The Delta independent., 1916-05-05
A VIVID DESCRIPTION OF
TROPICAL VOYAGE
Tropical Atlantic,
Monday, March 9Th, 1916.

This is an eventful voyage. We
waited a day in Halifax for a snow
bound cargo to get through to the
coast, then we lay at anchor another
day in Halifax harbor, hiding from a
storm reported to be bowling outside.
so we got away at last on Sunday
morning, instead of on Friday morn
ing as per schedule. The storm took
a hurricane twist unreckoned of in
our Captains calculations and on
Monday we ran into it and were
claimed for its own. / think l never
before saw such mountainous seas.
They broke into white and silver and
series of snow squalls passing across
all day and golden lights now and
then broke through the scudding
clouds and the white wells of flying
spray and flying snow. 1t was most
enchantingly beautiful. l was the only
woman on deck that day and almost
the only woman up.
Our ships company are nearly all
Canadians, but only one passenger,
young man, halls from Montreal.
1t is a different population to that of
the PARMA" when went to the West
Indies before. Then we carried Amer
lean tourists and Island people re-
turning after business or pleasure trips |
to Canada or to the United States.
Our first landing. Bermuda. was |
made on Thursday forenoon. We
have friends there, the family of
dear boy who is studying at McGill, |
but as our coal was more than forty
eight hours late in arriving, and we
had not been signalled, scarcely ex-
pected them to meet me: however
they were on the wharf waiting for us
to drop in. They took me in charge
at once, and gave me most lovely
day, lunch at one home, supper at
another, and in the afternoon between,
long very lonely drive to see the
sights. Bermuda is really a cluster of
islands, 365 they say. There are trop- \
ical trees where thy are being cared
for in parks and gardens, but most of
the wild trees are small pines and
cedars. inclined to grow crookedly and
indeed not unlike your Colorado pin
ions and cedars. The sea all about
is of a most heavenly and incredible |,
blue. An artist ! think could not get
it with paint and would not be be-
lieved if he could This blue water
surrounds and inyades and interlaces
the land everywhere. Every land
scape is also sea-scape. |
We went to see two very beautiful
caves all hung with stalactites which
look in some places like glass, in 9TH |
ers like alabaster. The little ends of {
these are always drip dripping, and
in may places the dorps fall into sea
floored in many places by ocean wa /,
ter. The little agitation caused by &,
the drops as they fall shows you
where the surface of the water is,
otherwise you could not even guess
for it is as clear as air.
My friends took me out after lunch
into their garden, where roses, ger
aniums. nasturtiums. English violets,
very fragrant) and snow drops we're
all in bloom together. Some OF the
hedges we passed in our drive showed
quite rich autumnal celebration. They
were Fiddle Wood shrub import
ed from Australia.
Our spring is the Australian Au-
tumn Won know and this plant clingS
to it's old habits still and goes through
it's fall changes now.
We saw the famous lily fields. but
they are not yet in bloom. only
the people on the islands. more than |
two-thirds, are negroes. All that we
saw were well dressed, and looked
we'll fed.
There were three English Men-of-
War in Bermuda harbor, and we car
ried down from Halifax half dozen
young officers going to join these,
and our second cabin quite full of
British Jack Tars. 1t was a sight to
see them all coming aboard in the
twilight the evening before we left
Halifax. They landed out of row
boats and came clambering in. each
carrying sausage shaped bundle
bound with cord and wrapped in can
vas, his kit"
Since we left Bermuda all the port
holes have been screened. the heavy
taI