The Republican journal., 1896-06-04

a clean, wear taking, narrow, curved
strip of smooth brass over the rounded
edge of each stair. Nothing in the place
could look heater, be more conducive to
good masculine language or more ably up
hold feminine grace and serenity. Be-
sides offering these aids to morality, the
rubber lends an easy spring to the tread
when going up stairs and the ofttime duty
of getting on deck becomes pleasure.
The next thing was to e-gild the trail
boards and billet head. No more lone
some situation or undignifed position can
be found at sea than working alone on
must be done, for there is nothing that
more quickly and surely adds years and
lack of value to a vessel S appearance than
by allowing the carved work to become
rusty and uncared for.
And SO with cabinet making, tinkering,
painting, gliding and vanishing there is
always work for handy hand to do,
while the vessel runs herself and the
trade winds push her along; hence the
time need never drag except in soul
torturing Gains.
Running down the northeast trades of
the Atlantic is about as mild sailing as
can be found The force of the trades is
nowhere SO even as may be read of; they
offer anywhere from drift of three or
four knots up to as much as one can
swing all sail to. On the eastern side
they are the most even and generally dry,
but as you gather over towards the Wind
ward Islands there are sometimes spells
Of Gains and other changes, with heavy
rain squalls following one after another
for several days at time, while the tenn
perature has become higher and more OPP
pressive Almost every one knows that the
northeast coast of North America is very
much colder than the same ATTITUDES in
western Europe, but all may not know
that farther south the conditions are
slightly reversed. There is polar cur
rent of moderate force running south
ward off the African coast, carrying a
temperature in the air above it of some
ten degrees lower than will be found in
similar ATTITUDES on the western side Of
the ocean. 1t also produces the
phenomena of cooler weather on the
coasts, from Senegal down into the Gulf
of Guinea, in the summer than they have
in the winter although it is all in north
latitude. In summer the rainy southwest
monsoons blow in off the polar current,
cooling the coasts, while in winter the
wind off the land brings the dry and burn
ing heat from the Desert to the coast
lands. The sickly season is the former,
the cooler time of summer, when the sky
is overcast and the atmosphere excess. We
ly humid.
In last writing plaintive mention was
made regarding the scarcity of sails now
met at sea- On this track there was al
ways rather less than elsewhere and this
time their absence was most remarkable.
When two days out an outward bound
British ship crossed our path and nothing
else atloat was seen for a run of more than
2, 400 miles, when, west of the 61st merid-
ian we saw small schooner, probably
bound to the Guianas.
In the days of cotton ships, and when
there was also large trade in English
Goals to the West Indies, there was at all
times struggling string of vessels on this
track which a fast one would be OCCASION
ally overtaking, while a dull one allowed
many to come up from asteln Besides
there were deep water ships and other YES
sells, crossing different parts of the path,
to OF from the equator, in trade with
either the United States or Europe; of
these there are still many, though not
happening to be much in evidence Just at
this time
After making good time to within a
day $ sail of our objective point the winds
gave out and three or four days of life
were completely lost in maddening calms
and lusty showers.
Arrived on May 3d. after the not long
time of "A days at sea RICHARDSON
Turk S Island, May 4, '96