Evening star., 1927-12-29
GUATEMALA RECEPTION
AT HIS LANDING THERE :
GRATlFIES LlNDBERGH
CONTINUED from First page)

tainS are extremely nlpn anu very
rugged, but are covered almost com
pletely by vegetation. Their difference
in this respect from the Rockies
struck me. Some of the mountains
were entirely covered with palms.
What was even more impressive was
to see the farms which men are culti-
waiting high M the slopes Of these
Some of these fields were
fully 10000 feet above the sea. and
there were fields clinging to the sides
of the peaks at an angle Of more
than io degrees. The ingenuity.
energy and perseverance shown by
these farmers seems hard to equal.
None of the volcanoes was directly
on my route, and | did not fly over
any craters. | hop" tn do this, how
ever. before the trip is ended Their
appearance was very ma iestic from
the air.
Flew Close to Ground.
flew nj an average altitude OF
! 900 feet and ut Il maximum of 1000.
rs Mexico City has an elevation of
: 900 feet, and Guatemala City 5000,
and much of the intervening area is
mountainous or high plateau, !,
consequently. sometimes was not high
above the ground. flew few
hundred feet or less over some OF the
higher mountains. passing quite close,
occasionally. to the villages.
These villages which are mostly
straw matched and quite individual
in appearance. are not, however, seen
frequently. They are widely scattered
In fact. for stretches OF so miles at
a time there was not "A single sign
Of human hahitation. 1t seemed
to be vast. virgin, tropical forest.
with sharp mountain peaks outstand
ing in II.
The villagers seemed interested In
aviation, coming outside their houSes
to watch me pass, ! have been told
that many OF them probably had
never sren an airplane before, If so.
II WAS impossible from the air 10 see
how the sight affected them. aside
from natural curiosity. There were
no indications Uf demonstrations
NV route did not take me over any
cities OF any size between the two
capitals.
For most OF the route very few
places appeared where forced idnd'
ing would hs possible. though | did
notice some here and there. One got
the impression from the air that IN
the case of forced landing in mnch
of his region II probably would take
weeks To reach any hahitation. The
Jungle in the lowlands. where il was
visible through the fog or clouds,
seemed extremely thick and extensive.
Holds Route Practical
believe. however, that the route
from Mexico city IT, Guatemala City
ion f,ts
with triple motored ships. It prob
ably would be best 10 follow the route
along either coast line.
Flying conditions. however, were
perfect today. None OF the rough air
which has been reported in these
regions was encountered, That. of
course, depends upon the atmospheric
conditions and is subject TO wide
variation.
l flew a compass course over The en-
tire route. depending almost entirely
on the earth inductor compass.
] approached Guatemala City from
the northwest. flying considerably To
The north Of the big volcanoes which
rise between ii and the Pacific. i,
would he hard 10 say in which coun-
Try. Mexico or Guatemala. the volca-
noes are denser The whole region
seems To lie fun OF them.
The sky was clear at Guatemal la
City except for clouds hanging around
much OF the horizon. and the day was
bright and sunny. The city WAS visi'
ble for a considerable distance. II
looks very white and beautiful from
the air. with Its houses built In squares
around court ar patio and green
with vegetation. The streets are
VI nd nH in ats4N "a ~ ytHn 81
cities in the United States. making
one. in this respect. seem at home.
despite the tropical plants
City Stands Out Strikingly.
The whole city stands out striking
~ against the surrounding plateau,
fringed with mountains and volca noes.
and against the extensive uninhabited
or sparxeIy settled areas to ths north.
west.
flew over the capital toward the
Aurora Air Field. which WAS easy Ia
see south of the city. and which
proved quite good. The field lies in a
district which is being developed into
an attractive residential section. with
golf links. race course and avenues
lined with trees.
The crowd mostly lined mp along the
west side of the field n front OF q LONG
line OF automobiles. Consequently on
la nding | taNi"d toward the hangar
on the east side. which had been kept
free OF people. But they MI seemed
Ia manage IN get there very quickly,
President i.azaro Chacon II Gunte.
maia was AT the plane a few moments
after left the cockpit. | understand
The reception had been planned for
The other side of The field. and he and
Minister Geissier had crossed the iieid
a considerable distsnc in the hot sun
on foot. an honor which ! appreciate
deeply aa we'll as the special dacora.
tIon ne then conferred AN n token of
The admiration of the Guatemalane
for the people of the United States.
WIN 80 Ia Belize.
Glatemalan nNiators. with the
camaraderie which In one ot the most
pleasant and most general features 81
hyinp, Immediately saw that the ship
vas guarded by soldiers while | went
10 call on he President at the Guate.
malan White House. and then to
lunch with Mr. Geissier at the lesa
tiuI.
On landing here the Spirit ~ ~
Louis had completed 395 hours of nv
ing from the time left san Diego This
spring, ! examined he plane after
lunch and found II In perfect cnndl
ZION.
nv plane is Ia leave here at day
break Friday for Belize. following an
airline, as | shall during the entire
touf save that | won't ny over any
considerable body of water. There IL
said IL he no landing held nj Belize
While ! mny be elamped there fnt
ppace, II is difficult for any one not
an aviator IN tell exactly whether II
IN impossible 10 land there. as stated
intend. In ANY event, to nv to
Rali1e and examine Its landing pnAsi'
Utilities II possible. ! will land there
" not, ] viii turn around and nN from
tl.iis.. tu Fan Salvador. In event that
| do not land at i,elize II probably win