The Prince George's enquirer and southern Maryland advertiser. (Upper Marlborough, Md.) 1882-1925, 1900-11-16

| w.
too serious to admit of his removal,
and not few of the best non-commis.
stoned officers and privatcs belonging
to the light brigade. need not add,
that a reunion of friends, under such
circumstances. was productive of the
highest cxultation on ALI sides; whilst
the reflection, that two officers of OK
percnce had returned to their stations,
! gave universal satisfaction, on higher
grounds than those Of mere personal
attachment.
From the date last referred to up to
the evening of the l4th, the fleet either
continued at anchor, or beat about the
Bay as if the Admiral were in eXpec-
tation of dispatches from home, or had
not yet made up his own mind rs to
the course which it bchOovcd him to
, follow. AZ last. however. though not
before we soldiers had begun to give
uttcrancc to many and sore complaints,
a signal to steer in S. S. E. direction
was displayed. All the transports,
most of the line-ofbattle ships, tie
bombs brigs, and small craft, instantly
obeved; and as the wind blew fine and
fresh, we bounded over the water like
eagles through the skies. Capes
Charles and Henry both hove in sight
before dusk. We rushed through be-
tween them, and the rising moon found
us once again at sea in the Atlantic
| Ocean.
Ofthe circumstances which attended
our passage from the Chesapeake to
Jamaica, it is not necessary that |
should give here any minute account.
The usual varieties Of rough and calm,
fair and foul weather, presented them
selves; and the customary formalities
Of shaving and administering oaths on
CT, ssing the line were gone through.
Sharks were tished for. dolphins har-
pooned. and fly ng fish secured on the
quartcr-drck, whittier they had leapcd;
and water-spouts, thunder storms, and
other children of the topics. came hy
turns to amuse and to alarm us. Yet
was the period of our lives which eX-
tended from the l4th Of October up to
the 2Sth of November but dull and
monotonous one. The scenery, indeed
after we had entered what is called the
windward channel, became interesting
and beautiful in no ordinary degree.
1t was delightful to behold the bold
shores of St. Domingo on the one hand
and the no less magnificent cliffs of
| Cuba on the other; whilst the unvary-
ing progress which we made under the
influence of the trade winds proved of
itself source Of hearty congratulation.
But in spite of these amciiorating ac-
compartments, six weeks voyage is,
after all, nothing more than six weeks
Imprisonment, where, as DR.. johnson
has observed, in addition to the loss OF
liberty, You run the risk Of being
drowned. 1t was, therefore, with feel
ings Of unspeakah!e satisfaction, that
we, at length, beheld the blue noun
tains of Jamaica cast their shadows
upon the distant horizon; and our sat-
isfaction received tcn-fold greater force
when the anchor was dropped in Port
Royal bay. The reader will readily
believe that we lost no time in putting
foot upon dry land; indeed, the vessel
had not swung round to the tide, when
every officer, except such as were at
solutcly required for duty, abandoned
her.
In spite of the excessive sultriness
of the climate, | shall never cease to
look back upon the perio of my brief
sojourn in Jamaica with sentiments OF
unqualified satisfaction. So many
MOI tbs had elapsed since an opportu-
nity of mixing ut all in CIVILIZED Ems.
lish society was afforded, that though
| can hardly venture to compare the
society of Kingston and its vicinity to
the polished circles of Grosvcnor
Square or Purtian Place, even it, with
all its draw backs, (rnl thy Were neitil-
er few nor trIiiny,) brolyhL Il charm
along with it, such rs | cannot ade
quately describe There was some
thing in the very domestic arrange
ment of the planters houses, which
men, so little accustomed of late to the
sight of such things, could not behold
with indifference. True, the absence
of well-bred and well-cducated white
women was severely felt. Not that
there were none such in the island
nav, far from it, those with whom we
did form an acquaintance were at least
as polished as women of their own sta
tions az home. Bat they were few in
number; and where they existed not
their places were inditferrntly supplied
BY the Mulatto and Musler girls. who
in too many instances, presided at oul
entertainers boards Then the man
ners Of the men, hearty and sincere, nc
doubt, were ut the same time abund
antly rough, uncultivatcd, boisterous
and dogmatical To a stranger, too
the being waited upon by filthy blacks
males and females, proved disgusting
in the extreme. In spite of all this
however, we enjoyed the change in the
order of our existence amazingly. The
| ,,oo,1o worn ~ wit ho,,t on,-