Through the Giant Cactus Forest 121 



which, the green tops of orange, lemon, lime, 

 or pomegranate wave and rustle in the 

 wind. 



The well is the centre of interest at Mucho- 

 bampo, as everybody is always at the well, it 

 being the only water for the community, the 

 only water within thirty or more miles. As 

 water was essential for a big motor car we found 

 the natives at the pozo, and hauled water for 

 the women to pay for what we took, a pro- 

 ceeding whicli doubtless amazed the Mucho- 

 bampoans, as, arduous as it was, it was too much 

 like work for the men, who possibly thought 

 that they did enough when they drank it. Be 

 this as it may, girls and women of all ages, sizes, 

 and complexions were the water carriers, as 

 was another Ruth in an Oriental Muchobampo 

 long ago. This well was over one hundred feet 

 deep, big and wide, cut down through gravel 

 deposited by the rivers of thousands of years 

 ago, and was worked in an ingenious way. The 

 buckets were of canvas, the rope of cow skin 

 with the hair on. This ran over a pulley, then 

 off some thirty feet to a big open vertical drum 

 which was worked by two long beams or capstan 

 bars, to which burros or mules could have been 

 harnessed and driven around and around. But 

 there were no burros, so the women and children 

 drew the water, filled their graceful ollas, and 

 there was a constant line of women and girls 



