The Columbia herald. [volume] (Columbia, Tenn.) 1850-1873, 1872-02-23
4 RIDE ACROSS THE ISTHMUS,
Panama.
BY WILLIAM z. BLISS.

By WILLIAM r. BLISS.
Correspondence Of the New York Observer.l
The thermometer stood at IS deg,
D clear hot morning., November. 25th
1871, when took the cars at Colon t.
, ride to Panama; to cross, in thre,
hours, from the Atlantic to the Pacif.
: ocean, thus doubling Cape Horn, ani
making the Northwest passage at thu
sametime. There is nothing to detai1
you at Colon, and only two thing,
attract your notice; one, the bronze
statue of Columbus which testifies hii
right to the name of the port; the 9th
or, the large wherves and sheds of the
railroad and steamboat companies
built for business that no longer
exists.
| The railroad across the isthmus is Al
miles long, and runs, not as you would
suppose, from east to west, but from
north to south. As every artificial
work tends rapidly to decay in this
climate, the rails are laid on sleeE ers
Of ignumvit@, and the telegraph wire
is suspended from pillars of cement,
cast and hardened in mould. Riding
away from the Atlantic shore, we pass
some patches of open land on which
cows and horses are grazing; remind
ing me of northern farm. But get
ting farther into the interior, the char
acter of everything we see is decidedly
tropical.
/ A dense jungle hedges each side of
the broad roadway; so dense that, in
many places, no man can penetrate it.
In the edge of it, pinespples, bananas,
| plaintains, avocates and enormous
lemons are growing wild. Flowering
vines, which appear to be q species Of
our morning glory vine, cover the larg-
or trees. There ia the marvel of Peru,
with stems as largo as your wrist, its
tendrils hanging in festoons from the
lofty cottonwood tree that rises above
the level Of the forest, bearing bell
shaped flowers in various colors. The
Ipomea, gay with flowers of soferino,
creeps over the edges of the thickets;
in which can be seen the blossoms OF
the acacia tree, and the bright red and
salmon flowers Of the ricinus, or cas-
tor-oil bean. II is impossible to exag-
gerate the luxuriant appearance Of the
forests rising on either side Of the
road-a mass Of brilliant vegetation,
that astonishes and pleases the eye.
Between the rails, and on the clear
ing at either side of the track, grows
the sensitive plant; covering the
ground as dense as the early English
primrose, and bearing pink blossom
which, in size and shape, but more
feathery, resembles the primrose flow
er. They who have thought it a great
pleasure to look at apot of the sensitive
plant in northern cOnservatories, can
| appreciate the new sensation that I
experienced in walking, when the train
stopped, through a long field of it
| pausing to watch its sensitive leaves
shrink away upon the stems at the ap-
proach of my foot; leaving, for short
time, my steps as plainly marked upon
the foliage-bed, as if they had been
impressed upon the wet sand of the
seashore.
on THE Road.
There are no towns nor business
centers on the road; but several turn
outs and watering stations for the
trains. Here cars passed US loaded
with mahogany, hides. sheep-skins,
coffee and rice, to be shipped at Colon.
At these stations are clusters of bam-
boo huts, thatched with palm leaves,
in which live the yellow natives who
find employment occasionally along
the line. Their household gods con-
sist of naked babies, pigs, puppies and
game-cocks, lying in common frater-
nifty about the doors. These people
have little use for dry-goods. Their
clothing, what there is of it, is mostly
! 'shonored in the breach" But on
steamer days, that is when the passen-
ger trains pass, the women have been
taught to sppear in their best attire,
which, if they have one, consists of q
trailing white muslin gown and moth
ing more, either above, below, or be-
meath.
oNH WILLOW BHLLE
who came down from the bamboos to
see us, was evidently more aristocratic
than her kindred; for, in addition to
her white wrapper, she sheltered her
complexion under brown silk UNI
brella, in which her pride..as wellas her
purse was invested. Near these clus-
ters of huts, rise the neat, white houses
of the station-masters; two stories
high, with broad verandah, and latti-
ces of vines. Here, with his heels on
the rail, sits, smoking cigar, the Yam
kee lord and master of the settlement.
The yard of the house, enclosed by
whitepicket fence, is shaded by COCOA
nut palms, oleanders, altheas and other
flower-beariug trees. 1t is pleasant to
meet these civilized spots, which,
blooming ont at intervals all along the
road, make wonderful contrast to the
huddle of dirty huts that lies on their
outskirts.
The railroad frequently touches and
turns away from the Chagres river, but
finally crosses it by long iron bridge.
There is now no life on this muddy
stream, once swarming with adventur-
ers seeking O fortune on the Pacific
coast. A bunch of curlew were skim
ming over it, and two white cranes
stood DOING on its sandy shore, as We
passed by. Soon after crossing the
river, the road reaches its summit
grade, which is not high .enough to
open any distant landscapes, and then
descends rapidly towards the Pacific,
winding between the highlands that
form the backbone of the isthmus, end
running out upon the beach of Pana-
ma before you are aware Of the prox-
unity OF the sea. Steamers bound to
San Francisco and to ports in Central
America, lie at anchor near the Islands
of Flamenco and Perico, three miles
off; to which q ferry boat transfers
passengers from the railroad.
THE CITY.
There is not much in the city Of
Panama to interest stranger. 1t is q
hot place, built of stone on q rocky
peninsular, and nearly 200 years old,
Vegetation has long since taken root
on the crumbling walls erected for its
protection against buccaneers, and on
the decayed churches and converts
that once attested the piety of its Span
ish founders. Its natives are mon
grel race, whose yellow skin and coarse
black hair tell that Indian blood pre-
dominates in them. They speak a
language as mixed as their blood, but
showing Spanish origin. The city
has some trade because it is a free
port. Linens, umbrx Has, cigars,
French wines and muslins are sold
ceeap. Most of the shops are kept by
the family of Isaacs and Nathan from