Panama and the canal in picture and prose .. . nds—a work in which thewomen are proficient—makingropes and hammocks, carvingdishes, mortars, stools, and otherobjects out of tree trunks. In the country which will betraversed by the Panama-DavidRailroad are found the Guay-mies, the only primitive peopleliving in large numbers outsidethe Darien. There are about5000 of them, living for themost part in the valley ofMirando which lies high up inthe Cordilleras, and in a regioncut off from the plains. Herethey have successfully defended their independenceagainst the assaults of both whites and blacks
Panama and the canal in picture and prose .. . nds—a work in which thewomen are proficient—makingropes and hammocks, carvingdishes, mortars, stools, and otherobjects out of tree trunks. In the country which will betraversed by the Panama-DavidRailroad are found the Guay-mies, the only primitive peopleliving in large numbers outsidethe Darien. There are about5000 of them, living for themost part in the valley ofMirando which lies high up inthe Cordilleras, and in a regioncut off from the plains. Herethey have successfully defended their independenceagainst the assaults of both whites and blacks. Toremain in their country without consent of the GreatChief is practically impossible, for they are savagefighters and in earlier days it was rare to see a manwhose body was not covered with scars. It isapparent that in some ways progress has destroyedtheir industries and made the people less ratherthan more civilized, for they now buy cloth, arms,tools, and utensils which they were once able tomake. At one time they were much under the. Photo by H. Pilticr CouTlcsy National Geographic Maoazine CHOCO INDIAN OF SAMBU VALLEY Silver beads about his neck and leg. Face paintedin glaring colors influence of the Catholic missionaries, but of latemission work has languished in wild Panama andperhaps the chief relic of that earlier religiousinfluence is the fact that the women go clothed ina single garment. This simple raiment, not neededfor warmth, seems to be prized, for if caught ina rainstorm the women will quickly strip off theirclothing, wrap it in a large banana or palm leafthat it may not get wet, and continue their work,or their play, in natures garb. It is said, too, that whenstrangers are not near clothesare never thought of. The menfollow a like custom, and in-variably when pursuing a quarrystrip off their trousers, tyingtheir shirts about their seem to impede theirmovements, and if a lone travelerin Chiriqui comes on a row ofblue cotton trousers tied to
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Keywords: ., bookauthorabbotwil, bookcentury1900, bookdecade1910, bookyear1913
