Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1890-11-22

cordiilera, which il said TO be in precisely
the same latitude with the Temple Of the Sun
at Cuxco. Soon after the conquest this high
way was made the boundary line between
New CASTLE" ana "New Toledo" the tribu-
taries granted to those rascals Pizarro and Al
m,agro; 1t was at Laran that the latter esssb-
lished his quarters in 1887, when. having re-
turned from his career of crime In Chill he
proceeded to the coast to claim from Pizarro
his share OF Peruvian territory. The stormy
interview that took place between these two
unscrupulous adventures led to the retreat of
Marshal Almagro into the interior and his
anal overthrow in the bloody battle of Las
Salinas.
THE VILLAGE OF cHILcA.
The next village, across long strip Of desert,
| is Chilca, a collection OF cane huts surround
! ing fine old church. in no way remarkable,
| except for being inhabited by race Of Indians
VINO, In this isolated oasis of the wilderness,
source. and to preserve intact the spirit OF
thelr ancestors. An example of their character
II related by recent explorer. His soldier
escort was so unwise as to get into . wrange
| with the syndic of the village. in course OF
which tho latter barefooted dignitary received
| blow In the head from the butt end of the
! soldiers pistol Instantly the whole popula-
zion were wild with excitement Assembling
| m the plaza they demanded that the fellow
should be remanded at once to Lima for trial.
nor would thoy permit him to remain over
night IN the town. but sent him off into the
desert, weary as he was after q hard days
journey.
INDIANS ARE JEALOUS OF THEIR RIGHTS
So Jealous ore these Indians OF their rights
and SO suspicious Of all outsiders that until
| within few years there was ono particular
! room in the Jefe's house which kept on
purpose for the accommodation of white trav-
| oilers. All who came were put into it and we'll
guarded, were the party large or small The
Jefe supplied them with food, but Immediately
informed them that no account, whatever
their business, would they be allowed to remain
IN the village more than twenty-four hours. The
Chiica Indians are industrious community,
many OF them being employed as farm hands
| In the ncighboring valley of Mala,
others working their own account as
| muleteers and fishermen. while the women
orald colored straws into pretty baskets and
| cigar cases. There is n widespread tradition
among all the coast Indians that ages before
the appearance of Nance Capac the country
was inhabited by race Of giants, who came
over from the western ocean in great canoes OF
biown-up skins Landing first near Guaya-
quii, Ecuador, they gradually overspread the
country; and to this day the fossil bones Of
mammoths and mastodons, which are often
found imbedded in the hard clay are pointed
| cut az proof of the existence Of those mythical
personages.
THE DOMINION OF DEsoLATIoN.
portion OF Peru between the cordileras and the
sea. with its perpetual alterations Of dreary
desert and fertile valleys. The length OF the
snore ilne not following the innumerable bays
ana lndentatlons. but reckoned as the crow
| HES. from Rio Tambez. which separates the
republic from that of Ecuador, to the Rio Loa
which marked its southern boundary until
Chlli lately took off small piece. is a little
over 1900 English miles Coming down from
Panama the wooded shores of Ecuador no
, sooner disappear than the aspect of the CONT
nent 10 entirely changed. High, bare rocks,
Irayed and crumbing. line the beach, and be-
| yond stretches a wilderness of sand beside
which Sahara would be a blooming garden. Il
| Is the very dominion of desolaton strewn with
bleaching skeletons left by the old-time whalers
and the bones OF mules and horses that starved
TO death by the wayside. its eternal silence
broken only by the short, quick bark of sea
mons and the screams OF water fowl.
BRAVE AND BOLD EXPLORERS.
For the most part the sand is hard, swept
| smooth by the winds, but in many places it has
| drifted up into mounds called medanos, Each
heap is crescent shaped, with the bow Of the
crescent toward the wind, as regular and sharp
| IN the outline as the new moon. Whenever
these medanos happen to have a core OF rock
they are permanent, but most of them vary in
shape with the varying winds. Brave men, as
we'll as bold, must those old commissioners
unexpiored better country beyond the noun
| tains, they sailed slowly along the borders OF
TINS valley OF death, against prevailing winds
and the great antarctic current Surely moth
| ing but consuming avarice and an unquench-
able love Of adventure could have led them on
THE LARGEST DESERT.
The largest of the deserts is that called Sech-
ura, near Payti, in northern Peru; and it is re-
ported that during cioudiess nights the sound
! OF sweet music is heard, mysteriously waited
across the sands. The climate where rain never
falls Is not so oppressive as might be inferred.
becauae every night refreshing dew descend in
abundance. In ancient times the beautiful
valleys were even more densely populated than
now, by men who exhausted the utmost cana
billtles OF every oasis, and even extended their
cities out into the deserts, leaving many monu-
ments OF their skill and greatness. Under the
pressure OF peculiar conditions and limited
means they developed q social and Industrial
system which modern apostles Of economical
organizations might study with profit and ad-
miration.
AS most OF the valleys were separated from
one another by impossible mountain walls at
one end and trackless sands at the other. their
inhabitants constituted each an independent
community, maintaining little relationship
with one another. Each had its separate gov
eminent, and, being relatively weak il fell an
easy prey to the advancing Spaniard And
thus 1t was that the conquistadores epcount
cred no more serious opposition. though collect
| lively there were enough Indians here to have
wiped from of the face of the earth force ten
times al powerful. FANNIE B. WARD.