34 PATAGONIAN EXPEDITIONS I NARRATIVE. 



my stock-saddle, I had wisely brought with me from the States, I attached 

 one end of it to the cross-bar at the rear of the shafts, then taking a half 

 hitch round the end of one shaft, with the free end of the rope in my hand 

 I mounted my horse and, cautioning the driver to be in readiness for the 

 start, swung into position directly in front of the cart horse, and taking a 

 hitch with the rope on the saddle-horn, gave my horse the spurs and away 

 we went out of the bed of the stream and up the incline on the other side. 

 Once on top, Senor Villegrand felt renewed confidence, and signalled me 

 to cast loose, which I had no sooner done than his horse stopped stark 

 still and refused to go further, so that I was compelled again to resort to 

 the same expedient, and I continued to snub the cart along by the saddle 

 horn until within a half mile of Guer Aike, where, as we approached, we 

 saw gathered a considerable assemblage of persons, brought together, as 

 we afterwards learned, to witness the horse-races and other festivities 

 which had been arranged for that afternoon and evening. When within 

 a half mile of this place, Senor Villegrand, desiring to avoid the embar- 

 rassment of appearing in this somewhat helpless situation, again signalled 

 me to cast him loose, which I immediately did, but much to his discom- 

 fiture the horse again refused to go, and the Chief of Police of the Argen- 

 tine Territory of Santa Cruz had to submit to being towed into Guer Aike 

 by a "gringo" Yankee, much to his mortification, I fear, and the amuse- 

 ment of the assembled group of gauchos, rancheros, runaway sailors, 

 escaped convicts and other nondescript characters, who had gathered 

 from the surrounding country to witness the races and take part in the 

 drunken orgies following them. 



We were to stop at Guer Aike over night, and had arrived in time 

 to see the races, which had not yet commenced. Lest my readers be 

 mistaken as to the size and importance of this place, which on the map 

 appears quite as conspicuous as either Gallegos or Santa Cruz, I will 

 venture a short description of it. Briefly, Guer Aike consisted of a single 

 tumbledown building on the south side of the Gallegos River, at the head 

 of tide water, some twenty-five miles from the mouth and at the first 

 practicable ford on that stream. It was such a place as in our Western 

 country in an early day would have been considered a road house of bad 

 repute. It was at the time of our visit presided over by a Spaniard and 

 his Chilian wife. The latter was a young, modest, rather handsome 

 woman of prepossessing appearance, who seemed somewhat out of place 



