PANAMA AND ITS PEOPLE—BELL. 615 
DEPARTMENT OF COLON. 
Colon lies between the Departments of Panama and that of Vera- 
guas on the Atlantic coast, and is bounded on the south by the De- 
partments of Cocle and Panama. Through it, and Panama as well, 
runs the Canal Zone, belonging permanently to the United States. 
These towns. are too well known to warrant a description here. 
The San Blas coast and territory surrounding Mandinga Bay com- 
prised the domain of the San Blas (Manzanillo) and Mandinga 
Indians, their country ending, approximately, where the Rio Man- 
dinga rises. Back from low-lying coast hills, in the higher sierras, 
the region is supposed to be uninhabited as far as the source of the 
Chagres except for wandering tribes toward the south. The route 
from the coast to the northern tributary of the Chagres, the Rio 
Pequeni, has been traversed by Americans and no Indian villages 
were encountered. 
Following the coast northwestward is seen the town of Palenque, 
settled by fugitive slaves many years ago, who lived in underground 
caves and passages and whose descendants to-day are held to be 
quite different from the usual Isthmian negro. They are extremely 
industrious, strong, and good woodsmen. Not far from here, on a 
small stream of the same name, was Nombre de Dios, of which no 
trace remains, and near it, on a beautiful but landlocked and un- 
healthy harbor, stands the ruins of Porto Bello, sacked by Drake, 
Vernon, Spring, and Morgan. The ruins of the two forts still 
exist, St. Felix on one side of the harbor, and Sts. Jéronimo y 
Christobal on the other, and fragments of the large government 
house “ Santiago de la gloria,” still remain. Porto Bello now has 
a small colored population, and is considered one of the most un- 
healthy places on the Isthmus. In the upper Chagres Valley are 
two little settlements, St. Barbara and San Juan, but the surround- 
ing country is little known, and the sources of several of the rivers 
tributary to the main river are still to be surveyed as bearing on the 
eanal-dam problem. A short distance up the coast from the city 
of Colon is the mouth of the Chagres, just beyond the zone border, 
where there is a tiny native village above which stands the fine old 
castle of San Lorenzo, famous in the history of the New World. 
It was built by Juan Antonelli, an engineer of Filip IIT, and was 
considered one of Spain’s greatest strongholds. In fact, it did for 
some time defy the furious attacks of many buccaneers, but was 
almost destroyed at the time of its surrender to Morgan’s forces. 
The account of its capture as told by the Dutchman, Esquemaling, 
one of Morgan’s men, is very interesting. In 1740 the already 
ruined fortifications were completely laid low by the English under 
Admiral Vernon, but it was rebuilt in 1752 by Ignacio de Sala (5) 
45745°—sm 190940 
