Narkativr of Bahama ExrEurnox. 137 



he does find a non wiio speaks English it isn't American 

 Enghsh, but Bahaman EngHsh, a curious futois composed of 

 negro dialect and the language of the London cockney, in 

 which the h's are misplaced with consummate adroitness. 



Tlie city itself lacks the picturesqueness of the Spanish 

 city, the cleanliness of the Bahaman village, and the push and 

 vim of an American town. The only really handsome build- 

 ing is the custom-house and post-othce combined, a substan- 

 tial structure of stone and brick, overlooking the harboi" and 

 embellishing an otherwise unattractive water front. Some 

 distance further to the south is the U. S. marine hospital, 

 where we found a formidable accunuilation of mail for our 

 party. Still farther down and separated from the island b}- a 

 causeway. Fort Ta\-lor adds a bit of romance to the scene. 

 The beach is lined with cocoanut palms, trees which seem 

 graceful and picturesque at first, but grow commonplace and 

 monotonous on long acquaintance. The shops of the town 

 are mostly wooden structures, sadly in need of paint, and a 

 majority of the signs are in Spanish. One of the most pre- 

 tentious buildings is the Masonic building, which is three 

 stories high, and contains a public librar\- and free reading- 

 room. A horse-car line runs along the principal business 

 streets, but the horses pulling the cars usually walk. The 

 streets themselves have the virtue of being wide. Ihe res- 

 idence part of the city is much more attractive than the 

 business portion, and contains c|uite a number of sensible and 

 homelike houses, with commodious verandas and abundant 

 shade. 



A new industr\' has been inaugurated at Ke}' West in the 

 shape of a canning factory for pine-apples. This enterprise 

 was started two or three \ears ago by Martin Waaner & 

 Company, of Baltimore, who ship the pine-apples from the 

 Bahamas to Key West and can them there, instead of trans- 

 porting the fruit to their factories at Baltimore, as in times 

 past. The misfortunes to which sailing craft are subjected 

 were well illustrated by a schooner that arrived during our 

 stay at Key West, consigned to Martin Wagner & Companv. 



