Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1890-02-01

1
tions. Parrots of various species make the for.
est ring with their unmusical cries. We saw
humming birds of gorgeous hues,
| SCARCELY BIGGER THAN BEES,
and great tOucans whose ugly beaks seem es
| pecially designed for the gobbling of tropical
fruits. Tapirs abound in the marshes and we
/ are told that their flesh, which greatly re-
sembles pork, is telished by the natives as well
/ as coon in Kentucky. There is also the wild
hog. or peccary "a distant relative ofthe tapir)
| which Is hunted for food. well as the monkeys
I that mock isthmian humanity and prowl the
| forest in troops. There are ant-eaters too
| and deer. cougars and tiger CATS Boa construct.
! ors and other big snakes are not uncommon
| but are not nearly so much to be dreaded As
| the INV asps and vlpers, some not longer than
your finger, and the exact color of the dead
leaves or bits of moss under which they hide
! There are lizards without number, some
| whose bite is deadly-from Shiny reptiles two
or three inches IN length, milk white. green or
coral. to scaly 6-foot-long Iguanas whose flesh
is considered the greatest possible delicacy.
| next to the juicy white breast of n roasted baby
monkey. BY the way. the eggs of the iguana
may be found for sale in many of the market
| OF Spanish-America and command high price,
vi course there are scorpions, centipedes
tarantulas, &C., for which we are warned to
keep sharp lookout, even in the cars; but
they re.not a circumstance compared to .'the
wicked flea" with which every grain of sand
and particle of dust Is loaded. They are too
tiny to be looked out for. but every one of us
is living and specified monument to their per-
sistent industry. Even smaller than the flea
and more enterprlslng In pursuit OF business is
THE JIGGER,
whose native name is chigoe, of which have
seen several interesting specimens, but. hap
ply, on somebody else. So very tiny is the
pestiferous little wretch that he can crowd in
where angels fear to tread" tor instance. be-
tween the seams of your garments or between
the sole and upper of your shoe. He enter
talns an especial fOndness for the human foot
and will invariably confine himself to that part
of your anatomy if you give him a chance. So
delicate is his foot fall and SO slight his sting
that you scarcely feel it; yet all the same he
gets IN his work, depositlng an intinitesimal
egg beneath toe nail or somewhere under the
cuts. Presently slight itching ensues and in
day or two a membranous sac is formed,
which must at once be pierced deep with a
needle and afterward thoroughly washed with
tobacco juice. If the is allowed to remain
huge ulcer forms and the victim is likely to
lose his toes, for the infant Jigger that issued
from the first egg is a most astonishing propa-
gator, capable of raising several interesting
families and becoming a hale and hearty
grandmother in fortnght's time.
Among other sights along the line of the
lstnmaln railway We were shown the cottage
occupied by MIR. John Il. Stephens, the we'll
known author and traveller during his brief
connection with the road. and also a gigantic
tree. the largest iii all this section, under whose
shade he Frequently wrote or rested and which
is still known far and wide as Stephens tree"
Part OF the way winds along the low noun
tains that form the backbone of the isthmus,
none of them more than 1000 feet i'll height 1t
Is said that Balboa in the year 1872 caught his
first glimpse of the Pacific from the summit of
one of them and that he fell upon his knees at
sight of that mighty ocean. Most celebrated
OF all ID local annals is the
CERRo DE LOS BUcANERos,
or Hill of the Buccaneers, from whose top the
pirate Morgan had his first view of ancient
Panama, and at whose base he encamped the
night before his attack upon that cty-just POI
Years ago. As that old-time buccaneer PLAYED
so important part on the isthmus-at one
time nearly depopulating it, having destroyed
the proudest city in all the Spanish colonies
whose fall gave rise to the Panama OF today
perhaps it may be we'll to recount a few of his
exploits. For partial compilation thereof we
are mainly indebted to Mr. Thomas w. Knox
and his inimitable Boy Travellers
Ruinors of the abundance of gold in the new
world, which reached Spain after the discovery
of America, led to the conquest and settlement
OF the West Indies. and also of the main land
for considerable portion north and south of
the isthmus. Within the half century follow
ing the frst voyage Of Columbus scores of
Spanish colonies were planted. forts garrisOned
by great numbers OF soldiers, and many ship
loads of treasure sent to the king. The cruel
conquistadores subjected the conquered people
to all manner of tortures in order to wiring
from them the utmost of their possessions. Ex-
aggerated accounts of the vast treasures in the
new world naturally spread beyond Spain and
soon all Europe believed that there was gold
enough III the opulent countries of Central and
South America to enrich every beggar in
christendom.
In those days piracy was fashionable and it
NHaE 1nr Infnry IL,
to traverse the Spanish Main" before pratt
cal crafts were in hot pursuit. Their crews
were known as buccaneers and their favor
lite rendezvous was the Caribbean sea and its
shores. They found plenty of hiding places
among the numerous Islands and along the
coasts OF the main land; and their numbers in
creased SO rapidly that they formed colonies.
titled the soil and i'll many cases established
something like local government. MANY of
them brought their families to the new world
manned on shore hunting wild game and rails
ing crops for the sustenance of their fellows at
sea the more adventurous
SAILED IN SEARCH OF PLUMBER,
returning occasionally to the colony to deliver
their share of spoIls to the settlers on land.
from whom provisions were obtained for an
other voyage.
Some times prisoners were brought to the
colonies and kept as slaves, some of them scions
OF the proudest houses of Old CASTLE: but AZ a
rule they were released on payment Of a heavy
ransom or put to death if no ransom was forth
coming. Human life was held of little value in
those days, not only by sea robbers but by kings
and potentates i'll all parts OF the world
So far as justice and honor are concerned
there was really not much difference between
the pirates themselves and those against whom
their plracies were directed. CorteZ Balboa
flzarro and other leaders in the Spanish con-
quest were simply the leaders of marauding ex-
Pedltlons on "a larger scale against the unof-
Tending inhabitants of the countries they
robbed and enslaved--bands of cut-throat
au'ehturers, though under the counte-
nance OF the pope and i'll the guise of religion:
while the buccaneers, i'll their turn endeayored
70 steal what had been already stolen. directing
thelr thlevlnS against thieves, adopting the
same line OF fortunes and crueltythat had wrung
the coveted gold from the aborlgines.
occasionally there was period of war be-
tween Spain and England and then the king of
the latter country would give commissions to
certain Well-known sea robbers and exalt them
to the dignity of ''priyateers." They were
allowed TO mt out expeditions at their own ex-
pehse, enlist their own men and do pretty
much as they pleased on land or sea outside
the kings domain, the only stipulation being
that they should turn over to the royal treas
urv q portion of the stealings.
Morgans enterprise against Panama was ex-
actly OF this character. tie had previously
earned an excellent reputation as a buccaneer
THE STORY OF WHOSE ATROCITIES,
would NIL volume. He had captured several
cities and murdered many people, often under
circumstances of unparalleled cruelty, all his
prisoners whom he could not sell into slavery
men. women. children and priests-being
slaughtered without mercy. He was a Welsh
man of In hnrfh r. III