The Meeker herald. [volume] (Meeker, Colo.) 1885-current, 1908-05-30
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A STRANGE ISLAND.
Americans should BE Interested it
This Place.

While Americans and Canadians
have been running over the world in
search of novelty. exploring the ma
larial jungles of Africa and the frozen
regions of the north. looking for
strange peoples and customs, they
have overlooked q very strange coun-
try close at hand. The island of
Anegada is one of the strangest of all
the strange places in the world.
First of all, where is Anegada? 1t
is one of the Virgin islands, and it
the Great Antilles. and Its first Pc
culiarity is that 1t is fiat and low, the
nsIghboring isles all being steep and
mountainous. 1t is nine miles long
and two miles across, and lies so low
that in heavy gales the sea makes Il
clean breach over the lower portions
of 1t, whence its name-for anegada
is the Spanish for drowned island"
Next We come to its strange history.
In 1881 it had only 719 inhabitants. of
whom but three were white people.
Its population is noted for idleness.
and the main occupation for many
years was wrecking-for an extensive
and very dangerous coral reef sur
rounds the island and once gave 1t
very melancholy notoriety. But since
the establishment of the lighthouse on
the island of Sombrero al miles to
the eastwardD, there have been few.
IL any, wrecks on Anegada, since the
ma1A cause of the shipwrecks was the
constant and swift current which sets
upon the island from the east.
Accordingly the natives are now
not often aroused by the cry OF "a
vessel on the reef"-the only call In
from their almost perpetual inactivity
In fact, they are about the LATEST peo-
pie in the West Indies, although that
is saying a great deal.
Anegada used to be covered with
Internationally Of the kind called
seaside grape. which here is particu-
larly rich in the valuable gum known
as Jamaica kino. Anegada is the home
of very numerous and singular tropical
plants. b-t it is perhaps rather more
noteworthy for Its immense numbers of
mosquitoes, gallinippers and scorpions,
not to speak of venomous and other
reptiles. The surrounding seas are
rich In scale and shell fish OF many
kinds.
Among its singular birds the fla
mingo is one OF the most numerous
species, and most of the ponds are the
abode of ducks which. on the approach
of man, rise and fill the air with their
dangerous cries.
1t is not an easy matter to reach the
island. A few years ago an attempt
was made to open mines upon it, but
nothing came of the effort but disap-
pointment and loss. Among the many
and steaming climate is the presence
of large salt ponds, which in the dry
season give out an intolerable stencil;
and the same ponds in the wet season
fill up with singular rapidly and food
a considerable portion OF the island.
AS we may infer from the name.
Anegada is pretty frequently flooded.
Whenever a hurricane comes sweep
ing along the waves roll completely
over the island. and the people have
to look out for their safety.
When Schomburgh, German trav.
weller, was in Anegada many years ago
there was one morning great cutlery
that all the north part of the island
was flooded; and so to all appearance
it was; but on examination 1t was
found that the supposed waves of the
sea were in reality only low-lying
fog which was rapidly sweeping along
Another curious thing is the aerial
refracion, and this often brings into |
view other islands which lie below the
horizon and which, according to the
ordinary operations of nature, ought to
be invisible.
A part Of the surface is composed of
sand dunes, but there is a considerable
of calcareous, or coral land,
with belts Of fertile loan, and II the
soil were intelligently and faithfully
1t would no doubt yield
good returns.
In ordinary seasons the fresh water
supply appears to be ample. On the
northeast side of the island there Is
singular succession Of very deep
natural wells Of fresh water. some of
them Is feet across the top.
1t would be hard to find anywhere a
hotter, wetter, worse-smelling, or more
generally disagreeable place to live
han Anegada; but, singularly enough.
It appears to be for the most part
pretty healthy place-at least for the
natives, of whom nearly all are black
Or colored.
In the ante-colonial days, the In
iians used to come hither in their
,anoes: but no Indian could ever
bring himself to make permanent
home In Anegada, with its steaming
'ogs, its squalls. It's sea floods. its
foundations. its strong
smells and its dense swarms of In
'ects; and no American could be per.