182 



COCA PLANT. 



climate and soil. The patches looked beautiful on the distant*sides of 

 the hills ; rows were planted on steps formed by little stone walls one foot 

 high, one above the other, with a platform to plant the trees upon of a 

 foot and a half in width. The plaee was too wet and cool, and the soil 

 not sandy enough. The Indians say the Yungas coca is better than 

 this of Yuracares, and that of Cuzco a superior quality to either. The 

 coca tree of Cuzco is larger; these grow on an average four feet in 

 height and produce fewer leaves. Near Cuzco the trees are planted in 

 a flat country, where the climate is warmer, more regular and not so 

 damp. There the mats on which the leaves are dried are spread on dry 

 ground flats. Here a pavement built of stone is walled in with an 

 opening on two sides, so that when it rains the water may pass through, 

 and wash off the pavements placed below the surface of the ground for 

 the purpose of protecting them from sudden gusts of wind that come 

 down and sweep away the whole crop, the more easily after the leaves 

 are dried. In the lowlands of Cuzco the winds are not so violent, and 

 the coca grower may tell when a storm is approaching and carry his 

 leaves under shelter. The air is dry enough there even when it rains 

 not to injure the leaf, while here the atmosphere is so damp that the 

 coca curer must carefully secure his leaves against it, or they lose their 

 flavor, diminishing their market value. The Yuracares coca planter is 

 too high up on the side of the Andes. If.he would condescend a little, 

 he probably could find as congenial a climate and soil as those in the 

 lowlands of Cuzco. In Espiritu Santo there are several patches which 

 have run out ; they are constantly planting new crops, which show that 

 the tree is short lived. 



The coca is a great favorite of the Quichua Indian; he prizes it as the 

 Chinaman does his opium. While the one puts to sleep, the other keeps 

 awake. The Indian brain being excited by coca, he travels a long dis- 

 tance without feeling fatigue, while he has plenty of coca, he cares little 

 for food. Therefore, after a journey he is worn out. In the city of 

 Cuzco, where the Indians masticate the best quality of coca, they use it 

 to excess. Their physical condition, compared with those who live far 

 off from the coca market, in a climate equally inhospitable, is thin, 

 weak, and sickly ; less cheerful, and not so good looking. The chewers 

 also use more brandy and less tamborine and fiddle ; seldom dance or 

 sing. Their expression of face is doleful, made hideous by green streaks 

 of juice streaming from each corner of the mouth. 



The coca leaf has a very bitter taste to those unaccustomed to it- 

 The Indians chew it with a little slacked lime, which they think eases 

 its way down, and makes it sweeter. 



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