During our long stay in the cave, my mind often turned to the future,
and I was sorely puzzled to know by what means, without funds of any
sort, we should find our way to England. Ned, as a sailor, would have
no difficulty; but Pedro and I, from our ignorance of nautical affairs,
would be totally unable to work our way. One day Manco asked me what I
was thinking about. I told him.
"Let not that distress you, my friend," he answered. "If gold could
restore happiness to our country, I could fill this cavern with it. I
will show you where you may supply yourself with all you can require;
you will spend it well, and therefore I do not hesitate to confide to
you the secret of our hidden wealth."
Two nights after this, as I was about to throw myself on my bed of
leaves to sleep, Manco came to me.
"We will at once set forth to obtain the gold I promised," he said.
"Pedro and your countryman may accompany us to carry what we find. We
must return before the morning, lest we encounter any of the Spanish
forces, who are ravaging the country on every side."
A few words served to let Pedro and Ned understand what was to be done,
and providing themselves with two bags, they instantly declared
themselves ready to proceed. Manco had provided torches, one of which
we each of us bore; but he told us not to light them till we should
reach the spot to which he was about to conduct us. As we were setting
out, he also distributed among us two spades and crowbars, and a
pickaxe. He led the way along the ledge and across the bridge; we
following in silence. He then descended the mountain, and proceeded
down the valley for some distance, when he once more began to ascend.
The ground was rugged and difficult in the extreme, and path there was
none, so that, had we desired it, we could not again have found our way.
For two hours we toiled on, up and down hill, following close upon the
heels of Manco, who seemed to know the road by instinct. At length we
reached a valley, the hill on one side of which was covered completely
with buildings, one rising above the other, and some apparently hewn out
of the solid rock. The moon, which had lately risen, lighted up the
scene, and increased its wild and mysterious appearance. Not a sound
was heard, not a human being appeared from this city of the dead. Manco
stopped and gazed up at the city.
"Two centuries ago, thousands of human beings, full of life and
activity, thronged those walls," he remarked. "All are gone, and of
descendants they have left none. All, all have been victims to Spanish
cruelty. Follow me."
He moved on, and led us into several. Some had two and even three
stories, and the floors of slabs of stone or slate still remained. We
at last reached a house larger than the rest, with a number of windows.
Manco stopped in the centre of the chief hall, and said, stamping his
foot, "Dig there." Lighting our torches, we stuck them in the ground,
and set to work. After digging about two feet, we came to a mass which
proved to be the body of a human being, swaddled up in bandages of
cloth, and in good preservation. It was in a sitting posture, with the
knees drawn up to the chin. Placing it on one side, we dug on.
Clearing away another stratum of earth, we reached a collection of
household utensils, which at first I thought were of copper and clay;
but as Ned was examining them, he exclaimed--
"They are gold, every one of them!"
"Dig, dig," said Manco; "you have more to find." A third layer of earth
was now removed, and we came upon a number of idols, all of gold or
silver, and surrounding them a quantity of bars of pure gold. None of
us had ever seen so much wealth in one mass. "There, take what you can
carry, and cover up the rest," exclaimed Manco. "You call that wealth,"
he continued, as if divining our thoughts; "yet of what use is it to
mankind thus locked up from sight? Now hasten, or daylight will
surprise us before we can reach the cave."
Following his direction, we loaded ourselves with as much of the pure
gold as we could carry; and then replacing the body as we found it, we
again covered up the grave. Then extinguishing our torches, we set out
to return to our cavern, which we reached in safety. It was with very
great satisfaction that I bade adieu to the cavern which had for so long
a time been our home. We had three horses, on one of which Nita was
mounted, and the other two were loaded with a supply of provisions; each
of the Indians, besides, carrying enough for his own wants, till a part
of the country should be reached where more could be procured. Manco
took every precaution for our safety which prudence could suggest. He
sent the Indians on ahead as scouts to inspect the country before we
advanced, and to bring us timely notice of the approach of an enemy. At
that time it was difficult to know who were friends and who were not,
for many of the Indians had gone over to the Spaniards, in the hopes of
saving their lives and property; and others, still worse, we had too
good reason to know, were ready to act the part of traitors, and to
deliver up their countrymen for the sake of the reward they expected to
receive.
We proceeded for some way along a series of wooded ridges, called by the
Spaniards _Ceja de la Montana_ (the Mists of the Mountains), on account
of the thick mists which, rising from the rivers in the valleys below,
are attracted by the trees, and hang over them in dense clouds. In
summer these mists are absorbed by the sun's rays; but in winter they
discharge themselves in endless torrents of rain. At night we took up
our abode in some deserted hut; but never, if we could avoid it, did we
rest in the abode of man, and whenever we did, Manco kept three or four
of our allies watching at a distance outside; and we always again
started at early dawn. As we reached the extreme eastern edge of the
_Ceja_, we looked down on an interminable extent of forest, composed of
trees of a height with which few in other parts of the world can vie.
These wooded plains are called Montanas, which is the name given to the
whole of the country eastward of the Andes.
As we advanced, our ears were saluted by the cries of numerous birds and
animals. Sometimes I thought I heard the roaring of a bull at a
distance, when I found it to proceed from the black ox-bird; and at
others the grunting of a hog sounded close to us; and a beautiful bird
called the _Tunqui_, like a cock with a tuft of red feathers, and an
orange bill, started up and astonished us with the contrast between his
gruff note and gay plumage. In the evenings, groups of the
pheasant-like _Hachahuallpa_ summoned their distant companions with the
cry of _Ven aca, ven aca_--Come here, come here; and owls and bats flew
out with noiseless wings to pounce on their unwary prey. Bears and
ounces, pumas and tiger-cats crossed our path; and stags started from
their thickets, where they had sought shelter from some of those
above-named enemies. Monkeys chattered at us, and squirrels leaped
among the trees; rats and mice were found in the huts, and _argutis_ in
the maize-fields; snakes crawled along the ground, and birds of prey
circled high above our heads. But in truth it would be impossible to
describe one-tenth of the beasts, the birds, and reptiles we encountered
in our journey; though I shall mention those I had opportunities of
examining.
We approached one evening the farm of a cacique, who, with most of the
men of his village, had marched to join the army of Tupac Amaru. The
women only, and some of the old men and children, remained. It was on
the extreme borders of the country inhabited by Christian Indians.
Beyond all was totally unknown to the white men, and but seldom visited
by the civilised natives.
Manco sent on a messenger to give notice of our approach, and to crave
the hospitality of the cacique and his family. He returned shortly,
saying that the females only were at home, and that as yet they had
received no account of the result of the expedition; but that they bade
the strangers welcome.
"Alas!" said Manco, "we are, I fear, the bearers of evil tidings. Had
the cacique escaped, he would have returned ere this."
We proceeded on, and in a space cleared of trees, we found a collection
of low buildings. The walls were constructed of reeds, the interstices
being filled up with loam; and the roofs were covered with palm leaves.
On one side of the house was a coffee plantation, and on the other some
fields of maize, with fruit-trees growing round them. At a little
distance, on some marshy ground, was a field of sugar-canes; and by the
side of a brook a row of the useful banana. The poor woman came out to
receive us as we approached. Her first inquiries were for her husband.
Manco had seen him and all his people cut to pieces. She did not faint
or shriek out, but retired into an inner room, sat herself down on the
ground, surrounded by her women, and groaned bitterly all the night
long. We did not see her again; but after a time one of her females
came out and set food before us. Our Indian companions found shelter in
some of the huts of the village; and one belonging to the farm was given
up to Ned, Pedro, and me. We had Indian corn bread, and cakes made of
the juice of the sugar-cane, called _chancacas_; potatoes, bananas,
oranges, and pine-apples, and several varieties of dried meat; with a
liquor also made from the sugar-cane, called _guarapo_: indeed we had no
cause to complain of any want of provisions. As we were safe here from
all risk of pursuit, Manco proposed to remain for some days, that we
might recruit our strength before prosecuting our journey.
The cacique had been accustomed to increase his wealth by buying from
the wilder tribes the celebrated Peruvian bark. In the month of May, a
number of Indians set out together, some of whom, of greatest
experience, who are called _cateadores_, or searchers, climb the highest
trees to spy out the _manchas_, or spots where the _chinchona_ groups
are growing, distinguishing them merely by a slight difference in the
tints from the dark-green of the surrounding foliage. When the
_cateador_ has discovered a group, he leads his companions to it with
wonderful precision through the almost impenetrable forest; a hut is
built, the trees are felled, and incisions are made in the bark, and
after a few days, as it dries, it is stripped off and placed in the huts
to dry still more. It is then packed in bundles, and sent to market.
A party of Indians came one day to the village, on their way across the
Andes, from the more distant forests to the east, laden with balsams and
odoriferous gums, which they had collected from a variety of resinous
plants. They were ignorant that the war had broken out, and when they
heard of it, they were unwilling to venture further, and returned, to
their own country. The men who carried the loads had on merely a piece
of cloth round the waist; but the women who accompanied them wore a
loose tunic without sleeves. Their legs were bare, but painted with the
juice of the huito, which made it appear that they had on half-boots.
The object was to protect their legs from the stings of insects. I
found that they professed Christianity. They were regular medical
pedlars; for they had powders, salves, plasters, seeds, and roots of
every description; claws of the tapir, as a remedy against the
falling-sickness; and the teeth of poisonous snakes, carefully stuck
into rushes, as specifics against head-ache and blindness. Manco had
purchased a sufficient number of horses to mount all our party, and to
carry such provisions as we required; though, from the abundance of game
to be procured in the forests, we had no fear of being in want of fresh
meat. Still, however, as there was no notice of the approach of the
Spaniards, he thought it better to remain a few clays longer, to recruit
our strength, before we recommenced our journey. Three of the Indians
only had remained with us, the rest having departed to their homes in
the south. Pedro, Ned, and I employed our time in wandering about the
neighbouring country, under the guidance of one of the Indians; but we
were charged by Manco not to go far from the village.
I can scarcely venture to describe the magnificence of the vegetation of
that region. There were numerous ferns and nettles growing in the form
of large shrubs; wonderful bignonias and gigantic orchids drawing their
nourishment from the air; with every variety of climbing plants,
throwing their thousand tendrils round the trees which gave them
support. I could not but admire the various forms of the stately palm,
the thickly-leaved balsam-yielding leguminosae, the luxuriant laurels,
and the solaneae, with their numberless flowers of vast size. Further
on, again, on the flat lands towards the east, the mighty trees rise to
an immense height from the humid soil, without a flowering plant or
shrub below their branches, forming a canopy almost impervious to the
light of day.
One day we had gone farther than usual from home, when we reached a
narrow lagune, overspread by the boughs of the gigantic trees which grew
on either side of it. The air and earth were teeming with animal life.
Birds of beautiful plumage, and every variety of note, were perched on
the branches, or flying above our heads; butterflies of many hues were
flitting about in all directions; and reptiles and insects innumerable
were crawling along the ground. More beautiful than all were the
humming-birds, which, like flashes of coloured light, appeared and
disappeared as they flew by us; and surpassing his brethren in
gorgeousness of hues, was the golden-tailed humming or fly bird, numbers
of which haunted every glade we passed. From many of the shady branches
hung nests built by the pouched starlings, four or five feet long, and
swinging to and fro with every breath of wind. Flocks of green parrots
were chattering on the higher boughs, and preparing to seek their
night--quarters in the higher parts. Our guide called them _jornaleros_
(day-labourers), and told me that the name was given them because, on
the return of every day, they come back at the same hour from the
mountains, where they sleep, to gather their food in the lower forests.
I had shot several birds, and was aiming at one, when he seized my arm,
and implored me not to fire.
"Do you not hear its note, Senor?" he exclaimed. "If you were to kill
that bird, Heaven would afflict you with some dreadful disaster.
Listen: does it not say, _Dios te de_ (May God give it thee)?"
The bird, as he rested on a branch before me, threw back his head and
rocked his body, and certainly uttered a note which might easily be thus
translated.
I had got close to the lagune, and was watching a bird which, with
fluttering wings, was hovering in the air a short distance from me, when
our guide forcibly drew me back, whispering, with a look of terror, "Did
you not see the _Yacumaman_? Would you venture within the mighty coils
of the Mother of Waters?"
At first I did not know what he could mean, till, creeping back, I saw
what I had at first taken for the root of a tree, but which I now
perceived to be an enormous serpent. Its body was wound in several huge
coils round the stem of a decayed tree, while it bathed its tail in the
waters of the lagune. Its head was now thrust forward, as with
glittering eyes it watched an opening in the forest. Presently a slight
rustling was heard, and a beautiful stag came to quench its thirst after
the heat of the day. It came up fearlessly, and dipped its head to
drink. Again it lifted it up, and looked around. On a sudden it caught
sight of those beautiful eyes. Instantly its limbs began to tremble.
It seemed to have no power to fly, but stood looking with mute wonder at
the object which fascinated it. The monster uncoiled itself, and glided
from the tree. Still the stag did not attempt to fly, yet in fleetness
it could have outstripped the wind. There it stood, a willing victim.
In another moment the serpent had sprung upon it, and encircled it in
its monstrous folds. As we could not rescue the stag, and had no wish
to interfere with the serpent, we hurried from the spot. We were
already later than it was wise to remain from the village, but we could
not help stopping to listen to the delicious notes of a cinnamon-brown
bird, with head and neck of dark olive, which was perched on a bough
overhanging our path. Never from a feathered songster had I heard notes
more sweet or harmonious.
"It is the _organista_," said our guide. "Hurry on, Senores, hurry on,
his note forebodes a coming storm; and, from the glimpses I have caught
of the sky between the trees, I fear that we shall have one before we
reach the village."
We took the Indian's advice, for a storm in that wooded region was an
event to be avoided, and walked as fast as we could over the soft ground
towards home. We had not got far, when a cry from Pedro, who was a
little in our rear, made us stop. As we hurried back to him, we saw
that he was limping along as if in great pain, and trying to overtake
us; and at the same time I observed a snake winding its way along among
the trees at a rapid rate from us. It was about two feet long, and
covered with the most brilliant stripes of deep red, yellow, and black.
The Indian caught sight of the reptile at the same time.
"Ah! mercy, Heaven, mercy!" cried poor Pedro. "I have been bitten by
that deadly snake, and in a few minutes must die. Farewell, my friends,
farewell!"
"Courage, Senor, courage!" exclaimed the Indian; "I have some huaco cake
with me. Eat, eat, and you may yet live."
Saying this, he produced from his pocket some cake of the huaco leaves,
a piece of which he put into Pedro's mouth, and spreading some more on
the wound, pressed it with all his force.--A litter was soon formed, on
which we placed him and carried him along, for the pain was too great to
allow him to walk. After a time, however, he declared that the pain was
gone, but that he felt as if his leg was made of lead. We hurried on,
for we had no time to lose. Thunder was heard rolling through the sky;
and distant flashes, seen through the trees, showed that the storm was
approaching. Suddenly a tremendous crash was heard close to us; and,
looking back, a tall tree, one of the giants of the forest, appeared
riven from the crown to its roots, and a vast branch lay across the path
we had just passed. Nothing now was required to expedite our steps.
The wind roared, the mighty trees rocked to and fro as if they had been
reeds, the thunder rattled in deafening peals, and the lightning, in
zigzag form, rushed down the stems of the trees, running like serpents
along the ground, and flashed vividly in every direction. The storm I
had witnessed in the Cordilleras was grander, but it was scarcely so
terrific in its effects. We got under shelter in the cottage before the
tempest had reached its height. Pedro was instantly placed in bed,
when, after a time, a profuse perspiration came on. Some cooling drink
was given to her, and a pumpkin poultice was applied to the wound.
The huaco plant grows in the woods. The leaves am half an inch long and
half an inch broad, of a solid texture, the upper surface being of a
dark-green, with purple veins running through it. The stem is slender,
hard, ribbed, and of a bluish colour; and the leaves grow singly, two
being placed opposite to each other. It is said that the natives
discovered its qualities by observing that a bird called the huaco,
which feeds on snakes, whenever it was bitten flew off and ate some of
this plant. I have heard that the harmless snakes are great enemies to
the poisonous ones, and will attack those much larger than themselves.
It took two or three days before Pedro had completely recovered from the
effects of the bite.