Year: 1866

F-N"-'


TRAVELLING C0RRESPONDENCE


MOBILE, ALA, June 6, 1866


trip to Mobile, thanks to the Harris & Morgan
line Of steamers may be an event of every day
occurrence, and although travel Is dull during
the sumner season the passage is still sufi.
cienty often made by most Of your readers as to
require but little description Having recently
made the experiment upon the good boat Louise,
we are prepared to speak authoritatiyely, aud the
truth Of the matter is that the landscape is re-
markabIy monotonoas. The dead even line Of the
Louisiana shore is almost unbroken by even the
sight of tree, and appears to produce nothing
but rank grass About dusk you pass Fort Pike,
which guards the Rgolets, and where garrison
Of some three hundred troops still maintain hos.
tities against the mosquitoes. The light now
falling you altogether, You accept the suggestion
made by The stewards bell, and the square meal
which he spreads before you allows no room for
complaint.


Just as we we're leaving the wharf at the lake,
we were furnished with an incident which caused
us for several minutes to hold our breath. The
boat had proceeded as far as hundred yards from
the landing, when we were all startled by a man
with pipe in his mouth running at full speed
and jumping over the railing. have never seen
anything done more coolly. He seemed to turn
head downwards without any effort, just as he
reached the water, and to emit puff of smoke
before going under. We all thought for a second
that the man was crazy and bent on suicide. and
if had not been in my best suit, | don't know
but what should have jumped over too, to save
him. But he soon almost sprung out of the water
his pipe still between his teeth, and waving US
with it polite adieu, struck out boldly for the
shore.


AT night we sat upon the deck and watched the
sparks which swiftly sped behind us, and which
reminded old soldiers of mortar shells at night
during bombardment. We occupied our time
pleasantly enough in talking and smoking, with
our legs laid over the railings, and nought marred
our contentment but the occasional passage of a
restless spirit which would involve the necessity
of taking them down.


Travelling over with US was colonel of the
Federal army, whose political views were not as
those Of old Confederates, and with whom we did
derce battle about almost every action that has
transpired, or principle that has been broached,
by one side or the other, for the last five years
He was so crazy, and yet honest in all his ultra
views, that really felt compelled to take pity
upon him and instil into him some sound Southern
sentiment. He, however, showed signs of i'm
proyement, and towards the last was willing to
admit that we were not so wide apart and SO
wrong as he had thought. We closed our discus
sion by drink together and perhaps parted on
both sides with better opinion of each others
views.


was not greatly struck with the appearance of
things upon my arrival at Mobile. The town, in
point of fact, is dull Those who made any money
on cotton during the last season have already left
to spend it.


1t was raining during the few hours of my stay,
but conscientiOusly stopped around through the
principal streets, and rode new city railroad
which a fat gentleman, whom took to be direc-
tor, said was to develop something or other. A
couple of youths in Confederate uniform run the
machine upon which l travelled, whose style of
doing things led you to infer that they had not
long been in power. The crank with which the
mule was ground in seemed to be deficient it
generally took the combined strength of both
engineers to put on the breaks, and when it
stopped it would be at the wrong street. Once or
twice on our route we stopped for several minutes
and rang both BELLS with which the car was pro-
vided, until the two or three passengers within
were nearly deaf This, it was thought, tended
10 encourage travel.


But our boat is about to cross the bay, and |
discontinue my adventures for the present to zeal
and direct NORM.