Evening capital. (Annapolis, Md.) 1884-1910, 1885-03-12
IN A TROPICAL REGION.



GUS people that can be imagined. asserts
Caracas letter to the New York Sun.
lmpolitenesa IS objectionable here. The
clerk, with whom yon deal over his coun-
ter, expresses his wish that ron may live
long and prosper, and thanks YOU crate
fully for giving him the pleasure Of show
ing MS goods, whether yon purchase
anything or not. When . gentleman
meets lady, be she his sweetheart Or bis
grandmother, he always says he is ~
ing ct her feet, and he would rather be
shot than be guilty Of passing before her.
They are not the -barbarians which
some people in gthe northern continent
suppose. They have accomplishments
which ought tCmake the rest Of America
ashamed. Usually theyarc able to speak
three or four languages, have refined
taste In art and music, and. while they
lack ingenuity, and usually do things in
the hardest way, they are nevertheless
possessed Of the keencst perceptive fac
ulties. and almost seem to read your
thoughts. Il is not difficult to make
known your wants, even If you
cannot understand q word Of their lam
guagc. They do not allow smoking in
the street cars and public places. as in
Mexico and Havana, and, although it Is
the privilege Of the manculiue gender TO
stare at the feminine with all the eyes
they have, the men are never rude, and
beg the pardon Of a beggar when they
refuse to give him aims.
They always put the locks upon the
wrong door, and wrong side up. When
they build house, it seems as If they
studied the most difficult mode OF con.
struction. They erect solid walls first,
and then chisel out places for the tim
bers to rest upon. There are no stoves
or chimneys, and charcoal is the only
fuel. Gas ID produced &c "a. 30 per 1, 900
feet from American coal which costs $50
ton. There is no glass in the windows,
but grating of iron bars keeps out in
truders, and heavy wooden shutters keep
out the air and light. Such blinds as
are common in North America would be
the most admirable protection IN this
country; but no one has ever intro
duced them, and the people will con-
tinue to swelter behind solid shutters
until the end Of time.
The rooms Of houses are not plastered,
but the joists are all exposed. The floors
are of tile, and gaudY paper is pasted
upon the walls Of cement and stone. In
the court Of every house are the most
beautiful flowers. Tube-roses grow ia
great trees, and the oleander is as com
mon as the lilac in New England The
parks look like the botanical gardens of
the North, and in the evening are always
thronged with gentlemen and ladies until
late hour.
The police regulations are very strict.
The other day d child was kidnapped BY
man in hack. Every coach driver in
the city was thrown into prison, and not
o wheel was turned unit. the child wac
recovered Drunken men are never seen
in the streets To become intoxicated
is to invite yourself to work ten or
twenty days in the chain gang; and to
see the way In which prisoners are treated
is an inducement TO be temperate
The president Of Venezuela, General
Crespo, is a mulafto Of fine stature and
commanding presence. lie wears Louis
Napoleon mustache and imperial, and ID
rather sluggish in his disposition. Ac-
cording to common understanding he is
simply the mask Of Guzman- Blanco, wh0i is
prevented from being perpetual president
BY constitutional provision which pro-
hibits the re election of a chief magistrate
without m intervening term. So they
saw. Guxman serves as President every
other two years in his own name. and
puts up dummy every alternate term.
Guzman -Blanco was born in the midst
of revolution, and lived In revolution
until he obtained the mastery Of The
country himself. For some time during
Buchanan's administration he was secre-