The Bellefontaine Republican. [volume] (Bellefontaine, Logan County, Ohio) 1855-1905, 1903-03-20
WINTER TRIP
Through the West In
dies and Mexico.
IA Logan County Boy Visits
| Martinique,
Stands upon the Ruins of St
/ Pierre.
Takes Trip Through JamaCa. ant
Takes d Trip Through JamaCa. and
Visits Santiago and Havana.
Havana. 18th February. 1903

hdNdud- -oIn reDIudIE, lyub.
Mrs. Emma Raley, Brothers and |
Sisters: West Middleburg, o.:
hope this will find you all well and |
happy. We left home Saturday, jan
ury 9th, for our Winter journey in the
South and sailed from New York City
January 18th, in the good steamship,
"Kaiserina Marie Theresa of the
German Lloyd Line of steamers. Is
a fine steamer and besides her crew
of $50 sailors she will accommodate
4S0 passengers, but as there were only
266 passengers on board, you see we
had lots of room. We had a state
room for ourselves and a room for
Miss Foos. After two days sailing
we passed into the Gulf Stream, where
it began to get very warm, lit was
zero weather when we left New York;
and Sunday morning it was so hot
that I had to take off my heavy suit
and underclothing and put on my
linen suit, which l have worn most of
of the time since. Having had some
Experience in warm climates, pro-
vided myself with plenty of linen
lsuits and light clothes
Monday morning, the 10Th, we ar
rived in the Bay and by ten o'clock
we we're landed at the village of
l"Charlotte Amalie" the capital of
the Island of st. Thomas. 1t is one
of the three islands owned by Dem
mark, and is the one that the United
Estates has been trying to purchase of
of Denmark for a coaling station. 1t
is small, only 3 miles wide and Is
, miles long, there is but little culti-
: walton, only tropical fruits, bananas,
pine apples and Cocanuts and a few
= vegetables, lettuce, onions, sweet
: lpotatoes and yams: (yams are cross
E between a sweet and Irish potato
: The business is coaling vessels is an
= average of one vessel per day arrives
v here The work is largely-done by
Il the women, carrying the baskets Of
= coal on their heads and dumping
i them in the hold of the vessel, foI
f which they receive one cent per bas
n ket and make from 40 to so cents pei
y lday. The men fish and are very lazy
]. lon all these islands education i.
= and all children have to
go to school until they are II year:
of age. They are nearly all coloret
but few white people on the Island
They were all out to see the expecte,
u Americans and wore their Sun
Il day clothes. which were white an,
/ light colored lawns and linens.
y The town is clean and very prett,
and overlooks the beautiful bay, an
II Overlooking the town are two larg
I castles, called ''Bluebeard" an
Blackboard They were built an
N owned by former wealthy resident
IT of the islands, many years ago.
'e We embarked in the evening d tte
spending a delightful day on the Il
"a land, and sailed for the Island of s.
Kills." where we arrived in the baI
Tuesday morning and landed at tn
village of "Basse Terrie." AS W
cast anchor in the bay our steame
It was surrounded by small boats vat
ID two or more native boys or men i
n each boat begging for pennies. To
d passengers would throw pennies il
le the water and they would dive TO
s. them. never failing to get them. A
lie this was something new they got {
great many pennies. This island
IN a British possession and is about 8
b. miles square and is not so mountain
Z. GUS. We could see from the steame
i'd large fields of sugar cane and a mum
5, ber of small sugar mills. We foun
e. about the same class of people her
as on ST. Thomas, but they SCENE,
70 much poorer and were great beggars
m The sugar mills were small old style,
, plants and cannot compete with mod
,f ern mills. We were invited and at
re- tended a reception at the Govern
a. ment House" by the white ladies an,
gentlemen, from 4 to 4. 1t was ver
pleasant and we were highly enter
~ taine-dmusic, dancing, games; an
tea, cake and ice cream were served
and in return an invitation was give
to spend the evening on the steamer
: where music and dancing were KEEP
up until u o'clock Refreshment
were served.
We arrived at Antigua on the is
land of St. John, the next morning
- but owing to the very shallow ba
we could not get within miles o
:. the shore and were landed in smal
J.. boats. This is d more level islam
:. and is being cultivated more thai
!, the others, are raising tropical fruit
and vegetables and giving a goo
- deal of attention to cattle. l sa,
:. here some fine India cattle, sometim
called sacred cattle, imported t
improve the native stock. a bul
er weighed 2lO0 pounds, he was a yer,
s. fine one. The people seemed poor
IN The wages paid to labor on these is
o. lands are l2c to 2Oc per day Inha hi