The morning call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1878-1895, 1890-12-28
PAINTING FOR
BREATH.
At an Altitude Of Fifteen Thou.
sand Feet Above Sea Level.
Highest Railroad in the world-stalking fol
Guanaoos Among the Snowy Peaks Of
the Andes-The Desert Of Islay.

~ ROM Lake T'iticaca to the sea is a rail-
kEz way journey of S26 miles, all In Peru,
| ia over the Andes and across desert.
| Starting at an elevation OF 1880 feet. the
| road Uses by gradual ascent to the extra
| ordinary altitude of 1866 feet, the highest
that wheels turned by steam have ever
| attained, writes Fannie B. Ward to the
Pittsburg Dispatch.
| This Puno and Mollendo Railway was
| build for the Peruvian Government about
| fourteen years ago by Mr. Henry Megas,
! and it cost more than S45, 0O0, 900 for the 325
| miles, or the enormous average of S135,000
| per mlle Though it has few tunnels. nc
| railway in the world can show so much ex-
| cayating or such massive entertainments.
| There is another Peruvian railroad, called
| the Oroya, also built by Meiggs, leading
| from Lima up to the mines OF Cerro del
| Pasco. and thence projected to the head
waters of the Amazon, designed to connect
| with that great fuvial highway, and thus
make transit to the Atlantic shorter and
| cheaper than by the old routeS-which, at
| some points, will be even higher than this
| one.
While John Thorndyke, late Of Boston.
| was manager of the Puno and Mollendo
road, its affairs were conducted strictly on
| the American plan, but since this railway.
comes under the celebrated "Grace-Don-
oughmore contract" the leaders being the
| well-known banker and ex-Mayor OF New
| York City and Lord Donoughmore of Lon
| don, backed by plenty OF English and Uni,
| ted States capital, its business is managed
| by an odd but polite mixture of methods,
| notably North American. South American,
| Peruvian and English.
Its present Superintendent, Mr.. Victor
| Hugo MacCord, formerly from San Fran
| ciso 10 m mi mo-
| the most cordial courtesy with great bust
| ness energy. He has experienced some
| strange ups and downs" in his connection
| with this railroad, which serve as sample
| of what most foreigners may expect who
| have the boldnesS to engage in business in
| many portions of this revolution-ridden con-
| tinent. Coming here first as a telegraph
| operator Mr.. MacCord soon worked his way
! up to the supeTint endence of the road.
Then came on the war between Peru and
| Chile, and 1t happened one day. by some ac-
| cident wholly unforeseen, that an engine on
| its way to Moliendo was seized and run
in" by the Chileans, who seem TO have made
| it point during that short but sanguinary
struggle to steal everything they could lay
hands on. even to locomotives under full
steami Though in no way TO blame for the
occurrence, MIR. MacCord was held directly
responsible by the local authorities of
: AREQUIPA.
That city, which has always been the head
QUARTERS OF the railway mdndR6ueul, DGluB
then under military rule.
He was at once arrested, and without a
hearing of any sort, imprisoned in gloomy
dungeon of tue Quartet, which had not so
much as a chair or bed, nothing but the
| bare, damp walls. Neither food nor water
| was supplied to him, and his repeated de-
| mands for trial or at least the change to
make statement in his own behalf were
| ans ~ered by counter-demaDds for large
amount of money. The latter not being
ntrly hn lad ,rtNt h
| out moments warning, ostensibly to be
| shot, and told TO prepare Tor instant death.
| Probablyit was not intended to kill him
merely to terrify him into enriching the i'm
! pecunious local Jefe Politico. Failing IN
| this, after he had been placed in position
| and the soldiers had raised their rifles to
| fire, knowing that nothing could be gained
| by his death and possibly something might
| be wruDg out of him if he were allowed to
| live, the half-drunken officer remanded him
| back to prison. Friends brought him food, and
| finally raised the sum of $4,000 for his re-
lease. which they paid over to the Jefe, who
| certainly had no right to it beyond that of
| temporary military power, and the illegally
few months ago Mr.. MacCord was again
| made Superintendent of this same road to
| the satisfaction of all concerned; and affairs
are now going as smoothly as anything can
| be expected to in Peru.
A few miles from Crucero Alto is VINCE
| caya, the very loftiest village in all the
| world, unless it may be some of those in
| Central Asia, Il. $50 feet above the sea. This
Apdean village is purely creation of the
| railroad and boasts of the adjunct of relay
| and repairing station.
Long before we arrive at Vincocaya, COM
| ing from either end of the line, nearly every
body is suffering from sirroche, in greater or
less degree. Strange to say. frequent pass
| ing over the same heights does not exempt
| one from the distressing complaint, and the
| strongest and healthieSt seem to be more
| Frustrated by 1t than the sick!y, with the
| exception OF one ofour immediate party, a
constructive young Chilean, travelling to
| prolong his span of life, whose sunken chest
| heaves painfully in the effort of respiration,
| and whose pale face has taken on a CHASTITY
| grayish blue. A jolly Englishman from
Arequipa, who weighs nearly 800 pounds,
! and says he was never i'll in his life except
when passing over this road, has turned the
| color of a boiled lobster, and. gaspng with
Suffocatinn, holds its head with both hands,
| declaring that it is about to burst. The
| remedies commonly made use Of are brandy
and bromide of POTASH, assisted by various
SMELLING SALTS
| And the odOr of raw onions. The natives
| believe so implicitly in the latter preventive
| that not one of them will travel in the higher
| attitudes without generous supply, which
| he cuts and shifts at leisure. though it be-
! strong enough to draw tears from the eyes
| of craven image. When mules and horses
are Frustrated with siIroche. the usual cure
| Is to stuff slices of raw onions up the
| creatures nostriIS.
The traveller on the railway is constantly
reminded of that celebrated painting called
The Heart of The Andes" and realizes that
he has found the very spot. 1t is always
! bitterly cold on the mountain tops, and
when, at Nlncocaya. we pick our way from
| the car to the Hotel Empress for luncheon.
| in driving storm of sleet and snow, we
console ourselves with the knowledge that
a few hours more will bring US down into a
| region of perpetual summertime, to the
| ever-bloomlng roses and soft, warm sun
shine OF old Arequipa, the Inca " Place of
| Rest"
In some parts of Peru, Bolivia and Chile
| guanacoS are as common as goats in SwitZer-
land. The animals body is somewhat of
the greyhound build, being very narrow in
| the loins but deep in the chest. 1t is COW
| cred with long hair. exceedingly soft and
| fine, pale yellow, shading to white under
| meath. Combined with the strength and
endurance of the llama. it has all the char
acteristics of the North American deer, be-
| ing as graceful and as fieet-footed. and its
| flesh Is much like that of the antelope.
| Their SKINS like that of the vacuna, COM
maud high price in Europe, where they
are are, in q, great demand for carriage robes,
animals roam in flocks. and one of the herd
always stands on guard. If danger threat
ems he gives the alarm by stamping his feet
| and swift indeed must the pursuer be who
| can overtake them.
Every hunter who can afford 1t keeps
pack OF dogs trained especially for this
chase. The men stalk the game with
| greatest care, and sometimes get near enough
for shot with their rifles; but it oftener
| happens that the timid creatures decline so
close an acquaintance with their natural
enemy, man. If guanaco is found grazing
singly on the plain. the chance of getting
him Is very small; but when the herd is pur-
sued, each animal tries to crowd himself
into the center for greater safety, thus con-
siderably retarding their speed by the con-
fusion that ensues. 1t is amusing to note
how well the dogs understand this trick,
and, while crazy to pursue flock, they
| look with Indifference upon the solitary
guanaco or vicuna. What is known as
"bezoar stone" is occasionally found in the
| stomach of one of these animals, and to
possess it is considered the greatest kind of