S41 215-160

The natives are using every parcel of ground in
Guatamala for planting, especially the flat areas on
top of hills and mountains. The steep side hills also
are farmad. It would seem that they would find it
difficult to maintain a footing on some of the slopes.
Have not seen, as yet, & place where there is not
som sign of human activity. Dogs are everywhere and
are camp is pregnated with odors.e They urinate on the
car, chairg table legs, food boxes eto. They are so
starved you could tag it pin it on a board without the

trouble of skinning it .

at Nebay we had not stopped over two minutes
when @ man from the Btates walked straight over to the
car as tho he hadn't seen a white man for 50 years.
It developed that he was from Kansas and the insignia on
our car door drew him like a magnet. The more we talked
the nearer home became. His brother Richard Elliott
graduated in 1948 from K.U.- his wife's brother is now
a junior in pre-med at K.U. and he--George Belcher and
wife are living at 1222Misissippi.e How's that for co-
incidence. Mr lliott is with the Sumer Institute of
Linguistics-Univ of Oklohoma and is making a study of
the languages of these people. His attractive wife and
three children are here in the primitive village of
Nebay. This area is the transition between the Spanish
language to the south and the Indian languages to the
northe The Natives areund Nebay have a very interest-
ing language and it is amsing to hear them converse.
It is a dignified stutter, with odd clicks and vocal
sounds that I have never heard in all my travels. I
do enjoy their chatter. I think their voice simulates
that of the shineese altho it has a more pure mechani-
cal manipulation.

Ray (Elliott) insisted that i accept a
gallon of white gas as the Guatamala gas was playing
tricks with our stove and lamp. I will never go into
the field again without testing ny equipment.