Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1914-04-29
THE CORAL ISLANDS
ON PANAMA ROADWAY
Country Editor Writes of the
Bahama Group.
SparseIy Settled, Mostly by Negroes
San Salvador Probably First
Land Discovered by Columbus.

This is the second letter written for The
Herald by Lou MCWethey on his recent
tour from New york to Panama. me mira
instalment will appear in this paper soon,
perhaps next week.-Ed. HERALD
The landsman enroute to Panama
finds so many new and interesting
things that it seems to make. little
difference whether Panama is reached
today, tomorrow or next week. In
fact the touch of the tropics pervades
even the first islands in the West
Indies and the everlasting present
seems sufficient. The first islands
sighted after leaving New York were
the Bahama Group, which said group
is the possession of the British
Government. The first really stable
island is the island of San Salvador,
generally conceded to be the first land
discovered by Columbus. This island
boasts light house and a few in
habitants. 1t is a low lying island
some "a miles long with a lake in the
interior. At the north are several
small islets, of coral formation stick
ing up from the sea, glistening in the
sunshine like icebergs. San Salvador
like most of the islands in this group
is surrounded by dangerous reefs and
like most of the islands had its
wrecked boat on it's front steps.
Wherever we sighted lighthouse
we also sighted wreck. The deep
water passage among these islands is
necessarily narrow and in time many
boats have come to grief. On Crook
ed Island reefs was large steamer
going to pieces and off the points of
Cuba within few cable lengths of
the light was another. On San
Salvador reefs was pinioned large
sailing vessel.
The Bahama Islands are sparsely
settled, mostly by negroes. They
raise enough for a living, which as
living goes is not much. The islands
abound in wild horses, cattle and
hogs. Along the shores one can find
famingoes, aigret heron and various
other wild fowl. It ought to be a
hunters paradise as the natives are
too poor to own firearms. If a wild
horse is captured one must pay the
British crown one pound and as much
more to get it tanned, and then the
problem of getting it out of the coun-
try is a matter of some concern. The
best way would be to smuggle it in
as l understand these so called horses
are about the size of shetland pony.
The aigret heron is profitable shooting
providing one is successful in snug
Cling the aigrettes into the United
States, although it is serious matter
if caught.
As hunters paradise there is but
one drawback. The country is in
many places entirely without water.
The natives catch rain water for
domestic use, but out in the interior
this would be rather dangerous for it
might not rain. Surrounding these
islands and inside the protecting reefs
is the most beautiful submarine
scenery in the world. So clear and
transparent is the water that enc may
look down on the bottom of the ocean
and watch the fish play at a depth of
twenty feet. Beautiful sea foliage
grows in natural gardens and along
the coral paths vari-hued water
creatures wend their way unscared by
the presence of men, for man is a
negligible quantity in these ATTITUDES.
AS we sailed through the channels of
the Bahama group we sighted many
ships, the first seen since leaving
port. The wide track of the ocean
here narrows to a few miles and
naturally brings all the sea craft
within sight of each other. Fortune
Island is the first stop, which is for
the purpose of taking on deck hands
for the balance of the trip. These
lean, lank, Fortune Island darkies
are said to be better workers than can
be found around the ports of Jamaica
and Colon and so they are booked for
the balance of the cruise and dropped
on the return trip. For this they
receive the magnificent sum of fifty
cents a day, half in real cash and
half in store credit Fortune Island
is ruled by one white man, the only
white person on the island. He has
his own sloop and occasionally visits
the neighboring ports where he re-
gales himself in splendor at the best
hotels in the country. He is married,
and while there may be no shadows
over his domestic bliss, there is never
theless several shades over the queen
of Fortune Island for she evidently
derives her title from famous hand