ACROSS THE ANDES 135 



tame guanaco (a kind of llama) in the road; 

 it strolled up to us, smelled the noses of the 

 horses, which were rather afraid of it, and then 

 walked on by us. From the summit of the 

 pass the ground fell rapidly to a wonderfully 

 beautiful little lake of lovely green water. This 

 little gem is hemmed in by sheer-sided moun- 

 tains, densely timbered save where the cliffs 

 rise too boldly for even the hardiest trees to 

 take root. As with all these lakes, there are 

 many beautiful waterfalls. The rapid moun- 

 tain brooks fling themselves over precipices 

 which are sometimes so high that the water 

 reaches the foot in sheets of wavering mist. 

 Everywhere in the background rise the snow 

 peaks. 



We crossed this little lake in a steam-launch, 

 and on the other side found the quaintest 

 wooden railway, with a couple of rough hand- 

 cars, each dragged by an ox. In going down- 

 hill the ox is put behind the car, which he holds 

 back with a rope tied to his horns. We piled 

 our baggage on one car, three or four members 

 of the party got on the other, and the rest of 

 us walked for the two miles or so before we 

 reached the last lake we were to traverse — • 

 Nahuel Huapi. Here there happened one of 

 those incidents which show how the world is 



