New-York daily tribune., 1854-08-24


Tie coffee tree is an extremely pretty tree and quite
peculiar Its branches shoot forth in opposite psrs
sb.ve and a. right angles with each other; the leaves
resemble those of the common laurel bat dsa
ica'e. TIE tree blossoms in May. and the white
flowers ssue in groups from the angle Of the leaf
stalks aud when they burst scent the whole air around
with the sweet perfume Of the jasmine; they only lsst
Cay. The blossom is replaced by the fruit which 10
not unlike cherry. and contains in the center ofs
yellow pulp, two berries These berries the
omstic coffee bean There is this peculiarly in the
e, tree, that one half only of each branch beam
fruit at alternate seasons.
The estate which yields the richest crop is in tho
rossession Of the President OF the Republic Don Ju.s
Rafael Morn. at the 4" Sayss" near san jose whsrs
the vegetable soil is from eiCh. to twelve feet Deep
sud even more On this estate the average produce
Of tree is four ard five pounds, whereas the general
average throughout the country Is not more than
pound or oue Snd bali
We passed most pleasant morning at Mr.. joys
estate and back at San Jose IN time for an early
dinner.
But before We visited the plantation above-men-
toned, We visited the "Plazs" on msrket-dsy, to
admire the native beauties of the place which some for
egnors long accustomed to Costa Rican life hal a.
surcd us to be well worthy Of the struggle has to
encounter to approach them from the accumulation Of
/ eusdrupeds and bipeds which block up eveSy street
that leads 10 the square, on Saturday morning. How
ever, fought our way bravey through the medley,
/ aud succeeded in reaching the Plaza" where ws
strollcd about between the rows OF sQuatng female
venGers Of vegetables snd fruits the manifest dis
comfort Of cur Ofctory nerves for he Costa Ricans
wi lateyer they may be remarkable for, are certainly
not remarkable tor cleanliness. We saw very few
pretty faces. but universally Of dirty ones. The
SIGHT which amused Ne the most was huge Aspesa-
non bon (whoever hiss glanced at the Mysteries Of
Paris will remember Pipeet and his hat AID have
thereby kea of the hat We saw noddng ON the head
Of many old woman which is in pretty general use.
Where those hats come from, who makes them. who
sells them. whether they are heirOoms no could
ii.
induce 4 woman to wear such del0rmiy, when an old
who was just in front OF me was trlpped up by
pig who obstinate ly thrust himself into the folds of her
Tetticoats As the old hag fell headortmost the hat
erked to a distance. ard from its cavities there
rolled in the dust accumulation of articles of all
kinds which solved the my stery-the hat is also a
pocket. Pretty women in Costa Rca their bosoms
as pocket aud have often smiled as they brought
forth frm them fragran. cigarette. and Of
iered it to me to smoke, which Invariably did with
infinite gusto, whenever the gyerhad beauty to recon-
mend the present.
Tie dress ofthe women Of the lower class, as they
crowd the market, is by means ungracclnl. The
bust is loosely covered by ndscreet chemisette Of
fine linen OF muslin which is constantly revealing
ieautes il is intended to vail This cEemisette Is fixed
TO the waist by the encircng te OF the skirt Of print
ed calico Of printed muslin which they over
a prOlusion of tLickly starched under clothes The
arms are left bare and rebozo' scarf OF slk
woo,n, is thrown over the head and brought closely
around the shoulders when they fold their Tho
cofure of the most cOquettish Of this class is mans
Panama bat; but what caused Inc much surprise was
to witness these prety dressed women In their taste
fu muslin dresses and silk scarfs and rogush faces,
moving the rough, sharp pavement without shoes
and stockings to their feet.
Of Saturday the native merchants who live on tho
square, erect in front of their houses the opposite
side of the pavemtn ut which incircles the " Plaza
STALL where they send either or a shopman to re-
tail their goods. The center of the square Is occupied
by the country people who squat in rows on the ground
with their vendables before them The scene is busy
one for every resident in the town is the square,
aud large numbers from the envrons, and even from
the other provinces in the valley, in the town on
that day. We purchased some pineapples 1.-TWO for .
siIIenee) snd oranges (threc dozen lor the same
SUM; but We found that the former were acid
from having been picked before maturty-a general
custom with the people of this cOuntry the latter.
howeyer, were excellent.
Shortly after arrival the celebration of the m
tons festivals in commemoration of the Independence
commenced. They had been put off for some month
in order to make of them Job with the Christina
holidays for the Costa Ricang utisrans in ths
full acceptation Of the word The square had been
converted for the occasion into plaza de toros (or
bull riDg) by surrounding 1t with a pasade. Livery
house was decorated with the Costa Rlca cOl0rs aud
fags Of other nations according the nationality Of
their the whole presenting TO the eye very
lively ensemble. The dwelling OF Mr. JOY which oc-
eupes the whole Of the southern side OF the square,
was especially gay. kind OF tribune, above when
waved the ample folds of st. Georges fag bad been
arranged with draperes the balcony Of the Ion. At
both ends OF the building other tags the British
merchant tag and the Saxon banner. We took our
seals some eight or ten gentlemen, mostly orelgners,
nj the balcony, when the bull fight commenced. Tho
bull fgi q in Costa Rca exceedingly poor and ex
hbit not even the fun which they occasion in other
parts of Central America In Nicaragua, for instance
IA saddle il fixed the animals back while he 10
secured firmly by the horns to pest; man then
mounts him the rope is united and away the bull
starts espDg and kicking in his efforts to free himself
from the intruder, whose business it Is to retain his
seat This generally gives rise to much laughter aud fun
from the ridiculous cuntOrtiOns and more ludicrOus
falls OF the rider In Costa Rca there s fun Of the
sort; the bull IL most pacific animal thrown into
a petul disposition of mind by the screaming OF tho
EN- who at safe distance, dance and round him.
We were sick the stupid sight and resolved t0
get up sOue amusement Of our own. Below US the
crowd was pretty numerous. Look here said one OF
us aud you will dro sight" saying which be
threw few sixpences into the square This was
certainly the only amusing part ofthe ete. The tangs
Of women and boys thattOOk place; the shouting
Of the men, the screaming of the women the laughter
Of ALL as they lay sprawling ON the ground, hight
ing among themselves to get possession Of the coin
cannot be described. Every aud then we would
wait for time, and look az the crowd who with iaces
anxiOusly turned upward and eager gesture Of arms
we're crying, More more " until better dressed
person, man or woran was fai:ly inyegied into the
crowd. Then another coin would be tuGg into tho
thTong and the comedy reacted to the utter dscOmi-
OF the victims betrayed by sober counenanccs
into passing below the balcony. Once an acade was
rash enough to enter the crowd, believing himself To
be perfectly in the midst OF his four soldiers.
This tine handful of coins thrown down. On
rushed toe crowd; the heade was pushed and buffet
ID in all directions; be dealt hard blows in sefpro
tecton the soldiers lost their military paper caps not
in bis defense but In endeayorng 10 get their share OF
,lo Tla iptop Al