The Republican journal., 1896-08-27

LIE national instrument has been in rsa
in slightly modified form, since LONG he.
lore Cortez' time. Any school bow. with
natural "ear for music and Yankee
Khack with a jack-knife, might make
maflmba. 1t is composed of light strips
OF wood, OF graduated lengths, from
which hollow canes or tubes of wood .ro
suspended; the whole mounted upon rude
legs that resemble sawhorse 1t is plav.
ed upon by three performers at once. who
strike 1T with little sticks, and the music
produced is very sweet and strange, like
strlnged instrument with the depth of
drum, minor wall running through it's
brightest strains, like the thread of
tragedy in life's mingled web.'' After
that we were in good tune for the mimi
table story of Don Quixote de la Mancha.
which is always part of our luggage IN
these lands SO like his own: and in the
comfortless inn we consumed the mid
night tallow dip to the ruination of it's
Chesterfieldian proprietor. Though he
had assured us that the casa was ours
the candles We're evidently his, for in the
bill was an extra charge of dollar for
four half burned dips.
Early in the morning the notes of fife
and drum called out the entire population
IN review, for in Guatemala every man is
soldier and may be pressed into the
service as soon as he arrives at the dignity
of first pair of trousers. The army. as
seen at 1zabal, is not a sight calculated
to ''strike terror to the stoutest heart"
Twelve year old boys and grizzled octo-
genarians struggle along side by side. each
at the gait which suits him best. all rag
ged, swarthy and barefooted The fort
and barracks overlook the village from
the top OF the same hill which upholds
the town bell, and also the pole called by
courtesy lighthouse, to which lantern
is suspended now and then when some
body remembers to light it. A walk in
the suburbs reveals many primitive homes
trees. Near the southern edge of the viii
lage we came upon the remains of some
ancient earthworks, or Notifications, rec
tangular in shape, enclosing what must
once have been mission garden. Among
the fine old trees was giant mango, it's
magnificent trunk fully six feet in diane
rounded dome of living green as perfect
and symmetrical as the largest oak of our
forest seen through powerful magnify
ing glass. A promiscuous collection of
flowers, strange and familiar, grows wild
in these quaint old gardens, planted origi-
naliy by hands that have long been dust.
Around the outer edge of the ancient
breastworks had once been a moat which
is now nearly filled up, bur extremely
rich and moist. This is entirely over
grown with great beds of the most gor-
geous Caladium | ever behed-the body
of the leaf bright red. with a margin of
green and nlid-ri of royal purple. The
effect OF thousands upon thousands of
these bright oliage plants massed to-
SSStltCl Sal pIltSI VIC lLctt tliptil tttS-
cribed The curious Calibash grows here
in everybody door yard and is ndispen-
sable for household uses. The tree is of
strangely irregular growth the very Cali
ban of the vegetable kingdom, with lid
die shaped leaves and awkward looking
branches reminding one of scrawny arms
with too much elbow. The speckled bios
SONS break out like warts on the trunk
and larger limbs--a wise provision Of
Providence, for the smaller branches
would not be able to bear the weight OF
the fruit if it grew like apples or pears.
1t is wonderful how many purposes the
Calabash may be made to serve. The
long. slim gourds, larger at one end than
the other, are split in two and used for
spoons and ladies': the spherical ones make
excellent boxes; fat ones are converted
into bowls, trays and platters, and the
little oval ones make the daintiest cups,
which you may often buy here beautifully
decorated. Calahash 'crockery'' is al
most unbreakable, being not only light
and very strong, but able to resist high
degree of heat.
FANNIE BRIGHAM WARD.