DIARY AND NOTES 345 



graded avenue, with old laurel trees on either side, leads 

 to this fort, whence one gains a magnificent view of the 

 harbor, which is fully capable of giving protection to five 

 or six hundred vessels. It is said that Acapulco's harbor 

 is one of the safest in the world. I cannot but compare it 

 to Manzanillo, though the latter is much smaller and less 

 favored by Mother Nature. Particularly interesting are 

 the strange life and dress of the natives, who swarm 

 in large numbers around the harbor or approach the for- 

 eign ships in small boats, hewn after Indian style, out of 

 large trunks cf trees. Their dress consists of an immense 

 straw hat called sombrero, an excuse for a shirt and short 

 drawers (which are frequently wanting). Tropical fruits, 

 bananas, anonas, cocoanuts, mangos, oranges and many 

 others, together with curious, singing birds, parrots of alt 

 sizes are offered for sale by the irrepressible Mexican 

 youth, as well as their elders. Another amusing feat of 

 theirs is their diving capacity. Throw a small silver coin 

 into the water and you will see one or more boys diving 

 after it, and they never fail to fetch it, as the water is so 

 clear, that one can clearly recognize any object at the bot- 

 tom of the water. Were it not for the intense heat I 

 should like to know more about these dark brown people 

 and their customs. I do not understand why one sees so 

 very few white faces in the market place and other busy 

 parts of town compared with Aspinwall or Panama. One 

 cannot but think of the Italian brigands and their Span- 

 ish brothers in spirit, as often represented on canvas by 

 the brushes of our European artists, when the poorly 

 clad brown figures, whose dark eyes lurking from under 

 the immense brim of their sombreros, make the stranger 

 feel rather uncanny until he imagines himself at a safe 

 distance only to meet another. 



Acapulco is the coaling station of the Pacific Mail Com- 

 pany, which accounts for our stopover, which ended by 

 three o'clock in the afternoon. Soon after we passed the 

 little lighthouse, which is built on a very high rock so 

 that its beacon light reaches far upon the sea. Manzanillo 

 is the next port of importance. On our way to this liar- 



