Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1901-10-12

have been in for weeks. with bad and
muddy roads
Soma, where we spent our last sun
day, Is a beautiful little village, on the
very tops OF the hills, where q sort
OF mesa Is formed, and everywhere the
ground Is covered with q carpet OF
green grass, Kept clean by the con-
slant rains that one could walk out
with his carpet slippers without fear
OF getting them soiled. The houses are
scattered promlseuously, every person
building where seemeth him good, A
neat little garden, containing cane
bananas or plantains, corn, mango
tree or two, guurd tree which FUR
nishes cups to drink out Of and q few
vegetables, surround each house, and
contrast beautifully with the green
grass. The houses are mostly matched,
without sides. or with sides OF upright
sticks 90 wide apart that plenty OF
fresh air Is always admitted. But we
must except three or four, the one we
occupied being one, and the acting al
cnIde's. Senior Rafael Morgas another,
which were built Of lumber saved by
hand aud carried on mule back from
the mountains a few miles away Every
body was sociable, and Of course
anxious to know who we were and
where we were from. We gratlilcd
their curiosity. and increased their
wonderment by answering their QUes-
tlons
At 6 o'clock Monday We were in the
saddle. Senior Rafael Morgas made no
charges for our pasturage and house
accommodations, and refused TO take
pay. We thanked him, babe him and
his kind family goodbye and as we
passed the house of our washer wo-
man babe her goodbye as well. In al
most every house we passed people
were AT the door and called out "bien
yiaje,' a pleasant trip.
PEOPLE LIVE WELL.
At noon next day we reached Las
pamas neat little village, so
named because OF the great number OF
beautiful palm trees including cocoa
nuts growing about the village,
Here we camped for noon, and drove
TO the house Of Senior Reyes, promin-
eht citizen. from whom we enqulred
as to where the alcalle lived, Senior
Reyes at once invited us TO camp at
his house, stating that the alcalde lived
next door, at present was away, but
would return I'm a few moments We
camped, and had no more than un-
packed when the lady of the house
asked US 10 have some refreshments.
Before we left. dinner was ready, and
we were invited The meal consisted
Of tortillas, beans, soup. rice, meat and
eggs, served IA clean White plates, with
Knives, forks and spoons We judged,
as the meal was not prepared especi-
ally for Us, that the people live well.
And why not? a very little work and
an abundance of the richest vegetables
and most wholesome grains can be
produced, and the abundance. OF grass
suggests that meat and milk can be
produced equally cheap. These people
Ought TO set as good a table as any
people In the world.
HosP1TABLE PEOPLE.
The people are also very hospltable
and patient. No inconvenience seems
to bother them. We often camp with
them Ia their small huts. We kick out
their dogs and pigs, put our cots In a
dry place and pile our packs where
they, too, will be dry. We cook on their
Gre. using their wood and their water,
which perhaps the woman has carried
half a mile up hill. and they take II all
In good part, seemingly delighted TO
have us around, When we eat they Of
ten bring us some dainty dish, dainty
to them, such as an egg or two, plate
Of beans, or OF rice, a piece OF sugar
their sugar is something like our maple
sugar or a tOrtilla made from new
corn, and Invariably which pleases us
more than anything else, they beat
their hungry dogs and cats away. The
cost to US is nothing, but we always
make some return gift which invari-
ably pleases them. | speak now Of the
poorer classes, the Indians. We passed
through three pretty little Indian vii
lagos, one Of which, Rio Jesus, interest
ed us very much AS rule the houses
are built around large open grass plot
lust at the edge of the forest. The
grass plot seems to be the commons.
for there are feeding the horses, COWS,
and pigs of the village. The houses
are invariably OF thatch roof Of palm
leaves, with sometimes no sides and at
others sides made OF upright sticks
placed an inch apart. In one or two
cases the sides are also matched with
palm leaves. Little children dressed In
the m0desty of nature were playing
around the houses, while the women in
many places were pounding or cleaning
rice. iihe rice Is all cleaned by hand
A log three feet long is followed out
bowl shaped In one end, like mortar
a FOUNDER, consisting OF a stick three or
four feet long and weighing about ten
pounds, is rounded on the ends and
with this the hun is pounded off. The
rice is afterwards cleaned either by a
fan or the winds Of nature II they are
blowing. About two to three pounds
are thus hulled at time. The men