49 
made  the  commission  I received  in  the  early  part  of  this  year,  to 
inspect  and  report  upon  the  state  and  possibilities  of  the  extensive 
rubber  plantation  of  the  Las  Cascadas  Pla  ntations  Company  Limited, 
at  the  very  outset  an  acceptable  one.  The  fact  that  this  plantation 
is  situated  in  the  Isthmus  of  Panama  seemed  to  me  a comparative- 
ly slight  matter,  although  I must  own  to  occasional  apprehensive 
pangs  on  being  treated  by  some  of  mv  friends,  and  others,  to  some- 
what vivid  descriptions  of  the  terrors  of  mosquitos,  malaria,  yellow 
fever,  and  small-pox.  I will  say  at  once  here  that  I found  all  these 
blood-curdling  stories  gross  exaggerations.  Colon  is  certainly  an 
abominable  hole,  but  had  I to  take  the  choice,  I would,  without  an 
instant’s  hesitation,  prefer  to  live  at  Colon  rather  than  in  the  slum 
districts  of  either  London,  Manchester  or  Salford.  The  same,  only 
more  so,  is  to  be  said  of  Panama,  whic  h is  a fairly  well  built  town 
upon  rocky  sub-soil.  Particularly  the  mosquito  bogey  appears  to 
me  an  absurd  exaggeration  as  far  as  the  isthmus  is  concerned. 
Only  once  during  the  whole  journey  did  I get  really  badly  bitten, 
this  w.'.s  in  mv  cabin  on  board  the  R.  .M.  S.  “ Para”  on  the  first 
night  after  leaving  Jamaica  for  Colon.  It  appears  that  besides 
taking  in  coal  at  that  port,  we  had  also  shipped  a liberal  consign- 
ment of  mosquitos. 
The  real  trouble  of  an  expedition  like  the  one  I undertook  was 
never  suggested  to  me  ; it  consists  in  the  fact  that  as  soon  as  one 
leaves  the  beaten  track  (Colon  to  Panama)  every  trace  of  civilized 
comforts  at  once  vanish.  'The  food  is  atrociously  bad,  the  cooking 
worse;  all  drinks,  even  water  taken  direct  from  the  streams,  are 
at  almost  fever  heat  and  often  there  is  nothing  to  be  had  but  rain 
water.  It  is  this  bad  food,  the  monotony  of  the  diet,  and  the  insi- 
pidity of  tepid  d I inks  which  1 felt  to  render  a stay  in  the  Tropics 
rather  trying.  Of  course,  on  a plantation  with  a well  established 
settlement,  all  these  difficultities  largely  disappear. 
As  is  well  known,  the  stretch  of  the  isthmus  from  Colon  to  Pa- 
nama, through  which  runs  the  track  of  the  illustrated  Panama  Canal, 
is  all  low-lying,  on  the  Colon  side  largely  swampy  land,  the  mean 
elevation  of  which  above  sea  level  does  certainly  not  exceed  8o 
feet.  There  are  a number  of  banana  plantations  along  side,  or 
within  near  distance!  of  the  canal  track,  but  nothing  of  any  magni- 
tude. 
Shortly  after  leaving  Colon,  the  mountain  ranges  appearing  in 
the  far  distance,  south  and  south  west  of  the  town,  begin  to  slowly 
close  in  upon  tlie  track  of  the  canal,  coming  eventually  near  Pana- 
ma, right  upon  it,  and  it  is  this  hill  district  which,  intersected  by 
innumerable  small  rivers  and  brooks,  verv  gradually  rises  to  alti- 
tudes 1,200  feet  and  upwards,  which  furnishes  at  altitudes  of  from 
200  to  8oo  feet,  or  perhaps  even  somewhat  higher,  the  most  suit- 
able land  for  the  cultivation  of  India-rubber,  cacao  and  coffee. 
In  this  hill  district,  connected  bv  their  own  road  with  Las  Cas- 
cadas station,  lies  the  plantation  of  the  Las  Cascadas  Plantations 
Company  Limited,  which  comprise  a total  area  of  very  manv  acres, 
a large  part  of  which  is  planted  oui  with  rubber  (Castilloa  elastica) 
cacao  and  coffee,  'fhe  number  of  rubber  trees  on  the  plantation 
