SUBTERRANEOUS 



CHAMBER. 



57 



reputation ; and yet they never mentioned it until I 

 climbed up to examine the upper building. They 

 said it was the abode of el dueno de la casa, or the 

 owner of the building. I immediately proposed 

 to descend, but the old Indian begged me not to do 

 so, and said apprehensively to the others, " Who 

 knows but that he will meet with the owner V 

 I immediately sent for rope, lantern, and match- 

 es; and, absurd as it may seem, as I looked upon 

 the wild figures of the Indians standing round the 

 hole, and their earnest faces, it was really exci- 

 ting to hear them talk of the owner. As there 

 was a difficulty in procuring rope, I had a sapling 

 cut and let down the hole, by means of which I 

 descended with a lantern. The news of my in- 

 tention and of the preparations going on had spread 

 among the Indians, and all left off work and hur- 

 ried to the spot. The hole was about four feet 

 deep, and, just as my head sunk below the surface, 

 I was startled by an extraordinary scratching and 

 scampering, and a huge iguana ran along the wall, 

 and escaped through the orifice by which I had en- 

 tered. 



The chamber was entirely different in shape from 

 those I had seen before. The latter were circular, 

 and had dome-shaped ceilings. This had parallel 

 walls and the triangular-arched ceiling ; in fact, it 

 was in shape exactly hke the apartments above 

 ground. It was eleven feet long, seven wide, and 



Vol. II.— H 



