GUANACASTE—PUNTARENAS TO LIBERIA 415 



horses were waiting for us and ox-carts for the steamer's 

 cargo and we were greeted by Seizor Chamorro, Inspector 

 of Schools of the Province of Guanacaste. 



In half an hour we were on our way on horseback, soon 

 climbing a few feet around some conical very dry hills whose 

 sides were ridged horizontally. After passing a beautiful 

 green enclosed pasture with grazing cattle (Guanacaste is 

 chiefly noted for cattle) we entered an Imposing forest of 

 great trees so spaced as to give the impression of a park 

 rather than an uncultivated forest. It was not a continuous 

 forest but there were alternating areas of scrub and savan- 

 nas. Several times we heard the deep call of the howling 

 monkey, known here as "mono bramador" or "congo." 

 When I first heard it I thought it the bellowing of a distant 

 bull. Twice we passed close to some monkeys of another 

 species, "mono de cara blanca," which paid no attention 

 to us although we all stopped to look at the second group, 

 apparently a mother and family, feeding on leaves as they 

 leisurely hung by tail or legs and put the leaves into their 

 mouths with the hands. Elsewhere bright blue and red 

 macaws sat on the boughs of the trees or there were flocks 

 of chattering green parrakeets. 



The only drawback to the ride was the dust, which our 

 cavalcade of eight stirred so that the strong wind carried 

 it about to the discomfort of all but the first riders. And yet 

 a mark on a tree-trunk, six feet from the ground, was pointed 

 out to us as the height reached by the water in the pre- 

 ceding rainy season, along this very road. At such times — 

 September and October — there is of course no traveling 

 here. 



The principal trees along the road were guanacaste, ceni- 

 zaro and cedro amargo. The guanacaste seemed to be of a 

 different species from those I had come to know farther 

 south, reaching a larger size and having a finer leaf; many 



