Macon beacon. [volume] (Macon, Miss.) 1859-1995, 1912-03-08

epoch of the islands history was when it served
as a sort Of STRENGTHENING" depot. In the days
when the traders in black ivory" found the diff
culties of their profession increasing in the ratio
of prejudice against slave holding their profits
decreased In a like ratio. They attempted to
rectify this loss in a measure by bringing a more
valuable article to the available markets. The
negroes shipped from the Kongo were often in
poor health, and their condition became pitiable
before they reached their journeys end. Imagine
the effect of a six-weeks' voyage, crowded under
matches, in the Tropics. Contrast the Joy of these
unfortunates when turned loose to work in the
fields Of a beautiful land, with abundance of food.
after the horrors of the oversee crossing.
1t is hard to index the islands many charms
Perhaps 1t finds its greatest attraction as a refuge
for the winter riven dweller in northern climes
In the wholesomeness Of the climate. The win
ter climate Of the Isle of Pines is ideal. The air
has an indescribable quality that let's the tenn
%perature defy the rigid markings of the Their
mometer. The northern winds that play among
the pine trees are as soft as the touch of butter.
flies wings, to borrow a phrase from the poets,
and the sunshine seems to distil a perfume from
the resin that truly sweetens the breezes. 1t has
been said that the perfect is beyond description.
This is true of the winter climate of this island.
The only criticism that the most difficult to please
would dare offer in complaint might be that It
10 hOAotOioucis Soohs ING ouClltICu DOblllUu VI
the island protects It from the north while the
southwest trades blow fresh from the Caribbean
With a steadiness that makes for such an equable
atmosphere which can not be rivaled in any Sec
ton OF the globe. This is not hyperbole but fact.
The two old towns Of first settlement, Nueva
Corona and Santa Fe, still hold much Of their
Spanish setting despite the invasion Of the hus-
thing American, who indicates his presence by
the typical country store that caters to the uni
ynrSnI Ooods Df tha co1np;,tg o~J 4ho A,cu I.~i-
Nueva Corona, which is the capital of the island,
has been fortunate in having for its mayor a ma
tive who combines all the courtesies of his Span-
ish ancestry with good business sense, which has
enabled him to turn the current Of the islands
present progress to the advantage of the little
town he loves so we'll. The many municipal i'm
provements that have been carried out during his
term of office serve as monuments to his industry.
Santa Fe rivals the sister town in civic pride, and
Its residents are alert In the matter of the i'm
provement of their pueblo
The island is entirely owned by Americans,
OF the 900, 900 acres of estimated surface the part
that remains in other titles is so small as to be
negligible, The present owners have developed
the principal industry of the island-citrus-fruit
growing,
Many have confused the name of the island,
connecting it in some way with the pineapple.
AS already stated, the name is derived from the
man! pune trees growing Inere; yet IL were not
inappropriate that the title should come from the
fruit, for the finest pineapples l have ever seen
are grown in its valleys. AS yet pineapple cult.
walton has not been made the business success
that it promises. A number of reasons have made
1t difficult to market the fruit successfully.
Tobacco was grown with great profit on the
island in certain specially suited sections during
the Suban war of independence; but tobacco
growing is almost an esoteric art the secret OF
which is only known to the "colonistas' Of the
Vuelto AbaJo district In Cuba.
Besides these special agricultural products, the
island blooms with all the tropical and semi.
tropical vegetables and many of the hardy tubers
from the temperate zone, so he who seeks his
winter home on those inviting shores will plant
his kitchen garden when he sets his nurselings
out.
Perhaps the most neglected, yet to the writer
the most potential, gifts which nature has en-,
dowed the Isle of Pines are the thermal springs,
These are beneficial beyond the mere figures oil
the analysis Of the curative properties they poe
sess.