Notes on Central America 



275 



tinct from the civilized race. The ne- 

 groes and mixed breeds Hve ahnost ex- 

 clusively on the coast lands. 



The Costa Ricans are all well formed, 

 robust, and healthy people, with regular 

 features. The women are gracious, have 

 splendid eyes and abundance of hair, and 

 appear affable in manner. The men are 

 intelligent, industrious, economical, hon- 

 est, and peaceable, as well as polite, truth- 

 ful, and generous. They respect order 

 and property, love to work, and are proud 

 of their wealth and of the independence 

 of their nation. 



Every Costa Rican owns property of 

 some kind. The better class of women 

 follow in their dress the fashions of 

 Europe ; the lower classes have gowns of 

 muslin or calico, and wear petticoats, 

 rebozos, and very often Panama hats. 

 Some adorn themselves with earrings and 

 other jewelry, and some wear shoes. 



The men dress in European style. The 

 lower class, consisting of hard-working 

 farmers, owners of small coffee planta- 

 tions and ox carts and oxen for internal 

 traffic, wear coarse cloth coats, drill or 

 cotton trousers, and straw or felt hats. 

 Most of these people go barefooted. 



The houses of the wealthy have all 

 modern conveniences. Those of the 

 poorer classes are nearly comfortless. 

 They are mostly low and built of adobes, 

 with a roof of tiles, and are arranged in 

 regular streets crossing each other at 

 right angles. The public buildings are 

 spacious and ornamental. 



Among the principal buildings in San 

 Jose are the New National Theater, in 

 which about 1,000,000 pesos was in- 

 vested; the National Palace, the Palace 

 of Justice, the Executive Mansion, the 

 Episcopal Palace, the National Distillery, 

 the Market, the University, the High 

 School for Young Ladies, the High 

 School for Young Men, the Custom- 

 house, the Mint, etc. 



The city possesses charitable institu- 

 tions, such as hospitals, orphan asylums, 

 insane asylums, etc., all under the man- 

 agement of corporations and associations 



constantly laboring for their improve- 

 ment. The cemeteries are under the 

 supervision of charitable associations. 

 There are several parks,' a museum, a 

 public library, and scientific, legal, med- 

 ical, literary, and musical societies, an 

 international club, and a German club, 

 etc. 



The streets are mostly macadamized 

 or paved with stones and lighted by elec- 

 tricity. Nearly every city is well sup- 

 plied' with water, conducted through 

 pipes. 



The food of the poor comprises meat, 

 beans, corn, rice, tortillas, and plantains. 



Saturday is the especial market day of 

 the cities, and from sunrise till noon the 

 market places are crowded with sellers 

 and buyers. Here can be found all kinds 

 of vegetables and fruits — potatoes, corn, 

 beans, coffee, tobacco, sugar, cheese, 

 meat, and other food, besides earthen- 

 ware, hammocks, hats, rebozos, charcoal, 

 etc. 



The population of Costa Rica is esti- 

 mated to be 330,000, of whom about one- 

 third, or 31.42 per cent, are able to read 

 or write. 



GUATEMALA 



Guatemala, writes Charles M. Pepper, 

 is a fascinating country for the traveler 

 and visitor. Antiquarians, deep delvers 

 in the majestic monuments of the long- 

 forgotten past, seek in the myths, the tra- 

 ditions, the temples, and ruins the riddles 

 of prehistoric civilization. Modern tour- 

 ists, traveling, as they will be able to do 

 within a short time, by railway from New 

 York or San Francisco to the very heart 

 of Guatemala, may lose themselves in ad- 

 miration of the sublime scenery, the 

 lovely landscapes of valley and mountain, 

 lake and forest (the Indian name for 

 Guatemala means abounding in trees), 

 volcanic caps, giant outlines, and cloud- 

 clad craters. Everywhere they will en- 

 counter that diversity which is the chief 

 attraction of natural scenery. They will 

 find also superimposed on the prehistoric 

 Indian civilization the charm of Spanish 



