The Republican journal., 1899-01-19
Around Home Ports and Away for
Uruguay.
Correspondence of The journal. I

n AShNbO, NV 1000. 1AibCt ioiy
spending half year at anchor under the
lee of a home treside, and elsewhere along
shore, it is good to again smell pure sea
air, off soundings, and to feel on ones
weather cheek a few wet drops of salt sea
spray. Here the wicked cease from troub-
ling and the paying of ship bills finds
rest. On the open sea, all his own, there
is room to swing around, and time for one
to forget how uncivil he may have been
while ashore, and time to regret any lack
of kindness or acts of impoliteness that
others may have shown towards him.
If it be not entirely too humble to be
comfortable, there is no place like home,
all right, but for one who has been SO
reared, the next best place is along the
exchanging ways-the trackless paths
of the sea- | have heard and known of
good and able men retiring from such a
life, swapping off their savings for some
little business knowledge, and then going
to sea again for living. l would as soon
think of retiring from life as of entirely
giving up the sea while believed | was
yet useful and still able to keep foothold
on comfortable deck. And no one need
to peer YEARLY into any very tiresome and
dim future to see himself beyond all such
conditions.
This voyage commenced in Boston, where
We took on board -, 900 cases of petrole-
am 90 gallons each) and a quantity of
turpentne and cylinder oils. This was
heavy start: case oil is hard cargo, be-
sides the tin aggravates the compasses
nearly as much as steel rails, and more
unegeniy, causing an uncertain quantity of
error On every course. We towed from
Boston to Portland for balance of cargo.
That was Just before those scare crow
mines were removed from our harhors,
hence we had to leave Boston before night
and not enter Portland before sunrise.
That was ~ Inconvenience, however; we
goweH along easily and pleasantly, with no
crew excepting HE usual afterguards and
four passengers. Three of the latter stay
ed bg ia port and had charge Of the vessel
When / see on hear Of a man being strict
aud sucGc~sful disciplinarau ! always
wonder Il he ever attempted to govern
two srowu-uy girls backed by an indul-
gem and co}spiling mother. Portland
w!s against met is now fast place in
summer churches, races, parks. Cape
cottages and stand theatres; one hardly
has lime tp change his dress between re-
turning from Il Saturday nights revel and
starting out fUr early Mass, or some other
proper Sunday morning devotions. Some
thing less than thirty years ago / was in
that same city, full Of youthful energy
and desire for adventure or amusement,
and the only recreation whatever that |
could find was riding a velocipede around
and around large hail. No women there;
none but men stradded those ancestors of
the present bicycle. Things have changed,
aud one OF years and staid feeling might
now wish that his life could have been re-
versed; that, contrary to nature. his spirit
could have lived back wards; that in his
early years, when more puritancal Gus
toms prevailed, his soul had been less
buoyant and his tires more slack, and that
tie animal, gay and cycling, could rule
him now when the chances are SO much
greater for Indulgence.
Together with the designations of the
present day and voyage we took in at
Portland, for balance OF cargo, plows,
carts and hardware, rope, canvas and oak
nm, oak, ash and hickory lumber, with
thousands Of spruce box shocks, made for
casing up the Liebig Extract of Beet,
which is extensively made in Uruguay
When the matches We're on the vessel " as
pretty deeply loaded, and then 1870, 900
feet Of lumber was taken on deck hence
when ready for sea she was numerically
loaded-too deep for comfort OF speed ;
but the freight was good and that may al
ways buoy up most any depth of trouble.
Ishad engaged the voyage before it was
learned that the Spanish navy was to be
only plaything for our ships, and when
owners were not very cheapy Offering
their vessels to be sent out where they
might meet the enemy. Long before we
sailed, however, Cevera's fleet had been
des troyed and peace was being asked for.
When ready for sea there had been very
fhick Jog for two weeks all along and off
the New England coast, causing many
collisions and tragedies The weather
did not clear off, but the fog just dried
up little in Portland harbor so that we
could see our way ont, while our best girl
watched us away from Munjoy's Hill, and
j was somewhat worried about reaching
safely beyond the fog line.
think | have mentioned in The Jour
nal before, what everybody knows, that
what we most worry about never occurs
We had never a eapful of fog or any other
thick weather, but with gentle, leading
winds and smooth sea reached out by
Cape Sable and away into deeper wa
ter where fOgs are never known.
We soon struck the Gulf Stream and
slanted along, diagonally, across it, on the