The Birmingham age-herald., 1912-09-15
THE BEAUTIFULLY Fra,,k c.

nents, Costa Rica is the lowermost coun- try of our grand division. It borders on Panama, and just now q party of Amer ican scientists. headed by Mir. John Hay ford, the eminent geographer and scien- tist, is mapping the boundaries which are now in dispute On the north is Nica- ragua, and San Jose where I am writing, lies in the center of the highlands, just about half way between. The country, all told, contains little more than lSooo square miles. It is just twice the size or Vermont or New Hampshire. It Is twice as big Maryland more than half as big as South Carolina, about one-thlrd the area of Illinois and more than two times that of Massa chusetts.
 The most of Costa Rica. as l have said, is made up of these highlands. They are so broken that they remind one or the H. lustration which one of the explorers or the days of Columbus gave 10 the King or Spain to show him the character or the Island of Haiti. That man took sheet of paper and crushed 1t up into ball in his hand He. then pulled it apart and threw It. all wrinkled and crumpled, on the table, saying:
 Your majesty, Haiti is like that. Well the same may be said of Costa Rica. From one end to the other 1t Is mass of wrinkles and folds, but the soil 
 the folds is composed of volcanic ashes and mud, and is one of the richest soils upon earth. The land will produce both temperate and tropical fruits. Most ar the country is so high above the sea that the. climate is perpetual spring, and as far as the weather goes, it reminds one of that inscription which was carved on the marble room In the palace of Delhi;
 "If there is a paradise on earth 1t is this, It is thisi II Is thisl'
 Climbing the Central American Andes
 But we can see the country better by taking a trip from the Atlantic seacoast up to this highland city of San Jose. The Northern railway, which Is leased by the United Fruit company, starts at Port Llmon and climbs right over the moun- tains. It is about 90 miles to the top of the pass, and Tn that distance we ascend almost 1000 feet. The road then goes down in the neighborhood of 20o0 feet to the capital leaving HIS at about three quarters of mile over sea level.
 There is now another road which has been continued down the western side of the mountains to the Pacific. That was completed only last year. and 1t has given the country railroad trunk line from ocean to ocean, The fare on the Northern railway is about cents mile and freight rates are compara- lively high The road Is narrow gauge, but the roadbed is well ballasted, and as the locomotives and other roll ing stock were made in America, the trip is quite comfortable.
 Leaving Port Limon, we go out into the jungle. and for some miles skirt the Atlantic, whose silvery waves are roll ing up on the shore. On our left are many cocoanut groves, the trees of which are so close to the cars that the nuts might fall down and crack the heads of the brakemen. After awhile we come to the banana estates and ride for an hour or so through a dense for est made up of these wide-leafed rust ling green plants. They reach as high as the cars and are so close that we can almost pull the fruit from the stems. We see them cutting the ba- nanas and laying them on beds of leaves by the tracks. Later on they will be carefully corded up and transferred to the cars
 AS we go on the land rises. We stop at Madre de Dios, and a little later reach the valley of the Reventazon river, an emeral dgreen stream which flows down the wild valley which forms the greater part of the route to the highlands. This river winds in and out, now passing through gorges between great walls of bridge green. One bend is known as the Devils El- bow, and above this are precipltous green walls, thousand feet high. The track winds along the sides of them and as you look up your view is bor- dered with emerald cliffs and rooted by the sky. Except for its green tint the water of the river Is beautifully clear; save where 1t rolls over the stones. foaming and dashing, trans- forming its emeralds to silver.
 A Botanical Garden
 And then the vegetables, Our way up the mountains Is through botanical garden more gorgeous and more beau tiful than the famed creations of Java, Hong Kong or Ceylon. The plants change as we rise and we have hun