However, we, who are used to taking little excursions over the world (between the covers of a book), so that we may learn to know our tiny Eskimo cousins who live near the icy pole, and our little African cousins south of the equator, as well as our Japanese cousins on the other side of the globe, think nothing of the distance between here and Porto Rico. We should expect to feel very much at home after we arrived there, especially now that Porto Rico has become part of our own country. We shall find our Porto Rican cousins and neighbours, with their dark skins, black hair, and soft black eyes, somewhat different in appearance, indeed, from ourselves; and we shall not be able to understand what they say unless we have learned the Spanish language; for, as we know, the parents or forefathers of our Porto Rican cousins came from Spain to Porto Rico, just as the parents and forefathers of most of us who speak English came from England. However, these are slight differences; and the Spanish people, from whom our black-eyed Porto Rican cousin is descended, belong to the same branch of the great human family as we do, who are descended, most of us, from English people. That is, the Spanish people and their descendants, the Porto Ricans, belong to the white race. Manuel is thus a nearer relative than the little black cousin, who belongs to the negro race; or the little Japanese cousin, who belongs to the yellow or Mongolian race; or the little Indian cousin, who belongs to the red race; or the little Malayan cousin, who belongs to the brown race. So we shall welcome the Porto Rican neighbours near our doorway into our nation's family. They were already our cousins by descent; they have become our adopted brothers in our nation. Contents CHAPTER PAGE I. MANUEL 9 II. DOLORES 15 III. LESSONS 21 IV. THROUGH THE WOODS 28 V. THE COFFEE-TREE 35 VI. SONGS AND STORIES 40 VII. A CRUEL SPORT 50 VIII. EARLY TIMES 56 IX. THE CARIBS 63 X. A SEASIDE PICNIC 68 XI. THE WONDERFUL CAVE 78 XII. THE HURRICANE 87 XIII. THE NEW BABY 93 XIV. THE CITY 98 List of Illustrations PAGE MANUEL _Frontispiece_ "A FOUNTAIN IS PLAYING IN THE CENTRE OF THE PAVED YARD" 12 DOLORES 17 "THE HOMES OF THE WORKMEN" 40 "ONE IS QUITE LARGE, AND IS FORMED IN THE SHAPE OF A FAN" 73 A STREET IN SAN JUAN 101 Our Little Porto Rican Cousin CHAPTER I. MANUEL.