174 THROUGH THE HEART OF PATAGONIA 



Gauchos. At first sight we thought them a mirage. On inquiry 

 I was told that my friend Sefior Waag was in command, news 

 at which I was naturally delighted. I had made Mr. Waag's 

 acquaintance in Buenos Aires, and we had arranged to meet in 



RIVER EELGEANO 



Patagonia if possible. Mr. Waag was on the Argentine Boundary 

 Commission, and has done more valuable geographical work in the 

 Cordillera than any other man. Being told that he was only a 

 couple of hours behind the troop, I galloped on to meet him, for 1 

 heard that his waggon had broken down, and so made sure of 

 coming upon him. After a few hours going, I arrived at the 

 camp of his assistants, where were two Italian engineers, and also 

 some piratical-looking peones in red caps making bread in an oven 

 dug into the ground. But Mr. Waag himself was not there, 

 having gone off the track to camp in a canadon. I was greatly 

 disappointed, for I had looked forward to this meeting. 



However, we were greedy to hear news of the outer world, 

 from which we had been cut off for four months. We were far 

 behind the times. I think our first question was about the war 

 and Kruger. We learned that he was in Europe and that guerilla 

 warfare was still going on. The Italians' news only carried up to 

 November. 



We made our camp a little way from theirs, and our hounds 

 strayed over to them and stayed with their waggons, deserting us 



