Chap. XIII. 



THE HUASCARAY RIVER. 



22' 



three feet only, with a perpendicular cliff on one side, and a 

 precipice six or seven hundred feet deep on the other ; while, 

 in others, it zigzags down amongst loose stones, where one 

 false step would be immediate destruction. But the scenery 

 continued to increase in beauty, and the cascades were really 

 splendid : — 



" A land of streams ! some, like a downward smoke, 

 Slow-dropping veils of thinnest lawn, did go ; 

 And some thro' wavering lights and shadows broke, 

 Rolling a slumbrous sheet of foam below." 



The river dashed noisily through the centre of the gorge, 

 and the masses of green on either side were toned down by 

 many flowers in large patches, bright purple Lasiandire, 

 orange Cassice, and scarlet Salvice. I also saw an Indigofera 

 growing in this part of the ravine. 



A mile from the hut of Cahuan-chaca is the confluence of 

 the river Huascaray ; and a league lower down is the little 

 shed or tambo of Cancallani. Here bamboos and tree-ferns 

 first appear, and coca is cultivated in terraces which are 

 fringed with coffee-plants, with their rich green foliage and 

 crimson berries. I observed that the huts in the middle of 

 these patches of coca or maize had no doors, showing the con- 

 fidence of the inmates in the honesty of the numerous passers- 

 by, who go to and fi'O between Sandia and the more distant 

 coca estates.^ I passed the estate of Chayllabamba, with 

 terraces of coca at least fifty deep, up the sides of the momi- 



"i The same was once the case all 

 over Peru, in the good old days of the 

 Incas, as we know from the cimous 

 dying confession of the last of the 

 conquerors, Marcio Sen-a de Lejesama, 

 addressed to PhiUp II., a.d. 1589. 



" Yom Majest^i' must imderstand that 

 my reason for making this statement 

 is to reUeve my conscience, for we 

 have destroyed the government of this 

 people by our bad example. Ciimes 

 were once so little kno^ni among them, 

 that an Indian with 100,000 pieces of 



gold and silver in his house left it 

 open, only placing a little stick across 

 the door, as a sign that the muster 

 was out," and nobody went in. But 

 when they saw that we placed locks 

 in om- doors, they understood that it 

 was from fear of theft ; and wlien they 

 saw that we had thieves amongst us, 

 they thought Uttle of us ; but now 

 these natives, tlu-ough om* bad example, 

 have come to such a pass that no crime 

 is imknown to them.' — Calancha, lib. 

 i. cap. 1.5, p. 08. 



Q 2 



