1863. 



NEW ENGLAND FARMER. 



325 



though they had been polished. The air was clear 

 and bracing, and the wide ocean, that had been 

 rolling in all the day before in sullen tones, and 

 breaking in low thunders upon the beach, was now 

 quiet as though it had passed a night of rest. 

 The day before, it swallowed a barque before our 

 eyes — this morning it seemed as though a cliild in 

 its cradle, might rock with safety upon its placid 

 bosom. Near the light-house is an old windmill, 

 racked and broken by the elements of more than 

 half a century — but aged and crippled as it is, still 

 able to grind all the grain that comes to its hop- 

 pers. Similar mills may be seen all over the Cape, 

 as there is not, probably, a single grist mill, with 

 water power, upon it. Everytliing was so quiet 

 compared with the varied sounds of the day be- 

 fore, that the contrast was impressive. The gun- 

 ners were enjoying their morning nap — no wail or 

 twitter of a sea bird could I hear — nought, but the 

 low, never-ceasing murmur of the waves far below 

 my feet, coming and receding, as they probably 

 came and receded, thousands of years ago. The 

 thoughts inspired were grand and sublime, but too 

 ■vast long to be entertained. Far beyond me, 

 white sails dotted the sea, on their errands of ci- 

 vilization and power, while behind, and on either 

 hand, broad marshes, cut with serpentine creeks, 

 and naked sand hills, torn with deep gulches, or 

 occasional hills covered with shrub oaks and wild 

 rose bushes, were mingled in inextricable confu- 

 sion ! 



In going from the "Light" to Provincetown, I 

 passed through a tract of land sowed with the yel- 

 low pine by the Rev. Mr. Miurick. The tract 

 contains, I was told, some sixii/ acres. Large por- 

 tions of it are now finely covered with pines vary- 

 ing from three to fifteen feet in height, while on 

 other portions, they are quite scattering, or have 

 not come at all. In some places, the seed was 

 sown twice, but did not come. Shallow furrows 

 were ploughed four or five feet apart, and, by 

 some ingenious arrrngement, the seed dropt from 

 a hopper at the same time. Others have planted 

 considerable tracts, so that the area now covered 

 with flourishing growth, is quite large. Major 

 PiljXNKY was one of the pioneers in this good 

 work, and has a tract of 25 acres covered with 

 trees 10 to 20 feet in height. 



Provincetown is a most singular place. It lies 

 on the noted harbor which was the first port the 

 Mayflower made, on her passage with the Pilgrim 

 Fathers, in 1620, and is situated on the end of 

 Cape Cod, and lies in the form of a hook. The 

 township consists of beaches and hills of sand, 

 shallow ponds and swamps. It has but one street, 

 which extends two or three miles along the water's 

 edge. It is only 18 feet wide, with a plank side- 

 walk, four feet wide. The houses are small and 

 crowd'^i' ' hind each othr'- ■ nrc few 



trees or shrubs, the little yards being filled with 

 the coarse sand hill grass. Here and there a nar- 

 row lane runs at right angle with the main street, 

 and extends back a score or two of yards until it 

 runs into a sand hill. These are so narrow, that 

 carriages cannot turn, or pass each other, when 

 once in them. One party or the other inu.st back 

 out ! On these lanes, some of the best dwellings 

 are situated, and about a few of them an attempt 

 has been made to cultivate the elm and some oth- 

 er shade trees. I also saw a few dwai f pear trees 

 and grape vines in one or two gardents of oO or 

 60 feet square. IJut, generally, instead of ihe ver- 

 bena, dahlia, gladiolus and other commun flowers, 

 that grace the garden, rank beach grass has full 

 possession of the little spaces about the front 

 doors. Other ornaments, however, of a more gas- 

 tronomic character, were everywhere seen — these 

 were the Jish Jiake-f, or lattice work, upon which 

 the cod fish are placed to dry in the sun, which 

 the hardy fishermen bring from Newfoundland or 

 the Straits. Every available foot of level sand, 

 (not land,) is covered with these flakes, and they 

 frequently are extended to the very door steps of 

 the front yard. In fair weather, the fish is placed 

 upon them to dry, and at night is packed away 

 again in the store-house — a day or two, only, of 

 clear, west wind weather being required to com- 

 plete all the solar cooking they need. 



The Town-House — The Caledonia. 

 Perched up<in a sand hill, directly behind the 

 houses, and elevated a hundred feet above the 

 water, the good people of Provincetown have 

 erected a Town-House. It is a handsome struc- 

 ture, and is a most conspicuous object from nearly 

 every portion of the Cape, as M'ell as a beacon to 

 approaching mariners. The view from the belfry 

 of this house is very fine. Nothing intervenes to 

 interrupt it, as far as vision extends, seawiird, or 

 across the bay. Behind the sand hill';, eastward, 

 the dark masts of the Caledonia loom up, remind- 

 ing the behqjder of the wreck of that splendid Eng- 

 lish steamer, sometime last year. She was sold 

 at auction, where she lies for about .Sl"J;n()0 ; her 

 engines were taken out, and it was hopeil that she 

 could be got ofi' — but all efforts have so far proved 

 unavailing. 



The PilgrimB, and the First Com Found. 



Jamks Small, Esq., the owner of the farm upon 

 which I stopt at Highland Lights, informed me 

 that several years since, the Rev. Dr. Yol'xc, of 

 Boston, passed a day or two with him, and during 

 that time, stated that he had examined the records 

 of the Pilgrims, in England, and taken coj)ious 

 notes from them. He projwsed to read from 

 these notes to Mr. Small, who is now 7G years 

 years of age, to learn whether he could recognize 

 anv of the places mentioned in them. Me did so, 



