Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1902-05-17

| looks down with Scorn upon the negro, and
will not, under any circumstances, mix with
| In the gardens on the hillsides are grape
| fruit, oranges, bread-frIit, which Is the
| dozen kind Of apples under diRerent names.
| all entirely tropical. Tamarind trees are In
abundance. and TING papfa. the excellent
| melon which grows In a treetop and which
| sixpence. This peculiar fruit has In Its
composition a certain amount OF vegeta-
BILE pepsin. which 10 q godsend to people
with weak digestions. A dyspeptic may eat
| whole melon and suffer no indigestion at
all.
The Women Help Load. -r
Falmouth lies in bay easily seen from
the sea. and It's clustering huts and houses.
with here and there q church spirs point
ing upward, make a bright picture. Monte
| go bay Is probably che prettiest spot on
the island next to st. Lucea. It Is next In
size to Kingston as a town and the stores
are interesting. Lying some fifteen miles
to the westward the ship usually makes
it the last or next to last stopping place,
going to st. Lucea first to take in few
thousand punches that the little town pro-
duces: Here, as in the other. northern
Jamaica ports. the women do the work
of loading the fruit into the surf boats.
the men only rowing out to the ship and
transferring the load to- the hold.
10 SeTt lIfIOxlCdtlHS liquors d llceiSS ID
necessary in all these towns, and 1t has
to be displayed conspicuously but Jamaica
rum is to be had at prices varying from
two to three shillings bottle even in the
frst-class establishments. - 49, =
Strategically, Jamaica Will be OF para
mount Importance when the canal is built
across the isthmus. Kingston will be the
key of the gulf and Caribbean sea, and
| with it's harbor will be unassailable. There
has been much talk of annexation to the
United States among the free thinking
class of the island who look ahead to
the future, but 1t Is doubtful IL anything
| will be realized In this direction. =.
As a winter resort Jamaica certainly ranks
high among other West Indian places for
the American. 1t has good water, good law
and good liquor, the three things true
New Yorker or Chicagoan most needs. The
habits of the table must necessarily be
changed II good is expected from sojourn
within the tropics, and for quantity and
variety the, fruit Of the island excefs One
may eat, fifteen varieties Of fruit a day and
be better for it. and there will be no 1ex-
hausting fevers or bowel complaints to mar
I the good work Of reconstructing a worn
I out or overworked system. For nervous
| diseases the climate is the best in the
world.
When the Canal is Built.
With the passage of canal bill the Island
Of Jamaica will become of great interest.
Besides it's Importance as a naval base, 1t
will probably furnish most of the labor for
the giant cut through the isthmus. The de-
spised black slnan of great size and exceed
ing strength will be looked to as a factor
to enable the dream Of the commerce lover
to be realized The scorned Jamaica mig
| GER will be the man behind the hoe who
will make the cut.
How this drain will be met by the fruit
growers of the Jamaica plantations it is
hard to see. The population, however, is
numerous and prolific and might supply
To- aioo,
is large. strong and finely built, and, what
is even more necessary for the purpose, is
peculiarly immune to the tropical fevers Of
the isthmus. Coolies South American ne
groes whites, negroes from the states, all
were tried in Panama, but the fever proved
deadly to them. The Jamaican, however,
imported by the tens of thousands, proved
able to withstand the exposure, and showed
low death rate that was remarkable. The
only quality he is said not to have is phys
ical staying power. This sounds strange
with his great size and strength and eli
matte endurance. Statistics on this quality
are lacking, and it may be that the lack of
physical endurance is more a thing of
choice, the natural quality developed in
mind prone to slotn.
I have seen a huge black giant sit for
hours keeping tally on coal leaders, pass
ing checks to the men who filed by and dis
dalning even to Stoop to pick up fallen
check which had escaped his fingers Even
his words calling the numbers We're whis-
pered, as If the effort were appalling and
quite beyond the strength of his giant
frame.
One of the peculiarities of the fruit-grow-
ing Jamaican is his speech. 1t is a Ian
guage of his own, made up from the En-
glsh pronunciation of the broad a" the
peculiar soft intonation of his neighbor
across the way In Cuba and the rapid,
nervous tongue of the Frenchman. 1t is
quite incomprehensible to the stranger. and
at one moment the visitor will be sure he
is speaking Spanish, the next French and
the next real niger" 1t takes some time
to get used to the jargon With it all, the
native is polteness itself.
With such abundance Of fruit it is
strange that bananas almost the sole
expectation. Oranges sell for a shilling a
barrel for poor ones and dollar a barrel
for good ones, yet very few shipped in
comparison with the bananas. The bread
fruit is seldom, if ever. exported, and grape
fruit that sells for tuppence for the choice
and a penny for the general run finds its
way to the states only in small quantities.
This is strange when one remembers that
a quarter of a dollar is the usual winter
price for prime grape fruit in New York,
and there Is no loss in transportation.
Grape fruit is a fad for the civilized and
the native will seldom touch 1t.