The Continental Monthly, Vol. 4, No. 4, October, 1863: Devoted to Literature and National PolicyVarious
History
The Continental Monthly, Vol. 4, No. 4, October, 1863: Devoted to Literature and National Policy
Various
Literature, Modern -- 19th century -- Periodicals; United States -- Politics and government -- 19th century -- Periodicals
Going on, we passed several beautiful 'pens,' as farms devoted to
grazing are called. These near town are little more than mere pieces of
land surrounding elegant villas, the residence of wealthy gentlemen
whose business lies in Kingston. Here you see 'the one-storied house of
the tropics, with its green jalousies and deep veranda,' surrounded by
handsomely kept meadows of the succulent Guinea grass, which clothes so
large a part of the island with its golden green, and enclosed by wire
fences or by the intricate but delicate logwood hedges, or else by stone
walls. On either side of the carriage road which swept round before the
most elegant of these villas, that of Mr. Porteous, we noticed rows of
the mystic century plant.
At last we left the comparatively arid plain, with its scantier
vegetation, and began to ascend Stony Hill, which is 1,360 feet high
where the road passes over it. The cool air passing through the gap, and
our increasing elevation, now began to temper the heat, and soon the
clouds began to gather again, and a slight rain fell. But I did not
notice it, for every step of the journey now seemed to bring me farther
into the heart of fairyland. It was not any variety of colors, but the
unutterable depth of green, enclosing us, as we ascended, more and more
completely in its boundless exuberance. From that moment the richest
verdure of my native country has seemed pale and poor. Reaching the top
of the hill, we saw above us the higher range, looking down on us
through the shifting mists, with that inexpressible gracefulness which
tempers the grandeur of tropical mountains.
We descended the hill on the other side into a small inland valley,
containing the two estates of Golden Spring and Temple Hall. The
former, which presented nothing very noticeable then, has since passed
under the management of a gentleman who to a judicious and energetic
personal oversight has added a kindliness and strict honesty in his
dealings with the laborers much more desirable than frequent in the
island. As a result of this, Golden Spring has become a garden. A great
many more dilapidated estates would become gardens under the same
efficacious mode of treatment.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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