66 



A DIARY OF THE 



principally of coarse grazing ground in its primi- 

 tive state, with plenty of wood. For this estate 

 he pays sixteen dollars a year to the widow of a 

 cacique. His stock consists of about 100 bul- 

 locks, and as many sheep ; the former valued at 

 sixteen dollars, and the latter at six reals each. 

 A man's rank or station in life is here generally 

 estimated by the number of cattle he possesses, 

 together with the quality of the poncho or mantle 

 he rides in, without reference to the appearance 

 of any other part of his dress : from this we 

 judged our guide to be above mediocrity. Dur- 

 ing this day we rode from eighty to ninety miles, 

 over a rich and beautiful country, where Nature 

 has bestowed her favours with a liberal hand on 

 an indolent and savage race, who are strangers 

 to every kind of agriculture beyond the cultiva- 

 tion of a few potatoes, for which they prepare a 

 fresh spot of ground every year. This will ac- 

 count for the fine specimens we have met with 

 in this country. 



About 4 o'clock this afternoon, I lost ray 

 sword, from my carelessness in forgetting to 

 buckle my belt, after looking at my watch on 

 horseback. We were an hour looking for it ; 

 and this delay occasioned our being benighted 



