| 1 |
 |
“..., rendering these months par-
ticularly pleasing, and, speaking generally, year in
and year out, the favourable features of the West
Indian climate far outnumber the bad.
There are well-qualified physicians in each Health,
of the British islands and British Guiana; but
tourists who adopt the usual precautions as to
diet and mode of living should not require to
have recourse to their services. It used to be
said that the best way to ensure good health was
to keep the pores of the skin open and the mouth
shut! Owing to the moisture in the air and the...”
|
|
| 2 |
 |
“... somewhat of a movable
feast. It may be put on the table at any time
between 10 and 12.30, according to the locality,
and it will be found to partake more of the nature
of luncheon at home. Tea follows at 4.30 or 5,
and dinner at the usual time of 7 or 7.30. At
first, the difference in the hour of meals in various
islands is rather bewildering!, but the visitor soon
gets accustomed to the changed conditions.
The cost of a visit to the West Indies must,
of course, depend very largely upon the tastes
and the temperament of the individual. While...”
|
|
| 3 |
 |
“...GENERAL INFORMATION
ii
at sea, there are, after the ticket has been paid
for, no expenses except for wines, &c., and the in-
evitable tips. With regard to the latter, it may be "Tips.”
mentioned that to ensure the best attendance it is
a good plan to give the cabin steward and waiter
their tips in two instalments, half at the begin-
ning of the voyage, with a promise of further
largess if satisfaction is given. * For a voyage of
twelve days it is usual to give the cabin steward
£1, the waiter at table ios., the bathroom steward
5s., and the boots 2s. 6d. On shore, ten percent,
of the amount of the charge or bill will be found
to be a good basis for calculating the amount of
tips. At most of the hotels and lodgings in the Hotels and
West Indies, from 8s. 4d. to 12s. 6d. per day is Lodgings'
the minimum charge for board and lodging. Added
to this must be the expenses of various expeditions,
involving the use of buggies, horses, boats and
trains but the tourist will...”
|
|
| 4 |
 |
“...28 GUIDE TO THE WEST INDIES
should invariably be worn next the skin, and
linen suits, which are provocative of chills,
avoided. Warm clothing must not be doffed
too soon at sea, and on no account should it
be sent home, as it is essential for the homeward
voyage. For men, thin flannel suits, breeches
and gaiters, and thin dress clothes, canvas shirts,
with merino or silk underwear, and pyjamas, are
most suitable. Ladies should take their usual
thin summer dresses, but shun openwork blouses,
which are a source of great attraction to mos-
quitoes, and, owing to the action of the sun, give
the wearer the appearance of being tattooed when
she appears in evening dress. Hats should be
shady and of as light weight as possible, and
ladies should always wear wool or silk next the
skin. They should also provide light wraps for pro-
tection against chills in the evenings, and heavier
ones for travelling by sea. For night attire a
material called India Gauze, mixed with silk...”
|
|
| 5 |
 |
“...36 GUIDE TO THE WEST INDIES
concluded, that our little leakie companion,” a
small vessel which had been keeping up with
them, “ was buried.” Off the islands called “ the
deserts,” a sail was sighted which “ we doubted was
a Turke”; and “made us putt ourselves in a posture
of defence, and the next morning, findeing that he
had chased us all night ... we prepared all things
for a fight, and continued in that posture all the
day and night.” On arriving at Madeira they were
“ verry neare loosing our shippe, the master being
unacquainted, and comeing too boldely in near
the shoar, in a daingerous place.” On Tuesday,
the 18th, they crossed the Tropic of Cancer, and
were much diverted by the flying fish, “which,
though common at sea, may be a subject of wonder
to such as are home-bred . . . they fly in whole
shoales, but not very farre, for no sooner are
their wings dry, but they drop into theire element,
the water. It is usual for them to fly into the
shipps. We had one...”
|
|
| 6 |
 |
“...GENERAL INFORMATION 41
within the usual limits of ordinary parcel delivery
express for a special fee of 5d. prepaid.
The population of the West Indies, taken as a Population,
whole, is of a very cosmopolitan character, includ- j
ing as it does Negroes, East Indians, Chinese,
Corsicans, and Portuguese; besides the English, |
Spanish, French, Dutch, and Danish Colonists and
their descendants, and latterly, too, Americans.
The larger islands — Cuba, San Domingo, and
Jamaica—appear to have been inhabited at the
time of their discovery by a gentle and timid race,
the Arouagues, while the smaller islands were
peopled by the Charaibes or Caribs, who arrived
from unknown parts in fleets of canoes. The
Arouagues or Arawaks were soon exterminated;
but the Caribs were for very many years a source
of trouble. Even now there are many families of
pure-blooded Caribs in Dominica and a few also
in St. Vincent, where nearly all the remaining
people of this race in the island lost...”
|
|
| 7 |
 |
“...GENERAL INFORMATION 51
by the wealthier classes, and of course a know-
ledge of these languages enhances the pleasure
of a visit to Venezuela.
Jane Anne Smith, the buxom black laundress The
who used to salute passengers on their arrival at Laundry'
Barbados, taking from them their “ washing ” and
selling to them her famous Barbados hot sauce is
—alas!—no more; but she has many imitators.
Some are good and others exceedingly bad. It
behoves tourists therefore to make the closest in- I
quiries before submitting their garments to them.
In most of the islands the laundry work is good,
and the hotels are in touch with the best artistes.
In British Guiana the Chinese undertake washing 1
with the usual satisfactory results. They are past
masters in the art of cleansing clothes.
BOOKS ON THE WEST INDIES
Many books have been written about the West
Indies; but most of the older and standard works
are now, unfortunately, out of print. The follow-
ing list includes the...”
|
|
| 8 |
 |
“... afterwards, it was re-
quisite to open the vault again for an admission
of a member of the family, when the coffins
were found to have been displaced as on the
former occasion; the family now became anxious
to ascertain the truth, and particular pains were
taken in securing the wall, and fine sand was
thrown over the floor of the vault, so that, if a
person should enter it from any other part than
the usual entrance, marks might be left behind.
Lord Combermere was residing in 1820 in the
neighbourhood of the church, and, having been...”
|
|
| 9 |
 |
“...JAMAICA 107
Officer, Colonial Secretary, Attorney - General,
Director of Public Works, and Collector-General,
and such other persons, not exceeding ten in
number, as His Majesty may from time to time
appoint, or as the Governor may from time to time
provisionally appoint, and fourteen persons elected
by the people. The Council is dissolved at the end
of five years from the last preceding general election,
if it has not been previously dissolved. There is
also a Privy Council, with the usual powers and
functions of an Executive Council. It consists
of the Lieutenant-Governor, if any; the Senior
Military Officer in command, the Colonial Secre-
tary, and Attorney-General, and such other per-
sons, not to exceed eight in number, as may be
named by the King, or provisionally appointed
by the Governor subject to the approval of His
Majesty. The Governor presides at each meet-
ing, and the Governor and two members form a
quorum.
Jamaica has many very good hotels...”
|
|
| 10 |
 |
“...164 GUIDE TO THE WEST INDIES
it is nearly twice as much. The island is practi-
cally free from hurricanes, there having been four
occasions only on which it is known to have been
visited by gales of hurricane strength. Near the
sea-level the maximum mean temperature is 90°
Fahr., and the minimum 68° Fahr., but in the
mountains it often falls below 6o° Fahr. The
death rate is only 21 per thousand, a figure which,
bearing in mind the usual infant mortality, must
be considered low.
History. It is not known when Grenada received its
present name, but it appears that it was called
Concepcion by Columbus, who discovered it in
1498, on his third journey. In 1650 Du Parquet,
the Governor of Martinique, who was a nephew
of D’Esnambuc, the first French coloniser in the
West Indies, having purchased the island from
the French “ Company of the Islands of America,”
started for it immediately with 200 men, and,
having taken formal possession of it, built a fort
there and...”
|
|
| 11 |
 |
“...ST. VINCENT
i85
by the weirdness of the scene we had witnessed,
and covered with the still thickly falling grey
dust. . . . The awful scene was again renewed
yesterday (Thursday, the 8th) and again to-day.
At about 8 a.m. the volcano shot out an imijiense
volume of material which was carried in a cloud
over Georgetown and its neighbourhood, causing
not only great alarm, but compelling the people
by families to seek shelter in other districts.”
The usual plan adopted by visitors who wish
to see the crater is to leave Kingstown by the
mail canoe which starts each day at 2 p.m. for
Chateaubelair, calling at the small leeward towns
of Layou and Barrouaille en route, and arriving
at 6 p.m., after giving the passengers an admirable
view of the forest-clad hills of the island and the
narrow valleys which run down to the sea. Pre-
vious to starting, however, the permission of the
chief of police should be obtained for the use
of the Government Rest Room at the police...”
|
|
| 12 |
 |
“...NEVIS
227
topher and Nevis, which also includes the island
of Anguilla. They were united by the Federal Act
No. 2 of 1882.
Charlestown.—The hotel of the heirs of Hotels.
Mrs. Hart and that of Mrs. Daniell offer fair but
limited accommodation—Pension 6s. per day, or
£,2, 2S. per week. Special terms are quoted for
families or for a lengthened visit. Visitors pro-
vided with good references can also obtain lodg-
ings with private families and live en pension.
Several merchants in Charlestown have good Means of
buggies, with one or two horses, but no fixed Conveyance-
tariff is adhered to. For the drive round the Carriages,
island, a distance of 20 miles, ^1, os. rod. is the
usual fare; but for shorter distances a special
agreement has to be made beforehand. Riding Horses,
horses can be obtained for about is. per hour.
There is a tennis and croquet club, which has Sports,
its headquarters in the Government grounds at Tennis.
Queen’s House, about a quarter of a mile...”
|
|
| 13 |
 |
“... was first
settled by the French in 1647. The western
coast is low, but the island rises gradually towards
the north. Its population is about 14,000, and
the soil is productive and yields the usual West
Indian products abundantly.
The administration of Guadeloupe and its de- Constitu-
pendencies is vested in a Governor, who is assistedtion'
by a Privy Council and has under his order a
Director of the Interior, a Procurator-General, and
a Paymaster. There is also an elective General
Council. The colony is divided into three arron-...”
|
|
| 14 |
 |
“... the island Hayti, the “Mountainous
Country,” and Quisquica, the “Vast Country”;
but Columbus changed the name to Espagnola, or
Little Spain, which was latinised to Hispaniola.
Adventurers from Europe, attracted by the usual
tales of gold, flocked to the island, and after thirty
years the natives, whom they cruelly maltreated,
were crushed out of existence. In 1505 negroes
were first introduced into the island, and by royal
edict, in the year 1517, the importation of 4000
negroes a year was authorised. In 1630 a mixed...”
|
|