sore for a long time and that somebody had said red pepper was good for them, so they had been putting powdered red pepper into her eyes for some time.
Smallpox is so common in this country that it is not considered worth while to try to escape it by quarantine or otherwise. In fact, it is not supposed to be a contagious disease, but is caused by the visit of a very great and honored spirit that resides somewhere in the south country and is supposed to visit every one at some time, so the people take it for granted and await his coming. While this idea is still prevalent throughout the country, nevertheless vaccination has during the past two decades made considerable headway, and is thereby putting this spirit out of business, in some households at least. As has been before stated, it is the custom of the country to address all children in low talk; but when the great smallpox spirit visits them and while he remains they are addressed in high talk in honor of the honorable guest which they are entertaining. When the disease has run its course and the child is about well, a great feast is held in honor of the spirit, and it is provided with a wooden horse and plenty of food and sent on its way rejoicing back to the south land, where it is supposed to reside. I have many times seen the little paper flags flying and the remains of the offerings outside the village where the spirit has been fed and sent away.
I shall not soon forget the first case of smallpox that I ever saw. I had been in the country a little more than a year, and was traveling in the interior
