LANGUAGES. 



235 



fired off when the new prefect arrived ; and the sound of that little gun 

 was echoed through the whole of this country by the newspapers. 



On the Andes we found two languages spoken by the Indians of the 

 great tribes, the Quichua and Aymara, both in the days of the Incas 

 under the same government. But in the Madeira Plate, the Indians living 

 on the same plain are divided into small tribes, and speaking different 

 languages, between the Inca territory and uncivilized tribes of savages 

 below them. Here, in the city of Trinidad, the tribe is called Mojos, 

 speaking the same language as the Indians of the three nearest towns — 

 Loreto, San Javier, and San Ignacio. In Santa Ana the language dif- 

 fers ; the Indians speak Mobimos ; in San Pedro, Canichanos ; in 

 Exaltacion, Cayuvaba; in San Ramon, Magdelina, and San Jose del 

 Guacaraje, Itonama; in San Borja, Borgano; in Reyes, Beyesano; in 

 San Ivaquin, Baures and Yuracares. 



Here are nine different languages or dialects in the same district of 

 level country, and we recognise a difference in the physiognomies of the 

 Yuracares, Mojos, and Canichanas tribes. The Yuracares are more 

 lively, cheerful, and talkative ; they are lighter colored, more fond of 

 hunting and rambling through the woods than the others. The Mojos 

 Indians are a grave, sedate, and thoughtful people. They are larger 

 than the men of Yuracares. The women are considered handsome; 

 those of Yuracares are very homely. Here the girls are large, well de- 

 veloped, and pleasant ; there they are small and cross-tempered, looking 

 as though they wanted to quarrel with men. Here they take their 

 rights without asking. The Mojos Indians are particularly fond of cul- 

 tivating the soil ; they drive the ox-team well. The boys run away 

 from school to the plough-field, where they seem to enjoy the labor, or 

 paddle the canoe with a load of fruit to market. They have little fancy 

 for the town or house ; the older ones like farming the best, and the 

 women seem satisfied to stay at home. These Indians carry no bows and 

 arrows about with them, except on long voyages up and down the river. 

 Since domestic cattle were introduced, they have put aside the arrow 

 and taken up the lasso, which they handle well. They know nothing of 

 fire-arms, never having used them. The Spanish race has stripped them 

 of all means of defence, except the war-club, should they choose to cut 

 one. They are civil, quiet, and peaceable ; seldom quarrel among them- 

 selves, and are already taught the consequences should they do so with 

 the Creole, who treats them worse than slaves. The humble Indian 

 obeys the meanest creole. The laws are made for the Creole, not for 

 him ; he pays the same annual tax, yet he has no vote. He is ignorant 

 of the laws by which he is governed. But one case has been known 



