The daily Gate City. [volume] (Keokuk, Iowa) 1855-1916, 1909-11-15
First Of ! Series Of Letters Written
on Board the Steamer cleve.
land On lts Tour Which
Circles tho Globe.
FIRST STOP MADEIRA
The Cruise Lett New York on octo-
hsr 10 and Arrived In the BAY
Of Naples on
October 20.

Especial Correspondence to Gate City
NAPLES, Italy, Oct. 29.-We left
New York October 16 at 6 a. m. amid
q great display Of music by bands or
nearby ships assisting the band on oul
snip, the new German STEAMSHIP
Cleveland, and after seeing the many
boats and then looking at tine one con
veying us we feel the stability, secur
lily and comfort on account OF her
wonderful size and construction
Throughout she has been built to the
most advanced ideas, every cabin has
an electric fan and lights. Built OF
steel witt double bottom and five
decks and pronounced by those who
seem to know the finest boat in the
world.
On October "a we landed at Mad
EZRA, one of the quaintest islands in
the world, which belongs to Portugal
10 miles wide by SO miles long. Fun
chal, the capital lies on an abrupt
slope with mountain peaks 5000 feet
high towering in the background. Ow-
ing to the steep roads, the vehicles
consist of sleds drawn by oxen. The
French have four automobiles in the
city of Funchal which contains 49,
900 population and the island 5000.
About IL per cent of the people can
read and those that have seen the
women of different nations claim
for Madeira the prettiest in the world.
They have beautiful compilations.
Ttle products are pineapples, banan-
mas, coffee and cane. The articles
manufactured are lace, wickerware,
sandals, notions and wine, all the dry
goods. clothing, notion and millinery
stores have saloon in the same room
with their other stocks. The religion
is all Catholic; we visited the Catho-
lie cathedral. the Methodist mission
and the Masonic lodge The lodge
room was arranged in ancient designs
(where we give it In lecturing) as It
should be. told them was from
Missouri and the W. M. took me to
the ground floor bringing me up and
made the world renowned remark
he would SHOW me-" Three lodges
are conducted In this room, French.
Portuguese and English on, different
nights and we were taken TO the
Masonic School, where so orphan girls
were being educated by these lodges.
After visiting this school 1t made ones
heart leap with Joy to see the bright
spot Of the Island and which is slow
ly but surely growing and in time
Will lift the veil OF superstitution and
ignorance, which were on our shores
as late as the 18th century at Salem.
The French company built cog
railroad around and up the mountain
something like the one up Pixies Peak
After arriving at the top we took the
famous mountain slide down the noun
tain on sled guided by two natives
q distance of miles and in this land
OF flowers we (twO ladies and my
self were almost buried with bo
Quets by ladies who would step on,
from behind doors made with iror
bars. The houses face along the
streets with lawns and gardens in the
rear. A visit to this island is so sci
dom made by American travellers. II
is proving Of much interest, by get
ting out Of the beaten path of foreign
travel. From Madeira We passed
along the north coast Of Africa fol
600 miles to Gibralter, where we were
landed In steam tenders to visit the
town and fort This British fortress
is considered the strongest in The
world and 1t has galleries from two
to three miles long tunnelled through
the solid rock and batteries built a,
all advantageous points up to 1851
feet above the sea. I was not SC
favorably impressed with this worlt
renowned fort and believe American
war methods would blow Giberaltel