The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-01-14
RUNNING A BLOCKADE IN
 LAST DAYS OF CIVIL WAR
BY j. H. FowLEs.

they were heartless and even cruel, as they could see my helpless condition, but l soon began to take notice. and lttle later l was smiling between gasps. in few minutes l found myself sitting up laughing, and was soon seated beside them, joining in their mirth, which was now uproarious, my seasickness all gone. My prescription for this disease, then. IS as follows: Take not less than one put preferably two Methodist preachers. with you, and when the first symptoms or seasickness appear require them to re- late some of their humorous experiences. Without prejudice against any or the other denominations, 1 specify Methodist ministers, because they are the only kihd that cured me. Their stories are always good, and, what is better, always clean.
 We reached Nassau safely on the even ing of the third day and my two Meth odist friends and myself were soon taken to a comfortable boarding house. They visited the Wesleyan minister of the city and were invited to preach the following Sunday in his church, which they did at morning and evening services, each of them delivering an admirable sermon. They were much surprised to find that the Wesleyan church used a prayer book and the pastor was obliged to officiate in that part of the service. These good men soon sailed for Liverpool and never met them again, but have read an auto biography of Dr. Mood in which he de- scribes his blockade running experiences. He became president of a Texas college and died in that state a few years ago.
 l will not weary you with description of Nassau, but will state one or two things which impressed me while there. A majority of the citizens were colored, most of them being mulattoes. who filled many of the offices and seemed to be enjoying perfect social equality in the churches as well as elsewhere. England freed her slaves on these islands in the thirties, and at the time of my visit, thirty years later, they would have fur nished an object lesson to our northern friends, who seem unable to appreciate the struggle we of the south are making for the purity of the Anglo-Saxon race. Like ourselves, they had many specimens of the yellow dog which defied descrip- ton. though the late humorist, Bill Nye. attempted it during a visit to Nassau short time before his death. He said: 'The yellow dog of Nassau, with its cor rugated back and concave stomach, is sight to behold" The banana grows lux uriantly on these islands, and soon after my arrival there, after being deprived of all tropical fruits for four years, had a waiterful brought to me and made an entire meal off them. As a result of the meal I could not bear the sight of a banana for several years.
 Two weeks after I left Charleston, that ClLy anu wilmington, IN. 0.s lilc OuiS ports of the Atlantic coast through which blockade running was conducted, were evacuated by our troops, and could net return home. I little dreamed that my home in Columbia was at this time in ashes, having been burned by Sherman's army.
 There were about thirty blockade run ners in the harbor of Nassau at this time, all of them out of business. On each of these boats there was signal service man detailed from that depart ment of our army, whose duty consisted in giving signals to our forts, by lamps of different colors as they went in and came out of our ports Like myself, all of these young men were anxious to re- turn home, and we applied to the Con federate agent at Nassau, Colonel M, to send us to Havana, from which place we hoped to take a blockade runner to Galveston Tex. or St. Marks, Fla. He told us to wait until he had an oppor- tunity to send us, but nearly month elapsed before we could leave. On March 13 he sent for us, and pointing to a steam ship which had just arrived and was an chored outside of the little island oppo- site the town, he told us it was new Confederate war vessel on its way to Havana, near which port 1t was to re- ceive it's armament We went on row. boats to the vessel which soon started on it's voyage.
 The ship was built of steel, painted black, and was bark rigged, having three masts, so she could be navigated under