Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-02-05
BY REX COLLIER.

| me SLOW, uphill, twisting journey Dy
| government "ferrocarril' from Punta-
renas to San Jose unfolded to President
elect Hoover and his party panorama
of tropical luxuriance more than JUS
tifying its designation by the early
| Spaniards as the rich coast"
So rich with the gifts of nature were
those shores when first discovered that
they had become rendezvous for buc-
cancers and freebooters, lured by tales
of hidden mineral wealth or DESTROYS
of raiding the country's supplies OF
luscious fruits and nuts and vegetables.
In the eighteenth century, the azure
| waters of the Gulf of Nicoya, where
Law anchored now the trim battlesnlp OF
good will. had been infested more than
once with sailing vessels from whose
masts fiuttered the grim skull and cross
bones of the Spanish Main. The great
err part of these activities had centereo
on the eastern shores OF the country,
however, where the costa RIGA was
lapped by the pirate-ridden Carlpoean
Sea.
Steps Ahead Of Neighbors.
Costa RIGA had suffered from these
forapes to such an extent that her col
onization and development had been
slow and painful process, the American
visitors were advised: but. once freed
from bondage, the nation had progressed
at double time" Now she was ieaolng
all Central America in education, was
prominent In The movement 1or Fan-
American peace and had become an lnl-
onPiRiIttllTa
and commerce. ~.
countrv's achievements, and the gov
eminent officials and chamber OF COM
merce representatives on the speclal
train lost no opportunity to supply their
guests with data concerning their ma
tons march to prosperity.
No Tagging Of Interest.
There was no tagging of interest dur
ING that tourney from the hot Pacific
lowlands to. the temperate interior
nlateaus of the Costa Rican CordilleraS.
The rapid climb from the coast to the
mountains carried the party from the
warm banana belt to the cooler coffee
country Of the highlands. and along
scenic trail of gorgeous natural splendor.
From their comfortable private car
Mr.. and Mrs Hoover could see, Tor the
first mile or two of the journey. the
sun-bathed surface of the snug harbor
in which the Maryland had come to
rest, and glimpses of the disappearing
tiled rooftops of languid Puntarenas,
far down the slope.
Train Circles Obstacles.
The train started climbing the mo-
mert it put the seaport behind It, and
the ascent continued almost without in
terruption for mile after mile. Costa
Rican railroad engineers apparently
find it easier to circle obstacles than
dig a way directly through them, and
In consequence thereof the picturesque
route frequently doubled upon itself as
it wound its way gracefully around
rocky cliffs or along hillsides densely
covered with jungle of underground.
palm trees, century plants and strange
wild flowers.
The banana country seemed hardly
awake. although the sun was high in
the heavens Plantations, pointed out
by those familiar with the section,
needed careful scrutiny to be recog-
nized. They seemed mainly to consist
of forests of young banana trees, with
a small adobe hut concealed in some
shady bower of palms. Little evidence
of activity was apparent anywhere.
Children Wave at Train.
Now and then native, machete in
hand, paused in his inspection of the
yet green punches of inverted bananas
to watch the passing of the train, and
sometimes family of little ragamuffins
emerged from Stockaded front yard to
wave at the passengers.
PreSident-elect Hoover learned that,
under Costa Rica's liberal farm policies,
every family in the country may own a
parcel Of cultivatable land, and that this
program of agricultural relief has done
much to eliminate poverty in the re-
public. One problem met with in the
banana regions is the necessity for find