The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1894-06-10
FROM SAN SALVADOR.
THE TRIP TO THE CENTRAL AMER
ICAN REPUBLIC.
I'm Earthquake Experience--The
Journey from San Francisco-Im-
pressions of Well Known Salt
Lake Lady.


90, 1S94.-The Pacific ocean bears its
name rghtfully; it is usually calm and
reposeful, but when the grand old pond
does brew a storm it is on gigantic
scale. The steamer San Bias, of the
Pacific Mail company, had the i'll luck
of running into such storm right out
of San Francisco, and it ragged and 1T
foamed for two days and night as L
have never seen it rage and foam any
where before. 1t was in vain that the
boat tried to make any Roadway, and
though 1 struggled brayely to keep up,
l at last succumbed to seasickness with
all the rest. The only thing that kept
| the passengers from surrendering to alb
: ject fear was the knowledge that the
veteran Captain William H. Mclean
was in command. He has traversed
/ these waters for so many years that he
knows literally every inch of them, and
| the confidence and security it gave TO
| the passengers was both instructive and
contagious.
The run from San Francisco to Ma
Zatlan is made in five days without
stoppage, but after that every port
that is run into causes delay Of one to
three days at this season when coffee
Mexico, is the largest and really the
only harbor on the way, and it is one
of the grandest natural harbors in the
world, but is so surrounded by hills as
to close out the air and earns for it
| the name of ''hot box
Down, down, towards the equator,
| the ship steams every day of our voy-
age and more balmy and fragrant be-
comes the spicy air, until we realize
that we have reached the tropics,
where snow is unknown and coffee is
the staple produce of the country.
AS l now walk the streets of San
Salvador under burning sky, 1 al
most pity the natives who have never
seen genuine Utah snowstorm and
whose idea of winter consists of moth
ing more than a downpour of rain. 1t
] is all very well to sigh for summer,
| but 1t becomes very monotonouS when
it lasts 365 days a year, excepting leap
year, when it lasts three $3.50. 1 would
give a great deal could 1 gaze once
again upon the snow-clad Wasatch
range instead of looking out upon a
serried row of extinct volcanoes, how
ever verdantly they may be clad.
We arrived at Acajutla early in the
morning, after a sea voyage of twenty
days. Here we disembarked with
about thirty Americans who were all
! salvador,
the capital of the republic of Salvador
An adjutant came on board to offer us
the government boat to convey US
ashore, but Captain Mclean feared it
might be unsafe on account of the chill
dren, so we waited for the launch to
take us to the pier with the other
passengers. The San Bias lay about
a mile and a half out at sea.
which is as near as she could venture,
because the approach to Acajutla is
dangerous. Huge black rocks tower
against them, while other rocks are
concealed under the water, some of
which peer out only when the ebb sets
in. In rough weather it is very difficult
for the launches, to land at the pier,
and often at such times a landing is
not even attempted. If a launch
should be dashed against the rocks,
the inmates would likely go to another
shore than the one in view. The mode
of leaving the steamer is certainly
novel. Six passengers are put in a box
| provided with bench on each side and
this deep box is lowered from the gang
Way to the launch below by means of
a cable. The sensation is not unpleas-
ant because the height is not great.
1t is entirely different, however, at the
| pier when a cage takes the place of the
box and the heights over one hundred
feet. You step inside, the hosting
engine on the pier puffs and coughs
| and before you know it, you are Sus-
pended in mid air. The cage revolves
in that position, knocks now and then
against the iron pier before twelve
brawny arms take hold of it and land
! it safely inside. / imagine that the
view from the cage over the ocean on
the one hand and over Acajutla on the
| other from an unsupported height of
a hundred feet must be superb. The
only trouble is that you are not
in position to appreciate it
just then, but rather concentrat e
! closure which keeps you in, and you
| hold on to it for dear life.
From Acajutla, a narrow guage rail
road carries us swiftly to Sonsonate, a
distance of fifteen miles, where we take
| breakfast. Breakfast here is the noon
dav meal and consists of soup, eggs,
three kinds of meats or fowl and fruit.
OF course we relished the meal We
do not relish it so much now because it
is invariably the same, and as antici-
patton is really the greatest pleasure
on earth. it is just little disappoint-
ing to know that at the next cenlten-
NAL of the discovery of America, we
shall still eat. if we are here, soup,
eggs. three kinds of meat and fowl and
fruit for breakfast
The country between Acajutla and
Sousonate indicates the unequaled
natural wealth of Salvador Though
this is the end of summer, which is here
Ionlv another name of the dry season,
and scarcely any rain has fallen for
many months, SO that all vegetation is
| thirsty. still the luXuriance of 1T is
amazing. On either side of the rail-
road are banana trees and cocOanut
ltrees. and bread fruit, while the native
timber. with it's knotted and gnarled
bark. indicates its hardness. Indeed the
native language is expressive in NAM
ling these woods, like the "Quebracho, .
which means break axes" About
midway a Chicagoan has large ffnka
| (plantation) on which he is trying ITO
lraise American corn cabbage, beans,
and peas on an extensive scale, with
the aid of American implements.
/ After AN hours rest, we proceed by
rail from Sonsonate to La Ceiba, a dis
Itance of thirty miles. An American
Eengineer built the road and an Ameri-
can conductor is in charge of the train.
Indeed, American enterprise is visible
ON all hands, as the government of
Salvador fosters and encourages with
"a bountiful hand all wise improve
ments.
Unused ITO the heat and wearied by
constantly recurring new sights, we
are now at La Ceiba, awaiting to make
the hardest part of our trip. 1t is
only six miles from here to Santa
Tecla. but so rugged and ragged and
precip.jtous is the road that however
short the airline may be, the actual
distance to travel is fully twice as
great. we have the choice to go on
mule back or in the "diligenca," and
we unfortunately choose The latter