The morning call., 1890-11-10
THE WORK OF GIANTS.
Probably the Oldest Ruins ON the
Hemisphere.
Visit to Tiahuanaco Monuments Of the
Past That Excite Wonder and
Admiration.

There is much of interest in South Amer
lean countries that the enterprising CORE
spondent male and female, is laying before
the people of the United States through the
medium of the daily papers. Fannie b.
Ward, in a letter from La Paz to the Pitts
burg Dispatch, writes: The traveller should
not bid good-by to Bolivia without havi ng
paid some attention to an ancient town near
the northeastern edge of Lake Titieaca.
which Professor Squier has dubbed 1.-The
Baalbec of America" 1t is named Ii
ahuanaco pronounced Tee-ah- uba-nah-co),
and is believed by some scientists to be the
oldest collection of ruins on the hemisphere.
At any rate it proves the existence OF race
so fan antedating the time Of the Incas that
all knowledge of it was los: before the Span
iards came; for when the latter questioned
the Indians of those days about the origin
of these mighty monuments they were told
that before ever the sun appeared in the
heavens race of giants inhabited the earth
for thousands of years; that they grew so
numerous the gods. became Jealous and
turned them all into stone. and what appear
to be the remains of huge buildings are, in
reality, some of the petriiied giants them
selves.
easily reached on horseback from Chililaya /;
and if visited during the westward journey
from La PaZ, il is best TO come to the former
village day or two ahead of the diligenca,
so as not TO miss the weekly steamer and be
stranded too long on this desolate coast.
STRANGE ANCIENT RUINS.
Modern Tiahuanaco contains nothing
whatever of interest except that its church
and many of its houses are built of beauti-
fully cut and polished stones taken from
ancient temples and palaces. Even the pave
ments of its streets and the bridges over
which we pass are set with them. The tall
stone cross in front of the church stands on
lofty pedestal that is much better wrought
than the Catholic symbol above it and in-
scribed with indecpherable hieroglyphics
perhaps to other gods. The corral where
our animals are stalled has mi its adobe walls
numerous blocks of slate-cOlored trachyte.
with snakes, toads and other mysterious
emblems carved upon them; in short. from
time out of mind the wonderful ruins have
served as an inexhaustible quarry for the
lazy and ignorant people OF the valley.
The principal ruins lie on level plain
within walking distance from the village
and cover an area of about three miles.
earth and stone, numerous edlficeS, and the
remains of massive walls that probably
served as forts or Enclosures. The highest
OF the mounds was once terraced, each ter
race supported by a wall of cut stone. ami is
completely covered anG surrounded by
ruins, with an enormous structure on top,
which modern visitors have named "The
Fortress"
Not far from this hill is the finest edifce
of all, so far as decoration is concerned.
now known as "The Temple" 1t is AS feet
long. SSS feet wide, made OF cut and polished
blocks of dark basalt. each 30 inches thick.
These stones are sunk into the earth, like
gate-posts, nobody knows 10 what depth,
the parts above ground varying in height
from to IA feet.
STONES PINNED TOGETHER.
Those ancient architects. whoever they
may have been, seem to have not under
stood the use of mortar, or maybe they did
not need it, being able to build a well with
out. Like King Solomon's temple, the
stones were all made to fit exactly into one
another, having round holes drilled into the
top and bottom of each, at corresponding
distances. into which bronze pins we placed;
Scattered all about are many highly polished
blocks which appear never to have been
placed in position. indicating that the
builders were disturbed in their work and
left it incomplete.
Among the most beautifully scnlptured
and curious relics is an enormous block of
sandstone. one single slab, Is feet inches
long, IS inches thick, and standing a little
over feet above the grOuBd-which, though
badly cracked the natives say by light
ming, is still upright 1t must be sunk
deeply into the earth 10 have stood so long
without external support, and was doubt
less meant for doorway, as il has a central
cutting feet inches high by 2 feet 9
inches wide. Across the upper face, above
this doorway, figures in low relief are
carved. which closely resemble the sculpture
of Egypt, and scientists say that finer
piece of cutting in the same kind of stone,
by artisans, ancient or modern, cannot be
found anywhere in the world. Within the
temple inclOsure is horizontal slab, about
fourteen feet square, with deep hollow in
the middle, cut out like a square trough,
which is supposed to have served in some of
the ceremonies of sun worship. The great
temple is composed of huge blocks of red
sandstone. each fourteen feet long and of
corresponding width and thickness, all pre-
ciSely alike and cut and
LAID WITH INCEST CARE.
This is the more remarkable, as those
early people must have been entirely unac-
quainted with iron and steel, and could have
had no mechanical apparatus for carving
or working heavy bodies, every bit of the
labor having to be accomplished by human
strength. Neither could they have had any
Howledge of gnnpOwder, or other explO-
sives; but that they were familiar with the
use of bronze is proved by the pins above
mentioned. and few weapons that have
come to light From some cliffs of red sand
stone, more than fifteen miles away, every
one of these enormous temple blocks must
have been carried; but no basalt nor
trachyte is found nearer than forty miles.
There seems, besides, to have been pal
ace a prison, a hall of justice and other in
stitutioDs which show that the long past
race possessed some degree of civilization
and refinement. None can gaze upon these
monuments without being filed with won
der concerning the mysterious people who
lived and died centuries before Columbus or
any other European had sought the Western
hemisphere.
The chuno festival is participated in by all
the Indians far ana near, and it is curious
minglng of the rites of the heather lncas
and the ceremonies of the church. Though
antedating the Christianization of the
country it is carried on to-day under the con-
troll of the priests, who, through the $50
years that have interviewed since the con-
quest, have always found it eXpedient to re-
tain some traces of the ancient customs.
As in these regions Indians and llamas
are generally seen together, a description of
one animal without mention of the other
would be incomplete. One who has never
seen llama can hardly form an idea of how
the strange little creature looks, with the
head of camel. the body of deer, the
wool of sheep, the hoofs of a mule and the
neigh of horse. 1t is found nowhere but in
the Andes and is the more interesting be-
cause it is the only native domesticated
animal in South America, the OK. horse,
sheep, hog and all others useful to man
having been brought originally from some
other country. 1t is
THE ONLY BEAST OF BURDEN
Used In the higher attitudes. where mules
and horses cannot endure the thin air, as it
alone is exempt from sirroche, its natural
home being 5000 feet and upward. Though
domesticated in Peru, Bolivia and Chile and
not able to live below a certain elevation
unless the weather is very cold. great num-
beers Of them run wild on the foothills and
sandy plains of Patagonia, even near the
level of the sea so far from the equator.
A full grown llama is about the size of a
year-old colt, standing from four to six feet
high, and is covered with long and sur
prisingly thick coat of wool which, how
ever. is seldom sheared, as the animal is
used only for purposes of transportation.
Its usual color is muddy brown, while a few
are light yellow or nearly white. The In
dians paint the latter with liquid dyes, and
very odd it looks to see troop of them in
all the colors Of the rainbow-red. blue,
purple. pink and green-with gay tassels
dangling from their ears. Many of the
most valuable mines of Peru and Bolivia
could hardly be carried On without these
hardy and sure footed animals, though not
one of them can be made to bear more than
n bnndrad mounds waipht uhila tho aypra pa