276 DEPARTURE FROM GIRONDA'«. Chap. XVII. 



allowed the stranger to injure liis countrymen. He wanted 

 to throw away all the plants, except a few which we might 

 take without observation, and, if we had not kept constant 

 guard over them, he would have carried his views into effect 

 without consulting us. I saw that in an immediate retreat 

 was the only hope of saving the plants ; and I explained to 

 Gironda that his views were incorrect, and that, if necessary, 

 we were prepared to defend our property by force. 



At the same time I addressed a letter to Don Jose Boba- 

 dilla, stating that his interference was an unwarrantable 

 step which F would not tolerate ; and that, as I understood 

 the provisions of the Constitution of 1856, the functions of 

 the Juntas Municipales were purely consultative and legisla- 

 tive, conferring no executive powers whatever, concluding 

 with an expression of my sense of his patriotic zeal, and of 

 regret that it should be accompanied by such misguided and 

 lamentable ignorance of the true interests of his country. 

 Nevertheless, I felt the imperative necessity of immediate 

 flight, especially as I obtained information from an Indian of 

 Quiaca that Martel's son and his party, who had brought the 

 letter, were only the vanguard of a body of mestizos, who 

 were coming down the valley to seize me, and destroy my 

 collection of chinchona-plants. 



Early in the morning of May 12th we took leave of our 

 kind and hospitable old friend Gironda, without whose 

 assistance we should have been exposed to much suffering 

 from want of food ; and of the honest forester Martinez. I 

 expressed my sincere regret to Gironda that any misunder- 

 standing should have arisen at the close of our acquaintance, 

 and promised Martinez to obtain guarantees that he should 

 suffer no molestation on account of the services he had ren- 

 dered to me. The most melancholy part of travelling is the 

 parting with friends, never to meet again. 



After a laborious ascent through the forest we found 



