Macon beacon. [volume] (Macon, Miss.) 1859-1995, 1895-11-30
A Short sojourn in Mobile
Interesting Incidents on the Way

MORrIE. Ala, Nov. 18Th, 81,
DEAR BRACoN Doctor informs me thai
YOU will extent some Of that old time cour
tssv in publishing 9 few incidents which
ale always attendan, upon even a very
short visit from home. c0en think. ifouT
powers OF observation and consideration
eouallcd the number Of sights and incl
dents, what Il great big book every little
trip would furnish il written ont, Every
person we meet has an nuNritten history.
some a history OF love and beauty, some =
history Of sadness snd despair, some going
up the bill Of life TO meet success. some
going down hill TO meet misfortune. II Is
imtcrcstin. to meet people ami study faces
and on the train with an ever shifting and
changing crowd. is d good place Tor this d.
version. We left Macon on the night OF the
la,h, We lett most of our cares and troub-
les behind the three little Clements. What
u pleasure 1t will be TO return and pick up
those little troubles again, What would
lite be without children: "Of such is the
Kingdom Of heaven"
We had not been on the train very long
before We We're attracted by a company of
travellers going to southwest Alabama, peo-
pie of WHOM we had no clue or knowledge,
We soon learned that they were from the
north. There were two old danes. evident
" so used TO busting about at home that
they continued to hustle about on the train,
and every thing about them demonstrated
that prim neatncss for which our northern
and western sisters are so noted. There
were two men also with the company, tall
aud angular, who would remind even the
most uuimasinative of cows, hogs. horses,
hay corn, gram of all binds and little odd
jobs about the homes Of those same two
busting laticS; IN fact. they were to my
mind two Of Will Cartons ~fsyorite char
ae;ers. And then. oh then. there was =
Young oma who had children, | really
don't Know last how many. though ranging
from fifteen down-not up-in years. This
woman Interested Inc from the time | saw
her. tecausc she had \ little baby just six
months old, She was not beautiful but had
. good, kind. inot,en,iyc face, lovely COM.
pieXiou and curled bangs. Now, you know,
Mr.. Editor, Il little six months old baby. Il
/ pretty complexion and bangs are three
! things which outwardly seem to make up Il
/ clever woman. Anyway She was the cen
ter OF attraction for me and | set to work to
V,.t.I, hur nu.l liar .,nurl S4o l,l thn
poor little chalky faced baby caldwell,
badly. No soft. warm i%lanncls, no dainty,
/ lace edged trocks. but in coloreG, cotton
checks from start to IiMi.,. Tho baby cried
and continued to cry. It would not sleep.
| went over TO oller my service ii ut eded.
aud here is the tale of woe | heard - the
baby has been on the train day anil night
now since sunday. She's had no milk for
twelve hours and | an feeding her on ice.
water and yellow cake. but it doesn't seem
to satiate nor Appetite This poor little
troubled woman wondered why the baby
was not satisfied. 1t reminded me of-''I
asked them for food and they gave me a
stonc.' a small bottlg of brandy was all
the phvsic | had III my travelling bag. |
broke blindIy through the prohibition law
and must say | took pleasure IN making one
little baby drunk. not because ! am partial
30 drunken babies or drunken anything
else. hut humanity told me it vas best to
warm that poor little empty cold stomach
even with plrho .ol in the shape of Il toddy.
The little thing went To sleep and rested
we'll all the way to Mobile, The lesson ba-
bieS are murdered every day because OF ig.
nor=ncc. At the first peep of dawn those
same two busting ladies from Dakotali bu-
sled themselves in laying out the breakfast
! from their ample aud previously well pa
| trorized lunch bias cts. Now, what do you
suppose they had: Cucumber pickle and
pie. Ofcoursc, there were other things
but these seemed 20 predominant AMI were
evidently the leading leliracies. | couldn't
help but wonder Just what kind Of CASTRO
Monies they possessed and what would be
the result 0: .ulh diet in this climate. |
could but console myself with the old say
ing. "tlis is the land of the free and the
home of :hc brave" We arrived in Mo-
I bile about $50 n. N. anl visions of broiled
trout AMI royal steak lee! Us first TO the spa
rious dinin. hall of Simon KIosky. After
we had brrakfastcd we went out sight see
Ing. forgetting the old proverb. cuisines
before pleasure" First, we went TO the
wharf, as We were told a fruit Vessel was
expected, and to see one unloadcd is Il sight
which attracts even tho old Mobilian. 1t
was Il large old weathor-bcaten craft, The
Condor, IRON South and Central America.
Its cargo was wholly fruit and principally
bananas and oranges. For the benefit of
the children | will cry to describe the I'M
loading. The ship was drawn up along.
side the wharf and fastened securely with
large chains and ropes. Then the gang
planks, three in number and reaching from
the ship to the wharf, We're thrown out and
for eight or ten hours about one hundred
negroes tr0tted TO and fro, bearing on their
backs punches of bananas and baskets OF
oranges. Some estimated there were not
les, than 10000 lunches, besides the Oran'
res. 4 white man stands at each gang
plank with 4 stick in his hand, and AS the
negroes 30 out with the bananas they are
classified into four grades. The best "whitt
abouts," second r~edahouts," third ware
house," fourth " wharf, The first grade
goes lar north and west the second to Til,
larger cities near by the third to the town'
along the N. n 0. RR. aud branches: thu
fourth are sold mainly In the city and oil
the wharf. The difference in grades sim
ply recognizes the size of bunch and ripe
ness Of the fruit. IA | stood and watchc,
the blacks unload | thought how very IN
tercsting it would have been to have sec'
the loading by those dusky natives, who
we were told, were chiefly employed for th'
purpose in the land OF the banana. | wisl
all my little friends IN Macon could hay
been with me to witness this unloading o
the fruit vessel.
We noticed not far of a group et beauti
full white steamboats,. We went down t
look at these and among the pumber we say
IL. "Tally," M old yet pretty steamboat
which fol years has piled the Tombigbe
o~J mn ,,hi,b "a "a .hiIl of snvau nninvp