Y, OCT 13 1351 izTc) TEGUCIGALPA A VISIT TO THE ' HONDURANEAN- ) h CAPITADBYAr^ ^1, i ; A.l ■ Edith Boulton ^et{c\ 1 Board of Foreign Missions^ Evangelical Synod of N. A., 2951 Tilden St., Washington, D. C. MOUNTAINS OF SILVER Edith Moulton Melick The big touring car swung round the last sharp turn that brought it to the top of the mountain. The dark skinned driver leaned forward to shift gears^ took one hasty glance back at his passenger^ adjusted his broad brimmed felt hat, and pressed the accelerater. We shot forward. Now he re- leased the pressure to round a curve, then at lightning speed covered a down grade ; another curve, a wall of solid stone on one side, a sudden drop of hundreds of feet on the other side, — his skilled hands gripped the wheel, and the danger spot was passed. He looked back again, whether it was to sight tlie two cars we had outstripped on the other side of the moun- tain, or to see if the only woman ])assenger would signal him to drive more slowly, I could not tell; but seeing neither, he set the powerful engine at top speed again. We rounded the last hill. Below lay Tegucigalpa and Comayagtiela, three thousand feet aboye sea level, and shut in on three sides by lour mountains : El Picacho, El Berinche, Juanalainez, and Las Crucitas — the highest of which rises to an elevation of six thousand feet. The late afternoon sun was shedding its slanting rays on the low, white-washed, red-tiled buildings of these old weather beaten cities. The road led into Comayaguela, the most ancient of the two cities. She boasts of the oldest cathedral, the widest, smoothest, and most level streets, the direct roads that lead 2 — both north and souths the hexagonal Central American mon- ument^ the national co-educational normal school, and the oldest believer in the Protestant faith. The automobile stopped in front of a high board fence, above which we could see the gable of a building. Extend- Ready to Start for Tegucigalpa ing over the -sidewalk was a sign, ^^Capilla Evangelica.^^ Yea, this was the place, the chapel of the Central American Mis- sion. At the left of the fence we found a gate. In answer to our knock, We heard a bolt slip back, and we were met with a cordial welcome by our host, the Eev. Herbert Peasley. Here we made our headquarters for ten days, while visiting the most interesting cities of Honduras. — 3 — Twin cities they are, and so closely related that their joint population of thirty-nine thousand is given as that of Tegucigalpa, the capital of the country. They are separated by the young waters of the Choluteea Eiver which rush down between two mountains and cut a winding path that skirts the capital, and flow south until they And an outlet in the Bay of Fonseca on the Paciflc Ocean, eighty miles away. Tegucigalpa and Comayagiiela have been visited many times, usually out of curiosity and with the love of adventure. Col. Lindbergh has just made his trip of good will and was so pleased with that ^^charming country he wished he could ^^stay longer. My companion, the evangelist of the Mission of the Evangelical Synod of North America, located at San Pedro Sula, and I were visiting Honduras’ capital for reasons of friendliness and good will, coupled with a deep concern for the spiritual welfare of the people. We went there primarily to acquaint ourselves with her missions. Many are the points of interest. Coma3"aguela may have some advantages over Tegucigalpa, but it is the desire of every traveler to see the capital. Connecting the two cities is an old stone bridge that spans the Choluteea Eiver. Her walls are built up on either side, which have been a place of concealment for citizens while trying to obtain water during revolutions when the water supply was cut off. Many a one has been shot down by the enemy who encamped in the surrounding hills. Just to the left in Tegucigalpa, on the river bank is the president’s pal- — 4 ^ ace. It is a beautiful stone structure^ built on the style of a fort, at a cost of one million dollars. From the top of the dome that marks the entrance floats the Honduranean flag, which is lowered at sundown to the music of their patriot song, ^Tu Bandera,^^ played by the national band. From the tiny windows in this dome, and those in the square tower at the extreme end of the palace, watchers keep their vigil when necessary. The broad flat roof affords an excellent opportunity for visitors to view the cities and surrounding hills. Within, President Miguel Paz Barahona lives alone. He demonstrates his economic policy by occupying a suite of three rooms. The love for his people is shown by his generosity in opening the palace to twenty The Presidential Palace from the Rear — 5 — students who attend the State ^Tornial School in Comaya- gtiela. The streets of Tegucigalpa are extremely narrow^, cob- bled and hilly. An attempt has been made to build the side- walks levels consequently^ the pedestrian suddenly finds him- self confronted by a flight of stairs, or he must retrace his steps if he prefers not to jump. The beauty spots of the city are her three parks. One is centrally located, marked by a large cathedral that faces it, and the statue of Francisco Morazan. The latter has been called the ‘^AVashington of Central America.^^ His sole purpose in life and warfare was to miantain the federal government of his beloved Central America. Morazan is represented in uniform, mounted on his charger. His slogan is inscribed on a bronze plate — ^^The only ideal worth dying for is the Union of Central America.’^ This piece of statuary is the pride of Honduras, and especially of Tegucigalpa, his birth-place. We found another plaza The Morazan Monument near the outskirts of the — 6 — city, and another on a hilltop. It was a hard climb up the hilly street, and we shortened the distance by ascending a long llight of stairs that brought us into the park or plaza. The panorama that lay before us was well worth the climb. We looked down on the red tiled roofs below us. The street looked like paths between rows of one story white buildings. The two story houses were much in evi- dence because of their scarcity^ their patios stood out resplendent wdth variegated foliage and bright flowers, with here and there one lone palm lifting her stately head. In the midst was the cathedral with the twin towers. We re- alized now its immensity, occupying a whole square. A dome was on the rear end, and the towers faced the ^Tlaza Cen- tral.^^ We knew that within were altars of inlaid gold, mar- velous pieces of statuary, and frescoes, and the burial places of priests and bishops, which were marked by slabs in the aisles. Shifting our gaze to the right, we could pick out the tele- phone building by its square tower surmounted by a dome ; the cemetery with two poplars, tall and straight, marking the entrance; the winding Choluteca, as it crept around making a complete right angle turn and led our vision back to the presidential palace and the old arched bridge. Beyond, lay Camaygiiela, appearing symmetrical in the distance. We could trace the roads that led out to the north and south, hiding themselves quickly among the mountains. These lay heaped in a broken irregular network before us as — 7 — far as eye could reach, out where the clouds hung low, cover- ing the highest points. The Brown Indian under the direc- tion of the Spanish slavedrivers had built the cities, but only God could make such a diversified extent of country. The Wooden Structure is The ^^Capilla Evangelica” Mountains, pine clad, or rugged, exposing bare rock glisten- ing in the sunlight, concealing precious metals which gave Tegucigalpa her Indian name, — meaning ^^mountains of sil- ver.^^ Scattered over this piece of God^s handiwork were small cultivated patches, with a speck denoting the thatched covered hut. How we wished we might explore these evi- dences of civilization in the distance, but our business here was to visit missions. — 8 — We returned to our headquarters^, the Central American Mission^ which was founded in 1911 in answer to prayer by a handful of native believers. Martin Ordoues, a blind rope maker^ found the Lord through a Bible colporteur in 1897. Nina Lencia became a believer several years later through the reading of tracts that Martin gave away. Then a few more believers came^ and Martin was their instructor until the Lord called him home. In 1909 the little group began prayer meetings in Nina Len- cia^s humble home and prayed for a resident missionary. After two years their prayer was answered by the Central American Mission's seeing the need there and to the south, covering a section occupied by nine priests. The second day of our visit we called on Mr. and Mrs. Cammack of the Friend^s Mission in Tegucigalpa. Into that tiny street we went, and knocked at a door over which was a sign, ^^Capilla Evangelica.^^ What a pleasant surprise as we entered — such a comfortable living-room ! what a refresh- ing court with running water gushing from its vine-clad pil- lar ! Hammock, swing, easy chairs, everything to help make life comfortable, and open for the free use of native believers ; here they came for conference and encouragement, and always found an understanding welcome. We, too, felt that perfect bond of sympathy when soul harmonizes with soul. The Friends^ Mission has been established since 1914, under the Missionary Board of the California Yearly Meeting of Friends, with headquarters in Whittier, California. 0th- — 9 — ers have been added to their staff including Miss Cammack, the missionary's daughter. The first Sunday spent in the capital was considered a fitting time for a street meeting. We started about ten o^clock in the mornings representatives of three missions whose bus- iness it was to win souls for the Lord. We walked along the sun blanched streets^ now on^ now off the sidewalk because of its varying width. Each missionary carried tracts and a song book^ and two native boys carried the folding organ. We took our stand in the most conspicuous spot in the market place, where several streets cross each other forming a square. After a song service, our evangelist, Mr. Auler, talked to the crowd from the curb about the saving love of Jesus Christ. Street Meeting in the Market Place — 10 — In spite of our being told we might be tomatoed^ or egged, if not stoned, the audience was most respectful. Everybody comes to market on Sunday, — men with their white suits and big felt hats; women in calico dresses and bright colored aprons; little girls, barefoot and dirty, stopped in the crowd and balanced their huge baskets on their heads; boys, with their hands thrust deep into their pockets, shifting from one foot to the other stayed to listen. The arcade above and the windows of the two story buildings held listeners. Thither they had come to buy and to sell, some had walked all night to be there, but for the moment it seemed forgotten as their attention was held by the messages delivered by missionaries and native believers, ^Vithout money and without price.^^ Day after day were spent in seeking opportunities to come in contact with the native. We found fine young people in the State Normal School; a young man who had been in Mr^ Auler^s English class was behind the counter in a shop ; a native priest who seemed to have the good of his country- men at heart, entertained us in his barren home. We found that old saint, Nina Lencia, lying on her sick bed in her tiny house. An expression of her faith was in a motto which was tacked on her wall over the table : ^Tor the which cause I also suffer these things, neverthe- less I am not ashamed ; for I know whom I have believed, and am persuaded that he is able to keep that which I have com- mitted unto him against that day.^^ 2 Timothy 1 : 12. One day when we were sitting by her bedside, her phy- — 11 sician paid her a professional call. The flippant way that he answered our evangelist^ showed that he was opposed to Chris- tianity. After he had gone his patient made a statement that I cannot forget, — ^Tt is better to talk to the Lord about him, than to talk to him about the Lord.^^ Street Scene in Tegucigalpa Ten happy days passed by. Then the day came to begin the homeward journey and we started before daybreak. A few minutes before four o^clock the auto horn tooted outside the high board fence. We were ready. We glided in and out of the rough streets, and other passengers were called for on the way out; it was too dark to see their faces, — six in all. Leaving the twin cities slumbering under a blanket of 12 — fog, we began the ascent, up and up we went. On the way we met Indians and half-breeds — the men with burdens strapped to their backs, and the women carried heavily loaded baskets which they balanced on their heads. A frightened mule, blinded by our headlights, dodged to one side in the darkness. Oxen huddled together, as they drew themselves back against the heavy cart which was loaded with iron for bridge building. All were going to the capital. The men and women must reach the market place with their wares at an early hour, where they would ^spend the entire day. As we climbed, the fog dropped into the valleys and hollows. The round sum- mits of the mountains stood out more clearly. There was no sound except the twitter of the birds and the whir of our automobile. Looking out over that misty land- scape in the semi-darkness, Qne of the First Converts I thought earth must have looked like that when it came fresh from the hand of God. To the west the moon showed dimly through the haze as it sank in the horizon. To the east the sky took on a hue deepening into purple and tinged with gold, and the sun came up like a ball of fire. — 13 — When we reached the summit of one of the dome shaped mountains, we began to descend; then up, then down again until we reached the Comayagua Plain. It stretched out before us thirty miles long, and more than two thousand feet above sea level. We could see the yellow road for miles ahead of us. The plain of Comayagua, known for its rich- ness of tropical growth during the wet season, looked like a desert now, in the midst of the dry season. The city, Coma- yagua, lay at the other end of the road. Once it was Hon- duras^ capital, but now it is a dingy, struggling, uncared for little village, dwindling in size, and fast losing its jmpor- tance except for its history. Prom the plain we began an ascent again, this time we reached an elevation of more than forty-seven hundred feet. Yes, Honduras is truly a tumbling network of mountains. Prom a high spot we could look over the side of the car and see three roads over which we had passed, then the down grade again. We finally reached Lake Yojoa three-thirty in the after- noon. The gasoline launch which would take us to the other end of the lake had not come in. To get away from the sordidness of El Jarral, the landing place, we walked up the road and seated ourselves where we could look over Yojoa^s blue waters, two thousand feet in altitude. While we were seated thus, a little Indian boy came from somewhere out of the thicket. He responded to Mr. Auler^s ^^Buenas Dias/^ and joined us on the grass. Priendly, ready to listen, and -- 14 -- apparently glad to have someone to talk to, he told us in answer to questions, that he had heard of God, knew some- thing of the saints and the virgin, but of Jesus he had never heard. He heard that afternoon. Then the boat came in. Lake Yojoa; 2,000 feet above Sea-level By 5 :40 P. M. we arrived at the north end of the lake, where an automobile was waiting to take the passengers to Potrerillos, the beginning of the National Eailroad going north. This was a twenty-seven mile trip and consumed three hours of time, for Honduras has much to be desired in her roads. The night was spent at the terminal hotel. At 5 :20 the next morning we boarded a freight train, and en- joyed a ride of two hours and forty minutes, covering a dis- 15 — tance of twenty-one miles^ which brought us to San Pedro Sula. We were glad to see the big mission house again, to hear the ^Velcome home^^ by the missionaries, and to eat an espe- cially prepared breakfast, even if we had dropped to two hundred and fifty-five feet above sea level: down where the bananas and the pineapples grow; down where the sugar cane waves her bright green blade, and the poinsettia lifts her crimson head; down where the brown boy early loses his innocence, and the brown girl accepts her dishonorable lot as inevitable. The boy so soon grows into a fiend or a drudge, and the girl becomes the drudge of that drudge or fiend. If Christ were to walk the streets of San Pedro Sula today, I am sure he would gather the little boys and girls of the street into his arms; and the young men and young women would say, ^The saints I know, and the virgin I know, but who are you?^^ 0, Church, arise ! Thy light has come ! Bear that flam- ing torch to the Southland, and seek the lost ones caught in the thicket! H— 3 M— 4-28. — 16