The sun., 1894-02-04

| highlands. but the vanilla vine is product
fietiss, OF ibis vino growing wild in the low
grounds g the Isthmus. one % them being tho
| produced. commands the highest price. Be
cause van vanilla beans do not make the stlr IN, IN
| the world that coffee beans do-One cannot sce
thousands OF bags OF them on the pier at Pan
ana as ne can OF coffee -vpntlla is but little
| ish Main. But beginning has been made.
pr B., y Fabreg!. graduate, OF the College
81 81 PihySlsians and surgeons In New iofk, hss
30OoO plants The underbrush In low
ground forest where The rlants grew Mild was was
placed In the ground among tho roots OF the
great trees. The .cxnensC OF clearing and
essarv to Keep the ground clear Of under
brush rerpctualIy. and after three years
crop and the replcing OF vines that are in any
way destroyed. Thus work in all may cost an
and planting tl,ouS,nd year. The vine q
knotted Ike sugar cane. and these knots yield
cane cane Knots viii viii G5 Tie Vine itseit Is much
ike an american ivv. 1t climbs the tfee about
lowsh. n species oi orchid. It is said. aud the
fruit develops "a II yellow bean pod. soven or
eight inches long or more which contains the
should yield 80. coo pounds at least when over
three years ot age. and the price runs from
dollar IN gold pound up to 90.
Now the vanilla is n poor mans cror, just as
coffee s. He can do even better with It than the
rich man can, because he will not depend on
hirnd labor Hc is beginning with n few plants
and is selling few pounds u year. lie is re-
loicinR In an increasing income. aud Is there
fore on the road to wealth.
IL is true that since the days when Humboldt
was exploring the spanish Mnin the Indians OF
Mexico have been producing vanilla OF tho
hest quality, and that without making much
III" ysd IL rSc nT tho adinos
will 10 differently as they havc done to n GER
tain extent in Costa l!icn. and for that matter
its railroads and poace. The lsthman farmers
are showing an ambition TO accumulate
root OF all evil. but sometimes there is a sweet
sap in the bitter root,
That the chocolate tree could he cultivated
a. readily ns the coffee treo scarce need be
said. hut did not SEQ or hear OF n single tree
iy louiish. too, whlS tea might perhaps be-
come staple. Conditions lust right ior the
@ sS Of Wealth % treG SnG S1t few
there even Know that such things exist, be-
cause the Government will not permit free
press The periodicals under the naino OF
newspapers which are issued in Spanish Amer
lea would lust suit tho gentlemen who write
Farmer Juan can rend-everybody learns to
read-but no one reads anewspaper.
The old-tim1 farm products OF the 1sthmus
but the export is small. The sugar cane is tho
chief Of these crops. and it goes out OF tho
country in tho form Of rum, or toothcd- water,
as the native name is, There is one sugar
plantation on the Santa Maria River that has q
steam sugar mill centrifugals and oil, hut tho
usual cane mill consists OF three upright logs
OF wood connected by wooden cogs which
which some Of tho Juice Is expelled from tho
cane. As much sugar is made from this Juice
as the home market will consume. 1t is q
sugar that looks like the maple product OF
northern Now York. and because It is made in
absor6s lot Of wood smoke, and cinders it
tastes like tho, maple product to an astonish-
Europe serves to turn the Juice into rum.
The Santa Maria River plantation mentioned
c ST T es rn E' Tha IL yeS he
est producer OF the Isthmus 30 Dr. Faorega
TO tho ordinary traveller tho m ost astonish-
ing thing Hnont these SUGAR can9 plantations
sugar ca is found growing in the swan sWsnps ano
ut least IN very low ground. In the ls,hmus,
hnye secn sugar canc doing well on the steep
sides Of mountains thOus inJs of feet above the
sea. These people sesmbe like the people Of
eastern kentucky in one respect; they like to
have their farms as near vertical MS possible.
Not ont sugar cane but rice is raised on the
in low or at least rriGated lands in other coun-
tries: But here. as In tho Iiimaaya Mountains,
above the soa. 1t is irrigated by the frequent
rains in the wet season. In the towns OF the |
silver a pound. and an acre Of land will pro-
duce on an average l.5oo pounds,
other land in tho American corn belt would
feel sorry for the lsthmian corn grower. Tho |
and scrnGgly as the product OF Now Hamp-
shire shire OF or an Adirondack farm. and that, too, In
tie seed dis IS pSnsd % eyery year sS, So Ia ar wac
could learn, the size OF the ears and the quail
~ OF the kernels were duo TO several causes. |
There has been no importing OF new or i'm
proved seed. and the cultivation consists solely
IN IN going through tho iicid and chopping down
crop Is growing. The ground Is not ploughed. |
the corn Is planted In a little hole made with
earth by tho foot and the hill ls are planted too
close together. There is no hoeing or stirring
When reached Hnrconcitas n swamp town |
on the shores OF the Bay OF David a stretch OF |
found two men there from San jose. Costa
Rica. buying food products. They loaded a |
and rice. senor Don Tmelio oiave merchant |
9i the town, with whom stopped. said that |
auntais t40I06 ponnds OF Of riee % at aoS 81 1.1 ps9
quintai. J 300 gun.ais OF corn at Sl.50 por |
GGinta several hunired chicEens at ana an aver per-
age prico OF 20 cents each. and some hundreds |
OF OF dozens OF eggs AZ ten cents dozen. About |
the merchant got S25 each. All these prices |
nre IN silver. The gold value was a little more
the export trade of tho average coast village |
Of tho lsthmus, II Agnadulce. with 1000 |
AGuaGulce. because Of its location, drew prod.
ppcts from larger territory than any town in
well as capital Of ChiriquL and is connected
With both Panama and Puntarenas COSTA
licnl 10y steam transports.
At David I found an Asacian. Mr.. John
Landau, man who had been a rust!er in the
had at last settled down temporarily as
dealer in produce at David. He bought every
thing that was offered him by anybody. A
catalogue OF \ months purchases would I'M a
column in The SUS, | doubt not. for there
were many medicinal roots, precious metals
Jewels, products OF tho field and the forest In
the list, OF the gold and other precious stuffs
l Will tell at another time hut he got lot OF
white rubber from the mountains and fIlstIc |
from the forests. lie had also found one bars-
footed farmer In the baekwoods who had ten
bags o. coiiee or sale. II was worth $50 a bag
md that IL the largest sale Of coffee heard of
10 the interior ofthe lsthmuR.
. There are other products that may be men,
toned because II the country is ever uDened |
10 t!a'..r ~ u railroad they will become OF
Immense imnortnnce. The gunine tree and
the castor bean are found Palm oil is made by
tho Indians. who buy kerosene lamps in which
70 burn IT, but never buy kerosene. The ram!e
plant Is indigenous and tho cotton plant |
grows Wild Without sowing or cultivation
The cocubc, mahogany. rosewood. teak cedar |
ahd, what i perhaps more important. huge |
pine trees abound. man could manager 10 |
market that pine as cheAply as II can be done
the lmmh.r Mnmll hrIng SAM gold n thnnsnni |