816 PAPERS RELATING TO ANTHROPOLOGY. 



padre led off, and was followed by first one Indian and then another, 

 with cuentas tales, after the style of those of the Arabian Nights, to 

 amuse children. Wrapped in their blankets, one by one they fell aleep 

 as the words of the last yarn died away in drowsy tones. Don An- 

 tonio freshened the fire and peered into the darkness to see whether a 

 tiger were lurking around, then hugging close his gun and machete, 

 sought repose. About midnight I awoke. The fire had died out, but 

 it was not entirely safe to stir around for wood ; there was the possi- 

 bility of a tiger and the probability of a shot from Don Antonio. So I 

 keiJt quiet, and began to feel the awful stillness of a tropical night in 

 the forest; then from far away came the sound of a solemn moan, 

 nearer and nearer, till with a sigh and a rustling of leaves a breath of 

 wind i^assed overhead, and left the night as silent as before. 



Again we were doomed to bad luck. We worked two days at this 

 place carrying the excavation to a depth of 6 feet with miserable results 

 so far as securing specimens was concerned, and as there seemed nothing 

 peculiar in the style of burial, as there was nothing more to eat less than 

 half a day's journey away, we gave up the job as unprofitable. 



A few days later I made a trip to Punta Arenas, via Bolson, and on 

 the 15th took passage in a canoe from Punta Arenas for Puerto Jesus. 

 Among the many delightful modes of traveling in Central America, the 

 voyage in the dug-out deserves remembrance. There is no room to 

 stretch one's legs under the most favorable circumstances, while on 

 this occasion the boat was loaded, and I had to eat, sleep, and be as 

 comfortable as I might for two days and a night on the top of two boxes 

 that were not even. The second day we were becalmed at midday in the 

 middle of the gulf, with not even a fleecy cloud between us and the sun. 

 Then in the afternoon a stormy breeze sprang up and we were driven in 

 on the rocky coast of Chii'a and had to drop our anchor, a large stone, to 

 keep from going ashore. There we lay within 20 feet of the rocks bob- 

 bing and bouncing around so we could hardly sit up, for six or eight 

 hours, till the weather moderated. About midnight, the second night 

 we reached Puerto Jesus, the port of Nicoya, at the head of an estero, 

 which can only be navigated by canoes at high tide. The rest of the 

 night was spent on a raw-hide stretched on the ground, with musquitoes 

 for comi)any. Next morning on a hired mule some 12 or 15 miles to 

 Nicoya. 



The neighborhood of Santana was visited on the 18th. There was no 

 lack of huacas as indicated by the low mounds scattered over the country. 

 On the northern slope of the ridge between Nicoya and Santana there 

 is a round toi)-hill, from which is a fine view over towards the Tem- 

 pisque and the head of the gulf to the line of volcanoes in the distance. 

 On this hill-top the huacas were marked by large stones, under which 

 the relics were found at a depth of 3 to 5 feet. The burials in the val- 

 ley seemed similar to those at Las Huacas and Las Carrillos. 



Sunday, the 19th, was the feast day of the patron saint of the barrio 



