190 ‘The Naturalist in Nicaragua 
wildest dreams of comfort. An Avocado tree grew before 
their door, the only fruit tree to be seen, and it was nearly 
destroyed by being deeply cut into. I asked why they had 
injured it, and they said they fired at it as a target, and, lead 
being scarce, they dug out the bullets with their knives; yet 
within thirty paces of their hut there were plenty of pine 
trees that would have done equally well as a target, but then 
they would have had to walk a few yards from their door. 
How was such a spot first chosen for settlement? All the 
names of the places around are Indian, and probably in the 
old times when there was continual warfare amongst the 
tribes, the remnants of one, conquered and nearly extirpated, 
fled to the mountains, and occupied a locality from necessity 
and for safety that they would not otherwise have chosen. 
Afterwards when a new generation arose they looked on the 
pine-clad hills as their home and birthright. 
