Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1891-05-16
A RIvAS CHURCH

Rivas is about four miles. and the ro&
connecting the two is the best that has
been built by the government. Here all i'm
provements of public nature are made by the
general government. there being no other
power for the collection Of taxes for such pur-
poses, the entire national revenue being de-
rived from the government monopoly Of the
traffic in liquors and tobacco, together with
import duties. The road is about 100 feet wide
Is graded and bedded with stone and within the
past year the construction of q tramway has
been begun, to run from the wharf to Rivas,
the concession for which gives the righE TO e1-
tend the line to neighboring towns and to
Brito on the Pacific. Mr.. J. T. Forrest, the
protector Of this enterprise, is an American.
BEAUTIFUL ESTATES on THE Road.
On either side Of the road are beautiful es-
tatss with splendid specimens of cattle grazing
within the Enclosures. Half mile from the
lake is situated the greater portion Of the town
of San Jorge, a village that has remained for
many years absolutely unchanged. The oldest
inhabitant cannot remember when this or that
house was not where and it is today. APP
preaching Rivas a large space rooted in is
noticed, where rather crude methods are being
used in the carpenter work that is being car
ried on Here all the work Of the saw mill is
done by hand At one place great log three or
four feet In diameter rests upon q trestle
several feet above ground Beneath it is a
pit four feet deep, In which stands q man
stripped to the waist, while his fellow worker
is on the log above him. With slow but regu-
lar motions they push and pull q great hand
saw, which Is gradually cutting the log into
boards, though IL takes several weeks to dis
patch such piece of timber. The wood is of
u variety that would be valuable abroad and
which takes high polish. Beneath the shed
are as many as q couple Of dozen workmen en-
gagged In getting out material for house build
ing or making handsome pieces of furniture
with the most careful and exact labor. The
furniture will show about the same painstaking
labor exercised on hidden portions as upon the
outside parts 1t is heavy in weight and there
Is no evidence Of those little tricks of work.
manship, commendable or otherwise which
allow economy in the use of labor and material.
yet produce the sam, appearance. In this
country, where the best classes of wood are
obtained as readily as cheaper grades the art
OF yeneering is known only in theory for il is
timber that would be valued for such purposes
abroad that Ii here used for nearly all cabinet
work.
THE STREETS OF RrvAs.
The street Of Rivas are laid out at right an
giles. forty or fifty feet wide, with houses of
adobe, tile rooted. the caves extending out over
the narrow sidewalk. There is a lack of hustle
OF any kind The stores have no indication of
their Character on the outside though a
sign over the doorway announces the name
OF the proprietor Within them the goods
VIII be found to be of English. French
and Herman make, American articles being
DUB rarely met except in the case of machin.
cry, and a. yet importations Of that char
acter are not large to meet the demand
Even more than the difference in prices This
isct Is largely In consequence Of the long credit