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NOTICES OF PERU. 397 



About five o'clock the heat had partially subsided, and the 

 fiouses in the streets running north and south, cast a complete 

 shade. We strolled out, and found a large portion of the po- 

 pulation seated at their doors, the men smoking cigars, and the 

 women dressed, and their heads ornamented with fresh pluck- 

 ed flowers. Near the riv-er, which passes on the north side of 

 the town, is a large building, formerly used as an hospital, but 

 now in ruins ; at its corner were seated upon the door sill, se- 

 veral gentlemen, amongst whom were the governor and a 

 number of officers of the customs, conversing and chatting over 

 their cigars. After a few remarks, we continued our paseo 

 across the bridge, which is now swagging sadly in the centre. 

 It is built of reeds laid athwart, and covered with earth, sup- 

 ported by piles of algarrobo wood that have become almost as 

 hard as stone, though they have been standing for a hundred 

 years. The river is about a hundred feet wide, and twelve or 

 fourteen deep. Generally it runs with an easy current, but 

 when the snows melt in the mountains, after a hard winter, it 

 overflows its banks, carrying every thing before it In March 

 1791, the town was inundated^ and many lives destroyed ; 

 again, in 1828, the hospital before mentioned was nearly de- 

 stroyed, and canoes were floated in the streets for several days. 



Lambayeque is celebrated for its excellent ehicha, and it is 

 one of the few places in Peru that Taralla speaks well of : — 



** j^ue llegas a Lambayeque 

 Abundante fertil pueblo, 

 Cuyos iBdios, y vecinos 

 Son del .agrado el modelo." 



Along the streets are seen poles projecting horizontally from 

 the tops of the ranches, with a bunch of corn leaves tied on 

 the end, which indicate that chicha is to be sold within- Near 

 ;the extremity of the bridge, opposite to the town, is a chi- 

 charia," at present in high repute for the excellence of its li- 

 quor. Here we found two or three young gentlemen, and a 



suit of that mu<Jh-'to-be-deprecated habit of squeezing and lacing, so generally 

 practised both in England and the United States, to the prejudice of health, 

 ;and often to the peril of life. 



