116 EAMBLES AFTEE 8P0RT. 



merely a dollar. You object ; another conaultation^ and 

 lie thinks he may venture to let you have it at half a 

 dollar — this with an air of '^ Well^ you can't afford more, 

 and so I give it you;'' and finally you get the article for 

 about one real, or the eighth of a dollar. 



The country near Valparaiso is barren, hilly, and unin- 

 teresting ; the soil, however, is so peculiarly fertile that 

 wherever a little water, cultivation, and care is applied, 

 luxuriant verdure clothes the soil. At the Zorras, 

 only three miles from Valparaiso, are many delightful 

 residences. Mr. Charles Watson, a gentlemen whose 

 well-known hospitality I had the pleasure of enjoying 

 during all my stay in Chile, has a beautiful place there, 

 with gardens, lawns, &c., as well laid out as in a country 

 house at home. The cricket ground is distant about two 

 miles up a steep guehrada; and an uncommonly cool and 

 airy place it is. The wind blows a perfect hurricane 

 there five days out of the week, almost precluding the 

 idea of playing cricket ; but, nevertheless, the Valparaiso 

 C.C. is a flourishing institution, and the members get up 

 plenty of matches during the season, especially if there 

 happens to be a man-of-war or two in the harbour. I 

 took many a charming ride to the Placilla, where the 

 annual races are held, and where the foxhound kennels 

 are ; yes, sporting readers, you may open your eyes, but 

 there is a pack of foxhounds in far-off Chile, and not such 

 a bad one either. I believe they were originally got 

 out by Mr. Thomas B. Garland, and presented by him to 

 the Valparaiso Hunt j after Mr. G.'s departure for Eng- 

 land, his cousin, Mr. George Garland, a gentleman known, 

 as I said before, as a most ardent sportsman, took charge 

 of them and hunted them himself for some years. Three 

 years ago, however, the hunt got out from England 



