Fergus County argus. [volume] (Lewistown, Mont.) 1886-1946, 1903-01-07

~ ~
one story In height. We had a small
meal here which cost us a little over
six cents. l have paid a dollar many
a time in the U. S. for a meal no bet.
ter. After leaving EsquintIa. the
railroad winds around the bases Of
two volcanoes on the other side Of
which is an immense lake which is
the crater of an extinct volcano. Il
Is claimed that a person drowned in
that lake can never be recovered. and
that in n place where the track
crosses the lake a train was lost and
nothing more ever seen Of II.
AT every station We stopped,
crowds OF girls came with baskets of
fruits, foods and liquors on their
heads and In trying to sell them to
US beat the peanut vendors in the u.
s. all hollow.
Guatemala city, the capital of the
state by that name. has street cars,
waterworks. pavements and all OF the
lates improvements and convent
ences. It's population is about 6 5000.
In the center of the town are locat-
ed the government buildings, all one
story and made OF dobe and about
four feet thick. Every morning the
Guard OF Honor holds guard mount In
front Of the military building. The
troops are dressed in overall denim
and French shakos, or hats. and are
armed with model 1875 Winchesters
and on the butt of each gun is a tag
labelled Guardia Honore, the name OF
the soldier and regiment and number
of gun. 1t is to keep them from
~pawning their guns.
Parks and I were walking around
the city on the morning OF the 25th
of October, when we heard detona-
tion after defamation, like the noise
OF heavy cannonading or the explo-
sion Of dynamite. We were informed
that 1t was a volcano in eruption. II
was afterwards found out that 1t was
the Santa Maria. The government
posted bulletins to quiet the people,
saying that there was no one injured.
AS a matter Of fact 1t destroyed a
town Of $4,000 people, killing 5000.
not to say anything Of several little
towns and plantations which were
ruined.
THE accommodations In Guatemala
are very good, a room costing $1.00,
and a swell ~ten-course dinner but six
cents. While talking to a railroad
contractor | was told that whenever
they wanted laborers they get an or.
der from the government for as many
men as they want and then send
troops into the hills to run them out.
They are then put to work at Is cents
per day. and IL they will not work
they are fogged. II Is called forced
labor" and I think pretty effectively
settles the strike problem in Central
America. We sailed on down the
coast, stopping occasionally at little
towns, all Of which were a repetition
of the dirt and filth Of the ones which
I have mentioned, saw two active vol
canoes and finally went by the Pa
ciic coast terminus Of the proposed
Nicaraguan canal.
That canal proposition Is a hot
one. The harbor in the entire Pa
cific ocean and such q surf! And when
they get the locks constructed there
will come a gentle earthquake which
will destroy in N second the work
of years. And on the Atlantic side
the harbor is continually filed with
sand. Now to quote a little inside
information 1t appears that Salvador
and Nicaragua have been assisting
the Columbian revolutionists, as Mica.
ragua is sore because her route for
the canal was not taken. II the in.
s%urgents had succeeded in their war,
they would have received the money
from the United States for the canal
franchise and given Nicaragua her
share, or else Nicaragua would have
quietly annexed the isthmus and then
controlled both routes. Columbia be.
came aware Of this and has sent a
great number of spies into Nicaragua
with the intention of learning her
strength and now has a revolution on
hand which will be sprung In the near
future. The remainder of the trip
was no less interesting, and I'll spin