St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1891-08-20


and Baroness Van Swift. The scene
was very picturesque. The Baron
ess had very unpleasant experience.
She is not accustomed to riding,
having ridden but a very few times.
We rode up the beach for a mile or so
and when we turned round, the chief
justice and a lieutenant of the Ger
man war ship started into a race.
The Baroness horse became excited
too and started into a run. | sup
posed she was joining in the race
and as my horse was not so fast as
hers, | urged my horse to its utmost
speed to try and keep up with her,
which of course excited her horse
still more So on she flew down the
beach, her hat streaming behind, she
in mortal terror, clinging to the
saddle, jouncing up and down in a
most uncomfortable manner through
a great crowd of natives, hooting
and yelling at her appearance. Her
husbands horse could not keep
within a long distance of her. AS
soon as she recovered from her fright
and stopped her horse, she became
very anxious about her husband,
who had not yet come in sight, so
we rode back after him and found
him far behind, belaboring his horse
in the vain effort to extract a rea-
sonable speed from it. The Baroness
is young, only 10 think, and mar
ried only last winter, and she and
her husband are very devoted to each
other At II o'clock | went to Mrs.
Hamiltons veritable Samoan lunch
The food in great quantities, was
spread upon large banana leaves,
back of which the guests sat cross
legged upon long strips Of palm
leaf mating. There was whole
large hog roasted in a Samoan oven
brown and crisp all over. There
were also many small pigs roasted
and standing around with legs, ears,
snout and all. Then there were cells,
fish, large and small, wrapped singly
in cocoanut leaves and baked and
sewed in the wrappings, taro boiled
and baked, bread fruit, chickens,
bananas of many varieties and sizes
from tiny Chinese ones up to those
as large as big ripe cucumber, and
many other kinds of native food.
Fingers and not forks nor plates, ex-
cept banana leaves, are the proper
implements for eating, but out of
respect to my prejudices a plate and
knife and fork were provided for the
Europeans but not for natives. For
drink we each had an opened young
cocoanut, full of its natural water,
set in front of US. AS many as $50
persons 1 should judge partook of
Mrs. Hamilton'S lunch and then the
remains of the feast were divided and
carried away by the guests. The
hog is roasted thus: An oval
shaped hole is prepared in the ground
paved with round stones, then filled
with dry cocoanut husks and shells,
on top of which are placed more
round stones. Then the shells and
husks are set on fire, which produces
a great heat and makes the stones
above and below red hot. Then part
of the stones above are put inside
the hog, his outsides are wrapped in
banana leaves and he is placed in the
hole on the hot stones at the bottom
and all is covered, first with other
hot stones and then with wet palms
and banana leaves, and he is left to
his glory in that warm nest. When
he comes out he is ready for the
Samoan stomach.
At halfpast1 o'clock we rodealong
a mile or two farther and came out
into a little headland overlooking
the sea. Here we sat upon mats
which the Samoans brought for us
from a neighboring house, and rested
while the natives prepared fine
oranges for US. Meanwhile Mr..
Sewal's two Cinnamon, with great
hampers of provisions, plates, glasses
etc. were brought over in the boat
and fine lunch was served in elegant
style. A picnic out in the woods on
the 4th was so familiar a thing to
me thatit seemed very fitting, though
we had palm and orange trees over
our heads and the ocean at our feet,
instead of the maple and beach and
elm and the beautiful fresh green
valleys and streams of Vermont.
When l returned to the general
pleasure ground at 4 p. m. the liquor
sellers had done their work and the
4th was being celebrated by speeches
more ardent and earnest than it is
customary to hear on Main street,
St. Johnsbury. l left very soon.
The evening was quiet, and so ended
the great and glorious fourth in
Samoa.