—Natives live from generation to generation on the same spot—

Do not give distinctive Names to the Rivers—Caribs barter Guns

and Iron-pots for Dogs—The Hairless Dogs of Tropical America—

Difference between Artificial and Natural Selection—The cause of

Sterility between Allied Species considered—The disadvantages

of a covering of hair in a domesticated animal in a Tropical

Country to o & • - so e a • o . 191

CHAPTER XII.

Olama—The “Sanate”—Muymuy—Idleness of the People—Moun-

tain Road—The “Bull Rock ’’—The Bull's-horn Thorn—Ants

kept as Standing Armies by some Plants—Use of Honey-secreting

Glands—Plant-lice, Scale-insects, and Leaf-hoppers furnish Ants

with Honey, and in return are protected by the latter—Contest

between Wasps and Ants—Waxy Secretions of the Homopterous

Hemiptera . © e o o e e o • . 212

CHAPTER XIII.

Matagalpa–Aguardiente—Fermented Liquors of the Indians—The

Wine Palm—Idleness of the Nicaraguans — Pine and Oak

Forests—Mountain Gorge—Jinotega—Native Plough—Descend-

ants of the Buccaneers—San Rafael—A Mountain Hut . . 231

CHAPTER XIV.

Great Range composed of Boulder Clay—Daraily—Lost on the Savan-

nahs—Jamaily—A Deer-hunter's Family—Totagalpa-Walls

covered with Cement and Whitewashed—Ocotal—The Walley of

Depilto—Silver Mine—Geology of the Walley—Glacial Drift—

The Glacial Period in Central America—Evidence that the Ice

extended to the Tropics—Scarcity of Gold in the Walley Gravels

—Difference of the Mollusca on the East and West Coast of the

Isthmus of Darien—The Refuge of the Tropical American Animals

and Plants during the Glacial Period—The Lowering of the Sea

Level—The Land Shells of the West Indian Islands—The Malay

Archipelago—Easter Island—Atlantis—Traditions of the Deluge. 247

CONTENTS. + xiii

CHAPTER XV.

PAGE

A Nicaraguan Criminal—Geology between Ocotal and Totagalpa-Pre-

parations at Totagalpa for their Annual Festival—Chica-drinking

—Piety of the Indians—Ancient Civilization of Tropical America

—Palacaguina—Hospitality of the Mestizos—Curious Custom at

the Festival at Condego—Cross Range between Segovia and Mata-

galpa–Sontuli—Birds' Nests . . & e to * . 275

CHAPTER XVI.

Concordia—Jinotega–Indian Habits retained by the People—Indian

Names of Towns—Security of Travellers in Nicaragua–Native

Flour-milk—Uncomfortable Lodgings—Tierrabona—Dust Whirl-

wind—Initial form of a Cyclone—The origin of Cyclones . . 292

CHAPTER XVII.

Cattle-raising—Don Filiberto Trano's new House—Horse-flies and

Wasps—Teustepe—Spider imitating Ants—Mimetic Species—

Animals with special means of defence are conspicuously marked,

or in other ways attract attention—Accident to Horse—The

Mygale–Illness—Conclusion of Journey . e go go ... 308

CHAPTER XVIII.

Division of Nicaragua into three Zones—Journey from Juigalpa to

Lake of Nicaragua–Voyage on Lake—Fresh-water Shells and

Insects—Similarity of Fresh-water productions all over the World

—Distribution of European Land and Fresh-water Shells—Dis-

cussion of the reasons why Fresh-water productions have varied

less than those of the Land and of the Sea to e to . 327

CHAPTER XIX.

Iguanas and Lizards—Granada–Politics—Revolutions—Cacao Culti-

vation—Masaya—The Lake of Masaya—The Wolcano of Masaya

—Origin of the Lake Basin . s o o s s . 338

CHAPTER XX.

PAGE Indian Population of the country lying between the great lakes of

Nicaragua and the Pacific—Discovery and Conquest of Nicaragua
by the Spaniards—Cruelties of the Spaniards—The Indians of
Western Central America all belonged to one Stock—Decadence
of Mexican Civilization before the arrival of the Spaniards—The
designation “Nahuatls” proposed to include all the Mexican,
Western Central American, and Peruvian Races that had de-
scended from the same ancient Stock—The Nahuatls distinct
from the Caribs on one side and the Red Indians on the other—
Discussion of the question of the peopling of America o . 358

CELAPTER XXI.

Return to Santo Domingo—The Birds of Chontales—The Insects of Chontales—Mimetic forms—Departure from the Mines—Nicaragua as a field for Emigration—Journey to Greytown—Return

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS.

-oTHE JAGUAR . o go & & o . Frontispiece. ALLIGATORS . e o o o o & • PAGE 9 MoT-MOTs of CHONTALEs. o o e o e . 16 CoMMISSIONER's House AT SANTO DOMINGO . . . 66 NEST OF LEAF-CUTTING ANT . •. o o o . 80

SECTION OF MINE SHOWING METHOD OF EXTRACTING THE

ORE o o s o o o o e . . 92 Quartz staurisa MACHINERY . e . . o . 93 SECTION OF SAN ANTONIO LODE . . . . . . 94 HUMMING-BIRDs (Florisuga mellivora, Linn.) . e . 111 ToNGUEs of HUMMING-BIRD AND WooDPECKER . 113, 114 PITCHER-FLOWER (Marcgravia nepenthoides). to & . 129 FLöweR of THE “PALosABRE * . . . . . . 130 PENA BLANCA . e to & o & to o . 148 ..INDIAN STATUES . e e o o ge o . . 165 PATH UP STEEP HILL to © g o o o . 193 QUISCALUS . o o e - " - o o . . 213 BULI's-Horn THORN. to o o o e so . 218 LEAF OF MELASTOMA . e o to e o . . 223 NATIVE STILL . to e o g go e to . 233 NATIVE PLOUGH . to . . . e o . . 239

GEOLOGICAL SECTION NEAR OCOTAL - o & & . 261 PAGE HoRNET AND MIMETIG BUg . . . . . . 319 GeoLogical SECTION AT MAsaya . . . . . . 348 LONGICóRN BEETLES OF CHONTALEs . « » . . . .380 LEAF INSECT . * o ë so e * se . 381 MOSS INSECT . & o e © * & * . . .382

SKETCH MAP OF NICARAGUA . & * o at the end.