12 COPAN. 



on the other. This war seriously interfered with my work. A large body of troops 

 was camped near Esquipulas, a small town about thirty miles to the south-west, cele- 

 brated as a place of pilgrimage to the shrine of the black Christ *. All the mules in the 

 neighbourhood were taken up for war-transport, and there was much difficulty in getting 

 up the relays of stores and material I needed from Yzabal. 



Nearly all my labourers were carried off to serve — very unwillingly — as soldiers, and 

 my work had to be carried on with such men as had passed the military age, and a few 

 waifs and strays who had managed to escape the vigilance of the government officers. 



Every now and then a report came that troops were marching towards the village, 

 and my neighbours generally prepared to betake themselves to the bush with such few 

 valuables as they possessed, and leave the village in charge of two or three cripples and 

 some ancient ladies. It was only from predatory bands who might take advantage of 

 the disturbed state of affairs that I myself looked for any trouble ; but nevertheless it 

 was uncomfortable, as the wildest rumours were flying about, and it was impossible to 

 get any trustworthy information. My friends in the city of Guatemala wrote to me, 

 most strongly urging me to beat a retreat to the coast, and added that it was quite 

 impossible, in the dangerous state of the roads, to send me the silver I needed to con- 

 tinue paying my workmen. 



But I determined to hold on, as I had most thorough confidence in the assistants 

 whom I had brought with me, who were all old and tried companions. I did not, 

 however, expect the confidence and support which I received from the villagers, who 

 had looked upon me anything but favourably when first I came amongst them, and who 

 themselves bore a most unenviable reputation, which I am delighted to have an oppor- 

 tunity to refute ; for, although very lazy and with a deep-rooted fear of soap and 

 water, I found them to be truthful, good tempered, and remarkably honest. When I 

 was reduced to my last dollar, not only did the men left in Copan and the neighbour- 

 hood volunteer to go on working for me, saying that they knew I would pay them when I 

 could receive the money to do so, but they actually scraped together the few dollars 

 which could be found in the village and lent them to me, so that 1 could pay off some 

 workmen who came from distant villages, and were obliged to return to their homes. 



Finally, a battle was fought not far from Esquipulas, in which General Barrios, the 

 President of Guatemala (who had always been a good friend to me during my previous 

 expeditions) was killed, and the war came to an end and some of my labourers 

 returned. 



There was, however, another matter which caused me anxiety and interfered seriously 

 with the supply of labourers, which was that during the whole of my stay at Copan, an 

 epidemic of small-pox raged in the neighbourhood. I am thankful to say that there 

 were no cases in Copan itself ; but I rode through some villages only a few miles distant 



* Views of Esquipulas and of the church containing the shrine of the hlack Christ are given on pages 1 

 and 4. 



