The Roanoke times. [volume] (Roanoke, Va.) 1890-1895, 1893-09-07

er was evidently genuine native Bahia
man. He was lank and cadaverous.
Blue eyes and yellow mustache pro-
claimed English blood was in his veins.
and general bleached out appearance
indicated fruit and an occasional fish
was not diet to be longed for. His
speech was very broken, though what
variety of brogue he employed is yet a
mystery. After asking So he was final.
ly eager to pilot us for So. 1t is the
fashion among these aborigines to de-
mand double the price they expect. In
SO much are they civilized. Aided by
fading zephyr and the enormous palmet-
to worn by our guide, our vessel glided
past reef and curling froth to u safe
anchorage. The tropical twilightis short,
but ere the stars had polished their faces
jibtopsail, flying j1b and jib had come
down. topsails, foresail and mainsail
were furled, and the anchor chain had
ratified through the hawse hole.
A typical tropic isle showed itself i'm
mediately on the vessels quarter. A
narrow strip of land it was, with a
foundation of coral; the bushes thicklv
clustered and the trees in clumps stood
green against the blue sky. On each
end the surf was heaped like snow, and
roar was borne to our ears. The green
water rolled in surges upon IL beach of
the whitest. finest. softest sand. This
stretch of beach terminated ut each end
OF the bay III sharp horn, where the
waves leaped up and fell helplessly back.
The glistening rim of sand was lining
to IL dark green band of vegetation
crowding closely upon it. In the back
ground row of cocoa palms marked
sharp against the sky, and MANILA
plants pressed the feet of them.
Such was tho first Bahama isle we
gazed upon. Nor was tho land alone
wondrous to us. To use an ominous
silnilc the Emily seemed suspended, like
Mohammed's coffin, i'll the air. Through
the 20 feet of ocean under us we could
make out every detail on the white sand
of the bottom. We could view the star
fish. corals and huge sponges and see the
great sea fans casting shadows from the
sun. The sea was pellucid and tremu-
lous as jelly.
Where the schooner lay the water was
the llmpid tint OF the interior of lem
on lntersecting this was strip of
grass green. and closely following in a
bewildering succession came emerald
robins egg and olive-all these colors
ard every tint of green possible thrown
lavlshly and recklessly together in an
always sharp contrast till the eye was
drunk with the display. Above all these
scenes of land and sea are the blazing
tropic sun and the transparent atmos-
phcro kissing the cheek rs softly as a
mothers caress.
OFF to the westward from the Emily
was a coral reef. and though Astounding
III curiosities it was the most aboni-
nablc place conceivable. Dante's In
ferno" can furnish hardly fitting
parallel. The surface of the moon as
pictured in ASTRONOMERS must resemble
the place-a back of gray coral barely
protruding above the waves. Every inch
of surface is jagged and scariiied rs
lava. and so hard and sharp arc the
countless projecting points that the
stoutest boot is cut to shreds Not Il
particle of softness is to be found, not Il
variation III the dingy, cold grayncss.
and overhead innumcrable gulls and
tern soar and scream.
The inhabitants of this desolato spot
are hideous rock crabs. AS the boat an
preached they scrambled in hundreds
down the rough banks into the sea, and
their Gathering was almost an uproar.
Repulsive creatures are they, large and
sprawling, like spiders, notified and with
protruding eyes and menacing claws.
They move with exceeding swiftness and
gave us shock as they tumbcd out of
every Granny our fingers or feet entered.
If the animal world has its imps and
COLLINS. these dreadful crustaceaps oc
cupy that sphere.
The name Of this reef is Little Egg is
land. Its sister. Egg island, where is the
beach before described, is about half Il
mile to the northward. High on an ele-
vation sheer above the vegetation, shine
the white walls of lighthouse and the
keepers dwelling. The keeper and his
ron are the only persons living on the
isle. He is an Englishman, of course.
lie has been here two years-ever since
the light was placed. 1t is n lonely life,
and he says lie is sick of it. One of the
two people must be constantly at the
lighthouse, and the other at intervals
must so to a neighboring island for food
and necessary articles.
Being of Johnny Bull instincts, Mr..
Pinder has very confused idea of the
United States. He said he had BROTH
er-in-law there. His name was Smith,
and we probably knew him. We did
Mr.. Pinder also had the notion we had
como down to annex the Bahamas.
i...1 ,,l. Il