NOTICES OF PERU. 



199 



house, not far from the commencement of this street, is a rough 

 picture of the Devil carrying off the Saviour to the Mount. 



In spite of the "animas," the corner houses are occupied 

 as grog shops, where there were a dozen negroes, men and wo- 

 men, dancing fandangos, under the influence of pisco or Peru- 

 vian brandy. And, as if to aid the dnimas in their pious inten- 

 tion of rescuing the living from the pains of the damned, there 

 was a friar, of the Order of Descalzos (Barefooted), in a 

 sackcloth tunic and leather girdle, holding in one hand a tin 

 box surmounted by a cross, having a slit in the top to receive 

 any alms that might be bestowed, while in the other he held a 

 long staff. He was smiling on the scene before him ; the staff 

 involuntarily kept time to the music. «<The spirit seemed 

 willing, but the flesh was weak." 



As we proceeded along the street, for several cuddras, or 

 squares, we saw many figures and customs which to us were 

 entirely new. The flat roofs, the abrupt termination of the 

 walls above, the faded green balconies, the great doorways and 

 grated windows, and the dingy white, scaly walls, gave an im- 

 pression of poverty and seclusion. The windows are large, and 

 secured on the outside with vertical iron bars, placed about 

 four inches asunder ; the lower part is shut on the inside with 

 a close trellis, generally painted green. From the window 

 projecting a few inches on the street, and the walls being very 

 thick, the sill is broad. Behind the trellis, which hides the in- 

 terior of the house from passers-by, we saw females seated on 

 the broad sill, with their feet drawn up, and dresses loose, 

 smoking cigars, and peeping into the street. The balconies 

 were occupied by females similarly engaged. As we rode 

 along, we met water carriers riding on donkeys, ofiicers in 

 gay uniforms, friars of several orders, women in saya y manto 

 — in short, so many sights, new and strange to us, that the at- 

 tention could not rest long enough on any one to register its 

 peculiarities in the mind. 



We found comfortable lodgings, not far from the plaza, at a 

 hotel kept by an obliging French woman. 



