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Not long ago the houses, even in the small towns, were thatched, and even now there are hamlets still cosy and picturesque under their mouse-coloured roofs; but in most instances you see a transition state of tiles gradually ousting the inflammable but beautiful thatch.
They secreted themselves in the thatch, and the sides of the house during the day, and failed not to disturb with their onslaughts during the whole of the night. July 22d. Mr. Hooper, the purser, was despatched in the Royalist to Sincapore, to purchase provisions and obtain assistance from any of the men-of-war who might be lying in the roads.
The thatch of the roof, the sod, the carpetless floor, the lack of furniture, the plain wooden bedstead in the corner with its mattress of straw, the crazy window fashioned by his own rude carpentry, the shapeless door which was like a slap in the face with its raw and unpainted color of new wood.
The entrance to this large square of irregular mud buildings, is through a narrow passage or gate, forming an oblong square of mud, covered with thatch, and facing Alimami's house: we were ushered through this by one of his head men, and proceeded in the order we set out to Alimami, who was seated at the top of the square, surrounded by his chiefs, upon a mat spread upon a raised bank of mud, dressed in a turban, after the Turkish fashion, and a loose manding, robe, or shirt.
When we had knocked from the trees a box of mangoes and turkey-red maranones, B touched a match to the thatch roof and almost before we could regain the launch the shack was pouring skyward in a column of smoke.
First, Jess's powerful jaws came together about the thick part of the dingo's right fore-leg, and took firm hold there, while the snarling and now terrified dingo snapped at the back of her neck, the rough edge of the bark thatch on the middle of his back producing in him a horrible sense of being trapped. That was one thing that happened in that instant.
On seeing the barbarity of his allies, Soto sounded a retreat and ordered the Spaniards to turn the Indians out of the town, wishing anxiously to put a stop to any farther mischief, and to prevent it from being set on fire. But all his efforts were ineffectual, as the Guachacoyans thrust burning brands into the thatch of the houses, which soon took fire, and the town was utterly destroyed.
In almost all of them the only chimney was little more than a hole in the middle of the thatch. This rendered the absence of glass in the windows not so objectionable; for, left without ordered path to its outlet, the smoke preferred a circuitous route, and lingered by the way, filling the air.
That, in its turn, stopped too; there was a great fall of dry thatch on the floor; and I saw the heavy, hairy hand of Shifty Dick, armed with the knife, come through after the fallen fragments. He tapped at the rafters with the back of the knife, as if to test their strength. Thank God, they were substantial and close together!
The houses of San Pedro are well constructed of stone, set in adobe, and have well-thatched roofs. The granaries, or cuezcomates, are of unusual size and well built. They range from six or eight feet in height to twelve or more, and are shaped like great urns, open at the top, which is protected by a thatch, generally two-pitched.
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