The Birmingham age-herald., 1914-02-22

OIL Is struck at about 500 feet Ten well
are already working and each Is yieid-l
ing an average of 80 barrels daily.
Inc petroleum output of this counti'l \
Is now more than 100000 barrels ped
annum and the business is at its begin !
hlng More than SO mells are now work
ing, and of these 300 in the old fields O 4
Zorrltos The oil Is of the high grade
ana 1t Is good for lighting as well as forl
Iuei' The steamer upon which | now and
purns fuel oil instead of coal, and W
nave taken on fresh supply here Thd
OIL IS stored in great round tank on theI
oluifs above Paita. and a pipe from tnd
TANK runs down to the ocean and TO y
little oil barge. whence IL Is conducted
INTO the Reservoir of the steamer.
The landing at all these coast ports
Is done in small boats The momentl
our ship came to anchor al Paita wh,ial
boats with red flags started out froml
the shore. They were rowed by bare
fotted Indian sailors clad I'm blue with
Whlte caps on their heads. Behind thernl
came the boats of the natives bringing
vegetables and other wares out to the
snip, and farther back still We're towe Il
the great barges loaded with freight io
be taken away on the steamer AT EtenJ
the port nearest here, the harbor is rougl
and the landing of passenger is by means
- n DdAiti, tit Iidfl Ol WHICH mas Deen
cut away and turned into a chair The
passenger takes his seat in the bar
rel. whereupon he is lifted by the crane
worked by the engine and dropped over
the side into the boat. In the same way
passengers are taken from the boat 70
the deck of the steamer. | saw three
women brought up that way today. One
of them wrapped her head in her shawl
and evidently prayed all the way up
] hOuglt Panama ha for ~
Sio IT was brought on board by an Ir-
uian whose first price was e6. | Offered
MN FL los and he came down to Gs
At the last moment he again appeareG
and took GO. The hat is IS closely woven
as the finest of silk. The straws are az
big around as a cambrie needle and so
soft that can bundle it 10 in my pocket
Panama hats that are now sold SO large
~ IN our stores are not made in Panama
Ihey come from Ecuador, Colombia anil
northern Peru, being shipped from here
all over North America and to GERMANY
tlsnce. England and to other parts Of
South America. Just now the Ecuador
cans are exporting some of the stra w
and a great deal OF ii comes down into
Peru and Is here worked into hats
l have always heard that the hats sold
10 the rich natives are f1ner than ans
that came to our country. This is. so
They cost so much that there is no de-
nand for them abroad. Some sell for
as much as 500. at which price they Are
bought by the rich Spariards One was
made same years ago as a present to the
then Prince of Wales, who is now kins-
of England. 1t was so fine that it could
he folded into a package not as big as
the ordinary 81 watch. That hat took
more than six months to make. 1t was
made of the finest OF straw and the
work upon it was done only In certain
hours fthe morning and evening. The
amount of moisture in the air affects
the straw.
The material of the Panama hat is
from the leaf of a palm tree. called the
toquilla The tree is now cultivated It
becomes full grown at Is months and will
continue to bear for 40 years. The straws
are made from the new leaves cut OF
Just as they are about TO unfold. The
leaves are split with needles or with the
finger nail and there is great choice in
the straw *
AS to the ordinary hats such as we
have in our country, they are sold here
in Paita for 81 or 81 apiece. 1'hey come
chiefly from Guayaquil which port ex-
ports several hundred dozen of them
every month.