Daily capital journal. (Salem, Or.) 1896-1899, 1899-01-04


pine islands.
nrr,,ea fsr ne capisai Jouusl b. Pnvsis
willard 1earnoi. dated Norembes a iRs.
10 compliance with your request
rllendeayor 10 give as good a descrip'
tIon Of things here aa can. and As !
seo u myself.
An uatIyc vegetation grows very
rnnk and thick, the timber Of the
surrounding country "a black aud
white mahogany, grcenhesrt, ebony.
aud cocoanut are used as ornamental
woods Allofthe above are capable
Of high polish. all OF them gfow
quite large, With the exception Of the
cocoanut, which grows up as straight
as an arrow Tor . distance OF twenty
or thirty feet, without a limb, at the
top it bushes out, and looks like a
huge umbrella. The cocanuts grow at
the point where the leaves spring out
from the main branch. Some trees
bear twenty-five or thirty nuts; each
cocoanut Il covered with an outer
she'll and the natives take the Inside
abrc ffom them and weave them Into a
sort Of cloth. aud II IL used for capes,
which are supposed 10. be waterproof.
They are odd looking affairs.
The bamboo Is the native islanders
never falling supply OF building ma
terIal, and they put 10 to more differ
eut uses than We do any one article
10 the states, houses, dishes, clothing,
sails, bridges. shafts are made from IL
and IL grows very luKurianG. One
would swear that they we're Willows
growing, Tor the leaves of the bamboo
and the willow could hardly DO told
at a distance Of onc.hundred yards. II
seldom grows over six Inches Ia diam.
etei, and up 20 forty feet high, II
generally grows straight aud same as
small FIR. but sometimes II IL verJ
crooked. haye NOT yet seen q mango
tree 70 can't describe II 10 you.
Mangoes and pine apples are out OF
season now.
We are not allowed 20 90 beyond |
our outposis, 10 No have not any
opportunity 10 get out Into the coun-
try, aud see how things are, for our
selves.
There ~ another fruit here called
by the NATIVES. "Chlc0es," In size and
general appearance, they look exactly
like a small golden russell apple, but
their flavor Is peculiar 10 itself, and
does not resemble any thing that l
know OF. There seems 10 be as many
different varieties OF bananas here, as
We have apples az home, but II will be
40 lmposslblllty for me to give the
names of more than two of them.
They are the Lacatan and Buluca.
tong. The former IL 40 eIgbt.cor.
nefed fruit, With very golden col
ored skin aud meat, II Is very good
favor The latter 10 a long slim
fruit, with a green skin aud white
meat, and In my estimation Il IL the
best aavorod of them all have not
been able 10 ascertain the variety
that is most common Ia the states,
but Ia my next, will Try 10 tell you.
OH 10 manufactured from the co.
clanu', aud II ia used by the ma
tlves for amounting their hair. All
sorts OF utensils are made from the |
bard she'll Of the eocoanut, such AZ
spoons, clippers, and augarbowls, Pea. .
nuts, sweet potatoes, Fadlshes, onions,
aud cucnmhefs flourish here. aud they 4
are ali IN season now; We have young
,niona aud fresh radlshes any meal /
~ Wish, for all We have ~ do Is TO 1
'ny them from the native street ven. /
iersi their cost Ia just . mere tribe. h
of two cents Mexican money will n
purchase al man cares n eat al a
'ne meal. IL Il rather a novel OK. 1,
D,rienco 10 be- eating fresh ''garden A
ruck" Ia November. The boys doa't \
eem 70 eat very many cuoumbera. 90 n
IccOunt OF collie, they are afraid Of =
hem Lettuce Il plentiful Too, but 1,
.NrHHll11uun1.nxu~suannz..s "A