The English in the West Indies or the bow of Ulysses

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encroaching, so it was alleged, and in other ways had been offensive and impertinent. Ships were going— had been actually ordered to La Guyra, to pull his nose for him, and to tell him to behave himself. The time is past when we flew our hawks at game birds. The opinion of most of the party was that Don Guzman knew it, and that his nose would not be pulled. He would regard our frigates as picturesque ornaments to his harbour, give the officers in command the politest reception, evade their demands, offer good words in plenty, and nothing else but words, and in the end would have the benefit of our indifference. 1

In the late evening we had music. Our host sang well, our hostess was an accomplished artist. They had duets together, Italian and English, and the lady then sang ‘ The Three Fishers,’ Kingsley being looked on as the personal property of Trinidad and as one of themselves. She sang it very well, as well as any one could do who had no direct acquaintance with an English sea-coast people. Her voice was beautiful, and she showed genuine feeling. The silence when she ended was more complimentary than the loudest applause. It was broken by a stupid member of council, who said to me, ‘ Is it not strange that a poet with such a gift of words as Mr. Kingsley should have ended that song with so weak a line ? “ The sooner it's over the sooner to sleep ” is nothing but prose.’ He did not see that the fault which he thought he had discovered is no more than the intentional ‘ dying away’ of the emotion created by the story in the common lot of poor humanity. We drove back across the savannah in a blaze of fireflies. It is not till midnight that they put their lights out and go to sleep with the rest of the world. One duty remained to me before I left the island. The Warners are among the oldest of West Indian families, 1

A squadron did go while I was in the West Indies. that any other result came of it.

I have not heard


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