IN COSTA RICA 
187 
Limon. For them the United Fruit Co. provides hospitals, keeping out 
two per cent, of their wages for medical attendance ; and yet, in spite 
of black fever, yellow fever, mosquitoes, and snakes, there is not a great 
amount of sickness among these laborers. And if one can judge by the 
appearance of the people, their home life in their little tin-roofed shacks, 
crowded with pickaninnies, mangy dogs, monkeys, and parrots, shows 
a greater measure of content than is to be found in the majority of settle- 
ments more favorably located, and populated by those who have a 
thousandfold more to make existence tolerable. 
As the train emerged from the palmetto swamps, it ran through 
some magnificent banana plantations, the trees growing rankly from rich 
alluvial soil and the bunches of fruit being often five or six feet long, 
and weighing over one hundred pounds each. The railroad, by the way, 
over which we were traveling, was built through the enterprise of that 
w r ell known American, Mr. Minor C. Keith, who was also the creator of 
the great United Fruit Co. 
After a time the road began to ascend and the scenery became more 
and more beautiful. Nearly the whole of the distance up to the city of 
San Jose, the way lay along the side of a range of mountains, and ran 
parallel with a rapidly rushing river, whose white water could be seen 
oftentimes for miles. As we got up into the higher country, the home 
life of the Costa Rican began to be apparent. 
LOADING BANANAS ON A TRAIN 
