The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1900-01-15
Nay Be standard q steamer.
A NIGHT OF TIE 3ROR.
Adventures of a Tobacco Agent In
Mexico.

mexico.
O.ondon Cigarette and Tobacco News)
The following amusing extract from
a letter forwarded by the cashier of
one of the La Seductiva factories to
his principals at San Andres. Mex,
shows the difficulties of carrying on
business where the principle of bank
ing is somewhat incomplete. We are
indebted to Mr.. J, 3, Banks, the COM
panys London agent, for the following
particulars of tedious journey:
As you know, / left Orizaba at
o'clock last Wednesday on my journey
to san Andres, and at the same even
ing l arrived safely at Vera Cruz.
Thence, next morning, I took the
train for AlvaradO. the seaport lying at
the mouth of the Papaloapan river.
which latter is to all appearances a
powerful concern. fit to carry ocean
steamers, but is in reality only a shall
low, though very wide. waterway. that
can only be used at high tide in he
present dry season.
The noble vessel which is supposed
to run in connection with the train
from Vera Cruz to convey passengers,
cargo and live stock to AlOnzO Lazaro.
the latter city the port for San Andres
Tuxtla, was not ready for sailing when
repairs being necessary, such as mend
ing the boiler. which happened to be
leaking in about a dozen places. and
touching up the machinery in many
places. A brother passenger, who hap
pened to be something of a mechanic.
offered to lay long odds that we would
still be in Alvarado that time next day.
and he was right, for the touching up
of the antiquated craft took the better
part of a day and a half
We spent the time shooting ducks
with borrowed shotgun, and very
nearly did / hit the gallant captain.
The night we passed in the Grand
Hotel Newman a noble structure con-
structed out of planks and lockwood.
and containing any amount of the
usual tropical and other insects. for
whose company nothing was charged.
AT p. m on Friday, at last our
vessel appeared to be ready to make
a start, and, after recommending our
souls to our respective saints, Of whom
this country seems to have an extra
number. we left the shore and went
out into midstream. Without any ad-
venture worth talking about We steam
ed along until about IL O'Clock. some
times, however, the crew. consisting of
one man and a boy, had TO get over
board to give the ship a push along
over some sandbank. The II O'clock
sandbank, however, somehow did not
seem to be quite so accommodating as
the previous ones. and the combined
EFFORTS of the crew, captain and Das-
sengers. were of no avail The gallant
captain, who. by-the-bye, does not be-
lieve in wearing shoes, called the pas
sengers together, who, to the number
of three or four white men and thirty
Indians. responded bravely.
In a long speech he put the serious
ness of our position before US, saying
that he could offer US one OF two
alternatives--either to remain on bosr5
until the next spring tide, which might
come in six months. or to use the boat
and get ourselves transhipped to some
island which could be dimly discerned
in the distant moonlight
AS the provisions on board would
not last six hours. much less six
months, we all voted for the boat. ex-
cept one Indian, who would not trust
himself to it, but preferred wading to
the hospitable island.
Hardly had We all arrived on the
isle. which was Just big enough to
mold Us, when-and now the stirring
part OF my adventures begins-a ire
mendOuS shock lifted the isle bodily out
had struck. Never before in nv life
had / been in anything like such sud
den and unexpected predieament
Everything went loose; the soil seemed
&c have been transformed into some
antedilnvian being; some undergroune
horrible sound burst upon our ears
and l thought the last judgment haf
come. The earthquake, for such it was
lasted nine hours and fifty-nine min
uteS; so, at least, It appeared TO me
although the pape. s only give it a,
forty-two seconds, and one of its re.
suits was the total disappearance of 2
netghboring Isle. The one we shin
wrecked mariners were standing on die
not disappear, but rose TO quite q res.
pectable distance out Of the water. 81
that when daylight had fully set ir
we discovered the shore to be only :
few yards off. and were enabled to wall
to the port of Alonzo Lazarod without
anv further accident"