The Bossier banner. [volume] (Bellevue, Bossier Parish, La.) 1859-1952, 1885-07-23
A Graphic Description of a Perilous Ad-
venture-A Crater Never Examined
by Seientists-Ipeidents and ss e
Accidents.

aa-f
There are five active volcanoes in
Costa Rica, according to the geography;
lrazu, which is ss11, 800 feet high; Tur-
rialba, which is 10.350; Poas, DeBarba,
and Mirrayalees, which have not been
measured,s and several smaller ones
whose craters have shown evidence of
former activity, but have emitted
nothing since the memory of man. To
be considered active volcano does not
have to keep belching out FIRE and smoke
all the time, for they must have vaca-
tons like the rest of us; but an extinct
one is that whose crater has been per-
mitted to fill up with debris and never
shows signs of life.
Not having had the advantage of vol
canic acquaintance, and being ambi-
tious TO look into the crater mouth, ]
determined to explore Irazu, and in
company with. Mr. H, Remsen White
house, Secretary of the United States
Legation in Central America, I made
the ascent.
1t was an experience which will never
be forgotten, but which one would not
care to repeat. You can not 90 to the
summit of Irazuin railway car like
Vesuvius, and no one has ever taken
the trouble to. build carriage road.
therefore the journey is not recon-
mendeds to ladies, inEalids, or timid
men; and one such trip will do the most
neryeful for aslifetiine. @
We followed up cart road, thick
with dust for few miles, then entered
the cornfelds and rode through them
for several hours, stopping at the cabin
OF native to get corn for our horses
aed a cup of coffee for ourselves.
This was the last house on the noun
ttin. and leaving it we went through a
pasture and struck into forest as dense
IS forest can be. There was a good
moon and it lit up the tree tops with a
weird and fantastic light, while the
great festoons of moss which hung from
tae branches and almost obscured our
way were almost liyid where the rays of
moonlight struck them. The trunks
aad limbs of the trees were covered
tir thick, yellow lichens, which were
as fine as hair, and hung like the beard
of patriarch. The trees, too. were
loaded with orchids, that rare plant so
much priced by botanists, and sought
iefe by collectors from all over the
world. Dead undiscovered with moss
that seemed almost phosphorescent
a'ose like phantoms in our way. Huge,
4ioafy eaeti, like the candelabra of
giants, were on every side, while the
dense growth of underbrush made it
almost impossible for the horses to push
through. aI6@ g ~@ @
Through this we keptcliabing until
The horseswere exhausted and the moon
sshts down. For some inscrutable
reason, but. really for no reason
whatever, it is considered best to
make the climb in the night, but we
eo5ldn go any further, so fire was
eu4t, the animals were unsaddled and
Fcn their supper; we swung our ham.
mocks IN the trees and wrapping our
serves In blankets lay down to pleasant
dreams.
ihe blazing fire frightened the ami
mais OF the forest. and all around us
we could hear the protests of the tiger.
whose cry Is Ike that of a child. Now
ana tnen the deeper tones of the moun-
tam ion could be distinguished. but
tney We're more frightened than we for
o eo,,,s nae Nas = terror to them, as it, was
1Sonlort 70 us, the altitude being some
sa,ng more than 5000 feet and sthetem.
pelature 1orty Farenheit. The birds
onasteied and gossiped, being a,yalC-
eneu oy the unusual light and disturb
s1 %nce IN their solitude. There was little
sieep Ior any OF us, as the situation waS
50 weird, and the noises our adyent
awaEened va SO strange to our ears A.
.. S:oo we were 20 be called and oontinne
sue ascent 80 as to reach the ton of the
mountain by sunrise. We were all
awake long before the time ond
sssslng sss;.g 5heshammocks hangina. and
oalpplng ourselves of every POSSIBLE
fsncaamoerance fa0a except overcoat and
r .oou, we Were in the saddle
pilomptiy and followed the guide a. he
paahged INTO q darkness that could he
gut with a knife. There is darkness
an anu uaraAAness, but that we encoun9eresl
,n M aiae tropical forest was tloul,le-ayaa
we might as well have been blindfoIded
IN ~ coihn at the bottom of a crave
.neIe was . path. trail arnono, tga
~ o,s1s, Ls pat the guide couldn't follow it
81. 81 horseback, SO he dismounted and
aaS ss.S ior Ion lt with his feet They failed
sn au ne crept along on his hands and
Sa.' SSaees' ana that method Of locornotion
ZEN eng rather unsatisfactory, he If =
sloas saus..e ne had in hispoeket and plodded