CHAPTER XVI 



LIFE IN LA PLATA 



"I do not own an inch of land, 



But all I see is mine, 

 The orchard and the mowing-fields 



The lawns and gardens fine. 

 The winds my tax-collectors are 



They bring me tithes divine, 

 Wild scents and subtle essences, 



A tribute rare and free 

 And more magnificent than all, 



My window keeps for me 

 A glimpse of blue immensity, 



A little Strip of sea. " Lucy Larcom. 



THE greater part of the time which we spent in La 

 Plata was necessarily devoted to our tasks in the 

 Museum. But there were a number of holidays and 

 holy days when our labors were interrupted. As in all 

 Latin lands the calendar of the Church is observed. 

 Interruptions due to this cause and the comparatively 

 short hours at the Museum gave opportunity now and 

 then to take long walks. The extreme flatness of the 

 region did not at first glance hold out promise of enter- 

 tainment, but there are other things besides hills and 

 mountains which lend interest to a stroll in the country. 

 Flat lands are not without their attractive features. 

 Some of the most delightful pedestrian excursions I have 

 ever made were along the dikes and ditches of Holland. 



When I was a lad and lived for a few months in In- 



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