The times. (Owosso, Mich.) 1882-1897, 1889-03-08
On THE ISTHMUS.
SPlENDOR OF THE SCENERY IN
PANAMA.
Tho South American Soidier--Custoins at
the Cemeterics-"Cofans ca Lct"-The
Scant Costumes of Panama--Tbc Costli-
Especial Correspondeuce.l

| short journey across the Isthmus OF
Panama from the Atlantic To the Pacific.
Its gorgeous and vast vegetation, its
waving palms and luxurious bananas,
its tall grasses and brilliant flowers are
rarely beautiful; but these one can SEQ
all over South America, i'm the neighbor-
hood of the equator. IL Is the human
conglomeration that is most unique and
interesting. The Panama canal has
brought to the isthmus working force
Of $4,000 negroes from Jamaica. Africa
and the small West India islands. After
them have come an army of bushwhack-
ers, the very dregs of the earth, consist
ing of French, English. Spanish. Turkish
and Chinese men and women.
The European managers, engineers
and contractors brought their peculiar
following. and the whole, with the native
clements, makes upa cosmopolitan popu-
lation, wonderful in its character, rock
lessness and general appearance. No
ono is surprised at anything ono hears or
sees in this strange land, for the Turk,
The African, the Monaghan, tho Euro
pean make up heterogeneous tumble
and do about rs they please. Some wear
one article Of dress, some scarcely that
Many children are in a continual state of
nakedness, and the diversity of costume
suggests Joseph's coat.
y&w
The government demands that all men
and women shall wear. n trifie moro COW
ering than thSNraditional Zig leaf, and
when q ship load of Africans from the
south coast arrived in Colon year or
two ago, cases of shirts and trousers
were sent them before they were per-
mittcd b. land. When they reached
town their appearance was striking, to
say tho least. Some had the trousers
fastened around their necks, while the
majority used the shirts as aprons and
rcsembled large body of African ma
sons robed only in their regalia and
attending colored brothers funeral.
Poor wretches! Their fate was sad.
When they wero put to work it was
found, strangely enough, that they could
not stand tho climate. They died like
sheep, and after n month OF experiment.
ing the living lot were sent back to
Africa. About this time u Chinese mer-
chant came to their town with q load of
trunks painted q brilliant green. The
interested savages bought them with
avidity and were rowcd back to their
ship proud'in the possession Of so many
green boxes, which to their crude taste
seemed beautiful. Their irilsome clothes
they threw away, but the trunks which
might have held them they carried
bravely back to the Dark Continent
x&x
Ono OF tho interesting features of the
isthmus is the soldiers. They are n
scrubby lot. The Colombian govern
ment, which supports nearly 5000 of
them, calls itself very strong in conse-
quence and thinks it is fully prepared
for war with any other South American
republic. These soldiers wear uniform
consisting Of red breeches and blue frock
coats, .but very dirty. i'll fitting and
coarse. Occasionally q soldier will wear
shoes, but as n rule they are barefooted.
Their guns arc as rusty as their clothes,
and in marching they shamblc along in
n way that the most awkward Of awk-
ward squads in the north never dreamed
of equaling. They are all little men, as
are all the males of this country, and
some of them arc not older than 16 years.
You can scarcely imagine anything more
grotesque than their general appearance,
and yet am told that in tho riots and
revolts which occasionally break out in
these republics these men in miniature
will fight like little devils. Multum in
parvo. Napoleon Bonaparto was but
trifle over five feet in height.
IL the Colombian soldier is an oddity
the Panama policeman is marvel. He
lounges about town, smokes cigarettes,
walks into the saloons and sips native
whisky by tho hour whilo on duty,
CANDLES in the Chinese houses and &C.
casionally goes to sleep on tho benches
Of the plaza. / should imagine the Pan
anna policeman's lot to be n very happy
one. He is paid aighty cents day equal
to sixty cents of our money!. The soldier
gets one dollar day about seventy cents
of our money! and has to find himself.
Tho pohcemans appearance is even more
disreputablo than that of the soldier, /
which is saying very much. But there
is dingy, careless, go-as-you-pleaso air
to every government official, high or
low, in Panama and on tho isthmus,
which shows woful lack of system,
training and power.
ss
All roads lead to Rome and all mule
paths along tho isthmus mako for Pam
anna. There tho motley masses gather
on Sundays and feast days and enjoy the
bull fights, the cock fights and the other
innocent pleasures prevailing. They
flock into the city day and night, spend
their money fast and furiously, eat,
drink and arc merry, finally returning
to their work, perhaps to live, perhaps to
die. Life is held cheaply here, for death
stalks grimly over the ontiro state. I
met French physician on the Panama
plaza. Hc was drinking absintho and
smoking cigarettes, and his mercurial
nature was all buoyancy and joy. And
yet he was almost the last of q gallant
coterie arriving hero within the year.
There wcrc eleven of us physicians left
Paris last February to servo the Panama
I'M