Ten miles from the eastern coast of Yucatan lies the Island of Cozumel, one of Nature's favored spots, where there is perpetual spring, and to live in the open air is a delight. We wanted a house, nevertheless, and were by no means charmed when informed that it would be very difficult to find a lodging. The centre of the village of St. Miguel is an immense grass-grown square, bounded on the west by the sea, on the east by a thatched church, and on north and south by thatched dwellings. The rest of the village is scattered along the beach and a little way back, not far, for there are only five hundred inhabitants.
Having no tent to pitch, we emphatically insisted on a house, and were at last allowed to take possession of a one-room residence at the southeast corner of the square. It was gloomy, damp, dirty; the floor thickly strewn with dry cocoa-nuts. It had two doors but no window. In
- ↑ Published in "New York Tribune."
