Keowee courier. [volume] (Pickens Court House, S.C.) 1849-current, 1908-09-02

They will remain an everlasting mon
ument to the American medical pro-
fession, an honor to our Republic
not speaking of the solid comfort
and peace of mind it affords the en-
ployees there, for from these tanks
flows the fluid which is used for
sprinkling the Zone, thus annihilat-
ing the deadly mosquito, for this,
with other sanitary arrangements,
has made the Isthmus habitable for
the white man.
At the city of Panama, which is
much more progressive town in
every way than Colon, we boarded
the Steamship Peru, thus beginning
our voyage down the west coast of
South America, and soon decided that
the Pacific Ocean was named proper
ly, for there was scarcely a ripple
all the way down, so much more
peaceful it is than the Atlantic.
Our next stop was Guyaquil, the
port for the Republic Of Ecuador.
Here we were not allowed to go
ashore on account Of the quarantine
which existed at Lima, for yellow
fever and Bubonic plague were both
holding carnival in the city, but, as
for that matter, l am told that both
are plentiful in GuyaQuil twelve
months In the year. And mosquitoes!
We barred our window and door, and
still they came after us with lanterns.
| was told by a locomotive engineer
who had employment there on the
Guyaquil and Quito Railroad
that the company were greatly
annoyed by the mosquitoes constant
ly puncturing holes in the boilers Of
their locomotives. | can't vOuch for
the truthfulness Of this story, but
do say that some of them looked to
be as large as grasshoppers.
On clear days the volcano Catapaxi
Is to be seen from here. She is con-
stantly belching forth fire and ashes,
and / was told by a citizen Of Ecua-
dor that he had frequently read
newspaper 25 miles away by the light
from 1t.
We are next at Payta, in Northern
Peru. 1t Is the port for the famous
Piura Valley, and it Is noted for it's
shipments Of Panama hats. By the
way, cotton is indigenous to this sec
ton Of Peru, and While many foreign
varieties have been cultivated here,
none do so we'll, nor is the product
so valuable, as the native tree, for
1t is truly tree from Is to 20 feet
in height. / have had the privilege
of seeing some Of 1t growing. Ano-
ther popularity of the country in
which 1t grows Is that 1t rains there
only once in each ten years, SO | was
informed by the Secretary of Agri-
culture Of Peru, who happened to
be on the boat. He also told me that
they had tried to introduce it In other
sections Of the country, but that it
had always been failure, so it
seems that just this amount Of rain
fall is peculiarly adapted to its prop
agation. The product Is a brown
fibre, and is used by the peasants in
their domestic weaving. An export
trade in the raw product has also
been established. The cotton crop
Is regarded as one Of Perus most
valuable resources, though | am in
formed that the total crop is approxi-
mately only about two per cent of
that Of the state Of Mississippi.
Now on to Callao, but it might be
interesting to note in passing that
we came in view Of a couple Of
whales, one a monster fish; also saw
the largest flock Of feathered birds
1t has ever been my privilege to see,
1t being a flock Of peltcans eight or
ltu Ill ouI W
sea, and there were thousands.
was Informed by this same Peruvian
Secretary that these birds were the
source Of the far-famed Peruvian fer
tiliZers.
Callao Is the principal port of
Peru. Because Of its central loca-
tion and excellent harbor, 1t Is
through this port that most OF the
countrys products are exported, and
its imports distributed. Located as
1t Is so near the equator, one would
expect a climate similar to that OF
.oints located at an equal distance
from the equator on the Atlantic.
Not so, for 1t Is not tropical either In
appearance or climate, the latter be-
ing modified by the dry trade winds,
but more especially by the cold Hum
boldt current sweeping up the coast
from the Antarctic regions. The eli