Now we are ready to return to San Juan, going northward over the great military road, one of the finest highways in the world.
It is macadamized, is fifty feet wide, ninety-seven miles in length, and smooth and even as a boulevard. It crosses mountains which reach a height of almost four thousand feet. It winds in and out among the coffee-covered hills, giving us a fine view of the green mountains and the deep valleys below.
Looking down we see patches of sugar cane and tobacco; groves of bananas, cocoanut, and palm trees; hedges of strange growth; unknown plants and vines, and fern-covered rocks.
Here and there is a rude cabin surrounded by bread-fruit and banana trees. We pass picturesque little towns with blue and yellow houses and quaint churches, their spires towering upward. In fifteen hours we would reach San Juan, but we delay our journey in order to obtain a closer view of the scenery and of the homes of the people.
Many happy hours we spend on the plantations in the country.
During these country rides and visits we get our knowledge of the animal and plant life of the island.
Let us stop, then, for a few days, at a country home by the seashore.
A COUNTRY HOME.
The residence of this home we find to be of good size and divided into rooms by partitions that reach only half way up to the roof. This is to give a free circulation of air. The house is thatched with palm leaves, and has a wide veranda running around it.
Mosquito curtains are used to keep out the swarms of sand flies and mosquitoes that make the night uncomfortable.