Baraboo weekly news. [volume] (Baraboo, Wis.) 1912-197?, 1912-03-07
CROSSING THE
ANDES MOUNTAINS
Continued from First Page.)
Watched GhostIy Forms OF Mules

I
In the indistinct light of the early
morning, it was interesting to watch
the ghostly forms of our mules, horses,
and of the riders we met, moving
steaIthily up or down on the different
grades. Several other riders were
ascending, having passed the night in
the vale, in spite of the far-fared and
widely feared spider. We passed
slowly and laborously down the cliff, ,
like a moving picture, until we came
to tiny cemetery, hung on the noun
tain. side, just over the town. 1t was
enclosed 10y high wall, after the ap-
proved style of cemetery in a
Spanish country, and had few tombs
built in the inside of the wall. No
one buried in the ground, of course.
What caused our mule-driver to de-
voutIy cross himself was probably the
presence of two lone graves, hugging
the entrance way, but outside of the
gate. Herelics, and so refused ground
| in which to be buried, and also denied
an entrance into Heaven. Their
neglected graves were 'osely surround
ed by a rude stone fence. We had
seen grave, the day before, on the
highest peak of a cliff, overlooking
the preclpice, with tall column to
marx. When [ asked whose it was,
[ was told that prominent general
who was hereto, had been refused
space in the cemetery, so had been
carried to that inaccesi BILE spot for
| burial.
Thought They Were Entering an
Oven.
We felt that we were indeed enter
ing an oven, as we swung off the last
tut of rock, and asked the way to an
inn, for breakfast. This town was
quite the warmest place l ever visited,
Not a breath of Fir in circulation.
with steady down-pour of the suns
rays, between all those over-hanglng
cliffs-and nearly at sea-leveI, in the
tropics.
What had appeared to be tiny
! brook, when we were on the noun
tainslde proved 10 be a sizabIe river,
worrying its turbulent way over huge
stones, ard apparently trying to hurry
out of this heated region. We crossed
it by means of a high steel bridge,
where we stopped to pay toll.
And then began the ascent. 1t was
after eight of sultry morning when
we finally started up the opposite side,
and we had the sun at our backs ali
the way. Not a cool breath of air,
nor a leaf of shade. This upward toll
is better not described, as we wish to
| blot the sufferings of it out OF our
mind. We were too weary, too parch-
ed in spirit and body to see the beau
ties of nature or to enjoy them.
There were two things OF sufficient
strapgeness to arouse our tagging
interest. A woman who had estab-
| lished her home in tree top, and was
engaged in washing under her house.
And the appearance upon our path of
what seemed to be large dog kennel,
or a good sized hen house. Nearer and
nearer it approached, and our curiosl-
ty grew, until we met it. The house
was fastened upon the back of mule,
and was held in place by two men.
We Judged it to be a dentist chair,
Grated, but received only stony stares
when we asked the poems what they
were carrying, so it might not have
been a dentists chair after all.
Plodded Through rlid-D&y Heat. g
There was no water to be had during
the whole three hours of the climb,
and what we had carried with us grew
more than luke warm long before we
reached the top. Peering over the last
rise of the mountain with great inter
est In what still lay before us, we
| found ourselves on an extensive table
land, stretching in all directions wind
swept and bleak. The horses were too
tired and thirsty to make good time
here although the path lay straight
and clean in front of them. We, hang
ing exhausted over our saddles, had
little ambition to urge them on, SO this
palt of the journey lives in our mem
cries as the dIeariest of all. Ii took us
three hours 10 go two leagues on fairly
level ground. We slowly plodded on
through the burning midday heat, the
blister of which stung our eyes and
aching threats. Little heat quivers,
dancing in front of our eyes, were the
only movements on all the bare
plain, aside from the detected crawl of
our animals. Burned up grass covered
most of the desolate hills, showing US
that in rainy seasons doubtless all this