Ladysmith news-budget. [volume] (Ladysmith, Rusk County, Wis.) 1907-1927, 1911-11-03


two HIGHWAYS and several byWays converge at
A!anie and every few days he might look for
passia3 visit from some Intelligent traveller. Ills
duties occupied three or four hours OF the day
and the rest of the time he filled in with study,
for his ambition pointed to advancement in his
calling whilst his environment had awakened an
inherent taste for natural history.
We left the table to walk over to the church.
with it's curious detached tower. | asked for the
records With righteous indignation blazing in his
eyes the little laid before me pile OF leath-
er-covered manuscripts nodded, worm-eaten. ana
torn. Not page was intact. hardly two consecu
tive lines legible
Such neglect is crime" said my host, fer
vently "I need hardly say that the damage was
beyond arrest when these came into my hands.
I fully appreciated his feelings Indeed, i dare
say that my own regret the keener Alanje
is older than David. In fact, it's history merges
with the times Of the Conquistadores and there is
no knowing what wondrous tales may be hidden
in those sadly mutilated documents.
Our church has legend, remarked the cura,
leading me to a large alcove on the left OF the
chancel. Drawing aside curtain, he revealed a
life sized painting of the Christ in his final agony
It was evidently the work of an artist, but did
not betray extraordinary ability
Il don't know when this came here, but 1t was
certainly before the present generation" the
cura explained with slight show of embarrass-
ment. 1.-THE story goes that one evening a
stranger came to the village and, declining shell
ter elsewhere, begged to be locked alone in the
church over night. His request was granted.
When the curious villagers came early in the
morning to look for him he had gone, and the pic
ture, with the paint fresh and wet hung where
you see It."
looked at the little cura questioningly.
ooh, don't know" he said, with shame
faced smile and shrug Of the shoulders. "At
any rate my people believe the story firmly. and
it does them no harm"
On the road between Aanje and Divala we
crossed several streams. A better watered coun-
try than this could not we'll be imagined.
Dvala is little settlement Of so to so huts
and perhaps 800 inhabitants, who are entirely
dependent upon the ranch and insure 1t con-
slant supply Of labor The people cultivate little
patches, from which they derive almost all the
foodstuffs they need. few weeks work in the
year at 60 cents day will produce enough money
for clothing and moderate Indulgence in the
Injuries that to be had at the village trading
store.
Dvala is Is miles from anywhere but the most
unlikely place to look for American family in
a bungalow that has the appearance of having
been transplanted from a New Jersey suburb.
Mrs. Wilson has lived in this out-of-the-way cor
ner of the earth for five years, and has had the
companonship of her infant during the past
eighteen months. There is not a woman of her
own race within 40 miles. This is isolation, in
deed and | suspected that she must find it rk-
some though she would not admit as much.
Twelve years ago Leslie Wilson came out from
California and settled in the neighborhood of Di-
vala with half dozen Americans and Brtishers.
Thus the settlement of Diyala formed and a
large proportion of the ranch turned into PotrerO
without penny of outlay. The disturbed condi-
ton of the country reduced the prices of all prop
erty and Wilson was able to buy the nucleus Of
his stock at very low figures.
The owner of Divala has worked hard and in
diligently for ten years the Improvement of
his property. Today he has 5000 acres of fine
land as any in Chiriqui, we'll stocked and fur,
nished with all the necessary buildings. The
ranch is easily worth $4,000 Not bad result
of an enterprise started twelve years ago with
5000 capital