694 



The National Geographic Magazine 



Photo by O. P. Austin 



A Bullock Carriage Used by Ladies of Rank, India 



They travel a distance of from lo to 

 20 miles per day, according to conditions 

 of roads, carrying loads of from 100 to 

 200 pounds each, and, accompanied by 

 their masters in the curious costumes of 

 Spanish America, present a picturesque 

 appearance as they wind in long trains 

 through the valleys filled with tropica^ 

 verdure. 



In many of the mountain sections these 

 pack trains are the only methods yet 

 available for the transportation of ore 

 from the mines to the smielting works or 

 the seaboard. 



Further south, in the mountain ranges 

 of South America, where the great alti- 

 tude and difficult travelling requires an 



animal especially prepared by nature for 

 these peculiar conditions, the llama is still 

 used in limited numbers as a beast of 

 burden. The llama was the only animal 

 suited for transportation found in Amer- 

 ica by the Spanish discoverers and ex- 

 plorers ; the horse, the donkey, and the 

 ox, which now perform most of the work 

 having been brought originally from Eu- 

 rope. The llama belongs to the camel 

 family, having the same peculiar foot with 

 a divided hoof and cushions placed on 

 the under surface, thus making it espe- 

 cially valuable for mountain climbing and 

 on sandy plains, and having also many 

 of the peculiar habits which characterize 

 the camel. 



