The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1910-02-10

Greece, the English royal family, and
the principal aristocracy and royalty
throughout the world. Twelve diff
ferent royal houses are named as us
ing the remedy, by royal command.
All British newspapers make much of
this sort of advertising. Another adj
vertiser says that by royal command,
his infant powder has been supplied
to eight royal houses: that all royal
babies are busted with his powder. -.
The reporters of The Cleaner are a
lazy lot. One of them devotes two
columns to crazy woman who
drowned herself, although the item
is not worth twenty lines. The re-
porter tells what the different wit
nesses before the coroner said, and
prints a lot of details that are unim-
portant and uninteresting. All the
local news is handled in the same
way. This being the Saturday issue
of The Cleaner, it contains the usual
church NOTES, headed: Preachers for
Tomorrow" l gather that there are
nineteen Episcopal churches in and
about Kingston. The English are
great on Episcopal churches. There
are also several other Protestant
churches in Kingston, including Con-
gregational, Baptist, Presbyterian,
Methodist, etc. The Cleaner prints
a full list of the 'Moltke's,' passen-
gers, which it claims to have received
ed by wireless.
I regret to say that flies began ap-
pearing a few days ago, and are now
quite numerous. At home, with winter
raging, you may belonging for warm
weather. But we have it here, and are
disposed to grunble about 1T. The un-
natural warm weather has given most
of us colds.
While sitting on deck today I picked
UP a magazine containing an illustrated
advertisement of the delights Of King
ston. Jamaica. The advertisement
didn't seem very attractive in King
ston, with a miserable rain falling, al
though I can imagine it would attract
much attention and comment in cold
climate.
Jamaica means Land of springs ano
streams and lies fifteen hundred miles
almost due south of New York. Colon
Panama), our next stop, is $40 miles
away. Jamaica is surrounded by the
Caribbean sea, and it l44 miles iohs,
and so to 20 miles broad. The island
has nearly three million acres of land
but only 413,430 acres are level In 1906
$4,000 acres were in bananas. $4,000 N
coffee, $1,000 in sugar cane, 10000 IN
cocoanuts,- and 5000 in cocoa. Sugar
cane cultivation is being largely super,
seeded by fruits, especially bananas and
oranges, the bulk of which are market
ed in the United States. 1t is said
Crown land may still be had at one
pound $50 per acre, but you know
what public land in Kansas and the
west generally is like; it is inferior.
That Jamaica is mountainous will DE
understood when 1 say Blue mountain
peak is 1923 feet high. There is warm
salt spring which attracts much attea-
ton. Jamaica has the best system 81
railways in the West Indies, next to
Cuba First class fares are four cents
a mile, or double the Kansas rate. The
island has two thousand miles of
macadam roads, built on plan for
reaching most of the important points.
Kingston has fifty thousand population.
You will remember that in 1907 it was
visited by terrible earthquake, In
which hundreds of lives were lost, and
hundreds of houses destroyed
During the last quarter of the seven
tenth century. Jamaica, and especially
the town Of Port Royal, at the entrance
of what is now the harbor at Kingston.
where this is written, became the head
quarters of the buccaneers, who preyed
upon Spanish commerce, and brought
here such vast treasure that it was
called the richest place in the world.
Here the buccaneers reveled after every
voyage. Among them was the famous
Morgan, who sacked several cities On
the Spanish Main. Morgan was not
content to capture ships, but captured
cities as we'll He became man of SO
much Importance and power that he
was afterwards knighted by the king.
and became governor of Jamaica. A
powerful rogue is often forgiven In the
present day, and hired to be respecta-
BILE, but that sort of thing was more
common in the old days. The career Of
the pirates at Port Royal, the wickede5t
city in the world, was rudely interrupt
ed on June z, 1852, when an earthquake
sent the town sliding into the sea,
where remains of it may now be seen
under water. OF 5000 houses, all but a
few slid into the sea. Port Royal never
recovered, and a new town, now known
as Kingston, was built on the main
land. Earthquakes at intervals have
disturbed the island ever since. the last
being in 1907. You will recall that ter
rible affair; also, the unusual conduct
of Alexander Swethenham. the English
governor. Rear Admiral Davis, of the
United States navy, hurried to King
ston on hearing of the earthquake, and
landed supplies, but the English gov
ernor treated Davis with scant court
esy, and Davis soon withdrew. This
action on the part of Swethenham
caused much Indignation, and he soon
sent in his resignation. Kingston has
been destroyed several times by earth
quakes and hurricanes. and IL is pre-
Dictated that the fate of Port Royal will
finally oyertake it-that it will slip into
the sea-that tradesmen insist upon