| Show WAKEMANS wanderings feb 6 1893 when I 1 first tramped tr over ver the heights of Nas ciar dosi descending ending into the valley beyond and saw saw spread bea before ore me the bay of st paul a sense of awe mingled with glorious elation came with the stillness and beauty of the spot where the heroic apostle tle was shipwrecked the ne bay vve is about two miles long and one jn in breadth is situated on the northern cost of malta and is hardly distant a brisk two hours walk from valetta the c chief abi rbi city of M malta alta countless excursions are made hither by water from maltas Y s cap capital ital and often the roads are figee with all manner of vehicles conveying pious or curious pilgrims I 1 preferred fa arv coming in the early morning and ane As I 1 stood on heights the sun was just u st rising above the promontory of ras el kaura its rays fell softly upon n the sleeping waters they gave the little memorial chapel a bright and smiling face they deepened the shadows on the eastern shore where fishermen were lazily spreading their nets they pierced ced the die copses and chines of the idel liba slopes disclosing the huts buts and cabins of the lower folk who are nearly as naked and quite as listless of civilization as were their barbarian forefathers among whom st paul was cast nearly 2000 2000 2 years ago they mellowed the grays of the massive walls of the ancient palace which crowns the Mal dalliba Afelt ioa liba rocks to the northwest and where the little island of greier like a bit of the cliffs tumbled into the sea at the north showed its irony surface between the blue of the bay and the sapphire of the sea they flooded the great statue of the saint with such transcendent shine and seeming that the quickened fancy for an instant at least swept across the centuries and basked in in the very presence of that far and mighty soul A winding road skirts the beautiful boa bay AV A ancient wall half hidden with and flowers forms a blunda bounda boundary with a second pleasant roadway behina behind the fishermen with their nets some donkeys grazing at the edge ot of le the hill sli slopes oes seagulls in countless numbers and a half naked lad urging alon along a herd of goats WM with N rocks and pebbles e ate S were the only living things in in view view soon lp a kinny faced priest joined me rae we wandered down the road together arte rte had I 1 came with the key of the chapel W anich WN I 1 is set on that point of the shore 4 an which tradition holds pauls bark was yewed ye ced As we catbe leisurely along the shore something in the water attracted my companions pA gions attention we stepped closer to the wimpling edge of the slee sleeping p I 1 I 1 aay av the de face ace of the fhe priest showed ame momentary tary excitement and he be made the sign OP of the cross there softly bumping in g against a low lying shelving roc rock k A boated fed a water logged piece of abrose spar opar wreckage flashing instantly to the fancy a wilder scene of nearly 2000 years ago go when the fearless apostle found a hospitable friend in the chief man of the te island it proved a startling in quent to my guide he recalled the tradition that since st pauls shipwreck within this very bay no craft had ever gope gone to pieces on this part of the coast and pot not even so trifling a hint of the terrors af the sea had ever come to the X bore s w had jut just seen and much disturbed he be led th the wy tp 0 the chapel it is a tiny chappl chapel with an in interior 4 bior of utmost simplicity I 1 put but threet three of its pictures whose subjects subjects are ae the shipwreck the miracle of t the e viper and 64 the p healing bealing of publius father are remarkable while the yearly votive offerings toe the goon good father told me aej are very great the friesss priests ests adios and Ole blessings sings followed loll owed m me e Fri from rom the place and as I 1 turned my steps towards ancient citta vecchia the last object in st pauls bay ay my eyes rested rented upon was the ledge of straggling gAng rocks where the two seas met it w was as rimmed with a shimmer of glis glistening g ripples as tiny shining and slumberous as though but e echoing ch the dreadful song of sirens sired inviting to a heaven of endless sleep from my habit of wandering dering alone and much in the country in foreign lands I 1 have come to regard their birds as my most charming chance acquaintances I 1 can recall no place where their companionship has seemed so enlivening and pricious to me as in the almost sterile island of malta absolutely without trees save those transplanted and nurtured like exotic flowers malta would hardly be regarded as the haunt of birds and yet I 1 have seen or heard here in midwinter nea nearly y every one of the loved and humble so sor well known in summertime summer time in north northern climes along ag the stony roads I 1 have kept ex pace with the hopping stonechat sto necha bat and redstart and chirped back a cheery greeting to flocks of chaffinches chaff inches among the white and gold of the orange trees climbing the dins cliffs or pothering adv among m the ruins the melodies of thrush or linnet have flooded the sky from the olive trees in the valleys below crossing the walled fields I 1 have often come upon hosts of titlarks tit larks rooks wrens crossbills cross bills and field fares all welcomed me in a homeland language I 1 knew the call notes of the reed sparrow peopled the famous island of the tha sword and aad cowl with olden forms ea and faces and as the balmy evenings came the son songs gs of abo abe blackbirds thrilled me with half forgot ten voices of ever haunting days and ways this recalls the exquisite pleasure I 1 have enjoyed from my acquaint acquaintance arice with the birds ind and especially the song birds of cuba cuba their variety and melody roundabout the grounds of old plantations are ravishing it has hs been written that what tropical caf birds gain in brilliancy of plumage they loose in variety and quality bality of song that is not true true in cuba aa the fhe birds seeria seem numberless their voices and singing are startlingly beyond anything possible for one to copie conie upon at any one time in the states on one occasion when riding from trinidad but a short distance into the vale del aguacate I 1 saw eight eighteen aen distinct species of balds birds the crow the parrot the indigo bird the pa roquet the lapwing the oriole the flamingo the rodin robin the he brown pelican the pigeon the mockingbird mocking bird the canary the golden winged wood woodpecker ecker the english ladybird the bluebird blue cd bird the ibis the catbird cat bird and the humming bird of which which there are said to be sixty varieties in cuba all of these birds are to be seen or or heard about country homes fd mid besides I 1 have passed char charming ming not hobia tr in awo of jf as papy many more 4 of 4 which r gadded the plantation trees ic shrubs bs and friedges theirs as surely as their hutnan human owners among these were the following folio wing the which live by b s sucking ki honey f the flowers they hey have brilliant green green jackets with yellow vests As large as our robin they live in gourd shaped double windowed nests attached to the under side of large tropic tr leaves the male is ruminative but its mate is full of joyous song the rayitos ate ale as large as our southern mockingbird mocking bird biro and in form fon and action resemble theu them their backs ar are blue black and th they ey have gorgeous yellow breasts and 4 a yellow slashing along each wing their songs are precisely like those of the canary but holder bolder and str stronger the negritos negri tos are here called the bak canary birds their win wings have a few few dainty white feathers and their singing is marvelous the sava neros are delightful inhabitants of the shorter cuban grasses and have the form of our thrush with dark puce brown feathers delicately mottled clinging close to the frame and their cheery chatter is endless other frequenters of the ground and grasses about plantation houses bouses are the and the they are alike black and nd in their resemblance to the american amer I 1 can blackbird black bird in inform form and movement both are melodious but noisy they flock in great numbers and ee g klee kl ki ee tug ing kl ee with the rhythmic modulations of silver bells first the sound their triple noes notes with rising scale as if questioning then from hundreds of hidden places answer is made in descending aca scale I 1 e by th the e the notes are almost identical simply reversed A singular fact is that when the form former biag their tails spread pread laterally ater and the latter perpendicularly thousands at one time will flock about these thaw home spots ringing ringing these bird voice chimes until the din is is often startling the gabreros are between the mock ing bird and eazary in size and are very beautiful they are a mottled blaak yellow and red in color one of their w interesting te characteristics is to eat so freely as to barely enable them to remain i upon their branch of shrub when they twitter and sing with wondrous wondrous won arous and plaintive sweetness two dainty species are the tome grine del pinar at and id the pio both are much smaller than the smallest canary and but a trifle larger than the hummingbird humming bird for its size the former has the most striking plumage pluma of all cuban birds with a robin hood jacket of brightest green its breast is set with a silver crescent while a gleaming black plume like comb surmounts its tiny head its notes are similar to those of the american robin but with more of the piccolo in them than the flute the is is smaller with a black and white back a white breast and a red neck he is an incessant inow sant singer with a pretty variety of trilled notes fiat but the are the buffoons of these plantation choristers cho they are the size of our wrens of ash color mottled with black and yellow Lw with yellow bills and feet their impish activity Is astounding biffi differing i 1 n from the crow magpie and mockingbird mocking moc ln g bird ird they possess many of the qualities of each though their gibes taunts and tea sings seem directed against other birds rather than humans est U imitative paw powers ers are marvelous wh M d the notes ea of a song birds to a nicety of tone and modulation and their range of mimicry reaches to fair imitation of the ing of a horse while their saucy pranks are supported by more than bravado for while each is a confirmed in bird strife the rascals are without exception undaunted fighters A curious incident of a great industry i having almost its origin and certainly deriving deriving its necessary physical support from fy om a childrens game came to my notice recently in labrador this game is called copy it is similar under its peculiar conditions to that of your own children when they boisterously follow your leader indeed it is a wild and dangerous pastime but is heartily encouraged b by y parents as at the basis of all success in seal hunting when the ice begins breaking up in march all labrador and newfoundland children hail the arrival of their annual play spell with joyous delight coping consists in leaping from one floating slab on pan of ice to another the most daring of leaders are selected and the sport is followed with tremendous vigor so ion long as the floating ice remains its utility fies res in its educative power the very expertness and bravery thus engendered are the supreme requisites in youths and men as seal hunters in the middle of the narrow straits of cf belle isle between newfoundland and labrador stands weird desolate belle isle itself the first land sighted on the grew some coast there is a lighthouse on its southern headland but no other sign of human habitation the island is simply a tremendous monolith of stone nine nine miles long and three broad rising precipitously from the sea at the outer entrance of the strait with not an iota of verdure upon its iron like sides and top I 1 once sailed close enough to belle isle in a little schooner to supply its hardy keeper with a few newspapers and some comforting american tobacco which prompted this reminiscence from the skipper of our craft yes he said ruminatively only once a year any government dessl lands there and the storms are so terrible that every time we sailors pass we dread to look up there fearing the ligh light lus III 11 be blown away how hard does the wind blow well I 1 cant rightly give ye the velocity but I 1 can furnish facts twenty years ago n I 1 well remember hima him a keeper named vaughn had charge of the light he got sort 0 hankering han kenn kerin arter green things awful foolish but taus hard to git any body to stay there at all so they lowed his scheme for a garding they took hull boatloads boat loads of soil up there in n made him a garding in n acre big would grow on it but he liked to dig in it pr grobly obly one evenin a chirlin wh irlin sort of storm riz anz in n sorter kept all night when vaughn poked hi hh i head out in the mornin he see the garding nowhere he know at lust but he was a beetle confused disselt his an climbed back an took his bearens be arina arins but ther was no garding nowhere certain that tor nader had jest yanked up the hull bull sile an spilled it all over th lantic alantic Lan tic vaughn h had ad spent he did he stand that so he threw up the job an took to chovin sh ovin seals A few years since I 1 found a lighthouse keeper in still greater misfortune than the belle isle keeper who lost his garden this was while coasting among the bahama islands it was at double shot head ke keys s at the edge of the grand banks of bahama ahama which you would pas paes were you crossing the banks Cub award as you entered the gulf of mexico it is a dangerous spot in navigation low ugly looking dreary and juts out of the ea savagely the english government has a lighthouse here A half dozen men who make salt and the lighthouse keeper and his wife are the only souls who have existed here for a score of years the woman is a character in england she was such a shrew that the government efti ment finally took cognizance of her P powers 0 w ers of home and neighborhood ruin an and d provided provided her husband who was a on the devenshire Doven shire coast with his forlorn and isolated charge the woman is forty incarnate fiends besides she is a pirate in her way alone and unaided she will haunt the channel for merchant craft plying between cuba and american ports demanding tribute skippers have a wholesome fear of her tongue and a super tinious dread of her evil eye and will humbly toss her pork beef beef sacks of onions or potatoes and the like glad to thus easily escape her wrath and maledictions male dictions her husband is an humble prisoner and slave several half serious but altogether ridiculous attempts to rescue him have been made by wreckers and other hunting the floridan and bahama reefs and keys and in each dinst instance a nce this virago of double shot head keys has nearly clubbed them to death for their pains EDGAR L WAKEMAN |
