The Republican journal. [volume] (Belfast, Me.) 1829-current, 1903-09-17
A Mule Back Trip in Bolivia.
enough the Lonely Heart Of the Andes.
covernment Highway to the Yungas

government Highway to the Yungas
valley.
I>utclal Correspondence of The Journal.l
,aILIMANI, BOLIVIA, Aug. End. 1908.
rn. tropical valley of Yungas, beyond
.f. last Apdean wall and down near
III. bead-waters of the Amazon, forms
,.- Of the most important departments
At Bolivia, because therein are raised
.,..t of Bolivias articles of export and
.frme consumption. The round trip
e-rUeeu the city of La Paz and Chuli-
.,r The latter being the Capital of
al lepartment aforesaid is a distance
,.Uput 80 Yankee miles, reckoned by
.- ug the Bolivian league, which is
English yards. Though all of Be-
F., COCOA and coffee, fruit, wines and
....5 .,re raised in Yungas, and though
... 1uvernment annually eXpendS a
-.- -lm of money on the alleged road
.-.,.o. the only highway of centuries
..t-L.Ya narrow trail, out round and
the edges of sky piercing NOUN
-Jmetimes zigzaging to and fro
-+ heir perpendicular faces like
-.t King of d ship, in places where
~ man nor mule could elm b
.... -.t up like fly on the wall. But
.. aces along the trail are wider
. uely to allow two mules to walk
...J,t. and many miles of it compel
......-GIe professions. Horses are never
.- il this journey, for they cannot
....ve the rapid change between the
of eternal snow and perpetual
..laer. While horse might possibly
.-.4 The lowlandS, if sufficiently sure
.,ugr,I. on the return he would surely
t.et ,irroche, which III reality is heart
e. IRE brought on by lack of oxygen in
--Ur
N..es are employed instead of the
-} little donkeys of the Indians,
irejs of them being constantly on
ad, laden with every conceivable
, odity. IlamaS, those strange ami
... hat are found only in the Andes,
40. 50 used as beasts of burden in the
t tains, but as they cannot live be-
., Il certain elevation they are never
..-. near sea level. At least, SO the Be-
..l Indians believe A degenerate
SID IS of the same animal is sometimes
,. ID ZOOS even in the United
.-tr5.
e wonder is that any road could
- ave been made in these stipend
lights. If tourists make the trip
.. must attach themselves to some
t. party. or secure the services of
experienced orriero (muleteer),
..N viii supply mules fer the travellers
-tytrel extra ones for carrying
PROVISIONS. and other luggage: be-
-... Alozos OF men-Servants to do the
Lag and act as guard, On the first
ut from La Paz-only about IS
nom it but four thousand feet
the highest point i'll the jour
attained 1t is called Alto del
a1l is fully :, 100 feet higher than
.Iy top of Pixies Peak or something
r. u00 feet nearer the stars than
s at home. The Alto" extends
pu dead level for several miles
me descent begins. At any time
the traveller away up here is
t .lllppl1l1t storm the
,Uud flakes that look like hail,
as they fall, wetting his gar
through and through, while a
44 wind chills him to the marrow,
l!itiOn to the usual program,
Ter storm was thrown in for our
ainment, lightning playing in the
below our feet and hollow echoes
trrating from peak to peak Of
ST. our animals suffered severely,
0ozing from their nostrils, and they
Hr0 pGliged to halt every few minutes,
..-ug painfully; while we, betwneen
wet and biting cold, had not breath
pare with which to urge them on
aa.i 10 add to the general melancholy
lis most desolate spot, we passed
fire 0ody Of a dead man lying prone
uss the road with CLASSY eyes star
I ~ to the cherries sky. Whether
ad been murdered. or had died from
ttal causes, we dared not pause to
ayr>;igate, for if the former, the find
rs ut the corpse might be held for
au,us in La PaZ to give testimony IN
-s SOW process of the Bolivian courts.
number of Indians, coming up the
0 from the opposite direction, had
4,- discovered the unfortunate, and to
..f.r care we left him.
trm time immemorial these lonely
4'Nltains have been infested with
lands of highwaymen, who murder
'- POOR Indian on his return to ungas
-om the sale of his little crop OF cocoa,
lol dies sake of the few dollars his half
year work has gained. The Indian
AEhWaymen, though less numerous
Tan those of lighter color, are more
e7WdIdly and much more to be dreaded,
Jog they do not fight openly, but skulk
ake 1akes behind the rocks and throw
4styue at your head from sling, with
IlfrTVItr az of