THE ARGENTINE FRONTIER 357 



to his lot; but while it seems as if this recognition might, 

 in many instances at least, give way to despair, such is not 

 the case. 



The partiality of the Quechuas for the high puna is 

 well known — some of the ancient dwellings having been 

 discovered at an elevation of more than seventeen thou- 

 sand feet. 



Those living near Pulque seldom come down into the 

 lower country; doubtless they are happier in their almost 

 inaccessible fastness than if they lived nearer to their Bo- 

 livian neighbors. In appearance and dress these Indians 

 differ greatly from the other members of the tribe living 

 in the more populous sections of the country. Instead of 

 the more or less conventional attire adopted by the latter, 

 they still adhere to a form of dress at least a part of which 

 may date back to the time of Atahualpa. The women wear 

 a quantity of clothing — short, full skirts of dark blue, and 

 shawls of varied colors. The men are garbed in loose, white 

 knee-breeches, a gray or blue shirt, and belts which are 

 neatly embroidered in gay colors and are very wide at the 

 back so that they form a kind of sash; also, they wear the 

 inevitable poncho. Strange as it may seem, the small 

 children always wear very long clothing, and the little 

 girls waddling along in their full, almost trailing skirts, 

 resemble dwarfed aged women. All the apparel is made 

 of woollen cloth of home manufacture. The men permit 

 their hair to grow long and braid it in a queue which 

 hangs down the back. Both sexes use peculiar little hats 

 made of some kind of skin prepared by a process which 

 renders it very hard; this head-gear reminded me of steel 

 helmets. With the exception of huge spoon-shaped pins 

 of copper, which the women used to fasten their shawls, 

 we saw no metal ornaments or jewelry of any kind. 



The home life of these Quechuas is tranquil and unevent- 

 ful. Usually the little stone huts contain two or three rooms ; 

 potatoes, avas, and other produce are stored in one of them, 

 and the rest are used for cooking and sleeping-quarters. 



