NASSAU, ‘1 CUBA m MEXICO.
1. I... . ‘ ‘ -, ' ._ r. ..1. a \ - ‘ .
‘ UNBIVALnEp . TOURS are run , enammgp
LANDS or .“SONG AND. SUNSHINE._’f: ,
m MAGNIFICENT Freer 01*an warm,
_—r'aou THE .NOR'rnnanwINrnR iro‘ mu
BALMY SOUTH m THIRTYeSIX HOURS—
ALL THE' compare: ' or MODERN. ,
OCEAN rnAv'EnéA' ‘13an Descent
' 9 . "new or FAMOUS :COUN'rRIEs.‘
It would be; difiiCult matter to state accu-
rately the number of travellers who start out
,each year from New—anork in guest of pleasure,
=“health and recreation. Their, name is legion.
~Whiie many pursue the.beaten paths which take
I'them through Europe, there is a. large number
,ofpersonsiwho want an entire change of air
BIN}! ~
and scenery. Travel in parts. of the globe which
brings- before them a life differing from exist-
en’cj’e‘at home-is soughtiO’r. Thousands of Euro— ; world!
pea'n- travellers have grown weary of the sights
made familiar with-constant contact. and are
“continually looking for ""«new' lands to conquer." 4
The problem seems to have met with a happy ’
. solution. lathe- trips to Southern points such as
1 Nassau, Cuba and Mexico. - The Ward Line,
WLOSe Steamshlps universe these Various routes, ;
has on the ocean a number of handsome,
splendid passenger vessels which give the trav-
eller every comfort—and luxury. These '. fine
boats of the New-York and Cuba Mail Steam-
ship Company are operated. hetWeen~ NeW'YOTk}
and Nassau, blew-Providence; New-York and
Havana; _.New-York and ,Sjantiago and 'Cien- .
fuegos, and New—York, and the following Mexi- -
__can ports": Vera Cruz, Tampicd, Progreso, Tux-
"p‘am, Campeche, Frontera and Laguna. Cennecg
at one of the old masters for painting lobsters:
tion is 'made direct for Mexico City, both from
'Ztthe ports 'of‘ Vera Cruz and Tampico, by rail.
'By these means a variety of unrivalled tours-
» . brief or extended—may be made, the passenger
rquvickl'y escaping from the rigors of winter in the
" lobsters fresh from the water, and white crabs".
as well. On the wharf are many vdarldes black.
"'_‘North and revelling in the midst of balmy scenes ,
. in'the' lands of “song and sunshine.”
In view of the newand‘ elegantly appointed
full~ power steel passenger ships, offering all.
the conveniences of the most modern sea-going
~ travel, including electric lights, large and airy
staterooms, perfect beds fiand an unexcelled
cuisine, it is no wonder that the saloon pas-
sengers on this line come from the ranks of
the best society of the United States, Canada,
'Europe, Cuba. and Mexico. It hardly seems pos-
Isible that within thirty-sixhours the cold blasts
of the Northern winter can be left behind and
the blue waters of the Gulf Stream reached.
The run to Nassau, happily named the ”Isle of
June," is. usually made in [eighty hours, arriv-'
ing there to land at daylight on Monday morn-
ing, leaving NeweYork on the previous Thursday
at 3 p. m. Those who have made this trip say
that there is no spot on the Western Hemisphere
which has'imore to delight thesenses in so small
on area. It is a lovelylittle dot on the vast
expanse of the blue Southern. ocean. One of the
best hotels the wide world over is the Royal
Victoria, which. was erected in the flush of war
times.
upon it, and to-day, with its large, pleasant
rooms. its grand sweeping piazzas, magnificent
views and every modern convenience, it reflects
the highest credit upon the clever American
architect, who has accomplished many works of
.a high order in his own native city. The table
is excellent, combining the luscious vegetables,
fish and turtle of Nassau with the choicest
meats and game from Fulton Market, which
are sent out in closed ice-boxes on every
steamer. . .
{The Royal Victoria was built by the «Govern-
.. ment in 1860 to meet demands that had grown
to be very great and pressing. It is constructed
principally of the native limestone, is four
stories high, and has three piazzas ten feet wide
surrounding it. As its site at the head of Par-
. liamentest. is ninety feet above tidewater, the
view frOm these piazzas, like the air that fans
them, ispxceptionally fine. Here, for the benefit
of those invalid-s who cannot journey about, is a
promenade of 1,000 feet. The town andIiarbor
Neither expense nor'labor was spared'
- Island passage, round the eastern coast of
- lie below, the adjacent islands and neighboring
villages are in .view, and the sea reaches awayf1
indefinitely. , The apartments in the first three'
stories are provided. with French easements,
giving access to the piazzas, each; door and
window having a fanlight. The house has bath-
rooms fitted for ,hot. or cold or salt or fresh
water, large and well-appointed parlors, and a
dining-room that will seat two hundred and fifty
persons comfortably.
The terms at the Royal Victoria are $2.50 and
upward per day, American currency. There are
other hotels and'boarding—houses at which good .
board can be secured at terms regulated to
-.v suit all classes of purses. When it is winter in
,' New-York thé’ mercury in Nassau rarely shows
an alteration of five degrees in temperature in
. one day, and in the whole season the extreme
points touched are but ten degrees .apart_-be_.
tween 68 degrees and 7-8 degrees. Here, for in-
sfance, is the showing of the average daily
temperature at 9 o’clock a. 113., according to the
“facial records: November, 74' degrees; Decem-
ber, 73 degrees; January, 70 degrees; February, .
.31 degrees; March, 72 degrees; April, 75 degrees. -
Nassau is the capital of New-Providence, the:
chief of the Bahama Islands. It is 960 miles
from New-York, a less distance than Chicago,
and has the most perfectly equa'ble, climate in;
the world. For more than a century it has been
‘theflpoint most favorei by persons desirous of .
eschping the severities of a Northern winter.
has advantages are: First, that it has the most
0 in vessel-s unsurpassed on thisior any other
. coast, and tenancies-it is 'sr-iuxunbusr snow-serif.
' of NewLEngland or the muddy streets of New-'
Vbanan'as.‘ the low Zamboth houses, the white
even and. salubrious climate in the» worild‘r
second, that it» is reached hyduie my short
and pleasant voyage of seventy to eighty hours
pefualitropic'al garden; The dist-view of misses
from the reassess, 4‘ where nursing-townie;
the warning Officer, , is indeed a I-tréat toner/res"
that have last gazed'_upon thesimwiaswmusu
York: 'The vessel is‘ln'darkfde‘epiblue woken,
but the 'ha‘r‘bor is: ash'eet .ofj'sparkling greens—l
with here and there a' pieced white, where jtfie'
water-“livery shoal- and ova-lies a bearer coral
orwhite sand. .With'in a stone’s throw. is Hog
Island, between theiseajud bay, ‘and back 0!-
all,‘ on .a gentle, slope, looking white and fresh
and-- clean to a degree; you would nothave be-,
lieved; poSSible, is, the capital of the-little-King-
dom of'Perpetual June. The waving palms, the
.streetse-these are novelties toa'n American, . and.1
imagine how pleasant his iceiings when he
leams__'that the-city is one of the cleanest in the.
Aslong ins you live you are likely to remember
your first impressions on landing. You glide,
Over water so clear iiha't you find it difficult
to believe that it has the depth they ascribe 'to-
it at points'where you can see the bottom; and.
as‘thefiransfer steamer reaches'the wharf. right.
in theheart {of the-town, you land your-self
surrounded? by-lfevessel-s, with'vstrange cargoes.
Here filigfiyload not Sponges, or whim," tor" the
cheaper graces, this is the supplystagnoupr the ..
'world,v"’the‘.yield amounting'tc at least afouarterf
ofna milliondollars' worth ayear, and3furnis'h-‘
Eng employment for very many little vessels and .
their crews. Here are the 'most lusciousrimelons g
and fruits and'vegetables, all strange to Norma
ern eyes. And here is "a cargo of fish unlike any- 0
thing we have in our Waters. ---‘.'.l‘he critics laugh;
red in a picture now in Rome, but here are red -
as night, but nearly all possessed of straight:4
and almost Grecian profiles, ,
Santiago de Cuba, the scene 10! the only landf
' ammo hermit" so? rim “ . ,
' 15.14. meanest an ,‘theV’TWest nuts, it not in
; but the heaviest vehicles. .
bathing and fishing in the harbor, and the boat;
America; certainly the oldest ofgany size on {the
streets, housesand general external appearance)
‘ilt'wmildnotia'stonlsh'columbus could'he see it to-
day. Where else scum-“he ~go and not be'V‘aston-
timeouts started mm it- to make thecon-
.rq‘iiest‘ of -Mexico. ‘i‘mea yolante—‘thiéh‘ is a.
New—York than a band or wild Indians in war
paint—éand‘fide slowly about ~ mum cool of the
tiny". : You see the heuses are only one story
"high. s'rh'at is a precaution against‘loss of life
by "earthquake. You can see in and through
them;.and very neat and cool the ones in the
nicest streets appear. Bent wood Or cane-seated
furniture, plenty of rockers-white walls, bare
rafters, and. stone floors are the rule. The ex-
ternalwalls are either of limestone, limestone
stained and painted, .or of a sort of primitive
p’lathin'g of tree—twigs, and branches covered with
aster :anddecay. “and you will see others that
have entirely =collapsed, along streets full or
some time So: shat-her. Twenty years or two
patterned tiles and every window fenced with
light ironwork. . ‘ , ~ - ‘
"If you admire femaiezbeanty,‘ walk up some
,Sistersz,otlgers have eyes of ebony, hair like jet,
ions.“ Howilg-mceful are their attitudes! It is
hours of daylight in this languid and most
young courtler occasionally steps up to the iron
bars :and steals a furtive' conversation. Wagons
are scarce, as they should be, for they are the
There is excellent
engagement flu-ring the “late war, hashée‘n :50,
log amid that exquisitewater scenery would
u
2“” - fifimum M" _
-‘a&*— a” ‘ ,_ :Lg' : IA"“’:’__ :1”? I“ . fi"
ONE OF THE WARD
oftentimes described that almost every school-'
boy in the land now knows ltslhis'tory. It has
been under American military government for
several months, and has quickly adjusted itself
to the new condition of affairs. In spite of all
this, the following description from the pen of
one who visited Santiago before the war is still.
of deep interest and attraction: .
“After leaving Nassau the steamers continue
to this port, some 560 miles distant from New-.
Providence, 9. run of about forty-six hours. It
is a most beautiful sail through the Crooked
Cuba,.so close to land sometimes that you could
almost toss the traditional biscuit ashore, and
then before you looms up the entrance to the
port of Santiago, an entrance so beautiful as to
'defy description. = .
“Suddenly you come upon an old yellow castle,
that almost makes you rub your eyes and doubt
what they show you. The high green bank 'has’
broken off almost precipitously, and at thef
fractured edge is this ancient Moorish strong-
hold, with extensions like roots of masonry:
reaching down the steep incline to the very sur- ‘
face of the water. Morro'Castle, at Havana, is;
modern beside it. It has little belfry archesi
every here and there, and singular towers and?
barred windows sifting light into cavernous dun-
geons, and stairs hollowed by the feet of half a
score of generations or more. You see soldiers
here and there, and learn that it is used as a
political prison, principally. On the ocean side,
under the fort, the sea has cut deeply into the
rock; how far it is not known, though it is said
by the natives that boatmen who ventured into
the cave never returned. Aswarthy pilot boards
your ship, orders her "about,’ as the soldiers say,
and you find that you are going into a. veritable
slit in the mountains; up what seems a narrow
high—walled river. Older travellers than you,
who have made the world their study, will tell
you that there is no other harbor to compare:
with this. Less than aweek ago shivering in a;
sleet storm. in NeweYvork; now cautiously. feel-
ing your way between the most luxuriant vege-
tation under a sky. of wondrous clearness, on
Water like molten emerald. and in the atmos-‘
phere of ,midsummerl. - -
“Now santiago lies before you, a spreading:
mass of low houses on a. mountain slope, pre—~
seating more than the colors of the rainbow,
for the citizens have utilized nearly every shade;
and tint in decorating the plaster wells of their
homes. It looks for all the world as if it [might
be in Algiers, Morocco or Tripoli. '
‘i 'I-‘Iardly has the great
LINE STEAMSHIPS.
(where there is good alligator shooting) to be
miles by rail, being through an exceptionally
beautiful country."
One is naturally apt to have his mental
membrances of the, Maine,
the Spaniards, “our late enemies.” All through
regaled with tales of sickness and starvation
and the many other terrors of a blockaded eity.
thrown off. American ideas and American san—
(itary systems will have 'soon converted Havana
into' one of the most charming spots in the
Antilles: Already engineers of the greatest, skill
. and experience have been at work on the prob--
lems of draining the city and ridding it of all
the germs of fever and disease. The late Colonel
scent to take up this work, but his sad and un-
timely death made it necessary to place the
work in charge of others who are expected to
carry it to a rapid completion. The Havana of
the future will be an entirely different city from
the Havana of a year ago. When all the en-
tangl-ing conditions of an international character
have become settled, there will be a travel from
this country to that port such as was never
handle the traffic, and already the management
has taken the necessary steps to equip the
lie demands.
Havana has a fine harbor, separated from the
sea by only a slender point of land, and empty-
own at New-York. 0n the one hand is the low,
a bluff, is the Monte Castle and the Cabanas.
No one needs to be reminded that Morro means
grim walls behind the castle, it was built aft-er
the English had captured 'Morro Castle in the
eighteenth century, and it- cost such a prodi-
gious amount that when the bills were submitted
.to Charles III, in Madrid, that witty .monarch
called forhis telescope.’ and. putting it out of
his pal-ace window, pretended to scan the horizon
in an attempt to see the distant fortification.
“It cost so much, ’ said he, “that Iishould think
’it- must be big enough to be seen from here."
A yet more modern fortress is opposite on the
city side. .
' Wherever the eye rests the scene is wholly
unfamiliar to Northern eyes.
the breeze. The houses that are separated from
shores are low, rambling, and either white
or, more add still, blue, or , pink, or green.
“You are in a. city founded by Velasquez in
vehicle-mat would make a bi ‘r’ ‘s 't‘on in- ,
' - 4 gge sen a l ~guides youto the landing before you have satis.
hundred years have passed without their being
’ mended. sci—they are not mended now. You will‘
see every house roofed with cumbrous scall'op- .
the custom-Io:- them to while away the last cool
‘ - to a; minimum. Leaving Vera Cruz in the-"early
l
continent So old iii-it that in its broad details {its ,
plaster. ‘You will see them in all stages of dis- ‘
. smiles and gaps, results ofone‘ thing or another, ‘
not the—streets closafito the Plaza. just before:
‘sunset, and see the young women in these wing
flows. Manyfiare as fair as, our wives and
and the soft-hue 'of the olive. in their complex-'
picturesque, manner, while 'the ever-vigilant
heaviest and most absurd things imaginable.‘
The "fact is [that there are few. roads, excepting
in the cities, and what there are would ruin any j
never grow tame to the dullest soul. There are
several trips besides the one to Guantanamo
made from Santiago, the one to 'San Luis. fifteen .
the summer readers of the daily papers were:
The venom of Spanish hatred was enlarged upon, ,
and this principal city of the lovely island of-
Cuba came to be looked upon as a place to be,
avoided above all others. But all this has been;
brought to an end. The Spanish yoke has been:
Waring, one of the best authorities on the.sub-'
fleet of sanitation, was selected by .the GOVern-;
dreamed of. Commerce and recreation will com-.
bine to give the Ward Line all it can do to;
service in order to meet the most exacting pub-.
ing into it through narrows no wider than, our
many-colored city, and on the other, perched on
Moorish-and is simply a reference to the style.
or manner in which "the .onceeformidahle fort;
was built. As for the Cabanas, stretching 'its'
_ on the green bills:
the graceful, umbrella-like palms and cocoan‘u-ts
and. huge-leavcd bananas fling their branches to;
the city and scattered about the surrounding
J
anchor rattled and plashed,
into the “waters of the tranquil harbor before .. (Nassau tender}.
the ship is‘besleged by'the most irregular-dock-
ing small boats. They are short and broadgl‘and
so, strong that one might, feel safe at sea in
one. Each has an awning upon an arched frame
over the after-part to shield- the passenger from
the sun's rays, and these awnings are painted.
like the houses, in one bright color or another.
so that altogether they make'tnejcene pict-
uresque and call to mind the hues of an Italian
water-view. Into one of these" boats you descend,
and your boatman, spreading a small sail,
fled yourself with staring at the tropic vegeta-
tion, the swat-moi beats, the men—of-w'ar, the
white forts, and 'the bare-headed women and
:coolly clad men who have come out of the .city
in other boats to greet Mellow-passengers.
Havana is the metropolis of the West Indies.
It has more life and bustle than all the rest of
the archipelago put together. If you are Ger-
man, English, Scotch, Dutch, American,jFrench.
Jr whatever'you are, you will find fellow-coun-
trymen among its quarter of a million souls.
There is a public spirit there ‘which is rare in
those" clinics. The theatres aston'ish you by
their size and elegance. Theyare the Tacon,
Payret, Nuevo Liceo, Verano, Cervantes, and
the Circus, called Circe de Jane. "Some of these
have five galleries, and one, the Town; can ac-
commodate six thousand persons at a ball or
three thousand in the seats. It ranks fourth in
size in the world. ’ ' .
' The Cuban winter climate is genial and the
1 nights cool. 'Thevmostdflicate invalid who can
travel at all will find Cuba reatf-ul and beneficial
in that season of the year. ’
From Havana the steamers continue, utter a
briefstop, across the Gulf of Mexico to the Mex-
ican port of 'Vera Cruz, touchingat the harbor:
. of Progreso and Tampico en route. The days
are passed upon the broad decks beneath 'Wide-
spread awnings in dreamy ianguor, and at night
the voyagers search the glittering tropic con-
stellations for the Southern Cross. '
' One of the 'most'famous railways in the world
extends from Vera Cruz across the grand moun-
tain chain to the City of Mexico, 263 miles.
Built by English capital, costing well into the
millions sterling, its perfect .roadbed and steel
ties lend to-travel a pleasure and reduce fatigue .
morning-wit threads its way through a gradual
ascent by the rich coffee plantations and. fruit
orchards of Cordova, until Oflzaba lsrea-che
. and thence to Esperanza. scenery unequalle
in a similar distance greets the eye on
all sides. Directly above you can be seen the
iron rails over which, after a serpentine course
of miles, the'train that bears you will pass—~31:
one side the rushing torrent, on the other bill:
so cleft that it seems as if the ploughshar‘e of
the Deity had cut them asunder and paused.»
awed” at the 'ig’reat handiwork—while under-
neath, thousands of feet below, is a. plateau of
. toWns and villages. looking like an exaggerated
. 'chessboard.
.At Apizaco a branch road runs to Puebla, an
old and important City. The rest of the route
to Mexico, less than one hundred miles, is lined
with immense-fields of the puique, from which
Mexico’s great drink of the same name is dis- *
tilled. . .
By the Mexican Central Railway from ‘Tam-
pico the route is along the coast plain. past
ancient ruins, along a sheer l ‘ of mountain.
- by Choy Cave, weird and uncanny in its look; in
tunnel and through canyon; on the edgeof precl-
. pices 3,000 feet in height, into the great Tamac‘
sopo canyon, unequalled in the world: through
'. fertile valleys. rich in agriculture, until the city
' of San Luis Potos‘i is reached, 275 miles from
f 'Tampico, and 6,000 feet above sea-level. This
, is an important place of fifty thousand inhabit-
' ants. Next come Las Salinas, Chicaiote, Agual
Cali'entes, Leon, Silao (at which latter place con-
; nectiofifi is made to Guanajato), Irapuato, where
. (the. Guadalajara Division runs westward 160
‘ miles to that fairest city of, the republic.
Whence, at some near day, this great railroad
system will stretch its iron arm to San Blas on
- the Pacific Coast. 'On by Queretaro, and at last
into the City of Mexico, full of interest,'-great in
the past. still greater in the futu . ..
This ancient capital of . ,' .c'a‘s naghbor,
republic has neVer failed to charm the visitor
within its gates. The people are hospitable and
exceedingly friendly, and there are innumerable
places to see around which cling the mystery
picture of Havana somewhat distorted by re-’f 0f mediaeval days. 'Mex’ico has been constantly
Weyler, Blanco and‘
growing in popularity with the traveller, and
the future promises a. traffic of increasing im-
portance. _
"In connection with Mexico it is not out of
place to mention the awakening commercial in-
terest among Americans. ‘Sefior Romero, thq
Mexican Minister at Washington, who has spent
almost his entire life in this country, has writ-
ten an interesting book which gives a faithful
and accurate description of the conditions now
,existing in the Republic of Mexico. Its great
commercial possi' 'lities are fully brought out.
and for the touris as well as for the capitalist
looking for opportunities for investment, this
book will have an unusual interest. ,
This articlegives the reader only an outline
of the attractions offered by travel over the
routes of the popular Ward Line. It would take
a small volume to adequately cover all the
ground. Those who have made a trip under the
care of this, well—known New—York steamship
company have nothing but praise and commend-
ation to offer. As for the expense, the rates are
reasonable, as will be seen from the following
schedule:
lst Class.
lst Excur- 2d
FROM N EW—YORK Class. .sion. Class.
To Havana ................. $35 $60 $20
Progreso .............. 55 100 30
Vera Cruz .............. 55 .100 35
Tuxpam ............. .. 60 110 . 40
Tampico .......... .. .. . . 55 ' 100 35
Campeche ..... . .. . . . 7-0 125 40
Frontera .............. 70 .125 40
Laguna -................. 70 125 40
Mexico City . . . .. 60 110 40
Above rates are for rooms on main deck. An
extra charge of $5 per berth will be made for
all hurricane deck rooms taken in -a.ny,direction.
lst-Class.
Excur- 2d
_ Class. slonu Class
To Santiago de Cuba....... $60 $100 ,
. Cienfuegos 60 " 100 ‘
Nassau 40 70 21)
Children, three to twelve years of age, halt
rates. N 0 extra charge for deck rooms. In ad-
dition to these rates, combination tourscan be
made over each and all of the routes, rates for
which will be furnished on application to any.
of the agents named.
The general agents of the New-York and Cuba
Mail Steamship Company are Jam-es E. 'Ward 8:
Company, No. 113 Wall-st. The Ward .‘L’lne fleet
includes the following vessels, which can be in-
spected at any time when in port at the com-
' pany's piers, Nos. 16, 17 and ‘13, East-River.
The steamship Matanzas, 3,094 gross tons;
Santiago de Cuba. Cienfuegos. Cometa, ,dealgo,
Edwin Bailey, .238 tons; Narciso Deuloi‘eu (tug),
Vigilancia, 4,200 tons; Seguranca, 4,200 tons:
Yucatan, 3,500 tons; Orizaha, 3,500 tons; City of
Washington, 3,000 tons; Seneca. 3.000 tons; Sar-
atoga, 3,000 tons; Santiago, 2,500 mung-Manteo.
700 tons,- Moran (Program tender) and Nessa.»
3.},
9
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Norwalk Chronicler