The daily morning journal and courier. [volume] (New Haven, Conn.) 1894-1907, 1903-02-21
Especial Correspondence of the Journal
and COurier.)

Panama, Colombia, Jan. %, 1903
More than anywhere else on the two
continents this narrow isthmus shows
! how hard and fast the young America
of the north is treading on the heels Of
| the older American of the south.
! New Panama, as it is called, was
built just two hundred and thirty
! years ago-soon after the burning of
! Panama la Tieja." (Old Panama),
, which received its royal charter in 1921,
/ and after a brilliant existence of
century and a half, was destroyed in
| single night by a handful of buccaneers.
The stranger in the city of to-day sees
| everywhere abundant evidences of its
| Castilian origin. There are ancient
casas of Moorish architecture, as drow-
| sy-looking and heavily pictured as
| those in old CASTLE, their central courts
| enclosed within enormously thick
walls, iron-barred easements with fold
| ing doors of solid wood in lieu of win
| dows, and awning shaded verandas;
while sandwiched numerously between
| them are young American hotels and
boarding houses, saloons, dry-goods
anu ldlliOL anu JOlioOt lS'l oA
fists, Haunting gaudy signs inscribed
with such familiar legends as Free
| LUNCH" Boston Baked Beans" Ten
Cents a Shave;" and-worst of all
pants" that word of United States
coinage that goes with 'gents'), -Four
Dollars a Pair!"
At the first glimpse of Panama you
wonder why all the older buildings are
| painted dark green-the stately old
| palace of the bishop, the great cathe-
| dral and even the row of colossal saints
| standing in nitches along its facade
| their benign countenances and flowing
| hair, like their robes, vivid green.
| Closer inspection, however, shows that
| the coloring is not paint. but thick,
Inouldy growth that covers everything,
| applied by the hot and humid atmos-
! phere.
Though surrounded on three sides by
| the sea, Panama is walled like feu-
| dial city. These defences, now partial
| ly broken down and overgrown with
! bushes, were originally from twenty to
| forty feet high, with moat and bastions
on the land side, battlements and tow
ers at frequent intervals, mounted with
many pieces of cannon. According to
history, so much money was spent on
| these walls that at last the Spanish
| king wrote to inquire whether they
were being made of silver or of gold.
| Their builders had lately suffered so
| much at the hands of legalized pirates,
! under Morgan, that they neglected no
| means of defense for the new capital.
| Morgan, you know, was Welshman of
! low BIRTH and most of his followers
were outlaws from the British isles.
| At one time he had two thousand men
under his command and a fleet of thir-
| ty-seven vessels. Though an acknowl-
edged pirate, guilty of the most dread
full atrocities and the wanton murder of
| innumerable men, women and children,
! he was under commission from the
| king Of England as a "privateer'' in his
raids upon Spanish territory, the only
| stipulation being that he should turn
over part of his stealings to the royal
treasury. Being then at war with
| Spain, Albion looked with kindly eye
upon all Morgans atrocities against the
! Spaniards, even the burning of the
| proud old city of Panama, the plumber
| ing of it's homes and churches and con-
vents, and the torturing of the citizens
TO make them disclose hidden riches.
Yet the riches treasures of the city
were lost. Soon as the tide Of battle
turned in favor of the invaders, the
wise Panamians loaded ship with the
gold and silver and jewels of the
churches and converts, the kings plate.
precious stones and private valuables of
every description, and sent them off to
Spain. Apprehending something of the
kind, Morgan sent out a ship to over
haul any departing vessel, but its off,
GERS and crew, eager to do their share
of looting the doomed city, dsobeyed
| orders and came back. In a fury of
! rage at finding themselves thwarted in
the object of their expedition, the pa
triotic sons of Britain out-did them
selves in deeds of barbarity. Finally
they marched away, driving before
| them a thousand wretched prisoners
and two hundred mules laden with
| plumber, leaving behind a wide swarth
| Of rapine and desolation. Their distin-
guished services were promptly recog-
nized by the British government. The
arch-pirate was at once knighted by
King Charles II and given an impor-
tant commission, and Illustrating in
stolen wealth, piously ended his days
as Sir Henry Morgan.
Panama is an Indian word signifying
''plenty Of fish," Like other Spanish
American cities. its central feature is a
big plaza surrounded by the principal
edifices of church and state Straight
through the middle of it runs the
Street of the Nuns (Calle de los
Eabildo. or government house. where
| Americans now call Main street. The
| Eabildo, or hovernnent house, where
all the business of the municipality is
| conducted, occupied one side of this
plaza, and opposite to it the stately old
palace of the bishops; while the other
two sides are faced by vast Ameri-
can hotel and the green cathedral with
its green saints, before mentioned
This famous sanctuary of bygone CEN
! turtles is almost a fac-simile of the
| grand cathedral of the City of Mexico,
being built of stone and succeed adobe.
two hundred feet long by one hundred
and fifty feet deep, with floor of square
bricks and roof supported by four
rows of massive stone columns. Its