Ch. XIII.] 



NATIVE STILLS. 



233 



on the palm wine. The Indians of Nicaragua, when the 

 Spaniards first came amongst them, objected to the 

 preaching of the padres against intemperance. They 

 said " getting drunk did no man any harm." 



The manufacture of aguardiente is a government 

 monopoly, which is farmed out to contractors. The 

 contracts are always given to the political supporters of 

 the party in power. 



There are many private illegal stills in the mountains. 

 They are generally amongst thick forest, near a small 

 brook, with some dense brushwood close at hand, for the 

 distiller to slip into if any government officers should 

 come up. One day, when rambling in the woods near 



NATIVE STILL. 



Santo Domingo, I came across one of these " sly grog ' 

 manufactories. The apparatus was very simple. It 

 consisted of two of the common earthenware pots of the 

 country, one on the top of the other, the top one having 



