Oxford Democrat. [volume] (Paris, Me.) 1833-1933, 1886-11-30
LAREDwELLERs.
A VILLAGE IN WHICH NO WOMAN Is AL
LOWED.

on the marshy borders Of lakes have
preferred to PLACE their dwellings in con.
vsnient position for their boats. and have
used pilss, driven into the edges Of the
lskes, for the foundations Of their dwell.
ings, which were at once houses and
wkarv,s. On the banks Of Lake Mara
cable, in Venezuela. are several OF these
Villages. and they ere 10 be found In OBJ
,cure places In AHA and on the ives,
coast Of Africa.
Taking the Shell Beach cars from
New Orleans and passing through fair
and fertile country. by the sneisn, battle
field where Jackson won bis Aurel'.
whose long line Of Qualifications repaired
by the Conf,dersis may ,iill be sen.
you reach in an hour the shores Of Lake
Bofgne. There Is fine new club house
here. owned by the hunting aud fishing
club. containing sleeping rooms enough
to accommodate half the club q, once.
From The observatory Of the club house
can be seen With . strong glass What
looks like . cluster OF low huis away 10
the distant curve Of the lake shoie
This /. the Malay villsge Of lake d~sll'
er.
There 10 . hotel. here. too. kept by an
old Spanish Creole and bis wife, shy.
slender brown girl. with bare feet and q
calico ,un.bonns, Of immsssurable depth
Of tunnel. and q dim obseuriiy down In
u depths In which her biz dark eyes
look ,of, and shsdO~y. They keep
pet alligator about the place. tied TO
stake. and Inclined 10 be extremely open
With strangers. Who pa, him on the bead
aud whistle 10 him. lie roll. one wicked
small eye. lifts hi. upper ia aud shuts
/, again with bang ,ha, Is unplsa'an'ly
emphatic. There is q solitary pelican.
too. with clipped wing. and an extremely
reserved disposition. whose bill the hotel
keeper. with an eye TO decoration and
exquisite lberiAn taste. has painted Wv
ID green A long pier runs Oh, from The
hotel hundred yards into the lake.
where . boa, may be hired 10 10 any
where. even TO the Malay village. though
the little French tos,nsn warns you
they. the Mslsys. are not .oeisbls. and
s,e lAmsnisbly careless in the u'e Of the
knife.
The village j. an hour. sail across the
curve Of the lake. snd there. In the brown.
cory mash. away from any human hsb-
i,a,ion, With only the Hat. dim horiron
10 sight. il ,hi. primsy.l phase Of eivilir.
alton. A sleepy. erswlipg bayou runs
through the village. aud the water marks
on the pile. tell how high the tide rise.
81 certain seasons. 90 that they ate sur
routded entirely by water in the 'Pring
Just row q little graz. prieks through
the 'limy earth. leprous with salt rs'idu.
um from the tides. and svarms Of fierce.
bloodthiriy mosquitoes rise 10 clouds a.
feet wading through the mad disturb
them.
There are ,ish, house. here. built up
on pile. ten fee, high. and made Of hewn
iimber' roughly pa, together and admit
ting the air and the light everywhere
through the ere,ice.. There are oblons
square. divided into three rooms. with
bs,,sn shutter, hung on leather hinges.
and no door TO any doorway. siesp, the
one iha, leads TO the rude. unroofsd gal
leiy. The houses are mostly about ,hir-
~ feet long by eighteen vide. and some
,ix or sish, men occupy each ote. AZ
mosi all Of the men. are away fishing At
the moment. but an ancient weather.
beaten party grse,s u, eivilly enough IN
q sort Of bastard Spanish. Difficult, TO un-
dsn,and. His face /. the color Of old
leather. and seemed a. II cut with knife.
There are two or three lounging about
~i,h pipes in their mouth, more OF lees
free ,fansla,ions Of the frs, ancient mar
insr. but no, . woman TO be ,een. |, 10
strictly masculine community. No NO.
man IL allowed within ,s borders
The men supper, themselves BY hunt.
ing and fishing. and live ir q primitive
fashion. ruled over by a sort Of patriarch.
Who settles disputes and governs the
community In all importsn, matters.
The sole amusement 10 gambling with
an original sort OF card. Of which there
are only ,~sn,y.sevsn in the pack, all Of
them quite unlike the cards in general
use. This. with game something like
the "old horse" Of children, fotms the
occupation Of ell their idle hours. They
have no religion apparently, and II crime
Is committed among them who knows ?
The waters Of the bayou would tell no
tales, and blood nigh, cry aloud from
those vast, lonely marshes and no ear
listen closer than the low blue skies.
They have but little furniture. The
only touch Of high al, !. displayed In the
dull brown blanket suspended before the
inner door. They sleep on boards sup
ported on urs,les. with no bed-elo,hes
other than a blanket. and, above ell. no
mosquito netting. There are grsa, heavy
tables Of hewn timber. where they ca, their
meals and play their games. A few pots
and kettles and huge ear,hern j'r,-
where their water remains cool and fresh.
complete tie lis, Of their possession.
Twenty yssp ego or more lev Ma
lay and Lasesr esmen deserted from
their ships =, the New Orleans lsyee.
drilled out keie. and found the desolaie
mash TO their taste. They have gradu-
ally accumulated more A'is,ie' from
time 10 time. until they number now
some thing like fifty men, Who live this
single amphibious life with perfect con.
tsnimtnt, dwelling almost all OF the time
upon the water and crawling out upon
the slimy banks to esi and sleep; drop
ping into unknown graves. and As obliv'
ious to ell the outer world a. II in an.
other place.