San Marcos free press. [volume] (San Marcos, Tex.) 1877-1892, 1885-08-20
CHAUTAUQUA LECTURE.
rctnre ON Jamaica and It's Peopl,

Wednesday night was entertaining and
large audience was assembled TO hear Il
egiys below brief extract from his re
marks
Jamaica Ia dead expense on John Bull
hands, but he was willing 10 pay for thu
privilege Of boasting that tho sun- -neyel
set ON his dominions.
"The island s mountainous with th,
highest elevation ia the western end. Tn,
scenery Is equal 70 any In the world; the
mountains are covered with yenduro TO IN,
summit beautiful flowers, waving palms
feathery palmettoes, and bananas witt
other vegetation Of the tropics, present .
SCENE Impossible 10 conceive unless 'tis
seen. ta
.sThe chief town Kingston, on Kingston har.
Dor is one of the. six finest In the world; til
on the southern coast, nineteen or twenty
miles from the eastern end of the island;
Kingston il q mile or two west of the Port
Royal, Kingston has about 400, 900 inhhbi.
tants, l6, 900 pure Africans, 10000 colored
mulattoes, the remainder are Cninamen,
Coolies and other nationalities. Kingston
IL a very pleasant place 10 live its history
dates from the destruction Of old Port Il ,yal
by the earthquake OF 1862. From the dis
covery OF Jamaica Port Royal was the haunt
of the buccaneers; so at the time OF its de-
hstruction il was another Sodom. OF 5000
houses only 400 were uninjnred. OF the
history of Jamaica few things eau be said.
From its discovery by Columbus,in 1i94 till
1866. when it was captured by the English,
it was held by Spain. Aside from internal
wranglngs and quarrels with the mother
land, it has history of disasters from cy-
clones, earthquakes instructions and con.
flngrations.
'The island has GOO, 900 inhabitants; 50D,-
600 blacks, nearly 100000 colored and
| 10, 600 or Is, 900 whites, Cinnamon and In
dians--Coolies from India. The different
nationalities preserve their peculiarities to
large extent: you know the Chinaman,
the Cody, the Columbian, from Panama
by their dress. The natives dress according
to the European style. only about two years
behind the time; what they are wearing
now you wore two years ago. The peas
antry have peculiar way of dressing, only
seen in Jamaica.
1.-The women of the country do all the
marketing the chief towns fifteen or twen-
ty miles apart are the only markets, and
they are continually on the road. except
when working at their crops. They believe
in using good deal of calico. ''I'he
dress of the Jamaica woman, necessi-
tates two belts, the first around the waist
the temporary belt is worn about six inches
below the waist; when they go to market
there are about two on three yards OF dress,
belted up between the two belts, the dress
l., about two or three feet off of the ground,
and you can im,gine their Appearance rs
they go to market leading on diminutive
donkey. Sometimes the road rs far as
you can see, will be strung With wonon-lei
donkeys.
The Coolies dress in 'cool" fashion. the
young ones soon adopt the European Dress
but the ''old fogies" dress in the old style.
They take belt of calico (domestic) and
bandage themselves-he begins at his head,
wrapping the body, and left limb, leaving
the right limb bare. This fashion of dress
would indicate why they are called Coolies.
"There are good many things that
strikes an American there and makes him
feel that he is away from home
"Their laws are stringent Especially
in regard to taxation: you must pay eleven
shillings, or $2.75 for keeping a horse; if
you keep a dog-cart or gig, you must pay
1915 for every wheel annually ly--conse-
quently the people don't use wagons, they
use carts altogether. You are not allowed
to keep firearms, and you never see man
with pistol. You are taxed for keeping a
gun or pistol in your house.
II mention these things to show how the
people are taxed, and how John Bull il
making slaves of the people he claims to
have freed.
"Three things you must report to head
quarters before their occurrence. or immc-
diately thereafter; deaths, marriages and
births, they look after these things with an
eagle-eye.
'aThe people don't live in very fine houses,
that is the peasantry, they often have but
one room. The. houses are bnilt of poles
and bamboo waiting, smeared with
mud inside and outside; the rooms are
about ten feet square, and there are no beds.
"The better class of people live in houses
built in what is called the Spanish American
style, resembling the better class Of Mexi-
IAN architecture.
'grhe chief educational resource of ia
naica has been the educational Mica fun1.
This fund originated in 1850, and consisted
If $40, 900, which, with interest amounted
% 5000, 900 at the date OF emancipation in
1884, and the interest on this sum was by
parliament applied to the education OF the
people of Jamaica. Schools were organ
zed, but the people soon lost interest, aud
.fter forty years they had only 2G0 rudi-
nentary schools Schools in Jamaica are
low conducted on the denominational prin-
iple; the manager of the school can have
lis peculiar views inculcated. These
chools, by complying with the rules and
equations of the government, receive
rants Of $3.50 10 $500 year. The pres &;
mt outlook for education is encouraging !.
Then we consider the deplorable. condition
4 that people fifty years ago.
"The speaker mentioned the bright reli- ]
ious outlook of the people of Jamaica, and {
its importance as key t. the diffusion
Professionalism through South America.
In conclusion, the reverend gentleman
lAde an eloquent appeal in behalf Of the
iucaaonh and religious interests Of the
lack race; stating that the Hebrews, Gods !
hoseu people, were as low IS the negro had
YER been. when God brought them ont OF !,
.rvitud. AMI rebaksd the Gentle nations
ifh them; and that be believed that God
ns going to take hold Of this black. down
'oddsu race. and in similar manner re-
uke rs for the way We have trsafed him
On motion. Mr. DnI3oss. The audience ac-
fheir apprssisfion q TIE lecture
, a rising vote q fh.nks
The money aspects Of the prohibi- !
on question are Dov urged as a rea-
On for continuing the liquor traffic = !