The Republican journal. [volume] (Belfast, Me.) 1829-current, 1902-07-03

stands the locally famous convent of
Versailles, where young ladies of this
and the neighboring islands receive
their education. Still higher in the
hills, on broad plauteau two thousand
feet above the sea. is the summer camp
OF the Governor and his troops. The
spacious residence, barracks, hospital.
arsenal. etc, are hidden in groves of
tamarinds and palmistes, and more
delightful place Oh summers day can
hardly be imagined. Several hundred
feet higher yet is another village, named
Matouba, whose matched cottages. over
looking a wide expanSe of the Carib
bean sea. are crowded during the fever.
season 10y the wealthy citizens of Basse-
Terre
There are a few other hamlets, or
'communes, as the French islanders
call them, scattered among the hills.
and coffee plantations are everywhere
above a certain elevation-the lowlands
being devoted to sugar-cane Here
abouts coffee grows best at a height of
two thousand feet and upwards. where
+ the temperature never gets above SO
degrees Fahrenheit in the hottest days
of August. Cane fourishes to perfec
ton along the coast. where the ther
mometer seldom falls below 100 degrees
at any time of year. There are at least
a thousand plantations among the
mountains of Gaudeoupe, and to en-
courage their increase the government
has offered premium Of forty dollars
for every new hectare about two acres
planted to coffee Tie berry was intro
duced into the islands with the first
colonsts. and the West India product
is in great demand i'll France-especial-
ly an excellent variety of Mocha. pro
duced i'll Gaudeloupe. which commands
from - to 81 cents per pound. on the
plantation.
The most interesting landmark in
Basse Terre is the old Basilique, or
cathedral, which has bid defiance to the
earthquakes and hurricanes of more
, than two centuries, and is yet a fine
monument to its founder, lie Pere La
bat BY the way, if you are lover of
rare books and have not on YOUR shelves
Labat's book-"Nouveau voyage aux
Hes d Amerique. you should get tiff
you can. 1t IS not easy to obtain in
these days and is therefore the more
valuable. The venerated father seems
to have been jolly Old fellow, as fond
of a Joke as his tipple: and his racy
book is worth more than all the rest
put together that was written in the
early days about these islands. He was
on chummy terms with all the great
buccaneers of the time But those
royerS of the high seas We're not all I'M
mltigated rascals. but defenders of the
weak and helpless. like Knights ashore.
Those sad sea dogs, who are reported to
have been always spelling for fight
when there was booty OF beauty to be
gained by it, could not purchase their
tood-sunplies openly: so they arranged
/ to have large quantities of meat deliv-
/ cred to them III one cargo Al some secret
rendezvous, where they dried, OF ''buc-
canned" it, hence their name bucca-
! neers-those who dry meat. Among
many tales OF the shadoWy past which
yo1 may hear III Gaudeloupe. is one to
the effect that Captain Daniel. Labat
/ tavorIte plrate-t friend. used to have the
/ holy Father say mass on board his ship
whenever lie came this way. ON a Ger
! tam occasion one OF the crew did not
behave as respectfully as he should dur
ing the elevation Of the Host. where
upon the buccaneeT drew his pistol and
Shot the man dead. Then he ordered
| the yet quiyering body to he tossed over
| board TO the sharks, and the service
piously proceeded Thus" comments
| Father Labat was the rascal effect
ually prevented from doing ANYTHING
of the kind again.
FANNIE 3. WAED.