The Cruise of the Thetis: A Tale of the Cuban InsurrectionCollingwood, Harry
History
The Cruise of the Thetis: A Tale of the Cuban Insurrection
Collingwood, Harry
Cuba -- History -- 1810-1899 -- Juvenile fiction; Sea stories
feel himself aggrieved, and departed, taking his men and his flags with
him. The _Thetis_ steamed out of Havana harbour again at eight o'clock
that same morning.
It is unnecessary to follow in detail the course of the voyagers during
the pleasure cruise upon which they had embarked; for while they
thoroughly enjoyed themselves the cruise was absolutely uneventful.
Suffice it to say that, proceeding in a very leisurely fashion, they
completely circumnavigated the island of Cuba, calling in at Matanzas,
Cardenas, Nuevitas, Guantanamo, Santiago de Cuba, Trinidad, Xagua,
Batabano, and other more or less interesting ports on the coast;
sometimes remaining only a few hours, at other times spending as many
days in harbour, while Don Hermoso made certain mysterious excursions
inland and had secret conferences with more or less mysterious people,
during the progress of which Jack, Carlos, and the two ladies enjoyed
themselves amazingly in the steam pinnace, in which craft they made
excursions up rivers, and prowled about among romantic cays to their
hearts' content. Then they crossed to Jamaica, where they enjoyed ample
opportunity to compare the condition of that island, under British rule,
with Cuba under the government of the Spaniards, as also to learn how
the Jamaicans construe the word "hospitality". Dances, picnics, dinners
at Government House and elsewhere, balls at Up-Park camp and on board
the battleships at Port Royal succeeded each other with bewildering
rapidity; while they were positively deluged with invitations to spend a
week or more on various sugar estates dotted about here and there in
some of the most beautiful parts of the lovely island: small wonder was
it, therefore, that six full weeks slid away ere the _Thetis_ again
steamed out to sea from Port Royal. Thence, coasting along the southern
shores of San Domingo, the travellers visited Porto Rico, where Don
Hermoso again had much business to transact with mysterious strangers,
occupying a full fortnight; after which Saint Kitts, Antigua,
Montserrat, Guadeloupe, Dominica, Martinique, Saint Lucia, Barbados,
Saint Vincent, Grenada, and finally Trinidad (to see the wonderful Pitch
Lake) were visited: by which time the month of February in the year 1895
had arrived, and Don Hermoso became anxious to be at home again, as
certain very important and momentous events were pending, the progress
of which he was anxious to watch as closely as might be. Wherefore, on
a certain evening, the yacht weighed her anchor shortly before two bells
in the first dogwatch, and, steaming close past the Five Islands, the
Diego Islands, Gaspar Grande, and Mono Island, swept out through the
Boca de Navios, and shaped a course north-west by west for Cape Tiburon,
in the island of Hayti, which was passed at daybreak on the morning but
one following; the yacht finally entering Havana harbour and making fast
to a buoy at eight o'clock on the morning of the succeeding day. The
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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