24 



CENTRAL AMERICA. 



placed him in his chair, and shot him before 

 all his parishioners. They then proceeded to 

 sack the village, and commit all sorts of 

 abominations. They returned from their tour 

 in a few weeks, leaving a desolated trail be- 

 hind them, and pretty well laden with spoil won 

 by every species of cruelty and oppression. 



Ask the best educated what he thinks of 

 any of these actions, and the answer is al- 

 ways the eternal " Quien sabe?" (" who 

 knows ?") and, lighting his cigar, takes a 

 swing in his hammock ; — -if he does think of it 

 at all, he takes very good care not to let his 

 thoughts escape. 



Not like these are the dwellers in the 

 woods and forests ; generally honest and in- 

 offensive, but bold and hardy, they seem to 

 care as little for revolutions as revolutions do 

 for them. " Remote from cities," they lead 

 a rather uncertain precarious life, but, with a 

 little hard work for a short time in the year, 

 they can assure subsistence to their families. 

 An acre of forest land, cleared, burnt, and 

 fenced, is sure to produce an abundant crop 

 of maize ; and if a few join together in felling 

 and fencing, — of which I shall give a descrip- 

 tion, — the work is better and quicker done, 

 and the produce divided. This ground may 



