GEORGE SQUIER. PERU: INCIDENTS OF TRAVEL AND EXPLORATION IN THE LAND OF THE INCAS (1877).

Джордж Скваер. Перу. Происшествия во время путешествия и исследования по земле Инков.
GEORGE SQUIER. PERU: INCIDENTS OF TRAVEL AND EXPLORATION IN THE LAND OF THE INCAS (1877).

PERU

INCIDENTS OF TRAYEL AND EXPLORATION

IN THE

LAND OF THE INCAS

BY E. GEORGE SQUIER, M. A, F. S. A.

LATE V. S. COMMISSIONER TO PERU, AUTHOR OF ” NICARAGUA,” ” ANCIENT MONUMENTS

OP MISSISSIPPI VALLEY,” ETC., ETC.

WITH ILLUSTRATIONS

NEW YORK

HARPER & BROTHERS, PUBLISHERS

FRANKLIN SQUARE

1877

Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1877, by

HARPER & BROTHERS,

In tlic Office of the Librarian of Congress, at Washington.

CONTENTS

CHAPTER I.

INTRODUCTORY.

Mr. Prescott on the Inca Monuments.—Influence of his Words.—The Author’s Aspi-

rations and Purposes.—Threatened with Blindness.—Appointed United States

Commissioner to Peru.—Restoration to Sight.—Commencement of Explorations.

—Extent of the Region explored.—Plans, Drawings, and Photographs.—Value

of the Material secured.—General Survey of the Inca Empire.—Its Boundaries.—

Physical Characteristics. — Lake and River Systems. — Mountain Ranges.—The

Coast Desert.—Fertile Valleys.—The Inhabitants of the Valleys.—The Cordillera.

— The Despoblado.—Distinction between the Cordillera and the Andes. — The

Basin of Titicaca.—Only two other Similar Basins in America.—Lake Aullagas.—

Lake Titicaca.—Its Sacred Islands.—The Bolsoncs, or Valleys.—The Bolson of

Cuzco.—The Montana.—The Incas and the Peoples of the Montana.—Probable

Population of the Inca Empire.—Divisions of the Ancient Inhabitants of Pern.—

Their Character and Institutions determined by Physical Conditions.—Design of

this Work………………………………………………Page 1

CHAPTER II.

NEW YORK TO LIMA.

New York to Panama.—The Remains of George R. Gliddon.—The Bay of Panama.

—Embarking for Peru.—The Island of Taboga.—Under Way.—The British Steam-

ship Company.—Dead Man’s Island.—The Island of Puna.—The Gulf and City

of Guayaquil.—Balsas.—Pine-apples.—The Rio Guayas.—Las Bodegas.—Along

the Coast.—Paita.—Arrival at Callao.—Disembarking.—The Harbor.—Sea-lions.

—Aspect of the Town.—The Plaza.—Merchandise.—Loungers and Lazy Officials.

—notol de la Marina.—The Road to Lima.—First Impressions of the City.—The

Hotel Morin.—New Quarters……………………………………17

CHAPTER III.

LIMA-THE CITY OF THE KINGS.

The City of the Kings.—Its Foundation and Aims.—Early Civil and Ecclesiastical

Supremacy.—Historical Reminiscences.—Ancient and Modern Sources of Wealth.

viii

CONTEXTS.

—Geographical Position.—Climate and Temperature.—Fogs and Mists.—Topo-

graphical Situation.—Prevailing Winds.—Health.—Origin of the Name of Lima.

— The Walls. — Municipal Divisions. — Population. — The River Rimae. — The

Bridge. — Style of Architecture.—Mode of Erection.—Balconies, Courts, and

Roofs.—Poultry and Buzzards.—Furniture and Pictures.—The Governor’s Pal-

ace.—Peruvian Soldiers.—The Cabildo and other Public Buildings.—The Cathe-

dral.—Other Churches.—The Plaza Mayor.—The Arcades.—Fountain, with Statue

of Fame.—The Plaza de la Constitucion and Equestrian Statue of Bolivar.—The

Pasco of the Barefoot Friars.—The Alameda de Acho.—Monument to Columbus.

—Public Institutions.—The General Cemetery.—Flower Gardens.—The Feast of

Roses.—Amusements.—Lima under the Viceroys.—Improvements since the In-

dependence.—The Central Market.—Varieties of Fruits.—Fish.—Meats.—The

Abattoir.—Poultry.—Cookery.—Puehero.—Chupe.—Picantes of various Kinds.—

Other Dishes.—Dulees.—:Dietetie Maxims.—A Dinner with a Hidalgo.—A Diplo-

matic Dinner. ………………………………………….Page 34

CHAPTER IV.

PACHACAMAO.

Visit to the Ruins.—The Ancient Sacred City.—Paehaeamae.—Miguel Estete’s Ac-

count of the Famous Shrine.—The Spoils taken by the Spaniards.—Sugar Estate

of San Pedro.—Condors.—Present Aspect of Paehaeamae.—El Castillo.—Mama-

cuna.—The Arch.—A Vast Burial-place.—Mummies.—Ancient Tenement-house.

—The Family Tomb.—The Bodies.—Articles found with them.—Tweezers.—

Blanket.—Shroud.—Spindle.—Wallet.—Girl’s Work-box, and Contents.—Boy’s

Sling.—Dried Parrot.—Child’s Rattle.—Vases and Pottery……………..62

CHAPTER V.

RUINS TN THE VICINITY OF LIMA.

The Valley of Cañete and its Ruins.—The Palace of El Rey Inca.—Ruins of Hervai.

—Temple at Magdalena.—Limatambo.—Ruins in the Valley of the Chillon.—

Burial-places of the Ancient Poor.—Relies found in Graves.—Ruins of Cajamar-

quilla.—Exploring and Surveying.—Meet the Robber, Rossi Arci.—His Subse-

quent Fate…………………………………………………82

CHAPTER VI.

IT THE COAST TO TRUXILLO.

Starting for Paita.—The Rocky Coast.—Sea-lions.—The Oasis and Port of lluacho.

—The Town.—Rock-salt.—How it is formed.—Supe and Patavilca.—The Rio de

la Barranca.—Ruins of Paramanea.—Traditions.—Ancient Works on La Horca.

—Iliiarrncy or Oiiarmey.—Casnia.—Bays of Simanco and Fcrrol.—The Valley of

Cliirnboto.—Ancient Monuments.—Silver Mine of Micate.—Port of Santa.—The

Rio Santa.—Riilge crowned with Ruins.—Huaca near Santa.—Ride to Santa.—

The City.—Guano Islands of Guafiape.—Eagles, Pelicans, and Vultures.—Port of

CONTENTS.

‘ Huanchaco.—Singular Craft.—Sardinas.—’Getting ashore.—The Prefect of Truxil-

lo.—Departure for Truxillo.—The Grand Chimu.—Beautiful Lizards.—Entrance

to Truxillo…………………………………………….Page 98

CHAPTER VII.

TRUXILLO-RECONNOISSANCE OF GRAND CHIMU.

Truxillo. — Hotel del Comercio. — The Chinese Fonda. — Churches, Convents, and

Public Buildings.—Colonel La Ro^a.—His Collections of Antiques..— Supposes

the Author to be in Search of Hidden Treasure.—Reconnoissance of Chimu.—

Hamlet of Miraflores.—The Great Aqueduct.—General Survey of the Ruins.—

The Huacas, Walls, and Gardens.—Girls’ Tombs without the Walls.—Azequias.

—Remains of a Village of the Excavators of El Obispoi—How” the Huaca was

built.—A Solitary Scorpion.—Almost under Arrest:—Unearthed Palace.— The

Royal Tombs-.—El Castillo.—The Dead of a Great Battle.—Skulls of Various

Races.—Cemetery of Girls.—The Prison.—Huaca of Toledo.—Miles of Graves.

—The Watering-place of Huaman.—Return to Truxillo.—Photographic Annoy-

> ances…………………………………………………….114

CHAPTER VIII.

THE RUINS AT MOCIIE.

Ride to Mochc.—Diminished Area of Cultivation.—Alleged Effects of Earthquakes.

—Incident on the Rio Moche.—The Indian Pueblo.—The Gobernador.—Many-

horned Sheep.—The Ladies of the Family.—Primitive Spinning Apparatus.—The

Church.—Reception by the Cura.—Present and Past Condition of his Flock.—

Ruined by having the Right of Suffrage.—The Cura’s Lamentations.—His Opin-

ion upon Treasure-hunting.—Offers to guide us to the Ruins.—The Ride.—Tem-

ple of the Sun.—View from the Summit.—The Great Pyramid.—Farewell to the

Cura.—Subsequent Exploration of the Pyramid.—Its Form and Dimensions.—

Alleged Secret Passages.—A Modern Adit.—Probable Purpose of the Structure.

—Visit to the Prefect of Truxillo.—His Magnificent Mansion.—His Want of Hos-

pitality…………………………………………………..125

CHAPTER IX.

EXPLORATIONS AT GRAND CIIIMU.

Ride to the Ruins.—Hall of the Arabesques.—The First Corridor.—Figures in Stuc-

co.— The Second Corridor.—Vaults and Store-rooms.—Cotton Mattresses.—An

Upper Edifice.—Walls, Passages, and Chambers. — The Furnace.—Vessels of

Gold and Silver. — Many Relics melted down. — Prospects left for Research.—

Conjectural Features of the Structure. — Exterior Walls probably Decorated.

— The Destruction by Treasure-hunters. — The Necropolis of Chiuiu. — Niches

with Unman Remains. — Fine Cloths of Cotton and Alpaca Wool.—Silver Or-

naments attached to Fabrics.—Decorated Skulls. — A Mysterious Structure.—

Covered Tomb. — Our Way of Life at Chimu. — Plans for the Future. — Ruins

Described by Rivero and Tschudi. — The “First Palace.” — Ornamented Court

and Hall.—Forms of Ornamentation.—The Great Reservoir.—El Presidio, or

the Prison.—An Evidence of Former Civilization.—The ” Second Palace.”—Hu-

aca of Misa. — Barrios, or Wards. — Sub – barrios. — The Cabildo, or Municipal

House.—Dwellings of the People.—Other Squares.—Reservoirs and Gardens.—

Huacas of Las Conchas and Toledo.—Ancient Smelting-works. — Evidences of

Trade Localities………………………………………..Page 135

CHAPTER X.

LEGENDARY HISTORY OF THE CIIIMUS.

Accounts by Feijoo and Garcilasso de la Vega: Extent of their Territory.—Their

Chief, Chimu-Canchu.—The Invasion by the Inca Yupanqui.—Stubborn Resist-

ance.—Final Submission of Chimu-Canchu.—Beneficent Measures of the Inca.—

Relation by Montesinos: The Inca Empire threatened by the Chimus.—Wars be-

tween the Chimus and Incas, from the Eleventh to the Twenty-fifth.—The Chimus

conquered by Topa-Yupanqui, the Ninety-seventh Inca.—Relation by Balboa: War

between the Inca Capac-Yupanqui and Chimu-Capac.—The Chimus subjugated by

Topa-Inca.—The Account by De Leon.—Different Customs and Dialects among

the Chimus.—Some Legends of their own Origin.—The Idol Llampallec at Chot.—

Its Removal, and the Consequences.—Accession of Chimu-Capac, who was con-

quered by the Incas.—The Ancient Language of the Chimus still spoken at Etcng.

—Different from the Quichua and that of the Incas………………….165

CHAPTER XL

THE ART, CUSTOMS, AND RELIGION OF THE CHIMUS.

Skill of the Chimu Artificers.—Their Productions easily Recognized.—Their Conven-

tional Symbols.—Animals, Birds, aud Reptiles.—The Lance as an Emblem of

Royalty.—Vases and other Works in Gold and Silver.—Groups of Figures.—

Some Remarkable Examples.—Implements and Weapons.—Their Chief Excel-

lence in Pottery.—Various Forms of Vases and other Vessels.—Ornamentation

of these.—Pictures on Pottery.—Musical Instruments and Performers.—Repre-

sentations of the Human Head.—Of Animals and Fruit.—Sacred Character of

their Ceramic Art.—The Best Source of our Knowledge of their Religion.—Sym-

bolical Character of their Religion.—The Symbols of the lour Elements.—A De-

basing Fctichism coincident with their Purer Religion.—Padre Arriaga’s Book on

the Extirpation of the Idolatry of Peru.—His Account of their Various Supersti-

tions.—Their Village, Household, and Personal Idols.—Worship of Ancestors.—

Results of Arriaga’s Efforts to extirpate Idolatry.—The Purer Religion of the

Chimus.—Worship of the Original, Pure, Incorporeal Being……………17’J

CONTENTS.

CHAPTER XII.

EXPLORATIONS NEAR THE COAST.

Farewell to Chimu.— Voyage down the Coast.— Landing at Samanco.— A Day and

a Night there.— Set out for the Estate San Jacinto.— Curious Megalithic Rock.

—Ruins of Huacatambo.—The Fortaleza de Tierra Firme.—Rich Vineyards.—

The Huaca de la Culebra.—Sun-worship and Serpent-worship.—Arrival at San

Jacinto.—The Hacienda.—A Renovated Estate on the Verge of the Desert.—

Ancient Ruins.—Lines of Walls on the Mountain Side.—Ancient and Modern Ir-

rigation.—Cultivation of Cotton.—A Mountain Ride.—El Palacio del Padrejon.

—The Village of Mora.—Estate of Motocache.—Four Terraced Pyramids.—An-

other Stone Work.—Vases in the Walls.—Return to San Jacinto.—A Midnight

Adventure.—Voyage resumed.—Coast Ruins.—Calaveras or Chancayillo.—For-

tress of Quisque.—Pyramidal Structure in the Valley of Santa.—Ruins of Alpa-

eote.—Ancient Works at Huanuco, as described by Raimondi.—Ancient Irriga-

tion on the Coast……………………………………….Page 103

CHAPTER XIII.

FROM LIMA TO TACNA.

Start for Explorations Southward.—Voyage along the Coast.—Islay the Port of

Arequipa.—Arequipa and the Earthquake of 1868.—Author’s Experiences of

Earthquakes in Peru.—Arica the Port of Tacna.—The Earthquake at Arica.—

A Peruvian Railway.—Tacna.—Its Architecture and Trade.—The Alameda.—

The Bola de Oro.—Preparations for a Journey among the Andes.—Berrios, our

Muleteer.—On the Way.—About Mules…………………………..221

CHAPTER XIV.

OVER THE CORDILLERA TO TIAHTJANUCO.

Equipped for the Journey. — The Tambo at Paehia. — Chupe. — The Quebrada de

Palca.—Palca.—Mule Travelling among the Mountains.—Chulpas.—An Aymarii

Skull.—The Soroche.—Climbing the Crest.—La Portada. — Llamas.—The Alps

and the Andes.—Tambos.—The Pass of Guaylillos.—Effects of the Soroche.—The

Rio de Azufre.—Veruga Water.—The Peak of Tacora.—Shot at a Vicuna.—The

Tambo of Tacora.—A Hospitable Host.—La Laguna Blanca.—The Divide between

the Basin of Lake Titicaca and the Pacific.—In the Despoblado.—The Rio Cuño,

the Boundary between Peru and Bolivia.—The Biscacha.—The Rio Maure.—Al-

pacas.—The Pass of Chuluncayani.—An Expensive Hotel.—Descending the Slope.

—First Signs of Cultivation.—A Cretin.—Santiago de Machaca. — The Aymara

Hat.—A Solitary Church.—Shot at a Condor.—St. Andres de Machaca.—The Go-

bernador and the Cura.—Fine Church.—Nasacara and its Floating Bridge.—The

xii

CONTENTS.

Rio Desaguadero.—Our Rascally Berrios.—Jesus de Machaca and its good Cura.

—The Crown of the Andes.—First View of Lake Titicaca.—Magnificent Panora-

ma.—Descent to the Plain.—Tiahuanuco.—The Drunken Cura.—Supposed to be

a Treasure-hunter………………………………………Page 238

CHAP TEE XV.

TIAHUANUCO, THE BAALBEC OF THE NEW WORLD.

Tiahuanuco a Centre of Ancient Civilization.—Difficulties.—The Chufio Festival.—

Death of my Photographer.—Studying the Art.—My Assistants.—The Edifices of

Ancient Tiahuanuco.—The Ruins a Quarry for Modern Builders.—Their Extent.

—The Temple.—The Fortress.—The Palace.—The Hall of Justice.—Precision of

the Stone-cutting.—Elaborate Sculptures.—Monolithic Gate-ways.—The Modern

Cemetery.—The Sanctuary.—Symbolical Slab.—The great Monolithic Gate-way.

—Its Elaborate Sculptures.—Monuments described by Cieza de Leon and D’Or-

bigny.—Material of the Stone-work.—How the Stone was cut.—General Resume.

—Tiahuanuco probably a Sanctuary, not a Seat of Dominion…………..272

CHAPTER XVI.

AT TIAHUANUCO, AND TO THE SACRED ISLANDS.

Suspected of Treasure-hunting.—The Guardian of the Tapadas.—The Potato-feast

and Corpus Christi.—The Indian Celebration.—Music, Dancing, and Costumes.—

Departure from Tiahuanuco.—Village of Guaque.—Cattle feeding in the Lake.—

Tortora Bridge over the Outlet of the Lake.—Entry into the Village of Desagua-

dero.—A Convivial Cura.—Hospitalities of the Caballeros and Señoritas.—Mine

Host the Comandante. — Zepita. — Scenes on the Road. — Comparatively Fertile

Region.—Village of Yunguyo.—A Pressing Invitation.—A Dinner Compliment.

—A Legal Luminary………………………………………..302

CHAPTER XVII.

THE SACRED ISLANDS OF TITICACA.

Copaeabana.—Its Famous Shrine.—Saluted as Viraeocha.—The Church of La Se-

ñora de Copaeabana.—The Camarin. — Votive Offerings. — A Pilgrimess from

Spain.—The Statue of La Señora.—An Idol of Blue Stone formerly worshipped

here.— The Fountain of the Inca.— The Ladera.— Yampapata.—Waiting for a

Balsa.—Night in a Tambo.—Balsa Voyage.—Description of the Lake.—The Sa-

cred Island of Titicaca.—Manco Capac and Mama Ocllo here began their Mis-

sion.—The Sacred Grain.—Etymology of the Name Titicaca.—Ruins of the Tem-

ple, Convent, and Palaec.—The Island of Coati.—The Island of Soto, or of Peni-

tence.— Landing on Titicaca.— Ascending the Terraces.— The Sacred Rock of

Manco Capac.—Landing-place of the Incas.—Alleged Triune Statue.—The Laby-

rinth.—Night at the Hacienda.—St. John’s Fires.—The Garden of the Incas.—

The Bath of the Incas.—The Paiace of the Inca……………………317

CONTENTS.

xiii

CHAPTER XVIII.

DETOUR TO PUNO.

Return to Copaeabana.—Set out for Puno.—Views by the Way.—The Towns and

their Inhabitants.—Resting-place of the Inca.—Ancient Sepulchres at Acora.—

Chulpas, or Burial-towers.—Arrival at Puno.—Welcome by an American Mer-

chant.— Lofty Situation of Puno. — Its Modern Origin. — Neighboring Silver

Mines.—Story of Jose de Salcedo.—The Wool-trade of Puno.—Aspect of the

Town.—Preparations for revisiting the Sacred Islands and exploring the Lake.

—Our Altered and Improvised Craft.—Voyage on the Lake.—Night on the Isl-

and of Titicaca.—Sail to the Island of Coati…………………..Page 34 V

CHAPTER XIX.

THE SACRED ISLAND OF COATI, AND REVISIT TO TITICACA.

The Island of Coati, Sacred to the Moon.—Small, but Fertile.—The two Groups of

Ruins.—The Gates of Purification.—Remains of Tambos.—The so-called Palace

of the Sun probably the Temple of the Moon.—The Shrine of Coati.—Situation

and Structure.—Interior Construction.—Curious Apartments.—Court or Corral

for the Sacred Llamas and Vicunas. — Platforms and Terraces.—Magnificent

View.—Origin of the Structures.—Derivation of the Name of the Island.—Priests

and Vestals.—An Accident.—Titicaca revisited.—Search for the Temple of the

Sun.—Statements of the Chroniclers.—Identification of the Ruins.—Places where

the Sun was tied up.—A Lofty Terraced Promontory.—View from its Summit.—

The Hamlet of Challa.—Real Historical Importance of the Island of Titicaca.—

Date and Origin of its Structures.—Embark for Puno.—A Stormy Voyage.—Put

in at Escoma.—Ruins here.—Becalmed on the Lake.—Reach Puno……..35′.)

CHAPTER XX.

SILLUSTANI—ITS CHULPAS AND SUN-CIRCLES.

Lake Umayo.—The Town of Vilque.—Ruins of a Temple.—Sillustani.—Numerous

Chulpas.—A Round Chulpa.—Its Construction and Arrangement.—Manner in

which the Stones were raised.—A Broken Chulpa at Sillustani.—Chulpas and

the Topes of Ceylon.—The Stones cut to Plan before being placed in Position.—

Sun-circles.—A Submerged Town and Palace. — Hatuncolla.— Hill-fortress of

Quellenata. — Chulpa at Ullulloma compared with Pelasgic Tower in Italy.—

Square Chulpas in Bolivia.—The Chulpas evidently Tombs.—Las Casas’ Account

of Peruvian Modes of Burial.—The Region in which they are found.—Aymara,

not Quichua Structures……………………………………….37ft

xiv

CONTENTS.

CHAPTER XXL

FROM LAKE TITICACA TO CUZCO.

Sliores of Lake Titicaca.—Huancanc.—Quellenata.—Sondor-huasi.—Thatched Roofs.

—Santa Rosa.—A Bull-fight.—A Condor introduced.—Attempt to send two Birds

of this Species to the Coast.—Pedro Lobo’s Correspondence.—Bleak Mountain

Gorges.—Tambos.—The Pass of La Raya.—Descending the Mountains.—The

Aguas Calientes.—The Valley of the Vilcanota.—Cacha and the Temple of Vi-

racocha.—Gareilasso’s Account of the Inca Viracoeha.—Apparition of the Spirit

of Viracoeha to him.—His Miraculous Victory over the Chinchasuyas.—He erects

the Temple.—Gareilasso’s Account of the Temple and Statue.—Present Condition.

—Dependent Structures.—Modern Potteries among the Ruins.—Gables and Win-

dows in Inca Architecture.—Error of Humboldt and Prescott.—Niches.—Ety-

mology of the Name Viracoeha.—Tupac Amaru.—Quijijana.—Curious Ruins and

Tombs.—Ureos.—The Bolson of Andahuaylillas.—Huayna Capae’s Gold Chain.—

A Night on Andahuaylillas.—The Inca Quarries.—Method of Quarrying.—The

Fortress of Piquillacta.—Ruins of the Inca Town of Muyna.—The Llautu or In-

carial Badge. — Muyna, an Ancient Walled Town. — Oropesa. — The Angostura

Pass.—San Sebastian, with its People of the Ayllos, or Inca, Stock…..Page 390

CHAPTER XXII.

CUZCO, THE CITY OF THE SUN.

Signification of its Name.—Its Situation.—Climate.—Historical Importance.—An-

cient Divisions. — The Hill of Saesahuaman. — Its Principal Structures. — The

Huacapata, or Great Square.—Terraces.—Cyclopean Walls.—The Stone of the

Twelve Angles.—Style of Public Buildings.—Perfection of the Stone-cutting.—

Error of Prescott.—Houses of more than One Story.—The Temple of the Sun,

and Subsidiary Edifices.—Its Site now occupied by the Church and Convent of

Santo Domingo.—The Field and Gardens of the Sun.—The Water Supply.—Pro-

lusion of Golden Decorations.—The House of the Virgins of the Sun.—The Place

of Serpents and Palace of Huayna Capac.—The Palace of the Yupanquis.—An-

cient Walls incorporated into Modern Buildings.—System of Palace-building by

the Incas.—Schools.—Galpones.—The Public Square.—The City commanded b?

the Fortress of Saesahuaman.—The Terrace of the Granaries, and Palace of

the First Inca.—Honors to Agriculture.—Probable Population of Ancient Cuzco.

—Its General Aspect.—Modern Cnzco.—Moorish Style of Buildings.—The Cathe-

dral and Church of La Merced.—Cnzco superseded in Importance by Lima.—At

present little known by Peruvians.—Population mostly Indians.—The White

Inhabitants.—The Old Families.—Sefiora Zentino and her Museum of Antiqui-

ties.—Notice of Lorenzo St. Ori(|, alias “Paul Marcoy.”—An ancient Trepanned

Skull.—Paucity of Sculptures in Pern.—The Alameda.—The Pant eon, or Cem-

etery.—Pablo Biliaea.—Processions and Cock-fighting.—The Dog Laws. .. . 42f>

CONTENTS.

CHAPTER XXIII.

SACSAIIUAMAN, THE ANCIENT FORTRESS OF CUZCO.

Import of the Name.—Situation of the Fortress.—The Ravine of the Rodadero.—

Aqueduct and Water-falls.—The Gate of Sand.—The Rock Rodadero.—Char-

acter of the Rock.—Gareilasso’s Description of the Fortress.—Plan of its Con-

struction.— System of Drainage. — Immense Stones. — Entrances. — The Round

Building, and other Subsidiary Works.—Mistake of Prescott.—How the Stones

were moved. — The Piedra Cansada, or Tired Stone. — El Rodadero, and Von

Tschudi’s Error in respect to It.—The Seat of the Inca.—Curiously carved Stones.

—Rock Seats.—Chingana, or the Labyrinth.—Contrasts between Saesahuaman

and the so-called Fortress at Tiahuanuco.—Date of the Construction of Saesahua-

man.—Modern Cuzco mostly built of its Materials.—Lamentation of a Descend-

ant of the Incas over its Destruction.—Treasure-hunters and their Traditions.—

Legend of Doña Maria de Esquivel………………………….Page 464

CHAPTER XXIV.

TIIE VALLEY OF YUCAY.-OLLANTAYTAMBO.

The Yucay the Parent Stream of the Amazon.—The Valley of Yucay.—Roads lead-

ing to It.—Chinchero and its Ruins.—The Table-land.—View of the Valley of

Yucay.— Climate of the Valley.—The Andenes, or Gardens of the Incas.—Their

Summer Palace.—Urubamba.—The Hacienda Umeres.—Ride to Ollantaytambo.

—Ancient Cliff Cemetery.—The Bolson of Antis.—Ancient Fortifications.—The

Governor of Ollantaytambo.—Village of Ollantaytambo.—The Ancient Fortress.

—Porphyry Slabs.—The Tired Stones.—View from the Fortress.—The Hill of

Flutes. — The School of the Virgins. — The Horca del Hombre and Horca de

Mujer.—Inca Houses in the Village.—Plan of the Ancient Town.—The Present

Inhabitants.—Ride to the Quarries.—Mimbres, or Suspension Bridges.—Perilous

Travelling.—The Mountain Road.—Diminutive Shrines.—The Quarries.—Ollan-

taytambo a Frontier Town.—The Legend of Ollautay………………..482

CHAPTER XXV.

THE VALLEY OF YUCAY.-PISAC.

Excursion to Pisac.—The Sacred Rock at Calca.—The Circular Building.—Serpen-

tine Channel in the Rock.—Its Design.—Worship of Isolated Rocks.—The Boun-

dary of the Inca Dominion.—The Great Frontier Fortress of Pisac.—Its Com-

manding Position.—The Approaches to it.—The Inti-huatana, or Solstitial Tur-

ret, the best preserved in Peru.—Other Inti-huatanas.—Gareilasso’s Account of

them.—Ascent to the Fortress of Pisac.—Complex and Elaborate Character of

the Works.—Auxiliary Fortifications.—The Burial-place.—Desiccated Corpses.—

Character of Peruvian Defensive Works………………………….SIT

xvi

CONTENTS.

CHAPTER XXVI.

OVER THE CORDILLERA, FROM CUZCO TO THE COAST.

Departure from Cuzeo.— Our two Extra Horses, El Nevado and Napoleon.— The

Plain and Town of Anta.— Surita, and its Post-keeper.— Limatambo, and its

Ruins.—Mollepata.—Guarding our Animals by Night.—Mountain Paths.—Perils

of the Road.—Approach to La Banca.—An Aqueduct built upon Arches.—Drunk-

enness and Goitres.—The Hacienda of Bellavista.—Waiting for Mules.—The Ar-

tist is afraid to cross the Hanging Bridge over the Apurimac.—La Banca again.

—More Delays about Mules.—Gesticulating with the Lips.—Our Artist separates

from us.—The Ancient Inca Roads.—Exaggerated Accounts of them.—They

must have followed the Present Lines of Travel.—Character of the Road from

Cuzeo to the Valley of Yucay.—Obstacles to Travel among the Cordilleras’—The

Rivers.—Few Stone Bridges.—Hanging Bridges of Withes.—Present Mode of

Construction and Maintenance.—The Great Hanging Bridge over the Apurimac.—

The Approach to it.—Its True Dimensions.—Crossing it.—The Tunnel Beyond.—

Meeting a Mule-train.—Curahuasi.—A Strange Visitor.—Searching for the Artist.

—Ultimate Tidings of his Fate.—Abancay.—Sculptured Rock at Concacha.—

Inta-huatana near Abancay.—Stone Bridge over the Pachachaca.—Andahuaylas.

—Talavera.—Moyobamba.—A Stormy Ride.—Chinchero.—Hanging Bridge over

the Rio Pampas.—Ocras.—Ayacucho, formerly Guamanga.—Scene of an Impor-

tant Battle, December 9th, 1624.—Reported Subterranean Palace, with Statues,

at Guinoa.—The Cordillera de la Costa.—Through the Despoblado.—A Five Days’

Ride.—Lose our Horses.—A Perilous Night Adventure.—The Posada of San An-

tonio.—First Sight of the Pacific.—Descent to the Coast.—Arrival at Pisco.—

Homeward-bound from Lima……………………………..Page 533

CHAPTER XXVII.

CONCLUSION.

Inca Civilization.—The People, as found by the Spaniards.—Rapidity of their Con-

quest.— The Civilization of Peru Indigenous.— Nature of Inca Superiority.—

Originally Several Tribes.—Quichuas and Aymaras.—Differences not solely owing

to Physical Conditions.—Probable Course of Union and Development.—Growth

of Separate Historical Legends, merging into each other.—Legends as transmitted

by Garcilasso and Montesinos.—How the Traditions were perpetuated.—Their

Quippus very Imperfect Means of Record.—Consequent Importance of the Monu-

ments.—What we may learn from them.—Probable Course of the Inca Empire,

without the Spanish Conquest.—Date of Peruvian Monuments wholly Uncertain.

—Some of them among the Oldest existing.—Reasons why they are not more Nu-

merous.—No Evidence that the Peruvians came originally from Abroad. .. . 568

APPENDIX

IXDEX

577

589

ILLUSTRATIONS.

PAGE

Gate-way and Valley of Ollantaytam-

bo …………………Frontispiece

Map of Peru, indicating the Route of

the Author…………….faees 17

The Rampart, Panama………… 18

City and Bay of Panama………. 20

Las Bodegas, Guayas River…….. 25

Interior Court, Lima………….. 44

Peruvian Infantry and Cavalry….. 47

Interior of the Chapel of the Ceme-

tery, Lima……………….. 52

View in the Cemetery, Lima……. 53

Hut on the Estate of San Pedro. … 66

Shot at a Condor…………….. 67

View at Paehaeamae…………. 68

Plan of Temple of Paehaeamae….. 69

Plan of Mamacuna, Paehaeamae. … 70

Niche in the Wall, Paehaeamae—- 71

Arch at Paehaeamae………….. 71

Peruvian Mummies…………… 73

Plan of the Tenement………… 74

Peruvian Tweezers…………… 75

Pattern of Alpaca Blanket……… 75

Pattern of Cotton Shroud………. 76

Ancient Spindle……………… 77

Wallet, folded………………. 77

Wallet, unfolded…………….. 77

Spool of Thread……………… 7S

Knitting Utensils……………. 78

Skein of Thread…………….. 79

Toilet Articles………………. 79

Netting Instrument…………… 79

Dried Parrot……………….. 80

Boy’s Sling…………………. 80

Infant’s Burial-net…………… 80

Pottery from Paehaeamae……… 81

Palacio del Rey Inca,Valley of Cañetc 83

Ruins of Hervai, Valley of Cañete… 84

PAGE

Demolishing Huaca, Limatambo. … 86

Portion of Wall of Huaca near Lima-

tambo …………………… 87

Fortified Hill of Colliqui……….. 88

Plan of Ruins at the Hacienda Arria-

ga, with Section……………. 89

Carved Wooden Idol………….. 90

Wooden Bowl………………. 91

Ear of Maize, in Stone………… 91

Ruins of Cajamarquilla……….. 92

Section and Plan of Subterranean

Vaults…………………… 92

Part of Ruins of Cajamarquilla, Val-

ley of the Rimac…………… 93

Door-ways…………………. 94

Vase, from Santa…………….. 10^

TheCaballito……………….. 109

The Great Pyramid of Mocho…… 131

Plan of the Pyramid………….. 131

Palace, Chimu………………. 136

Hall of the Arabesques, Chimu….. 137

Figures in Stucco……………. 138

Silver Cup…………………. 142

Excavation of the Necropolis, Chimu 144

Specimen of Cloth, Chimu……… 145

Silver Ornament from Chimu…… 146

Fish Ornaments from the Chincha

Islands……………….147, 148

Gold Feather Ornament……….. 149

A Strange Structure………….. 150

Tomb B, Necropolis, Chimu…….. 150

Plan of “First Palace,” Chimu…..152

Sectional View of Walls, Chimu. … 153

Figures on Wall, Chimu……..153, 154

Ruined Walls, Chimu………faces 154

Plan of Reservoir……………. 155

Prison (“First Palace”), Chimu. . . . 157

Plan of ” Second Palace,” Chimu … 159

xviii

ILLUSTRATIONS.

PAGE

Plan of Sub-square, Ruins of Grand

Chimu…………………… 160

Golden Vase, Chimu………….. 171

Silver Vase, Chimu…………… 171

Golden Plate, Chimu. One-fourth

size…………………….. 172

Silver Medal, Chimu. One-fourth size 172

Gold and Silver Coins, Chimu. Full

size…………………….. 172

Silver Lizard, Fish, and Serpent, Chi-

mu. Reduced…………….. 173

Bird cast in Alloyed Gold. From Ca-

ñete. Half size……………. 174

Agricultural Implements of Bronze.. 175

Trowel……………………. 176

Knives, Chimu………………. 176

War-club………………….. 177

Peruvian Pottery………….177, 178

Pictorial Design from a Vase, Chimu 180

Model of an Ancient House, from a

Vase, Chimu……………… 181

Tambourine-player…………… 181

Syrinx, or Pan’s-pipe………….. 182

Trumpet, baked clay…………..182

Peruvian Vases……………… 183

Modern Peruvian Head………… 184

Peruvian Vases……………… 185

Combat between the Man of the

Earth and the Man of the Sea…. 186

The Serpent Symbol………….. 186

Snail from Chimu Vase……….. 187

God of the Air………………. 188

Ruins of lluaeatambo, Valley of Rio

Ncpeña………………….. 199

Pyramid of Tierra Firme………. 201

El Padrejon, Valley of Nepciia….. 206

Stone Works of Mora…………. 207

Vase at Motoeache…………… 209

Stone Fortress of Chancayillo, Valley

of Casma………………… 211

Plan of the Fortress of Quisque.. . . 213

Plan of the Ruins of Alpacotc…… 215

Plan of Ruins of Iluanueo V\ejo. faces 216

The Castillo of Iluanueo Viejo….. 217

Mcdanos……………………222

Grand Plaza and Market-place of

Arequipa………………..223

Arequipa ami the Volcano of Mis-

ti……………………faces 225

PAGK

Port of Islay……………….. 227

Tambo of La Joya, Pampa of Islay.. 227

Chart of the Harbor of Arica…….22S

The Port and Morro of Arica.. faces 229

The Alameda of Tacna………..233

Equipped for the Cordillera…….. 239

Chulpa, or Burial-tower………… 243

Aymara Skull……………….. 244

The Llama………………….246

The Nevados of Tacora and Chipicaui,

from the Pass of Guaylillos.. faces 249

The Vicuna………………… 250

Nevado and Tambo of Tacora……252

The Casitas of Uchusuma………255

Our Dormitory at Uchusuma……. 256

Street View in Santiago de Machaca. 261

Aymara Female Head-dress……..262

Balsa Bridge over the Rio Desagua-

dero……………………..265

Illampu (the Crown of the Andes)

and Lake Titicaca……….faces 268

Plan of a Part of the Ruins of Tia-

huanuco…………………. 276

The American Stonehenge,Tiahuanuco 277

Outer Terrace Walls of Fortress, and

Scattered Blocks of Stone……. 280

Lesser Monolithic Door-way…….. 283

Gate-way at Cemetery—front view.. 284

Gate-way at Cemetery—rear view… 285

Symbolical Slab……………… 287

Front of Great Monolithic Gate-way. 288

Back of Great Monolithic Gate-way. 289

Centre Figure on Great Monolith… 291

Sculptured Figure on Great Monolith. 292

Head of Statue near Tiahuanuco…. 296

Columns and Figures in Stone in Tia-

huanuco…………………. 297

Head-dress of Indian Female Dancer. 305

Indians celebrating the Chuuo, or Po-

tato Festival, Tiahuanuco……..306

Cattle feeding on Lake-weed, Lake

Titieaea…………………. 308

Totora Bridge over the Outlet of Lake

Titieaea…………………. 309

Entry into the Pueblo of El Dcsagua-

dero……………………. 311

A Dinner Compliment in Yunguyo.. 315

View of the Bay of Copaeabana, Lake

Titicaca………………faces 317

ILLUSTRATIONS.

xix

PAGE

Shrine of Nuestra Señora de Copaea-

bana……………………. 319

Seats cut in the Rock, Copaeabana.. 324

The Bath of the Incas, Copaeabana. 325

View from the ” Ladera,” the Island

of Titicaca in the Distance……. 327

Balsa Navigation on Lake Titicaca.. 328

Map of Lake Titicaca………….330

Plan of Ancient Buildings at the

‘Landing, Island of Titicaca……333

Niche in Ruins at Landing, Island of

Titicaca…………………. 334

The Sacred Rock of Manco Capac… 337

Pila, or Fountain, of the Incas, Titica-

ca……………………… 342

Side-view of Palace of the Inca, Island

of Titicaca…………….faces 343

Chambers in the Palace of the Inca. 343

Ground-plan of the Palace of the

Inca, Island of Titicaca………. 344

Plan of Second Story of the Palace of

the Inca…………………. 345

Island of Coati and the ” Crown of

the Andes,” from Esplanade.of Pal-

ace of the Inca…………faces 346

The Inca’s Chair……………..350

Ancient Sepulchres, Acora………351

Chulpas, or Burial-towers, Acora…. 352

Plan and Section of Square Chulpa.. 353

Plan and Section of Round Chulpa.. 353

Ancient Monument at Chucuito…..354

Plan of Palace of the Virgins of the

Sun, Island of Coati……..faces 360

Palace of the Virgins of the Sun,

Coati……………………. 361

Temple of the Sun, Island of Titicaca. 368

Section of Aymara Chulpa………372

Aymara Chulpa, or Burial-tower, and

Hill Fort, at Escoma…………373

Map of Lake Umayo………….. 377

Round Chulpas, Sillustani……….378

Foundation-stone of Chulpa…….. 379

Broken Chulpa, Sillustani………. 381

Platform Stone of Sun-circle……. 383

Sun-circle, Sillustani………….. 384

Stone Pillars of Hatuncolla…….. 385

Ornaments on Pillar…………..386

Frog on Pillar………………. 386

Hill Fortress of Quellenata……..387

PAGE

Pelasgic Tower at Alatri, Italy……387

Chulpa at Ullulloma, Peru………387

Turf House near Mouth of the Rio

Ramis…………………… 391

Remains of Structure, Acarpa……393

The Sondor-huasi…………….. 394

The Condor and the Bull………. 396

Plan of Inca Tambo, La Raya……401

Ruins of Temple of Viracoeha……407

Plan of Temple of Viracoeha and De-

pendent Structures…………..408

Stone Houses near Temple of Vira-

coeha ……………………410

Gate-way of Fortress of Piquillacta.. 420

Plan of Piquillacta……………421

View of Cuzeo, and the Nevada of

Asungata, from the Brow of the

Saesahuaman………….faces 427

Plan of Cuzeo, Ancient and Mod-

ern………………….faces 429

Church and Convent of Santo Do-

mingo, Cuzeo……………… 430

View in the Plaza del Cabildo, Cuzeo 431

Inca Bridge over the Huatenay, Cuzeo 432

Cyclopean Wall, Palace of the Inca

Rocca, Cnzco……………… 433

Inca Door-way, Cuzeo…………. 435

Court of Convent of Santo Domingo,

and Ancient Inca Fountain, Cuzeo 440

Plan of the Temple and Convent of

the Sun, Cuzeo…………….441

End Wall of the Temple of the Sun,

Cnzco…………………… 443

Side Wall of the Temple of the Sun,

and Ancient Street, Cuzeo…….445

View of the Pampa Maroni, with Inca

Wall, Cuzeo……………….446

“The Schools,” Cuzeo………….447

House of Garcilasso de la Vega,

Cuzeo…………………… 449

View of the Hill of the Saesahua-

man from the Plaza del Cabildo,

Cuzeo…………………… 450

Remains of Palace of the First Inca,

Cuzeo…………………… 451

Church of La Merced, Cuzeo…….454

Trepanned Skull…………….. 457

Terra-cottas from Cuzeo……….. 458

Ancient Stone Sculpture, Cuzeo…..458

ILLUSTRATIONS.

PAGE

Dog-killing in Front of the Convent

of Santa Ana, Cuzeo…………4G1

Aqueduct over the Rodadero…….465

Lower Fall of the Rodadero……..466

Upper Fall of the Rodadero……..467

Part of Inca Aqueduct…………468

Section of the Walls of the Fortress. 470

Plan of the Inca Fortress of the Sae-

sahuaman…………….faces 470

Salient Angle of the Fortress……471

Part of the Fortress of the Saesa-

huaman, from the ” Seat of the

Inca “………………..faces 476

Niche in Terrace Walls of the Col-

compata………………….477

Rock Seats, near Fortress………. 478

Map of the Valley of Yucay……. 483

Coped and Niched Terrace Walls,

Chinehero…………………484

Section of Terrace of Chinehero. . . . 485

Terrace Wall and Azeqnia, Yucay.. 487

View in the Valley of Yucay from

Corridor of the Hacienda Umeres. 490

Rock Tombs, Ollantaytambo…….491

Map of Valley and Monuments of

Ollantaytambo………….faces 493

The Fort, Ollantaytambo………..493

Principal Fortress of Ollantaytambo. 495

PAGK

Door-way to Corridor, Ollantaytambo 496

Niched Corridor, Ollantaytambo…. 497

Ollantaytambo Fortification……..499

Porphyry Slabs, Fortress of Ollantay-

tambo…………………… 500

Horea del Hombre, Ollantaytambo.. 502

Inca Buildings, Ollantaytambo……503

Ancient Block in Ollantaytambo…. 504

Inca Bridge, Ollantaytambo……..506

Small Houses, Ollantaytambo……. 509

Plan of Palace of Ollantay……..515

View of Part of Palace of Ollantay. 515

Sacred Rock and Circular Building

near Calca, Valley of Yucay…..518

View of Point of Fortress, Pisac. … 521

Stairway, Pisac………………. 522

Fortified Pass, Pisac………….. 523

The Inti-hnatana of Pisac……… 525

The Inti-huatana of Pisac (Plan)… 527

Rock Tombs, Pisac…………… 531

Bridge of the Apurimac…….faces 545

The Artist and the Indians……… 554

The Roek of Coneacha—Front and

Back……………………. 555

Hanging Bridge over the Rio Pam-

pas…………………….. 558

Looking across the Bridge……… 559

The Post-house at Ocras……….. 560

INCIDENTS OF TRAVEL AND EXPLORATION

THE LAND OF THE INCAS.

CHAPTER I.

INTEODUCTORY.

Mr. Prescott on the Inca Monuments.—Influence of his Words.—The Author’s Aspi-

rations and Purposes.—Threatened with Blindness.—Appointed United States

Commissioner to Peru.—Restoration to Sight.—Commencement of Explorations.

—Extent of the Region explored.—Plans, Drawings, and Photographs.—Value

of the Material secured.—General Survey of the Inca Empire.—Its Boundaries.—

Physical Characteristics.—Lake and River Systems.—Mountain Ranges.—The

Coast Desert.—Fertile Valleys.—The Inhabitants of the Valleys.—The Cordillera.

— The Despoblado.—Distinction between the Cordillera and the Andes.—The

Basin of Titicaca.—Only two other Similar Basins in America.—Lake Aullagas.—

Lake Titicaca.—Its Sacred Islands.—The Bolsones, or Valleys.—The Bokon of

Cuzeo.—The Montana.—The Incas and the Peoples of the Montana.—Probable

Population of the Inca Empire.—Divisions of the Ancient Inhabitants of Peru.—

Their Character and Institutions determined by Physical Conditions.—Design of

this Work.

MANY years ago, Mr. Prescott, in the Essay on the Civiliza-

tion of the Incas, prefixed to his ” History of the Conquest of

Pern,” said, in words which were echoed by every thoughtful

student of antiquities:

” The hand of the conquerors fell heavily on the venerable

monuments of Peru; and, in their blind and superstitious search

for hidden treasure, they caused infinitely more ruin than time

or the earthquake. Yet enough of the monuments of the In-

INCIDENTS OF TRAVEL AND EXPLORATION

cas remain to invite the researches of the antiquary. Those

only in the most conspicuous situations have hitherto been ex-

amined. But, by the testimony of travellers, many more are to

be found in the less-frequented parts of the country, and we

may hope they will one day call forth a kindred spirit of enter-

prise to that which has so successfully explored the mysterious

recesses of Central America and Yucatan.”

At that time a mere youth, I was engaged, with limited re-

sources but an earnest purpose, in investigating the aborigi-

nal monuments of the Mississippi Yalley, and these words of

Prescott did not fall on unheedful ears. One of the results of

those investigations was the warm, personal friendship of that

distinguished historian. It was, in a great degree, through his

influence that I was subsequently sent as representative of the

United States to Central America, where every interval of lei-

sure was dedicated to the discovery of the resources and the

illustration of the ante-Columbian, and as yet imperfectly un-

derstood, history of that interesting region. In all my labors I

was constantly and earnestly supported by the sympathy, and,

so far as my researches deserved it, by the appreciation, of that

most estimable man and conscientious student. To visit the

land of the Children of the Sun, and to realize, in some degree

at least, his aspirations, became a leading purpose of my life.

But inexorable circumstances, distracting occupations, and

the thousand vicissitudes which make us what we are, and of-

ten prevent us from becoming what we might have been, inter-

fered to defeat my hopes and aspirations; till at length, owing

to undue exposure and protracted over-exertion, the light began

to fade away before my eyes, and a dark veil fell between them

and the bright and moving world without. The skill of emi-

nent oculists was exerted in vain, and I was told that my only

alternative lay between absolute mental rest and total blindness.

Rest, and an entire change of scene and occupation, might per-

haps restore, at least partially, my failing vision.

Then, and not till then, an unexpected concurrence of cir-

cumstances enabled me to realize the hope which I had so long

cherished. I received the appointment of Commissioner of the

IN THE LAND OF THE INCAS.

United States to Peru, charged with the settlement of the con-

flicting claims between the two countries. Away from the rush

of business, and the irritation of the morning newspaper; in the

cool corridors of the gray old Palace of the Inquisition, in Lima,

the city of the kings, which Pizarro founded, and in which he

died; listening calmly to quotations from Vattel, Puffendorf,

and \Vheaton; valuing guano with an indifference that might

startle thrifty farmers; and disjjosing, in a day, of reclamations

which had sent more than one war-vessel around the Horn, and

had. even brought on the direful catastrophe of striking the flag

of an envoy extraordinary: here, close by the spot where more

than a hundred heretics had been burned alive, and more than

three hundred had been beaten with rods—here the day came

back to the failing vision, and the glorious light once more

vibrated on responsive nerves, and filled the sinking heart with

joy and gratitude.

It was on the conclusion of my duties as Commissioner that

I commenced, my explorations in Pern; explorations directed

mainly to the elucidation of its aboriginal monuments, the only

positive and reliable witnesses of the true condition of its an-

cient inhabitants. My travels and investigations occupied me

actively for more than a year and a half. During that time I

probably went over more ground than any of my predecessors

in the same field. I carried with me the compass, the measur-

ing-line, the pencil, and the photographic camera; knowing

well that only accurate plans, sections, elevations, drawings, and

views can adequately meet the rigorous demands of modern

science, and render clear what mere verbal description would

fail to make intelligible.

My expeditions carried me first through the coast region of

Peru, lying between the Cordillera and the sea, from Tumbez

to Cobija, or from latitude 2° to 22° south. Within this region

lie the vast ruins of Grand Chimu, Paehaeamae, and Cajamar-

quilla, besides numberless others, less known but equally inter-

esting, in the valleys of Santa, Nepeña, Casma, Chillon, Rimac,

Cañete, Pisco, and Arica. From the port of Arica my course

INCIDENTS OF TRAVEL AND EXPLORATION

was inland over the Cordillera into Bolivia, where are the re-

markable ruins of Tiahuanuco; thence to Lake Titicaca and

its sacred islands, whence the Incas dated their origin. I be-

lieve I am the only traveller who ever thoroughly traversed

this great and interesting lake, lying 12,500 feet above the sea;

an ‘undertaking of no little difficulty and danger, when carried

out in a small open boat. From the Titicaca basin my course

was still northward, over the great divide, or water-shed, sepa-

rating the head-waters of the streams flowing into the grand

basin of Lake Titicaca from the sources of the Amazon; down

the valley of the Yilcanota, which is probably the true parent

stream of the Amazon, to the cluster of mountain-circled hoi-

xo?ies, or high valleys, in which the Incas founded the capital

of their mighty empire. From Cuzeo my expeditions radiated

for one hundred miles in every direction, and were carried to

the savage frontier, on the Atlantic declivity of the Andes.

Several months were spent in and around the Inca capital, in

many respects the most interesting spot on the continent.

Thence my course was to the north-west, very nearly on the

line of the great interior road of the Incas, which extends from

Cuzeo to Quito, crossing the head-waters of the streams which

combine to form the Amazon, through Abancay, the ancient

Gnamanga, now called Ayacucho, and thence back to Lima.

With a longer time and more adequate means at my com-

mand, I could have greatly extended the field of my explora-

tions ; but, so far as my principal object—that of illustrating

Inca civilization from its existing monuments—is concerned, I

believe that the results would have been merely cumulative.

As it was, I brought back with me more than four hundred

plans, sections, and elevations; about as many sketches and

drawings; a large number of photographs, and a considerable

collection of works of art and industry. A selection of the

most important and interesting of these will be embodied in

this volume, leaving little to be desired by the student in re-

spect of Peruvian archaeology, so far as its elucidation depends

on the monuments of the country.

These materials will, I think, show not only that there were

IN THE LAND OF THE INCAS.

originally several detached and distinct civilizations in Peru,

but that some of them antedated the Incas; while my observa-

tions on the geography and topography of the country will

show how the Incas were enabled to establish their extensive

dominion, and how their expansive and astute policy was sug-

gested and developed. My researches will, I think, correct

many mistakes and exaggerations as regards ancient Peru, and

enable us to form a rational and just estimate of the power and

development of the most thoroughly organized, most wisely ad-

ministered, and most extensive empire of aboriginal America,

concerning which we have hitherto had little for the guidance

of our judgment, except the vague traditions of the natives

themselves, and the too often partial and distorted chronicles

of the conquerors. The absence of written records of the Incas

and the tribes consolidated with them unhappily leave us only

these traditions and chronicles whence to deduce their charac-

ter and original condition; and hence researches like those I

undertook become invested with a value less to be measured

by the capacity of the individual who made them, than by the

number and nature of the facts presented by him.

The Inca empire had attained its greatest extension and

power precisely at the period of the discovery by Columbus,

under the reign of Huayna Capac, who, rather than Huascar or

Atahualpa, should be called the last of the Incas. His father,

the Inca Tupac Yupanqui, had pushed his conquests on the

south, beyond the great desert of Atacama, to the river Maule,

in Chili; while, at the same time, Huayna Capac himself had

reduced the powerful and refined kingdom of the Sciris of Qui-

to, on the north. From their great dominating central plateau,

the Incas had pressed clown to the Pacific, on the one hand, and

to the dense forests of the Amazonian valleys, on the other.

Throughout this wide region, and over all its nations, princi-

palities, and tribes, Huayna Capac at the beginning of the six-

teenth century ruled supreme. His empire extended from four

degrees above the equator to the thirty-fourth southern parallel

of latitude, a distance of not far from three thousand miles;

while from east to west it spread, with varying width, from the

INCIDENTS OF TRAVEL AND EXPLORATION

Pacific to the valleys of Paucartambo and Chuquisaca, an

average distance of not far from four hundred miles, covering

an area, therefore, of more than one million square miles, equal

to about one-third of the total area of the United States, or to

the whole of the United States to the eastward of the Missis-

sippi River.

The geographical and topographical features of this vast re-

gion are singularly bold and remarkable, and reacted powerful-

ly on its ancient, as they do on its present, inhabitants. The

physical characteristics, the mental and moral traits, the polity

and religion, the architecture and arts, the manners, customs,

and modes of life of the aboriginal population could not escape

being moulded or controlled by natural conditions and circum-

stances so extraordinary and potential as prevailed throughout

the Inca dominions. The empire itself could never have exist-

ed, nor the Incas have obtained any extraordinary ascendancy

over their neighbors, or have developed a civilization so ad-

vanced as theirs, had it not been for exceptional circumstances

of position, influencing alike climate and productions, and di-

recting their power and ambition in fixed channels.

In no part of the world does nature assume grander, more

imposing, or more varied forms. Deserts as bare and repulsive

as those of Sahara alternate with valleys as rich and luxuriant

as those of Italy. Lofty mountains, crowned with eternal snow,

lift high their rugged sides over broad, bleak punas, or table-

lands, themselves more elevated than the summits of the White

Mountains or of the Alleghanies. Rivers, taking their rise

among melting snows, precipitate themselves through deep and

rocky gorges into the Pacific, or wind, with swift but gentler

current, among the majestic but broken Andes, to swell the

flood of the Amazon. There are lakes, ranking in size with

those that feed the St. Lawrence, whose surfaces lie almost level

with the summit of Mont Blanc; and they are the centres of

great terrestrial basins, with river systems of their own, and

having no outlet to the sea.

The two great mountain ranges which determine the physical

aspect of the South American continent attain their maximum

IN THE LAND OF THE INCAS.

of bulk, and have their most decided features in what was the

Inca Empire. The western range, popularly denominated the

Cordillera, runs nearly parallel to the coast throughout its whole

length, and at such short distance inland that, to the voyager,

the ocean seems literally to break at its feet. Even where it

recedes farthest from the shore, it throws forward outliers, or

spurs, which cease to be imposing only when contrasted with

•the mighty masses of the mother mountain. There is, never-

theless, a narrow but often interrupted strip of land between

the Cordillera and the sea, which, however, from Guayaquil

southward is throughout as desert as the flanks of the moun-

tains themselves are bare and repulsive. A waste of sand and

rock, it is the domain of death and silence — a silence only

broken by the screams of water-birds and the howls of the sea-

lions that throng its frayed and forbidding shore.

Bold men were the conquistador es, who coasted slowly along

these arid shores in face of the prevailing south wind and

against the great Antarctic current. Nothing short of an ab-

sorbing love of adventure, and a consuming and quenchless ava-

rice, could have prevented them from putting down their helms

and flying shudderingly from the Great Desolation before them.

For the most part the sand is hard, swept smooth by the

winds, and unrelieved by anything except an occasional stone

and the more frequent skeletons of mules and horses that have

perished by the way. In places, however, the traveller comes

upon great heaps formed by the drifting sands, called medanos.

They are all crescent-shaped, with the bow of the crescent .tow-

ards the wind, and as regular and sharp in outline as the new

moon itself. Some, which have a core of rock, are permanent;

but most are shifting, varying in shape and position with the

varying winds.

This desert strip, averaging perhaps forty miles in width,

where rain falls only at rare and uncertain intervals, is never-

theless intersected here and there by valleys of great fertility

and beauty, and often of considerable size. They are formed

by the streams and torrents from the mountains, which are fed

by the melting snows, or by the rains that fall, during a part of

INCIDENTS OF TRAVEL AND EXPLORATION

the year, in the interior. Some of these streams are swallowed

up by the thirsty sands before they reach the sea, and only form

oases at the outlets of the gorges whence they emerge. But

both oasis and valley, in the ancient time, were densely popu-

lated by men who exhausted the utmost capabilities of the nar-

row valleys, and who have left many monuments of their skill

and greatness. Under the pressure of peculiar conditions and

limited means, they developed a social and industrial system (as

is shown by their remains) that Fourier might have envied, and

the apostles of economical organizations may study with profit

and admiration.

These valleys are often separated from each other, in their

lower portions, by many leagues of trackless desert, and in their

upper portions by impassable mountains. Their inhabitants,

therefore, constituted separate communities, independent in gov-

ernment, and with little, if any, intercourse or relationship. In

a few instances, however, where several considerable valleys con-

verge and come closely together, as near Truxillo and Lima,

large and efficient civil and political organizations were effect-

ed, and the united communities took the form and status of a

state. But, in general, the inhabitants of the varions valleys

were isolated and relatively weak, owing their security from

the avarice or ambition of their more powerful neighbors to

the barriers of mountain and desert which shut them in. AVe

can understand, from these conditions, how it was that the Span-

iards encountered no serious opposition when they landed on

the coast.

Back of this narrow strip of coast lies the giant bulk of the

Cordillera. It is a vast terrestrial billow, bristling with volca-

noes and snowy peaks, and supporting a minor net-work of hills

and mountains. Although of probably less average elevation

than the Eastern Cordillera or the Andes, it is nevertheless the

true water-shed of the South American continent. The Andes

are pierced by numberless deep valleys, through which most of

the waters collected between the two ranges flow, in uncounted

streams and rivers, into the Amazon, the Orinoco, and the Pla-

ta ; but the Cordillera of the Pacific is throughout unbroken.

IN THE LAND OF THE INCAS.

Its summit often spreads out in broad, undulating plains, or

punas, varying from fourteen to eighteen thousand feet above

the sea, frigid, barren, desolate, and where life is only represent-

ed by the hardy vicuna and the condor. This inhospitable

region is the great Despoblado, or unpeopled region, of Peru.

Here, except on some of the more important trails over the

mountains, where we find the ruins of Inca tambos, or huts of

refuge, badly represented by the few and wretched postas of

modern times, no trace of human habitation is discovered. The

traveller is happy to obtain the protection of a cave or the shel-

ter of a rock at night, and by day hurries as fast as his starving

and unsteady mule, suffering from the rarefication of the atmos-

phere, will enable him, across the dreary waste.

The Despoblado, sometimes called the Black Puna, has a gen-

eral breadth of perhaps a hundred and fifty miles. It narrows

in Northern Peru, and widens as we approach Chili. It varies

also in elevation, but sustains throughout its desolate and repul-

sive character.

Beyond the Despoblado, we descend into the lower yet lofty

plateau intervening between the Cordillera of the coast and the

glittering Andes. The average elevation of this valley is consid-

erably more than eleven thousand feet above the sea. Though

we cannot characterize it better, by a single word, than plateau,

or table-land, yet we must remember that it is an extensive re-

gion, with mountains and hills, plains and valleys, lakes and riv-

ers—a microcosm of the earth itself, lifted up into the frosty

air, and held in its place by the mighty buttresses of the Andes

and the Cordilleras.* In some portions of South America these

two great ranges are from one to two hundred miles apart; in

* As there will be frequent occasion to speak of these two great chains, and to

distinguish them, I shall use the designations Andes and Cordillera, as they are used

in the country itself. The great backbone of the South, the Central, and the North

American portions of the continent is, unquestionably, the Eastern Cordillera, bear-

ing in South America the specific name of Andes. Yet the Western Cordillera,

the Pacific, or Volcanic Coast-range, forms, almost throughout, the water-shed of the

entire continent. The streams which gather their supplies between the two chains,

with few exceptions, break through the eastern range, and pour into the Atlantic.

INCIDENTS OF TRAVEL AND EXPLORATION

others they approach each other, and at a few points actually

come together, forming a “knot,” where they become indistin-

guishable. One of these knots is at the point known as the

Pass of La Raya (latitude 14° 30′ south, longitude 70° 50′

west), where, in an inky tarn, is the true source of the Amazon,

here represented by the Rio Vilcanota, and whence also flows

the Rio Pacura, which falls into the great interior Lake Titi-

caca. Another point of contact is in Northern Peru, near the

important mines of Cerro de Pasco (latitude 10° 15′ soiith, lon-

gitude 76° 10′ west).

To the southward of the pass of La Raya, the Andean

plateau is represented by the grand terrestrial basin of lakes

Titicaca and Aullagas, to which I have already alluded as hav-

ing no outlet to the sea, and possessing a fluvial system of its

own. In this basin we find ruins of ancient architecture singu-

lar in character, and having an antiquity possibly higher than

any other of advanced civilization on the continent. It was in

the islands of Lake Titicaca that, as tradition affirms, the found-

ers of the Inca Empire had their origin. These circumstances,

not less than the remarkable physical characteristics of the basin

itself, entitle this portion of the Andean plateau to receive our

particular attention. Viewing it from the cumbre, or crest,

of the Cordillera, we have spread before us a region unlike

any we have ever seen, and which seems to be lifted above

the rest of the world in spirit as well as in fact, looking down

upon it coldly and calmly like the winter stars, sharing none of

its sympathies, and disturbed by none of its alarms; the silent,

wondering vicuna gazing at us with its large liquid eyes; the

gliding llama; and the condor, circling high up in the air, or

swooping down towards us as if in menace; the absence of for-

ests ; the white clouds surging up from the plains of Brazil,

only to be precipitated and dissipated by the snowy barriers

which they cannot pass; the clear metallic blue of the sky; the

painful silence—all impress the traveller with the feeling that

lie is no longer in the world that he has known before. There’

is nothing with which he is familiar, nothing suggestive of oth-

er scenes. Not an unfitting region this for the development of

IN THE LAND OF THE INCAS.

an original civilization, like that which carved its memorials in

massive stones, and left them on the plain of Tiahuanuco, and

of which no tradition remains, except that they are the work of

the giants of old, who reared them in a single night.

The American continent affords but three really notable ex-

amples of that interesting physical phenomenon to which the

basin of Titicaca belongs. The first is the great Utah basin, with

its salt lake; the second is the smaller basin of Lake Itza, in

Central America; the third is the vaster, more elevated, and, in

all respects, more interesting basin under notice. Its greatest

length, almost due north and south, is about six hundred miles;

its average width may be estimated at not far from one hundred

and fifty miles; thus giving a total area of about one hundred

thousand square miles. The slope of this basin is gentle towards

the south. At or near its northern extremity lies Lake .Titicaca,

a magnificent body of fresh water, and the recipient of several

considerable streams. It discharges its waters through a deep,

broad, and swift, but not turbulent stream, El Desaguadero,

one hundred and seventy miles long, and having a fall of about

five hundred feet, into Lake Aullagas, of which we as yet know

next to nothing. The most that seems to be established is, that

it has no visible outlet to the sea; that it receives the drainage

of Lake Titicaca; that its principal feeder, the Desaguadero, is

swollen by some considerable streams, after leaving Lake Titi-

caca ; and that it has itself a number of important feeders. Its

size, contour, depth, and the possible disposition of its affluence

of waters, are open questions. It must be of vast superficies, in-

deed, if its excess of water be carried off, as has been suggest-

ed, by evaporation. The eastern border of the Titicaca basin is

bounded by the loftiest section of the Andes—a vast, unbroken,

snow-crowned range, whose loftiest peaks rival Chimborazo in

altitude.

The islands and promontories of Lake Titicaca are for the

most part barren. The waters hide a variety of strange fishes,

which contribute to support a population necessarily scanty in

a region where barley will not ripen, except under very favor-

able circumstances, and where maize, in its most diminutive

INCIDENTS OF TRAVEL AND EXPLORATION

size, has its most precarious development; where the potato,

shrunk to its smallest proportions, is bitter; where the only

grain is the quinoa (Che?iopodium Quinoa) ; and where the only

indigenous animals fit for food are the biscacha, the llama, and

the vicuna.

In the islands of Lake Titicaca, if tradition be our guide,

were developed the germs of Inca civilization. Thence, it is

said, went the founders of the Inea dynasty, past the high

divide between the waters flowing into the lake and those fall-

ing into the Amazon, and skirting the valley of the river Yil-

canota for more than two hundred miles, they established their

seat in the bolson of Cnzco.

A brief description of these valleys, which nothing can bet-

ter describe than the Spanish word bolson, or “pocket,” will

help us to understand the original condition of the various peo-

ples and families which constituted the Inca Empire, and how

the inhabitants of one valley, by uniting with those of another,

through policy or by forcible pressure, grew gradually in power

until they overflowed the Despoblado on one side, and the val-

leys of the Andes on the other, spreading themselves north and

south past Atacama and up to the equator.

“While the narrow valleys of the coast are separated by track-

less deserts, the bolsones are isolated by ranges of hills or moun-

tains, or by cold, uninhabitable punas, and encircled by the

mighty gorges of rivers which, like the Apurimac, are impassa-

ble, except by the aid of bridges, swinging dizzily in mid-air.

The bolsones are of varying altitudes, and, consequently, of vari-

ous climates and productions. Some are well drained; others

are marshy, and contain considerable lakes. They discharge

their gathered waters through streams which plunge down

dark and narrow ravines into the gorges of the great rivers.

The passage from one to another is over the intervening ele-

vated ridges and punas, frequently among frost and snow, and

always by rocky and wearisome paths, fit only for the vicuna

and the sure-footed llama.

It was in one of these bolsones, the centre one of a cluster

lying between the valleys Vilcomaya and Apurimac, that the

IN THE LAND OF THE INCAS.

Incas built their capital. It is not only central in position,

salubrious and productive, but the barriers which separate it

from the neighboring valleys are relatively low, with passes

which may be traversed with comparative ease; while they are,

at the same time, readily defensible. The rule of the first Inca

seems not to have extended beyond this valley, and the passes

leading into it are strongly fortified, showing the direction

whence hostilities were anticipated in the early days of the em-

pire, before the chiefs of Cuzeo began their career of conquest

and aggregation, reducing the people of the bolson of Anta in

the north, and that of Urcos in the south.

There remains a comparatively small portion of the Inca Em-

pire to describe. This is what is called the Montana, as distin-

guished from the Costa, the Despoblado, and the Sierra. The

Montana comprises the eastern declivity of the Andes, or, rath-

er, the valleys of the rivers flowing eastward towards the vast

plains of Brazil. The Incas did not extend their empire far in

this direction. They pushed down the valleys until they en-

countered the savage forests, and their still more savage inhabit-

ants. Here their implements were inadequate to the subjuga-

tion of nature; and the fierce Antis, creeping through the dense

thickets, launched unseen their poisoned arrows against the Chil-

dren of the Sun, who protected themselves by fortifications from

an enemy they could not see, and whom it was vain to pursue.

They nevertheless succeeded in securing the upper portions of

some of these valleys, with their wealth of tropical products:

the cocoa and cotton, the skins of wild beasts, the gorgeous

feathers of the birds, and many other articles of use, luxury, or

beauty which rigorous nature denied them in their native eyries.

Perpetual war seems to have been waged between the Incas

and the savages of the lower valleys. Even in the plenitude

of their power, the Incas were unable to carry their conquests

far to the eastward, certainly not more than sixty miles from

their capital in that direction. The massive and complicated

fortresses of Paucartambo, Pisac, and Ollantaytambo define, in

part at least, the limit of their sway. They possessed none of

the modern auxiliaries to material conquest, and could only

11 INCIDENTS OF TRAVEL AND EXPLORATION

look down wistfully and hopelessly on plains where every rood

of land might, almost spontaneously, yield a return far greater

than their utmost labor could gain from a corresponding por-

tion of their undisputed empire.

The survey of the monuments of Peru brings the conviction

that the ancient population was not nearly so numerous as the

accounts of the chroniclers would lead us to suppose. Prom

what I have said, it will be clear that but a small portion of the

country is inhabitable, or capable of supporting a considerable

number of people. The rich and productive valleys and bol-

sones are hardly more than specks on the map; and although

there is every evidence that their capacities of production were

taxed to the very utmost, still their capacities were limited.

The ancient inhabitants built their dwellings among rough

rocks, on arid slopes of hills, and walled up their dead in caves

and clefts, or buried them among irreclaimable sands, in order

to utilize the scanty cultivable soil for agriculture. They ex-

cavated great areas in the deserts until they reached moisture

enough to support vegetation, and then brought guano from

the islands to fertilize these sunken gardens. They terraced

up every hill and mountain-side, and gathered the soil from the

crevices of the rocks to fill the narrow platforms, until not a

foot of surface, on which could grow a single stalk of maize or

a single handful of quinoa, was left unimproved. China, per-

haps Japan, and some portions of India, may afford a parallel to

the extreme utilization of the soil which was effected in Peru

at the time of the Inca Empire.. No doubt the Indian popula-

tion lived, as it still lives, on the scantiest fare, on the very min-

imum of food; but it had not then, as now, the ox, the hog,

the goat, and the sheep, nor yet many of the grains and fruits

which contribute most to the support of dense populations.

The llama was too highly valued to be lightly slain; the hua-

naco and alpaca were few; and the vicuna, whose soft fleece

farmed what may be called the ermine and purple of the Inca

aristocracy, was protected by royal edict, and no one not of roy-

al blood could use its fleece, under penalty of death. Of other

animals available for food there were next to none. These con-

IN THE LAND OF THE INCAS.

ditions, apart from the scantiness of arable land, must have been

a powerful check to the increase of population. This, however,

was encouraged by the wise and beneficent social and civil in-

stitutions of the Incas, who recognized the right of every hu-

man being born into the world, not only to light, water, and

air, but to a portion of the earth, and to the direct protection

and fostering care of the State.

The present population of the three states which were wholly

or in part included in the Inca Empire—namely, Ecuador, Peru,

and Bolivia—does not exceed five millions. I think it would

be safe to estimate the population under the Inca rule at about

double that number, or perhaps, somewhere between ten and

twelve millions; notwithstanding Las Casas, the good, but not

very accurate, Bishop of Chiapa tells us that, ” in the Province

of Peru alone the Spaniards killed above forty millions of peo-

ple.”

The ancient population of Peru may be divided into the peo-

ple of the coast and those of the Sierra, the main characteristics

of each being determined by the physical conditions of the re-

gion in which they dwelt. The people of the Sierra were sub-

divided into tribes, or families, through physical conditions less

strongly marked. The inhabitants of the coast had a compara-

tively mild climate, although they were sometimes subjected to

fervent heat direct from the sun, and augmented by reflection

from desert sands and treeless hills. Rain never fell in most

parts of the coast, or if at all in any part, it was so rarely and in

such small quantities, that to guard against it became a second-

ary consideration. They had no domestic animals, except, per-

haps, the cue, or guinea-pig, and their available lands were too

precious to permit the growth of timber and its use in their ed-

ifices, except in the smallest quantity. How these conditions

would, from necessity, qualify, if not dictate, their architecture,

and how they would mould their social and political life, no re-

flecting mind can fail to perceive.

In the Sierra, on the other hand, where, owing to altitude,

the climate is often severe, where rains fall during a great part

of the year, where the llama is equally a beast of burden and of

INCIDENTS OF TRAVEL AND EXPLORATION

food, and where the stalks of the agave or the forests of the

Amazonian valleys furnish some timber, we can comprehend

that the architecture of the people would evince a marked dif-

ference from that of the coast, and that very different organiza-

tions—civil, social, and religious—must spring up, even though

we were to assume that the people of the coast and Sierra were

originally of one blood and one family. The great sea, break-

ing in thunder on the rocky coast, would naturally impress the

dweller on its shores with reverence and awe, lead him to per-

sonify its irresistible power, and induce him to give to Yira-

cocha, the divinity of the ocean, the first place in his rude pan-

theon. To the shivering dweller among snowy mountains, or

on frosty table-lands, by an equally natural process, the sun, the

source of light and heat, the visible dispenser of all that sup-

ports life, or makes it endurable or even possible, would natural-

ly become the chief object of worship, and would be personified

under some name or symbol.

The general physical characteristics of the land of the Incas,

in relation to the development of the people who inhabited it,

at the period of the Spanish conquest, have now been pre-

sented. To investigate this people in the light of the works

which they constructed, of which the remains, more or less per-

fect, still exist, was the main design of the travels and explora-

tions the results of which are embodied in this volume. The

scenes herein described were all visited by me; the ruins were

explored, surveyed, and as far as possible photographed by my-

self or under my own supervision; and I can vouch for the ac-

curacy of the plans and other illustrations. To select from the

vast mass of materials gathered by me has been no easy task.

I have performed it as best I could.

IN THE LAND OF THE INCAS.

CHAPTER II.

NEW YORK TO LIMA.

New York to Panama.—The Remains of George R. Gliddon.—The Bay of Panama.

—Embarking for Peru.—The Island of Taboga.—Under Way.—The British Steam-

ship Company.—Dead Man’s Island.—The Island of Puna.—The Gulf and City

of Guayaquil.—Balsas.—Pine-apples.—The Rio Guayas.—Las Bodegas.—Along

the Coast.—Paita.—Arrival at Callao.—Disembarking.—The Harbor.—Sea-lions.

—Aspect of the Town.—The Plaza.—Merchandise.—Loungers and Lazy Officials.

—Hotel de la Marina.—The Road to Lima.—First Impressions of the City.—The

Hotel Morin.—New Quarters.

IT is not a quarter of a century since the voyage from New

York to Lima occupied several months. Under favorable cir-

cumstances the journey can now be accomplished in about eigh-

teen days, by steamer from New York to Aspinwall, or “Colon;”

thence by rail across the isthmus to Panama; thence by the

vessels of the British South Pacific Steamship Company to Cal-

lao, the port of Lima. I shall not describe the voyage to As-

pinwall, nor the ride across the isthmus; nor even the quaint,

dilapidated, picturesque old city of Panama, where we were de-

tained several days awaiting the arrival of the British steamer,

which was behind time.

This delay at least gave me time to perform a melancholy

duty in caring for the remains of my old friend, George R.

Gliddon, known to the world in general as former Consul of

the United States in Egypt, and as agent of the Yiceroy of

Egypt in the United States; known also to the scientific world

by having supplied Dr. Samuel G. Morton with most of the

material for his ” Crania ^Egyptica,” and as the associate of Dr.

J. C. Nott in the production of the ” Types of Mankind,” and

“Indigenous Races.” He was also the friend of Humboldt,

Jomard, and Lepsius; was a fascinating Lyceum lecturer, and ,

18 INCIDENTS OF TRAVEL AND EXPLORATION

contributed largely towards popularizing Egyptian research in

America. Having several years before had important business

relations in Honduras, Mr. Gliddon acted as my agent in that

country. On his return to the United States, he was attacked

by sudden illness, and died at Panama.

THE RAMPART, PANAMA.

During the flush period of emigration to California, and be-

fore the Panama Railroad was built, and while there were no

adequate means of speedy communication with California,

hundreds and thousands of American emigrants were stricken

down with fever at Panama, and died there. The then pre-

fect of the city assigned a piece of ground in the suburbs as a

burying-ground for them. In this Gliddon was buried ; and,

acting in behalf of my associates, I sent to the American con-

sul the materials for erecting an inclosure around his grave,

and a marble slab to mark the spot. It was a sad duty for

me now to visit the grave of my old friend. I early directed

IN THE LAND OF THE INCAS.

my steps to the “American Cemetery.” I found it literally a

golgotha—” a place of skulls.” The shrubbery which had cov-

ered it had been cut away, and from numerous little hillocks

projected skulls and human bones; many others had been piled

up in heaps and burned. A somewhat pretentious building

was in course of erection in one corner of the area, and into the

walls were built the bricks and head-stones of the few graves

whieh had ever been so marked. The ground had been made

over to one of his friends by the very prefect who had original-

ly conceded it for an American cemetery. I sought in vain for

the tomb of my friend; all that I could find were two or three

half-calcined fragments of the marble slab whieh I had sent out.

I found out a German carpenter, who had acted as undertaker,

and with him returned to the cemetery, and with great difficul-

ty we were able to identify the grave, and that only by my rec-

offnizino; the bricks which I had sent for the foundation of the

monument. I caused the remains to be gathered together and

sent to Philadelphia, to Mr. Lippincott, his friend and publish-

er, by whom they were deposited in the Laurel Hill Cemetery,

the spot being marked by an appropriate monument.

The Bay of Panama, viewed from the shore, is equally beau-

tiful and picturesque. Its high and brightly tinted islands

break what would otherwise be a dull, monotonous horizon,

and afford a relief to eyes gazing seawards. But, unhappily,

Panama has only a bay. It has, in no just sense of the word,

a port. Inshore the bay is shallow and rocky, the black reefs

extending out a mile or more beyond the base of the fortifica-

tions. The British steamers lie at the island of Taboga, six or

eight miles distant, and the American steamers swing at their

anchors at points almost as remote. And as the tide rises from

eighteen to twenty-two feet, setting in and running out with a

strong eurrent, the matter of embarking and disembarking is

both difficult and dangerous, and can only be performed with

any degree of comfort or safety at what is ealled “half-tide.”

Then small steamers, ” tenders,” and lighters are brought along-

side the wharf, where they bound up and down, and lurch ” off

and on” to the swell of the waves, in a manner startling to

’20

INCIDENTS OF TRAVEL AND EXPLORATION

delicate nerves. Passengers and baggage are bustled aboard in

reckless confusion, and, should it come on to rain, as it is most

likely to do, the only refuge is a hot, fetid little cabin, not big

enough to hold a fourth of the passengers. If they cannot face

the tropical, pouring rain on deck, below they may enjoy the

odors of rancid oil from the machinery in the intervals, when

not occupied in evading the vagrant trunks and parcels that

tumble from side to side with the movements of the vessel.

CITY AND BAY OF PANAMA,

After an hour or more of this discomfort, drenched through

and through, the south-bound passenger discerns at last the

black sides of the steamer Bogota looming through the blind-

ing rain, like a rampart.

Put our troubles had scarcely begun. Getting aboard the

tender was bad enough, but getting off her was worse. While

the Bogota rocked with a certain gravity to the swell of the

IN THE LAND OF THE INCAS.

sea, our little craft bobbed about like an egg-shell, now banging,

in a small way, against the larger vessel, and just as soon as the

slippery gang-plank was supposed to be adjusted, falling away

to a distance. I know not how many collars were torn from

the coats of the men, or how many arms of the women were

dislocated by the sailors in dragging — I suppose, in nautical

phrase, I should say in ” hauling “—us aboard the Bogota. We

were more fortunate than some of our fellow-passengers in not

having our baggage dropped overboard, and were duly grateful

when, saturated with rain from without, and clammy with per-

spiration from within, we found ourselves in our state-room.

It was hot and close; but what with the drifting rain and the

splash and spatter of the sea, it was impossible to open the

ports, and so we had to sit, sweltering and steaming, until the

wretched little tender had gone ashore and brought off a string

of lighters, loaded with luggage and freight.

This occupied most of the day, and it was not until near

night that we were able to make our appearance on deck, woe-

begone and bedraggled, to select from a confused heap of drip-

ping luggage our own especial articles. This achieved, and the

aforesaid articles, under the persuasive appeal of a half-crown,

having been transferred to our cabin, we were able to exchange

our saturated habiliments for dry clothes, and to make ourselves

relatively comfortable. Our improved temper was further im-

proved when, towards night, the rain ceased, the clouds lifted,

and the sun burst in a flood of gold on the island of Taboga,

in front of which we lay. The little town looked wonderfully

cheerful and picturesque, with its red-tiled and pointed thatch-

ed roofs, over which tall palms, with their russet fruit, drooped

gracefully, while the broad leaves of the plantain and banana

formed a background of translucent green.

Canoes and pit-pans now began to come off the shore, filled

with oranges, bananas, pine-apples, cocoa-nuts, aguacates, nispe-

ros, and all the multitndinous tropical fruits that grow on the

islands and shores of Panama Bay. We laid in an ample sup-

ply of those we liked best, and, moreover, invested in a ” mon-

key.” Not-one of those gibbering, prehensile creatures that

INCIDENTS OF TRAVEL AND EXPLORATION

mock humanity, but a porous earthen jar, in which, if it be sus-

pended in front of the open port, water soon beeomes delicious-

ly cool.

It was dark when the Bogota lifted anchor and started on her

voyage southward; and when morning came, we found our-

selves clear of the Bay of Panama, on the broad Paeifie, and out

of sight of land. The day turned out pleasantly; the deck of

the vessel was clean and dry, and an awning broke the some-

what fervid rays of the sun. The sea was smooth, and our ves-

sel rose and fell slowly and gracefully to the long, gentle swell

of the mighty Pacific, which contrasts so strongly with the fret-

ful and turbulent Atlantic. Before night we had forgotten the

trials and disgusts of the preceding day; and as no one was sea-

sick, we began to look upon our voyage in the light of a pleas-

ure-trip. We were not crowded; the service was good, the of-

ficers civil, albeit reticent; the crew prompt and orderly—the

whole in violent contrast with our experiences in that den of

horrors, the steamer from New York to Colon. It is only just

to say that there is not, under all the adverse circumstances of

the case, a line of steamers better managed than that of the

British South Pacific Company. It was projected by Mr. Wil-

liam Wheelwright, an American, as an American company, and

he procured the necessary data and concessions for its establish-

ment, all of which he presented to the “merchant-princes” of

New York, from whom he received neither ” aid nor comfort,”

and was obliged to take his enterprise to England. The conse-

quence is that the whole passenger trade of the South Pacific,

and nearly all its commerce, have passed into British hands.

Except a few hulks employed in carrying guano, not an Amer-

ican keel ploughs the Pacific from Panama to Cape Horn !

The morning of our third day out was marked by a yellow

haze through whieh only the Isla del Muerto, ” Dead Man’s

Island,” was dimly visible, looking really like some gigantic

corpse floating on the waters. This island lies off the Gulf of

Guayaquil, and is an unmistakable landmark for seamen. Al-

though the main-land was not discernible through the mist,

wc could readily detect its odors—a mixture of dampness and

IN THE LAND OF THE INCAS.

fragrance impossible to describe. Our course was now changed,

and we steamed sharply eastward. The fog lifted, and we. soon

found^ ourselves in the gulf. On our left was the island of

Puna, on which Pizarro bore up so long and persistently against

open foes and treacherous friends, and organized that force with

which he conquered the richest and most powerful of the an-

cient empires of America.

The Gulf of Guayaquil is large, and its channel tortuous. At

times our steamer ran close to the low, slimy shores; lined with

mangrove-trees, among the gnarled roots of which numbers of

alligators find congenial repose. The city of Guayaquil stands

on the right bank of the river Guayas, sixty miles from the sea.

The site is low, and the town itself is utterly without architect-

ural pretension, the houses being mainly of wood, and as fiimsy

in fact as in appearance. The cathedral is a large edifice of a

style that must have been devised by a lunatic architect during

an attack of severe indigestion. A broad street extends along

the bank of the river, against which is huddled every variety

of craft, from the ponderous ocean steamer down to the shal-

lowest canoe.

The voyager can not help being both interested and amused

by the incongruity and quaintness of the floating devices that

meet his eye, but more especially by the balsas, or rafts, con-

structed of what is known as balsa-wood, as light as cork. These •

are lineal descendants of the old Peruvian contrivances for navi-

gation, and probably differ little from those which Pizarro saw

when he entered the Guayas River. From five to ten of the

trunks of the balsa-trees are lashed together with wires and

withes; the whole stayed and strengthened by cross-pieces. On

a flooring of bamboos or split palms, huts are built, consisting in

some cases of several rooms, with a place for cooking, and with

hammocks swinging in all convenient positions. Pigs, fowls,

parrots and macaws, chattering monkeys, and naked children

hardly distinguishable from them, occupy the balsa on terms

of easy confidence and familiarity; while bunches of bananas

and plantains, and a net-work bag, filled with oranges and pine-

apples, depend from the rafters.

INCIDENTS OF TRAVEL AND EXPLORATION

The piña blanca, or pine-apple, of Guayaquil is a proverb of

excellence all over South America, on account of its size and

flavor. No traveller fails to secure a dozen or so before leaving

port. When we left, our steamer resembled a first-class fruit-

shop. On deck and between decks, in the purser’s cabin and

the sailors’ forecastle, on every projection from which they could

be suspended, swung the fragrant piña blanca of Guayaquil;

for it is a perquisite of “all hands” to carry along the coast,

for sale in the different ports, as many pine-apples as their

finances will permit them to buy, or the space at their com-

mand enable them to stow away.

Above Guayaquil, although still substantially an estuary,

the Rio Guayas narrows and becomes more like a river. It is

navigable for more than sixty miles, and steamers ply to a point

or landing-place, called Las Bodegas, whence the traveller for

Quito commences his long and weary journey.

The trip to Bodegas takes about six hours, and should not be

omitted by the transient voyager to Guayaquil, if his time will

permit. The river-bank is lined with a superb tropical vegeta-

tion, relieved at intervals by cane-built and picturesque native

huts, in front of which graceful canoes and unwieldy balsas are

moored, preparatory to being loaded with fruit for the port.

The steamer seems utterly out of place in these placid waters

• and amidst this slumberous scenery, sacred to drooping palms,

broad-leaved plants, interlacing vines, gaudy parrots, and

dreamy alligators that literally line the shores. It is well for

the traveller, if bound for Peru, to feast his eyes on the verd-

ure that surrounds him in such profusion, for he will see little

of the grateful green of tree or plant after he leaves Guayaquil.

Under favorable circumstances, it is said, the great volcano of

Chimborazo, flaunting its banner ox smoke over the ranges of

high Cordillera, may be seen from the port; but clouds rested

on the mountains, and we missed the view.

From Guayaquil southward—which the people persist in say-

ing is up the coast—there is little to interest the voyager. The

wooded shores of Ecuador soon disappear, and the aspect of the

continent becomes entirely changed. High, bare rocks, frayed

IN THE LAND OF THE INCAS.

and crumbling, line the shore, and behind them spread out

broad, parched deserts, unrelieved by tree, or shrub, or blade of

grass. From repeated descriptions we have all formed some

faint notion of the deserts of Africa and Arabia, and explorers

have pictured to us the wide wastes of Utah and New Mexico;

but Sahara is a ” thing of beauty,” and Arizona ” a joy forever,”

compared with the coast of Peru.

LAS BODEGAS, GUAYAS RIVER.

The first port in Peru at which the steamer touches is Paita,

the sea-gate of Piura, a considerable city, in the midst of a re-

stricted but rich district, near the base of the mountains, be-

yond the desert of Sechura. Imagine a series of the mud nests

of the barn – swallow, set close together on a narrow, sandy

beach, at the base of a ledge of pale-gray and disintegrating

rock, with no sign of vegetation far or near, and you will get a

pretty accurate picture of the town of Paita. It is neverthe-

less a place of some importance commercially, and is a favorite

resort of whalers, who rendezvous here for supplies and repairs.

Its little bay forms a good anchorage, and its blue waters are

relieved by a variety of vessels, European and native; the lat-

INCIDENTS OF TRAVEL AND EXPLORATION

ter of a nondescript order, reminding one of the picturesque

fishing-boats and coasters of the Mediterranean.

There is here a very good mole and commodious custom-house

of iron. Landing is easy, and a visit to the town should not be

omitted. It consists mainly of a single narrow street, lined by

the quaintest shops and dwellings imaginable. The houses are

mere wieker-baskets of cane, thinly plastered over with mud,

through the walls of whieh it seems quite feasible to thrust

one’s fingers. Some of them present interiors well completed,

and set out with furniture which would not disgrace a Fifth-

avenue parlor; but they are few—the residences of expatriated

agents of foreign commercial houses, who seem to think that

the wealth of Ormus and of Ind might be a compensation for

a residence in Paita. We went ashore at Paita, and traversed

the narrow, pale-gray streets, between the comical houses of

canes and mud; mounted the pale-gray cliffs, and looked out

upon the vast plain of pale-gray sand whieh stretehed away

twenty leagues to Piura. We were thirsty when we returned

from this pale-gray expedition, and were told that the watef

we drank, to wash out our pale – gray reminiscences, was

brought from a distance of thirty miles on the baeks of don-

keys.

We were not sorry when we left Paita; but were wondering

what this portion of burned-out ereation was made for, when the

captain tells us that we had seen Peru, or at least its coast, fair-

ly typified in and around Paita, and that for two thousand

miles we would find only this dreary waste of barren roek and

sand, treeless and lifeless, traversed only here and there, at long

intervals, by ribbon-like valleys of green, marking the course of

some small stream or river struggling down from the mountains

to the sea.

The route from Paita, passing too far from the shore to en-

able us to see the city of Truxillo—around which spread out

the vast ruins of Grand Chimu—we find rising before us the isl-

and of San Lorenzo, inside of which is the harbor of Callao,

with its busy huddle of steamers and forest of masts, standing

out in relief against the yellow walls of the Castle of San Felipe,

IN THE LAND OF THE INCAS.

above whose massive battlements the Spanish flag waved for

the last time in continental America.

The approach to the harbor of Callao is certainly very flne.

As the steamer heads inshore, the high, bare island of San Lo-

renzo is seen rising boldly on the right, its lofty northern ex-

tremity crowned by a light-house, literally a ” light-house in the

skies,” more imposing, it is said, than useful. On the left is a

low shore, with trees and a sloping plain, with yellowish verdnre,

extending back to a series of high brown hills, each receding

tier becoming higher, until, above them all, and above a stratum

of dim, motionless clouds, we discern the Nevados, or Snowy

Cordilleras. At the base of these bare brown hills, six miles

inland, stands Lima, the renowned ” City of the Kings.”

In the morning a thin mist almost alwa}Ts rests over the har-

bor of Callao, the condensation of the moisture of the atmos-

phere by contact with the cold Antarctic current that sweeps

northward along the coast of Peru, and greatly modifies its cli-

mate. Through this mist the fleet of steamers, sailing-vessels,

store-ships, coke-hulks, lighters, and other craft thronging the

harbor loomed up in exaggerated proportions, as did the build-

ings of the town, and the cheese-shaped turrets of the famous

old Castle of San Felipe.

We slowed up among this huddle of vessels to our anchorage,

close by the quaint old British store-ship Naiad, with high

poop-galleries and hanging decks, which had done good service

with Nelson at Trafalgar, but is now condemned to swing lazily

at her moorings, and eternally rise and dip to the monotonous

swell of the sea, her ‘tween – decks crammed with musty cord-

age, rusty chains, and useless lumber of all sorts.

Our anchor was scarcely down before the marineros, or boat-

men, of Callao came swarming around us like buzzards, in boats

of every kind and size; but they were not allowed to come

within a certain distance of the steamer until the autocratic cap-

tain of the port had made his official visit. This he took his

own time to do, and in the interval the captain of the Bogota

paced his bridge impatiently, and the purser stood gloomily at

the head of the gangway, muttering something probably not

INCIDENTS OF TRAVEL AND EXPLORATION

complimentary to the captain of the port. Everybody was on

deck. The secretary was there, with his long Springfield rifle

slung over his shoulder, and arrayed as if about to commence a

campaign against the cannibals, while the attorney looked grave

and thoughtful, as if already oppressed with the responsibilities

of his position. Waiting under such circumstances, with your

baggage carefully piled together on deck, after the last scru-

tiny of your disordered cabin, ” to see if you haven’t forgotten

something,” is tedious always, and sometimes provoking.

For a while the chattering of the boatmen — a variegated

crowd in color, and polyglot in language—amused us. There

were Chinamen and cAoIos, Englishmen and Frenchmen,

Swedes and Genoese, among them, vociferating together, in the

free jargon of sea-ports all over the world: ” Havee boatee ?”

” Much bueno boatee!” ” Ver good embarcation, sare !” ” All

paints, sweet for lady !” ” Tolda boat, mister; keep sun off!”

” I take all de Yankee ! Good Yankee me!” ” Don’t mind

the yellow beggars, sir! They are only wharf-rats, sir; ’11 be

sure to wet you, sir!” and so on for half an hour, and yet no

sign of the captain of the port.

Meantime the sun’s rays dissipated the mist, the ships around

us dwarfed in size as they became more distinct, the town con-

tracted and looked shabby, and San Felipe itself ceased to be

imposing. Impatience began to run into indignation, and ev-

ery passenger was fast getting into condition for being disgust-

ed with everything in Peru, its government and officials in par-

ticular, when a man-of-war’s boat, swept by strong .and prac-

ticed arms, was seen rapidly approaching, but from quite a differ-

ent direction from that in which the port official was expected

to appear. There was a gratified little flutter, and people began

to gather up their bundles, when the boat circled round grace-

fully under our stern, displaying our own national ensign. She

had been sent from the Fredonia to land our party; and as we

moved cheerfully, if not triumphantly, down the ladder to em-

bark, a perceptible cloud settled over the brows of our fellow-

voyagers, and I think their “good-byes” were not altogether so

cordial as they would have been had they also been going to land.

IN THE LAND OF THE INCAS.

On our storm-swept coast the harbor of Callao would scarce-

ly deserve a better name than that of roadstead; but hereabout

the only winds that blow are from the south and south-west,

and from these it is protected by a projecting tongue of land,

marking the site of old Callao, and by the high island of San

Lorenzo. There is, nevertheless, a considerable swell; for the

heave of the great breast of the Pacific is- proportioned to its

own vast expanse, and is felt in every nook and corner of the

South American coast, however well sheltered it may be. In

consequence, a kind of mole, or breakwater, has been built out

into the harbor or anchorage, with stairs behind, where all small

boats and lighters receive and land their passengers and car-

goes.

As we rowed along, I was startled by the sudden projection

above the water, close by the side of the boat, of a head resem-

bling that of a calf, accompanied with a snort and a spluttering

of the water, like those made by a diver on reaching the sur-

face, after having been a long time under. The captain smiled

as I glanced at him in a bewildered way. “It is only a sea-

lion,” he said; ” this coast is thronged with every variety of

these great seals, whose diabolical music you will get familiar

with by and by, and who are common enough right here, among

the shipping. They are not at all inclined to be crowded ont;

and we who are obliged to live on board ship are often amused

by their gambols, jealousies, and flirtations. There are as ras-

cally Blue-beards and Lotharios among them as you will find on

land, anywhere.”

If Callao looked shabby from the deck of the ship at a mile’s

distance, how much more rickety and tumble-down and tawdry

did it appear on closer inspection! Built generally of canes,

plastered over with mud and painted a dirty yellow, its flimsy

houses stand askew, with scarcely a perpendicular or horizontal

line among them, and look as if they were trying to straighten

themselves up after a grand debauch, in a vain endeavor to ” toe

the line ” of the street. There are several modern buildings of

some architectural pretensions in the place. One of these—

the railway-station, close to the mole—is visible from the water.

INCIDENTS OF TRAVEL AND EXPLORATION

The landing-stairs was thronged with a motley assemblage,

more variegated even than the crowd of boatmen who had be-

sieged our steamer; a filthy, fetid, hustling crowd, who gaped at

the ladies, and obstructed the landing, so that we could with dif-

ficulty push our way through their ragged ranks.

“We were welcomed warmly by the American consul and

other countrymen, and cordially received by some of the offi-

cials of the port, arrayed in gorgeous, uniforms loaded with

gold-lace sufficient to have fitted out a regiment of brigadiers

at home. The little plaza at the landing-place presented a

strange if not a busy scene. There were gigantic piscos, or

jars, shaped like Roman amphorae, and filled with italia, a na:

tive spirit, ranged in long rows ; bales of cinchona-bark from the

forests of the distant interior; great heaps of wheat from Chili,

waiting to be carried to the mills on the Rimac, and left with

impunity in the open air; piles of white and rose-colored blocks

of salt, resembling alabaster, from the salt-quarries near Hua-

cho; pyramids of loaves of chancaca, or coarse, unrefined sugar,

roughly wrapped in dry plantain-leaves, through which the mo-

lasses oozed and dripped for the delectation of clouds of flies

that hovered around them; and conspicuous among all a stack

of massive bars of silver from the mines of Cerro de Pasco,

awaiting shipment to England. Mixed confusedly among these

products of the country were many commonplace and familiar

bales and boxes from Europe and the United States, besides old

anchors and iron shafts half buried in the soil, and logs of tim-

ber that had evidently lost their owners, and become the pre-

scriptive lounges of idle porters and dozing wharf u bummers.1′

There were many people with dilapidated hats and greasy

ponchos in the plaza, but they seemed to be principally en-

gaged in the easy task of dawdling, or in making up their

minds whether they should do any work that day, or creep into

the shade between the piscos, and go to sleep again. The cus-

tom-house officials sat astride their chairs in the corridor of the

aduana, resting their chins on their arms, with their empty cof-

fee-cups on the stone pavement beside them, lazily puffing their

cigars. Everybody looked drowsy and languid, except the dusky

IN THE LAND OF THE INCAS.

and extremely decollete females who had established their lit-

tle charcoal braziers in various odd corners, and were engaged

in compounding picantes—wonderful aggregations of fish, fresh

and salt meat, potatoes, crabs, the juice of bitter oranges, lard and

salt, but chiefly peppers (the more pungent and fiery the bet-

ter), ladled out with gleeful alacrity into the earthen dishes or

calabashes of the cholos and wharfingers, who have no better

or other fare than this from one year’s end to another. Filthy

and incongruous as is the wharf picante of Callao, it is certain-

ly fragrant in odor, and we were by no means indisposed for

breakfast when we ascended the stairway of the hotel, to await

the landing of our baggage. I must say, however, that our ap-

petites would have been better, had we not been obliged to

pass the steaming kitchen, with its unwashed and unkempt in-

mates, and its horrible hangings of mangled flesh, in our way

from our apartment to the dining-room. Still, there was

enough strange and interesting to reconcile or blind us to what

was disagreeable and repulsive, and we were in favorable humor

when we took the train for Lima.

The distance between Callao and Lima, as I have said, is a

little more than six miles; but as Lima is five hundred and

twelve feet above the sea, the ascent is somewhat slow, occupy-

ing, with the prevailing wheezy locomotives, the best part of

an hour. The road first takes a sweep along the shore of the

harbor and around the Castillo of San Felipe, now called Forta-

leza de la Independencia, and then passes through a cane-built

suburb of the town, and strikes off in a right line, past the aldea

and cemeteries of Bellavista, to the capital. Throughout it

runs parallel with the old camino real, once paved and lined

with trees, but now broken up and deep with loose stones and

sand, through which the big-wheeled carts of the carreteros are

dragged with difficulty by struggling mules. The ascent is so

slow that the traveller has ample opportunity to view the coun-

try, which is mainly a parched waste, divided up into squares

by ruined mud walls, with here and there a dilapidated, flat-

roofed dwelling, and occasionally a bright green field of alfalfa,

or lucern. The whole, however, might be made a garden’ by

INCIDENTS OF TRAVEL AND EXPLORATION

irrigation; and the courses of the azequias, or irrigating canals,

that do exist are everywhere marked by long lines of willows,

canes, vines, creepers, and flowers. Conspicuous among these

were the bright-red, orange, and yellow flowers of the nas-

turnum, whieh flourishes here with unrivailed luxuriance.

Scattered all over the sloping plain are mounds of mamjyosteria

and adobes of greater or less regularity, some of them of im-

mense size. There are the huacas of the ancient inhabitants,

of which I shall have much to say. They have supplied vast

numbers of sun-dried bricks, of excellent composition, for the

construction of the towns and villages of the plain.

As we approach the city we come to fruit and vegetable gar-

dens surrounded by high walls, above whieh rise orange, paita,

and plantain trees, with their pleasant contrasts of green and

gold. Then we reach the gas-works, and passing through the

walls, a section of whieh is here demolished, enter the city by

the Street of San Jacinto, by no means one of its most aristo-

cratic or attractive avenues, and move slowly to the railway-sta-

tion, whieh occupies the site of the suppressed monastery of

San Juan de Dios.

\Ve found the secretary awaiting us on the platform. He

had secured rooms in the Hotel Morin, and had obtained a cart

to transport our baggage ; but he had not been able to secure a

carriage, and so we were obliged to make our entrance into the

capital on foot. The traveller’s first impressions of the place

are not likely to be pleasing. The houses are squat and irregu-

lar, painted fantastically, some of them in squares, like a cheek-

er-board; others in stripes, like a barber’s pole; and nearly all

having Moorish balconies, or jalousies, of a size out of all pro-

portion to the buildings themselves, on which they appear to

hang by a most uncertain hold, and with which they seldom

harmonize in color. The sidewalks are narrow and uneven;

but as they are flagged, and .less rough than the roadways, they

are preferred by the troops of donkeys carrying panniers’, filled

with offal, lime, sand, bricks, etc.; that rush pell-mell along them

before the cracking whip of a mounted driver, jostling and

crushing against whomsoever may be in their way.

IN THE LAND OF THE INCAS.

“We nevertheless succeeded in reaching our hotel without be-

ing bruised or trampled on by the donkeys, and were ushered,

under a high archway, into the court of a relatively imposing

building, surrounded by three tiers of corridors, on which open-

ed the doors of the various apartments and dormitories of the

establishment. One side of the court was occupied by a bar

and billiard-saloon, as flashy with mirrors and tinted lithographs

as any billard in Paris; another side by a dining-room, through

the open door of which we could see a long table, with squad-

rons of glassware and snowy napkins, which gave us a rather

favorable preliminary notion of the resources and cleanliness of

the Grand Hotel Morin. These, however, were not well sup-

ported by an inspection of our apartments, which were decided-

ly dusty and frowzy, and which we only accepted on the assur-

ance of being supplied with better ones on the following day.

Happily, however, we were not obliged to call on the land-

lord to keep his promise, thanks to the hospitality of onr min-

ister, who offered us a suite of rooms in the Legation, a large,

new house in the Calle de Coca, in the heart of the city, and

not far from the hotel, where we found it more convenient to

take our meals than to establish a menage of our own. Here

we remained for six months, until my duties as commissioner

were concluded; when I started on my explorations. It is to a

narrative of these that this book is mainly dedicated, but it would

hardly be complete without some account of Lima and its peo-

ple. Few cities of this continent, historically or in other re-

spects, possess equal interest with the old vice-regal, luxurious,

bigoted, and corrupt capital of Peru, the richest and most im-

portant of all the kingdoms of Spain in the JSTew “World, and

which even now has no rival in population, wealth, or impor-

tance outside our own country, except perhaps in Pio de Ja-

neiro and Mexico.

INCIDENTS OF TRAVEL AND EXPLORATION

CHAP TEE III.

LIMA-THE CITY OF THE KINGS.

The City of the Kings.—Its Foundation and Aims.—Early Civil and Ecclesiastical

Supremacy.—Historical Reminiscences.—Ancient and Modern Sources of Wealth.

—Geographical Position.—Climate and Temperature.—Fogs and Mists.—Topo-

graphical Situation.—Prevailing Winds.—Health.—Origin of the Name of Lima.

— The Walls. — Municipal Divisions. — Population. — The River Rimac. — The

Bridge. — Style of Architecture.—Mode of Erection.—Balconies, Courts, and

Roofs.—Poultry and Buzzards.—Furniture and Pictures.—The Governor’s Pal-

ace.—Peruvian Soldiers.—The Cabildo and other Public Buildings.—The Cathe-

dral.—Other Churches.—The Plaza Mayor.—The Arcades.—Fountain, with Statue

of Fame.—The Plaza de la Constitucion and Equestrian Statue of Bolivar.—The

Paseo of the Barefoot Friars.—The Alameda de Acho.—Monument to Columbus.

—Public Institutions.—The General Cemetery.—Flower Gardens.—The Feast of

Roses.—Amusements.—Lima under the Viceroys.—Improvements since the In-

dependence.—The Central Market.—Varieties of Fruits.—Fish.—Meats.—The

Abattoir.—Poultry.—Cookery.—Puchero.—Chupe.—Picantes of various Kinds.—

Other Dishes.—Dulees.—Dietetic Maxims.—A Dinner with a Hidalgo.—A Diplo-

matic Dinner.

2STo other city founded by the Spaniards in America possesses

so much interest, historical or otherwise, as does Lima. Its site

was designated by Pizarro, as the capital of his conquered do-

minions, on January Gth, 1535, old style, that being the day

of the festival of the Epiphany, or the manifestation of our

Saviour to the magi, called in our English version of the New

Testament the “wise men” from the East, and who are by old

tradition styled the “Three Kings.” Hence Pizarro gave to

his • projected capital the name of Ciudad de los Reyes, the

” City of the Kings.”* The pompous celebration of the foun-

* Many towns of Spanish America derive their names wholly, or in part, from

the saints or martyrs upon whose festival days they were captured or founded, or

from some doctrine of the Church. Henee there are several towns with such names

as “Asuncion,” ” Santa Fe,” ” San Pedro,” “San Pablo,” and ” Santa Maria.” Each

of these had also a special designation; and one or the other is usually dropped in

IN THE LAND OF THE INCAS.

dation of the city took place twelve days later, on the 18th

of January. The arms of the city, granted by the Emperor

Charles V., in allusion to the ” Three Kings” and the star by

which they were guided to ” the place where the young child

lay,” are three golden crowns on an azure field/and a rayed

star. The emperor also conceded to it the title of ” Most Noble

and Most Loyal.” The origin of its present name, Lima, will

be explained hereafter.

The ” City of the Kings ” became the seat of the haughtiest,

and perhaps the most luxurious and profligate, of the viceregal

courts. Its viceroys ruled with almost independent sway, not

only over what now constitutes Peru, but also over the vast

provinces of Chili, La Plata, and New Granada, including the

modern states of Bolivia and Ecuador. Here was the seat of

the most important ecclesiastical dependency of the Church of

Pome in America. The Inquisition was active and powerful

in Lima long after it became inert and decadent in Madrid.

Its churches and convents were as magnificent as those of Eu-

rope, and were endowed with almost fabulous wealth. The

College of San Marcos, the oldest university in America, was

founded at Lima in 1551: fifty-six years before the English

settlers landed at Jamestown ; fifty-eight years before Hudson

sailed into the bay of New York; and sixty-nine years before

the Mayflower touched the shores of New England. Here Pi-

zarro was assassinated by ” the men of Chili,” the avengers of

the stout and generous Almagro ; and here his bones repose.

Here was born, and here died, Santa Posa, La Patrona de todas

las Americas, “the Patroness of all the Americas,” the only

American woman who has ever attained the honor of canonization.

From the turrets of the fortress of San Felipe, in Callao, the port

of Lima, the flag of Castile and Leon floated for the last time on

the continent of America as the emblem of Spanish sovereignty.

But, apart from these clustering historical recollections, we

popular usage. Thus the full name of Bogota*is Santa Fe de Bogota, and of Tacna,

San Pedro de Tacna. Children are usually named after the saints on whose day their

birth occurred. Hence the frequency of such names as Jose, Pedro, and Pablo;

Maria, Catarina, and Teresa.

INCIDENTS OF TRAVEL AND EXPLORATION

know that here centred the products of the mines of Potosi and

of Pasco, and the marvellous wealth of # Castro-Yeireina and

Puno. Here, too, in 16S1, the viceroy, La Palata, rode through

the streets of his capital on a horse whose mane was strung

with pearls, and whose shoes were of gold, over a pavement of

solid ingots of silver. Here, too, centred the galleons of the

East, laden with silks and spices from the Philippines and

Cathay; and on the verge of the horizon, off the land, hovered

the sea-hawks Rogers, Anson, Hawkins, and Drake, swift to

snatch from the heavy ” treasure – ships” of Manilla the rich

booty which even the Yirgin Queen did not disdain to share

with the freebooters of the South Sea and the Spanish Main.

Now California quicksilver is carried past the open shafts of

the cinnabar mines of Huancavelica; the argentiferous vetas of

Salcedo are abandoned; the sands of Carabaya are no longer

washed for gold; and the infant State of Nevada supplies more

silver every year than Pasco and Potosi, and all the mines of

Peru put together, ever did. The Indians can no longer be

parcelled out to the favorites of power, and the negro no long-

er pays the tribute of unwilling labor to the rich proprietors of

Lima. But the ancient City of the Kings is still rich, still gay,

still flourishing, and more luxurious than in her proudest colo-

nial days. If the sources of her ancient wealth have dried up,

fortune has opened new and richer fountains, and the rough,

rocky, and repulsive guano islands which line the arid Peruvian

coast, the terrors of the ancient mariners, and still the haunts

of howling seals and screaming sea-birds, pour into her lap a

more than Danaean shower of gold; alas, with all its concomi-

tants of social, civil, and political demoralization!

Lima is situated in latitude 12° 2′ 31″ south, and longitude

77° 7′ 36″ west of Greenwich. Its elevation above the sea is

512 feet.* Under these conditions, and being “under the

* I follow Paz Soldan because, as I suppose, he must have had, as Superintend-

ent of Public Works, the exact results of the levelling for the Callao and Lima Rail-

way before him. His figures relate to the height of the Plaza Mayor, or Central

Square. Humboldt gives the height at 570 English feet; Riveiro at 505; Herndon

at 475£; and Gay at 172 Spanish varus, each equal to about 3.3 inches.

IN THE LAND OF THE INCAS.

tropics,” it might be supposed that its climate would be essen-

tially tropical. Such, however, is not the fact.

During the six months constituting what is called the winter

season—that is, from June to November inclusive—it is posi-

tively cold, the thermometer ranging from 57° to 61° Fahren-

heit, so that thick clothing becomes necessary for comfort within

doors, and wrappers almost indispensable without. The mean

average of the thermometer during this period, from eight

o’clock in the morning to eight o’clock in the evening, for the

year 1861, as derived from the observations at the telegraph

office, was 56.4° Fahrenheit. During the summer season, from

November to May, the average mean is much higher, the mer-

cury sometimes reaching 82° Fahrenheit. This low temper-

ature of Lima may be partially accounted for by the proxim-

ity of the snowy Cordillera, and partly from the fact that

the great, cold Antarctic current of the Pacific sets from the

south-west full on the coast, where it has a temperature of thir-

teen degrees less than the waters of the open sea a hundred

miles from land.* The prevailing winds are also from the

south-west, following the direction of the ocean current, and

sharing its temperature.

During the winter season (I use the word ” winter ” in its re-

stricted, local application), it is not the cold which contributes

wholly to render life in Lima unpleasant or unbearable, but

the fog and the damp. For days and even weeks the sun is

invisible, and a drizzle not unlike a Scotch mist makes the

sidewalks slippery and pasty, and so permeates the air that the

sheets of one’s bed are chill and sticky; the walls drip; the

hand slips in endeavoring to turn the clammy door-knobs; a

feathery and almost ethereal fungus sprouts up in a single night

from the depths of one’s inkstand, or replaces the varnish on

one’s boots with a green and yellow mildew. Bone-aches and

neuralgies walk the streets, ransack the houses, and outrage

* Von Tschudi suggests that the cold waters of the river Rimac, which descends

from the glaciers of the interior, may have an influence on the temperature of the

city.

INCIDENTS OF TRAVEL AND EXPLORATION

their occupants unchallenged, and the noise of the church-bells

is stifled in the damp and lifeless atmosphere. We are assured

that ” it never rains in Lima;” but the dense permeating mist

not unfrequently forms itself into minute drops, when it is call-

ed guara. These soak through the flat thatched roofs, discolor-

ing the ceilings, trickling upon the floors, and rendering an

umbrella necessary for the pedestrian in the streets.

It is a singular but unexplained fact that while Lima is thus

frequently enveloped in mists, and while its temperature rules

so low, the other towns and villages on the same plain, and not

far distant, generally enjoy a clear sunshine, and are compara-

tively warm. I have stood on the heights of Morro Solar, over-

looking Chorillos, the watering-place of the capital, and only

nine miles distant from it, when the sun was almost blinding,

while a cloud, like that which rests over London in November,

enveloped the city; due, however, not to the smoke of half a

million fires, but to meteorological causes not yet sufficiently

explained. Miraflores is an embowered village, situated on the

same plain as Lima, and about five miles distant. Von Tschu-

di found that, during ten days in December and January, the

temperature was here ten degrees higher than in the capital.

During the six months for which I have given the mean aver-

age in Lima, the mean average in Callao was 67.4°, a difference

of eleven degrees in favor of Callao.

The topographical situation of Lima may help to solve some

of the anomalous meteorological phenomena which I have no-

ticed. It is built at the head of the plain which bears its name,

very nearly at the point where the river Rimac debouches

from the outliers of the Cordillera, which rise close at hand, on

every side except towards the sea. One of these, a buttress of

the range of Amancaes, the Cerro de San Cristobal, a steep, con-

ical peak, surmounted by a cross, and a conspicuous object from

every part of the city, rises’, to the north-west of Lima, to the

height of 1275 feet above the Grand Plaza, or 1787 feet above

the sea; while, on the opposite side of the river, and occupying

a position scarcely less dominating, is the Cerro de San Bartolo-

meo, but little inferior in elevation. The cold air, which seems

IN THE LAND OF THE INCAS.

to pour down the valley of the Rimac with more or less con-

stancy, encounters the sea-winds concentrated at this point by

the funnel-shaped plain, and induces a precipitation of the

moisture of the latter, which, if greater, would descend in rain.

Certain it is that the south-west or prevailing winds are felt

but a little distance up the narrow valley of the Rimac, where

the guar a is a thing unknown. The precipitation around Lima

is so great as sensibly to affect vegetation, and the arid slopes of

the Cerro de San Cristobal and Amancaes, during the months

of August and September, lose something of their ashy hue un-

der a struggling vegetation, made up chiefly of the plants of

the amancaes, a kind of lily with yellow blossoms. This is a

festival period, wdien all classes of the population resort to the

hills as &paseo, or ride, to eat camarones, drink chicha, and pluck

the flowers, with which every one returns decorated in great

profusion.

But, however they may be accounted for, these meteorologi-

cal anomalies are not favorable to health; and Lima may be

regarded as the most unhealthy capital in America, Havana not

excepted. Her most ardent eulogists and most enthusiastic

sons have ceased to number salubrity among her merits or at-

tractions. Señor Paz Soldan, while claiming for Lima an an-

cient good reputation in this respect, admits that she no longer

deserves it, but that, ” without doubt, the frequent and rapid

communication with Panama, the immense immigration of Chi-

nese and other foreigners, have produced a notable change in

the atmosphere “—less notable, perhaps, than this apologist im-

agines. It is said that, when the last of the Incas heard where

Pizarro had resolved to found the Spanish city, he was great-

ly rejoiced, exclaiming that soon none of them would remain

alive. And there is a tradition that, long before the arrival of

the Spaniards, this portion of the valley of the Rimac was set

apart as a kind of presidio for criminals — an Inca Cayenne,

in fact—in which conspirators and evil-doers soon ceased from

troubling. Nor can the change have been altogether recent,

since Von Tsehudi wrote, more than thirty years ago, when

communication with Panama was rare enough, that it might

INCIDENTS OF TRAVEL AND EXPLORATION

” be regarded as certain that two-thirds of the people of Lima

are suffering at all times from tercianas (intermittent fevers), or

from their consequences.”

The name Lima is a corruption, or rather modification, of

the Quichua word Rimac, which was formerly applied to the

valley or plain, and is still borne by the river which waters it.

The word is the past participle of the verb rimay—” to speak ”

—from a famous oracle that existed here in ancient times, and

whose shrine was probably among the extensive ruins near the

present little town of La Magdaleua.*

The old walls of the city described an irregular oval on the

left bank of the Rimac, inclosing an area about three miles

long by one and a half broad, within which is the city proper,

although there is an extensive suburb—that of San Lazaro—on

the light bank of the river. These walls were built by the vice-

roy, La Palata, in 1683. They were of adobes, from eighteen

to twenty-four feet high, and about twenty feet thick, with thir-

ty-four bastions, and were entered by twelve gates. They have

been of but little use except to facilitate the collection of local

imposts, and affording a paseo, or elevated bridle-path, for eques-

trians. For defensive purposes they were contemptible. They

have lately been entirely demolished.

The ground on which the city is built slopes gently towards

the river, parallel to which—nearly cast and west—the princi-

pal streets, eight in number, are laid out. Municipally, the city,

* including San Lazaro, is divided into 5 quarters, 10 districts, 46

wards, 346 streets, and 33 public squares, exclusive of the prin-

cipal square. The number of houses in 1864 was stated at

4500, and of doors—a novel item of statistics—at 14,209.

The population of Lima is about 120,000 souls. At the pe-

riod of the Independence the population was 64,000, showing

an increase of upwards of 57,000, or nearly one hundred per

cent, since that event. Under the crown, we are informed,

* ” This name,” says an anonymous author, ” came from the idol Rimac, and not

from the river; for it is only in a poetical and figurative sense that a river can be

represented as speaking.”

IN THE LAND OF THE INCAS.

the average annual increase was only 225. Under the repub-

lic, it has been 1275. This fact is certainly significant, and

is not the only one tending to disprove the common allegation

of the decline and deterioration of Spanish America since the

Independence.*

The Rimac is an errant stream, variable in volume, flowing

through a broad and shallow bed, full of stones and sand-bars,

half overgrown with willows and other shrubbery. During the

dry season it is separated into a dozen channels, and the water

barely dribbles over the stone platform.on which the bridge is

built. But during the summer season—the season of melting

snows and rains among the mountains—it swells into a large,

swTift, and turbulent stream of yellow water, closely resembling

the Upper Rhone. It is tapped at numerous points above Lima,

not only for irrigating the valley, but to supply the city and

plain of Lima with water. The bridge across it, leading to San

Lazaro, is an ancient and ungraceful but massive stone structure

of six arches, built in 1610. It has recesses on each side, lined

with seats, for foot-passengers and idlers, which are much fre-

quented by the lower orders on summer evenings. The view

from the bridge, especially up the valley, is very fine, with the

tall willows of the Paseo de Acho on one hand, the bulk of the

Church of San Francisco on the other, and in front the Cerro

of San Cristobal, with a long succession of brown mountains

shutting in the green valleys, altogether forming a grand vista

only terminated by the snowy Cordilleras. On the side of the

city proper the bridge is reached by a lofty arch, painted in

fantastic colors, and supporting a clock.

* Navarrete gives the population at different periods as follows: In 1600,14,262;

in 1614,25,455; in 1700,37,259; in 1746,60,000; in 1755,54,000; in 1781,60,000;

in 1790, 52,627. He, however, suspects that the first census, in 1600, was below

the fact, ” from the circumstance that the common people refrained from giving cor-

rect statements as to their numbers, fearing that the census was only a preliminary

to some new tax.” This suspicion is borne out by the greatly reported increase at

the next census, which shows an augmentation of about eighty per cent, in fourteen

years; an increase wholly unwarranted by any thing else in the successive censuses.

The decrease in 1746-55 and 1781-90 is accounted for by earthquakes and epi-

demics.

INCIDENTS OF TRAVEL AND EXPLORATION

The private buildings of Lima are apparently of a most frail

and unsubstantial character; but the style of architecture is the

result of conditions too imperative to be disregarded. The city

stands in the very centre of a region in which rain never falls,

and in whieh earthquakes are of frequent occurrence, and may

be looked for at any moment. The most substantial structures

of brick or stone could not resist the severe convulsions to

whieh the city is exposed, and the buildings are consequently

of the lightest materials—little more than huge cages of canes,

plastered over with mud on the outside, and frescoed in imita-

tion of stone. They are generally of one story, seldom more

than two, in height. The roofs are flat, because the absence of

rain renders a pitched roof unnecessary. They are sometimes

formed of poles, over -which is spread cane matting, support-

ing a layer of sand or ashes to absorb the damp of the guaras /

but usually the roofing is of boards, correspondingly protected.

The apparently massive towers and buttresses of the churches

are only great wicker-baskets—deceptive combinations of poles

and canes tied together with hide-thongs, stuccoed over, and

painted. Under a brisk shower, such as we often experience

on a summer afternoon, the whole city would melt away, leav-

ing only a withered cane-brake in a gigantic mud-puddle.

I claim to be versed in the mysteries of house-building in

Lima, for a dwelling went up in the Calle de -‘oca, during my

stay, right opposite my window. I watched its almost imper-

ceptible growth from day to day, and had a distinct notion of

how little an able-bodied man can contrive to do in a day, if he

really exerts himself in that direction. The site was a little

elevated above the street, which, as regards the matter of drain-

age, is an advantage. Cellars and basements are things wholly

unknown here. A most unpromising series of poles was set in

the ground, along the front and sides of the proposed building.

Transverse poles were fastened to these by thongs of raw hide,

kept in a proper state of pliancy by immersion in water. This

frame-work, wonderfully like a skeleton, having been finish-

ed, split canes were tied to the horizontal ribs, and wattled to-

gether, basket-wise. Then came a negro, with two boys, bring-

IN THE LAND OF THE INCAS.

ing boxes of mud tempered, I should say, with the sweepings

of the nearest stable, Avhieh they rolled up in balls and flung

against the wattles, smoothing them down with their hands.

The amount of work accomplished by the man was hardly

worth mentioning. While this was going on, two or three

other men were marking out the interior plan of the building,

dividing it up into sahts, bedrooms, etc., in the like basket-

making fashion. These partitions were in the same manner

bespattered and jammed with mud by the negro and his juve-

nile assistants, whom he assailed opprobriously and with uncom-

plimentary reflections on their ancestry whenever they bungled

—sitting himself meanwhile on an adobe, smoking his cigar.

At the end of the third month I began to discover indica-

tions of a purpose to put up a seeond story. A ladder ap-

peared, and veritable sawed timber was brought, I suppose

from Maine, to serve as sills for the seeond floor. These were

tied in place as I have described, Avhile men below, with their

backs braced against the wicker-work, foreed it into a perpen-

dicular position. Then came the negro, and his mud, and his

low-born apprentices, and there were more vituperation, and sit-

ting on adobes, and smoking, and at last the second story was

daubed as the first had been before it. Then came the man

who made roofs, and he who tarred them,* and he who covered

■them with fine gravel; and then the Irish carpenter, who sus-

pended a balcony outside on such frail pretexts of support, that

I never ventured on one thereafter without fear and trembling;

and then a Frenchman came, who stuccoed the mud, and after-

wards an Italian with pots of pigments of rainbow hues, who

freseoed the stueco most gorgeously.

I came to look upon this building as in some sort my own;

and when on my return from the Sierra, a couple of years af-

terwards, although the Italian’s work was a trifle faded, I was

more than compensated for the loss of color by glimpses of

dark eyes and ivory shoulders through the tantalizing Venetian

blinds that now formed the front of the balcony.

I should like to know precisely what portion of each day the

beauties of Lima spend in these cages, whence they can look

4A:

INCIDENTS OF TRAVEL AND EXPLORATION

down on everything that passes in the street below, with the

pleasing assurance that no upturned eye can penetrate the mys-

teries of their retreat, or discover if their toilets have been

made. Thrown open on festival days, these balconies are as

gay as flower-beds, and as brilliant in color. They are pleasant

albeit unsightly contrivances, to which the foreigner takes kind-

ly, happily unconscious of their insecurity.

Most of the houses have courts, with open galleries extending

around the four sides. The lower story on the street is usually

occupied by shops, and the remaining rooms are devoted to

storage, or used as stables and kitchens — the two latter often

adjoining and sometimes united. This part of the building is

generally damp, and the better class of the people live in the

altos, or upper stories. These are partly lighted and ventilated

by projections above the roof, not unlike the wind funnels

which we see on board steamers; but instead of being movable,

so as to be turned to catch the breeze, they are fixed with their

openings towards the south, the direction from which blows the

prevailing wind.

INTERIOR COURT, LIMA.

IN THE LAND OF THE INCAS.

Some of the older and better class of houses have a mirador,

or tower, from which some very fine and extended views may

be commanded. But from these eminences the views near at

hand, although striking, are not usually pleasing, for the shiftless

inhabitants and worthless servants heap the flat roofs with every

kind of abomination. All the refuse and filth that does not go

into the azequias, or sewers, and much that ought to go there,

is deposited on the roofs. Such rubbish ! and occasionally such

spectacles! old hats, old shoes, broken crockery, rags, cast – off

crinoline, everything worn out and displeasing to the eye, is

strewed about or piled up on the roofs of Lima. No wonder

the sun refuses to shine for six months of the year. The mu-

nicipality pass ordinances that are never enforced, bristling with

fines and penalties never collected, against the nuisance. The

roofs still remain unsightly and offensive, and will do so until

the very nature of the population is changed.

Sometimes the tecJtos, or roofs, are utilized as grand henneries.

The first morning that dawned on us in Lima, at the Hotel

Morin, was ushered in by vehement crowing of cocks, and

strenuous gobbling of turkeys, apparently close to my head.

I rubbed my eyes, and wondered if I was dreaming, after a sur-

feiting Thanksgiving dinner, and if the ghosts of slaughtered

and undigested gcdlince had returned to torment me. I found

later, when I ascended to the roof for my first bird’s-eye view

of the city, that it was a gigantic cage for fowls of every kind;

and that when I lay down at nights, only an inch board, two

inches of sand, and a crowded chicken-roost intervened between

me and the stars and the angels. These roofs are also the

roosting-places, and, I suppose, the brooding-places, of the great

and noble army of zopilotes, or buzzards—those invaluable trop-

ical scavengers. They make deliberate explorations among the

garbage and rubbish of the house-tops—stalking about quietly

and solemnly, but occasionally quarrelling over the last dead kit-

ten that the lazy servant has thrown there.

Internally, the residences of the better classes of the people

of Lima are not only well, but in some instances luxuriously,

and even elegantly, fitted up and furnished, too often showily,

INCIDENTS OF TRAVEL AND EXPLORATION

ill a rather exaggerated French fashion, with highly colored car-

pets and paper-hangings, and furniture, in which veneering and

varnish and gilding, satin and brocatel, dispute predominance.

Mirrors are abundant, and of the largest dimensions; but pict-

ures are few, chiefly old family portraits of the grimmest kind,

or saints and Virgins as grimy as any of those which are sold

nightly at auction in cheap shops in the Bowery as the pro-

ductions of Salvator Rosa and the other masters of lamp-black.

But the lithographs are numerous, occasionally somewhat ques-

tionable in subject, but always gorgeous in tint.

Excepting the churches, the public buildings are few. The

Palace of the Government, which ought to be the best of these,

is the meanest—a low, irregular pile, occupying the whole of

the right side of the principal square, and entered by a single

portal in the centre. A rickety corridor, not a foot of which

follows a right line, runs along the front of the second story,

beneath which are a great number of low chiccherias,picante-

rias, and what may best be described as “junk-shops.” AVith-

in are several courts, around which are the various Government

offices, the official residence of the head of the Government for

the time being, and quarters for a detachment of troops.

The Peruvian army is made up almost exclusively of Indians

and negroes, or sambos. The Indians constitute the infantry,

and, being accustomed to travel on foot in the mountainous in-

terior from infancy, they have wonderful rapidity and endur-

ance on the march. The negroes are confined to the plains of

the coast, and are accustomed to riding and the management of

mules and horses. Hence the peculiar distribution.

The Peruvian soldiers are tractable, and, if well led, as brave

as any in the world. The native Indian tenacity and stubborn-

ness are excellent elements in the composition of the soldier.

Almost every Peruvian foot-soldier is attended by his rabona,

who may be, but is not generally, his wife. She marches with

him, cooks and mends for him, often carries his knapsack, some-

times his musket, and always the little roll of matting which,

when unfolded and supported on a couple of sticks, constitutes

his tent. It is of little moment on which side the Indian fights.

IN THE LAND OF THE INCAS.

PERUVIAN INFANTRY AND CAVALRY.

He knows nothing about the political squabbles of the country,

and cares less.

Various improvements have been attempted in the Palace of

the Government without the slightest regard to architectural

proprieties, but with some success in making a few spacious

and comfortable apartments. Altogether, “El Palacio,” as de-

scribed by a native writer, is ” a confused, intricate, heterogene-

ous agglomeration of disproportioned rooms, parlors, and closets

of all shapes and eras, forming a veritable labyrinth.” It is,

however, of some historical interest, having been founded by

Pizarro; and from 1535 to 1821, a period of nearly three hun-

dred years, it was occupied by three governors and forty-three

viceroys. Since 1821, that is to say, since the Independence, it

has been the residence of some fifty or sixty chiefs of state, of

various titles, to say nothing of five Councils of Government!

It is only in their churches that the old and new inhabitants

INCIDENTS OF TRAVEL AND EXPLORATION

of Lima have undertaken to overcome the physical hostilities

to their position and circumstances. They have tried to con-

struct imposing temples in spite of the earthquakes, and with a

certain success, making allowance for the semi-Moorish and

somewhat grotesque taste which has ever prevailed throughout

Spain and its former dependencies. The cathedral, although

the largest, is by no means the most impressive of the religious

structures of Lima. It was founded by Pizarro, and his bones

are alleged to rest in its vaults. The original edifice cost

8594,000. Owing to earthquakes and other retarding causes,

it was ninety years in building. Nearly destroyed by earth-

quakes in 1T4C, the present structure was raised by the viceroy,

Saperanda, and was for a long time surrounded by petty shops,

which obstructed and disfigured the approach from the front.

These were removed many years ago, and a broad platform,

reached by a series of steps, supplies their place. The lower

part of the building is of stone and brick, but the towers are of

canes and mud. The whole is stnecoed and painted in a style

which may be designated as the “Eminently Mixed.” The in-

terior is badly cut up, poorly lighted, and without any grand ef-

fects. There are many paintings, but of little merit: among

them, however, is a ” Veronica,” by Murillo. The plan and

adornments of the edifice are said to have been closely copied

from those of the great church of Seville, in Spain. The or-

gan is a fine instrument, and among the bells that clang in its

towers is one of wonderful tone, called the Cantabaria, which

weighs thirty thousand pounds.

There are some seventy-six churches, conventual and others,

in Lima, besides the cathedral, but only a few of them are in

any way remarkable. That of San Francisco is most imposing,

and, with its convent, is said to have cost fifteen million dollars.

That of Santo Domingo is distinguished for its lofty and sym-

metrical towers, for the spaciousness of its central aisle, and for

having a chapel dedicated to Santa Posa. The churches of San

Augustin and La Merced are really remarkable for their elabo-

rate facades, which are wonderful specimens of what may be

called stucco fretwork. San Pedro has a fine position, a mas-

IN THE LAND OF THE INCAS.

sive aspect, and is the fashionable church of the city, the favorite

worshipping-place of the well-to-do señoritas, and consequently

of devout young men. Owing to its exceptional popularity,

the frayed, flea-infested, rough brick pavement, common to all

the churches, was replaced, while I was in Lima, by one of

bright encaustic tiles.

The Plaza Mayor, or great central square, is spacious, cover-

ing nearly nine English acres. Two of its sides are occupied by

the Government House and the cathedral. The other two sides

are lined byportales,’or arcades, behind which are shops. The

Portal de Escribanos, or Arcade of the Scriveners, takes its

name from having been the place where this class of persons

had their desks, precisely as we see them still under the portales

of San Carlo in Naples. They have now disappeared, and their

place is supplied by the trays and tables of toy-venders. The

Portal de Botoneros, or Arcade of Trimmers, is still occupied,

between the piers, by that class of artisans, who manufacture

gold-lace and other similar articles, under a privilege from the

municipality. They do not overwork themselves, and are a

gossiping set altogether.

As the sidewalks are generally narrow, and not often clean,

these arcades are favorite promenades of the ladies of the city

and of saunterers of the other sex. They not only afford pro-

tection from the sun, but the shops that line them are gay with

the fabrics which delight women’s eyes, or flash with the jewel-

lery which dazzles them. Although not generally large, these

shops, in their fltting-up, and the variety, elegance, and value of

their contents, compare favorably with the finest in the great

cities of Europe and America. There is scarcely an article of

taste or luxury that is not to be found in them, and they are con-

stantly filled by a bright and ever-varying throng of the beauty

and wealth of Lima. They are nearly all kept by foreigners,

chiefly French and Germans, who spare no money or effort in

supplying the extravagance of the capital from every quarter

of the globe.

In the centre of the plaza is a bronze fountain, rising from

a basin of the same material, supported by lions and griffins, to

INCIDENTS OF TRAVEL AND EXPLORATION

the height of forty-two feet, the whole surmounted by a statue

of Fame. It is very ancient, having been erected in 1578, and

is of the best workmanship of that period. At the time of my

visit the plaza was an open, unpaved, dusty area, and the foun-

tain was always surrounded by a chattering crowd of water-car-

riers with then* donkeys. It has since been paved; jpilas for

the accommodation of the aguadores have been placed at the

corners, and the central fountain inclosed within a tasteful gar-

den of tropical plants and flowers.

The only other square worthy of notice is the Plaza de la

Constitucion, formerly called of the Inquisition, from the cir-

cumstance that the edifice of that institution fronted on it, as

did also the old college of San Marcos. Its principal feature

is a spirited bronze equestrian statue of Bolivar, cast at Mu-

nich, from a design by Adam Tadolini. It is thirteen feet nine

inches high, and closely resembles that of Andrew Jackson at

Washington; but is much superior in design and execution.

The horse is represented as rearing, and is, consequently, sup-

ported only by the hind legs and tail; while the Libertador, in

the act of salutation, waves his chapeau with his right hand, thus

throwing open his cloak and displaying his uniform beneath.

The marble pedestal has let into its side bronze rilievi repre-

senting the decisive battles of Ayacucho and Junin, which se-

cured Peruvian independence. Two bronze tablets are sunk in

the ends of the pedestal; that in front bearing the inscrip-

tion : UA SIMON BOLIVAR, LIBERTADOR ) LA NACION PERUANA, AÑO

MDCCCLVIII.” The remaining tablet bears the national arms.

Among the 2)aseos, or public walks, that called El Paseo de

los Descalzos, or Nuevo, on the farther side of the suburb of

San Lazaro, is most important. It is a parallelogram fifteen

hundred feet long, planted regularly with trees, having extend-

ing longitudinally through its centre an area surrounded by tall

iron railings, laid out in gravelled walks, with seats, vases, stat-

uary, and a great variety of shrubs and flowers. It is entered

by a rather elaborate iron gate-way, and at its farther extremity,

a little in front of the Convent of the Barefoot Friars, whence

it takes its name, is a fountain. In its present form it dates

IN THE LAND OF THE INCAS.

back only to 1856. In every respect this paseo is a tasteful and

most creditable public work, worthy of any metropolis.

The Paseo or Alameda de Acho, on the same side of the

river, is much more picturesque than that of the Descalzos.

A terrace extends along the river for half a mile or more, and

here is a paved walk, while the rest of the area is divided by

rows of tall willows into long, leafy aisles, terminating in an

oval open space, in which is erected an allegorical monument to

Columbus. It is a marble group, in which America is repre-

sented as a crouching Indian girl, receiving a cross, the symbol

of Christianity, from an elaborately draped figure of the great

discoverer, while she drops an arrow, the symbol of savage life,

at her feet. The whole is supported on a highly ornamented

pedestal. The group is from the chisel of Salvatore Pevelli,

an Italian sculptor of some eminence, and is a wrork of much

merit.

The viceroy Amat projected another paseo on the San Laza-

ro side of the river — the Paseo de Aguas — but it was never

finished. The road leading to Callao was formerly lined with

trees and seats, with fountains at intervals, for upwards of a

mile, and was called the Alameda del Callao; but it has been

suffered to fall into decay and ruin.

The public institutions of Lima of beneficence or charity, if

not numerous, are creditable. Principal among them is the

Sociedad de Beneficencia, founded in 1825, which has the guar-

dianship and supervision of public charities, and also the direc-

tion of the bull-ring, the cock-pit, and the lottery, from the

gains of all of which it derives a large part of its resources—

much to the scandal of a small minority of the good people of

Lima.

The general cemetery, situated outside of the walls, was in-

augurated in 1808. The chapel has a pleasant exterior, and the

altar in the interior is finely executed. There are pretty gar-

dens, finely kept, and some costly monuments. Vaults are built

up, like rows of ovens, tier upon tier, each numbered in order,

and in them the coffins are deposited.

One of the favorite resorts of the elite of Lima formerly, and

INCIDENTS OF TRAVEL AND EXPLORATION

still, to some extent, is Conroy’s Garden, on the left bank of the

Rimac. Conroy was an Irishman of cultivated taste and some

wealth, who brought together here, in grounds well laid out, a

great variety of trees and plants, some of them exotics, but

mostly indigenous. Since his death, and in part owing to its

inaccessibility, it has lost most of its prestige, and is becoming

a mere matter-of-fact fruit and flower garden.

There are many fine gardens, private or semi-public, in the

outer squares of the city, especially in that part which is only

partially built up, and known as the Cercado. In all these,

during most of the year, is to be found a vast profusion and

INTERIOR OP THE CHAPEL OF THE CEMETERY, LIMA.

variety of roses, of the most exquisite and marvellous tints.

The pride of the old burgomasters of Amsterdam in their tu-

lips is rivalled by that of the true Limenian in his roses, which

are trained, trimmed, grafted, and attended with the utmost

care, and in a spirit of intense yet friendly rivalry. Perhaps

the fact that Santa Rosa is a native of Lima had something to

do with the growth of this local passion for the queen of the

flowers. Indeed, if a passion for flowers of all kinds can be

taken as evidence of taste and refinement, Lima may claim to

rank among the most refined and cultivated of capitals. High

and low, rich and poor, are more or less adorned or more or less

IN THE LAND OF THE INCAS.

surrounded by flowers. They bloom in courts and blush on

balconies; they enliven alike the dwellings of the rich and the

humble, and the heavy tresses of the belle as well as the curly

shock of the samba. They tempt you under the Arcade of the

Trimmers, and they have the place of honor in the market-

house. And yet the stranger hears unfeigned lamentations on

the decline of the public taste for flowers ! The famed puchero

de flores, the matron tells you, has almost disappeared, or is only

to be found, sadly degenerated, at the station of Miraflores, on

VIEW IN THE CEMETERY, LIMA.

the road to Chorillos. It was a grand bouquet of mingled

fruits and flowers, roses and violets and camellias, with cherries

and strawberries and downy peaches, all tastefully arranged, and

(what does the reader suppose?) sprinkled with pungent essences

to give them fragrance! On the whole, it is well enough that

the puchero de fiores went out with the saya y manta, to give

place to a simpler and purer taste.

The public amusements of Lima consist mainly of the thea-

tre, the cock-fight, and the bull-fight, enumerating them inverse-

ly in the order of their popularity. Despite the opposition of

INCIDENTS OF TEAVEL AND EXPLORATION

the press, the bull-fight retains its favor, and may be styled the

passion of the Liinenians, Sunday being invariably chosen as

the day for the exhibition. Cock-fighting was formerly prac-

tised in the streets and publie places. Many years ago, an at-

tempt was made to suppress it altogether. This being found

impossible, it was decided to confine the exhibition to a single

building erected for the purpose, and to regulate it by law.

The regulations comprise many chapters, and the official code is

about twice as long as the Constitution of the United States.

One cannot help thinking what a filthy, ill-supplied, uncom-

fortable city Lima must, after all, have been under the Span-

ish viceroys, when it was utterly without most of the establish-

ments and appliances which modern civilization regards as in-

dispensable. There are many of the inhabitants who deplore

the ” good old times,” when there was no gas, no adequate sup-

ply of water, nor a market, nor a slaughter-house, not even a

cemetery worthy of the name, and who fix the date of the In-

dependence as that of the commencement of Peruvian deca-

dence. Yet four-fifths of all the material ameliorations of the

city have been effected since that event; not precisely as a

consequence of it, perhaps, but with a rapidity that would have

been impossible under the old system. Although much re-

mains to be done to bring Lima up to the standard of the day,

yet her people deserve great credit for what they have accom-

plished. Old customs and habits are hard to be eradicated; arid

were it not for the grand institution of death and renovation,

progress would be next to impossible.

The Central Market of Lima is better, in many respects, and

more commodious than any now existing in New York. It

covers an entire square, being part of the Convent of the Con-

ception, whieh was, I believe, in 1851, forcibly appropriated by

the Government, at the risk of an outbreak. It is built around

a great court, with exterior shops and an inner corridor, and is

traversed by pathways, radiating from a fountain in the centre,

forming a series of smaller courts, appropriated to special prod-

ucts. There are stalls for the principal dealers; but the mass

of venders, who are women, squat on the pavement at the

IN THE LAND OF THE INCAS.

edges of the galleries or in the open spaces, with their fruits, or

fish, or vegetables heaped up in flat baskets, or on mats before

them in little piles, called montones, each monton having a cer-

tain price. Like their congeners in all parts of the world, they

chatter and ” chaff” with each other and their customers, nurs-

ing children perhaps, or performing some other less pleasing

maternal duty, at the same time. These children, when they

have attained the requisite strength, tumble and sprawl about

in a very promiscuous way, not at all appetizing to purchasers.

People keeping establishments in Lima had better leave their

marketing to a confidential major-domo possessed of a strong

stomach.

The market is certainly very well supplied with products, in-

cluding those of the tropics and the temperate zone. Most of

these are found together in the exceptional climate of Lima and

its adjacent valleys, while others are brought clown from the

mountains, wThose elevation and irrigation supply the necessary

conditions for nearly every variety of production. Tomatoes,

potatoes, the ears of green corn (choclas), radishes, and cucum-

bers are to be found side by side with yucas and plantains;

while oranges and peaches, chirimoyas, grapes, granadillas, pal-

tas, and tunas appeal with equal freshness to the eye of the vis-

itor. The people are infatuated with the notion that their pal-

tas, the aguacate of Central America, and the alligator-pear of

the Antilles, are the best in the world; but they are no more to

be compared with the aguacates of Nicaragua and the Isthmus

than rancid lard to fresh-churned butter in the clovery month

of June!

The waters of Peru abound with fish, which are largely con-

sumed in Lima. The commonest are bonitos, a kind of mack-

erel ; corbinas, resembling our “weak-fish;” and thepejerey, lit-

erally, ” king-fish,” a fine variety of the smelt, which, it is said,

for some unknown reason, is fast disappearing from the coast.

Fresh meats—beef, mutton, and pork—are sufficiently abun-

dant in Lima, and of fair quality. One of the best establishments

in the city is the Carnal,the ahattoir,ov slaughter-house,situated

just outside of the gate of Monserrat, on the banks of the Pi-

INCIDENTS OF TRAVEL AND EXPLORATION

mac, near the so-called Botanic Garden of Conroy. The Carnal

was erected in 1855 by the same enterprising person who estab-

lished the garden, under a contract from the Government. The

place is not easy of access, but it merits a visit, if for no other

reason than as showing how much more neatly and efficiently

the act of slaughtering the animals is accomplished than with

us. They are fastened to cross-bars extending between stout

columns, side by side, in such a manner as to leave an open

space between their heads, through which a person may pass.

This person is an experienced butcher, who carries in each hand

a sharp, thin, broad, triangularly shaped knife. He pauses be-

fore each animal, with his upraised knife firmly clutched, and,

cautiously measuring his blow, drives it down in the neck, at

the base of the skull, severing the vertebrae at that point. The

animal drops as if struck by lightning, and stiffens out on the

instant, while another expert severs the jugular. According to

received theories, sensation must be suspended the instant the

knife falls; but if in no respect more humane than our system

of stunning the animal by blows on the head, this certainly ap-

pears less brutal to the eye, besides being more rapid and effec-

tive. It is to be regretted that the skill exhibited in slaughter-

ing is not equalled by that of preparing the carcass for market.

These are often literally hacked in irregular pieces, such as no

American household would permit to appear on its table. For-

eigners stipulate to have their meats cut in a designated man-

ner.

The traveller in Central America who complained that he felt

every morning a disposition to perch himself on the first rock

and crow, and who examined himself every night to see if his

hirsute adornments had resolved themselves into feathers—and

all in consequence of his unvarying diet of chickens and tur-

keys—may visit Peru with safety. “Hay gaU’tnas hoy/” was

occasionally the exuberant announcement of Perez, our favorite

and especial waiter, as we entered Maury’s dining-room. But

when we saw Perez solemn and mysterious, with a deep expres-

sion of significance in his eyes, we were pretty sure to be in-

formed in a stage-whisper, “Pavo hoy /” (turkey to-day), an an-

IN THE LAND OF THE INCAS.

noimeement too momentous in Lima to be lightly made. And

when I tell my readers that turkeys sell at from twelve to

twenty dollars each, ” in gold,” and none of the biggest at that,

and that chickens bring from six to eight dollars a pair, and

are seldom to be got at that price, they will understand better

the impression of rarity and respect they produced on Perez’s

simple mind.

Lima cookery, like Lima society, is in a transitive state, and is

a rather incongruous mixture of foreign and native styles, the

latter predominating in private meals, the former in all formal

or public repasts. First on the list of national dishes, and that

likely to resist longest foreign innovation, and which leads in

every true Lima dinner, is the jpucliero. The following recipe

for its composition is given by Fuentes, with evident gusto:

” To make a puchero according to strict gastronomic rules,

put in a kettle a large piece of beef or mutton, some cabbage,

sweet-potatoes, salt pork, sausage-meat, pigs’ feet, yucas, ba-

nanas, quinces, pease, and rice, with annotto and salt [and Chili

peppers, of course], for seasoning. Add a sufficient quantity of

water, and let the whole stew gently for five or six hours; then

serve in a tureen or deep dish.”

Chupe is a favorite breakfast dish, having a certain resem-

blance to puchero, but simpler in composition. Picantes seem

to be going out of fashion with the better classes, although it is

said they are pretty freely indulged in by the ladies between

meals. On the lower orders, however, they retain their ancient

hold, and in some parts of the city almost every second shop is

a picanteria, around which the water-carriers, porters, and negro

and cholo laborers cluster in swarms. There are many varieties

of picantes, but all have the predominating ingredient of red

pepper. The variety called scoicha is most pungent, composed

of small pieces of fish or crabs, potatoes, and bread-crusts, soak-

ed in the juice of the bitter orange, with an excess of peppers

and salt. The other varieties are carapulca, composed of meat

and potatoes finely pounded; the lagua, of Indian-meal and

pork; acloba, of pork alone; and many others. All are colored

more or less red by the peppers and the addition of achote (an-

INCIDENTS OF TRAVEL AND EXPLORATION

notto). Formerly it was the custom of the best people after

some outdoor funeion—a bull-fight, for instance—to resort to

the picaiitei’ias to picar. Speaking from long observation and

experience, I am confident that there is a certain craving among

all dwellers in tropical regions, strangers as well as natives, for

stimulating, high-seasoned food, and the free use of the numer-

ous kinds of peppers found there soon becomes a habit, if not a

necessity. Salt destroys or neutralizes very sensibly the rank,

acrid taste of the peppers, whieh, after having been treated with

it, may be made into a pleasant salad.

Among the numerous other native dishes may be mentioned

the chicharron, lean pork fried in lard, one of the commonest of

the viands cooked by zamba women over braziers, on the side-

walks and in way-side tambos. The tamal is a preparation of

ground maize, with lard, pistachios, peppers, and slips of pork,

grilled, and wrapped in plantain or maize leaves; it is of Cen-

tral American origin. The ensalada de frutas (literally, fruit

salad) is a common dish, not generally liked at first, but whieh

improves on acquaintance; as its name implies, it is made up

of all sorts of fruits, sweet and sour, mild and pungent, stewed

together. Dulces, or “sweets,” are coincident with Spanish

America, and are of infinite variety. Leche asada (literally,

cooked milk) is a kind of clotted cream. Hand, sweetened

yolks of eggs, and empanadas, gigantic cakes, are among the

staples of the dessert. These sweets are taken not for the grat-

ification they may afford to the palate, but in virtue of an an-

cient dietetic maxim, “Tomar didce para beber agua” (take

sweets in order to drink water), for it is orthodox to believe

.that no dinner can do a man good unless a glass of water fol-

lows.

The Limeños had formerly many queer conceits and maxims

about diet and medicine, which have greatly given way under

foreign contact, but which still lurk among the masses. As

among the Chinese everything resolves itself into yin and yang,

positive and negative, white and black, male and female, so in

Lima all food is held to be frio 6 caliente (hot or cold), cosas

que se oponen (things hostile), and whieh, if introduced into

IN THE LAND OF THE INCAS.

the stomach at the same time, would be dangerous, if not dead-

ly. It will never do to take chocolate and rice at the same

meal, because se openen, ” they are opposites;” and a dram of

italia, or brandy, on a banana would inevitably produce an em-

pacJio. Chickens are frio, but beef is caliente, and agua de

polio (chicken-tea), instead of beef-tea, is the proper thing to

give a patient suffering under acute or inflammatory disease.

You must not take cold water after a fit of anger, nor wash

yourself after a hard ride, or when you have a fever.

We once dined with Señor J-, a thorough representative

of the old school of Limeños, at his house in the Cercado, which

had once been the semi-suburban residence of the viceroys.- It

was a spacious, rambling building, repulsive enough on the ex»

terior, presenting more the aspect of a prison than of a palace.

The mountainous line of whitewashed wall on the side of the

street is relieved only by a high saguan, closed by massive

doors, with great bronze knockers, like the heads of Roman

battering-rams, and almost as heavy, and by two or three win-

dows grated like those of the old Bastile. A place roughly

chipped over the entrance showed where the arms of Spain had

been cut away by patriot chisels. Within, however, were wide

and lofty solas, wainscoted and draped as in the olden time,

with quaint furniture, and quainter portraits of forgotten digni-

taries arrayed in velvet doublets, and tipped out with plumes,

each with his armorial blazonings and list of titles in opposing

corners of the dark and stained canvas out of which he looked

with stern, unblenching eyes. A few ragged viceregal banners

were draped here and there, and a faded missal or two in parch-

ment rested on marble tables along the walls. The corri-

dor of the building formed one side of a large garden filled

with fruits and rare flowers, divided into terraces, with foun-

tains, pigeon-houses, and graperies, all sufficiently decayed and

out of repair to make the establishment picturesque and the

visitor pensive and poetical. The pigeon-houses had few occu-

pants, and these were old and plethoric; the fountains barely

dribbled; the trees were unpruned and mossy; and the great

brown gnarled trunks of the grape-vines twined themselves in

60 INCIDENTS OF TRAVEL AND EXPLORATION

many a serpentine fold over windrows of stones, which answer

the purpose of trellises, and give out at night the heat they

have absorbed by day, to enrich and ripen the great clusters of

bursting fruit which blushed among the scanty leaves.

“We were received by Señor J-and his daughter with the

lofty ceremonials of other days, but with a cordiality peculiar to

no period. Our dinner was served in a grand old comedo?7, our

host and hostess occupying the head and foot of the table re-

spectively, but partaking of none of the articles served. Such

was haute etiquette before the Independence, and we were dining

with the representatives of the ancien regime. We had sqpa

teologa (priest’s soup) and puchero, and then came a whole roast

kid; then kid again, in another form; next, mutton in two or

three forms, in one case almendrado, stuffed with almonds;

and after that a,pica?ite (in fact, &picante paste was all the time

on the table), pigeons, tamales, etc., etc., through twenty courses,

ending with dtdces, not forgetting a gigantic emjmnada, which

it took an able-bodied man to carry, with fruits and liqueurs, in-

cluding a glass of ripe and rare italia—the supremest stomachic

of their sunny land.

The Second Vice-president, acting in place of the President,

deceased, and the First Vice-president, absent, gave the Mixed

Commission a formal dinner in the rickety old Palacio del Go-

bierno, which was in striking contrast with that which we en-

joyed so much in the Cercado. The diplomatic corps was pres-

ent, as were the officers of state; but great and grievous had

been the discussions as to where the commissioners should be

placed—those anomalous fellows who were clothed with abso-

lute powers over all questions in dispute between the United

States and Peru, and whose decisions it was impossible to re-

view. Could they be classed as diplomatists, and sit next the

envoy extraordinary from Ecuador, or with the representative

of the potentate of the Sandwich Islands ? Or were they judi-

cial characters, to be ranked with the Judges of the Supreme

Court? Or what were they? How the momentous question

was settled I never knew, but I suspect the matter was com-

promised, as we found ourselves ranged opposite the represent-

IN THE LAND OF THE INCAS.

(31

atives of Ecuador and Kamehameha, with the table between us

and their dignity. And then came the dinner, which, like the

uniform of the soldiery, was of a Frenchy character. It was

a tedious affair, made up of eight courses, with an average of

four dishes each, which were all scrupulously served, but with

the slight drawback of being exceedingly cold. Patent heaters

would be a desirable addition to the culinary apparatus of El

Palacio.

A custom of the dinner-table, which was once common, and

is not yet entirely in disuse, even in Lima, is the bocadito—a

demonstration of politeness, or something warmer, consisting in

selecting a choice morsel from the dish before you, and hand-

ing it on your fork to some lady present, who is privileged

to return the attention. In some parts of the country the com-

pliment is intensified, if not rendered a little startling, by the

lady’s taking the delicate bit between her thumb and fore-

finger, and placing it in the mouth of the caballero who has

made the challenge.

INCIDENTS OF TRAVEL AND EXPLORATION

CHAPTEE IV.

PACHACAMAC.

Visit to the Ruins.—The Ancient Sacred City.—Paehaeamae.—Miguel Estete’s Ac-

count of the Famous Shrine.—The Spoils taken by the Spaniards.—Sugar Estate

of San Pedro.—Condors.—Present Aspect of Paehaeamae.—El Castillo.—Mama-

cuna.—The Arch.—A Vast Burial-place.—Mummies.—Ancient Tenement-house.

—The Family Tomb.—The Bodies.—Articles found with them.—Tweezers.—

Blanket.—Shroud.—Spindle.—Wallet.—Girl’s Work-box, and Contents.—Boy’s

Sling.—Dried Parrot.—Child’s Rattle.—Vases and Pottery.

DURING my residence in Lima I visited the ruins of Paehaea-

mae, twenty miles south of the capital, on the right bank of the

Rio Lurin, close by and overlooking the sea. \Ve started from

Chorillos, where we had spent the night, by sunrise, prepared

for a stay of several days. Our route lay to the southward,

over the dusty Pisco road, and we were soon out of sight of

the gardens and cultivated fields of the Rimae Valley, riding

over barren and sandy hills, and plains none the less sandy and

barren. The sun beeame scorchingly hot long before we ob-

tained our first view of the green valley of Lurin, and the

sparkling waters of the river of the same name, whieh flow

to the southward, and in sight of the celebrated ruins that we

had come to visit, and which we found without any difficulty.

They cover wholly, or in part, four considerable hills of regu-

larly stratified but somewhat distorted argillaceous slate, the

strata varying from two inches to a foot in thickness, breaking

readily into rectangular blocks, which were used by the old

builders for the foundations of the walls, and to a great extent

worked into the structures themselves. The site of the ruins

is most forbidding iiuaspeet, and is a waste of sand, which has

been drifted into and over a large portion of the buildings with-

in the outer walls, some of whieh have been completely buried.

The desert extends northward to the valley of the Rimac, and

IN THE LAND OF THE INCAS.

inland to the mountains, that rise, naked and barren, in the dis-

tance. In contrast to these are the green and fertile little val-

ley of Lurin on the south, and the blue waters of the Pacific on

the west, with its picturesque rocky islands, against which the

waves chafe with a ceaseless roar, and over which constantly

hovers a cloud of sea-birds. The ruins consist of large adobe

bricks, and the stones already mentioned. Some of the walls

are in a fair state of preservation, considering the heavy and

frequent shocks of earthquakes to which they are exposed on

this coast; but, owing to the absence of rain and frost, they

have suffered little from the effects of the weather.

Paehaeamae is one of the most notable spots in Peru, for

here, as we are told by the old chroniclers, was the sacred city

of the natives of the coast, before their conquest by the Incas.

Here was the shrine of Paehaeamae, their chief divinity, and

here also the Incas erected a vast Temple of the Sun, and a

house of the Yirgins of the Sun, side by side with the temple

of Paehaeamae, whose worship they were too politic to sup-

press, but which they rather sought to undermine, and in the

end merge in that of their own tutelary divinity. The name

Paehaeamae signifies “He who animates the universe,” “The

Creator of the world.” The early Spanish priests thought they

had discovered in this definition ” that it was the Unknown God

the people here worshipped, and rendered respect and honor to

his name.” They also tell us that ” it was the same among the

Greeks and Latins, with the Pantocrator and Omnipotent, by

which names were invoked the True God, Creator of the Uni-

verse, and Verifier of all things. In this way there was estab-

lished the worship of the Supreme Deity, who from his incom-

prehensibility was not represented by any figure in this tem-

ple, whieh, although constructed of fragile materials, equalled

in wealth of gold and silver those of Cuzeo and Titicaca.

” Profuse were the oblations and sacrifices of the Indians in

this temple. Of the precious metals the Spaniards took away,

among their spoils, twenty-seven cargas of gold* and two thou-

* A cargo, is two and a half arrobas, or sixty-two and a half pounds.

INCIDENTS OF TRAVEL AND EXPLORATION

sand marks (sixteen thousand ounces) of silver, without having

discovered the place where were hidden four hundred cargas of.

these two metals, which is presumed to be somewhere in the

desert between Lima and Lurin. Señor Pinelo affirms that a

pilot of Pizarro asked for the nails and tacks which had sup-

ported the plates of silver, bearing the sacred name on the walls

of the temple, as his share of the spoil, which Pizarro granted

as a trifling thing, but which amounted to more than four thou-

sand marks (thirty-two thousand ounces). We may judge from

this what was the wealth of the temple in its greatness.”

After Pizarro had seized on the person of Atahualpa, not

satisfied with the immense ransom that he offered, he sent his

brother Hernandez from Cajamarca to the coast, to seize on the

treasures reported to exist in the Temple of Paehaeamae. Her-

nandez Pizarro had with him one Miguel Estete, by no means

an insignificant persouage among the conquistador’es, who wrote

a report of the expedition, to which Oviedo had access, and

which he seems to have quoted verbatim. The expedition ap-

pears to have followed the great inner or mountain road from

Quito to Cnzco, until it reached a town called Pachacoto, where

it left the main road for that of the plains. This was followed

for three days to a place called Perpunga, overlooking the sea.

Here they took ” a very broad road ” extending through all the

coast towns, and on the fourth day reached Paehaeamae, where

they were received in a friendly manner and lodged in certain

great buildings.

Hernandez then summoned the chiefs, and informed them

that he had come for the gold which they were to send for

the ransom of Atahualpa. They said it had already been sent;

but, nevertheless, they afterwards brought a little, and declared

that this was all which remained there. Hernandez pretended

to believe them, but said that he wished to see the temple and

the idol within it.

“This-idol,” says Estete, “was in a good house, well painted

and finished. In one room, closely shut, very dark and stink-

ing, was the idol made of wood, very dirty, which they call

God, who creates and sustains us. At its feet were some offer-

IN THE LAND OP THE INCAS.

iiiffs of golden ornaments. It is held in such veneration, that

none except its priests and servants, whom, it is supposed, he has

selected, may enter where it is, or touch the walls. No doubt,

the devil resides in this figure, and speaks with his servants

things that are spread all over the land. It is held throughout

the country as God, and to it they make great sacrifices, and

pilgrimages from a distance of three hundred leagues or more,

with gold and silver and clothing. These they give to the cus-

todian, who enters and consults the idol, and returns with its

answer. Before any of its ministers can enter, they must fast

many days, and abstain from all carnal intercourse. In all the

streets of this town and its principal gates, and around this

house of the idol, are many idols of wood, adorned in imitation

of their devil.

•’All the people from Tacamez, which is the beginning of

the government, pay tribute every year to this temple, having

houses in which to place it. They believe all things in the

world are in the hands of this idol.”

They were greatly scandalized and appalled when Hernandez

entered the temple, who, they believed, would be destroyed, and

had their faith much weakened when they fonnd this did not

occur. Hernandez ordered the vault (hoveda) in which the idol

was, to be demolished, and broke up the idol itself, and then

showed them the cross as an invincible weapon against the devil.

” This town of Paehaeamae,” continues Estete, u is a great

thing; and very near to a part of it, and along-side of the tem-

ple, is a house on a hill, well built, with five enclosures or walls,

which the Indians say is that of the Sun. There are also in

the town many other large houses, with terraces like those of

Spain. It must be a very old place, for there are numerous

fallen edifices. It has been surrounded by a wall, although

now most of it is fallen. It has large gates for entering, and

also streets. Its principal chief is called Taurichumbi, and

there are many other chiefs.”

Many chiefs of Mala, Chincha, and other places, came to see

Hernandez, bringing presents, and wondering much at his au-

dacity in confronting the idol. With what they brought and

INCIDENTS OF TRAVEL AND EXPLORATION

what he got from the temple, he obtained ninety thousand pesos

in gold, though the priests had taken away four hundred loads.

Such is the account of the first Spanish visit, and the overthrow

of the idol of Paehaeamae.

During my stay at Paehaeamae, I was hospitably entertained

at the sugar estate of San Pedro, two and a half miles from the

ruins, in the valley of Lurin. By careful irrigation and intel-

ligent industry, this estate has been rendered one of the finest

and most productive in the country. I present a view of the

residence of a family of laborers on this estate; it is a fair type

of the better class of dwellings of the common people along the

coast. The large population that once surrounded the great

HUT ON THE ESTATE OF SAN PEDRO.

temple is now reduced to a few families, who live in a little

village still called Paehaeamae. The houses are built of canes

and rushes. And in place of what was once the Mecca of a

great empire, we now find only numberless graves, a vast and

ancient cemetery among the crumbling ruins, which, however,

bear authentic testimony to the ancient greatness of the place.

The South Pacific Ocean off the coast of Chili and Peru is

a favorite crnising-ground for whalers, one of which had lately

been in these waters, and had left many carcasses to be drifted

ashore by the Antarctic current, which here sets full on the

IN THE LAND OF THE INCAS.

land. Two of these were stranded at the foot of the hill on

which stands a part of the ruins. A dozen or two condors had

appropriated this hill as a resting-place, when gorged with the

carrion. Half a dozen would be circling above us at once,

sometimes not more than twenty yards above our heads, and

again wheeling high up in the air. One day, while I was

sketching alone on the top of the ruins, a shadow suddenly fell

upon my drawing, and I heard a sharp report like the noise of

striking two boards togeth-

er. Looking up, I saw an

immense condor, not more

than fifteen feet above me,

apparently ready to pounce

upon me. I sprung to my

feet, drew my pistol, and

hastily fired. I do not

know whether I hit him

or not, but he sailed off,

“on mighty pens,” a few

hundred yards, and then

turned back and poised

himself directly over my

head, but at a more re-

spectful distance. I now

had a chance for a fair

shot at him, and the ball

cut out one of the featlir

ers of his wing close to the socket. It measured two feet four

inches in length. It is bardly necessary to say that I saw no

more of my feathered friend for the remainder of the day.

The two principal edifices now traceable (for, as we have

seen, some were in ruins at the time of the first Spanish visit)

are called “El Castillo,” or the Temple, which supported the

shrine of Paehaeamae, and that reared by the conquering In-

cas, with the convent of the Virgins, now bearing the name of

Mamacuna. The former occupies the snmmit of a considera-

ble hill, or, rather, headland, projecting from the somewhat ele-

SHOT AT A CONDOR.

INCIDENTS OF TRAVEL AND EXPLORATION

vat eel level behind, and rising about five hnndred feet above the

sea. It reaches close to the shore, so that the ocean may be said

to break at its feet.

About half-way up the hill commences a series of four vast

terraces built around the natural cone, forming a semilunar

pyramid. The walls of each terrace are nearly perpendicular,

and are faced with large adobes of uniform size. They were,

no doubt, at one time painted red, as there are still many spots

of red paint to be seen. The surface at the top, covering sev-

eral acres, is reached by a winding passage-way through the

broken-down walls of the terrace. The rectangular work has

VIEW AT PACHACAMAC.

been greatly injured by excavations, but was originally stuccoed

and painted; the walls, after all the destructive agencies that

have been employed to effect their ruin, still bearing traces of

the figures of trees and men. The terre-plehi is covered with

ruins; and at the southern corner, behind two rocks that crop

out, stood the shrine. The most interesting part of these ruins

is a sort of esplanade, at the point commanding the finest view

seaward. Here, though in an exceedingly rninous state, can be

made out pilasters and traces of edifices that once adorned

the spot.

The only building among the ruins having the Inca type is

IN THE LAND OF THE INCAS.

(39

that called Mamacuna, which would seem to imply that it was

a convent rather than a temple. It is situated about a mile and

a half from the ruins of El Castillo, which we have just de-

scribed, and stands on low ground near a small lake. A cluster

of dwarf palms has grown up in what was apparently the court.

Mamacuna is built of the same material as the other structures,

and in like manner, but differs in style, and is unmistakably

Inca, as the door-ways, niches, and other peculiarities show. One

of the niches in the inner room, shown in the following plan, is

depicted on page 71.

INCIDENTS OF TRAVEL AND EXPLORATION

The principal and remarkable feature is an arch, so rare in

American ruins. Indeed, in all my explorations in Central

and. South America, it is the only proper arch I ever found.

It is perfect and well turned, is of adobes, of large size, and

surmounts a passage running into the solid bulk of the edi-

fice, which may be considered as of two stories. The sides of

the passage are the solid walls of the structure. The length of

the passage is 14 feet 9 inches, but was, in all probability, much

greater. The width is 5 feet 0 inches, its height 8 feet, and the

spring of the arch 35 inches. There is no key-stone, but it is

filled in with the same material as the adobes.

IN THE LAND OF THE INCAS.

NICHE IN THE WALL, PACHACAMAC.

This arch is by no means the only example to be found on

the coast; for it is said that others also exist among the ab-

original monuments in the vicinity of Tumbez, in Northern

Peru. It is certain that a kind of bastard arch, formed by

overlapping stones,-or flat stones set at a certain pitch against

each other, like the rafters of a house, was known among all the

relatively civilized nations of the continent; but the true arch

is a thing exceptional, and the one to which I have alluded en-

tirely enigmatical, as I can scarcely conceive that the knowledge

ARCH AT PACHACAMAC.

INCIDENTS OF TRAVEL AND EXPLORATION

and skill of which it gives evidence eonld have existed, even

among those wonderful architects, the ancient Peruvians, with-

out having a wider or more general application.

In ancient times, Paehaeamae was the Mecca of South Amer-

ica ; and the worship of the Creator of the World, originally

pure, invested the temple with such sanctity that pilgrims re-

sorted to it from the most distant tribes, and were permitted

to pass unmolested through the tribes with whieh they might

happen to be at war. Of course, around both the ancient and

the modern temple there gradually sprung up a large town,

occupied by priests and servitors, and containing tambos, or

inns, for the pilgrims. But the desert has encroached on the

old city, and buried a large part of it, with a portion of its Avails,

under the drifting sands. Nothing can exceed the bare and

desolate aspect of the ruins, Avhich are as still and lifeless as

those of Palmyra. No living thing is to be seen, except, per-

haps, a solitary condor circling above the crumbling temple ; nor

sound heard, except the pulsations of the great Pacific breaking

at the foot of the eminence on Avhich the temple stood.

It is a place of death, not alone in its silence and sterility, but

as the burial-place of tens of thousands of the ancient dead. In

Paehaeamae, the ground around the temple seems to have been

a A’ast cemetery. Dig almost anyAvhere in the dry, nitrous sand.

and yon will come upon Avhat are loosely called mummies, but

Avhich are the desiccated bodies of the ancient dead. Dig deep-

er, and you Avill probably find a second stratum of relics of poor

humanity; and deeper still, a-third, shoAving IIOAV great Avas the

concourse of people, and IIOAV eager the desire to find a resting-

place in consecrated ground.

Most of the mummies are found in little vaults, or chambers

of adobes, roofed Avith sticks, or canes, and a layer of rushes,

and of a size to contain from one to four and fiVe bodies.

These are invariably placed in a sitting posture, Avith the head

resting on the knees, around Avhich the arms are clasped, or Avith

the head resting on the outspread palms, and the elboAvs on the

knees, enveloped in Avrappings of various kinds. Sometimes

they are eiiAreloped in inner Avrappings of fine cotton cloth, and

IN THE LAND OF THE INCAS.

PERUVIAN MUMMIES.

then in blankets of various colors and designs, made from the

wool of the vicuna and the alpaca, with ornaments of gold and

silver on the corpse, and vases of elegant design by its side.

But oftener the cerements are coarse, the ornaments scant and

mean, indicating that of old, as now, the mass of mankind was

as poor in death as impoverished in life. Fortunately for our

knowledge of the people of the past ages, who never attained

to a written language, they were accustomed to bury with

their dead the things they most regarded in life, and from

these we may deduce something of their modes of living, and

gain some idea of their religious notions and beliefs. In fact,

the interment of articles of any kind with the dead is a clear

proof of a belief in the doctrine of a future state, the theory

being that the articles thus buried would be useful to their

possessor in another world.

To ascertain something more about the ancient inhabitants

of Paehaeamae than could be inferred from their monuments,

I explored a number of their graves, during my ten days’ visit

there. I shall not try to give the general results of my inquir-

ies, but will record what I found in a single tomb, which will

illustrate how a family, not rich, nor yet of the poorest, lived

in Paehaeamae.

INCIDENTS OF TRAVEL AND EXPLORATION

I shall assume that the family occupying this tomb lived in

what may be called ” an apartment,” or one of the tenement-

houses in the ancient city, whieh were, in some respects, better

than ours. They were of but one story, and had no narrow,

dark, common passages, but all the apartments opened around

a spacious central court. Some of these tenements were com-

posed of but a single room. This family probably had three: a

large one, about fifteen feet square; a small sleeping-room, with

a raised bank of earth at one end ; and another smaller room, or

kitchen, with niches in the walls to receive utensils, and with

vases sunk in the earth to contain maize,

beans, etc., that seem to have been leading

articles of food. The plan is of such a

dwelling. The implements, utensils, orna-

ments, and stores have disappeared; but we

find many of them in the family tomb in

PLAN OF THE TENEMENT. ,i ‘111 J X” xl x 1

the neighborhood of the temple.

This particular tomb was one of the seeond stratum of

graves, and was, therefore, neither of the earliest nor latest date.

It was walled with adobes, was about four feet square by three

feet deep, and contained five bodies: one, of a man of middle

age; another, of a full-grown woman ; a third, of a girl about

fourteen years old ; a fourth, of a boy some years younger; and

the fifth, of an infant. The little one was placed between fa-

ther and mother: the boy was by the side of the man; the girl,

by the side of the woman. All were enveloped in a braided

net-work or sack of rushes, or coarse grass, bound closely around

the bodies by cords of the same material.

Under the outer wrapper of braided reeds of the man was

another of stout, plain cotton cloth, fastened with a variegated

cord of llama wool. Next came an envelope of cotton cloth of

finer texture, whieh, when removed, disclosed the body, shrunk-

en and dried hard, of the color of mahogany, but well preserved.

The hair was long, and slightly reddish, perhaps from the effects

of the nitre in the soil. Passing around the neck, and carefully

folded on the knees, on which the head rested, was a net of the

twisted fibre of the agave, a plant not fonnd on the coast. The

IN THE LAND OF THE INCAS.

threads were as fine as the finest used by our fishermen, and

the meshes were neatly knotted, precisely after the fashion of

to-day. This seems to indicate that he had been a fisherman

— a conclusion further sustained by finding, wrapped up in

a cloth, between his feet some fishing-lines of various sizes,

some copper hooks, barbed like ours, and some copper sinkers.

Under each armpit was a roll of white alpaca wool, and behind

the calf of each leg a few thick, short

ears of variegated maize. A small, thin

piece of copper had been placed in the

month, corresponding, perhaps, with the

obolos which the ancient Greeks put

into the mouths of their dead, as a fee

for Charon. This was all discovered be-

longing exclusively to the fisherman,

except that, suspended by a thread

around the neck, was a pair of bronze tweezers, probably for

plucking out the beard.

The wife, beneath the same coarse outer wrapping of braid-

ed reeds, was enveloped in a blanket of alpaca wool finely spun,

PERUVIAN TWEEZERS.

PATTERN OF ALPACA BLANKET.

INCIDENTS OF TRAVEL AND EXPLORATION

woven in the style known as three-ply,” in two colors—a soft

chestnut-brown and a pure white. The somewhat intricate fig-

ure is reproduced on a reduced scale in the engraving.

Below this was a sheet of fine cotton cloth, with sixty-two

threads of warp and woof to the inch. It had a diamond-shaped

pattern, formed by very elaborate lines of ornament, inside of

which, or in the spaces themselves, were representatives of

monkeys, which seemed to be following each other as Tip and

down stairs.

PATTERN OF COTTON SHROUD.

Beneath this was a rather coarsely woven, but yet soft and

flexible, cotton cloth, twenty yards or more in length, wrapped

in many folds around the body of the woman, whieh was in a

similar condition, as regards preservation, to that of her hus-

band. Her long hair was less changed by the salts of the soil

than that of her husband, and was black, and in some places

IN THE LAND OF THE INCAS.

WALLET, FOLDED.

lustrous. In one band she held a comb, made by setting what

I took to be the bony parts—the rays—of

fishes’ fins in a slip of the hard, woody part

of the dwarf-palm-tree, into which they were

not only tightly cemented, but firmly bound.

In her other hand were the remains of a fan,

with a cane handle, from the upper points of

which radiated the faded

feathers of parrots and

humming-birds.

Around her neck was a

triple necklace of shells,

dim in color, and ‘exfolia-

ting layer after layer when exposed to light

and air. Resting between her body and

bent-up knees were several small domestic

implements, among them an ancient spindle

for spinning cotton, half covered with spun

thread, which connected with a mass of the

raw cotton. This simple spinning apparatus

consisted of a section of the stalk of the quinoa, half as large

as the little finger,

and eight inches long,

its lower end fitted

through a whirl – bob

of stone, to give it

momentum when set

in motion by a twirl

of the forefinger and

thumb grasping a

point of hard wood

stuck in the upper

end of the spindle.

The contrivance is

precisely the same

as that in universal

use by the Indian WALLET, UNFOLDED.

ANCIENT SPINDLE.

INCIDENTS OF TRAVEL AND EXPLORATION

SPOOL OF THREAD.

women of the present day. Only I have seen a small lime,

lemon, or potato with a quinoa stalk stuck through it, instead

of the aneient stone or earthen

whirl-bob.

One of the most interesting ar-

ticles found with the woman was a

kind of wallet, composed of two

pieces of thick cotton cloth of dif-

ferent colors, ten inches long by

five broad, the lower end of eaeh

terminating in a fringe, and the up-

per end at eaeh corner in a long

braid, the braids of both being

again braided together. These

cloths, placed together, were carefully folded up and tied by

the braids. The packet contained some kernels of the large

lupin, sometimes call-

ed u Lima beans ;” a

few pods of cotton,

gathered before ma-

turity, the husks be-

ing still on; some

fragments of an orna-

ment of thin silver;

and two little thin

disks of the same ma-

terial, three-tenths of

an inch in diameter,

each pierced with a

small hole near its

edge, too minute for

ornament apparently,

and possibly used as a

coin; also some tiny

beads of chalcedony,

scarcely an eighth of

an inch in diameter.

KNITTING UTENSILS.

IN THE LAND OF THE INCAS.

SKEIN OF THREAD.

The body of the girl was peculiar in position, having been

seated on a kind of work-bos of braided reeds, with a cover

hinged on one side, and shut-

ting down and fastening on

the other. It was about eigh-

teen inches long, fourteen

wide, and eight deep, and con-

tained a greater variety of ar-

ticles than I ever found together in any grave of the aborigines.

There were grouped together things childish, and things show-

ing approach to maturity. There were rude specimens of knit-

ting, with places showing where stitches had been dropped;

mites of spindles and implements for weaving, and braids of

thread of irregular thick-

ness, kept as if for sake of

contrast with others larger

and nicely wound, with a

finer and more even thread.

There were skeins and

spools of thread; the spools

being composed of two

splints placed across each

other at right angles, and

the thread wound “in and out” between them. There were

strips of cloth, some wide, some narrow, and some of two and

even three colors. There were pouches, plain and variega-

ted, of different sizes, and all woven

or knit without a seam. There were

needles of bone and of bronze; a

comb, a little bronze knife, and some other articles; a fan,

smaller than that of the mother, was also stored away in the

box.

There were several sections of the hollow bones of some bird,

carefully stopped by a wad of cotton, and containing pigments

of various colors. I assumed at first that they were intended

for dyes of the various cotton textures we had discovered; but

I became doubtful when I found a curious contrivance, made

TOILET ARTICLES.

NETTING INSTRUMENT.

INCIDENTS OF TRAVEL AND EXPLORATION

of the finest cotton, evidently used as a ” dab ” for applying the

colors to the face. By the side of these novel cos-

metic boxes was a contrivance for rubbing or grind-

ing the pigments to the (requisite fineness for use.

It was a small oblong stone, with a cup-shaped hollow

on the upper side, in which fits a little round stone

ball, answering the purpose of a pestle. There was

also a substitute for a mirror, composed of a piece

DRIED PARROT. ^ pyrites resembling the half of an egg, with

the plane side highly polished. Among all these many curious

things, I dare say, none was prized

in life more than a little crushed

ornament of gold, evidently in-

tended to represent a butterfly,

but so thin and delicate that it

came to pieces and lost its form

when we attempted to handle it.

There was also a netting instru-

ment of hard wood, not unlike

those now in use in making nets.

The envelopes of the mummy of the girl were similar to

those that enshrouded her mother. Her hair was braided and

plaited around the forehead, encircling

which, also, was a cincture of white cloth,

ornamented with little silver spangles; a

thin narrow bracelet of the same metal

still hung on the shrunken arm, and be-

tween her feet was the dried body of a

parrot, doubtless her pet in life, brought

perhaps from the distant Amazonian val-

leys.

There was nothing of special interest

surrounding the body of the boy; but

bound tightly around his forehead was his

sling, finely braided from cotton threads.

The body of the infant, a girl, had been

INFANT’S BURIAL-NET. embedded in the fleece of the alpaca, then

BOY’S SLING.

IN THE LAND OF THE INCAS.

wrapped in fine cotton cloth, and placed in a strangely braided

sack of rushes, with handles or loops at each end, as if for carry-

ing it. The only article found with this body was a sea-shell

containing pebbles, the orifice closed wTith a hard pitch-like sub-

stance. It was the child’s rattle.

Besides the bodies, there were a number of utensils, and oth-

er articles in the vault;

among them half a dozen

earthen jars, pans, and

pots of various sizes and

ordinary form. One or

two were still in crusted

with the soot of the fires

over whieh they had been

used. Every one con-

tained something. One

was filled with ground-

nuts, familiar to us as pea-nuts; another with maize, etc., all

except the latter in a carbonized condition.

Besides these articles, there were also some others, illustrating

the religious notions of the occupants of the ancient tomb, and

affording us scant but, as far as they go, certain ideas of the

ancient faith and worship.

POTTERY FROM PACHACAMAC.

INCIDENTS OF TRAVEL AND EXPLORATION

CHAPTER Y.

RUINS IN THE VICINITY OF LIMA.

The Valley of Cañete and its Ruins.—The Palace of El Rey Inca.—Ruins of Hervai.

—Temple at Magdalena.—Limatambo.—Ruins in the Valley of the Chillon.—

Burial-places of the Ancient Poor.—Relics found in Graves.—Ruins of Cajamar-

quilla.—Exploring and Surveying.—Meet the Robber, Rossi Arei.—His Subse-

quent Fate.

IN the vicinity of Lima are many ruins, which I visited and

explored. These will form the subject of the present chapter.

In one of the districts of the fertile valley of Cañete, now occu-

pied by rich sugar plantations, stood, at the time of the Spanish

conquest, a grand fortress, which was to a great extent demol-

ished in the seventeenth century by the viceroy, the Conde de

Mendoza, while he was building the Castle of Callao. Of this

fortress a Peruvian author writes: ” Where the valley of Guarco

terminates, twelve leagues from Lima, on the south coast, and

near the valley of Cañete, were discovered the remains of a

great fortress overlooking the sea. It was a castle of stone,

situated on an elevation washed by the sea. This edifice had

for its foundations great square bricks (adobes). The doors to

the apartments, and entrances to the various interior rooms,

were of a regular architecture, the whole well arranged, with

spacious courts and antechambers, which gave more dignity to

this invincible fortress. From the highest of these a stairway

descended to the sea. The steps were of great stones, so well

united as to appear of a single piece, nor was any mortar visi-

ble between them. Altogether the structure appeared to be of

different construction from the buildings of Cuzeo, and at least

exhibiting equal power and magnificence. The Yiceroy of Pern,

the Marquis of Cafiete, in the year 1595, repaired this fortress,

and appointed an alcalde to guard it, with six soldiers; the for-

IN THE LAND OF THE INCAS.

mer with a salary of twelve hundred assayed escudos annually,

and the latter with the pay each of twenty-five escudos month-

ly. But the payment of these sums not having been realized,

the guard was withdrawn, and the demolition of the fortress

was commenced by the people of the valley, who used the

stones for new constructions of their own. The ruin thus

made reflects disgracefully on bur intelligence, which requires

that this work should be restored and preserved.”

The ruins known as the Palace of El Rey Inca, in the valley

of Cañete, are shown in the

plan. On the front, a row

of piers gives entrance to an

extensive square court, cov-

ering as much ground as

the structure beyond, and

enclosed by a wall three feet

thick. The building itself

is divided into rooms, with

an open court, and at the

side an extension forming

one apartment between two

terraces. Many of the walls

are niched, especially those

of the two principal rooms.

The ruins of Hervai, in

the valley of Huarcu, one

of the branches of the Ca-

ñete, show excellent work-

manship and materials. As will be seen in the plan, they are

remarkable for the numerous flights of well-laid steps, leading

from one part to another. The passage-ways through the walls,

marked ” W,” are covered.

Between Lima and the sea, protected by the fortress of San

Miguel, is the small village of Magdalena, a place of not more

than five hundred inhabitants. A road leads from it to Bella-

vista, a station on the railroad from Callao to Lima; and as there

is a demand for bricks, the ancient adobe structures are fast

INCIDENTS OF TRAVEL AND EXPLORATION

being destroyed, the material being remade into bricks for tbe

modern towns. The ruins, now in a very dilapidated condition,

were once highly important, including a temple of the famous

oracle – deity, Rimac. Of this a native author says: “About

half a league to the sonth of Lima are the ruins of a temple

which, if we may credit the old accounts, was scarcely less

adorned than that of Paehaeamae in richness of gold and sil-

ver, although differing from it in the worship to which it was

dedicated and sumptuousness of construction. Here was adored

an idol, which from its oracular utterances was called Rimac,*

which word, if yon pronounce the Ii softly, means a thing that

talks. They pretended that the demon of the temple spoke

through the mouth of this idol, which was of clay, imitating

the figure and habit of the Moanes. It was dedicated, says

Pinelo, speaking of this temple, to an idol which it contained,

which responded as an oracle, and was for this called llhnac,

k he who speaks.’ In this there was nothing more demoniac than

astuteness, for the Moanes, to deceive the people, introduced

one of themselves beneath the statue, which was hollow, who

responded to the consultations according to the character of the

offerings made by the people. They painted in this temple, as

hieroglyphics, the answers most favoring their ideas. And, to

make mysterious these paintings, which are to be seen on the

* From this idol, and not from the river on whose banks it stands, the city of

Lima takes its name; the II changing into L.

IN THE LAND OF THE INCAS.

walls of this structure, they covered them with other walls,

without allowing the junction of those that served as a curtain

to obliterate the figures they concealed.

“The Padre Calancha adverts to the same things with my-

self, and with animation says: ‘I admired seeing in one of

these palaces or houses two walls, once joined together, which

had been separated by earthquakes, and were painted with

figures of Indians and animals. Asking of some how they

could smooth and paint one wall joining another, they thought

(seeing that the walls are great) that they painted one brick

or section of tapia, and quickly joined its ends; then an-

other. But they do not explain how it was that the divisions

between wall and wall remain visible, and the pictures with

lines and breaks show the separation. vVe are compelled to

believe that the multitnde of Indians had a way of making the

wall entire, and, after smoothing and painting it, joining it to

the other; since the number and obedience of the Indians

would make things much more difficult easy.’

“Of the treasures of this temple the authors say nothing

positive; what they write are conjectures, but well founded if

this is the tradition they favor. It says that there are great

riches buried in the ruins. But the area they cover is not great.

With comparatively few workmen the walls may be torn down,

their materials removed, and the centre excavated, in which

case the truth may be ascertained. My doubts do not relate

to the riches which were unquestionably contained in the tem-

ple before its ruin, but to those alleged to be buried within its

walls. For such burials there was scarcely time, and if there

had been, it is hardly credible that within the walls of Lima

and around it there can remain until now undiscovered so great

a treasure, there being no difficulty in the way of its discovery,

especially as there are men who love more this kind of work

than any other. I do not deny that there are hereabouts some

burials, sufficient to alleviate the poverty of one or two, but

nothing like the treasures which, without dispute, are hidden

in Chuciuto, Cnzco, Truxillo, Paehaeamae, and Cajamarca. If

these were discovered, they would be sufficient to enrich the

INCIDENTS OF TEAVEL AND EXPLORATION

world. It is difficult to find them, from the sitnation of the

deposits; but it would be easy to discover those of Rimac if

any certain information existed concerning them. This temple

was called then Rimac-Tam-Pu (house of him who speaks), a

name now corrupted into Limatambo.”

When I visited these ruins I found a graded way or inclined

plane leading from one court to another, giving on a small

scale, but in a perfectly satisfactory manner, an explanation and

example of the mode in which ascents were accomplished by

the builders of these works. The double wall that surrounds

the temple, or huaca, and other structures at this place is more

than three miles long, and in some places more than sixteen

feet high. The gateway, partly closed by a modern wall, has

two inner piers or square columns, standing a few feet from the

wall inside.

DEMOLISHING HUACA, LIMATAMBO.

On the road to Chorillos, nearly on a lino with this, is the

modern Limatambo, with extensive remains; but these and sim-

ilar works at Amacavilca, which overlooks the present fashion-

able watering-place of Chorillos, need little description. Those

at Limatambo were also undergoing demolition by the hands of

the brick-makers; but their sacrilege was forgiven in return for

the advantage afforded us of studying more in detail than we

IN THE LAND OF THE INCAS.

elsewhere enjoyed the mode of construction and system of

building these ancient structures.

In the valley of the river Chillon, ten miles north-west of

Lima, is a fortification similar in design and purpose to the

fortresses of Calaveras and Quisque, in the valleys of the Cas-

ma and jNepiña, hereafter to be described. It is situated on the

Hacienda Collique, near the road to Cerro Paseo, over which we

went on our way down to the ruins. The remains are in shape

an irregular oval, the lines being conformed to the outline of

the hill, which is about five hundred feet in height. The area

PORTION OF WALL OF HOACA NEAR LIMATAMBO.

is fifteen hundred feet in its greatest diameter. The two out-

er walls, with the two supporting ones at the entrance, are of

rough stones without cement; the third and last is of stones

carefully laid in tenacious clay, fourteen feet high, and faced

vertically. There are a number of clusters of ruined buildings

within the walls, and to the left are several small hills, sur-

mounted with adobe buildings in a state of much dilapidation.

After passing the fourth wall, at the entrance we come to an

INCIDENTS OF TRAVEL AND EXPLORATION

extensive level area, which I have designated as the Plaza, and

whieh is partly surrounded by terraces faced with stones; pass-

ing which we come to a steep stairway, mainly cut in the solid

FORTIFIED HILL OF COLLIQUI.

rock, leading to the top of the hill. Here is the terre-jplein,

nearly level and free from stones, and the round tower or cita-

del. At the base of the hill, upon the right, is a heavy adobe

wall crossing the valley and the Cerro Pasco road, to another

and somewhat similar fortified hill, on the opposite side of the

valley.

On the Hacienda Arriaga, about three miles north-west of

Lima, on the road to the valley of the river Chillon, there is

an extensive ruin, a plan of a portion of which we give. These

remains are part of a large series, of which they are the best

preserved, and are situated on the flank of a considerable hill

or promontory projecting into the valley which they overlook,

besides commanding a fine view of the harbor of Callao. The

hill is about two hundred and fifty feet high, and the ruins are,

perhaps, one-third of the way up the side. At the place where

the hill is steepest the outer wall is reinforced by two others of

less height. On the opposite side of the hill is a broad sandy

valley running high up the mountain, and covered with re-

IN THE LAND OF THE INCAS.

PLAN OF RUINS AT THE HACIENDA ARRIAGA, WITH SECTION.

mains. It seems formerly to have been in considerable part

cultivated by means of an azequia tunnelled through the hill a

distance of one hundred and fifty yards.

The traces of the tunnel, which is now fallen in or stopped

up, are distinct, and arc situated about one hundred yards to the

left of the works. The remains are distinguished by having

several low door-ways through the wall, besides the open ones.

The ” lower classes,” the ” hewers of wood and drawers of

water,” in Peru, as everywhere else, met in death a treatment

corresponding with that meted out to them in life. They were

thrust into holes in the nitrous sands of the coast, or into crev-

ices of the rocks among the mountains, with such scant para-

phernalia for their wanderings in a future world as their own

limited means or those of their humble friends could supply.

Few and rude are the relics found with these shrivelled remains:

a calabash or gourd; perhaps a carved wooden cup, containing

INCIDENTS OF TRAVEL AND EXPLORATION

amulets or charms; curious stones, to the natural peculiarities

of Yvhieh the superstitious mind rendered reverence ; an imple-

ment of toil; and perhaps a rude wooden idol: such were the

objects most frequently found with the plebeian dead of the

coast, buried in such shallow graves that the winds often ex-

posed them, and the earthquake thrust them up to the day.

To utilize the arable land, the ancient inhabitants were accus-

tomed to pile up the stones that encumbered the ground in

great heaps. In these, to avoid encroaching upon the areas of

cultivation, they often deposited their humble dead. Thou-

sands of such stone-heaps dot the plains around Lima, and the

valleys of the Rimac and Chill on. In one of these I found the

dried-up body of one of the ancient tillers of the soil. He sat

alone among the stones wrapped in rustic cloths, with some

pods of beans and ears of maize pressed between his breast and

knees, testifying that the distinctions of life, real or adventi-

tious, extended to the grave.

At his feet, enveloped in coarse cotton cloth, were two ob-

jects of interest, obviously connected

with his superstitions. The first was

a kind of idol or mask, cut out of

wood, bearing a resemblance to the

carved idols brought from distant

Pacific islands. It is painted red on

the face, and has on -top and sides

holes through which thin cords, still

remaining in place, were passed, as if

to attach it in front of some object.

A projection beneath the chin, ap-

parently designed to fit into a socket,

suggests the possibility that it was

carried surmounting a pole or staff. It is seven and a half

inches vertically, exclusive of the lower projection, by seven

inches broad, and is boldly and freely cut by some sharp in-

strument. Probably the eye-soekets had been filled by oval

pieces of shell, corresponding with what we see in the works of

the Polynesian islands, and of the people of the African coast.

CARVED WOODEN IDOL.

IN THE LAND OF THE INCAS.

WOODEN BOWL.

There was also a wooden bowl, four and a half inches in di-

ameter, and nearly four inches high, carved with a border of

conventional representations of

some kind of bird running

around its rim. The outer sur-

face is smooth, while the interior

shows the marks of sharp tools.

It was packed full of layers of

variously colored alpaca and vi-

cuna wool, in perfect preserva-

tion. Between each layer were

deposited pebbles, having some

faint likeness to animals, a little strengthened by art. There

were fragments of crystallized quartz, and a very good carving

in a variegated talc of an ear of maize,

three inches long, and of just propor-

tions. These articles were what are

called, according to the Padre Arriaga

in his rare book on the ” Extirpation of

Idolatry in Peru,” canopas, the house-

hold deities, or lares, of the ancient inhabitants. We are told

that “the most esteemed of these were the bezoar stone {quicu)

and small quartz crystals (guispi). The carvings in stone, in

imitation of ears of maize, are specially mentioned under the

name of zaramama.

Some four or five leagues from Lima, following up the val-

ley of the river Rimac, is a side valley, an amphitheatre among

the hills, containing several important haciendas, of whieh those

of Huachipa and La Niverea are the principal. This valley is

watered by a large azequia, deriving its supply from the river

higher up, and which dates from the time of the Incas. The

water, however, cannot, or could not, be carried, under the hy-

draulic system of the ancients, sufficiently high up on the flanks

of the hills to irrigate the whole of this subsidiary and remark-

ably fertile valley. Its upper or higher part, therefore—an ex-

tent of several square miles—like all the rest of Peru where not

irrigated, is an arid area, without vegetation of any kind; while

EAR OF MAIZE, IN STONE.

INCIDENTS OF TRAVEL AND EXPLORATION

the lower or irrigated part is covered with luxuriant grain fields

and meadows.

On this plain, and covering nearly a square league, are the

RUINS OF CAJAMARQUILLA.

remains of an ancient town, now known as the ruins of Caja-

marquilla. These consist of three great groups of buildings

on and around the central masses, with streets passing be-

tween them. It would be impossible to describe this compli-

cated maze of massive adobe walls, most of them still standing,

albeit much shattered by centuries of earthquakes, or to convey

I”

12 ft.

>,’•> ‘»l>l/WWjy./l/»»H’>.’/> y}

‘”/’/’ft.

SECTION AND PLAN OF SUBTERRANEAN VAULTS.

IN THE LAND OF THE INCAS.

an idea of the pyramidal edifices, rising stage on stage, with ter-

races and broad flights of steps leading to their summits. It is

enough to say that many of the buildings of the ruined city,

the history of which is lost even to tradition, are complicated

■r

-|l

— – —

–

‘H

< o ? Z o >

– > ” a

»s ^

i >

” O

far

T7FBT

SECTION A.B.

structures, their apartments connecting by blind and narrow

passages, and containing many curious subterranean vaults or

granaries, which consisted of excavations made in the hard

ground, of various shapes and sizes. Some were round, like a

vase or jar, and again others were square. They are called

INCIDENTS OF TRAVEL AND EXPLORATION

ollas, or tinajas (vases, or jars), and were no doubt intended for

the storage of household supplies. The plans on page 92 will

afford a better idea of their construction than can be given by

words.

The privacy of these rooms was insured by walls in front of

the doors. The door-ways are all low, and vary in fomi, a few

of which a”re given in the engraving. There are no windows

DOOR-WATS.

in the dwellings, and the roofs are flat. ISTo traces of gables are

to be seen. In many there was an earthen elevation or dai’s,

and they seem to have been supplied with suitable closets.

Among these edifices an army might conceal itself; and, in

fact, these ruins have several times been made the refuge of

bands of robbers and vagabonds, so as to require, on one oc-

casion, a full regiment of soldiers to hunt them out and expel

them.

I had gone to the hacienda of La Niverea, at the invitation

of its proprietor, Don Pablo, who was also the owner of the

waste lands occupied by the ruins, for the purpose of making

a thorough investigation of them. I was accompanied by a

friend, who was both draughtsman and photographer, and we

intended to spend a week there, and bring away such plans and

views as would give a clear notion of the singular and unde-

scribed remains of the ancient city. We found at the hacienda

a detachment of troops from Lima, a lieutenant and some flve-

and-twenty men, who seemed to be in no hurry to leave the

comfortable foraging afforded by Don Pablo’s well-cultivated

hacienda, with its acre or two of vineyard, now purple with

such grapes as are found nowhere in the world except Peru.

IN THE LAND OF THE INCAS.

We commenced operations among the ruins the very day of

our arrival, assisted by a couple of Chinese laborers, kindly

lent us by our host. We went to our work early, and returned

late, our interest deepening with every hour’s investigation.

On the second day, the lieutenant and his squad left, alleging

that the ladrones had been heard from over the mountains, in

the valley of Chillon, whither they went “to persecute them.”

I suspected that the ” persecutors ” of the robbers had got some

hint of their approach to La Niverea, and, either from fear or

through complicity, had determined to give them a clear field.

On our third day among the ruins, my companions succumbed

to the heat and glare of the sun reflected from the bare walls,

and returned to the hacienda with many symptoms of fever,

leaving me with but one assistant, A-tau, a Chinese, who could

neither speak nor understand more than half a dozen Spanish

words; but who, nevertheless, I had little difficulty in making

comprehend all that I required in the way of aiding me in my

survey. He carried the measuring-line and stakes, and myself

the compass and note-book.

Having long before recognized the utter impossibility of

making a complete plan of the whole city, I had determined

to run out the most important streets, and make a detailed sur-

vey of a section sufficiently large to convey a clear notion of

the whole. I ran my fines on the walls, which are in general

broad and firm enough to permit one to walk along their tops.

We had proceeded on a single, slightly deviating course for

i nearly half a mile, past the principal pyramidal pile among the

ruins, and nearly to their centre, and were silently intent on

our work, when, being in advance, I was startled in every nerve

by the sudden apparition of three men leaping suddenly to their

feet from the earthen floor of one of the smaller rooms, where

they had been comfortably reclining on a heap of piliones and

ponchos. They were armed, and their hands were on their

weapons in a moment. I gave the universal salutation of the

mountaineers, “Dios y pas” (God and peace), which was re-

sponded to in like manner.

It was Rossi Arci himself, the ” Robber of the Ruins,” and

96 INCIDENTS OF TRAVEL AND EXPLORATION

Ms companions, whom I had surprised. I knew that I was in

for it, so I made a bold advance by clambering down the broken

wall, with outstretched hand, which was accepted reluctantly.

I soon found that I was suspected of being a Government agent,

making a plan of the ruins for official use. I knew there was

no time for trifling, and that a fearless manner was my only

guarantee of safety. I offered him my flask, which he declined,

saying, “After you,” and for reasons afterwards obvious, I com-

menced. My excellent friem. paid profound respects to the

flask when passed to him; and, as I handed him one of my

cards, and he read the name with the appendage, ” Comisionado

de los Estados Unidos,” he said, “Bien [good]; pardon me,” and

lifted his sombrero. He followed the explanation of my plans

with apparent interest, but I fear he was not exactly the man to

appreciate archaeology. One fellow of the party had encoun-

tered me some months previous at the ruins of Amacavilca,

and had seen the great range of my wonderful breech-loading

rifle, and gave a pretty high notion of the efficiency of that

weapon. The robber wished to possess himself of so valuable

an addition to his armory, and immediately made me an offer

of one hundred Bolivian dollars, adding, slowly, “When I get

them ; for, señor, we really are’ not rich.” I, however, declined

the generous offer; but I promiseol to send him a few bottles

of italia, such as I had with me. As we parted, he said, ” You

may come back to-morrow to your nonsense \tonterias~] with-

out fear; and I will send a reliable man for the rifle. Adios,

amigo /” I sent A-tau to carry the bottles, which he did with’

great reluctance. It was after dark when he returned, grossly

intoxicated. It seems that my friend Rossi Arci had insisted

on my drinking first, not from motives of courtesy, but to as-

sure himself that there had been no poisons artfully dissolved

in the tempting italia • and when he got hold of A-tau’s bottles,

the Celestial wretch was compelled to drink a third of each to

give assurance that a similar “doctoring” had not taken place

at the hacienda. Between fright and an overdose of brandy, I

lost my assistant next day, and Don Pablo a laborer for a week.

Four weeks afterwards, a swollen and disfigured corpse was

IN THE LAND OF THE INCAS.

exposed in the Grand Plaza of Lima. It was that of Rossi

Arci. He had made a bold attack on a Government guard of

about a hundred soldiers, who were conveying a remittance of

coin, at a place noted in the annals of Peruvian brigandage as

Rio Seco, about half-way between Lima and Cerro de Pasco.

The fight lasted some hours, and frequently swayed in his fa-

vor ; and it is not impossible that he would have captured the

booty had he not received a severe wound in the groin, which

compelled him to retire, and of which he died the next day.

His last request was to be buried in the bottom of an asequia,

so that his body might not fall into the hands of the authori-

ties. His request was complied with; but one of his followers

gave himself up, and purchased clemency by revealing the se-

cret of the brigand’s grave. A commission was sent to verify

the statements of Arci’s follower, and the decaying body was

identified and brought to Lima amid the rejoicings of the peo-

ple. The commander of the remisa was promoted, and a gen-

eral feeling of relief pervaded the community.

INCIDENTS OF TRAVEL AND EXPLORATION

CHAPTER VI.

UP TIIE COAST TO TKTJXILLO.

Starting for Paita.—The Rocky Coast.—Sea-lions.—The Oasis and Port of Huacho.

—The Town.—Rock-salt.—How it is formed.—Supe and Patavilca.—The Rio de

la Barranca.—Ruins of Paramanca.—Traditions.—Ancient Works on La Horca.

—Huarmey or Guarmey.—Casma.—Bays of Simanco and Ferrol.—The Valley of

Chimboto.—Ancient Monuments.—Silver Mine of Micate.—Port of Santa.—The

Rio Santa.—Ridge crowned with Ruins.—Huaca near Santa.—Ride to Santa.—

The City.—Guano Islands of Guañape.—Eagles, Pelicans, and Vultures.—Port of

Huanchaco.—Siugular Craft.—Sardinas.—Getting ashore.—The Prefect of Truxil-

lo.—Departure for Truxillo.—The Grand Chimu.—Beautiful Lizards.—Entrance

to Truxillo.

HAVING completed my official duties as United States Com-

missioner to Peru, and having explored the ruins at Paehaeamae

and those in the immediate vicinity of Lima, I was at liberty to

undertake the far wider researches and explorations which I

had so long meditated. My first expedition was to be north-

ward, up (or as they phrase it here, down) the coast to the an-

cient ruins of Grand Chimu, near Truxillo. I proposed also, on

my return voyage, to visit the ruins lying in the vicinity of the

coast between the port of Truxillo and Lima. I was accom-

panied by Mr. P-as photographer, and Mr. C-, a friend

who was to assist me. After infinite delays, I succeeded, as I

thought, in getting the ” dark tent” for use in photographing

completed, just in time to be put aboard the little, low, long

English-built steamer Inca, plying coastwise between Callao and

Paita. A more uncomfortable craft could scarcely be found.

The cabin was low and without state-rooms, the compartments

for the sexes being merely shut off by dingy curtains. The

deck was uncovered, with only a narrow seat running part of

the way aronnd it, next the guards. AVe were too glad to get

off, to be either critical or complaining, especially as we found

IN THE LAND OF THE INCAS.

that the captain was communicative, pleasant, and even con-

vivial.

It was late in the afternoon, and the two remaining hours of

daylight were spent in watching the thousand fantastic forms

of the frayed and barren rocks under whose shadows our little

steamer glided along. AVe were so close to them that they shut

from sight the higher elevations and nevados of the interior,

with their rugged escarpments. Early next morning we were

awakened by the slowing of the vessel, its occasional stoppages,

and the heaving of the lead—indications that we were nearing

the land in a fog. Going on deck, we found the atmosphere of

the color of milk, thick with moisture that hung in beads from

every stay, and stood in pools everywhere. We were cautiously

feeling our way into the port of Huacho, more than a hundred

miles from Callao. But what noise is that, now loud and ap-

parently close at hand, and then fainter and more distant, a

mingled howling and bellowing, rising above the slow splash of

our scarcely revolving wheels ? A dripping sailor, noticing my

amazement, said, with a grim smile,

” They are having a good old time of it this morning.”

“Who are?”

“Why, them sea-lions—seals some folks call ’em. They are

allers lively in such weather. And a good thing it is too; for

you see, sir, the gettin’ into this place is full of rocks that

these beasts live on, and fight on too; real savage, sir, some-

times, especially when courtin’: and if it warn’t for them, we

should never know where we are in thick weather; for these

people would never put up fog-bells.”‘

And so it was; we were really .steering by the racket of the

seals that swarm on the rocky islets off the coast, and especially

in this locality. After a while the man at the lead sung out,

” Three fathoms—half !” and the order to anchor was given. A

gun was fired, and we awaited the lifting of the fog; waited

until breakfast and after breakfast, for four mortal hours, when

a light breeze sprung up and the fog began to scatter, unveiling

fitfully the shore, which was high and green, with a number of

little silvery cataracts from the various azequias pouring over

100 INCIDENTS OF TRAVEL AND EXPLORATION

the declivity. After a while the whole oasis of Huacho was re-

vealed, a verdant interval extending perhaps a mile along the

beach, between two bare, rocky eminences; that to the south

projecting into the sea so as to form a partial protection from

the prevailing south wind. Near this the Government had con-

structed at great cost a long iron mole, which was little used;

for the boats that put off to our steamer, whether with passen-

gers or freight, all started from the beach through the heavy

surf, and landed there, as in the days of old. I was anxious to

go ashore for a few hours in Huacho, but found that, in conse-

quence of the delay occasioned by the fog, this would be im-

practicable.

Huacho is a considerable town, in a high valley watered by

the Rio Huaura, containing many rich haciendas and several

tolerably large towns. It has about six thousand inhabitants,

mainly Indians, engaged in supplying Lima with fowls, pigs,

etc., and in working the salt-pits (salinas), fifteen miles to the

southward. The great blocks of salt which form so conspic-

uous a feature in the shops of Lima are obtained here. The

place where the deposits occur is called Pampa de las Salinas,

a plain (as its name implies) two miles long by one broad, about

three miles from the sea. The centre of this plain is depressed,

and here the salt is found in thick layers of different degrees of

purity; the upper and poorest being called sal de barco, or ship-

salt ; the intermediate variety, sal de garza / and the lowest and

best, sal de corazon. It is chopped out in blocks of from eighty

to one hundred and fifty pounds, varying in price according to

quality, from fifteen to forty cents per Jiundred-weight, at the

works.

Whenever the salt is removed, the excavations soon become

filled by infiltration with saturated salt-water, and in the course

of a year or two they are occupied again by another solid mass

of salt. It was long supposed that this infiltration took place

from the sea; but the investigations of Professor Raimondi

have shown that the supply of water is kept up from the con-

densation on the surrounding hill-sides, and on the plain itself,

of the guaras, or fogs, of the winter season. He supposes that

IN THE LAND OF THE INCAS.

101

the plain, and the basin of which it is the centre, were once be-

neath the sea, and raised up suddenly by one of those convul-

sions of which the whole coast bears so many evidences, thus

forming a great salt lake cut off from the sea, and that by

evaporation thick beds of salt were deposited in the lowest part

of the plain, while the surrounding sands were charged with

it; and that the constant renovation of the pits is due to

the gradual solution of this salt, and its slow accumulation in

depressions formed by the removal of the original deposits.

Hence he rejects the popular notion that these beds are fed

from the ocean, and therefore inexhaustible, and warns the

Government to look to their economical working.

About noon we paddled out of the indentation of the shore

called the bay of Huacho, and passed the low rocky islets.

Many seals were splashing about in the sea, and yet the rocks

were alive with them.

Steaming along and close to the shore, we came in a few

hours to a part of the coast where the high, rocky shore-ridges

broke away, revealing a broad space of sandy beach and rolling

sand-hills, extending back as far as the eye could reach to the

very base of the cloud-capped Cordillera. A cluster of the

rudest possible cane huts near the water, with a few boats and

caballitos drawn up in front and a number of horsemen pranc-

ing behind, were the only signs of life within the range of

vision. This is the port of Supe and Patavilca, towns standing

back some distance from the shore, behind the sand-hills, in the

midst of a fertile region watered by three streams; the largest

of them, called Rio de la Barranca, is, during some seasons, a

powerful and impassable stream, bringing down in its course

great rocks, and piling them in confusion on its banks.

In this neighborhood are a number of remarkable monuments

of the ancient inhabitants, the most important of which, situ-

ated two leagues from the Rio de la Barranca and one from the

sea, and not far from the pueblo of La Fortaleza, are the ruins

of Paramanca. They are described by Paz Soldan ” as occupy-

ing the summit of a hill quadrangular in form, consisting of three

lines of mud-walls, the interior ones dominating the exterior.

102

INCIDENTS OF TRAVEL AND EXPLORATION

The greatest exterior length is nine hundred feet, the length of

the inner wall six hundred feet. Within the latter are remains

of houses separated by narrow streets. Xinety feet from each

angle of the exterior wall are bastions [outworks ?] flanking the

curtains.”

These ruins are described by Proctor as ” a large, square mass

of mud-work, diminishing towards the summit, and forming

large steps. Although,” he continues, ” undoubtedly of great

antiquity, the works do not appear to have suffered materially,

as the sides are square, and the edges sharp. They are partly

covered by a kind of plaster, on which are seen the uncouth

colored representations of birds and beasts.”

There is a tradition that this fortress was erected to com-

memorate the peace between the Inca Capac-Yupanqui and the

King of Chimu, who had his capital near Truxillo, far to the

northward. But it is more probable that it was a frontier

work, defining the limits of the rule of the princes of Chimu

as against the chiefs occupying the valleys of Huaura, Pacas-

mayo, Chillon, Pimac, and Lurin (Paehaeamae), to the southward.

A little to the north of the mouth of the Pio de la Barran-

ca, and where the coast begins again to assume its high and

rocky aspect, is a considerable hill, presenting a bold, scarped

front to the sea, which beats heavily at its base. This is called

La Horca (the gallows). Its top is crowned by massive an-

cient works, with wing-walls running down its slope, connect-

ing apparently with other extensive works near the base; the

whole being conspicuous from the deck of the passing steamer.

Paz Soldan regards these as the prisons of the Chimus, and

thinks that the projecting and precipitous headland was a kind

of Tarpeian rock, from the crest of which criminals were pre-

cipitated into the sea—a suggestion fanciful enough. I passed

these fine monuments with the consoling reflection that, in re-

turning, I should be able to investigate them thoroughly, little

suspecting on how rich a field of inquiry I was entering, or

with what rapidity I should be obliged to return to Lima, if 1

would not forego my great purpose of a trip to the historic in-

terior.

IN THE LAND OF THE INCAS.

103

Our steamer, being a mere coaster, stopped at every little

port and roadstead as she proceeded northward, receiving an

occasional passenger, who seldom indulged in the costly luxury

of the cabin, but took a plank on the forward deck, providing

his own rations. Going in this direction, little, if any, freight

was brought aboard. The coast retained its rough, angular out-

line all the afternoon, and presented a long, ragged perspective,

with a white base-line of spray.

Before bedtime we slowed up in front of a mean collection

of huts, called the port of Huarmey, or Guarmey, which, like all

our other stopping-places, was at the mouth of a river and val-

ley descending from the Cordillera. The place is of slight im-

portance, distinguished mainly for its chicha, which, to my

taste, was only a little less disagreeable than that which I found

elsewhere.

Daylight next morning discovered us anchored close to the

shore in the Bay of Casma, which is a good harbor, under the

protection of a lofty headland that shuts off, the south wind.

Here we took in a few passengers, and, hugging the coast, at

noon reached the large and fine bay of Simanco, which, with

that of Ferrol, just to the northward, from which it is separated

only by a sand-spit, constitute the two largest, and perhaps nat-

urally the best, harbors on the whole Pacific coast of South

America. The river ISTepeña falls into the bay of Simanco,

after passing through a rich valley, which, however, is blocked

in by sand-hills and dunes near the coast.

The Bay of Ferrol has behind it the broad valley of Chim-

bote, which has no perennial river, and is consequently now

quite barren and desolate. It abounds, however, in remains,

temples, dwellings, and other edifices of a large ancient popula-

tion, who contrived to irrigate it by means of an aqueduct from

the river Santa, sixteen miles distant. The greater part of this

fine work still exists, and is computed to have a capacity of sup-

plying sixty million cubic feet of water daily. The somewhat

celebrated silver mines of Micate are situated twenty-seven

leagues inland from the Bay of Ferrol.

Early in the afternoon we reached the harbor of Santa, be-

104

INCIDENTS OF TRAVEL AND EXPLORATION

hind one of the loftiest and ruggedest of the headlands of this

rocky coast. The waves and winds have frayed it into a thou-

sand fantastic shapes, and the water has worn a passage through

it, forming a gigantic natural arch. Myriads of water-fowl soar-

ed and shrieked around its stony pinnacles, or settled in clusters

on its projecting ledges. We rounded close to this headland—

so close that the spray from the heavy surf almost spattered on

our decks. A moment later we were out of the swell of the

sea, and gliding along in smooth water towards a cluster of

cane-built and wattled huts that constituted the port of Santa,

behind which we could discern a belt of shrubbery, and still be-

yond large trees, defining the valley of the river Santa, the long-

est and largest river on the coast of Peru, and possibly, except-

ing the Guayaquil, the largest on the Pacific coast of South

America.

The Santa rises far to the south, behind the first range of the

Cordilleras, in a broad and elevated valley, separated from that

of the principal affluents of the Amazon by the true Cordillera,

or dividing ridge of the continent. Its course is almost due

north for nearly the whole length of the department of Ancachs,

a distance of a hundred and fifty miles, when, receiving a con-

siderable affluent from the north, the Rio Chuquicara, it turns

abruptly to the west, and, after a course of seventy miles, falls

into the Bay of Santa. The valley of this river is salubrious,

and rich in productions, animal, vegetable, and mineral. It con-

tains several important towns, and, although reached from vari-

ous points on the coast through the gorges of the Cordilleras,

its principal commerce is through the town and port of Santa.

Several coasting vessels were loading and unloading in the har-

bor ; and as we were told that the steamer would not be able to

discharge and receive her cargo until late at night, we deter-

mined to go ashore, and visit the town of Santa, situated a

couple of leagues inland.

As we entered the harbor I noticed that the lofty ridge con-

necting the headland with the main-land was covered with

long lines of walls, terraces, and remains of numerous structures

built of uncut stones. So, while the agent of the steamer oc-

IN THE LAND OF THE INCAS.

105

cupied himself with procuring horses for our trip to Santa,

Mr. C-and myself made a reconnoissance of the monuments.

Climbing with difficulty the steep and rocky ridge, we found

its summit and flanks for some distance downwards literally

covered with vestiges of edifices which had been built among

the rocks on terraces laboriously constructed. Some were quite

large, especially those upon and near the summit, where a con-

siderable regularity had been observed in their arrangement;

but most were small, square or circular, and scattered confused-

ly wherever a spot could be levelled to support them. There

were several large areas, surrounded with ruins of buildings of

relatively quite a pretentious character, probably public struct-

ures, or the residences of the headmen of the ancient munici-

pality. Flights of stone steps still remained, leading up diffi-

cult places, and traces of carefully smoothed streets or roads.

These ruins covered an area of half a mile wide by a mile long,

terminating towards the sea, on an elevated point of the ridge,

in some stone towers eighteen or twenty feet in diameter, and,

although much ruined, still of about the same height. These

were flanked on and just below the brow of the ridge on both

sides by lines of walls, clearly for defence.

As there is little room for cultivation near the harbor of

Santa, and as we knew that the valley inland was anciently ex-

ceedingly rich and populous, I could not resist the conviction

that here was a large fishing town or station, and that its rugged

site had been selected in part for its salubrity, and in part for

its facilities for defence. The arrangement of the various edi-

fices, so far as the broken nature of the ground would permit, I

afterwards found to be substantially the same with that of the

cities and towns of ancient Chimu, whose princes held sway

over the valley of Santa.

One of the largest and most celebrated huacas, or pyramidal

structures, of Pern stands not far from the town of Santa. It

has been extensively excavated, and many articles of gold and

silver, with vast quantities of pottery, have been taken from it;

among others an interesting vase or vessel, presented to me by

one of the residents of the place, of which an engraving is here

106 INCIDENTS OF TEAVEL AND EXPLORATION

given. It is of well-burned red clay, five inches high, and

represents a squatting human figure supporting a kind of sack

over his shoulders. Its principal interest

is in the face, which is strongly marked

and artistically modelled, with clearly no

attempt at exaggeration or caricature. I

think it may fairly be regarded as typical.

Proctor, who entered the valley of Santa

overland, from that of Nepeña, speaks of

encountering on the road ” several remains

of Indian towns, particularly two paral-

lel streets, paved with adobes, with walls

about three feet high on each side, twenty

feet wide, and extending in a direct line

as much as a league.”

Returning from our antiquarian ram-

ble, we found Don Federieo, the steam-

er’s agent, awaiting us with horses for our trip to Santa.’ Our

captain, in full uniform, had come ashore, and needed no sec-

ond invitation to accompany us. We set off at a rapid pace,

over a fair road through swampy ground, covered with bush-

es, interspersed with pools of water. Seamen are not noted

as equestrians, and for some reason the captain could not

keep up. There was, he said, no ” go” in his horse, and he

couldn’t get him ” to forge ahead.” So I changed horses with

him, giving him mine, a spirited animal, whieh discovered at

once that his new rider was no horseman, and with a wilful

plunge dashed off at full speed. It was now quite dark, the

road was winding, and horse and rider were out of sight in an

instant. We tried in vain to overtake them; but at the end of

half a mile came upon the captain sitting in the road alone, his

coat torn through from top to bottom, and his hair filled with

sand; but he affirmed that he was not hurt in the least. Don

Federieo vainly urged him to mount his own horse; but he

had made up his mind, he said, to walk the rest of the way to

Santa, and to return in an ox-cart. Happily the distance was

not great, and we soon entered the town, which looked sufti-

IN THE LAND OF THE INCAS.

107

ciently shabby in the evening gloom. There was one bright

light in a dirty fonda, or pulperia, where a number of un-

couth Indians and half-naked arrieros Were drinking chicha,

and indulging in noisy, incoherent discussion; there was an-

other light in the corridor of Don Federico’s house, and a third

streamed from the open mouth of an oven in his court-yard—

for, besides being an apothecary and agent for steamers, Don

Federieo was a baker, supplying the town, the port, and the

vessels frequenting it with bread.

Our impression of Santa, derived from a stroll through its

dark and dirty streets, past a tumble-down church, were not

favorable; and we were not sorry, after tasting our host’s italia,

to return to the steamer, whose captain was fain to forego his

ox-cart and trust himself to a mule, led by one of Don Fed-

erico’s servants. The present city of Santa does not occupy

the site of the old town, which was destroyed by the Dutch pi-

rate David in 16S5; but it bears the title of ” city,” given to

it by the crown in recognition of the gallant defence of its in-

habitants against the pirates, and particularly for their having

preserved a miraculous image of Christ, the gift of Charles V.

Between Santa and Huanehaco, the port of Truxillo, whither

we were bound, our steamer made no stoppage. The coast pre-

sented throughout its same rugged outlines ; but as we now stood

farther off shore, we could see the mighty ranges of the Cor-

dillera, piled rank on rank behind, their summits gleaming with

eternal snow. We passed to the right of the high guano islands

of Guafiape. Though not of so good a quality as that of the

Chincha, the quantity of guano here is considerable. Both the

coast of the main-land and these islands are the resorts of

myriads of seals and sea-birds, which find abundant food in the

fishes that swarm in these waters. All day the sea around the

steamer was alive with the darting, leaping varieties, making

the surface fairly boil with their evolutions.

Mr. Davis, an American engineer, who was engaged in the

survey of these islands, gave me a curious account of the habits

of the birds that frequent them. Although of a number of va-

rieties, they live together in perfect harmony, and, so far from

10S INCIDENTS OF TRAVEL AND EXPLORATION

quarrelling, some of them, like the sea-eagles, will defend their

less powerful neighbors, such as the clumsy and unwarlike pel-

ican. The young of these are regarded by the vultures of the

main-land as delicate food, and they wTill sometimes come off in

hundreds, when the wind blows off shore, and make a forray on

these plump little lumps of flesh and fat. They select the time

of the day when the sea-eagles are accustomed to fish, and when

the fish themselves happen to swarm far out at sea. Then they

swoop down on the islands, creating the greatest alarm and

commotion, except among the stupid pelicans, who will stand

stolidly by wrhile their helpless young are disembowelled by

their rapacious assailants. But woe betide the latter, when, in

response to the alarm carried to them by some fleet messenger,

the warriors of the islands return with rapid wing and sharp

beaks, and open a fierce attack on the intruders. In vain do

the vultures seek safety in flight; the eagles rise high over

them, then close their wings and strike down on them with

the velocity and force of an arrow from a cross-bow, driving

them, wounded and bleeding, into the ocean. The combat is

not an equal one; and out of the hundreds of vultures that join

in the forray, it will be lucky, indeed, if a tenth part escape.

While the fight goes on, the other birds, incapable of coping

with the vultures, will nevertheless hang like clouds in the air,

and with loud and dissonant cries seem to cheer on and encour-

age their champions.

The fourth morning after our departure from Callao found

us slowing np in the open roadstead, in front of Huanchaco, the

place of our destination. The town stands on an unprotected

beach which extends for several miles north and south, beneath

a high, scarped edge of the sandy plain beyond, relieved by a

number of lofty peaks of bare rock, of which the famous Monte

Campana — within whose recesses pious ears hear the eternal

chime of bells—is most conspicuous. A church on the edge of

the plain stands like a sentinel over the mean little town, which

is scarcely visible against its amber-colored background, afford-

ing; a convenient landmark for all vessels bound to this worst of

all the so-called ports of Peru.

IN THE LAND OF THE INCAS.

109

We fired our gun, and. after a while we could discern the

great launches or seows, in which landing is effected here, put-

ting off from the shore. But long before they could reach us

we were surrounded by a swarm of Indians, mounted astride of

probably the most novel craft that the world has ever seen, call-

ed caballitos, or ” little horses.” They consist of one or more

bundles of reeds or flags, bound together something like sheaves

of wheat, only more firmly, from one end to the other, alto-

gether forming a float from eighteen to twenty-five feet long,

and of varying width. The taper end is turned up, like the

neck of a swan. They are extremely buoyant, and when not in

use are taken ashore and placed erect to dry. Generally they

consist of two bundles or sheaves of reeds, in which case the

marinero sits astride, or balanced on his knees in the centre, and

propels it by a double-bladed oar, striking the water alternate-

ly right and left. Some of the larger ones consist of three

sheaves lashed side by side, the largest in the centre, astride of

which sits the manager. These will carry several persons, or

two or three bales of goods, and are often the only means of

communication between vessels and the shore. We declined

several urgent offers from

the owners of these queer-

looking craft to go ashore

with them. Among the

many quaint earthen ves-

sels which we found in the

ancient ruins near Huan-

chaco, was one rudely rep-

resenting the cavallito, on

which is a sitting figure,

with two children, engaged

in fishing. He is represent-

ed as just hauling in a ray.

The accompanying cut represents a similar and equally inter-

esting one from Chimu.

The lumbering launches were very tardy in reaching the

steamer; and it was a long time before the officials who had

THE CABALUTO.

110

INCIDENTS OF TRAVEL AND EXPLORATION

come off in them were able to get through their duties aboard

—one of which was that of taking a most hearty breakfast, with

the accompaniments. Finally, after much bumping against the

steamer’s sides, we got aboard one of the launches, amidst a con-

fused mass of merchandise and baggage which had been hud-

dled into it without system or order. The men, at the expense

of much swearing, ultimately got settled at their sweeps, and

began pulling towards the land, two miles distant. The swell

of the sea was heavy and regular, and we rose and fell with dig-

nified monotony, passing meanwhile through an almost solid

mass of the little fishes, called sardinas every where on the coast,

which were apparently driven inshore by large and voracious

enemies in the sea, the occasional splash of whose tails told the

story of their insatiable appetites. . The little victims crowded

each other, until their noses, projecting to the surface, made the

ocean look as if covered over with a cloak of Oriental mail.

\Ye could dip them up by handfuls and by thousands. Yast

numbers had succumbed in the crush, and floated about dead in

the struggling mass. They filled the sea over a belt more than

a mile broad along the shore, where hundreds of women and

children were scooping them up with their hats, with basins,

baskets, and the fronts of their petticoats, and depositing them

in heaps on the sand.

As we neared the shore, our attention was withdrawn from

the fish and the fishermen by the increased size and more rapid

movement of the rollers, which tossed our heavy launch, now

head, now stern, high up in the air, tumbling boxes and bag-

gage about with little regard to the safety of our legs. Our

men were very expert in managing the launch so as to evade or

glide over the waves, now pulling vigorously, and next resting

on their oars, until we came to rest just outside the breakers,

holding off and on in a perpetual seesaw. But now came the

critical part of the business — the landing. A number of tall,

stalwart cholos and sambos, naked, except that each had a breech-

cloth, came off through the surf to carry us ashore. vYe were

expected to mount, not on their shoulders, with our legs astride

their necks, and clinched under their armpits, but astride their

IN THE LAND OF THE INCAS. Ill

slippery right shoulders, one leg in front and the other behind.

My confidence in this mode of conveyance was not increased by

seeing one of our passengers slip from his perch in the thickest

of the surf, to be dragged ashore like a half-drowned rat; but I

tried it, and got in with a slight wetting. Our baggage was

brought off with less difficulty on the heads of the men, who

here form a class or guild, with the exclusive right of doing

this kind of work.

Huanchaco, unattractive from the sea, was hardly less so when

viewed from the shore. Caballitos drawn up to dry, with bales

of merchandise piled up and covered wTith hides and old tarpau-

lins, were scattered along the beach above the reach of the

waves, and, with a few high-wheeled and exceedingly rude ox-

carts, formed the foreground of the picture that presented it-

self to us on landing. Back of these, the ground rising rather

abruptly, was a kind of shed, formed of a roof of coarse rush-

matting and canes, supported on crooked posts, each inclining a

different way from any other, beneath which were gathered the

leading inhabitants of Huanchaco and its visitors; for this is

rather noted as a watering-place, and during ” the season ” not

only attracts many people from Truxillo, but from the towns of

the interior. To all of these the arrival of the steamer is an

event of importance, to be celebrated by a general gathering

under the shed on the shore, where the new arrivals and their

mishaps in landing are duly laughed at and criticised.

Happily for us, we were speedily taken in charge by the con-

tador of the port, whose acquaintance I had made in Lima, and

who occupied a house which was rather stylish for Huanchaco,

but which would hardly be dignified by the name of hut in

many parts of the world. It was, however, comfortably fur-

nished, and contained a very agreeable family, including a num-

ber of young ladies dressed in the height of the ruling fashion

at Lima.

During the sitting of the Mixed Commission in Lima, I had

been introduced, under very favorable auspices, to Señor K-,

the Prefect of Truxillo, who had once been Peruvian minister

in Europe, and was reputed to be one of the richest men in

112

INCIDENTS OF TRAVEL AND EXPLORATION

Peru, as well as celebrated for possessing the finest private resi-

dence in all South America. He was courtly in manner, speak-

ing English very well, and extended to me a pressing invitation

to visit Truxillo, and investigate the monuments in its vicinity.

His house and influence, personal and official, were put at my

service with a copiousness and warmth of phrase that, from a

man who had lived abroad, and knew something of the value of

words, made me feel not only grateful, but under an obligation

to report myself to him on the instant of my arrival in Truxillo.

It was not, therefore, without satisfaction that I ascertained

from the contador that he was then in the port, where he had

also a large and commodious residence. As soon as I could

make myself presentable, I waited on him; but, although the

conversation was sufficiently discursive, and, as I thought, rather

adroitly directed to recalling some of the extravagant proffers

that had been made to me in Lima, I failed to get the remotest

reference to the grand establishment in Truxillo, or to any of

the wonderful facilities I was to have received in prosecuting

my researches. In fact, in reply to the direct inquiry if there

were any thing like hotels in -the city, I was told, ” None worthy

of the name; nothing except a Chinese fonda, Bola de Oro,

and a shabby place, Hotel del Comercio. It was possible I

might find some kind of accommodation there.” And, thus en-

lightened and consoled, I had the honor of wishing the prefect

and ex-minister ” Good-morning.”

My companions did not receive the report of my interview

with any marked demonstrations of satisfaction. But our good

contador, in his modest way, not only gave us a tolerable break-

fast, of which the sardines we had seen caught in such vast num-

bers in the morning formed a principal part, but he also helped

us to get a couple of carts for our apparatus and effects, and

some lean and lazy saddle-horses for ourselves.

Mounting the ridge dominating the town, a broad, barren,

treeless, and somewhat irregular plain spreads out before, the

traveller, extending back ten or twelve miles to the base of

the mountains, near which is a belt of verdure, marking the

shallow valley of the river Moche, in which stands the city of

IN THE LAND OF THE INCAS.

113

Truxillo. This is properly the plain of Mansiche or Chimu;

but the coast is generally level, or interrupted only by isolated

mountains, as far north as the valley of Chicama, and as far

south as that of Viru, an extent of nearly ninety miles. Prac-

tically, these valleys may be considered as one, affording, with

their ramifications in the mountains, a rich and ample area for

a large and advanced ancient population, the evidences of whose

existence are met with almost immediately after leaving Huan-

chaco. These consist of long lines of massive walls, gigantic

chambered pyramids, or huacas, remains of palaces, dwellings,

aqueducts, reservoirs, granaries, prisons, furnaces, foundries, and

tombs, extending for many miles in every direction. These are

the ruins of Grand Chimu, the most extensive and populous of

all the cities of ancient Peru. The road runs directly through

them, and in their centre, solitary and alone, with no sign of life

or population around it, stands the little church of La Legua,

built here among the deserted and crumbling monuments of

the ancient inhabitants, as if to give some sort of Christian sanc-

tity to the relics of los infieles.

After a long ride, we emerged from the ruins into cultivated

grounds, cut up into fields by thick and high hedges of thorny

bushes and climbing plants, under the shelter of which scurried

hundreds of lizards, of all sizes and colors, some flashing in me-

tallic green, with heads glowing like rubies, and others splendid

in suits of gold. Probably nowhere in the world can be found

so many and so beautiful varieties. No wonder the princes of

Chimu emblazoned them on their arms, embroidered them in

their tissues of cotton and wool, and gave them a prominent

place in the insignia of-their power.

After passing some crazy reed huts and crumbling adobe

houses, the remains of the Indian village of Mauriche, to which

the lower orders of the people of Truxillo resort on holidays,

we came in full sight of the city, and entered upon a ruined al-

ameda, lined with trees, which had two piers of stone-work, now

standing awry, to mark its commencement. One of these bore

a half – obliterated inscription, purporting that the alameda was

dedicated to the beautiful ladies of Truxillo.

114

INCIDENTS OF TRAVEL AND EXPLORATION

CHAPTER VII.

TRUXILLO—RECONNAISSANCE OF GRAND CHIMU.

Truxillo. — Hotel del Comercio. — The Chinese Fonda.—Churches, Convents, and

Public Buildings.—Colonel La Rosa.—His Collections of Antiques.— Supposes

the Author to be in Search of, Hidden Treasure.—Reconnoissance of Chimu.—

Hamlet of Miraflores.—The Great Aqueduct.—General Survey of the Ruins.—

The Huacas, Walls, and Gardens.—Girls’ Tombs without the Walls.—Azequias.

—Remains of a Village of the Excavators of El Obispo.—How the Huaca was

built.—A Solitary Scorpion.—Almost under Arrest.—Unearthed Palace.— The

Royal Tombs.—El Castillo.—The Dead of a Great Battle.—Skulls of Various

Races.—Cemetery of Girls.—The Prison.—Huaca of Toledo.—Miles of Graves.

—The Watering-place of Huaman.—Returu to Truxillo.—Photographic Annoy-

ances.

A MILE farther on brought us to the walls of the city, at the

western, or Mauriche, gate. We entered by a long, ill-paved

street, leading directly to the great plaza, which is flanked on

one side by the cathedral, and has a fountain in the centre—a

large and silent square, with a solitary figure moving here and

there in the shadow of the buildings, and a single donkey brows-

ing in the middle. Turning from the plaza to the left, into the

Calle del Comercio, the principal street, on which are some pre-

tentious shops, we came to the Hotel del Comercio, a low build-

ing, extending around a large court, and entered beneath a

heavy archway.

We had difficulty in finding either host or servants, but final-

ly discovered them in certain dark and dirty retreats behind a

large room, in which was a dingy bar, and which served the pur-

poses of reception, sitting, and eating room. The proprietor was

a lean, sallow man, with black, irregular fangs for teeth, his head

bound up in a smouched towel, and his whole person closely en-

veloped in a rusty blue cloak. His solitary servant, or major-

domo, was a fitting counterpart of his master, a saturnine, un-

IN THE LAND OF THE INCAS.

115

kempt eholo, who evidently thought guests were nuisances,

since they involved some exertion or attention on his part.

AVe finally succeeded in obtaining a large room on one side of

the court, which had once served as some kind of a shop, the

shelves and counter still remaining, and a room in a low second

story, at the front of the house, and looking out on the princi-

pal street. Both apartments were full of dust and cobwebs

and alive with fleas, on which we persuaded a stray zambita, or

mixed Indian and negro woman, whom we found strolling in

the streets, to make vigorous war. The empty shop answered

for a laboratory for preparing our photographic chemicals, and

a store-room for our collections.

AVe retained our quarters in the Hotel del Comercio, but took

our meals, when we took them in town at all, at the Chinese

fonda. This was kept by an association of Chinamen, each

taking a special department, and all performing their work har-

moniously and well. They had cut off their pigtails; and one

of them—the only instance of the kind I heard of in Peru—

had married .a native chola, by whom he had children. The

cooking was good, and the food varied and well-served. Alto-

gether, the Chinese fonda was second to none of the so-called

hotels I found in the country outside of Lima. The enterprise

of its managers was shown in establishing relays of mules for

bringing down a daily supply of ice from the snowy mountains,

four days distant—an enterprise to which we contributed no

inconsiderable support during our stay.

Truxillo stands in a little more than eight degrees of south

latitude, on a level space, at a slight elevation above the sea, and

on ground so flat that the azequias by which it is supplied with

water have a scarcely perceptible current, and are consequent-

ly offensively charged with filth. It was founded, in 1535, by

Francisco Pizarro, who named it after his native town in Spain,

intending it for one of the great capitals of Peru. It is regu-

larly laid out, the streets crossing each other at right angles,

leaving here and there small open plazas or squares, on’ which

the various churches usually face. In 1686 it was encircled by

a wall of adobes, a regular oval in outline, and, with the excep-

lib-

INCIDENTS OF TRAVEL AND EXPLORATION

tion of Lima, is the only walled city in Peru. Its present pop-

ulation is about fifteen thousand, made up largely of hacenda-

dos, or owners of estates in the surrounding valleys, and comer-

ciantes, or traders, with the usual proportions of the lower or-

ders and mixed breeds. It is, on the whole, well built; many

of the houses being of two stories, with spacious and well-fur-

nished interiors, indicative of wTealth and a certain amount of

taste. It has still some importance, but insignificant, compared

with what it possessed under the viceroys, when it was the cen-

tre of an extensive jurisdiction, with high officers, a royal mint,

and numbered families of high and historic titles among its in-

habitants. It was also the seat of a bishop, and had five con-

vents for men and two for women. The former have all been

suppressed; but the latter, largely endowed, are still in exist-

ence, covering large areas within the city walls. The richest,

Santa Clara, had, at the time of our visit, only thirteen inmates.

There are thirteen churches within the walls, besides the cathe-

dral. They are generally well built, and some of them, with

their flying buttresses thrown out to support them against

earthquakes, are both quaint and picturesque. The other pub-

lic buildings are simply mean, neglected, and in decay.

Nearly all the leading inhabitants to whom we had introduc-

tions were absent on their estates at the sea-side; but we were

fortunate in finding the gentleman whom we were most inter-

ested in meeting, and to whom I bore special letters from Lima

—Colonel La Rosa, the most experienced, enthusiastic, and per-

sistent treasure-hunter of Truxillo, where rummaging for tapa-

das, or treasures, has been a passion, I had almost said the main

business, of the people since Juan Gutierrez de Toledo com-

menced the practice nearly three hundred years ago. Years

before, I had seen in London a large collection of articles, both

curious and valuable, obtained by him from the ruins of Chimu,

Moche, and Yiru, and which he had confided to a person call-

ing himself “Dr. Ferris” to dispose of, but who claimed to have

discovered them himself, and sold them on his own account.

A part went to the British Museum, and another portion was

bought by the late Mr. George Folsom, and is now deposited

IN THE LAND OF THE INCAS.

117

with the Historical Society of New York. I had also seen a con-

siderable collection of the colonel’s in Lima, and had purchased

some of the more remarkable articles in the precious metals.

The colonel was neither an archaeologist nor an antiquary,

and had little care for the relics he obtained in his excavations,

except in a mercantile sense. He had rather a contempt for

pottery, and for implements or utensils in bronze. His inter-

est in Chimu architecture was mainly in the way of finding hid-

den vaults and chambers; he cared nothing for arabesques or

paintings; and his knowledge of the ancient modes of sepul-

ture was limited to ascertaining where the rich and powerful

were buried, and where ornaments of gold and silver were most

likely to abound. In these directions he had become proverbi-

ally expert. Of course, he did not sympathize greatly with my

plans of surveying, measuring, and mapping the monuments,

and evidently thought my declaration of such a purpose was

merely a shallow pretext for diverting attention from my real

object—that of finding the peje grande, or “great fish,” as the

yet undiscovered, legendary treasure of the Chimus has been

called from “immemorial days, and in trying to discover which

millions of dollars had been expended. The colonel did not ex-

actly tell me that he was confident I had got hold of some an-

cient itinerary, map, or guide, drawn up perhaps by the same

Indian, Cazique Tello, who had confided to Gutierrez de Toledo

the secret of the peje chica, or “little fish,” and which had been

kept hitherto concealed. His manner implied that he was not

at all deceived in the matter. He hardly waited for me to sug-

gest that we should take a ride over the ruins next morning,

but warmly seconded the proposition. It would be difficult

for the possessor of the great secret to wholly retain that com-

posure, when standing over the peje grande, which a quick eye

and ready wit could not penetrate! Thus, possibly, speculated

Colonel La Rosa. But be that as it may, he reported himself

early next morning at the hotel; and leaving P-behind to

prepare his photographic chemicals and apparatus, we set out in

company with Mr. C-for a reconnoissance of the ruins of

Chimu.

IIS INCIDENTS OF TRAVEL AND EXPLORATION

“We left the city by the Portada de Miraflores, one of the

northern gates, past the Panteon, or Cemetery, through a rich,

well – cultivated district, till we reached the hamlet of Miraflo-

res, a league or more from the city, at the foot of the hills that

slope down to the plain in that direction. Here we came upon

the remains of a great azequia, or aqueduct, which had tapped

the Rio Moche many miles up towards its source among the

mountains for the supply of the ancient city, and which was

here carried across the valley on a lofty embankment. This is

still more than sixty feet high, built of stones and earth, with a

channel on top, originally lined with stones, and of the dimen-

sions of our ordinary canals. We followed this to the point on

the slope overlooking the old city, where the water was distrib-

uted, through minor azequias, over the plain below.

All around us, on the arid slope, were remains of rude stone

edifices, suggesting that here, perhaps, had been a suburb of the

city, occupied by the poorer class of inhabitants. Below, how-

ever, stretching away in a broad sweep from the foot of the de-

clivity to the sea in front, and from the base of the rocky pin-

nacle of Monte Campana on the north, to Huaman and the Rio

Moche on the south, over an area hardly less than from twelve

to fifteen miles long by from five to six miles broad, was the’

plain of Chimu itself, thickly covered over with the ruins of

the ancient city. They consist of a wilderness of walls, form-

ing great inclosures, each containing a labyrinth of ruined

dwellings and other edifices, relieved here and there by gigan-

tic huacas, most conspicuous among which were those of El

Obispo, Conchas, and Toledo—great masses, which the visitor

finds it difficult to believe to be artificial.

On the side from which we approached the ruins, the city

seems to have been protected by a heavy wall, several miles of

which are still standing. From this wall, extending inwards at

right angles, are other lines of walls of scarcely inferior eleva-

tion, inclosing great areas which have never been built upon,

and which fall off in low terraces, carefully cleared of stones,

each with its azequia for irrigation. These wrere evidently the

gardens and pleasure-grounds of the ancient inhabitants.

IN THE LAND OF THE INCAS.

119

Descending the slope, we encountered, outside of the great

wall, two rectangular inclosures, situated about a quarter of

a mile apart, each containing a truncated pyramid, or huaca.

The first of these inclosures is 252 feet long by 222 feet at the

ends. The wall is still 11 feet high by 6 feet thick at the base.

The huaca is 162 feet square by 50 feet in height, and stands

nearer one end of the area inclosed than the other. It is built,

as are the walls, of compact rubble; that is to say, of tenacious

clay mixed with broken stones, so as to form an indurated mass,

almost as hard as mortar. Notwithstanding this, however, it

has been much excavated and defaced, revealing that, towards

its summit at least, it was made up of sepulchral chambers, from

which great quantities of bones have been taken, which now lie

strewed about in every direction. These were all slight, and

appeared to have been of females, ranging from five to fifteen

years old. I had occasion to observe afterwards that a custom

of burying the dead of certain ages and sexes together, in cer-

tain places, existed among the builders of Chimu.

The other structure referred to corresponds very closely with

this. It is 210 feet long by 210 feet wide, the outer walls 20

‘ feet high by 8 thick, and the interior huaca, or mound, 172 feet

long by 152 wide, and 40 feet high. No human remains were

found here, but the summit of the mound showed that it had

been divided into sections, or chambers, from five to six feet

square, by walls of rubble eighteen inches thick. I could not

resist the conviction that this structure, like the other, had been

built for sepulchral purposes, but had not been used.

We entered the ruined city through a break in the outer

wall, and I was at once struck with the care with which the

open areas, which I have called gardens, had been cleared and

prepared for culture. The principal azequias had been built

close along the walls, and carefully lined with stones; wdiile the

smaller distributing channels had been earned in zigzags from

terrace to terrace, so as to insure an equal and efficient distribu-

tion of water. All were dry now, as they had been for centn-

ries, and a nitrous efflorescence covered the once fertile areas

that they had made to bloom and blossom in past ages.

120 INCIDENTS OF TRAVEL AND EXPLORATION

Directing our course towards the great huaca, Obispo, we

passed a number of broad and deep rectangular excavations,

their sides terraced and faced with rongh but well-laid stones,

and with zigzag slopes, or pathways, leading to the bottom.

These, Colonel La Rosa insisted, were ancient granaries; but it

did not require much intelligence to discern that they had been

reservoirs of water. The vast size of the huaca became more

obvious as we approached it, and the great excavation which

had been carried into it from its north side, a century or more

ago, made it appear like the crater of some extinct volcano.

The materials—stones, rubble, and adobes — that had been

taken out of the excavation were heaped up in a high, irregular

mass on the plain, literally covering acres; and close beside it

were the rnins of an abandoned village, with a little church, in

the plaza of which a cross was still kept up by pious hands.

This village was built for the workmen, Indians (encomendados)

and others, who had been employed, so runs the tradition, for

twenty years in penetrating the huaca. Presuming that they

conducted the work as similar work is still conducted in Peru—

in other words, that the materials were loosened by little picks,

gathered up by hand, and carried out in baskets on the head, or

in improvised sacks made of ponchos—I see nothing improbable

in the story. But, however accomplished, the undertaking was

a gigantic one; yet how insignificant as compared with that of

building the structure in the first instance !

I could not learn that treasure, or indeed anything else, was

found in the huaca to compensate for the great labor and cost

of its excavation. And while I could not help regretting the

defacement and ruin of this fine monument, yet I was gratified

in being able to discover how it was built. Its construction

was similar to that of the Castillo at Paehaeamae, of nearly

equal parts of stones and rough adobes, the whole cast over

with a kind of breccia or rubble-work. The excavation had

been carried below the level of the surrounding ground, and re-

vealed the natural strata. So the notion of subterranean cham-

bers beneath the mass, evidently once entertained, was not sup-

ported by experiment.

IN THE LAND OF THE INCAS.

121

Wc ascended to the top of the huaca, from which a distinct

view of the whole plain and its monuments is commanded.

Turning over an adobe for a seat, I discovered a little scorpion,

the first and the only one I saw in Peru. Why he was at the

summit of El Obispo, that scorched and arid heap in a scorched

and arid plain, I did not stop to inquire, but inveigled him into

an empty letter-envelope, and pickled him duly on my return

to the city. Whether he belonged to any variety new or rare,

I do not know; albeit I sent him, with an earnest solicitation, to

a scientific friend, who affects scorpions, but from whom I have

never heard a word in reference to the unique and virulent lit-

tle reprobate.

Subsequently I made a visit to El Obispo, and measured it,

with its surroundings, as well as its dilapidation would permit;

in doing which, both C-and myself were overhauled and

somewhat roughly questioned by a body of mounted rural po-

lice in search of certain ladrones who had committed robbery

and arson in the neighboring valley of Chicama, and, it was sup-

posed, had taken refuge among the ruins. I shall never forget

the blank look of the commander of the squad when he was

assured that we were merely making surveys of the monuments.

If he did not arrest us, I am sure it was because he doubted if

taking charge of idiots and madmen fell within his line of duty.

El Obispo is about one hundred and fifty feet high, and cov-

ers an area five hundred and eighty feet square, equal to about

eight acres; and as its sides are so abrupt, where unbroken, as

to prohibit ascent, its contents may be roughly calculated at

about fifty millions of cubic feet. Its summit was probably

reached by zigzag inclines or a stairway on its northern face.

From the top of El Obispo, Colonel La Rosa pointed out to

me the locality of his latest and most extensive excavations, to

which we made our way through an ancient avenue or street,

lined on both sides by monuments. The excavations were in

what appeared to be a shapeless mound of debris, with very

slight external evidence of having been, what, it probably was,

the palace of the jmnces of Chimu. The surface was rough

and irregular, and we had some difficulty in riding over it.

122

INCIDENTS OF TRAVEL AND EXPLORATION

Suddenly, the colonel, turning abruptly around a huge pile of

rubbish, reined up on the edge of a great pit, in whieh were ex-

posed the lower walls, passages, courts, and apartments of a part

of some great structure long ago buried from the day. A sin-

gle glance satisfied me that, thanks to Colonel La Rosa’s passion

for tajpadas, we had before us a revelation of an entirely unique

and very beautiful style of aboriginal American architecture.

My eye ran with mingled surprise and delight over long walls

covered with intricate arabesques in relief, and here and there

glowing with brilliant colors, such as I had never seen in all my

previous explorations on this continent. The colonel seemed to

attach no importance to them, but eagerly directed my attention

to the spot where he had found a concealed chamber or closet,

piled full of vessels of silver and gold.

As I shall have occasion to speak in detail of these particular

remains, I shall pursue the narrative of our reeonnoissanee.

From the palace the colonel led us to another mound, where

excavation had revealed what there is good reason to believe

were the royal tombs. Hence we took a long sweep past La

Legua to an eminence near the sea, on which stands an exten-

sive work with a huaca and other monuments inclosed, called,

from its position and assumed purpose, El Castillo. The sandy

soil in front of its principal entrance, over an area of several

acres, is stuffed with skeletons, buried irregularly, as if after a

great battle; a supposition supported by the fact that the bones

which had been exposed by excavation or laid bare by the winds

were all of adult men, and that a large part of the skulls bore

marks of violence. Some were cloven as if by the stroke of a

battle-axe or sabre; others battered in as if by blows from clubs

or the primitive hammer to which the French have given the

appropriate name of cassetete / and still others were pierced as

if by lances or arrows. I picked up a piece of a skull showing

a small square hole, precisely such as would be occasioned by

the bronze arrow-heads found here and there among the ruins.

I could not resist thinking, in spite of tradition, that perhaps

on this very spot had been fought the last decisive battle be-

tween the Inca Yupanqui and the Prince of Chimu, and that

IN THE LAND OF THE INCAS.

123

here were mingled the hones of the slain of both armies : a no-

tion supported by finding mixed together the square, posterior-

ly compressed skulls of the peoples of the coast, the elongated

skulls of the Aymaras, and the regular, normal heads of the

Quichuas of the Sierra.

Inside the Castillo we found a terraced cemetery, containing,

however, only the skeletons of young women, carefully envel-

oped in fine cotton cloth. These skeletons were apparently of

persons that had died at between fifteen and eighteen years of

age.

Returning from the Castillo through a wilderness of excava-

tions and gigantic water-reservoirs, we rode in succession to a

series of vast enclosures, themselves containing lesser ones,

crowded with buildings, which are strangely called ” palaces.”

One of the most interesting enclosures contained, besides a

number of open squares of differing sizes, a great reservoir,

and, in one corner, fenced off by massive walls, what we subse-

quently ascertained to be a prison. We visited also the huaca of

Toledo, whence Don Garcia Gutierrez de Toledo had extracted

his enormous treasures. It has been so worked upon and into,

“in the course of three centuries, as to have lost all shapeliness;

and it now stands, a great uncouth mass, honey-combed, and

pierced in every direction by shafts, passages, and adits, some

quite recent, that must have cost hundreds of thousands of dol-

lars to excavate.

At four o’clock in the afternoon, with my head in a whirl of

surprise and excitement over the wide and unexpected revela-

tions of the day, I was not loath to second the suggestion of my

guide to ride along the sea-beach to the little watering-place

and projected new port of Truxillo, Huaman. The sand-dunes,

at a short distance back from the shore, like almost all vacant

and desert spots around Chimu, are vast cemeteries. Skulls

and bones projected everywhere above the surface, and were

crushed under our horses’ hoofs. The whole shore for miles is

a veritable Golgotha.

We found at Huaman only a collection of wicker-work huts,

built of canes and reeds wattled together, belonging to families

121 INCIDENTS OF TRAVEL AND EXPLORATION

living in the city, accustomed to make a paseo here occasionally

to bathe. The “masses” disdain these modest refuges, and

men and women disport themselves together, alfresco, in the

waves. JS”one, however, were bathing this afternoon, for a

strong wind was blowing into the shallow bight from the

south, in which direction it is open, creating a surf, backed by a

mile or more of breakers—a perfect ” hell of waters,” such as, I

think, I never saw before. The foam from the waves, rolled up

like the fleeces of sheep, drifted over the sands inwards, where

they were caught on the boughs of the cringing trees and torn

into tatters, or tossed high in the air, to fall, pulsating and dis-

solving, in the open fields. AVe were speedily drenched by a

penetrating mist, or spray, and rode back to town hurriedly

over a level road, which, near the Huaman gate, is glorified into

something like an alemada. In other words, there were wil-

low-trees planted on the edge of the interminably stagnant

ditch which flanks it on either side.

Returning to our lodgings, we found P- in a state ap-

proaching frenzy. In the first place, the dark tent was a failure.

AVherevcr the sail-makcr,s spike of a needle had gone through

the oil-cloth, there came in a vicious ray of light, one glance of

which on the sensitive plate was utter ruin. And then the bro-

mide of cadmium, or something of the sort, had been left be-

hind. I got to know the importance of these things when I

was alone in the Sierra ; but just then I was not as tolerant as

I should have been of P-‘s want of prevision.

Happily, there was a kind of photographer in Truxillo, and

from him a few grains of the missing chemical were procured.

A c/iolo, who kept black and yellow cotton mania, and had a

sewing-machine, was also found and engaged to furnish a lining

for the dark tent. As this needful work would occupy a full

day, we resolved to utilize our time by visiting the Indian town

of Moche and the remains in its vicinity, concerning which we

had heard much.

IN THE LAND OF THE INCAS.

125

CHAPTER VIII.

THE RUINS AT MOCHE.

Ride to Moche.—Diminished Area of Cultivation.—Alleged Effects of Earthquakes.

—Incident on the Rio Moche.—The Indian Pueblo.—The Gobernador.—Many-

horned Sheep.—The Ladies of the Family.—Primitive Spinning Apparatus.—The

Church.—Reeeption by the Cura.—Present and Past Condition of his Flock.—

Ruined by having the Right of Suffrage.—The Cura’s Lamentations.—His Opin-

ion upon Treasure-hunting.—Offers to-guide us to the Ruins.—The Ride.—Tem-

ple of the Sun.—View from the Summit.—The Great Pyramid.—Farewell to the

Cura.—Subsequent Exploration of the Pyramid.—Its Form and Dimensions.—

Alleged Seeret Passages.—A Modern Adit.—Probable Purpose of the Structure.

—Visit to the Prefect of Truxillo.—His Magnificent Mansion.—His Want of Hos-

pitality.

STARTING early in the morning, we cantered over a level road

through rich green meadows of alfalfa, and fields of cotton,

rice, and the nopal. The cultivation of the latter plant was at

one time quite large, and considerable quantities of cochineal

were produced; but of late years, what with its increased pro-

duction in Guatemala, and the introduction of aniline and oth-

er dyes, this branch of industry has declined. It is stated by

Paz Soldan that the area of arable land around Truxillo was

much larger than now, until the great earthquake of 1087,

which made vast tracts sterile. Stevenson affirms that, after

the severe earthquake of 1729, “some of the valleys near the

coast, which before produced most abundant crops of wheat,

became quite sterile for more than twenty years after.”

Some other writers speak of similar effects from earthquakes;

but it is difficult to conceive how the elements of the soil are

affected by earthquakes. If the fact of sterility sometimes fol-

lowing on the convulsions of the earth be established, we may

perhaps find the explanation, at least on the rainless coast of

Peru, in the upheaval of the earth, whereby considerable tracts

126 INCIDENTS OF TRAVEL AND EXPLORATION

of land would be raised above the reach of irrigation. Fertility

Vould follow on any later subsidence of the same areas, where-

by irrigation would again be made possible.

About a league from Truxillo, we reached the river Moche,

a considerable stream, flowing in a shallow, sandy bed, shut in

by alders, acacias, and other trees and bushes. We forded it

without difficulty, and, reaching the opposite bank, our ears

were saluted by a confused noise of a drum and a qidna, or In-

dian flute, accompanied by shouts and laughter, and in a few

moments we came upon an extraordinary scene. A party of

Indians and mestizos were excavating an azeqida, or, rather,

clearing out an old and abandoned one, while another party,

acting as a relay, all half drunk, sat under the trees near by,

around some jars of cldelta and dishes oipicante, eating, drink-

ing, drumming, and cheering the men in the trench. Among

them were several gaudily dressed women, with dishevelled

hair, who formed a fitting adjunct to the bacchanalian scene.

They shouted to us to dismount and join them ; but as we’ did

not seem inclined to do so, some of them seized our horses by

their bridles, and led us into the centre of the throng, where

they besieged us with bowls of cldcha and little gourds oi 2>i-

eante. We made the best of our situation ; that is to say, ate

and drank as little as possible. One of the dusky damsels made

me the object of her special attentions, calling me familiarly

El Blanquito. Observing my disposition to shirk the aji, she

picked out choice bits from her own dish, which she took be-

tween her thumb and forefinger, and held them up to my mouth

with a ludicrously tender leer, insisting that I should take them

u for her own dear sake.” I had great difficulty in avoiding

the proffered morsels, thereby giving her much offence.

We escaped from our inebriated friends with some difficulty;

and a ride of another league, over a flat country and a dusty

road, brought us to the Indian pueblo, a considerable town, reg-

ularly laid out, of low cane huts, their roofs of reed-matting

supported by crooked algarroba posts, and covered with a thin

layer of mud to keep them from blowing away. There were a

few houses of crude adobes, roofed in like manner, the whole

IN THE LAND OF THE INCAS.

127

presenting an aspect of squalid monotony. We rode directly to

the house of the gobernador, a full-blooded Indian. His dwell-

ing was merely an immense shed, with some compartments

fenced off with adobes or canes, for such of the occupants as

affected privacy. The bare earthen floor was strewed with the

aparejo of mules and rude implements of husbandry, for the

gobernador was both muleteer and husbandman. In front of

the house, and partly in its shade, a sheep-driver from Yiru had

halted a flock of sheep, wdiich he was taking to Truxillo. I no-

ticed among them a very large proportion with three, four, five,

and six horns.

The gobernador was not at home; the females were taciturn,

and kept silently and impassibly at their work of spinning cot-

ton, with perhaps the most primitive apparatus ever devised for

the purpose. It was composed of a thin stem of the quinoa, as

a spindle, stuck through half of a small green lime, for a whirl, or

bob. Having vainly interrogated these industrious ladies about

huacas, we resolved to consult the cura, who, we understood,

was an intelligent man. We rode through the silent streets,

fetlock-deep in dust, to the plaza, one side of which was occu-

pied by the church, a quaint, old, tumble-down edifice, its bell-

tower reached by a flight of stone steps outside the building.

We paused a moment before it, when we were startled by a

stentorian command of “Quiten sus sombreros!” (“Take off

your hats !”), proceeding from a stern-visaged, gray-haired man

reclining on a mud-bench under the corridor of a building close

by, which we at once took to be the residence of the cura.

We did as we were ordered, and then rode to the house itself,

where we were saluted with a torrent of invective, kept up by

the cura, without stopping to take breath, until he was purple

in the face. ” None but Jews and infidels would pass in front

of a church without taking off their hats. Even the ignorant

Indian brutes of Moche know better; or, if they didn’t, I would

teach them! Holy Mother of God! I would teach them!”

Here the cura shook his stout cane savagely in our very faces.

We endeavored to explain, but he went on. When he broke

down again, we once more sought to excuse ourselves, but could

12S

INCIDENTS OF TRAVEL AND EXPLORATION

get no hearing, for the reason explained by the cura himself a

little later: ” It is of no use talking to me; I have been stone-

deaf these ten years ; you might fire a battery of artillery in the

plaza, and I couldn’t hear it. If you have got anything to say,

come in here, where there is ink and paper.”

He then led the way into his sitting-room, hung around with

dusky pictures of saints and martyrs. Helping us with courte-

sy to seats, he thumped violently on the table with his stick.

A meek Indian boy entered on the instant, and received the

peremptory order, “Beast! coffee and cigars! Quick! Holy

Mother!” One would have supposed the worthy cura over-

come by rage; but the moment he was seated, his really fine

face assumed a benignant expression, and he motioned with a

smile to the writing materials, saying, “Caballeros, I welcome

you to my poor house; it will be my pleasure to serve you. I

seldom see white faces, except those of the scoundrel politicians

who come down here to corrupt my poor Indians with their

lies and their bribes. It was a woful day, gentlemen, when the

idiots in Lima gave these simple, innocent people the vote.

You should have seen my Moche children forty years ago,

when I first came here. They were industrious, sober, devout,

and happy. You see what they are now: idlers, liars, drunk-

ards, and thieves ! Then, if a stranger or a traveller were to ap-

proach the town, the first man in authority would have sent to

me a chasqui (fleet messenger) to say,’ Our good father, a trav-

eller has come; he is dusty and weary: we will conduct him to

you ; we will bring alfalfa for his horses; we have eggs and

fish, and bread of wheat, which we will bring to yon for him.

Good father, give us your blessing!’ I would have died rather

than witness the change that has taken place since. It has all

come of the ballot, and the political villains of Truxillo. I have

not put my foot within its accursed walls these many years.

These poor people are mere children ; they must be governed

by a father. The Incas were right, after all. This voting is

their ruin.”

The good cura went on for a long time much in this strain,

lamenting the part he took in his youth againt the viceroys

IN THE LAND OF THE INCAS.

129

and in behalf of the republic. There was no longer public or

private virtue; the duties of hospitality even were neglected,

and religion had beeome a sham and a pretence.

We were not altogether sorry when the curds lamentations

were finished, as they were with the entry of the coffee and ci-

gars, and we were enabled to write out a few questions about

the huacas. The cura, I found, regarded them all with aver-

sion : they kept up unholy memories and traditions among the

Indians, and he would like to see them levelled to the earth.

But they were very strange things, nevertheless, very rich in

gold and silver; and that, of course, was the matter in which

we were most interested. We had not then entirely ceased to

protest against being considered searchers after tapadas; but

the cura would not be convinced that we could have any object

except to dig for gold. He advised us to visit Viru, where, he

said, the posts and beams of many of the old buildings were

still standing, and where there were vast numbers of monu-

ments. The most interesting objects around Moehe, he said,

were the Temple of the Sun, at the foot of the eonieal peak

called Cerro Blanco, which he pointed out to us from his corri-

dor, and a pyramid muy disforme (monstrous), surpassing El

Obispo in size. When we inquired for a guide, he volunteered

to go with us himself, if we would ride slowly. This he did,

mounted on a meek burro, his long robe almost trailing on the

ground, and carrying over his broad sombrero a bright pink

umbrella. One Indian servant led the burro, and another the

youth whom the cura had denominated ” a beast” an hour be-

fore, trotted by his side, carrying the euro’s ominous cane and a

fiask of ch icha. As we passed through the streets, the Indian

women and children hurried to the doors of their houses, and,

kneeling with uplifted palms, received the padre’s blessing. It

was rare, he said, of late years, that he ventured out of the

town; it was twenty since he had visited the huacas.

We rode for some distance through cultivated fields, striped

with lines of verdure following the courses of azequias, until

we reached the flank of the hills above the reaeh of irrigation,

where the desert commences. Here we fell into a path in the

130

INCIDENTS -OF TRAVEL AND EXPLORATION

sand skirting the hills, the gray waste relieved here and there

by a white human skull bleaching in the bright snnlight—for

here, as everywhere amidst Chimu, were scattered mementoes

of death.

As we approached the Cerro Blanco, the cura pointed out, as

the Temple of the Sun, a mass of adobe walls, standing on a

bold, rocky projection, or shelf, of the mountain at an elevation

of a hundred feet or more, lie declined to ascend; so, leaving

him below, we clambered up to the structure, which, in position

and style, more resembles a fortress than a temple. We entered

by an inclined plane, through a massive gate-way, into a broad

court, from which passages led off right and left, from one stage

or terrace to another, until we reached the last and highest,

from which we looked over the whole green valley of the Rio

Moehe, past the low towers of Truxillo, to the huacas of Chimu,

El Obispo rising boldly in the distance. The most conspicuous

object which met our view was the great pyramid of which the

cura had spoken, and which, in its magnitude, justified his de-

scription. It stands on the edge of the desert slope, at the base

of Cerro Blanco, just where irrigation begins—a kind of gigan-

tic landmark between luxuriant verdure and arid sands, between

life and death. Viewed from this position, it was the most im-

pressive monument we had yet seen in Peru.

AVe descended to the cura, and rode past the pyramid to a

deep azequia, which was carried along its base on the side tow-

ards the valleys, and was fringed with graceful canes. Cross-

ing it on a shaky bridge of poles, covered with weeds and earth,

we entered a grove of fruit-trees, flanking a field of Chili pep-

pers, in one corner of which, and under the shadow of the pyra-

mid, stood a rude Indian cane hut. The occupants welcomed

the padre, and treated us to chicha. The padre and his attend-

ants soon started back for Moche, while we took a more direct

road to the city.

AVe subsequently returned, and carefully measured and pho-

tographed the pyramid, which is sometimes itself called El

Templo del Sol (the Temple of the Sun). AVe found it to

be a rectangular structure, which the plan alone can make in-

IN THE LAND OF THE INCAS.

131

telligible, having a greatest length of a little more than eight

hundred feet, and a greatest width of four hundred and seven-

ty, covering a trifle more than seven acres. Its greatest height,

THE GREAT PYRAMID OF MOCHE.

at the summit of the terraced structure, is upwards of two hun-

dred feet. It is constructed throughout of large adobes, which

appear to have been built around a central core, or nucleus,

having sides inclining inwards at an angle to the horizon of

seventy-seven degrees. The bricks, however, were not laid in a

continuous series around this core, but built up in blocks, like

pilasters, one beside another, unconnect-

ed, and supported by common inclination

around the centre. The whole seems to

have been surrounded by a casing of the

thickness of between thirty and forty

adobes, interlocking, so that originally its

faces were smooth and regular.

To comprehend the structure, we will

ascend it from the side on which, if there

Avere any facilities for ascent, they must

have existed; namely, from the causeway

A. This extends from the base of the pyr-

amid eleven hnndred and twenty feet to a

PLAN OF THE PYRAMID.

.132

INCIDENTS OF TRAVEL AND EXPLORATION

rocky hill, around which are some almost obliterated ruins, and is

about fifty feet wide. From it there was probably a stairway,

leading up to B, which is a level area, elevated nearly one hun-

dred feet above the plain, and is about four hundred feet long

by three hundred and fifty wide. It may have been, and prob-

ably was, level: possibly it supported buildings; but it is now

covered all over with heaps of rubbish from modern excavations

or from demolished buildings. At the southern extremity of

this lofty platform, or terrace, rises another, thirty or forty feet

higher, on which stands a terraced pyramid, about two hundred

feet square. Seven stages are still distinct, but there are traces

of nine. On its summit, as on most of the more important

monuments of the infieles, stands a wooden cross, its elevation

being, by computation, as already said, about two hundred feet.

The platform on which this stands.was probably ascended by

steps; but the ascent to the summit of the crowning pyramid

itself seems to have been from the west, and by a graded way.

The long platform D is eighty feet below that on which rests

the terraced pyramid, and E is still lower.

Here I may explain that if my measurements, estimates, and

descriptions are not more specific and exact, it is due to the

devastation which time and the elements — but, above all, the

‘ ruthless hands of men—have wrought in this grand old monu- •

ment.

Passages and chambers are said to exist in the structure, the

entrances to which are only known to the Indians, and kept

carefully concealed beneath masses of rubbish. One of these

passages, says common report, descends from the work on the

mountain slope that I have already described, and extends be-

neath ground to the very sanctuary of the pyramid, the vault

that contains the body of the mightiest prince of Chimu, and

where, perhaps, the peje grande lies concealed.

We found neither passages nor chambers, but we did find an

adit, or drift, driven in on a level with the natural soil, from the

eastern side of the great mass, under the centre of the terraced

pyramid C. This had been dug by treasure-seekers, and the de-

bris from the excavation formed a real hillock at the month of

IN THE LAND OF THE INCAS.

133

the passage. Having brought candles with us, we followed the

passage to its extremity. It was fetid and slippery with the

excrement of bats, which whirred past us when disturbed, dash-

ing out our lights, as if they were the sinister guardians of the

treasures of the Chimu kings. The survey showed us nothing

beyond the constant layers of adobes, with no signs of chambers

or passages, nor the slightest variation from the system of con-

struction I have described.

It is hardly possible to assign any other than a religious pur-

pose to this structure, which, with the huacas of Obispo, To-

ledo, etc., in common with the teocallis of Mexico and Central

America, may have supported buildings sacred to various di-

vinities, or a single naos dedicated to the Supreme Essence.

On reaching the Hotel del Comercio, we found a card had

been left for us by Señor K-, the prefect; and as a part of the

afternoon still remained, we lost no time in returning his visit.

We found his residence, in which were also the offices of the

prefecture, fronting on the Calle del Comercio, in the very heart

of the city, a vast building of two lofty stories, dominating all

the other houses of the city. It is of highly ornate modern

Italian style, built around a court, with corridors to each story

supported by columns. The second story, at the bottom of the

court, is omitted, and a colonnade supplies its place. This is

for the purpose of better ventilation. Although, from the ne-

cessities of the case, built mainly of the ordinary building ma-

terials of the country, these have been put together with the

utmost care, and stuccoed and frescoed in imitation of marble.

Altogether, whether viewed from the exterior or the court, it is

an imposing building; and its interior, in arrangement, archi-

tectural decoration, and furniture, is in harmony with its pa-

latial exterior, and probably justifies the distinction generally

awarded to it, of being the finest private residence in South

America. Nothing that money could purchase was spared in

its construction and adornment. Workmen and artists were

brought from Italy and France, and the furniture was made for

it expressly in Paris. Yet, after wandering from room to room,

rich in hangings, over floors bright with polish or soft with vel-

134 INCIDENTS OF TRAVEL AND EXPLORATION

vet carpets, it was not without a certain revulsion, when shown

into the grand sal a, we observed the walls hung with meretri-

cious French lithographs of the largest size, representing nude

female figures in every voluptuous attitude. But this was not

the worst. Bungling attempts at vindicating modesty had been

made by sticking strips and patches of green tissue-paper here

and there over some of the most indelicate, or, rather, on the

glass that covered them. As these patches and slips were at-

tached to the glass by wafers, the reader can imagine the effect!

Señor K-‘s library was large ; that is to say, it was lined with

long battalions of the French classics gaudily bound. It was in

rather a confused state at the moment, as the shock of a recent

earthquake had thrown down some of the book-cases, and shat-

tered the plaster busts of the celebrities, ancient and modern,

with which they had been surmounted.

The whole building, not excepting the fine view from the

asotea, was shown with evident pride by Señor K-; but nei-

ther our expressed admiration nor our open appreciation of the

señor’s munificence and taste, nor yet our natural inquiry as

to how he could dispose of so much room, considering that his

whole family consisted of himself and a boy seven years old,

had the effect of eliciting that conventional, if not warm and

cordial, “A la disposition de Vms.” (“At your service”), so com-

mon in Spanish America, and which, after the invitation ex-

tended in Lima, we had resolved to accept literally. We re-

turned to our dirty fonda, determined to put no more faith in

prefects.

IN THE LAND OF THE INCAS.

135

CHAPTER IX.

EXPLORATIONS AT GRAND ClIIMU.

Ride to the Ruins.—Hall of the Arabesques.—The First ‘Corridor.—Figures in Stuc-

co.— The Second Corridor.—Vaults and Store-] *ooms. — Cotton Mattresses.—An

Upper Edifice.—Walls, Passages, and Chambers. — The Furnace.—Vessels of

Gold and Silver. — Many Relies melted down.—Prospects left for Research.—

Conjectural Features of the Structure. — Exterior Walls probably Decorated.

— The Destruction by Treasure – hunters. — The Necropolis of Chimu.—Niches

with Human Remains. — Fine Cloths of Cotton and Alpaca Wool. — Silver Or-

naments attached to Fabrics.—Decorated Skulls. — A Mysterious Structure.—

Covered Tomb. — Our Way of Life at Chimu. — Plans for the Future. — Ruins

Described by Rivero and Tschudi. — The “First Palace.” — Ornamented Court

and Hall.—Forms of Ornamentation.—The Great Reservoir.—El Presidio, or

the Prison.—An Evidence of Former Civilization.—The ” Second Palace.”—Hu-

aca of Misa. — Barrios, or Wards. — Sub-barrios. — The Cabildo, or Municipal

House.—Dwellings of the People.—Other Squares.—Reservoirs and Gardens.—

Huacas of Las Conchas and Toledo.—Ancient Smelting – works. — Evidences of

Trade Localities.

OUR tent having been finished to P-‘s satisfaction, we

hired a cart to convey it, our photographic implements, and a

barrel of water to the ruins of Chimu, whither we directed our

dinner to be sent from the Chinese fonda. “We then mounted

our horses, and rode direct to the excavation already mention-

ed, the last made by Colonel La Rosa, in the ruins of what I

shall call the palace. Here, in what we called the Hall of

Arabesques, indicated in the plan by the letter A, we pitched

our tent and commenced operations.

This hall was fifty-two and a half feet wide, but of unknown

length, as on the end by which we approached it the walls are

destroyed. The side walls, however, can be traced for ninety

feet; and it was probably a hundred feet or more in length;

possibly the length was just double the width. The walls on

the right – hand side are much broken down, and covered by

136

INCIDENTS OF TRAVEL AND EXPLORATION

great heaps of debris from the excavation; but the left-hand

wall is very well preserved; and at the height of seven feet

above, a low terrace, ten feet wide, running along its base and

thence upwards, is covered with an intricate, unique, and very

effective series of arabesques, or stucco ornaments in relief, on

a smoothed surface, made by plastering over the adobes compos-

ing the wall. No description can give an idea of the character

of these relievos. It will be seen from the illustration that they

consist of a succession of reduplicated figures, raised about an

inch above the surface, and modulating, if I may use the term,

into each other. At an elevation of about twelve feet above

IN THE LAND OF THE INCAS.

137

the low terrace alluded to, appears to have been a series of

niches five feet wide, and sunk in the wall four feet. Owing

to the fact that the upper part of the wall is broken down, their

height can not be determined. The arabesque ornamentation,

which, however, leaves a kind of smooth frame-work around

them, runs up between them, and probably completely sur-

rounded them above.

HALL OF THE ARABESQUES, CHIMU.

Looking directly before you, you will perceive that you are

standing on a kind of terrace raised four feet above the general

level of the hall, which you may reach, nevertheless, by an in-

clined plane sunk in the terrace, instead of extending out from

it. This lower area is square, fifty-two and a half feet on every

side. The end wall in front of you has an elevation of about

twenty feet. It is pierced exactly in the middle by a door-way

four and a half feet wide; and on each side, near the corners of

the hall, is a niche six feet high, five and a half feet wide, and

four feet deep. Although this door or passage-way now opens

to the very top of the wall, there is reason to believe that it

13S INCIDENTS OF TRAVEL AND EXPLORATION

originally reached only to the base of the belt of arabesques,

which were continued around from the side. This belt is yet

from eight to ten feet wide, but the wall is so much broken

down that it is impossible to determine its original breadth.

Entering the door-way through walls tapering slightly up-

wards, and six feet thick at the base, the investigator finds

himself in a corridor twelve feet wide, the floor of which was

originally five feet higher than that of the hall or corridor he

has just left. How far this corridor originally extended on the

right can not be determined, having only been excavated for

about forty feet. On the left it has been excavated about ten

feet from the door-way, to a barrier of adobes that seems to

have been filled in purposely after the corridor was finished, as

if to obstruct or close it up. The wall facing the entrance, like

that we have just passed through, is covered with arabesques

of the same design, but with this difference, that the door-way

leading through it and to another corridor beyond is framed in

by double pilasters—if I may use this term

in default of a better—between which is a

line of stucco figures in relief, designed ap-

parently to represent monkeys, each crown-

ed with a kind of ornament, a demi-lune in

shape — with which we afterwards became

FIGURES IN STUCCO, familiar in the pottery and paintings of the

Chimns, and which was one of the symbols or insignia of rank

and power among them.

Beyond this corridor we enter still another, on a level five

feet higher, but only eight feet wide. Its length, for the rea-

sons already assigned, can not be definitely ascertained. The

walls are much broken down and defaced ; but enough remains

to show that they were also covered with arabesques similar to

those of the great or entrance hall, apparently differing only

in having a border of the monkey-shaped ornaments extending

around them.

These apartments and corridors, so far as exposed by the ex-

cavations, do not connect with others; but there is little doubt

that the corridors led, by ramifications more or less intricate,

IN THE LAND OF THE INCAS.

139

or by subterranean passages, to vaults and chambers, in the py-

ramidal structure of which they formed part. We may infer

this from the circumstance that, in the adobe mass back of the

last corridor, and over which, at a still higher elevation, once

stood a large building (D), Colonel La Rosa found several

vaults, which he effectually destroyed, completely obliterating

the passages leading to them, whether laterally or from above.

His recollections of them were very vague. One chamber or

vault, however, seems to have been a kind of store-room, con-

taining a great number of cotton mattresses, which had been

covered with fine cotton cloth. The cloth had, for the most

part, decayed, but the cotton remained perfect, slightly, if at all,

discolored. I brought away a portion of one of these mat-

tresses, the cotton of whieh was, I believe, baled and sent

abroad. The fibre is still as strong and good, perhaps, as it

ever was.

The edifice D, as will be seen from the plan, had its floor

about thirty-five feet above that of the Hall of Arabesques, A.

There is no apparent connection between the two, nor yet be-

tween the superior structure and the halls or corridors, B and C.

This structure seems to have been placed on the summit of the

adobe mound, and its interior dimensions, so far as can be as-

certained in its present state of mutilation, were seventy-six by

twenty-six feet. Its interior has been excavated to the depth

of thirty or forty feet, all the way through adobes, without

reaching the level of the soil. It was in making this excavation

that the vaults to which I have alluded were discovered. The

debris from this vast pit is piled all around the structure, bury-

ing still deeper the remains of the other structures that once

crowned the mound, which must have had on the top an area

of two or three acres. The walls of this particular edifice, D,

are in places eight feet high. They were built of adobes, stuc-

coed over smoothly, without ornaments in relief, but with here

and there traces of colors. It was entered by passages, skirting

the southern wall, flanked on one side by openings, resembling

windows, with sills four feet above the floor. These, however,

are entrances to little square rooms, seven feet by seven, each

140

INCIDENTS OF TEAVEL AND EXPLORATION

floor being on a level with that of the hall itself. These cham-

bers were continued on both sides of the hall, and possibly across

the northern end, which has been completely broken down. 1

found many of these small dependent chambers connected with

other buildings, but have been unable to form a clear opinion

as to their purpose. They may have been places of deposit or

storage, and possibly dormitories. The latter supposition is not

unreasonable, when we consider the smallness of some of the

sleeping apartments in the dwellings of Pompeii.

Returning now to the Hall of Arabesques, we find its eastern

wall broken through near the south-east corner, and are able to

pass through the opening into a passage or corridor, E, eighty

feet long by fifteen feet wide. Its high walls of adobe have

been plastered over and made smooth, as if glazed, but without

ornament of any kind. Leading from tins to the left is a plain

passage, F, only five feet wide, extending until lost in the mass

of debris to the north. We next observe an isolated wall, G,

eight feet thick, in which, at a height of about six feet above

the floor of the passage, are a number of small chambers, pre-

cisely like those already described as opening from the superior

hall D, only smaller, being but four feet square. The right

wall of the passage E is massive; rising first to the height of

fifteen feet, when it forms a kind of terrace, H, seventeen feet

wide, from which again rises another wall, I, broken down al-

most to its base, where it is twelve feet thick. Beyond this the

terrace, II, is resumed for eight feet, when we come to a suc-

cession of oblong, rectangular chambers or vaults, six feet wide

and twelve feet long, sunk six feet below the level of the ter-

race. Some of these are entirely, and the rest partially, cov-

ered or filled with rubbish. This description will be made more

intelligible by reference to the section.

Advancing along the passage E, we reach a door-way five

feet wide, and originally about seven feet high, through a lofty

wall eight feet thick, and enter a passage, or rather a chamber,

about thirty feet wide, and of unknown length beneath the rub-

bish in front of us. The walls are plain, the most remarkable

feature being a cubical mass, K, K, twenty-four feet long and

IN THE LAND OF THE INCAS.

141

eighteen feet wide, and twelve feet high, built up against the

high wall on our right. In the centre of this is a chamber ten

feet square, open at the top. Its walls are burned and blistered

like those of a furnace to the depth of twenty inches, and show

every sign of having been exposed to severe and protracted

heat. By the side of this, and between it and the wall through

whieh we entered, is a sort of bin, M, with a low wall in front.

This, Colonel La Rosa assured us, was filled with calcined hu-

man bones when the hall was excavated; but few traces of

bones, however, were to be found at the time of my visit. The

colonel considered the hollow mass, K, K, as the place of burn-

ing the dead—a practice, however, of which I found no traces

elsewhere, nor do we hear of it among the traditions of the an-

cient occupants of these regions. I am more disposed to regard

this mass as a furnace, in some way connected with ancient

metallurgic operations.

Perhaps this hypothesis is better supported than that of Col-

onel La Rosa, from the discovery by himself of a chamber or

walled-up closet, filled with vessels and utensils of gold and sil-

ver, principally of the latter, close to the supposed furnace on

the left, and indicated by the letter N. This closet, or rather

well, whieh, according to the colonel’s statement, had no en-

trance, except perhaps from above, was about twenty inches

square, and as many feet deep, and was formed by leaving this

space in a second wall several feet thick, which had been built

up against the original outer wall of the chamber or area. The

vessels were piled regularly, one layer above another, and, ac-

cording to the colonel’s notion, had been hidden away here at

the time of the struggle between the Chimus and the Incas, to

preserve them from the clutches of the latter. The vessels

were mostly in the form of drinking-cups or vases, some plain,

and others ornamented, of very thin silver, considerably alloyed

with copper, and oxidized to the extent of making some of

them so brittle as hardly to bear handling. He had melted

them down, except a few, with very poor return in amount of

exportable silver.

Of the few preserved by him, I have two; one is ten inches

142 INCIDENTS OF TRAVEL AND EXPLORATION

ill height with a flaring top and bottom, and with a human face,

having a marked aquiline nose, and the hair in plaits at the back

of the head, all struck up from the in-

side. The thickness of the metal is about

that of ordinary tin-plate. There is no

sign of soldering in any part, and the

whole seems to have been hammered out

from a single piece of metal. I can not

accept the suggestion that it was cast, of

which there is not the slightest indica-

tion. The other is a similar but less

ornate vessel, somewhat smaller in size.

Colonel La Rosa affirmed that he had

found some gold vessels here, whieh he

had sold by weight, for exportation as

bullion. It will probably be always a

source of regret to antiquarians that these

articles, infinitely more valuable in an artistic and scientific

view than in any other, should not have fallen into more en-

lightened hands.

The outline of the treasure-well is distinctly marked on the

opposite wall, twelve feet thick, and twenty-eight feet high,

whieh has been excavated through, affording admission to the

oblong rectangular chamber, or hall, O. Flanking this are two

passages, P, P, eight feet wide, divided by projections into two

rooms, and entered by narrow passages. Near the farther ex-

tremity of each inner apartment, sunk in the floor, was found a

vault, three feet by two, and four feet deep, whieh, when discov-

ered, I was assured, was full of silver utensils similar to those to

which I have just alluded.

I have here, as clearly as I am able, described the excavated

portion of the monnd which I have ventured to designate the

Palace,” and which, as I have said, covers several acres. “What

valuables are still hidden under the present shapeless mass, what

secrets of architecture and art, of ancient skill and industry, are

here concealed, remain to be disclosed. The glimpses we have

got are due to the blind greed of treasure-hunters, who spent

IN THE LAND OF THE INCAS.

143

many thousands of dollars over and above the spoils they ob-

tained in their operations, and who have fortunately been dis-

couraged from extending the ruin they have already wrought.

There remains, consequently, a rich mine for the antiquarian

student to explore: but he must have command of ample

means; as, area for area, the amount of material to be re-

moved here is twice that required to be taken away to reach

the streets and dwellings of Pompeii, while fewer facilities for

excavation and the removal of the debris here exist.

I would not undertake to reconstruct the Palace from hints

afforded by the comparatively small portion of it uncovered;

but I have no doubt it was a broad, and rather low, artificial

mound, built of adobes throughout, containing many small sub-

terranean chambers, or vaults, and rising from the plain by a

succession of three or more terraces, eaeh covered with build-

ings of various designs and purposes; some of them connected

by passages, others detached; some ornamented by reliefs or

colors, but all arranged in a harmonious whole—at least, in ex-

terior aspect. If it was the residence of the Prince of Chimu,

it contained, perhaps, as did some feudal castles of the Old

World, store-houses and armories, rooms and shops for attend-

ants and servants, and perhaps, like the Vatican, a place for cun-

ning workmen in metal and in clay, spinners, weavers, and dyers.

Nowhere in the excavations here could we find out if the ex-

terior walls of the structure had been in any wray decorated;

but we may infer that they were, from the fact that the outer

walls of some of the buildings surrounding and standing apart

from the mound were elaborately ornamented with a kind of

crochet-work of small squares, surrounded by a border of vo-

lutes, the former in intaglio, the latter in bass-relief. The in-

terior walls of some of these outstanding buildings had been

painted with vivid colors, among them a delicate purple. The

areas of some of them had been excavated to the depth of fifty

or sixty feet, all the way in the gravelly, semi – stratified drift

of sand, gravel, and pebbles that makes up the plain of Man-

siche. Evidently, the excavators had but slight acquaintance

with geological conditions!

144 INCIDENTS OF TRAVEL AND EXPLORATION

About a hundred yards to the westward of the great mound

in which the excavations just described were made, is another

low, broad mound, in which treasure – seekers had also been at

work, exposing some interesting features, indicating that here

was a cemetery, probably the necropolis of the princes of Chi-

EXCAVATION OF THE NECROPOLIS, CHIilU.

inn. The excavation is about 100 feet long by 00 feet wide,

and 14 feet deep. It reveals a portion of two sides of a square,

defined by thick, solid rubble walls. The extent of these walls,

and consequently of the area they enclose, is unknown. From

the northern wall projects a platform, C, with a flight of steps

descending on either side into the area. This area seems to

IN THE LAND OF THE INCAS.

145

have been mainly occupied by masses or blocks of rubble-

work, separated by streets or passages, and covering chambers

or vaults of varying sizes, but of the uniform height of about

nine feet. Nearly all have niches at the sides or opposite the

entrances. Two or three have two rows of niches, one above

the other. Occupying the niches in all these chambers or vaults

were found skeletons and desiccated bodies, elaborately clothed

and plumed, and accompanied by ornaments of gold and silver

and various insignia of rank.

These interesting relics were all taken away or destroyed.

I nevertheless found fragments of the cloths and garments in

which the bodies had been wrapped, some of cotton, others of

the wool of the vicuna, called chumbi. The cotton cloth was

SPECIMEN OF CLOTH, CHIMU.

116 INCIDENTS OF TRAVEL AND EXPLORATION

remarkably line and even, with sixty-two threads of warp and

woof to the inch. I have a piece of what is regarded as a very

tine specimen of Egyptian mummy-cloth, from the wrappings

of a priest unrolled in the Egyptian department of the Paris

Universal Exposition, which has but forty-four threads to the

inch. The finest was plain, or without color, except a yellow-

ish tinge, probably from age. Specimens from graves newly

opened were perfectly white. Some specimens (of which the

cut affords an example, greatly reduced from the original) were

woven in ornamental figures, and those of animals. In this in-

stance the border is made up of a narrow strip of white, fol-

lowed by dark brown, relieved by little squares of white. Suc-

ceeding this is a broad stripe of bright red, relieved by yellow,

leaf-shaped figures. Next a stripe of white, then of black,

shading off into dark brown, which seems to have been the pre-

vailing tint of the article of which the fragment formed part.

Woven in this ground are a succes-

sion of figures of yellow lizards, with

eyes in red, alternating with birds with

red eyes and feet, and yellow legs and

bills. They appear to be striking the

heads of the lizards with their bills,

which are represented longer than

their legs. This device has been ob-

served in several fragments. One of

these was a little square rug, with a

brick-colored ground, on which are

sewed plates of silver, ornamented in

relief, the whole having a double

border of feathers, blue and yellow,

with feather tassels held in silver

knobs. This specimen, with many

others, larger and smaller, was ob-

tained from the tombs of Chancay, to

SILVKH ORNAMENT KROM CIHMU. ^ Qf Q],^

This instance of the ornamentation of cloth by fastening on

it plates of the precious metals, instead of embroidery with

IN THE LAND OF THE INCAS.

147

threads of the same, is by no means an exceptional one. Among

the cloaks or wrappers taken from the Chimu tombs by Colonel

La Rosa, and now preserved

in the museum of the His-

torical Society of New

York, is one spangled over

with silver plates cut in the

form of fishes, of which a

representation is here giv-

en. The original is nine

and a half inches in great-

est length, and five and a

quarter in greatest breadth,

and is in the form of the

fish known as the ” skate.”

It was sewed upon the cloth

through small holes punch-

ed in it. Thin plates of

silver, also eut in the forms

of fishes, with their eyes,

fins, gills, and other feat-

ures ” struck up ” as if from dies, had been found elsewhere,

notably in the guano islands of Chincha.

FISH ORNAMENTS FROM THE CHINCHA ISLANDS.

The other cuts give

FISH ORNAMENTS FROM THE CHINCHA ISLANDS.

148 INCIDENTS OF TRAVEL AND EXPLORATION

examples, natural size, of a number in my own possession,

taken by Captain John Pardo, an Italian, from the guano at

a depth of about thirty-two feet below the surface. At the

same time, and in connection with these, was found the body

of a female, lacking the head, which, however, was discovered

at some distance from the skeleton. The breasts and the ribs

were covered with thin sheets of gold, and the whole would

have been a valuable relic, had it been preserved as found. But

the workmen divided the gold, part of which was sold to cap-

tains of ships loading guano, and the body thrown into the sea.

FISH ORNAMENTS FROM THE CHINCHA ISLANDS.

It is not improbable that the silver fishes had been attached to

some envelope or article of clothing which had decayed in the

lapse of time.

Many fragments of human skulls and other bones were scat-

tered about this excavation, some of the former showing signs

of having been painted red, and affording some ground for

crediting Colonel La Posa’s statement that among the skulls

discovered here were several that had been gilt, or were en-

circled by ornamented bands of gold or of brightly colored

braids of thread, in which, and rising above the forehead, were

stuck feather-shaped ornaments of thin gold, which vibrated

with every movement, giving motion to little disks of the same

metal, suspended in corresponding openings in the plate. I

IN THE LAND OF THE INCAS.

149

subsequently found a number of these in Lima, of which the

cut is an example. They were all of very

pure gold.

Certainly the strangest, if not the most in-

teresting, object disclosed in excavating these

tombs was the regular and somewhat elaborate

mass of adobes and rubble-work indicated by

the letter A, and of which the cut on the fol-

lowing page, from a photograph, will give a

better idea than the plan. The end towards

the spectator is partly broken down; but, pre-

suming it to have corresponded with the oth-

er, the structure was sixteen feet square, and

twelve feet high, entered at each end by a

door-way or passage three feet wide, leading

into a kind of area, ten feet long by five wide.

The sides of this area or court were furnished

with a series of platforms and demi-niches im-

possible to describe, and only to be compre-

hended by reference to the engraving. They

were all plastered smooth, as were also the up-

per surfaces of the walls themselves, and here

and there exhibited traces of having been

painted. I am utterly at a loss to suggest

even the purposes of this strange monument,

unless indeed it was connected with unknown

burial rites, in the course of which different

grades of functionaries occupied the various

graduations or seats of the interior. It ob- GOLD FEATHER ORXA-

viously had never been covered so as to form

a vault, and seems to have stood wholly isolated from the other

masses containing hidden chambers.

In an open space outside of the excavated area, reached by a

passage through the northern wall, is an isolated, covered tomb,

twelve feet long by six wide, nine feet high exteriorly, and six

and a half feet inside. It has entrances at both ends, one twice

the width of the other, the narrowest showing evidences of

150

INCIDENTS OF TEAYEL AND EXPLORATION

A STRANGE STRUCTURE.

having been once closed with adobes. There are eight niches.

four on each side, in two rows of two each, one above the other.

Small openings lead from

the tops of the upper ones

into the open air. The

walls are smooth-cast, and

were once painted in red

and yellow. The whole is

a compact mass of rubble;

and, as the ceiling sup-

ports itself, was probably

built over a solid core or

model, which was removed

when the mass had become

hard and firm. When this

was first discovered, the

ToMii B, NECROPOLIS, CHIMU. excitement of the discov-

IN THE LAND OF THE INCAS.

151

erers was intense: they felt sure that this was the traditional

” big fish;” and they sent to Truxillo for a force to protect

their anticipated wealth from the workmen, who were eager

to break down the adobe barrier between them and the count-

less millions the vault was supposed to contain. 13ut, alas for

their golden visions ! it proved to be only a tomb, containing

some of the most striking relies disclosed by the excavations,

including the alleged gilt skulls. A number of vaults besides

those shown in the plan had been excavated, but were covered

up again by the debris of those finally left exposed.

In studying, planning, sketching, and photographing the re-

mains of the palace and the necropolis Ave spent a week, coming

early and leaving late. Our practice was to rise at daylight, get

a eup of coffee at the Bola de Oro, mount our horses, and gallop

to the ruins. At eleven o’clock our Chinese purveyors would

send out a boy with edibles, wine, and ice for our breakfast.

The remains we had investigated were those exposed last;

but there was a vast number of others, uncovered years and

even centuries ago, whieh claimed our attention. I was at a

loss what to do. To make a good plan of the ruins would oc-

cupy a large corps of engineers for months, and I did not like

to undertake to clo less. I calculated my time, and came to the

conclusion that, by swift’movements, passing over some points

of interest on the coast, I might get back to Lima early enough

to enter on my expedition to the Sierra, and yet have two weeks

more in Chimu, besides a week in each of the valleys of Ne-

peña and Casma. I took my measures accordingly.

I have said that among the ruins of Chimu are many great

blocks, or rectangular areas, enclosed by massive walls, and con-

taining within themselves courts, streets, dwellings, reservoirs

for water, etc., ete. Of two of these, Rivero and Tsehudi have

published plans and brief descriptions, calling them, strangely

enough, “First Palace” and “Seeond Palace.” These plans I

determined to verify before proceeding farther; for if they

were accurate, there was so much gained.

The so-ealled ” palaces ” stand not very widely apart, about a

mile south of the remains which I have described. Both are

152

INCIDENTS OF TRAVEL AND EXPLORATION

rectangular. The first is sixteen hundred feet long by eleven

hundred feet wide at its widest part. The outer wall varies

from twenty-five to thirty feet or more in height, by ten feet

thick at the base, the sides inclining towards each other; so

that on top the wall is probably not quite half that thickness;

PKISOX

□

PLAN OF

“FIRST PALACE”

CHJMTJ.

LIILLLLILLLJ

LTTTTTTTTTT]

i±J_

RESERVOIR

I’,””””LL””‘LLL.LLJ

crnnxi

LTJ

1X3

b a

3U.11J.J

2 [11113

B 3

1131X2

RTTTI

tfrxm

for from five to seven feet from the ground it is built of rough

stones, laid in tenacious clay, which may have some intermixtnre

to give it greater cohesion over that. At intervals of a few feet

may be seen, projecting above the wall, the tops of tall stems

of the caña brava, or bamboo, which may have been planted in

IN THE LAND OF THE INCAS.

153

the ground to give greater firmness to the wall. It is possible

they were laced together horizontally by other stems, thus giving

greater strength and cohe-

sion to the mass. Inside

this wall, which appears to

have had but a single en-

trance, from the north (al-

though there are now two

others, apparently broken

through forcibly), we find

five lesser rectangular en-

SECTIONAL VIEW OF WALLS, CHIMU. closures, three of them

filled with minor squares, dwellings, and reservoirs, one vacant,

and the fifth containing a strongly walled interior square, in

turn enclosing a strange structure, called El Presidio (the Pris-

on). The relations of these squares and the plans of the build-

ings they enclose can only be understood by reference to the

general plan of the grand enclosure itself, corrected on the spot,

from that published by Pivero and Tschudi. This plan is on

so small a scale that many of the minor features of the work

are necessarily lost, or but imperfectly indicated.

FIGURE ON WALL, CHIMU.

Entering the grand enclosure from the north, and turning to

the right, we find ourselves in a kind of antechamber, evidently

never roofed, from which a gate-way opens into a large, open

plaza, or square, A. In front of the entrance is a raised plat-

154 INCIDENTS OF TEAVEL AND EXPLORATION

form, d, forty feet square, and three feet high. Beyond this is

a graded way, leading to a narrow terre-plein, or platform, from

whieh there is a narrow street, or passage, to the left. The left-

hand wall of this court is composed of adobes, stuccoed over, and

covered with ornaments in relief, in which the figures shown in

the cut are constantly reproduced. A single line of these oc-

cupies the face of the wall, which is twelve feet high. The op-

posite, or right-hand, wall may also have been ornamented, but

of this there are now no traces. To the right of this court, but

not entered directly from it, are two long and relatively narrow

halls or passages, E, F, the walls of which are also highly orna-

mented in figures of which the following cut affords an exam-

ple. The design is in relief, as are also what may be call-

ed the borders, above and below. The wall is of adobes, and

the relievos were formed by their projections when built in the

wall. The ground on which they appear is of stucco, scratched,

or roughened, horizontally with numerous undulating lines, pro-

ducing the effect of what we call “rustic work” in architect-

ure. In this way, the relievos, having their faces smooth, are

made conspicuous. Here, as elsewhere, there are traces of color.

FIGURE ON THE WALL, CHIMU.

From these ornamented halls we pass into another sala, or

hall, Gr, which has a terre-plein, or platform, running around two

sides, with a graded way leading up to it on the third. The

walls of this, although much broken down, are remarkable. On

the face of a solid backing is a wall of adobes, so arranged as to

form regular, lozenge-shaped figures, as shown in the cut. Sev-

eral other rooms or courts are ornamented in like manner. In

a few instances, the lozenge-shaped opening is carried quite

RUINED WALLS, CHIMU.

IN THE LAND OF THE INCAS.

155

Wmm&

1 II’FFTRA’J iiiiifiiii’i’iv.IINIIIII’:,

I—:____

Hip

through the wall, giving the effect of a trellis. Another kind

of ornamentation is to be observed in several places, formed of

square adobes, in which every alternate block is in relief, as

shown in the cut. Occasionally these blocks are so arranged

that every alternate space is an opening entirely through the

wall, .which is as thick as the adobe is long—about three feet.

The honey-combed effect of these walls, when looking over the

ruins from an eminence, is very striking.

Passing now to the rectangular court, B, we find nearly a

similar arrangement wTith that marked A — the raised square,

the inclined plane, and the terre-plein. A little beyond this to

the south, past a row of houses, we come to a wall five feet

high standing on the

berme, or near the

edge of a deep exca-

vation, presumably a

reservoir for water.

I give a plan, and a

section of this struct-

ure, of which the de-

scription must stand

for that of a hundred

others, of greater or less size, among these

ruins. It is 450 feet long by 195 broad,

and 60 deep. The sides fall off by two steps, or gradients, and

were, from top to bottom, faced with unwrought stones, carefully

fitted in place. On the southern and near the left end is a pro-

jection like a wharf, from which there is reason to believe stair-

ways led to the bottom of the excavation. This is 78 feet long,

and projects 15 feet. The wall on the southern berme of the

excavation is double the height of that on the northern side,

and has only one or two gates; while through that on the north,

or populated side, there are several, as also at the ends.

The bottom of this area sunk so far below the general level

is comparatively moist, sufficiently so to nourish a number of

fine fig-trees (probably planted by some enterprising citizen of

Truxillo), from which we obtained a by no means ungrateful

PLAN OF RESERVOIR.

156 INCIDENTS OF TRAVEL AND EXPLORATION

supply of fruit. Eivero and Tschudi mention certain aque-

ducts, or azequias, leading from the Rio Moche into this reser-

voir as ” still visible.” I did not discover such, but it is proba-

ble that they existed anciently.

I shall not stop to describe the groups of structures at the

extremities of the great reservoir, of the purposes of which, ex-

cept in so far as they may have been used as dwellings, I can

form no better judgment than my reader. I therefore come at

once to wThat I regard as the most remarkable and interesting

feature in the group I am describing, namely, El Presidio,

which fills the north-west corner of a large square, defined by

high and massive adobe walls, entered, as is the great rectangle

enclosing the remains I have described, from the north. Other

openings exist, but they are modern breaches to facilitate exca-

vating operations.

El Presidio (if we include the whole area under that name, as

the Palace of the Tuileries may be understood to give name to

.the ground covered by its dependent squares and gardens) is

320 feet long by 210 wide. The wall surrounding it is 5^ feet

thick at the base, 25 feet high, narrowing to about two feet in

thickness at the top. Within the area thus enclosed we find

the most conspicuous object to be a rectangular mound of

mamposteria, measuring at the base 175 by 135 feet, and 17

feet high, the sides inclining inwards. It is level on the top,

which is reached, as shown in the plan, through a rectangular

enclosure, passing several apartments or guard-houses by a

graded way or inclined plane. A low wall of adobes is carried

around the edge of the mound at its summit, where we find, at

the north-east corner, an enclosure 55 feet long by 30 wide. A

trench has been excavated nearly through the mound longitu-

dinally, which, while it has greatly disfigured it, has revealed its

construction. The foundation seems to have been of large,

rough stones, placed on the ground, on which the body of the

work,, of most compact mamjoosteria, was raised. This, how-

ever, was not solid throughout, for no fewer than forty-five cells

or chambers, arranged in five rows of nine each, were left in

the mass, as shown in the longitudinal section.

IN THE LAND OF THE INCAS.

157

The roofs of these cells are six feet below the level of the sum-

mit of the mound, and the cells themselves are 13 feet long, 7

wide, and high, entered from above by gradients like steps.

The dimensions of the orifices by which they were entered, ow-

ing to the general ruin, cannot now be exactly ascertained, but

they were probably only sufficiently large to admit the body of

a man — a supposition supported by the circumstance that a

number of heavy quadrangular stones are scattered about, the

only intelligible purpose of which was that of covering over

the entrances to the vaults or cells below. The hypothesis that

the structure wTas really a prison derives favor from the fact

that not only the foundation is composed of heavy stones,

through whieh a convict could not dig, but that such stones are-

158

INCIDENTS OF TRAVEL AND EXPLORATION

also built firmly in the mamposteria between the cells, as if to

prevent excavation horizontally. The manner in which the

approach to the mound is guarded ; the platform to the left,

with a parapet running around its upper edge, and which com-

mands the only entrance to the great enclosure—all go to indi-

cate the character of the work, which was first suggested to me

by its popular name, El Presidio.

If I am not mistaken in the matter, this monument is evi-

dence of an advanced condition of society and government in

Chimu very nearly up to the standard of what we call civiliza-

tion. The plan and size of the cells would’suggest that “soli-

tary confinement” was a rule in the penal code of Chimu, prob-

ably supjriemented with hard labor—of which the vast block of

edifices containing the prison shows so many proofs. To the

right of the mound, and built up against it, is a supplementary

and lower one, much ruined, but which seems to have had a

number of rather elaborate apartments or chambers; whether

intended as penal cells or as dwellings for the keepers of the

prison, I will not undertake to say.

This detailed account of what Rivero and Tschudi call the

“First Palace” obviates the necessity of describing the “See-

ond Palace,” of which the plan, on the same scale with the

first, gives a very faithful representation. In common with the

other, it is a great parallelogram in outline, defined by heavy

double walls capable of resisting field-artillery; some are of

mamposteria, others of adobes, occasionally backing one against

the other. It also has its open courts, platforms, and squares

of houses; but it is singular in being without a water reservoir.

There is, however, a very capacious one just outside its walls

to the right.

Near its south-east corner is an enclosure, not unlike El Pre-

sidio in the ” First Palace,” also containing a mound known as

the Huaca of Misa. It is, however, very different from that in

El Presidio; originally it was perhaps fifty or sixty feet high;

but now, excavated in every direction, it is a shapeless mass.

Passages and interior chambers, some of considerable size, are

nevertheless still traceable. Pivero reports these to have been

IN THE LAND OF THE LNCAS.

159

lined with cut stones, of which, however, I found no sufficient

evidence. He also states that many relics were discovered here:

mummies, mantles of cloth ornamented and interwoven with gold

and bright feathers, figures of men and animals, in metal, im-

plements of various kinds, an idol of wood, and many frag-

ments of pearl shells.

PLAN OF

“SECOND PALACE”

CHIMU.

HUACA OF 31 ISA.

TTTT1

I 3

rim

TTTT3

U11LLLL1J.111IJ

XLTT

TTTT

L±1±±J

r~TTT1

E 3

LlilllJ

en m

TTTTT”

LXXU

I made surveys of several other grand enclosures similar to

those noticed, which might, with equal propriety, be called

“palaces.” They may better be described as sections, barrios,

160

INCIDENTS OF TRAVEL AND EXPLORATION

or wards, each with its special population separated and kept

apart for municipal purposes or social reasons. True, it would

seem that this kind of isolation could be equally well effect-

ed without constructing such high and massive walls as define

these barrios, and whieh are quite as strong and imposing as

those which seem to have enclosed the city on its land side.

Yet each division or square may have been designed to be in it-

self a fortress or citadel. However that may be, some of these

squares not only contain lesser ones, but are also subdivided,

as shown in the subjoined plan.

PLAN OF SUB-SQUARE.

This sub-square or section is one of a number contained in a

great enclosure three or four times the dimensions of that called

by Bivero the ” First Palace,” and may be taken as a type of the

others, which, however, are “not uniform in details. The heavy

outer walls shown in the plan are by no means those of the

grand enclosure, but of a series traversing its area at right an-

gles. Within these walls is an open space, ten feet wide, after

which comes another lesser wall, with openings or entrances on

IN THE LAND OF THE INCAS.

161

three sides. The main entrance, or that from the north, leads

into an open plaza, in the middle of which is a reservoir for wa-

ter, about sixty feet long by thirty broad, and twelve feet deep,

the sides falling off by steps, and are faced with stones. On

the right and left are rows of what originally appear to have

been shops or market-stands, only a few feet square, opening

on the plaza. A low and comparatively thin wall crosses each

door-way, like a threshold, and separates the interior -from the

area outside. A terrace three feet high extends across the end

of the plaza, opposite the entrance, in front of the largest build-

ing in the group. This contained three apartments, along the

walls of which are projections like pilasters, too high for seats,

forming what may be called niches between them. Even our

Chinese attendant recognized the probable purpose of this

building, when, in pointing to it, he ejaculated, “Cabildo!”

Three streets, two crossing the square north and south, and one

east and west, intersect each other on this terrace of the cabildo,

dividing the whole area of the barrio into six subordinate

squares or blocks, exclusive of that which I have called the

plaza. Each of these in turn has its minor court or plaza, and

four of them have their own small cabildos, or municipal houses.

Around each plaza the dwellings of the aneient inhabitants

are grouped with the utmost regularity, but in a manner baffling

description, and which can only be made intelligible by refer-

ence to the plan, which also shows many curious and enigmat-

ical features which it would be tedious to enumerate. Some of

the houses or apartments are small, as if for watchmen or peo-

ple on guard; others are relatively spacious, reaching the di-

mensions of twenty-ñve by fifteen feet inside the walls. These

walls are usually about three feet thick, and about twelve feet

high. The roofs were not flat, but, as shown by the gables of

the various buildings, sharply pitched; so that, although rain

may not have been frequent, it was, nevertheless, necessary to

provide for its occurrence. Each apartment was completely

separated from the next by partitions reaehing to the very peak

of the general roof. There are no traces of windows, and light

and air were admitted into the apartments only by the door.

162

INCIDENTS OF TRAVEL AND EXPLORATION

it will be observed that, except on the plazas, the doors of none

of the buildings open opposite eaeh other. How far this feat-

ure may be due to regard for individual or family privacy, in a

community organized with an order and system that a social-

istic philanstery might despair of rivalling, I do not undertake

to say, but we must believe that it was not without a clear de-

sign. Altogether there seems to#have existed in this sub-barrio

thirty-nine separate buildings, with from two to five apartments

each, or one hundred and eleven in all, without counting the

twenty-two little tiendas, or shops, facing upon the central

square.

The long, narrow, open spaces, or corridors, running around

the several squares and along the walls of the principal square

itself, are enigmatical, especially as we find them interrupted, on

one side at least, by cross-walls. We might otherwise imagine

them to be the places where refuse and filth of various kinds

were east temporarily.

The sole entrance to this particular square, it will be ob-

served, is from the south-east corner, and through another but

open square, which seems to have been a garden, the indurated

ground still showing traces of cultivation. The square to the

north of this under notice corresponds very nearly with it in

size, and contains a large but ruined truncated mound, sur-

rounded by buildings. Some open squares succeed, followed

by others filled with edifices in perplexing variety, a few stand-

ing on the natural surface of the earth, others on terraces; some

in absolute ruin, others relatively perfect; and altogether so

numerous as to forbid a survey except by a corps of engineers,

limited in their work neither by time nor considerations of

cost.

Outside of these walled enclosures, and scattered with more

or less regularity over the intervening spaces, are the founda-

tions and other remains of a vast number of small buildings,

apparently of ruder construction than “those within the enclos-

ures. Some of the spaces, however, are clear, or marked only

by small piles of stones scattered over them here and there.

We were told that these covered graves; but I removed sever-

IN THE LAND OF THE INCAS.

163

al, and excavated the earth beneath them, without finding any

remains.

•I have alluded to reservoirs for water; these are more nu-

merous outside than inside the enclosures, and exist in consider-

able numbers. They are popularly supposed to be granaries,

but I think their purposes are obvious, especially as there are

traces of azequias leading to several of them. They could not

have been roofed over; and the intelligent people who built

Chimu would certainly not have left their grain exposed in a

region where, although rarely, rain sometimes falls in torrents.

Three or four instances have been known in the historical pe-

riod when great damage was done, and indelible traces left on

the plain and its monuments.

Besides these reservoirs,’there are a number of large exca-

vated areas in the sands towards the sea, in the direction of

Huaman, obviously for gardens, in conformity with a practice,

anciently wide-spread on the coast, and not yet extinct, of re-

moving the sand in desert places until a stratum of earth was

reached sufficiently moist to support vegetation.

In speaking of the huaca of El Obispo, I alluded to two oth-

ers, those of Toledo and Las Conchas. The latter, like all the

others, has been excavated from above and from the sides.

Tunnels have been driven into it at various elevations; and

outside a shaft has been sunk, and a drift carried beneath it, in

search of subterranean deposits. This last experiment was

made only a few years ago, by a company of treasure-seekers of

Truxillo, but without much success. They found some pas-

sages and chambers, one of the latter ornamented with shells

inserted in the mamjposteria of the walls. They found the

roofs of the passages supported in places by hewn cross-beams

of algarroba wood, of which I brought away one, perfectly pre-

served. It is five feet long, nine inches wide, and five thick,

hewn flat on the lower surface and the sides. One end is cut

squarely, the other roughly to a point. The marks of the tool

are large, bold, and sharp, as if from an instrument quite as ef-

fective as the iron axe now in use in Peru. The drifts and pas-

sages are dark, noisome with bats, and quite unsafe, so that

164

INCIDENTS OF TRAVEL AND EXPLORATION

I did not undertake to jjenetrate far into Las Conchas. The

same reasons deterred me from venturing into the labyrinthine

excavations of the huaca of Toledo farther than to ascertain -its

construction. Its core, or central mass, seems to have been of

very hard concrete, in thick layers, inclining to the centre, and

the whole faced over, both on the sides and top, with adobes to

the depth of ten or twelve feet, perhaps more. I can only re-

peat that the ruin here, as in the case of most of the huacas, is

so absolute that close measurements are impossible.

I have omitted reference, up to this point, to a remarkable

sub-barrio, or enclosure, in one of the larger squares, notice of

which now will naturally lead to a fuller consideration of what

may be called the minor works of art of the ancient Chimus.

This enclosure is very nearly of the’dimensions of that last de-

scribed, but with a different arrangement. It has a double row

of buildings on its northern side, but along its southern wall is

a succession of what were perhaps ancient furnaces or smelt-

ing-plaees, so much ruined as to prevent any clear understand-

ing of their construction. Their thick walls were burned deep,

and fragments of slag still cling to them, while in a large open

space near by was heaped a great quantity of slag, or seorise,

which is proved by analysis to be mainly of copper and silver

ores. We have here proofs of a certain proficiency of the Chi-

mus in metallurgy, in addition to those furnished by their orna-

ments and other relics in gold, silver, and bronze. Here, too,

we have further evidence of the hypothesis that the various

great enclosures were occupied by artisans or mechanics of cog-

nate pursuits, and the smaller divisions, by those who followed

out the details of each pursuit—by those who reduced the met-

als from the ores, and those who wrought them into articles of

use or ornament; by those who produced and cleansed the cot-

ton from its seed, and those who spun, wove, and dyed it.

IN THE LAND OF THE INCAS.

165

CHAPTER X.

LEGENDARY HISTORY OF THE CHIMUS.

Accounts by Feijoo and Garcilasso de la Vega: Extent of their Territory.—Their

Chief, Chimu-Canchu.—The Invasion by the Iuca Yupanqui.—Stubborn Resist-