The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1898-07-10

wish l could take you into one OF
these Indian huts and show you just how
hundreds Of thousands Or people live mere
in Bolivia. II is by no means easy 10 get
into the Indians house. for he mates
strangers and VIII not admit anyone II ne
can help Is. / had one or two rather Seri-
ous experiences while making my investi-
gators of this kind or the Tfticaca plat
eau, and IN one case the Indian household
sr showed figilt and threatened to have me-
arrested. The outside 81 the hufs are 10
be seen everywhere in the country about
mere | have ridden along tens OF thous-
aids Of them and they are practically the
same everywhere They would hardly
rank as respectable pig pens in America
Imagine q mud hut from six. eight 10
twrgye feet square. Let Il have walls 50
low that you can reach up TO the thatcn-
ed roof without effort Let it have no
windows and let the door be an opening
two feet from the ground, so small that
you have to stoop TO get into il. The door
Of the hut IS tie ground and you step
over the high door sill to get in Once in
side there Is little more than room 20 turn
about, for often the farming utensils De
longing 70 the owner are kept there and
it may be that in the hut the donkey. he
chickens, and the liamas also quarter.
There IL little furniture The people Sit
Oh the floor and men, women and children
back themselves up against the wall at
night keeping as close together as pos
s.tse for warmth and sleep sitting. In
one corner of the nut there Is a little
hearth or clay stove with pile OF llama
manure for fuel beside II. There IS no
chimney to the hut and the dense smoke
finds It's way out as Ii can. No one THINKS
of using fire for warmth. Fuel is too ex-
pensive for anything except cooking. The
family does not change its clothes al night.
Everyone sleeps in the clothes which ne
wears during tie day. The men and boys
wrap their ponchos about them and the
women their blankets and all draw them
selves as closely as possible together that
no part of their bodies may remain I'M
covered The cooking is very simple. one
OF the favor.te dishes being chaliona stew
with perhaps some chuno or frozen pota-
toes dried. mixed with H. Challona is
ierked mutton. The sheep having been
killed Is split open. then laid OUT hat and
frozen. Water is now sprinkied over 1t
and II ;s frozen again 1t is then hung ~
and when dried 1t becomes so tough that
Il will keep for months. When used it is
cut into bits and boiled Long time. The
Indian considers IL delicious.
The Great south American Chew.
There is one thing that IS more important
to tho Bolivian Indian than his meals. This
is his coca or his daily and hourly. and
might almost say his perpetual, chew. He
eats coca as q morse eats may CHI
p,oyesl In the mines each insist on daily
allowance OF five ounces of coca leaves IN
addition TO their wages. and many OF the
farmers give coca TO their men, Women
and children chew coca, and il Is rarely
that you can find an Indian without big
lump of It inside his cheek. Coca is indeed
one OF the chief products Of Bolivia. Mil
lions II dollars worth OF 1t are produced
every year, and ii is brought into La Paz
daily in large quantities. Coca is the shrub
from which cocaine Is made. 1t should be
distinguished from the Cacao tree. from
which we get our chocolate and cocoa. The
coca plant grows from two to five feet In
height, and 1t is largely cultivated In the
eastern provinces of Bolivia. Each plant
gives three crops of leaves Il year. The
leaves are gathered by Indian women,
packed up in bundles of twenty-five pounds
each and shipped to the markets on the
lacks OF llamas. donkeys or mules. It is
heavily taxed and is one of the chief
sources OF government revenue
Like the BeteI Chewers of Siam.
The Indians use coca much as the SIAM
csc chew the betel nut They take the
leaves. which, by the way. look not unlike
wintergreen leaves. and mix them with
ashes Of lime. They chew the mixture,
and strange 10 say swallow their spittle
The chew is said 10 be both a food and q
stir,usart 1t keeps out the cold and allays