Moving Picture World (Jan-Mar 1912)

THE MOVING PICTURE WORLD 379 ^found Madeira with the O'Kalems By J. P. McGowan. It 8:30 A. M., December 9th, the log registered 2,752 miles froi New York as we skirted along the coast of Madeira. R ht ahead of us lay the "Desertas," as the smaller islands o:he group are called, and the sun playing over their ridges ai, hills, flashing here and there on a solitary house, gave ulsonie idea of what they were like. These islands were dbovered by the Portuguese in 1419 and are still in their p/session. The largest of the group, Madeira, is an import;t coaling station for steamers bound down the west coast 0 A.frica and South. America. It has the appearance of volc.ic origin, huge walls of red stone rising sheer from the w;er's edge to, almost six thousand feet, broken up, li;e and there by deep ravines, at the foot of which tiny esters of thatched roofed hamlets proclaim the residence oifisher folk. Great banks of clouds had settled down on tl, tops of the peaks, their snowy whiteness and regularity frming a natural table-cloth. The sun was slowly dissolvii; it, but as the shafts of light shot through the clouds they vre beautiful indeed. -lowly we turned into the Bay of Funchal and had our fit glimpse of the capital of the island. It is located quite C;Se to the water's edge, stretching back and rising as the h:S slope up. The houses with their gaily colored red tiled rpfing stood out in bold relief against the more sombre backg.iund of green and brown, while here and there gardens in fi bloom added another touch of color. ',Ve came tn anchor and were immediately surrounded by frdes of small skiffs, the occupants of which, with fierce gitures and shrill shrieks, begged for a "sixpence" to be tlown into the water. Some of them were mere boys not a day e'er eight or nine years of age, but all were perfectly at fjme in the water, which was blue and clear, and it was rite easy to watch a diver as he went down ten or twenty fjt. A coin was thrown; there was a flash, and quick as an Jer the boy had dived. Straight down he went, following coin, which could be readily seen; then he wavered as his hjids went out; back like a shot, the money thrown to the bottom of the boat, and he was pleading once more. Launches had arrived at the "Adriatic's" side and we went ashore. The tourist traffic has become part of Madeira's life, and the "old primitive methods have been turned into commercial enterprises." The bullock cart of long ago, drawn on sled runners, is practically the only means of conveyance," and sleds are used for all manner of transportation and invariably drawn by oxen. The streets are very elaborately built with beach cobble stones laid on edge and arranged in patterns. It is rather difficult walking, but reduces the friction surface to a minimum on the runners of the sleds. It is surprising how comfortable these sleds are to ride in, although they are not fast. We engaged three, each of which seats four people; a boy leads the oxen and a man with a long bamboo pole with a spike on the end, as a persuader, drives. They have a great deal of patience with their animals and can drive through seemingly impossible openings. We went around the town for an hour or so and could not but admire the cleanliness of the people, the stores and the city itself. There was an atmosphere of industry that is frequently absent in places deriving a good portion of their revenue from tourists. Everybody was busy, and some of the stores would have done credit to many of our towns of equal size in the United States. Leaving the bullock cart, we entered the small Funicular Railway station and boarded a small open car for the trip to the top of the hill. The engine is of peculiar construction and has a large cog-wheel in the center. This is operated through a set of cogs that are laid between the rails, and naturally the ride was a slow one. Through vineyards, beautiful gardens, on past an avenue of pine trees, that were strangely reminiscent of California, and out through a banana plantation until we reached the top. Below us, thousands of feet, lay the city, the harbor with the ships lying peacefully at anchor, and, away as far as the eye could reach, stretched the Atlantic, as calm as a mill pond, blending in so perfectly with the sky that the horizon was hardly distinguishable. For some moments we stood in silence drinking in the beauty of the scene; everything seemed so quiet and peaceful. Going on past a large Catholic church, we entered sleds. These hold three people and are built of wicker-work. Ropes KALEM PLAYERS ON BOARD WHITE STAR S. S. ADRIATIC. Geo. Ilollister J. .\. Faiiuim J. J. Clark George HoUister, Jr. J. P. McGowan Rob't. Vignola Alice Hollister Sidney Olcolt Ethel Dorris Hollister Gene Gauntier