THE PAMPAS. 



73^ 



from her husband — she placed it under her pillow, 

 and then offered me some mate, but I had no time 

 to wait for it, and started. 



At third post from Mendoza, the post-master, 

 who might be exhibited in England as a curious 

 specimen of an indolent man, to every thing I 

 said, replied ^' si" — it was but an aspiration, and he 

 seemed never to have said any other word — I had 

 twice passed his house, and it was always the same 

 Si ! 



Galloped on with no stopping, but merely to 

 change horses until five o^clock in the evening — 

 very tired indeed, but on coming to the post-hut, 

 saw the horses in the corral, and resolved to push 

 on. — Started with a fresh horse, and a young 

 Gaucho, who, singing as he went, galloped like the 

 wind ; the sun set, and it got so dark, that, for 

 more than an hour, I expected that every moment 

 the boy would get away from me, as the road was 

 rough, and through wood. At half-past seven, 

 after having galloped a hundred and fifty-three 

 miles, and been fourteen hours and a half on horse- 

 back, got to the post — found the hut occupied by 

 some people who had arrived in a carriage — quite 



