The City of Guayaquil. 



27 



running parallel to the river. A few streets are rudely 

 paved, many are shockingly filthy, and all of them yield 

 grass to the delight of stray donkeys and goats. A num- 

 ber of mule-carts, half a dozen carriages, one omnibus, and 

 a hand-car on the Malecon, sum up the v^^heeled vehicles of 

 Guayaquil. The population is twenty-two thousand, the 

 same for thirty years past. Of these, about twenty are 

 from the United States, and perhaps twenty-five can com- 

 mand $100,000. No foreigner has had reason to complain 



Cathedral of Guayaquil. 



that Guayaquilians lacked the virtues of politeness and hos- 

 pitality. The ladies dress in excellent taste, and are pro- 

 verbial for their beauty. Spanish, Indian, and Negro blood 

 mingle in the lower classes. The city supports two small 

 papers, Los Andes and La Patria, but they are usually 

 issued about ten days behind date. The hourly cry of the 

 night-watchman is quite as musical as that of the muezzin 

 in Constantinople. At eleven o'clock, for example, they 

 sing '■^Ave Maria purisima ! las once han dedo, noche 

 clara y serena. Viva lajpatria /" 



