Morning journal and courier., 1885-01-01
that the captain offers him and then returns

hutS. with no comforts, SurrOuHueo Oy nooo and vermin, and spending most of the time in chewing sugar-cane. A few cocoannt trees stand in front of the house, and back of it a few banana plants are shooting up. l In every village, besides the Indians, there are half dozen Carlos, perhaps one or two | Spaniards who, on account of pontlcal or other troubles, have found it necessary to emigrate to a new State. These men are not | of the best class, and mixing with the lnd1- ans, a half-breed population has been the re- suit. and bad one at that. Every lnd1an who has made little money or got start in his plantation immediately discovers that he is Spaniard. There are hundreds along
 the coast who will pass themselves on TOT
 Spaniards but who have not drop or span
 ish blood in their veins. The only difference
 between an Indian and half breed IS that the latter has little more cunning ana an aptitude for making more money
 During the night after steemsr has been off the village bedlam reigus. It becomes time of carousing, drunkenness ana gam bling. Every Indian has learned to gamble. The Spaniards taught them that ana they were ready learners Twenty-one is favor ite game, and dice playing is practiced to 8 great extent, with all the simple ways ot vambling. Monte is perhBps played as much | as any game. Poker is a little too intricate \ for the average Central American Inoian, ! though many of them who have sunlc1enI \ money allow themselves to be heeced by
 
 | is the national drink of Honduras and gln | does not improve the humor of the Indian. ! Then he has native drink, sort of pu que, which Hondurians are supposed to drlnk- I liquor brewed in their own country only, on ! which the government relies for its income | to a large extent Liquor from the States will find it's way in, however, and no one need go thirsty for want of it.. l Late in the evening the Indians have De- come thoroughly excited and their money IS nearly used up. Keeling through the s1feets, | shouting and fighting they make the night hideous. The fighting once commenced, 1t keeps on and a wholesale spearing goes on. | saw a man with twenty scars on hls back and shoulders with one or two cuts on the neck. He had received them in village fights You could not persuade that half- | breed to leave his native village, however, | and he would remain there until he was cut l to Dieces. No mattet how drunk native 1 may get he will not attack an American 1n that condition, or any foreigner ot position.
 Indeed, they always hold an American Tn
 reverence and think he carries 8 revolver. | The Central American Indian respects re- fyolyer. and especially one in the hands of an l American An old planter said he had gone ! for four years without revolver, but every ! Indian and Carib firmly believed he had one
 Revolvers are being imported into these V1l- lagos nowadays in large quantities, but some. how the Indian does not get the knack ot using them with any accuracy, and they are in a measure harmless enough with them The danger is greater to themselves than to
 others The gambling and drinking IS kept ! up all night until the money is spent and the
 noisy inhabitants tired out
 ! Christmas is the great time for carousal.
 The Spaniards taught them this also, for the
 religious knowledge of these villagers is de | eidedly meager A few Catholic churches
 are to be found in the big places, but in the ! small places there is no teaching at all
 Hence it is that at Christmas time the plant CT with little capital can step in and Pur- | chase new plantations for a mere song. The | native must have money for his Christmas | carousal, and his plantation must go Ii
 necessary. It is in this way that Spanlst , residents have built up their large bananf farms The Indian or half-breed who selli
 ! out his little place, after his grand spree
 finds himself without means of support. H'
 goes immediately to work, or rather sets hi 1 wife to work and clears up a new one d'
 l gets it well started and has cut some frui l when Christmas comes around and away l goes again for rum. This IS great feasoi
 why the Central American Indians never ge l ahead any. Again, they are easily cheated F ! and will sometimes make contracts for thel
 fruit which will keep them ill poverty. The. - 1 have not the moral power to stand up TO f themselves and readily fall in the trap or oe l ! signing schemers.
 What little work is done on an Ind1al
 half breeds plantation is done by the wo l 1 men and is little enough. No attempt made to obtain full yield from the ground Undererowth of all kinds is allowed to chok
 off the young plants. When the time 10 | gathering the fruit comes the women oftel 7 have to cut path out in order to drag thel bananas through, or back them out, as the = call this work While the women are thu y at work the men are chewing sugar-cane I s front of their houses, while the children ar 4 l wandering around under the cocoanut trees !. some naked and some with an apology C @ covering, growing up without any educat1o
 and without any incentive to get out ot tn h state their parents have lived in. Yet the 0 are half-civilized and each year, perhaps J. sees them in little better condition tha 6 the last. There. is hope for them oni s through education and connection with tt g enterprising foreigners who come into tE r country, with whom the native must COT @ tend. Leave them to themselves and Ill |, year they would be in the same condltlC
 that Cortez found them when he visited u
 little city of Truxillo and built his wall ther
 which has constantly been a reminder j. them of the civilization of the world ou # side. Plantations that are owned by the n
 tives are never kept in good order, and u IS fruit raised is consequently not what s, should be. What the country is capable k in this line of industry alone has never bee if realized by it's inhabitants, and 1t IS only u I enterprising American who, settling on u IL rich fruit land along the coast, discovers tn Ie he can have perfect garden at his feet.