Page:California Inter Pocula.djvu/164



.152 THE  VOYAGE  TO  CALIFORNIA.

the perfumed  incense  of  orange  groves;  and  here  a wonderful  city  ghttering  beside  a  glassy  sea,  a  city famous for  its  cigars,  its  fountains,  its  magnificent opera house  and  mosaic  mirrored  counting  house,  its narrow streets  and  broad  shaded  carriage-way  and Isabel Segunde  promenade,  its  grand  plaza,  cafes  and brilliant gas  lights,  its  moonlight  music,  and  gay military officers,  and  dark-eyed  senoritas,  and  its  two- wheeled volantes — the  hansom  cab  of  London  and the gondola  of  Venice — drawn  by  a  small,  scrawny horse, harnessed  to  the  ends  of  two  long  poles  ten feet and  over  from  the  vehicle. The tail  of  the  ani- mal is braided  so  as  to  leave  it  at  the  mercy  of  tor- menting flies, and  besides  drawing  the  gig  with  its freight of  fat  Cubans  or  fair  senoritas,  the  poor  beast must carry  a  driver  with  large  jingling  spurs  and heavy club. If more  than  one  beast  is  attached  to  a volante,  the  horses  are  usually  driven  tandem.

To the  the  bishop's  garden,  the  popular  drive, most of  our  passengers  went  for  the  day — past  villas and chateaus  buried  in  blooming  foliage,  through avenues bordered  by  hedges  of  roses,  and  shaded  by orange-trees  bending  beneath  their  golden  fruit. At night we  listened  to  the  band  playing  in  the  plaza, and watched  the  half-veiled  senoritas,  and  sombre looking men  and  smoking  women  and  naked  boys, moving noisily  about  beneath  the  shrubbery  and under the  glowing  moon  which,  mirrored  on  the glassy water  of  the  harbor,  made  it  shine,  like  a  sea of silver,  Siempre  fiel  isla  de  Cuba;  la'loya  mas brilliante en  la  carona  d'  Espana — heaven  be  with thee, as  thou  in  my  youthful  fancy  appeared  almost like heaven.

The passengers,  baggage,  mails,  and  freight  of  the George Law  were  here  transferred  to  the  steamer Georgia, and  day  and  evening  were  consumed  in  the operation. At length,  worn  out  by  unaccustomed fatigue, tired  even  of  a  tropical  paradise,  we  shoul- dered a quantity  of  cigars  which  we  had  purchased