Rensselaer Semi-Weekly Republican, Volume 35, Number 95, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 4 August 1903 — A Letter From Europe. [ARTICLE]

A Letter From Europe.

“Princess Irene” 10:00 a. m. Silip Time, about 5 a. m. Repsgelaer Time. July 15th, 1903. Dear Friends: We are now in the Mediterranean Sea and early tomorrow morning we cast anchor in the Bay of Naples, so our twelve days’ trip on the water is almost completed. We have had an unusually fine voyage, and consequently, little or no seasickness. Our steamer the. “Princess Irene” of the North German-Lloyd line, has been in use only three years and is a well-arranged and well-kept boat. There are on board about eight hundred and fifty people, including cabin passengers, crew and steerage. The last number about three hundred and are a very dirty and picturesque crowd of Italinns. They furnish us entertainment these moonlight nights with their singing and dancing. >

This is the warmest day we have had. The ocean air has been cool and bracing, and gave us all keen appetites for the generous meals supplied us. We have breakfast at 7:30, a cup of broth if we wish it, at eleven, luncheon at on a, lemonade and cakes at four, and a seven or eight course dinner at eight. Our chief exercise is walking, and after dinner there is a long line of couples on the lower promenade deck, bent on making the ten rounds which count a mile. During the day we play “ringtoss” and shuffle-board, or, if we feel indolent, we read and take naps in our streamer chairs. The only excitement we have is caused by a passing steamer or the appearance of a whale. There have been several inter-

esting social fusctiOns, among them an informal dance, two bails, two concerts, and tonight the last on the ship, will be the captain’s which means an elaborate menu and speech-making. We started from New York City on Saturday July the fourth, and we passed the Azores Islands the following Thursday. The islands, nine in'number, are beautiful and well-cultivated. The climate is very equable, so much so that the grains and fruits which grow so abundantly, can be planted at any season of the year. The houses are built of white plaster. As these islands are a mailing station, our mail, which had been collected, was placed in an oilskin bag, then in a tin box, this last attached to a buoy, and the whole thrown off to be towed in by a small boat which came out in answer to our signals. On July thirteenth w%. jgtopped off a few hours at Gibraltar. We went ashore on a tender and then took a drive through the city. Its and crooked ’ streets are filled with peppleofall nationalities. and one sees costumes, and hears a confusion pf languages. The beggars and pedlars run by the sides of the carriage and tho their English is limited it is expressive and to the point—they cry ’‘money,'’ “money,' ,J! “nloney,” incessantly. Gibraltar has fifteen thousand inhabitants of which five thousand are soldiers.. The groat rock of Gibraltar is two and one-half miles long, from two to six furlongs wide, and twelve hundred feet high. It is said to be honeycombed with subterranean rooms and galleries and the cliffs are full of holes where cannons are stationed. Gibraltar was interesting and full of novel sights, hut it was also very warm and dusty, and we were all glad to get back to the steamer which now sterns to us like home. Helena Wash burn.*