Equatorial America Descriptive of a Visit to St. Thomas, Martinique, Barbadoes, and the Principal Capitals of South America   By: Maturin Murray Ballou (1820-1895)

DESCRIPTIVE OF A VISIT TO ST. THOMAS MARTINIQUE, BARBADOES, AND THE PRINCIPAL CAPITALS OF SOUTH AMERICA

BY

MATURIN M. BALLOU

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BOSTON AND NEW YORK HOUGHTON, MIFFLIN AND COMPANY The Riverside Press, Cambridge 1892

Copyright, 1892, BY MATURIN M. BALLOU.

All rights reserved.

The Riverside Press, Cambridge, Mass., U. S. A. Electrotyped and Printed by H. O. Houghton & Company.

DEDICATED TO CAPTAIN E. C. BAKER OF THE STEAMSHIP VIGILANCIA WITH WARM APPRECIATION OF HIS QUALITIES AS A GENTLEMAN AND AN ACCOMPLISHED SEAMAN

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PREFACE.

"I am a part of all that I have seen," says Tennyson, a sentiment which every one of large experience will heartily indorse. With the extraordinary facilities for travel available in modern times, it is a serious mistake in those who possess the means, not to become familiar with the various sections of the globe. Vivid descriptions and excellent photographs give us a certain knowledge of the great monuments of the world, both natural and artificial, but the traveler always finds the reality a new revelation, whether it be the marvels of a Yellowstone Park, a vast oriental temple, Alaskan glaciers, or the Pyramids of Ghiza. The latter, for instance, do not differ from the statistics which we have so often seen recorded, their great, dominating outlines are the same as pictorially delineated, but when we actually stand before them, they are touched by the wand of enchantment, and spring into visible life. Heretofore they have been shadows, henceforth they are tangible and real. The best descriptions fail to inspire us, experience alone can do that. What words can adequately depict the confused grandeur of the Falls of Schaffhausen; the magnificence of the Himalayan range, roof tree of the world; the thrilling beauty of the Yosemite Valley; the architectural loveliness of the Taj Mahal, of India; the starry splendor of equatorial nights; the maritime charms of the Bay of Naples; or the marvel of the Midnight Sun at the North Cape? It is personal observation alone which truly satisfies, educating the eye and enriching the understanding. If we can succeed in imparting, a portion of our enjoyment to others, we enhance our own pleasure, and therefore these notes of travel are given to the public.

M. M. B.

CONTENTS.

CHAPTER I.

PAGE

Commencement of a Long Journey. The Gulf Stream. Hayti. Sighting St. Thomas. Ship Rock. Expert Divers. Fidgety Old Lady. An Important Island. The Old Slaver. Aborigines. St. Thomas Cigars. Population. Tri Mountain. The Negro Paradise. Hurricanes. Variety of Fish. Coaling Ship. The Firefly Dance. A Weird Scene. An Antique Anchor 1

CHAPTER II.

Curious Seaweed. Professor Agassiz. Myth of a Lost Continent. Island of Martinique. An Attractive Place. Statue of the Empress Josephine. Birthplace of Madame de Maintenon. City of St. Pierre. Mont Pelée. High Flavored Specialty. Grisettes of Maritinque. A Botanical Garden. Defective Drainage. A Fatal Enemy. A Cannibal Snake. The Climate 33

CHAPTER III.

English Island of Barbadoes. Bridgetown the Capital. The Manufacture of Rum. A Geographical Expert. Very English. A Pest of Ants. Exports. The Ice House. A Dense Population. Educational. Marine Hotel. Habits of Gambling. Hurricanes. Curious Antiquities. The Barbadoes Leg. Wakeful Dreams. Absence of Twilight. Departure from the Island 51

CHAPTER IV.