Shepherdstown register. [volume] (Shepherdstown, Va. [W. Va.]) 1849-1955, 1909-01-21
Letter From a voyager.
MERIDA, WARD LINE.
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MERIDA, WARD LINE.
~ Hours BELOW CAPE HATTERAS,
SATURDAY.
DE,R REGISTER We left New York
at ~ 30 Thursday. starting little late
on account of the incoming tide; en-
barked from Pier Is, East river. came
down that river into New York Bay
.assed Governors Island and Statue or
Liberty, rounded Sandy Hook and came
into the big Atlantic. On entering the
Atlantic our course turned directly south
and we have been heading south and
southwest ever since.
We have on board mixed variety OF
nationalitles, varying in color from
white TO yellow, thence darker brown
and finally pure black. The passenger
list numbers something over hnndred
and consists of negroes Chinese coolies,
Spaniards, Germans and Americans.
Among theseds big fat Germrn with
a short little goatee He is travelling
wine vsnder. speaks Ave languages we'll
and is fond Of watching ships on the
horizon with his glasses, which have a
i've mile lens. There are also on board
two new married couples who seem to
have hidden goodbye to all gayety when
we left New York. The crew on board
represents even more natlonalitles than
the passe ,gers. They are Spaniards,
Americans, English, French, Poles,
Danes Swedes and negroes.
The Merida is a first class steamer or
s. 600 tons. is 4l6 feet long by % Feet
broad, and CARR s large cargo besides
big crew and the passengers. She
carries u ). mail. is an iron-clad, makes
about IA knots an hour, and is va ued
at about a quarter of a million dollars.
We have three frstrate meals every day,
which are sand wfched with two lunches
b.tweea times. hear that in Cuba
people only eat two meals day.
We are probably right now 1T ii
O'Clock somewhere off the coast of South
Carolina, maybe as far south as Georgia
Haven't sighted ship TODAY. Yester-
day morning we passed the Moro Castle
hound for New York When we were
of Cape, Charles and Henry there were
ute number of vessels in slgnt. vi
G4pe Hatteras, % miles from the light
house, is stationed the Diamond Shoal, y
a light boat. Two men live alone on
this light boat, anchored about nifty
time, only seeing the sky and the sea
and the passing vessels. ms VesSei
usually carries them mail, but the sea
was running too high to stop when we
came by.
Ever since we left New York flock
Of sea gulls (ffty or sixty have followed
us. They eat up everything that is
III rown overheard, having sharp eyes 10
see the smallest eatables. They never
get tired and very -arely settle on laud
or water, though they are good swim.
mers. Yesterday evening about 4
o'clock a large school Of dolph'ns fol-
lowed US for two or three miles There
were four or five hundred ofthem vary
ing ia size from caild TO slx.foot man.
Some of them went before US, some fol-
lowed all were increasingly leaping
two or three feet into the air and diving
again into the deep. When We get
nearer Havana We will see many
sharks, | hear
After leaving Cape Hstteras last night
we crossed the Gulf Stream. which is
from sixty TO seventy miles broad at
that point The Merida is just outside
the Gulf Stream. AS we go sIuth this
STRAIN becomes narrower and narrower
1t is Of slightly lighter blue color than
the rest of the ocean.
All the Spaniards on board, men and
women, wear many diamonds and other
precious stones, large and small, espec-
ially on the fiugers.
The weather today is very mild.
There is a south. west breeze blowing
and we need no overcoats even on deck.
We arrive in Havana Monday morn
ing.