New Britain herald., 1924-01-11
VULCAN IS ECUADOR
 EARTHQUAKE VICTIM
City Reported Wiped Out, Has
 Series of Violent Shocks

Washington, D. C., Jan. 11.--"Tul-
 can. Ecuador city reported wiped out
 by an earthquake, lies in a region
 where the only rift in Natures lute
 seems to be siesmic disturbances, " says bulletin from the Washington.
 D. C., headquarters of the National
 Geographic society.
 ''Tulcan had about 5000 people. It lay 100 miles northeast of Quito, near
 the Colombia border, and was ac- l cessible only by mule trail. One writer says the climate is so healthful that Hens lay so persistent | ly that medicine has to be given them to save their lives
 Water, Rail and Path.
 The mule ride is the last stretch of waterway, rail, and bridle-path
 route which takes visitor up South Americans principal Pacific river. the Guayas, to Guayaquil, Ecuador's prin-
 cipal port, and thence to the country's capital, Quito, after two days rail- road travel
 Quito is only 2Ss miles from Guay- aquil, but the trains do not travel by night. That is the visitors good for tune, for the route discloses the rug ged beauty of the Andes and traverses regions which produce staples of American retail trade-Panama hats, quinine and cocoa.
 Though hidden far from the busy world, Tulcan was a thriving com munity. to which American export ers' representatives in GuayaQuil sent a pfo ifa Ia joined the colorful crowds on the streets of Quito, a capital abovezsthe clouds.
 Quito Cultured Capital.
 Quito resembles our own capital in that it is more residential and gov- ernmental than business city. Ladies In smart motor cars shop at stores | displaying the latest importations | from New York, London and Paris. | American Indians frequently come to | Washington; but the Ecuadorean h. dians are far more plentiful in Quito's | streets. They stroll about in orange | ponchos, sailor-llke cotton trousers, and broad -brimmed hats. Their na- tive villages usually can be distin- guished by the shapes of their pom chos. the cut of their hair, or a turn of their headdress,
 There is no daylight saving prob- lem in Quito. Day and night are 12 hours the year round. The climate is just as equable--it is always early spring in Quito--but there is 10-de- gree difference between the sunny II places of the direct Equatorial rays. and the shade.
 -Four hours toward the mountains H will land one na region of perpetual frost; in half day one can descend II to the deep and sultry valleys between the mighty chains of the Andes.
 Produces Chocolate.
 One Ecuadorean chocolate plan tation produces 25,00o pounds of racao yearly for American and Euro pean confection makers. The cacao beans are spread, for drying. over icres of bamboo mattings. Workmen scuffle through them with bare feet occasionally to make sure they dry
 When the pods are first opened III he beans and pulp are creamy white: | hey grow brown after exposure to lir. HI
 Quito, from the slopes of the hills which surround 1t, present a picture H 'f white, relieved by the red roofs Of ts wooden houses.
 Although wood is it's only available n material, Guayaquilss public churches and theaters are loted for their architectural beauty. E Ind because It's buildings are wood it maintains what is reputed to be the argcst fire department of any city of II Is size in the world. In times past U suffered from disastrous fires. h
 Why Panama Hats?"
 Sixty miles up-riyer, Guayaauil is he country's great distributing cen- ar. It has one manufacturing indus IA ry of great importance to the United tates--that Of Panama hat making. exports more than 8 million dol- IT'S worth of headgear annually. The aw material comes from smaller in- e' md cities: the finished product gets e s name from the canal through VI 'hich 1t is shipped to this country. W "One other prospect Of northern tc which is not so pleasing is fs he snow-clad, ever active. volcanic fl otopaxi. with its illommend smoke pl alo. The orator is near Btacunga. fl here the legend survives that the A reat earthquake of 1898 was foretold u y a priest. The Carmelite nuns of to atacunga, 50 the story goes, held 10 bi ieir faith in the prophecy for seven p' ears during which they slept in tents their gardens. Their faith was re- |, arded when the quake finally came, IT their convent fell, but the tent wellers escaped"