Forest City press. (Forest City, Potter County, D.T. [S.D.]) 1883-19??, 1907-12-05
Mrs. Harriet Adams, Intrepid
Explorer, Makes Record In
Feminine Adventure.
LONG TRIP IN SA@n'
Much Of Wild South American Coun.
try She Traversed Never Visited
by Civilized Persons
Before.

San Francisco. Special: California
has added more to her long list OF
| renowned and remarkable people in
Mrs. Harriet Chalmers Adams. ono OF
the greatest women explorers. Mrs.
Adams has returned from South Amer
lea where. accompanied by her hus-
band. she visited every country, navi-
gated many of the rivers, went through
| trackless forests. spent three years in
| exploring that vast continent as 1t had
never been before. In telling of her ex-
! periences in South America, Mrs. Ad-
| ans said:
My favorise country OF them all. n
/ feel in a way qualified to Judge be-
| cause / visited them all. is Peru. Per-
laps ii is because there is hardly a foot
OF that marvellous land that l have not
journeyed over. and then, too, Peru Is
the richest in interest historically.
| When II thinks of what a vast king
| dom the proud race of the IncaS ruled
| ever. and ruled it all beneficently and
wisely from their capital city of Cuzco.
! on the highlands of Peru. and then re-
members the wealth of tho Incas. MAX
ing 1t possible for the subjects to fill a
room nine feet deep with gold to ram
som their last ruler from the Spanish.
1t is enough to fire the imagination OF
the most uniinasinativc.
"Of course my husband and I took In
the leading cities, such aS colorful Lima
with It's bull ring. and .Arequipa. with its
towering mountain. El Misti. piercing the
heavens at 1900 feet. We journeyed to
Lake Titicaca, the highest lake in The
world. lying over 1000 feet above ths
yea, and or to the en;hrailing city of La
Paz. Bolivia. called tho hermit capital,
and to Tiahuanco. where mighty ruins
are found dating back "a the days OF
Babylon. But all these things we did by
'ailroad. as other may.
when we left the beaten path. however,
md roamed tho wilds where white feet
FEVER tread, then / felt that we were find
ng what we came to see. To do this
We suffered hardship such AS | cannot be-
iere now that We endured. To realize
exactly what we experienced the topog-
apply of the Peruvian country must DO
lear in the mind.
Peru Is divid>i into four sections by
hree mountain ranges. and rain never
'alls on the first three zones. The first d.
5ision is called the dry zone the second
n the temperate zone. where the bulk OF
he people live and all the large cities
te. the third section is the puma or. az It -
,ften called, the roof of the world, which
almost exactly corresponds to the desolate
rhibetan county. and the fourth and last
section Is a mighty forest country. inhab-
ted by savages. unknown to white civil
cation.
over the third and fourth zones we
wandered for months sometimes with Z
guide. often alone. We travelled over 1000
niles in the saddle. We crossed the Cor.
1illera. or easternost range OF the AndeA
tour times in going from the puma or
ligh land to the 'montana' or forest land.
once at a height of 1000 feet, again at
$500 feet. and that time without any
guide. We slept in every kind Of a ma
, tive hut. on the ground anywhere.
"On the high lands exist the last RENE
npS,t 0f tho TsrrnA In thA r.t
who are p:tifully poor and live in small
huts along with the l!amas. which are
their sole means OF support. These
strange animals are immensely pictures
que. as seen in the streets of La Paz, and
Ne once owed our lives to meeting .
band OF them on the desolate plains at
night. when We failed to reach shelter.
and nestled among them for warmth. 4
man would die easily from exposure were
he to remain out all night at an altitude
of 1900 feet.
1T seemed like a fairy dream to cross
the lofty Cordillera and find ourselves in
the vast forest country of Peru. Trails
have been put into this country by rubher
companies. for here lies the seat Of the
great rubber industry. ] was the first
white woman to penetrate into this land.
and my husband the fourth white man
This is a virgin forest. untouched bv the
AK. ana rs such a jungle as one sees ptc-
btlStOHN DOCKS.
night We slept in little bark hut..
perched high on stills. pulled up our lad.
der as we climbed TO our roost. and all
nisht long could hear the iasuars prowl-
ihs oeioW. One night we shot two enor.
nous Fellows by setting trap guns. AZ
We rode along the trails the MONKEYS
would ieap across from tree to tree and
Hooks OF parrots would nv scree m;r1 .e
our approach.
~ me way. these trails are fearful
'hinKs on the eastern slopes of the Ande.
ana many narrow escapes we had or them
y" nenever you hear a llama train comir.
on one OF these narrow trails bearing o,,e
loads OF rubber. you must Instantly sjirhe
from Your animal and natten yourself
"saiH.' 'he wall. for the cargo mules
"hich the tTGin invariably try
To push other animals from tho trail IN.
the abyss below. INV
nee'des exploring the forests We navs.
gated a number of the rivers. which hav~
their origin here. and are head vater. 10
the Amazon. %
we came back finally to the bare min.
V!ins highlands and penetrated; 10 the citv
OF cuzco. the ancient capital of the Ivc.s
where the once famous temple OF fhe On"
z. STOOD. blazing with gold. and At las. ~.
reached Doto. a desolate little town Twin.
l.."0 feei among the clouds. No wonder
the ouichuas chew the cocoa untM thev
are always partially benumbed. We v,ers
ol.eh iorceo to chew IT.. too. in order to
'o.xs' ,ne coid and hunger We endured.
in all these wanderinks We went fnpv
armed and l wore a revolver ~ ny a..
Tor seven months continuously. Before "a
left Peru We made the ascent ~ Aso,,.e
Aisti. one OF the loftisst mountains IN the
world. and wsre never attacked nv TIA
.soroehe' or mountain sickness IN ii, s,,r
high climbing"