The farmer and mechanic. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 18??-19??, 1909-09-21

Mr. w. \. Graham Clark Writes Most
interestingly From Costa Rica, Tell
ing of His Visit to Three More Cen
trail American States and After Hav-
inc Inspected the Capitals OF All the
Six States.
We are permitted to use the fol-
lowing letter from w. A. Graham
Clark. written. to relatives in this
city.
San Jose de Costa Rica,
August 5. 1909.
I have visited three more countries
since writing you last and have now
been to the capitals or all of the six
Central American Republics.
/ had an even 6 trip down
from T~egucigalpa than 1 had going
UP as | found another bridge had
been washed away in the meantime
which necessitated quite a detour.
When l got. to La Venta where l was
to sleep the first night 1 found that
the family who usually take in trav-
eIlers were all down sick. They
thought it was smallpox but offered
to make room for me. l politely de-
clined and tried to find a bed else
where but every house In the little
Village WAS Iull. IIldlly OIc Ihd o1io
he would accommodate me if l would
take a hammock. l prefer a ham
mock to a native bed and anything
to sleeping in the open while every
thing was soaked by the heavy rains.
He Lad a family of six or seven and
we all slept in a single ROOM. they
on canvas cots around the walls and
I in a hammock. Having slept in
these native huts before was care
full before turning in to hitch it up
high enough to prevent the pet hog
from scratching his back on me when
he c~me strolling through during the
night. The hut had a mud floor,
adobe walls and straw root and the
docs. hogs and chickens were as much
at home as the rest of the family. /
started before day next morning and
abOu noon met up with Don Aguirre
Munoz. the Nicaraguan Minister to
Honduras. whom l a previously
met at our Legation at Tegucigalpa.
1t seems that owing to the feeling at
TeguciSalpa that Nicaragua Is again
plotting against them. The NicAra-
guam Minister was not considered
safe there at present so he was going
home for a vacation. With him was
Col. Gomez. a refugee from Colombia.
who had been mixed up in some rev.
olutions there but who is now with
the Nicaraguan army and attached to
the Minister as a kind Of ~bodyguard.
He had a great idea of the Minister'S
importance and after dark that even
ing when we were all plodding along
in the wake of the usual heavy after
noon rains and met a crowd Of carts
he called to them to clear the road
for the Minister of Nicaragua. When
they seemed slow in Obeylng he whip
ped out his gun and punctuated the
darkness with a couple of flashes
desired effect. Did not get to San
Lorenzo until very late but found
there a launch that our Consular
Agent had sent up for me and also
a note saying the General in charge
at Amapala has given permission for
me to and during the night. The
aunch that the Minister was expect
ing did not arrive, so l gav him a place
in mine as otherwise he would have
missed his ship, and I also took On
several Spaniards and Hondurans who
were stranded there. Leaving at
eleven at night with the moon just
rising we slid down the narrow wind
ing river where the trees threw tall
shadows across the stream and
where the silence was broken occa-
%sionally by the flight Of some startled
wild animal breaking through the
jungle, then out on the bay and
among the Stands until about three
o'clock in the morning when we drew
up to the small Customs pier at the
island port of AmapaIa. The sentinel
must have been asleep for We heard
no challenge but as we bumped into
the stairway I heard a click and a
startled "Quienviva' and glancing up
found myself looking into the barrel
Of a forty-fve. 1 never before real
lied how big a forty-fiye was until I
looked into the business end Of this
one and knew that the scared fool
who had hold Of the trigger probably
took us for N~icaraguans come to
c. out their repeated threats to
r a L. the Orf IN min npoSncfol
thai had permission from the Com
mandante and in vain the Minister
declared that there had been sDecial
orders issued for his case. The sen-
tinel had received no orders and con