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COSTA RICA 



kinds of shells. Their beds are placed on platforms well up 

 under the roof. The floor is the naked earth. Hammocks are 

 strung about, always occupied, for Costa Rican Indians are not 

 fond of Avork. The most interestino- character in Talamanca is 

 Antonio Sandano, the king, to whom the government accords 

 the absolute sovereignty of the Talamanca Indians. 



The rainfall of Costa Rica is somewhat greater than that of the 

 United States. There is a dry season and a wet season every 

 year, but the rains are never constant, nor are they ever entirely 



IN TALAMANCA, COSTA RICA 



absent ; indeed, the atmospheric moisture is reliable and droughts 

 never affect plants. It is well to become acquainted with a 

 fact that seems rather curious in reference to rain; it is the one 

 that attracts the attention of foreigners, who in visiting Central 

 America expect to see rain pouring down constantly. The rain 

 begins at about 2 o'clock in the afternoon, continuing from a 

 half hour to three hours. But what rain ! It seems as though 

 the dikes of the heavenly reservoirs had been torn asunder. An- 

 other peculiarity still, when it rains on the eastern slope it is 

 clear on the western, and vice versa. 



