The Greenville journal. [volume] (Greenville, Ohio) 1850-1918, 1911-03-23
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streets; and thousands of skulls whiten the sur
rounding sands, grewsome reminders of the null
utude who formerly lived and worshiped at these
ruined shrines. .,.
Peru has few merely tourist visitors and of
lAhese fewer still Pachacamac the trip from
Lima being considered long and hard. But for
one accustomed to the saddle (and little of South
America can be otherwise seem Pachacamac is
comfortably accessible.
The simplest route is by the excellent electric
cars to the pretty suburb Chorillos, beyond Mira
flores, where horses should have been ordered
in advance to await the traveller.
Over roadside walls of mud or adobe brick
wild nasturt1ums Chamber in riot Of color; bare
high hills rise at side; the battlefield of San
Juan, famous in the Chilean war, and here and
there populous haciendas are passed before the
open country Is reached. mile or two of Jungle
like swamp follows, rich in interest for lovers
of birds and growing things. But beyond this
fertile tangle one may canter along the hard sand
beach for nearly all the remaining miles. Sea
birds in such myriads that the sun is actually
darkened as they fly up at our approach, seven
or eight lines of superb Pacific rollers breaking
in thunderous surf, rampant of high sand noun
tains Just back of the beach-and in two three
hours appear the familiar walls and dun-colored
remains of Inca occupation.
For Pachacamac has been the scene of sew
eral superimposed civilizations, whereby its
study is rendered more confusing than that of
other ancient Shrines. The many graves and
their contents were seemingly at variance
chronologically inconsistent-with fragments of
pottery and implements found near by. But it
is certain that prelnca Indians had here their
chief temple and that when these alconquering
mobiles with their hordes of willing workers
rived triumphantly upon the scene, so far from
trying to wipe out the old faith they treated it
with much respect perhaps from prudential mo-
tfves building their great temple to the sun on
the hin above, but still permitting, even encour
aging continued worship of the creator god Pac-
hacamac, so that the temples religious prestige
did not suffer under the Incas.
The Sun temple seems to have been built to
include this earlier sanctuary, which shows
amicable relationship between the older cult and
that worship Of the sun which the Incas ultimate
ly imposed on conquered tribes.
A beautiful site these early dwelers chose for
their rites. Although desert bounded on north
and east, the temples themselves set in sand by
whose encroaching drifts they are now half COW
cred, toward the west rolls the blue Pacific, and
southwark lies the green and fertile Valley of
Lurin, watered by It's river of the same name,
off whose mouth rise rugged islands, the wings
of myriad sea birds flashing In the sunshine as
they dip and circle and soar about the lofty
cliffs
Only 2k miles wide at the coast. the little Lu-
rim valley narrows rapidly toward the interior.
mile and a half distant lies the village on the
same side of the river as the ruins. Only 500
inhabitants now belong here, but perhaps 1000
can be counted In the whole parish. Modern Pac-
hacamac holds about 300, it's parish 5000. Trees
of many kinds abound-the willow (Salx) al
ways prominent with cane (canillo) and trees
bearing the chirimoya, palta. lucuma and other