The Greenville journal. [volume] (Greenville, Ohio) 1850-1918, 1917-11-29

- AILING into a foreign port at
the break Of day appears to be
q favorlte custom with the av-
erage sea captain, and the occa-
sion to which we write was no excep-
ton. For several hours our ships
course had been guided by flashes from
the friendly lighthouse, and the latter
we knew stood on the Yucatan shore
at Progreso. The morning broke calm
and peacefully over the tropical wa
ters of the gulf, and soon the move
ment of anchor chains automatically
announced that the limit had been
reached-the limit of deep water-and
five miles away lay Progreso, one of
the worlds most important shipping
centers of heneQuen or hemp.
Going ashore at Progreso is rather
an exciting novelty If not dangerous
experience, writes William A. Reid In
the Bulletin of the Pan-Amerlcan
Union. The sea is alive with sharks,
and they are dartlng here and there
about the big ship, to the consterna-
ton of the stranger. The clear waters
which battle this shore seem to accen-
tuate the size of these monsters, and
while the visitor shudders the boat
bounding shoreward. announce that
arrangements may then and there be
made for a shark-fishing excursion
later in the day.
Few Sights to See In Proereso.
Sightseeing In Progreso does not
detain the visitor. But the port with
its 5000 people is usually busy one,
as the bulk Of the vast henequen crop
passes via PrOgreso to world markets.
The smaller ships calling for cargo
manage to draw much closer to port
than the big ocean vessels; but when
the long-talked-Of piers are construct
ed several miles out into the rOadstead
the handling of the country's COM
merce will be greatly facilitated.
By and by the day grows warmer,
and one is glad to board the train for
Merida, 80 miles southwark. Travel
ing on this three-foot gauge road Is
cheap, being only about two cents
mile for the best accommodation Of
fered. Slowly through the suburbs of
Progreso our train steams, but soon
we are moving rapidly over a level
country with dry and parched ap-
pearance, Astounding in shrubs, cacti,
and coarse grasses; but to this condi-
tion Yucatan owes its vast revenue de-
rived from the marvellous little maguey
plant and Its product. Here and there
are breaks in the barrenness and we
catch sight of swamps with lilies and
other wafer plants, relief to look
upon.
AS our train proceeds, with stops
at little stations en- route, the cars
are better filled, and at the same time
opportunities are afforded for getting
close glimpses of the henequen work
ers and their fields of maguey plants
that lie in view from the car window.
Long before sighting Merida the land
scape becomes dotted with windmills,
and when finally the capital city Is
reached one can almost imagine him
self in old Holland or Barbados, about
the only difference being that Yucatan
has the modern-style mill. These wind
mills explain that Merida, like other
regions of the country, must pump wa
ter from beneath the surface, so few
are the lakes and streams.
Driving About Merida.
After being made comfortable in one
Of Merida's hotels we start out to view
the city. There is no lack of vehicles
and the stranger is literally swamped
with proffers of delightful drive"
Most of these small carriages, gener-
ally drawn by single pony, have rub
ber tires, and many are kept consplcu-
Ously clean and inviting looking,
despite the dust of the suburban Sec
tions Of the city.
Merida today claims 81, 900 people
and among its residents are numerous
families of wealth which have ac-
quired riches In connection with the
great industry, the growing of the
maguey and the production of hene-
Quen. Merida, while not as old as the
port of Sisal, dates from 1912, when a
settlement was founded by Francisco