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ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

RCOVADO

ACROSS
S^UTH AMERICA

AN ACCOUNT OF A JOURNEY FROM BUENOS
AIRES TO LIMA BY WAY OF POTOSI

WITH NOTES ON BRAZIL, ARGENTINA,
BOLIVIA, CHILE, AND PERU

HIRAM BINGHAM

YALE UNIVERSITY

WITH EIGHTY ILLUSTRATIONS
AND MAPS

2^-?^6 r-^

BOSTON AND NEW YORK

HOUGHTON MIFFLIN COMPANY

H 'S ^ 5 ^^

Published April IQJI

1)51

THIS VOLUME IS

AFFECTIONATELY DEDICATED

THE MOTHER OF

SIX LITTLE BOYS

PREFACE

IN September, 1908, I left New York as a delegate
of the United States Government and of Yale
University to the First Pan-American Scientific
Congress, held at Santiago, Chile, in December and
January, 1908-09. Before attending the Congress I
touched at Rio de Janeiro and the principal coast
cities of Brazil, crossed the Argentine Republic from
Buenos Aires to the Bolivian frontier, rode on mule-
back through southern Bolivia, visiting both Potosi
and Sucre, went by rail from Oruro to Antofagasta,
and thence by steamer to Valparaiso. After the
Congress I retraced my steps into Bolivia by way
of the west coast, Arequlpa, and Lake Titicaca.
Picking up the overland trail again at .Oruro, L con-
tinued my journey across Bolivia and Peru, via La
Paz, Tiahuanaco, and Cuzco, thence by mules over
the old Inca road as far as Huancayo, the present
terminus of the Oroya-Lima Railroad. At Abancay
I turned aside to explore Choqquequirau, the ruins
of an Inca fortress in the valley of the Apurimac ; an
excursion that could not have been undertaken at
all had it not been for the very generous assistance
of Hon. J. J. Nuiiez, the Prefect of Apurimac, and his
zealous aide. Lieutenant Caceres of the Peruvian
army. I reached Lima in March, 1909.

The chief interest of the trip lay in its being an
exploration of the most historic highway in South
America, the old trade route between Lima, Potosi,
and Buenos Aires. The more difficult parts of this

VIU

PREFACE

road were used by the Incas and their conqueror
Pizarro; by Spanish viceroys, mine owners, and mer-
chants; by the Hberating armies of Argentina; and
finally by BoHvar and Sucre, who marched and
countermarched over it in the last campaigns of the
Wars of Independence.

Realizing from previous experience in Venezuela
and Colombia that the privilege of travelling in a
semi-official capacity would enable me to enjoy
unusual opportunities for observation, I made it
the chief object of my journey to collect and verify
information regarding the South American people,
their history, politics, economics, and physical en-
vironment. The present volume, however, makes
no pretence at containing all I collected or verified.
Such a work would be largely a compilation of sta-
tistics. The ordinary facts are readily accessible in
the current publications of the ably organized Pan-
American Bureau in Washington. Nevertheless, I
have included some data that seemed likely to prove
serviceable to intending travellers.

Grateful acknowledgment for kind assistance
freely rendered in many different ways is due to
President Villazon of Bolivia, the late President
Montt of Chile, and President Leguia of Peru; to
Secretary, now Senator, Root and the officials of the
Diplomatic and Consular Service; to Professor Rowe
and my fellow delegates to the Pan-American Scien-
tific Congress; and particularly to J. Luis Schaefer,
Esq., W. S. Eyre, Esq., and their courteous asso-
ciates of the house of W. R. Grace & Co. Although
business houses rarely take the trouble to make the

PREFACE ix

path of the scientist or investigator more comfort-
able, it would be no easy task to enumerate all the
favors that were shown, not only to me, but also to
the other members of the American delegation, by
Messrs. Grace & Co. and the managers and clerks
of their many branches.

Acknowledgments are likewise due to the officials
of the Buenos Aires and Rosario Railroad, the Peru-
vian Corporation, and the Bolivia Railway; and to
Colonel A. de Pederneiras, Sr. Amaral Franco, Don
Santiago Hutcheon, Sr. C. A. Novoa, Sr. Arturo
Pino Toranzo, Dr. Alejandro Ayal4, Captain Louis
Merino of the Chilean army, Don Moises Vargas,
Sr. Lopez Chavez, and Messrs. Charles L. Wilson,
A. G. Snyder, U. S. Grant Smith, J. B. Beazley, D.
S. Iglehart, John Pierce Hope, Rankin Johnson,
Rea Hanna, and a host of others who helped to make
my journey easier and more profitable.

I desire also to express my gratitude, for unnum-
bered kindnesses, both to Huntington Smith, who
accompanied me during the first part of my jour-
ney, and to Clarence Hay, who was my faithful com-
panion on the latter part.

Some parts of the story have already been told in
the ** American Anthropologist," the "American
Political Science Review," the "Popular Science
Monthly," the " Bulletin of the American Geo-
graphical Society," the " Records of the Past," and
the "Yale Courant," to whose editors acknowledg-
ment is due for permission to use the material in its

present form.

Hiram Bingham.

Yale University, New Haven, Conn.
20 November, 1910.

CONTENTS

PAGE

I. Pernambuco and Bahia 3

II. Rio, Santos, and Brazilian Trade . . . . i6

III. Buenos Aires 29

IV. Argentine Independence and Spanish-American ,

Solidarity 46 .^.i

V. The Tucuman Express 60

VI. Through the Argentine Highlands .... 69 _

VI I. Across the Bolivian Fft(^TiER 81

VIII. TupizA TO Cotagaita 92

IX. EscARA TO Laja Tambo 104

X. PoTOsi 117

XI. Sucre, the dejure Capital of Bolivia . . 133

XII. The Road to Challapata 148

XIII. Oruro to Antofagasta and Valparaiso . .164

XIV. Santiago and the First Pan-American Scien-

tific Congress 180

XV. Northern Chile 198 '\

XVI. Southern Peru 211

XVII. La Paz, the de facto Capital of Bolivia . 224

xii CONTENTS

XVIII. The Bolivia Railway and Tiahuanaco . . 241

XIX. Cuzco 254

XX. Sacsahuaman 272

XXI. The Inca Road to Abancay 280

XXII. The Climb to Choqquequirau 296

XXIII. Choqquequirau 307

XXIV. Abancay to Chincheros 324

XXV. BOMBON TO the BATTLEFIELD OF AyACUCHO . 34 1

XXVI. Ayacucho to Lima 360

XXVII. Certain South American Traits 379

Index " . • 393

ILLUSTRATIONS

PAGE

Rio from the Corcovado (page 21) .... Frontispiece
Looking down into the Lower City, Bahia .... 12

The Corcovado from Rio 20

The Harbor of Santos 24

The Docks of Buenos Aires 30

Avenida 25 DE Mayo, Buenos Aires 34

The Uspallata Pass 50

Our Coach leaving the Hotel at La Quiaca ... 82

The Angosta de Tupiza 86

Fantastic Pinnacles in the Valleys North of Tupiza 90

A QuicHUA Family going to plough 94

The Valley through which we had come 98

Our First Glimpse OF a Snow-clad Bolivian Mountain 112
View of the Cerro from the Roof of the Mint . .120
The Cerro of Potosi from the Spanish Reservoirs . 124

An Ancient Quichua Ore Crusher 124

The Market-Place of Potosi 128

Greener and more Populous Valleys 132

The Picturesque Old Church of Bartolo . . . .134
A Pasture for Sheep and Alpacas 138

xiv ILLUSTRATIONS

A QuiCHUA Woman weaving at Quebrada Honda . .138

The Great River Pilcomayo 142

Our Hotel in Sucre 142

An Abandoned Tambo 150

Our First View of the Great Table-land of Bolivia . 150

A Friendly Llama Baby 160

My Mule on the Last Day's Ride 160

The Prefectura and Plaza of Cruro 166

A Quaint Old Balcony in Oruro 170

A Corner in Oruro 170

Battlefield of Maipo near Santiago 186

mollendo 212

The Cathedral of Arequipa and Mt. Chachani . .216

An Old Doorway in Arequipa 216

Chachani and Misti 216

Monolithic Image at Tiaiiuanaco 228

The Market-Place of La Paz 232

A Remarkable Stairway at Tiahuanaco 232

Balsas near Guaqui on Lake Titicaca 240

An Old Church near the Bolivia Railway .... 240
Great Platforms of Stone weighing ALxny Tons . . 250

Part of the Great Monolithic Doorway 250

Llamas of Cuzco 258

CUZCO FROM SACSAHUAMAN 258

ILLUSTRATIONS xv

Sacsahuaman 266

The Plaza, Cuzco, with Cathedral and Jesuit Church 266
A Section of the Lower Terrace, Sacsahuaman . . 274

An Inca Vase from Cuzco 278

Articles of Dress and a Decorated Mule Halter

FROM Cuzco 278

The Gobernador of Curahuasi and his Family . . 288
A Chasm down which plunged a Small Cataract . . 298

The Wonderful Canon of the Apurimac 298

Sunrise at Choqquequirau 302

The Frail Little Bridge over the Apurimac . . . 302
A Story and a Half High, built of Stones laid in Clay . 308

The Party Wall rises to the Peak 308

The Interior of the Buildings near the Outer Precipice 312
The Upper Six Steps of the Giant Stairway . . .312

Skulls, etc., from Choqquequirau 316

Interior of a Building at Choqquequirau . . . .316
Our Cavalcade on the Bridge of Pachachaca . . . 324
Some of the Sheep had very Long Curly Horns . . . 334

The Club at Chincheros 338

The Large Plaza of Ayacucho 342

The Bridge over the River Pampas 342

Ayacucho 346

The Courtyard of the Hotel 346

xvi ILLUSTRATIONS

A Picturesque Corner in Ayacucho 350

Crossing the Pongora River on the Shaky Suspension

Bridge 350

The Battlefield of Ayacucho 354

The Battlefield as it appeared to the Spaniards . . 354

The Bridge over the Huarpa 362

Urumyosi 366

The Hut near Paucara 366

The Toll-Bridge of Tablachaca 368

Sunday Morning in Huancayo 372

MAPS

The Author's Route across South America .... 3

Southern Bolivia 81

Southern Peru 254

Choqquequirau and Vicinity 307

Lower Plaza Choqquequirau 310

Upper Plaza Choqquequirau 314

Cuzco and Neighboring Fortresses 318

The frontispiece and the illustration at page 20 are from photographs by
Marc Fcrrez. Those at pages 50, 216, 228, 232, 258, 298, 302, 324, 342, 346,
3S0i 354. and 362 are from photographs by Mr. C. L. Hay; and those at pages
150, 160, 170 from photographs by Mr. H. Smith.

ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

CHAPTER I

PERNAMBUCO AND BAHIA

THERE are two ways of going to the east coast
of South America. The traveller can sail from
New York in the monthly boats .of the direct line
or, if he misses that boat, as I did, and is pressed for
time, he can go to Southampton or Cherbourg and
be sure of an excellent steamer every week. The
old story that one was obliged to go by way of Eu-
rope to get to Brazil is no longer true, although this
pleasing fiction is still maintained by a few officials
when they are ordered to go from Lima on the Pa-
cific to the Peruvian port of Iquitos on the Amazon.
If they succeed in avoiding the very unpleasant
overland journey via Cerro de Pasco, they are apt
to find that the "only feasible" alternative route
is by way of Panama, New York, and Paris !

Personally I was glad of the excuse to go the longer
way, for I knew that the exceedingly comfortable
new steamers of the Royal Mall Line were likely to
carry many Brazilians and Argentinos, from whom
I could learn much that I wanted to know. They
proved to be most kind and communicative, and
gave me an excellent introduction to the point of
view of the modern denizen of the east coast whose
lands have received the "golden touch" that comes

4 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

from foreign capital, healthy immigration, and rap-
idly expanding railway systems. I was also fortu-
nate in finding on board the Aragon a large num-
ber of those energetic English, Scots, and French,
whose well-directed efforts have built up the in-
dustries of their adopted homes, until the Spanish-
Americans can hardly recognize the land of their
birth, and the average North American, who visits
the east coast for the first time, rubs his eyes in de-
spair and wonders where he has been while all this
railroad building and bank merging has been going
on. If there were few Germans and Italians on board,
it was not because they were not crossing the ocean
at the same time, but because they preferred the
new steamers of their own lines. I could have trav-
elled a little faster by sailing under the German or
the Italian flag, but in that case I should not have
seen Pernambuco and Bahia, which the more speedy
steamers now omit from their Itinerary.

The Brazilians call the easternmost port of South
America, Recife, "The Reef," but to the average
person it will always be known as Pernambuco.
Most travellers who touch here on their way from
Europe to Buenos Aires, prefer to see what they can
of this quaint old city from the deck of the steamer,
anchored a mile out in the open roadstead. The great
ocean swell, rolling in from the eastward, makes the
tight little surf boats bob up and down in a dangerous
fashion. It seems hardly worth while to venture down
the slippery gangway and take one's chances at leap-
ing into the strong arms of swarthy boatmen, whom
the waves bring upward toward you with startling

PERNAMBUCO AND BAHIA 5

suddenness, and who fall away again so exasper-
atingly just as you have made up your mind to jump.

Out of three hundred first-cabin passengers on
the Aragon, there were only five of us who ventured
ashore, — three Americans, a Frenchman, and a
Scotchman. The other passengers, including sev-
eral representatives of the English army — but I
will say no more, for they afterwards wrote me that,
on their return journey to England, the charms of
Pernambuco overcame their fear of the "white
horses of the sea," and they felt well repaid.

Pernambuco is unquestionably one of the most
interesting places on the East Coast. From the
steamer one can see little more than a long low line
of coast, dotted here and there with white buildings
and a lighthouse or two. To the north several miles
away, on a little rise of ground, is the ancient town
of Olinda, founded by the Portuguese in the sixteenth
century, a hundred years before Henry Hudson
stepped ashore on Manhattan Island. By the time
that our ancestors were beginning to consider es-
tablishing a colony in Massachusetts, the Portu-
guese had already built dozens of sugar factories
in this vicinity. Then the Dutch came and con-
quered, built Pernambuco and, during their twenty-
five years on this coast, made It the administrative
centre for their colony In northeast Brazil. Their
capital, four miles north of the present commercial
centre, is now a village of ruined palaces and an-
cient convents. The Dutch had large interests on
the Brazilian seaboard and carried away quanti-
ties of sugar and other precious commodities, as is

6 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA,

set forth In many of their quaint old books. The
drawings which old Nieuhof put In his sumptuous
folio two centuries ago are still vivid and lifelike,
even if they serve only to emphasize the great change
that has come over this part of the world in that
time.

Now, three trans-Atlantic cables touch here, and
it is a port of call for half a dozen lines of steamers.
The old Dutch caravels used to find excellent shel-
ter behind the great natural breakwater, the reef
that made the port of Recife possible. No part of
the east coast of Brazil possesses more strategical
importance, and modern improvements have deep-
ened the entrance so that vessels drawing less than
fifteen feet may enter and lie in quiet water, although
the great ocean liners are obliged to ride at anchor
outside. Tugs bring out lighters for the cargo, but
the passengers have to trust to the mercy of the surf
boats.

It took six dusky oarsmen to pull us through the
surf and around the lighthouse that marks the north-
ern extremity of the reef, into the calm waters of the
harbor. On the black reef a few rods south of the
lighthouse stands an antiquated castle, which mod-
ern guns would make short work of, but which served
its purpose admirably by defending the port against
the sea rovers of the seventeenth century. Opposite
this breakwater, on two or three "sea islands" whose
tidal rivers cut them off from the mainland, the
older part of Pernambuco is built.

It was with a feeling of having miraculously es-
caped from the dangers of a very stormy voyage,

PERNAMBUCO AND BAHIA 7

that we clambered up the slippery stone stairs of the
landing stage and entered the little two-storied oc-
tagonal structure which serves the custom house
as a place in which to examine incoming passengers.
This took but a moment, and then we went out into
the glaring white sunlight of this ancient tropical
city and began our tour of inspection.

Immediately in front of us was a line of ware-
houses three or four stories high and attractively
built of stone. They give the water-front an air of
permanency and good breeding. Between them and
the sea-wall there was a tree-planted, stone-paved
area, the Rialto of Recife, where all classes, from
talkative half-tipsy pieces of foreign driftwood to
well-dressed local merchants, clad in immaculate
white suits, congregate and gossip. Beyond the sea-
wall a dozen small ocean steamers lay inside the
harbor, moored to the breakwater; while numbers
of smaller vessels, sloops, schooners, and brigantines
were anchored near the custom house docks or in
the sluggish Rio Beberibe, which separates Recife
from the mainland.

As we wandered through the streets past the
Stock Exchange, the naval station, and the princi-
pal business houses, we saw various sights: a poorly
dressed Brazilian, of mixed African and Portuguese
descent, carrying a small coffin on his head; bare-
footed children standing in pools of water left in
the paved sidewalks by the showers of the morning ;
bareheaded women, with gayly colored shawls over
their shoulders; neat German clerks dressed In glis-
tening white duck suits; lounging boatmen in nonde-

8 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

script apparel ; and everywhere long, low drays loaded
with bags of sugar, each vehicle drawn by a single
patient ox whose horns are lashed to a cross-piece
that connects the front end of the thills. Those who
moved at all moved as if there were abundant time
in which to do everything, and as though the hustle
and bustle of lower New York never existed at all.
The scene was distinctively Latin- American. One
must be careful not to say " Spanish- American "
here, for if there is one thing more than another
that the Brazilian is proud of, it is that he is not a
Spaniard and does not speak Spanish. However, the
difference between the two languages is not so great
and the local pride not so strong but that the oblig-
ing natives will understand you, even if you have
the bad taste to address them in Spanish. They will
reply, however, in Portuguese, and then it is your
turn to be obliging and understand them, if you can.

West of Recife, on another island and on the main-
land, are the other public buildings, parks, and the
finest residences. A primitive tram-car, pulled by
mules, crosses the bridge and jangles along toward
the suburbs, which are quite pretty, although some
of the houses strive after bizarre color-effects which
would not be appropriate in the Temperate Zone.
There are fairly good hotels here, and there is quite
a little English colony. But it is not a place where
the white man thrives. The daily range of tempera-
ture is very small, and it is claimed that the average
difference between the wet and dry season is only
three degrees.

From Pernambuco there radiate three or four*

PERNAMBUCO AND BAHIA 9

railways, north, west, and south. None of them are
more than two hundred miles long, but all serve to
gather up the rich crops of sugar and cotton for
which the surrounding region is noted, and bring
them to the cargo steamers that offer in exchange
the manufactured products of Europe and America.
If one may judge from the size of the custom house
and the busy scene there, where half a dozen steam
cranes were actively engaged in unloading goods
destined to pay the annoyingly complex Brazilian
tariff, the business of the port is very considerable.
It seemed quite strange to see such mechanical
activity and such a modern customs warehouse so
closely associated with the narrow, foul-smelling
streets of the old town. But it gives promise of a
larger and more important city in the years to come,
when the new docks shall have been built and still
more modern methods introduced.

Yet even now there are over one hundred and fifty
thousand people in the city, and the mercantile
houses do a good business. The clerks move slowly,
and there is little appearance of enterprise; but one
must always remember, when inclined to criticise
the business methods of the tropics, that this is not a
climate where one can safely hurry. Things must be
done slowly if the doer is to last any length of time.
The commercial traveller who comes here full of
brusque and zealous activity, will soon chafe him-
self into a fever if he is not careful. These are easy-
going folk, and political and commercial changes do
not affect them seriously. They are willing to stand
governmental conditions that would be almost in-

10 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

tolerable to us, and their haphazard methods of busi-
ness are well suited to their environment. The Eu-
ropean, although proverbially less adaptable than
the American, is forced by keener competition at
home to adjust himself as best he may to the local
conditions here and elsewhere in South America.
His American colleague, on the other hand, has as
yet not felt the necessity of learning to meet what
seems to him ridiculous prejudice.

Emblematic of this Brazilian trade are the primi-
tive little catamarans in which the fishermen of
Recife venture far out into the great ocean. The frail
little craft are only moderately safe, and at best can
bring back but a small quantity of fish. They are
most uncomfortable, and their occupants are kept
wet most of the time by the waves that dash over
them. Furthermore, a glimpse of them is as much
of Pernambuco as most steamship passengers get.
It is only by venturing and taking the trouble to go
ashore that one can see the modern custom house
dock on the other side of Recife, and learn the les-
son of the possibilities of commerce here.

We left Pernambuco in the afternoon and reached
the green hills of the coast near Bahia the next morn-
ing. The steamers pass near enough to the shore to
enable one to make out, with the glasses, watering-
places and pretty little villas that have been built
on the ocean side of the peninsula by the wealthier
citizens of Bahia. At the end of the promontory, just
above the rocks and the breakers, is the picturesque
white tower of a lighthouse. Unfortunately, it did
not avail to save a fine German steamer that was

PERNAMBUCO AND BAHIA ii

lying wrecked on the dangerous shoals near the en-
trance to the harbor when we passed in.

As we steamed slowly around the southern end
of the low promontory, the city of Bahia gradually
came into view, its large stone warehouses lining the
water-front, its lower town separated by a steep hill,
covered with gardens and graceful palms, from the
upper city, conspicuous with the towers and cupolas
of numerous churches and public buildings.

On the left, as one enters the harbor, rises the in-
teresting island of Itaparica, which England once
offered to take in payment of a debt due her by
Portugal. It bears a resemblance to Gibraltar in
more ways than one, but it was not destined to be-
come a British stronghold. A favorite resort of the
citizens of Bahia, it is called "the Europe of the
poor," because it has a genial climate and is fre-
quented by those who cannot afford to cross the
Atlantic.

As we leave It on our left, in front of us, and to the
north, lies the magnificent bay that has given the
city its name. It lacks the romantic mountains that
make Rio so famous, yet Its beautiful blue waters
are most alluring, dotted as they are here and there
with the white sails of fishing-boats and catamarans.

We have to anchor a mile from the shore, and a
steam launch carrying the port officials soon comes
alongside. The local boatmen, whose little craft,
suited only to the quiet waters of the bay, bear no
resemblance to the seaworthy surf boats of Pernam-
buco, line up at a distance of half a mile, awaiting the
signal which permits them to hoist sail and race for

12 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

the steamer. It is a pretty sight, enlivened by the
shouts of the boat crews. Some boats are loaded with
delicious tropical fruits that are eagerly bargained
for by our steerage passengers, most of whom are
Spanish peasants on their way to harvest the crops
of Argentina. Others are anxious to take us ashore.
And after the usual delay, we make a deal with a
boatman, a lazy fellow who wastes a lot of time try-
ing to sail in against the wind while his more ener-
getic competitors are rowing. On the way we pass
half a dozen steamers and a few sailing vessels, and
steer carefully between scores of huge lighters and
dozens of smaller craft. In place of the steel steam
cranes which we saw at Pernambuco, on the wharves
are numerous wooden cranes worked by hand.

We land on slippery wooden stairs, and hurry
across the blistering hot pavements of the street
to rest for a few moments in the shade of the large
warehouses and wholesale shops that crowd the
lower town. Some of the signs are decidedly bizarre
and scream as loudly for patronage as the limits
of modern Frenchified Portuguese art will permit.
There is none of the picturesqueness of Pernambuco,
and we soon betake ourselves to one of the cog rail-
ways where, for a few cents, we are allowed to scram-
ble into a bare little wooden passenger coach and be
yanked up the steep incline by a cable that looks
none too strong for its purpose. Once in the upper
city, the narrow streets of commerce seem to be left
behind, and we are in broader thoroughfares, with
here and there a green park full of palms and other
tropical plants. There are churches on every side,

LOOKING DOWN INTO THE LOWER CITY. BAHIA

PERNAMBUCO AND BAHIA 13

some of them wonderfully decorated and most at-
tractive. Bahia is not quite so old as Pernambuco,
its foundation dating only from the middle of the
sixteenth century; but it early became the religious
and intellectual centre of Portuguese- America, and
it is still noted forits literature and culture, although
long ago passed in the race by Rio.

The glaring white sunlight throws everything into
bold relief and makes the shadows seem unusually
dark and cool. On the corners of the streets are little
folding stands bearing a heavy load of toothsome
confectionery. Their barefooted coal-black owners,
clad generally in white, lean against the iron posts
of the American Trolley Car System and watch
patiently for the trade that seems sure to come to
him who waits. On every side one sees black faces.

In fact, Bahia is sometimes popularly spoken of
as the "Old Mulattress," in affectionate reference
to the fact that more than ninety per cent of its two
hundred thousand people are of African descent. For
over two centuries Bahia monopolized the slave
trade of Brazil. Her traders continued to be the
chief importers of negroes down to the middle of
the nineteenth century. It is said that as many
as sixty thousand slaves were brought in within a
single year.

We took one of the American-made trolleys and
soon went whizzing along through well-paved streets
and out into the suburbs. Here villas, fearfully and
wonderfully made, like the baker's best wedding
cake in his shop window, attest to the local fondness
for rococo extravagance. In general, however, the

14 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA'

principal buildings appear to be well built, and are
frequently four or five stories in height.

The architecture of Bahia is decidedly Portuguese,
much more so than that of Pernambuco, which still
bears traces of its Dutch origin and even reminds
one of Curacao. Some of the villas in Bahia are
strikingly like those in Lisbon. And there are other
likenesses between the Portuguese capital and this
ecclesiastical metropolis of Brazil. Both are situ-
ated on magnificent estuaries, and present a fine
spectacle to the traveller coming by sea. Both have
upper and lower towns, with hills so steep as to re-
quire the services of elevators and cog or cable rail-
ways to connect them. The upper town of each
commands an extensive view of the shipping, the
roadstead, and the surrounding country. But here
the similarity ends; for Lisbon is built on several
hills, while Bahia occupies but a single headland,
the verdure-clad promontory which shelters the
magnificent bay.

Bahia is the centre for a considerable commerce
in sugar and cotton, cocoa and tobacco. These are
brought to the port by land and water, but chiefly
by the railroads that go north to the great river
San Francisco and west into the heart of the state.
There are many evidences of wealth in the city, and
there is certainly an excellent opportunity for de-
veloping foreign trade. One looks in vain, however,
for great American commercial houses like those
which mark the presence of English, French, and
German enterprise. Nevertheless the electric car
line, with its American equipment, gives a promise of

PERNAMBUCO AND BAHIA 15

things hoped for. And there is a decided air of friend-
Hness toward Americans on the part of the Brazil-
ians whom one meets on the streets and in the shops.
There is none of that "chip on the shoulder" atti-
tude which the Argentino likes to exhibit toward the
citizens of the ** United States of North America."
The Brazilian appears to realize that Americans are
his best customers, and he is desirous of maintaining
the most friendly relations with us.

CHAPTER II

RIO, SANTOS, AND BRAZILIAN TRADE

/rr^wo days' sail from Bahia brought us within
A. sight of the wonderful mountains that mark
the entrance to the Bay of Rio de Janeiro. As one
approaches land, the first thing that catches the eye
is the far-famed Sugar Loaf Mountain which seems
to guard the southern side of the entrance. Back of
it is a region even more romantic, a cluster of higher
mountains, green to their tops, yet with sides so
precipitous and pinnacles so sharp one wonders how
anything can grow on them. The region presents, in
fact, such a prodigious variety of crags and preci-
pices, peaks and summits, that the separate forms
are lost in a chaos of beautiful hills.

The great granite rocks that guard the entrance
to the harbor leave a passage scarcely a mile in
width. At the base of the Sugar Loaf we saw a fairy
white city romantically nestling in the shadow of the
gigantic crag. It is the new National Exposition of
Brazil.

Once safely inside the granite barriers, the bay
opens out and becomes an inland sea, dotted with
hundreds of islands, a landlocked basin with fifty
square miles of deep water.

On the northern shores of the bay lies the town of
Nictheroy, the capital of the state. Its name per-

RIO, SANTOS, BRAZILIAN TRADE 17

petuates the old Indian title of the bay, "hidden
water." The name of the capital of the RepubHc, on
the south side of the bay, carries with it a remem-
brance of the fact that when first discovered, the bay
was mistaken for the mouth of a great river, the
River of January.

Since the early years of the sixteenth century, Rio
has been conspicuous in the annals of discovery and
conquest. Magellan touched here on his famous
voyage round the world. The spot where he landed
is now the site of a large hospital and medical school.
French Huguenots attempted to find here a refuge
in the time of the great Admiral Coligny. As one
steams slowly into the harbor, one passes close to
the historic island of Villegagnon, whose romantic
story has been so graphically told by Parkman.

Hither came the King of Portugal, flying from the
wrath of Napoleon. Here lived the good Emperor
Dom Pedro II, one of the most beneficent monarchs
the world has ever seen. And into these waters are
soon to come Brazil's new Dreadnoughts, about
which all the world has been speculating, and which
have made Argentina almost forget the necessities
of economic development in her anxiety to keep up
with Brazil in the way of armament.

An elaborate system of new docks, that has been
in the course of construction for a long time, has not
been completed yet; so we anchor a mile or more
from the shore, not far from a score of ocean steam-
ers and half a hundred sailing vessels. Before the
anchor falls we are surrounded by a noisy fleet of
steam launches, whose whistles keep up a most in-

I8 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

fernal tooting. A score of these insistent screamers
attempt to get alongside of our companion-way at
the same time. In addition, half a hundred row-
boats attack the ladder where some of the steerage
passengers are trying to disembark.

We had heard, before entering the port, that there
were several hundred cases of smallpox here, besides
other infectious diseases. Yet this did not prevent
everybody that wanted to, and could afford the
slight cost of transportation, from coming out from
the shore and boarding our vessel. Such a chatter-
ing, such a rustling of silk skirts and a fluttering of
feathers on enormous hats, such ecstatic greetings
given to returning citizens! Such ultra- Parisian
fashions !

On shore we found the marks of modern Rio —
electric cars, fashionable automobiles, well-paved
streets, electric lights, and comfortable hotels — very
much in evidence. Were it not for the blinding sun-
light that fairly puts one's eyes out in the middle of
the day, one could readily forget one's whereabouts.
To be sure, if you go to look for it, there is the older
part of the city which still needs cleaning up accord-
ing to modern ideas of sanitation. But if you are
content to spend your time in the fashionable end
of the town or speeding along the fine new thorough-
fares in a fast motor car, it is easy to think no more
of Rio's bad record as an unhealthy port.

The city of Rio is spread over a large peninsula
that juts out from the south into the waters of the
great bay. Across the peninsula, through the centre
of the busiest part of the city, the Brazilians have

RIO, SANTOS, BRAZILIAN TRADE 19

recently opened a broad boulevard, the Avenida
Central. Fine modern business blocks have sprung
up as if by magic, and the effect is most resplendent.
The spacious avenue is in marked contrast with the
very narrow little streets that cross it. One of them,
the Rua Ouvidor, the meeting-place of the wits of
Rio, Is in many ways the most interesting street in
Brazil. Here one may see everybody that is any-
body in Rio.

At one end of the Avenida Central is Monroe
Palace, which once did duty at an International
Exposition, and more recently was the meeting-
place of the third Pan-American Conference, made
notable by the presence of Secretary Root. Beyond
the showy palace to the east there are a number
of little bays, semi-circular indentations in the shore,
which have recently been lined with splendid broad
driveways, where one may enjoy the sea breeze and
a marvellous view over the inland sea to the moun-
tains beyond.

At the far end of the new parkway rises the ever-
present Sugar Loaf, at whose feet are the buildings of
the National Exposition. They are wonderfully well
situated, lying as they do on a little isthmus wedged
in between two gigantic rocks, with the ocean on
one side and the beautiful bay on the other. The
buildings themselves are not particularly remark-
able, being decorated in the gorgeous style of elabo-
rate whiteness that one is accustomed to associate
with expositions.

The crowds I saw there were composed exclusively
of Brazilians, most of whom had apparently visited

20 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

the grounds many times and accepted them as the
fashionable evening rendezvous. Each of the states
of Brazil had a building of its own in which to ex-
hibit its products, and there was a theatre, a "Fine
Arts" building, a Hall of Manufactures, and a sad
attempt at a Midway. An entire building was de-
voted to the manufactures and exports of Portugal.
All other buildings were devoted to the states or
industries of Brazil, making the prejudice in favor
of the mother country all the more noticeable.

A change is coming over the foreign commerce of
Rio. Twenty years ago, the largest importing firms
were French and English. Many of these have
practically disappeared, having been driven out
by Portuguese, Italian, and German houses. The
marked leaning toward goods of Portuguese origin
is very striking and naturally difficult to combat.

Brazil has recently established in Paris an office
for promoting the country and aiding its economic
expansion. This office is publishing a considerable
literature, mostly in French, and will undoubtedly
be able to bring about an increase of European
commerce and that immigration which Brazil so
much needs. The completion of the new docks will
greatly help matters.

But besides new docks Rio needs a reformed cus-
toms service. Every one is agreed that the most
vexatious thing in Rio is the attitude of the custom
house officials. Either because they are poorly paid
or else simply because they have fallen into extremely
bad habits, they are allowed to receive tips and gra-
tuities openly. The result may easily be imagined.

THE CORi

•ROM RIO

RIO, SANTOS, BRAZILIAN TRADE 21

A few days after my arrival, an American natural-
ist, thoroughly honest but of a rather short temper,
was treated with outrageous discourtesy, and his
personal effects strewn unceremoniously over the
dirty floor of the warehouse by angry inspectors,
simply because he was unwilling to bribe them.
There was no question as to his having any duti-
able goods.

The population of Rio is variously estimated at
between seven and eight hundred thousand, but
her enthusiastic citizens frequently exaggerate this
and speak in an offhand way of her having a mil-
lion people. They are naturally reluctant to admit
that Rio has any fewer than Buenos Aires.

The suburbs of Rio are remarkably attractive.
On the great bay, dotted with its beautiful islands,
are various resorts that take advantage of the natu-
ral beauties of the place, and cater to the pleasure-
loving Brazilians. From various ports on the bay,
railroads radiate in all possible directions, going
north into the heart of the mining region and west
through the coffee country to Sao Paulo. The ter-
minus of a little scenic railway is the top of one
of the highest and most remarkable of the near-by
peaks, the Corcovado. The view from the summit
can scarcely be surpassed in the whole world. The
intensely blue waters of the bay, the bright white
sunlight reflected from the fleecy cumulous clouds
so typical of the tropics, the verdure-clad hills, and
the white city spread out like a map on the edge of
the bay, combine to make a marvellous picture.

No account of Rio, however brief, would be com-

22 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

plete without some reference to the "Jornal do
Comercio," the leading newspaper of Brazil, whose
owner and editor, Dr. J. C. Rodriguez, is one of the
most influential men in the country. In addition
to guiding public opinion through his powerful and
ably edited newspaper, he has had the time to at-
tend to numerous charities and to the collection
of a most remarkable library of books relating to
Brazil. He has recently taken high rank as a bibliog-
rapher by publishing a much sought after volume
on early Braziliana, basing his information largely
on his own matchless collection.

Another well-edited paper is "O Paiz," which
like the " Jornal do Comercio " has its own handsome
edifice on the new Avenida Central. A subscription
to it for one year costs "thirty thousand reis" — a
trifle over nine dollars ! As in the case of other South
American newspapers, its offices are far more luxu-
rious and elaborate than those of their contempo-
raries In North America. These southern dailies
give considerable space to foreign cablegrams, so
much more, in fact, than do our own papers, that
it almost persuades one that we are more provincial
than our neighbors.

Santos, the greatest coffee port In the world and
the only city in Brazil having adequate docking
facilities, Is a day's sail from Rio. It is separated
from the ocean by winding sea-rivers or canals.
The marshes and flats that surround It, and the
bleaching skeletons of sailing vessels that one sees
here, are sufficient reminders of the terrible epidemics
that have been the scourge of Santos in the past.

RIO, SANTOS, BRAZILIAN TRADE 23

Stones are told of ships that came here for coffee,
whose entire crews perished of yellow fever before
the cargo could be taken aboard, leaving the vessel
to rot at her moorings. All of this is changed now,
and the port is as healthy as could be expected.

Yet the town is not attractive. It lacks the pic-
turesque ox-drays of Pernambuco and the charming
surroundings of Rio, The streets are badly paved
and muddy; the clattering mule-teams that bring
the bags of coffee from the great warehouses to the
docks are just like thousands of others in our own
western cities. The old-fashioned tram-cars, run-
ning on the same tracks that the ramshackle sub-
urban trains use, are dirty but not interesting.
Prices in the shops are enormously high. In fact,
on all sides there is too much evidence of the up-
setting influence of a great modern commerce.

A long line of steamers lying at the docks taking
on coffee is the characteristic feature of the place,
and a booklet that has recently been issued to ad-
vertise the resources of Brazil bears on its cover a
branch of the coffee tree, loaded with red berries,
behind which is the photograph of a great ocean
liner, into whose steel sides marches an unending
procession of stevedores carrying on their backs sacks
of coffee. It not only emphasizes Brazil's greatest
industry, but it is also thoroughly typical of Santos.

Most of the coffee is grown in the mountains to
the north, and comes to Santos from Sao Paulo on
a splendidly equipped British-built railway. The
line is one of the finest in South America. It rises
rapidly through a beautiful tropical valley by a

24 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

gradient so steep as to necessitate the use of a cable
and cogs for a large part of the distance. The power-
houses scattered at intervals along the line are
models of cleanliness and mechanical perfection.

Notwithstanding the fact that America is by far
the greatest consumer of Santos coffee, the greater
part of the local enterprises are in British hands.
The investment of British capital in Brazil Is enor-
mous. It has been computed that it amounts to
over six hundred million dollars. Americans do not
seem yet to have waked up to the possibilities of
Brazilian commerce, or to the fact that the ques-
tion of American trade with Brazil is an extremely
important one.

It Is only necessary to realize that the territory
of Brazil Is larger than that of the United States,
that the population of Brazil is greater than all the
rest of South America put together, and that Brazil's
exports exceed her imports by one hundred million
dollars annually, to understand the opportunity for
developing our foreign trade.

Brazil produces considerably more than half of
the world's supply of coffee, besides enormous quan-
tities of rubber. The possibilities for increased pro-
duction of raw material are almost incalculable. It
is just the sort of market for us. Here we can dis-
pose of our manufactured products and purchase
what will not grow at home.

We have made some attempts to develop the
field, even though our knowledge is too often limited
to that of the delightful person who knew Brazil
was " the place where the nuts come from ! " We have

THE HAK <

SANTOS

RIO, SANTOS, BRAZILIAN TRADE 25

little conception of the great distances that separate
the important cities of Brazil and of the dififtculties
of transportation.

A story is told in Rio of an attempt to go from
Rio to Sao Paulo by motor, over the cart-road that
connects the two largest cities in the Republic.
The trip by railway takes about twelve hours.
The automobile excursion took three weeks of most
fearful drudgery. Needless to say, the cars did not
come back by their own power.

It is more difficult for a merchant in one of the
great coast cities of Central Brazil to keep in touch
with the Amazon, than it is for a Chicago merchant
to keep in touch with Australia.

Furthermore, to one who tries to master the situa-
tion, the coinage and the monetary system seem at
first sight to present an insuperable obstacle. To
have a bill for dinner rendered in thousands of reis is
rather confusing, until one comes to regard the thou-
sand ret piece as equivalent to about thirty cents.

Another and much more serious difficulty is the
poor mail service to and from New York. To the
traveller in South America, unquestionably the most
exasperating annoyance everywhere is the insecurity
and irregularity of the mails. The Latin-American
mind seems to be more differently constituted from
ours in that particular than in any other. He knows
that the service is bad, slow, and unreliable. But
it seems to make little difference to him, and the
only effort he makes to overcome the frightfully un-
satisfactory conditions is by resorting to the regis-
tered mail, to which he intrusts everything that is

26 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

of importance. Add to this fact the infrequency of
direct mail steamers from the United States to the
East Coast, and it may readily be seen where lies
one of the most serious obstacles in the way of ex-
tending our commerce with Brazil,

A marked peculiarity of the Brazilian market is
its extreme conservatism. Brazilians who have be-
come accustomed to buying French, English, and
German products are loath to change. American
products are unfashionable. The Brazilian who can
afford it travels on the luxuriously appointed
steamers of the Royal Mail, and he and his friends
regard articles of English make as much more fash-
ionable and luxurious than those from the United
States.

This is largely due to the lack of commercial
prestige which we enjoy in the coast cities of Brazil.
The Brazilians cannot understand why they see
no American banks and no American steamship
lines. Our flag never appears in their ports except
as it is carried by a man-of-war or an antiquated
wooden sailing vessel. To their minds this is proof
conclusive that the American, who claims that his
country is one of the most important commercial
nations in the world, is merely bluffing.

Such prejudices can only be overcome by strict
attention to business, and this attention our export-
ers have in large measure not yet thought it worth
while to give. The agents that they send to Brazil
rarely speak Portuguese, and are unable to com-
pete with the expert linguists who come out from
Europe. Frequently they even lack that technical

RIO, SANTOS, BRAZILIAN TRADE 27

training In the manufacture of the goods which
they are trying to sell, which gives their German
competitors so great an advantage.

Still more important than commercial travellers
In a country like Brazil, is the establishment of
agencies where goods may be attractively displayed.
An active importer told me that, in his opinion,
the most essential thing for Americans to do was to
maintain permanent depots or expositions where
their goods could be seen and handled. Relatively
little good seems to result from the use of catalogues,
even when printed in the language of the country,
owing to the insecurity of the mails and the absence
of American banks or express companies which
would Insure the delivery of goods ordered.

Finally, it is disgraceful to be obliged to repeat
the old story of American methods of packing goods
for shipment to South America. This fact has been
so often alluded to in many different publications
that it might seem as though further criticism were
unnecessary. Unfortunately, however, In spite of re-
peated protests, American shippers, forgetful of the
almost entire absence of docks and docking facilities
here, continue to pack their goods as If they were
destined for Europe.

At most of the ports, lighters have to be used.
These resemble small coal barges, Into which the
goods are lowered over the side of the vessel. Often
more or less of a sea is running, and notwithstanding
all the care that may be used the durability of the
packing-cases Is tested to the utmost. I saw a box
containing a typewriter dumped on top of a pile

28 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

of miscellaneous merchandise, from which it rolled
down, bumping and thumping into the farther corner
of the barge. Fortunately, this particular typewriter
belonged to a make of American machines whose
manufacturers have learned to pack their goods in
such form as to stand just that kind of treatment.
The result is that one sees that brand of machine
all over South America.

The American consul in Rio, Mr. Anderson, has
been doing a notable service in recent years by
sending north full and accurate reports of business
conditions in Brazil, and our special agent, Mr.
Lincoln Hutchinson, has written excellent reports on
trade conditions in South America. To the labors
of both these gentlemen I am greatly indebted for
information on this subject.

CHAPTER III

BUENOS AIRES

WE left Santos late on a Tuesday afternoon,
and after two pleasant days at sea entered
the harbor of Montevideo on Friday morning. It
was crowded with ships of all nations, and we were
particularly delighted to see the American flag
flying from three small steamers. Could it be pos-
sible that the flag which had been so conspicuous
for its absence from South American waters, was
regaining in the twentieth century the preeminence
it had in the early years of the nineteenth? Alas, no;
the boats were only government vessels in the light-
house service, towing lightships from the Atlantic
to the Pacific coast. They had stopped here to coal,
for Montevideo is a favorite port of call for steamers
bound through the Straits of Magellan. Ever since
the days when it was the home of active smugglers,
who were engaged in defying Spain's restrictive
colonial policy, Montevideo has been a prosperous
trading centre. To-day, clean streets, new build-
ings, electric cars, fine shops, elaborate window dis-
plays, well-dressed people, and excellent hotels mark
it as modern and comfortable.

It is difficult to realize that this is the capital of
Uruguay, "one of the most tumultuous of the smaller
revolutionary states of South America." The Amer-

30 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

ican is chagrined to find that the Uruguayan gold
or paper dollar is worth two cents more than our
own. And the Englishman is most annoyed to find
the "sovereign" at a discount. But chagrin gives
way to frank amazement at the high prices which
the Montevidean is willing to pay for his imported
luxuries.

The republic is small but there is no waste land,
and the railroads bring in quantities of wool and
food-stuffs destined for the European market. More
than three thousand steamers enter the port an-
nually. Most of them belong to the eighteen Brit-
ish lines that touch here. No wonder the city is
wealthy and has attractive shops and boulevards.
To be sure, the harbor improvements, not completed
yet, have been greatly retarded by the most flagrant
kind of political graft. But what American city,
from New York to San Francisco, has a clean
record in this particular?

Splendidly equipped steamers, resembling our
Fall River boats, ply nightly between Montevideo
and Buenos Aires, in order to accommodate the in-
creasing numbers who wish to do business in both
cities.

A generation ago the traveller to Buenos Aires
was obliged to disembark in the stream seven or
eight miles from the city, proceed in small boats
over the shallow waters, and then clamber into huge
ox-carts and enjoy the last mile or two of his jour-
ney as best he could. Since then, extraordinary har-
bor improvements, costing millions of dollars, have
been completed, and ocean steamers are now able

BUENOS AIRES 31

to approach the city through dredged channels.
Yet such has been the phenomenal growth of the
port that the magnificent modern docks are al-
ready overcrowded and the handling of cargo goes
on very slowly, retarded by many exasperating de-
lays. The regular passenger and mail steamers are
given prompt attention, however, and the customs
house examination is both speedy and courteous, in
marked contrast to that at Rio. In years to come,
the two other important ports of Argentina — Rosa-
rio, higher up the Rio de la Plata, and Bahia Blanca,
farther down the Atlantic coast — are destined to
grow at a rapid rate because of the better docking
facilities they will be able to afford. r

• Bahia Blanca in particular is destined to have a
great future, as it is the natural outlet for the rapidly
developing agricultural and pastoral region of south-
ern Argentina.

Buenos Aires, however, will always maintain her
political and commercial supremacy. She is not
only the capital of Argentina, but out of every five
Argentinos, she claims at least one as a denizen of
her narrow streets. Already ranking as the second
Latin city in the world, her population equals that
of Madrid and Barcelona combined.

Hardly has one left the docks on the way to the
hotel before one is impressed with the commercial
power of this great city. Your taidcah passes slowly
through crowded streets where the heavy trafhc re-
tards your progress and gives you a chance to marvel
at the great number of foreign banks, English, Ger-
man, French, and Italian, that have taken pos-

32 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

session of this quarter of the city. With their fine
substantial buildings and their general appearance
of solidity, they have a firm grip on the situation.
One looks in vain for an American bank or agency
of any well-known Wall Street house. American
financial institutions are like the American mer-
chant steamers, conspicuous by their absence. The
Anglo-Saxons that you see briskly walking along
the sidewalks are not Americans, but clean-shaven,
red-cheeked, vigorous Britishers.

In England they talk familiarly of "B.A." and
the "River Plate"; disdaining to use the Spanish
words Argentina, Uruguay, Paraguay, and Buenos
Aires. To hear them you might suppose they were
speaking of something they owned, and you would
not be so very far from the truth. What Mexico owes
to American capital and enterprise, the countries
and cities of the Rio de la Plata owe to Great Britain.
British capitalists have not been slow to realize
the possibilities of this great agricultural region.
They know its potentiality as a food-producer, and
they have covered it with a network of railways
much as we have covered the prairies of Illinois and
the plains of Kansas. Of the billion and a quarter
dollars of British capital invested in Argentina,
over seven hundred millions are in railways. Thou-
sands of active, energetic young Englishmen, backed
by this enormous British capital, have aided in the
extraordinary progress which Argentina has made
during the past generation.

In some ways this is an English colony. The ma-
jority of the people do not speak English, except in

BUENOS AIRES 33

the commercial district, and the Englishman is here
on sufferance. But it is his railroads that tie this
country together. It is his enterprises that have
opened thousands of its square miles, and although
the folly of his ancestors a century ago caused him
to lose the political control of this "purple land,"
the energy of his more recent forebears has given
him a splendid heritage. Not only has he been able
to pay large dividends to the British stockholders
who had such great faith in the future of Argentina,
he has made many native Argentinos wealthy
beyond the dreams of avarice.

Land-owners, whose parents had not a single
change of clothes, are themselves considering how
many motor cars to order. Their patronage sus-
tains the finely appointed shops which make such
a brave display on Florida and Cangallo Streets.
These streets may be so narrow that vehicles are
only allowed to pass in one direction, but the shops
are first class in every particular and include the
greatest variety of goods, from the latest creations
of Parisian millinery to the most modern scientific
instruments. Fine book shops, large department
stores, gorgeous restaurants, expensive to the last
degree, emphasize the wealth and extravagance of
the upper classes.

On the streets one may hear all of the European
languages. In the business district it is quite as
likely to be English as Spanish, and in the poorer
quarters Italian is growing more common every
day. The speech of the common people is nominally
Spanish, very bad Spanish. In reality it is a hybrid

34 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

into which Portuguese, Italian, and Indian words
and accents have entered to disfigure the beautiful
Castilian.

When Rio cut her Avenida Central through the
middle of her business district, she had in mind the
Avenida 25 de Mayo of Buenos Aires, a typical
imitation Parisian Boulevard that was opened not
many years ago to facilitate traffic and beautify the
city. On the Avenida, as in Rio, the leading news-
paper has its luxurious home.

All the world has heard of "La Prensa" and its
marvellously well-appointed building where dis-
tinguished foreigners are entertained, lectures are
given, and all sorts of advertising dodges are fea-
tured. It was "La Prensa" that had the news of
President Taft's election two minutes after it was
known in New York. Many Portenos, as the people
of Buenos Aires are called, think the columns of
"La Prensa" are too yellow and that its business
methods are almost too modern. They prefer the
more dignified pages of the "Nacion."

The hotels on the Avenida are not up to the
standard of three of those on the narrower thorough-
fares. In fact, it would be hard to find more com-
fortable hostelries than the Grand or the Palace.
The new Phoenix Hotel, one of the first skyscrapers
to be erected here, promises even greater comforts
and is to be the rendezvous of the British colony.

There are many theatres and they have a bril-
liant season, which begins in June. The pleasure-
loving Porteilos are willing to pay very high prices
for the best seats, and managers can offer good

BUENOS AIRES 35

salaries to tempt the best performers to leave Eu-
rope. Variety shows are popular and carried to an
extreme with which we are not familiar in the United
States. Some of them are poor copies of question-
able Parisian enterprises. But even these are not
as bad as the moving picture shows that have cap-
tured Buenos Aires. Public opinion is astonishingly
lax in the southern capital. Exhibitions of shocking
indecency are countenanced, that would no longer
be tolerated in Europe or North America. In this
matter Buenos Aires also offers a marked contrast
to Santiago de Chile where morals are on a much
higher plane, thanks to the Catholic Church, which
unfortunately seems to have lost its grip here.

The Porteiio has not only forgotten his religion,
he seems also to have lost the pleasing manners of
his Castilian ancestors. I have been in eight South
American capitals and in none have I seen such
bad manners as in Buenos Aires. Nowhere else in
South America is one jostled so rudely. Nowhere
else does one see such insolent behavior and such
bad taste. Santiago, Lima, Bogota, and Caracas
seem to belong to a different civilization. To be
sure, none of them are as rich and prosperous. But
in all of them good society is a much more ancient
concern than in this overgrown young metropolis.

Here the newly rich are in full sway and their
ideas and instincts seem to predominate. On Sun-
day afternoon, all the world dashes madly out to
the race course, where it exercises its passion for
gambling to the fullest capacity. In the Jockey Club
inclosure are gathered the youth and beauty, the

36 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

wealth and fashion of the city. And yet the ladies
carry the artificial tricks of feminine adornment to
such an amazing extent that it is almost impossible
to realize that they belong to the fashionable world
and not to the demi-monde. The races that I at-
tended drew an audience of thirty thousand. One
race had a first prize amounting to fifteen thousand
dollars. The horses seemed to be of a rather heavier
build than ours but they did not interest the spec-
tators. Facilities for betting were provided on an
elaborate scale. There were no bookmakers, and
the odds depended entirely on the popular choice,
as is commonly done in Europe. The gate receipts
and the proceeds of the "percentage" are enormous
and have enabled the Jockey Club to build one of
the most luxurious and extravagant club houses in
the world.

After the races, hundreds of motor cars and car-
riages promenade slowly up and down that part of
the parkway which society has decreed shall be her
rendezvous. Here one sees an astonishing display
of paint and powder illuminating the faces of the
devotees of a fashion which decrees that all ladies
must have brilliant complexions. The effect is
very unpleasant. I suppose it Is simply another
evidence of the newness of modern Buenos Aires.
Very few wealthy families have a long-established
social position. Culture and refinement are at a
discount. Otherwise it is difficult to Imagine how
any society can tolerate such artificiality. This
garish Sunday parade Is quite a swing of the pen-
dulum from the old days when Creole ladies, mod-

BUENOS AIRES 37

estly attired in lovely black lace mantillas, walked
quietly to church and home again, as they still do in
most South American cities.

It is hardly necessary to speak of the more usual
evidences of great wealth, palatial residences that
would attract attention even in Paris and New York,
charming parks beautifully laid out on the shores
of the great Rio de la Plata, and a thousand luxu-
rious automobiles of the latest pattern carrying all
they can hold of Parisian millinery.

One does not need to be told that this is a city
of electric cars, telephones, and taxis. These we take
for granted. But there is a characteristic feature
of the city that is unexpected and striking: the
central depots for imported thoroughbreds. Only
a few doors from the great banks and railway offices
are huge stables where magnificent blooded horses
and cattle, sheep and pigs, which have brought re-
cords of distinguished ancestry across the Atlantic,
are offered for sale and command high prices.

These permanent cattle-shows are the natural
rendezvous of the wealthy ranchmen and breeders
who are sure to be found here during a part of each
day while they are in town. So are foreigners de-
sirous of purchasing ranches and reporters getting
news from the interior. The cattle-fairs offer ocular
evidence of the wealth of the modern Argentine
and the importance of the pastoral industry. There
are over a hundred million sheep on the Pampas.
Cattle and horses also are counted by the millions.

The problems of Argentine agriculture and ani-
mal industries are being continually studied by the

38 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

great land-owners, who have already done much to
improve the quahty of their products.

During my stay in Buenos Aires, it was my privi-
lege to visit an agricultural school in one of the
neighboring towns. The occasion was the celebra-
tion of its twenty-fifth anniversary. The festivities
were typically Spanish- American. An avenue of
trees was christened with appropriate ceremonies,
being given the name of the anniversary date. To
each tree a bunch of fire-crackers had been tied.
At the beginning and end of the avenue a new
sign-post bearing its name had been put up and
veiled with a piece of cheese cloth. A procession
consisting of the officials of the school and of the
National University of La Plata, with which the
school is affiliated, alumni and visitors, formed at
the school-buildings after the reading of an ap-
propriate address, and marched down the new
avenue following the band. As we progressed, the
signs were unveiled and the bunches of fire-crackers
touched off. At the far end, in a grove of eucalyp-
tus trees, a collation was served, and we were en-
tertained by having the fine horses and cattle be-
longing to the school paraded up and down. The
school has an extensive property, is doing good work,
and shows a practical grasp of the needs of the coun-
try. '

Argentina has worked hard to develop those in-
dustries that are dependent upon stock-raising.
The results have amply justified her. The expor-
tation of frozen meat from Argentina amounts to
nearly twenty million dollars annually. Only re-

BUENOS AIRES 39

cently one of the best known packing-houses of
Chicago opened a large plant here and is paying
tribute to the excellence of the native stock. Every
year Argentina sends to Europe the carcasses of
millions of sheep and cattle as well as millions of
bushels of wheat and corn, more in fact than we do.
Of all the South American republics, she is our
greatest natural competitor, and she knows it.
Nevertheless, she lacks adequate resources of iron,
coal, lumber, and water power, and notwithstanding
a high protective tariff, can never hope to become a
competitor in manufactured products. Argentina
exports more than three times as much per capita
as we do, and must do so in order to pay for the
necessary importation of manufactured goods. It
also means that she will always find it to her ad-
vantage to buy her goods from England, France,
and Germany, where she sells her food-stuffs. Brazil
can send us unlimited amounts of raw materials
that we cannot raise at home, while at present
Argentina has little to offer us. Yet we are already
buying her wool and hides, and before long will
undoubtedly be eating her beef and mutton, as
England has been doing for years.

The banks of Buenos Aires have learned to be
extremely conservative. For a long time this city
was a favorite resort of absconding bank cashiers
from the United States, and stories are told of
many well-dressed Americans who have come here
from time to time without letters of introduction
but with plenty of money to spend, who have been
kindly received by the inhabitants, only to prove

40 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

to be undesirable acquaintances. What we con-
sider " old-fashioned and antiquated " English bank
methods are the rule, and it frequently takes a
couple of hours to draw money on a letter of credit
even when one has taken the pains to notify one's
bankers beforehand that the letter was to be used
in South America. Personally, I have found Ameri-
can Express checks extremely useful in all parts of
South America and have had no difhculty in getting
them accepted in Buenos Aires. In the interior
it is more difficult unless one comes well introduced.
But the necessity for letters of introduction is quite
generally recognized all over the continent. Strang-
ers who have "neglected to supply themselves with
credentials," frequently turn out to be fugitives
from justice.

Another local peculiarity noticeable also in Chile,
is that many of the citizens bitterly begrudge us
our attempted monopoly of the title of "Ameri-
cans." They catalogue us at all possible times un-
der "N" instead of "A." They also speak of us
as North Americans or as "Yankis, " and they call
our Minister the "North American Minister,"
quite ignoring the existence of Mexico and Canada.

Certain Americans who are desirous of securing
an increase of our trade with South America and of
placating in every possible manner the South Amer-
icans, overlooking the practical side of the question,
have acquiesced in the local prejudice and speak
of themselves as North Americans, even though
they do not address their letters to the "United
States of North America."

BUENOS AIRES 41

The fact that the South American refuses to grant
us our title of "Americans" is really an indirect
compliment. It is chiefly owing to the industry
and intelligence of the citizens of the United States,
that the word "American" has come to have a com-
plimentary meaning, — far more complimentary in
fact than it had fifty years ago when distinguished
foreigners were wont to use that adjective as a
peculiarly opprobrious epithet. With this change
in the significance of the term has come a natural
desire on the part of the South Americans to apply
it to themselves. They reason that they have as
good a right, geographically, to the term as we have,
and they wilfully forget that each of their repub-
lics has in its legal title a word which conveniently
and euphoniously characterizes its citizens. The
people of the United States of Brazil are called
Brazilians, and those of the United States of Mex-
ico are Mexicans by the same right that those
of the United States of America are Americans.
To be sure, the world generally thinks of our coun-
try as the United States, quite forgetful that there
are several other republics of the same name. It
is a pity that a euphonious appellation cannot be
manufactured from one or both of those two words.
We cannot distinguish ourselves by the title " North
American," as that ignores the rightful claim to that
title which the denizens of the larger part of this
continent, the Mexicans and Canadians, have in
common with us. It is difficult to see how we are
to avoid calling ourselves Americans even if it
gives offence to our neighbors. It is not a point of

42 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

great importance and it seems to me that in time,
with the natural growth of Chile and the Argentine
Republic, their citizens will be so proud of being
called Chilenos or Argentinos that they will not
begrudge us our only convenient and proper title.

There is another point, however, in their criti-
cism of us which is more reasonable and on which
they might be accorded more satisfaction. I refer
to that part of our foreign policy known as the
Monroe Doctrine. Many a Chileno and Argentine
resents the idea of our IVIonroe Doctrine applying
in any sense to his country and declares that we
had better keep it at home. He regards it as only
another sign of our overweening national conceit.
And on mature consideration, it does seem as though
the justification for the Monroe Doctrine, both in
its original and its present form, had passed. Eu-
rope is no longer ruled by despots who desire to
crush the liberties of their subjects. As is frequently
remarked, England has a more democratic govern-
ment than the United States. In all the leading
countries of Europe, the people have practically as
much to say about the government as they have in
America. There is not the slightest danger that any
European tyrant will attempt to enslave the weak
republics of this hemisphere. Furthermore, such
republics as Mexico, Argentina, Brazil, Chile, and
Peru no more need our Monroe Doctrine to keep
them from being robbed of their territory by Euro-
pean nations than does Italy or Spain. If it be true
that some of the others, like the notoriously lawless
group in Central America, need to be looked after

BUENOS AIRES 43

by their neighbors, let us amend our outgrown
Monroe Doctrine, as has already been suggested
by one of our writers on international law, so as to
include in the police force of the Western Hemi-
sphere, those who have shown themselves able to
practice self-control. With our lynchings, strikes,
and riots, we shall have to be very careful, however,
not to make the conditions too severe or we shall
ourselves fail to qualify.

The number of "North Americans" in Buenos
Aires is very small. While we have been slowly
waking up to the fact that South America is some-
thing more than "a land of revolutions and fevers,"
our German cousins have entered the field on all
sides.

The Germans in southern Brazil are a negligible
factor in international affairs. But the well-edu-
cated young German who is being sent out to cap-
ture South America commercially, is a power to
be reckoned with. He is going to damage England
more truly than Dreadnoughts or gigantic airships.
He is worth our study as well as England's.

Willing to acquaint himself with and adapt him-
self to local prejudices, he has already made great
strides in securing South American commerce for
his Fatherland. He has become a more useful
member of the community than the Englishman.
He has taken pains to learn the language thoroughly,
and speak it not only grammatically but idio-
matically as well; something which the Anglo-
Saxon almost never does. He has entered into the
social life of the country with a much more gracious

ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

spirit than his competitors and rarely segregates him-
self from the community in pursuing his pleasures
as the English do. His natural prejudices against
the Spanish way of doing things are not so strong.

His steamers are just as luxurious and comfort-
able as the new English boats. It is said that even
if the element of danger that always exists at sea
is less on the British lines, the German boats treat
their passengers with more consideration, giving
them better food and better service. No wonder
the Spanish-American likes the German better
than he does the English or American. Already the
English residents in Buenos Aires, who have re-
garded the River Plate as their peculiar province
for many years, are galled beyond measure to see
what strides the Germans have made in capturing
the market for their manufactured products and in
threatening their commercial supremacy. And
neither English nor Germans are going to hold out
a helping hand or welcome an American commercial
invasion.

Meanwhile the Argentinos realize that their
country cannot get along without foreign capital,
much as they hate to see the foreigner made rich
from the products of their rolling prairies.

Politically, Buenos Aires and Argentina are in
the control of the native born. They have a natural
aptitude for playing politics, and they much prefer
it to the more serious world of business. This they
are quite willing to leave to the foreigner.

They realize also that they greatly need more
immigrants. The population is barely five per square

BUENOS AIRES 45

mile, and as a matter of fact, is practically much
less than that for so large a part of the entire popu-
lation is crowded into the city and province of
Buenos Aires. Consequently they are doing all they
can to encourage able-bodied immigrants to come
from Italy and Spain.

And the immigrants are coming. My ship brought
a thousand. Other ships brought more than three
hundred thousand in 1908. Argentina is not stand-
ing still. Nor is she waiting for "American enter-
prise." During 1908 considerably more than two
thousands vessels entered the ports of the republic.
Four flew the American flag.

CHAPTER IV

ARGENTINE INDEPENDENCE AND SPANISH-
AMERICAN SOLIDARITY

ON the 25th of May, 19 10, the Argentine nation
in general, and Buenos Aires in particular,
observed with appropriate ceremonies the one
hundredth anniversary of their independence. Great
preparations were made to insure a celebration that
should suitably represent the importance of the
event.

In 1 8 10 Buenos Aires had been a Spanish colony
for two hundred and fifty years following her foun-
dation in the sixteenth century. But the Spanish
crown had never valued highly the great rolling
prairies drained by the Rio de la Plata. There were
no mines of gold or silver here, and Spain did not
send her colonists into far-away America to raise
corn and wine that should compete with Spanish
farmers at home. Buenos Aires was regarded as the
end of the world. All persons and all legitimate com-
merce bound thither from Spain were obliged to go
by way of Panama and Peru, over the Andes, across
the South American continent, before they could
legally enter the port of Buenos Aires. The natural
result of this was the building up of a prosperous
colony of Portuguese smugglers in southern Brazil.
Another result was that no Spaniards cared to live

ARGENTINE INDEPENDENCE 47

so far away from home if they could possibly help
it, and society in Buenos Aires was not nearly so
brilliant as in the fashionable Spanish-American
capitals of Lima, Santiago, or Bogota.

During the closing years of the eighteenth century
the Spaniards became convinced of their short-
sighted policy and made Buenos Aires an open port.
The English were not slow to realize that this was
one of the best commercial situations in South Amer-
ica, and that far from being the end of the world,
as the Spaniards thought, it was a natural centre
through which the wealth of a large part of South
America was bound to pass. The great Mr. Pitt,
who was most interested in developing British com-
merce with South America, felt that it would prob-
ably be necessary to introduce British manufactures
in the wake of a military expedition, and decided
to seize Buenos Aires, which was so poorly defended
that it could easily be captured by a small resolute
force.

Accordingly in June, 1806, an attack was made.
The Viceroy, notwithstanding repeated warnings,
had made no preparations to defend the city, and it
was captured without difficulty. There was great
rejoicing in London at the report of the victory,
but it was soon turned to dismay by the news of a
disgraceful and unconditional surrender. The sud-
den overthrow of the English was due largely to the
ability of a local hero named Liniers who played
successfully on the wounded pride of the Portenos.

,The significance of the episode is that it gave to
the Porteiios the idea that the power of Spain could

48 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

be easily overthrown, and that they actually had
the courage and strength to win and hold their own
independence.

Hardly had the city recovered from the effects
of its bombardment by the English before events,
destined to produce a profound change throughout
South America, commenced to attract attention
in Spain. Napoleon inaugurated his peninsula
campaigns, and the world beheld the spectacle of
a Spanish king become the puppet of a French em-
peror. In July, 1809, a new Viceroy, appointed by
the Spanish cortes then engaged in fighting against
Napoleon, took possession of the reins of government
in Buenos Aires. In the early months of 1810, Na-
poleon's armies were so successful throughout the
Spanish peninsula that it seemed as if the complete
subjection of Spain was about to be accomplished.

On May 18, the unhappy Viceroy allowed this
news from Spain to become known in the city. At
once a furor of popular discussion arose. Led by
Belgrano and other liberal young Creoles, the people
decided to defy Napoleon and his puppet king of
Spain as they had defied the soldiers of England.
On the 25th of May, the Viceroy, frightened out
of his wits, surrendered his authority, and a great
popular assembly that crowded the plaza to its ut-
most capacity appointed a committee to rule in
his stead. So the 25th of May, 1810, became the
actual birthday of Argentina's independence, al-
though the acts of the popular government were
for six years done in the name of Ferdinand, the
deposed king of Spain, and the Act of Independence

ARGENTINE INDEPENDENCE 49

was not passed by the Argentine Congress until
1816.

No sooner had Buenos Aires thrown off the yoke
of Spain than she began an active armed propaganda
much as the first French republic did before her.
Other cities of Argentina were forcibly convinced
of the advantages of independence, and the armies
of Buenos Aires pressed northward into what is
now southern Bolivia. It was their intention to drive
the Spanish armies entirely out of the continent,
and what seemed more natural than that they should
follow the old trade route which they had used for
centuries, and go from Buenos Aires to Lima by way
of the highlands of Bolivia and Peru. But they reck-
oned without counting the cost. In the first place
the Indians of those lofty arid regions do not take
great interest in politics. It matters little to them
who their masters are. Furthermore, their country
is not one that is suited to military campaigns.
Hundreds of square miles of arid desert plateaux
ten or twelve thousand feet above the sea, a region
suited only to support a small population and that
by dint of a most careful system of irrigation, sepa-
rated by frightful mountain trails from any adequate
basis of supplies, were obstacles that proved too
great for them to overcome. Their little armies were
easily driven back. On the other hand, when the
royalist armies attempted to descend from the
plateaux and attack the patriots, they were equally
unsuccessful. The truth is that southern Bolivia
and northern Argentina are regions where it is far
easier to stay at home and defend one's self than

50 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

to make successful attacks on one's neighbors. An
army cannot live off the country as it goes along,
and the difficulties of supplying it with provisions
and supplies are almost insurmountable. The first
man to appreciate this was Jos^ San Martin.

It is not too much to say that San Martin is the
greatest name that South America has produced.
Bolivar is better known among us, and he is some-
times spoken of as the "Washington of South
America." But his character does not stand inves-
tigation ; and no one can claim that his motives were
as unselfish or his aims as lofty as those of the great
general to whose integrity and ability the foremost
republics of Spanish South America, Argentina,
Chile, and Peru, owe their independence.

San Martin was born of Spanish parents not far
from the present boundary between Argentina and
Paraguay. His father was a trusted Spanish official.
His mother was a woman of remarkable courage and
foresight. His parents sent him to Spain at an early
age to be educated. Military instincts soon drew
him into the army and he served in various capa-
cities, both In Africa and later against the French
in the peninsula. He was able to learn thoroughly
the lessons of war and the value of well-trained
soldiers. He received the news of the popular up-
rising in Argentina while still in Spain, and soon
became interested in the struggles of his fellow-
countrymen to establish their independence. In
1812 he returned to Buenos Aires where his unsel-
fish zeal and intelligence promptly marked him out
as an unusual leader. The troops under him be-

THE USP.-

A PASS

ARGENTINE INDEPENDENCE 51

came the best-drilled body of patriots in South
America.

After witnessing the futile attempts of the pa-
triots to drive the Spanish armies out of the moun-
tains of Peru by way of the highlands of Bolivia, he
conceived the brilliant idea of cutting ofif their com-
munication with Spain by commanding the sea
power of the West Coast. He established his head-
quarters at Mendoza in western Argentina, a point
from which it would be easy to strike at Chile
through various passes across the Andes. Here he
stayed for two years governing the province admi-
rably, building up an efi(icient army, organizing the
refugees that fled from Chile to Mendoza, making
friends with the Indians, and keeping out of the fac-
tional quarrels that threatened to destroy all proper
government in Buenos Aires. In January, 181 7, his
army was ready. He led the Spaniards to think that
he might cross the Andes almost anywhere, and suc-
ceeded in scattering their forces so as to enable him
to bring the main body of his army over the most
practical route, the Uspallata Pass.

The expedition was successful, and in 1818 San
Martin had the satisfaction of administering such a
decisive defeat to the Spaniards at Maipo as to in-
sure Chilean independence. With the aid of a re-
markable soldier of fortune, Thomas Cochran, Earl
of Dundonald, and an interesting group of Anglo-
Saxon seamen, San Martin drove the Spaniards
from the West Coast and captured the city of Lima.
The aid which was given him by Buenos Aires and
Chile was not sufficient to enable him to penetrate

52 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

the great Andes of the interior and totally destroy
the last Spanish army. He sought Bolivar's aid, but
that proud Liberator would only come as Comman-
der-in-chief. So, rather than sacrifice the cause of
independence, San Martin, with unexampled self-
effacement, gave up his well-trained veterans to Boli-
var and Sucre and quietly withdrew to his modest
home in Argentina. His unwillingness to enter into
political squabbles, his large-minded statesmanship,
and his dignified bearing did not endear him to his
fellow countrymen, and he was forced to pass the de-
clining years of his life in Europe, an exile from his
native land.

The history of the period is full of petty personal
rivalries and absurd political squabbles. Against
these as a background the magnificent figure of San
Martin, efficient soldier, wise statesman, and unsel-
fish patriot, stands out plainly distinct. His achieve-
ments are worthy to be remembered with those of
the greatest heroes of history. His character, the
finest that South America has ever produced, has
few equals in the annals of any country.

For many years he was disliked by his fellow pa-
triots because he openly expressed the belief that
they were not fit for pure democratic government.
Since his day many South Americans agree with him.

The most serious criticism, however, which we
can lay at the door of the South American is his lack
of political cohesion. The border provinces are ever-
lastingly rebelling against the decrees of the central
government. Furthermore, when the Spanish colo-
nies secured their independence, they either did not

SPANISH-AMERICAN SOLIDARITY 53

combine or else combining soon fell apart. The rea-
son for this lack of solidarity may be found in the
history of the Hispanic race and in the geographical
conditions that exist in the southern continent.

In criticising South American habits of mind and
political tendencies, one must remember that the
moral and intellectual characteristics that form the
soul of a people have been developed by its entire
past and represent the inheritance of its ancestors.
For the motives of its conduct, one must look to its
history.

Historically, the Hispanic race was led to develop
individualistic rather than cooperative action. The
forces at work in the peninsula were centrifugal
rather than centripetal. A small handful of brave
mountaineers were almost the only inhabitants of
the peninsula that were able to defy the Moorish con-
querors. The process of the Christian re-conquest
of Spain was so slow that it took nearly eight centur-
ies for her to grow from the lonely, rocky fastness of
Covadonga to the group of Christian kingdoms that
embraced the entire peninsula. During these eight
hundred years, preceding the Conquest of America,
the Spaniards fought almost continuously against
an ever-present enemy. This developed a strong
municipal spirit, for the towns on the frontier were
in constant danger of attacks from the Moors, and it
was necessary to grant them very considerable pow-
ers. As the boundaries of Christian Spain extended
southward, new cities came to be frontier posts, but
the old ones retained the powers and the semi-inde-
pendence they had previously gained.

54 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

The result was a race of men devoted primarily to
their cities; only secondarily to the province or king-
dom to which their city belonged, and quite incident-
ally to Spain as a geographical and linguistic unit.
Such a racial tendency could not help developing
that disregard of large national interests in prefer-
ence to petty local concerns which has been a most
unfortunate trait in the history of the South Ameri-
can republics. For while it may be true that the con-
ception of the city as the soul of the native country
has always been effective from the point of view of
the development of civilization, it has been disas-
trous in its effect on national progress. It was just
that loyalty to the municipality that prevented the
growth of the Greek Empire.

Another result of the eight hundred years of Chris-
tian warfare against the infidel Moor, was the devel-
opment of moral and physical qualities that made
possible the marvellously rapid conquest of America
by small companies of coiiquistadores. Brave, big-
oted, courageous, accustomed to continuous hostili-
ties, ardently devoted to a cause for which they were
willing to lay down their lives, fighting to the last
ditch, it is not surprising that the ancestors of the
South Americans were able to achieve such wonder-
ful results in the early sixteenth century.

Only a vigorous and rising nation could have ac-
complished the great work of exploring, conquering,
and colonizing America which was done at that time.
,. As a matter of fact, a wonderful transformation
was then taking place in Spain. The marriage of
Ferdinand and Isabella had united by personal

SPANISH-AMERICAN SOLIDARITY 55

bonds what had formerly been a handful of detached
kingdoms. These countries each had their own laws,
their own peculiar customs and separate administra-
tive systems. Some of the provinces were inhabited
by people of different stock. The process of unifica-
tion was almost contemporaneous with the conquest
and colonization of America.

For a career destined to be as great as that of any
of the larger empires of history, Spain had at the be-
ginning of the colonizing period an inadequate po-
litical organization. Spanish racial unity and reli-
gious uniformity were of recent growth. The Euro-
pean progenitors of the conquerors did not fight for
Spain as a whole, but rather as citizens of a munici-
pality or as vassals of a petty king. The spirit of a
centralized, unified government whose citizens are
willing to sacrifice everything for the sake of their
nation, did not run in their blood. They belonged
to a fragmentary and embryonic group of nations.
Spain did not adopt a policy of centralization long
enough before the acquisition of her American col-
onies to allow the results of such a change in meth-
odsof government to affect popularhabits of thought.
In the meantime, South America was being colo-
nized by men who had no sense of racial unity and
few tendencies towards concerted political action.
[■ Hence it is not at all surprising that their descend-
ants, the heroes of the Wars of Emancipation, did
not find it easy or natural to unite under one gov-
ernment. It was in accordance with the history of
their race that they should form separate political
establishments. It was also in accordance with that

56 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

Spanish colonial policy which forbade communica-
tion between the different colonies and in no way en-
couraged a community of interests.

Historically then, there was little to cause the
South American colonies on achieving their inde-
pendence, to unite, even had they not been sepa-
rated by tremendous natural obstacles.

Although the basins of the Amazon, the La Plata,
and the Orinoco offered many thousands of miles of
navigable highways, the masses of water were to6
copious and too irregular to be controlled until the
era of steam navigation. In the great valleys east of
the Andes, the excessive fertility of the soil has pro-
duced an enormous area of continuous woodlands,
a mass of vegetation that has defied the efforts of cen-
turies to effect clearings and roads. This densely
timbered and sparsely inhabited region keeps Vene-
zuela from having any dealings with Bolivia more
effectually than if an absolute desert lay between
them.

There is nothing that separates one of the United
States from another that is at all comparable to the
lofty chain of the Andes and the impenetrable jungle
that lies for hundreds of miles on the eastern slope
of the Cordillera. The more one considers the mat-
ter, the more it seems as though nature could not
have placed more impassable obstacles in the way
of intercommunication if she had set out with that
definite purpose in view. In comparison with the dif-
ficulties of travelling from Lima, the centre of the old
Spanish domain, to Buenos Aires, a journey from
New York to Charleston in the days of the Ameri-

SPANISH-AMERICAN SOLIDARITY 57

can revolution was a mere pleasure jaunt, and yet it
seemed difficult enough at that time! Nowhere in
the English colonies existed such impediments to
communication as the deserts of northern Chile
and southern Peru, the swamps of eastern Colombia
and western Venezuela, the forests of Ecuador, Peru,
and Bolivia, or the gigantic chain of the Andes whose
lowest point for thousands of miles is ten thousand
feet above the sea.

# The founders of the original thirteen English colo-
nies not only inherited racial unity but providen-
tially built their homes on a short strip of coast and
occupied a homogeneous country, no larger than a
single Spanish colony. Their union followed as a
matter of course.

It was quite otherwise in South America. For, as
though it were not enough that the tendency of the
race was towards building up individual communi-
ties rather than federations, as though the laws for-
bidding the colonists from trading with one another
and from travelling from one colony to another were
not a sufficient preventive of union, all the forces of
nature, mountains, rivers, deserts, swamps, and even
winds, combined to promote the isolation of the new
republics. The top of the highest mountain in the
thirteen English colonies was not half as high as the
lowest point in the ranges of lofty mountains that
separated the Spanish colonies ; nor one third as high
as the Uspallata Pass by which Chile is connected
with Argentina.

It is not for us to criticise the South Americans for
having failed to unite and form a great nation. Our

58 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

ancestors were favored by nature with a region that
is comparatively accessible in all parts. It is not any
more creditable to the English colonists that they
united than it is discreditable to the Latin-Ameri-
cans that they did not. In both cases, racial char-
acteristics, aided by diverse policies of colonial ad-
ministration made a foundation for growth which by
an extraordinary coincidence, was in every possible
way favored by local geographical conditions.

The English colonists, on securing their independ*
ence, had been acquainted with one another for gen-
erations ; had fought side by side in the French and
Indian wars; had intermarried, built up social and
business friendships ; united in sending agents to the
mother country and in sending representatives to
Congresses where the leading men of each colony
came to know one another's desires and aspirations.
Placed by fate on a narrow strip of coast less in
length than the seaboard of Chile alone, enabled by
nature to communicate both by sea and land, sep-
arated from one another by neither deserts nor lofty
mountains, what more likely than that they should
have followed their natural traditions and formed a
single nation? The difficulties in the way of the
South American colonists following such an example
were stupendous. Scattered over an enormous area,
separated by the greatest natural boundaries that
nature has produced, it was scarcely to be expected
that they too should not follow the traditions of
their race and build up local governments instead
of forming a federation.

The historical and geographical reasons that pre-

SPANISH-AMERICAN SOLIDARITY 59

vented the formation of confederations have also
mitigated against the building up of strong national
governments. The citizen Is still inclined to favor
the affairs of his city rather than the good of his
country. He finds It easier to be loyal to the local
chieftain than to the central government. The cure
for this, however, is already in sight. The energy
and enterprise of English, French, and German capi-
talists are overcoming the obstacles that nature has
placed In the way of intercommunication.

In time, aided by steam and electric systems of
transportation, some of the Southern Republics may
even unite with others. But before this comes about
it may confidently be expected in the near future
that the development of new transportation facili-
ties will make possible the growth of strong national
feeling and will prevent the states from falling apart.
It will certainly make revolutions less frequent and
bring a condition of stability that will even attract
American capital and greatly augment European
immigration.

CHAPTER V

THE TUCUMAN EXPRESS

FOR nearly three centuries the most important
trade-route in South America was the overland
trail from Buenos Aires to Lima by way of the silver
mines of Potosi. The system of travel for both pas-
sengers and freight was well established. In 1773
there was published a little book called "El Laza-
rillo," "The BHnd Man's Guide," which contains
full information for travellers going from Buenos
Aires to Lima with exact itineraries and "with some
useful notes for those new business men who traffic
by means of mules." The road with its post-houses,
its relays of mules, and its provisions for the comfort
of man and beast is well described. Buenos Aires
is credited with having twenty-two thousand souls,
of whom "ninety-nine are orphans and sixty-eight
are in jail!"

I should have liked nothing better than to have
been able to follow "The Blind Man's Guide" from
post-house to post-house along the entire distance.
But alas, since the days of railways, many of the
road-houses that formerly offered "good accommo-
dations to travellers," have disappeared, and it is
necessary to go as the world goes and take the train ,
— when there is one.

On November 13, 1908, accompanied by Mr.]

THE TUCUMAN EXPRESS 6i

Huntington Smith, Jr., I left Buenos Aires for Boli-
via. The first stage of the journey, seven hundred
and twenty miles, was by train to Tucuman, over
the tracks of the Buenos Aires and Rosario R. R.,
one of the oldest and richest railways in Argentina.
Our train was made up entirely of vestibuled sleep-
ing and dining cars.

Among the first-class passengers was a newly
arrived Spanish mercantile clerk and a French com-
mercial traveller. I noticed more French in Argen-
tina and Brazil than on the West Coast or in the
northern countries. Especially in the large cities,
they, with the Germans and English, have been
very active in promoting local enterprises.

In the first fifteen miles out from Buenos Aires
we saw numbers of villas shaded by groves of euca-
lyptus trees standing in the midst of the owner's
broad acres. There is considerable evidence of mar-
ket gardening and general agriculture. So far as we
could see from the train, the roads are very bad and
have not improved since the days of the woe-begot-
ten travellers who had to cross these plains in ox-
carts.

When Edmund Temple, the breezy secretary of
the Potosi, La Paz & Peruvian Mining Association,
crossed Argentina on his way to Bolivia in 1825, he
was struck with the immense number of "hoppers"
that they passed on the Pampas. He says the lo-
custs covered the road and adjacent parts for
miles. In those days, pasturage was plenty, and cul-
tivated fields were scarce, so nobody cared very
much. It is only with the increasing importance of

62 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

crops that the Argentlnos have come to regard the
swarms of locusts as a great pest, and have spent
many thousands of dollars fighting them. They are
now planning to build a fence of sheet zinc, costing
several million dollars, to keep back the "hoppers."
Some modern travellers have had their trains de-
layed by locust swarms on the tracks, but we saw
comparatively few.

Our first stops were at suburban towns, which are
more attractive than one would suppose in a coun-
try that is so flat. At one of them, on the River
Tigre, the English colony has made boating fash-
ionable, with festivals like those at Henley. We had
showers in the course of the morning, but the country
over which we passed looked rather dry.

A characteristic feature of the Pampas are the
modern windmills with their steel frames. Most of
them are of American make, for despite our back-
wardness in some lines, we have been peculiarly suc-
cessful in supplying Argentina with windmills. In
fact, we have almost monopolized that particular
business. Fortunately, our manufacturers seem also
to excel in the production of small and inexpensive
motors, such as are particularly desired on farms
and ranches where, owing to the extreme difficulty
of getting workmen, there is an excellent market for
labor-saving machinery. Notwithstanding this en-
couraging feature, for every million dollars' worth of
goods which Argentina imports from the United
States, she imports six millions from Europe.
• Many of the interior towns have their own elec-
tric lighting plants. The agents of German manu-

THE TUCUMAN EXPRESS 63

facturers have been far-sighted in following up new
concessions and in getting large contracts for the in-
stallation of German machinery. It takes a good
many windmills to equal one electric lighting plant.

Our train made a short stop at Rosario, the second
largest city in Argentina. Owing to its advanta-
geous situation at the bend of the Parana River, it
has become a most important port.

Accessible throughout the year to vessels drawing
sixteen feet, it is the terminus of many trans- Atlantic
lines which bring European manufactured goods
here in exchange for wheat and cattle. Some ore
from Bolivia is also shipped from here. On our mule
trip in Southern Bolivia we saw hundreds of animals
laden with huge packing-cases from Europe marked
"via Rosario."

The other important new port in Argentina is
Bahia Blanca, which is situated several hundred
miles south of Buenos Aires and is connected by rail-
ways with the newly opened regions in northern
Patagonia. There is no scarcity of good agricultural
land as yet undeveloped. Were the government of
Argentina as well managed for the interests of the
individual farmer as the governments of our west-
ern states, there is no question that Argentina would
secure a much higher grade of immigrant. The op-
portunities are truly magnificent, but I was re-
peatedly told by foreign residents who are engaged in
farming, that there are many unpleasant features.
The truth of the matter is that the Argentino is too
fond of keeping political power in his own hands. He
does not understand all that is meant by a constitu-

64 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

tional democratic form of government. It Is not his
fault, for his race history, as we have seen, has given
him other inheritances and prejudices. Neverthe-
less he is learning.

( - Leaving Rosarlo we plunged Into the heart of a
great agricultural and pastoral region. The heat
and dust were rather trying. The humidity was con-
siderable, being about eighty per cent in our car.
In truth, we experienced all the various annoyances
to which one is subject when crossing our western
plains, in a moderately slow train. We had been
told that this Tucuman express was " the finest train
in America." Some of the young Englishmen on our
steamer were extremely enthusiastic over it and as-
sured us that we could have nothing so fine in the
United States. Consequently we were somewhat
disappointed to find the standard of comfort not any
greater than it was on our western trains fifteen
years ago.

There is one thing, however, in which the "B. A.
and R." is ahead of most American railroads. At
each station are one or two very large sign-boards
conveniently placed so that the stranger has no diffi-
culty in ascertaining whether he has reached his des-
tination or not. And there are other little things
along the line that make one feel the presence of rail-
way officials carefully trained In English railway
methods. It goes without saying that the road is
largely owned In England and has Anglo-Saxons for
its principal officers.

Argentina has about thirteen thousand miles of
railway operated under some twenty companies.

THE TUCUMAN EXPRESS 65

One thousand seven hundred miles are owned by the
government, but by far the larger part of the railway
system is controlled by British capitalists. A little
more than half of the mileage consists of the very
broad five and a half foot gauge. The remainder is
one metre or less. The three gauges necessitate con-
siderable transferring of freight and passengers.

To one who is accustomed to thinking of Argen-
tina as a rich but undeveloped region, it seems in-
credible that she should have fifty thousand freight-
cars and two thousand passenger-coaches. It is
still more astonishing to learn that every year her
railways carry thirty million passengers, and thirty
million tons of freight, of which about one third are
cereals. During the year 1906, the receipts from the
passenger traffic amounted to more than $18,000,00,
and from freight traffic to something over $55,000,-
000. Statistics are dry and uninteresting except as
they open our eyes to conditions of which we have
formed but a small conception. The extremely
rapid growth of the Argentine railways is shown by
the fact that while in 1884 the capital invested did
not amount to $100,000,000, it now amounts to over
$700,000,000.

So far as killing people is concerned, the Argen-
tine railways do not come up to our record, although
they do fairly well. In 1905 they killed, all told, two
hundred and eighteen persons, and in 1906, two
hundred and fifty. This is a heavier percentage per
passenger carried than in the United States.

Towards evening we left the farming country and
entered a barren region where great stretches of

66 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

perfectly flat land seemed to promise splendid re-
sults if it could be irrigated.

The dust increased, and we were glad enough to
be hauled over these dry pampas of Santa Fe and
Santiago del Estero in a night, instead of being ob-
liged to spend a fortnight on them following a slow-
moving Spanish caravan.

' When we looked out of the car window the next
morning all was changed. Sugar-cane fields waving
attractively in the sunlight, big wheeled carts lum-
bering noisily along drawn by oxen or mules, lithe
horsemen riding strong little ponies through thickets
of dry scrub, had transformed the scene from the
everlasting prairies of the pampas into the highlands
of the northwest. The hills beyond the fields of cane
were covered with a scrubby growth. To the north-
west and north arose green mountains that seemed
to be forested to their tops. Some of the trees were
in bloom with brilliant yellow flowers.

The contrast between the dry, barren pampas and
the green cane-fields of Tucuman is so striking that
Argentine writers have been accustomed to speak of
the latter in terms of the most extravagant praise.
Even the well-travelled Sarmiento called it the
"Eden of America," "where nature had displayed
its greatest pomp!" As a matter of fact Tucuman
is admirably situated in a very fertile and highly
cultivated plain, and is the centre of the most im-
portant sugar-growing region in Argentina. In its
immediate vicinity we counted a dozen tall chimneys
of sugar factories.

We reached the city about ten o'clock.

THE TUCUMAN EXPRESS 67

It was founded about the time that Sir Walter
Raleigh was looking for Eldorado. Here in 18 16,
the Argentine Congress passed their Declaration of
Independence. Here Belgrano won a great victory-
over the Spanish armies that had descended from
Peru to crush the Argentine patriots.

The Tucuman station, a large modern affair, was
chiefly interesting because of the picturesque char-
acter of the luggage that was lying about the plat-
forms. Chairs and cots, pots and pans, spring mat-
tresses, and hen-coops, all bore evidence to the fact
that this is still a young country into which new set-
tlers are coming, and that the Railroad Company
has the good sense to make it easy for people to
travel with all their possessions. Everything was
checked and went in the luggage- van, as a matter of
course, instead of being handed over to "slow-
freight " or rapacious express companies, as with us.

Most of the immigrants were Italians from Genoa
and the north of Italy. A few came from Galicia,
the home of Spain's most sturdy peasantry. Neither
immigrants nor residents wore picturesque costumes.
Even the Gauchos are dressed in civilized raiment
and bear little resemblance to the South American
Indian of our dreams. It is too progressive a coun-
try to allow its clothes to get in its way.

The facts relating to Buenos Aires and Argentina
are at every one's elbow so it is all the more aston-
ishing how ignorant the average American is regard-
ing the great metropolis of the southern hemisphere.
We are very fond of telling stories of our English
cousins who imagine that our western states are

68 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

overrun with wild Indians and desperadoes. And
we think it inexcusable in them to judge from the
frequent press reports of lynchings and "hold-ups"
that we are an uncivilized, lawless people. Yet we
judge the Argentino just as hastily. Not only are we
quite ignorant of his material progress, we also fre-
quently slander him for having an "unstable gov-
ernment." "Revolutions" or struggles for govern-
mental control occur, it is true, but they do not
amount to much and hardly deserve the exagger-
ated reports of them which are published abroad.
In a country that has been bound together by such
a network of railroads as Argentina, making it pos-
sible for the government in power to send its troops
rapidly wheresoever it will, the habit of playing with
revolutions is sure to die out. In the old days when
transportation was slow and difficult, it was possible
for a popular leader to gather a considerable band of
followers and prepare to march on the capital be-
fore the government knew of his existence. Such
uprisings, however, are necessarily the work of days
or weeks, and it is becoming more and more difficult
to bring them to a successful issue. As an evidence
of the more stable condition of the government and
as showing how Argentina has recovered from the
setback which it got at the time of the failure of the
Baring Brothers, it is well to note that in the ten
years between 1895 and 1905, the foreign trade of
Buenos Aires more than doubled, growing to more
than half a billion dollars annually.

CHAPTER VI

THROUGH THE ARGENTINE HIGHLANDS

AT Tucuman we left the broad gauge of the
British-built Buenos Aires and Rosario R. R.
for the metre gauge of the North Central Railway,
an Argentine Government line, that runs to Jujuy
and has recently been continued northward to La
Quiaca, on the Bolivian frontier. The distance
from Buenos Aires to La Quiaca is 1150 miles. Of
this we had done 700 miles in the first twenty-four
hours. The last 450 miles required another twenty-
four hours, divided into two daylight periods, as
sleeping-cars are not run on the North Central R. R.
In this stretch the elevation rises from thirteen hun-
dred feet to twelve thousand feet, and the journey
lies entirely in the Argentine Highlands.

Our train was mixed passenger and freight. The
locomotive was a " Baldwin " and the cars were made
in Wilmington, Del. We had, besides, an excellent
dining-car that seated sixteen people and provided
a table d'hote meal served in the usual Spanish style.
The third-class passengers, however, patronized the
enterprising women who sold flat loaves of bread,
hard-boiled eggs, and native drinks at the stations
where we stopped.

Not long after leaving Tucuman, we passed
through a tunnel, the first one in eight hundred miles.

70 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

Rather a different experience from my journey in
Venezuela, from Caracas to Valencia, where in the
course of an hour we passed through sixty-five tun-
nels, one every minute!

With many windings we climbed up into the hills.
Grass became scarcer and cactus and mimosa trees
more common. We passed a small flock of goats.
Dust and sand came into the train in clouds. Occa-
sionally we passed lofty whirlwinds, but none of them
troubled us. The humidity to-day was very much
less, being under forty per cent. The streams seemed
to be very low. We saw a few locusts.

At many of the stations were carts drawn by mules
harnessed three abreast, with a loose rope- tackle that
is characteristic of this hilly region. The houses of
some of the more well-to-do were built of corrugated
iron and wood, but most were made of mud. As it
was the dry season, the cots were usually out of
doors.

The evidences of prosperity at Ruis de los Llanos
consisted of new stucco buildings of attractive con-
struction with arcades in front and courtyards in
the interior, a modern application of old Spanish
architectural ideas. Other buildings were nearing
completion, to accommodate the bakers and grocers
who supply the quebracho cutters. There are great
forests of quebracho on the plains of the Gran Chaco
to the east and northeast. The wood is extremely
hard and very serviceable for railway- ties. Owing
to the difficulty that is experienced in cutting it, it
has earned for itself the sobriquet of "axe-breaker."
It is the chief article of export from this region. The

THE ARGENTINE HIGHLANDS 71

bark is shipped to tanneries as far away as Cali-
fornia.

At Matan, another important station, there was a
new hotel, the " Cosmopolita," a clean-looking Span-
ish inn, near the railway station. Near by lay huge
logs of quebracho awaiting shipment. The hills were
well wooded, and we saw a number of agave plants
and mimosa trees. Firewood is shipped from here
to the treeless Pampas. Here we noticed, for the
first time, riding-boots of a curious fashion, so very
corrugated that we dubbed them "concertinas."
They are much in vogue also in southern Bolivia.
■ At Rio Piedras, where a dozen of our third-class
passengers alighted with many baskets and bundles,
we heard the familiar hum of a sawmill. Near the
track were more quebracho logs. A burly passenger
who had joined us at Tucuman, ready dressed and
prepared for a long horseback ride, left us here.
With a large broad-brimmed hat, loose white jumper,
large baggy white cotton trousers, and "concer-
tinas,' ' he came very near being picturesque. Throw-
ing over his shoulder a pair of cotton saddle-bags
well stocked with interesting little bundles, he
walked slowly away from the train with that curious
shuffling gait common to those who spend most of
their lives in the saddle.

Not far away we saw some newly arrived Ameri-
can farm machinery, a part of the largest item of
Argentine imports from the United States.

During the course of the afternoon, we wound out
of the hills far enough to be able to see far over the
plains to the east. Here there was more vegetation

72 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

and some corn growing. On the left were jagged
hills and mountains. The temperature in the car
about four o'clock was eighty-five degrees. Our alti-
tude was about twenty-five hundred feet. 5

As we went north through hot, dusty valleys,
climbing up into the foot-hills of the Andes, the faces
of the loiterers at the stations lost the cosmopolitan
aspect that they have in and about Buenos Aires.
We saw more of the typical Gaucho who is descended
from the aboriginal Indians of the Pampas and bold
Spanish cattle-drivers. Tall in stature, with a robust
frame and a swarthy complexion, he possesses great
powers of endurance and is a difficult person to han-
dle. His tendencies are much like those of the fast
disappearing American "cow puncher," but he has
the disadvantage of having Inherited a contempt for
manual labor and an excessive vanity which finds
expression in silver spurs and brilliantly colored
ponchos. His territory Is rapidly being invaded
by hard-working Italians, more desirable because
more dependable.

Near Juramento the country grows more arid and
desolate. A few scrubby mimosa trees, sheltering
the white tents of railway engineers, offered but lit-
tle welcome to intending settlers.

Just at dark we reached Guemes, where we were
obliged to change cars. The through train from
Tucuman goes west to Salta, the most important
city of the vicinity. We arrived at Jujuy shortly
after nine o'clock. A score of ancient vehicles were
waiting to take us a mile up into the town to one of
the three hotels. We went to the Bristol and found

THE ARGENTINE HIGHLANDS 73

it quite comfortable according to Spanish-American
ideas. That means that the toilet facilities were ab-
sent, that the room had a tile floor, and that there
were beds and chairs.

In the morning we got up early enough to look at
the town for a few minutes before leaving on the
semi-weekly train for La Quiaca.

Jujuy was built by Spanish settlers a generation
before the Pilgrims landed at Plymouth, and still
preserves the white- walled, red- tiled-roof aspect of
the old Spanish-i\.merican towns. Lying in a pleas-
ant, well-watered plain, a trifle over four thousand
feet above the sea, it is attractively surrounded by
high hills. Beyond them, we caught glimpses of
lofty barren mountains, the summits of the Andes.
The near-by valleys were green, and there is some
rainfall even in the dry time of the year. Although
Jujuy produces a large amount of sub- tropical fruit,
it really owes its importance to its strategical posi-
tion on the old trade route to Bolivia. It is the last
important town on the road because it is the last
place that enjoys a salubrious situation. For cen-
turies it has been the natural resting-place for over-
land travellers.

In fact, these northwestern highlands of Argen-
tina, Jujuy, and Tucuman, were first settled by emi-
grants from the mountains of Upper Peru now called
Bolivia, of which they form the southern extension.
Their political and commercial relations were with
Potosi and Lima rather than Buenos Aires. The
great prosperity of the mining regions of the lofty
plateau created a demand for provisions that could

74 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

not be met by the possibilities of agriculture in the
semi-arid irrigated valleys of southern Bolivia. Beef
and other provisions could most easily be brought
from the fertile valleys near Tucuman and Jujuy.
The necessity for some better animal than the llama,
to carry not only freight but also passengers, caused
a demand for the horses and mules which, raised on
the Argentine Pampas, were brought here to be put
into shape for mountain travel, and were an impor-
tant item in the early fairs.

When the railroad came, Jujuy was for many years
the northern terminus. This only added to the im-
portance of the town, and increased the reputation
of its annual fair. But with the building of the con-
tinuation to La Quiaca, its importance is bound to
decrease. However, it will always be a favorite re-
sort for Bolivians seeking a refuge from the rigors
of their Thibetan climate. We met many families
in southern Bolivia who had at one time or another
passed the winter season here.

Before leaving the Bristol we succeeded in getting
eggs and coffee only with considerable difficulty as
the train was due to leave at seven o'clock, and the
average Spanish-American traveller is quite willing
to start off on a long day's journey without even a
cup of coffee if he can be sure of something substan-
tial about ten or eleven o'clock.

When we arrived at the station, we found a scene
of great confusion. The line had been running only
a few months, and many of the intending passengers
were not accustomed to the ways of railroads. An
official, and his family of three, had spread himself

THE ARGENTINE HIGHLANDS 75

over one half of the car, with bags, bird-cages, bun-
dles, rolls, and potted plants. He filled so many
seats with his impedimenta that several of the passen-
gers had to stand up, although that did not worry
him in the least. Had we known how much luggage
belonged to him, we should have dumped it on the
floor and had a more comfortable ride, but unfor-
tunately we did not discover how greatly he had im-
posed on everybody until the end of the day.

From Jujuy the train climbs slowly through a
valley toward a wonderful vista of great mountains.
At 6000 feet the verdure disappeared, the grass be-
came brown, and on the barren mountains a few
sheep and goats were trying to pick up a living.

The railway had a hard time overcoming the diffi-
culties of the first part of the way. The grade is so
steep that for some distance a cog road was found
to be necessary. In the first one hundred and four-
teen miles, the line climbs up 8000 feet to an altitude
of over 12,000 feet above sea-level.

Notwithstanding the newness of the road and the
steepness of the grade, we carried with us an excel-
lent little restaurant car that gave us two very good
meals before we reached La Quiaca.

The cog railway begins at Leon at an altitude of
5300 feet and continues to Volcan, rising 1500 feet
in a distance of eight miles. At Volcan there is sup-
posed to be a mud volcano, but, as was pointed out
some years ago by Mr. O'Driscoll in the "Geograph-
ical Journal," there is no volcano at all. It is simply
a mud avalanche, that comes down after unusually
heavy rains from the rapidly disintegrating hillside.

76 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

Although not a volcano, it Is nevertheless a difficult
problem for the engineers. It has already com-
pletely submerged a mile or two of track more than
once.

This Is on the line of the proposed Pan-American
railway from New York to Buenos Aires. With a
sufficiently vivid imagination, one can picture a New
Yorker of the year 1950 being detained here by a
mud-slide which will have put the tracks over which
he proposes to travel two or three feet under ground.
It it to be hoped that he will not be obliged to stay
at the local inn where Edmund Temple stopped on
his journey from Buenos Aires to Potosi. Temple
was aroused in the middle of the night by a noise
under his bed as if of a struggle between two ani-
mals. To his astonishment (and to that of the reader
of his charming volumes) he "discovered, by the light
of the moon, a cat eating the head of a viper which
she had just subdued: a common occurrence I was
informed, and without any ill consequences to the
cat, however venomous the snake!"

Some effort had been made to plant a few trees In
the sandy, rocky soil around the station of Volcan,
which is not far from the mud-slide. They seemed,
however, to be having a hard time of it, although, at
a ranch near by, quite a grove of eucalyptus trees
had been successfully raised by means of irrigation.
The mountains round about are very barren and
gave evidence of being rapidly wasted away by
erosion, their summits assuming many fantastic
forms.

Twenty miles beyond Volcan Is Maimard, where

THE ARGENTINE HIGHLANDS 77

there was further evidence of irrigation in the valley,
the trees and green fruits being in marked contrast
to the barren hillsides.

As the road ascends, the country becomes more
and more arid. Cactus is common. Sometimes it is
used as a hedge ; at other times, by being planted on
the top of a mud-fence, it answers the same purpose
as a barbed wire.

Great barren mountains on each side continue for
mile after mile, making the scenery unspeakably
dreary. Judging by the northward inclination of the
cactus and the trees, the prevailing wind is from the
south.

Some of the valley is irrigated, but there is little
sign of life anywhere. Nothing grows without irriga-
tion. In the days before the railway it was abso-
lutely necessary to have alfalfa and other animal
fodder grown near the post-houses that supplied
travellers and freight-carriers with shelter at night.
This business has", of course, fallen off very much in
the past few months, yet just before reaching Hu-
mahuaca we stopped at Uquia, where enough hay is
still raised to make it worth while to bale it and
ship it north to the barren plateau beyond.

Late in the afternoon, we saw a group of llamas,
but they are not at all common in this region.

At Tres Cruces, 1052 miles from Buenos Aires, we
reached our highest elevation, something over 12,000
feet. It was a dreary spot with scarcely anything in
sight except barren mountains, the two wire fences
that everlastingly line the railroad tracks, and the
mud-walled railroad station. The Httle "hotel"

78 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

looked like an abandoned adobe dwelling in Arizona,
and the region bore a striking resemblance to the un-
irrigated part of our new southwest. Erosion has
cut the hillsides into interesting sections of shallow
gulches and semi-cylindrical slopes. The only green
things to be seen are occasional clumps of bushes like
sage-brush.

From here to La Quiaca, sixty miles, we main-
tained about the same altitude, although La Quiaca
itself is 500 feet lower than Tres Cruces. We had, in
fact, surmounted the great plateau of the Andes.
South of us lay the desert of Atacama ; to the north
the arid valleys of southern Bolivia and the Bolivian
tableland. East of us, beyond many intervening
ranges and the steep slopes of the eastern Andes, lay
the Gran Chaco of Bolivia and the valley of the lower
Pilcomayo with its wild Indian tribes and its trop-
ical forests. To the west lay the still higher Andes of
the great Cordillera, some of whose peaks rise at this
point to an altitude of twenty thousand feet. Not-
withstanding these interesting surroundings, the ex-
treme bareness of this desolate region reacts on one's
enthusiasm.

We reached La Quiaca just before nine o'clock.
The railroad offices were still incomplete, as the line
had only been opened to traffic for a month or two.
The old town of La Quiaca, a small mud-walled af-
fair two miles away from the railroad station, is des-
tined soon to be deserted for the thriving young set-
tlement that is springing up near the terminus of the
railway. There are two "hotels." Ours, the 25 de
Mayo, had only just been opened. In fact, its ex-

THE ARGENTINE HIGHLANDS 79

tenor walls had not yet received their proper coat of
whitewash and stucco.

All day long we had been travelling through an ex-
tremely sparsely populated region, so dry, high, and
inhospitable as to dispel any idea that this railroad
can rely upon it for much traffic. In fact, the line
was built by the Argentine Government, not so
much to open up this part of the Republic as to
tap the mining region of southern Bolivia, with
the idea of developing Argentina's foreign com-
merce by securing in Bolivia a good market for
her food-stuffs and bringing back in return ore
to be shipped to Europe from the ports of the
Parana.

An agreement was entered into between Argen-
tina and Bolivia whereby Bolivia was to extend her
system of national railways southeast from Oruro
to Potosi and thence due south to Tupiza, fifty miles
north of the Argentine boundary. The Argentinos
on their part agreed to continue their railway north
from Jujuy to Tupiza. By the time they reached La
Quiaca, however, the English Company that owns
the rich Oruro-Antofagasta line became alarmed lest
such an arrangement as was proposed would inter-
fere with their profits. By some means or other, the
Bolivian government was persuaded to change its
plans and decide to build the national railways so as
to connect with the Antofagasta line rather than with
the Argentine lines. This breach of faith on the part
of the Bolivianos was naturajly resented not only in
Argentina but also by the southern Bolivianos them-
selves who would be much more benefited by hav-

8o ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

ing good connections with Buenos Aires than with
the Chilean seaboard.

As a result of this difficulty, the Argentinos, at the
time of my visit, had not carried their railway be-
yond the frontier. This makes La Quiaca the out-
fitting point for mule-trains that now start here
with merchandise destined for the cities of southern
Bolivia.

A stage-line has been opened, running once a week
to Tupiza, where it connects with stages for Uyuni
on the Antofagasta line and Potosi. This stage-line
was owned and operated by that same energetic
Scotchman, Don Santiago Hutcheon, who used to
run stages between La Paz and Oruro before the
completion of the Bolivia Railway. By great good
fortune, we found him in La Quiaca where he had ar-
rived that day on one of his own stages.

CHAPTER VII

ACROSS THE BOLIVIAN FRONTIER

SOON after our arrival at La Quiaca, at 9 P. M. on
November 15, 1908, we received a call from two
rough-looking Anglo-Saxons who told us hair-raising
stories of the dangers of the Bolivian roads where
highway robbers driven out of the United States by
the force of law and order and hounded to death all
over the world by Pinkerton detectives, had found
a pleasant resting-place in which to pursue their
chosen occupation without let or hindrance. We
found out afterwards that one of our informants was
one of this same gang of robbers. Either he decided
that we were disposed to regard his " pals " in a suffi-
ciently lenient manner to make our presence in Boli-
via immaterial to them, or else he came to the con-
clusion that we had nothing worth stealing, for we
were allowed to proceed peaceably and without any
annoyance wherever we journeyed in Bolivia. He
put the case quite emphatically to us that it was
necessary for them to make a living, that they were
not allowed to do so peaceably in the States, that
they desired only to be let alone and had no intention
of troubling travellers except those that sought to get
information against them. They relied entirely for
their support on being able to overcome armed es-
corts accompanying loads of cash going to the mines

82 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

to liquidate the monthly payroll. This they claimed
was legitimate plunder taken In fair fight. The only
individuals who had to suffer at their hands were
those who took up the case against them. Having
laid this down for our edification, he proceeded to
tell us what a reckless lot they were and how famous
had been their crimes, at the same time assuring us
that they were all very decent fellows and quite
pleasant companions. Don Santiago, who in his ca-
pacity as coach-master and stage-driver, has had to
carry hundreds of thousands of dollars in cash over
the unprotected Bolivian highv/ays, assured us that
he had never been molested by any of these high-
waymen because he never troubled them in any way
either by carrying arms or spreading information of
their doings. If the Bolivian bandits are half as bad
as they were painted to us that night, Don Santiago
must lead a charmed life for he and his stages cer-
tainly offer an easy mark for any enterprising out-
law.

The view from our hotel the next morning across
the sandy plaza of La Quiaca was anything but in-
spiring. The plateau is so high and dry that nothing
grows here. Even the mountains, whose tops are
really higher than our own far-famed Pike's Peak,
look stunted like low sand-hills. Partly finished
adobe houses, which were gradually meeting the de-
mands of the newly-born commercial life of La Qui-
aca add to the forlorn and desolate appearance of
everything. There was nothing to make us wish to
stay any longer In Argentina, and we eagerly wel-
comed Don Santiago and his eight-mule team that

ACROSS THE BOLIVIAN FRONTIER 83

rattled up to the door a few minutes after six
o'clock.

A quarter of a mile north of the town we crossed
the frontier and entered Bolivia. For the next four
hours there was little in the landscape to relieve the
monotony of the journey. As those who are familiar
with stage travel know to their cost, bumping over
rough roads of stone or sand, in a cloud of dust with
nothing to see on either side except a brown, treeless,
rolling plateau, is not exciting. Nevertheless the
process of keeping eight mules on the go, up hill and
down hill, is never absolutely devoid of interest. As
it was quite impossible for the driver to reach the
foremost mules with his long whip, he employed a
strong-lunged boy to race alongside of the mules,
pelt them with stones, curse them in his worst Span-
ish, and frighten them into frantic activity with the
lash of a short-handled whip which he laid on with
no delicate hand. The mules became so afraid of his
mad rushes that when they heard him coming they
bolted in the opposite direction, sometimes pulling
the stage-coach a rod or two off the road.

In a rarefied atmosphere that would almost kill a
foreigner who should try to run any distance, the In-
dian boy only found it necessary to take short rests
on the running-board of the coach, and even then he
had breath enough left to keep up shrill whistling
and loud shouting so as to make the mules remem-
ber his presence. If he stopped this continuous per-
formance he heard from the driver in no uncertain
language. The result was that, notwithstanding the
primitive cart-track, the stage was able to make the

84 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

sixty miles between La Quiaca and Tupiza in twelve
hours. To be sure, there are two changes of mules
and the luggage is carried on a separate wagon. But
the road is as bad as it possibly can be. So much of
it is in the bed of a stream, the coaches can only run
in the dry season, May to November. In the rainy
season the road disappears under swollen rivers and
resort has to be had to saddle and pack animals.

In this extremely arid region the business of feed-
ing the mules is a most difficult one. The rainfall is
very slight. It is only by irrigation that fodder will
grow at all. The ground is not sterile but it is so dry
and parched that it does not look as if it would ever
grow anything. The Indians in the vicinity are
Quichuas, who speak the same language as did their
former masters, the Incas. They are a patient race
with little ambition and few wants. This does not pre-
vent them, however, from charging all the traffic will
bear when any one desires to purchase alfalfa or
barley straw for his mules. Don Santiago told me
that he had once been obliged to pay as high as forty
dollars, gold, for enough fodder to give an eight-mule
team a proper luncheon. Needless to say, transpor-
tation is expensive. The coach-fare from La Quiaca
to Tupiza was ten dollars, about sixteen cents a
mile. A charge of two cents a pound is made for
luggage. None is carried free.

Our first stop was at Mojo, to change mules and
eat a "breakfast" which consisted of the customary
highly-spiced mutton and potatoes. We were not
"favored by the addition of an excellent roasted
guinea pig " as was Edmond Temple when he stopped

ACROSS THE BOLIVIAN FRONTIER 85

here in 1826. Yet guinea-pigs are still common here-
abouts and we saw several on the road.

Mojo is a village of four hundred inhal)itants.
There is a small branch office of the Bolivian cus-
toms service here which is supposed to look after
travellers and their baggage. The principal custom
house for southern Bolivia is at Tupiza, a much more
agreeable spot for the residence of the officials and
a natural distributing point for the region.

A short distance from Mojo we began an abrupt
descent. In one place the hill was too steep to per-
mit the road to make a proper turn, so we all had to
get out and help lift the stage-coach around a "switch
back." After this tortuous zigzag we came out on a
broad plain over which we passed without difficulty
to the banks of the river Suipacha.

The water was low and the cart-track attempted
to steer a straight course up stream. But as the
shrunken current meandered over the sandy river-
bed, we were obliged to ford it every three or four
minutes. This entailed constant difficulties, for the
leading mules would invariably stop to walk as soon
as they entered the water, while the others trotted
briskly in and tangled up the whole team. Perhaps
the fault was mine, for I was having my first expe-
rience in driving an eight-in-hand, and the hard-
mouthed mules took particular delight in giving me
a bad time. Notwithstanding our difficulties, we
reached Suipacha on time, and stopped to change
mules.

This valley was the scene of one of the earliest vic-
tories of the patriots in 1 810 at the beginning of the

86 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

wars of independence. It will be remembered that
after the glorious 25th of May, recently celebrated
in Buenos Aires, the Argentinos attempted to free
the province of Upper Peru from Spanish control.
The result of the victory of Suipacha was to cause
the Bolivians to rise and join the Argentinos against
their oppressors. The patriot army marched joy-
ously northward across the plateau, although the
Argentinos suffered greatly from the cold and the
high altitude. When they reached the southern end
of Lake Titicaca, the Spanish army, augmented by
hundreds of obedient Quichuas, attacked the pa-
triots and practically annihilated them.

Suipacha itself, situated on a slight elevation
above the banks of the river, looks like all the other
small villages of this arid region. Plenty of sand and
stones, a few mud-walled hovels, some thorny scrub,
here and there an irrigation ditch and a green field,
and on every side barren mountains, A favorite
form of fence here is a wall of adobe blocks,
adorned with cactus or thorny mimosa branches.

Suipacha is said to have six hundred inhabitants
but it did not seem to be any larger than Mojo.
From here a road goes east to the important city of
Tarija, a pleasant, fertile town in southeastern Boli-
via that enjoys a charming climate, and has often
served as a city of refuge for defeated Argentine poli-
ticians who are glad enough to escape to such a land
of corn and wine after unsuccessful revolutions on
the dreary pampas.

The road to Tupiza took us northwest, and con-
tinued to follow the bed of the Suipacha or Estarca,

** .' 1

-'ti*-

Am:^

THE "ANGOSTA DE TUPIZA"

ACROSS THE BOLIVIAN FRONTIER 87

and one of its tributaries. In the valley were several
farms or fincas as they are called here, where small
crops are raised by irrigation. Half-way from Sui-
pacha to Tupiza we passed through a magnificent
rocky gateway called the Angosta de Tupiza. Cliffs
five hundred feet high rise abruptly on each side of
the river, leaving barely room enough for the road
even in dry weather. For a distance of seventy feet,
the width is less than thirty feet. Beyond the gate
the mountains form a spacious amphitheatre. Dur-
ing the rainy season, from November to March, it is
frequently impossible to pass through this gorge,
even on good saddle-mules. Fortunately for us, the
rains had not yet begun, and we had no difficulty.

We reached Tupiza, a town of about two thou-
sand inhabitants, just at six o'clock. It is only ten
thousand feet above sea-level, nearly two thousand
feet lower than La Quiaca, and is prettily situated
in a plain less than a mile in width, that in this re-
gion may fairly be called fertile, so great is the con-
trast with the surrounding desert. Good use has
been made of the water in the little stream, and there
are many cultivated fields and trees in the vicinity.

The plaza is quite an oasis in the wilderness. It is
carefully cultivated and the shrubbery and willow
trees make it a delightful spot. Around the plaza
are a few kerosene oil street-lamps on top of wooden
poles set in stone foundations. The white tower of
a new church rises above the trees and makes a good
landmark. Near by is the large two-story ware-
house belonging to the Bolivian government and
used as a post-office and custom house.

88 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

In the early '8o's, before the construction of the
Antofagasta railway, most of the commerce of South-
ern Bolivia passed through Tupiza and the custom
house had more importance than it has now. To-
day it has less than a tenth of its former business.
With the completion of the railway to La Quiaca
and its contemplated projection to Tupiza, however,
the local revenue business is bound to increase.

Even at the time of my visit (November, 1908),
the street in front of the custom house was blocked
by scores of bales and boxes recently arrived from
La Quiaca and awaiting examination prior to being
shipped north to Potosi on the backs of mules.

On the opposite side of the plaza was a branch of
the National Bank of Bolivia. Here we found that
the Bolivian dollar or peso is worth about forty cents
in our money.

The common currency consists of banknotes rang-
ing from one to twenty pesos in value. These de-
pend entirely for their value upon the solvency of
the bank of issue. Several banks have failed, and the
Indians are very particular what bills they accept.
They dislike the bills of banks that have no agencies
in the vicinity and prefer the bills of the National
Bank of Francisco Argondano.

The nickel subsidiary coinage Is usually genuine
and is in great demand, but the smaller silver coins
are frequently either counterfeit or so badly made
that they do not ring true and are not accepted by
the Indians with whom one has most to do on the
road. Consequently it is the common practice to
tear bills in two when change cannot be made in any

ACROSS THE BOLIVIAN FRONTIER 89

other way. The result Is that perfect bills are grow-
ing scarce and the expense of issuing new ones is be-
ing felt by the banks. Several times when cashing
checks at branches of these banks, I was paid en-
tirely in half bills. They are accepted in almost all
parts of Bolivia but are at a discount in La Paz and
are not received at all in some localities.

We are told that the scarcity of subsidiary coinage,
and the relative frequency of counterfeit money, is
due to the native habit of burying all coins of real
value lest they fall into the hands of unscrupulous
officials and rapacious soldiers. Since time imme-
morial, enormous quantities of articles made of the
precious metals have been burled by the Indians.

Tupiza was the scene in 18 19 of one of those in-
effectual skirmishes In which the unaided Bolivian
patriots endeavored to secure their independence.
In fact, this old trade-route from the Pampas to Po-
tosi was the scene of numerous engagements during
the Wars of Independence.

There are two hotels in Tupiza, one of them being
the headquarters of that section of the Bolivian army
which Is stationed here to guard the frontier. The
other Is more commonly resorted to by travellers.
Our Inn, the Grand Hotel Terminus, a long, low
building once white- washed, with a courtyard paved
with cobblestones and a few bedrooms opening into
the court, was run by an amiable rascal who I believe
claimed to be an Austrian. However that may be,
he belonged to the type that believes In charging for-
eigners double the regular tariff. "For one roast
fowl, $2.00, a bottle of vIchy, $1.25, one bottle of

90 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

German beer, $i.oo, half pint of Apollinaris, $40."
We were not able to get any discount. Instead of
fighting our own battles we foolishly referred the
matter to Don Santiago who lives at the hotel, has
his office here, and depends upon the hotel proprietor
for a number of favors. Our request naturally put
him in an embarrassing situation, and all he could
say was that the charges seemed to him to be regular.
The proprietor appeared to be drunk most" of the
time, but he was not too drunk to charge up all
drinks to his American guests.

There is a club here which was not In a very pros-
perous^condition at the time of my visit. This may
have been due to a patriotic celebration that had
taken place a fortnight before. At that time a little
poetical drama, reminiscent of the first conflict for
independence in 18 10, was played in the club-rooms.
The drama, written by a local poet, was dedicated to
Seiior Aramayo, the Maecenas of Tupiza, a member
of the wealthiest family of southern Bolivia, and the
owner of several rich silver mines and a large im-
porting warehouse.

The shops of Tupiza were not brilliantly lighted
although they contained quite an assortment of arti-
cles of European origin. The trade which they ap-
peal to is that of the mule-drivers, the arrieros, who
congregate here while their cargoes are being in-
spected by the revenue officers. The Indians of the
vicinity, whose money comes chiefly from the pro-
duct of their irrigation ditches, have little to spend.
• Tupiza boasts two newspapers; one of them a bi-
weekly, now in its third year, and the other a literary

ACROSS THE BOLIVIAN FRONTIER 91

weekly that had recently been started by the author
of the poetical drama just alluded to. The weekly
refers to the celebration in most flattering terms.
"Undoubtedly social life in Tupiza had increased so
far that it is high time to commence to notice its
faults and deficiencies. These could easily be re-
moved with proper enthusiasm and good will. Tu-
piza is a centre of social culture, but unfortunately
it is not yet able to appreciate such worthy theatri-
cal spectacles as have recently taken place!"

CHAPTER VIII

TUPIZA TO COTAGAITA

E found that the BoHvian government had
recently subsidized a weekly stage Hne from
Tupiza to Uyuni on the Antofagasta railway and an-
other from Tupiza to Potosi, our next objective
point. The fare to Potosi is twenty-two dollars,
and the journey takes only four days. But we had
enough of being shaken to pieces in a stage-coach,
and decided we could see the country better and
be more independent if we used saddle mules.

Two weeks before our arrival a couple of bandits,
one of whom had been hunted out of Arizona by
Pinkerton detectives, had held up a cart containing
twenty thousand dollars, on its way to pay off the
laborers in a large mine. The owners, wealthy Boli-
vians, immediately offered a large reward for the cap-
ture of the bandits, dead or alive, notwithstanding
that the robbers and their friends, of whom there
seemed to be a score or more, let it be carefully
understood that they would take a definite revenge
for any lives that might be lost in pursuit of the
highwaymen. This did not deter the mine owners,
however, and a party of fifty Bolivian soldiers
went on the trail of the robbers, who were found
lunching in an Indian hut. They had carelessly left
their mules and rifles several yards away from the

TUPIZA TO COTAGAITA 93

door of the hut and were unable to escape. After a
fight, in which three or four of the soldiers were killed
and as many more wounded, the thatch roof of the
hut was set on fire and the bandits forced out into
the open where they finally fell, each with half a
dozen bullets in his body. Their mules were cap-
tured and sold to Don Santiago who let me have
one of them for my journey. He turned out to be a
wonderfully fine saddle mule. When his former
owner had had the benefit of his fleet legs and his
splendid lungs, there was no question of his being
caught by the Bolivian soldiery.

In that part of the Andes where one is following
the usual trade-routes, there are four modes of trav-
elling. One may purchase one's own animals, em-
ploy servants to attend to them, and sell them for a
song at the end of the journey. This is the most ex-
pensive, the most satisfactory, and the surest method
of travel, provided always that one succeeds in get-
ting a reliable, well-recommended arriero. A care-
less arriero will soon drive you to despair and allow
your mules to get into a state of semi-starvation and
sore back that will speedily destroy their usefulness.
The second method is to hire a professional carrier
who, for a stipulated sum of money, will provide you
with animals, go along with them, feed and care for
them, and get you to your destination as speedily as
possible. If your sole object is speed, this method is
even surer than the first, for owing to the high price
of fodder in the post-houses, the contractor may be
relied upon to push the caravan forward as speedily
as possible. The third method is by far the least ex-

94 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

pensive, the most troublesome, and the least certain.
This is to depend on the mules that are supposed to
be in readiness for travellers at the post-houses. We
frequently amused ourselves on our journey by im-
agining what we could possibly have done had we
attempted to rely on this last method. Repeatedly
we reached post-houses where there was not a mule
to be seen, or where the two or three that were there,
were drearily hanging their melancholy heads In the
corral, so worn out and broken down as to convince
us of their inability to carry even an ordinary load
at anything faster than a slow walk. The traveller
who trusts to post-house mules rarely remembers
much of the scenery or the nature of the country.
His chief impression is that of unfortunate mules
continually being beaten in order to reach the next
post before dark. The fourth method, and the one
we decided to adopt, Is to hire from a reputable
contractor a number of his best mules and one of his
most trusted arrieros at so much per day. In this
way, you are not hurried faster than you want to go,
the mules are sure to be well cared for, and the dis-
comforts of mountain travel are reduced to a mini-
mum. Except on a long journey, it Is not as expensive
as buying one's own animals and is less risky.
I*> Thanks to the energy of Don Santiago, the neces-
sary mules and provisions were ready In two days.
On his suggestion, we took with us as arrtero, one
Mac, a wandering Scotchman who had seen service
in the Boer War, had drifted thence to Argentina,
and was now trying his luck In southern Bolivia. He
seemed just the sort of person to make a good orderly,

TUPIZA TO COTAGAITA 95

and we thought we were quite fortunate in securing
his services. Relying on his past experience, we told
him to purchase such provisions as were necessary
for the next five days. He proceeded to purchase
four dozen hard-boiled eggs and three roast fowls.
These he packed carelessly in my leather saddle-bags,
together with a bottle of Eno's fruit salts of which
he was very fond. The expected happened. The
eggs were reduced to an unrecognizable mass, the
bottle of fruit salts was broken and the contents well
rubbed into the chicken, so that our fare for the
next two or three days was not much above the
ordinary.

We left Tupiza on a bright, clear morning and rode
northward through a semi-arid region where we were
continually reminded of Utah and southern Colo-
rado. For two leagues we saw no house and met
no one. The floor of the valley was broad and flat,
covered with sand and pebbles, and occasionally
intersected by small irrigating ditches. Almost the
only green things were cactus and mimosa trees.
Barren hills that appear to be crumbling rapidly
away rose abruptly on each side. In some places,
the eroded hillside took the form of chim-
neys, ruined factories, or even forts. In others
erosion had produced fantastic pinnacles, and
often the buttressed hills looked very much like
cathedrals.

About nine o'clock we met a Quichua family, the
wife carrying the baby and spinning, the man carry-
ing his wooden plough on his shoulder and driving
his oxen to an irrigated field where he proposed to do

96 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

his spring ploughing. His wife had on as many
gaudy-colored petticoats as she could afford. Such
is the fashion of the country.

Near one of the irrigating ditches under the
shadow of the buttressed walls of the caiion, we came
upon a hundred mules. Some of them were carry-
ing huge packing-cases, large enough to hold the
entire body of the patient mule, provided of course
that it were properly cut up and the extremities
shortened. In general the pack-mules were fine,
large animals, well able to carry their three-hundred-
pound loads. With such a caravan as this go a
dozen arrieros who rise each day three hours before
dawn and commence the everlasting task of saddling
and loading. When this is done, the men eat a
hearty breakfast, prepared in the meantime by one
of their number, and then start out for an eight-
hour march. About five o'clock in the afternoon,
or earlier, if they have by that time reached a suit-
able camping-place, the caravan stops and unload-
ing begins, which is finished barely in time to give
the men a few hours of slumber before the whole
process has to be repeated.

Fortunately, most of these cases of merchandise
were packed in Germany where they know how to
meet the exigencies of South American mountain
travel, and although the great wooden boxes were
banged against projecting rocks by the roadside and
often allowed to fall with a crash when the saddle-
ropes were untied at the end of the day, the contents
were practically sure to reach their destination in
good condition.

TUPIZA TO COTAGAITA 97

At noon we came to a group of freshly white-
washed adobe farm buildings, the property of an ab-
sentee landlord. Here we were able to purchase
green fodder for the mules, and luncheon, in the
shape of very hot soup and tea, for ourselves. In one
of the buildings was a district school with six or eight
pupils, the scholars evincing their studiousness by
learning their lessons out loud. The resultant noise
would considerably jar on the ear of a highly strung
New England "schoolmarm," but the good-natured
Bolivian teacher did not know that he had any
nerves, and only wanted to be sure that all his pupils
were busy.

After lunch our road continued up the same arid
valley past flocks of goats that strove to get a living
from the low-hanging branches of the mimosa trees.
Some of the more adventurous had even gone up
into the trees to secure a meal.

In the middle of the afternoon, we climbed out of
one valley and looked down into another. From the
pass we had a fine view of the valley through which
we had come. The prevailing color was brown with
here and there a touch of dusty green. All around
there was a confusion of barren hills and arid moun-
tains without a single evidence of human habitation.
The only sign of life was the long line of the mule
caravan which we had passed earlier in the day. The
country is so unfitted for the habitation of man
that the general effect of this and of most of the
scenery in southern Bolivia is oppressive and dis-
piriting.

Shortly before sunset, however, we came to a beau-

98 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

tiful spring called the "Eye of the Water," which
bubbled up by the roadside and flowed off into care-
fully guarded irrigating ditches. As was to be ex-
pected, there was a small Indian village in the vi-
cinity. The villagers were Quichuas, wearing small
felt hats, scanty shirts, and short loose pantaloons
made of what seemed to be homespun cloth. It was
rather attractive in appearance, and as it had the ro-
mantic flavor of being made here by the Indians, we
were inclined to purchase some until we discovered
that it was only "imitation" and was made in great
quantities in Manchester, England. These Qui-
chuas are a humble folk, excessively polite to each
other, doffing their hats whenever they meet. Both
men and women wore their hair in long braids down
their backs.

The little village sprawled up the side of the canon
just out of reach of the floods which occasionally
pour through this valley in the rainy season. In one
of the huts a kind of spring carnival was being cele-
brated with a reasonable amount of drinking. Sol-
emn singing and a monotonous tom-tomming of a
primitive drum were the only signs of gaiety except
a few bright flowers which they had gathered some-
where and put in their hair. As no rain was to be
expected and the village had the usual component
of filth and insects, we set up our folding cots in the
dry bed of the stream. The elevation was about ten
thousand feet. The stars were very brilliant. The
night was cool, the minimum temperature being 47°
P., a drop of forty degrees from the afternoon's maxi-
mum.

TUPIZA TO COTAGAITA 99

The next morning, after a breakfast of cold chicken
and Eno's fruit salts, all that our Boer War veteran
could provide for our comfort, we pushed up the val-
ley, and before long reached Totora, a typical Boli-
vian poste or tambo. It consisted of a small inclos-
ure surrounded by half a dozen low mud-huts with-
out windows. In one of these was kept alfalfa fodder
to be sold to passing travellers. In another lived the
keeper of the poste and his family. Here also was a
fire from which one had the right to demand hot
water, the only thing furnished for the comfort of
humans. In another, two or three well-baked
mounds of earth, flattened on top, were intended for
beds. A roof, an earth floor, and a wooden door were
the only other conveniences at the disposition of
travellers.

These pastes, more or less dirty and uncomfort-
able, may usually be found on the well-travelled
roads in southern Bolivia at a distance varying from
fifteen to twenty-five miles from each other. They
are not picturesque, but after some little experience
in travelling in that desolate region, one learns to
welcome the little collection of mud-huts, with pos-
sibly a green spot or two of alfalfa, as a perfect haven
of rest. To be sure, the only thing to eat is the food
you bring with you, but you may be always certain
of having hot water, and your arriero (unless he hap-
pens to be a veteran of the Boer War) will bring you
a cup of excellent tea within twenty minutes after
your arrival.

The road from Totora continued to be the rocky
floor of a valley in which from time to time little

100 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

streams of water or Irrigation ditches appeared, only
to lose themselves in fields of alfalfa or quinoa. Dur-
ing the dry season carts attempt to use this road, and
we overtook a dozen of them on their way north.
Each cart was drawn by six mules driven three
abreast by a driver who rode postillion on the nigh
mule nearest the cart. Before noon we climbed out
of this valley and descended Into a rocky, sandy
plain through which flowed the river Cotagaita on
its way eastward to join the great Pilcomayo. At
this time of the year, the latter part of November,
the river is a broad, shallow stream, easily fordable.
On sandy bars left dry by the receding waters were
cam.ped caravans of pack-mules and carts. Beyond
them lay the little town of Cotagaita, where the Ar-
gentine patriots were badly defeated in 1816. This
place is, in a sense, the crossroads of southern Bolivia
and is one of the main stations of Don Santiago's
stage-lines. Uyuni, on the Antofagasta railway, is
one hundred and fifteen miles west of here, three or
four days by stage. The mines of Potosi are nearly
the same distance north. Camargo, the capital of
the province of CInti, Is a few days due east, while
Tupiza Is fifty-four miles due south. There are sev-
eral routes from Tupiza to Uyuni but the most im-
portant and the only one practicable for coaches is
by way of Cotagaita. The road is new and said to
be very uncomfortable. There is not much to Inter-
est the traveller, except a few mines. Not far away
is Chorolque, a famous silver mine, at an altitude
of over seventeen thousand feet.

The town of Cotagaita is an old Spanish settle-

TUPIZA TO COTAGAITA loi

ment with the customary plaza, a few trees, a foun-
tain in the centre and a church on one side; one story
white-washed houses built of baked mud, the usual
narrow streets crossing each other at right angles,
their stone paving sloping toward the centre where
a ditch does duty as a sewer; a few Indians and a few
shops to minister to their wants. There are said to
be twelve hundred inhabitants but I doubt it. The
elevation is slightly lower than Tupiza.

We left Cotagaita after lunch, hoping to make the
tambo at Escara before dark, but we were des-
tined to disappointment. Mac, our Scotch arriero,
had decided that the pack-mules, which Don San-
tiago selected for us at Tupiza, were not good enough
to stand the march to Potosi, so he requested the
coach agent here to give us two better animals. The
latter allowed our veteran to go into the corral and
take any mules he pleased. Rich in knowledge of
the Boer War, but poor in experience with Bolivian
mules, he picked out two strong-looking beasts that
had been driven in the stage-coach but had never
carried a pack in their lives. After being blindfolded
they were saddled, with some difficulty, and we were
about to start when it was discovered that one of
them lacked a shoe on its nigh hind-foot. The black-
smith, a half-drunk, strongly built Indian, was sum-
moned. He brought a new shoe, a few nails, and a
hammer out into the street. The blindfolded mule
was held by Mac while an Indian tied the foot that
was to be shod securely to the mule's tail. Then the
blacksmith went to work. No attempt was made to
fit the shoe, and when the second nail was driven, the

102 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

mule kicked and struggled so violently as to throw
itself and all three men in a heap in the middle of
the road. Finally, after much tribulation, the shoe
was securely fastened, and amid the cheers of the
populace, we started briskly off for Potosi.

The new pack-mules, lacking all road sense and
missing the bridle, promptly ran away. One of them
was secured without much difficulty, but the other
one went up the hillside through a grove of young
mimosa trees which attempted to detain the load
with their thorny branches. They only succeeded
in partly dislodging it, however, and the mule con-
tinued his headlong career until his load turned com-
pletely under him, tripped him up, and ended by
rolling him down-hill. Fortunately the dunnage
bags were new and no great harm was done. Mac
insisted that he could drive this mule as well as any
other — which may have been true — so the poor
coach-mule was reloaded. Then four of us tried for
over an hour to make the two wretched animals
carry their packs properly and stick to the road as
pack-animals should. But they declined to enter
our service, and we were obliged to send them back
to Cotagalta, minus their loads. Meanwhile the
two mules which Mac had so thoughtfully discarded
at lunch time were reengaged. The exhibition was
useful, for It showed us that Mac knew even less
about saddling pack-animals than we did and was
perfectly useless in an emergency. Fortunately, an
excellent fellow, a brother of Don Santiago, became
our dens ex machina, helped us out of our difficulty,
and promised to join us the next morning with a new

TUPIZA TO COTAGAITA 103

arriero. By hard riding we arrived at the little tambo
of Escara an hour after dark and had some difficulty
in securing admittance. No one has any business to
travel at night in this country, unless bent on
mischief.

CHAPTER IX

ESCARA TO LAJA TAMBO

WE got Up early enough the next morning to
witness a phase of Bolivian life which we
had heard of but had not as yet seen. An officer and
two soldiers of the Bolivian army, travelling south-
ward, had spent the night at Escara and desired to
proceed promptly. The pastes are subsidized by the
Government on the understanding that all travelling
government officials shall be furnished with mules
and a man. Each paste has three or four guides called
postilions, connected with it. This morning things
did not move fast enough to suit the officer. The
mules were not ready when he wanted to start and
the meek Quichua postilion was offering an explana-
tion. In the midst of it, the officer lost his temper,
and taking his strong riding-whip, commenced to
lash the poor half-clad Indian across the face and
shoulders. The latter stood it for a few minutes
stolidly and then commenced to back off, followed
by the officer who continued to lay on the blows as
fast as possible. At length the postilion turned to
run and the officer pursued him, beating him and
cursing him until out of breath. It was a sickening
sight, but the strangest part of all was the absolute
meekness with which the Indian took his beating.
There was not the slightest sign of resentment or

ESCARA TO LAJA TAMBO 105

even annoyance. The strokes of the whip made the
blood start and trickle down his face and sides, but
he gave no evidence of feeling it.

Later in the day at Quirve, another poste, we
witnessed a similar exhibition, only in this case
the Indian did not even run away. The son of the
proprietor, a great hulking brute, six feet tall and
powerfully built, found fault with one of the post-
ilions for some trifling mistake and beat him across
the face and chest with a rawhide thong until
the blood flowed freely. Like the other Indian,
his face remained perfectly stolid, and he showed
no signs of anger or irritation.

We had been furious with the ofiicer in the morn-
ing and this exhibition was even more trying. Yet
the Bolivianos thought nothing of it. As Mr. Bryce
has so ably put it: "One must have lived among a
weaker race in order to realize the kind of irritation
which its defects produce in those who deal with it,
and how temper and self-control are strained in re-
sisting temptations to harsh or arbitrary action. It
needs something more than the virtue of a philoso-
pher — it needs the tenderness of a saint to preserve
the same courtesy and respect towards the members
of a backward race as are naturally extended to
equals." There is no doubt about the Quichuas be-
ing a backward race.

From the earliest historical times these poor In-
dians have virtually been slaves. Bred up to look
upon subjection as their natural lot, they bear it as
the dispensation of Providence. The Incas treated
them well, so far as we can judge, and took pains to

io6 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

see that the irrigation works, the foot-paths over the
mountains, the suspension bridges over the raging
torrents and tambos for the convenience of travel-
lers, should all be kept in good condition. The gold-
hunting Spanish conquistadores, on the other hand,
had no interest in the servile Quichuas further than
to secure their services as forced laborers in the
mines. The modern Bolivianos have done little to
improve their condition.

After seeing these two Indians meekly take such
severe beatings, I found it easier to understand why
Pizarro had been able to conquer the Empire of
Peru with a handful of determined Spanish soldiers,
and why the unfortunate Tupac Amaru could make
so little headway in 1781 when he attempted to rouse
the Indians to revolt against Spanish tyranny. Al-
though he had sixty thousand men under him, the
Spanish general easily defeated him with barely
twenty thousand, of whom only a few hundred were
Spaniards, the majority being friendly Indians.

How much the extremely severe conditions of life
that prevail on this arid plateau have had to do in
breaking the spirit of the race is a question. It is a
generally accepted fact that a race who are depend-
ent for their living on irrigating ditches, can easily
be conquered. All that the invading army has to do
is to destroy the dams, ruin the crops, and force the
inhabitants to face starvation.

The Quichua shows few of the traits which we or-
dinarily connect with mountaineers. His country is
too forlorn to give him an easy living or much time
for thought. He is half starved nearly all the time.

ESCARA TO LAJA TAMBO 107

His only comfort comes from chewing coca leaves.
Coca is the plant from which we extract cocaine. It
is said that the Quichua can go for days without
food, provided he has a good supply of coca. It
would be extremely interesting to determine the ef-
fect on his intelligence of this cocaine habit, which
seems to be centuries old. If a man can stand up
and take severe punishment for trivial offences with-
out getting angry, showing vexation, or apparently
without bearing any grudge against his oppressor,
there must be something constitutionally wrong
with him. I believe that the coca habit is answerable
for a large part of this very unsatisfactory state of
affairs. Coca has deadened his sensibilities to a de-
gree that passes comprehension. It has made him
stupid, willing to submit to almost any injury, lack-
ing in all ambition, caring for almost none of the
things which we consider the natural desires of the
human heart.

In travelling through Bolivia and Peru, I found it
repeatedly to be the case that the Quichua does not
care to sell for money either food or lodging. Pres-
ents of coca leaves and tobacco are acceptable. A
liberal offer of money rarely moves him, although it
would be possible for him to purchase with it many
articles of necessity or comfort in near-by towns. As
a rule he prefers neither to rent his animal, nor sell
you cheese or eggs, or anything else. The first Qui-
chua words one learns, and the answer which one
most commonly receives to all questions as to the
existence of the necessaries of life, is "mana canca,''
"there is none."

io8 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

This condition of affairs is not new. When Tem-
ple travelled through Bolivia in 1825, he was struck
by the prevailing ''no hay nada" (there is nothing
at all). Poverty, want, misery, and negligence are
the story that is told by the melancholy phrase. The
truth is, the Quichua not only has no ambition, he
has long ago ceased to care whether you or he or any-
body else has more than just barely enough to keep
body and soul together.

Needless to say, the Quichuas have no concern
with the politics of Bolivia, although they constitute
a large majority of the inhabitants.

From Escara our road continued to follow a semi-
arid valley. We passed a caravan of mule-carts
bound for Potosi and Sucre. In one of the carts
was an upright piano; in another, pieces of mining
machinery, while still others contained large cast-
iron pipes destined for Sucre's new waterworks.
Nearly all of the carts carried bales of Argentine hay
as this region is so arid that it is extremely difficult
to secure any fodder for the animals, and the barley
or alfalfa, when procurable, is often too expensive.

The weather continued to be fine. After a hot,
dusty ride of twenty miles, we stopped at the poste
of Quirve.

Just before reaching Quirve, we crossed the Tu-
musla River, the site of the last battle of the Bolivian
wars of independence. After Sucre's great victory
at Ayacucho, in 1824, the only Spanish troops which
remained unconquered in all South America were
the garrison of Callao and a small band under Gen-
eral Ollaneta in southern Bolivia. His men were

ESCARA TO LAJA TAMBO 109

badly disaffected by the news of the battle of Ayacu-
cho, and an officer who commanded a small garrison
at this strategic point, came out openly for the pa-
triotic cause. Ollaneta tried in vain to suppress the
revolt. The result was a battle here on the first of
April, 1825, in which the Spanish general was de-
feated and slain. The garrison of Callao held out for
a few months longer, but this was the end of active
warfare.

We found the tamho of Quirve to be of the most
primitive sort, not even affording shelter for man or
beast. The weekly Potosi stage-coach came in from
the north about six o'clock carrying one passenger.
He soon spread his bed under the wagon and made
himself comfortable for the night. The luggage
from Potosi was shipped on pack-animals and was
in charge of an Argentine Gaucho named Fermin
Chaile. This man we took in exchange for Mac,
whom we were glad enough to get rid of. Fermin, the
Gaucho, tall and gaunt, round-shouldered and bow-
legged, his dark Mongolian-like features crowned
by a mop of coarse, black hair, proved to be a god-
send. His loose-fitting suit of brown corduroys, far
better raiment than most arrieros can afford, bore
witness to the fact that he was sober, industrious,
and trustworthy. No one ever had a better mule-
teer. Like Rafael Rivas, the faithful Venezuelan
peon who had guided my cart across the Llanos in
1907, he took excellent care of the mules, yet drove
them almost to the limit of their endurance, was de-
voted to us, and proved to be reliable and attentive.
He was a plainsman, as different in spirit and achieve-

no ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

ment from the wretched mountaineers through
whose country we were passing, as though he had be-
longed to a different continent.

As we continued northward from Quirve, the val-
ley grew narrower and our road continued to be in
the dry river course. All the water that was visible
was collected in little ditches and conducted along
the hillsides fifteen or twenty feet above the bed of
the stream. On some of the hillsides of this valley
are terraces or andines where maize, quinoa, pota-
toes, and even grapes are made to grow, with much
painstaking labor. These terraces, common enough
farther north, were the first we had seen. The sta-
ple food of the Indians is chuno, a small potato that
has been put through a freezing process until its nat-
ural flavor is completely lost. One of the principal
dishes at this time of the year is the fruit of the cac-
tus. Everybody seems to be very fond of the broad-
leaved edible species, a thornless variety of which
we are developing in Arizona and New Mexico.

Farther up the valley I was struck by the inge-
nuity which had been exercised in carrying the irri-
gation ditches along the side of precipitous cliffs.
Numerous little tunnels, connected by small via-
ducts, enabled a tiny stream of water to travel three
or four miles until It reached a level space sufficiently
above highwater mark to warrant the planting of a
small field. The only animals to be seen beside mules
and horses, goats, pigs, dogs, and a very few birds,
were the little wild guinea-pigs of a color closely re-
sembling the everlasting brown hills. I was sur-
prised not to see any llamas.

ESCARA TO LAJA TAMBO in

Soon after leaving Quirve, we came to the little
village of Toropalca, in every way as brown and
dusty as the guinea-pigs. In fact, it melted into the
landscape as perfectly as they did.

About noon we reached another hillside village,
Saropalca, its houses placed so closely one above
another on the steep slope as to give the appearance
of a giant stairway. We climbed up through the
irregular lanes of the little village, until we found a
wretched little tambo where we bought a few bun-
dles of alfalfa and a bowl of soup.

Whenever we could secure sufficient alfalfa for the
mules and a bowl of hot chupe for ourselves in addi-
tion to the customary pot of hot water for our tea,
we considered ourselves most fortunate and were
willing to admit that the poste was well provided
with "all the necessaries of life." Chupe is a kind of
stew or thick soup consisting of frozen potatoes and
tough mutton or llama meat. In its natural state,
its taste is disagreeable enough, but when it is served
to the liking of the natives it is seasoned so highly
with red pepper as to be far too fiery for foreign pal-
ates.

In the course of the afternoon, the valley nar-
rowed to a gorge in which we passed more heavily-
laden mule-carts making their way along with the
utmost difficulty. Beyond the gorge we found sul-
phur springs and some banks of sulphur. One of the
hot springs gushed up close by the roadside. "El
Lazarillo," the eighteenth century Baedeker, says
there was once a "modest thermal establishment"
here, intended to attract bathers from Potosi.

112 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

At the end of the day we reached Caisa, after hav-
ing made nearly forty miles since morning. Caisa is
an old Spanish town and looks like all the rest. One-
story houses, narrow streets, badly paved, a city
block left open for a plaza, on one side of it a church
and the house of the priest, on the other three sides,
a few shops where we bought newly-baked hot bread,
beer, cheese, and candles. The tambo was called "La
Libertad" and bore the legend '' Muy barato" (very
cheap) . We surmised this meant that the proprietor
would charge all the traffic would bear; and such
proved to be the case. In fact, we had a very dis-
agreeable dispute with the landlady the next morn-
ing. Fermin indignantly declared she had tripled
the usual prices.

At Caisa the road from Argentina to Sucre
branches off to the right, going due north to Puna
and thence to Yotala, where it joins the road from
Potosi to Sucre.

Leaving Caisa on November 22, we went north-
west and soon had our first glimpse of a snow-clad
Bolivian mountain. The snow was not very deep,
however, as it had fallen during the night, and be-
fore noon it was all gone. Our road crossed several
ridges and then descended into a partly cultivated
valley near an old silver mine and a smelter called
Cuchu Ingenio. The road here was unusually good.
Even in 1773 " The Blind Man's Guide " says it was
a "camino de Trote, y Galope."

As we ascended a gorge, I was attracted by a little
waterfall of crystal clearness that came tumbling
down from the heights above, and was tempted to

'^ ^

\" .•'• * ^-/

'./."••* ♦*

ESCARA TO LAJA TAMBO 113

take a hearty drink of the delicious cool liquid. A
Boliviano from Tupiza, who was travelling with us
for company, warned me against such a rash act as
drinking cold water at this altitude. I had noticed
that no one in this region ever touches cold water,
and I thought the universal prejudice against it was
founded on a natural preference for alcohol. So I
laughingly enjoyed my cup of cold water and as-
sured him that there could be no harm in it. An
hour later we reached Laja Tambo, a wretched little
poste, standing alone on the edge of a tableland
twenty miles from Potosi. The altitude was about
thirteen thousand feet. The sun had been very warm,
and soon after alighting on the rough stone pavement
of the inn yard, I arranged the thermometers so as to
test the difference in temperature between sun and
shade. The temperature in the sun at noon v/as
85° F. In the shade it was 48° F. Scarcely had I
taken the readings when I began to feel chilly. Hot
tea followed by hot soup and still hotter brandy and
water failed to warm me, notwithstanding the fact
that I had unpacked my bag and put on two heavy
sweaters. A wretched sense of dizziness and of long-
ing to get warm made me lie down on the warm
stones of the courtyard. I grew rapidly worse, and
was soon experiencing the common symptoms of
soroche, puna, or mountain sickness. The combina-
tion of vomiting, diarrhoea, and chillswas bad enough,
but the prospect of being ill in this desolate poste,
twenty miles from the nearest doctor, with nothing
better than the usual accessories of a Bolivian tambo,
was infinitely w^orse. Somehow or other, I man-

114 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

aged to persuade Fermin to saddle and load the ani-
mals and put me on my mule, where I was deter-
mined to stay until we should reach Potosi.

The last thing to do before leaving the tambo was
to pay the bill, and this I proceeded to do in the Boli-
vian paper currency which I had purchased in Tu-
piza. Alas, one of the bills was on a bank situated
two hundred and fifty miles away in La Paz, a bank,
in fact, in which the postilion did not have much
confidence. The idea of having a servile Quichua
postilion decline to receive good money was extremely
irritating, and I tried my best, notwithstanding my
soroche, to force him to take it. He persisted and I
was obliged to find another bill in my wallet. I sup-
pose my hand trembled a little with chill or excite-
ment and in taking out the bill I partly tore it.

This would not have mattered had the tear been
in the middle, but it was nearer one end than the
other and the Indian refused to accept it. I had no
other small bills and was at a loss to know what to
do. In the meantime, Fermin and the pack-mules
had left the inclosure of the tambo and started for
Potosi while Mr. Smith was just outside of the gate
waiting for me. So I rolled up the sound bill which
the Indian had declined to receive, gave it to him,
and while he was investigating it, made a dash for
the road. He was too quick for me, however, and
gripped my bridle. Exasperated beyond measure,
I rode him against the wall of the tambo and made
him let go long enough to allow me to escape. It
seemed on the whole a lawless performance, although
the bank-note was perfectly good. I fully expected

ESCARA TO LAJA TAMBO 115

that he would follow us with stones or something
worse, but as he was only a Quichua he accepted the
inevitable and we saw no more of him.

In the face of a bitterly cold wind we crossed the
twenty-mile plateau that lies between Laja Tambo
and the famous city of Potosi. On the plain were
herds of llamas feeding, but these did not interest
us as much as the conical hill ahead. It was the
Cerro of Potosi, the hill that for two hundred and
fifty years, was the marvel of the world. No tale of
the Arabian Nights, no dream of Midas, ever
equalled the riches that flowed from this romantic
cone. Two billion ounces of silver is the record of its
output and the tale is not yet told.

Rounding the eastern shoulder of the mountain,
we passed several large smelters, some of them aban-
doned. Near by are the ruins of an edifice said to
have been built by the Spaniards to confine the poor
Indians whom they brought here by the thousands
to work in the mines. The road descends a little val-
ley and runs for a mile, past the ruins of hundreds of
buildings. In the eighteenth century, Potosi boasted
a population of over one hundred and fifty thousand.
Now there are scarcely fifteen thousand. The part
of the city that is still standing is near the ancient
plaza, the mint, and the market-place.

Our caravan clattered noisily down the steep,
stony streets until we reached the doors of the Hotel
Colon where an attentive Austrian landlord made us
welcome, notwithstanding the fact that one of the
party was evidently quite ill. I could not help won-
dering whether an American hotel-keeper would

ii6 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

have been so willing to receive a sick man as this be-
nighted citizen of Potosi. The paved courtyard was
small, but the rooms on the second floor were com-
modious and so much better than the unspeakably
forlorn adobe walls of Laja Tambo, that I felt quite
willing to retire from active exploration for a day or
two. Fortunately, I fell into the hands of a well-
trained Bolivian physician, who knew exactly what
to do, and with his aid, and the kind nursing of Fer-
min and Mr. Smith, I was soon on my feet again.

CHAPTER X

POTOsi

WE had not been in Potosi many hours before
we realized that it was a most fascinating
place with an atmosphere all its own. By the time
we had been here a week we were ready to agree with
those who call it the most interesting city in South
America.

The prestige of its former wealth, the evidence on
every side of former Spanish magnificence, the pic-
turesquely clad Indians and the troops of graceful,
inquisitive llamas in the streets, aroused to the ut-
most our curiosity and interest.

Our first duty was to call on the Prefect who had
been expecting our arrival and was most kind during
our entire stay. A Bolivian prefect has almost un-
limited power in his department and is directly re-
sponsible to the President. His orders are carried
out by the sub-prefect who is also chief of police and
has a small body of soldiers under his immediate con-
trol.

We found the Government House, or Prefectura,
to be a fine old building dating back to colonial days.
Probably the most interesting person that has ever
occupied it was General William Miller, that pic-
turesque British veteran who fought valiantly
through all the Peruvian Wars of Independence, re-

Ii8 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

celving so many wounds that he was said to have
been "honeycombed with bullets." At the end of
the wars he was appointed Prefect of Potosi, and it
was during his incumbency that the great liberator
Simon Bolivar made his visit. There is a vivid de-
scription of it in Miller's ** Memoirs." When Bolivar
arrived in sight of the far-famed mountain, the flags
of Peru, Buenos Aires, Chile, and Colombia were un-
furled on its summit. As he entered the town, twenty-
one petards were exploded on the peak, an aerial
salute "that had a very singular and imposing ef-
fect." "Upon alighting at the Government House,
under a grand triumphal arch, decorated with flags,
the reception of His Excellency was according to the
Hispanic-American taste. Two children, dressed as
angels, were let down from the arch as he approached,
and each pronounced a short oration! Upon enter-
ing the grand saloon, six handsome women, repre-
senting the fair sex of Potosi, hailed the arrival of
His Excellency, crowned him with a wreath of laurel,
and strewed flowers, which had been brought from a
great distance for the occasion." This was followed
by seven weeks of bull-fights, grand dinners, balls,
fireworks, illuminations, and other signs of public re-
joicing, which would seem to have surfeited even a
person so fond of pomp and adulation as the great
liberator.

Opposite the Government House, on the east side
of the plaza, is a curious many-arched arcade which
incloses a new plaza, the work of an ambitious pre-
fect. The tall column surmounted by a statue, that
stands as the only ornament in the new plciza, once

POTOSI 119

stood in the centre of the old, but was moved to its
new position by the Prefect who decided that his
work would be incomplete unless properly graced
by a monument.

On a corner of the new plaza is Potosi's only book-
shop. Judging by the stock in trade, the principal
customers are school children and lawyers. The
book trade was dull when we were there, but con-
siderable interest was shown in other departments
of the store where toys and picture post cards were
on sale.

Near by is the "University" where second-rate
secondary instruction is given to poor little boys who
sit on damp adobe seats in badly-lighted, foul-smell-
ing rooms. It was once a convent, but the church
connected with it has long since been transformed
into a theatre. The only attractive thing about the
"University" is the charming old convent garden
where rare old flowers still try to bloom.

Opposite the ** University" is the club. Here
there are billiard tables (it is really remarkable how
many billiard tables one finds scattered all over
South America, even in the most inaccessible places)
and a bar. The custom of serving a little felt mat
with each drink is resorted to, and when a member
chooses to stand treat, he goes about and gathers up
all the mats in sight and takes them to the bar where
he cashes them with his own money, or some that he
has recently won. The bar was well patronized. And
no one is to blame but the climate, which is the worst
in South America.

Although Potosi is in the Tropics, the highest re-

120 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

corded temperature here in the shade on the hottest
day ever known, was 59° F. The city is nearly thir-
teen thousand five hundred feet above the sea, al-
most as high as Pike's Peak. Every afternoon cold
winds sweep down through the streets striking a
chill into one's very marrow. A temperature of
22° F. is not unknown, yet none of the houses have
stoves or any appliances (except soup) for warming
their shivering inhabitants. As the prevailing tem-
perature indoors is below 50° F., almost every one
wears coats and hats in the house as much as out-
doors, or even more so, for a brisk walk of a block or
two at this altitude makes one quite warm, and in
the middle of the day the sun is hot.

Wherever we wandered in this fascinating city,
our eyes continually turned southward to the Cerro,
the beautifully colored cone that raises itself fifteen
hundred feet above the city. It is impossible to de-
scribe adequately the beauty of its colors and the
marvellous way in which they change as the sun sinks
behind the western Andes. I hope that some day a
great painter will come here and put on canvas the
marvellous hues of this world-renowned hill. Pink,
purple, lavender, brown, gray, and yellow streaks
make it look as though the gods, having finished
painting the universe, had used this as a dumping-
ground for their surplus pigments. In reality, the
hand of man has had much to do with its present
variegated aspect, for he has been busily engaged
during the past three hundred years in turning the
hill inside out. Much of the most beautifully col-
ored material has been painfully brought out from

POTOSI 121

the very heart of the hill through long tunnels, in
man's effort to get at the rich veins of silver and tin
which lie within.

The discovery of silver at Potosi was made by a
llama driver about the middle of the sixteenth cen-
tury. It was soon found that the mountain was tra-
versed by veins of extremely rich ore. After the gold
of the Incas had been gathered up and disposed of,
Potosi became the most important part of all the
Spanish possessions in America. At the beginning
of the sevententh century, when New York and Bos-
ton were still undreamed of, Potosi was already a
large and extremely wealthy city. It attracted the
presence of hundreds of Spanish adventurers includ-
ing many grandees. In short it had taken on all the
signs of luxury that are common to big mining camps.
Grandees in sumptuous apparel rode gayly capari-
soned horses up and down the stony streets, bow-
ing graciously to charming ladies dressed in the most
costly attire that newly-gotten wealth could pro-
cure. On feast days, and particularly on great na-
tional holidays, like the King's birthday, elaborate
and expensive entertainments were given.

If it were not for the great expanse of ruins and
the very large number of churches, it would be diffi-
cult to realize to-day that for over a century this was
the largest city in the Western Hemisphere. The
routes which led to the Bolivian plateau became the
greatest thoroughfares in America. Money flowed
more freely than water. In fact, the Spaniards found
great difficulty during the dry season in supplying
the city with sufficient water to use in washing the

122 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

ore and in meeting the ordinary needs of a large
population. Consequently, they went up into the
hills above the city and built, at great expense, a
score of dams to hold back the water that fell during
the rainy season and preserve it for the dry.

Immediately following the Wars of Independ-
ence and the consequent opening of the country to
foreign capital, a wild mining fever set in among
London capitalists. Greedy and ignorant directors
took advantage of the cupidity of the British public
to enrich themselves, while incidentally working the
mines of Potosi with disproportionately expensive
establishments. So eager was the public to take
stock in Potosi that shares which at the outset were
quoted at 75 or 80, rose incredibly in the short space
of six weeks. Some of them went up above 5000. As
was to be expected, this speculative fever was fol-
lowed by a panic which ruined not only the stock-
holders but those unfortunates like Edmund Tem-
ple, who had gone to Potosi in the employ of one of
the wildcat companies, and those South Americans
that had honored their drafts on London.

Then followed a long period of stagnation. But
as railroads came nearer and cart-roads began to
multiply, transportation became cheaper and new
enterprises sprang up.

|: Any one is at liberty to secure a license from the
proper authorities to dig a mine in the side of the
mountain, provided he does not interfere with the
property of someone else. The records show that
since the Cerro was first discovered licenses have
been issued for over five thousand mines. It is easy

POTOSI 123

to imagine what a vast underground labyrinth ex-
ists beneath those many-colored slopes. Most of
the openings, however, have been closed by ava-
lanches of refuse from mines higher up the hill.

One day I was invited to visit several new mines
that had recently been opened by a Chilean Com-
pany. In one mine, at an altitude of about fifteen
thousand feet, I undertook to crawl into the depths
for five hundred yards in order to see a new vein of
silver ore that had recently been encountered. The
exertion of getting in and out again at that altitude
was terrific, yet the miners did not appear to feel it.
They wear thick knitted caps which save their heads
from the bumps and shield them from falling rocks.
Their knees are protected by strong leather caps.
Their feet they bind in huge moccasins. Those that
carry out the ore frequently wear leather aprons tied
on their backs. The workmen are a sordid, rough-
looking lot who earn and deserve very good wages.
Sometime ago when tin was higher than it is now, a
large number of new mines were opened and un-
heard-of prices were paid for labor. Now that the
price of tin has fallen, it is extremely difficult to get
the Indians to accept a lower scale of wages. Con-
sequently, most of the new mines have had to be
closed.

In the old days, the tin was discarded as the eager
Spanish miners thought only of the silver. But now
the richer veins of silver have become exhausted, and
although some are being worked, most of the activ-
ity is confined to the tin ore. At the top of the cone
there is an immense quantity of it; the only diffi-

124 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

culty is how to get it down to the smelters in the val-
ley between the hill and the city. '

In this valley runs a small stream of water that
comes from the hill reservoirs. Attracted by its pre-
sence, most of the smelters have located themselves
on one side or the other of the little gorge. There are
innumerable small ingenios worked by the Indians
in a very primitive fashion. Some of them are scarcely
more than a family affair. Besides these there are
twenty-eight large smelters, and all of them devoted
more to tin than to silver. Not one of these is owned
by a Bolivian. A few belong to English capitalists,
more to Chileans, and the largest of all to a French-
man who has constructed an aerial railway to bring
the ore from high up on the mountainside to his fur-
naces. The never ending line of iron buckets adds a
curiously modern note to the ruins over which they
pass. Ore is also brought down on the backs of don-
keys and llamas. The workmen are mostly Quichuas.
Some of them are evidently not city bred, for they
dress with the same pigtails and small clothes that
they wore when Spanish conquistador es forced them
to take the precious metal out of the hill without
any thought of reward other than the fact that they
were likely to die sooner and reach heaven earlier
than if they stayed quietly at home. The product
of this smelter is shipped both as pure tin in ingots
and also as highly concentrated and refined ore.

The most picturesque feature of the valley was a
small chimney smoking lustily away all by itself,
high up on the opposite hillside, like a young volcano
with a smoke stack. In order to get a good draft for

THE CERRO OF POTOSI FROM THE SPANISH RKSKRVUIRS

AN ANCIENT QUICHUA ORE CRUSHER

POTOSI 125

the blast furnaces, the smoke is conducted across the
stream on a stone viaduct, enters the hill by.a tunnel,
and ascends a vertical shaft for one hundred and
fifty feet to the chimney which then carries it thirty
feet further up into the air. The tunnel does just as
good work in the way of producing a draft as though
it were a modern brick chimney, two hundred feet
high, but the effect is uncanny, to say the least.

We found among the boarders at the Hotel Colon
a group of young Peruvian and Chilean mining engi-
neers who were very congenial. They made the best
of their voluntary exile, and although none of them
enjoyed the fearful climatic conditions, they man-
aged to make their surroundings quite tolerable with
hard work, cheerful conversation, birthday dinners,
and social calls.

The courtyard of the hotel was a fine example of
the prevailing mixture of old and new. The roof was
covered with beautiful large red tiles whose weight
had crushed down the rafters in places so as to pro-
duce a wavy effect. Meanwhile the shaky old bal-
cony that ran around the court connecting the rooms
on the second floor, was sheltered from the rain by
strips of corrugated iron! The fine old stone-paved
patio was marred by a vile wainscoting painted in
imitation of cheap oil-cloth. In one corner stood a
little old-fashioned stove where arrieros, who need to
make an early start, cook their tea without disturb-
ing the hotel servants. An archway running under
the best bedrooms of the second floor, led out to the
street. Another archway led in to the filth of the
backyard where, amid indescribable scenes and

126 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

smells, six-course dinners were prepared for our con-
sumption. It was a miracle that we did not get
every disease in the calendar.

Opposite the hotel was a fine old building with a
wonderfully carved stone gateway and attractive
iron balconies jutting out with stone supports from
each second-story window. It is now the residence
and warehouse of one of the largest importers in Bol-
ivia. Once it was the abode of a Spanish marquis.
The exquisitely finished exterior bears witness to the
good taste of its builder and the riches and extrava-
gance that once ran riot in Potosi.

So also do the beautiful towers, all that are left
standing of the Jesuit church. The church itself has
disappeared, but the solidly constructed, exquisitely
carved stone towers remain as silent witnesses to the
power of that Christian order that did most to ad-
vance the cause of civilization in South America.

Unquestionably the most picturesque part of Po-
tosi is the market-place and the streets in its im-
mediate vicinity. Hither come the miners and their
families to spend their hard-earned wages. Here can
be purchased all the native articles of luxury: coca,
chupe, frozen potatoes, parched corn, and chicha (na-
tive hard cider made from anything that happens
to be handy). The streets are lined with small mer-
chants who stack their wares on the sidewalk against
the walls of the buildings. There are no carriages
and few horseback riders, so that one does not mind
being crowded off the sidewalks by the picturesque
booths of the Quichua merchants.

In the streets flocks of llamas driven by gayly-

POTOSI 127

dressed Indians add a rare flavor not easily forgot-
ten. The llamas move noiselessly only making little
grunts of private conversation among themselves;
quite haughty, yet so timid withal, they are easily
guided in droves of fifty by a couple of diminutive
Indians.

To see these ridiculous animals stalking slowly
along, looking inquisitively at everyone, continually
reminded me of Oliver Herford's verses about that
person in Boston who

"Looked about him with that air
Of supercilious despair
That very stuck-up people wear
At some society affair
When no one in their set is there."

In the immediate vicinity of the market-place
every available inch on each side of the street is used
by the small tradesmen. They are allowed to erect
canopies to protect their goods from the sun and rain,
and the general effect is not unlike a street in Cairo.
On one corner are piled up bolts of foreign cloth,
their owners squatting on the sidewalk in front of
them. On another corner, leaning against the white-
washed walls of a building, is a native drug store.
The different herbs and medicines exposed for sale
in the little cloth bags are cleverly stacked up so as
to show their contents without allowing the medi-
cines to mix. The most conspicuous article offered
for sale is coca, which is more to the Quichua than
tobacco is to the rest of mankind.

The market-place itself is roughly paved with ir-

128 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

regular stone blocks and is surrounded by arcades
where are the more perishable European goods. The
vendors of Indian merchandise squat on the stones
wherever they can find a place and spread out be-
fore them their wares, whether they consist of eggs
or pottery, potatoes or sandals.

It is the custom to arrange the corn and potatoes
in little piles, each pile being worth a real, about four
cents in our money, the standard of value in the mar-
ket-place. Under umbrella-like shelters are gath-
ered the purveyors of food and drink, their steaming
cauldrons of chupe surrounded by squatting Indians
who can thus get warmed and fed at the same time.
[ The Quichua garments are of every possible hue,
although red predominates. The women dress in
innumerable petticoats of many-colored materials
and wear warm, heavy, colored shawls, brought to-
gether over the shoulders and secured with two large
pins, occasionally of handsome workmanship, but
more often in the shape of spoons. Generally they
are content with uninteresting felt hats, but now and
then one will have a specimen of a different design,
the principal material of which is black velveteen,
ornamented with red worsted and colored beads. On
their feet the women usually wear the simplest kind
of rawhide sandals, although when they can afford it,
they affect an extraordinary footgear, a sandal with
a French heel an inch and a half high, and shod with
a leather device resembling a horse shoe.

Near the market-place is an interesting old church,
its twin towers still in good repair. Services are
rarely held here, and it was with some difficulty that

POTOSI 129

we succeeded in finding the sexton, who finally
brought a large key and allowed us to see the histori-
cal pictures that hang on the walls of two of the
chapels. They are of considerable interest and ap-
peared to date from the sixteenth century. We com-
mented on the fact that a large painting had re-
cently been removed and were regaled with a story
of how a foreign millionaire had bribed some prelate
or other to sell him the treasured relic !

In the eighteenth century Potosi boasted of sixty
churches but of these considerably more than half
are now in ruins. The ruined portion of the city lies
principally to the east and south. A few strongly
built churches or church towers are still standing
amid the remains of buildings that have tumbled
down in heaps.

Several of the old convents and monasteries, how-
ever, are still in a flourishing condition. To us the
chief interest consisted of their collections of fine old
paintings and their beautiful flowers. Nothing was
more refreshing in this mountainous desert than to
walk in their lovely green gardens.

The principal object of interest in the city, how-
ever, is the Casa Nacional de Moneda, the great mint,
which was begun in colonial days to receive the
plunder that the Spaniards took out of the hill by
means of the forced labor of their Indian slaves. It
covers two city blocks, and is really a collection of
buildings covered by a massive roof and surrounded
by a high wall with only one entrance. The front is
striking. At regular intervals along the roof are
little stone ornaments like funeral urns. The few

130 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

windows are carefully guarded with iron bars. On
either side of the elaborately decorated fagade of the
two-storied portal are wooden balconies over which
projects the heavily timbered roof covered with large
red tiles.

As one enters the great building from the street
and passes between heavy doors into a large court-
yard, the first thing that attracts one's attention is
an enormous face, four feet in diameter, which looks
down at the intruder from over an archway that
leads to a second courtyard. The gigantic face has a
malicious grin yet bears a distinct resemblance to
Bacchus. Who put it here and what it signifies does
not seem to be known. Suffice it to say that many
of the Quichuas before starting on a journey, come
to this courtyard and make obeisance to the face,
throwing down in front of it a quid of coca leaves
just as they used to do to the rising sun in the time
of the Incas.

The courtyard is surrounded by an arcade with
massive arches over which runs the carved wooden
balustrade of the second-story balcony. In the sec-
ond patio, which is also paved with cut stones, a tiny
narrow-gauge railway is used to carry silver ingots
from the treasure-room to the stamping-machines.
In one of the buildings is a physics laboratory. In
another a little gymnasium. In still a third, a collec-
tion of minerals. All of which are evidences that
here are the beginnings of a school of mines that is be-
ing built up under the able direction of an intelligent
young Bolivian engineer who received his training
at Notre Dame University in the United States. In

POTOSI 131

one old building are still standing the great wooden
machines that were formerly used in the process of
hammering out the silver. In a large room on the
second floor of another building are kept the vellum-
bound records of the mint and all the dies which have
been used for the past two hundred years* Accord-
ing to the records, the value of the silver taken from
here in the colonial days amounted to about one
billion dollars. Most of the stamping was done by
hand. The Bolivian government has cleared out two
or three of the buildings and installed modern ma-
chinery, imported from the United States.

One of the most remarkable features of the mint is
the size and condition of the huge timbers that sup-
port the roof. They are as sound to-day as they were
two hundred years ago when, with infinite labor,
they were brought across the mountains from the
distant forests of the Chaco.

The roof is surmounted by a number of small sen-
try-boxes which are connected by little paths and
stairways that lead to all parts of the structure. In
the old da^/s, it was necessary not only to protect the
"money-house" against possible attacks from with-
out, but to make sure that the Indians, who were as-
signed to work in the mint, did not escape from the
attics where they slept at night.

I crawled through several of these attics where
not even an underfed Indian could stand upright.
The roof was scarcely four feet above the floor. In
the corners were rude fireplaces where they may
have cooked their chiipe, with dried llama dung as
their only fuel. The rooms were dark, even in mid-

132 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

day. The tiny peek-holes that served as windows ad-
mitted scarcely any light. Altogether it was as
wretched a dormitory as could possibly be imagined.

The view from the roof was most interesting. The
romantic cone of the mountain-of-silver rises to the
south beyond the graceful towers of the cathedral.
East of it are the hills where the Spaniards built their
famous reservoirs. Further east are higher hills
which have been the scene of several bloody en-
counters in the unprofitable civil wars that have
devastated Bolivia. ' Here on the battle-field of Kari
Kari, several hundred unfortunate Indians, fighting
for revolutionary leaders with whose selfish aims
they had little sympathy, fell victims to the unfor-
tunate habit of appealing to arms instead of ballots.

North of us, in the foreground, is the picturesque
market-place, while northwest, in the distance, the
old trail for Oruro and Lima winds away through
the barren hills. To the west the far extending vista
discloses a wilderness of variegated hills and moun-
tain ranges. While all around, the quaint old arched
roofs, rolling like giant swells of the Pacific, are sur-
rounded by the narrow streets, the red-tiled houses,
and the ruinous towers of the ancient city.

CHAPTER XI

SUCRE THE DE JURE CAPITAL OF BOLIVIA

POTOsf was an irresistible attraction to thousands,
but the dreadful climate, the high altitude, the
cold winds, and the chilling rains drove away those
who could afford it to the more hospitable valleys a
few days' journey eastward where, with an abund-
ant water-supply at an elevation of eight thousand
feet, charming villas sprang up surrounded by at-
tractive plantations, the present suburbs of Sucre.

A fairly good coach road has recently been com-
pleted, and a weekly stage carries mail and passen-
gers between the two cities. We preferred, however,
to continue on our saddle mules and followed the
older route. The new road is a hundred miles long.
The old trail Is only seventy-five. With good ani-
mals it need take but two days. We were In no hurry,
however, and decided to do it in three.

The valleys through which our road descended, at
first arid and desolate, gradually became greener and
more populous. The views were often very fine and
extensive and we saw a few snow-covered moun-
tains. In the middle of winter, that Is June and
July, the snow frequently covers everything. Now,
on the 29th of November, the prevailing color was
a tawny brown.

On the road we met long strings of llamas, don-

134 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

keys, and mules laden with every conceivable shape
of basket, bag, and bundle bringing from the fertile
valleys to the eastward, potatoes, maize, wane, green
vegetables and fruits, the produce that feeds Potosi.

Further evidence of the extent of this traffic and
the number of arrieros that continually pass over
this road is the frequency of little chicherias , wretched
little huts built of stone and mud, baked in the sun,
and thatched with grass or bushes, w^here *'chicha "
can be bought for a penny a gourd.

On the bare ground in front of one of them a wo-
man had pegged down the framework of a hand
loom and was beginning to weave a poncho. Near
her the family dinner of chupe was simmering away
in a huge earthenware pot, supported on three stones,
over a tiny fire of thorns and llama dung. Other
picturesque jars filled with chicha awaited her cus-
tomers.

We lunched at what Baedeker would call "a
primitive thermal establishment," a favorite week-
end resort for German clerks in the importing houses
of Potosi. A swimming-pool that affords opportun-
ity to luxuriate in the warm sulphur water attracts
many visitors, as it is practically the only place in
southern Bolivia where one can get a hot tub bath.

The proprietor of the Baths, a type of English-
man that in the Pacific Ocean is called a "beach
comber," was an amusing old vagabond who made
a great fuss ordering his half-starved Indians to pre-
pare us a suitable meal. Our expectations were
aroused to a high pitch by his enthusiasm, but the
quality of the food was not any better than that of

^m a

^^^H^^^^H

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^*^ ^^^iK^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^I

SUCRE 135

the ordinary native inn. There was one very marked
difference, however. We were not met by any dec-
laration of ^'no hay nada.''

Our second stopping-place was Bartolo, a small
town of a thousand inhabitants, chiefly Quichua In-
dians, and a picturesque old church surrounded by
a wall made of stone arches. We arrived on a Sun-
day evening and found the tambo already so full of
travellers that there was no room for us or our beasts.
The Prefect of Potosi had given us a circular letter
requesting the masters of all the post-houses on our
route to accord us "every facility for our journey."
We soon found the letter to be of little avail, for
when there was any difficulty such as lack of accom-
modation or of fodder we were invariably informed
that the master of the poste was away attending to
some business in another village. As our letter, how-
ever, included also the governors of towns, we now
asked to be directed to the house of the Gobernador of
Bartolo and found that worthy gentleman bidding
good-bye to some Sunday visitors with whom he had
been partaking freely of brandy and chicha. He was
at first inclined to be insolent, and although he had a
comparatively large house, declared that he had no
room for us and that we must return to the inn. As
the situation approached that point where it was be-
coming necessary to use force in order to secure
shelter for the night, an obliging guest, who had pos-
session of the largest room in the inn, learning from
Fermin, the Gaucho, that we were delegados, offered
us the use of his quarters while he sought accommo-
dation among his acquaintances in the town.

136 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

In the meantime, the family of the tipsy governor
had sobered him up enough to make him realize that
he had shown discourtesy to the bearer of a govern-
ment passport and he came to the inn with profuse
offers of entertainment which we unfortunately
could not accept.

We left Bartolo early the next morning. The dust
had been laid by thunder-showers in the night and
the crisp mountain air was most refreshing. Occa-
sionally we passed the ruins of a rude stone cairn
erected in colonial days to measure the leagues be-
tween Sucre and Potosi. Fermin had never been
beyond Potosi, so we were obliged to fall back upon
the service of guides or postilions from here on.
They cannot be taken farther than from one poste to
another, generally six leagues or twenty miles. They
receive a regular tariff of four cents per league, and
a small gratuity besides.

For this munificent sum of a little over a cent a
mile, they are supposed to assist in catching and sad-
dling the animals, to hold the packs while they are
being loaded, and then to run beside the trotting
pack-animals, ready to help if the loads become
loosened, constantly at hand, a willing slave to the
arriero and a guide to the traveller. Generally lightly
clad with the regulation Quichua small clothes, that
look as though made of meal-sacks, they march or
lope along cheerily, now and then blowing lustily on
an ox-horn, which they carry slung over the shoulder
as a badge of their position.

The postilions will not budge unless their tariff is
paid in advance, for they have learned through cen-

SUCRE 137

turies of experience that while the traveller with a
stout whip, mounted on a good animal, with the
authority of the government at his back, can force
them to go the required distance after the fee has
been paid, they have no means whatever of forcing
him to pay after he has arrived at his destination
and has no further need of their services. The first
postilion we had, recognizing the fact that our arriero
was a stranger in this part of the country and that
we were foreigners, ran far ahead of the little cara-
van, and would have disappeared among the thorny
shrubs of the arid hillside had we not galloped after
him and threateningly ordered him to return to his
post at the heels of the mules. The next one proved
to be a good fellow and did his work well, notwith-
standing the dust which was his portion during most
of the day.

This morning we passed a field in which alpacas
that looked like overgrown woolly dogs were feeding.
As the sparse foliage increased, we met numerous
flocks of sheep watched over by diminutive children
in shawls and ponchos who ran away and hid be-
hind rocks when they saw us coming.

About the middle of the morning we came to the
edge of a plateau and enjoyed a wonderful view of
fertile valleys, whose waters flow rapidly down to
the Pilcomayo. It seemed difficult to realize that a
Bolivian landscape could have any other color than
brown. Our descent was now rapid, and the tem-
perature grew warmer except when we encountered
a small hail-storm.

After passing the scene of a battle in the unsuc-

138 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

cessful revolution of General Camacho, a militant
politician with whom Bolivia had considerable diffi-
culty in the '90's, we stopped for lunch at a tumbled-
down hostelry called Quebrada Honda, in honor of a
deep little valley whose steep sides rise abruptly
from a roaring mountain torrent. Squatting on the
ground in front of the tambo was a Quichua woman
weaving a bright-colored poncho.

In the afternoon we passed some primitive dwell-
ings which consisted of huge flat boulders under
which excavations had been made leaving them par-
tially supported by piles of stones at the corners.
The method did not seem to have proved success-
ful, for in most cases, the roof, too heavy for the
supports, was lying on the ground.

About five o'clock we arrived at the poste of Pampa
Tambo. We found a postilion in charge; the "mas-
ter of the poste was absent" as usual. The postilion
decided to charge us three times the regular rate for
forage and Fermin protested vigorously, but in vain.
Although it was a matter of only a dollar or so, I de-
cided to see whether my letter from the Prefect of
Potosi would make any difl"erence with his attitude
toward us. The sight of the official seal, and an em-
phatic threat that he would get himself into trouble
if he persisted in his outrageous demands, gradually
brought him to lower the price until it came within
two or three cents of the regular tariff.

Hardly had we settled the dispute when a violent
thunder-storm came up. This was the last day of
November and the rainy season was beginning. From
now on we had showers nearly every afternoon.

, »*

^ |l^|i-jr^" 'kf^' ^^

I -*

^m-

r^-

A PAStURE FdR .SHEEP AND ALPACAS

A QUICHUA WOMAN WEAVING AT QUEBRADA HONDA

SUCRE 139

In the evening a party of foreigners arrived, con-
sisting of a wealthy Franco-BoHviano and his two
sons who were on their way home from Paris. They
amused us by their elaborate preparations to supply
themselves with drinks and edibles. Little alcohol
stoves were kept busy making hot toddy, and drinks
without number soon produced a very drowsy party.

We got an early start the next morning and, in an
hour after leaving Pampa Tambo, came in sight of
the great river Pilcomayo which is associated with
the tragic death of the French explorer, Creveaux.
The Pilcomayo rises west of Potosi, receives the tur-
bid waters that have passed through Potosi's smelt-
ers, flows east and then southeast towards Para-
guay, finally joining the Paraguay River just above
Asuncion. Were it not for the gigantic morass, the
Estero Patino, which interrupts its course for about
fifty miles, it would serve as a convenient means of
communication between the mining region of Boli-
via and the Rio de la Plata. Most of its course is
through the Gran Chaco, a debateable land that har
been only partly explored.

East of the Andes, where the afifluents of the Pil-
comayo are almost interlaced with those of the Ma-
more, in the watershed between the basins of the
Amazon and the Parana, lies a region of rich trop-
ical forests with possibilities of development that
appeal very strongly to far-sighted Bolivianos. The
conditions are tropical, the soil is fertile, and there
is an abundance of rain. There are, however, in this
region, many tribes of wild Indians of whom little
is known and who have shown no desire to encour-

140 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

age the advent of strangers. Transportation is ex-
ceedingly difficult.

We found that a suspension bridge had been built
across the Pilcomayo at its narrowest and deepest
point, but owing to the tardiness of the wet season,
we were able to ford the stream lower down and save
a detour of several miles. After crossing the river
we rode up a dry gulch in which an attempt at culti-
vation by means of irrigating ditches was produc-
ing both pomegranates and peaches.

An hour's ride beyond the river brought us to
Calera, a little hamlet of Indian huts with a very
primitive tambo. We had counted on resting here
during the middle of the day, but there was abso-
lutely nothing to be had either for man or beast. We
could have unloaded and unpacked our own supplies,
but there is no point in eating when your mules can-
not eat, and so we pushed on, twelve miles further, to
the town of Yotala. Our path crossed a low range
of barren hills and then descended a thousand feet
or more by a steep, winding path to the river Cachi-
mayo which we forded without difficulty. In this
little valley we found many attractive plantations,
the fincas or country houses of the wealthy resi-
dents of Sucre. Extensive irrigation has trans-
formed the bed of the valley into what seems like a
veritable paradise, so great is its contrast with the
barren region around about.

Yotala is an old Spanish town, much more dead
than alive. There was an inn, misnamed a "res-
taurant," where there was nothing to be had in the
way of food for any of us. Fermin finally succeeded

SUCRE 141

in finding a poor widow who had a little fodder for
sale and was willing to let the mules eat it in her
back yard. As for ourselves, we had to fall back as
usual on canned goods, just as though this were an
isolated poste, twenty miles from anywhere, instead
of being a town of several thousand inhabitants.
We spread out our little lunch on the stones of the
plaza under two trees.

As it was noon, and the sky cloudless, the sun
shone with considerable ferocity. Presently a slov-
enly official with an expression on his face that said
plainly he was not quite sure whether we were dis-
tinguished travellers who ought to be looked after
or only vagabonds who should be driven off, came
and inquired if we were French merchants. On re-
ceiving a negative reply he seemed rather relieved
and withdrew to the shade of his own house. Of
course if we had whispered the magic words " dele-
gados de los Estados Unidos," all would have been
different.

After the mules had had a rest we covered the re-
maining six miles to Sucre, passing on the way a
number of leiVgefincas. One of them seemed to bear
a distant resemblance to a pleasure park. Statues
of men and animals, summer houses, pagodas, and a
small intramural railway whose imitation locomo-
tive was a small automobile in disguise, lent the
place a festive air which was increased by one or two
minarets and other fantastic tourers. We learned
afterwards that this was La Glorieta, the seat of the
Prince and Princess of Glorieta. The story, as told
us by a pleasant old lady in Sucre, is as follows : —

142 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

It seems that the head of the richest family in
Bolivia, who is also the leading banker of Sucre,
wearying of republican simplicity, decided to make
a large donation to the Pope. Soon afterw'ards his
great generosity was rewarded with the title of
"Prince of Glorieta." Unfortunately, our presence
in this part of the world was not properly made
known to this Bolivian royal house and I am unable
to give an adequate description of the beauties of
Glorieta. They have, however, been published by
the owners in a pamphlet, and from all that I could
hear, Glorieta has a distant resemblance to Coney
Island.

After passing Glorieta, w^e crossed a small cafion,
climbed the sides of a deep gorge, and suddenly found
ourselves at the city gates.

Sucre has a population of twenty thousand souls,
including fifty negroes, and two or three hundred
foreigners, a large number of whom are Spaniards
engaged in mercantile business. There are tw^o or
three hotels here, and we were in some doubt as to
which might offer the best welcome. After a vain
effort to locate the Prefect and get his advice, we
decided to go to the Hotel Colon where we found
large comfortable rooms on the second floor, facing
the plaza. The proprietor was most polite and at-
tentive. The only fault that we had to find with
him was his continual spitting. The fact that there
were no cuspidors and that he was ruining his own
carpet did not deter him in the least. Perhaps he
had rented the furnishings.

It is superfluous to speak of the filth of the kitchen

THE GREAT RIVER PILCOMAYO

il.a li ihltri%^ iilMlh#* *il «<lil» t'" '^ift ijtiifc i^ ^i *iWw» JB^ IMfc'* '" *' ^

OUR HOTEL IN SUCRE

SUCRE 143

through which we had to pass to reach the back
yard. It differed from others only in the large num-
ber of guinea-pigs that swarmed everywhere. They
helped to make the bill-of-fare more interesting.

Sucre owes its importance to its comparatively
pleasant climate. The average temperature is 56° F.
Bolivianos, accustomed as they are to one of the worst
climates in the world, say that Sucre has "the finest
climate in existence," which means, being translated,
that it is fairly tolerable. Nevertheless, we found it
very agreeable to be down at this lower elevation,
and we could scarcely sympathize with Castelnau,
who, coming up from the eastern plains in 1845,
thought Sucre very "triste.'" He and his associates
had been for many months in the warm regions of
Brazil and found it difficult "to resist the cold and
the effects of the altitude." Most of them suffered
severely from soroche although few people now-a-
days think of being troubled at an altitude of any-
thing less than twelve thousand feet and Sucre is
only a little over nine thousand.

If the miners had felt as Castelnau did, the old
Indian city of Chuquisaca would never have be-
come the social and literary capital of upper Peru.
Its name was changed to La Plata in recognition of
the stream of silver that flowed to it from Potosi.
Here resided an important bishop who looked after
the souls of countless thousands of Indians scattered
up and down the Bolivian plateau and in the tan-
gled jungles east of the Andes. The citizens of Chu-
quisaca, or La Plata, acquired before long a reputa-
tion for wealth and intelligence which spread far and

144 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

wide. They called their city the "Athens of Peru"
and they established here a university where stu-
dents still come to study law and medicine^

After the great battle of Ayacucho in December,
1824, when General Sucre won the memorable vic-
tory that defeated the last Spanish army in South
America, Upper Peru was erected into an independ-
ent Republic, taking its name from the great Gen-
eral Bolivar and giving to its capital city the name
of its first president.

President Sucre was living at the capital when
Edmond Temple came here in 1826. That enter-
taining writer describes him as tall and thin with
mild, prepossessing manners and dififident address.
Temple had lived in Bolivia for nearly a year and
was moved to say that General Sucre was the best
choice that could have been made to fill "the ardu-
ous, troublesome, and thankless office of Supreme
Chief of the new republic of Bolivia." Temple at-
tended a session of Congress where he was unfavor-
ably impressed by the custom of remaining seated
during the whole debate and by the constant prac-
tice of spitting, "which is a breach of decorum
which no Englishman can patiently witness!" The
innkeeper must have been a descendant of a Con-
gressman.

As long as Congress sat here the representatives
came mostly from this region and were naturally in-
fluenced by the aristocratic society of the capital.
The wealthy politicians of Sucre succeeded in divert-
ing a large part of the national revenues to beautify-
ing their city, building extravagant public works,

SUCRE 145

and neglecting the just claims of La Paz. La Paz,
far more populous, and enjoying a much more im-
portant situation commercially, was overlooked. Lit-
tle of the public revenue found its way thither. The
result was a revolution in which La Paz emphatically
proclaimed its desire to share in the distribution of
the public moneys and public offices. The then
President gathered the Government forces together
in Sucre and proceeded to march on the rebellious
metropolis. He was defeated not far from La Paz
with great losses, and the war-like Aymaras of La
Paz followed up the victory with orgies of a disgust-
ing and barbaric if not cannibalistic character. The
result was that while Sucre retained the Supreme
Court and the title of Capital, La Paz became the
actual seat of government, and few foreign diplo-
mats have ever undertaken the five days of hard
travel which separates Sucre from Challapata, the
nearest railway station.

Nevertheless the wealthiest people in Bolivia live
in Sucre. They are very aristocratic and extremely
exclusive, and they feel very superior to the citizens
of La Paz although that place is really much more
important than Sucre. The great land-owners have
established here the headquarters of the most im-
portant banks in the country.

At the largest of all, the Banco Nacional de Bo-
livia, I drew some money on my letter of credit.
Among the coins which I trustfully accepted were
seven or eight that proved to be bad. The Indians
always ring a coin before accepting it. The result
was I found myself the victim of a clever bank cash-

146 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

ier. The coins were probably not counterfeit. The
Bolivian government has not been above issuing
"silver" coins, particularly "half pesos'' that con-
tain so much "alloy" as to be valueless. -

These debased half dollars have long been a sub-
ject of annoyance not only to travellers but to the
neighboring Peruvians. Sir Clements Markham
says that at the time of his visit to Peru in 1859,
when he was on that famous mission that secured
Chincona plants from eastern Peru for transporta-
tion to India, war was imminent between Peru and
Bolivia and one casus belli was that the Bolivian
government persisted in coining and deluging Peru
with debased half dollars. These ill-omened chick-
ens have certainly come back to roost, for one never
sees them now in Peru and they are all too frequent
here. Perhaps that is one reason why the local banks
are so unusually well built.

There is also a pretentious "legislative palace,"
and at the time of my visit a large theatre was in the
course of construction. It was hoped to have this
completed in time for the celebration of the one hun-
dredth anniversary of the beginning of the War of
Independence.

The market-place Is neither so interesting nor so
picturesque as that of Potosl. A few of the men
wore curious helmet-like hats wuth small visors
turned up in front and back. It would be interest-
ing to know whether this were the original hat of the
vicinity or whether it had been copied from the head-
gear of the armored Spaniard conquistadores of the
sixteenth century. The corresponding women's hats

SUCRE 147

were twice as large as the men's but the brim was
turned up in the front and back in the same fashion.

Most of the women wore felt hats of native manu-
facture, picturesque coats of white cotton decorated
with many little pieces of colored calico, and as many
heavy woollen petticoats as they could afford. Thema-
jority wore rough rawhide sandals without socks but
a few had elaborately patterned knitted stockings.

A considerable quantity of chocolate is manu-
factured here and, as in the mountains of Colombia,
no meal is considered complete without it. They
appreciate better than we do the advantage of
having the drink as light and airy as possible, and
consequently never serve any without beating it
to a light froth by means of a wooden spindle that is
inserted in the pot and rapidly revolved between
the palms of the hands.

There are several Indian silversmiths here, as well
as in Potosi, where filigree- work, spoons, and simple
silver dishes are hammered out. The director of the
mint in Potosi told me he was frequently offered
pure silver family heirlooms that have come down
from the extravagant days of the seventeenth cen-
tury when in a well-to-do house every imaginable
utensil was made of silver.

Another specialty of Sucre is the manufacture of
tiny dolls out of pieces of fine wire, lace, and tinsel.
They range in size from four inches down to half an
inch. Sometimes an effort is made to copy a native
costume, but more generally the dressing is entirely
fantastic or suited only to high carnival. Similar dolls
are made in south central Mexico.

CHAPTER XII

THE ROAD TO CHALLAPATA

WE were not sorry when the time came to leave
Sucre. It not infrequently happens that in-
terior provincial cities of considerable local political
importance are not very lenient toward strangers,
particularly if the latter are dressed in breeches that
seem at all outlandish to the provincial mind. I un-
derstand that Chinese have found this to be true in
the capitals of our Western States. The thing had
happened to me before in Tunja, the capital of the
province of Boyacd, Colombia. And it happened
here in Sucre. Whenever w^e walked the streets ex-
amining the public buildings or visiting the market-
place, we were considerably annoyed by loafers,
both men and boys, who, recognizing us as strangers
and foreigners, regarded us as the proper target for
all manner of witticisms.

An hour after leaving the city, we turned to look
back, and found the view from the west quite attrac-
tive. In the foreground, dry gulches, stony hillsides,
and an occasional thatched mud hut. In the dis-
tance, hills sloping down so abruptly that one could
not see the bottom of the gulch that lay between us
and the city. Immediately beyond, the white walls
of Sucre overshadowed by a mountain whose twin
peaks rise beyond the eastern suburbs. There was

THE ROAD TO CHALLAPATA 149

just a suggestion of green, reminding us that this is
the last fertile spot on the outskirts of the great arid
plateau, towards which we now turned.

As the road between Sucre and the railway is one
of the most important thoroughfares in Bolivia, it
was to be expected that there would be pastes every
four or five leagues. The first one we came to was
that of Punilla, four leagues from Sucre. All we
needed was a guide, but the only postilion we could
secure had a very sore foot, scarcely protected at all
from the stony road by the primitive rawhide sandal
that he wore. Yet he came along quite cheerfully.

The pastes between Sucre and Challapata are
larger than those in southern Bolivia. They are
modelled on the Inca tambos that used to exist on all
the more frequented trails in the highlands of Peru and
Bolivia; a range of low, windowless buildings, either
of stone or adobe, sometimes completely surround-
ing a courtyard, at other times only on three sides,
containing a few rooms of which one is furnished with
a rough and very shaky table and three or four adobe
platforms intended for bunks; mud floors that have
accumulated dirt and filth of every description ever
since the building was constructed ; poorly thatched
roofs from which bits of straw and pieces of dirt oc-
casionally dislodge themselves to fall on the table
where we spread our canned repast, or to alight on
our faces just as we were trying to get to sleep.

The trains of pack animals that we met on the
road, whether llamas, burros, or mules, were all en-
gaged in bringing freight from the railway. This
consisted mostly of boxes of soap and canned goods,

150 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

cases of wine and beer and condensed milk, and small
packages of general merchandise.

The next poste, Pisculco, four leagues beyond Pu-
nilla over a good road that wound through semi-arid
hills, was an extremely primitive affair. The mas-
ter of the paste and all the postilions were "absent,"
but we secured the services of a small boy who
bravely girded his belt, slung a horn over his shoul-
der, received his pay and started out as our guide
and escort. He soon fell behind, however, and be-
fore we knew it, disappeared among the brown
bushes. Both his scanty raiment and his skin were
so nearly the color of the ground that it was a hope-
less task to look for him, and we went on, trusting
we should be able to follow such a well-travelled
highway without the necessity of a guide. Unfor-
tunately, the road forked, and in choosing the more
travelled branch, we followed a short cut in the
steps of llama pack trains. As they camp in the
open at night, we missed the road for Moromoro,
took the wrong turn, and after a perilous descent
down a mile of treacherous, slippery rocks, found our-
selves at the abandoned tambo of Challoma, whose
only inhabitants were an old woman and her pigs.
She was greatly alarmed at our arrival and told us
in shrill tones that we were three leagues off the road.
Nevertheless, as it was rapidly getting dark and we
had had a hard ride of forty miles, we decided to
take shelter under the leaky roof of the ancient poste.

Beyond Challoma the trail crossed a canon and a
shallow stream and finally came out on a series of
flat lands where we saw a few burros and llamas

■■'^'\,

THE ROAD TO CHALLAPATA 151

grazing on the dry grass which had been left over
from the last rainy season.

In the middle of one such plain stood the next
poste, Caracara, built like a fortress in the desert.
There are only three openings in the great square
inclosure: a barred window high up in a gable end
near one corner; a little door leading to a cantina
where one could purchase a few drinks, matches,
candles, and cigarettes; and a small arched entrance
through which loaded animals and travellers pass to
the courtyard. Although on one of the most Import-
ant highways in Bolivia it did not afford any food
for the animals or ourselves.

After leaving Caracara, we passed a few pink roses
blooming under the shelter of some rocks. They
looked strangely out of place in this Thibetan wil-
derness but they gave signs of the coming spring and
the rainy season. In the afternoon we had several
thunder-showers. The result of the showers of the
past few days had been to stimulate also the growth
of an occasional geranium, or modest little fern. In
general there was little to relieve the monotonous
brown wilderness.

For league after league we continued our march
westward through a confused mountainous region.
In southern Bolivia we had followed a long valley
running in a north and south direction, but here our
route lay across the valleys. Sometimes we followed
the coach road for several leagues and then took a
short cut down a steep hillside. At times we did not
see a single hut in the twelve or fourteen miles sep-
arating the pastes. While not quite so sandy and

152 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

desolate as the region farther south, still it impresses
one as being extremely inhospitable and unlikely
ever to support a larger population.

In the evening of the second day we reached
Ocuri, eighty miles from Sucre. Just outside the
town we crossed a very swampy plain where cattle,
horses, and pigs were feeding in treacherous bogs.

Ocuri is a brown little Indian town of perhaps two
thousand inhabitants, with houses of sunburned
brick and thatched roofs, lying high up on the side
of a mountain whose peak shelters it somewhat from
the easterly winds. It is higher than Potosi and has
much the same cold, dismal climate. It likewise owes
its existence to the presence of mines of silver and
tin. There are several small smelters just outside
the town. We could get nothing to eat in the poste,
but a pleasant-faced mestiza woman who kept a sort
of boarding-house near by, gave us a supper of beef-
steak and fried eggs, a welcome change from the
canned food which was our mainstay.

The principal street in the town was lined with
small shops where a considerable variety of domestic
and foreign merchandise was offered for sale. This
does not mean that there were any attractive win-
dow displays but that when Mr. Smith felt brave
enough to venture to step over the little Aymara
brats and the fierce Bolivian dogs who were playing
around the prostrate forms of drunken arrieros, he
found hidden away in the dark recesses of dusty
shops, quite a variety of articles. Cigarettes, onions,
eggs, bread, canned salmon, sardines, home-made
woollen ponchos, imported cotton cloth, candles,

THE ROAD TO CHALLAPATA 153

cheap domestic pottery, straw hats, shoes, belts,
gloves, and condensed milk. It is a very poor place
indeed in Bolivia where one cannot buy a small can
of Swiss condensed milk, the one thing that is gen-
erally good.

At Ocuri, we entered the country of the Aymaras
for whom this is a kind of outpost town. Our first
evidence of their being here was the fact that the
postilions in the tamho unloaded our mules very care-
lessly, allowing the bags to fall with a crash to the
ground. They seemed to think it a great joke to
treat us as ignominiously as possible. From here to
Oruro, La Paz, and Lake Titicaca the Aymaras are
in full sway. They seem to be inserted like a wedge
between the Quichuas of Peru and those of southern
Bolivia.

The Quichuas are a mild and inoffensive folk, but
the Aymaras, heavier In build, coarser featured, and
more vigorous In general appearance, are brutally
insolent in their manner and unruly in their behav-
ior. We were even regaled with stories of their can-
nibalism on certain occasions, but unfortunately had
no opportunity of proving the truth of such state-
ments. Neither Quichuas nor Aymards are at all
thrifty, and we were everywhere Impressed with their
great poverty. Their clothing is generally the merest
rags and their food is as meagre as can possibly be
imagined. Coca and chicha (i. e., cocaine and alco-
hol) seem to be beginning and end of life with them.
We rarely ever saw one riding, although occasion-
ally we met a postilion returning to his poste with a
mule that had been placed in his charge.

154 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

A great majority of the population show little or
no desire to vote or to have anything to do with poli-
tics. They are uneducated, but have very fixed
ideas with regard to their absolute rights over land
which they have occupied for any length of time.
Their ideas of squatter sovereignty sometimes inter-
fere with the desires of the government to develop
the resources of the country.

It is unfortunate that no efforts are being made to
establish a good system of public schools and en-
force attendance. One of the greatest difficulties in
the way of such an undertaking is the fact that the
Indians not only have no interest in securing the
education of their children, but also that they find it
to their advantage to speak their own tongue rather
than Spanish. Probably less than fifteen per cent
of the population speak Spanish with fluency. They
are lacking in ambition, seem to have no desire to
raise produce, bear ill-will towards strangers, and pre-
fer not to assist travellers to pass through their
country. Even if a man has plenty of chickens and
sheep, he will generally refuse to sell any although
you ofi"er him an excellent price. With coaxing and
coca you may succeed. Sometimes he pretends not
to understand Spanish and replies to all questions
in guttural Quichua or Aymara.
I So large a percentage of the population are In-
dians that nearly all the whites are actively inter-
ested in politics and would like to be office-holders.
It is said that all elections are merely forms through
which the party in power goes, in order to maintain
its supremacy.

THE ROAD TO CHALLAPATA 155

The majority of the inhabitants are in no sense
fitted to be the citizens of a repubHc. However much
the theoretical lover of liberty may bemoan the fact
that Bolivia is in reality an oligarchy, one cannot
help feeling that that is the only possible outcome
of an attempt to simulate the forms of a republic
in a country whose inhabitants are so deficient both
mentally and morally. Mexico has given a splendid
example of what can be accomplished in a region
populated largely by Indians and descendants of
Spanish monarchists. The benevolent despotism
which President Diaz has exhibited now for more
than a generation has done wonders. The great San
Martin foresaw the advantages of oligarchy or mon-
archy and advocated something of the kind for the
Spanish provinces of South America when they
secured their independence. Unfortunately, his far-
sighted statesmanship ran counter to the bombastic
notions of " liberty " held by the uneducated Creoles
who had secured control of the reins of government
and the result was the creation of republics. The ex-
treme difficulty of communication throughout Bolivia
has made the way of revolutions fairly easy. An en-
tire province can rise against the government before
sufficient troops can be sent to quell the disturbance.

Whenever we got an early start from a poste, we
were pretty sure to come upon a llama camp before
long; the drivers engaged in slowly rounding up their
grazing beasts and inducing them to receive their
loads for another day's work. In the absence of
rain, the loads are merely piled up on the ground so
as to form a shelter from the wind during the night.

156 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

If showers threaten, ponchos and tarpaulins are
thrown over the heap of merchandise.

Many of the llama drivers carried primitive mus-
ical instruments. The most common form was a bam-
boo flute or flageolet with six holes. On these the
Indians succeed in playing weird, monotonous airs
in which a fantastic reiteration of simple strains is
varied with occasional bursts of high, screechy notes.
Some of the drivers had little guitars of a very prim-
itive construction on which they thrummed rather
monotonously. Some had their wives and children
with them. The women were nearly always engaged
in spinning yarn with a wooden spindle which they
handled with the dexterity of a professional juggler.
Two or three men, and a boy or so, generally accom-
panied a caravan of sixty or seventy llamas. Each
driver carried a knitted sling made of llama wool
and found no lack of ammunition by the roadside
with which to urge forward his flock or to head off a
stray animal. We were always amused when we met
a drove. The leaders would approach gingerly,
stretching their long necks and looking very much
like timid, near-sighted dowagers. They scarcely
knev/ whether to advance or to retreat. A few flying
rocks from the slings of the drivers, followed up by
encouraging shouts, generally decided the leaders
to proceed, but some were so palpably ** frightened
to death" by everything they saw, vv^e were sur-
prised they had managed to live so long. Occasion-
ally a herd coming from Sucre laden with chocolate
or sugar and bound eastward, would meet one com-
ing from the railroad with foreign merchandise.

THE ROAD TO CHALLAPATA 157

This nearly always resulted in great confusion and
much shouting. The llamas looked so stupid we
wondered how they ever succeeded in extricating
themselves and proceeding in the right direction.
At one point where the road almost disappeared
among a wilderness of huge, scattered boulders, we
met a large drove that had lost all sense of direction.
Every attempt of the drivers to get their animals
headed the same way met with failure. The beasts
seemed to be infused with some centrifugal force
which sent every one of them in a different direction
from his neighbor. Owing to the huge rocks, it was
impossible for the poor creatures to see one another
or the drivers. They may be there yet.

There is something extremely amusing in the soft
tread, the awkward gait, the large innocent eyes, and
the inquisitive ears of the llama. Many had the tips
of their ears decorated with bits of colored worsted.
I saw two that were decked out with very elaborate
headdresses. They never seemed to be in a hurry,
any more than their Indian drivers, and their dis-
position is much more gentle and inoffensive than
I had been led to suppose.

About ten miles from Ocuri I saw several fat liz-
ards each about six inches long. The altitude at the
time was about fourteen thousand feet, the record
height for lizards, so I am told.

Soon afterwards we got a glimpse to the north-
wards of the sharp peaks near Colquechaca, one of
the highest towns in the world, which owes its exist-
ence, as do so many of the Bolivian towns, to the
presence in its vicinity of rich silver mines.

158 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

We reached Macha at noon on the third day, after
a hot ride of thirty miles from Ocuri.

Macha is another dusty-brown, Indian town lying
on the slopes of a large valley. Near by we saw some
evidences of cultivation. The fields were surrounded
with walls of dried mud and had large adobe gates
reminding me of the Sogamoso valley in Colombia.
That region, however, was so much greener and
more fertile than this that the resemblance ceased
with the gates and fences. It should be remembered
that the rainy season here had only just begun.

As we descended the east side of the valley, we
met a six-mule coach on its way from Challapata to
Sucre. The curtains were drawn down on all sides
to protect the passengers from the dust and glare.
Their outlook was rather limited. A quarter of a
mile beyond we met a drove of relay coach mules,
in charge of two mounted postilions.

There is a moderately good coach-road two hun-
dred and ten miles long from Sucre to Challapata.
The coach runs fortnightly, in pleasant weather, and
takes five days for the journey. Personally, I should
prefer almost anything rather than to be shut up in
a Bolivian coach and yanked over these rough, dusty
roads, but I suppose some people would relish even
that better than jogging along forty miles a day on
a mule, as we chose to do.

We left Macha after a light lunch but had not
gone a mile before we were pelted by a violent thun-
der-shower accompanied by hail, some of the stones
being as large as marbles. To add to our discomfort
the mules had made rapid marches since leaving

THE ROAD TO CHALLAPATA 159

Sucre and were very tired. The road out of the val-
ley was steep and slippery. When we reached the
summit, the storm renewed its fury, and we all shiv-
ered with the cold, in contrast to the burning heat of
the morning. At this height, whenever the sun
shines, the glare is trying and the heat really uncom-
fortable. As soon as the sun passes behind a cloud,
however, one experiences all the rigors of winter.

We arrived at the lonely isolated poste of Acon-
cawa just at sunset. The Aymara postilions were as
disobliging as possible. Four or live Bolivian trav-
ellers had reached the poste ahead of us and taken
possession of the only available sleeping room. The
night was bitterly cold and wet. The altitude was
something over thirteen thousand feet. After some
difficulty, we succeeded in forcing our way into a
room where the cebada or barley straw was stored.
South of Potosi the fodder for the mules is generally
alfa or alfalfa but hereabouts it is cebada. The In-
dians were so afraid of our damaging the straw by
sleeping on it that they swept it up and piled it on
one side of the room as high as possible, raising
clouds of fine dust in the meantime. The dust did
not settle for many hours and brought on asthma
when we tried to sleep. Soon after leaving Acon-
cawa, Fermin's sharp eyes detected three vicuiias,
feeding, a mile away to the south of us. I could
barely make them out with powerful field-glasses
and should never have seen them at all but for the
keen-eyed gaucho. It seemed strange that these
should be the only vicuiias which we saw in a wild
state in our entire journey in southern Bolivia.

i69 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

Travellers fifty years ago speak of meeting them con-
stantly in the more desolate parts of the mountains.
Before the great demand arose for vicufia rugs,those
highly-prized trophies of the casual visitor, these
graceful and beautiful creatures, with their fawn-
colored coats, were one of the most interesting fea-
tures of travel in the lonely upland pastures of the
Bolivian and Peruvian mountains.

On the little plain near the vicuiias were a few
pools of water that seemed to be a feeding-ground
for a few pigeons and some birds that looked like
Titicaca gulls. An occasional earth-colored guinea-
pig was practically the only other wild animal we
could discover.

Soon after seeing the vicuiias we continued to
climb by a zigzag road until we reached the highest
point in this journey, the ridge of Livichuco, fifteen
thousand feet above the sea. Neither mules or llamas
seemed to mind this altitude but we found it very
chilly and disagreeable and were glad enough to de-
scend as quickly as possible without wasting much
time in enjoying the -extensive view over the rock-
strewn hills about us. It may seem strange that we
did not stop to rhapsodize on the fact that we were
now leaving the basin of the Rio de la Plata, or on
the extensive panorama. But the latter was so cold,
desolate, and forbidding, the only effect was to make
us urge foru ard the mules at as rapid a pace as pos-
sible.

The mountains were not snow-capped although,
at times, we had had light storms of hail and snow.
This was particularly true of the afternoons, the

A FRIENDLY LLAMA HABY

MY MULE ON THE LAST DAY'S RIDE

THE ROAD TO CHALLAPATA i6i

mornings being generally fine and clear. As we
went west, the valleys grew broader. We occasion-
ally passed over level plains four or five miles wide.
We had now crossed the watershed and left the basin
of the Rio de la Plata and its affluents for that of
Lake Poopo and the Bolivian tableland.

Descending, we came to valleys that offered suffi-
cient grass to support a large number of llamas, al-
pacas, and sheep. This region seems to be a favorite
breeding-place for the llamas and we saw a number
of baby llamas. One of the latter, almost entirely
black as to its body and legs, with black ears, re-
sembling the horns of a carnival devil, and a white
face that looked like a mask, was so interested in my
efforts to take his picture that he walked up to within
eight feet of my mule, much to his mother's alarm.

A cold wind and a cloudy sky that kept the sun
from offering any warmth made our arrival at the
poste of Livichuco anything but pleasant. To add
to our discomforts, Bolivian travellers had again ar-
rived ahead of us and monopolized everything in
sight, as the scanty accommodations of this wretched
tambo were insufficient to meet the demands of both
parties. A few eggs was all the postilions could offer
for our entertainment, and as these turned out to be
rotten their willingness to sell food was not appre-
ciated.

The morning had been cloudy, cold, and disagree-
able but the afternoon was worse. Clouds of dust
and peals of thunder ushered in the usual storm.
Our road, however, was not as rocky and precip-
itous as on the preceding days. We crossed several

i62 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

broad plains, joined the Potosi-Challapata trail and
passed near Vilcapujio, another of the battlefields
of the War of Independence. In 1813 the soldiers
of Buenos Aires had again invaded Bolivia to assist
the patriots of Uppeft- Peru. They reached Potosi
in safety and were on their way north to Oruro when
they were met here at the fork in the road and de-
feated by the Spaniards. A few days later came the
battle of Ayoma, near Macha. The result was tem-
porarily fatal to the cause of Bolivian independence.

We had another unpleasant experience on our
arrival at Ancacato, on the evening of the fourth
day. Bolivian travellers had, as before, taken posses-
sion of all the available rooms and we had a hard
time persuading the master of the poste to allow us
to remain.

At a distance of two or three miles from the tamho
is the old Indian town of Ancacato lying spread out
on the level floor of the valley which was at present
brown and desolate although it had signs of being
cultivated in the rainy season. Like other Indian
towns, the only conspicuous feature of Ancacato was
the tower of its large church. The rest of the town
consisted of brown huts as much as possible like the
color of the hills.

The next morning we met an unusually large num-
ber of llamas on their way from Challapata to the
interior carrying small boxes of European merchan-
dise. The monotony of this morning's ride was va-
ried by the spectacle of a mounted Indian trying,
like "Mac," to drive a pack mule that was quite
unaccustomed to such service and most unwilling

THE ROAD TO CHALLAPATA 163

to keep the road. There are no fences or walls to
mark off the road from the surrounding country and
an active pack animal can take to the hill as often as
he pleases. Most of them are either too weary, too
tame or too well acquainted with the punishment
that follows, to attempt such amusements, but this
one was new at the game and he led his driver a
merry chase over frightful rocky slopes, up and
down precipitous hillsides, and through the dry bed
of a stream. "Anywhere and everywhere" seemed
to be his motto.

A short hour's ride brought us through the pass
over the Cordillera de los Frailes and out onto the
great tableland where the horizon on every side, ex-
cept behind us, seemed to be as level as the ocean.
Far away to the southwest we could just make out
the dark lines and specks that denoted the where-
abouts of Challapata and the railway station.

Challapata is an old Indian town, but there has
grown up at some distance from it, near the railway,
a little modern settlement where white- washed ware-
houses, hotels, stores, and a telegraph office offer a
marked contrast to the brown mud-huts of the more
ancient city. The population is said to be more than
two thousand souls. Of these by far the larger part
are Aymaras who speak little or no Spanish. The
streets of the new town are wide and sandy, hot and
glary like some of our western towns. We thought
the hotel was most comfortable and even luxurious,
after our experience of the past few weeks, but I dare
say that the traveller coming the other way would
turn up his nose at its primitive accommodations.

CHAPTER XIII

ORURO TO ANTOFAGASTA AND VALPARAISO

NOTWITHSTANDING its Comfortable beds, wash-
stands, and billiard- table, we were glad enough
to leave the hotel at Challapata and take the train
for Oruro. Our only regret was that we had to say
good-by to old Fermin whose faithfulness in his care
not only of the mules but of ourselves, had made us
grow very fond of him. We gave him a little gratu-
ity which he almost immediately offered to Mr.
Smith in exchange for a cheap silver watch the latter
had purchased in Jujuy!

On our way northward to Oruro we got distant
glimpses of the saline waters of Lake Poopo that re-
ceives the overflow from Lake Titicaca by means of
the Desaguadero River but has no outlet of its own.
On our right were the low summits of the Cordillera
de los Frailes and on the intervening plain was an
occasional town with brown huts and a conspicuous
church. Once in a while we saw chulpas, so-called
"Inca tombs," really Aymard, in which interesting
remains are often found. The Ferrocarril Antofa-
gasta- Bolivia, a very narrow-gauge road constructed
and managed by Englishmen, was built to reach the
important silver mines of Huanchaca which, in the
early '90's, exported annually eight million ounces
of silver. Once on the plateau, it was an easy matter

ORURO 165

to connect the railroad with Oruro whose output of
silver at that time was about a million and a half
ounces. Furthermore, Colquechaca, with an equal
output, was only two days away and pack trains
could bring the silver readily to the railway.

The road has proved to be a splendid investment,
yet Great Britain has never favored Bolivia with
much capital. Apart from this line and a small bit
of railroad near La Paz, there are almost no British
enterprises in the country. It is said that even
Ecuador, backward as it is, has twenty times as
much British capital as Bolivia, while Argentina has
two hundred times as much.

The ride to Oruro was devoid of interest except
for a conversation which I had with a distinguished
Bolivian physician who had recently come from the
eastern provinces where he assured me lay the real
wealth of his country. He was most enthusiastic
about the possibilities of the Gran Chaco as a region
likely some day to be well populated. Although a
native of this part of Bolivia, he told me that every
time he came back to this altitude, he suffered from
soroche or mountain sickness. I was told by several
other Bolivianos that they too suffered from soroche
whenever they came up from the lower elevation,
notwithstanding the fact that the author of a recent
book on South America says that the Bolivianos
themselves never suffer from this infirmity.

We reached Oruro shortly after dark and were
met by a pleasant- faced Austrian hotel proprietor
who obligingly put us on board of a mule-drawn
tram-car. A few minutes later we stopped in front

I66 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

of the Grand Hotel de Francia y Inglaterra and were
back in the civilized world again.

There are tw^o comfortable hotels in Oruro and an
excellent Union Club where all nationalities come to
enjoy themselves. Besides this, a German club has
recently been started. Another feature of Oruro,
which we might not have noticed had we approached
it from the civilized instead of the uncivilized side
of the world, was a rather palatial public billiard-hall
or casino where a dozen or fifteen good tables, and
an elaborate bar, attracted every evening a crowd
of foreign engineers, clerks, and bookkeepers.

The climate of Oruro is cold and forbidding, the
thermometer in the shade usually being 50° F. The
rainy season commences in November and lasts
until March; January and February being the rain-
iest months. During our summer the weather here
is intensely cold and snow-storms are not infrequent.
To the west and south of the city are barren hills and
the general lack of foliage makes the place rather
melancholy, muy triste.

The next morning we crossed the plaza to the fine
large government building where the Prefect lives
and has his offices. The present incumbent, Dr.
Moises Ascarrunz, was most kind and attentive. He
received us in state, opened champagne, drank our
health and then drove us out in the state carriage to
a rifle range where, as it was a holiday, the local
sporting club was holding a match.

The Prefect has taken great interest in the club
and it has thriven under his patronage. The facili-
ties for rifle practice are excellent, and we saw some

ORURO 167

capital shooting. After a light lunch of beer and
sandwiches at the pleasant little club house, the Pre-
fect showed us the sights of the town.

In his annual report which was just off the press
at the time of our visit, he calls special attention to
the bad condition of the pastes on the road from
Sucre to Challapata! We were not inclined to dis-
pute his criticism.

One day during our stay, a government procla-
mation was heralded about town in the usual fash-
ion. The local regiment of infantry paraded through
the principal streets, stopping at the important cor-
ners while the colonel read the proclamation in a
loud voice. The colonel seemed so strong and healthy
that I was greatly surprised to learn on my return to
Oruro a few weeks later that he had been taken down
with one of the sudden pulmonary fevers of this alti-
tude and died in less than twenty-four hours.

A pleasant German-American, In charge of the
local agency of a large New York commercial house,
told us that it was not at all uncommon for a man to
get a chill on his way home from an evening party
and die the next day of galloping pneumonia. The
explanation seems to be that at this altitude (13,000
feet) one needs all the lung capacity one has, as the
air is so rare. A congestive chill Is followed by such
a dangerous loss in the capacity to receive oxygen,
that the patient soon succumbs and dies.

The shops of Oruro, as might be expected of a min-
ing city that has been for several years in communi-
cation by rail and steam with the outside world, con-
tain a great variety of imported merchandise. One,

i68 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

owned by Spaniards, Is devoted almost exclusively
to the manufactured products of Spain. Another,
owned by a German, contains an indefinite variety
of goods "made in Germany." Two or three book
shops contain several thousand volumes of Spanish
and French literature, law and medicine. There is
also a small public library and reading-room and the
city hopes to have a large accession to the number
of its books in the near future.

I called on one of the local physicians, not profes-
sionally, but because I had heard of a remarkable
collection of Bolivian pamphlets and manuscripts
that he possessed. One gets so accustomed to shift-
lessness and uncleanliness in South America that I
could scarcely believe my eyes when I found myself
in an office whose spotless white furniture and asep-
tic glass cases of modern surgical instruments would
not have been considered out of place on Madison
Avenue. The surgeon had been educated at the
Chilean Medical School in Santiago although he was
a Bolivian by birth. His collection of manuscripts
and prints was an extraordinary one, but I must
confess that his up-to-date professional methods in-
terested and surprised me more than his extensive
bibliographical learning. After having witnessed
unspeakable conditions in the leading hospital of
Venezuela at Caracas where, as readers of my "Jour-
nal" will recollect, surgeons educated in Paris and
New York worked in an operating theatre that had
for its motto, " Those who spit are requested not to
stand near the table during operations,'' I am afraid
my views of South American surgery, outside of such

ORURO 169

cities as Buenos Aires and Santiago, had hitherto
been decidedly uncomplimentary.

Oruro owes its importance to valuable silver and
tin mines in its vicinity. There are several large
smelters on the outskirts of the town, and the offices
of a number of important mining companies are to
be found here. Certain parts of Oruro are not pleas-
ant places in which to take a walk. In fact, I never
felt more uncomfortable in my life than I did on a
solitary expedition in which I found myself among
a lot of half-drunken miners of all nationalities who
were hanging about the doors of a choice collection
of grog-shops. The fearless, impudent stare of the
Aymaras was no less unpleasant than the menacing
looks of three or four burly Anglo-Saxon miners who
had spent their last cent for drinks and were looking
for more.

The silver mines have largely been abandoned and
the principal industry is connected with the tin de-
posits. No mines were discovered here until some
years after those of Potosi and they never produced
as much silver, although, during the colonial epoch,
they ranked easily second.

Oruro was founded about the time that the Dutch
landed on Manhattan Island. In the latter part of
the seventeenth century there was already a popu-
lation of 76,000. In the eighteenth century, the city
stood next to Potosi in wealth and importance.

Some of the churches still show the marks of that
elegance with which they were ornamented during
the period of Oruro's palmy days. There are, how-
ever, few remains of any fine edifices. Indeed, we

lyo ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

are told by "El Lazarillo" in 1773 that "in this
great city one will not encounter a single building
that corresponds at all to the immense fortunes
which have been spent here, during the past two hun-
dred years, in an excess of parades, shows, games,
and banquets."

When the price of tin went up, a few years ago,
Oruro enjoyed a boom. Old buildings were torn
down and pretentious new ones begun. Some of
them were only partly completed when tin fell and
the boom collapsed. The population now is about
sixteen thousand, although during the boom it rose
to over twenty thousand, of whom more than five
thousand were foreigners. A good percentage were
Chileans.

Apart from its importance as a mining centre,
Oruro has for some time been distinguished as a rail-
road terminal. A line from here to Potosi is planned.
A line from Oruro to Cochabamba, on whose fertile
valleys Oruro depends for its food-supply, is in course
of construction. The Bolivia Railway's line to La
Paz has recently been completed. The road to An-
tofagasta has been running since 1892.

Oruro is nearly six hundred miles from Antofa-
gasta and the journey used formerly to take three
days, for trains were only run by daylight and at
slow speed. We found, however, that the road-bed
had been improved, although the track was not
widened, and a vestibuled train with two compart-
ment sleeping-cars and a restaurant-car can now
make the journey from Oruro to Antofagasta in two
nights and a day. Three times a week a Bolivia

A QUAINl' OLD BALCONY IN ORURO

A CORNER IN ORURO

ORURO 171

railway train leaves La Paz in the morning and ar-
rives at Oruro late in the afternoon. Once a week,
as soon after the arrival of this train as possible, the
new vestibuled train starts for Antofagasta. There
is no chance for a through service, for the Bolivia
Railway has a meter gauge, while the Antofagasta
line is only three-quarters of a meter wide. Further-
more owing to some unfortunate squabble between
the railroad companies, the stations are located at
some distance from one another, and the traveller
must get across the town as best he may.

When the Antogafasta line was completed, Oruro
increased in population by leaps and bounds, and the
admiring Bolivians called their city the "Chicago of
Bolivia." The only resemblance, however, that I
was able to discover was this forced transfer across
the city. The streets of Oruro which one has to cross
in going from one terminal station to the other are
not paved, and the traveller who happens to take
the journey in the rainy reason, when the roads are
two feet deep in mud, will wish this were Chicago!

The departure of the weekly train for Antofagasta
is just as much of an event for Oruro as that of the
weekly steamer is for a port in the Hawaiian Islands
or the West Indies. Every one who can comes down
to the station, and those who can afford it crowd
into the restaurant car, order drinks and enjoy the
iced luxuries just as the residents of the Caribbean
ports do when a mail-steamer calls.

We had been advised by friends in New York not
to attempt to use this railway as it was only intended
to carry ore and no one cared how many passengers

172 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

were killed. It did give one a creepy feeling to see
a heavy sleeping-car balanced on rails that were only
twenty-eight inches apart. It seemed like riding on
a monorail and I could not help wondering whether,
if the berths on one side of the sleeping-car should
happen to be filled first, the car would not capsize.
Evidently this thought had occurred to the builders
of the car, for by an ingenious arrangement the
berths are all in the centre of the car, directly over
the rails !

We left Oruro at dusk and during the night passed
through Challapata, the end of our mule trip, and
Uyuni, where Don Santiago's stages start for Potosi,
Tupiza, and La Quiaca via Cotagaita.

The scenery early next morning was not impres-
sive. Before long, however, gigantic volcanic peaks
twenty thousand feet high rose into view, one of
them, the volcano of Ollawe, emitting a tiny cloud of
sulphurous steam that gives a yellow stain to its
snow-capped peak. We soon left behind the great
sandy tableland of Bolivia, that veritable Thibetan
Sahara, and began climbing out of the great plateau
through the western Cordillera.

At one of the stations an Indian came aboard the
train with a young vicuna that he had raised as a pet
and which he was taking to be sold to a gentleman
in Chile.

About noon we crossed the frontier. Our train
was boarded by two officials. One of them was a Bo-
livian, seeing to it that departing passengers did not
take any gold out of the country and violate the law
which prevents any exportation of the yellow metal.

ORURO 173

The other was a polite Chilean customs officer. Their
inspection of the luggage was very superficial. In
the afternoon, at Ascotan, after crossing a pass thir-
teen thousand feet high, we commenced the descent
and soon reached the banks of that wonderful white
sea of borax, glistening like snow in the sun, which
has made this region famous.

The mountains were grand and inspiring but we
were so tired of seeing barren brown hillsides that
we longed for something green, and yet the further
we went, the more desolate became the country.
We had entered the nitrate region which is part of
that magnificent desert that extends for two thous-
and miles up and down the west coast of South
America.

In the evening we stopped for a few minutes at
Calama, a small town but important as a nitrate
centre. It has a moderately good water-supply which
enables it to present an attractive greenness in con-
trast to the absolute aridity of the surrounding de-
sert. In this region are several mines of silver, gold,
and copper.

Calama was the scene of some skirmishing dur-
ing the revolution against Balmaceda in 1891, but
its chief claim to fame rests on a battle that was
fought here in the war between Chile, Bolivia, and
Peru in 1879, when Bolivia lost her seaport and
Chile made a large increase to her territory at the
expense of her two northern neighbors. The first
thing that Chile did after war was declared was to
attack the unprotected Bolivian seaport of Antofa-
gasta. The majority of the population of Antofa-

174 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

gasta were Chileans and the small garrison was quite
unable to offer any adequate resistance to the Chil-
ean invaders, so the Bolivian authorities retreated
at once to Calama. Thither the Chileans sent six
hundred men to attack one hundred and forty. Al-
though the Bolivian forces took up a strong position
the Chileans had the advantage of superior num-
bers and won an overwhelming victory. The affair
was insignificant except that it destroyed all the
hold that Bolivia had on her seacoast.

During the night, we passed through a large num-
ber of little stations in the nitrate country. Early
the next morning, as the last half hour of the railway
journey, came an exciting ride down a steep grade
in full view of the beautiful blue waters of the Pa-
cific Ocean. After weeks of everlasting browns, it
w^as a tremendous relief to our eyes to see such an
expanse of blue. Of course no green was to be ex-
pected in this vicinity. But blue did just as well.

The railroad runs for some distance parallel to the
shore back of the town until it enters the terminal
station. We had left Oruro Thursday at 6:30 p. m.,
were in Calami by nine o'clock Friday evening, and
reached Antofagasta soon after seven o'clock Satur-
day morning.

Hardly were we established in a hotel when we
learned that the steamer Mexico, of the Pacific
Steam Navigation Company, was to sail that morn-
ing for Valparaiso. We had had no chance to explore
the sandy streets and well-stocked shops of Antofa-
gasta, but this was the first steamer to sail for six or
seven days and it might be a week before there

ORURO 175

would be another. Furthermore, there was little to
tempt us in this modern seaport with its ugly, gal-
vanized- iron workshops and warehouses. So we de-
cided to board the Mexico as fast as possible.

The harbor was crowded with boats and barges.
A few steamers and sailing-vessels were lying at
anchor waiting for cargoes of minerals of one sort or
another, mostly nitrates and copper.

Antofagasta is a seaport of considerable import-
ance, being the port of entry for a large part of Bo-
livia and northern Chile. Yet it shares with Mol-
lendo the reputation of being the worst harbor on
the west coast of South America. There is little pro-
tection against westerly and southerly winds. Even
in calm weather there is a considerable swell at the
boat-landing.

Once in the boat, however, we were charmed by
the gambols of inquisitive sea-lions who thrust their
snouts out of the water, a biscuit-toss away from the
boat. As a counter attraction great flocks of birds
flew in circles overhead looking for schools of fish
that swim in this bay. As soon as a school was lo-
cated, the entire flock of birds would pause an in-
stant and then dive with the rapidity of lightning
from the airy height straight into the billows, leav-
ing only a splash of white water to show where they
had gone. Another moment and they came to the
surface, shook themselves, flapped their wings, and
were away again to enjoy another magnificent dive
a little later.

I had heard much of the terrors of steamship travel
on the West Coast. Passengers who had recently

176 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

experienced it assured me that it was simply horri-
ble. We must have been very lucky, for we found
the Mexico most comfortable and quite as good as
one could expect in this part of the world. Of course
she was neither so large nor so luxurious as the aver-
age trans- Atlantic liner. On the other hand she was
not intended to carry luxury-loving travellers three
thousand miles over a rough ocean and keep them
amused, contented, and well-fed for a week. Her
task consists in stopping every afternoon, anchoring
in a badly-sheltered bay or an open roadstead, land-
ing passengers, merchandise, and cattle into row-
boats and barges, taking on cargoes of hides, coffee,
or provisions; and meanwhile acting as a home for
itinerant greengrocers whose business it is to pro-
vide this two thousand mile desert with fresh vege-
tables. Furthermore she was built to sail over the
comparatively smooth waters of the tropical Pacific
Ocean and provide for passengers who are travelling
in a climate of perpetual spring and summer. All of
this she does admirably.

The staterooms opened onto the promenade deck.
There was a well-stocked library of fiction with books
in four languages. The Chilean stewards were polite
and obliging. Altogether we had little to find fault
with. The food might have been a little better, but
when one looked toward the land and saw that bleak
desert coast continuing for hour after hour and day
after day and realized that in the mountains behind
it there were even greater desert solitudes, it did not
seem surprising that the food was not up to our ideas
of what it should be on board an ocean steamer.

ORURO 177

Most of the passengers were natives of the West
Coast. To them the diet seemed quite luxurious.
To us who had come from the pastes of southern Bo-
livia the table fairly groaned with abundance. I
can readily believe that a traveller, who, while on his
way south from Panama to Lima, has his first South
American meals on board of one of these West Coast
steamers would find the fare distressingly bad and
the boats not very clean. Perhaps the discipline
would seem lax and the service execrable. It all de-
pends on one's point of view.

If one is going to travel in South America at all,
it is necessary to make up one's mind to put up with
a lot of this sort of thing. It need only be remem-
bered that these boats are as safe and comfortable
as those in other parts of the world, and that they
have better accommodations than will be found any-
where in South America outside of half a dozen
cities.

The first day after leaving Antofagasta brought
us to Caldera. On the second day we reached Co-
quimbo which seems to be a flourishing seaport. Of
course there are no wharves, but the bay is fairly
well protected and steamers are able to anchor
within three quarters of a mile of the landing-stage.
New villas in course of construction on the heights
at the south end of the bay testify to the prosperity
of two of the leading business men of the place.

Devoted as Coquimbo has been to commercial
pursuits, very little attention has been given to mak-
ing the buildings attractive, and only recently has
an effort been made to improve the appearance of

178 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

the plaza. I visited tw^o book shops In the hopes of
getting some local prints and found a recently pub-
lished anthology of the poets of Coquimbo! The
books for the most part were those such as are found
in the usual South American book store: French
novels, French text-books, a few Spanish novels, and
the local legal commentaries and law books.

It is a night's journey by steamer from Coquimbo
to Valparaiso. The temperature was much cooler
than we had expected, and grew more so as we neared
Valparaiso. To be sure, Valparaiso is as far south of
the equator as San Francisco is north and the same
general climatic conditions prevail.

The beautiful bay and harbor of Valparaiso have
been repeatedly described by enthusiastic visitors for
many years. Since the terrible earthquake of 1906,
the city has lost much of its beauty, although many
of the buildings have been restored and business is
going on quite briskly. In the harbor were fifteen or
twenty ocean steamers lying at anchor, two or three
Chilean men-of-war and two large floating dry
docks capable of taking care of the West Coast mer-
chant steamers.

The naval dry dock Is at Talcahuano. Although
Valparaiso is the principal seaport on the West
Coast, there are no wharves. The business section
is built on the old beach and on a terrace. The hills
rise abruptly from this narrow shelf and the residen-
tial district is on the hills. Elevators and trolley-
lines connect the upper and the lower city. The rail-
road station is very near the boat-landing.

The railway fares were very moderate and the offi-

ORURO 179

cials of the road seemed to us quite courteous and
obliging although, during our stay in Santiago, we
read in one of the local newspapers a letter from a
lady globe-trotter who declared the Chilean railway
officials were the rudest and most disobliging that
she had found anywhere in the world. Chilean rail-
ways have grown tremendously during the past four-
teen years. At the time of the revolution against
Balmaceda, in 1892, there were barely seven hun-
dred miles; while, at the time of the Scientific Con-
gress, the trackage had increased to three thousand
miles of which half is owned and operated by the
government. More lines are in course of construction.

Valparaiso is the commercial capital of Chile and
her Stock Exchange determines the rate of exchange.
The shops of Valparaiso are filled with things that
appeal to Anglo-Saxons, for there is a large British
colony here.

Perhaps it was natural that we welcomed most
eagerly of all the presence of an attractive English
book shop where we purchased files of English news-
papers and all the recent pictorial weeklies and maga-
zines that we could find. Partly for this reason and
partly because we had grown tired of looking at
scenery, the four hours' railroad journey between
Valparaiso and Santiago passed without making
much impression on us so far as our immediate sur-
roundings were concerned, and almost before we
knew it, we had entered the political and social capi-
tal of Chile.

CHAPTER XIV

SANTIAGO AND THE FIRST PAN-AMERICAN
SCIENTIFIC CONGRESS

FROM the railway station to the centre of San-
tiago is a two- mile ride on a fine parkway, the
Alameda de las Deliciosas. It has rows of trees,
muddy little brooks, and a shady promenade. Statues
to some of Chile's more famous heroes have been
placed in the centre of the promenade, and stone
benches, more artistic than comfortable, line its
sides near the brook. This sounds rather romantic,
but the waters of the stream, which is in reality a
ditch two feet wide, are so dirty that it suggests an
open sewer rather than a mountain brook.

During our stay some one became disgusted with
either the brook or the stone benches and exploded
a bomb under one of the latter. It happened late in
the night and nothing was hurt, except the bench,
which was quite demolished. Had the bomb gone
off earlier in the evening there would have been a
list of casualties, for all the world walks up and down
here in the cool of the evening admiring the view of
the Andes. The strictly fashionable world confines
itself more often to the pavements of the principal
plazas where it may be found about nine o'clock, on
evenings when the band is playing, walking slowly
round and round, enjoying a glimpse of itself. But

SANTIAGO I8i

the broad Alameda, as wide as three or four ordinary
streets, is distinctly the more popular resort, and on
festivals like Christmas or New Year's, it is thronged
with merry-makers.

At the end of the Alameda, beyond the centre of
the city, is the romantic rock of Santa Lucia. Santi-
ago owes its situation to the fact that this precipit-
ous hill of solid rock was left by nature in the centre
of a rich, fertile plain. The rock formed a natural
fortress and was fortified by the Spaniards when
they first came to Chile. After having been the
scene of numerous bloody battles during Chile's
colonial days, Santa Lucia is now a wonderfully at-
tractive park with fine driveways, well-made paths
that command splendid panoramas of city, plain,
and mountains, and a theatre and restaurant on its
summit. The view is remarkably fine. The city
spreads itself out on all sides although the principal
plaza and the business district lie more to the west.
The snow-capped Andes, the most characteristic
feature of Santiago scenery, rise majestically to the
east. Low foot-hills bound the western horizon. The
fertile plain, which is none other than the great cen-
tral valley of Chile, lies to the north and south.
Magnificent vineyards yielding a larger crop of wine
than those of California itself, are scattered over this
valley. Chile repeatedly reminds one of California
by its climate, its fruit, its mountain scenery, and its
arid coast. California has one advantage, its width
between the ocean and the Sierras, particularly in
the fertile region, is so much greater than that of
Chile.

i82 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

The hotels of Santiago are not so luxurious and
modern as those of Buenos Aires, yet we found the
"Annexo B" of the Oddo to be perfectly comfort-
able. It is really a "bachelor apartment hotel."
No meals, except early coffee, were served there, so
we took advantage of the generous hospitality of the
two leading clubs, the Club Santiago and the Union.
Wearied as I was by the dismal brown desert of
southern Bolivia, the gardens and fountains in the
patio of the Club Santiago seemed like Paradise it-
self. To be able to sit at small tables, served by
courteous waiters, and enjoy immaculate linen and
the best of food and drink, was sufficiently novel to
be charming, but only half as welcome as the restful
green of the trees and the pleasant splash of the
fountains.

We soon discovered that the coolest and easiest
way to see Santiago was from the second story of an
electric car, especially when the upper tier of seats
was covered. The fare on the roof is intended for the
pocket-books of second-class passengers and is only
five centavos (a cent and a quarter !) which makes it
cheaper to take a car than to walk. Unfortunately
for the pleasures of life in Santiago, fashion frowns
on any one who climbs the stairs when he can afford
to ride below.

Our friends would not even allow us to ride below,
however, and put us instead into a kind of "hack"
that is known here as an ^^ Americano.''

It seems that several generations ago, an Ameri-
can resident introduced a carriage which he thought
peculiarly adapted to Santiago. It might be described

SANTIAGO 183

as a two-seated rockaway. This vehicle soon be-
came a vogue and is now the established style for
hackney carriages. There are victorias for hire on
the principal plazas, but their rates are extortion-
ately high while those of the ''Americanos'' are ri-
diculously low. It is well they are, for otherwise no
one would patronize them. They seem to be with-
out springs, cleanliness, or any ordinary comforts.
They are not without fleas and other insects. As you
go bumping and rattling over the cobblestones of
Santiago in one of these antiquated vehicles you
come to wonder whether the Chilean's proverbial
dislike of Americans has not been intensified by the
discomforts he has suffered in the '^ Americanos!'^

The first Pan-American Scientific Congress was
the fruit of an idea started some years ago in Buenos
Aires where delegates from a few of the South Ameri-
can countries met for the first Latin- American Scien-
tific Congress. That was followed by a second which
met at Montevideo, and a third, at Rio, each show-
ing an increase in numbers and importance. Plans
for the fourth Congress were left entirely in the
hands of a Chilean organization committee who de-
cided that the time was ripe to include the United
States in the list of invitations and make the Con-
gress Pan-American instead of Latin-American.
The visits of a number of distinguished North Amer-
icans, including Secretary Root and Professors Moses,
Rowe, and Shepherd, had done much to pave the
way for friendly feeling between the scientific men
of Chile and those of the United States, and the pro-
posal of the organization committee met with hearty

i84 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

approval. Owing to the efforts of Secretary Root
and Professor Rowe, the United States Congress
passed an appropriation to send an official delega-
tion to the Congress. A number of our leading uni-
versities likewise appointed delegates.

The programme suggested for the Congress was
replete with all manner of topics for discussion and
covered almost the entire field of knowledge, from
questions of sanitation to those of international law,
and from the antiquity of primitive man in America
to modern methods of primary instruction.

As was to be expected from such a comprehensive
programme, the intention was not so much to bring
out the results of the latest research as to furnish
topics that would be sure to interest the delegates.
Even the meetings of our learned societies in the
States are largely social. To many of those who at-
tend the chief attraction is the opportunity of meet-
ing others who are interested in the same lines, and
the programme is merely an excuse for the meeting.
The Pan-American Scientific Congress was not far
different. It offered an excellent opportunity for
the scientists of Latin-America to renew old ac-
quaintance, and it gave the favored delegates from
the United States a chance to make new friends
among men whose interests are chiefly intellectual.

Under the circumstances, it is not surprising that
few of the papers presented new facts or the results
of prolonged and scholarly research. Nor is it at all
remarkable that the most animated discussions took
place in the sessions devoted to international law
and politics, education, and political science. These

SANTIAGO 185

are topics on which every man has ideas which he
is not afraid to express. And these discussions served
as a means of introducing men that might not other-
wise have met.

PoHtics were kept in the background, as far as
possible, but national feelings occasionally found
opportunity for expression.

Chile is the one country in South America that
has never had and cannot have a boundary dispute
with Brazil. The Portuguese-American Republic is
not likely to meddle with West Coast matters, and
Chile has nothing to gain from troubling the beauti-
ful harbors of Rio and Bahia. Indeed, so lacking have
been any causes of friction between the two Republics
that they are fond of emphasizing the entente cordiale
that exists between them. It was natural, conse-
quently, that the third Latin-American Scientific
Congress, meeting in Rio under Brazilian organiza-
tion, should have chosen Santiago as the seat of the
fourth congress, and it was a return of the courtesy
when the organizing committee at Santiago, com-
posed of Chileans, selected the local Brazilian Minis-
ter as President.

The Congress opened with formal ceremonies,
fine music, and much oration. In answer to the roll-
call of republics, the leading delegate from each
country responded with befittingly felicitous re-
marks.

It is true that the learned Brazilian who replied,
when the name of his country was called, with a
speech in Portuguese lasting nearly an hour in length,
stretched the friendly feelings toward the Brazil-

I86 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

ian delegation almost to the breaking point. Few
of the audience could understand enough of what he
said to follow his wordy address. Almost everyone
thought that its unnecessary length, added to the
fact of its being the only address of the evening that
was not in Spanish, the official language of the Con-
gress, was at least a breach of good manners.

The state of mind of the Chilean audience was re-
flected in the daily papers the next morning when
full space was given to verbatim reports of the
speeches made by the representatives of all the other
republics and not even a synopsis was accorded to
the speech of the learned Brazilian. The Brazilian
delegation took umbrage at this and also at the ova-
tion that was given the Argentine representative
whose speech was short, crisp, and filled with ex-
pressions of friendship. Like the Mexican delegate,
he had appreciated the fact that there were of neces-
sity seventeen other addresses, and that five min-
utes devoted to cordial greetings was better than
fifty minutes of erudite information. A month after-
wards when the Brazilian delegation was on its
way home, I read in the newspaper reports from
Buenos Aires that the Brazilians felt that the Chil-
eans had gone out of their way to make friendly over-
tures to Argentina, Brazil's natural rival. But the
only things of which they had any cause to complain
were brought about by their own unfortunate mis-
takes and in no wise indicated any desire on Chile's
part to weaken the ties of her long friendship with
Brazil.

Another interesting thing in the formal opening

SANTIAGO 187

meeting was that although the Peruvian delegate
received one of the most enthusiastic and heartiest
ovations of any, he took it in stolid silence, making
no motion and giving no sign that he heard or under-
stood what was going on. As a matter of fact, he
and his colleagues felt out of place. Peruvians hate
and dread Chile and feel grievously wronged by her
continued occupation of Peru's southernmost pro-
vinces, Tacna and Arica. Consequently, they ac-
cepted all the Chilean overtures with very bad grace,
feeling that it would have been much more desirable
to have had fewer fine words and more kind actions.
It was apparent that the Chileans were doing every-
thing in their power to try and patch up the quarrel
and let bygones be bygones, but the Peruvians felt
that the demonstration lacked the essential quality
of sincerity which, of course, could only have been
given by a sacrifice of the provinces of Tacna and
Arica which Chile had no intention whatever of
making. Throughout the meetings the Peruvian
delegates held themselves somewhat aloof and took
part in the exercises with a certain dignity which
showed how little they enjoyed being the recipi-
ents of Chilean hospitality. The Chileans were un-
doubtedly annoyed at the cool reception of their
friendly overtures. It is entirely possible that this
contributed not a little to Chilean excitement over
the incident of La Corona, of which I shall have oc-
casion to speak later on.

The greater part of the time of the Congress,
counted by hours, was given over to receptions and
teas, breakfasts and dinners, visits to vineyards,

I88 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

public works, and exhibitions, military tournaments,
picnics, and balls.

Hardly had we got settled in our hotel before in-
vitations began to pour in, and we soon found that
the hospitable Chilenos had made up their minds
to overwhelm us with kindnesses from the moment
of our arrival until our departure. Never did a city
give itself over more heartily and more gracefully
to entertaining an international gathering. For
three weeks, hardly a day passed that was not marked
by elaborate entertainments. Balls, distinguished
by elegance and magnificence, were attended by the
youth and beauty of the most aristocratic society in
South America, clad in the height of fashion and be-
having just as society does in other parts of the
world. The Club Santiago was repeatedly the scene
of banquets whose brilliance would have rather
startled those good people in the United States who
think of South America as being something like an
African jungle.

Most of the outdoor festivals were held at the race-
track where a fine large grandstand, capable of seat-
ing ten thousand people, faces a beautiful field and
the magnificent snow-capped Andes. Here, on a
sunny afternoon, Santiago society met in a battle of
flowers for the benefit of charity. The participants,
either standing on the terrace in front of the grand-
stand or driving by in handsomely decorated equi-
pages, were neither noisy nor boisterous and yet
entered heartily into a very pretty event.

One evening was devoted to the volunteer fire-
men of Santiago. Following a parade was a distri-

SANTIAGO 189

bution of premiums for bravery and length of ser-
vice. As there is no paid fire department, the city
depends on these volunteers for fire protection, and
it has always been fashionable to belong to one of the
best companies.

For over three hundred years Santiago has been
the home of Spanish families of distinction. Their
income has never been so swollen as to tempt them
to extravagant display or so small as to drive them
to petty pursuits for the sake of gaining a livelihood.

In such matters as magnificent hotels, expensive
restaurants, luxurious clubs, and showy automo-
biles, Santiago readily yields the palm to Buenos
Aires. There has been no great boom in Chile at
all comparable to that which Argentina has seen.
Furthermore, earthquakes and fires have done their
worst to impoverish a nation not too bountifully
supplied with natural resources. To be sure, the
enormous nitrate deposits of northern Chile have
made the government able to distribute millions of
dollars among its followers without overtaxing the
population. Money has come in so easily from the
export duties on nitrate that no Finance Minister
has been greatly troubled by his budget.

Although Santiago cannot boast of as many evi-
dences of wealth as Buenos Aires, she has other
qualifications which give her the right to hold her
head higher than any city in South America. The
chief of these is her literary preeminence.

She has produced during the past generation more
writers of ability than any other South American
city. Easily first among these is Jose Toribio Me-

190 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

dina, whose untiring industry and genius for biblio-
graphy have made him famous all over the world.
Aided by a devoted wife, he has produced more
scholarly works than any other man now living in
South America, and more volumes of first-class bib-
liography than any in the western hemisphere. A
born collector, he spent years in various parts of the
world purchasing rare books in out-of-the-way
places and making notes of unpurchasable volumes
in the great libraries, until he had built up a magni-
ficent collection of early Americana that is almost
unparalleled.

His modest house is replete with interest. Three
large rooms are lined from floor to ceiling with his
treasures. One room is devoted almost entirely to
early Mexican imprints. To see gathered together
in one place ten thousand pamphlets printed be-
fore Mexico secured her independence, leads one to
modify somewhat those conceptions of Spanish in-
tolerance for learning which we have inherited from
some of our older writers. To be sure, the pamphlets
are mostly of a religious character. However much
one may disagree with the dogmas they contain one
cannot but admit that the intention of their pub-
lishers was to raise the religious and moral tone of
the community. In the back part of Sr. Medina's
house are the rooms of the "Elzevir" Press. Here
have been printed those sumptuous bibliographical
quartos that are the envy of every librarian and the
despair of the average scholar. As Sr. Medina was
originally a printer, it is his recreation to assist in
putting his volumes into type. It is not often in the

SANTIAGO 191

modern world that one finds the whole process of
making a book existing under one roof. Here are the
sources ; here lives the scholar who knows them ; here
he extracts their virtues; and from this same place
he sends forth to the world the results of his inves-
tigations, printed and bound, ready for the use of
the student.

Besides Sr. Medina, Santiago has produced a
number of historians, men like Vicuna Mackenna
and Diego Barros Arana who for careful statement
and concise diction have not been surpassed in
South America. Even the late Bartolome Mitre of
Buenos Aires, one of Argentina's greatest states-
men and her greatest historian, never succeeded in
getting away from the Spanish trick of efflorescence
in language which greatly marred his work from the
literary point of view.

Santiago's literary preeminence is further shown
both by the fact that in no other city in South
America are there so many people who are fond of
books and reading — witness the large number of
new and second-hand book stores — and the excellent
list of works that are published here every year.
While Buenos Aires, with a population three times
as large, can boast of a few booksellers whose shops
are devoted to showy imprints, and who cater to the
needs of those who buy their libraries by the yard,
there is little evidence in Argentina of a discriminat-
ing group of booklovers like those who patronize
the score of old book stalls in one of Santiago's
streets near the university.

On the outskirts of Santiago is an excellent man-

192 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

ual training school where several hundred boys are
lodged, fed, and taught all manner of trades, from
printing to forging, and carpentry to carving. Par-
ticular attention is paid to electricity, and a large
number of the students become practical electri-
cians. At the exhibition of the year's work we were
particularly impressed with the fact that the school
is able to sell nearly all the articles made by the stu-
dents. Churns, derricks, chairs, and bells, well made
and cheap, gave evidence that the school was run on
sound business principles.

Not far off is the Quinta Normal, a fine large re-
servation where normal and agricultural schools rub
shoulders with museums of fine arts and natural
history. The result is a charming place for study
and a delightful public park.

During our visit, the annual fine arts exhibition
was in progress and included a number of extremely
meritorious paintings by Sotomayor, a Spanish
painter who has recently been engaged by the Chil-
ean government to teach in the Art School. Chile
is certainly to be congratulated on the class of teach-
ers that she brings from abroad for her schools, and
her latest acquisition is well up to the standard.

Chile's appreciation of art and her policy of secur*
ing able foreign talent to teach her youth are greatly
in her favor. She is in fact a young and vigorous
nation. Her people are bred in a splendid climate^
well suited to the development of a strong race. In
fact the Araucanian aborigines were superior to any-
thing that the Spaniards found in either North or
South America. The early Spanish immigrants were

SANTIAGO 193

an unusually good lot. And there has been a strik-
ing admixture of Anglo-Saxon blood as is shown by
the frequency of English family names in Santiago.

As is well known, in the south of Chile there are
many Germans and it is commonly cited as one of
the danger spots of German expansion in South
America. Those who argue so fail to take into con-
sideration the remarkably strong hold that Chile
has on her children. In no other part of South Amer-
ica do foreigners become so fond of the soil as in Chile.
Even those of English ancestry are prouder of the
history of Chile than they are of that of England. I
have heard them go so far in praise of their adopted
land as to deride England and predict her downfall.
In Buenos Aires, on the other hand, they continu-
ally revisit the homeland and pride themselves on
their close connection with it. There one sees little
of that devotion to the country of their adoption
which is in evidence here.

Among the spectacles provided for the benefit of
the delegates, the most interesting was a military
tournament that was worth going a long way to see.
The Chilean cavalryman is a remarkably daring
horseman. His Spanish and Araucanian ancestry
have given him qualities that appeal to the eye and
to one's admiration of courage. Perhaps the most
remarkable feat of the afternoon was the charge
made by a squadron of cavalry over a burning hur-
dle. A brush fence, well soaked in kerosene, was
erected in front of the grandstand and set on fire.
Starting to windward, the squadron charged,vaulted
over the flames and dashed away in the smoke, only

'194 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

to turn in the face of a strong wind which blew the
smoke and flames into the very faces of the horses,
dash back again, and in perfect order clear the fiery
obstacle with as much ease and grace as though it
had been a peaceful country fence. As an exhibition
of training it was extremely significant.

President Montt/ who was extremely kind and
courteous to us, and is one of the most able and hon-
est officials that South America has ever seen, sent
us an invitation one morning to attend the offi-
cial inspection of the Military Academy. All the
Chilean officers speak German and most of them
have spent from tw-o to three years studying in Ger-
many. Like the army, the school is run on German
models and is extremely well kept up. The neatness,
discipline, cleanliness, and excellent sanitary arrange-
ments were in marked contrast to most public build-
ings in South America. The cadets are a fine-looking
lot of boys who are largely put on their honor. Few
rules are made for their guidance but when any one
is guilty of conduct unbecoming in an officer and a
gentleman, he is permanently discharged from the
academy. The instructors lay great stress on map-
making. The exhibition of maps made by the stu-
dents was remarkably interesting. The students are
taught not only to make outline maps, but also to
construct models of battlefields and even to draw
sectional panoramas on a uniform scale. Three ca-
dets are sent out to survey a position and to return
in half an hour, each with a drawing which, fitted to
that of his mates, will make a panorama that will

,, * His sudden death in August, 1910, is a very great loss to Chile. ,

SANTIAGO 195

enable the commanding officer to understand the
situation and direct his forces intelligently. This is
only one instance of the thoroughness with which
the cadets are instructed. It Is not remarkable that
several other Latin-American countries have sent
for Chilean officers to teach their cadets, and have
even sent their own boys to study here.

The Congress closed on the evening of the 5th of
January, 1909, with a grand banquet that was a
blaze of glory. Eloquent speeches of mutual con-
gratulation were delivered by the representatives of
various parts of the two continents. Perhaps the
most striking thing of the evening was the contrast
between the speeches of that member of the Ameri-
can delegation who had been chosen to respond to
the toast, "The United States," and the one that
followed it delivered by a brilliant young orator
from Uruguay. As might have been expected, the
latter was fiery, flowery, and ecstatic, while the for-
mer was dignified and well within the bounds of rea-
son even in his compliments. The unexpected and
very striking difference was that the American spoke
better Spanish, pure Castllian, melodious and grace-
ful. The Uruguayan speech was in the offensive dia-
lect of Montevideo, harsh to the ear, resembling
Portuguese In its guttural quality.

The only other speech of the evening that equalled
the North American's in beauty of diction was that
of General Uribe Uribe, the delegate from Colombia.
He ably upheld the reputation of his country for
speaking the best Castllian in America. So far as
one who Is not a native may be permitted the priv-

196 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

ilege of judging by the effect on the ear, the inhab-
itants of Colombia and Peru speak the best, while
the people of the countries of the River Plate speak
the worst and most impure Spanish of any on the con-
tinent. The impurity is a natural result of their cen-
tury-long dealings with the Portuguese in Southern
Brazil; of the presence in their midst of a very large
number of Italians whose speech is so like the Span-
ish that it easily corrupts it; and also of the fact that
during the colonial epoch, Buenos Aires was not a
centre of Spanish culture like Bogota or Lima. On
the contrary, as is well known, Buenos Aires was
filled with a fairly rough lot of traders who made
their fortune by smuggling and other illegitimate
transactions. However much we may be inclined to
justify such actions on their part by the injustice of
the Spanish trade laws governing the commerce of
the Indies, we cannot be oblivious to the fact that
the kind of individual who would be vrilling to make
his living by smuggling w^ould probably not take
pains to speak his native tongue with either elegance
or careful attention to grammatical rules. In Lima
and Bogota, on the other hand, society was domin-
ated by the official class, and however critically w^e
may regard these proud Spaniards who were sent by
their King to govern America, we must be willing to
admit that they were likely to speak the beautiful
language of Castile as perfectly as possible.

So much has been said of the inability of Ameri-
cans to learn Spanish properly and to speak it grace-
fully (it is a common proverb in South America that
English and Americans murder the soft Castilian)

SANTIAGO 197

that it was a great pleasure to hear the official lan-
guage of the Congress spoken better by a North
American than by a South American. Furthermore,
it was characteristic of their courtesy that the Span-
ish-American delegates at once complimented us on
such an achievement.

CHAPTER XV

NORTHERN CHILE

TWO days after the closing banquet, we rose early
and hurried down to the station to take the
morning express for Valparaiso. Notv/ithstanding
the unseasonableness of the hour and the fatigue of
recent entertainments, a large number of the hospit-
able folk of Santiago were on hand to bid us "God-
speed" on our journey. It is an extremely pleasant
custom, this taking the trouble to welcome the com:-
ing and speed the parting guest by going out of your
way to greet him at the railway station, or if in the
country, to saddle your horse and ride out of town
for a mile or two to accompany him. It takes time, to
be sure, and time that, according to American stand-
ards, might be more profitably expended on attend-
ing to the business of adding up dollars and cents.
Yet it does increase the store of friendly feelings in
the world. The casual visitor to the United States
too often has occasion to feel that we are so wrapped
up in money-making that we have no time to be po-
lite. As a recent British visitor said in comparing
us with Mexico, "when one crosses the Rio Grande,
the brisk and selfish American atmosphere is left be-
hind."

After an uneventful journey of four hours in a par-
lor car, we reached the water-front of Valparaiso.

NORTHERN CHILE 199

Before going on board the steamer we had a few-
hours to give to sight-seeing and the purchase of furs
brought here from the Straits of Magellan and the
Andean highlands. We had time also to feel some-
thing of the excitement caused by the rapid fluctua-
tion in the value of the paper dollar on the floor of
the Valparaiso Stock Exchange.

The national currency fluctuates considerably
from day to day and is the most serious drawback
to commercial prosperity in Chile. During my stay
in Santiago it fluctuated so violently that some of
the prominent business men were very evidently less
interested in their legitimate business than in specu-
lating in currency. The unit of value is the peso,
worth, while we were there, about twenty-five cents.
It has gone as low as fifteen cents, and as high as
forty cents. All current accounts in the large im-
porting houses are carried in pounds sterling.

British commercial houses have a very strong
hold on Valparaiso. So important are the dealings
with Great Britain that English is actually the lan-
guage of commerce. This is the more noticeable be-
cause, although no educated South American would
for a moment admit that he could not read and speak
French, outside of the larger cities very few South
Americans can even understand English. Nor do I
remember to have met more than one or two, out-
side of Chile, who pretended to any knowledge of
German. A knowledge of English is generally lim-
ited to those who have been in the United States or
England and to those who have had large business
dealings with British commercial houses. At the

200 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

same time, English is taught in many of the schools
in Chile and we repeatedly met young Chileans who
were anxious to practice it on us.

Great Britain has always favored Chile ever since
her merchantmen, headed by the gallant Admiral
Thomas Cochran, Earl of Dundonald, created the
Chilean navy which swept the West Coast clean of
Spanish ships in the Wars of Independence. It was
the Chilean navy that enabled San Martin's troops
to reach Peru and strike at the last stronghold of
Spain in South America. In those days, most of the
vessels were commanded by English and Scottish
officers. The tendencies of the navy are still British,
and this extends even to the uniform of both officers
and cadets. In a word, the navy is as English as the
army is German. Furthermore, it has long main-
tained its preeminence among the navies of South
America. When Brazil gets the dreadnoughts for
which she has contracted, this supremacy will tem-
porarily disappear.

When we boarded the Chilean steamer Limari, we
found among our fellow passengers quite a number
of pleasant-faced little naval cadets bound for some
point up the coast where they were to join their
training-ship. They smoked too many cigarettes,
and their manners on board were not particularly
good, although they were probably no worse than a
similar group of American schoolboys would have
been under the circumstances. Certainly our fellow
passengers were not as bad as those cadets whom
Hugh de Bonelli encountered in his journey from
Panama to Lima in 1850 and describes in his enter-

NORTHERN CHILE 201

taining "Travels in Bolivia." In one corner of the
saloon on his steamer "sat an elderly gentleman and
a maiden lady, brother and sister, surrounded by
parrots, a monkey, two cats, and three ugly little
dogs, all of whom they alternately kissed and hugged.
Two young cadets of sixteen, in uniform, who, with-
out a figure of speech, may be said to have smoked
themselves away — for they were scarcely percept-
ible behind the volumes of smoke they emitted, —
got into disgrace with these worthy people. One of
these young sparks threw down, on the sly, a lighted
cigar upon the monkey, who had been watching him.
The animal seized it, and put the lighted end of it
into his mouth; then screamed, chattered, and cried
— jumped upon the head of the old lady, who was
so frightened that she fainted away ; then upon that
of the old man, from which he fell to the ground with
the old gentleman's wig firmly held between his
jaws!"

We found the Limari well crowded with passen-
gers, most of them Chileans bound for Coquimbo,
Antofagasta, and Iquique. The absence of a railway
makes the semi-weekly steamers the only means of
communication on this desert coast. Yet it was not
until we had experienced the decided inconveniences
of overcrowding and felt the relief caused by the
heavy disembarkation at the northern Chilean ports
that we fully realized how dependent the Chileans
are on the control of sea-power. They are now plan-
ning to construct a longitudinal railway that shall
run parallel to the shore line, and make them less
dependent on naval predominance.

202 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

The next day after leaving Valparaiso, we reached
Coquimbo. The cable had been used to Vv'^arn the
authorities that there were distinguished passengers
on board, and the leading citizens of the town came
out to invite the delegados ashore and took us for a
delightful drive along the beach from Coquimbo to
the old Spanish settlement of La Serena. At the lat-
ter place we were entertained at the Club Vv^here an
informal reception was held, wath the aid of the usual
cocktails and champagne.

At Caldera we were spared from official recogni-
tion and spent our time catching lizards on the sandy
hills back of the town.

The third day brought us to Antofagasta where
several of the delegation left to take the railroad to
Bolivia over the route by which I had come out a
month ago. The sea-lions and the diving birds were
playing about the harbor in the same fascinating
manner as when I first saw this port. But the effect,
after living for several weeks amid the green parks
of Santiago and enjoying several days of blue ocean,
was far less striking than when we came from the
bleak brown deserts of the Bolivian plateau.

The morning of the fourth day saw us at Iqulque,
once the centre of Peru's nitrate industr}^ now ri-
valing Valparaiso as the scene of Chilean commercial
activity. Numbers of sailing-vessels were lying in
the roadstead waiting for cargoes of the precious fer-
tilizers. It was a pleasure to see several of the vessels
actually flying the American flag! The West Coast
depends largely on Oregon and Puget Sound for its
lumber-supply and these three-masted American

NORTHERN CHILE 203

schooners find a profitable trade in bringing lumber
and returning with nitrates. The Limari's cargo con-
sisted largely of merchandise which had come from
Europe and America through the Straits of Magel-
lan. While this was being discharged we had time to
see the city, where a few months before an angry mob
of strikers from the nitrate works, had been mown
down by well- trained government troops.

We were entertained here by Mr. Rea Hanna, the
enthusiastic American Consul, who has a difficult
role to play in a town where Chileans are in control
but where the Peruvian Club is the centre of aristo-
cratic society. That he is universally liked speaks
volumes.

At the southern end of the town there is good
bathing; and in addition, pavilions and beer gar-
dens to entice the weary clerk from the nitrate of-
fices. The well-arranged grounds of the Jockey Club
afford opportunity for social intercourse, polo, and
tennis. But the most interesting place in Iquique is
what is known as the Combination, the central of-
fice of the Nitrate Association, where the different
companies, mostly English, unite to arrange scales
of prices and quantity of output and maintain an
efficient Bureau of Propaganda.

People frequently confuse Chilean nitrates with
guano. One is a mineral, the other an animal pro-
duct. Whether the nitrate fields were not originally
guano deposits is a moot point, but I believe this
idea has been abandoned. There Is, however, con-
siderable difference of opinion as to the actual origin
of the great nitrate desert.

204 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

As there is a heavy export duty on the nitrates,
Chile has been, and will continue to be, as long as
the supply holds out, in the very enviable position
of making foreigners pay the bulk of her taxes. How
long this exceptional state of affairs will last is a
problem for the geologists to settle. As there is un-
doubtedly enough material in sight to satisfy the de-
mands of the present generation and the next, no
one has any very stringent reason for husbanding
the output or for investing the national income from
the export duties in such a way as to provide for the
exigencies of future tax-payers. The natural result
of this easy method of securing a revenue is a ten-
dency towards extravagance in the Chilean budget
and an absence of careful supen^ision. Few people
care whether the money is spent for the best inter-
ests of the country. Political scientists say that
when the voter has a very light burden of taxes to
bear, he does not mind seeing the government's
money wasted or his favorite politicians grow
wealthy. Doubtless in time such a condition of affairs
will have a serious influence for evil on Chilean char-
acter. As yet the whole industry is too young to have
produced any marked effect. Fortunately for the
race, the nitrate fields will probably become ex-
hausted before any lasting harm is done. Neverthe-
less Chile would do well to take warning from the ex-
perience of Peru, whose revenue for many years
depended almost exclusively on the yield of guano
from the Chincha Islands. The exhaustion of that
valuable product left the country in a far worse
state than she was before her easily acquired income

NORTHERN CHILE 205

had commenced to corrupt her politicians and
financiers.

We left Iquique late that night and arrived early
the next morning at Pisagua, the northern limit of
the nitrate country. Like all the other ports at
which we had touched since leaving Valparaiso, it is
the terminus of a little railway that goes back a few
miles into the interior and brings down minerals of
one sort or another; sometimes copper ore, generally
nitrate, more rarely tin and silver.

In the course of the afternoon we reached Arica.
The southern side of the bay is guarded by a pictur-
esque cliff, not unlike Gibraltar, which is celebrated
in Peruvian history as the site of a memorable bat-
tle in the war with Chile. At its crisis the comman-
dant of the Peruvian garrison, rather than fall into
the hands of the victorious Chileans, spurred his
horse over the summit and was dashed to pieces
among the rocks and waves at the base of the clifif.
To the Anglo-Saxon mind, he would have died more
creditably had he killed as many Chileans as possi-
ble first, and fallen face to the front. But the more
spectacular death that he chose appeals strongly to
the Latin temperament.

Yet this trick of committing suicide Instead of
fighting to the last breath is not a characteristic
of Spanish heroes generally. It is not easy to say
whether the gallant soldier was influenced or not by
any Quichua ancestor that he may have had. Readers
of Prescott's "Conquest of Peru" will remember that
in the attack on Cuzco, made by one of the Pizarros,
a Quichua noble who had greatly distinguished him-

206 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

self in the Inca army, seeing that his cause was irre-
trievably lost, jumped over the precipice on the
south side of the Sacsahuaman hill, and preferred to
be dashed to pieces rather than to see how many
Spaniards he could kill first. He in turn may have
inherited the tendency from remote ancestors in the
Pacific Ocean. On the Island of Kusaie there is a
picturesque waterfall where, according to tradition,
two young chiefs, defeated in battle, ended their
lives by casting themselves from the precipice into
the boiling pool below. The habit of jumping over a
precipice in preference to being killed in battle by
one's enemies is not uncommon in the history of
the Pacific races, both in the Carolines and in the
Hawaiian Islands.

Arica is particularly interesting to Americans be-
cause it was here that the U. S. S. Wateree was
carried inland by the great tidal wave of 1868. Not
only has the port been devasted by earthquakes
and tidal waves but also by fire. At present it has a
very squalid appearance. Before the completion in
1 87 1 of the Southern Peruvian railway from Mol-
lendo to Puno, Arica was an important port of entry
for Bolivia. When the Chileans finish the railway
which they are building to connect this port with La
Paz by a line that shall cross the mountains back of
Tacna, this importance will be restored.

At the close of the war between Chile and Peru
the Treaty of Peace known as the Treaty of Ancon
stipulated that the territory of the provinces of
Tacna and Arica should remain in the possession of
Chile for ten years from 1883 to 1893. The Treaty

NORTHERN CHILE 207

continues: "The term having expired, a plebiscite
shall decide by popular vote if the territory of these
provinces shall remain definitely under the dominion
and sovereignty of Chile, or if they shall continue
to form part of the territory of Peru. The Govern-
ment of the country in whose favor the provinces
of Tacna and Arica shall be annexed shall pay to the
other ten millions of dollars Chilean silver money or
Peruvian soles, of equal percentage of fine silver and
of equal weight as the former. A special protocol,
which shall be considered an integral part of the pres-
ent treaty, shall establish the form in which the ple-
biscite shall take place, and the terms and conditions
in which the ten millions of dollars shall be paid by
the nation remaining in possession of Tacna and
Arica."

As is well known, the special protocol, establish-
ing the form in which the plebiscite is to take place,
has never been agreed upon. The principal obstacle
is that since 1883 3. large number of Chileans have
settled, voluntarily or otherwise, in the provinces,
enough to decide the vote of the plebiscite in favor
of Chile. The Chilean government says all present
residents should vote. The Peruvians maintain that
the voters in the plebiscite should consist only of
those who were residents of the provinces at the ter-
mination of the war. Naturally, the Chileans will
not agree to this as there is no doubt but that the
majority of such persons are of inherent Peruvian
preferences.

It is now seventeen years since the plebiscite was
due to take place and the question is still an open

208 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

one. The fact, however, that in a recent treaty with
Bolivia, Chile promised to construct, at her expense,
a railway from Arica to La Paz, and has since granted
a contract to a reliable company to build that rail-
way, would seem to indicate that Chile considers
the question settled although no plebiscite has been
held. No nation voluntarily commits itself to spend
millions of dollars in building a railway in a province
which it considers in the slightest degree likely to
become the property of a neighbor. The Peruvians
have not overlooked the calm way in which the Chil-
eans take it for granted that Tacna and Arica are to
be permanently Chilean territory, but they are in
no position to dispute such a conclusion. Their
fighting strength is far below the Chilean standard
and they know it.

The whole question was brought vividly to the
fore just at the time of our visit by a little interna-
tional episode known as the '* Incident of La Corona."
Peru had erected a magnificent memorial to her sol-
diers that fell in the conflict with Chile. As was cus-
tomary and proper, the representatives of the va-
rious foreign powers resident in Lima, requested
permission to deposit formal wreaths at the base of
the monument as an expression of the friendship of
their governments. The Chilean diplomat was not
behind the others, and his request was granted, only
to be denied later on when his funeral wreath had
been made ready for the exercises. At this he took
great umbrage, demanded his passports, and sailed
for home. His arrival in Santiago was the occasion
of a popular outburst. There was a strong demand

NORTHERN CHILE 209

on the part of a portion of the public that the govern-
ment resent the Peruvian "insult" in a very practi-
cal way, viz., by holding elections in the provinces
of Tacna and Arica and summoning representatives
to the National Congress in the same manner as
from the other Chilean provinces. This would be
taking the last step in formal annexation of the dis-
puted territory and final recognition of it as a defin-
ite part of the national domain.

I was travelling in the interior of Peru at the time
of these demonstrations and it may be imagined that
the press reports in the Peruvian newspapers did not
underestimate the gravity of the situation. The fact
that the Chilean government did not take any active
steps toward formally annexing Tacna and Arica in
response to the popular demand was attributed by
many Peruvians and not a few Chileans to the fact
that in the harbor of Lima there happened to be at
this time a powerful squadron of American battle-
ships. The long-standing friendship between the
United States and Peru, and the active hostility be-
tween the United States and Chile at the time of the
fall of Balmaceda and the "Baltimore" episode,
were regarded by the Peruvians as sufficient guar-
anty of an intention on the part of the United States
to Interfere In case trouble arose over an attempt on
the part of Chile to terminate the territorial dis-
pute In a high-handed manner.

Whether or not the government at Washington
indicated Its wishes in any way or expressed any
opinion whatever; whether or not the presence of
our battleship fleet In the waters of the West Coast

210 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

at this time was intentional or purely accidental, are
matters about which I know nothing and which do
not affect the actual results. As it stands, the Peru-
vians having avoided trouble with Chile feel grate-
ful toward the United States, and the Chileans feel
correspondingly irritated that their government was
apparently kept from an overt act by the influence
of the Yankis. An enthusiastic Chilean, a vigorous
" an ti- American," told me some time afterwards that
he had endeavored, to the best of his ability, to find
out from political friends in Valparaiso why nothing
was done when it would have been so easy to settle
the whole matter. The reply in every case was ' ' fear
of offending the United States."

After leaving Arica our next stop was to be at IIo,
the southernmost harbor of Peru, a fact that was
emphasized by the very marked depletion of our
passenger list. Few Chileans care to go to Peru.
Because we came from the "polluted" ports of a
hated rival, the Limari was subjected to a thorough-
going fumigation, a process rendered the more un-
necessary and offensive because nearly all of the
Peruvian ports actually had cases of bubonic plague
and smallpox while the Chilean ports were free
from the pest.

We reached Mollendo on the afternoon of January
14th, just seven days after leaving Valparaiso.

CHAPTER XVI

SOUTHERN PERU

MOLLENDO Is one of those places where nature
never intended man to live. The natural
port, and the one that was used for centuries, is the
bay of Islay, a few miles north. As a matter of fact,
this was to have been the terminus of the Southern
Railway of Peru, the outlet for the commerce of the
Lake Titicaca region. But the owners of real estate
at Islay were so convinced that there had arrived
that " tide in the affairs of men which, taken at the
flood, leads on to fortune," that they attempted to
make the most of their opportunity and asked the
railway prohibitive prices for land and water-front.
The result was that Islay missed its high tide and
the railway engineers carved out of the desert coast
what is now the port of Mollendo.

It claims to be the worst harbor on the West Coast.
In fact, the author of a recent book on South
America was so impressed with the terrors of disem-
barking here that he described it fully In three sep-
arate chapters of his book! Although there was
quite a little breeze blowing at the time of my land-
ing, I confess to being very much disappointed at
the tameness of the procedure. The reverend author
had led me to expect " a surf-lashed landing-place —
a tremendous tossing and bouncing on the moun-

212 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

tainous swell." Even in calm weather the boat was
"tossed about like a cockle shell, now thrown up to
heaven on the crest of a wave, now dropped down
towards the nadir in its hollow. The swarthy Peru-
vian oarsmen strain at the oars, they avoid the
jagged rocks between the boat and the pier by a
hair's breadth!" etc. etc.

One gets very little idea from such language of a
busy little basin and a dock where half a dozen
steam cranes are at work loading and unloading
large freight barges. As would be expected from the
fact that this is the chief port in southern Peru, the
docks were crowded with boxes and bales of every
description. Occasionally as many as eight or ten
freighters are anchored in the offing, and a large
number of lighters are kept busy most of the time. A
new breakwater is being built of enormous cubes of
concrete, which it is hoped will resist the action of
the waves better than the natural rock of the neigh-
borhood which disintegrates rapidly.

A climb of fifty or sixty feet up the face of a steep
cliff back of the landing stage brought us to the lit-
tle platform and gate of the local custom house.
Our arrival here was not expected by the officials,
and we received the customary hard looks that are
given every one coming from Chile. Mollendo has
not forgotten the war. Nevertheless it needed but
the mystic word delegado to the collector of the port
to cause all our luggage to be passed graciously
through the custom house without even the formal-
ity of an examination.

Our next difficulty, after landing on Peruvian soil,

SOUTHERN PERU 213

was in finding some one who would relieve us of our
Chilean money and give us coin of the realm in ex-
change. At first the local bank flatly refused to
oblige us, saying that so few people ever went from
Peru to Chile that there was no demand for Chilean
money, and that they could not realize anything on
our Chilean currency without sending it by mail to
Valparaiso or Antofagasta, an expensive and risky
undertaking which they did not care to assume. In
a word it was "against the rules." So it was neces-
sary to say ''delegado" again. As was to be expected,
the obliging cashier was now only too glad to relieve
us of all our Chilean money. How many bank cash-
iers in the States, after laying down a rule of the bank
to a foreigner, would be willing to break it because
the stranger was able to prove that he was an official
delegate to a Scientific Congress? I fear we are be-
hind our southern neighbors in realizing what is due
to "science"!

The only thing we could find of interest in Mol-
lendo, was a cock-fight in one of the side streets. An
audience of fifty or sixty boatmen and their friends,
relieved from their duties at the end of the day, were
hazarding their silver soles on whichever bird they
judged would last the longest in the tiresome and
bloody battle that was being fought out on the cob-
ble-stones. The excitement grew fast and furious
as the fight neared its close, and one poor bleeding
rooster, nearly totally blind, and almost dying, re-
ceived a few final pecks from his victorious oppo-
nent, himself dripping with blood. I have occasion-
ally watched these Spanish- American cock-fights in

214 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

an effort to understand why the spectator with Span-
ish blood in his veins gets so excited over them.
Apart from a reaUzation that at present cock-fight-
ing is the national sport of South America, and as
such, takes the place that baseball does in the United
States, and cricket does in England, I must admit
that I have failed to work out any reason to account
for the frenzied interest.

Probably the Peruvians would have been just as
bored if they had been sandwiched into a crowd of
"fans" at a baseball game.

We had not expected to stay over night in Mol-
lendo, which has the usual reputation of West Coast
ports for harboring persons afflicted with con-
tagious diseases. But the daily train for Arequipa
had gone and there would not be another until the
following noon, so we were obliged to make our-
selves as comfortable as possible in the Hotel Ferro
Carril which was not at all bad. The worst feature
of it was the partitions, which were extremely thin.
The room next to ours was occupied by an English-
speaking individual who received a call in the course
of the evening from a fellow countryman, resident
here, who tried to frighten him out of his senses by
vivid details as to the number of cases of "yellow
fever, bubonic plague, and smallpox" now raging in
the town. "More deaths occuring every day than
the undertakers could possibly attend to ! " " Scarcely
a house without its sick folk!!" "Not a family still
intact!!!" etc., etc. What effect these remarks may
have had on the person for whom they were intended,
I am unable to say. I do know they caused no little

SOUTHERN PERU 215

uneasiness among those delegados who had landed
here on their way to the interior. We did not stop
to make personal investigations as to the truth of
the rumors but were promptly on hand the next day
to take the train for Arequipa.

As there was not nearly enough space for all the
people who desired to leave MoUendo that morning,
we were very much crowded for the first hour or so.
This exodus from town was not due to any fear of
the prevailing pest, but rather to the fact that Janu-
ary is the season for leaving town and enjoying a
short stay in the country. The train followed the
coast for eight miles to the south until it reached the
bay and beach of Mejia, a summer resort where
many of the families of Mollendo have built little
villas. From here the road turns inland, east and
then north, climbing slowly and affording one a view
of the pleasant green valley of the Tambo River with
its little country houses and its plantations of sugar-
cane. Still climbing, the train continued almost due
north across the sandy plain known as the Pampa
de Islay, or the desert of Arequipa. For miles on
either side of the track as far as the eye could reach,
there was not a green thing to be seen. Although
there was no animal or vegetable life, it is not ex-
actly correct to say there was not a living thing, for
this is the home of the medanos, those extraordinary
crescent-shaped sand-dunes that travel across the
hard ground of the desert floor, driven by the pre-
vailing southwesterly winds. Each hill is a perfect
crescent exquisitely drawn, the delicate horns taper-
ing off toward the north, away from the wind. They

2i6 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

cause the railroad no end of trouble, for when a me-
dano approaches the track, it must get across some
way or other. It is of no use to shovel back the horns
of the crescent as they encroach on the rails, for the
main body of the mound, twenty feet high and
sixty feet or more wide, will advance just the same
and must be helped along.

Although we had started from Mollendo Imme-
diately after lunch and the journey is only one hun-
dred miles in length, it took us seven hours to ascend
the 7500 feet, and it was dark when we left the train
at Arequipa. We found on the other side of the sta-
tion a long line of mule-trams, one of which was re-
served for intending guests of the Gran Hotel Ma-
rone. After some delay incident to transferring a
train-load of passengers and their hand luggage to
this caravan of tram-cars, we started off and jingled
our way through poorly-lit streets of one-story houses
where attractively carv^ed stone doorways, dimly vis-
ible in the semi-darkness, told of w^ell-built mansions
of former Spanish grandees, whose walls had with-
stood Arequipa's earthquakes.

To a person who has experienced a great earth-
quake, the mere mention of the word is terrifying,
and yet we were told by one of the astronomers at
the local Harvard Obser\^atory that their seismo-
graph recorded three earthquakes during the four
days of our stay here. In fact, scarcely a week goes
by without one or more disturbances. Fortunately
for us, and for Arequipa, these daily earthquakes
that are ^o faithfully recorded by the delicate instru-
ments of the observatory are not usually perceptible

i^iMl

THE CATHEDRAL OF AREQUIPA AND MOUNT CHACHANI

CHAC N

AN OLD DOUKWAV IN ARLyUlPA

- ) MISTI

SOUTHERN PERU 217

to human beings. However, like San Francisco, Val-
paraiso, and many another city of the west coast of
America, Arequipa does have a serious shake once
or twice in a century and people do not build two-
story houses unless they can afford to use very strong
construction.

We were most agreeably surprised and delighted
with our accommodations at the Hotel Marone.
None of us had expected to find anything nearly so
comfortable outside of a South American capital.
With this excellent hotel and with the promised im-
provement of steamship service on the West Coast,
Arequipa is bound to become a Mecca for travellers.
Charmingly situated, with a delightful climate, pic-
turesque streets, and remarkable churches and mon-
asteries, it offers the additional inducement of being
a base from which many pleasant excursions can be
made. Mountain climbers and those fond of moun-
tain scenery will be attracted by the active volcano
El Misti, 19,000 feet high, and the snow-capped peaks
of Chachani that look down upon the city from their
lofty altitude of over 20,000 feet above the sea. Are-
quipa is the distributing centre for southern Peru
and contains a number of banks and the warehouses
of several large importing houses. To the explorer
intending to penetrate the continent, it is an excel-
lent place in which to purchase part of his outfit. It
was the base of the DeMilhau-Peabody Museum
Expedition to the Upper Amazon. I was astonished
to find at the time of my visit, that in one of the Eng-
lish warehouses it was not only possible to get a com-
plete supply of excellent canned goods, but even

2i8 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

such luxuries as folding-cots and Caracas chocolate.
Professor Bandelier, that most distinguished stu-
dent of Spanish- American lands and peoples, says in
his recently published "Islands of Titicaca and
Koati" that Mt. Koropuna, lying about one hun-
dred miles northwest of Arequipa, is probably the
highest mountain in America. Aconcagua is 6940
metres, while, according to Raimondi's map of the
Department of Arequipa, Koropuna is 6949 metres.
Here is a chance for a well-equipped exploring ex-
pedition.

For the less ambitious tourist there are shops
where one may buy all manner of foreign and do-
mestic supplies, and excellent photographs, the best
of which I regret to say were stolen from a scientific
expedition many years ago by a native photo-
grapher. The lover of curious costumes and quaint
shops will be abundantly repaid by long strolls
through the Indian quarters.

As soon as the Prefect of Arequipa, Sr. Don Lino
Velarde, heard of our arrival, he made haste to call
and place himself "entirely at our disposal." Some-
times this gracious Spanish extension of hospitality
means very little, but In this case it was genuine, and
the Prefect did everything in his power to make our
stay both pleasant and profitable. Horses and a
military escort were provided for an excursion to the
Harvard Observatory, and the Prefect's secretary
was detailed to act as our cicerone and see to it that
we were shown the treasures of the local monasteries.

We found the old Jesuit church the most interest-
ing of all the sights that the city afforded. It had

SOUTHERN PERU 219

once been superbly adorned and embellished with
elaborate gilded carvings and magnificent altars.
The last earthquake had overturned and destroyed
three of the altars, but the four remaining are well
worth a visit, and there are many beautiful paintings
still on the walls. The west front of the church is a
marvellous example of stone-cutting and like the
towers of the Jesuit church in Potosi shows what
excellent manual training the Jesuits taught their
followers. Their expulsion from South America was
one of the most serious in the long list of mistakes
that Spain made in the government of her American
colonies.

The atmosphere of the Franciscan monastery
took one back to the middle ages. Everything was
scrupulously clean and in good order. In the sa-
cristy we found a beautiful Madonna by some artist
of the sixteenth century. The monks treasure it
highly and with good reason for the face is as beau-
tiful as any I have ever seen. A pleasant-faced, com-
municative monk, who seemed glad enough to be per-
mitted to break through the monotony of his quiet
life in the cloisters, took us to his favorite spot in
the gardens where, under the grapevines, a rude seat
had been made from a great millstone that dated
back to Spanish days. From here he led us to differ-
ent trees in the orchard and begged us to sample the
pears, peaches, and plums that it was his delight to
cultivate. We were permitted also to visit the li-
brary and found it well stocked with rare and beau-
tifully printed old books. Naturally most of them
were devoted to theology and religious philosophy,

220 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA'

but there was one section into which old-fashioned
works on natural history had crept, including a fine
set of Buffon. On the door of the library was posted
a notice telling the monks that on Mondays and
Thursdays they could consult books on piety ; Tues-
days and Fridays, works on theology; Wednesdays
and Saturdays, other classes of religious books, etc.,
etc. We looked in vain for any day on which it was
permitted to use the books on natural history. Much
has been written of the degenerate conditions pre-
vailing in the South American religious houses. The
Franciscan monasteries we visited here and in San-
tiago, where an electric dynamo runs a modern print-
ing press for the dissemination of religious informa-
tion, cannot be included in that category.

As we wandered about Arequipa enjoying the pic-
turesque Indian shops and the bright colors of the
native costumes, the Indians themselves were cour-
teous and polite and gave little evidence of any justi-
fication for their reputation for turbulence.

The only evidence which we witnessed of any
eagerness to join an uprising was on the arrival of
Dr. Durand, a notorious revolutionist, who had fled
from the country on the failure of a revolution which
he had instigated not two years ago, and was now
being allowed to return, thanks to the clemency of
the Government. He had taken refuge in Bolivia
and in going to his home at Lima, had to pass
through Arequipa. We happened to be calling on
the Prefect when the chairman of the local com-
mittee of the Liberal party came to request the priv-
ilege of giving Dr. Durand a popular reception. The

SOUTHERN PERU 221

Prefect had evidently received orders from the Gov-
ernment to allow any kind of a demonstration short
of rioting, and after warning the Liberal chairman
that there must be no disturbance of the peace, gave
him permission to carry out the plans for the recep-
tion. We were somewhat surprised at the daring,
one might almost say the bravado, of the Govern-
ment in extending clemency to a notorious agitator
who had done his best to upset the administration
by violence.

Our feelings were confirmed the next day on the
arrival of the train from Puno. The exile was received
by a mob of three or four thousand noisy Liberals
who, inspired by the sight of their hero, went to the
limit in their manifestations of joy. It goes without
saying that the horses were taken from the exile's
carriage and that he was dragged through the streets
in triumph by his loyal supporters. The flat roofs
of the houses were crowded with interested specta-
tors who did not care to ally themselves with the
Liberal party by joining the procession in the streets.
A few of the bolder Liberals, encouraged by cognac
or chicha, ventured to cry " Down with the Govern-
ment!" "Down with the President!" "Viva Du-
rand!'' "Long live the Liberal party!"

It may seem ungracious to criticise the policy of a
country where one has received as much hospitality
and kindness as I have in Peru. At the same time
I cannot help expressing the conviction that if Peru
wishes to give the world evidence that she belongs
to the same category of nations as does Mexico, for
instance, where capitalists may safely invest and de-

222 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

velop the resources of the country; if she seriously
proposes to do away with revolutions and make them
matters of ancient history rather than of present
politics, she cannot afford to allow the instigators of
revolutions to enjoy public triumphs such as are
usually accorded to the true heroes of a nation.

There is too much of a tendency among South
Americans to regard revolutions as a popular game.
One of the rules is that after the conflict is over, your
enemies must be treated with all the honors of war,
and that it will not do to be too severe on the con-
quered revolutionist for fear that he may take re-
venge on you when the next revolution succeeds. If
these politico-military agitators were put to death
after being convicted of treason by a properly con-
stituted tribunal, Peru would enjoy an era of peace
and prosperity such as she scarcely dreams of at pre-
sent — and the Peruvians are good dreamers. But
just as long as she enthusiastically welcomes home,
after a brief exile, men like Dr. Durand, she offers
an extra Inducement to any hot-headed young fire-
brand to start another revolution. If he succeeds,
all honor and glory will be his, besides the emolu-
ments of ofiEice and the satisfaction of enjoying po-
litical power. If he fails and makes good his exit
from the country, it can mean at the worst but a
brief exile and then a triumphal return, crowned by
an ovation. In either case, unless he is so extremely
unlucky as to get shot in the scrimmage, he is sure
of plenty of honor and glory and those plaudits so
dear to the Latin heart. Such a state of affairs in-
sures more revolutions.

SOUTHERN PERU 223

In talking the matter over among ourselves the
evening after we had witnessed this extraordinary
reception to a man whom we could not help regard-
ing as an enemy of his country, we ventured to pre-
dict that before the end of the year Peru would see
another revolution. It was an easy prophecy and we
were not surprised at its speedy fulfillment. In fact,
in less than six months a revolution broke out in
Lima that for a time seemed as though it would suc-
ceed in overthrowing the Government whose mis-
taken clemency we had witnessed. The President
and the Minister of Foreign Affairs were captured
and dragged through the streets, and narrowly es-
caped death in the resulting collision between the
revolutionists and the government troops. For-
tunately, like so many of its predecessors, the revo-
lution was a failure. But coming as it did just at a
time when the city of Lima was endeavoring to sell
its bonds on the New York market, it acted as a very
effective warning to capitalists who were attracted
by an eight per cent municipal bond.

CHAPTER XVII

LA PAZ, THE DE FACTO CAPITAL OF BOLIVIA

IT is a twelve hours' run from Arequlpa to the
wharf at Puno where one takes the steamer
across Lake Titicaca. The distance is only two hun-
dred and eighteen miles, but there are fifteen or
twenty stops, and there is no hurry.

Our train was mixed passenger and freight and
one first-class coach was amply sufficient to accom-
modate everybody.

Shortly after ten o'clock, we stopped for break-
fast at a primitive little railway inn, where, although
we had good appetites and were accustomed to na-
tive fare, the food seemed exceptionally bad, and
some of it was quite inedible. Whether it was the re-
sult of this or not, several of the passengers soon be-
gan to show signs of mountain sickness. Arequipa
is 7500 feet above the sea, but Crucero Alto, a water
tank station, which we reached about half past two,
is 14,666 feet, so there was good excuse for any one
who is at all affected by rarefied atmosphere.

The eastern edge of the plateau brought us to the
two mountain lakes of Saracocha and Cachipascana.
Although there was no green in the landscape, the
snow-capped mountains that surround the lakes lent
an atmosphere of romance and charm to the other-
wise desolate view. Continuing eastw^ard, the train

LA PAZ 225

went rapidly down grade for two thousand feet,
stopping occasionally at little Indian villages until
it reached the important railway junction of Juliaca.
Here the passengers for Cuzco left us, and in the dusk
we turned south and hurried over the remaining
thirty miles of level road. On reaching the wharf at
Puno, we found to our dismay that the steamer
scheduled to cross Titicaca this evening was the
Yavari, the smallest and oldest on the lake, and the
first steam vessel to be propelled at an altitude of
12,500 feet above sea-level. She had already re-
ceived her full complement of freight, and her deck
was covered with railway-ties brought from Oregon
for the new Bolivia Railway System. It took but a
few moments to get passengers and their luggage
transferred from the train to the steamer, and be-
fore we realized it, we were plowing through the
troubled waters of the highest large body of water
in the world. The sky was beautifully clear and the
stars shone with wonderful brightness, attracting
us to spend the evening on deck, to the amazement
of the natives who preferred to sit in the stuffy little
dining saloon. It did not take us long to agree with
them that it was too cold and damp to make the
starlight very enjoyable.

Our slumbers were disturbed by a terrific thun-
der-storm that made the little Yavari toss about like
a cork. The rain descended in torrents and obliged
us to close our porthole. Of course, it was not the
first squall nor the worst that the stout little vessel
had weathered, but out of consideration for her age,
we had unpleasant dreams of swimming in the water

226 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

of a lake which Is so cold that none of the Indians
who live on its banks and navigate their crazy balsas
over its surface have ever learned how to swim.

We were up at daylight just in time to see the
islands of Titicaca and Koati and the promontory
of Copacavana, the old centre of civilization on the
plateau. It is still the scene of many quaint Indian
festivals. The ancient terraces are still used in slow
rotation for raising crops. We passed quite close to
the peninsula of Taraco which abuts from the eastern
shore and is thickly populated. In fact, so far as we
could see, all the valuable lands on the shores of the
lake were cultivated to the limit.

Mr. Bandelier says there are probably more In-
dians here now than there were in the days before
the Conquest, all the sentimentalists to the con-
trary notwithstanding.

The atmosphere was wonderfully clear, and with
the aid of glasses, we could see people miles away
going in and out of picturesque little churches, driv-
ing their cattle to pasture, tending crops, and work-
ing on the primitive threshing-floors where donkeys
and oxen were treading out the barley. Occasionally
the effect was heightened by a mirage that raised
the shores up from the lake and enabled us to see
new towns and villages. Far in the distance snow'-
covered mountains added to the charm of the scene.

On the marshy shores the fisherfolk began to em-
bark in their balsas, those curious canoes, made of
bundles of reeds tied together, quite comfortable
when new but most disagreeable when water-logged.
At one time we were able to count forty of them dot-

LA PAZ 227

ting the waters of the lake. Not less interesting was
a species of wild duck or diver that amused us by
swimming directly in the path of the steamer, then
becoming suddenly frightened, and with the aid of
its wings, running over the surface of the water with
incredible swiftness.

Numerous as have been the travellers that have
crossed the lake, and easy as it is of access, still Mr.
Bandelier is able to write: "Lake Titicaca in most
of its features is as unknown as the least visited of
the inner African lakes. The shores are so indented
and their topography is so complicated, that a coast-
ing voyage of a year at least would be needed to
achieve a complete investigation."

There is only a narrow channel between the pen-
insula of Copacavana on the west and that of San
Pedro on the east so that after one passes through
the narrow straits of Tiquina, one loses sight of the
great expanse of Titicaca and is in reality in a small
lake at its southern end. It took us several hours
to cross this, however, and it was noon before we
entered the little artificial harbor of Guaqui. The
only lake traffic that pays is freight and the boats
run frequently, but irregularly, starting as soon as
their loading of cargo is completed. One reads in
the guide-books that they have a regular schedule.
The natives say that you can never tell when the
steamers will sail. As a matter of fact, it is usually
possible to find out a day or two ahead from the rail-
road officials the hour and date of sailing.

Soon after our arrival the daily train started.
The first stop was at the famous town of Tiahua-

228 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA'

naco. We could see enough of the wonderful ruins
from the train to arouse the greatest curiosity, which
a few boys increased by trying to sell us trinkets
which had possibly been dug up in the vicinity.

Beyond Tiahuanaco the country, part of the great
tableland of Bolivia, is covered with loose stone and
an occasional low shrub. Not a single tree breaks
the monotony. Trees are rarely seen anywhere on
this plateau. A three hours' run over the level
plains brought us to Alto de La Paz.

My impressions of the approach to La Paz were
so much like those of our old friend Edmund Tem-
ple who came here from Potosi in 1828, that I shall
quote in full his quaint and vivid description. "After
travelling twelve, thirteen, and, as I imagined, every
mile of the distance from Ventilla to La Paz, my as-
tonishment was excited by not perceiving on so level
a plain any object indicating the existence of a town.
Sundry groups of Indians, droves of mules, llamas,
and asses, some unladen, some with burdens, were
indeed to be seen passing and repassing, as in the
bustle of business, but no buildings or habitation
whatever; no turret, dome, or steeple of church or
convent appeared in view, although the tolling of
their bells occasionally struck faintly on the ear. Huge,
barren, weather-beaten rocks, and snow-covered
mountains, apparently close at hand, rose directly
before me, and presented an impassable barrier.

" I could not perceive where I was to find a town;
and, as I rode onwards In strange perplexity, endeav-
oring to solve the enigma, I arrived suddenly at the
verge of an abrupt and prodigious precipice, at the

MONOLITHIC IMAGE AT TIAHUANACO

LA PAZ 229

bottom of which I beheld, in diminutive perspective,
the large and populous city of La Paz. . . . Through
this fairy town may be faintly seen, winding with
occasional interruptions, a silver thread marked
with specks of frothy white, which, upon approach-
ing, proves to be a mountain-torrent, leaping from
rock to rock, and sweeping through the valley. In
casting a glance farther round, you perceive squares
and patches of every shade of green and yellow,
which, to a European, is perhaps the most striking
part of the interesting scene. Corn, and fruit, and
vegetables, and crops of every kind, may be seen in
all their stages, from the act of sowing to that of
gathering them in ; here, a field of barley luxuriantly
green; there, another in full maturity, which the In-
dians are busily reaping; next to it, a crop just ap-
pearing above the ground. Farther on, another ar-
rived at half its growth ; beyond it, a man guiding a
pair of oxen yoked to a shapeless stick, the point of
which scratches the earth sufficiently for the recep-
tion of the seed which another man is scattering in
the furrows; trees bearing fruit and at the same time
putting forth buds and blossoms complete the scene
of luxuriance. . . . Yet it requires only to raise the
eyes from the lap of this fruitful Eden to behold the
widest contrast in the realms of Nature. Naked
and arid rocks rise in mural precipices around ; high
above these, mountains beaten by furious tempests,
frown in all the bleakness of sterility; higher still,
the tops of others, reposing in the region of eternal
snow, glisten uninfluenced in the presence of a trop-
ical sun.

230 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

**I stopped for some minutes on the verge of the
precipice to look upon a scene so wonderfully strange ;
indeed, my horse, of his own accord, made the first
pause, and with outstretched neck, ears advanced,
and frequent snorting, showed that he was not un-
aware of the abyss beneath, and seemed to inquire
how it was to be descended, for the road, in a sud-
den turn, winding round the face of the precipice, is
at first completely concealed from view; and, al-
though it appeared as if I could have ' thrown a bis-
cuit' into the town from the heights where I first dis-
covered it, a short league is the calculated distance,
and full three quarters of an hour were occupied in
descending, before I entered the suburbs. Here,
again, I was surprised to find that the town, which,
from the height I had just left, appeared to be on a
flat, was in reality built upon hills, and that some of
the streets were extremely steep, which circum-
stance alone must convey a tolerable idea of the
depth of the valley in which the city of La Paz is
situated."

The only change since the days of Temple, whose
graphic pencil has so ably described the scene, is
that a well-built electric railroad winds down the
face of the western cliff into the town. At the time
of his visit he was obliged to go from tamho to tambo
in search of a lodging but found them all so full that
there was no place for him. It gave him the oppor-
tunity of putting to test those often proffered ser-
vices and complimentary generosities of the South
American. Addressing the first decent-looking
person he passed, he made inquiry who was the

LA PAZ 231

owner of a large and respectable mansion near by.
On learning that it belonged to a worthy and excel-
lent man, he determined to present himself and ask
for lodgings. At first he was rather brusquely
received by the lady of the house, who "stood for
some time like a pillar of salt to my politely-studied
address"; but he explained his predicament and
was soon given a kind and affable reception.

Fortunately, we were not obliged to experiment
upon the proverbial Bolivian hospitality, but were
met at the station by kind friends, representatives
of W. R. Grace & Co., who did everything in their
power to add to the debt of gratitude which I had
owed their house ever since I started on my jour-
ney. Comfortable quarters were found for us in the
Sucursal, a huge, modern, three-story building in-
tended for a convent, but now used as the annex
of the leading hotel. It was not long before we were
exploring the streets and enjoying the sights of the
most picturesque Indian city in Spanish-America.

There are, to be sure, the usual earmarks of
a Latin-American capital: well-stocked warehouses
owned by English, German, and American firms;
native politicians, unmistakable, in frock coats and
silk hats, who spend their time chatting around the
benches of the principal plaza near the Government
House; a telephone company with four hundred
subscribers; fine residences on a shady alameda,
owned and occupied by people of European descent;
etc., etc. Nevertheless the general impression that
one gets of La Paz is that it is an Indian city, quite
distinct from any city seen anywhere else. Its In-

232 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

dians are not like the Quichuas of Cuzco and
Potosi, or the Chibchas of Bogota. They are
Aymar^s.

It is said that La Paz, with a population of sixty
thousand people, has thirty thousand Aymar^s who
neither speak nor understand a word of Spanish.
Judging by my experiences in the streets and in the
market-place, the proportion of people who do not
understand Spanish is considerably larger. I found
very few, even of those who were most anxious to
sell their goods, who could so much as count in
Spanish.

The result of having such a large part of the
population untouched by Spanish language or cus-
tom is to make the streets much more picturesque.
The brilliant colors completely threw into the shade
my impression of Potosi. Never have I seen such
gay ponchos and such kaleidoscopic effects as in
the La Paz market-place and the streets and squares
near it.

The reason is not far to seek. In no other city of
the Andes are the aborigines so powerful as here.
La Paz owes its political supremacy, and its present
possession of the President and Congress, to the
fighting qualities of the Aymaras. They are a bar-
barous folk whose cupidity, low cunning, and savage
cruelty is quite unlike their mild cousins the
Quichuas. Pampered and befriended by the Govern-
ment, made to feel their power and importance, they
stalk unabashed through the streets of the city and
take pleasure in carrying their savage tastes to an
extreme. The natural result is to give the city an

THE MARKEi

A REMARKABLE S

A( OF LA PAZ

LW - AT TIAHUANACO

LA PAZ 233

atmosphere of barbaric glitter which is lacking
elsewhere. In cities like Bogota, Cuzco, and Potosi,
although the Indians far outnumber the whites,
the latter are so absolutely dominant, and the In-
dians so peaceable and humble, that there is an
opportunity for ridicule to mitigate against the
more picturesque features of Indian costume. But
in La Paz few of the Spanish-speaking boys would
dare to jeer at a stalwart Aymara carrier, no matter
what garb he chose to wear.

In fact, the Aymara attitude is a striking example
of the truth of Mr. Bryce's dictum that "serfs,
when they have attained a measure of independ-
ence, resent the inferiority, be it legal or social, to
which they find themselves condemned. Discon-
tent appears and social friction is intensified, not
only because occasions for it grow more frequent,
but because the temper of each race is more angry
and suspicious." We had noticed their insolent
demeanor when we first met them in the village of
Ocuri on the road from Sucre to Challapata. Poor
Mr. Bandelier had many unpleasant experiences
with them.

The streets of La Paz, picturesque at all times,
are particularly so on Sunday, especially on Child-
ren's Sunday. In 1909, that event came on January
24th, when we had been in La Paz nearly a week.

The fair held on that day was unusually interest-
ing. From early morning until the middle of the
afternoon, the plazas and streets were thronged
with thousands of gaudily dressed Aymaras, bent
on enjoying themselves, and purchasing toys and

234 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

other trinkets of the hundreds of peddlers who dis-
played their wares in every inch of available space
on the three principal plazas and the streets connect-
ing them. While the characteristic feature of this
fair is the number of toys that are offered for sale,
and the miniature models of everything the Indians
use and wear, the chance to sell all kinds of articles
that appeal to Aymard taste is not lost sight of.
Spread out on ponchos on the edge of the sidewalk
and in the middle of the streets was pottery, large
and small, useful and ornamental; tinware, wooden-
ware, and crockery; dresses for women, girls, and
dolls; ponchos of every grade and description, from
the expensive vicuna, worth forty dollars, to the
cheapest kind of llama, worth only two or three;
musical instruments: little guitars with bodies made
of the hard shell armor of the Bolivian armadillo,^
Aymard flutes and flageolets of bamboo, drums and
horns made in Germany; and dolls made in France;
in fact, everything that one can think of that would
appeal to the Indian and at the same time be within
the possibilities of his pocket-book.

The proper thing to do, and the one that seemed
to appeal most to the half-tipsy Aymard porter
that had saved up a few pesos from the rewards of
his labor, was to purchase a fat little doll eight or
ten inches high, made in the form of a humpbacked
clown, buy gaudy clothes for it, and then load it

^ Mr. Thomas Barbour, of the Museum of Comparative Zoology,
Harvard University, tells me these are generally Dasypus vellurosus.
Colored plates of many of the interesting Aymard toys and textiles
can be found in Stubel's Kultur und Industrie SUd Amerikanischer
Volker.

LA PAZ 235

down with tiny models of brandy bottles, coca wal-
lets, and chicha jugs, in short everything it might be
supposed to desire. The result was not unlike a
heavily laden Santa Claus, although the face of the
manikin, instead of being like our genial old saint,
was that of a hideous, debauched vagabond.

The most interesting things that were offered for
sale were little plaster models of Aymara types; a
carrier or porter with a red knitted cap and a bit of
rope in his hand, on the run to get his load ; a woman
seated on the ground before a miniature loom on
which she had begun to make a bright-colored
poncho; a chola with her white straw hat, yellow
fringed shawl, jewelled neck, close-fitting bodice,
gaudy petticoats, and high-heeled French boots.
Besides there were rudely made little rag and
wooden dolls, clad in characteristic native costumes ;
clay models of llamas, cows, birds, and mythical
animals; little balsas fifteen inches long but re-
sembling in every particular the craft of Lake
Titicaca; small packages of coca leaves done up in
burlap exactly like the bundles that the burros bring
across the Andes from the warm valleys to the east-
ward ; little copper kettles from Coracora ; tiny clay
models of cooking utensils, water-jugs, and little
rawhide sandals scarcely more than an inch in
length, faithful imitations of the clumsy Aymar4
footwear.

One of the smaller plazas was given over almost
entirely to games of chance. The favorite variety
consisted of a form of dice. Instead of being marked
with the usual aces and deuces, the dice were cov-

236 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

ered with grotesque figures. Each outfit had a
different set, but nearly always one face bore the
representation of a drunken man, another that of a
devil with forked tail and horns, and a third the
effigy of the sun. The others frequently carried
pictures of wild animals such as lions, tigers, or
jaguars. As three dice were cast at a time, it was
possible to win three for one, provided all came up
the same way, and you had staked your money on
the lucky figure. The gambling booths were well
thronged. Most of the betting was done with reals,
a nickel coin worth about four cents. On the pave-
ment in the middle of this plaza a number of games
of lotto were going on, a game which I used to play
in my childhood when anything connected with
gambling was strictly forbidden. The La Paz game
was played as usual with discs and cards. Instead
of numbers as in our game, each disc had a gaudily
painted picture on it, and each card several pictures
and lines. The discs were drawn from a greasy
calico bag by an Indian boy, who called out the
name of the figure in a droning voice, and the cor-
responding grotesque picture on the cards was then
covered. The player who first covered all the pic-
tures on his card won the pool, less the bank's
percentage. I should have liked to join the game,
but as it was conducted entirely in Aymard, I found
it a little too difficult to learn the names of the
different men and animals that figured on the cards.
Another game of chance that attracted a dense
crowd consisted in selling ten numbers at a real
apiece. If your number was drawn, you won five

LA PAZ 237

reals and the bank got the other five. The only
novel feature of the game was the way in which the
drawing was made. At the top of a little pole, five
feet high, were ten wooden arms radiating from it
like the spokes of a wheel. From the end of each
hung a little clay figure of an animal, lions, llamas,
dogs, and cows. These had numbers pasted to them.
By means of a spring, a wooden monkey was made
to climb the pole, carrying a stick in his hand with
a hook on the end of it. In the meantime, the wheel
of numbered animals was rapidly revolved until the
monkey manikin made a jab with his hook and
pulled off one of the clay animals. This decided the
winning number. To see how it worked, I bought
two numbers for two reals. The other numbers were
soon sold in the crowd ; the monkey clambered pain-
fully up his stick, and owing to some defect of the
mechanism, pulled off two clay figures instead of
one. It happened that both of them bore the num-
bers which I held in my hand, but as I was a for-
eigner, and as the monkey had not played the game
squarely, the figures were re-arranged, the spring
again set, and my luck changed, much to the delight
of the Aymards.

The home of Bolivia's millionaires, and the centre
of Bolivian capital, is in Sucre, nevertheless there
are nine banks of issue in La Paz, including several
small ones that have no agencies in southern Bolivia
and whose bills have only local circulation. While
we were here, the banks put into operation a new
rule to the effect that bills torn in two, after the
favorite custom in Bolivia for making change, would

238 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

be no longer accepted at the bank at their face
value. It seemed natural and proper enkDugh to us,
but greatly disturbed the small tradesmen, and
seemed likely to cause considerable inconvenience
owing to the scarcity of subsidiary coinage.

During my entire visit I was treated most cour-
teously by the government officials and I regret to
feel any necessity of offering serious criticism of
anything in La Paz. Nevertheless I cannot pass by
the barbarous state of affairs which we found in
the city prison, an institution which is entirely
inadequate for a city of this size and a disgrace to
any modem capital. The prisoners are herded
together without regard as to whether they are
detained on suspicion of misdemeanor or convicted
of murder.

Not all of the prisoners are treated so humanely.
For our satisfaction, the jailer unlocked the door of
one cell, six feet high, three feet wide, and eighteen
inches deep. As the door opened, the occupant of
the cell tumbled out onto the floor. He was a police
officer in full uniform who for some delinquency had
been imprisoned for twenty-four hours in this tor-
ture chamber where he could neither stand up nor
lie down, I shall offer no further criticism because
I am conscious of the fact that travellers in nearly
every country are prone to find fault with the meth-
ods of punishment employed there. Coming from
a different atmosphere, things seem dreadful to
the stranger that attract no attention from local
observers, and which are really not as hard on native
prisoners as they would be on foreigners. Further-

LA PAZ 239

more, the distinguished Bolivian statesman who
had poHtely but regretfully yielded to our request to
see the prison, told us he was very sorry we had
seen it and that it "would be improved before
long."

The traveller in search of new itineraries or out-
of-the-way routes will have plenty of suggestions
made to him by the hospitable English and American
colony in La Paz, and if he is at all uncertain in his
mind as to just what he wants to do, he is likely to
become bewildered by the number of attractive
trips which he can make from La Paz as a base.
La Paz contains the principal offices of a number of
mining and exploration companies. The general
manager of one of those that is engaged in gold-
mining in the valley of the Beni, very nearly per-
suaded me to abandon my proposed trip overland
from La Paz to Lima, and go across the mountains
to the Beni, thence to the Amazon, and so home.
Had it not required more time than I had at my
disposal, and been a somewhat uncertain venture
at this time of the year, I should have accepted his
invitation. For the benefit of any who would like
to plan a journey across South America by one of
the new trade-routes which few travellers have yet
seen, I give the itinerary as it was given me. It
makes no allowances for missing connections: —

La Paz to Sorata by coach or mule-back, 2 days.

Sorata to Guanay, a hard trip on mule-back, 7
days.

Guanay to Rurrenabaque, on the river Beni, by
raft, 4 days.

240 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

(In the rainy season, that is from January to
April, there are very few rafts to be had. The route
then would be from Sorata direct to Rurrenabaque,
an interesting but rather difficult trip that would
take fourteen days on mule-back.)

Rurrenabaque to Riberalta at the junction of
the Beni and the Madre de Dios by steam launch,
4 days; or by boat, i8 days.

From Riberalta to Port San Antonio by boat, 6
days.

From Port San Antonio to Manaos on the Ama-
zon, by steamer, 5 days.

Total : La Paz to Manaos, not counting time lost
in making connection, 28 to 45 days.

BAL6AS NKAR GUAQUI ON LAKE TITICACA

AN OLD CHURCH NEAR THE BOLIVIA RAILWAY

CHAPTER XVIII

THE BOLIVIA RAILWAY AND TIAHUANACO

IN order to attend the Scientific Congress, I had
been obliged to interrupt my journey from
Buenos Aires to Lima and had left my saddles and
impedimenta at Oruro. It was now necessary to
return thither and pick up the overland trail.

Leaving La Paz early one morning by the electric
train for the Alto, we took the Guaqui train as far
as Viacha, the northern terminus of the Bolivia
Railway.

This railway was built to order for the Bolivian
Government by an American syndicate, and we
found it equipped with American-made locomotives
and cars, and operated by American railroad men.
Most of them had had some experience in Mexico
and were familiar with the difficulties of handling
Indian laborers, and also with the use (and abuse) of
the Spanish language. None of them seemed to be
particularly enthusiastic over the prospects of the
country, and all were looking forward with pleasure
to the time of their vacation when, according to
the terms of their contract, they would be sent back
to the States.

The construction of this road over the plateau
offered no great engineering difficulties such as are
met with by the roads that cross the Cordillera.

242 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

The heaviest grade is not over ten per cent, and
there are no tunnels. To offset this advantage,
however, rock ballast is difficult to procure, and the
earth that has been dug up on each side of the track
to form the roadbed seems to lack cohesion. The
gauge is one metre. The ties are of California red-
wood and Oregon pine. Owing to the high cost of
rails and ties and the distance which they had to be
brought, the railroad has been an expensive one to
build. There is only a difference of eight hundred
and sixteen feet between the highest and lowest
portion of the line, yet the hundred and twenty-five
miles have cost two million dollars and a quarter,
or eighteen thousand dollars per mile.

The Bolivia Railway is remarkable for the
promptness with which it was constructed after the
signing of the contract. The National City Bank
of New York and Speyer & Co. agreed, on the 22nd
of May, 1906, to build the line from Viachi to Oruro.
Work was commenced seven months later, and the
line was opened for traffic in less than two years.
Everything considered, the prompt completion of
the work is a great credit to the American engineers
who had the line in charge.

There is another side to the story, however.
Owing to the fact that the opening of the road had
to be rushed in order to please President Montes of
Bolivia, trains began to run before the road was really
finished, and it has been necessary to continue the
service in order to avoid criticism. The South Amer-
ican is not as patient as the North American and is
ever ready to enter vehement and furious protests

THE BOLIVIA RAILWAY 243

against anything short of perfection In railway
management. Not content with actual progress,
and not having had any practical experience in the
difficulties of railroad construction and mainten-
ance, he Imagines that all accidents and all short-
comings on the railway are due to gross carelessness
on the part of the chief officials. Every time a train
is late, he blames the management and accuses it of
bad faith, although he knows many of his friends
and neighbors would miss any train that started on
time. The necessity of catering to the desires of the
politicians has made it extremely difficult to get the
roadbed into good shape. At the time of my visit
six hundred Indian laborers, conscripts, were still
employed In getting the track properly ballasted.
Their wages average a trifle over fifty cents a day.
I had heard that accidents occurred "every
trip," but thought It only one of those extravagant
criticisms that are so common, until I asked the
conductor. He admitted that some of the wheels
generally left the rails at least once a day. For an
hour or so nothing happened, and in my interest
in the landscape, dotted here and therewith mud-
colored villages and ancient tombs, I was beginning
to forget the delightful sense of approaching
danger, when suddenly, with a rattle and a bang, we
came to a sharp stop. One of the forward cars had
left the rails and plowed its way across the ties for
some distance. The train crew, well experienced in
such matters, soon had the refractory car back on
the rails again and, nothing the worse for our acci-
dent, we proceeded merrily southward for another

244 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

half hour until brought up with a sudden jerk by a
repetition of the rattle and bang. This time it
proved to be the tender whose wheels had found a
weak spot in the roadbed. Upon further examina-
tion, it looked as though we were going to be de-
layed for at least four or five hours. The tender had
lost its balance and was lying over partly on one
side, kept from a complete upset by the weight of
the engine and the strength of the couplings. In ten
or fifteen minutes, however, the crew, well trained
by daily practice, had the port wheels back on the
.track, but the starboard wheels continued to remain
in the air five or six inches above the rails. As the
water tank had recently been filled, the centre of
gravity was too high to allow the tender to assume
its normal position, and the added weight of several
men failed to bring it down. The engineer suggested
that a bend in the track less than a quarter of a
mile away would "do the business," and so he was
allowed to pull down to the curve. It looked like an
extraordinarily clever acrobatic performance to see
this refractory tender going merrily along on a
single rail. True to the engineer's expectations, as
soon as the wheels felt the changed angle of the
track, down came the tender with a lurch that
almost capsized it on the other side. In less than
twenty minutes we were again on our way, thankful
that we had experienced wreckers instead of the
ordinary train crew of the eastern United States,
whom I have seen take several hours to perform
what these men did in a few minutes.

Notwithstanding our two accidents we arrived at

THE BOLIVIA RAILWAY 245

Oniro about five o'clock in the evening, after a
journey of nine hours, on time!

We found the Government House surrounded by
throngs of people. Presently a company of infantry
marched through the streets from their barracks
and took up a position in the courtyard. The occa-
sion was the death of the major who, six weeks
before, had read the proclamation in the streets and
now had just died after an illness of twenty-four
hours.

The scene at the railroad station the next morn-
ing at eight o'clock, when I left Oruro to return to
La Paz, was characteristic. The local regiment was
drawn up in front of the train after having escorted
the remains of their major from the Prefecture. Sev-
eral hundred citizens thronged the platform and
tried to crowd into the cars. Friends of the deceased
major and his family, men and women, were weep-
ing loudly, and some of the women uttered piercing
shrieks and wild cries. Altogether, it was rather
trying.

The plain over which we passed for a good part
of the journey was very flat, treeless, and covered
only with small, scrubby growth. At one station we
were met by thirty or forty Indians who had brought
bundles of fagots, dry brush from the neighboring
mountains. These they piled onto a flat car and
carried down the line to one of the new settlements
which have sprung up near the tracks, and which
depend on the trains for both fuel and fresh water.
The latter is carried in tank cars, like oil.

At the principal stations, a dozen or more

246 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

Aymard women, seated in a long line on the ground,
offered for sale chicha, cakes, buns, and little pears,
brought from the fruitful valleys far to the east-
ward.

The only part of the road that offered any attract-
ive scenery was that near the river Viscachani,
an affluent of the Desaguadero. Near Ayoayo, there
are a number of ancient tombs east of the track.
Some of them have been opened by the railroad
people and artificially flattened skulls found. The
railroad men told us that when they were building
the line they saw many vicufias and biscachas, but
these have now almost entirely disappeared.

We stopped for lunch at a little station whose new
adobe buildings and corrugated iron roofs told of
railroad enterprise. The restaurant was kept by a
pleasant American, who did his best to please all of
his patrons, but chiefly the railroad "boys" on
whom he depends for most of his income. On my
way down to Oruro, I had had the good fortune to
sit at the same table with part of the train crew, but
this time the two seats nearest me were occupied by
Bolivian army officers who were as rude and ill-
mannered as possible. If I had introduced myself
as a delegado they would have been the pink of
politeness. Any one connected with the Govern-
ment would be sure to receive their kind attention.
But, so far as they could see, I was simply an Ameri-
can traveller. Accordingly they proceeded to act as
though they owned the restaurant and everything in
it, presuming that I would be glad enough to get
whatever they chose to leave. There is, however, a

THE BOLIVIA RAILWAY 247

certain relief in avoiding the excessive attentions
which such men as these bestow on any one with
a government "pull," and it was instructive to see
how they behave toward foreigners who were ap-
parently travelling without official recognition. It
enabled me the better to appreciate the different
attitude that is taken toward South Americans by
distinguished foreign visitors who are in the hands
of attentive friends during their entire stay, and by
casual travellers who have failed to fortify them-
selves with official letters of introduction. I do not
mean to imply that one who merely wishes to visit
the chief centres of interest will fail to be comfort-
able unless he supplies himself with important look-
ing documents tied with red tape and sealed with
a great seal, but I do know from personal experience
that such a preparation can give one, in at least
eleven Latin-American republics, a very different
impression of the country and of the courtesy of its
inhabitants.

There does not seem to be much likelihood of any
large amount of traffic being developed along this
desolate plateau. The railroad must depend for its
freight on foreign merchandise coming to La Paz
via Oruro and the port of Antofagasta. As it has
a longer haul than that of its competitor, the
Peruvian Southern from Mollendo to Puno, it will
have some difficulty in getting much of this. Fur-
thermore, there is the new Chilean government rail-
road now under construction, a direct line to La Paz
from the port of Arica. When that is finished, it is
difficult to say how the line from Oruro to La Paz

248 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

can secure enough freight to pay expenses. There
will always be a certain amount of passenger traffic,
but at present one train, three times a week, is
amply sufficient.

A branch of the Bolivia Railway is now in course
of construction from Oruro to Cochabamba, which
will bring to La Paz the food and coca cultivated
in the warm valleys northeast of Sucre where frost
is unknown and there is an abundance of rain. There
is an imperative demand for coca all over the pla-
teau where it cannot possibly grow. Furthermore
it does not keep well, loses its flavor after four or
five months, and fresh supplies have to be brought
continually from the eastern valleys. This makes it
an important article of commerce to be reckoned
as one of the surest sources of revenue for the
Bolivia Railway.

Shortly before reaching Viacha we passed a trun-
cated hill, the Pan de Sucre, that has been a favorite
camping-ground in revolutionary wars. It is easily
defended and its summit is spacious enough to
furnish refuge for quite a number of troops. On the
hills west of it, romantically perched on an almost
inaccessible peak, is a little church where services
are held once a year. To the eastward we could
begin to see the magnificent snow-range of the
Bolivian Andes. Words fail to describe adequately
the grandeur of the Cordillera Real with its two
hundred and fifty miles of snow-capped mountains,
scarcely one of which lies at a lesser elevation
than twenty thousand feet. It must be seen to
be appreciated. Still, one can get a very vivid

TIAHUANACO 249

impression of it in the pages of Sir Martin Con-
way's fascinating "Climbing and Exploration in
the Bolivian Andes."

The next day after my return from Oruro, through
the courtesy of Mr. Rankin Johnson, I enjoyed the
privilege of visiting the village and ruins of Tia-
huanaco on the plains several miles south of Lake
Titicaca.

Leaving La Paz at eight o'clock in the morning,
we had six hours in and around the village and
returned in time for dinner the same evening. It
was necessary to take our lunch with us, for there
is no inn and the little village shops afford scarcely
anything that is fit to eat. The Tiahuanaco station
is within a mile of the most interesting ruins. The
railroad track passes within a few feet of three of
the monolithic images and one of the monolithic
doorways.

At the station we secured the services of a pic-
turesquely dressed old Aymara who the station
master assured us was a competent guide. He took
us across the dusty plain towards a large mound
which had once been surrounded by terraces and
stone walls. It is popularly known as the "fortress."
Originally a truncated pyramid about six hundred
feet long, four hundred feet wide, and fifty feet high,
treasure-seekers have dug great holes in its sides
and excavated part of Its summit in an effort to find
the "buried riches of the Incas." Besides the for-
tress there seems to be evidence of a great "temple "
and also of a "palace." The "temple," roughly
outlined by rude stone blocks, occupies an area of

250 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

nearly four acres. For the most part the blocks
are from six to ten feet in height and three feet in
thickness. Within there is still evidence of a ter-
race, and from this on the eastern side there leads
a remarkable stairw-ay. Scattered about over the
^ound and all over the plain are many rectangular
stones whose purpose has been entirely lost, thanks
to the activity of treasure- seekers who have ruth-
lessly moved them from their original position and
left them lying in indescribable confusion. There
seems to be evidence that many of the blocks were
held in place by strong metal pins, for there are
round holes drilled into the stones and insertions
made to receive "T" clamps.

The principal ruins are in a broad level part of
the plain where the soil is firm and dry. They con-
sist of rows of erect, roughly-shaped monoliths,
sections of foundations, portions of giant stairways,
monolithic doorways, some bearing carvings in low
relief, monolithic statues, and innumerable small
cut stones strewn about on all sides.

Great stone platforms, weighing many tons,
aroused our keenest curiosity. One looks around
the plain in vain for a near-by quarry from which
they could have come. The most natural supposi-
tion is that they must have been quarried on the
spot from ledges outcropping here, for it would seem
scarcely possible that blocks twenty feet long, ten
feet wide, and four feet thick could have been trans-
ported any distance** by the primitive methods at
the disposal of those prehistoric people.

The ruins 'were much more complete in 1875 ^t

GREAT PLATFORMS OF STONE WEIGHING MANY IONS'

PART OF THE GREAT MONOLITHIC DOORWAY

TIAHUANACO 251

the time of the visit of the American archaeologist,
E. G. Squier, who spent some time here, and whose
account of the ruins in his book on Peru is one of
the most complete and satisfactory that we possess.
Unfortunately, his drawings give an erroneous im-
pression of the size of many of the monuments
which are not so large as he has represented them.

Squier saw no subterranean vaults or passages,
but we were more fortunate, for only a short time
previous to our visit, thanks to the activity of Mr.
John Pierce Hope of La Paz, who has taken a great
interest in the work of exploration, a small vault
was discovered and we were able to enter and exam-
ine it. It is about six feet square and the same in
depth and is made of beautifully cut stones, accu-
rately fitted together. Nothing of value was found
in the vault and it is probably one of those to
which Von Tschudi, who was here before Squier's
visit, refers. The winds that blow over these sandy
plains will soon fill the vault and cover it up
again and leave it to be rediscovered by some future
traveller.

The largest monolithic doorway, now broken, is
covered with figures not unlike some of the Central
American monuments. It is very different from
anything else here or in Cuzco. The story goes, that
when the Spaniards first arrived, it was lying on its
side, and there appears to be no record to show who
raised it nor when the crack developed which led
finally to the door breaking into two parts. The
southern and larger half has lost its balance and
will soon be lying on the ground. By a curious coin-

252 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

cidence, Mr. Barbour, who made a careful photo-
graph of the carvings on this doorway, afterwards
secured from a grave near Pachacamac in the
vicinity of Lima, a textile that was decorated with
a similar pattern.

After examining the ruins, we spent an hour or
more in the village itself where we were struck by
the great number of finely cut stones inserted into
the walls of the huts and used as paving in the
streets. The church on the plaza is built entirely
of blocks brought from the ruins. It has a fence or
wall in front composed of a row of arches that
reminded me of Potosi and Bartolo. The exterior
of the church gives no evidence of the extraordinary
magnificence within, which is quite in keeping with
the ancient importance of this little village. Here
we found religious paintings, some of them very
good, elaborate gilded carvings, and an altar built
of pure silver, beautifully worked.

La Paz has two or three remarkable collections of
antiquities which consist largely of material brought
from Tiahuanaco. Perhaps the best is in the Na-
tional Museum, which owes its existence to the
enlightened patriotism of Sr. Don Manuel Vicente
Ballivian, a descendant of one of the most distin-
guished Bolivian families, and the leading anti-
quarian in the republic.

Of the ancient Tiahuanaco, there is comparatively
little left now. Not only did the Spaniards use cart-
loads of it in building the churches of La Paz and
Guaqui, but the modern Guaqui-to-La Paz railroad
has taken away within the past ten years more than

TIAHUANACO 253

five hundred trainloads of stone for building its
bridges and warehouses. From the point of view
of the railroad manager, whose business it is to
secure lasting results with the greatest possible
economy, it must have seemed a most fortunate
circumstance that within a few rods of his tracks
there should be such a quantity of nicely cut stone,
and "a lot of old stone walls," all ready to use!
tempora I mores I

CHAPTER XIX
cuzco

WE left La Paz on January 26, 1909, at 8.30
A. M. When we reached Guaqui we found
that our steamer was to be the old Yavari that we
had before. She was late in arriving from Puno;
the afternoon was spent in unloading her cargo;
and we did not sail until eight o'clock that evening.

The night was wet and chilly. Thunder-storms
and squalls made the lake quite rough and we had
the usual discomforts. The storm and the late start
kept us from reaching Puno before 11 A. M. The
regular train had gone, but a special was made up
for the convenience of the Arequipa passengers and
we reached Juliaca at one o'clock. Here I bade the
last of the delegados farewell and asked for the train
for Cuzco. "It had left several hours before and the
next train was due to leave day after to-morrow!"

Thanks to the courtesy of the railway officials,
however, a special train, consisting of half a dozen
freight cars and a small passenger coach, was made
up to take me as far as Checcacupe.

The coach which had been put at my disposal
was old and very small, about the size of an ancient
bob-tailed horse-car. Moreover, it was already
occupied by a dozen native passengers who, like
myself, had missed the regular train. As usual,

CUZCO 255

they had no end of bags, bundles, and boxes. There
was hardly room to squeeze inside the door. Un-
doubtedly they had better right on the train than
I did, for they had paid their fares while I was riding
on a pass. So I relinquished any claim to the coach
and took the fireman's seat in the locomotive, which
afforded me a better opportunity of seeing the
country.

We pulled out of Juliaca shortly after two o'clock
and rattled along over the plains north of Titicaca.
Here I saw for the first time llamas tied to stakes.
Of all the thousands of llamas seen in Bolivia, I do
not remember one that was tied. But I soon found
that the practice is customary in and around Cuzco.

The inquisitive Indians who gathered at the sta-
tions to stare at our train while the engine was get-
ting a drink of water were mild-mannered Quichuas.
Puno is the northern limit of the Aymaras. The
Quichua women here wore broad-brimmed black
hats covered with velvet and ornamented with
tinsel.

We did not reach Ayavari until six o'clock and
it was dark before we approached the upper part of
the valley of the Pucara River and began to climb
up over the Vilcanota mountains. The night air
was exceedingly cold, but fortunately, by this time,
most of the native passengers had left the train and
I was able to get a seat in the coach.

The highest station on the road. La Raya, is
14,150 feet above sea level. From here, there is a
rapid descent of 2500 feet to Sicuani which was for
many years the northern terminal of the railroad.

256 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

Here, in search of supper, I stumbled through the
dark streets with the train-crew to a filthy little
Indian chicheria where a half-drunken brigand and
his besotted spouse were persuaded to give us hot
tea, beer, and stale bread. The conductor of the
train said I would have to spend the night at
Sicuani as he did not propose to go any further in
the dark. Unfortunately for him, orders came
directing him to proceed at once twenty-five miles
further to Checcacupe in order that I might catch
the north-bound morning train. The engineer
declared that it was a dreadfully risky run from
Sicuani to Checcacupe and that we would probably
never reach our destination at all. But I was too
tired and sleepy to care very much, and as soon as
I got back into my little bobtailed car, pulled out
my sleeping bag, and promptly forgot all about the
train and the danger of falling into the Vilcanota
River. The next thing I knew the Checcacupe sta-
tion agent was flashing his lantern in my face and
telling me to lie still as this was much the best place
for me at this time of night (i A. M.), and I should
not be disturbed until morning. I thanked him
and dropped off to sleep again, dimly conscious that
some kind of an animal was scratching about on the
floor of the little car among my dunnage bags. When
I woke up, aroused by the shouts of the train-men
who were making up the train for Cuzco, I found
that my visitor was a little seven-year-old Quichua
street-Arab who could speak no Spanish, but who
said as plainly as possible that he would be my slave
for ever after and desired to travel in my company.

CUZCO 257

I gave him part of my breakfast and thought little
more about it, especially as Mr. Clarence Hay, who
had kindly agreed to accompany me overland from
Cuzco to Lima, met me here. Mr. Smith had gone
back to New Haven to pursue his studies.

Mr. Hay and I were soon installed on the train
for Cuzco. We were already well on our way when
the polite Peruvian conductor smilingly informed
us that there was a boy in the second-class car who
insisted he belonged to me. It was too late to put
the little fellow off, so I decided to be responsible
for him; but he was a foxy little rascal, slipped out
of the train at some station before we reached Cuzco,
and disappeared. Children mature early in the
Andes.

At the time of our visit, the Cuzco railroad had
only just been completed. The track runs along
the steep side of a valley which has an embarrassing
habit of sending down landslides quite unexpect-
edly, so the journey was a bit slow and uncertain.
The natives are fond of exaggerating its irregulari-
ties, and said it would take several days, but we
were to reach Cuzco on time, notwithstanding all
their dismal forebodings.

The scenery was very pretty. The Vilcanota
valley rapidly narrows as it descends, and the river
becomes a roaring torrent. The climate is delight-
ful and has been likened to that of Italy. The soil
is extremely fertile and produces a remarkable
variety of crops.

The road follows the west bank of the Vilcanota
until it is met by the Huatanay River. Here it turns

258 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

abruptly to the left and enters the lovely region
that was once the very heart of the Inca Empire.
The valley of the Huatanay is still densely popu-
lated, as it always has been. In quick succession
the train passed the large Indian cities of Oropeza,
San G eronimo, and San Sebastian. Suddenly we
stopped m the fields and too^on a group of laughing
Peruvian sports who had waved a piece of red
flannel to save themselves the trouble of going to
the nearest railway station. One of the joys of this
railroad is that everybody that is anybody flags
the train whenever he pleases. The habit interferes
somewhat with the time-tables, but no one cares
(except the railroad people), and it gives an indi-
vidual a great sense of his own importance to make*
a train stop while he climbs on board. A few min-
utes later we reached the temporary Cuzco station^
a group of small, corrugated-iron buildings which
stand in a plain a quarter of a mile south of the city.
The most agreeable approach is by way of thd
Alameda, an ill-kept avenue with a double row of
alder trees, on the west bank of the Rio Huatanay.
From It we had a fine view of the convent of Santo
Domingo, the ancient Temple of the Sun, across
the ravine to the east. On the west of the Alameda
is the new rifle range of the local shooting club.
The avenue itself leads into one of the principal
streets of the best residence quarter, where Spanish
houses have almost completely obliterated all traces
of Inca occupation. As soon as we reached the cen-
tre of the city, long walls of beautifully cut stone,
laid without cement, and fitted together with the

LLA ;

k F cuzco

|| ;SAHUAMAN

CUZCO 259

patience of expert stone-cutters, assured us that
this was verily the Cuzco of Pizarro, Garcilasso de la
Vega, and the Spanish chroniclers. The one dis-
tinctive feature that separates Cuzco from all other
cities in America is the prevalence of these long,
ilark, sombre walls. When you look at a building
//from a distance, it seems to be an ordinary two-
[ / story Spanish house with a red-tiled roof, wooden
' balconies, and white-washed adobe walls. As you
i come a little closer, it strikes you that the white-
wash has been worn off the lower part of the walls,
but when you come closer still, you find that this
portion consists of unpainted Inca stone-work, still
fresh and attractive.

The most striking wall in Cuzco is that of the
palace said to have belonged to the Inca Rocca,
which is composed of very large irregular boulders.
They are of all sizes and shapes, some with as many
as a dozen angles, but all fitting perfectly. The
stones used in most of the ancient palaces and tem-
ples are more nearly rectangular. The corner-stones
of buildings are frequently rounded off, but there
are almost no circular walls in Cuzco. The principal
exception to this is in the Dominican Monastery,
once the temple of the Sun, where the end of one
of the buildings is rounded like the chancel of a
church. This is, perhaps, the finest bit of stone-
cutting in Cuzco, and is shown off by the Dominican
Fathers with great zest. E. G. Squier, who lived
for some time in the convent and made a minute
examination of these walls, found that the sides of
contact of each stone are true radii of a double

26o ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

circle, and that the line of general inclination of the
wall is perfect in every block.

In some of the walls, the outer surfaces of the
stones are perfectly flat, but in general, they are
slightly convex. The blocks vary in length from a
few inches to several feet, although it is very rare
to find any more than five feet long. All are laid
with remarkable precision and at first sight appear
to be absolutely rectangular. On closer examina-
tion, you find that there is scarcely an absolute
right angle in the whole wall. Each block is slightly
irregular, but this irregularity matches so exactly
with that of the next that there is no space for a
needle to enter. The result of such careful workman-
ship, combined with the use of dark-colored stone,
is to produce a dignity and solidity that is very
impressive.

The characteristics of Inca architecture are in
part the same as those of the older Egyptian ruins :
individual blocks of great size; doors narrower
at the top than at the bottom, and walls with a base
markedly wider than the apex so that the sloping
front is a distinct feature. Probably the same meth-
ods which the Egyptians evolved in order to put in
position large monoliths too heavy to be lifted by
hand, were employed by the Incas. They seem to
have thought nothing of fitting carefully into place,
on top of a wall fifteen feet high, boulders weighing
several tons.

The followers of Pizarro who divided Cuzco
among themselves, built their homes on the massive
walls of the Inca palaces. Sometimes they left the

CUZCO 261

Inca wall standing to a height of six or seven feet.
In other instances it still rises to fifteen or twenty
feet.

It is unfortunate that the Incas did not use
cement. In that case the Spaniards would have
found it much more difficult to have destroyed the
ancient palaces, and more would have been left for
the delectation of students and travellers to-day.
Under the circumstances, it was a simple matter
for the faithful disciples of the church to raise
temples and towers of great beauty by the simple
process of tearing down Inca palaces and using the
material according to the ideas of ecclesiastical
architecture which they had brought with them
from Spain.

Many travellers have studied Cuzco but none
with so great care as Mr. Squier, in whose "Peru"
may be found many drawings and plans of the
rooms.

Thirty years ago, when he was here, there was no
inn, and he was obliged to depend on the kindness
of the local officials and the hospitality of the
monasteries. But there is now a commodious
Hotel Comercio where reasonably good meals and
decent bedrooms enabled us to be very comfort-
able. Of course, the "plumbing" was conspicuous
by its absence, and there was by no means so much
luxury as at the Hotel Marone In Arequlpa. How-
ever, even the Incas were not remarkably cleanly
and It is as well not to have too many of the con-
veniences of the twentieth century when living in a
metropolis of the fifteenth.

262 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

Cuzco has long been notorious as one of the dirti-
est cities in America; and it justifies its reputation.
The stone paving of the streets is extremely rough
and unspeakably filthy. To add to the slime, the
sewers are open conduits running through the
middle of the narrow streets. In the wet season,
they are kept flushed by heavy downpours. In the
dry season, they are unspeakable.

One has to be very careful where one steps while
investigating the ancient structures, for the present
inhabitants are no more cleanly or sanitary in their
habits than their predecessors. It is pathetic to see
the filth and squalor that surround the walls of the
magnificent old edifices.

Although we rarely forgot to pick our way care-
fully through the streets, the practice soon became
a habit and did not interfere with the enjoyment
of the brilliant colors affected by the Quichuas.
Their home-made ponchos and shawls, fastened
with one pin instead of two as in Potosi, are woven
of native wool and cotton. Yet though the material
may be as rare and uncommon as real alpaca,
vicuna, or llama wool, the brilliant hues are unmis-
takably aniline. In fact, in the market-place of
almost every city in the Andes, one is pretty sure to
find a native peddler whose specialty is the sale of
German dyes.

The most striking part of the Cuzco Quichua cos-
tume is the pancake hat. It is reversible, being
made of a straw disc with a cloth-covered hole in
the centre. On one side, for rainy weather, the disc
is lined with coarse red flannel or some other worsted

CUZCO 263

stuff, but the dry weather side is elaborately cov-
ered with tinsel on black velvet. Likewise, the loose,
baggy cloth that covers the opening in the centre
is lined with velveteen on the fair-weather side and
coarse woolen stuff for rain. The men's hats are
slightly larger than the women's, but otherwise
the fashion seems to be alike for both sexes.

Opposite our hotel was the church and convent
of La Merced. Its cloisters are noted for their fine
old paintings, their elaborately carved stone col-
umns and arches. Its gardens are filled with rare
flowers and shrubs. In the crypt beneath the altar,
PIzarro's partner, Almagro, and his son are sup-
posed to have been buried. The obliging Brother
who showed us the monastery had never heard of
any such tradition. "Quien sabe?" and a shrug of
the shoulders was all he would reply.

Not far from La Merced is the warehouse of Sr.
LomellinI, Cuzco's leading merchant, an Italian
gentleman who, while building up an extensive
business, has devoted himself to a study of the Inca
civilization. He has brought himself in as close
touch with it as possible; the very entrance to his
warehouse is a fine old Inca doorway, while his
home, half way up the side of Sacsahuaman, was
once the site of the palace of Manco Capac, the first
famous Inca. He showed me with a sad smile a few
elaborately carved bronze figures or idols that
looked very much as though they had been buried
for centuries in the mould of a royal mausoleum,
but Instead were "made In Germany." Later I
found similar specimens in Lima, where one "anti-

264 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

quarian" had the effrontery to have three of iden-
tically the same pattern, differing only in color,
exposed for sale in the same showcase.

West of Sr. Lomellini's warehouse is the mon-
astery and plaza of San Francisco. The plaza is
chiefly interesting for the Beggars Fair which is
held here every Saturday evening. There are prac-
tically no pawn shops in Cuzco, but this fair takes
their place. We were told it was an excellent oppor-
tunity to obtain bargains. It may be so for the
natives, but as we were branded at once as "foreign-
ers who had plenty of money," the prices of every-
thing were put up to the highest possible notch
and kept there. I was surprised at the amount of
old rubbish, rusty nails, bits of broken pottery,
and worn-out second-hand clothing, hundreds of
things that one rarely sees exposed for sale in a
pawn shop, and many on which no one but a junk
dealer would advance a penny. As a picturesque
spectacle, however, the Fair was most attractive.
The plaza was lit up by smoking torches and
crowded with a swarm of bargain hunters who
jostled each other noisily up and down the long
lines of traders seated on the ground behind their
wares.

Nearly all the fairs in the Andes are held on Sun-
day mornings. The market-places are usually
entirely deserted in the evening. I suppose in this
fair it would not do to expose cast-off household
treasures to the full light of day. Not only is the
chance of making a sale much greater when the
article can only be seen by torch-light, but the

CUZCO 265

newly-poor individual, who is forced to bring hither
his household goods, may more easily avoid the
scrutiny of his newly-rich neighbors.

Looming up in the darkness, above the torches,
the tall tower of the Franciscan church added a
touch of solemnity to the scene. One afternoon we
had an opportunity to visit the monastery and
examine the beautiful wood-carvings in the choir.
Like all the Franciscan establishments that we
visited, the rule of the order is strictly enforced,
the gardens are well kept, and although one can
easily see that the Order has seen better days, there
is little to criticise.

The Great Plaza of Cuzco, once much larger than
it is now, and the scene of many I nca carnivals, is
still very attractive. On its east side stands the
massive cathedral and its chapels, said to have been
built entirely of stones taken from Inca palaces
near by.

On the south are the beautifully carved stone
towers of what was formerly the Church of the
Jesuits. Flanking these are picturesque two-story
buildings with red-tiled roofs and overhanging
wooden balconies supported by a row of columns
and arches. In the arcades numerous small trades-
men display their wares. On the west and north
of the plaza are more two-story houses with arcades
filled with interesting little booths. Here, and on
the stones of the Plaza, are cloth merchants who
have gathered their wares from England and the
Continent, North and South America; venders of
pottery and Quichua toys, made in the neighbor- ,,

266 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

hood; market gardeners with corn and potatoes;
and peddlers of every variety of article imaginable ;
some protected from the rain by cloth shelters that
look as though they had been taken from the top
of a prairie schooner in the "days of '49"; others
squatting on the rough pavement, their wares spread
out on the skins of sheep or llamas, exposed to
wind and weather.

The Plaza has had a varied history. Perhaps its
most tragic day was when it witnessed the death
of Tupac Amaru. It was on the morning of the i8th
of May, 1 78 1, that the Inca was brought forth to
his execution from the old Jesuit church. In order
to prevent a repetition of Indian uprisings, such
as he had started, the Spanish authorities felt it
necessary to practice the most diabolical cruelties
on both him and his wife. She was placed on a lofty
scaffold, her tongue was cut out, and an attempt
was made to garrote her with an iron screw. When
it was found that her neck was so small that she
could not be strangled in this manner, the execu-
tioners placed a lasso around her neck and pulled
and hauled until she was dead. After witnessing
the death of his wife, the Inca was taken into the
centre of the square, his tongue was cut out, and
his body was drawn and quartered by four horses.

The immediate effect of his revolution was to
cause laws to be promulgated prohibiting the use
of the native language, ordering the Indians to give
up their national customs and to destroy all their
musical instruments. Fortunately, these laws were
not carried out. In fact, the Quichua tongue is

SAC

^'mr:^^M^

THE CATHEDRAL — THE J]

-URCH— THE I'LAZA-CLZCU

CUZCO 267

still used to a large extent. It was supposed by Sir
Clements Markham and other travellers fifty years
ago that owing to the constantly increasing cor-
ruption of the ancient dialect and the introduction
of Spanish modes of expression, the language of the
Incas would soon be a thing of the past. We found,
on the contrary, that nine out of ten Indians, even
those who occupied stalls in the market-place of
the largest cities, either could not or would not con-
verse in Spanish. There was usually an Indian in
the crowd who was willing to act as an interpreter,
but the great majority of the people seem to have no
acquaintance with Spanish. Furthermore, we found
that the Spanish-speaking residents all recognize
the necessity of learning Quichua.

The Prefect of Cuzco put his orderly at our dis-
posal for the entire time of our stay. He proved to
be most useful and agreeable. A word from him
opened to us the doors of monasteries and churches,
and his knowledge of prices enabled us to get exam-
ples of Quichua handiwork without being obliged to
pay much more than the regular price. In our shop-
ping excursions whenever we began to accumulate
more Indian toys and trinkets than we could easily
carry in our pockets, the orderly would summon the
next police officer and tell him to act as our porter.
It was rather hard to keep from laughing. Imagine
a Broadway policeman toddling up Murray Hill
carrying bundles for a foreign delegate to a Scien-
tific Congress!

After my experience In the La Paz jail, I was
curious to see what that of Cuzco might be like.

268 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

Our obliging cicerone willingly consented to show
all there was to be seen. The jail consists of an old-
fashioned Spanish dwelling built around a large
courtyard. Into this inclosure all classes of prison-
ers are put without any regard as to whether they
are awaiting trial or condemned to life imprison-
ment. There did not seem to be any cells, and the
forty or fifty prisoners were enjoying themselves
after the fashion of the Inmates of English prisons
of the eighteenth century. The Government's pro-
vision for food does not Include any luxuries, but it
is possible for the prisoners to earn money and pur-
chase what they need. So far as we could see, there
was no forced labor, and the men were thrown
entirely on their own resources. Several were busily
working at hand-looms making ponchos which they
were glad enough to sell. Others had cups carved
out of horns. One unfortunate, who happened to be
asleep at the time of our visit, sent to the hotel a
gaudily painted trinket with a note saying that he
hoped we would purchase it for a good price, as he
was much in need of funds. On the whole, although
the building was old, dilapidated, and quite inade-
quate, according to our ideas, the prisoners seemed
to be having a good time, and there was no evidence
of cruelty. The Quichuas are such a mild, inof-
fensive folk that the jailers do not have the same
Incentive to punish them severely as do those in
La Paz who have to deal with the cantankerous
Aymards.

On the south side of the historic plaza, next door
to the Jesuit Church, is the University of Cuzco,

CUZCO 269

rather squalid by comparison with the church, but
containing some fine stone cloisters. It was founded
in 1598, thirty-eight years before Harvard College.
I had a very pleasant call on its distinguished Rec-
tor, a well-read lawyer. The principal work of the
University at present consists of training men for
the law. According to the annual report of the
Rector, during the year 1907 the University con-
ferred the degree of Bachelor of Philosophy and
Letters on four candidates, that of Bachelor of
Jurisprudence on two, Bachelor of Political Science
on two, and Doctor of Jurisprudence on four. There
are eighteen instructors. They receive salaries of
$35 a month, and give, on the average, one hundred
and thirty-five lectures a year. The Faculty of
Letters has a three-year course and thirty-three
students. The Faculty of Jurisprudence, a five-year
course and forty-six students. The Faculty of
Political Science, a three-year course and twenty-
four students. The Section of Natural Science, a
three-year course and nine students. The total
income for the year is in the neighborhood of $10,000.
Of this the Government gives $5500, and the rest
is made up largely of students' fees. One source of
revenue for 1907 was $40 in fines levied on the
members of the Faculty, "for failing to attend their
classes and for other acts"!

The question of the education of South American
youth is an interesting one. The opinion of the
majority of British residents has been well expressed
by an English mining engineer who has recently
published a book on Peru. He says: "The Spanish-

270 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

American youth educated in the United States, is
not a happy product. London is the real home for
the cosmopoHtan refinement suited to their char-
acter"!

South American institutions of learning are built
on such different lines from those in the United
States that it seems to me extremely unlikely that
a large number of students from South America
will ever come to American universities. Ought
we to do anything to encourage more to come?
Spanish-Americans now studying in the States are
devoting their attention chiefly to engineering and
dentistry. Very few South Americans are likely to
care for our academic or collegiate course or any-
thing corresponding to it. It does not fit in at all
with their customary scheme of education. To the
average South American, a "college" means a kind
of high school from which a student graduates to
enter at once upon his professional studies. At first
glance it looks like the familiar German idea of a
gymnasium course followed immediately by pro-
fessional studies in the university. But it would be
unfair both to the gymnasium and the colegio to
place their curriculum in parallel columns.

A large number of physicians in South America
claim to have studied in Paris. The dentists usually
advertise the fact that they were educated in Phila-
delphia or New York. Lawyers rarely ever receive
any special training outside of the local university.
On the other hand, while a large percentage of the
native civil engineers are trained in the local engi-
neering schools, a very considerable number have

CUZCO 271

studied abroad. It is a generally recognized fact
in South America, outside of Argentina and Chile,
that the best engineers are Americans.

On the whole I am not disposed to agree with
those who disparage American training for Latin-
American youth. I am Inclined to believe that it
increases their efficiency more than the "cosmo-
politan refinement" of London.

CHAPTER XX

SACSAHUAMAN

TO defend Cuzco from attack by enemies com-
ing from the north, the Incas built a great
fortress on a hill overlooking the city. To reach it,
the easiest way is to take a mule and ride through
Cuzco's narrow streets, up the ravine to the ancient
gateway in the east side of the hill. At first sight
it might seem ridiculous not to walk, as the fortress
in only 600 feet above the city. But Cuzco has an
elevation of 11,500 feet, and hill-climbing at this
altitude is best done on mule-back.

The Prefect kindly supplied us mules and an
escort. On our way we passed the church of Los
Nazarenes whose superstructure is laid on ancient
walls that are noteworthy because of the many
serpents that are carved in relief on the stones.
Among the crude pottery dishes that I bought in
the streets of La Paz was one decorated with these
same little wriggling serpents.

Beyond Los Nazarenes the street narrowed until
presently it became simply a path in a rocky gorge.
As we entered the gorge there was at first little to
be seen. Then in its narrowest and most easily
defended part we came suddenly upon a pile of
massive rocks, roughly hewn. Huge blocks of stone,
five or six feet high, slightly rounded off and accu-

SACSAHUAMAN 273

rately fitted together, are here built into a gateway-
twelve feet high that opens into a passage defended
by a wall of large boulders. This leads to the hilltop.
On the side toward the city, the slope is nearly
precipitous, but the approach was made even more
difficult near the summit by a series of three ter-
races each twelve or fourteen feet high. There is
nothing remarkable about the summit except the
beautiful view of Cuzco which one gets from here.

The immediate front of the hill just below the
upper terraces is extremely steep. About halfway
down to the city the spur broadens and flattens out.
It was there the first Inca built his palace. On the
lower continuation of this spur, between two rivu-
lets, the palaces and temples of the later Incas were
built.

It is the north side of Sacsahuaman, the side
away from Cuzco, that is the chief object of interest.
Here the slope is very gentle and it was necessary
to fortify the place artificially. Furthermore, it was
on this side that attacks might be expected, not
only from the savages of the Amazonian wilds, but
also from the hostile tribes of the Andean plateau,
including the Caras of Ecuador. Accordingly, here
the Incas exerted their utmost skill in the construc-
tion of a powerful line of defence.

The fortifications extend for a third of a mile
entirely across the back of the hill, and are flanked
by steep valleys at each end. They consist of three
lines of zigzag terraces, one above another, each
faced with walls of colossal boulders, some of them
twelve feet in diameter. The lower terrace has an

274 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

average height of about twenty-five feet; the middle
and upper ones are some six feet less. There are few
sights in the world more impressive than these
Cyclopean walls.

The Incas were accustomed to build great ter-
races and I have seen them in many places in Peru.
In every other case, however, the terrace walls are
straight, or nearly so. Here, although the walls are
parallel, they are also zigzag and consist for the
entire length of salients and reentrant angles. The
apex of each salient in the lower wall is usually
formed by a conspicuously large block, twenty-five
feet high and ten or twelve feet thick.

The size and strength of the walls and the employ-
ment of salients which enabled the defenders to
cover the entire face of the fortification with a
flanking fire, a device unknown even to the Euro-
pean Crusaders, made the Inca fortress practically
impregnable. It was certainly quite secure from
the assaults of any Indian assailants, armed only
with such primitive weapons as bows and arrows,
slings and spears.

Next to the colossal size of the stones which the
builders used for the lower wall, the most impres-
sive thing is the care they took to fit the stones
together without cement, so that they should stand
for ages.

It is said that most of the smaller stones have
been carried off for building purposes in the city.
Be this as it may, what remains is the most impres-
sive spectacle of man's handiwork that I have ever
seen in America. Photographs absolutely fail to

SACSAHUAMAN 275

do it justice, for at best they show only a few boul-
ders, a small part of one of the walls. If taken far
enough away to show the whole fort, the eye loses
all sense of the great size of the stone units owing to
the fact that they are so much larger than any
stones to which it is accustomed.

The Inca author, Garcilasso de la Vega, wrote,
in the sixteenth century, as follows of Sacsahuaman:
"This was the greatest and most superb of the
edifices that the Incas raised to demonstrate their
majesty and power. Its greatness is incredible to
those who have not seen it. . . . It passes the power
of imagination to conceive how so many and so
great stones could be so accurately fitted together
as scarcely to admit the insertion of the point of a
knife between them. And all of this is the more
wonderful as they had no squares or levels to place
on the stones and ascertain if they would fit to-
gether. How often must they have taken up and
put down the stones to ascertain if the joints were
perfect! Nor had they cranes, or pulleys, or other
machinery whatever. . . . But what is most mar-
vellous of the edifice is the incredible size of the
stones, and the astonishing labor of bringing them
together and placing them." Compare this with
what a recent writer on the Caroline Islands says,
in describing the colossal stone ruins on the Island
of Lele near Kusaie: "Looking at their solid out-
lines, seamed and furrowed with the rain and sun
of untold generations, one cannot help marvelling
at the ingenuity and skill of these primitive engi-
neers, in moving, lifting, and poising such huge and

276 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

unwieldy masses of rock Into their present position,
where these mighty structures, shadowed by great
forest trees, stand defying Time's changing seasons
and the fury of tropic elements."

Also this from Captain Cook's "Voyages": "The
platforms are faced with hewn stones of a very
large size. They used no sort of cement, yet the
joints are exceedingly close and the stones mortised
and tenoned one into another in a very artful man-
ner and the side walls were not perpendicular but
sloping a little inwards." This is an accurate de-
scription of Sacsahuaman. Yet Captain Cook never
came to the highlands of Peru and probably never
even saw a picture of these walls. In this paragraph
he is describing the stone ruins on Easter Island.^

The resemblances between the ruins of upper
Peru and those of Easter Island and the Caroline
Islands offer a remarkably interesting field for
ethnological speculation. Unfortunately as yet
they have told us but little of the builders of
Sacsahuaman.

It is generally conceded that the fortress was
commenced in the reign of the Inca Viracocha, two
hundred years before the Spanish Conquest. Whe-
ther this tradition is well founded, it is difficult to
say. It may be due to the fact that the name
"Viracocha," as Sir Clements Markham points out,

1 In Paymaster Thompson's report of his visit to Easter Island, he
gives drawings and photographs of walls that bear a striking resem-
blance to Sacsahuaman. There is the same peculiar close fitting of
one stone to another, the same striking size of the stones and lack of
cement in the joints. See also Cook's Voyage Around the World in
1772-1775, London, 1777.

SACSAHUAMAN 277

was simply the term applied to a powerful char-
acter, a term of admiration, equivalent to the word
"gentleman" in English.

Whoever built it, the task was certainly heroic.
Many of the stones were undoubtedly quarried
near by. As for methods of transportation, we know
that the Incas understood the manufacture of
strong cables, for they built suspension bridges
across many of the chasms of central Peru. By the
aid of these cables and of wooden rollers, it would
have been entirely possible to have dragged very
large stones for a considerable distance, up inclined
planes. Although they had no draft animals,
llamas being only accustomed to carrying, they had
thousands of patient Quichuas at their disposal,
whose combined efforts, extended over long lines
of cables, would have been amply sufficient to move
even the largest of these great blocks. Nevertheless,
when one considers the difficulty of fitting together
two irregular boulders, both of them weighing eight
or ten tons, one's admiration for the skill of these old
builders knows no bounds.

The modern Peruvians are very fond of speculat-
ing as to the method which the Incas employed to
make their stones fit so perfectly. One of the favor-
ite stories is that the Incas knew of a plant whose
juices rendered the surface of a block so soft that
the marvellous fitting was accomplished by rubbing
the stones together for a few moments with this
magical plant juice!

Discussion and speculation will undoubtedly con-
tinue indefinitely, yet one can come to at least two

278 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

conclusions: the Incas had an unHmited amount of
labor at their disposal, and time was no object.

Futhermore, they were apparently very fond of
playing the game of stone-cutting. From the for-
tress we rode across the little grassy plain that
separates the terraces from the rocks of Rodadero
hill. On its summit, terraces have been hewn out
of the solid rock, and it is said that the Incas were
fond of sitting here to watch their patient workmen
engaged in putting together the magnificent walls
of Sacsahuaman. On the north side of the hill, the
rock has been worn into grooves by the water and
polished by the ponchos of generations of pleasure-
seekers who have used this curious formation as a
"toboggan slide." Our guides assured us that the
habit of coasting down this hill on ponchos was
started by the Incas. At all events, it is still a
favorite Sunday amusement.

In the rolling country north of the Rodadero are
numbers of rocks and ledges that have been carved
into fantastic seats, nooks, and crannies by a people
who seem to have taken a keen delight in stone-
carving for its own sake. It is difficult to explain in
any other way the maze of niches and shelves, seats
and pedestals that are scattered about on every
hand. Writers are accustomed to label as "Inca
thrones" every stone seat they find in the moun-
tains of Peru. But here the ledges are car\^ed so
irregularly as almost to bewilder the imagination.

A mile away to the northeast we discovered the
dim outlines of a large amphitheatre where the
Incas may have gathered on the grassy slopes to

SACSAHUAMAN 279

watch games and religious festivals. It offers an
attractive field for digging, as it seems to have been
entirely overlooked hitherto.

On our way back to the city we were invited to
rest at Sr. Lomellini's country house which is built
in the gardens of Manco Capac, the first Inca. The
entrance is through a gate in the wall of the ancient
outer terrace. Near the house stands a section of
the palace wall, thirty feet long and ten feet high,
containing a recessed door and window. In the outer
terrace the stones are of irregular shapes while in
this wall they are practically rectangular. In his
house, Sr. Lomellini has collected a number of
extremely interesting specimens of the ceramic art
of the Incas. The most striking are two very large
vases resembling in shape and marking the small
one figured here. This is only six inches high ; those
are nearly three feet. There are quite a number of
imperfect specimens in the American Museum of
Natural History.

After the gardener had given us a handful of
roses, we left the precincts of the ancient Inca and
clattered down the hill over the rough cobblestones
to the picturesque sights — and distressing smells —
of modern Cuzco.

CHAPTER XXI

THE INCA ROAD TO ABANCAY

THERE are several ways of going from Cuzco to
Lima. The easiest and most frequented now
is by rail to Mollendo and then by steamer to Callao,
the seaport of Lima. Before the days of rail-
roads the common route was by mule via Aya-
cucho, Pisco, and the Coast. Since the building of
the Oroya railroad and more particularly since the
extension of the line south to Huancayo, instead
of going west to the coast from Ayacucho the over-
land traveller continues north to the Jauja valley
until he meets the railway. It was this road that
we proposed to take.

For centuries the overland trail from Cuzco to
Huancayo and the north was the most celebrated
highway in Peru. The Incas used it in their con-
quests and improved it. When Atahualpa fell into
the clutches of Pizarro, the largest part of his golden
ransom was brought over this road. After the death
of the Inca, Pizarro in his march on Cuzco found
this road most convenient for his little cavalcade.
During the civil wars that followed the conquest
this highway was repeatedly the scene of action.
For three hundred years it was replete with historic
incident. Finally, the road that had seen the begin-
nings of Spain's conquest, was destined to see the

THE INCA ROAD TO ABANCAY 281

bitter end. For, in 1824, it witnessed the last cam-
paign, the final act in the drama of Spain's Colonial
Empire, when La Serna, last viceroy of Peru, was
defeated by the patriot forces under General Sucre
in the battle of Ayacucho.

In journeying over the three hundred miles of
this historic highway, I should have preferred to
have hired mules for the whole trip, but nobody was
willing to undertake the contract. We were told
that "in the good old times" before the railway
came to Cuzco, it was very easy to hire mules; and
arrieros were willing enough to go anywhere, but
now there was so little demand for this sort of thing
that the supply had stopped. The best we could do
was to get an arriero to take us to Abancay, the
capital of the next Department.

Two American civil engineers whom I had met
in Arequipa had told me that the journey from
Cuzco to Huancayo would be full of trouble and
countless dif^culties, as a large part of the region
was uninhabited! They said that if it were possible
to buy a tent in Cuzco, to do so, by all means, as we
should otherwise be obliged to spend many nights
in the open, exposed to rain and snow. They had
not been over the road but had lived for months in
Cuzco and had "heard all about it." I mention this
merely as an instance of the difificulty of finding out
the truth about South America by hearsay.

We now learned from those who had actually been
over the road that while there were no inns to be
encountered anywhere except in Ayacucho, it would
be only owing to extremely bad luck if we failed to

282 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

reach the shelter of a village every night. Accord-
ingly we contented ourselves with a few canned
goods and kitchen utensils and found them to be all
that was necessary.

In the Peruvian highlands the rains commence in
November and continue until the end of March.
February is supposed to be the worst of all. During
that month the discomfort of travelling over the
bridle-paths of the Andes is so great that the natives
never undertake a journey for pleasure and stay at
home as much as possible. Yet it was February
that we had chosen for our march. It was "Hob-
son's choice," but I was not sorry. Several travel-
lers have given a picture of the region as it appears
in the dry season when the roads are comparatively
good. We were to have an opportunity of seeing
what they could be like in the worst of the rainy
season, and we were further favored by the fact
that this particular February turned out to be "the
rainiest month of the rainiest season that any one
remembered to have experienced in Peru for at
least twenty- five years." In a word, we were to see
the mountain trails at their worst.

We left Cuzco on the morning of the first of Feb-
ruary, 1909. The day promised ill. Rain fell in
torrents. The preceding day we had received calls
from a number of local dignitaries, all of whom
assured us that they would be on hand in the morn-
ing to escort us out of town. But the continuous
downpour overcame their conscientious scruples.
Even the Prefect's polite orderly, who had been
unremitting in his attention, was glad enough to

THE INCA ROAD TO ABANCAY 283

take our hint that we were sufficiently honored by
his accompanying us for three blocks from the hotel.

The Prefect had been very solicitous about our
welfare and, although we assured him that we pre-
ferred to travel without a military escort, he in-
sisted that a sergeant and at least one soldier should
accompany us as long as we were in his Department.
I never discovered why he was so insistent. There
was no danger, and highway robbery is unheard of
in Peru. Possibly he was afraid that the delegados
might otherwise go hungry at villages where inhos-
pitable, half-starved Quichuas would say that there
was no food to be had; or he may have thought it
undignified for us to travel without an escort. What-
ever his reasons, he meant well and it was not a case
of graft, for the soldiers were ordered to accompany
us at the expense of the government.

We started off in a northwesterly direction, leav-
ing Sacsahuaman on the right. After climbing out
of the Cuzco valley we descended gradually to the
great plain of Anta, famous as the scene of numerous
battles in the wars of the Incas. We crossed it by
the ancient Inca road, a stony pathway five or six
feet wide, with ditches and swamps on either side.
The Peruvians have allowed it to fall into decay, and
for a good part of the distance it has disappeared.
At noon we reached Puquiura, a village with a
plaza very like that of Tiahuanaco. At half past
three, after making a long detour in order to avoid
the swamps and ponds that in the wet season cover
the direct road, we crossed a little stone bridge and
rode into the dismal plaza of the old Indian town of

284 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

Huarocondo. This is only a few miles from Uru-
bamba, and the remarkably interesting ruins of
Ollantaytambo, which have been so graphically
described by Squier.

Unfortunately we had no time to visit them and
took instead the road to the southwest. Skirting
the hills north of the plain of Anta, we passed several
great terraces a third of a mile long and fourteen
or fifteen feet high, and towards evening entered
Zurita, a small Indian town. Here we were directed
to the house of a hospitable Gobernador where we
found that two Peruvian travellers had preceded us.

As in other houses of the better class in this vicin-
ity, the entrance was through a large gate into a
courtyard. Opposite the gate was a two-story
building with a balcony running the length of the
second floor. On another side of the court were
smaller structures one of which had a wide stone
verandah where the arrieros and the soldiers piled
up the saddles and bags and spread their blankets
for the night. Two unfortunate parrots, cold, sickly,
and bedraggled, had their perches attached to the
posts of the verandah.

An hour after our arrival, four Indian alcaldes and
tenienfes carrying silver-tipped canes as symbols
of office, presented themselves in the courtyard in
answer to the summons of the Gobernador. When
that official appeared on the balcony, they humbly
removed their hats and stood in silence while he
told them how many bundles of fresh barley straw
to bring for our mules. An hour later they returned
with other Indians who, acting under their orders,

THE INCA ROAD TO ABANCAY 285

brought the cehada. The conversation was carried
on in Quichua, which we were unable to follow,
but the Gobernador said that for the fodder the
alcaldes wanted one sol, a Peruvian silver dollar
worth forty-eight cents. This we cheerfully gave
him, whereupon, in a most unabashed manner, he
put the sol in his pocket, took out a few small coins
worth about half a sol and threw them down into
the courtyard where they were gratefully picked up
by the alcaldes.

We left Zurita the next morning, accompanied
by the Gobernador and our fellow lodgers. They
were all well-mounted on excellent horses. The
horsemen of this vicinity affect a bit of harness that
seems to be a relic of the trappings of Spanish war
horses. The crupper is covered with a V-shaped
piece of solid leather elaborately stamped and
marked. From it hang hip straps supporting very
loose breeching that dangles almost to the points
of the hocks and actually rests on the ham strings.
Although it is of no use whatever, and in fact, actu-
ally impedes the horse's action, the effect is rather
picturesque.

Leaving the arriero and his pack mules to follow
in charge of our military escort, we pushed on at a
good pace with our friends and found ourselves at
noon at Challabamba on the divide that separates
the waters of the river Urubamba from those of the
Apurimac. In marked distinction to the grassy,
treeless plain of Anta from which we had just
ascended, we saw before us deep green, wooded
valleys.

286 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

The trail, a rocky stairway not unlike the bed of a
mountain torrent, led us rapidly into a warm trop-
ical region whose dense foliage and tangled vines
were grateful enough after the bleak mountain
plateau. Beautiful yellow broom flowers were
abundant. The air was filled with the fragrance
of heliotrope. Parti-colored Ian tanas ran riot through
a maze of agaves and hanging creepers. We had
entered a new world.

A steep descent brought us to the town of Lima-
tambo where there are interesting terraces and other
evidences of an Inca fortress. The valley of the
Limatambo River is here extremely narrow and the
fortifications were well placed to defend an enemy
coming against Cuzco from the west and north.

Rain had been falling most of the day and the
river Limatambo had risen considerably. The ford
was quite impassable, and we were obliged to use a
frail improvised bridge over which our mules crept
very cautiously sniffing doubtfully as it bent under
their weight. Soon afterwards we crossed the river
Blanco and left the old trail, which goes through
the Indian village of Mollepata, described by
Squier as "a collection of wretched huts on a high
shelf of the mountain with a tumbled-down church,
a drunken Governor who was also keeper of a hovel
which was called the post-house, and a priest as
dissolute as the Governor ... a place unsurpassed
in evil repute by any in Peru." Fortunately for us,
since the days of Squier's visit, an enterprising
Peruvian has carved a sugar plantation out of the
luxuriant growth on the mountain side, at La

THE INCA ROAD TO ABANCAY 287

Estrella. Here we were given an extremely cordial
welcome although Sr. Montes, the owner, — the
fame of whose hospitality had reached even to
Cuzco, — was not at home. Our military escort did
not arrive until nearly three hours later, with a sad
story of wretched animals and narrow escapes.

We were considerably surprised to find here at La
Estrella an excellent piano in fairly good tune. It
had been brought from Cuzco on the shoulders of
Quichua bearers. This seems extraordinary enough,
but before the days of the railroad, pianos were
formerly carried by Indians all the way from the
Pacific Coast to Cuzco. The next time I saw five
stalwart Irish truckmen groaning and shaking under
the weight of an upright piano which they had to
carry fifty feet from the truck into a house in New
Haven, I wondered what they would think of half-
starved Indians who could carry it from sea-level
over mountains fourteen thousand feet high.

The presence of the piano at La Estrella meant
that here as everywhere else we were to be favored
with the strains of the "Tonquinoise" and "Quand
L'Amour Meurt." This is the kind of music that
most appeals to the South Americans. Wherever
there was a piano in the heart of Peru or Bolivia,
it mattered not whether the place was Potosi or
Arequipa, these tunes were everlastingly drummed
into our ears.

The next morning we descended from the cane-
fields of La Estrella by an extremely precipitous
winding trail. In places it seemed as though our
heavily-laden mules must surely loose their footing

288 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

and roll down the fifteen hundred feet to the raging
Apurimac River below. At length, however, we came
to an excellent modern bridge which we were actu-
ally able to cross without dismounting, something
that rarely happens with the bridges of Peru.

In the old days a wonderfully lofty suspension
bridge made by the Indians in the Peruvian fashion,
was the only means of crossing this river. Vivid
pictures of it, no two alike, are given in Squier's
"Peru," Markham's "Cuzco and Lima," and Lt.
Gibbon's "Exploration of the Valley of the Ama-
zon." Although they all differ as to its height above
the water and its length, all were greatly impressed
by the remarkable cafion that it crossed. Gibbon
says "the bridge was ... 150 feet above the dark
green waters"; Sir Clements Markham, who crossed
the bridge two years later says, " the bridge spanned
the chasm in a graceful curve at a height of full
300 feet above the river." As he crossed it in the
middle of March just at the end of the rainy season
when it may be supposed the waters were high,
while Lt. Gibbon crossed it in August, the middle
of the dry season, when the river is very low, the
contrast between their estimates of the height of
the bridge above the river is all the more striking.
Unfortunately it has disappeared and travellers can
no longer dispute over its dimensions.

The scenery to-day was superb; the great green
mountains piling up on one another, their precip-
itous sides streaked with many lovely waterfalls.
Green parrots overhead and yellow iris underfoot
lent additional color to the scene. To add to our joy

THE INCA ROAD TO ABANCAY 289

the sun shone all day long. A comparatively easy
journey over steep but well-travelled mountain-
trails brought us to the town of Curahuasi where we
were met by Lt. Caceres, who had been directed to
act as our escort, and who proved to be a most
genial and exceptionally spirited young Peruvian,
a member of an old and distinguished family.

Immediately on our arrival at Curahuasi we were
taken to the local telegraph office where Caceres
sent off an important message announcing the ap-
proach of the "distinguished visitors"! To recom-
pense us for waiting while he wrote the messages,
bottles of stout were opened and toasts solemnly
proposed. We expected to spend the night in the
town, but found that the Gobernador, who desired
us to be his guests, lived a couple of miles up the
valley at Trancapata on the road to Abancay.

Although his establishment was a primitive one,
it was charmingly situated on the edge of a deep
ravine. The dining-room was an old verandah over-
looking the gorge, and we enjoyed the view and the
generous hospitality quite as much as though the
villa had had all modern conveniences. In fact,
neither of us had ever before experienced such a
cordial welcome from a total stranger. We were to
learn, however, before we left the Department, that
such friendliness was characteristic of nearly every
village and town that enjoyed the over-lordship of
the genial Prefect of Apurimac.

The next morning when we finally managed to
bid our cordial host good-by, It was not until he
had accompanied us for a long distance up the deep

290 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

valley. As we climbed the ascent under a bright
sun, a wonderful panorama spread itself out behind
us, the snowy peaks of Mt. Sargantay gleaming in
the distance. We soon left the region of luxurious
vegetation, lantanas, cacti, and tropical plants, and
ran into a chilly drizzle at an elevation of thirteen
thousand feet. Then we descended, came out of
the rain, and had a delightful ride over a trail lined
with masses of blue salvia and pink begonias.

At last we caught glimpses of the fields of sugar-
cane that have made Abancay famous throughout
Peru. To one who has seen the broad canefields
of Hawaii or the great plantations of Cuba and Porto
Rico, the fame of this rather small district would
be surprising. But after passing over the bleak
highlands of Peru and experiencing the chill of the
mountain climate, one feels more ready to appre-
ciate that a warm, rich valley, eight thousand feet
above the sea, where sugar can be easily raised, is a
matter for profound congratulation.

A long descent down a very bad road brought us
into a charming region. A mile from Abancay itself
we were met by the sub-Prefect and a dozen sugar
planters and caballeros who had taken the trouble
to saddle their horses and come out to give us a
fitting welcome. After an interchange of felicita-
tions, we clattered gayly into town and were taken
at once to the Prefecture. Here Hon. J. J. Nufies,
the genial Prefect, gave us a cordial reception and
apologized for the fact that he had quite a large
family and could not give us suitable sleeping
quarters in the Prefecture. As it was, he placed

THE INCA ROAD TO ABANCAY 291

the local club entirely at our disposal. We were
only too glad to accept, for the club's two pleasant
rooms overlooked the little plaza and commanded
a very pretty view of the ancient church and steep
hills beyond.

Hardly had we had time to turn around in our
new quarters before the Prefect came to make a
formal call. He at once broached the subject of
the ruins of Choqquequirau and begged us to visit
them.

It seems that in Quichua, the language of the
Incas, still spoken by a majority of the mountain-
eers of Peru, Choqquequirau means a "Cradle of
Gold." Attracted by this romantic name and by
the lack of all positive knowledge concerning its
last defenders, several attempts had been made
during the past century to explore its ruins and to
discover the treasure which it is supposed the Incas
hid here instead of allowing it to fall into the hands
of Pizarro with the ransom of Atahualpa. Owing to
the very great difficulty of reaching the site of the
ruins a tradition had grown up that the Incas built
a great city that once contained over fifteen thou-
sand inhabitants, high up on the mountain-side,
six thousand feet above the river Apurimac. That
the tradition had a basis of fact had been demon-
strated occasionally by bold mountain-climbers who
succeeded in reaching a part of the ruins.

We were told that the first man to reach there
went and came alone. All he saw was a stone wall
which he reached late in the afternoon, exhausted
and without food. He slept in its shelter, left his

292 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

gun as proof that he had been there, and came away-
early the next morning, anxious only to get home. A
generation later a small party of adventurers suc-
ceeded in reaching the ruins with enough food to
last them for two days. They excavated two or
three holes in a vain effort to find buried treasure
and returned with a tale of sufferings that kept any
one from following their example for twenty years.
They brought back reports of rocky "palaces,
paved squares, temples, prisons, and baths," all
crumbling away beneath luxuriant tropical vegeta-
tion. Then a local magistrate, dreaming of untold
riches, so ran the tale, endeavored to construct a
path by which it might be possible to reach Choq-
quequirau and to maintain a transportation ser-
vice of Indian carriers who could provide workmen
with food while they were engaged in making a sys-
tematic effort to unearth the "Cradle of Gold."
This man had at his disposal the services of a com-
pany of soldiers and a large number of Indians, and
it is said that he expended a large amount of time
and money in his quest. He succeeded in reaching
the top of the ridge 12,000 feet above the river and
6000 feet above Choqquequirau, but was unable
to scale the precipices that surround the ruins, and
all his labor came to nought. Others tried to utilize
the path that he had made, but without success,
until the present Prefect of the department of Apu-
rimac, Honorable J. J. Nufies, assumed ofifice and
became interested in the local traditions. Under his
patronage, a company of treasure-seekers was formed
and several thousand dollars subscribed.

THE INCA ROAD TO ABANCAY 293

The first difficulty that they encountered was the
construction of a bridge over the frightful rapids
of the Apurimac. All efforts failed. Not a Peruvian
could be found willing to venture his life in the whirl-
pool rapids. Finally "Don Mariano," an aged
Chinese peddler, who had braved the terrors of the
Peruvian mountains for thirty years, dared to swim
the river with a string tied to his waist. Then after
much patient effort he succeeded in securing six
strands of telegraph wire from which he hung short
lengths of fibre rope and wove a mat of reeds two
feet wide to serve as a foot path for a frail suspen-
sion bridge. Once on the other side, the company
was able to use a part of the trail made twenty
years ago, but even with that aid it took three
months of hard work to surmount the difficulties
that lay between the river and Choqquequirau.
Cheered on by the enthusiastic Prefect and his
aide, Lieut. Caceres, an exceptionally bold officer,
the task which had defied all comers for four hun-
dred years was accomplished. A trail that could
be used by Indian bearers was constructed through
twelve miles of mountain forest, over torrents and
precipices, and across ravines from the river to the
ruins.

With these and similar stories we were regaled
by one and another of the local antiquarians, in-
cluding the president of the treasure company and
our friend the Prefect.

We felt at first as though we could not possibly
spare the week which would be necessary for a
visit that would be worth while. Furthermore we

294 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

were not on the lookout for new Inca ruins and had
never heard of Choqquequirau. But the enthusi-
asm of the Prefect and his friends was too much
for us. The Prefect held it out as an extra induce-
ment that no foreigners had ever visited Choqque-
quirau, a statement that I later found to be incor-
rect. Finally he said that President Leguia of Peru,
knowing that we were to pass this way, had re-
quested the company to suspend operations until
we had had a chance to see the ruins in their original
condition. In short so urgent were the Prefect's
arguments, and so ready was he to make it easy for
us, that we finally consented to go and see what his
energy had uncovered.

That night he gave us an elaborate banquet to
which he had invited fifteen of the local notables.
After dinner we were shown the objects of interest
that had been found at Choqquequirau, including
several ancient shawl-pins and a few nondescript
metallic articles. The most interesting was a heavy
club fifteen inches long and rather more than two
inches in diameter, square, with round corners, much
like the wooden clubs with which the Hawaiians
beat tapa. It has a yellowish tinge that gave rise to
a story that^ it was pure gold. Unfortunately we
had no means of analyzing it, but I presume it was
made, like the ancient Inca axes, of copper hardened
with tin.

The next afternoon, amidst a heterogeneous mess
of canned provisions, saddles, rugs, and clothes, we
packed, and received distinguished guests. Almost
everyone who called told us that he was going to

THE INCA ROAD TO ABANCAY 295

accompany us on the morrow, and we had visions
of a general hegira from Abancay.

In the evening we were most hospitably enter-
tained at one of the sugar estates. To this dinner a
genial gathering came from far and near. The plant-
ers of Abancay are a fine class of caballeros, hospit-
able, courteous, and intelligent, kind to their work-
ing people, interested both in one another's affairs
and in the news of the outside world. Many of them
spend part of each year or two in Lima, and a few
have travelled abroad.

One of our hosts had recently made an excursion
to Choqquequirau, which "nearly killed him." He
lost one mule: it slid down a precipice. He lamed
another badly. On the whole, although urged to
do so by his friends, he decided not to offer to go
with us on the morrow. At least one man proposed
to stay in Abancay!

CHAPTER XXII

THE CLIMB TO CHOQQUEQUIRAU

rT"\HE next morning, accompanied by a large
J. cavalcade, we started for Choqquequirau.
Most of our escort contented themselves with a
mile or so, and then wishing us good luck, returned
to Abancay. We did not blame them. Owing to
unusually heavy rains, the trail was in a frightful
state. Well-nigh impassable bogs, swollen torrents,
avalanches of boulders and trees, besides the usual
concomitants of a Peruvian bridle-path, cheered us
on our way.

Soon after leaving our friends we had to ford a
particularly dangerous torrent where the mules
had all they could possibly do to keep their footing
in the foamy waters. After the crossing we rested
to watch Castillo, one of the soldiers who had been
assigned to accompany us, cross the stream on foot.
His mule, tired out by the dreadful trail, was being
rested. It had forded the stream with the others
and was standing by us watching the soldier take
perilous leaps from boulder to boulder, where a
misstep would have meant certain death. Hardly
had Castillo gained our side of the stream when the
mule decided to return to Abancay and plunged
back across the dangerous ford. With a shout of
rage, the soldier repeated his performance, gained

THE CLIMB TO CHOQQUEQUIRAU 297

the other side of the torrent, and started after the
mule, now quite rested, and trotting off briskly for
home. A chase of a mile and a half put Castillo
into no very pleasant frame of mind, and the mule
had little respite for the remainder of the day. At
noon we stopped a few moments in the village of
Cachora where the Prefect had instructed the Gober-
nador to prepare us a "suitable luncheon." This in-
toxicated worthy offered us instead many apologies,
and we had to get along as best we could with three
or four boiled eggs, all the village could provide.

All day long through rain and heavy mist that
broke away occasionally to give us glimpses of
wonderfully deep green valleys and hillsides covered
with rare flowers, we rode along a slippery path that
grew every hour more treacherous and difficult.
In order to reach the little camp on the bank of the
Apurimac that night, we hurried forward as fast as
possible although frequently tempted to linger by
the sight of acres of magnificent pink begonias and
square miles of blue lupins. By five o'clock, we
began to hear the roar of the great river seven
thousand feet below us in the cafion. The Apurimac,
which flows through the Ucayali to the Amazon,
rises in a little lake near Arequipa, so far from the
mouth of the Amazon that it may be said to be the
parent stream of that mighty river. By the time it
reaches this region, it is a raging torrent two hun-
dred and fifty feet wide, and at this time of the year,
over eighty feet deep. Its roaring voice can be
heard so many miles away that it is called by the
Quichuas, the Apurimac, or the "Great Speaker."

298 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

Our guide, the enthusiastic Caceres, declared that
we had now gone far enough. As it was beginning
to rain and the road from there on was "worse than
anything we had as yet experienced," he said it
would be better to camp for the night in an aban-
doned hut near by. His opinion was eagerly wel-
comed by two of the party, young men from Aban-
cay, who were having their first real adventure,
but the two Yankis decided that it was best to reach
the river if possible. Caceres finally consented, and
aided by the dare-devil Castillo, we commenced a
descent that for tortuous turns and narrow escapes
beat anything we had yet seen. Just as darkness
came on, we encountered a large tree that had so
fallen across our path as completely to block all
progress. It seemed as though we must return to
the hut. Half an hour's work enabled us to pass this
obstacle only to reach a part of the hillside where
an avalanche had recently occurred. Here even the
mules and horses trembled with fright as we led
them across a mass of loose earth and stones which
threatened to give way at any moment. Only two
weeks previously, two mules had been lost here.
Their crossing had started a renewal of the ava-
lanche which had taken the poor animals along with
it.

An hour after dark we came out on a terrace. The
roar of the river was so great that we could scarcely
hear Caceres shouting out that our troubles were
now over and "all the rest was level ground." This
turned out to be only his little joke. We were still
a thousand feet above the river and a path cut in

A CHASM DOWN WHICH PLUNGED A SMALL CATARACT

THE WONDERFUL CANON OF THE APURIMAC

THE CLIMB TO CHOQQUEQUIRAU 299

the face of a precipice had yet to be negotiated. In
broad daylight we should never had dared to ride
down the tortuous trail that led from the terrace
to the bank of the river. But as it was quite dark
and we were quite innocent of any danger we readily
followed the cheery voice of our guide. The path
is what is known as a corkscrew and descended the
wall of the canon by means of short turns each
twenty feet long. At one end of each turn was the
precipice, while at the other was a chasm down which
plunged a small cataract which had a clear fall of
seven hundred feet. Half way down the path my
mule stopped, trembling, and I dismounted to find
that in the darkness he had walked off the trail and
had slid down the cliff to a ledge. How to get him
back was a problem. It is not easy to back an ani-
mal up a steep hill, and there was no room in which
to turn him around. It was such a narrow escape
that when I got safely back onto the trail, I decided
to walk the rest of the way and let the mule go first,
preferring to have him fall over the precipice alone
if that were necessary.

Two thirds of the way down the descent came
the crux of the whole matter, for here the path
crossed the narrow chasm close to and directly in
front of the cataract, and in the midst of its spray.
There was no bridge. To be sure, the waterfall was
only three feet wide, but it was pitch dark. As I
could not see the other side of the chasm, I did not
dare to jump alone, but remounted my mule, held
my breath, and gave him both spurs at once. His
jump was successful.

300 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

Ten minutes later we saw the welcome light of the
master of the camp who came out to guide us
through a thicket of mimosa trees that grew on the
lower terrace just above the river.

The camp consisted of two huts, six by seven,
built of reeds. Here we passed a most uncomfort-
able night. Mr. Hay has described the next few
hours so vividly in his diary that, with his per-
mission, I am going to quote his account of it.

"Our luggage, including the folding cots, did not
arrive that night till very late, so we slept on benches
made of bamboo poles, in our boots, under an open
thatch-roofed shelter. During the night the Pre-
fect's secretary, el periodista, either in exuberance
over reaching the bottom of the mountain in safety,
or being unstrung on account of his recent experience,
or simply because he was a bounder, fired his revolver
off at three different times, the ball fortunately pass-
ing through the roof each time. I must admit that I
was so sound asleep as to hear only one of the shots,
though I was so near the "young idea" that I could
have touched him with my hand. Even he, though,
wearied of that form of amusement after a time, and
quiet was restored until 3 A. M. At that hour a
rooster, who had quietly been resting with his
women-folk on a pole over our heads, decided that
dawn was coming on, or if it was n't, ought to be, and
showed us conclusively what a healthy pair of
feathered lungs, in a rarified atmosphere, was capa-
ble of. He was within reach, but I bided my time.
Not half enough notice had been taken of the alarm
to suit him, and I saw the chest of Sr. Chanticlerio

THE CLIMB TO CHOQQUEQUIRAU 301

expand for a supreme effort. He raised himself to
his full height and let loose. With ever increasing
volume the notes poured out, until just as it seemed
he would burst, in the concluding notes of the
anthem, I arose, and with the side of my hand,
caught him in the place that needed it most. He
summoned up the courage to give one defiant little
crow three hours later. But his spirit was broken, and
his style was cramped by the periodista, who, awake
by this time, was firing at him with his revolver.
There were no casualties."

While breakfast was being prepared we went out
to take pictures and measurements of the bridge.
This was 273 feet long by 32 inches wide, and the
river 250 feet wide. " Don Mariano," the builder of
the bridge, told us that when construction com-
menced, the water was nearly eighty feet below the
bridge although at present the river had risen so
that it was only twenty-five feet below it, an in-
crease in depth of over fifty feet. An almost incredi-
ble bulk of water was roaring between its steep
banks. It was estimated at 100 feet deep, and yet
the water piled up on itself in such a way as to give
the appearance of running against huge boulders in
midstream.

We sent the Indian bearers ahead with our lug-
gage. Pack animals could not possibly use the trail
on the other side of the river and the bridge was not
constructed to carry their weight. The surprising
thing was that the Indians were very much afraid
of the frail little bridge which Chinese courage and
ingenuity had built, and crept gingerly across it on

302 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

their hands and knees while they carried our lug-
gage and supplies to the other side of the river.
They had been accustomed for centuries to using
frail suspension bridges much less strong in reality
than this little structure. But they are not ac-
quainted with the tenacity of wire, and it seemed
the height of frivolity to them that we should be
willing to trust our lives to such a small "rope." Yet
the much larger fibre ropes of which their suspension
bridges were constructed would not begin to stand
the strain as well as these six telegraph wires.

After a breakfast of thin soup and boiled sweet
potatoes, we girded ourselves for the ascent. The
river at this point is about 5000 feet above sea-
level. We had had little practice in mountain
climbing, except on mule-back, for many months,
and it seemed like a pretty serious undertaking to
attempt to climb six thousand feet more to an ele-
vation of 11,000 feet. This will sound tame enough
to the experienced mountain climber although it
was anything but easy for us. Our patient, long-
suffering Quichua bearers, coming of a race that, at
high altitudes, is in the habit of marching distances
which appear incredibly long to those students of
military history that have confined their attention
to the movements of European troops, bore their
burdens most cheerfully. At the same time they
gave frequent evidence of great fatigue which was
not at all to be wondered at under the circumstances.

Of one incident of the ascent Mr. Hay wrote :
"Most of the party started long before the two
*Yanquis,' but in half an hour we caught up w^ith

SUNRISE p :

rm I RAIL LITTL:

O' R THE APURIxMAC

THE CLIMB TO CHOQQUEQUIRAU 303

them. They had waylaid an Indian bearer and were
having beer and other refreshments under a tree.
Here we noticed an example of the height of gener-
osity towards an Indian in Peru. This is to let him
carry all day, among other things, the refreshments.
Then take the beer, drink it, and return him the
bottle. The bottle, be it noted, should be received
with many expressions of thanks on the part of the
Indian. We passed the revellers and plodded on up
together. Unfortunately for history but fortunately
for our nerves, at least, the periodista gave out soon
after this and was forced to turn back. So the
chronicle of the events at Choqquequirau must
come only from the pen of an alien? Not for a
minute! El periodista was ever with us in spirit, and
the report for the Lima Journal fared far better at
the hands of Imagination than it ever could have
through plain Experience."

The enthusiastic Caceres kept shouting "valor"
at the top of his lungs as evidence of his good spirits
and in an effort to encourage the others. The two
Yankis had a hard time of it and were obliged to
stop and rest nearly every fifty feet.

At times the trail was so steep that It was easier
to go on all fours than to attempt to maintain an
erect attitude. Occasionally we crossed streams in
front of waterfalls on slippery logs or treacherous
little foot-bridges. At other times we clung to the
face of rocky precipices or ascended by roughly
constructed ladders from one elevation to another.
Although the hillside was too precipitous to allow
much forest growth, no small part of the labor of

304 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

making the path had been the work of cutting
through dense underbrush.

As we mounted, the view of the valley became
more and more magnificent. Nowhere have I ever
witnessed such beauty and grandeur as was here
displayed. A white torrent raged through the canon
six thousand feet below us. Where its sides were
not too precipitous to admit of vegetation, the steep
slopes were covered with green foliage and luxuriant
flowers. From the hilltops near us other slopes rose
six thousand feet beyond and above to the glaciers
and snow-capped summits of Mts. Sargantay and
Soray. In the distance, as far as we could see,
a maze of hills, valleys, tropical jungle, and snow-
capped peaks held the imagination as though by a
spell. Such were our rewards as we lay panting by
the side of the little path when we had reached its
highest point.

After getting our wind, we followed the trail westr
ward, skirting more precipices and crossing other
torrents, until, about two o'clock, we rounded a
promontory and caught our first glimpse of the
ruins of Choqquequirau on the slopes of a bold
mountain headland 6000 feet above the river.
Between the outer hilltop and the ridge connecting
it with the snow-capped mountains, a depression or
saddle had been terraced and levelled so as to leave
a space for the more important buildings of the
Inca stronghold.

At three o'clock we reached a glorious waterfall
whose icy waters, coming probably from the glaciers
on Soray, cooled our heads and quenched our thirst.

THE CLIMB TO CHOQQUEQUIRAU 305

We had now left our companions far behind, and
were pushing slowly along through the jungle, when
shortly before four o'clock we saw terraces in the
near distance. Just as we began to enjoy the pros-
pect of reaching Choqquequirau alone, Caceres and
Castillo caught up with us. They had stayed be-
hind in a futile attempt to encourage the Indian
bearers, and the other adventurers to have more
"valor." The others did not arrive until the next
morning; not even the Quichua carriers on whom
we depended for food and blankets.

Soon after our arrival, we clambered up to a
little bit of flat ground, where evidently the Incas
once cultivated their crops, to enjoy the view.
Here we were discovered by a huge condor who pro-
ceeded to investigate the invaders of his domain.
Apparently without moving a muscle, he sailed
gracefully down in ever narrowing circles until we
could see clearly not only his cruel beak and great
talons, but even the whites of his eyes. We had no
guns and not even a club with which to resist his
attack. It was an awe-inspiring moment, for he
measured at least twelve feet from tip to tip of wing.
When within forty feet of us he decided not to dis-
turb us, and seemingly without changing the posi-
tion of a feather, soared off into space. We were told
afterwards by Caceres and Castillo that they had
been greatly alarmed by condors when they first
commenced operations here.

Owing to the non-appearance of the carriers we
passed an uncomfortable night In the smallest of
the little thatched huts which the workmen had

3o6 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

erected for their own use. It was scarcely three feet
high and about six feet long by four feet wide. The
day had been warm, and in our efforts to make
climbing as ea.sy as possible, we had divested our-
selves of all our warm clothes. Notwithstanding
the fact that a shelter tent was pulled down and
wrapped around us for warmth, and stacks of dry
grass piled about us, we were scarcely able to close
our eyes for the cold and chilling dampness all night
long.

The humidity was one hundred or nearly so during
the four days which we spent on the mountain. Con-
sequently we passed the majority of the time in
thick mist or rain.

inity,Peru. —

dale
l-sen Feb.7,8,9. 10, 1909,

CE Hay Esq

^ Giant Stairway

3 Lower Plaza

4 Outer Fort

5 Water Fall

6 Ruias&Terraces iaWoods

posttioas-measurements approx,

7 G reeves

Coatour Interval 100 feet.

CHAPTER XXIII

CHOQQUEQUIRAU

r-r^HE next morning we began at once to take
J. measurements and get what pictures we
could. We found that the ruins were clustered in
several groups both on terraces and natural shelves,
reached by winding paths or stairways. Some build-
ings were long and narrow and of one story ; others
of a story and a half with tall gables. The buildings
were placed close together, probably in order to
economize all the available space. It is likely that
every square yard that could be given to agricul-
ture was cultivated.

Magnificent precipices guard the ruins on every
side and render Choqquequirau virtually inaccessi-
ble to an enemy. Every avenue of ascent, except
such as the engineers determined to leave open,
was closed, and every strategic spot was elaborately
fortified. Wherever it might have been possible for
a bold mountaineer to gain a foothold, the Incas
had built well-faced walls of stone so as to leave an
adventurous assailant no support. The terraces
thus made served the double purpose of military
defence and of keeping the soil from sliding away
from the gardens down the steep hillside.

As may be seen from the map, the ruins consist of
three distinct groups of buildings.

3o8 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

All had been more or less completely hidden by
trees and vines during the centuries of solitude.
Fortunately for us the treasure-seeking company
had done excellent work in clearing away from the
more important buildings the tangled mass of
vegetation that had formerly covered them. Dyna-
mite had also been used in various likely spots where
treasure might have been buried. But the workmen
had found no gold and only a few objects of interest
including, besides those we saw at Abancay, a few
clay pots and two or three grinding stones of a pat-
tern still in use in this part of the Andes and as far
north as Panama.

At the top of the southern and outer precipice,
five thousand eight hundred feet immediately above
the river, stands a parapet and the v/alls of two
buildings without windows. The view from here,
both up and down the valley of the Apurimac, sur-
passes the possibilities of language for adequate
description. The photograph gives but the faintest
idea of its beauty and grandeur. Far down the
gigantic caiion one catches little glimpses of the
Apurimac, a white stream shut in between guardian
mountains, so narrowed by the distance that it
seems like a mere brooklet. Here and there through
the valley are marvellous cataracts, one of which,
two thousand feet high, has a clear fall of over one
thousand feet. The panorama in every direction is
wonderful in variety, contrast, beauty, and grandeur.

North of this outer group of buildings is an arti-
ficially truncated hill. It is probable that on this
flattened hilltop, which commands a magnificent

BUILT OF SroXKS ],.\n> l.\ I LAV

THE PARTY WALL RISES TO THE PEAK

CHOQQUEQUIRAU 309

view up and down the valley, signal fires could be
built to telegraph to the heights overlooking Cuzco,
intelligence of the approach of an enemy from the
Amazonian wilds.

We noticed on this hilltop that small stones had
been set into the ground, in straight lines crossing
and recrossing at right angles as though to make
a pattern. So much of it was covered by grass, how-
ever, that we did not have a chance to sketch it in
the time at our disposal.

North of the lookout and on the saddle between
it and the main ridge is located the main group of
ruins: a rude fortification fifteen feet high, running
across the little ridge from one precipitous slope to
the other; a long one-story building of uncertain
use in which curious carved stone rings are set into
the walls in such a manner as to serve possibly for
the detention of prisoners; a long one-story building
that might have been a grand hall or place of meet-
ing, whose walls are surrounded with numerous
niches; and a block of story-and-a-half houses
whose gabled ends are still standing. The use of
gables was almost universal in the central and south-
ern part of the land of the Incas.

These double buildings stand transversely to the
general line of the edifices and have a middle or
party- wall exactly dividing the gable. It rises to
the peak of the structure and once doubtless sup-
ported the upper ends of the rafters. These houses
bear a striking resemblance to one of the Inca build-
ings at Ollantaytambo described by Squier * in the

^ E. G. Squier, Peru, p. 503,

310 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

following words: "It is a story and a half high,
built of rough stones laid in clay, and originally
stuccoed, with a central wall reaching to the apex
of the gables, dividing it into two apartments of
equal size. . . . There seems to have been no access
to the upper story from the interior, but there are
two entrances to it through one of the gables, where
four flat projecting stones seem to have supported
a kind of balcony or platform, reached probably by
ladders." This description fits these structures
almost exactly. There are other resemblances be-
tween Choqquequirau and the Inca fortresses
visited and described by Mr. Squier. In fact, one
.might use many a sentence from his accounts of
Pisac and Ollantaytambo that would adequately
describe Choqquequirau and its surroundings. Like
the buildings of Ollantaytambo, these are nearly
perfect, lacking only the roof.

The two-story houses had an exterior measure-
ment of 42 by 38 feet. Similar ones measured by
Squier near the temple of Viracocha north of Lake
Titicaca, were also divided into two equal apart-
ments and measured 46 by 38 feet. The fronts of
each building have two entrances and the Interior
of every apartment is ornamented with Irregular
niches within which some of the stucco still remains.
The walls are Irregular but usually about three feet
thick, and are composed of unhewn fragments of
lava cemented together with a stiff clay.

In general, all the walls appear to have been built
entirely of stone and clay. The construction, com-
pared with that of the Inca palaces in Cuzco, is

''/|^*iid/;*fk^X#>.

#^/M*>***f-*^'''-

^#SS:i

' . ■ iim i.,i4» i ii.. i ja.. i ii j«.uii i u, i iuiii iBiwfawiwfB.. •;;^, , '^ ^'^mf/fJ^s

General Plan

O F-

Lower Plaza —

ChoqqucquiRau

Drawn by C.W Dr^sdals from Meaaure-
ments a.^dP^lotographs faken Feb.7,a.9,IO, 1909

byDr.HiRAM Bingham and Clarence

Hay Esa

CHOQQUEQUIRAU 311

extremely rude and rough and no two niches or doors
are exactly ahke. Occasionally the lintels of the
doors were made of timber, the builders not having
taken the trouble to provide stones wide enough for
the purpose. One such lintel was still standing, the
wood being of a remarkably hard texture.

Probably the ruins to-day present a more striking
appearance than they did when they were covered
with thatched roofs.

Ornamental niches which constitute a character-
istic and constant feature in Inca architecture ap-
pear on the interior of all the Choqquequirau build-
ings and on the exterior of a few. Some of those on
the outside are of the re-entering variety. Those on
the inside are of two kinds. The larger ones about
five feet high reach to the floors of the apartments
and are mere closets, as it were, without doors,
being slightly wider at the bottom, about thirty-four
inches, than at the top, about twenty-eight inches,
and of varying depth, thirteen to sixteen inches. A
second line, smaller and not reaching to the ground,
is also found in several of the structures. There is
good evidence that some of the walls were faced
with stucco and possibly painted in colors. In the
case of one wall that had been partly pushed out of
the perpendicular by the action of time, several of
the niches retained almost entirely their coating of
stucco, and so did some of the more protected por-
tions of the wall.

Almost the only ornamentation which the houses
contained besides the ever-present niches, were cylin-
drical blocks of stone about three inches in diameter

312 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

projecting twelve or fourteen inches from the wall
seven feet above the ground between each niche.

In one of the niches I found a small stone whirl-
bob of a spindle-wheel, in size and shape like those
made from wood and used to-day all over the Andes
by Indian women. This simple spinning apparatus
consists of a stick about as large as the little finger
and from ten to twelve inches long. Its lower end
is fitted with a whirlbob of wood to give it proper
momentum when it is set in motion by a twirl of
the forefinger and thumb grasping the upper end
of the spindle. It is in universal use by Indian
women from the Andes of Colombia to those of
Chile, and one rarely sees a woman tending sheep or
walking along the high road who is not busily en-
gaged in using this old-fashioned spindle. In the
tombs of Pachacamac near Lima have been found
spindles still fitted with similar whirlbobs of stone.

The third group of buildings is higher up on the
spur, a hundred feet or more above the second
group. Near the path from the lower to the upper
plaza are the remains of a little azequia or water-
course, now dry, lined with flat stones. The south-
east corner of the third group is marked by a huge
projecting rock twenty feet high and twelve or
fifteen feet in diameter. Beside it, facing the eastern
slope, is a giant stairway. It consists of fourteen
great steps roughly made and of varying dimen-
sions. They average about fifteen feet wide, with
risers four and a half feet high and treads about six
and a half feet deep. It is possible to ascend these
stairs by means of small stone steps erected on one

CHOQQUEQUIRAU 313

end or the other of the giant step. Walls on each
side, two feet wide, serve as a balustrade. A pecu-
liarity of the construction is the locating of a huge
flat stone in the centre of the riser of each step.
The view to the eastward from this stairway is
particularly fine. Perhaps the rising sun, chief
divinity of the Incas, was worshipped here.

Beyond the stairway are terraces, alley-ways,
walls, and story-and-a-half houses, filled with niches
and windows. The length of the first terrace is
slightly over two hundred feet and its height is
twelve feet. The second terrace above it has a
height of ten feet and a length of one hundred and
twenty-nine feet. Above these are two long alley-
ways or halls with niches in their walls and windows
looking out over the terraces. These halls are five
feet wide. Back of these are buildings resembling
in their construction those in the lower group. They
also are decorated with irregular niches and cylin-
drical stone projections. Under these houses, how-
ever, there ran a small passage-way or drain twelve
inches wide and ten inches deep. These two houses,
although roughly built, were as nearly the same size
as possible. Between them ran a narrow passage-
way leading to a back alley. This was curiously
paved with slabs of slate half an inch thick. Back
of this is another hall five and a half feet wide with
windows in front and niches on the rear, or hill, side.

The gables of the upper group are steeper than
those of the lower group and are in fact quite as
pointed as those seen in Dutch cities. The two
gable buildings of the upper group stand on the

314 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

slope of the hill in such a manner that there Is no
gable on the side nearest the declivity. In other
words, they are only half the size of the double
houses below. Nearly all of these houses have two
or three small, rude windows. A narrow stone stair-
way leads from the back alley to a terrace above.
This opens out into the upper plaza on which are
several buildings that overlook the western preci-
pices. Two of the houses have no windows and one
of them contains three cells. The Peruvians said
they were used for the detention of prisoners. They
were more likely storehouses. On the north side
of the plaza is a curious little structure built with
the utmost care and containing many niches and
nooks. It may possibly have been for the detention
of so-called "virgins of the sun" or have been the
place in which criminals, destined to be thrown over
the precipice, according to the laws of the Incas,
awaited their doom. The plan gives a good idea of
its irregular construction.

Above It the hillside rises steeply, and on the crest
of the ridge runs a little conduit which we followed
until It entered the Impenetrable tropical jungle
at the foot of a steep hill. The water In this little
azequia, now dry, coming straight down the spur,
was conducted over a terrace into two well-paved
tanks on the north side of the plaza. Thence it ran
across the plaza to a little reservoir or bath-house
on the south side. This was ten feet long by five feet
wide with low walls not over five feet high and had
on Its north side a small stone basin let down into
the floor two feet by three In such a manner as to

•liipii^

Q-

gpanfHsuwBwsw

Giant Stairway

^'/iiift\^C~ — GeneralPlan —

Upper Plaza and Giant Stairway

Choqqucquirau

Drawn by C-WDrysdale From Measurements

ondPhot-ographs taken Feb. 7.6.9.10, 1909 by Dr. HiRAM BiNG HAM o„d CLARENCE H AY Es(?.

CHOQQUEQUIRAU 315

catch the water that flowed over the edge of the
wall. A small outlet had been provided at the end
of this basin so that the water could flow under-
neath the floor of the bathroom or tank house and
then proceed on its way down the ridge to the build-
ings below.

As the western slope of the Choqquequirau spur
Is a sheer precipice, little attempt at fortification
was made on that side. The eastern slope, however,
is not so steep. On this side it was necessary to
build enormous terraces hundreds of feet long faced
with perpendicular walls twelve feet wide. Two
narrow paved stairways lead from one terrace to
another.

Near one of the terraces I picked up either a bola
or a hammerstone nearly as large as my fist.

In the jungle immediately below the last terrace,
under ledges and huge boulders, were dug little
caves in which the bones of the dead were placed.
I found that the bones were heaped in a little pile
as though they had been cleaned before being in-
terred. No earth had been placed on them, but on
top of the little pile in one grave I found a small
earthenware jar about one inch in diameter. It had
no handles and was not closed at the top although
the opening, a quarter of an inch in diameter, had
been fitted with a specially well-made perforated
cap. There was nothing in the jar, although it had
retained its upright position during all the years
of its interment. The natural entrance to the lit-
tle tomb had been walled up with wedge-shaped
stones from the inside in such a way as to make

3l6 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

it extremely difficult to enter the cave from the front.
I found, however, that by digging away a little on
one side of the huge boulder, I could easily remove
the stones which had evidently been placed there by
the grave-digger after the bones had been deposited
in the tomb.

The workmen had excavated under a dozen or more
of the projecting ledges and in each case had found
bones and occasionally shreds of pottery. In no
case, however, had they found anything of value
to indicate that the dead were of high degree. Prob-
ably they were common soldiers and servants. If
any of the officers of the garrison or Inca nobles were
ever buried in this vicinity, their tombs have not
yet been discovered, or else the graves were rifled
years ago. But of this there is no evidence.

All the conspicuously large rocks below the ter-
races have been found to cover graves. The skulls
were not found alone but always near the remainder
of the skeleton. The larger bones were in fairly
good condition but the smallest ones had completely
disintegrated. Nevertheless, ribs were frequently
met with. Some of the largest bones could be crum-
bled with the fingers and easily broken, while others
w^ere very hard and seemed to be extremely well
preserved. Some skulls likewise were decayed and
could be easily crushed with the fingers while others
were white and hard ; all that we found were those
of adults, although one or two of them seemed to
be of persons not over twenty j^ears of age. So far
as has been observed, no superincumbent soil was
placed on the skeleton.

I. A ll,u\ariaii. 2-4. Skulls from Chociciueiiuir.iu. 5- -^ I l.U-head Indian.

6. Bola found at Choqquequirau. 7. VVliirl-bob-

8. Jar found in a grave, Choqquequirau.

INTERIOR OK A BUILJJING Ai CH( jygL KCJL I RAU

CHOQQUEQUIRAU 317

The Quichua Indian carriers and workmen
watched our operations with interest, but they
became positively frightened when we began the
careful measurement and examination of the bones.
They had been in doubt as to the object of our
expedition up to that point, but all doubts then
vanished and they decided we had come there to
commune with the spirits of the departed Incas.

As a rule, the evidence of deformation of the skull
was slight in a majority of the specimens examined.
Nevertheless one had been much flattened behind
and another extremely so in front. There was no
evidence of any having been trephined or of any
decorative patterns having been made on any part
of either skulls or bones. Three of the skulls are now
in the Peabody Museum in New Haven, with the
other articles I found here.

On the steep hillside southeast of the terraces and
graves, we found many less important ruins, com-
pletely covered by the forest. Were it possible to
clear away all the rich tropical growth that has been
allowed to accumulate for centuries, one would
undoubtedly find that there is not a point which is
not somehow commanded or protected by a maze
of outworks. No clearing or path having been
constructed in order to enable them to be seen,
we could not form an adequate idea of their ex-
tent. There seemed to be, however, no limit to
the ruins of the huts where lived the private sol-
diers and the servants of the garrison. One hall
measured 75 by 25 feet while another was 30 by
10, and it is entirely possible that there are others

3i8 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

that have not yet been located, so dense is the
jungle.

On the opposite side of the valley are the ruins
of Incahuasy, near Tambobamba, which have been
described by M. Charles Wiener.^ So far as I can
judge from the drawings he gives of one of the
"palaces," the construction is very similar to that
used at Choqquequirau.

I believe that Incahuasy and Choqquequirau were
originally frontier fortresses that defended the val-
ley of the Apurimac, one of the natural approaches
to Cuzco, from the Amazonian wilds. A glance at
the map will show that Pisac and Paucartambo,
northeast of Cuzco, with Ollantaytambo to the
north and Choqquequirau to the west form a com-
plete line of defence. Each is located in one of the
valleys by which the unconquered Indians of the
great forest could attack the sacred capital of the
Incas. The Incas were never able to extend their
empire far into the forests that covered the eastern
slopes of the Andes or the valleys of the rivers that
flow toward the Amazon. They did, however, push
their empire down the valleys until they encountered
the savage inhabitants of these wild forests, savage
Chunchas or Antis, who with their poisoned arrows
and their woodcraft w^ere well able to protect them-
selves. The Incas were obliged to stop short when
they reached the thick forests. The massive and com-
plicated fortresses of Paucartambo, Pisac, and Ollan-
taytambo marked the extent of their sway. There
were undoubtedly several less important outlying
1 Perou et Bolivie, pp. 293-5.

CUZCO AND NEIGHBORING FORTRESSES

CHOQQUEQUIRAU 319

fortresses lower down the rivers, situated in such a
way as to be able to prevent the incursions of small
parties of wild savages and give notice of any large
expeditions that might attempt to march on Cuzco.
They were so placed as to be practically impregnable.
Choqquequirau was evidently one of these.

I fear that no amount of dynamite will ever dis-
close at Choqquequirau a "Cradle of Gold" or any
articles of great value. It was not a temple or a
treasure house, but a fortress where life was strenu-
ous. The ofificers of its garrison were not likely to
bring with them gold ornaments or utensils, and the
poor Incas had few such baubles left at the end of
their career.

Why then should it have been called the "Cradle
of Gold?" One answer is that the ridge or spur on
which Choqquequirau lies, when seen from a dis-
tance, looks not unlike a hammock. The setting
sun often tinges it with gold and the romantic Incas
might easily have named Choqquequirau from its
resemblance to the only cradles with which they
were familiar.

The other answer is that the name, which does
not occur in any of the chronicles, so far as I have
been able to discover, is a modern invention. In
one of the buildings we found several slabs of slate
on which visitors have been accustomed to register
their names. According to these inscriptions Choq-
quequirau was visited in 1834 by a French explorer
M. Eugene de Sartlges, and In July, 1834, by two
Peruvians, Jose Maria de Tejada and Marcelino
Leon, who may have come with de Sartlges.

320 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

Charles Wiener, in his very unreliable but highly
interesting "Perou et Bolivie" (Paris, 1880), says
(footnote, p. 294) that Choqquequirau has also been
visited by another Frenchman, " M. Angrand whose
MS. notes, with plans and drawings, were be-
queathed to the Bibliotheque Nationale in Paris."
I find they are merely hastily-drawn sketches. One,
a route-map, is dated " 30 7bre," [1847]. Angrand's
name does not appear on any of the slates.

Besides de Sartiges, and the two Peruvians al-
ready mentioned, the slate records show that in
1861, on the loth of November, Jose Benigno
Samanez ("pro Presidente Castilla") Juan Manuel
Rivas Plata, and Mariano Cisneros reached the
ruins. Also that on July 4, 1885, Luis E. Almanza,
J. Antonio Almanza, Emiliano Almanza, Pio Mo-
grovejo and a party of workmen did what they could
to find the buried treasure. So much for the exist-
ing evidence of former visitors.

M. de Sartiges, writing under the nom de plume
E. de Lavandais, published an account of his visit
in the Revue des Deux Monies, in June, 1850.
His route, the only one possible at the time, was
exceedingly circuitous. From Mollepata, a village
near the sugar plantation of La Estrella, he went
north across the high pass between Mts. Sargantay
and Soray to the river Urubamba, to a village called
Yuatquinia (Huadquifia [?]). He engaged Indians
to cut a trail to Choqquequirau. After three weeks
he found that the difficulties of making a trail were
so great that it would take at least two months to
finish the undertaking, so he and his companions

CHOQQUEQUIRAU 321

made their way through the jungle and along the
precipices as best they could for four days. On the
fifth day they arrived at the ruins. In his projects
for exploration, he had failed to take into account
the fact that tropical vegetation had been at work
for centuries covering up the remains of the Inca
civilization, and as he was only able to stay at Choq-
quequirau for two or three days, he failed to see
some of the most interesting ruins. The giant stair-
way and the buildings on the upper plaza seem to
have escaped his attention entirely. He was greatly
impressed with the fortifications on the south side
of the lower plaza and speaks of them as though they
formed a triumphal wall ("mwr triomphar'). He
seems to have spent most of his time hunting for
treasure behind this wall. He had expected to
spend eight days here, but the difficulties of reaching
the place were so great and the food-supply was so
limited that he had to hurry back without seeing
more than the buildings of the lower plaza, the
lower terraces, and a grave or two. It was his opin-
ion that fifteen thousand people lived here once.
One wonders what they lived on.

M. de Sartiges's description made us realize how
much we were indebted to the labors of the treasure-
seeking company for penetrating the jungle and
uncovering buildings whose presence otherwise
would never have been suspected.

Raimondi says that in 1862, Don Juan Gastelu,
a Peruvian traveller, left Ayacucho in an effort to go
up the valley of the Apurimac in a canoe, hoping in
this way to reach the ancient fortress. After seven

322 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

days of perilous navigation, he gave up the attempt
long before reaching its vicinity.

The interesting question remains: Was this the
ultimate refuge of the last Inca?

It is reasonably certain that Manco Ccapac, the
last emperor, fleeing from the wrath of the con-
querors, took refuge in a place called " Vilcabamba."
There is a village of that name, two or three days
journey over the mountains north of Choqque-
quirau, on the Vilcabamba River, an affluent of the
Urubamba. It has never been explored so far as I
know.

Peruvian writers like Paz Soldan and the great
geographer, Raimondi, are positive that Manco
Ccapac's "Vilcabamba" was really Choqquequirau.
They base their belief on the fact that in 1566 an
Augustinian Friar, Marcos Garcia, undertook to
penetrate to "Vilcabamba," where poor old Manco
Ccapac had found a refuge. In describing his tour,
Father Calancha, the author of the "Chronica
moralizada del Orden de San Augustin, Libro III,
Cap. XXIV and XLII," says that Garcia founded
a church in Pucyura, "two long days' journey from
Vilcabamba." Raimondi calls attention to the fact
that Pucyura is only two leagues from the present
village of "Vilcabamba," and while he admits that
it is possible that Father Calancha wrote ''days'
journey" instead of ''leagues'' by mistake, he be-
lieves that the reference is to Choqquequirau which
is in fact two long days' journey from Pucyura. It
is at least a very roundabout method of inference.^

1 Raimondi, Peru, vol. ii, p. i6i.

CHOQQUEQUIRAU 323

Raimondi may be correct, but until some one shall
have explored the present village of Vilcabamba
and its vicinity, I am inclined to the opinion that
Choqquequirau was merely a fortress.

Since writing the above I have received, through
the kindness of Prof. Roland Dixon of Harvard
University, a copy of a pamphlet by the distin-
guished Peruvian historian, Carlos A. Romero,
entitled "Las Ruinas de Choqquequirau," which
gives the result of his careful researches through all
the works of writers who refer to Choqquequirau.
It does not add to our actual knowledge of the early
history of the ruins.

CHAPTER XXIV

ABANCAY TO CHINCHEROS

ONE of the conditions on which we had based
our decision to visit Choqquequirau was that
the Prefect was to see to it that animals should be
ready for our departure as soon as we got back, and
that his officials along the road should facilitate our
progress in every possible manner. To his credit
be it said that he kept his promise faithfully, not-
withstanding all the rules in the books to the effect
that a South American rarely remembers his promise.

The next day after our return to Abancay, we
spent in re-arranging our luggage and making ready
for a rapid march to Ayacucho. The Prefect sent
in an official request for a report on the ruins of
Choqquequirau. Not being a Latin-American, I was
unable to sit down and dash off a "thorough satis-
factory official report" in an hour and a half and
had to explain that it would take days and even
weeks to draw plans from the data in our field-books
and from the ten dozen negatives we had exposed.

On the following day, much refreshed in body and
mind, we succeeded in getting an early start. We
were accompanied out of town by a score of enthu-
siastic friends whose interest in our undertaking was
perfectly ingenuous and of whom we had learned
to be very fond. They not only decided to extend

ABANCAY TO CHINCHEROS 325

the customary " mile of courtesy " to a dozen or
more, but later they followed us up with congratu-
latory telegrams speeding us on our way.

Our cavalcade clattered gayly out of town on a
fine brisk morning when for some reason or other
it did not happen to be raining. A short stop at
Yllanya to enable us to pay our respects to the kind
Letona family, who had given us a pleasant ban-
quet the week before, was rewarded by the young
master of the house having his horse saddled at once
and insisting on taking us by a short cut through
his own canefields. These looked prosperous enough,
but a swarm of locusts that had just made their
appearance was pointed out to us, and the planter
feared greatly for his crops.

At ten o'clock we reached the river Pachachaca,
the first large affluent of the Apurimac. We crossed
it on a stone bridge whose magnificent single arch
was erected under the direction of a Jesuit architect,
two hundred and fifty years ago. It is said to be one
of the longest spans in the Andes. Here we stopped
to have a round of drinks and to enjoy the scenery.

It was a beautiful spot: green mountains on both
sides of a valley filled with waving sugar-cane
through the midst of which ran a roaring, rushing
torrent. A few miles farther up this valley there are
a number of small Indian towns in which General
Sucre had his headquarters a few weeks before the
battle of Ayacucho.

An hour's brisk trot brought us to Auquibamba,
a sugar mill and plantation, owned by Don Federico
Martinelli who was unfortunately ill in bed and not

326 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

able to see us, although his engineer and manager
did the honors most hospitably. Quantities of de-
licious oranges were brought to appease our appe-
tites while an elaborate lunch was being prepared
for the dozen more people than had been ex-
pected.

After lunch we all mounted at once. The custom
of taking a siesta does not seem to prevail at this
altitude, 7000 feet. After all were on horseback,
affectionate good-bys had to be said, and notwith-
standing the nervousness of some of the more high-
strung animals, their riders succeeded in embracing
the departing guests with true Spanish fervor.

Our road from Auquibamba led through a charm-
ing country until it gradually climbed out of the
valley and across a pass, at an altitude of 1 1 ,700 feet,
where there was a small lake but no signs of trop-
ical vegetation.

We saw no llamas at all. Mules, horses, and burros
were the pack animals that we met carrying out
kegs of aguardiente and loads of sugar and bringing
in foreign merchandise. Thanks to the rainy season,
the fields were covered with flowers, many varieties
of which have been imported for our own gardens
at home. Wonderfully large begonias, excelling in
size anything I had ever seen before, lupins, cosmos,
and many others added great charm to the scene
and partly made up for the frightful condition of
the roads.

Every one with whom we talked expressed sur-
prise that we should attempt a journey at this sea-
son of the year when all good Peruvians stay at

ABANCAY TO CHINCHEROS 327

home. Not only are the roads positively dangerous
in places, but the heavy rainfall insures a thorough
daily drenching unless one is so fortunate as to be
protected by a very heavy rubber poncho. As the
natives depend almost entirely on woolen ponchos
for protection against the rain, it may be imagined
that they get well soaked after two or three hours'
riding, notwithstanding the fact that the best and
most expensive vicuna ponchos are beautifully and
closely woven and will shed an ordinary shower.

At half past four we began the descent into the
pretty cultivated valley of Huancarama. The
descent was steep and the path extremely slippery,
and we were paying so much attention to the man-
ner of our going that we barely noticed the cavalcade
of eight horsemen riding at full gallop up the val-
ley. The Gobernador had been informed of our
approach by the kind-hearted Prefect, and had
brought with him half a dozen of his friends to do
us honor. We were taken at once to his house,
a small adobe hut, and treated most courteously.
The priest of the village and two of the leading
citizens were urged to remain and dine with us,
which they readily consented to do. After dinner
we were piloted through the muddy streets to the
plaza where a room, evidently used for various gov-
ernmental purposes, was placed at our disposal.
All went well until the next morning when we were
told that one of the animals which the Prefect had
furnished us belonged to the Gobernador, who had
lent it to the Secretary of the Department for the
expedition to Choqquequirau, and he was unwilling

328 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

to have it go any farther. He said that "one of his
friends" had an excellent horse which he would rent
us for that day. The Gobernador was firm, and as he
had sent the animal to pasture, he had more than
"nine points of the law" on his side. Anyhow we
had no desire to impose on him, and requested him
to have his "friend's horse" brought around.
There seemed, however, to be some sort of an under-
standing between the Gobernador and his "friend,"
as the horse, a fairly good-looking beast, was
brought out from the Gobernador's own backyard.
We suspicioned that the " friend " was probably a
confederate in graft, if not actually a servant. The
price asked for the use of the horse for one day was
five dollars. Evidently we were considered to be
"easy." We appealed the matter to the soldier who
had been sent as our escort, but he would only shake
his head sadly and shrug his shoulders. So we told
the Gobernador the price was outrageous and that
rather than pay it, we would settle down in Huan-
caramaand live at his expense. With this terrible al-
ternative staring him in the face he sent his servant
to another "friend " with orders to bring up another
animal. This time the price asked was only $i, and
although the soldier said that was twice as much
as the regular charge, we preferred to pay it rather
than be delayed any longer.

The day was very rainy. It may have been for
this reason, or it may have been because he was
disappointed at his unsuccessful attempt at "legiti-
mate graft," that the Gobernador did not assemble
his friends and escort us out of town. In either case

ABANCAY TO CHINCHEROS 329

we did not blame him. It was rather a relief to
escape the oft-repeated expressions of sincere sorrow
at departure which one can make two or three times,
but which somehow lack spontaneity and sincerity
when they must be repeated to a cavalcade of
sixteen.

The road was no improvement on that of the day
before. A long cHmb through the rain and sleet,
a long descent through the clouds into the valley of
the river Pincos, whose tantalizing roar helped us
to realize what magnificent scenery we were missing;
a little glimpse of green fields, a dilapidated village,
an old bridge, and another long steep ascent led
us finally to a bleak paramo where we were as uncom-
fortable as cold winds and drenching rain could
make us.

Just before four o'clock we were gladdened by
the sight of a good-sized town and hoped that it was
Andahuaylas, our destination, but our escort said
it was only San Geronimo, a suburb of Andahuaylas.
We found it to be a densely populated Indian town
of the usual type. Before we had much of an oppor-
tunity to take in its points of interest, however, we
were surrounded by twenty horsemen, including the
sub- Prefect of Andahuaylas, the secretary of the
province, and their friends who had ridden to meet
us. Much as we appreciated their courtesy and the
liquid refreshments they brought with them, we
were still more gratified by being asked to dismount
and allow the soldiers to put our saddles on two fresh
horses. It may have been because the rain had
stopped its torrential downpour, or because our

330 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

tired, jaded animals had made us lose all sense of
proportion, or it may possibly have been that those
two horses really were the finest animals in Peru;
whatever the cause, we both of us agreed that we
had never enjoyed any ride so much as that last
mile to Andahuaylas, and that we had never ridden
such magnificent, fiery steeds that so closely resem-
bled the high mettled war-horse that one usually
sees surmounted by General Bolivar either in
bronze or in historical paintings.

The good people of Andahuaylas had heard by
telegraph of the banquet which had been "tendered
us" in Abancay and of the enthusiasm with which
the Prefect had welcomed us back from Choqque-
quirau. They determined not to be outdone. If
an additional reason was needed to spur them on to
do their utmost, it came in the press despatches that
day which stated that Chile was about to throw
down the gauntlet to Peru by definitively announc-
ing her permanent occupancy of the provinces
of Tacna and Arica. To the minds of the older
Peruvian generation who had felt the cruel lash of
the Chilean conqueror in 1883 and had witnessed
the burning of the Lima Library and the stabling
of Chilean horses in Peruvian churches, there
seemed little hope of a satisfactory settlement of
the dispute and no desire to engage in another war.
Their one idea seemed to be that the United States,
with its love of fair play, would see to it that Chile
did not take advantage of the weakness of Peru to
rob her of her southernmost province. As we were
the only Americans in sight, and as there was about

ABANCAY TO CHINCHEROS 331

us a certain reflected glamour of officialdom, we were
treated as though we were diplomats, instead of
being, as they knew perfectly well, merely a dele-
gate to a Scientific Congress, and his "secretary."
Anyhow, they had done their best to provide a
banquet that should eclipse the glories of Abancay ;
the table was set for forty-five and it may safely be
assumed that most of the leading citizens of Anda-
huaylas were present. Little American flags, made
for the occasion, were crossed with Peruvian flags
on the walls of the room. Portraits of President
Roosevelt and President Leguia, suitably framed,
decorated the wall immediately behind us. "Ice
cream," made of snow brought from the Nevada of
Chillihua on the backs of llamas, was on the menu.
There was enough food and drink to last until
2.30 A. M. Unfortunately I had to leave early for
I was simply used up with the amount of "enter-
tainment" that I had had to undergo during the
preceding week.

Our hosts came to call rather late the next morn-
ing and looked pretty mournful. It was not due
entirely to the fact of the pouring rain. Neverthe-
less the sub-Prefect was most kind, and had us
take all our meals at his house, a picturesque old
compound whose large patio was surrounded by
one and two-storied buildings. The roofs, with their
heavy old-fashioned mission tiles, had long ago
lost any straight line they ever possessed. To add
to their beauty, rain and sun and mosses had given
them every variety of color. In a corner of the
patio, an Indian man-servant and a little girl were

332 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

busy grinding meal by rocking one stone upon
another in the same fashion as did the builders of
Choqquequirau and with stones almost the exact
counterparts of those we found there. .

In the afternoon, our friends felt a little better,
and the rain held up enough for us to be shown the
sights of the town. A well-proportioned stone
church, designed by the same architect who had
built the bridge near Abancay, testified again to
the excellent crafts that the Jesuits taught in this
country two hundred and fifty years ago. Some of
the booths on the plaza were extremely picturesque,
the various colored wares offered for sale being pro-
tected from the sun by umbrella-shaped shelters
rudely made from old sticks covered with faded
ponchos or with the dried skins of animals, cured
with the hair on.

Some one with a great fondness for Lombardy
poplars had lived here years ago and the view of
the town which we got from the heights across the
river was most attractive. On the side of a moun-
tain to the north were many farms. The fields of
corn divided from each other by hedges gave a very
pleasing background ; the roaring rapids of the little
river formed the foreground; while in the middle
distance the red-tiled roofs, white walls, poplar trees,
and fine old stone church made a charming picture.

The sub-Prefect and his secretary, who had most
generously placed his own very comfortable quarters
at our disposal, took great pleasure in showing us
two new alamedas or avenues which had been laid
out recently under his direction. It is pleasant to

ABANCAY TO CHINCHEROS 333

remember these signs of progress even though we
also remember a little old street through which we
had to pass after leaving the alameda. The old
street, scarcely as wide as the sidewalks of the new,
had no conveniences whatsoever for foot-passengers.
Owing to the recent downpour, part of it had been
converted into a pond, and we had an amusing and
not altogether successful time getting across dry-
shod.

All our friends promised to be on hand the next
morning to accompany us out of town although we
assured them that it was quite unnecessary. When
they woke up and saw the rain coming down in
sheets, they decided we were right. The sub-Pre-
fect came through the downpour to bid us good-by,
but was still suffering from dyspepsia and excused
himself for not mounting his horse. By his orders,
the Gobernador of the neighboring town of Tala-
vera, through which we passed half an hour after
leaving Andahuaylas, accompanied us on our way.

Talavera is noted for the manufacture of the
finest grade of Vicuna ponchos. Mr. Squier gave
it a bad name and was impressed by the evil looks
of its inhabitants, but we saw nothing to differenti-
ate it from the other crowded little towns of the
interior. Wherever possible, the land is occupied.
There is, in fact, very little evidence that there was
a much larger population in Peru before the arrival
of the Spanish conquerors. Although it is true that
some of the irrigating ditches have been destroyed,
it does not seem likely that this region could ever
have supported a much more numerous population

334 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

than lives here to-day. Those writers who believe
that the Peruvian Indians were reduced "from
upwards of thirty millions to three millions within
the space of two centuries," must have forgotten
to make allowances for the fondness for exaggera-
tion in the Spanish chronicles. The country is
actually as crowded to-day as its resources will
allow. In fact, most of the Indians are half starved
all the time. It is difficult to believe that twice as
many, to say nothing of ten times as many Indians,
could find support on these bleak highlands, even
when they were forced to practice an extensive cul-
tivation of the soil by Inca laws and usages, which
provided for almost every action of their lives.

Since writing the above I have been reading Prof.
Bandelier's remarkable book, "The Islands of
Titicaca and Koati," and am glad to notice that he
says, p. 27: "The conclusion is reached that the
Indian population, of that district (Chucuito) at
least, has not at all diminished since the early times
of Spanish colonization, but has rather increased.
It shows how unjustified is the hue and cry about
extermination of the natives of Peru by the Span-
iards. I could easily furnish more examples of the
kind from all over Peru and Bolivia."

It is pleasant to have my amateurish opinions
substantiated so unexpectedly and from such a high
authority.

In the valleys above Talavera there was abundant
pasturage and we saw many flocks of sheep and
herds of cattle. Some of the sheep had very long
curly horns, reminding one of the Rocky Mountain

ABANCAY TO CHINCHEROS 335

goats, while others were distinguished by having
four horns instead of two. From Talavera the road
turned northward and followed for some distance
the valley of the Andahuaylas River, then crossed
it and climbed out of the valley, passed the ruins of
a tambo at a place called Monobamba, and sur-
mouted an exceedingly bleak plateau, a veritable
paramo bravo where the barometer showed an eleva-
tion of 14,500 feet. The neighboring hills, the sum-
mits of the Andes, were covered with snow. More
snow began to fall before we left the paramo.

The descent to Chincheros was particularly diffi-
cult owing to the fact that a little mountain torrent,
usually easy to ford, had become very much swollen.
Furthermore, the mud was so deep in places that
we should have found it impossible to proceed had
it not been for our excellent guide, the Gobernador
of Talavera, who knew how to avoid the worst
places and was able to pilot us across stretches of
treacherous pasture-land where the soggy soil barely
sustained the weight of our animals.

It was a long forty-mile ride. The Gobernador of
Chincheros, who had come out, with a dozen of his
friends, to meet us two miles from his town, had
been waiting in the shelter of a hut for more than
an hour before we appeared. Nevertheless our
tardy arrival in no wise interfered with their wel-
come, and the long wait had not even induced them
to make any lighter the load of the Indian servant
who had brought on foot a basket-load of bottled
beer and coiiac. We had learned by this time, from
sad experience, that our stomachs, well emptied

336 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

by a long day in the saddle, would rebel at being
treated to fire-water even though it was "the cus-
tom of the country." Although a refusal would
have been misunderstood, no objection was offered
to the fact that we merely touched the fiery draft
and did not drain the glass. With the kindly escort
was an officer who had been sent all the way from
Ayacucho bearing a letter of welcome from the
Prefect of that department, with orders to attend
to our comforts on the way. We felt as though we
were in the hands of our friends, but at the same
time we were not prepared for what was to follow.
After paddling painfully along for a mile or so
through awful mud and slush, we came to a road-
side inn whose proprietor had stretched a line of
flags across the road and erected a primitive frame-
work for them. As it was late in the afternoon, we
did not tarry long to return his courteous greetings
but trotted on down the valley. A sudden turn in
the road brought us into view of a charmingly situ-
ated town. Deep green valleys, high mountains,
and pleasant trees gave a fine setting to picturesque
Chincheros with its little old church and its red-
tiled roofed houses. We had to cross a stone bridge
just before entering the town, and here we were met
by an Indian bearing on a pole an enormous flag.
Although it had less than twenty stars and only
eight stripes, it was unmistakably intended to be
"Old Glory." Welcoming us with a loud shout,
the bearer turned about and marched at the head
of our cavalcade. Flags fluttered from every house.
The streets were thronged with people, many of

ABANCAY TO CHINCHEROS 337

whom showered us with rose-leaves! As we entered
the plaza, the church bells, which had been ringing
ever since we rounded the turn in the road, re-
doubled their noise; the shouts increased, and we
were almost carried from our horses on the shoul-
ders of the crowd. We realized perfectly the spirit
with which our arrival was celebrated, and knew
that it was merely an expression of cordial good-
will toward the United States, arising from a mis-
taken idea that we were the official personification
of that great country; but it was all we could do
to keep our faces straight.

After we were finally lodged in a comfortable room
belonging to the little local club, we thought the
crowd would disperse. Not at all. Nothing would
satisfy them but that one of us should make a
speech which, however feebly delivered, was re-
ceived with great enthusiasm. More rose-petals
were thrown, the bells were rung again, the flags
waved, the people cheered, and we were made to
know what it must be like to be a returning military
chief and to hear the band play " Lo the Conquering
Hero Comes!"

The little group of Chincherenos, whose public
spirit had established the club, tendered us a ban-
quet that evening. They had determined to outdo
the celebrations which they had heard of as taking
place in Abancay and Andahuaylas, but they in-
sisted that the outside celebration was quite spon-
taneous, and that the Indians had taken it into their
own heads to improve on that which the club had
planned. After the banquet that evening, there was

338 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

a display of fireworks consisting of a set piece fixed
to a pole which was held by a poor Indian who did
not seem to mind in the least the shower of sparks
that fell on every side. To prolong his danger, the
rain kept putting out the fuse so that it had to be
lighted six or seven times. If he felt any pain, how-
ever, he failed to show it, and seemed only too de-
lighted to be the centre of attraction.

The celebration had a strange witness. In the
crowd that welcomed us near the bridge there was
a haggard man with German features who called out
in English, "Hurrah for the United States ! " He soon
came to call on us and told quite a tragic story.

He said his name was Emillo Smith (or Schmidt)
and that his home was in Diisseldorf on the Rhine.
With three companions, he had made a wager in
New York that they Could walk from Buenos Aires
across both continents to New York City without
funds and without begging. He said that the New
York " Herald " and the Buenos Aires "La Prensa"
had offered a prize of five thousand dollars, if they
would accomplish the feat. They had had no partic-
ular difficulty in crossing Argentina, but one of them
succumbed at Tupiza soon after they reached
Bolivia. Nothing daunted, the other three pressed
on over much the same road that we had followed
from Tupiza to Potosi and thence direct to the
Antofagasta railway. At each place they had
secured the signature of official witnesses to the
effect that they were not riding and were not beg-
ging but were conducting their overland tramp
fairly. They raised money by giving lectures and

ABANCAY TO CHINCHEROS 339

entertainments in the towns through which they
passed, and had frequently been given food and lodg-
ing by kindly disposed Indians, although often they
had been very rudely received. They had walked
around Lake Titicaca, and had reached Cuzco,
followed the old trail to Lima, walked up the coast,
and penetrated the equatorial rain-belt in Ecuador
before disaster overtook them. Weakened by months
of exposure, they were in no condition to encounter
tropical fevers, and all were soon flat on their backs.
Two of them never recovered and were buried in
Ecuador. Smith, now alone, cabled to the New York
" Herald " for instructions, stating that he was too
weak to continue the journey alone, and had no
funds. The answer came back: "Return to Buenos
Aires." Although he had been dismayed by the
difficulties that lay ahead of him in Ecuador and
Colombia, he knew enough of the road over which
he had come to believe that he could safely get back
to Buenos Aires and that then the " Herald " and the
" Prensa" would probably reward him for his fool-
hardy excursion. Accordingly, he was retracing his
steps, and had reached Chincheros that noon. He
had intended to go along further in the afternoon,
but hearing of the expected arrival of two Ameri-
cans, and being invited to the banquet, he had stayed
over.

It was a dismal story that he told, but he took
great pride in it, and his eyes flashed as he recounted
his exploits. The only bitter in the sweet was that
he had lost his friends, and that we had not heard
of him.

340 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

"What, you don't know about me? Why, I am
the foot-walker. I go from Buenos Aires to New
York. I don't get there. I go back to Buenos Aires.
You haven't heard of me? You haven't heard of
me, Emilio Smith, the foot-walker? That is very
strange. And the Prefect of Abancay? He is a good
fellow. Didn't he tell you about me? Didn't he
show you my picture? My picture of me and my
two friends?"

I think he felt that we really hadn't been to
Abancay after all. Poor fellow, living for months
on the narration of his exploits, it was a hard pill
for him to swallow that the only Americans he had
seen who had come over the road where he had
passed several months before, had never heard any
mention made of his overland journey. The reason
was not far to seek. He travelled on foot. No one
but an Indian travels on foot. It is perfectly incon-
ceivable to the Spanish mind that any one should
do any feat of pedestrlanism unless compelled to,
either by poverty or the instincts of a vagabond.
Poor people and vagabonds are too common to
attract much attention. W^e never heard of him
again. He left early the next morning.

CHAPTER XXV

BOMBON TO THE BATTLEFIELD OF AYACUCHO

THE next morning we were furnished fresh
horses by our kind hosts, and accompanied
by five or six of them, climbed out of the beautiful
valley of Chincheros up to the heights of Bombon
overlooking the river Pampas. Here in 1824, the
patriot forces under General Sucre, marching along
this road to Lima, encountered the Royalists under
La Serna, trying to cut off their retreat. The ad-
vance guard of each army met on the 20th of No-
vember on the heights of Bombon. The Royalists
were driven down into the valley and across the
river Pampas.

After reaching the level of the river, our path
followed the Pampas, down stream, in a northerly
direction, for some distance among groves of mi-
mosa trees and cacti. This is a famous place for
mosquitoes, and there is said to be a great deal of
malaria in the vicinity. The altitude is slightly over
six thousand feet.

My interest In the Pampas valley was consider-
ably increased by finding the trees and cacti cov-
ered with white land shells, some of them reminding
me of those tree shells that I had gathered as a boy
in the beautiful valleys of the Island of Oahu. I
filled my pockets, and later spent the evening clean-

342 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

ing the shells, much to the amusement of my hosts.
My labor was amply rewarded by finding, after
reaching home, that among the shells were three
new species which Dr. Dall, the Curator of the
Division of Mollusks in the United States National
Museum, has named and described.^

The bridge over the Pampas has long attracted
the notice of travellers. The approach to it is at
the foot of perpendicular cliffs. The surrounding
scenery although not so imposing as that of the
Apurimac is nevertheless magnificent. The bridge
is about 150 feet long, and at the time of my visit,
February, 1909, was 50 feet above the river. There
are two pictures of the old bridge in Mr. Squier's
book, and although wire rope has replaced the old
cables that the Incas made from maguey fibre, it is
still the most unwelcome feature of the road from
the point of view of the mules.

One of our mules simply would not cross the
bridge. No amount of pushing and pulling, beating
and shouting, would make him budge an inch.
Finally he was blindfolded and a rope tied to each
front leg. His hind legs were tied securely together,
to prevent him from kicking, and by alternately
pulling the ropes attached to his front feet, he was
forced in a most ignominious manner to come onto
the bridge and go a third of the way across. Then
the ropes were loosened and the blind taken off.

1 "On some Land Shells Collected by Dr. Hiram Bingham, in
Peru"; Proceedings of the U. S. Nat. Mus., xxxviii, 177-182. The
shells "comprised various species and varieties of Bulimulus and a
single species of Clausilia." The latter was described by Dr. H. A.
Pilsbry.

THE BRIDGE OV)

Zi )F AYACUCHO

i't RIVKR PAMPAS

BOMBON TO AYACUCHO 343

We expected to see him turn and bolt for the nearest
side but he was too frightened to do anything of
the sort, and became at once most docile, and fin-
ished the trip in peace.

He was not the only one who did not like the
bridge. The priest of Chincheros, who had been
delayed from accompanying us by the arrival of
a visiting cleric that morning, overtook us here.
Although a sturdy native Indian, he was rather
portly and preferred not only to leave to some one
else the leading across of his mule, but even to have
a poor Indian bearer give him his shoulder to steady
him on the swaying structure.

From the other end of the bridge we ascended the
precipitous cliff by a narrow winding path and found
ourselves on a lofty terrace where the enterprising
Parodi Brothers have planted waving fields of sugar-
cane. Here we were met by the Gobernador of
Tambillo and the Parodis who escorted us to their
sugar factory at Pajonal, a most attractive hacienda
nestled in a valley at the foot of beetling crags. Our
hosts had inherited from their father an unusual
stock of energy and skill. Owing to his efforts, a
good irrigation ditch had been constructed that
furnished the canefields with an abundant supply
of water. The houses were in good repair and every-
thing bore the marks of prosperity. It was a pleas-
ure to see such evidence of enterprise and energy
in this wild region. One brother, who ordinarily
practices medicine in Lima, was here on a visit.
Another brother is being educated in the States.

We left Pajonal the next morning, accompanied

344 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

by the Gobernador of Tambillo, a very agreeable
person of German- Peruvian descent. From Pajonal
the road ascends a little valley and then climbs a
mountainside to the village of Ocros, a most forlorn
and wretched place, with an elevation of nearly ten
thousand feet.

The adobe church, like that at Chincheros, was set
back from the plaza, and had a new adobe wall
around it. Earth for this seemed to have been
taken right out of the plaza. No attempt had been
made to fill up the huge holes that remained. The
only building at Ocros that seemed to be in any
kind of repair was the local telegraph office where
the officer from Ayacucho who accompanied us,
went to send a despatch to the Prefect.

On the way we had been struck by the extra-
ordinary method of hanging telegraph wires that
prevails in this country. The linesmen had thought
nothing of planting three poles together on the top
of one hill and the next three not less than a quarter
of a mile away on the top of another, stretching
their wire across the interv^ening distance in mid-
air. This occurred not once or twice but whenever
they could save poles by so doing. The strain on
the wire must have been tremendous. We learned
that the service was "frequently interrupted."

The road up from Ocros was the worst that we
encountered anywhere. It was really the bed of a
mountain stream and our animals had the greatest
difficulty in picking their way among the rocks and
boulders. It was hard to imagine that this was
really the highway between Cuzco and Lima. The

BOMBON TO AYACUCHO 345

"road" grew worse and worse until it reached a
bleak paramo at an elevation of thirteen thousand
feet, where snow, hail, and sleet, driven in our faces
by a high wind, added to our discomforts. A steep
descent on the other side of the range greatly tried
the patience of our animals. The ground seemed to
be a hard clay that offered no support to their feet
and they slid and slipped, sometimes eight or ten
feet at a time, without being able to stop. Night
was falling as we reached the little collection of
wretched huts called Matara. No one seemed to
have any desire to receive us. In fact, the Indian
who had charge of the only dry hut in the place,
locked the front door and disappeared into the night.
Unlike vigorous Caceres, who would sooner have
died than allow an inhospitable Indian to refuse
admission to the foreigner in his charge, the officer
from Ayacucho was a timid soul who had gone
through the world bemoaning his ill fortune and
doing nothing to make it better. He could think
of no solution of the problem except that we make
ourselves as comfortable as possible in the shelter
of a kind of a porch in front of this thatched hut.
So we passed an exceedingly uncomfortable night
and experienced some of the hardships that the
British soldiers, who aided the patriot army in that
last campaign against the Spanish viceroy, must
have suffered in this very locality.

The next morning our road led across half a
dozen deep gulches whose streams feed the river
Colpahuayo. In one of these I was so fortunate as
to find in a gravel-bank at the side of the road, which

346 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

had been heavily washed by recent rains, a portion
of an ancient Inca stone war-club shaped like a huge
doughnut.

The road continued to be extremely slippery and
was not improved by the almost continuous rain.
At half past two we reached Tambillo. Here we
were welcomed by the pleasant wife of the Gober-
nador who had ridden ahead to have a good break-
fast prepared while we had waited in vain on a hill-
top hoping the rain would hold up sufficiently to
let us photograph a magnificent panorama that in-
cluded the distant city of Ayacucho and the heights
of Condorkanqui and the famous battlefield.

After lunch we crossed another gulch whose
treacherous sides more than once caused our mules
to fall heavily. In the village of Los Neques, we
were met by a very courteous emissary of the Pre-
fect of Ayacucho who turned out to be proprietor
of the hotel. He had been sent out in the rain to
apologize for the fact that there was no commit-
tee to meet us and to explain that the notables had
mounted and ridden out to await us until driven
back by the inclemency of the weather, for all of
which we were duly thankful, as it meant that we
had escaped the necessity of hurting anybody's
feelings by declining to drink more copitas of brandy
on an empty stomach.

Here at Los Neques the Indians were getting
ready to celebrate the days of Carnival which were
soon to be upon us. A hundred men and women
had gathered in the courtyard of an old house.
In one corner a red cloth shelter had been erected

THE COURTYi"

V^ v-' t>>

.*-l^

C D

<" TFiK IKi'l'lL

BOMBON TO AYACUCHO 347

under which sat the old men around a table on
which was scattered popcorn, roast maize, and
dishes of succotash. The other men and women
squatted on the ground with dishes of succotash
and bowls of chicha in front of them. As long as we
looked on, all was orderly and quiet except that two
musicians with a violin and a primitive old harp
were endeavoring to cheer them up.

Soon after dark, in a pouring rain, we passed the
high walls of the Ayacucho cemetery, clattered over
the cobble-stones of the narrow streets, entered the
plaza, and were ushered with a flourish through a
stone arch into the courtyard of the hotel. Acting
on the orders of the Prefect, the proprietor had re-
served for our use an enormous parlor or reception
room where at least forty people could be comfort-
ably seated, and a great bedroom of nearly the same
dimensions in which were four large bedsteads.
Notwithstanding the attractiveness of the hotel
bedsteads, such is the perversity of human nature
that I decided to use my own little "Gold Medal"
folding cot that had served me faithfully for many
weeks, and my own blankets which, as they were
folded up every morning as soon as I arose and not
unfolded until I was ready to sleep, could be relied
upon to be free from fleas, etc.

The plaza of Ayacucho is surrounded on three
sides with private houses that have arcades sup-
ported by stone pillars. The ground floors are taken
up with shops, while over the arcades are balconies
that lead to the principal rooms of the dwelling
houses. Our hotel had been once occupied by one of

348 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

the principal families of the town and was a good
specimen of the old Spanish method of building.
It had a large courtyard from which a flight of
stone steps led up to the galleries, and was orna-
mented by potted plants and caged birds.

Hardly had we examined our rooms when we re-
ceived a call from the Prefect, Don Caspar Mauro
Cacho, a tall, finely proportioned Peruvian with a
remarkable sense of humor and an unfailing store
of courtesy. On the following day he took upon him-
self to show us the sights of the town, including the
fine old cathedral, the large public market, clean
and well kept, the picturesque old churches, and the
Prefecture, a large double quadrangle where were
located the offices of the Department, the barracks
of the few troops stationed here, and the rooms
allotted for the use of himself and his family.

His wife and children had arrived from Lima not
many months previous, and the terrors of the over-
land journey were vividly in their minds. His
senora assured me that she had feared she would
never reach Ayacucho alive, notwithstanding the
fact that the government had made every possible
provision for their comfort on the journey. One of
the "guides" lost his way, and they were quartered
at an abandoned tambo where there was nothing to
eat or drink and no firewood. Having lived in Lima
all their lives, they felt the discomforts keenly. It
was an interesting commentary on the state of the
roads that even a Prefect could not be sure that his
family would travel with a moderate degree of com-
fort.

AYACUCHO 349

I had sometimes felt that the life of an official in
Peru was as easy as the life of the poor Indians was
hard, but I had to reverse that opinion before leav-
ing the country. While the Prefects are appointed
directly by the President and are responsible only
to him, they are likely to be considered troublesome
by the local magistrates who, although elected by
the citizens, exercise very limited prerogatives.
Were it not for the dozen or more soldiers that take
their orders directly from the Prefect, he would
often be in a precarious position. He must govern
as well as he can, and yet if he does not make himself
popular with the people of the city in which he
lives, his lot is not at all an easy one. With such
men as the Prefects whom we met in Arequipa,
Abancay, and Ayacucho, the central government
is fortunate in being able to be sure that the power
which it delegates to them will be used firmly and
wisely and without causing friction.

This city, one of the largest in Peru, occupies an
excellent central situation and from it diverge roads
in every direction. Yet so great is the difficulty of
bringing foreign merchandise over these mountain
roads, that we found few shops here of any import-
ance, and almost all seemed to be owned by natives
of the country. The streets were all of the same pat-
tern, paved with rough stones, sloping, not away
from the centre as with us, but towards the centre,
where in the middle there is invariably a ditch,
practically an open sewer. For those walking on
the sidewalk, it is certainly much pleasanter to have
this ditch in the middle of the street.

350 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

In anticipation of the joys of eating and drinking
connected with Carnival, Indian women with huge
cauldrons of chiipe and immense jars of chicha were
preparing to take up all-night stands, sometimes in
the centre of the street or else on a busy corner where
they would be sure to attract trade. The effect of
the women's head-gear was most curious. It was
exactly as though the lady had found her shawl a
bit too warm and had taken it off, folded it into a
square, and proceeded to carry it on her head for
convenience. We went through one old crumbling
archway, attracted by some beautiful clay jars, and
found ourselves in a backyard that would have
delighted a painter. Not all painters, but the kind
that loves a natural combination of picturesque
ruins, fine old jars tumbled about helter-skelter,
dirty little Indian children in dirtier hats and pon-
chos, very much too big for them, a cat, and a long-
legged pig who nosed about among the jars trying
to see which one contained chicha fit to gratify his
thirst.

From the tower of one of the oldest churches we
secured a splendid view of the city and the surround-
ing country including nearly the entire region occu-
pied by the forces of Sucre and La Serna in the week
preceding the final battle of Ayacucho.

The old name of Ayacucho was Guamanga, which
is said to have been a Spanish adaptation of the
Inca Huaman-ca (Take it. Falcon), a name that was
given to the district by an incident that followed a
fierce battle in which a warlike tribe of this vicinity
was defeated and almost annihilated by the armies

352 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

streets were narrow and not in particularly good
repair. Suddenly the horses of our guides wheeled
and bolted and were with difficulty kept in the road.
The cause was a characteristic piece of carelessness
on the part of somebody. A horse had recently died
and his thrifty owner had at once skinned him to
save his hide, leaving the hideous carcass in the very
centre of the narrow road. It was necessary to
make a considerable detour through the neighboring
fields, for none of our animals would go within fifty
feet of the disgusting spectacle.

For the first two leagues we followed the regular
road to Lima and the north, branching off when we
reached the ford over the Pongora River, then pass-
ing through several small plantations and near two
vineyards, we crossed the river Yucaes on a new
suspension bridge and climbed the face of a steep
cliff by a zigzag trail. We had good animals and
kept them going at a comfortable trot so that we
arrived at the little village of Quinua in three and a
half hours after leaving Ayacucho.

The plaza of Quinua is surrounded on three sides
by houses and ruins, the fourth side being taken up
by the church. Like the other houses in the vicinity,
these were built of stone and earth and roofed with
red tiles. Many of the roofs had been allowed to
fall into decay, and the house which was pointed out
as tlie place where the truce was signed after the
battle, and where the Spanish General surrendered
to General Sucre, had entirely lost its covering.

A hasty lunch was prepared for us at a little mud
hut called a tavern, and as soon after as possible we

AYACUCHO 353

re-mounted and rode north for half a mile up the
face of a little hill and found ourselves on the plain
where was fought the last great battle of the South
American Wars of Independence. A monument,
apparently made of some kind of plaster, and natu-
rally in a very bad state of repair, marked the centre
of the plain. Near by was a kind of shed or shelter
for the horses, and a little to the westward the walls
of a memorial chapel that had not yet been com-
pleted. North of the plain the heights of Condor-
kanqui rise abruptly. A new road had recently been
constructed over them to the warm valleys beyond,
but it was still perfectly possible to see the old
trail down which the Spanish troops marched in
their attack on the patriots.

The altitude of the field is nearly eleven thousand
feet, and romantically inclined writers have some-
times spoken of this as the ' * battle above the clouds."
As a matter of fact, we had considerable difficulty
in taking photographs owing to the low hanging
clouds that continually swept down from the sum-
mits of Condorkanqui. Fortunately it did not rain
all the time.

Few battles have ever been fought on a height
that offered such a magnificent view. From all parts
of the battlefield, a superb panorama is spread out
to the east, south, and west, embracing the entire
valley of Ayacucho.

After spending the afternoon on the field, we
returned to the little tavern where the evening
passed very pleasantly and we were entertained by
the Indian villagers who were celebrating the Car-

354 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

nival. They came In throngs bringing us parched
corn, popcorn, and chicha, swearing eternal friend-
ship, and expressing their appreciation that we
should come such a long distance to see their famous
battlefield. The village appeared to be divided into
three wards, and the alcalde of each ward was
anxious that we should eat and drink just as much of
his offering as we had of the others.

They were easily satisfied, however, and appeared
to be having a very good time. I never saw Indians
enjoy themselves more. As a conclusion to the
entertainment, two Indian women were instructed
to sing for us. Their performance consisted in a
wailing duet, beginning loud and high, ascending
with a powerful crescendo to screeching falsetto
notes and then gradually descending and diminish-
ing into a wheeze like a very old parlor organ with
leaky bellows.

We spent the next morning photographing dif-
ferent parts of the battlefield and trying to get a
better idea of the reasons for Sucre's victory. I was
very forcibly impressed by the skill with which he
had chosen his position.

The little plain, really a plateau, is literally sur-
rounded by ravines. It was just large enough to
allow Sucre to use his seven or eight thousand men
to the best advantage. An enemy attacking him
must perforce come up hill on every side, even
though it would seem as though the Spanish troops
descending from Condorkanqui would have had
some advantage. But they were under fire all the
time they were descending to the plain, and just

AYACUCHO 355

before they reached it, they found themselves in a
little gully up the sides of which they had to scram-
ble at a disadvantage before they could actually
be on a level with the defenders. La Serna was too
good a general not to have appreciated the strength
of Sucre's position. In fact, as General Miller points
out, the mistake of the Viceroy in attacking orig-
inated in allowing himself to be over-persuaded by
the eagerness of his troops. Their patience had been
exhausted by terrible marches which seemed to them
to be endless. Only a few days before the battle,
the tents of the Viceroy and his chief general had
had lampoons pasted on them, accusing them of
cowardice. It may fairly be said that he was goaded
into action contrary to his own judgment.

The battle of Ayacucho, besides being the final
combat, was one of the most brilliant in the history
of the Wars of Independence. The troops on both
sides were well-seasoned veterans. The generals in
command were among the ablest that the long wars
had developed. Every man fought with bravery.
Although the Patriots were outnumbered, they
made up for it by enthusiasm and by a knowledge
that there was no opportunity for them to retreat.
They were aided by the lay of the land, but the
result was due to a most determined valor and a
heroic daring that must always gratify lovers of
Peruvian history.

We returned to the city in the middle of the after-
noon in time to take a little walk in the streets and
be bombarded by little Carnival balloons filled with
scented water, egg-shells filled with colored powder,

356 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

and the other missiles that are commonly employed
to bear witness to the fact that Lent is approaching.
The ladies and children, who occupied points of
vantage in the second-story windows, kept up a
brisk fire on everyone who ventured along the
streets, and we had to do some very rapid dodging
to avoid being entirely soaked and colored with all
the hues of the rainbow.

In the evening, notwithstanding a terrific down-
pour of rain, the "society of Ayacucho," including
the Archbishop, the Prefect, and fifty or sixty of
their friends, "tendered us" an elaborate banquet
which quite took the palm for variety of food and
drink. There were no less than fourteen courses
besides seven kinds of wine including champagne.
The after-dinner speeches were also quite remark-
able. Hitherto, the chief interest in us had been the
fact that we had "visited the lost city of Choqque-
quirau," but here Choqquequirau meant little or
nothing. The battlefield of Ayacucho meant every-
thing, and the fact that we were delegados from a
country whose aid Peru hoped to receive in case
Chile became troublesome meant a great deal more.
Whether it was at this banquet or at one of those
that preceded it in the past three weeks, I do not
remember, but the opinion was expressed more than
once that, rather than have another war with Chile,
they would surrender to the United States and be-
come a protectorate. I mention this not as an
indication of national sentiment, but merely to
show the state of feeling that prevailed in the
interior of Peru at the time, and the attitude with

AYACUCHO 357

which they regarded the possibility of another war
with Chile.

A large part of the hatred that exists between
Chilean and Peruvian is due to their native ances-
try. In the Chilean there is a large percentage of
Araucanian blood. In the Peruvian there is as much
of the blood of the Quichuas. The Araucanians are
the hereditary foes of the Quichuas. For centuries
there was no peace between them. The Incas pushed
their army of Quichuas as far south as possible, but
they never could conquer the lands where the
Araucanians roved. Even the all-conquering Span-
ish soldiers were blocked in southern Chile. It is
not necessary to repeat here the long story of the
Araucanian wars and the heroic deeds of Lautaro
and his kinsmen. Instead of being easily conquered
by the handful of Spanish adventurers as were the
Incas and Quichuas, the Araucanians kept the Span-
iards at bay for centuries, and were in fact never
subdued.

The Araucanians and the Quichuas had as differ-
ent racial characteristics as can be imagined. Al-
though the Araucanians did not constitute a nation
in the proper sense of the word but were divided
into a large number of clans, each independent and
recognizing no master, they never allowed any out-
side people to interfere with their national life.
They were intensely Independent. Even the chiefs
lacked authority in time of peace. There were no
serfs or slaves. More important still, there were
no laws ; private wrongs had to be settled privately.
All of these elements must be taken into consldera-

358 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

tion when contemplating the character of the
Chilean of to-day. His Spanish ancestors brooked
no interference and recognized no central govern-
ment, but his Araucanian forebears were still more
intensely fond of individual liberty. His Spanish
ancestors were brave and fearless. No better sol-
diers existed in Europe in the sixteenth century.
The Araucanians were even more warlike, and after
their first few defeats by the invaders, they success-
fully assumed the offensive, storming Spanish towns
and carrying off cattle and horses. They organized
troops of cavalry, learning to excel on an animal
that their fathers had never heard of, and which the
Quichuas even now rarely dare to mount. The
entire Araucanian nation was less numerous than
the army of Quichuas that surrounded Atahualpa
when he was successfully attacked by Pizarro, yet
they killed more Spanish soldiers than fell in the
conquest of the entire remainder of the continent.
With such an ancestry, it is not remarkable that
the Chileans are notoriously the best fighters on the
continent to-day. Contrast their inheritance with
that of the Peruvians.

The Quichuas were and are a timid, peaceful folk
lacking in dignity, defending themselves rather with
cunning and falsehood than by deeds of arms. The
servile sentiment is deeply rooted in the Quichua
nature. He maintains a sense of loyalty for his
former masters, but he has absolutely no idea of
liberty or independence. The Quichuas had reached
a higher state of culture than the Araucanians but
their manly characteristics were far less developed.

AYACUCHO 359

In fact, at the time of the Spanish conquest, they
seem to have been already in a decadent condition.
With such blood in their veins, it is not surprising
that the Peruvians were easily defeated by the Chile-
ans, their country overrun and humiliated, their
valuable nitrate fields seized, and the seeds of intense
national hatred planted that will take generations
to eradicate.

CHAPTER XXVI

AYACUCHO TO LIMA

EVERY one had told us that it would be "abso-
lutely impossible" to leave Ayacucho until
two or three days had elapsed after the end of the
Carnival. Possibly because we were a trifle home-
sick, and possibly because we had been assured so
positively that it could not be done, we determined
to try to leave Ayacucho on the last day of the three
devoted to Carnival. I must confess that it was
rather cruel, not only to the two soldiers who were
ordered to accompany us, but also the arriero who
was informed that he must provide us with mules
and go when we were ready to start. The morning
was spent in a great row over the mules and the ques-
tion as to how far they were to go with us, in w hich
many tears were shed by drunken Indian women
who declared that they were sure they would never
see their husbands or animals back again. If it had
not been for the Prefect's willingness to help us, we
could never have persuaded any one to go, but he
did his part splendidly. We at length got off just
at noon. The Prefect and his friends, to the number
of fourteen, escorted us for the first league out of the
city. Then we bade them an affectionate farewell
and started off on the last stage of our journey,
determined, if possible, to travel henceforth as much

AYACUCHO TO LIMA 361

like private citizens as we could. To be sure, we
had our little military escort. Without them we
should have found it almost impossible to proceed
at all for the next few days. Our first two leagues
were over the same road which we had used in going
to Quinua, then, instead of fording the river, we
kept on its left bank until we reached a shaky sus-
pension bridge. Its floor was made of loose planks
that were so easily misplaced by the mules that Hay
declared he had to set them all over again after I
had passed in order to avoid falling into the river.

We met on the road many Indians, celebrating
Carnival, marching along gayly, beating primitive
little drums and blowing on bamboo-fifes. They
stopped at almost every house they passed, shouting
and hullabalooing and getting a few drinks of
chicha.

As we were crossing the rocky bed of a little
stream we met an itinerant musician, a blind harpist,
who was being helped across by a friend. His harp
was very curious, being a wooden box shaped like
half a cone with two wooden legs tacked into its
base, and two eye-holes on the flat side which made
it look very much like some dwarfish animal. With
great difficulty we tried to persuade him to set up
his harp in the dry bed of the stream and play us a
tune while we took his picture. Not having the
slightest conception of what we were trying to do,
the poor blind musician was rather frightened, and
as he understood no Spanish whatever, we should
not have succeeded had it not been for the kind
offices of a pleasant-faced mestizo family party who

362 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

were picnicking on the bank of the stream and who
translated our poor Spanish into Quichua. In the
evening we reached Huanta, an historic little town
where savage Indian tribes from the Amazonian
forests have frequently come into collision with
armed Peruvian forces. Although we hoped to be
able to slip into town unnoticed, we were met, a
mile out, by the usual dozen of hospitably inclined
caballeros who, with the Gobernador at their head,
had been "celebrating" for the past two or three
days. We were by this time so fatigued by the labors
of crossing Peru in the wet season, that we found
it very difficult to be as polite as w-e were expected
to be to the reception committees that had been our
lot hitherto. However, in this case, to put it bluntly,
the Gobernador was very drunk, which m.ade him
only the more friendly, and he insisted that we were
two "princes of America," and that his house would
be everlastingly famous in history as having been
the place where we stayed !

His wife and daughters behaved splendidly.
They seemed to realize that we knew it was custom-
ary for all the men to get drunk at this season of the
year. At the same time they did their best to make
us comfortable and to see that the male members
of the family did not annoy us any more than they
could help.

Naturally, the "morning after" was a sad occa-
sion, and had it not been for our excellent soldiers,
who had gone to bed sober, it would have been very
difficult to have persuaded our hosts to let us go.
The Gobernador was extremely cross. He had for-

AYACUCHO TO LIMA 363

gotten all about our princely lineage, and only re-
membered to charge us treble for everything he
could think of. Although we had gotten up at five
o'clock, no Indians sober enough to act as guides
could be found for several hours, and it was after
ten before we finally left Huanta.

The son of the Gobernador was the only person
who had energy enough, or had sufficiently recovered
from the debauch of the night before, to do us the
honor of escorting us out of town. This had come to
be such a regular feature of our travels since leaving
Cuzco that we always looked forward with curi-
osity to see what would happen. This young fellow
was very polite and went with us as far as the en-
trance of the local cemetery, a bizarre white-washed
adobe gate, protected from the weather by a little
covering of red tiles. There must have been some-
thing prophetic about his bidding us good-by at
the gates of a cemetery, for he was the last honorary
escort that we had in Peru.

Our road led us through a thickly populated
region. Here and there on the roadside, unfortun-
ate individuals, both men and women, who had
been too far gone to reach home the night before,
were sleeping off the effects of the Carnival. Ordin-
arily one does not see much drunkenness in Peru,
but this certainly was an exception.

Small towns and villages followed in quick suc-
cession. Then we descended into the valley of the
Huarpa River and across a well-built toll-bridge.
The bridge was so long and so high above the stream
that my mule concluded he would stay on the east

364 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

bank. He yielded to our combined efforts, but only
after much beating. We now passed through a semi-
arid region of cactus and mimosa trees Hke the basin
of the Pampas River, until we began to climb an
extremely steep ravine. Several times we lost our
way, and in places the path had been completely
washed out by the rains. The crux came at a little
waterfall only five feet high. So smooth was the face
of the rock over which the little stream of water
trickled that our sure-footed animals found it im-
possible to reach the upper level until we had built
a rude stone stairway which they cheerfully essayed
to climb. Their energetic scrambles were finally
rewarded by success. For three hours the trail
wound upwards as steeply as it was possible to go,
until we reached the bleak paramo near M areas.

A magnificent panorama lay spread out before
us. In the foreground were hillsides dotted with
thatched huts and fields where sheep and cattle
grazed ; in the middle distance, deep valleys whose
rivers had cut their way down into gorges out of our
sight; and far beyond, a magnificent range of moun-
tains, some capped with snow and others with
clouds. It was a little after five o'clock when we
entered the picturesque little village of Marcas with
its two dozen huts scattered about under the lee of
the rocks or clustered near the road. We recognized
it as just the sort of village where v/e would have
been refused both food and shelter had we been
alone. But as we were accompanied by an energetic
sergeant who did not propose to allow any poor
Indians to stand in the way of our progress, a hut no

AYACUCHO TO LIMA 365

dirtier or more comfortless than the rest was soon
put at our disposal, and the sergeant did his best to
get us all a good supper out of our own provisions.

Our baggage animals had had a frightfully hard
day of it and our soldiers assured us that if we in-
tended to catch the weekly train out of Huancayo,
it would be necessary to have at least one more beast
of burden, for although our luggage could be con-
veniently carried by two mules going at a walk, if
we expected to make forty miles a day, as we hoped
to do, one animal must be rested every other day.
Accordingly the Indian alcalde of Marcas was in-
structed to get us a mule. "But there are no mules
here" he replied. A horse then. "Very well, there
is one old one which I will have ready for you in the
morning." Soon after breakfast an old white horse
appeared, accompanied by a weeping Indian woman
who had no desire to take our money and who was
thoroughly convinced that she would never see her
horse again. It was finally agreed that the horse
should go only to the next town where we could get
another beast and send this one back by one of the
Indian alcaldes that now accompanied us from vil-
lage to village, returning as their task of acting as
guides was taken up by the alcaldes of the next
place.

With the aid of the fresh horse, we made good
time and skirted the slopes of a high range of hills
leaving the trim little town of Acobamba far off
on our left. It lies in the valley of the Lircay which
is quite densely populated and seemed to be very
fertile. In the middle of the afternoon we reached

366 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

UrumyosI where there are curious great rocks
shaped like sugar loaves. They are of soft sandstone
which is easily worked, and a number of caves have
been made by poor people at the base of the rocks.
After a long cold ride and ten hours in the saddle,
we came in sight of a mud-colored town called Pau-
cara which has long had a very evil reputation.
Whether this is deserved or not we did not endeavor
to discover. The sergeant persuaded the owner of
a rude little hut, half a mile from the town and on
the direct road, to let us spend the night there. One
of our neighbors brought freshly cut barley-straw
for the mules, another brought a dozen eggs, and
with the aid of our own supplies and cooking utensils,
we fared splendidly.

The night was excessively damp and as bitterly
cold as it can be only in a genuinely tropical coun-
try when the temperature drops forty degrees after
the sun goes down and an icy wind penetrates your
very bones, even though you have hurriedly put on
two or three sweaters and a couple of ponchos as it
grew dark. There is no cold like the cold of the trop-
ics. Furthermore the carcass of a recently killed
sheep hung dripping in the hut. The floor was wet
and muddy, there were no windows and only a small
door. We wished we had a tent.

There being no incentive to linger at this charm-
ing country-house, our Indians were actually up
and away before six o'clock. We had saved four
eggs the evening before to be cooked for our break-
fast, and after loading our pack animals and seeing
them safely off with all our supplies, we handed our

URUMYOSI

THE HUr NEAR PAUCARA

AYACUCHO TO LIMA 367

eggs and some tea to the housewife and asked her
to prepare us a frugal meal. Alas! it was quite
impossible. The cooking activities of the evening
before had used up every stick of firewood within a
radius of a mile, and there was no way in which water
could be boiled. The only provisions for our break-
fast were the raw eggs. We had before us a ride of
forty miles over an exceedingly rough country, part
of which lay at an elevation of fourteen thousand
feet above the sea, so we hastily swallowed our eggs
as best as we could and started off with the prospect
of twelve hours in the saddle.

At first the road wound slowly up the valley of
Lircay, until finally it climbed over the edge of the
hills to a great bleak plateau where hundreds of
llamas were feeding. When you come to a llama
range you may be fairly certain that the altitude is
not far from that of the top of Pike's Peak. Add
to this a blinding snow-storm that keeps you from
seeing more than six feet ahead of you, a wearied
mule, a very hungry rider, and the uncertainty as
to whether you are on the right road or not, and
you will have a picture of our predicament during
part of that never-to-be-forgotten day. At length,
to our great delight, the trail began slowly to de-
scend from cheerless paramos and little mountain
lakes into a great valley where, thousands of feet
below, we could see huts and cultivated fields.

Skirting the hills half-way up the valley and avoid-
ing the attractive little trails that led down to In-
dian villages, we kept turning more and more to the
westward until we rounded a spur and came on a

368 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

magnificent view of the great river Mantaro that
on its way to join the Apurimac has cut a wonder-
fully deep canon through this part of Peru. A tor-
tuous descent of two thousand feet brought us to
the new toll-bridge of Tablachaca and onto an
excellent road. Of course, this does not mean that
it could be used for wheeled vehicles, for of carts
there are none in this part of the world. It simply
means that a trail four or five feet wide and reason-
ably free from rocks and holes allowed the mules to
jog along at a gait of nearly five miles an hour. So
slow had been our progress over the paramo that it
was considerably after dark before we reached the
picturesque old stone bridge of Yscuchaca, re-
crossed the Mantaro, and clattered over the cobble-
stones of this well-built little town.

We had rather flattered ourselves that no one
here knew we were coming and so we had avoided
an official reception and all possible attacks on our
digestive faculties. But we had to pay for it by
finding that it took nearly two hours longer than
usual before we were able to secure any accommo-
dations whatsoever for the night. The Gobernador
of Yscuchaca lived a mile or more out of town on his
country estate, and learning finally that there were
two ''distinguished foreigners" in town, sent his
head servant to welcome us, gave us the use of a
room in his town house, provided our mules with
pasturage, and the next morning charged us three
times the regular tariff. I regret to say that we took
advantage of the absence of the Gobernador to pay
his major-domo what our sergeant told us was the

AYACUCHO TO LIMA 369

legitimate price and left him wondering why he had
not been able to overcharge us as he had certain
American civil engineers who had been here not long
before, surveying for the extension of the central
railway of Peru.

At present, that railway, begun many years ago,
goes from Lima to Oroya and thence south to
Huancayo which is nearly fifty miles from Yscu-
chaca. It is proposed now to continue it from Huan-
cayo to Yscuchaca and thence due south to Huan-
cavelica where there are mines of quicksilver and
copper. Eventually it will form one of the links in
the chain of the Pan-American Railway.

Our mules were pretty tired and so were we, but
when one is on the home stretch it is easy to travel
from early to late. We rose before five o'clock. Our
road first crossed the Mantaro, ascended the left
bank of the stream for several miles, passed several
mineral springs, and then climbed out of the narrow-
ing caiion up toward the village of Acostambo. At
one place where the road had been cut through what
looked like a fossil bed, I was so fortunate as to find,
in situ, a fossil bivalve. Professor Charles Schuchert
of Yale University has been so good as to identify it
for me as allorisma suhcuneata. It has been found
also in Brazil. Its geological horizon, the upper
carboniferous, is widely distributed in South Amer-
ica and is well known about Lake Titicaca. The
location of this fossil here may indicate the presence
in this vicintiy of coal-beds. If any could be found,
it would be the greatest benefit, not only to the rail-
way that hopes some day to pass through this valley,

370 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

but also to the copper-smelters in the vicinity. As
a matter of fact, Peru does not need the coal for
power; these great and rapidly flowing rivers like
the Mantaro, the Pampas, and the Apurimac offer
an abundant water-power that, transformed into
electricity, would run all the railroads and factories
that could possibly be crowded into Peru.

Personally, I do not believe in the construction of
steam railroads in this country. The difhculties of
overcoming steep grades are serious, and the cost of
building is necessarily all out of proportion to the
traffic that is likely to be developed. I do believe,
however, that the future of Peru depends upon the
development of her water-power and the building of
light electric railways that would be sufficient to
handle economically the product of the mines and
to accommodate passengers. If the region were one
where extensive crops could be cultivated and a
large amount of heavy freight developed, this argu-
ment would not hold. Under the circumstances,
however, I believe that it is a much safer investment
for capital and a much more practical work for the
government to develop electric traction.

At Acostambo, a town of perhaps two thousand
inhabitants, we tried to buy something to eat for
lunch, but there was nothing to be had except some
dough cakes that had been "cooked" In cold ashes.
After passing through two or three small villages
where most of the Indians seemed to be in a state
of intoxication, we crossed the Cordillera Marca-
valle and found ourselves on the well-travelled road
to Pampas. Before us, spread out in a magnificent

AYACUCHO TO LIMA 371

panorama, the fertile, densely populated valley of
Jauja. Watered by the Upper Mantaro River and
its affluents, there are over fifty villages, towns, and
cities, clustered together in this rich plain. Imme-
diately ahead lay four towns almost exactly in a
straight line and less than ten miles apart: Pucara,
where w^e stopped long enough to buy some parched
corn and freshly roasted pork for supper, Sapal-
lauga, Punta, and Huancayo. Instead of the deso-
late region in which we had passed most of yester-
day, we were now in one of the most thickly popu-
lated parts of Peru, and felt as though we were back
again in civilization. This sensation was increased
when we began to clatter down the long street of
Huancayo. It seemed like an age before we finally
reached the business centre of the city at 9 P. M.
and surrendered ourselves into the hands of a cour-
teous Austrian hotel proprietor.

We had spent nearly fourteen hours In the saddle.
This was quite forgotten when we learned to our
delight that there was to be a train for Oroya the
next day, for the first time in two weeks.

We had heard that the train from Huancayo left
usually on Sundays, so we had promised our soldiers
a sovereign apiece if they would see to it that we
reached Huancayo by Saturday night. As they had
to accompany the slow-moving pack animals, they
did not arrive themselves until the next morning,
somewhat in fear lest they had lost their promised
reward. When they were assured, however, that we
had caught our train, and when they had received
their gold and what was left of our kitchen utensils

372 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

and supplies, their delight knew no bounds, and they
were constrained to embrace us in truly oriental
fashion.

Sunday morning Is a great event in Huancayo.
Before sunrise, thousands of Indians come in from
the surrounding towns and villages for the weekly
Fair. Two large plazas are crowded with vendors
of every conceivable kind of merchandise : oxen and
mules raised nearby, toys "made in Germany," pot-
tery and ponchos made in Huancayo, and beer made
in Milwaukee. Overflowing from the crowded plazas
the Fair extends for nearly a mile through the main
street of the city. The picturesque Indians in their
brilliantly colored ponchos, thronging the streets
and alternately buying and selling their wares, offer
a field for diversion that no one should miss who
reaches Lima,

Like the Mexican Indians, so vividly depicted by
Mr. Kirkham in his artistic " Mexican Trails," there
are many among the throng who will "sell a hen,
later to bargain for a sombrero, presently to go upon
their knees within the church yonder, candle in
hand ; lastly to lie by the roadside, overfull of pulque
and oblivious of this world, or the next."

The type is the same whether it be seen on a Sun-
day in the Andes of Mexico, Peru, or Colombia.
Only here it is chicha that is the favorite beverage
instead of pulque.

The long expected train was due to arrive at noon
and "to leave soon afterwards." The platform and
the newly constructed booths near the little cor-
rugated-iron station were crowded for hours by in-

AYACUCHO TO LIMA 373

tending passengers and friends of expected arrivals.
But it was late in the afternoon, almost dark in fact,
before the belated little train pulled into the station
and the runners from the three Huancayo hotels
had the satisfaction of greeting their "friends." We
were informed that the train would not leave before
six o'clock the next morning so we tried to possess
ourselves in patience at our comfortable little hotel.

We were on hand, bright and early, just in time to
see the train pull out of the station. Happily it was
only a false alarm, and the train soon backed down
to the platform again and waited for three quarters
of an hour for intending passengers to arrive. At
length the conductor decided he could wait no longer,
and at 6:40 we pulled out, just before the sub-
Prefect and his friends arrived on the scene. A
young politician on the train, who thought that the
sub-Prefect wanted to go to Lima, pulled violently
at the bell-rope. The engineer, accustomed to that
form of stopping the train, had detached the ropes
from the locomotive so that all that the friends of
the sub- Prefect were able to do was to pull several
yards of it into the rear coach. Rather character-
istically, the only four people who were on hand at
six o'clock ready for the train to start on time, were
all Americans. The two besides ourselves were
artisans from the great copper mines of Cerro de
Pasco who were enjoying a week's vacation.

At Jauja there is a spur track which runs from the
main line a mile or more back to the historic old city,
celebrated In the annals of the Spanish Conquest
and the Wars of Independence. The good people of

374 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

Jauja, not yet accustomed to the necessary rules of
a railroad train service, flocked on board the train
to say "good-by" to their departing friends and
chat as long as possible. Taking no heed of the
screams of the engine and the cries of the conductor,
more than twenty ladies, who had no intention of
leaving town, were still on board when the train
pulled out of the station. The conductor took them
a mile and a half down the track to the main line ;
then, fearing that the mere fact that they would have
to walk home would not sufficiently impress them,
he made each one pay for riding! Twenty more
sheepish-looking individuals than the garrulous
ladies, whom the conductor lined up in the field a
short distance from the tracks and charged for their
short ride, would be hard to find.

At eleven o'clock we came to a wash-out and had
to cross the Oroya River on planks hastily thrown
over the unfinished new railroad bridge. A train was
waiting for us on the other side, and with very little
delay, all the passengers and luggage were safely
carried across and we reached Oroya before four
o'clock that evening.

Although there are rich mines in the vicinity and
it is the terminus of the new line, built by American
capital, to the great Cerro de Pasco smelters, Oroya
is chiefly famous as the terminus of "the highest
railroad in the world," and we looked forward with
interest to our journey on the morrow.

The magnificent great viaduct which has fre-
quently been pictured as formerly one of the highest
railroad bridges in existence, had come to grief only

AYACUCHO TO LIMA 375

a short time before, in a rather tragic manner. A
car, loaded with bridge-construction material and
occupied by several American engineers, was stand-
ing on the bridge to which repairs were being made.
A run-away engine came flying down the grade,
struck the car, jumped into the air, crashed back
on the frail viaduct, which gave way and allowed a
tangled mass of men and metal to fall into the cafion
two hundred and twenty feet below.

This accident necessitated many delays, as all the
passengers and freight had to be transferred by
mules or on foot down into the cailon and up the
other side to the train for Lima.

The ride from Oroya to Lima has been so fre-
quently described by many travellers and the excite-
ment of coasting down from the summit tunnel
where the altitude is 15,666 feet to the Lima sta-
tion, which is only a little above sea level, is so well
known, that I will not attempt to give my own im-
pressions here. Suffice it to say that the excitement
was increased if anything by the fact that besides the
bridge accident another had occurred only a few
days previously in which a locomotive had left the
tracks and rolled down an embankment.

Owing to these accidents our train was provided
with a very old engine whose boilers were so leaky
that we had a hard time climbing up from Oroya
to the divide. Several times we stopped; once for
three quarters of an hour to allow enough steam to
accumulate to pull us around a curve. We did not
object, however, for the scenery was wonderful.
The great craggy cliffs, their slopes covered with

376 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

snow and ice, made us realize that this was really
the roof tree of the continent. Just before entering
the summit tunnel, the train stopped again, and we
had a chance to enjoy a magnificent panorama of
snow-capped mountains.

A hand -car with two workmen was sent down the
road just ahead of our train so as to give us some
sense of assurance. It is well known that most
people coming up this road from Lima suffer greatly
from soroche before they reach the summit. On our
way down, however, most of the passengers were
so well accustomed to high elevations that not more
than three or four, and they Peruvian ladies from
Jauja and Oroya, seemed to be affected. So far as I
could judge, their trouble was due more to car-
sickness and the lack of ventilation than to the
elevation.

We reached Lima about half past eight on the
evening of March 2d. Who can describe the com-
fort and luxury of those first few hours in the ex-
cellent Hotel Maury?

My first duty the next day was to call on Presi-
dent Leguia, report on what I had seen at Choqque-
quirau and tell him how very hospitably we had
been received in the interior towns and cities. After
talking with him for a few moments, we were no
longer at a loss to understand why the Prefects and
sub- Prefects of Peru had been so courteous to us,
for their chief is himself the soul of courtesy. Well-
travelled, well-educated, speaking English fluently,
a trained business man, not in the slightest degree
the type of South American President with which

AYACUCHO TO LIMA 377

novel-readers and playgoers are familiar, he im-
pressed us as a man who would do his best to ad-
vance the welfare of Peru without caring in the
least how his own affairs might prosper in the mean-
time.

The door-keeper was a fine, tall, gray-haired
soldier who had the manners of a general, was rather
suspicious of us at first, but returned almost imme-
diately after taking in our cards and, with a mag-
nificent bow and a courtly gesture, ushered us at
once into the inner reception room, greatly to the
disgust of several pompous, perspiring politicians
who had been warming their heels in the gilded salon
for some time before we arrived. We did not stay
long, and on our way out were again given a demon-
stration of interest by the courteous old brigadier.
To our sorrow we read a few months afterward that
in the unsuccessful revolution already referred to in
the chapter on Arequipa, which began by seizing
the presidential offices and in securing the President
himself and his Minister of Foreign Affairs, the revo-
lutionists had ruthlessly killed the old door-keeper.

Like every visitor to Lima, we too went into the
cathedral to see the mummified remains of Francisco
Pizarro, the Conqueror of Peru, and then we took
a little victoria, drawn by a pair of speedy little trot-
ters, and explored the parks and boulevards. We
saw the monuments and the new public buildings,
called on the American Minister, whom we found
to be a charming southern gentleman, exceedingly
well suited to his diplomatic profession; admired
the many vSubstantial foreign banks and business

378 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

houses, and regretted that so much of the flavor of
the old colonial Lima had been lost in the Chilean
war and in the recent era of business prosperity.
With electric lights and electric cars and abundant
foreign capital, it is not easy to preserve those pic-
turesque features which are so charming in the
interior cities.

At last my journey overland from Buenos Aires
had been completed. I cannot claim to know it as
well or as intimately as the poor " foot- walker " who,
if he has been successful, must by this time have
reached Buenos Aires and walked on foot twice over
this long dreary road. Nevertheless, I can appre-
ciate keenly some of the difhculties of travel in Span-
ish-America during the colonial period when Lima
was the gay capital and Buenos Aires was merely
a frontier post. It is small wonder that there was
little sympathy between Lima and Buenos Aires in
those days.

Like my journey across Venezuela and Colombia,
this taught me to feel anew the stupendous difhcul-
ties that lie in the way of advancing South American
civilization. It made me admire tremendously the
courage and determination of those heroes of the
Wars of Independence who marched up and down
this road for fourteen years until they had driven
from it the last vestige of a foreign army.

CHAPTER XXVII

CERTAIN SOUTH AMERICAN TRAITS

AS one travels through the various South Amer-
ican republics, becomes acquainted with their
political and social conditions, reads their literature,
and talks with other American travellers, there are
a number of adverse criticisms that frequently arise.
I shall attempt here to enumerate some of them, to
account for a few, and to compare others with criti-
cisms that were made of the people of the United
States, half a century ago, by a distinguished Eng-
lish visitor.

Although it is true that the historical and geo-
graphical background of the South Americans is
radically different from ours, it is also true that they
have many social and superficial characteristics very
like those which European travellers found in the
United States fifty years ago. The period of time
is not accidental. The South American Republics
secured their independence nearly fifty years later
than we did. Moreover, they have been hampered in
their advancement by natural difficulties and racial
antipathies much more than we have. Although
the conditions of life in the United States, as de-
picted by foreign critics seventy-five years after
the battle of Yorktown, were decidedly worse than
the conditions of life in South America seventy-five

380 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

years after the battle of Ayacucho, the resemblances
between the faults that were found with us fifty
years ago and those that are noticeable among the
South Americans of to-day, are too striking to be
merely coincidences. It is surely not for us to say
that there is anything inherently wrong with our
Southern neighbors if their shortcomings are such
as we ourselves had not long ago, and possibly have
to-day.

The first criticism that one hears, and the first one
Is likely to make after getting beyond the pale of
official good breeding in South America, is that the
manners of the ordinary South Am-erican are very
bad. Lest the traveller be inclined to take such a
state of affairs too seriously, let him read what
Dickens wrote about us and our ways in 1855. It
was a faithful picture of a certain phase of Amer-
ican life. It should be confessed that it paints a
condition of affairs worse than anything I have
seen in South America.

Travellers who are prone to find fault with the
service at South American hotels and restaurants
will enjoy Dickens' description of the dining-room
of a New York boarding-house. "In the further
region of this banqueting-hall was a stove, garnished
on either side with a great brass spittoon. . . . Be-
fore it, swinging himself in a rocking-chair, lounged
a large gentleman with his hat on, who amused him-
self by spitting alternately into the spittoon on the
right hand of the stove, and the spittoon on the left,
and then working his way back again in the same
order. A negro lad in a soiled white jacket was

CERTAIN SOUTH AMERICAN TRAITS 381

busily engaged in placing on the table two long rows
of knives and forks, relieved at Intervals by jugs
of water; and as he travelled down one side of this
festive board, he straightened with his dirty hands,
the dirtier cloth, which was all askew, and had not
been removed since breakfast."

It is indeed hard for us to overlook the table man-
ners of the average South American. But how many
years is it since North Americans were all reading
and conning "Don't! A Guide to Good Manners"?
It is less than a quarter of a century since our self-
conscious use of the fork on all possible (and im-
possible) viands showed that we felt the need of
improvement.

To one Inclined to criticise the speed with which a
company of South Americans will dispose of their
food, let me recommend Dickens' American board-
ing-house table where a "very few words were
spoken ; and everybody seemed to eat his utmost in
self-defence, as if a famine were expected to set in
before breakfast-time to-morrow morning, and it
had become high time to assert the first law of
nature. The oysters, stewed and pickled, leaped
from their capacious reservoirs, and slid by scores
into the mouths of the assembly. The sharpest
pickles vanished; whole cucumbers at once, like
sugar-plums; and no man winked his eye. Great
heaps of indigestible matter melted away as Ice be-
fore the sun. It was a solemn and awful thing to
see. Dyspeptic Individuals bolted their food in
wedges; feeding, not themselves, but broods of night-
mares, who were continually standing at livery

382 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

within them. Spare men, with lank and rigid cheeks,
came out unsatisfied from the destruction of heavy
dishes, and glared with watchful eyes upon the
pastry."

The conversation of a group of young South
Americans is not such as appeals to our taste. There
is usually too much running criticism on the per-
sonal qualities and attractions of their women
acquaintances. To them it seems doubtless most
gallant. At all events, it is not sordid, as was that
conversation which Dickens describes as "summed
up in one word — dollars."

When Dickens visited America, he remarked the
frequency of the expression "Yes, sir" and made a
great deal of fun of us for our use of it. Singularly
enough, the Spanish "Yes sir" — si senor — is so
extremely common throughout South America as
to attract one's attention continually.

Another thing that Dickens noticed was our ten-
dency to postpone and put off from day to day
things that did not have to be done. Yet there is no
more common criticism of Spanish-Americans than
that known as the "Manana" habit. You will hear
almost any one who pretends to know anything at
all about Spanish-America say that the great diffi-
culty is the ease with which the Spanish-American
says "Mafiana." Personally, I do not agree with
this criticism for I have heard the expression very
seldom in South America. It is true that it is hard
to get things done as quickly as one would wish, but
I believe that the criticism has been much over-
worked. Undoubtedly Dickens was honest in re-

CERTAIN SOUTH AMERICAN TRAITS 383

porting that the habit of postponing one's work was
characteristic of the middle west as he saw it, but
it would be greatly resented to-day and would not
be true.

In many South American cities one is annoyed
by the continual handshaking. No matter how
many times a day you meet a man, he expects you
solemnly to shake hands with him just as did those
western Americans who annoyed "Martin Chuzzle-
wit."

So also with "spitting." I have been repeatedly
annoyed, not only in the provinces, but also in the
very highest circles of the most advanced Republics,
by the carelessness of South Americans in this par-
ticular, even at dinner parties. But how many years
is it since "The Last American" was prophetically
depicted by J. A. Mitchell as sitting amid the ruins
of the national Capitol with his feet on the marble
rail, spitting tobacco juice? One can hardly ride in
our street cars to-day without being reminded that
only recently have the majority of Americans put
the ban on spitting. The fact that there are already
printed notices in some of the principal South Amer-
ican cathedrals begging people, in the name of the
local "Anti-Tuberculosis Association," not to spit
on the floor, shows that this unpleasant habit will
undoubtedly be eradicated in considerably less than
fifty years after we have ceased to offend.

We also dislike intensely the South American
habit of staring at strangers and of making audible
comments on ladies who happen to be passing. Un-
fortunately, this is a Latin habit which will be hard

384 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

to change. The South American has a racial right
to look at such customs differently. But if some of
his personal habits are unpleasant, and even dis-
gusting from our point of view, there is no question
that we irritate him just as much as he does us. Our
curt forms of address; our impatient disregard of
the amenities of social intercourse; our unwilling-
ness to pass the time of day at considerable length
and inquire, each time we see a friend, after his
health and that of his family; our habit of elevating
our feet and often sitting in a slouchy attitude when
conversing with strangers, are to him extremely
distasteful and annoying. Our unwillingness to take
the trouble to speak his language grammatically, and
our general point of view in regard to the "innate
superiority" of our race, our language, and our
manufactures, are all evidences, to his mind, of our
barbarity. We care far too little for appearances.
This seems to him boorish. We criticise him because
he does not bathe as frequently as we do. He criti-
cises us because we do not show him proper respect
by removing our hats when we meet him on the
street.

Furthermore, he regards us as lacking in business
integrity. We are too shrewd. Our standard of
honor seems low to him. In fact, a practical obstacle
with which one accustomed to American business
methods has to contend in South America, is the
extreme difficulty of securing accurate information
as to a man's credit. Inquiries into the financial
standing of an individual, which are regarded as a
matter of course with us, are resented by the sensi-

CERTAIN SOUTH AMERICAN TRAITS 385

tive Latin temperament as a personal reflection on
his honesty. It seems to be true that the South
American regards the payment of his debts as a
matter more closely touching his honor than we do.
He is accustomed to receiving long credits; he
always really intends to pay sometime, and he gen-
erally manages to raise installments without much
difficulty. Yet when pressed hard in the courts, he
is likely to turn and resent as an intentional insult
the judgment which has been secured against him.
I have known personally of a case where a debtor
informed his creditor that it would be necessary for
him to come well armed if he accompanied the sheriff
in an effort to satisfy the judgment of the court, for
the first man, and as many more as possible, that
crossed the door of his shop on such an errand would
be shot. This we criticise as defiance of the law.
To the South American, the law has committed an
unpardonable fault in venturing to convict him of
neglecting his honorable debts.

It is unfortunate that the South Americans them-
selves are generally quite unaware of their failings
— a species of blindness that has frequently been
laid at our own doors. It is due to a similar cause.

South American writers who have travelled abroad
and seen enough to enable them to point out the
defects of their countrymen rarely venture to do so.
The South American loves praise but cannot endure
criticism. It makes him fairly froth at the mouth,
as it did the Americans in the days of Charles Dick-
ens' first visit. So the pleasant-faced gentleman
from Massachusetts, Mr. Bevan, told young Martin

386 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

Chuzzlewit. *'If you have any knowledge of our
literature, and can give me the name of any man,
American born and bred, who has anatomized our
follies as a people, and not as this or that party ; and
has escaped the foulest and most brutal slander, the
most inveterate hatred and intolerant pursuit, it
will be a strange name in my ears, believe me. In
some cases, I could name to you, where a native
writer has ventured on the most harmless and good-
humoured illustrations of our vices or defects, it
has been found necessary to announce, that in
a second edition the passage has been expunged,
or altered, or explained away, or patched into
praise."

There is a story in Santiago de Chile of a young
American scholar who spent some time there study-
ing localisms. When he returned to New York he
ventured to publish honest but rather severe criti-
cisms of society, as he saw it, in that most aristo-
cratic of South American republics. As a result, the
university from which he came received a bad name
in Chile and his visit is held in such unpleasant
memory that his welcome, were he to return there,
would be far from friendly. This seems narrow-
minded and perverse but Is exactly the way we felt
not long ago towards foreigners who spent a/^w
months in the States and wrote, for the benefit of
the European public, sincere but caustic criticisms.
American sensitiveness became a byword in Europe.
Possibly it is growing less with us. However that
may be. South American sensitiveness Is no keener
to-day than ours was fifty years since.

CERTAIN SOUTH AMERICAN TRAITS 387

I am willing to admit that it ill becomes an Amer-
ican to offer serious adverse criticisms of the people
of any country. Our own defects have been so re-
peatedly pointed out by foreigners, many of them
with distressing unanimity, that we cannot afford
to set ourselves up as judges of what South Ameri-
cans should or should not do. It is true that the
South Americans have certain graces of manner
which we lack. They are more formal in their social
intercourse, and use more of the oil of polite speech
in the mechanism of their daily life than we do.

Climatic conditions and difhculties of rapid trans-
portation have had much to do with the backward-
ness of the South American republics. With the
progress of science, the great increase in transporta-
tion facilities and the war that is being successfully
waged against tropical diseases, a change is coming
about which we must be ready to meet.

It is particularly important that we should realize
that the political conditions of the larger republics
are very much more stable than our newspaper and
novel -reading public are aware of. Lynchings are
unheard of. Serious riots, such as some of our largest
American cities have seen within the past genera-
tion, are no more common with them than with us.
It : true that the Latin temperament finds it much
more difficult to bow to the majesty of the law and
to yield gracefully to governmental decrees than the
more phlegmatic Teuton or Anglo-Saxon. But the
revolutions and riots that Paris has witnessed dur-
ing the past century have not kept us from a serious
effort to increase our business with France. The

388 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

occasional political riot that takes place, of no more
significance than the riots caused by strikers with
which we are all too familiar at home, is no reason
why we should be afraid to endeavor to capture the
South American market.

There is not the slightest question that there is a
great opportunity awaiting the American manu-
facturer and exporter when he is willing to grasp
it with intelligent persistence and determination.
South America is ready to take American goods
in very large quantities as soon as we are ready to
take time to give attention to her needs. As Mr.
Lincoln Hutchinson aptly says: "There is no quick
and easy remedy ; money must be spent, thoroughly
equipped export managers must be employed, ex-
port houses specializing on South American trade
must be established, efficient travellers must be
sent out, technical experts employed, agencies estab-
lished, credits be given, minutiae of orders attended
to, and, above all, trade connections adhered to in
spite of allurements of the home market, if we would
succeed in the face of our competitors. Halfway
measures can accomplish but little, and that only
temporary."

Germany teaches her young business men Span-
ish or Portuguese and sends them out to learn con-
ditions in the field. American Universities long
ago learned the advantage of adopting Germany's
thorough-going methods of scientific research. Amer-
ican business men have hitherto failed to realize the
importance of adopting Germany's thorough-going
methods of developing foreign commerce. It is high

CERTAIN SOUTH AMERICAN TRAITS 389

time that they took a leaf out of the experience of
the "unpractical" universities.

Finally, a word of caution to those in search of
information regarding the history, politics, or geo-
graphy of South America. The most unfortunate
result of the seven centuries during which Arab,
Moorish, or Mohammedan rule dominated a part
or the whole of the Spanish peninsula, is the truly
Oriental attitude which the Spanish and the Span-
ish-American maintains towards reliable informa-
tion, or what we call "facts."

The student of the East realizes that Orientals,
including Turks and Celestials, have no sense of the
importance of agreeing with fact. They have fur-
thermore a great abhorrence of a vacuum. If they
do not know the reply to a question they answer
at random, preferring anything to the admission of
ignorance. If they do know, and have no interest
in substituting something else for what they know,
they give the facts. When they have no facts they
give something else. They not only deceive the
questioner, they actually deceive themselves.

The same thing is true to a certain degree in South
Americans. Sometimes I have thought they were
actually too polite to say "I don't know."

In South America as in the East it is of primitive
importance to reach the men who know and to pay
no attention to any one else. No one really knows,
who Is not actually on the spot In contact with the
facts. The prudent observer must avoid all evidence
that Is not first hand and derived from a trust-
worthy source.

390 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

I do not bring this as a charge against the South
Americans. I state it as a condition which I have
found to be neariy universally true. So far as the
South Americans are concerned, it is an inherited
trait and one which they are endeavoring to over-
come. They are not to be blamed for having it, any
more than we are to be blamed for having inherited
traits from our Anglo-Saxon ancestors which are un-
pleasant to our Latin neighbors and for which they
have to make allowance in dealing with us.

In offering these adverse criticisms of the South
American as he appears to me to-day, I must beg
not to be misunderstood. There are naturally many
exceptions to the rule. I know personally many
individuals that do not have any of the character-
istics here attributed to South Americans in general.
I have in mind one South American, a resident of a
much despised republic, whose ancestors fought in
one of the great battles of the Wars of Independence,
who has as much push and energy as a veritable New
York captain of industry. He has promoted a num-
ber of successful industrial enterprises. He keeps up
with the times; he meddles not in politics; he enjoys
such sports as hunting with hounds and riding across
country. The difference between him and the New
Yorker is that he speaks three or four languages
where the New Yorker only speaks one and he has
sense enough to take many holidays in the year
where the New Yorker takes but few. I know an-
other, a distinguished young lawyer who gives din-
ner parties where the food is as good, the manners as
refined, the conversation as brilliant, and the intel-

CERTAIN SOUTH AMERICAN TRAITS 391

lectual enjoyment as keen as any given anywhere.
He, too, speaks four languages fluently and could
put to shame the average New York lawyer of his
own age in the variety of topics upon which he is
able to converse, not only at his ease but brilliantly
and with flashes of keen wit. I know another, a dis-
tinguished historian, who has been described by a
well-known American librarian, himself a member
of half a dozen learned societies, as the "most schol-
arly and most productive" bibliographer in either
North or South America. But these are exceptions
to the general rule.

When we look at South Americans at close range
we may dislike some of their manners and customs,
but not any more so than European critics disliked
ours half a century ago. And not any more so, be it
remembered, than the South American dislikes ours
at the present day.

In this chapter and, in fact, throughout the book,
I must confess to having spoken more frankly and
critically than will please some of my kind friends
in South America. Although they placed me under
many obligations by their generous hospitality , I
feel that it is better for all concerned that the truth
should be told, even when it is unpleasant. We can-
not have confidence unless we have facts. I cannot
pretend to have succeeded in always finding the
facts, but it has not been for lack of endeavor. I have
had no interest in concealing anything favorable
or unfavorable which I thought would make the
picture clearer or more distinct. Were we not already
deluged with so much official propaganda, it would

392 ACROSS SOUTH AMERICA

have been my privilege to tell more of the wonderful
natural resources which all the South American
republics possess. But just because it has not been
the business of "boosters" or promoters to adver-
tise difficulties or obstacles to progress, it becomes
the more necessary for the unprejudiced traveller to
lay more stress on the existing human handicaps,
than on the wonderful natural resources. It is an
unpleasant task, but I believe it is worth doing. I
have no patience with those writers who paint every-
thing in glowing colors and leave others to discover
the truth at their own expense. Nor have I any
sympathy with those who distort or emphasize dis-
agreeable truths for the sake of creating a sensation.
I will, however, plead guilty to being a prejudiced
observer in so far as I am an ardent advocate of
closer and more intelligent relations between the
United States and the South American republics,
and a firm believer in the truth that international
friendships, in order to be lasting, must be built on
an honest understanding of prevailing conditions
and racial tendencies.

INDEX

Abancay, 289, 290, 295, 324.
Acobamba, 365, 370.
Aconcagua, 218.
Aconcawa, 159.
Acostambo, 369.
Agave plant, 71, 286,
Aguardiente, 326.
Alcaldes, Indian, 284, 365.
Alfa. See Alfalfa.
Alfalfa, 77, 84, 100, 108, 159.
Allorisma subcuneata, 369.
Almagro, 263, 351.
Almanza, Emiliano, 320.

, J. Antonio, 320.

, Luis E., 320.

Alpacas, 137, 161.
Alto de La Paz, 228.
Amazon, 139, 240, 297, 318.
American^TTi LaTaz, 239.
Americans in South America, 10,
, 13-15, 24, 26-28, 29, 32, 39-40,

62, 182, 241, 388.
Amphitheatre, Inca, 278.
Ancacato, 162.
Ancon, Treaty of, 206.
Andahuaylas, 329-335.
Anderson, Geo. E., 28.
Andines. See Terraces.
Angosta de Tupiza, 87.
Angrand, M., 320.
Anta, plain of, 283-285.
Antis, 318.

Antofagasta, 170-175, 201-2.
Antofagasta Railway, 88, 92, 170.
Aniline dyes, 262.
Animal Industries, 37-39.
Apurimac, 285, 291, 297, 325,

368, 370.
, bridge over, 288.

Apurimac, rapids of, 293.

, valley of the, 318, 321.

Aramayo, Senor, 90.
Araucanians, 192, 357, 358.
Architect, Jesuit, 325.
Architecture, Inca, 260, 311.
Arequipa, 215-224.
Argentina, 30-82 and passim.
Arica, 187, 205-209.
Armadillo, 234.
Art School of Chile, 192.
Ascarrunz, Dr. Moises, 166.
Ascotan, 173.
Atacama, 78.
Atahualpa, 280, 358.
Auquibamba, 325-26.
Automobiles, 18, 25, 31, 33, 36.
Ayacucho, 108, 144, 321, 324,

346-351. 360.

, battle of, 281, 325, 350-355-

Ayala, Alejandro, ix.
Ayamaras, 145, 152-154. 163,

169, 232, 249, 255, 268.
Ayavari, 255.
Ayoayo, 246.
Ayoma, battle of, 162.
Azequia, 312, 314.

Bahia, 10-15.

Bahia Blanca, 31, 63.

Ballivian, Sr. Don Manuel Vi-
cente, 252.

Balmaceda, Pres., 173, 179, 209.

Balsas, 226, 235.

"Baltimore" episode, 209.

Bamboo pipes, 361.

Banco Nacional de Bolivia, 145.

Bandelicr, Professor Ad. F., 218,
226, 227, 233, 334.

396

INDEX

Banks and Banking, 145; in Are-
quipa, 217; Argentina, 39-40;
Brazil, 31-32; La Paz, 237;
Tupiza, 88.

Banquets, Peruvian, 331, 337,
356.

Barbour, Thos., 252.

Barley straw, 84, 159, 284, 366.

Barros Arana, Diego, 191.

Bartolo, 135, 252.

Beazley, J. B., ix.

Beer, 335, 372.

Beggars' Fair in Cuzco, 264.

Begonias, 290, 297, 326.

Belgrano, 48, 67.

Beni, valley of the, 239, 240.

Bibliographer, 391.

Billiards, 119, 166.

Birds, no, 175, 202.

Biscachas, 246.

Blanco River, 286.

"Blind Man's Guide." See El
Lazarillo.

Bogota, 35, 47, 196, 223.

Bola, 315.

Bolivar, General Simon, 50, 52,
118, 144.

Bolivia, 49, 56, 57, 73, 79, 83,
and passim.

Bolivia Railway, ix.

Bolivian Andes, climbing and ex-
ploration in the, 249.

Bolivian army, 89, 104.

customs service, 85.

Government, 79, 92.

National Museum, 252.

paper currency, 114.

physician, 116.

Bombon, 341.

de Bonelli, Hugh, 200.

Book shops, 168, 178-79, 191.

Brazil, chapters I and II, 42, and
passim.

Brazil, trade of, 10, 14, 20, 24-28.

British enterprises in Bolivia, 165.

Broom flower, 286.

Bryce, Rt. Hon. James, 233.
Bubonic plague, 210, 214.
Buenos Aires, 30-45, 60, 72, 73,

and passim; foreign trade of,

68; history of, 46-51.
Buenos Aires and Rosario R. R.,

ix, 61, 69.
Bulimulus, 342.
Business methods, 384.

Caceres, Lieutenant, vii, 289, 293,

298, 303. 305. 345.
Cachimayo, 140.
Cachipascana, 224.
Cacho, Don Gaspar Mauro, 348.
Cachora, 297.

Cactus, 77, 86, 95, 341, 364.
Caisa, 112.
Calama, 173.
Calancha, Father, 322.
Caldera, 177, 202.
Calera, 140.
Callao, 109.

Camacho, General, 138.
Camargo, 100.
Caracara, 151.
Caracas, 35.
Caras of Ecuador, 273.
Carnival balloons, 355.
Carnival season, 346, 350-353,

360-363.
Caroline Islands, 206, 275. j

Casa Nacional de Moneda, 129.
Castelnau, 143.
Castilla, President, 320.
Castillo, 296, 298, 305.
Cattle, 37, 38, 152, 334, 364.
Ccapac, Manco, 322.
Cebada. See barley straw.
Central America, 42.
Cerro de Pasco, 3, 373, 374.
Chachani, Mt., 217.
Chaco, 70, 78, 131, 139, 165.
Chaile, Fermin, 109, 164, and

passim.
Challabama, 285.

INDEX

397

Challapata, 145, 158, 162, 163,

172.
Challoma, 150.
Chavez, Lopez, ix.
Checcacupe, 254, 256.
Chibchas of Bogota, 232.
Chicha, 134, 153, 246, 347, 350,

354. 361, 372.
Chicherias, 134, 256.
Children's Sunday in La Paz, 233.
Chile, 40, 42, 51, 57, 58, 179, 181,

330, and passim.
Chile and Brazil, 185.
Chile and Peru, 357.
Chilean and Peruvian engineers,

125.
Chilean character, 204.

hospitality, 187.

navy, 200.

Chileans, 124.

of to-day, 358.

Chincha Islands, 204.

Chincheros, 335-341-

Chincona plants, 146.

Chocolate, 147, 156.

Chola, 235.

Choqquequirau, 291-323.

Chorolque, lOO.

Chucuito, 334.

Chulpas, 164.

Chunchas, 318.

Chuno, no,

Chupe, III, 126, 128, 350.

Chuquisaca, 143.

Cinti, 100.

Cisneros, Mariano, 320.

Civil Engineers, 242, 270-71, 369,

375; 387.
Clausilia, 342.
Coal-beds, 369.

Coca, 107, 126, 127, 153, 235, 248.
Cochabamba, 170, 248.
Cochran, Thos. Earl of Dundon-

ald, 51, 200.
Cock fight, 213.
Cocoa, 14, 107.

CoflFee, 21, 23, 24.

Coins and coinage of Bolivia, 88,

128, 238; Brazil, 25; Peru, 145,

146, 213; Uruguay, 30.
Colombia, 147, 378.
Colpahuayo, 345.
Colquechaca, 157, 165.
Commerce. See Trade.
Commercial houses, British, in

Valparaiso, 199.
Commercial prosperity in Chile,

199.
Commercial travellers, 9.
Condor, 305. •

Condorkanqui, 346, 353.
"Conquest of Peru" — Prescott,

205.
Convents in Potosi, 129.
Conway, Sir Martin, 249.
Coiiac, 355.

Cook, Capt. James, 276.
Copacavana, 226, 227.
Copper-ore, 205.
Copper smelters, 370,
Coquimbo, 177, 201-02.
Coracora, 235.
Corapuna. See Koropuna.
Corcovado, 21.

Cordillera de los Frailes, 163-64.
Cordillera Real, 248.
Corn, in Potosi, 128.

parched, 254, 371.

Corrugated iron, 70.

Cosmos, 326.

Costume, Quichua, 262.

Cotagaita, IOO-2.

Cotton, 14.

Covadonga, 53.

"Cradle of Gold," 319.

Creveaux, 139.

Criticisms of Americans, 379, 387.

Crucero Alto, 224.

Cuchu Ingenio, 112.

Curahuasi, 289.

Currency of Chile, 199.

of Peru, 213.

398

INDEX

Custom Houses, in Argentina, 31 ;

Bolivia, 88; Brazil, 7, 9, 20, 21;

Peru, 212.
Cuzco, 205, 233, 251, 255, 258-

282, 309, 318; elevation of, 272;

university of, 268, 269.
Cuzco and Lima, 288.

Dall, Dr., 342.
Dasypus vellurosus, 234.
Dentists in South America, 270.
Desaguadero River, 164, 246.
Desert of Arequipa, 215.
Dickens, Charles, 380, 385.
Discovery of silver at Potosi, 121.
Diseases, tropical, 387.
Dishes, silver, 147.
Dixon, Prof. Roland B., 323,
Dolls of Sucre, 147.
"Don Mariano," 293, 301.
Doorways, monolithic, 249, 251.
Drug store in Potosi, 127.
Drums at Carnival, 361.
Dry season, the, 84; cf. Rainy

season.
Duck, 227.
Durand, Dr., 220.
Dutch in Brazil, 5-6.

Earthquakes in Arequipa, 216.

Easter Island, 276.

Ecuador, 57, 339.

Education of South American

youth, 269.
Electric car, 182.

Railways, 370.

R. R. of La Paz, 230.

"El Lazarillo," 60, iii, 170.
"Elzevir" Press of Santiago, 190.
English in Argentina, 31-33, 43-

44, 47-48, 62, 64; Bolivia, 124,

239; Brazil, 4, 8, 20, 23-26;

Chile, 179, 193, 199-200.
Escara, 100, 104.
Estarca, 86.
Estero Patino, 139.

Estrella, La, 287.
Eucalyptus trees, 61.
Exhibition, fine arts, 192.
"Exploration of the Valley of the

Amazon," — Gibbon, 288.
Exposition, National, of Brazil,

16, 19-20.
Eyre, W. S., viii.

Ferdinand and Isabella, 54.

Ferdinand VII. of Spain, 48.

Fermin. See Chaile.

Fern, 151.

Fincas, 141.

Firemen, volunteer, of Santiago,

188.
Fireworks, 338.
Fish, 175.

Flute, Ayamara, 234.
Folding-cots, 218.
Fortifications, Inca, 273.
Fortress, Inca, 274, 286, 310.
Fossils, 369.
Franco, Sr. A., ix.
French, in Argentina, 61 ; Bolivia,

124; Brazil, 4, 17, 20, 31, 61;

South America, 124.
Fruit, in Argentina, 73; Bolivia,

246.
Furs, 199.

Gables in Inca houses, 309, 313.
Games of chance, 235-36.
Garcia, Marcos, 322.
Garcilasso de la Vega, 259, 275.
Gastelu, Don Juan, 321.
Gauchos, 67, 72.
Geranium, 151.
German-Americans, 167.
German business methods, 96,

388.

Club of Oruro, 166.

Germans, in Argentina, 43-62;

Brazil, 4, 7, 20, 27, 31; Chile,

193.
Goats, 70, 75, 97, no.

INDEX

399

Gobernador of Chincheros, 335;
Huancarama, 328; Quinua,
351; Talavera, 333, 335, Tam-
billo, 343, 344; Yscuchaca, 368,

Grace & Co., W. R., viii, ix, 231.

Gran Chaco. See Chaco.

Grapes, no.

Grinding stones, 308.

Guamanga, 350-51.

Guanay, 239.

Guano, 203-4.

Guaqui, 252, 254.

Guemes Gral., 72.

Guinea pig, 84, no, 143, 160.

Guitars, 156, 234.

Gulls, 160.

Hail, 158, 345.

Hand loom, 134.

Hanna, Rea, ix, 203.

Harness, 285.

Harp, 347, 361.

Harvard Observatory at Are-

quipa, 216.
Hats, 146, 263.

Hay, Clarence, ix, 257, 300, 302.
Head-gear, women's, 350.
Heliotrope, 286.
Herford, Oliver, 127.
Hispanic Race, 53-56.
Historian, South American, 391.
Hope, John Pierce, ix, 251.
Horse racing, 36.
Horses, 37, no, 152, 326.
Hospitality, Bolivian, 231.
Hotels, in Arequipa, 217; Aya-

cucho, 347; Buenos Aires, 34;

Challapata, 217; Cuzco, 261;

Huancayo, 371, 373; Jujuy, 7^-

74; La Paz, 231 ; La Quiaca, 78;

Lima, 376 ; Mollendo, 214 ;

Montevideo, 29 ; Oruro, 166;

Pernambuco, 8 ; Potosi, 115, 125;

Rio de Janeiro, 18; Santiago,

182; South America, 380; Sucre,

142; Tupiza, 89-90.

Huadquifia, 320.
Huancarama, 327.
Huancavelica, 369.
Huancayo, 369-372.
Huanchaca, 164.
Huanta, 362-63.
Huarocondo, 284.
Huarpa River, 363.
Huatanay River, 257-58.
Humahuaca, 77.
Humidity, 70, 306.
Hutcheon, Don Santiago, ix, 80.
Hutchinson, Lincoln, 28, 388.

Ice cream, 331.
Iglehart, D. S., ix.
Ilo, 210.

Images, monolithic, 249.
Inca Empire, 318, 258.

palaces, 261.

roads, 283.

Rocca, 259.

stairway, 312.

stonework, 259.

stucco, 310, 311.

Tambos, 149.

"Inca Thrones," 278.

vases, 279.

Viracocha, 276.

Incas, 84, 130, 206, 291, 307-323,

357, and passim.
Incahuasy, near Tambobamba,

318;
Ingenios in Potosi, 124.
Iquique, 201, 202, 205.
Iris, yellow, 288.
Irrigation, 77, 84, 100, IIO, 343.
"Islands of Titicaca and Koati,"

the, 334.
Islay, 211.
Italians in Argentina, 31-34, 45,

67, 72; in Brazil, 4, 20.
Itaparica, il.

Jail in Cuzco, 267.
in La Paz, 238.

400

INDEX

Jar, earthen-ware, 315.
Jauja, 373; valley of, 371.
Jesuit church, 265; in Arequipa,

218; in Potosi, 126.
Jesuits, 332.

Jockey Club of Buenos Aires, 35.
Johnson, Rankin, ix, 249.
"Jornal do Comercio," 22.
Jujuy, 69, 72-74.
Juliaca, 225, 254.
Juramento, 72.

Kari Kari, battlefield of, 132.
Kirkham, Mr., 372.
Koati, 226.
Koropuna, Mt., 218.
Kusaie, Island of, 206, 275.

"La Corona," incident of, 187,
208.

"La Estrella," 287, 320.

"La Glorieta," 141.

Laja Tambo, 113.

"La Nacion," 34.

Lantanas, 286.

La Paz, 145, 170, 228-240.

La Plata, 143.

La Plata, National University of,
38.

"La Prensa," 34, 338.

La Quiaca, 69, 78, 82, 172.

La Raya, 255.

La Serena, 202, 28 1, 341, 355.

Latin-American Scientific Con-
gress, 183.

Lautaro, 357.

Lavandais, E. de, 320.

Lawyers in South America, 270,
390.

Leguia, A. B., Pres. of Peru, viii,
294.331.376.

Lele, 275.

Leon, 75.

Leon, Marcelino, 319.

Letona family, 325.

Liberal party in Peru, 221.

Lima, 35, 47, 49, 51, 56, 73, 196,

369. 376, 378.
Limari, str., 200, 201, 210.
Limatambo, 286.
Liniers, 47.

Lircay, valley of, 365, 367.
Lisbon, 14.
Livichuco, 160.
Lizards, 157, 202.
Llama drivers, 156.
Llamas, 77, no, 113, 115, 133,

149, 155-161, 255, 326, 331,

367-

in Potosi, 117, 126.

Locusts, 61, 70, 325.
Lombardy poplars, 332.
Lomellini, Sr. C, 263, 279.
Los Neques, 346.
Lotto, 236.
Lupins, 297, 326.

Mac, 94, loi.

Macha, 158.

Mackenna Vicuna, B., 191.

Madre de Dios, river, 240.

Magellan, straits of, 179.

Maimara, 76.

Maipo, 51.

Maize, no.

Malaria, 341.

Mamore, river, 139.

Manaos, 240.

Manco Capac, 263, 279.

Mantaro River, 368-371.

"Maiiana" habit, 382.

Marcas, 364.

Marcavalle, 370.

Markham, Sir Clements, 146, 267,

276.
"Martin Chuzzlewit," 383, 386.
Martinelli, Don Federico, 325.
Matan, 71.
Matara, 345.
May, the 25th of, 46-48.
Medanos, 215.
Medical School in Santiago, 168.

INDEX

401

Medicines, 127.

Medina, Jose Toribio, 189-190.

Mejia, 215.

Mendoza, 51.

Merchandise, foreign, 326.

Merino, Capt. Louis, ix.

"Mexican Trails," 372.

Mexico, 41, 42.

Mexico steamer, 174.

Military Academy, Chilean, 194.

Milk, condensed, 153.

Miller, General Wm., 117, 355.

Mimosa trees, 71, 72,95,300,341,

364-
Miners at Potosi, 122.
Mines, copper, 173.

of Cerro de Pasco, 373.

Mines, gold, 173; silver, 157, 164,

169, 173; tin, 123, 169. '
Mint in Pofosi, 129.
Misti, 217.
Mitchell, J. A., 383.
Mitre Bartolome, 191.
Mogrovejo Pio, 320.
Mojo, 84.

MoUendo, 175, 210-214.
MoUepata, 286, 320.
Monasteries, 129; Dominican,

259; Franciscan, 219, 220, 265.
Monobamba, 335.
Monroe Doctrine, 42-43.
"Monroe Palace," 19.
Montes, Pres. of Bolivia, 242, 287.
Montevideo, 29, 30.
Montt, Pres. Pedro of Chile, viii,

194.
Moromoro, 150.
Moses, Professor Bernard, 183.
Mosquitoes, 341.
Mountain sickness, 113, 165.
Mules, no, 134, 149, 281, 326,

342, 360, 372, and passim.
"Mur triomphal," 321.

Napoleon, 48.

National Bank of Bolivia, 88.

National Bank of Francisco Ar-
gondaiio, 88.

National City Bank of New York,
242.

Negroes in South America, 13.

Nevada of Chillihua, 331.

Newspapers in Rio, 22; Buenos
Aires, 34; Tupiza, 90.

New York Herald, 338-340.

Niches, Inca, 310, 311.

Nictheroy, 16.

Nitrate Association, 203.

Nitrates, Chilean, 173, 202-205.

"North Americans," 40-43, 381.

North Central Railway of Argen-
tina, 69.

Notre Dame University, 130.

Novoa, C. A., ix.

Nunez, J. J., vii, 290.

Oahu, 341.

Ocros, 344.

Ocuri, 152.

Oddo, the hotel, 182.

O'DriscoIl, Mr., 75.

Olinda, 5.

Ollaneta, General, 108.

Ollantaytambo, 284, 309, 318.

Ollawe, volcano of, 172.

"O Paiz," 22.

Oranges, 326.

Oropeza, 258.

Oroya, 369, 371, 374.

Oruro, 79, 80, 162, 164-172, 241,

245. 248.

climate of, 166.

population of, 170.

Oruro-Antofagasta Line, 79, 173.

Pachacamac, 252, 312.

Pachachaca, 325.

Pacific Steam Navigation

174.
Paintings, religious, 252.
Pajonal, 343.
Pampa de Islay, 215.

Co.,

402

INDEX

Pampa Tambo, 138.
Pampas, the Argentine, 62-66.
Pampas River, 341, 370.
Pan-American, railway, 76, 369;

Scientific Congresfe,i83; Union,

viii.
Pan de Sucre, 248.
Paraguay, 50, 139.
Paraguay River, 139.
Paramo, 329, 335, 345, 367.
Parana River, 63, 139.
Parodi Brothers, 343.
Parrots, 284, 288.
Patagonia, 63.
Paucara, 366.
Paucartambo, 318.
Paz Soldan, 322.
Peaches, 219.
Pears, 246.
Peas, 219.

Pederneiras, Col. A. de, ix.
Pernambuco, 3-10, 14.
Peru, 42, 49-52, 57, 21 1-224, 254-

378, and passim.
Peru, Upper, 73, 86, 143, 144.
Peruvian Corporation, ix.
Peruvian engineers, 125.
Petticoats of Quichuas, 147.
Physicians in Bolivia, 168; South

America, 270.
Pianos, 287.
Pigs, no, 152.

Pilcomayo, 78, 100, 137, 139,140.
Pilsbry, Dr. H. A., 342.
Pincos River, 329.
Pine, Oregon, 242.
Pino Toranzo, Arturo, ix.
Pisac, 310, 318.
Pisagua, 205.
Pisculco, 150.
Pizarro, 106, 259, 280, 351, 358;

followers of, viii, 260; remains

of, 377-
Plata, Juan Manuel Rivas, 320.
Plums, 219.
Pneumonia, 167.

Polo, 203.

Ponchos, 327, 372.

Ponchos, vicuna, 234, 333.

Pongora River, 352.

Poopo, lake, 161, 164.

Popcorn, 354.

Poplar trees, 332.

Pork, 371.

Portenos, 34, and passim.

Portuguese in Brazil, 5, 7, 8, 20,

46.
Postes, 99, 104, 149, and passim.
Postilions, 104, 136, 137, 149, 159.
Potatoes, no; in Potosi, 128.
Potosi, 73, 79, 92, 100, 112, 115-

133, 169,233,252, 33«; Cerroof,

115, 120; La Paz and Peruvian

Mining Association, 61 ; stage,

109.
Pottery, 308, 312, 316.
Prescott's "Conquest of Peru,"

205.
Prices, in Santos, 23; Buenos

Aires, 33; Montevideo, 30;

Tupiza, 89.
Prince and Princess of Glorieta,

141.
Prison. See Jail.

Projection, cylindrical stone, 313.
Pucara River, 255, 371.
Pucyura, 322.
Pulque, 372.
Punilla, 149.
Puno, 112, 225, 254.
Punta, 371.
Puquiura, 283.

"Quand L'Amour Meurt," 287.

Quebracho, 70-71.

Quebrada Honda, 138,

Quichua garments, 128.

Quichua tongue, 266.

Quichuas, 84, 86, 95, 98, 104-108,
124, 130, 153-54. 232, 255, 267,
268, 277, 287, 317, 348, 357.

Quinoa, 100, no.

INDEX

403

Quinta Normal, 192.
Quinua, 351, 352.
Quirve, 104, 108, 109.

Railroads, in Argentina, 32, 61-
79; Bolivia, 79-80, 164-65,170-
74, 225, 227, 230, 241, 249, 252;
Brazil, 8, 9, 21, 23; Chile, 170-
74, 178, 179, 205, 208; Peru,
206, 211,215, 216, 224-25, 254-
58, 370. 372-76; Uruguay, 30.

Raimondi, 321, 322.

Rainy season, in Bolivia, 84, 87,
138, 240; Peru, 282.

Recife (Pernambuco), 4-10.

Redwood, California, 242.

Restaurants in South America,
380.

Revolutions, 68, 222.

Riberalta, 240.

Rio Bebribe, 7.

Rio de Janeiro, 16-22.

Rio de la Plata, 31, 37, 46, 56,
160.

Rio Piedras, 71.

Riots, 387.

Rivas, Rafael, 109.

Rodadero, 278.

Rodriguez, Dr. J. C, 22.

Romero, Carlos A., 323.

Roosevelt, President, 331.

Root, Ehhu, viii, 183.

Rosario, 31, 63.

Roses, 151, 337.

Rowe, Leo S., viii, 183.

Rua Ouvidor, 19.

Rubber, 24.

Ruins, 115, 121, 250, 272, 291,
307, and passim.

Ruis de los Llanos, 70.

Rurrenabaque, 239.

Sacsahuaman, 206, 263, 272-279.

Salta, 72.

Salvia, 290.

Samanez, Jose Benigno, 320.

San Antonio, Port, 240.

Sand-dunes, crescent shaped, 215.

Sandstone, 366.

San Geronimo, 258, 329.

San Martin, Jose de, 50-52, 155,

200.
San Pedro, 227.
San Sebastian, 258.
Santa Fe, 66.
Santa Lucia, 181.
Santiago, Chile, 35, 47, 180-196,

386.
Santiago del Estero, 66.
Santo Domingo, Convent of, 258.
Santos, 22-23.
Sao Paulo, 21, 23, 25.
Sapallauga, 371.
Saracocha, 224.
Sargantay, Mt., 290, 304, 320.
Sarmiento, 66.
Saropalca, no.
Sartiges, Eugene de, 319.
Schaefer, J. Louis, viii.
Schmidt, Emilio, 338-340.
School, Manual Training, 192.
School of Mines in Potosi, 130.
Schools, Public, 97, 154.
Schuchert, Prof. Chas., 369.
Scots in South America, 4.
Sea-lions, 175, 202.
Shawl-pins, 294.
Sheep, 37, 75, 137, 161, 334, 364,

366.
Shells, land, 341.
Shepherd, Wm. R., 183.
Sicuani, 255.
Siesta, 326.
Silver. See Mines.
Silversmiths, 147.
Singing of Quichua women, 354.
Skulls, 316.

Skulls, Deformation of, 246, 317.
Slate, 313.
Sleet, 345.

Sling of llama wool, 156.
Smallpox, 210, 214; in Rio, 18.

404

INDEX

Smelters in Bolivia, 112, 115, 124.

Smith, Emilio, 338-340.

Smith, Huntington, Jr., ix, 61,

257.

Smith, U. S. Grant, ix.

Snow, 112, 335, 345, 367.

Snyder, A. G., ix.

Sorata, 239.

Soray, Mt., 304, 320.

Soroche, 113, 143, 165, 376.

Sotomayor, 192.

South Americans, characteris-
tics of, 52; manners of, 379,
391.

Spain, 53-55.

Spanish Armies, 67, 144, 354.

Spanish in South America, 12, 29,
33, 45-52, 61, 67.

Speyer & Co., 242.

Spindle wheel, 312.

"Spitting," 383.

Sport, 214.

Squier, E. G., 251, 259, 261, 342.

Stage coach, 83.

Steamers, Atlantic, 3, 6, 10, 17,
26, 29-31, 44; Chilean, 200-
203; Lake Titicaca, 227; West
Coast, 175-177.

Stewards, Chilean, 176.

Stone, cylindrical blocks of, 311.

Stone-cutting, game of, 278.

Succotash, 347.

Sucre, city of, 108, 112, 133, 142-
148, 158, 248.

Sucre, General A. J., 52, 108, 144,

325, 341, 352, 354-
Sugar, 5, 9, 14, 156, 290.
Sugar-cane, 66, 286, 290, 295, 325,

343-
Suipacha, 85.
Sulphur springs, iii, 134.
Sweet potatoes, 302.

Tablachaca, 368.

Tacna, 187, 206-209, 330.

Talavera, 330, 334.

Talcahuano, 178.

Tambillo, 346.

Tambo River, 215.

Tambobamba, 318.

Tambos, 99, 149.

Taraco, peninusla of, 226.

Tarija, 86.

Tea, 125.

Tejada, Jose Maria de, 319.

Temperature, 98, 113, 143, 178,

366.
Temple, Edmund, 61, 76, 144,

228.
Temple of the Sun, 258.
Tenientes, Indian, 284.
Tennis, 203.

Terraces, no, 307, 313, 315.
Textiles, 252.
Theatres, 34-35.
Thompson, paymaster, 276.
Tiahuanaco, 228, 249-253.
Ties from Oregon, 225.
Tigre River, 62.
Tin. See Mines.
Tiquina, straits of, 227.
Titicaca, island of, 226, 334.
Titicaca, Lake^ 86, 164, 224-227,

249, 310.
Tobacco, 14.

Tombs, ancient, 164, 246, 315.
"Tonquinoise," 287.
Toropalca, ill.
Totora, 99.
Toys, Ayamara, 234; German,

372.
Trade and commerce, 10, 14, 20,

24-28, 38-39, 46, 127, and pas-
sim.
Trade Routes, 49, 60, 73, 93, 239-

240, 280.
Trancapata River, 289.
Transportation, difficulties of,

387.
Treasure-seekers, 250, 292, 308,

321.
Tres Cruccs, 77.

INDEX

405

Tucuman, 66-69, 73.
Tucuman Express, 64.
Tumusla River, 108.
Tunja, 148.

Tupac Amaru, 106, 266.
Tupiza, 79-80, 87-92, 100, 172,
338.

Ucayali, 297.

United States and Peru, 209,

337-
Uquia, 77.

Uribe, General Uribe, 195.
Urubamba, 284-85, 320.
Uruguay, 29-30.
Urumyosi, 366.
Uspallata Pass, 51, 57.
Uyuni, 80, q2, lOO, 172.

Vaca de Castro, 351.
Valparaiso, 178, 179, 198-201,
Vargas, Moises, ix.
Velarde, Don Lino, 218.
Venezuela, 56, 57, 70, 378.
Ventilla, 228.
Viachi, 241-42, 248.
Vicuna Ponchos, 234, 327.
Vicufias, 159, 160, 172, 246.
Vilcabamba, 322.
Vilcanota Mts., 255.
Vilcanota River, 256, 257.
Vilcapujio, 162.
Villazon, Pres. of Bolivia, viii.
Vineyards, 181.
Viracocha, 276, 310, 351.

"Virgins of the Sun," 314.
Viscachani, 246.
Volcan, 75-76.
Von Tschudi, 250.

Wages, 243.

War between Chile, Bolivia, and

Peru, 173, 206.
War-Club, stone, 346.
Wars of Emancipation. See Vv'^ars

of Independence.
Wars of Independence, viii, 46-

58, 67, 86, 89, 100, 162, 2C0,

273. 353-
Wateree, U. S. S., 206..
Waterfalls, 288, 299.
Water power, 370.
Whirl-bob, 312.
Whirlwinds, 70.
Wiener, Chas., 318, 320.
Wilson, Chas. L., ix.
Wind, the prevailing, 77.
Wine, 181.
Wool, 30.

Yavari, 225, 254.
Yellow fever, 214.
"Yes, sir," 382.
Yllanya, 325.
Yotala, 112, 140,
Yscuchaca, 367-68.
Yuatquinia, 320.
Yucaes River, 352.

Zurita, 284-85.

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