New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1888-05-27
THE FORLORN FALKLANDS.
LIFE AT TIE OTHER END OF THE HEMIS-
Pierre

anu uays without a breeze. Ihey can save INC
trouble Of bringing their Clothing and
laying away fine and heavy wraps Here arc sea
breezes and plenty of them, for It is the exception
when wild gale Of wind Is not blowing These
sland- comprise about 5000 square miles, with coast
line continuously broken and having enough hne har-
bors to supply tho whole of the west coast OF south
America and then have plenty left over
One large bay is called the Bay Of Harbors Stanley
Harbor is aptly described In the South Atlantic Pilot
as "a natural DOCK 1t is about three miles long
and short half mile broad with heavy mud bottom,
in which any anchor will hold mud so heavy that
ships that have anchor down long IN one place
run great danger of breaking their capstans Wheh
getting under way. The harbor opens into FORT
William Sound. a body of water five miles long aha
one wide itself splendid anchorage, by d harro"
pass a cables length wide. The SOUND neeus no
buoys as its sides are buoyed with kelp and the
largest man-ofwar with safety anywhere
outside Of the kelp.
A vessel making the harbor first sees fine ight-
house Pembroke Point on the south side OF for'
william Sound and the stranger would naturally eA'
pect to see some marks OF habltaton as he comes up
the sound but none are visible, save beacon,
couple Of miles up. opposite the pass into staniey
Harbor. When the pass is entered nothing Is " 10
except perhaps few stray sheep on inc D~icii
hillsides. Not till vessel Is in the harDor ooes INC
little town Of two or three hundred inhabitants pe
come visible up the harbor. II, too has lost'
strayed appearance from the want of any outlying
farm houses or buildings OF any kind. There arc
cluster of thirty OF forty wooden buildings, Few COZ
tages or villas and some storehouses, ana out III '
stream lie half dozen square rugged ships, schoohers
pilot boats and smaller craft. An English gunpoat e9
tied up at wharf and another az anchor. HUNS
lie along the shore and arc piled with lunDer anu
coal while closer inspection OF the shipping SHOWS
many 10 be lame ducks" that have been crlppleu
in trying TO round the tempestuous Horn, winch sun
Keeps I'D its terrible reputation. One OF the laino
ducks is the Great Britain, an immense IRON snlp'
having 3OOO tons Of coal aboard reconiy
condemned and the cargo sold at auction to the a
land Islands Company. She was one OIL me oiu
orxutarios e., tho Australian trade She has had her
en- CINE taken out her upper mass are gone, and only
her lower ones remain with such yards as one Will
seldom or never see again-they are over loo "o'
long A more interesting object to the American %
the hulk Of the Snow Squal now lying on shore anu
used as a storehouse for lumber. She was the only
sailing vessel that away from the Alaoan"'
and clean pair of heels she showed the soutnerher
that dav The Alabama was sighted about IL O'CLOCK
in the morning carrying English coors, and on
closer view the Yankee captain did not Ike her iooAs
so he made sail and the Alabamas coal passers Pheu
their sboves I'm vain, for the fine lines OF le
let her 60 through the water so fast that oy
the Alabama was out Of sight. Under her Do"spr'
and colng down her cutwater was the green uiaeon'
her figure head, and that our captain reho'ou anu
will bring home to the land of the vessels BIRTH
There IS not tree Of any kind in sight and what
IS MORE there is not tree on all the ISLANDS incS
will not grow here 1t is said but the truth Is they
you'd do so II the bowling gales would give them
chance It is all the people can do to spike down
,bolr bouses and keep them from departing iOr inc
Cane Of Good Hope, or Cape Horn ha'i"s
managed TO keep them from blowing away
Imagine their disgust when the peat slipped down 'lo
hillside carrying houses and pigstyes along lAe ,oys
min "a
cbnrcb where the colonial chaplain prayed tor ali
.toso in authority with such fervor during Con-
cr,,ative Ministry The green hillside on which the
tovn stands is now dsfgured by long oiacA streaA
down its side, reaching nearly 10 inc sea- anu ~,
houses on and near the slip have enough peat cut anu
drying to last them for years.
An the country. save sheep ranch which mas
- 90 tts own Is called the "Camp," from the
Snanisb campo field, plain, and In this region IL
4. mostly bog The grass grows In heaVy tlliS sh"
tbe Islands are admirably adapted 10 sneep sI"N'e
Here sheep have enemies to cOhtehd against saw
man and the refrigerator steamships ihey inorc'So
s,cadIv and thrive apace, and several Enghshn'on
lave made large fortunes out OF them. 0Pl0
,. - are too: next to the veritable South
down. the finest in the "orlh' - T.. r., -
pnt the Camp is not good place for man OF
,i,ud 10 pass the night H. ~ Hu'"O
cbudren have strsyed away rom hone' No'0i
70 ne seen again. What could become Vi 'n0I - -
,,.rcfap
ho rock that IL seems impossible that they couiu "
'i' -, ,d and ont OF sight in a few hours
-, ~ ,ho whole town and the crews Of men OF war
-, ,.eis IN tho barbor are searching thoroughly
-, loot ~ ground that a child could possibly ha'e
travelled I'm the time elapsed. In inc n''io go
yard IN the hills de, the first tmhg Oh
80 , that a vessel passes coming in, are several
COMMISSIONERS with inscriptions declaring tn@' 81 "iD
50 an officer in Her Majestys serVloe' vi ~
| ~ nxChil lie
other service lost his way on the camp "IIe ,d
and uas tound dead the next morning IN al An1'
| Of weather fair and foul, strong men hS'o l~~
down to Sleep wearied with watkins anu ~"
ovahened sometimes their well filed hasKs "rre
untouched sonnet mes they empty; ther o"n'iS
were dead from exposure. theory sueges'eu' ou'
neither proved nor disproved, is that inc
become asphyxated by an eAhs@'ioH -
acid gas from the peat
The American Consul here is man OF sionS
Jewish type and accent who has married inc uAue"
,ar % tbe Local sapsare maker Our Government
gives him 81 500 annually to look after "ha' sup
wrecked American seamen may turn up mere anu INC
official wants more for, as he says, Doai -, 80
ton and l have to keep fire burning al Tue m
keep the archives warm One OF our Colsui ~
long time was the most famous lnh'o,' -.
the islands Captain Smiley, or Ola olii, 10y -.
known from the Plate TO Terra ded fuego me -
and adventures were most extraordinary, most eA
traordnary, by CAD sir' as one OF our eea. ,bo
hosts here expresses Il. We first heard Oh nun -
champion eater" An old storekeeper snu stores
had seen Captain Smiley sit in his store 'eliins arav
and eating peaches till, unaided, he hau So tooD
with a barrel The old evidently hau ~
eve 70 business He persuaded a number of persons
here to raise about So 600 and with IL ne
and loaded little brig for Patagonia inc nc, rpnra
put in some of the money, but most Vi NJ ~, br,
sened the savings Of small colonlSs WIN Ms hnnS
he sailed for Patagonia promising 10 piin n,-aI1an
thousands to each investor lie ran W. -. not
c..o,- No., ~, h,t, on n mud bank In quei spO''