A Frenchman |nni.ikr. nCihrlr rtiiaii 

 Hit mbacqucnt Gaie. 



A brutal party —rii»r|t!tU ii«te uf she 

 couniry in Lower Peru.— Yiuig*. 



them ho had never eaten ei worse meal in his 

 lid: 



After iliis remark, a belief was entertained that 

 Jiia saddle-bags contained edibles, and he was ac- 

 cordingly plied with questions until lie confessed 

 hi- lnid u loaf of bread : tins proved quite accept- 

 able, and a triumph over their fellow-lodger, win* 

 promised theni a further treat iu the morning u|ion 

 Mime tine chocolate. 



On the morning of the 25th tho Frenchman de- 

 parted early, and forgot all about his fine chocolate. 

 They regretted to hear, shortly after their arrival 

 at Lima, that he had been robbed and murdered 

 on his return. 



Otir parly set out early, and after an hour's ride 

 reached CuJnai, where the villagers were busy 

 gathering in their potatoes. There were also »e- 

 vend patches of oxalis euuata, tropteohim tubero- 

 fluin, and a species of basella. Tho two former 

 when cooked an.' well-tasted, and nil nf them are 

 much esteemed by the natives. These patches are 

 enclosed by low stone dikes* ; the plants, as they 

 advance, are earthed up, as wo do potatoes, in the 

 early part of tho season ; irrigation is necessary, 

 as the soil is light and open, and consists chiefly of 

 decayed rock and vegetable- mould. Hero soino 

 very interesting seeds and roots of a species of 

 alstromicria wrrv gathered. 



Culnai and Danos an- about <>n the same level, 

 ten thousand feet above the sea, and arc the highest 

 points of cultivation ; they are both distant fmui 

 tin? crest, by the route of tho water-course, about 

 nine miles. 



Dr. Pickering having preceded the party on foot, 

 reached Culnai alter nine o'clock, when he entered 

 a store and was received with the utmost cor- 

 dialily ; a meal was ai once prepared for him. con- 

 sisting of eggs and potatoes, called chupe in the 

 country, which was kindly tendered ; the landlord 

 was very inquisitive, and examined his budget, 

 calling the attention of the by-standers to it; his 

 charge, wan reasonable, and he gave the, doctor a 

 heart v salutation at parting, with the " Adios jier 

 I)jos. : ' 



At dark the party was rrunited at OhrajHIo. 

 Hi .- who arrived first witnessed the slaughtering 

 of a bullock in the square, on which occasion great 

 numbers of condors and buzzards were collected in 

 the air above. The latter bird is seldom seen 

 higher up than Yaso. They slopped at the |»osada, 

 which they found occupied by the company of 

 Chilian troops whom they had met at Casa Cancha, 

 and in consequence they were obliged to take up 

 with a filthy hut. 



At Obrajtllo good crops of Indian corn, rye, and 

 beans are raised ; but none of these grow at a 

 greater altitude. 



A singular and rather amusing custom was wit- 

 nessed iu the morning, which does not speak much 

 f.-r the gallantry of the male population. A town 

 officer was seen strutting with a spear about the 

 public square, calling all the women out to come 

 and sweep it. They soon marie their appear- 

 ance, and were not lotig in creating a prodigious 

 dust. They swept the dirt up into small heaps ; 

 then taking their coarse shawls from their shoul- 

 ders, they spread them upon the ground, and put 

 the dirt they hod collected into them, to be carried 

 away. 



The guide* now demanded a settlement, but re- 



quested their money might be kept for them until 

 the parly reached Lima, as they certainly would be 

 robbed if they took it themselves. This incident 

 proves how little security there is in this country 

 for persons of any class having any tiling valuable 

 about them. 



Tho preparations that had been made in the 

 town were for a festival, and the guides were dis- 

 inclined to start for I .una. A little bribery, 

 however, and reminding them that one of the 

 greatest feasts in the Catholic Church, thai of 

 Corpus Christi, was near at hand, induced them to 

 go forward. 



On their way from Obrajillo, which they left at 

 an early hour, they met a bridal party on horse- 

 back. *Tho bridegroom's hat and person were 

 decorated with carnations and pinks ; the bride 

 and bridesmaid carried the same flowers, which 

 they presented to our gentlemen in passing. After 

 a hard day's ride ihey reached Taso, and took op 

 their quarters in the porch of the post-house ; the 

 landlord and postmaster's absence was now ac- 

 counted for, by saving that he had gone to church, 

 but would soon be back ; he of course did not 

 come, nor was he expected by our gentlemen. 

 They, in consequence, fared badly, for they had 

 nothing to eat, They found here a gentleman who 

 had beeu robbed the day before by three persons 

 iu masks ; they had treated him with great polite- 

 ness, only proposing exchanges to his disadvantage; 

 he had nothing else to complain of ; they took his 

 purse, watch, spurs, and a drink of his brandy. 

 Much to their surprise, the guides, who had been 

 so scrupulous about their money, showed no signs 

 of alarm. A new difficulty arone wiih them : they 

 had been informed that a conscription was going 

 on, and they were afraid to proceed, lest they should 

 lose their "liberty ; but the assurance, that they 

 would bo protected while with the party, satisfied 

 them. 



The frequency of murder, highway robbery, and 

 a constant resort to the cuchillo, lias not been ex- 

 aggerated in the accounts of Lower I'eru. 



On the morning of the 2~lh the) again set out, 

 having prepared themselves to encounter any 

 attack. The guides, knowing well the dangers 

 that were tn be apprehend- id, showed much soli- 

 citude about keeping the company together. 



They reached Yanga without accident, and find- 

 ing the posada occupied by a party of soldiers, and 

 a recruiting officer, I hey were directed to a house 

 with a porch, but they found it shut up. They, 

 therefore, being assured that the owner would soon 

 return, deposited the saddles, &c. in the porch. 

 Soon after, a woman appeared, and on being in- 

 formed of their situation, and that they had fa-sted 

 for two days, she sot about providing for their sup- 

 per, apparently fmm Christian motives, f<-r during 

 the process she crossed herself several times. She 

 proved to be the owner td the estate, was somewhat 

 advanced in life, managed her own affairs, and was 

 seemingly well adapted to encounter the roughness 

 of the turns. The heiress, a little gtrl, (Angelita 

 by name,) came galloping on a horse, driving the 

 catlle before her/with the air of a veteran, having 

 command over both the animal she rode and those 

 she drove; they were not much struck with her 

 heauty.for her well-plastered face, and wide-spread- 

 ing and matted hair, gave her the appearance of an 

 elf; but she was a specimen of Peruvian nobility. 



