July 115 , 1SUO. OMAHA ILLUSTRATED BEE. Business Life in San Juan , Porto Rico 'Copyrighted , 1S99 , by Frank O. CMrpcuter. ) SAN JUAN , Porto lllco , Juno 30 , 1S9D. ( Special Correspondence of The Boo. ) Take n walk with nio this morning through the city of Snn Juan. We are In the capital ot 1'crto Hlco , ono of the strangest of all the new towns which Uncle Sain has taken from Spain. What a queer piece of Yankee property It Is. It Is only the American lings \yhlch lly from the buildings , our sol dier boys upon the streets and the heavy wagons drawn by army mules , which arc gathering up the garbage , that remind us of home. The houses are ot brick , covered with stucco. They arc painted nil colors of the rainbow , and their green shutters cover holes In the walls , without gloss or win dow frames. Most of the shutters are open now , for It is day. At night they will bo B scaled up ns tight as a drum dead , and the only ventilation will come through the little square holes In the shutter , each of the size of n playing card. Wo can see Into the houses as we > go along the streets. The ground HOOTS arc as open as the homes of Japan. There u woman Is Icombing tier hair. Next door one sits with a liandsowlng machine on her lap. while another in the same fajnily Is making her toilet In full sight of the passers-by. The rooms along the sidewalks are workshops - ; _ shops by day and sleeping places by night. Hero is a shoemaker , with his boys sitting Uit their benches about him , all pegging and sowing. The wife , a rather pretty young girl , is running a machine at the Hack , and a bright-eyed , nude baby rolls about on the floor. Next door Is a grocery and further on are MARKET PLACE IN SAN JUAN. dressmakers' establishments. See , each has a half dozen or more black and brown Porto Hican girls working machines or sewing and stitching by hand. There is a shoo store further on. As we pass It wo see that it has a little stall just off at one side , out of the top of which a woman's head peeps. That is the stall where women go when they try on their shoes. They arc very chary of showing their ankles , al though their children or little sisters may be trotting around half naked. In < liu SliopM of Sun Juan. But let us take a close look at the stores , They are like caves walled with shelves. "They seem exceedingly small , but they are Tilled with buyers and sellers. For a week after I came here I thought San Juan had no business to speak of. I know better now. These little caves or box-like rooms are only show rooms and sample rooms to the great Quarters at the back , which are filled with all sorts of goods. I find that some of kJio merchants carry largo stocks , and that not a few do a business of several hundred thousand dollars a year. The most of the trading Is done In cash , although it was different before the war. Then credit was given from coffee crop to coffco crop , but now all money transactions are unsettled and trade is suffering from Change of government. The rich Spaniards have loft nnd the Americans who have so far como are not money spenders They are army nnd navy officials who make most of their purchases of the commissary de partment. They receive comparatively small salaries and much of their money goes back tji America. Hut hero wo are at a dry goods establish ment. It is ono of the biggest of San Juan J know the merchant , and ho will show us over hlH store. The little culibyholo we enter ie walled with shelves. It has hardly room for the clerks to turn around In , nnd * oii would not suppose that the stock all told was worth more than $2,000. Yon are mistaken. This man has $200,000 worth of goods packed away In the rear. Ho Is a large wholesale dealer nnd ho has several branch stores In San Juan. Wo walk with him through ono dark room after another filled with feoxea nnd bales , Some of the jods nro yet unopened , They Ho In their original packages awaiting orders. We llnd the same thing In the drug stores , in the hardware stores , and , in fact , In nil stores. * The Porto Ilicans do a big business and they are good merchants , They are Indeed such sharp traders that you find few Jews In Porto Hlco. They can , I am told , glvo the Jews odds and beat them. It Is doubt ful whether the Americans can get much ot n foothold hero ns merchants. The Porto Ulcans are clannish ; they like to patronize tholr own people. They care , however , for the dollar , nnd it may bo that the competi tion of prices will mnko a difference. < lu MT lliinliieNN SlniiN. All the business of Porto Hlco Is done In Spanish. It would bo foolish for our people to send commercial travelers hero who cau- not speak Spanish , and an American mer chant who did not understand the language would faro badly. The business signs here nro In Spanish. You sco them over the stores. They are not the names of the owners nnd glvo no Indication of the char acter of the goods for sale. There Is ono named La I'crla , or "Tho Pearl. " It is n notion store. Opposite It Is a dry goods establishment , over which I see the words " 131 Gallo do Ore , " or "Tho Golden Cock , " while further down the street Is a hard ware store labeled "Tho Flower of July. " There is n store here labeled "La Nina , " or "Tho Maiden , " which really sells gentle men's shirts nnd hats , and n barber shop labeled "La Hlja do Ilorlnqucn , " "Tho Daughter of Ilorlnqucn. " A man never puts his own name over his store. I sup pose ho chooses the name of the maeect which ho thinks Is to bring him luck. I am much Interested in the Porto Hlcan clerks. Wo see- many of them as we walk through the streets. Some do not wear coats nor vests , hut ci'can whlto shirts and pantaloons , with a fancy belt between. They are sl ck-looklng , dapper young dan dles , and excellent salesmen. Their wages , however , would not keep a New York clerk In cigars and soda water. The average salary is 10 pesos a month nnd board. Dis count the pesos at10 per cent and you have a salary'of six American dollars , and you can cut down the board to about the same ratio. It consists of a cup of coffee and a pleco of dry bread for breakfast , of soup , meat and vegetables and a dessert fcr luncheon , and of about the same for dinner. The clerks live in the back rooms of the stores on the ground lloor. Each has his cot , which is folded up in the day time , and ho takes turns for his primping at the common looking gAiss. The mer chant usually lives In the swell quarters over the store , for all well-to-do people in San Juan live above stairs. The Porto Hlcan clerk puts In from six teen to seventeen hours per day. Ho takes down the shutters at 7 In the morning and by 7:30 : trade is In full blast. It keeps on all day , with the exception of an hour at noon , say from 11:30 : to 12:30 : , and continues en until 10 or 11 nt night. Some of the smaller s'ores do not close for the noon hour nnd not a few nro open from 7 a. m. until 11 p. m. And nro there many young men who want such positions at $ G per month ? Yes , any amount of them. They nro glad to got them and anxious to hold them. They work for a year or so before they nro alvanced nnd when they rlso to $20 or $30 a month they begin to jiut on airs. About this time they take lodgings outside the stores and aspire to a partnership in the business. Good clerks are often taken Into iwrtnershlp by their employers , but it Is only after years of service. These low wages prevail in all branches of trade , Ono of the best cutters In the most fashionable tailor shop here receives less than $1 a day. Ho has to work every day and Sunday , from 7 a. m , until 10 p. m. , and his master Is alwavs telling him ho is paying him too much wages. Quito a lot of ihuslncEs Is done In the Porto Hlcan cities by peddlers , The streets nro full of hucksters , candy sellers and Ice cream vendors. Each has his own cry and the walls ring with them from daylight until dark nnd after dark. Hero comes a man peddling chickens. Ho Is yelling a cry wo do not undestand. holding out ns ho docs so ono of the three dozen fowls ho has tied together by their logs nnd slung over his shoulder. The chickens squawk as ho carries them along the street nnd their shrill cries nro apparently In opposition to his statement that ho will sell fine chickens for 75 centavos - vos about 45 cents npleco ot our money. Hut see those queer bundles ho has under his arm. He seems to bo n feather peddler ns well. The bundles are wrapped with Jagua palm bark nnd out of their ends stick what look like feather dusters. Now ho has turned about nnd wo see the other ends of his bundles. Each contnlns u llvo turkey and It Is poking Its hcad out of the bark. The turkeys nro laid Hat with their legs doubled up under them. The legs nnd wings arc bound around with strings and the whole is wrapped up In the thick bark of the Jagua palm. In this way ho can carry three or four turkeys , nnd at the same time the dozen or so chickens ho has thrown over his shoulder. I ask ns to prices and find that turkeys are exceedingly cheap , while the chickens are dear. As I talk to him n man comes up with a round basket the slzo of ono of our bushel baskets slum : to his shoulders. U seems to bo filled with dry leaves. I thrust In my hand and llnd that It contnlns eggs , which arc packed about in this way. How Tli > y Sell lee anil Hreml. Hut there comes < he Ice cart of San Juan. It takes two such to supply the city. It Is hardly iblgger than a dry goods box nnd Is hauled about on wheels by a donkey. The Ice here Is manufactured. It Is shipped In hogsheads to the Interior of the Island on nn ox cart nnd considering the slow method of transportation lasts pretty well. Behind the Ice wagon Is a bread pedcjler. Ho stands there near that beer saloon over which you see the sljjn of ono of our Ameri can bcors. See the basket of bread upon his head. It Is ns big around as a wash tub nnd the long loaves stand out on nil sides. Each of these loaves costs G centavos or 4 cents. They nro made of American flour nnd nro baked by professional bakers. No bread Is mnde In the homes of the Porto RIcans. The poor can't ralso enough capital to buy flour and every one relies on the bakers , who furnish fresh bread every day. They make as good bread as you can find any where In America. It Is light nnd crisp , with a crust ns delicious ns that which you get in Paris or Vienna. The bread is peddled about from house to house , nnd you find broad peddlers far off In tfio country districts soiling the loaves. I have gene into some of the bakcshops. Bare-armed men knrnd the bread Just as we do and lay it nway In old-fashioned bake ovens which look more/ like furnaces than anything else. This Is done at night and In the morning It is ready for sale. The Markets of Sail Juan. But let us go to the markets and see what the Porto Hlcans cat. We cross the wide Plaza , walk up the hill between the post- office and city hall , and como at last to a long , low building surrounding a court. We hear the din rf buying and selling as we approach It. Wo enter and llnd ourselves in the midst of about an acre of Porto Hicans , negroes , mulattoes and whites. There are men , women , children nnd babies buying and selling , chatting and squawllng. There are black-faced women in whlto or gay calicoes with bandana handkerchiefs about their heads. There are market men wearing nothing but shirt and pants , the former cut very low at the neck. Women squat on the lloor with vegetable and fruits plied around them. Here Is one selling egg plants , some of which are as big as pumpkins. She offers me ono the size of a foot ball for G cents , and , seeing It SAN JUAN ICE CAHT. does not attract me , she picks up a squnt-h the slzo of a peck measure and asks me In buy. Over there Is a woman selling toma toes. They are no bigger limn marbles and have probably grown wild. I : irik the price , of eggs of n man at one of the counters in the building nnd am told they nro 1 centavos apiece , or about 28 cents of our money a do e-ii. Eggs are high all over Porto Hlco. The chickens , us you can see from the little ones all about us , nro game fowls , nnd it occurs to us Ifuit there might bo money In nn American ( Continued on Eighth Page. ) Opening Up a New Line to Yellowstone Park A parly of hotel men headed by Mr. I ) . C. Shears , Grand hotel , Cincinnati , ar rived In Omaha n day or two ago , nnd loft via the Union Pacific for Yellowstone park. They will return over the Oregon Short Line and Union Pacific to Denver , nnd from Den ver via Union Pacific to St. Paul. The party is a notable one , Inasmuch na It IH one of a series of excursions to Inau gurate ) the short route to Yellowstone park. This famous park lies principally In the northwest corner of Wyoming , though per lions of It creep over into Montana nnd Idaho. In 1872 Us 3,311 squnro inII00 wcro with drawn from the public domain by an act ot congress nnd dedicated nnd Bd apart ns a public park or pleasure ground for the benefit and enjoyment of the people. H Is nature's great curiosity shop. Around It nro ranges having peaks 11,000 feet high , and \\lthln It are a diversity ot Incomparable marvels of nature which neither pen nor tongue can fitly depict. Hero , niuld the grandeur of Alpine scenery , tinted with colors ot Indescribable variety and beauty , nro geysers spouting nt precise Intervals their scalding waters sky nml , tor- PULPIT TERHACES , MAMMOTH HOT SPRINGS , YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK , REACHED VIA THE UNION PA CIFIC. race-building lountalns , pools of steaming clay , ovorlnstlng springs Iced in enrth's depths or boiling from her furnaces , and the grent Yellow stone hike , a inllo and n halt above sea level , ami romantic \nlcs nnd shaded glens , and nil else Hint prodigal cre ative genius could mnko to (111 ( the land with wonders. Monldn , on the crest of the Rocky moun tains , 7,000 feet nbovo the tide , Is the start ing point for the stage ride , nnd Is less than one day's coaching distance from tlio Yel lowstone park. The iinmo "Monldn" Is a composite of the first syllables of "Montana" ami "Idaho. " The lower geyser basin In the park is about the same elevation as Moulda , so that the stage route passes through a level coun try , nnd nil the way is lined with pictur esque scenes , making the conchiug trip ono GREAT SIIOSHONB FALLS , YELLOW . STONE NATIONAL PARK , REACHED i VIA THE UNION PACIFIC of the most delightful In the Rocky moun- tnins. Geyser Meadows nro two miles away. Hero nre several geysers which throw their torrents twotity-rtlvo feet or higher. Dome Spring is nt the top of a calcareous deposit of livid colors and some of Us neighbors are similarly situated. "Queen Laundry" Is n spring whoso waters will almost instantly cleanse even the dirtiest saddle blanket and which finally drop into a 'basin nt delightful bathing temperature. Fairy Creek Falls Jump 220 feet over nn ndjncent cliff. With these spouting , leaping novelties nil about Midway Geyser Bnsln Is reached llvo miles from Fire Hole Basin. Hero are the grand est hot springs In the world. The overflow of hot water comes from the Great Spring , the equal of which no human eye over saw. This aperture Is 250 feet across nnd IH walled In by sides thirty feet high. The surface is in constant turmoil nnd the rising stream scalds the Incautious. A glnnco Into the gulf causes a shudder. Only a few yards away there Is a cold fount twonly- flvo feet In diameter , filling an elaborately chased ba.sln of unknown depth. Near by nro the Clinlk Vnts , bubbling nnd spurting their mushy compound nnd throwing out splashes of it which vary from n snowy whlto to a bright pink. Upper Geyser bnsln , eight miles frrm Fi''i ' > Hole bnsln , IH the- sent of the ton largest geysers over discovered , bo.ildo which HIOHO of Iceland are trifling , There IB n charming grove within n stone's throw of Castle Geyser - ser , which begins to glvo vent to Its pent-up force In muttered thunder , and then I's ' Hood sboots over the cone , first a spurt and then a stream ; then with n shaking of the earth and the roar of a tempest , a river boumlH upward Ilka a rocket , submerging broad acres with the descent of its boiling Hood. Half a mlle away "Old Faithful" spoutb every fifty-woven minutes , throw'ng a stream several feet In diameter to n height of 200 feet. Across the river IH the "Bee Hive , " whoso fountain Hies 200 feet In the air , forming a crystal arch beautiful In the sun light. "Tho Giantess" hns a crater eighteen by fifteen fcot In diameter , llolchlng forth such a volume as doubles the amount of water In Flro Hole river , hero twenty feet In wldlh and a foot deep. There Is a thrill , a groan , a tremor , dense volumes of Hteani , u rolling and clashing of unseen \uivos nnd a deafening boom , im an Immense body of water IH hurled upward to the Hky , Its extreme - tremo Jet reaching 250 feet above the earth. Next la Gibbon Falls , where , In a wildwood - wood tangle , they drop eighty feet ; then Gibbon Canyon , with Its aides 2.000 foot hlch. from which the tourist emerges into Elk Park. In the delllo Is heard a boom , broiu. iMotii , that never censes , and from an orifice In the rook cornea steam In regu Inr puffs as the pulsation of n great waste pipe of nn engine. Monument Geyser and the famous P.ilnt Pots , \\lth their varied and vivid hues , nre nenr by. Norrls Oeyser Basin Is the next In order. U In the oldest b.iHln In the park , the hottest and most dangerous for pedestrians. To the right Is .Mammoth Geyser. When nl n rest n peep tuny bo had Into Its gaping throat ami Its bloid-chllllng gurgle can be distinctly heard Yellowstone Lake Is twenty-five tulles from Klro .Hole . Basin. The altitude of this lake Is 7.7SS feet. H Is thirty miles long anil ten to fifteen wide , with numerouH Islands. The Natural Bridge of Rook sp.ius Bridge Creek at n height of forty feet and affords onrrlnge loom. Down the river twelve miles Is Devil's Den ; east of this Is Mud Volcano. Brimstone Mountain Is three miles below. Hero pure sulphur Is shoveled up by the wagon load. The encroachments of men have taken away from the charm of Nature. But Shoshone - shone Is as lonely IIH when first this rush ing river sprang through those towering canyon walls. The helgbt of the chasm nbovo and below the falls varies fn m 1,050 to 1,200 feet , nnd there is eighteen miles of this gorge. The full proper measures WiO foot ncroHS and the Bridal Veil , which Is only a few yards back of the great fall , 125 feet. Down through this appalling rent the rlvor plunges , tnkes a Hying leap of eighty-two feet nl first and then falls thunderously 210 feet Into the boiling basin below. It is three miles up the river to Twin Falls ; six miles to Blue Lake , n charming bit of water scvonty-.flve feet deep nnd ns clear ns crystal ; ono-lmlf mile to the Vaulted Dome ; one-half mile to the Uieo- niotlvo Cave ; a mlle nnd n quarter to the lower Cascade Falls , and one nnd one-half tulles to the Devil's Corral. The hotel Is situated on the bank overlooking the Great Falls , not twenty fcot from the brink , nnd affords a view of Bridal Veil , Brldnl Train. Natural Mill Rnco Falls , Eagle Rock and Bell's Island. The Upper Falls of the Yellowstone nro leached by an easy trail. Hero the rapids narrow to less than 100 feet nnd the over hanging rocks press so closely together that , t bridge could lie easily thrown across. The water eddies and cascades nnd then files downward 31)7 ) foot , while the grandest can yon of the world stretches away 1,500 feet below. The mind vnnnot grasp Grand can yon ; words cannot paint It. H glows with a life of Its own and with colors of Its own , or born of the HUH and the spray. Tower Falls nnd Canyon nre twenty miles fiom this charming spot. Specimen mountain Is forty miles from Flro Hole Basin. H Is covered with ngato , once wood , stone snakes an 1 fishes , with erystalH nnd petrified rootH , whllo the vlow from the summit IH sublime And this Is Yellowstone National park. Words cannot convoy a proper realization of Its grandeur and magnificence. Nowhere else in America are there such superb views as the park affords ; nowhere else such an abundance of finny game ; nowhere else such myriads of wild fowl ; nowhere else Hiicli a delightful camping place , or more perfect weather. THE STAGE LINE FROM MONIDA. This line ban the authority of the United States government ' " operate from the west ern entrance through the Yellowstone park The equipment IB now , nnd Concord conches nro used exclusively. Relay "stations are placed every fifteen to twenty miles. The management of the line has been Identified with the park for the past fifteen years , nn-1 in thoroughly acquainted with the wants of visitors. Speaking of this line In IIB ! report to the honorable secretary of the Interior for 1S1S ! , the superintendent of the park Bays "Tho Monldn K. Yellow stone Stage com pany Is of the first order in every respect ; II IH given flint-class service to Its patrons ; has opened up a. nnw route to the paik through a lioftutlfiil country , and 1 have found Its entire pcr.sonnul , by courtesy and politeness , desirous of making Its rout' ' YELLOWSTONE LAKE , YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK , REACHED VIA UNION PACIFIC. pupuar with the traveling public , which li will undoubtedly be , " It IH suggestexl that If travelers to the Yellowstone park will hear In mlud the fact that by Holectlng the Union Pacific , pat-sing through Colorado , or Wyoming , Utah and Idaho , tlioy will not only see the celebrated scenic nnd lilHtorlc attractions of theme states , hut passing through the varying alti tudes they become acclimated and receive a preliminary training for the various ele vations of the park , The round trip rate for rail and stage Is $00.00 from Onmlm. All round trip tickets arc rail to Monldn , stage to nnd through Yellowstone park ( six days' coaching. )