ROADSIDE SKETCHES IN GUATEMALA 95 



variety. This instrument, in shape like an immense harmoni- 

 con, is peculiar to Guatemala, and dates from very long ago. 

 It is used at all native festivities, varies in size, and is some- 

 times played by two men, sometimes, as in this case, hy as 

 many as five. The sweet, bell-like notes were very pretty, and, 

 heard for the first time, took our fancy greatly. The instrument 

 consisted of twenty-seven pieces of hard wood resting upon 

 strings immediately over the mouths of twenty-seven square 

 wooden organ-pipes, partially closed at the bottom. As the 

 pieces of wood decreased in size, so did the pipes below, in area 

 and length, the smaller when struck by the stick producing the 

 higher, the larger the deeper notes. At the hotel we were 

 introduced to the national dish, " frijoles," stewed black haricot 

 beans, which, with the unleavened maize cakes " tortillas," to 

 be afterwards described form the principal food of the natives. 

 After dinner extract of coffee in bottles was handed round, from 

 which everybody took a little into his cup, to be diluted with 

 boiling water according to taste. Here, in a great coffee-pro- 

 ducing country, one might naturally expect to drink the very 

 best under the most favourable conditions ; but no, the lazy 

 natives, to save themselves trouble, boil it down in large quan- 

 tities to a strong extract, bottle it, and, of course, most if not 

 all the aroma has escaped long before the bottle is empty. 

 This practice, excepting at some private houses belonging to 

 foreigners, seemed universal. Another disagreeable custom is 

 the washing of plates and glasses with soap, the objectionable 

 smell of which always hangs about, and can be detected at once 

 mingled with that of food and drink. Four o'clock next morning 

 found us on the road to the capital, fifteen leagues away. Our 

 muleteer before leaving with the baggage the day before had 

 lent each of us one of his spurs, remarking, on our asking for 

 one for the other heel also, " One is enough ; if you make one 

 half of the animal go the other is bound to follow." The road 

 was terribly bad, but, thanks to the two hours' darkness before 

 sunrise, we did not see, though we felt, the worst and most 

 stony part of it. Early though it was, the women were already 

 up and busy ; we could see them as we rode along sitting beside 

 the brightly burning fires grinding maize-corn and making 

 "tortillas," preparing bread for the husband who still slum- 

 bered in the dark part of the hut. This is the task of the 



