Vashon Island news-record. [volume] (Vashon, Wash.) 1919-1954, 1931-07-30
Prof. Parkes Chronicles
Further Experiences


by a risen Christ.
In Cojutepeque with three Catholic
churches, each with its program. Of
professions. and each emphasizing in
its own way some phase or feature OF
the Easter story we had ample oppor-
tunity to see how Catholicism i'm
presses on its followers the story OF
the Cross. AS the theme is played
through they mourn and they dance,
they weep and they rejoice. Much is
seen in action in face and mein. Who
can say what is written on the heart?
But when the bells have ceased on
Sunday morning the scene Is changed
with startling suddenness to the mar
ket place, for Sunday is the great day
for buying and selling in this place.
The market place is a daily scene the
full description of which would fill a
book. But on Sunday the oxcarts
come from the country with the pro-
ducts of land and hand and the
market scene overflows from the
building and fills many streets around.
Shoes and hammocks, hats and water
jars, shawls and other clothing, vege-
tables and fruits, four and sugar, as
special attractions for the flies, so it
seems, foods cooked and raw, and on
the meat stalls 1t looks very, very raw,
soaps, candles, lanterns and cotton
goods, can't possibly arrange mix
t,lre that adequately describes what is
around our heads, on level with our
hands and under our feet as we wend
and wind our way among the throng
OF women who buy and sell. Especial
ly sell, for it is almost entirely the
woman who sell what the farm pro-
duces or what their hands have made.
Candies and cakes, bread and beans,
black beans and red beans, white
beans and lima beans, coffee beans
and cocoa beans, smoked fish and sau-
sages and picked stuff and cheese.
o, my lady, you should see what they
use for cheese! 1t looks like chalk
but 1t tastes like-well I admit it
doesn't taste like anything else I know
of so it might as well be called cheese.
They seem to like it and yet they seem
ashamed of it for they are always try
ing to hide it and it comes to the
table in the omelette or in the hash
and occasionally find it in the potato
croquettes. But the only place real
ly don't mind seeing it is in the
market place for there all I need do
is to avoid stepping on it. Some day
/ must record my full impress
sions on markets and business as
see it here but now it is still Easter
Sunday morning SO we must leave the
market and, we hope, the cheese be-
hind and wend our way to breakfast
at which we should have ham and
eggs If, as some would-be humorist
has remarked, we
We spent few days of our Easter
vacation in San Salvador, the Capital
Every time I go out of town, or into
town either, someone is sure to step
up to me and politely ask me my
name. I've got used to it now and 1
don't try to tell it. I reach for the
mans pencil and write it for him on
the paper he carries. Any other pro-
cedure takes much time and CONVEX
sation. At first thought it was a
wideawake press keeping track of the
movements of important looking citi-
zens and I thought was going to get
some publicity on the front pages. But
now know that 1t is only the Police
Department at work. Just what salts
faction they get out of knowing when
I move from place to place do not
yet know. Perhaps someone started
the custom and they don't know how
to stop 1t. Perhaps I shall discover
some day how the Republic is bene-
fitted by keeping track of me. At
present it is just one of those myster-
les.
After we had explained to several
/ hotel keepers that we were not
millionaires in disguise we got good
accommodations in the Hotel Inter-
nacional for eight Colonies, which is
$500, a day for two for a room and
three meals, American plan. Isn't 1t
strange about the hotel business? In
America everything is now on the
European Plan and everywhere else on
the American plan. In the dining
room no money Is wasted on bill of
fare. At dinner and supper, or lunch
and dinner, as you please to call 1t, a
pile Of three plates, the top one a
soup plate, confronts the diner. With
out question soup is served and taken
or neglected, and the plate removed
On the second plate was served
a generous pile of beef stew and vege-
| tables and then, when we were full OF
stew, practically, they brought for the
third plate nice beefsteak with fried
potatoes which we would rather have
had second. Rolls, fruits and coffee
complete the meal But 1t isn't all
stew and steak. There are some sur
prises We had an omelette at one
meal which had concealed in It's in
terror half of a pigs foot. This fact
was only determined by o rearrange-
ment Of the bones after it was con-
sumed. While we were eating 1t 1t
tasted like chicken, but was sure one
Of the bones would not fit into the
anatomy Of chicken and hence the
following investigation and discovery
1t was good, don't misunderstood me
but 1t was decidedly new to us.
At breakfast there is only one ques-
ton they ask. How do you like your
eggs? No bacon or ham. They don't
make EN- here. Bacon from the U. s
A. can be bought for $1.15 pound
which no doubt explains why they
don't serve 1t In moderate priced
hotels.