The Washburn times. [volume] (Washburn, Wis.) 1896-1976, 1913-08-07
CUBA. JAMAICA AND PANAMA
From New York to the IsthmuS By
the Ocean Pathway
BY j. E. JONES
Association, Bond Building Washington C.
BY j. E. JONES

come one of the lords of the land. But
these tropical roads have greater wonders
than the houses and the people along
side.
Somewhere have seen a picture of
lack Jamaica women. stretching as far
along the highway as the eye can reach.
bearing on their heads the produce bound
for market. great baskets filled with man.
goes. cocoanuts and other fruit. Evidently
those accompanied by burro. likewise
weighted down, had attained high state
of prosperity, as these animals are worth
from 81 to SIS apiece. The Jamaica wo-
men and their burros are the pack trains
of commerce and they pass by like pic
lures on a screen along the highway. It
is told that when tho Jamaican laborers
first were introduced to wheeIbarrows at
Panama. that they loaded them full, and
then carried them off on their heads.
Along the Constant Springs road our
last morning, our native rig was overtaken
by dashing turnout and in moment we
were transferred to this new vehicle, oc-
cupied by our friends. Miss Farquharson
and her guest, Miss HUT. who were on
the way to town to meet our ship. There
are tales of gods that ride chariots across
the clouds, but that team of bavs, hitched
to the two-seated carriage. ably managed
by Jamaican Williams" in spotless white
at the reins. with our friends and the loads
of beautiful flowers and native baskets of
freshly picked fruit. ah. that indeed was
a day of days. touch of paradise.
Cargoes From Southern Seas
Aside from giving passengers the time
of their lives. we were to find that these
Hamburg American ships had still another
important mission. the principal part OF
which related to the carrying of bananas
consigned to the Atlantic Fruit Company
have been pulling the fruit from hang.
ing stem on the upper deck with REGULAR.
ty andin these last few days bananas have
ceased to be the mere barter of the Greek
fruiterer. Bananas have evolved in my
understanding into great commodity oil
commerce. One stem grows on each
stalk and then at the end of ten to four.
teen months the stem is cut and the stalk
like that Of corn comes down, and the
process must begin all over.
The fruit companies buy the crops in the
field, and the smaller West Indian stems
| with its supply of from 100 to 100 bananas
brings approximately 20 cents to the planter
| weighing from AZ to IS pounds and selling by
| weight in New York at about one dollar
The larger stems. with $50 to 175 bananas
and weighing approximately IS pounds come
from Costa Rica, Nicaragua and Columbia
and bring about $3.50 in New York.
Great gangs of workmen from the BAHIA
mas Travelled with us on the ships to handle
the cargo. and thousands of stems were
taken aboard at the different stops. On the
ship Prinz Joachim we have about 81, OO
stems aboard. For hours and hours we hav,
watched the black men handling the fruit
Their fleets of small boats have come out t
us quarter or half mile from the Jamaican
bHC HdbChCo hdNC UeCH Open6u dnC
lcopper-hued giants with great bare "slol
feet" that spread out at the toes like tn,
streets of washington running out from the
Capitol, come rushing over the sides of oul
ship-there are perhaps $50 of them.
Once when boy saw bucket brigade
at fire, where the pals of water wer,
passed along a line of men from creek
The banana brigade" started in the bottom
of the lighters and extended up through
human steps or stations to the deck of ou
ship. and then on down long lines the heav,
stems were tossed from one man to the
| next. Hour after hour. as fast as they
| can travel their course leads down into the
deep hold of the ship / wondered If Their
| we're any bananas left after all we had re
ceived. but was informed that like the car
goes of grain at the head of Lake Superior
| what we had carried away. was an infentis
NAL part of the supply.