The Opelousas courier., 1895-05-11
L OF ST. LANDRY, La, MAY IL, 1895.
The Island of Trinidad.

AT sea the sight of land is always
pleasant, even though it he but few
sand hills; but when it comes gradually
into view in the shape of beautiful little
mountains rising saucly upwards to
very abrupt peaks in one place and then
falling back gently and again rolling
more gracefully in another, as it seems
to bid you smiling we'""" it ia as
pecIaliy cheerful to gaze upon. This is
how the island of Trinidad looked as we
approached the lIarbor of Port of Spain
through the " Dragons Mouth on our
winter cruise in the West Indies.
1t belongs to England and, next after
Jamaica, is her most prosperous colony
IN the West Indies. Port-of-Spain is its
capital and largest city, claiming pop
ulation of 10000. 1t is electric lighted !;
has street cars and telephones, and is
connected by railroad and telegraph
with all the other towns of any impor-
tance on the island, and by cable with
the outside world; has large CONNER
clal relations with Europe ard the Unit
ed States-sugar, coffee, cocoa and fruits
being exported, and manufactured arti-
cles imported in return.
The population consists principally of
English and Spanish, though most of
the European nations and ihe United
characteristic of all are the East Indian
Coolies" These were originally East
Indians imported by the English to work
their large sugar plantations, and they
have preserved their native language,
dress and customs, which mark them
out as distinct people. With their
dark, copper color skins, their straight,
jet-black hair and their handsome,
clear-cut features, as you see them OF a
Saturday afternoon, swarming in the
city from all the surrounding country;
buying little kniekknacks and jewelry;
sitting and loungiDg on the grass in the
parks and in the streets-the men with
their all-white, three piece costumes,
consisting OF turbaD, waistcoat and loin-
girdle, and the women and children in
dresses of the gayest though well COM
bined colors, with all their bracelets,
earrings and nose riDgs-they form a
most striking picture, and you cannot
help stopping and admiring their grace
tul, lazy movemeDts-which are gener-
ally 10 more numerous than they can
possibly help.
While visiting one of the large sugar
plantations, we passed through one of
their villages. Their houses are much
smaller than an average Louisiana plan
tatiOn hands cabin; are built entirely
OF bamboo on as cool plan as possible,
and with thatched roofs. They are a
gentle, contented people and hardly
ever. STRIKE" though their wages, in
the best seasons, are only about fifty
cents per day.
As far as the production of sugar is
concerned, it is about the same as in
Louisiana. The sugar houses are very
modern and quite "np-to date" in all !
the latest Improvements in machinery,
centrifugal pans, electric lights, &c,
and the sugar made is of an excellent,
coarse-gran quality. The plantation
owners seem to thrive very we'll in their |
large, luxuriously furnished houses,
though they declare that between the
sugar bounty in Louisiana and the su-
gar trust in New York, they will finally
have to give up the sugar business and
commence raising coffee or cocoa.
Besides being famous for it's genial,
health giving climate, its fine botanical
tion of all kinds. crcket-clubs, and
many "ultra-cockney EDglishmen, it
has celebrated Pitch Lake +" which is
the wonder of the island and from which
ls taken ninety per cent of all the pitch
used in the asphalt payements of the
world.
Pitch Lake lies about twelve miles
from Port-of- Spain, at an elevation of
two hundred feet above the sea. It has
an area of about four square miles and
looks like what once might have been
an asphalt park, much overgrown with
palms, brush and small trees, and
greatly cut up by small rivulets that are
constantly changing their course. 1t
has small cable-car line running all
around it and back to central depot,
which in turn has kind of elevated
trolley cable system running out to the
end of an immense wharf, where there
are always number of vessels being
loaded with the pitch and carrying it to
all parts OF the world. 1t is large en-
and when we consider that it is
entirely owned by Americans-the plant
Dnly, for the lake itself belongs to the
Crown and is leased by the company for
4 number of years only-it bears out the
reputation which Americans have for
enterprise but do not let your local
pride be crushed when in one of these
inspired moods you commence telling a
Trinidadian about the beauty and
grandeur Of Niagara Falls, Yosemite
Valley, or the green prairies of fair
Opelousas, when he will smile serenely
md admit most generously 6 All, yes
very true, very true but you have no
Pitch Lake in the United States!"
FRITZ LOUIS SANDOZ.