CHAPTER XIV.

Road to the Primeval Forests--Barbacoas, or Indian Suspension

Bridges--Vegetation--Hollow Passes--Zoology--the

Montana--Plantations--Inhabitants--Trade in Peruvian Bark--Wandering

Indians--Wild Indians or Indios Bravos--Languages, Manners, and

Customs of the Indios Bravos--Dress--Warlike Weapons and Hunting

Arms--Dwellings--Religion--Physical formation of the Wild Indian

Tribes--Animals of the Aboriginal Forests--Mammalia--Hunting the

Ounce--Birds--Amphibia--Poisonous Serpents--Huaco--Insects--Plants.

Leaving Ceja de la Montana, we will trace the route to the Aboriginal

forests, which extend eastwardly from the bases of the Andes. The whole

plain is overspread by a thick veil of mist, which does not disperse

until about noon, and then an undulating dark green canopy clouds the

vapory atmosphere. A European, whose heart throbs at the bare idea of

one of those vast virgin forests, gazes anxiously forward on the

boundless distance, and finds the pace of his cautious mule too tardy

for his impatient hopes and wishes. He beholds in perspective the goal

of his long journey. Nature, in all her virginal freshness and grandeur,

opens to his astonished eyes, and he feels a sensation of delight he

never before experienced. Regardless of present toil and danger, he sees

only the pleasure to come. But he is soon drawn back to cool reality,

and is forcibly reminded of the truth, that every enjoyment must be

earned by labor. The road is broken, narrow, and steep; over the woody

sides of the hill it is easily passable; but as soon as it begins to

descend, it presents all those difficulties which have been

interestingly described by the early travellers in Peru. The scanty

population of the surrounding districts, the native listlessness of the

Indians, and their indifference to the conveniences of life, are

obstacles to the making of roads which might be passable without

difficulty and danger. However, where nature from the state of the

country has compelled man to establish a communication, it is executed

in the most rude and unsatisfactory manner. A most decided proof of this

is apparent in the bridges called _barbacoas_, which are constructed

where the way is through a _derumbo_, or a small narrow mountain-pass,

or where there is an obstruction caused by a rock which cannot be passed

circuitously. The barbacoas are constructed in the following manner.

Stakes from three to three and a half feet long are driven into the

ground, or into the crevices of rocks. Over the ends of these stakes are

fastened strong branches of trees, the interstices are filled up with

mud, and the whole is covered by a sort of matting composed of plaited

branches and reeds. If the ground admits of it, which is seldom the

case, a pile of stones is built up beneath the barbacoa, extending to at

least one half its breadth. When it is considered that there is,

probably, on the one side of this bridge, a rock inclining at a very

acute angle, or an almost perpendicular declivity of a hill of loose

earth, and that on the other side there yawns a deep abyss against which

there is not the least protection, the traveller may well be pardoned if

he shudders as he passes over the creaking and shaking barbacoa. These

fragile bridges are often so much worn, that the feet of the mules slip

through the layers of mud and reeds, and whilst making efforts to

disengage themselves, the animals fall over the edge of the barbacoa,

and are hurled into the chasm below, dragging down the crazy structure

along with them. In consequence of these accidents, the way is often for

weeks, or even months, impassable.

In the construction of these rude bridges, I observed that the Indians,

in their simplicity, always faithfully copy their great instructress,

nature. The majority of the plants growing in these regions belong, if I

may use the expression, to an aerial vegetation. The small, gnarled,

low-branched trees, have often scarcely one half of their roots in the

earth: the other half spreads over the surface of the soil; then winding

round the roots or branches of some neighboring plant, fastens on it,

and intimately uniting with it, forms a kind of suspension bridge, over

which the intertwining of numerous luxuriant climbing plants makes a

strong, impenetrable network. All the trees and shrubs are covered with

innumerable parasites, which, in the higher regions, are met with in

their smaller forms, as lichens, mosses, &c.; but lower down, in the

course of the various transformations they undergo, they appear in

larger development.

The whole vegetable kingdom here is stamped by a peculiar character. It

presents immense fulness and luxuriance: it spreads widely, with but

little upward development, rising on the average only a few feet above

the earth. Trees, shrubs, and tendrils, in endless complication of

color, entwine together, sometimes fostering, sometimes crushing each

other. Out of the remains of the dead arises a new generation, with an

increase of vital impulse. It seems as though the ice-crowned Andes

looked down with envy on the luxuriant vegetation of the forests, and

sought to blight it by sending down cold, nightly winds. The low

temperature of the night counteracts that extreme development which

the humidity of the soil and the great heat of the day promote. But

what the vegetation loses in upward growth it gains in superficial

extension, and thereby it secures more protection against the

ever-alternating temperature.

The further we descend the eastern declivity, the more difficult becomes

the way. During the rainy season deep fissures are worked out by the

flow of waters; the ground is slippery and full of holes. The sides of

these hollow passes are often so close together that the rider cannot

keep his legs down on each side of his mule, and is obliged to raise up

his feet and thrust them forward. When beasts of burthen, coming in

opposite directions, meet in these places, the direst confusion ensues,

and frequently sanguinary conflicts arise among the Indians. The weaker

party are then obliged to unload their mules, and the poor beasts are

dragged backward by their hind legs, until they reach a point at which

there is sufficient space for the others to pass. When I was proceeding

through one of these cavities on Christmas-eve, 1840, I encountered a

heavily laden ass coming down a steep declivity. Ere I had time to leap

from my saddle, the ass came direct upon me with such force that my

horse was driven backwards by the concussion, and I was thrown. Ten

months afterwards, another encounter of the same kind threatened me with

a similar disaster, and to save myself I had no alternative but to shoot

the ass. The Indian who was driving the animal neglected the usual

warning cry, given by the arrieros when they enter those dangerous

passes, and he was regardless of my repeated calls desiring him to stop.

In some steep places, with the view of improving the roads, the Indians

lay down large stones in the form of steps; but to ride over these rude

flights of steps is no easy task, for the stones are small, and are

placed at the distance of a foot and a half or two feet apart. The mule

begins by placing his hind feet on the first stone, then springing

forward he reaches the third stone with his fore feet, at the same time

placing his hind feet to the second. By this manoeuvre the mule's body

is kept at full stretch, and the rider is obliged to lean forward over

the animal's neck to avoid being thrown head-foremost by the violent

jerks when the mule springs from step to step. It is absolute torture

to ride down a descent of five or six leagues, along a road such as I

have just described: willingly would the harassed rider dismount and

pursue his course on foot; but were he to attempt to do so, the mule

would stand stock still. I have already remarked the singular

obstinacy with which the mules refuse to proceed when their riders

dismount, and it sometimes gives rise to very comical scenes. On my

way to Vitoc, I was passing through a ravine in which the uprooted

trunk of a tree was resting slantwise against a rock. Though there was

not room for me to ride under it, yet there was sufficient space to

allow my mule to pass, and I accordingly dismounted; but all my

efforts to drive the animal forward were fruitless. I had no

alternative but to ride close up to the tree, then spurring the mule,

I quickly slipped out of the saddle, and seizing the trunk of the

tree, I hung to it until the mule had passed on.

No less difficult and dangerous are the steep declivities over loamy

soils, which are frequently met with in these districts. On them the

mule has no firm footing, and is in danger of slipping down at every

step. But the wonderful instinct of these animals enables them to

overcome the difficulty. They approximate the hind and fore feet in

the manner of the Chamois goat, when he is about to make a spring, and

lowering the hinder part of the body in a position, half sitting half

standing, they slide down the smooth declivity. At first this sliding

movement creates a very unpleasant feeling of apprehension, which is

not altogether removed by frequent repetitions. Accidents frequently

occur, in which both mule and rider are mortally injured.

There is more variety of animals in these regions than in the

mountainous parts; but they have few peculiarities of character. The

swift-footed roe of the Cordillera roams here and dwells in the

thickets, avoiding the warm forest. The dark brown coati (_Nasua

montana_, Tsch.) howls, and digs at the roots of trees in search of

food; the shy opossum crawls fearfully under the foliage; the lazy

armadillo creeps into his hole; but the ounce and the lion seldom

stray hither to contest with the black bear (_Ursus frugilegus_,

Tsch.) the possession of his territory. The little hairy tapir

(_Tapirus villosus_, Wagn.) ventures only at twilight out of his close

ambush to forage in the long grass.

Of the birds there is not much variety of species; but all are

remarkable for gay-colored plumage. Among the most characteristic of

these districts are the red-bellied tanagra (_Tanagra igniventris_,

Orb.), the fire-colored pyranga (_Phoenisoma bivittata_, Tsch.), two

species of the crow, one of which is of a fine blue color (_Cyanocorax

viridicyanus_, G. R. Gray), the other green on the back and bright

yellow on the belly (_Cyanoc. peruanus_, Cab.). The Indians call the

latter _Quienquien_, as it utters a sort of screaming sound resembling

these syllables. Individual birds belonging to the Penelope family (_P.

rufiventris_ and _adspersa_, Tsch.) and the green pepper-eater

(_Pteroglossus caeruleo-cinctus_, Tsch., _Pt. atrogularis_, Sturm.) are

found in the lower forests.

Proceeding still further downward we at length reach the _Montana_. The

Peruvians apply this name to the vast aboriginal forests which extend

across the whole country from north to south along the eastern foot of

the Andes. Those which lie higher, and in which the spaces between the

lofty trees are overgrown with thick masses of bushes and twining

plants, are called by the natives simply _Montanas_. Those which are

free from these intermediate masses of vegetation they call _Montanas

reales_ (royal mountains). At first sight they produce the impression of

a virgin forest of oaks.

The distance from the Ceja to the district properly called the Montana

is very various at different points. In some parts it takes six or

eight days' hard riding; in other directions the traveller may, in the

morning, leave the snow-covered Puna huts, and at sunset, on the

uninhabited margin of the primeval forest, he may taste pine-apples

and bananas of his own gathering. Such a day certainly deserves to

form an epoch in his life; for in the course of a few hours he passes

through the most opposite climates of the earth, and the gradual

progression of the development of the vegetable world is spread out in

visible reality before him.

The Montanas of Peru are, in general, but thinly peopled with Christian

Indians. They are employed either in cultivating their own fields, or in

working as day-laborers in the great plantations. The productions of the

haciendas consist chiefly of sugar, coffee, maize, coca, tobacco,

oranges, bananas, and pine-apples, which are sent to the Sierra. The

cultivation of bark, balsams, gums, honey and wax, also occupies a

great number of Indians.

The plantation buildings stand on rising grounds. The walls are

constructed of reeds, the interstices being filled up with loam, and the

roofs are of straw or palm leaves. Around the buildings are the fields

allotted to cultivation, in which the soils favorable to the production

of certain plants are selected. The coffee usually grows round the

house, and an adjacent building contains the store-rooms. The

fruit-trees grow along the margins of the maize fields; marshy ground

is selected for the sugar fields; in the vicinity of brooks and

streams the useful banana flourishes; the pine-trees are ranged in

rows on the hot, dry declivities, and the coca is found to thrive best

in warm, hollow dells.

As the humidity of the atmosphere, added to the multitudes of insects,

mice and rats, prevents any lengthened preservation of provisions, the

cultivators sell or exchange them as speedily as possible; hence arises

a very active intercourse in business between the Montanas and the

Sierra. The mountain Indians bring llamas, dried meat, potatoes, bark,

and salt, to exchange for fruit; it is very seldom that any money

circulates in this traffic. Only the owners of plantations sell their

productions for ready money, with which they purchase, in the upland

towns, European goods, particularly printed and plain cottons, coarse

woollen stuffs, knives, hatchets, fishing-tackle, &c.; with these goods

they pay their laborers, charging them for every article five or even

six times its value. As there is throughout these forest regions a great

want of men, the plantation owners endeavor to get the few Indians who

settle voluntarily on their property, fixed to it for ever. They sell

them indispensable necessaries at an extravagant price, on condition of

their paying for them by field labor.

I have seen an Indian give five days' labor, from six o'clock in the

morning to sunset, for a red pocket-handkerchief, which in Germany would

not be worth four groschen. The desire to possess showy articles, the

necessity of obtaining materials for his wretched clothing, or

implements to enable him, in his few free hours, to cultivate his own

field, and, above all, his passion for coca and intoxicating drinks, all

prompt the Indian to incur debt upon debt to the plantation owner. The

sugar-cane is seldom used in the forest plantations for making sugar.

The juice is usually converted into the cakes called _chancacas_, which

have been already mentioned, or it is made into _guarapo_, a strong

liquor, which the Indians spare no effort to procure. When they begin to

be intoxicated, they desire more and more of the liquor, which is

readily given, as it is the interest of the owners to supply it. After

some days of extreme abstinence they return to their work, and then the

Mayordomo shows them how much their debt has increased, and the

astonished Indian finds that he must labor for several months to pay it;

thus these unfortunate beings are fastened in the fetters of slavery.

Their treatment is, in general, most tyrannical. The Negro slave is

far more happy than the free Indians in the haciendas of this part of

Peru. At sunrise all the laborers must assemble in the courtyard of

the plantation, where the Mayordomo prescribes to them their day's

work, and gives them the necessary implements. They are compelled to

work in the most oppressive heat, and are only allowed to rest thrice

for a few minutes, at times fixed, for chewing their coca and for

dinner. For indolence or obstinacy they suffer corporal punishment,

usually by being put into a kind of stocks, called the CEPO, in which

the culprit stands from twelve to forty-eight hours, with his neck or

legs fixed between two blocks of wood.

The labor of bringing the forest lands into a productive state is one of

the severest tasks in the Montanas, and it can only be performed in the

hottest season of the year. As the soil is always moist, and the

vegetation full of sap, the trees must be cut down about the end of the

rainy season, and after drying for some months they are burned; but they

are seldom brought into a state of such aridity as to be destroyed by

the action of the fire. This is a considerable obstruction to the

progress of raising plants; for the seed must be sown between the felled

trees, which are perhaps only half-charred, and are still damp. In

consequence of this, the practice is, in the first year, to plant maize

at the places where the burnt trees are laid; the maize grows in almost

incredible abundance, and the result is a singularly rich harvest, after

which, part of the burned wood is removed. The same process is renewed

after every harvest, until all the burnt trees are cleared off and a

free field gained for the cultivation of the perennial plants.

Far more fortunate than the Indians who are neighbors of the

plantations, are those who live far back in the interior of the

forests, and who, in consequence of their great distance from any

settlement, seldom have intercourse with the civilized world. Content

with what bounteous nature offers them, and ignorant of the wants of

more refined life, they seek nothing beyond such things as they can,

without any great efforts, obtain in the districts in which they

dwell. There they plant their little patches of ground, the care of

which is consigned to the women. The men takes their bows and arrows

and set out on hunting expeditions, during which they are for weeks,

often months, absent from their homes. The rainy season drives them

back to their huts, where they indulge in indolent repose, which is

only occasionally suspended when they are engaged in fishing. The

return of the sunny sky draws them out again on their expeditions, in

which they collect a sufficient supply of food for the year.

But wherever these Indians have settled on the banks of great rivers,

the trading intercourse produces an alteration in their mode of life.

Europeans and Creoles then try to create among them, as among the

plantation Indians, a desire to satisfy unnecessary wants, and thereby

they are induced to collect the valuable productions of the forests.

In the loftier districts of the Montanas the Peruvian bark is found:

the lower and more marshy places produce the sarsaparilla, and a sort

of wood for dyeing called _Llangua_. This last-named article has not

yet found its way to Europe.

In the month of May the Indians assemble to collect the Peruvian bark,

for which purpose they repair to the extensive Cinchona woods. One of

the party climbs a high tree to obtain, if possible, an uninterrupted

view over the forest, and to spy out the _Manchas_, or spots where there

are groups of Peruvian bark trees. The men who thus spy out the trees

are called _Cateadores_, or searchers. It requires great experience to

single out, in the dark leaf-covered expanse, the Cinchona groups merely

by the particular tint of the foliage, which often differs but very

little from that of the surrounding trees. As soon as the cateador has

marked out and correctly fixed upon the mancha, he descends to his

companions, and leads them with wonderful precision through the almost

impenetrable forest to the group. A hut is immediately built, which

serves as a resting-place during night, and is also used for drying

and preserving the bark. The tree is felled as near the root as

possible, divided into pieces, each from three to four feet long, and

with a short curved knife a longitudinal incision is made in the bark.

After a few days, if the pieces are found to be getting dry, the bark

already incised is stripped off in long slips, which are placed in the

hut, or in hot weather laid before it to dry. In many parts,

particularly in the central and southern districts of Peru, where the

moisture is not very great, the bark is dried in the forest, and the

slips are packed in large bundles. In other districts, on the

contrary, the bark is rolled up green, and sent to the neighboring

villages, where it is dried. Towards the end of September the

_Cascarilleros_[79] return to their homes.

In the more early periods of South American history, the bark was a

principal article of Peruvian commerce. Since the commencement of the

present century its value has, however, considerably diminished, chiefly

in consequence of adulterated and inferior kinds, which are supplied

from other quarters, perhaps also on account of the more frequent use of

quinine; for in the production of the alkaloids less bark is employed

than was formerly used in substance. During the war of independence the

bark trade received its death-blow, and for the space of several years

scarcely more than a few hundred-weights of bark were exported from

Peru. The Montanas of Huanuco, which once furnished all the apothecaries

of Europe with the "divine medicine," are beginning again to yield

supplies. From the roots of the felled trees a vigorous after-growth has

commenced. In the Montanas of Huamalies a kind of bark is found, the

nature of which is not yet defined by botanists; and from the Montanas

of Urubamba comes the highly esteemed _Cascarilla de Cuzco_, which

contains an alkaloid, named _Cusconin_.[80] Possibly the medicinal

bark may again become a flourishing branch of trade for Peru, though

it can never again recover the importance which was attached to it a

century ago. During my residence in Peru, a plan was in agitation for

establishing a quinine manufactory at Huanuco. The plan, if well

carried out, would certainly be attended with success. There is in

Bolivia an establishment of this kind conducted by a Frenchman; but

the quinine produced is very impure. The inhabitants of the Peruvian

forests drink an infusion of the green bark as a remedy against

intermitting fever. I have found it in many cases much more

efficacious than the dried kind, for less than half the usual dose

produces, in a short time, convalescence, and the patient is secure

against returning febrile attacks.

A class of Indians who live far back in the heart of the woods of

Southern Peru and Bolivia employ themselves almost exclusively in

gathering balsams and odorous gums from resinous plants, many of which

are burned in the churches as incense. They also collect various

objects, supposed to be sympathetic remedies, such as the claws of the

tapir, against falling sickness; and the teeth of poisonous snakes

which, carefully fixed in leaves, and stuck into the tubes of rushes,

are regarded as powerful specifics against headache and blindness.

Various salves, plasters, powders, seeds, roots, barks, &c., to each of

which is attributed some infallible curative power, are prepared and

brought to market by the Indians. When the rainy season sets in they

leave the forest and proceed in parties to the mountainous country. On

these occasions, contrary to the general custom of the Indians, the men,

not the women, carry the burthens. They are accompanied by the women as

far as the Sierra; for the loads, which are often very heavy, graze the

backs of the men who carry them, and the women then act as surgeons. The

injured part is first carefully washed with copaiba balsam, moistened,

then covered with leaves fixed on with small strips of leather, overlaid

with the hide of some forest animal. These operations being performed,

the loads are again fastened on the backs of the Indians. In their

native forests these people wear but little clothing. Their dress is

limited to a sort of loose tunic without sleeves for the women, and for

the men merely a piece of cloth fastened round the waist. They go

barefooted; but they paint their feet and legs with the juice of the

Huito (_Genipa oblongifolia_, R. Pav.) in such a manner that they seem

to be wearing half-boots. The juice of the Huito has the effect of

protecting them against the stings of insects. The coloring adheres so

strongly to the skin that it cannot be washed off by water; but oil

speedily removes it. In the Sierra these Indians put on warmer clothing,

and on their feet they wear a kind of boots called _aspargetas_, made of

the plaited tendrils of plants.

The stock of balsams and drugs being disposed of, the Indians, after a

few months' absence, return to their homes. Some of them, however,

wander to the distance of two or three hundred leagues from their native

forests, traversing the greater part of Peru, and even visiting Lima,

carrying large flask gourds filled with balsams. These wandering tribes

seek frequent contact with other nations. They are not distrustful and

reserved, but, on the contrary, annoyingly communicative. It is not easy

to discover the cause of this exception, or to ascertain the time when

the Indians began to travel the country as physicians and apothecaries.

The earliest writers on the oldest epochs of Peruvian history make no

mention of this race of medical pedlars.

The Indians here alluded to all profess Christianity, and must, as

_Indios Christianos_, in strict correctness, be distinguished from the

wild Indians, _Indios Bravos_, who exclusively inhabit the eastern

Montanas of Peru, towards the frontiers of Brazil. These Indios Bravos

comprehend numerous tribes, each of which has its own customs, religion,

and also, in general, its own language. Only very few of them are known,

for since the overthrow of the missions there is little communication

with them. Respecting the Indios Bravos who inhabit the Montanas of

Southern Peru, I have been unable to collect any accurate information.

They remain quite unknown, for impenetrable wilds intervene between them

and the civilized world, and seldom has a European foot ventured into

their territory. The wild Indians in Central Peru are most set against

the Christians, particularly those called Iscuchanos, in the Montana de

Huanta, and those known by the name of Chunchos, in the Montana de

Vitoc. The Iscuchanos sometimes maintain with the inhabitants of Huanta

a trade of barter; but this intercourse is occasionally interrupted by

long intervals of hostility, during which the Iscuchanos, though rather

an inoffensive race, commit various depredations on the Huantanos;

driving the cattle from the pastures, carrying off the produce of the

soil, and spreading terror throughout the whole district. Some years

ago, when the inhabitants of Huanta had assembled for the procession of

the Festival of Corpus Christi, a troop of Iscuchanos came upon them

with wild bulls, turning the infuriated animals against the procession,

which was dispersed, and many of the Huantanos were killed or severely

wounded. These Iscuchanos are so favored by the locality of the district

they inhabit, that even were a military expedition sent to drive them

farther back into the woods, it would probably be unsuccessful.

The Chunchos are far more dangerous, and are one of the most formidable

races of the Indios Bravos. They inhabit the most southern part of the

Pampa del Sacramento (the terra incognita of Peru), and chiefly the

district through which flow the rivers Chanchamayo and Perene. Those

regions are inhabited by a great number of tribes, most of which are

only known by name. The frontier neighbors of the Chunchos are the

sanguinary Campas or Antes who destroyed the missions of Jesus Maria in

Pangoa, and who still occasionally pay hostile visits to San

Buenaventura de Chavini, the extreme Christian outpost in the Montana de

Andamarca. The savage race of the Casibos, the enemies of all the

surrounding populations, inhabit the banks of the river Pachitea. This

race maintains incessant war with all the surrounding tribes, and

constantly seeks to destroy them. According to the accounts of the

missionaries, they, as well as the Antes and Chunchos, are still

cannibals, and undertake warlike expeditions for the purpose of

capturing prisoners, whom they devour. After the rainy season, when

the Simirinches, the Amapuahas, or Consbos, hunt in the western

forests, they often fall into the hands of the Casibos, who imitate in

perfection the cries of the forest animals, so that the hunters are

treacherously misled, and being captured, are carried off as victims.

Many horrible accounts of this barbarous tribe were related by the

missionaries centuries ago, when romantic stories and exaggerations of

every kind were the order of the day; but the most recent

communications of the missionaries from Ocopa confirm the fact, that

in the year 1842, the Casibos continued to be savage Anthropophagi. It

is worthy of remark that they never eat women, a fact which some may

be inclined to attribute to respect for the female sex. It is,

however, assignable to a different feeling. All the South American

Indians, who still remain under the influence of sorcery and

empiricism, consider women in the light of impure and evil beings, and

calculated to injure them. Among a few of the less rude nations this

aversion is apparent in domestic life, in a certain unconquerable

contempt of females. With the Anthropophagi the feeling extends,

fortunately, to their flesh, which is held to be poisonous.

The languages spoken by the wild Indian tribes are very various. From

the Maranon to Omaguas, Quichua, the language of the Incas, is spoken.

On the left bank of the Ucayali the dialect of the Panos prevails. On

the right bank the Cascas, the Sinabus, and the Diabus, preserve their

own idioms, which are so different that those races are reciprocally

unable to communicate with each other. On Upper Ucayali evidences of

common origin are said to be apparent between the Simirinches, Campas,

Runaguas, and Mochobos. But on this subject no accurate conclusions

can be formed; for the accounts given by the missions in early periods

were very imperfect, and most of the races are so intractable that it

has since been impossible to collect correct information. According

to the accounts of travelled missionaries which I had the opportunity

of examining in the convent of Ocopa, it appears that, besides the

Quichua, the idioms spoken by the Panos, Cascas, Simirinches, and the

Chunchos, may be set down as dialects of decidedly different origins.

The mode of living among all these Indians is very much the same. War

and hunting in summer, and repairing their warlike weapons in winter,

are the occupations of the men. The women cultivate the fields, lay up

the stores of provisions, fish, spin and cook. Their clothes are of the

most simple kind. Many of the races wear no clothing, and have their

bodies wholly or partially bedaubed with paint. The men of some races

wear a kind of shirt without sleeves, and the women a petticoat reaching

from the waist to the knees. These garments are made of cotton obtained

from the uncultivated tree _Bombax_, and their color is white, blue, or

red. The custom of boring the ears, the nose, and the under lip, for the

insertion of some ornament, is much practised, particularly by the

Panos, Shipeos, and Pirras. They paint their bodies, but not exactly in

the tattoo manner; they confine themselves to single stripes. The Sensis

women draw two stripes from the shoulder, over each breast, down to the

pit of the stomach; the Pirras women paint a band in the form of a

girdle round the waist, and they have three of a darker color round each

thigh. These stripes, when once laid on, can never be removed by

washing. They are made with the unripe fruit of one of the Rubiacaceae.

Some tribes paint the face only; others, on the contrary, do not touch

that part; but bedaub with colors their arms, feet, and breasts.

In hunting, bows and arrows are the principal weapons used by the

Indians. In war they use, besides bows and arrows, clubs and a kind of

sword made of wood. The arrows are reeds, five or six feet long, and

of the thickness of a finger. The point is of very hard wood, and is

strongly barbed by notches and with sharp fish teeth about three

inches long. To the other extremity of the arrow colored feathers are

always affixed.

Among many Indians, particularly in the western and northern districts

of the Pampa del Sacramento, the _Pocuna_ is a weapon much used in

hunting. It is made of a long reed, and measures eight or ten, or even

more, feet. At one end are fixed two teeth of a javali, or white-lipped

peccary (_Dicotyles labiatus_), on which the reed is rested when taking

aim. The arrows, which are only one and a half or two inches long, are

made of the thick part of a strong cactus stem. In general their small

arrows are poisoned, for otherwise the wound would be too inconsiderable

to kill even a little bird. The poison for arrows differs almost with

every tribe, and very mysterious ceremonies are observed at its

preparation. On this account the art of preparing it, and the

ingredients employed, are only very partially known to Europeans. Their

elements are obtained from several plants not yet defined botanically,

among which the _Apihuasca_ and poison capsicum are much resorted to.

Infusions of the leaves of a very strong kind of tobacco, and of the

Sanano (_Tabernaemontana Sanano_, R. P.), and of Euphorbiaceae, are also

taken. Some modern travellers, contrary to the testimony of the oldest

writers on Peru, have asserted that no animal substance is employed in

the poison for arrows. I am, however, enabled to state, on the authority

of an Indian who had himself often made the poison, that not only the

black and very poisonous emmet (_Cryptacereo atrato affin_), but also

the teeth of the formidable serpent, known to the Indians by the name of

Miuamaru or Jergon (_Lachesis picta_, Tsch.), are used for that purpose.

The wound of the poisoned arrow is fatal and rapid. Men and large

mammalia die in about four or five minutes after receiving the wound;

the smaller mammiferous animals and birds, in two minutes. The blow-reed

sends these deadly arrows with great certainty to the distance of

thirty-two or thirty-six paces. Hunting with the blow-reed must be long

practised in order to acquire dexterity in its use, and great caution is

requisite to avoid being self-wounded by the small sharp arrows. An

example came to my knowledge in the case of an Indian who let an arrow

fall unobserved from his quiver; he trod upon it, and it penetrated the

sole of his foot; in a very short time he was a corpse.

The club called _Matusino_ is four or five feet long, and is encircled

in a spiral form at the thick end, by a row of deer's horns. A single

long horn is fastened in the centre, the chief use of which is to

stick it in the earth when the club is rested. Only a few races of

upper and lower Ucayali and the Sensis use this formidable weapon,

which is very inconvenient and obstructive in passing through thick

forests. The _macana_, or wooden sword, is made of strong _chunta_.

The color of this wood is a deep blackish brown; it is very hard and

heavy, and is always used for implements which require great

durability and strength. The macana is about four feet long, one inch

thick, and from five to six inches broad; towards the hilt end the

breadth is about three inches, and it is rounded. It is so well cut

and polished, that a sabre scarcely excels it in sharpness. The weapon

is so heavy that it requires both hands to wield it.

There are not only offensive, but also defensive, weapons. One of the

latter is the _viche_, a very simple shield, one and a half or two feet

in diameter. It consists of a strong frame of twisted creeping plants,

over which the skin of a deer or tapir is stretched and fastened with

twine. On the inside there are two holds for the arm; the edge is

adorned with colored feathers.

The Indians of the races above noticed seldom live in villages, but

chiefly in huts scattered through the forests. Sometimes they construct

a few of their dwellings near together, and so form a hamlet. Their huts

are either quadrangular, oblong, or circular. The walls consist of

strong stems of trees, bound together by twining plants; and the roof is

of palm leaves laid over a skeleton of reeds. The entrance, which is on

the side opposite to the prevailing wind, is left open, and but seldom

protected by a door. At Chanchamayo I saw a very simple kind of hut

among the Chunchos. It resembled an open umbrella with the handle stuck

in the earth. The single wall, which also formed its roof, consisted of

eight long reeds: they spread out below in the form of a fan, standing

obliquely on the earth, and fastened to three stems of trees. On this

simple skeleton were laid lengthways the leaves of the omero, a kind of

palm. A strong stem fixed firmly in the earth, extended obliquely to the

middle of the inner side of the wall, and two thinner stems on each

side, served as supports for this frail building. According to the

direction of the wind the hut is turned round.

The Indian huts all stand detached from each other, and they are seldom

divided internally into apartments. They occupy very little ground,

never more than sixty square feet of superficies. In the principal

settlement of an Indian race, the huts are scattered over a circuit of

some miles in the forests.

Any form of government is a thing quite unknown to most of the Indios

Bravos of Peru. Uniformity of speech, manners, and arms, unite together

a number of Indians, who thus form a race, but there is among them no

bond of subjection, or of duty to any government, either voluntarily

chosen, or self-constituted. Among the inhabitants of Lower Ucayali,

however, the oldest, or the bravest individuals of each race are either

publicly, or silently recognised as chiefs. Respect to age prevails only

among a few of the races, as the Setebos, Mayorhunas, and Panos. Among

others, as the Campos, Casibos, and Cunchos, the old are put to death.

It is a general custom of the wild Indians to kill their aged prisoners

immediately on their being captured.

Social meetings among these races are of rare occurrence. Gloomy,

reserved, and distrustful, the Indian is only at ease in the circle he

has himself formed. When, however, the general interest of the race is

in question, then he comes boldly forward in support of the whole. The

usual assemblages are for the arrangement of long hunting excursions,

and warlike expeditions. The departures and the returns are celebrated

by tumultuous feasts, in which intoxicating drinks flow freely. Most of

the liquors are prepared from Yucca, or the fruits of the Chunta, called

the _Mazato_, or other species of palms. In the most remote forests, and

among the most insulated tribes, the preparation of intoxicating liquors

is known; and there certainly is not in all South America an Indian race

which is not familiar with it. Wild dances form part of the

entertainments, and the banquet usually ends with a sanguinary battle.

Marriage in most races is celebrated socially, but not among those in

which polygamy prevails. The formula observed on the occasion differs in

different tribes; in some the union is effected under painful ceremonies

to the bride, in others with fasting and penitential torments to the

bridegroom. In general the Indian selects a wife for himself. In the

greater number of tribes a maiden is set up as a prize, and the young

men commence a life or death contest for her. The oldest warriors are

arbitrators, and from their hands the conqueror receives the prize. This

is the practice among the inhabitants of the Rio de Santa Catalina. With

them, as well as with most of the tribes of Western Ucayali, the birth

of a child is festively celebrated. The oldest individuals of the race

assemble to receive the child, which is repeatedly blown on to drive

demons and sickness away from it; the name of an animal is then given

to it, and, according to Don Pedro Beltran, the witnesses of the

ceremony mark with a wooden pencil some hieroglyphic characters on two

leaves, which are carefully preserved, and on the death of the Indian,

deposited in the grave with him.

The dead are buried in the huts. The survivors having testified their

sorrow by a melancholy howl three times repeated, leave the place and

build a new residence for themselves in a distant district. They break

in pieces all the household furniture of the deceased, but they bury

with him his warlike weapons and his agricultural implements, under the

conviction that he will use them in the place to which he is going. A

peculiar custom among several races is this: the oldest son cuts a

piece from the heel of his deceased father, which he hangs round his

neck, and wears as a sacred relic. Some of the tribes on the Perene

and Capanegua do not, like most wild nations, respect the remains of

the dead, but throw the bodies into the forest unburied, to be

devoured by beasts of prey.

Very little is correctly known of the religion of the Peruvian Indios

Bravos. All believe in the existence of superior beings, and distinguish

them as good and evil; and they are accordingly venerated from

gratitude, or from fear. The former they regard as beneficent; but the

latter as having the power of bringing into exercise all the destroying

forces of nature. These people, therefore, find in the sky, in the air,

and on the earth, objects for their adoration. Certain constellations

are regarded as favorable phenomena, while others are looked at with a

secret horror. The sun is by all gladly worshipped, more particularly by

the descendants of those who in early times stood in connexion with the

Incas. On the other hand, they pay but a reluctant tribute to the moon,

perhaps because by its pale light fearful images are reflected around

them in the forests, and because its phases are to them involved in

impenetrable mystery. They ascribe thunder and lightning to demoniacal

influences, and to the same origin they attribute certain winds which

have an injurious influence on their health. But their religious notions

are not connected exclusively with the phenomena of nature, which are to

them inexplicable. With all their ideas on surrounding nature, two

conflicting principles are invariably connected, one of which is

believed to be beneficial, the other injurious to them. In the animals

of the forest, the plants, the stones, in everything, they trace these

beneficent or demoniacal powers. Every idea, every action is with them a

consequence of the influence of one of these two powers, and free will

is impossible. Though a rude materialism cripples the intelligence of

these Indians, yet they seem to be sensible of the connexion between

that which is perceptible to their senses, and something

higher--something beyond the sphere of corporeal perception. But of the

nature of this higher something they have no comprehension, nor do they

endeavor to render to themselves any account of it. They are satisfied

with an obscure idea of the difference between the visible and the

invisible; but still this idea is so contracted that they always give to

the spiritual a corporeal form: and they attribute to natural objects

with which they come most in contact, the possession of good or evil

qualities, thus assigning to them the nature of spiritual beings.

None of these tribes appear, as yet, to have advanced so far as to be

impressed with the persuasion that the whole of nature is guided by

unchangeable laws over which one will presides. In general, they have

no idea of a spiritual unity, and are utter strangers to the knowledge

of one God. They all, however, believe in the immortality of the soul.

They see the lifeless body, they have certain proof that the earthly

integument is no longer the abode of the soul; but, as they can form

no notion of anything spiritual entirely self-existent, they imagine

that their dead will, in new life, appear under a new bodily form. The

several tribes differ greatly in their belief of the nature of the

metamorphoses which they expect to take place. Those who look forward

to the re-appearance of the deceased in human life, bury with the men

hunting and agricultural instruments; but their notions even on this

head are not very clear, and when questioned on the subject their

answers are very confused. They say that they are going to a very

beautiful place, far from their present dwelling; but, according to

their conception, it appears that the place, though distant, is still

on earth. Those races who believe in metamorphoses into the forms of

the lower animals, are persuaded that the dead in their new forms will

inhabit the woods around their homes, and avenge the wrongs they have

suffered during life. This is the belief of the inhabitants of Upper

Ucayali and Pachitea.

In considering the physical formation of the wild Indians, we may class

them according to their natural divisions, viz., the inhabitants of the

more highly situated lands, or mountains, and those of the low hot flat

country. The former dwell on the eastern side of the hill-chain,

dividing the river territory of the Huallaga and Ucayali, and spreading

to the banks of the Chauchamayo, Perene, and Apurimac. These are the

Iscuchanos. They are rather tall and generally slim; their limbs are

vigorous; their hands and feet small, and in walking their toes are much

turned in. The head is proportionally large, with very strong bones; the

forehead is low, the eyes small and animated, the nose large and rather

sharp, the cheek-bones a little prominent. The mouth is not large, and

the lips are delicately formed, but often disfigured by ornaments. The

ears are small, quite the reverse of those of the Indians of the flat

lands. The pointed chin is only sparingly covered with beard, which does

not appear until advanced age, and on the cheeks there is none. The hair

of the head is long, stiff, and of a brilliant black. Many of the tribes

dye their hair; the Chunchos dye it red, and the Antis are said to dye

it blue; as to the latter color it appears to me improbable, but I

mention it on the authority of Friar Leceta. The skin is fine and soft,

the color a deep rusty brown. In speaking of the South American Indians,

it is usual to describe their skin as copper color, but this term is

incorrect, for there certainly is no single tribe to which it might be

perfectly applicable. It appears to me that the color of all is much

fainter, and tending more to brown or yellow. "Rusty brown," if the

expression may be used, appears to me far more descriptive.

The second natural section of the wild Indians inhabits the northern

part of the Pampa del Sacramento, the banks of the Ucayali, and of the

Maranon. They are smaller than those just described. There is a

certain peculiarity in the make of these people; for though they are

broad over the shoulders yet their chests are flat, and their shoulder

blades lie low. Their limbs are lank, and their hands rather small;

the soles of the feet are broad and flat. The face is broad, the eyes

long shaped, the pupil deeply set, the nose is flat, with large

oblique nostrils, and the cheek-bones are prominent. The mouth is

wide, the lips thick, and among some tribes the mouth and nose are

very close together. The chin is small and round, the ears large and

standing out from the head. The hair and beard of these Indians are

the same as in those of the hilly country. The color of the skin

varies much; in some it is a light reddish brown; in others, a kind of

yellow, very like that of the Mongols. The women of all these tribes

are exceedingly ugly, and far from corresponding with the picture a

European imagination might form of the daughters of the aboriginal

forests. These women soon become old, for they not only fulfil female

duties, but execute the greater part of those severer labors which

ought to fall to the share of the stronger sex.

To the above outline sketch of the human inhabitants of the aboriginal

forests, I will now add some description of the animal world, as it came

under my observation in those luxuriant regions.

Unlike the peaceful repose which presides over animal life on the level

heights, are the constant aggressions and combats which prevail in the

forest regions. There the strong attack the weak, and the cunning

inveigle the unwary: strength and intelligence, caution and instinct,

are unceasingly in active operation. The variegated forms and colors

which meet the eye, and the multifarious cries and tones which resound

through the woods, form, altogether, the most singular contrast. The

gold-feathered colibri hums lightly through the air, soaring over the

heavy, sombre-colored tapir. The sprightly singing-bird pours forth his

melodious chants amidst the thick foliage of the aged trees, whilst the

fierce ounce, prowling for his prey, growls as he passes over their

enormous, spreading roots. Slowly do the eye and the ear learn to

distinguish individuals in the vast mass of apparent chaotic confusion,

and to recognise quickly fleeting forms, or distant resounding sounds.

The whole of the animal world is here developed to the view, and it

would be difficult to assign the predominance to any one class. Yet,

perhaps, the variegated feathered tribe is relatively most extensively

represented. The number of the mammalia is also important. They are

seldom seen by the hunter during the day, but twilight draws them from

their hiding-places.

Troops of monkeys skip from tree to tree, looking timidly around, and

uttering mournful howls. Among them are swarms of the black marimonda

(_Ateles_), with slender long arms and red-brown or black faces; in some

the faces are encircled with white hair (_Ateles marginatus_, Geoff.),

which gives them a striking resemblance to an old negro. Next is seen a

group of silver-grey monkeys (_Lagothrix Humboldtii_, Geoff.), stalking

over heaps of broken branches and twigs in search of a resting-place.

These monkeys, which are the largest in South America, are about three

feet high, and are bold and vicious. When wounded they take a position

of defence against the hunter, struggling, and uttering loud cries, upon

which their companions hasten down from the trees to assist them. But

soon a short stifled cry is heard: it is the cry of mortal convulsion.

That sound drives them instantly back, and they disperse in wild flight.

The sly sayu ventures to approach the dwellings of men, where he

plunders maize fields with incredible dexterity. The delicate

silky-haired monkey, shivering at every cool breeze or shower of rain,

and starting at the slightest noise, creeps for shelter into the

thicket, where he lies peeping with his penetrating eyes in the

direction of the apprehended danger.

At sunset swarms of bats flutter through field and forest in all

directions, and greedily devour the insects which in the twilight awaken

to full activity. Some of these bats (_Phyllostoma hastatum_, Geoff.)

are remarkable for their expanse of wing, which measures nearly two

feet. Others are distinguished for ugliness and for their offensive

smell. These latter fly into the Indian huts at night and greatly annoy

the inhabitants, who cannot get rid of them by fire or smoke, or any

other means, until at the midnight hour they retire of their own accord.

Not less troublesome are the leaf-nosed bats (_Phyllostoma_), which

attack both man and beast. This bat rubs up the skin of his victim, from

which he sucks the blood. The domestic animals suffer greatly from the

nocturnal attacks of these bats, and many are destroyed by the

exhaustion consequent on the repeated blood-sucking. The blood drawn by

the bat itself does not exceed a few ounces; but if, when satisfied, it

drops down to the ground, or flies away, the wound continues to bleed

for a long time, and in the morning the animal is often found in a very

weak condition, and covered with blood. One of my mules, on which a

leaf-nosed bat made a nightly attack, was only saved by having his back

rubbed with an ointment made of spirits of camphor, soap and petroleum.

The blood-suckers have such an aversion to the smell of this ointment

that on its application they ceased to approach the mule. These bats are

very mischievous in the plantations of the forests, where beasts of

burden and horned cattle are exposed to their attacks. Whether they

venture to assail man has been a much disputed question. Several

travellers declare that they do not. I may, however, mention a case

which occurred within my own knowledge. A bat (_Ph. erythromos_, Tsch.)

fastened on the nose of an Indian lying intoxicated in a plantation, and

sucked so much blood that it was unable to fly away. The slight wound

was followed by such severe inflammation and swelling that the features

of the Cholo were not recognisable.

Many beasts of prey, and among them some of formidable strength and

fierceness, make havoc among the other animals of the forests. In the

lofty Montanas the black bear (_U. frugilegus_, Tsch.) roams as wild as

his fellow-depredator of the Cordillera. He often enters the maize

fields of the Indians, breaks the stalks of the plants and drags the

green tops away to his hole. When this bear cannot obtain his customary

vegetable food, consisting chiefly of the fruits of a pandanea

(_Phytelephas_), he watches for the deer and wild boars, or attacks the

oxen employed to turn the machinery in the sugar-mills: he has even

been known to assail solitary travellers. The lively coatis traverse the

forests in flocks. They collect round the roots of trees and search for

the larvae of insects; light-footed, they climb up bush and tree to find

birds' nests, and feast on the eggs and the young. With a monotonous

howl, not unlike that made by some dogs on a clear moonlight night, the

yellow-breasted glutton (_Galictis barbara_, Wieg.), the omeyro of the

Indians, announces his presence. But the most fierce of all these wild

forest animals are those of the feline class. The spotless dark-grey

yaguarundi, not much larger than the wild cat of Europe, pursues all

kinds of birds, particularly the pigeon, the partridge, and the

penelope. The oscollo (_F. celidogaster_, Tem.), the uturunca (_F.

pardalis_, L.), and the long-tailed, yellowish-grey tiger-cat (_F.

macrourura_, Pr. M.), all lie in wait, not only for the weaker mammalia,

but sometimes they even venture into the plantations and kill dogs and

poultry. The maneless Mexican Lion (the puma) roams through the upper

regions of the forest, where he has almost undisputed hunting-ground. He

fearlessly assails victims who cannot effectually defend themselves,

such as the horse, the mule, and the ass, and he tears large pieces of

flesh from their ribs; but he does not venture to meddle with oxen. He

shuns men, and in the forest he even flies from the unarmed Indian. I

fired at a very large puma, which immediately fled, roaring loudly.

When severely wounded and driven into a corner, this animal frequently

commences a combat of despair, and sometimes kills the hunter. The

puma measures in length about four feet, and in height more than two

feet. More direful than any of the felines mentioned above is the

sanguinary ounce,[81] which possesses vast strength, and is of a most

savage disposition. Though the favorite haunts of this animal are the

expansive Pajonales, yet he frequently takes up his abode in the

vicinity of villages and plantations, spreading terror among the

inhabitants. Far from being intimidated at the sight of men, he often

attacks individuals, and when pressed by hunger is not afraid, even

in broad daylight, to slip into the forest villages in order to carry

off food, and the booty, when once seized, is not easily recovered.

An amusing example of this occurred in the Montana of Vitoc. An Indian

one night heard his only pig squeaking loudly, as if in pain. He

hastened to the door of his hut to see what was the matter, and he

discovered that an ounce had seized the pig by the head, and was

carrying it off. The Cholo, who determined to make an effort to recover

his property, seized the pig by the hind legs, and endeavored to drag it

from the grasp of the robber. This contest was kept up for some time,

the ounce, with his eyes glaring in the darkness, holding fast the head

of the pig, and the Indian pulling it hard by the legs. At length the

Indian's wife came to the door of the hut with a lighted fagot, and the

scared ounce, with terrible howlings, slowly retired to the forest. In

general the Indians have a great dread of these animals, and seldom

venture singly into the parts they frequent. The ounce hunter is the

only one who ventures to approach them. He is armed with a long spear,

with which he gives the ferocious animal a death-blow. He lets the ounce

come within a few paces of him without making the least show either of

flight or attack. If, however, the stroke he aims does not immediately

reach the seat of life, the hunter, in general, becomes the victim of

his bold attempt. Before he can stand on his defence, the wounded ounce

drags him to the ground, and tears the flesh from his bones.

Sometimes the villagers collect their dogs together for a general hunt.

They drive the ounce into a place from whence there is no escape, or

often up a tree, where they shoot him with long arrows sent from their

bows or blow-tubes. In a few places snares are laid, or large holes are

dug, and a sharp-pointed stake is stuck in the middle, covered with

stalks and branches of trees, on which the bait is laid. The ounce is,

however, too cunning to be easily caught in traps, and it is only when

pressed by hunger that he can be tempted by a bait. In some districts

the ounces have increased so greatly, and done so much damage, that the

natives have been compelled to remove and settle in other places. I need

only refer to the Quebrada of Mayunmarca, in the Montana of Huanta,

near the road to Anco. There once stood the little village of Mayumarca,

which has been abandoned for more than a hundred years, as it was found

that the jaguars annually decimated the inhabitants; this Quebrada is

still in such bad repute that not a single Indian will venture into it.

There is a black variety of the ounce, by many erroneously regarded as a

distinct species. It has the identical marks of the common jaguar, or

ounce, only its color is a dark, blackish-brown, whereby the whole of

the black spots are rendered indistinct. On the lower banks of the

Ucayali and the Maranon this dark variety is more frequently met with

than in the higher forests; in the Montanas of Huanta and Urubamba it is

also not uncommon. It is upon the whole larger, stronger, and more

daring than the lighter kind, and I have actually seen many black

skins which exceeded the usual length; but of specific distinctions

there is no indication. The superstitious Indians assign extraordinary

powers to everything that departs from the common course; the black

ounce is, accordingly, supposed to possess singular properties. The

yana chinca holds a prominent place in the religious ceremonies of

some of the Indian races.

Turning from these fierce natives of the forest, we will now take a

glimpse at the peaceful inhabitants of those umbrageous regions. In

the hollow stems of trees, or among their canopied branches, are found

the timid marsupial animals (_Did. impavida_, and _noctivaga_, Tsch.).

These animals remain in obscure holes until the sun sinks beneath the

horizon, when they slip out in search of insects and fruit. Not

unfrequently they penetrate into the slightly guarded Indian huts,

creeping into every corner, until at last they are caught in traps

baited with pieces of banana and pine-apple. The lofty

_Terebinthaceae_, with their walnut-like fruit, are inhabited by

swarms of squirrels, which strongly remind the European of his own

woods. Numbers of the mouse family, from the small tree-mouse

(_Drymomys parvulus_, Tsch.) to the large, loathsome, spinous rat

(_Echinomys leptosoma_, Wagn.) swarm over all the Montanas, and love

to approximate to the dwellings of man. These animals destroy the

gathered harvest, and even in these remote regions they become a

plague. It is a striking fact, that certain animals are almost

inseparable from man. They keep with him, or follow him wherever he

settles. The mouse genus is one of these. On the coast, mice are not

the same as on the mountains, and in the forests they are again

different. Everywhere they leave their original dwelling-places, which

they exchange for an abode with man. As the mouse and the rat attack

the gathered fruits of the earth, the agouti preys on those yet

standing in the field. These animals are seldom found in the depths of

the forest, but more frequently on its edge near the chacras of the

Indians. Shortly before sunset they leave the thickets, and stealthily

repair to the maize, yucca, and anana fields, where they scratch up the

root and eat the grain and fruit; but the slightest noise drives them

back to their holes. In the deeper recesses of the forest resounds the

monotonous, drawling cry of the sloth. Here we have a symbol of life

under the utmost degree of listlessness, and of the greatest

insensibility in a state of languid repose. This emblem of misery fixes

itself on an almost leafless bough, and there remains defenceless; a

ready prey to any assailant. Better defended is the scale-covered

armadillo, with his coat of mail. Towards evening he burrows deep holes

in the earth, and searches for the larvae of insects, or he ventures out

of the forest, and visits the yucca fields, where he digs up the

well-flavored roots. The ant-eater rakes up with his long curved claws

the crowded resorts of ants, stretches out his long, spiral, and

adhesive tongue, into the midst of the moving swarm, and draws it back

covered with a multitude of crawling insects.

In the soft marshy grounds, or in the damp shady recesses of the

forests, the heavy tapir reposes during the heat of the day; but when

the fresh coolness of evening sets in, he roves through the forest,

tears the tender twigs from the bushes, or seeks food in the

grass-covered Pajonales. Sometimes a multitude of tapirs sally from the

forests into the cultivated fields, to the great alarm of the Indians. A

broad furrow marks the tract along which they have passed, and the

plants they encounter in their progress are trampled down or devoured.

Such a visit is particularly fatal to the coca fields; for the tapirs

are extremely fond of the leaves of the low-growing coca plant, and they

often, in one night, destroy a coca field which has cost a poor Indian

the hard labor of a year.

Flocks of the umbilical hog, or peccary, traverse the level Montanas. If

one of them is attacked by the hunter, a whole troop falls furiously on

him, and it is only by promptly climbing up a tree that he can escape;

then, whizzing and grunting, they surround the stem, and with their

snouts turn up the earth round the root, as if intending to pull down

the tree and so get at their enemy. The stag lurks in the thicket to

withdraw from the eyes of the greedy ounce; but towards evening he

leaves his hiding place, and sometimes strays beyond the boundary of the

forest; he ventures into the maize fields of the plantations, where he

tarries until night is far advanced.

The same diversity of nature and habits is seen in the numerous hosts of

birds that inhabit the leafy canopies of the forest. On the loftiest

trees, or on detached rocks, eagles, kites, and falcons, build their

eyries. The most formidable of these birds of prey, both for boldness

and strength, the _Morphnus harpyia_, Cab., darts down on the largest

animals, and fears not to encounter the fiercest inhabitants of the

forest. The owl (_Noctua_, _Scops_, _Strix_), and the goat-milker

(_Caprimulgus_, _Hydropsalis_, _Chordiles_), fly with softly flapping

wings to their hunting quarters to surprise their victims while asleep.

In the hilly parts of the Montanas the black ox-bird (_Cephalopterus

ornatus_, Geoff.), the _Toropishu_ of the Indians, fills the forest with

his distant bellow, similar to the roaring of a bull. The _Tunqui_[82]

inhabits the same district. This bird is of the size of a cock; the body

is bright red, but the wings are black. The head is surmounted by a tuft

of red feathers, beneath which the orange bill projects with a slight

curve. It lives sociably with other birds in thickets, or among Cinchona

trees, the fruit of which is part of its food. Its harsh cry resembles

the grunt of the hog, and forms a striking contrast to its beautiful

plumage. Numberless fly-catchers and shrikes (_Muscicapidae_ and

_Laniadae_) hover on tree and bush, watching for the passing insects,

which they snatch up with extraordinary dexterity. Finches twitter on

the summits of the loftiest trees beyond the reach of the hunter's shot:

they are distinguished, like the _Ampelidae_, who, however, live amongst

the lower bushes, by the lively and almost dazzling colors of their

feathers. In modest plumage of cinnamon-brown, with head and neck of

dark olive, the _Organista_[83] raises, in the most woody parts of the

forest, her enchanting song, which is usually the prognostic of an

approaching storm. The tender, melancholy strains and the singular

clearness of the innumerable modulations charm the ear of the astonished

traveller, who, as if arrested by an invisible power, stops to listen to

the syren, unmindful of the danger of the threatening storm. On old

decayed stumps of trees the busy creeper[84] and the variegated

woodpecker are seen pecking the insects from under the loose bark, or by

their tapping bring them out of their concealed crevices; while the

red-tailed potter-bird (_Opetiorynchus ruficandus_, Pr. Max.) builds his

dwelling of potter's clay, or loam, as firmly as if it were destined to

last for ever. The pouched starlings[85] hang their nests, often four or

five feet long, on the slender branches of trees, where they swing to

and fro with the slightest breath of wind. Like a dazzling flash of

colored light the colibri (humming-bird) appears and disappears. No

combination of gorgeous coloring can exceed that which is presented in

the plumage of the golden-tailed humming or fly-bird (_Trochilus

chrysurus_, Cuv.) which haunts the warm primeval forests, but it is

still more frequently found in the pure atmosphere of the ceja-girded

Montanas. The silky cuckoo (_Trogon heliothrix_, Tsch.) retires into the

thickest masses of foliage, from which its soft rose-colored plumage

peeps out like a flower. The cry of the voracious chuquimbis[86]

accompanies the traveller from his first steps in the Montanas to his

entrance into the primeval forests, where he finds their relative, _Dios

te de_.[87] This bird accompanies its significant cry by throwing back

its head and making a kind of rocking movement of its body. The Indians,

who are always disposed to connect superstitious ideas with the natural

objects they see around them, believe that some great misfortune will

befall any one who may shoot this bird, because it utters the sacred

word, _Dios_. Long trains of green parrots fill the air with their noisy

chattering. One kind of these birds (_Ps. mercenarius_, Tsch.) is

remarkable for regular migrations. Every morning they sally forth in

flocks from the upper to the lower forests, where they pass the day, and

they regularly return before sunset to their roosting-places. From year

to year these parrots leave their night quarters daily at the same hour,

and return with equal punctuality before sunset. This regularity of

departing and returning has caused the natives to give them the name of

_Jornaleros_ (day-laborers). From the depth of the forests sounds often

arise which resemble human voices, and the astonished hunter then

believes that he is in the vicinity of his companions, or, perhaps, of

hostile Indians. He eagerly listens, and it is only when well acquainted

with the sounds of the winged inhabitants of the woods that he can

recognise the melancholy tones of the wood-pigeons (_C. infuscata_,

Licht.; _C. melancholica_, Tsch.). When day begins to depart, groups of

the pheasant-like Hachahuallpa[88] assemble, and with the cry of _Ven

aca_, _Ven aca_,[89] summon their distant companions.

Not only are the trees of the forests peopled with myriads of birds,

but the earth has also its feathered inhabitants, who seldom soar

above the level of the soil. They build their nests among the roots

and fallen branches, and depend for movement more on their feet than

on their wings. Among those members of the winged tribe, who show no

disposition to soar into the regions of air, we find here the

turcassa, a pigeon with richly-shaded plumage; the beautifully

speckled toothed fowl (_Odontophorus speciosus_, Tsch.), and

short-tailed grass fowl, or crake,[90] whose flesh when cooked is

delicately white and finely flavored. In marshy places and on the

slimy banks of rivers, the jabiru (_Mycteria americana_, L.) loves to

wade, together with the rose-colored spoon-bill (_Platalea ajaja_,

L.); the fish-devouring ibis (_Tantalus loculator_, L.), the

curved-billed snipe (_Rhynchoea Hilaerea_, Val.), the party-colored

cranes, plovers, land-rails, shrites, and even sea-swallows.[91] In

the rivers there are ducks: these birds are, perhaps, carried down by

the currents from the Andes, or, possibly, they fly in great trains

from the inner waters of Brazil.

Of the amphibia in the principal forests of Peru, only the great

fresh-water tortoise (_Hydraspis expansa_, Fitz.) is useful to the

natives. On the sandy banks of rivers this animal buries its eggs, from

which the Indians extract oil: its flesh, also, supplies well-flavored

food. All other animals of this class are objects of terror, or at least

of aversion, to the Indians. In the warm sand of the river banks, lies

the lazy caiman.[92] He keeps his jaws wide open, only closing them to

swallow the innumerable flies which he catches on his tongue. To the

helplessness of these animals when on land, the natives have to be

thankful that they are not the most dangerous scourges of the forest: in

water, their boldness and swiftness of motion are fearful. The number of

lizards here is not great, nor do they attain so considerable a size as

in other equatorial regions. The serpents are to be feared, and on

approaching them, it is not easy to decide at the first view whether

they belong to a poisonous or innoxious species. In the forests, where

the fallen leaves lie in thick, moist layers, the foot of the hunter

sinks deep at every step. Multitudes of venomous amphibia are hatched

in the half-putrescent vegetable matter, and he who inadvertently steps

on one of these animals may consider himself uncommonly fortunate if he

can effect his retreat without being wounded. But it is not merely in

these places, which seem assigned by nature for their abode, that

loathsome reptiles are found: they creep between the roots of large

trees, under the thickly interwoven brushwood, on the open grass plots,

and in the maize and sugar-cane fields of the Indians: nay, they crawl

even into their huts, and most fortunate is it for the inhabitants of

those districts that the number of the venomous, compared with the

innoxious reptiles, is comparatively small. Of the poisonous serpents,

only a few kinds are known whose bite is attended with very dangerous

consequences. The _Miuamaru_, or _Jergon_ (_Lachesis picta_, Tsch.), is,

at most, three feet long, with a broad, heart-shaped head, and a thick

upper lip. It haunts the higher forests, while in those lower down his

place is filled by his no less fearful relative _Flammon_ (_Lachesis

rhombeata_, Prince Max.), which is six or seven feet in length. These

serpents are usually seen coiled almost in a circle, the head thrust

forward, and the fierce, treacherous-looking eyes glaring around,

watching for prey, upon which they pounce with the swiftness of an

arrow; then, coiling themselves up again, they look tranquilly on the

death-struggle of the victim. It would appear that these amphibia have

a perfect consciousness of the dreadful effect of their poisonous

weapon, for they use it when they are neither attacked nor threatened,

and they wound not merely animals fit for their food, but all that

come within their reach. More formidable than the two snakes just

described, but happily much less common, is the brown, ten-inch long

viper.[93] It is brown, with two rows of black circular spots. The

effect of its bite is so rapid, that it kills a strong man in two or

three minutes. So convinced are the natives of its inevitably fatal

result, that they never seek any remedy; but immediately on receiving

the wound, lay themselves down to die. In the Montanas of Pangoa this

viper abounds more than in any other district, and never without

apprehension do the Cholos undertake their annual journey for the coca

harvest, as they fear to fall victims to the bite of this viper. The

warning sound of the rattlesnake is seldom heard in the hot Montanas,

and never in the higher regions.

Nature, who in almost all things has established an equilibrium,

supplies the natives with remedies against the bite of the serpent. One

of the cures most generally resorted to is the root of the amarucachu

(_Polianthes tuberosa_, L.), cut into slips and laid upon the wound.

Another is the juice of the creeping plant called vejuco de huaco

(_Mikania Huaco_, Kth.), which is already very widely celebrated. This

latter remedy was discovered by the negroes of the equatorial province,

Choco. They remarked that a sparrow-hawk, called the _huaco_, picked up

snakes for its principal food, and when bitten by one it flew to the

vejuco and ate some of the leaves. At length the Indians thought of

making the experiment on themselves, and when bitten by serpents they

drank the expressed juice of the leaves of the vejuco, and constantly

found that the wound was thereby rendered harmless. The use of this

excellent plant soon became general; and in some places the belief of

the preservative power of the vejuco juice was carried so far that men

in good health were inoculated with it. In this process some spoonfuls

of the expressed fluid are drunk, and afterwards some drops are put into

incisions made in the hands, feet, and breast. The fluid is rubbed into

the wounds by fresh vejuco leaves. After this operation, according to

the testimony of persons worthy of credit, the bite of the poisonous

snake fails for a long time to have any evil effect. Besides the two

plants mentioned above, many others are used with more or less favorable

results. The inhabitants of the Montana also resort to other means,

which are too absurd to be detailed here; yet their medicines are often

of benefit, for their operation is violently reactive. They usually

produce the effect of repeated emetics, and cause great perspiration.

There is much difference in the modes of external treatment of the

wound, and burning is often employed. I saw an Indian apply to his

wife's foot, which had been bitten, a plaster, consisting of moist

gunpowder, pulverised sulphur, and finely-chopped tobacco, mixed up

together. He laid this over the wounded part and set fire to it. This

application, in connexion with one of the nausea-exciting remedies taken

inwardly, had a successful result.

Innoxious snakes[94] wind on tendrilled climbing plants, or lie like

necklaces of coral on the brown decayed leaves (_Elap. affinis_, Fitz.).

Where the branches of rivers enter the gloomy forests and form little

narrow lagunes, over which the high trees spread in vaulted cupolas

almost impervious to the light of day, there dwells the powerful giant

snake (_Eunectes murinus_, Wagl.), called by the Indians, in their

figurative language, _yacumaman_, "mother of the waters." Stretched in

listless repose, or winding round the stem of an old tree, bathing her

tail in the cool lagune, she watches wistfully for the animals of the

forest who come to the waters to quench their thirst. Whilst she gazes

at her distant prey, the fascinating power of her eyes seems to subdue

the trembling victim, and, unable even to attempt escape, he falls an

easy sacrifice.

The amphibia of the frog species, which lie concealed in silent repose

during the day, raise, after sunset, their far-sounding voices. The

violet colored throat-bladder (_Cystignathus silvestris_, Tsch.)

maintains his loud, uniform croak beneath the bushes, or penetrates into

the huts of the inhabitants. The _trapichero_, or sugar-mill frog, is a

large species, almost half a foot in length. Its croak resembles very

much the grating sound caused by the working of a sugar mill, for which

reason the natives have given it the name of trapichero, or the

_sugar-miller_. The croaking of these frogs, whose manifold tones blend

together in confused union, augments not a little the distressing

dreariness of a forest night.

Of the numerous species of insects which swarm in these regions, few are

remarkable for beauty; but many fix attention by their peculiar habits.

The bites and stings of numbers of them are very dangerous, and it

requires much caution to guard against their attacks.

Variegated butterflies flutter noiselessly among the spreading branches

of the trees, or sun themselves on the warm masses of fallen leaves. The

most remarkable of these butterflies is the large atlas, whose

brilliant blue tints shine out with lustrous radiance in the dim light

of the forest. Along the banks of rivers, and especially in hot marshy

spots, small musquitoes swarm. The bite of this animal produces an

intolerable burning sensation, and often causes considerable

inflammation. But more troublesome, and also much more numerous, are the

stinging-flies (_sancudos_). On my first arrival in the Montana, I lay

several days exceedingly ill in consequence of severe swelling of the

head and limbs, caused by the bites of these insects. To the inhabitant

of the forest the sancudos are an incessant torment. In no season of the

year, in no hour of the day or night, is there any respite from their

attacks. Rubbing the body with unctuous substances, together with the

caustic juices of certain plants, and at night enclosing one's self in a

tent made of _tucuyo_ (cotton cloth), or palm-tree bast, are the only

means of protection against their painful stings. The clothes commonly

worn are not sufficient, for they are perforated by the long sting of

the larger species, particularly of the much-dreaded

_huir-pasimi-sancudo_ (Lip-gnat). Regularly every evening at twilight

fresh swarms of these mischievous insects make their appearance.

The ticks (_ixodes_) are a class of insects destined by nature for the

suction of plants; but they often forsake trees, shrubs, and grasses, to

fasten on man and other animals. With their long sharp stings they make

punctures, in which they insert their heads, and thereby occasion very

painful sores. These insects appear to have no preference for any

particular class of animals. They are often found on the hair of dead

mammalia, and among the feathers of birds which have been shot; even the

toad, the frog, and the scaly lizard are not spared by them. Much more

troublesome than these insects are the antanas, which are not visible to

the naked eye. They penetrate the surface of the skin, and introduce

themselves beneath it, where they propagate with incredible rapidity;

and when some thousands of them are collected together, a blackish spot

appears, which quickly spreads. If these insects are not destroyed when

they first introduce themselves into the punctures, they multiply with

incalculable rapidity, destroying the skin, and all the tender parts in

contact with it. Washing with brandy, which is often found to be a

remedy against the less mischievous isancos, is not sufficient for the

removal of the antanas. For their extirpation the only effectual remedy

is frequently bathing the part affected with a mixture of spirits of

wine and corrosive sublimate.

Who can describe the countless myriads of ants which swarm through the

forests? Every shrub is full of creeping life, and the decayed

vegetation affords harbor for some peculiar kinds of these insects.

The large yellow _puca-cici_ is seen in multitudes in the open air,

and it even penetrates into the dwellings. This insect does not bite,

but its crawling creates great irritation to the skin. The small black

_yana-cici_, on the contrary, inflicts most painful punctures. A very

mischievous species of stinging ant is the black _sunchiron_. This

insect inflicts a puncture with a long sting, which he carries in the

rear of his body. The wound is exceedingly painful, and is sometimes

attended by dangerous consequences. My travelling companion, C. Klee,

being stung by one of these ants, suffered such severe pain and

fever, that he was for a short while delirious. A few nights

afterwards, a similar attack was made on myself during sleep. It

suddenly awoke me, and caused me to start up with a convulsive

spring. I must confess that I never, in my whole life, experienced

such severe pain as I did at that moment.

A most remarkable phenomenon is exhibited by the swarms of the species

called the _naui-huacan-cici_,[95] the great _wandering ant_. They

appear suddenly in trains of countless myriads, and proceed forward in

a straight direction, without stopping. The small, the weak, and the

neuters are placed in the centre, while the large and the strong flank

the army, and look out for prey. These swarms, called by the natives

_Chacus_, sometimes enter a hut and clear it of all insects, amphibia,

and other disagreeable guests. This work being accomplished, they again

form themselves into a long train, and move onwards. The united force

of these small creatures is vast, and there is no approach to the

fabulous, when it is related that not only snakes, but also large

mammalia, such as agoutis, armadillas, &c., on being surprised by

them, are soon killed. On the light dry parts of the higher Montanas we

find the large conical dwellings of the termes so firmly built, that

they are impenetrable even to rifle shot. They sometimes stand singly,

sometimes together, in long lines. In form they strongly resemble the

simple, conical Puna huts.

Before leaving the animal kingdom of these forest regions, which I have

here sketched only briefly and fragmentally, I must notice two insects,

the _Cucaracha_ and the _Chilicabra_, species of the Cockroach

(_Blatta_). They are exceedingly numerous and troublesome. The

Cucaracha, which more particularly infests the deep regions of the

forest, is an inch and a half long, and above half an inch broad; it is

reddish brown, with a yellow neck. The Chilicabra, though smaller, is

more mischievous, by reason of its greater numbers. They settle in the

huts, where they destroy provisions, gnaw clothes, get into beds, and

into the dishes at meal time. These insects defy every precaution that

can be taken against their tormenting attacks. Luckily, nature has

provided enemies for their destruction. Among these is a small reddish

yellow ant, called by the Indians, the _Pucchu-cici_, a useful member

of the ant family, for it pursues and destroys the mischievous

cockroaches. There is also a very elegant little bird, called the

_Cucarachero_ (_Troglodytes audax_, Tsch.) which wages war against

these insects. On seizing one of them it first bites off the head, then

devours the body, and throws away the tough wings. These operations

being completed, it hops to the nearest bush, and tunes its melodious

song, the sounds of which closely resemble the words "_Acabe la

tarea!_" a name which the Indians give to this bird.[96] I could yet

fill many pages with descriptions of insects which are dangerous or

troublesome, and among them are included the julus, measuring six

inches in length, the large black and red scorpion, not forgetting the

numerous poisonous wasps and the cicadas. However, those which have

been noticed will suffice to afford an idea of the ever-active

movements of animal life in the forests.

Willingly would I take a view of the vegetation of the virgin forests,

and attempt to sketch its progressive developments and alternations

from the hilly Montanas of the eastern declivities of the Andes to the

humid level banks of the larger rivers; but I do not feel myself

competent to undertake a labor to which former travellers intimately

acquainted with the world of plants have already rendered full

justice.[97] Being devoted to the study of zoology, and,

unfortunately, too little familiar with botany, I have confined myself

to a description of the general impression produced by the luxuriant

growth of the soil, without entering into the individualities of the

vegetation. In the more highly situated Montanas, where the cinchona

is found in the place of its nativity, the gigantic orchidae, the

numerous fern plants, the tree-like nettles, the wonderful bignonias,

and the numerous, impenetrable complications of climbing plants,

powerfully rivet the attention of the observer. Lower down, in the

lighter forest soil, amidst numerous shrubs and climbers, the eye

delights to dwell on the manifold forms of the stately palm, on the

terebinthaceae, on the thickly-leaved balsam-yielding leguminosae, on

the luxuriant laurels, on the pandaneae or the large-leaved heliconias,

and on the solaneae, with their gigantic blossoms and thousands of

flowers. Descending still further, the flat lands of the forest assume

a dark and gloomy aspect. The massive foliage of trees overarches

stems which are the growth of centuries, and form a canopy almost

impervious to the light of day. On the slimy soil no small shrub

uprears its head, no flowering plant unfolds its blossom. The mighty

trees stand alone, and erect in rows, like gravestones in a

churchyard; and the child of darkness--the rapidly-shooting

mushroom--finds genial nurture on the warm humid earth.

FOOTNOTES:

[Footnote 79: Bark-gatherers. The Peruvians call the bark

_cascarilla_, and they point out the distinctions of a great number of

species and varieties.]

[Footnote 80: From Cuzco, the ancient residence of the Incas. It was

discovered by the French chemists Corriol and Pelletier, in the

Cascarilla which is shipped in Arica; hence this alkaloid is also

called _Aricin_.]

[Footnote 81: The Indian name for this animal is _Chaque chinca_. The

black variety _Yana chinca_ is called by the Spaniards _Tigre_ or

_Yaguar_.]

[Footnote 82: _Rupicola peruviana_, Ch. Dum. The color of the female

is reddish brown, and she is named by the natives _Tunqui mulato_; the

male is called _Tunqui Colorado_. In some parts of the Montana the

_Cephalopterus ornatus_ is called _Yana Tunqui_. Thus, even the

Indians have observed the relationship of these birds, which, classed

according to our system of natural history, actually belong to one

family, the _Ampelidae_. Their affinity is indicated very correctly by

the Indian name.]

[Footnote 83: The Organistas of Peru, Brazil, and Guiana, &c.,

mentioned by so many travellers, all belong to the family of the

Troglodytinae, to the two genera, _Troglodytes_, Vieill, and

_Cyphorhinus_, Cab. The Peruvian Organista above alluded to, is the

_Troglodytes leucophrys_, Tsch. In Guiana it appears to be the

_Cyphorhinus carinatus_, Cab.]

[Footnote 84: _Xenops_, _Anabates_, _Dendrocolaptes_, and many other

kinds of _Capito_ and _Picus_.]

[Footnote 85: These are different kinds of _Cassicus_ and _Icterus_.]

[Footnote 86: Kinds of Pteroglossus. Those most frequently met with in

the Montanas are the _Pt. atrogularis_, Sturm; _Pt. coeruleocinctus_,

Tsch. (_Aulacorhynchus_, Orb.); and _Pt. Derbianus_, Gould.]

[Footnote 87: _Dios te de_ signifies _May God give it thee_. The sound

which is interpreted, _Dios te de_ resembles very much the cry of most

of the Toucans, or pepper-eaters.]

[Footnote 88: Several kinds of Penelope.]

[Footnote 89: The cry of this bird closely resembles the Spanish words

_Ven aca_ (Come hither).]

[Footnote 90: Seven species of Crypturus.]

[Footnote 91: _Sterna erythrorhynchos_, Prince Max., _St.

magnirostris_, Licht.]

[Footnote 92: _Champsa fissipes, sclerops et nigra_, Wagl.]

[Footnote 93: _Echidna ocellata_, Tsch. This is the only species of the

viper family belonging to South America, as yet known.]

[Footnote 94: _Sphenocephalus melanogenys_, Tsch.; _Lygophis Reginae_,

Wagl.; _L. taeniurus_, Tsch.; _L. elegans_, Tsch.]

[Footnote 95: From _naui_, the eye, _huacay_, to cry, and _cici_, the

ant;--so called by the Indians, because the pain of its numerous stings

brings tears into the eyes.]

[Footnote 96: "_Acabe la tarea_" may be translated "_My task is

finished_." But the Indians are not very consistent in their

interpretations of the song of the _Cucarachero_; for in some districts,

they contend that it repeats the words--_Casa te Soltera_, "_Go and get

married, Maiden_."]

[Footnote 97: A. von Humboldt, von Martius, and, in particular, Poeppig,

who has published a narrative of his journey through Peru, distinguished

by its precision, and written in a style so elegant and simple that its

perusal affords the utmost interest and pleasure.]