FOREST AND STREAM. [Nov. 2,1901. 
342 
Adventures in Tropical America. 
-III.— Indians and Mosqwitoes. 
-■ Crossing Brewer's Lagoon on the Mosquito CoAst of 
Central America, one sees a group of cocoanut trees 
rioating, as it were, above the water. It marks ohe of the 
principal towns of the Mosquito Indians, a pl'acc where 
dark stories lingered— tales of the Indians and there 
cruelty. 
Arriving at this place oae evening, I saw a low, 
muddy shore, and groups of huts clustered togethef 
among the trees. As we came up to the landing Women 
and children crowded about, talking eag-e)rly, and anxious 
to see everything- we had. Climbing over the side of 
a great canoe, I stood for the first time on the native 
land of the Indians, isnd it would have been hard to tell 
who were the most interested, I or the Indians crowding 
about me. The girls were graceful; the j^ounger ones 
beautiful. The children were bright and pretty, like 
little fairies, almost; but the older women were worn and 
bent by labor. The men showed all too clearly the 
signs of unrestricted dissipation. They were of rather 
dark skin, and among some there were marked traces of 
negro blood. These huts were oblong, rounded at the 
i-nds; they were made by driving palmetto trunks info the 
ground and covered with a thatched roof of palm leaves. 
The children wore but little clothing; the Avomen used 
a short skirt and little shawl, and the men wore panta- 
loons and a short coat, only partially covering the ab- 
domen. All were friendly, and in a very short time 
willing hands took our supplies from the canoes, and then 
made us welcome, with presents of fruits and game. All 
our things were stored in one of the larger huts, and 
we were given a place near by, in which we Were to live — ■ 
a very comfortable hut, with mahogany boards for the 
floor. 
Soon people grew tired of looking ' at us, and 
vent about their own affairs. The women busied them- 
selves preparing food, and presently seated before the 
luits were groups of people, eating, talking and laugh- 
ing, evidently secure in the abundance of the present 
and the promises of the future, with no care at all. 
In a little time the family groups began to disappear, 
and laughing and talking could be heard from under 
heavy canopies; and from the surrounding jungles a 
distant hum, rising up and dying away, could be heard 
l onstantly growing louder, and seeming to be drawing 
nearer. Most of the people had disappeared by this 
time, and the chief now shouted to us, "Get under the 
mosquito canopies; don't you hear them coming?" 
We had been provided with canopies before leaving 
the settlements, and finding that the Indians had been 
careful to hang them in our hut Ave hurried under cover. 
For a time I lay awake, listening in wonder to the 
myriads of mosquitoes that came swarming about. This was 
the Mosquito Coast, and I began to understand hoAv, at 
night, the mosquitoes are a real danger, and to sleep 
without a heavy canopy would truly mean death. 
IV. — Canoeing with the Mosquito Indians. 
Once, in the early morning, when the fog Avas thick 
among the marshes, and the mist hung Ioav over the 
Avater, I left the little Indian village under the cocoanut 
trees on Brewer's Lagoon and began a long journey, 
canoeing up the Rio Potues of Spanish Honduras. I 
had been pleasantly entertained at the village, but my late 
friends were apparently so indifferent at my going that 
I began to lose faith in the Indians, while stories that I 
had heard of their cruelty and treachery were con- 
stantly suggesting themselves to my thoughts. My 
Avhite companions were rough, boasting, quarrelsome 
men, not pleasant traveling companions; and from them 
I separated myself, and found a comfortable place in 
one of the smaller canoes alone with three Indians, about 
whom I really knew nothing. Soon the Indian village 
was lost in the gray light of the morning, and then Ave 
were surrounded by fog and desolation. Along the 
shores of the lagoon Avere dead or dying trees, gaunt 
and naked; about us were quantities of water fowl, and 
in the Avater were many watchful alligators. Our prog- 
ress was slow, for the shallow water was choked with 
plants and decaying vegetation. About noon we made 
a branch of the Potues River, where a volume of muddy 
water came pouring out of a narrow channel, surrounded 
by great stretches of marsh land covered with tall reeds 
and extending for miles. Progress was slow, and the 
clumsy boat designed by the superintendent of the ex- 
pedition could scarcely be held against the current. 
By nightfall Ave had made perhaps one or two miles, 
and then, the mosquitoes appearing, we were forced to 
prepare a hasty camp on a mud bank. Such a night! 
IBefore my mosquito bar was up I had caught a net full 
of them and as the hours wore away h"feld a boxing 
match with myself, and perhaps killed some mosquitoes; 
but I am not sure; in that country mosquitoes are differ- 
ent from the harmless little insects at home. They are 
like rubber; to kill them one must use force enough to 
cause some inconvenience, and that night I punished 
myself severely. Next morning came with fog and light 
rain, just the weather for mosquitoes; and the Indians 
predicted that we would have a bad time. We didn't 
stop to eat much, and were soon under way again, ma- 
king better progress than on the day before. I traveled 
Avith my three Indians, who were working vigorously to 
keep up Avith the larger boat. They Avere almost naked, 
and the quantities of mosquitoes made their flesh quiver; 
yet they bent determinedly to their work. Presently we 
passed under a group of willow trees, and I picked a 
bunch of soft Avithes to keep the mosquitoes from my 
hands and face. One of the Avithes was very long, and I 
found that by using a little energy I could send it gently 
over the backs and shoulders of my suffering men, and 
at the same time protect my own face and hands. Pres- 
ently my Avhite companions noticed my efforts, and from 
the larger boat set up a derisive shouting, saying, with 
many unpleasant words, that it was no use to do any- 
thing for an Indian, 1 would learn quickly enough. The 
Indians said nothing; neither did they make any sign 
of thanks, though at each derisive s|?out and taunting re- 
hiatk i noticed an ugly light flash in their eyes, but 
there was no other change of expression. Then we fell 
behind the big boat, and I was alone with theltti Ginnfer 
time came; the big boat was fat in a^ivante of lis and my 
men had nothine- t'd eat. Their lea,der asked ttle, "Ybli 
eat ftow?" and on being told that I Avbuld stbt)ped the 
t:ift>ii'ot at a convenient point and spreld out the bountiful 
ibnth that had been bi"ovitle(i for me. Then they went 
back to tiie c^i.n'ofe and sat in stolid dejection, waiting for 
me to flttisn. I immediately called them, proposing to 
divide what food I had equally. They came with some 
hesitation; each took the offered food, but ma.de no .?ign 
of thanks, not even an expression of gratitude oh tllcii- 
faces. My dog received a share of the food, and it laid 
its head affettlohSleiy on my knee and Avagged its tail in 
appretia'tibn; but the Indians simply ate, and made no 
sign. I was disgusted". Truly there Avas reason in all 
the derision of my Avhite companions. We started on 
presently, but there was a sort of misimderstanding 
among us. I sat in the canoe, brushing the mosquitoes 
from my hands and face, and let the men shift for them- 
selves, thinking that there was no use doing anything 
for an Indian; but common humanity Could not bear the 
sight of their quivering, naked flesh, and the next mo- 
ment I was brushing the mosquitoes from them, as be- 
fore, wondering at tlieir strange. Unfeeling natUireSi 
Late in the afternoon we oveftook the latgfe boat and 
found that preparations Were being tnade to camp on a 
high, wooded bank, that promised Well for the night. 1 
fot out my mosquito bar, meaning to arrange it aarly, 
efore the mosquitoes came; but no sooner had I stailfea 
for the shore than the leader of niy lileh giVfe the 
youngest a savage cuff actoss the eai-' and pointed to the 
bundle, which the yoUng: ttian immediately ran to take 
from me. I was Avell tited, and only too pleased to give 
it up, and scarcely noticed that my nien were busily at 
work arranging it for me — and they did it Well, tob. 
When supper was ready and We sat aroUnd eatinfe as best 
we could hard-tack and canned corned beef, With stl-ong 
coffee, Dhe of my men came softly behind me and put a 
line piece of roasted turtle on my plate, and Avent aAvay, 
not even waiting for thanks. Of course, I shared it 
with my wliite companions, and we all found it a wel- 
come addition to our limited supply. Then the mos- 
quitoes drove us under our nets, and Ave tried to sleen: 
but a fierce storm, now rapidly approaching, made us 
anxious, and avc lay aAvake Avaiting. The perspiration 
was trickling down my face; then for a moment a breath 
of cool air came, bloAving through the net, followed by 
a crashing and roaring as the storin closed in around us 
— wind, thunder, lightning and torrents of rain. No tent 
could turn such a volume of Avater, and presently it was 
coming through in streams. All the place was drenched, 
and pools of Avater formed where my companions had 
made their beds; but Avhere I lay the ground had been 
banked up, arid no water collected, and for some unac- 
countable reason no water came through my part of the 
tent, though long, bitter curses, coming from my com- 
panions, shoAved how they Avere faring; yet I Avas cool 
and comfortable and presently fell asleep. 
Morning came bright and clear after the storm, and 
on scrambling out from under the tent I saAV that my 
Indians had left their beds, and in all that storm had 
collected quantities of big leaves and arranged them on 
the tent- over my bed that I might sleep unharmed. 
Truly their Avays are not as our ways, and it is of some 
use to show kindness to the Indians. I understood them 
after that, and we were the best of friends. Through all 
that journey I had but to express a Avish. and eager 
hands were ready to serve me. Of course I shared my 
provisions, and kept the mosquitoes off them; but that 
was not much to do, and they gave in return of fruits, 
game and all that they had; nor were they ever con- 
tented till I had taken the best of everything that they 
secured; yet never an expression of thanks in their silent 
faces, only noAV and then a light in their eyes that shone 
for an instant and then disappeared. Through all that 
trip up the river the Avater was at full flood, the rainy 
season on in force, and all nature at its best. ^ Each turn 
of tke river opened to new delights of tropical luxuri- 
ance, a Avall of green on either hand, a torrent of muddy 
Avater crawling, chafing and filling the air Avith a sub- 
dued, but ominous, murmuring; bands of dark, forbid- 
ding clouds, beating showers, with alternate periods of 
bright sunshine, and everywhere the fragrance of count- 
less blossoms. Of all that was beautiful, the most 
striking Avere the masses of yellow jessamine floAvers 
that in some places, where the vines had mounted to the 
tops of great trees, were seen in bold outline above the 
forest, a crown of glory and fragrance. It was beautiful, 
but no place for a Avhite man. Below the dense luxuri- 
ance of the jungle were swamps and poisoned air, and 
all that region was solitude, given over to Avild animals 
and primeval forests. 
Camping in such places was not pleasant, and each 
night we made the best convenience Ave could on a mud 
bank, and though my Indians did everything possible for 
me I was beginning to be quite miserable, Avhen my head 
Indian said, ''Don't sick; avc .sleep dry to-night, and to- 
morrow reach houses!" 
Our camp that night promised to be the most un- 
pleasant of all, and to my surprise the Indians did not 
arrange my bed and mosquito bar as usual. I soon found 
they had not forgotten, for after supper they came to 
carry me on their strong backs tAvo miles tlirough the 
swamp to a village of their people. My white compan- 
ions objected, saying, "You are a pretty felloAV, going 
to leave the expedition, making up to the Indians and 
deserting your friends. Suppose the river rises, and 
everything exposed to it." I stopped, not that I cared 
much about my "friends," but I felt some responsibility 
for the goods we carried. The Indians Avere disap- 
pointed, and the youngest of my three men was told to 
stay Avith mc. Of this there Avas no need, and I sent him. 
to be comfortable, with the others. Then night settled 
doAvn about camp and the sorroAvs of darkness began — 
rain above, mosquitoes around and mud below us. 
At last morning came, and the Indians returned from 
the village looking fresh and rested; but Ave, who had 
stopped on the mud bank, Avere a sorry appearing lot. 
That day it did not rain so much, and the Indians worked 
with a will, so that by noontime Ave reached an open 
savannah, Avhere a collection of board houses and_ a 
ruined saw mill were lonely evidences of an enterprise 
of some kind that >yas a failure, H,ere we were to stop 
for a fcAv days, until arrangements had been made with 
other Indians to take us further on. Our supplies wef^ 
soOh Unloaded, and then tlie In'difins turhed aAvay and 
left us, illy bwn men going without a work or a look. 
I htil-tied after them to say good-by; and when I called 
they stopped, took my proffered hand with a surprised 
expression, and then went on again, A moment or two 
later the boats disappeared around a bend in the river, 
and I never saw any of them again. 
A circumstance of no little sadness in irregular trav- 
eling is the passing intercourse with many people. Some 
tti'e bad and not fegi-etted; others strong and loyiil, wltll 
whom one goes through hardships or pleasures, and on 
parting thinks he will see them again; but one never does. 
Francis C. Nicholas. 
A Walk Down South.— H. 
Soon after t left Johnston's 1 climbed the tidge which 
divides th^ §UsqUehanna fi-ohl the Mohawk Watetshed. 
Thiree potatoes added nearly four pounds to my pack, but 
I traveled easily under the load. I began to feel stronger 
as a result of the exercise, though I was a long way to 
a fit eondititjn fbi" such a pack aS iriih'-. 
As the aftetnoon waned, t watched foi- a piacfi id 
camp. The road, as a rule. Was many rods froin woodsj 
but as I began to go down the pitch into the vallelr 
Avhere Lebanon lies, I spied a little brook 3t the foot t>f 
a hill off to the left. I Avent aci:os3 lots tb it, and aBotit 
I o'fclofck, tWo tiilleg shbi-t of LcbaHon, I went ihtb cdiii|i. 
It Was a clear-Avatef- streain, but noj: the Adii-ondacl^ 
kind. The stoneS A\'ei-e coyeired With clay, fci-ns. and 
sttings, the sediment from the fields thi-ough Which iHe 
brook flowed from its source in a patch of Avoods dbovb 
the road on a, hill. On a bank was a scale roCk tliff 
several feet in height. , , . 
On a bit of level a couple of f-ods back fl^diti this Ms(T 
I pitched my tent, using tAvo poles instead of three, Avith 
a supporting stick at each end of the blanket. I did not 
try to find forks of the right size to hold the side poles, 
but tied them fast to a couple of saplings with string — a 
quicker and better Avay. I did not sAving the tent so 
high either. The sides lapped imder the hemlock bed 
and kept out the Avind, as did the rear drop, which was 
adjusted with care. A dry, beech pole fire, with a green 
birch "bottom,** Avas so Avarm that it alarmed me fot ttly 
rubber top, but it did not melt. I drank a little beef tesii 
not being hungry, and soon after the blUejays and ctoWs 
stopped their cries 1 went to sleep. OnCe 1 awakened 
to tend the fire; the next time 1 roused Ut> thete was 
scarcely a spark left. I did not bother to reliindle it, but 
rolled up tightly in my blankets and slept till a red squiir- 
rel yelped his amazement on discoveting my teht neai' 
his home tree. It Was a joy to have a red squirrel ring 
the^ get-up bell over one's head in the morning. 1 built 
a fire, fried some potatoes in the grease of fried pork, 
and then packed up carefully. It takes skill and experi- 
ence to get a basket filled well. Done one ivay, a pack 
hangs lopsided, .is topheavy, swings back from the 
shoulders, rattles and holds about half of one's duffle. 
On the Sunday I spent above SoUsville in the old house 
I packed and repacked my stuff to find the best way to 
do it, and each day since I have added a little to the ex- 
perience there gained, taking especial pains to group the 
articles— flour, salt and baking powder scattered to the 
four corners of a pack make confusion at every meah 
And at night I knoAv of nothing more irritating than to 
have to go to the bottom of the pack for the tent covetj 
and to the middle of the clothes rolls for the string. 
After my pack was all ready, and when I had looked 
carefully around for stray articles, I started again, but 
went only a few^ rods. While I was cooking breakfast 
I had shot a spying bluejay, tearing it beyond the possi- 
bility of eating. I wanted to kill some red squirrels; so 
I went up over the hill, leaving my pack by the road. 
I spied two on one hemlock tree. They Avere very wild, 
and climbed to the top of it out of sight; so I sat down 
and waited. In ten minutes one of the animals came 
down into sight and I fired, missing. The next shot, 
hoAvever, killed. 
I dodged Lebanon by going over a great hill and many 
fences. A/ cold in the head and hunger again made me 
lonesome. But down in a SAvamp a fire with some fire- 
light pancakes, changed the hue of things. Fried squir- 
rels were good to eat, even though they were red squir- 
rels. 
The desire to hear from home grew rapidly as I ap- 
proached the first station where I was to get my mail — • 
NcAvark Valley, in Tioga county. But my feet were sore 
with the steady striking of over two hundred pounds on 
each of them. Every twenty minutes I stopped to rest, 
and when I started, the blisters were more and more 
painful. 
I passed through Otselic on Tuesday, and two miles 
below that place a small hay barn down in the lot looked 
so attractive that I went to the owner of the farm and 
asked if I could sleep there. 
"Do you smoke?" he asked. 
"No," I said, and offered him my match box to boot. 
He didn't take it, and I went down to the barn to sleep. 
To get into it I had to climb an outside perpendicular lad- 
der and go through a loft doorway. It was hard work 
Avith the heaA'y pack, after the ten miles. 
About milking time, 5:30 P. M., I Avent to the barn and 
bought two quarts of milk, which I drank Avarm on the 
spot. It Avas delicious and satisfying. Taking another 
quart for breakfast, I went back to the barn and slept 
all night long, save that a shower of rain roused mc 
two or three times. In the morning I drank my quart 
of milk and started, invigorated, down the Otselic Valley, 
in spite of the shoAvers of rain, Avhich came at intervals 
during the day. I put the rubber blanket over my pack 
and head so that I was kept dry. 
Corn in the shack rattled in the wind, and leaves from 
the trees fell to the road from wayside maples. The 
crests of the ridges on either side of the valley seemed to 
grow gray as I looked at them. It was probably not all 
optical illusion, for the trees \yere shedding their leaves 
in clouds at each Avet gust of Avind. 
Very few people Avere in sight, and the presence of 
strangers did not make this part of the trip any less lone- 
some. I longed for a companion of some sort. I wished 
some dog, like Nesgmuk's Pete, the dog without pedi- 
» 
