Ottumwa semi-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1899-1903, 1903-04-09

u
in height. Above was the reservoir;
a lake covering perhaps 20 acres of
ground, from which the timber had
been denuded. The character of the
forest around this artificial lake was
far different from that through
which they had passed. 1t was more
open. Instead of the jungle of
chaparral, Spanish bayonets, and
other forms of thorny plants, brush
and tree, the plateau on which they
now stood was noble tropical
| forest-a veritable park with glades,
rocks, picturesque ravines and gem
| tie hills.
| This is more like it, said Sid
ney as they took a seat on a rock
beneath the spreading branches of
q magnolia tree. 'If the rest of the
/ island is like this our task is an
easy and pleasant one"
4 Their view was one to entrance a
/ poet. They were at the edge of
1 glade covering about 40 acres. Here
/ and there a rock showed above the
waving grass and flowers, but other
| wise the vista was unbroken.
! "This,iS superb spot" said Sid
I ney. did you ever see such flowers
/ and trees? How tame the products
! OF Conservatives seem compared
! with natures work. There is
/ bunch of roses which would be worth
| 500 in New York. What kind of a
tree is that?" Sidney pointed to
medium-sized tree about is feet in
/ height, with broad spreading leaves.
"Why, it's a banana tree" he ex-
! claimed in great delight. '.And sshat
is more, it is loaded with bananas"
A huge bunch of yellow and yell
low-blaek bananas hung from the
| point where the broad leaves spread
like stalk of celery. Sidney took
! out his knife and cut several from
/ the bunch.
You are sure these are bananas,
are your" asked Mr.. Kent. Don't
! poison Yourself
They certainly are" said Sidney,
land they are delicious. These are
| the first ripe bananas | have ever
tasted. The stuff we get in New
York is no more like this than po-
tatoes are like pears. They pick,
them green, months before they are
ripe, and ship them north to ripen
in easements or in tenement houses.
Did you ever taste anything so de-
licious?"
"They are fine" said Mr. Kent.
"Cut some more"
They found scores of banana trees
with punches of fruit in various
stages of development. They knew
/ that life can be supported for an in-3
definite period from the banana tree
alone, and while they had no inten-
ton of remaining on the island, the
thought was comforting one.
They returned to the brook and
followed it in a northwesterly di-
rection. For some time they had
heard the sound of falling water,
and soon circled ledge of rock and
had a full view of a beautiful cas-
cade. The brook leaped so feet; not
from the top of a precipice, but
from point fully 40 feet below the
top. 1t came yelling from cavern
and fell unbroken into a pool below.
On the crest of the rocks there We're
trailing vines and ivy directly above
the tunnel from which poured the
waterfall.
There is the end of our BROOK
said Sidney as he studied the view
before him. II remember now THAI
underground rivers and brooks are
common in these southern ATTITUDES.
There are lots of them in Mexico and
especially in Yucatan I wonder if
can scale those rocks?"
81 know that l cannot" said Mr..
Kent as he sat down on boulder.
go ahead and | will stay here and
watch you"
1t was hard climb, but Sidney
made it. He stood at last directly
over the waterfall. Without stop
ping to admire the view spread out
before him. he plunged into the for
est which sloped upward 1t grew
thicker as he advanced Suddenly
he came to solid mass of trees
dense that no animal larger than
a rabbit could penetrate it for
yard. Sidney walked along the edge
of this jungle for half mile or
more, but his search for an opening
was stopped by the fact that the
vegetable barrier finally extended
to the edge of the cliff. The ex-
plorer then selected tall logwood
tree, and after hard struggle
Skinned" up to the lower branches
and climbed nearly to the top, From
4 this elevation he had fair view of
this part of the jungle, but could
only guess at its extent. He found
that it continued unbroken to the.
top of hill fully a mile away, and
beyond he made out the outlines of
other and higher hills, probably four
or five miles away.
(To Be Continued)
Beware of ontments for catarrh That
Contain Mercury,
as mercury will surely destroy tbe se,sa