The Birmingham age-herald., 1920-03-07

| great island of Java was mentioned, along with other big Dutch insular possessions; and in the list little Curacoa found a place.
 1 If the ex-Kaiser is really to be disposed of in this way it must be said that wSyee solutions of his problem might be found l than an enforced residence in Curacoa. | Whereas Java, Sumatra and other islands ruled over by Holland are vast in ex- | tent and thiclSly peopled, presenting pos abilities of escape and even revolt, Cura- coa is far more like St. Helena, to wNth Napoleon was relegated after Waterloo. It is a mere .speck in the Caribbean Sea, a few miles off the coast of Venezuela, so barren that scarcely anything can be raised on it. and peopled by few thou sand inhabitants, mostly blacks, the ma jority of whom are huddled in the one town of the island, Wilemstad. just as the bulk of St. Helena's small popula- ton is centered at Jamestown, the islands 1 capital.
 1 Curacoa is scarcely known to any ex- cept those who travel to Venezuelan ports, for it has been for many yeArs a regular stopping place of the American line of steamers connecting New York with La Guayra, the seaport of Curocas, the Venezuelan capital From Curacoa 1 this line also maintains a branch serv- 1 ice to Maracaibo, an important Nenez- uelan coffee port.
 Curacoa is delighsfully picturesque. The town of Willemstad reminds the vis- 1 itor of "Spotless Town advertisements. ! It is gabled of course did not the Dutch build it?-and nestles on the arid edge of the blue Caribbean in quaint conglom- eration of gaily-colored buildings. l Steamships enter it's harbor between 1 two tiny forts, more like toys than act 1 ual Notifications. Beyond these, On both sides of narrow neck of deep water, the town of Willemstad is clustered, con- nected by bridge of boats which oblig- ! ingly swings aside to permit the steamer | to pass. Boats manned by stalwart ne- groes, swarm around the steamer, black
 boys swim to it's sides and dive with l fsh-like skill for pennies, and solemn l Dutch customs and police officials w~.h i cooked hats and short sabres cdkne iabcard.
 1 If the ex-K aiser is lodged in Willemstad l itself he may be quartered Tn one of the old forts guarding the harbor entrance or in another old fort perched on hill 1 a bit inland and commanding the town | it's approaches. Then again he may have allotted to him one of the big, gaily- colored villas in the aristocratic section of 1 Scharlo where the rich merchants ol Willemstad live.
 1 That will be different enough from ne in his palace at Potsdam, but not SC l much as his life will be if the Dutch au- thorities decide to give him Curacoa country residence. The "country' on the 1 island is few square miles of stubble- covere dground, parched by the sun | showing ever water course, dotted wltf villas whose owners seem to initiate the lcomfortabIe rural conditions of Holianc l by placarding them with high-sountne Dutch names and tumbie-down novels ol l the rural negroes.
 /, So dry is Curacoa that the problem o1 drinking water sometimes becomes quite I serious. On every house is a cistern tt
 catch rain water, which. after Ions
 dry spell, tastes exceedingly brackish ane
 junnpalatable.
 The ex-ruler of Germany will have 2
 hard time finding diversion for himself
 in Curacoa. He may drive or ride oyel
 to an ostrich farm a few miles ouscf
 of Willemstad and gaze at the ungainl.
 birds quartered there; or he may pla.
 tennis on courts laid out behind one o
 the little forts guarding the harbor; Q he may take sea baths close by tand ge we'll pounded by a splendid surf; or par
 ticipate in the favorite diversion Q watching the steamers pick their wa.
 between the little forts to the vafiou anchorages in the harbor. Not very ex citing after having strutted for guar ter of century as the war lord of Ger many, And. of course, he may drink Hi Curacoa liquer which derives it's nam from the island, though much of it is nov made in Europe from orange peel grow elsewhere in the West Indies.
 There would be little possibility for Will liam to escape from Curocoa, if the Du.c, exercised close surveillance over hin He might try to bribe the skipper Of