A TRIP HOME.

Wairarapa Age, Volume XXXI, Issue 3008, 3 October 1908, Page 5

A TRIP HOME.

THE VOYAGE DESCRIBED. (BY J. C. ALPASS). No. 2. J The second day after rounding Cape Horn the weather was clear, and when we came on deck in the moaning we saw that the sun was on our right, and we know that we were in the Atlantic, steering a northeasterly course. 1 noticed that at 11 o'clock vv« were heading straight for the sun. Instead of putting our watches on about thirty minutes, we on'y required to alter them eight minutes. We expected to see more ships in the Atlantic than what we had seen in the Southern Ocean, but it was several days before we saw another, then we passed fairly close to a small sailing' ship. The same evening we sighted another ship in the moonlight. The following daj no shins were sighted, but we saw a number of small whales, some of them within a stone's throw of the ship. A GORGEOUS SUNSET. The next day the monotony was relieved by the loss o, i fireman, who was supposed to hav "jumped overboard, but particulars were kept as quiet from the passengers as possible. To the general satisfaction of all on board the lost fireman was discovered asleep in a quiet corner amongst the coal. This day will be long remembered by the passengers for its gorgeous sunset. A tropical sunset of this kind is beyond description, and to be appreciated must be seen. We had splendid sunsets in New Zealand, but nothing to compare with the one we saw the day before we reached Rio de Janeiro. When we were off Cape Horn it began to get dark about half past three, but off Rio the orb of day set about five o'clock. A couple of hours before the sun went down a most peculiar formation of clouds appeared in the west, slightly west of the sun's track. Some passengers said it looked like icbergs of many fantastic shapes; others compared it to a very rugged rock-bound shore; while others compared it to the mosques and other peculiar shaped buildings of an eastern town. It was certain that but few of us had ever £seen clouds that appeared down on the water instead of up in the sky. As the sun went down these clouds evidently had something to do with the gorgeous colours with which the sky was emblazoned, the beauty of which was very much enhanced by the deep glassy blue of the placid waters of the ocean. Looking in an easterly direction, the waters of the ocean appeared of a lovely soft pink, as the little ripplfls mirrored back tha glowing tints of the western sky. gco,n after dark the moon, as if determined not to be outdone in grandeur by the orb of day, rose fiery vc-d aa if out of the appearing ?o r.ear. th*t brie ' COuld put a ilfle bullet into it. As it rrse it gradually lost its fiery appearance and became once more the silvery moon, Ven\i? in the western sky, brW *tid &l*fi» looket3 down undisturbed by th§ raany .traii3fottrations in colour on ftfl planet. The mighty Jupiter, aUo ih ihe same direction, passed ' below the horizon about two hours after sunset. . Rio de Janeiro in the morning! J Who has been on a big steamer carrying hundred passengers who have sesn land only once and not set foot on terra firma for over three week?, but has caught or experienced some of the EXCITEMENT AND ENTHUSIASM created by the prospect of going ashore, if but for a few hours. And when the stewards informed us that breakfast would be ready half an hour earlier than usual, we realised that the looked for landing at the capital city of Brazil Would soon be a reality. On the morning of June 16th there was no necessity to ring bells to call up the passen gers. As soon as it was daylight many eyes were strained to see what could be seen, but a thick haze hung over the land and very little coul3 be discerned until we passed the fort at the entrance of what is claimed to be the fh est harbour in the world. When the lonic dropped anchor about a mile from shore we were not favourably impressed, particularly with the facilities for hading and \unloading cargo. When we considered that this had been in the hands of Europeans for over four hundred years, and that at present it is an immensa city with nearly a million of inhabitants, and yet ships have, to lay out in the harbour and be unloaded into lighters, we can but conclude that the Spanish and thq Portuguese are lacking in commercial enterprise, more particularly when we compare their shipping facilities with our own Wellington for instance, where large ocean liners by the dozen can get up to the wharves ani be loaded or unloaded with hydraulic cranes in the, shortest possible time. We were told that even Latin America is waking up and realising the advantages of commercial facilities, as quite recently a loan of several millions has been obtained from Rothschilds for harbour improvements. Stone wharves are to be built and equipped, and five large dredgers employed to make deep water near the wharves. Many of the passengers were hardly able to finish their breakfast, they were so anxious to get oil shore at the first opportunity, although, from what we were told, there was NOTHING VERY INVITING in Rio—yellow fever and small-pox prevalent, and Spaniards,, with knives, lurking here, there, and everywhere, ready to rob and murder, if need be, any foreigner who looked worth going throughSteam launches came alongside flying the White Star and Shaw Savil flags, but the agents were not allowed to set foot on our ship until the doctor had been made satisfied that our passengers were not likely to contaminate the Brazilians. After the doctor came the Customs officers, followed by the ships' agents, etc. By this time it was after nine o'clock, and the passengers were crowding the head of the gangway, so that when a steam launch came alongside it took but a few minutes to fill up, and we started* to touch terra firma in South America.. We had been told to look out for being fleeced, especially by the boatmen,,

so were agreeably surprised when the man in charge did not even ask us for our fare, merely telling us to be at the landing at /our o'clock, and the launch woul i be waiting to take us back to our ship, which was due to sail at fi'-e. We were landed at some stone step 3in a low wall or quay that extended for a very considerable distance; in fact, in one direction we could not see the end of it, as it followed the curves of the harbour for a long distance. Coming to the srure we passed the Customs house, a good, substantial-looking building, built on and covering the whole of a large rock in the harbour.

Climbing up the few steps from i our launch our surprise was un • J bounded as we beheld a lovely esplati- i ade, strange tropical trees, flower- I of many designs, the plants in which we did not have time to ' examine, nicely-kept grass plots, interpprsed with neat paths in every direction, and a well executed eques- I trian statute of the General who led j the Brazilians to victory at the battle of Paraguay. How our opinions j change in a few minute?! We had expected to find sqnaior and filth everywhere,-instead of which there was

A VERITABLE PARADISE, provided with seats*, where the leisured could rest and view the placid harbour, wheiv the big ships lay at anchor and the little steam launches flew here and there through the water -really Ul2 only things in Rio that qppeared to be in a hurry. Away over on the other side of the bay could be seen the residences oi some of the aristocracy of Rio, who have quite a town of their own, no doubt a welcome resort when contagious diseases are doing deadly work in the poorer portions of the great city. We were soon in the business part, and began to realise what narrow streets are, only justwide enough for two vehicles to pass each other, with sidewalks of just sufficient width for two persons to pass each other. Tram lines ran down some of these streets, and the trams are light and airy, the motive power being a single mule. I did not notice any uf these mule cars fully loaded, but I think they would seat about twenty persons. Nineteen years ago human , SLAVERY WAS ABOLISHED in Brazil, but the slave to day is the mule, for which the Brazilian has no mercy. Many of them are little bigger than donkeys. They are driven usually two abreast, generally in i clumsy, heavy-built carts, with very high wheels. I noticed a few wagons. I saw one loaded with coal being i driven at top speed, but heavy vehicles usually goat a walking pace. Ho,rssS} ai?ej very few and far between, I U? the proportion of one to §Y-e hulked mules, and these latter, j driven, without mercy and not too I weU ss6, soon succumb to their hard j lot anfcpass to their eternal rest, I where the whip of the Spaniard is I felt not.. But the death of th? usulo I is the life of thQ rural Spaniard, and the orly mor.ey imny country people I ever see ?3 what they get for their I annual quota of mul:s, sent to be I slaves in the city of Rio. (To be Continued).