Panama and the canal . 8o STREETS AND HOUSES as if to stand a siege. No lawns separate them from thestreets. It is but a step to the sidewalk. Doors are open everywhere. Theinteriors of thehouses of the poorerpeople are in fullview from thestreets. We shallfind, however, thatthe homes of thebetter class are inthe second story oftheir houses andmore removed fromthe noise and dirt. Let us pass di-rectly into thetown to Independ-ence Plaza. Herestands the oldCathedral of Pan-ama,—with its twin spires, Spanish architecture, and clang-ing bells. In front of it is the open park or Plaza. This isthe
Panama and the canal . 8o STREETS AND HOUSES as if to stand a siege. No lawns separate them from thestreets. It is but a step to the sidewalk. Doors are open everywhere. Theinteriors of thehouses of the poorerpeople are in fullview from thestreets. We shallfind, however, thatthe homes of thebetter class are inthe second story oftheir houses andmore removed fromthe noise and dirt. Let us pass di-rectly into thetown to Independ-ence Plaza. Herestands the oldCathedral of Pan-ama,—with its twin spires, Spanish architecture, and clang-ing bells. In front of it is the open park or Plaza. This isthe center about which the town is built. Thechief hotel, the Bishops palace, the City Hall,and the principal clubs, are all on this Plaza. Here, onSunday evenings, rich and poor alike gather to listen to. How Strangely Narrow Its Streets Are ! The Plaza INDErEXDENCE TLAZA Si the band concerts or to promenade beneath the Hghts andpahii trees. For more than two hundred years this Plazahas witnessed some of the most important events in thehistory of Panama. If the City of Panama is the capital ofthe Republic, this small stjuare is its very lieart. There areother old churches and other parks in the city, but noneCjuite so interestinij;as these. Xot all the town,however, is as at-tractive as Independ-ence Plaza. ]\Iuchfilth, many vilequarters, evil-smell-ing and unhealth-ful streets, revealthe usual conditionsthat are all t<jocommon in tropicalcities. Yet ourgeneral feeling, as^\• e examine t h etown, will not bewholly unpleasant. From the Cathedral Plaza it is only a short walk to theharbor. A stroU out on the old sea-wall is full of noveltyand interest. This is the very same wall which the Spaniards
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1900, bookdecade1910, bookidcu3192401401, bookyear1910
