El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1914-07-25

cases they ara paid wages and in 9TH
| ers they get nothing but their board
/ for their work The leases by which
! the indians hold their little homes and
] lands provide that they may be sent
from time to time into the town TO
work as house servants such periods
are limited TO a week or so for each
/ person, and in some Of the houses Of
{ La Paz the servants are changed every
/ two weeks. A land owner with a large
number Of indians on his estate may
: agree to furnish you house servant
for a year, sending man after man, in
RELAYS as II were, TO MI up the time.
] When the pOngO comes 10 work IN his
masters house he usually brings with
him enough bags Of llama manure to
serve as fuel for the cooking during his
stay.
While there he carries all the water,
brings the vegetables and meats home
from the market, and IL IS his business
to empty the Stops and clean the pots
and pans There are many Of these
DongOs on the streets OF La PaZ- They
20 along half double carrying great
copper or clay water jars on their
backs They act as the watchmen of
the houses, sleeping at night on the
stones inside the door that leads TO
the street. and they must get I'D and
open to the people who go out or come
in. They do all sorts OF drudgery, and
some kinds that servants Of other
classes will refuse to do. Indeed, one
NAV have 20 other servants but he
must still have his pongO.
Notwithstanding these hard condi-
tons the indians are attached to their
masters. They viii work for them for
little or nothing rather than for a Tor
eigner who may pay them good wages.
They make their masters grievances
their own, and are ready to engage in
any battle If lnstigated by them. This
often causes feuds between the indians
Of neighboring farms, and gun fights
and stone fights are common. The
stone fights are usually by means Of
the sling. which is the natural weapon
Of the Ayrama- He uses II to keen his
He hunts with IL, and from behind his
hut watches for his enemy and sends
a rock crashing through his brain.
Not long ago there was a big stone
fight between the indians Of two plan
tations, one belonging to a foreigner
and the other TO a native Bolivian The
foreigner had bought the estate and
the Bolivian wanted to force him TO
sell il cheap. 1t adjOined his property
and was especially desirable on other
accounts. He asked the foreigner his
price and was told that il was $4,000.
He wanted II much cheaper and IN
order to make him sick OF his bargain
he melted his indians to stone those
Of the foreigner They did so, but the
foreigner made such brave fight that
the Bolivian came to him and offered I
70 take the place at his original price.
The foreigner replied I VIII sell you
the farm, but the price has risen. 1
offered II TO you month ago for Sl5,- /
900, but after what you have done you |
cannot have il for less than $4,000"
Il will take it," was the reply. I have |
had enough trouble about this already |
and rather than have more 1 will pay /
what you ask
Usually Build in Villages.
The huts Of the Aymara indians are |
scattered over the plateau, and also /
high up on the slopes Of the Andes. !
They are usually in villages, but some
lines M the Mains few
houses are more than Is or 20 feet !
square, and some only eight or ten. 1
Sometimes a family may have a half \
dozen houses InclOS6d by a mud wall 4
but the most of the buildings are Tor
the stock and as a rule the family uses /
but one 1t is not easy 10 enter such
homes.
The indians do not like strangers,
and in making my Investigations I
have had them show fight and warn
me 10 leave. such huts as I have seen
into are little better than pig pens
They have walls so low that you can /
reach the matched roof without effort, /
and the single door is so small that 1
you have TO stoop TO 90 in The floor
s the ground, and the furniture is only |
/ few skins and little mud stove or
wen, built Up in one corner The fuel |
s the manure OF lamas and sheep, and
he cooking is done IN earthenWare
BOTS which are used not only for boil
ng and stewlng, but for cups, saucers
md plates. There is no outlet for the
imoke but the door, and it blackens
he roof and the walls
Usually Sleep Sitting.
The Aymaras sleep on llama skins
aid on the floor. They have no night
lothes, and wear the same garments
{ night as during the day. They usu- |
lly sleep sitting, backing themselves
10 against the wall, and drawing as ]
loosely together as possible, in order
hat all may get under the blanket and /
o that the heat Of their bodies may
id in keeping them warm.
The food OF these indians is simple. ! {
/ favOrite dish is a stew known as {
hallOna, made of dried mutton. The ! {
heep is killed and skinned The body I
S then split open and laid out fiat I
nd left out Of doors to be frozen. The 7
ext night il is sprinkled with water /
nd frozen again. 1t is then hung up (
o dry. It doe so without spelling 2
nd soon becomes so tough and hard ]
hat it will keep for months. When e
sed il is cut into bits and boiled a Y
Jng time Vegetables are cooked with /
l. and often some chUnO. The latter S
frozen potatoes, which are prepared No
D such a way that they Will keep quite /
s long as the dried mutton This is |
one by soaking the raw potatoes in ] @
-ater and then allowing them to freeze ! G
hey are soaked and frozen again. The [
kInS become so loose that rbav "a n he r