Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1903-04-11
ANCIENT TAP ACHULA
Path to 1t i Difficult at
Best.
A ROAD or ASHES
FALLEN IN ARGENT VOLCANIC
ERUPTION.
Journey Made at Night-Many Ameri-
cans Own Plantations and Guilt
vate Coffee and Rubber.
Special Correspondents of The Evening Star.

Special Correspondence Of The Evening Star.
TAPACHULA, Mexico, April 1. 1903.
The path to the ancient town of Tapa-
chula is difficult at best. At Salina Cruz two
months wait for the uncertain Mexican boat
is not unusual. The plague at Mazatlan has
added quarantine delays. The lagoons offer
the most enticing route, but the dry season
Is on and the assurance is given that with
the assistance of the Indian the canoe will
have to be dragged half the way. The horse
back journey Is said to be impossible. and
likewise pedestrianisn.
Down the sea the port Is San Benito a
port for Tapachula. built Of shacks except
for the custom house. barren and hotelless.
Difficulties multiply. by the sea route, but
chance vessel made It available by sea,
in which the passenger is hoisted by der
ricks, dumped overheard and otherwise NAL
treated. and for this he must be thankful.
for it Is Of record that for month at a
have departed. unable to discharge cargo
at all. The Mexican steamer is clean. much
superior to the boats of the gulf coast. That
part Of the journey by sea Is pleasant, but
car, dropped overheard to barge and
jerked shoreward by a cable attached to
stationary engine on shore. Then his trou-
bles begin. He Is deposited on a heap OF
drifting, DUnQlnS, CHOKING volcano aSuoS,
and finds before him, thirty miles Of similar
ashes, for such is the road from Sen Benito
to Tapachula, thirty miles away. The fall
from the great eruption Of Santa Mona,
fifty miles distant. in Guatemala, October
% last. was eight and one-half inches on
the level at Tapachula and about the same
at San Benito.
San Ben1to Not Summer Resort.
San Benito is not summer resort In
iyy1 ho viofo Of cha r.
fording entertainment for man and beast
unfortunately both in the parlor, which was
also the bed room and the kitchen, in which
the guests ate irrespective of party, ma
tionality or animality Pedro Revier was
having his siesta under his coach outside.
He would not leave for Tapachula until D
at night; he preferred going by night on ac-
count Of the heat; possibly horses and a
guide might be obtained; then he slept
again. A day in the shack for variety, a
stroll in ashes knee deep awaits the trav-
eler at San Benito-- But Pedro displayed
remarkable trait considering that he was
in the land of manana, and half an hour
before the promised hour drove up with a
dash, all of which was in his whip, the four
horses Juggling laboriously.
1t was in truth a drive of mountainous
monotony. Though Pedro cracked his whip
vigorously all the way the horses refused to
go out of walk The only spirit shown
was when some horsemen were met and
Pedro cracked his whip. blew his whistle,
and then wet it as a salute to his passing
friends. At length came the halfway house.
a shack of poles, through which the light
cleaned dimly. There were no bandits sit
ting about, alas for tradition. but the coffee
was bad. Then came more hours of ashes.
1t was impossible to see for them, almost
impossible to breathe for them. 1t was
warm and dreary. ,a- . :
Effect of an Earthquake.
At poidpipht tho c}tv uas raachad Tha
coach made its way through the streets,
filed with ashes from the house tops as a
rule. Water. however. flowed through the
main streets ankle deep from dam in the
river above the city. The ashes were being
gradually washed away by this expedient
of the local authorities. The inevitab BILE
Mexican dog barked fiercely from every
house at the noise of the coach. Otherwise
the city was dead. Past innumerable ruins
walls scanned by earthquakes, churches
tumbled down, towers leaning. the coach
rolled to the hotel. 1t was said to be the
best in this city Of 10000 people. The only
room available was cracked and scanned.
1t was offered at the occupants risk as
likely to fall. The earthquake had racked
the building, but the other rooms were
considered ordinarily safe. The bar room
was an immense cocktail, with no glass
ware unbroken. after. the shock came. A
drug store across the street was grand
mixture Of all drugs and chemicals. with
chemical action going on. Thus the boni-
face. chatted as he offered his earthquake
room Another hotel was found with solid
walls but slightly scanned. This Is Tapa-
chula. with its people from every cline
There Is only one wonder greater than
that of why they came. it Is why they re-
main. And yet that Is explained. Amid
these dangers they find sustenance and
wealth in the culture and commerce asso-
ciated with the fertile lands on the noun
tain slopes. The principal export Is coffee
Rubber comes next Long pack trains
come down the mountain with coffee or rub
Der. They are unloaded and the product
goes forward to the port in the huge lum-
bering canvas-covered carts. The start
Is generally made at night by the cart
trains, and the muchachos sing or sleep
as the slow-going oxen plod lazily along
Local commerce is sadly affected by the
money exchange. The state was once Il
part OF Guatemala and Is even now little
Mexican. Everything is "Cachuco." which
is Indian for the former government
Fluctuations Of Money.
The money is particularly Cachuco. and
is called "tin money" by the foreigners. It
consists entirely Of Guatemala silver for
local business. and they have a habit of
cutting the smallest piece in two to make
change. These splits Of half-moon shape
have large circulation Their exact value
in gold 1t Is hard to determine The coin
split is the cuartilla, one-fourth of a real.
The real is supposed to be 12h cents. worth
about cents gold. so that the split comes
close to the 1-cent piece.
There Is no copper in circulation Qua
temala paper Is not in circulation and Is
bought only for use over the border The
SIP. 90 paper for $500 American gold. This
money is all there is In general circulation