Menace of Guatemala (Ideal What-Nots series) (1934)

Majestic in its dark Grandeur agwa the volcano of water rears its menacing Peak over the sleeping ruins of the ancient city of Antigua one time capital of Guatemala largest of the five republics in Central America AGA is one of several volcano now slumbering which time and again have laid in Ruins Guatemalan cities founded in the dim past by the Tex for over 200 years Antigua was the capital of Guatemala and the seat of one of the highest types of civilization in the western world the cruelty of Nature and of foreign Invaders have destroyed Guatemala's ancient culture the majority of our citizens who are P blooded Indians live in a state closely bordering on semi barbarism throughout the country one finds Villages composed mainly of one-story houses walled with rocks and thatched with straw the more palatial of these are crowned with a large Earth and wear pot to keep out the tropical rain a typical resident will house grandma grandpa a couple of their married children their children a dozen chickens and a dog or two the Elders of the settlements are treated with great respect something lacking in our more should we say cultured countries in some respects the Guatemalan Indians are far Advanced for instance the barber trims one at home while as for the ladies they have a style of hairdressing that well it may yet be the rage with [Music] us [Music] hair and hat in one style plus economy the Guatemalan women are the Busy Bees of the family doing all the cooking and most of the other work essential to life they are Adept at making tortillas that ancient ancestor of our own modern Flapjack this girl well she sure would collect crowds in front of a restaurant [Music] window it looks here as if Mama and the kitties are on an outing at the beach but that isn't so they're really hard at work catching fish to go with those tortillas they build a Breakwater of grass and weeds and and gradually bring the ends together the silly little fish second cousins to sardines are caught in the resulting pools and will be served for dinner that is if there's anything left of them after they're [Music] fried the men go duck hunting occasionally when a bit tired of tortillas and fish just try this method of catching Ducks sometimes first locate your ducks and then give Chase in a duck out new throwing rocks at your prospective dinner every once in a [Music] while if you tire out the Ducks before collapsing yourself well just sock one with a rock and call it a day some sport e what in their spare moments it might be said while resting the lady of the Guatemalan Indian households convert the wool from sheep which they raise into Woolen thread and then into cloth though they have no spinning wheels they're very Adept into spinning the wool into thread with a stick for a spindle and a bit of broken [Music] gourd you might try this yourself sometime when you get tired of listening to the [Music] radio the finished thread is died on racks and rolled into SKS prior to being woven into cloth for clothing or into rugs and blankets which are eventually bed in the nearby marketplace with the crudest of looms the girls fashion this material this girl is very busy with both hands and mouth she's chewing chickle the base of our own more modern chewing gum it sure sounds good doesn't it the Weaver sits in a loop of the crude Loom to hold the affair taught and busily works away on a blanket and here's the result of her work it took a long time to make it but it's guaranteed pure wool a yard wide and it'll last a [Music] lifetime though mules are used in transporting tobacco and coffee in bulk the most common pack animal in Guatemala is the native indan himself yes indeed father does work at times and here he is several of him on the way to Market with a load of pottery blankets cloth and well what have you the foundation for the pack is the cast resembling a music cabin which is carried on the back with the aid of a head strap the average load is about 200 lb for the men oh yes the women carry packs too though their packs are just a bit lighter as well they generally have a baby to take along with [Music] theirs even the boys are trained at an early age they become human beasts of [Music] bird every Community has its Marketplace and here the Caravan of two-legged mules finally arrived to trade it where as for necessity isn't luxury the natives are unable to produce at home here all is commotion with fruit vendors calling their wear customers haggling over good with Merchants acquaintances renewing old friendships and making new ones it's just a short stroll from the hum and the buzz of the busy Market to the big public drinking fountain in the plazas the women love to gossip here while filling their huge jars with water and few of those big jars are ever broken but many a reputation is badly damaged when the girls get their busy tongues to W every day is Monday at the big Municipal baths where the women bring their dirty linen you'd think that the girls would look mighty neat with all this washing but well take a look for yourself you know it's against the rules but when the custodian of the bath isn't looking the girls take a shower occasionally very occasionally though the majority of the Native Guatemalan IND Indians composing about four fifths of the country's population are devout Catholics their great Delight on festive occasions in the cities is the Indulgence in rights and practices undoubtedly descended from their Pagan ancestors the taltech among these is the carnival Dan solemnly performed in elaborate costume to the booming beat of the Native Instrument the marima even though these ceremonies are old as history they have a definite place in the life of these people in the pre-tin celebr ation fantastic figures representing different animals as the lasso descends over the atlas of the deer it signifies the capture of the last meat before the 40 days observance but at work or at play there Looms in the background of the life of these peaceful people the ageold Menace of AGA and her sister volcano which have so ruthlessly played their part in retarding the development of gu