The Shasta courier., 1860-03-10
NUMBER I.
Guatemala.

/
of its most noted cities:
| "SAN JOSE is small collection Of Indian or
native huts, with thatched roofs, some of the
walls being built of brick adobe, but mostly
of cane, plastered and whitewashed. Its popu.
| laton is about 500. There is a hotel at San
Jose, where you can get passable dinner of
| beef roasted or stewed, with vegetables of the
country, in great profusion; also eggs in a.
| bundance. At night you get plain cot for a
bed, but no pillow or bedding of any kind in
fact no covering is necessary. They generally
| have mosquito nets over each cot, as mosquitoes
with flies of various kinds, are at times excess
| sively-snnoying. During the heat of the day
| the sun is very powerful, and drove me to tho
shade at once; yet the natives pay little atten-
ton to It's great heat. The mornings and even
ings very pleasant and agreeable, and the
nights pleasantly cool Most of the population
are Indians and mixed race, there being a few
Spanish, English, French and Germans, to di-
rect the business, but no Americans The coun-
| try is clothed with deuse growth of all the
tropical varieties OF vegetation. At o'clock in
the afternoon of the second day | started on
| horseback for the city of GUATEMALA The road
is level wide, and little winding through for
ests of trop'eal trees, hashes, vines and shrubs
all clothed with green foliage and many with
gorgeous bloom, entirely to me. Occasion
ally among them, the orange tree, in full
fruit, the palm, with its lofty, waving plume
like foliage the banana, plantain, and other
| fruit trees. Altogether they enchanted me be-
yond description Four leagues from San Jose,
| passed the cattle hacienda of 0vero. II is a
| large establishment. The main building is very
| well constructed of adobes and matched. with
wide, shady corridors entirely surrounding it.
A fine stream OF pure water passes near it. af-
fording an abundant supply. On its banks, the
| people attached to the place have their houses
or huts, some of them rather neat and pictures
| que. 1t is charming place. | rode four leagues
| further that evening to Narauca, another large
| hacienda. | was Hospitality entertained BY the
major domo, with eggs, chocolate, bread, butter
| cheese, sweet-cake, and such chocolate as you
cannot or do not get ih California. Then he
gave cigars of the native tobacco, very fair,
and best Of all for a tired man, good, wide cot,
with clean sheets, pillows aud mosquito net
| to keep off the flies. Naranca is another beauti-
ful place 1t belongs to old family who live
in the city of Guatemala. This morning after
taking chocolate and bread, | rode eight lea
CUES more TO Esquintia, an old town containing
about 5000 or 1000 inhabitants 1t is situated
a little above the level lands of the coast and
at the foot hills of the high or table lands of
Guatemala, There is much cultivation between
Naranca and Esquintia, and some&fne sugar
F estates, also few young coffee Plantations
Esquintia is important point, and by all
means the most active and growing place have
seen in Guatemala. The next day rode eight
leagues further 10 Matattan, smart town on the
table lands containing about 5 900 inhabita
1t is the centre of many cochineal plantations,
and derives its Importance and prosperity from
the coehineal culture. From this place pSde
TO the city of Guatemala, six ledg0es, accom-
pshing my trip from San Francisco in exactly
one month. The City of Guatemala is quite as
large a town as San Francisco in extent of
! ground, butI doubt if it has one-haf its
population. have visited several fthe church.
es, and they many of them very large, ex-
ceedingly well built, with high arching roofs,
constructed entirely Of stone and brick, and
eaborately finished There is no wood in their
construction whatever except simply the doors,
, and these hung upon stone castings. We
have nothing like these edfces in any part of
the United States in size and massive structure.
, The Roman Catholic religion is here practced
! with all its grand and gaudy pomp. The church.
es profusely decorated with images of saints,
the virgin, angels, &c, liie-sze, and richly
dressed. They have many fine old paintings.
The music is really very fine, with grand Or
q gan and full instrumental band, and count
less choir of voices they swell volume of har-
mony through the high vaults of their cathedral
and churches well calculated to captivate tho
} senses of the religious votares. Catholicism as
practiced 1HIour country is not to be compared
with its extensive show here. The feasts of the
Church are here sort of holiday-all business
suspended, and grand religious professions, IL
luminations fireworks that really credit
able, compose the various external duties, whila
social intercourse rules within. The Govern
ment has built very fine theatre, and given it
free TO the present manager, who has Italian
Opera troupe from New York. have attended
| twice and the performance is passable good
| There sees the fashion aud high life of Qua
temala. The ladies nre extremely dressy in
fact, TO my taste, they over-dress have made
the acquaintance of several lawyers and the
! Judge of First Instance. They are very polite
| and give every consideration. The profess
| sion law is overcrowded aud fees are extreme
y small. do not regret comining here, and
am fully satisfied with everything find in fact
it is more advanced than had supposed