The Anaconda standard. [volume] (Anaconda, Mont.) 1889-1970, 1890-05-11
IN PARKWAY AFRICA
Notes Of q Traveller on tho Trip to the
Distant TranSYaal.
Notes OF an Anaconda Oentleman's
Experience on the Voyage
from England to Africa's
Shores.
Special Correspondence OF the Standard.

IRfioniSs lE0nSNunl, SOutu africa,
March 1s, ls90.-My first letter will deal
with my journey TO Kimberley the second
with Kimberley itself, and the third with
Johannesburg, SO prepare yourself for an
invasion at irregular intervals. OF the
journey across the continent and the
Northern part Of the Atlantic. nothing in
teresting can be said. SO l will
my description with the departure from
South Hampton. We, my broker ard
myself, arrived early on the docks at
South Hampton, i'm order TO assure our
selves that all our luggage, we only had
ID pieces W us, vent OH board, and
that what we wanted i'm our cabins did
not go into the hold and vice versa. Our
exertions were rewarded with complete
success and il was with a sigh of intense
satisfaction that l saw the last piece
hoistcd on board, and had time to look
over the o that was to be our dwelling
place for the next eighteen or twenty
days. The first thing that impressed my
eyes on seeing the steamer was its
open a~irness, so TO speak, and the high
state OF varnish of all the wood work, so
different from the close, compact painted
appearance of the Atlantic lines. I had
bitter reason to regret the closeness of the
Northern steamers, for starting at 3o'clock
I'm the afternoon we steamed slowly out of
the harbor along the north side of the Isle
of Wight, past Castle Osborne, which
Haunted the imperial flag until we reached
The Needles, where we dropped our pilot
aud teamed out into the Bay of Biscay,
and it was SO cold, oh, so cold. No means
of heating the cabins were provided and
the wind blew colder and colder, adding
with each blast to my qualmishness.
However, / managed to get into my.
berth where covered up with
blankets and rugs. l courted sleep to
drive off sea sickness. The kind god
listened to my appeals and I was able to
get through the night splendidly and even
went SO far MS the breakfast table. But
here | found that | had leant on a reed.
Neptune demanded his dues. and he was
such a persistent dun that l could not put
him Off, and so like a little man ! up and
paid him. Cold and colder grew the wind
and more and more uncomfortable grew
/. First this side OF the smokestack, tben
that was tried in order to see III some
where there was not enough warmth To
chase the miserable feelings out of my
bones, but no use; so rolling myself up i'm
my rug / stretched myself out in my chair
and vowed myself to misery. Lunch bell
rang, but | paid il no attention. I was
woe begone and oh, so cold. However. i'm
the afternoon the sun shone, the cold
ceased and "A vigorous tramping of the
deck infused into me enough courage to
find out how il wasf aring with my brother,
who had retired to his berth. He was get
ting on moderately well for a sea sick
man in the middle of the Bay of
Biscay. I had to rush on deck To get a
supply of fresh air before trying dinner,
and even thus fortified dessert had no at
TI,a. ..-l.
the deck saloon thinking that my brother
in his state needed all the cabin TO him
self. The next day was almost a repeti.
ton of the first, but the third dawped
bright and sunshiny and found us along
the coasts of Portugal. Early in the fore
noon we cast anchor in the Tagus oppo-
site the city of Lisbon, which from the
steamer presented a gala appearance as
il was just the day after the arrival of the
emperor of Brazil.
Lisbon is situated between the river and
a range of hills which il seems to have
tried to run up but sat down when only
half way. The contrast between its in
tcnsely white houses with their black
roofs and the green of the hillside pro-
duced n most peculiar effect on you.
somehow you g felt like saying;
the falling infection indicative
OF disappointment. Ii is always so how
ever, the greatest of anything never as
tonishes you as you think IL will, and Lis
bon experienced the greatest earthquake
i'm the world, the ravages of which are still
pointed out to the traveller.
As we would have to wait several hours
for mail, most of the passengers decided
to go ashore, amongst them my brother
and myself. A little boat propelled by
four oarsmen, two on a seat, slowly took
MS through the shipping to the custom
house stairs which were easily assembled,
and we passed without further for
mality through the custom house into a
babel of to~ngues."Talk Eglish very we'll"
re- "How &c gentleman take
me as guide | speak ilrst,l show ze gentle
men nc pantheon" and what n din they
did make. Finally picking out one
who made a little less noise than
the rest and did not insist quite
So strongly on the attractions OF
tho pantheon, we asked him how much
he would chargc."A thousand rcis." Now,
none of us knew how much a refs was,
whether il was the hundredth Part of a
cent, or ten cents was uncertain, ana we,
none of us had any Portuguese money. so
we looked rather blank Mt our guide who
fastened To add, dat ISIS four aud SIX
about u dollar ten cents. Luis was en-
gagged on the spot and four of us getting
into a passing cHrriage our guide climb
ing on the box, we proceeded to take i'm
Lisbon. We drove through the square
three sides Of which are formed by the
government office. the fourth by the river.
Tho effect of the square was good; the
buildings were rather barrack like hut
substantial looking and the center of the
square was occupied by a column SUR
mounted by n really fine equestrian
statute of one of the numerous Don
Pedros who have sat on P~ortugafs
throne. We drove up Gold street past
the theater which really hasa flint facade,
but the white color of all the buildings is
trying To ones eyes n unless perfectly
clean is not very pretty. We next visited
the market. which presented a bright ami