The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1893-08-27

lholaus was Killed. and since then they
have had no ruler or head man. There are
about fifteen villages of them in all, each
settlement occupying one she'd The
tribe numbers rather more than 1900
souls.
THEIR SOCIAL CUSTOMS.
In the communal dwellings each family
seems to be entirely independent, and all
Of them live most tremendously together.
When one OF the young men is old enough
10 marry very commonly he steals girl
and carries her away into the woods, per-
maps remaining absent for months. Mean
while her afflicted relatives get over their
annoyance at the occurrence, and even
finally he returns with the woman. In
that neighborhOod Mr.. Richmond shot
nearly score of what are called Holy
Ghost birds, because they are snowy
white. The species is so rare that only
two or three specimens have hitherto
been possessed by the museums Of the
world.
On leaving this region the ornithologist
visited the east coast of Nicaragua and
journeyed up the Escondido river, which
runs through one Of the greatest banana
producing regions in the world. The port
Is Blue Fields. The stream runs up into
the interior sixty-flve miles to the Spanish
town Of Rama. There the Rama and ST.
guia rivers join on their way to the sea.
For twenty miles up these two continents
and down the Rama 10 within twenty
miles Of the coast the shores are covered
with banana plantations. Three lines of
steamers from Blue Fields carry bananas
to Savannah and two lines to New Or
leans. In winter vessels leave every FIVE
or six days, each loaded with from IL, 200
to 10000 lunches.
When a steamer arrives at Blue Fields
the company 70 which II belongs sends
tug up the river with orders. These or
ders are delivered at the plantation. For
example, One grower will be requested
to cut on a certain day 300 punches, three
quarters full. This signifies a stage of
growth at which fruit may be expected
TO ripen in eight or nine days. Bananas
two-thirds full are not so big and not so
near ripeness. They would be cut at this
stage for transportation to a greater dis
tance. The steamers accept punches
having eight hands or over as whole
punches: those With from seven to four
hands are taken as half punches.
THE BANANA PLANTATIONS.
Each plantation is called a . bank. ="
When it receives an order the foreman
and his laborers start out early in the
morning, going through those portions of
the cultivated land where the fruit is
most abundant and in the best condition.
As they go along they chop down each
plant that bears desirable bunch. The
bunch is cut of aud the plant is left to
rot on the spot. The lunches, whole ones
weighing from fifty to seventy-five
pounds, are carried to the landing place
and green banana leaves are put over
them to protect them from the sun.
The banana Is propagated by cutting off
small shoots from the roots of developed
plants and setting them out in regular
rows 50 that they shall be eighteen feet
apart. They require no further attention,
except TO keep down the weeds, which
grow go rapidly and with such luxuriance
as to require cutting every few days.
Otherwise they take away so much from
the sustenance of the plants that the lat
ter will only produce half lunches A
full grown banana plant is from twenty
10 twenty-five feet high. with leaves eight
to ten feet long. 1t requires about eigh-
teen months to mature and ripen the
single bunch which it produces. A good
bunch win contain $50 bananas. One
square mile will cut 500 lunches week
all the year round. Unfortunately, ba-
nanas rapidly drain the soil, so that
plantation runs out in ten years or so. 1t
begins to bear only half punches and must
finally be abandoned for fresh land.
arHE PLANTERS; AND rAEIR L&BoRERs.
The labor in this banana-growing re-
gion is mostly done by Jamaica negroes.
They are the LATEST and most unman-
ageable woTkmen in the world 1t is
bard to get them to do more than two or
three hours work in day The rest of
their time they spend in playing the &C
Gordon and in quarreling. Though they
quarrel constantly, they rarely fight. 1t
! is different with the Spanish laborers.
Every one of the latter carries a knife at
his nip or in the middle of his back, and
when angry he will use it. The Span
iardS have disagreeable way of getting
into rows at their festivals, on which &C.
casions feuds of long standing are recalled
and acted upon.
The planters are Americans, Spaniards
and Jamaica negroes of a better class
They are not making money nowadays,
being at the mercy of the steamer lines
Some time ago Philadelphia line of
steamers entered the business, and start
ed to carry bananas from Blue Fields. To
freeze out this new rival the other COM
panies raised the price of bananas to 81 80
a bunch in gold. This was very profit
able to the growers while it lasted. The
Philadelphia company being choked off
by this process, the price Immediately
| fell and is now only 40 cents q bunch in
Nicaragua money, which is equivalent to
30 cents in United States coin.
When the fruit is plentiful, the steamers
reject all lunches which are not in the
finest condition. There is nothing to do
with these but to throw them away and
| thus it happens that lunches of green
I
| by thousands, the fishes eating them and
the cows wading into the streams to feed
on them. These facts will help to account
| for the wonderful cheapness Of bananas
in the country. When they reach here
too green it is said that the Italian ven
doris sleep with them for the purpose of
ripening them, but that is very likely I'M
! true.
NATIVES PREFER PLANTAINs.
Strange to say bananas are not very
highly priced where they grow. The ma
tives greatly prefer plantains. They be-
lieve that raw bananas give people fevers.
The fully ripened fruit looks very differ
ent from the banana that is sold in north
ern markets. 1t becomes very round and
fiat, finally splitting in two lengthwise.
/ Dwellers in the banana producing coun-
/ try cook them in several ways. They
/ peel and boil them when they are green
and hard, and when they begin to get
/ yellow they are sliced and fried Good
vinegar is made from fermented bananas.
! The fibre of the stalk is excellently
adapted for many purposes, and is likely
/ to become commercial product before
/ long A plant for manufacturing banana
flour has recently been set up in Hon
duras. In the preparation OF this article
/ the bananas are peeled, dried and ground.
] II is claimed that tho aOur iS a good and