OP LA PEROUSE. 27 



vifiting the environs of this little fettlemcnt, be. 

 took it into his head to make an exchange, which 

 gave us a very bad idea of his forefight. He 

 had juft bartered all our provifions of meat for 

 fome apples, without troubling himfelf whether 

 apples would be a good frock for rambling over 

 the mountains. We fully determined to em- 

 ploy another time a more intelligent fteward. 

 It may not be amifs to remark, that fhip fervants 

 are generally little qualified for any fervice on 

 ihore. 



Wc were very far from any habitation, at the 

 approach of night. It was near nine o'clock in 

 the evening, when we arrived at a village where 

 hofpitality is certainly not the characleriftic vir- 

 tue of the inhabitants. It was not without the 

 utmoft difficulty that we there found any fhelter. 

 As we did not understand Spanifh, we could 

 exprefs ourfelves only by iigns; and at night, 

 above all, this fort of language is of very little 

 fervice. But our guide, who was as defirous as 

 ourfelves to find a place to fleep in, went about, 

 knocking in vain at all the doors ; when, after 

 having gone through almoft the whole village, 

 we met with two worthy people who were fo 

 good as to afford us an afylum. 



We were immediately ferved with a frugal 



repair, during which, we were lighted in the 



manner of fome inhabitants of our Alps ; fmall 



a fplinters 



