An elevated region called by the Quichuas the Puna, or "the
uninhabited," must be described. A scanty vegetation covers these vast
plains. Man can with difficulty breathe on them, or produce the means
of existence. Barley, though cultivated, seldom ripens; the chief plant
which grows to maturity being the _maca_, which has tuberous roots, and
is used like the potato. In consequence of the diminished pressure of
the air, water begins to boil at so low a temperature that neither meat,
potatoes, nor eggs, can be sufficiently cooked. From the same cause,
those unaccustomed to the rarefied air are afflicted with an attack
called the _vela_--consisting of headache, nausea, and producing even
spitting of blood, and other disorders of the mucous membrane. Horses
suffer in the same way; and cats are so affected that they die in
violent convulsions. There is another complaint, called the _chanu_,
affecting the skin of the hands and face, as well as the eyelids; when,
the skin breaking, blood flows from every opening. The _surumpe_, by
which travellers are affected--the inflammation of the eyes caused by
the reflection from the snow--is still more painful. Often the agony
which even an Indian suffers from it is so great, that he has been known
to sit down and utter cries of anguish; while, occasionally, total
blindness has been the ultimate consequence.
But it is time that we should turn to the brute creation existing in
these regions, noticing the interesting specimens of the vegetable
kingdom as we proceed in our survey. As the camel is the characteristic
animal of the sandy deserts of Arabia and Africa, the royal tiger of the
jungles of Bengal, and the kangaroo of the wide-extending plains of
Australia, so the llama brings to our recollection the lofty plateaus of
the Andes, and the mighty condor its still higher peaks.