Peninsula enterprise. [volume] (Accomac, Va.) 1881-1965, 1904-03-12
1ADiqYGYSSIa4H
TIE FINGER OF FATE IN THE FALL
\ SogE tE6a SSTALSner

u,.torx Of Her Rusaed Cities-TwO
of Them Vanished Utterly From on
the Fare of~the Earth.
ThertStxMts In Jamaica, in the Nest
Indies, universal superstition that
.o,rse rests upon any town chosen 10 De
its CAPITAL. Since 1909. when the nrst
chief city was founded, no fewer than
three capitals have been ruined III myS-
FERROUS and tragic ways. Two nave
vanished utterly from the face OF Tue
earth. Some of the more superstluous
Of the colonists, brOOding over the
strange history of their country lear
that Kingston, the present capital
city of 10000 inhabitants, will share
the fate Of its predecessors.
The first capital was Sevilla Nueva
New Seville). otherwise called SeVllie
d,Oro (the Golden Seville), on account
Of its marvellous wealth. 1t was found
cd by Don Juan d'EsQuivel and Diego
a son Of Christopher Columbus. In
few years it became the greatest span
,sh city I'M the new world. Thither
Aocked the blue blooded but impecum'
Gus mobiles Of CASTLE, eager to reDuiiu
their family fortunes at the expense OF
the poor Arawak.
Ca+hadrals. palaces and monasteries,
rivaling those Of Spain IN spiehuor'
were erected. The marble streets were
crowded with gayly clad cOurtiers ana
Indian slaves, who toiled for them ana
brought them tribute from mine ana
jungle.
Then. in a night, the city vanished
and no one can tell today what nap
pened 10 II. No survivors and no rec
ords were left behind TO tell the tale
Today one can see, buried in tropical
iungle. a mile Of marble pavement ana
few broken columns and arches.
Nothing else remains OF the Golden
Seville. once so prosperous and splen-
did except a few contradictory ma
tive traditions. These traditions va
riously ascribe the destruction OF the
CITY and its inhabitants TO n mutny OF
the oppressed Indians, an earthquake,
a sudden visitation of millions OF req
ants and an attack 10y French Duc-
cancers. The very memory OF What
was once the greatest city OF the new
world has almost persisted. Even LII
Jamaica few people know anything
about the Golden Seville.
The Spaniards made Saint Jago de Ia
Vega. now called Spanish Town, their
second capital. Time and again 1t was
devastated by hurricane and plague
harassed by Indian revOlts or ransacK-
ed Inv adventurous picarOons. Gradu-
ally II sank from its high estate until
now 1t is merely squalid village.
When the English conquered the is
land they made Port Royal their real
capital, though Spanish Town remain
ed for some time the official seat OF
government The emporium of the In
dies and the Spanish main, the market
for the Ill gotten gains Of 10000 buc-
cancers, Port Royal soon became the
richest and wickedest city OF the new
world. At the height Of its splendor
and its vice it was destroyed within
the space Of two minutes by an earth
quake.
1.-The ground opening in Several
Places at once" wrote an eyewitness
in 1892, few days after the catastro-
phe, swallowed up Multitudes of Peo'
pie together, whole Streets sinking I'M
der water with Men, Women and Chill
dren In them; and those Houses which
but Just HOW appeared the Falrest ana
Loftiest in these Parts and might vie
with the Finest Buildings in the World
were in q moment Sunk in the Earth
and nothing to be seen of them; such
CRYING. such Shrieking and Mourning
L never heard, nor could anything III
my Opinion appear more Terrible tc
the Eye of Man. Here a Company OF
People Swallowed up at once; there q
whole Street tumbling down, and in
Another Place the Trembling Earth
opening her RavenOus Jaws, let in the
Merciless Sea, so that this Town Is be
come q Heap Of Ruins. Several Peo
pie were Swallowed up of the Earth
when. the Sea breaking in before the
Earth could Close, they were washed
I'D again and Miraculously saved from
Perishing. Others the Earth received
I'D to their Necks, and then Closed
upon them and squeezed them tC
Death, with their Heads above Ground
many Of which the Dogs Eat; Multi
tudes Of People Floating up and down
having no Burial. The Burying Place
at the Palisades IS quite Destroyed
the Dead Bodies being washed out OF
their Graves, their TOmbs beat tC
Pieces and they floating up and down
IT is sad to think how we have Suf'
fered.
"The Earth hath still fits of Shaking
with very much Thunder and Light
ming, and dreadful Weather; yet this
had so little effect upon some People
here that the very same Night they
were at their Old Trade of Drinking
and Swearing; breaking up Ware
houses; Pillaging and Stealing from
their Neighbours, even while the Earth
quake lasted, and several of them were
destroyed In the very Act; and indeed
this Place has been one of the Ludest
in the Christian World, a sink of al
flthiness, and mere SOdOm."
Old Port Royal lies buried beneath
the sea. The present town of Port
Royal, place of no Importance except
las coaling station, was built after
the earthquake, fire and landslide
having destroyed the few houses LEFT
standing.
Kingston was not founded until thu
early part Of the eighteenth century
but 1t has already been thrice destroy
ed by fire and several times ravaget
by hurricanes. The inhabitants nat
,urally wonder what catastrophe vii
happen next
The Boston Waiter.