464 



FOREST AttD STREAM. 



| Jahuaky la, 1883, 



us that tbis was but a preparatory slop to a fl06d of Chinese 

 cheap labor, and that it was a step -which threatened the very 

 existence of our people by making food to cheap that the 

 Mongol would set up a " washce' on every quarter section. 

 Oh, for the lungs of a stump orator to exclaim iu stentorian 

 tones over the laud where the buffalo now grazes iu quietude 

 and the wolf howls iu solitude "Beware, the introduction of 

 this cheap food which is but a proludj to an invasion by a 

 cheaper people ! " 



The Mew Tosb Obsbtbe has reached (he green old age of 

 sixty years, having entered upon its sixtieth volume last 

 week. It carries its years with dignity and strength j and 

 to-day is the most able journal of its kind iu the world. The 

 Irenrous Letter in the current number recounts some interest- 

 ing facts in the history of the paper. "Very few T arc now 

 living who subscribed for the Observer in 1823. Many who 

 as children read it then, are its constant readers. A few of 

 the original subscribers survive. Four families are now re- 

 siding in 37th si reel, iu this city, to whom the paper has 

 been going ia the same name from ils first number. R ev . 

 Calvin Yale paid his sixtieth subscription last week, and, 

 more remarkable still, he began with the Boston 

 six years before the Observer was begun, Mr. Cunningham, 

 now our Superintendent of printing, was a bny in the otficc 

 in 1820, and he has been iu it ever since. He remembers the 

 first line he set up at the desk." The life of a good paper is 

 not measured by the span which limits the career of the men 

 who make it. Men may come, and men may go, but the 

 paper goes on forever. The Observer has the wisdom and 

 experience of old age ; it has also the vigor of young blood ; 

 and time will be when these first sixty years will be accounted 

 its youth. 



PsECDONTMS IN NATURAL HlSTOKY NOTES.— The point 



advanced some time ago in our natural history columns by 

 Dr. Merriam, and again referred to this week by Dr. Fisher, 

 is, undoubtedly, well taken, aud deserves the serious con- 

 sideration of our contributors. The value of any published 

 note on natural history depends on its authenticity, and this 

 cannot be determined unless the name of the author is given. 

 We should much prefer to have all our contributors on this 

 subject sign their articles with their full names, for there are 

 numerous observations recorded each year in the columns of 

 Foekst and Stkeam which are of great value, and might 

 prove of much importance to naturalists, were it possible for 

 them to learn more of the topics recorded aud the individual 

 by whom the record is made. The matter, of course, is one 

 which each writer must decide for himself, but iu the inter- 

 ests of science we hope to see the plan advocated by Drs. 

 .Merriam and Fisher, generally adopted by our natural history 

 contributors. There is no reason whyarticles outside of this 

 special department should not be signed by pseudonyms, 

 and we have no desire that any change in the manner of 

 . Bigning should be made. 



Baeom Ihnsst Lagrange, of France, well known to 

 readers of our Paris contemporary La CViasse TUuslre, and a 

 prominent sportsman in his country, has come to America 

 for a two-years' stay, to visit some of the famous game 

 grounds of this country, of which he has heard so much. 

 Accompanied by J. U. Gregory, Esq., Naval Agent at Quebec, 

 Canada, Baron Lagrange called at this office last week on his 

 way to Florida. They propose going into the Kissimee 

 game country, the charms of which we may believe will, in 

 due time, be eloquently described in La I'/m^e. 



Pittsbtjeg Bunch Snow.— Mr. Edward Gregg, the Presi- 

 dent of the Pennsylvania Poultry Society, under whose 

 auspices the coming bench show at Pittsburg will be held, 

 writes us that the prospects for a large show are very flat- 

 tering. They have already received many applications from 

 prominent sportsmen for a place iu the hall for their dogs. 

 Mr. Charles Lincoln is there, and the premium list and entry 

 blanks will soon be ready and may be had by addressing the 

 Secretary, Mr. C. B. El ben. 



Nsw Yoek Bench Show.— The Westminster Kennel 

 Club will hold their sixth annual bench show iu April. The 

 date will be determined at a meeting of the club this week. 

 Full particulars will be found in our next issue. 



Florida.— Dr. C. J. Ken worthy's " Climatology of Flor- 

 ida," contains just the information that very man 

 are seeking now. It may be had from the author, whose 

 residence is at Jacksonville, Fla. 



Kill The Owls ; kill the hawks ; kill the foxes ; kill the 

 skunks ; kill ihe red squirrel*. Remember that this destruc- 

 tion of vermin means something toward the preservation of 

 the game supply. 



MezzLE-LoAi)reaKii--Les are discussed in our game columns 

 to-day. fit r. Van Dyke will find mauy to agree with him' as 

 to the muzzle-loader's accuracy at short range. 



The Floeida Cattle Gbowbbs. — Can any of the readers 

 of the Fokest and Stkeam furnish information about the 

 life of the stock gro (vers of South Florida ? 



Seoketaeihs of Ga?.ib Associations will confer a favor by 

 notifying us of the coming meetings of iheir societies. 



IN THE FORESTS CF YUCATAN— II. 



THE glassy surface of the "aguada," soon after dawn, 

 reflected the rosy hues of the sky, and the sun crept, 

 slowly up, dissipating the coolness of the night, and before 

 seven it was very hot. The sand-fl.ii s came out and en- 

 livened us, while the birds commenced their erics. Idressed 

 and, weni, out. Coffee was ready and cigarettes ;' and alter 

 Inking breakfast we were ready to start fur the coast. We 

 were to have started "muy temprano''— very early— but the 

 sun climbed higher aud ihigher and still the horses were 

 Chi [their corn and my friend still unprepared. It, is 

 always " mafiana"— to-morrow— in this country; "man- 

 y-ami temprano"— early to-morrow ; but is ever "mafiana" 

 and never "temprano." The people lose the best hours of 

 morning ami work in the heat, of the day. 



Across the " aguada" there was a strange bird called the 

 " marinero"— or sailor— that uttered a succession of harsh 

 eries for hours. The woods were full of birds of certain 

 species, sueh as orioles, flycatchers, blackbirds, doves, and a 

 host of others. I shot a very beautiful trogon with a yellow 

 breast, and parrots were crying out all the lime. ■"Tem- 

 prano" meant ten o'clock, when the sun nearly blistered our 

 backs, yet even then Alonzo wanted to know if I would not 

 like to wait till later. 



The. trees that composed the wood we first entered, many 

 of them, supported great nests of the white acts,' which 

 looked at a little distance like black bears. We passed 

 through a broad area covered with wild "henequc 

 hemp— showing where the plants come from whence the 

 plantations are stocked. Near some lovely " aguadas" was 

 a new " rancho" with anice-looking girl preparing tortillas, 

 and some hundred rods beyond we saw an Indian mound of 

 shells. An hour later I saw a man-o'-war bird i',:,,, ,', 

 aejuila) and felt that, from this sign, the sea could not be far 

 off; nor was 1 mistaken, for we soon struck a sandy plain 

 with small salt ponds and espied the great lagoon that con- 

 nects with the sea. 



Mangroves and stunted trees had been features of the land- 

 scape thus far, but a mound of green cocoa palms now rot o 

 up ano relieved the monotony. This was the " cerr," — or 

 hill— we were looking for, a shell-heap made by ihe ancient 

 Indians, covered aud surrounded with a few hundred coco 

 palms. Here were two small thatched and wattled huts, 

 dilapidated and dirty, within which were two Indian women 

 CJoking some fish. They had but little corn and nothing 

 else but fish, but they brought a great fish called "lisa," 

 which had been broiled on the coals in its own fat, and this 

 was delicious. It was, as it lay split, open, nearly two inches 

 thick, aud we ate and relished exceedingly great" flakes of it. 

 These women had never seen a spoon, knife or fork, and as 

 we had none with us, we used our fingers aud tortillas, each 

 one taking his turn at the fish and gravy. Fortunately, we 

 had hundreds of coco nuts at hand, and were not obliged to 

 drink the nasty cuff ee they boiled for us, but had, instead, 

 the refreshing water of the cocos. A man came along as we 

 finished our cigarettes and we engaged him to take us iu his 

 boat to a point up the lagoon where - , . according to 



him, "muchos" flamingoes. The ■■o: rro" is at a point where 

 the lagoon meets the sea, called "Boca de oilam" and 

 "Punta Arenas''— or point of sand. There are here long 

 sand-bars and shoals, and naturally the fish congregate here 

 by millions aud the sea birds by thousands. A wall of man- 

 groves comes down to the border of the lagoon, and beyond 

 the sand point is the open ocean. Flocks of pelicans, se.i 

 gulls, terns, cormorants, "peeps," plover, snipe, herons, 

 egrets and sponbill.s were flying, wading aud swimming in 

 and above the water. Here it, is said the flamingoes come by 

 hundreds on the bar, about a gunshot, from the huts among 

 the palms ; but they were not there then, they would come 

 that night or "mafiana." The man poled the boat up the 

 lagoon, disturbing hundreds of snipe and sandpipers, to a 

 point where the stream narrowed and where the mangroves 

 came down to the water's edge forming solidgreen walls with 

 the placid water between them. These trees were dotted 

 with w T hlte herons and cormorants, and at a place where there 

 was a spring — a spring of fresh water* bubbling up in this 

 salt water lagoon — we put up a hundred ducks and two dozen 

 spoonbills— "platalea ajaja" — which were roosting on the 

 trees. 



Having shot some of these birds we tried to land.fout the 

 mud was so soft and we sank so deep that it was impossible, 

 and we had to leave them there. Leaving the main channel 

 we entered a narrow water lane, where many egrets and 

 night herons, with broad boat -bills, flapped across our bows. 

 The mangroves were in bloom, ihe small concealed flower 

 being hardly perceptible. At last we reached the p mil 

 where the flami (lgoes ought to have been, but where they were 

 not, a broad mud flat, wltere they always have fed till to-day. 

 Disappointed, w-e turned the boat about, after causing it to 

 be pushed over the mud as far as possible, and returned. 



The sun was down then aud the water Smoother, and all the 

 little, water birds aud the greater ibis and herons were going 

 ome on the sand Bars, others on the trees. Our 

 dinner, when w T e reached the hut, was the same as our break- 

 fast— a large broiled fish laid out on a palmetto fai 

 we ate by the light of an attenuated Candle stuck near by on 

 a " nictate " table. The interior of the hut. was black with 

 smoke, dried fish were stuck up all about, nets and other 

 paraphernalia of a fisher'shut hung iu the corners, and one 

 end was filled by a great pile of eocoanuts. Into the six 

 hammocks, hung side bF side in Ihe centre, leu people 

 stowed themselves as night came on, though Alonzo and 1, 

 in virtue of our silver, had a single one each. 1 slepl un- 

 easily because they told me the flamingoes would 

 the night and we must get up at moourise aud hunt, them. 

 Insects of some kind — I could not te'l what nor h 

 save that, I knew they were numerous and sanguinary — were 

 crawling over me all night. The hammock next me was 

 occupied by an old woman with two babies, and she, with 

 the men and boys on either she i &g and spit- 



ting all night. It was very dark, aud the wind -v. 

 through the spices of the hut all tl. tho ■;, hours, 



• Perhaps llio reader may recall tire accounts given ol :,■■ ,. 

 cremil 1'iesli uaierspllng in tile .Hlaiille, on* St. .-', .i„iisi m ■, en im 



and iu i bo morning there was a perfect "norther" and the 

 long leaves of the cocoa palms were lashing their trunks 

 ib fur; £-1 sunset the Indians told us the flaming 

 come at m dnight, then at dawn, and when dv I 

 they-wa - I two leagues off, and would appear 



» When 1 heard this last I knew the ease was 



hopeless, and prepared to depart. The only si,! ;,," 



mingoes we obtained was early in the morning, when two 

 long lines flapped over the water far at s. li'stinguish ffl 



■ayt .. 

 Stephens and D 



their bright, color. Forty years ago Mfc, 

 i iftbol hart similar fortm e to mi ■ i 



™, u v. j^aia,. Having 1)0011 hired hero fr.1,,1 Hie pm1 I ! | 



by the stories told them of the abundance of ibis and flinfflS 

 goes, and ho..: g returned empty-handed. Then, as now 

 Puntas Arenas was simply a station for fishermen 

 but i ingle hut. I perfectly agree with the disli 

 traveler that, "for mere sporting, such a ground is 

 seen, and the idea of a shooting lodge, or rather hut on the 

 shores of Puntas Arenas for a few months iu the season pre- 

 seulcd itself almost as attractively as that of exploraS 

 ruined cities." ' B 



COZITMICI. AND THE ISLA MTTGERE8. 



Stephens was theu on his way back from an extend*) 

 exploration of the ruins of the island of Cozitntel and 

 the east coast of Yucatan, and perhaps, as this is the neaiffl 



point we shall reae;< ,., : • -ooi.ion, it will be , J 



icrpolate a short description ol that portion of rucatffi 

 The first point at which the Spaniards under Cordova landed 

 upon the then unknown kingdom of Mexico wa» at if* 

 northeastern extremity, now called Cape Catoche. An In 

 diau chief invited them ashore, saying ' Con-EscotoaE 

 which signifies come to our town, and it was from trffl 

 that he gave it the name of Pumas de Cotoche It 

 whs determined by us to accept the invitation savs the 

 old chronicler, observing the proper precaution of sM 

 all in a body, and by one embarkation, a s tve V 

 ceived the shore to be lined with Indians." They wctp 

 attacked by these, the first acquaintances of the new 

 country, and fifteen or the company wounded "TflH 

 warriors were armed with thick coats'of cotton, 

 besides their bows and arrows, lances, shiei. 

 also wore ornaments of feathers on their heads. * "* « 

 Near the place of this ambuscade were three' buildines jP 

 lime and stone, wherein were idols of clay, with diabofflH 

 countenances, and several wooden chests,' which contaH 

 similar idols bnt smaller; some vessels, three di,,i, , „;,■ 

 one imitations of bo ..a aod tishes in alloyed 

 imldmgs of liuie aud stone, and the gold, gave us a aTfiB 

 ilea ol ihe country we had discovered. On our ,etum tfl 

 hoi we had the satisfaction to find, that while 40 

 were fighting, our chaplain, GonEales, had taken care of the 

 chests and their contents, which he had, with the assistance 

 ,,f two Indians of Cuba, brought off safely 10 our -hitis 

 Having re-embarked, we proceeded as before, coasting j5 

 the westward." The island of Cozurnei wast - ' 

 next-year, 1518, on the voyage of Grijalav 

 Cortez set sail in 1516* "There Was," says 

 "on ihe island of Cozumel a temple, and 

 idols, to which all the Indians of Ihe nelghtl 

 medio go frequently in solemn procession." ., 



Cortez and his companions east down, and o ,,,',. 



crucifix in their place, which the Indians finally consenfifl 



to accept. Here they heard of two Spaniards 'in captivity 



among the Indians, one of whom they rescued aud who 



proved of great service afterward as an interpreter Nfflfh ' 



of the great island of Cozumel is Isla Mug, , 



six miles from the coast, five or six' miles in 



length by half a mile wide. Here some of the sailors- 



of Cortez went on shore "aud found in 11 



hard by, four temples, the idols in which represented Jrtti- 



man I'cma'c figures of large size, for which reason we ummd 



this place Puntas de las Mugeres. " They thought 'the irfiM 



■overed th'a 

 o and for it 

 Bormd Oidft. 



"'ing districts 

 These i m 



Females. What! 



3 a -nd Cozumel, in a 

 gist.TJr. i, 



'•orily. In a com- 

 Salisbury, Jr., of Worcester, in- 

 '•'"! first; of the Isia. 



,.. point, and calle 

 Stephens in 1842 did lot 

 superficial manner, theleai 

 lalso done more thorn" 

 muuication to 8tephe_ _ 

 1878,* he gives a complete survey (the 

 Mugeres, locating the ancient buildi 

 temple formerly containing the idols Bpolten ol by*BeJH 

 Diaz, and the "altar." A valuable discovery by the Doctor 

 was made there of a terra cotla female tiiiurc, which Mil 

 formed the front ofa "brasero,"or incense burner. It wasof' 

 excellent workmanship, and valuable, not oniy'fiorn this 

 fact, but owing to the extreme rarity of works of ccranffc 

 art iu and near the peninsula of Yucatan. The Doctor's de- 

 scription of Mugeres is so delightful that I cannot rM9 

 quoting it, especially as the book in which it is o 

 not accessible to the general reader. "The village , >] I k,\„m 

 is built on the beach of ihe pretty little bay-, where n il B 

 Of fishing smacks from Havana, as the pirates of old, finds 

 Hire shelter from the violence of tho stormy northei ■ , i itdffib 

 the wavesagamst the iron-bound shores of Ihe < ,. , , ,,], „ 

 the ink .o aueiie a terrific and deafening noise. Thehouscs 

 are i uug y ensconced in a thick grove ol cocoa i 

 evergri j tc as them from the scorching rays (if 



tl etropioal sun. three streets run north and south ' Tin- 

 principal street, the middle one, half a mile iu len 

 ered with deep sand, as are all the others, leads in i 

 Hue to the necropolis, rhe dwellings, with bin ,, 



exceptions, are mere thatched huts. The 

 of palisades of trunks . if palmetto trees. They an 

 inside and out and then whitewashed Among the fire 

 hundred houses of which the village is composed, a ajfflB 

 lay have their walls of stone and monoo 



with th 



from tin 



great pa 



few rose _ _ 



mice, of which they 



- , I ; ', i 



Blmilar 



lalmetl o t rees. Each hut is seuaJH 

 '.yard 1 n some the on n 

 , try to cultivate iu the sandy soil a 

 u- flowering shrubs of sickly apaH 

 nne.c, ui nu^iiuvj „■ ■- very proud. The interior oM® 

 houses is the same for the rich as for the poor, consisti^H 

 a large, single room, which serves during the dn 

 and reception room. It is converted at night iul 

 mon Bleeping apartment by hanging hammocks from the 

 ratters which support, the roof. Oftentimes an 

 hung across the room, divides it into two apartments, aW 

 serves ia lieu of a cm-fain. The articles of furniture are feff. 

 and old fashioned— some wooden chairs and tables, sup- 

 port,,, d on trestles to isola'e them from the dump floors -of 

 ' belun' (Maya foi tuncre . , I the shrine of the 'Pen 

 ate,' containing th tatuctte of the patron saint oi 



the family, before which is constantly burning a small lamp. 

 hammock: or two, together with fi-hing nets, oar-V 



Sec" rro ^ i ,. .-, in Tlctm Antli-piarlan .society, tor IStt^ 



article eatitlei 1 ' Terra Cotta Figure trum Jslu ilugeres,'' 



