Vague Rumors Of The Unknown Savages Of The Interior
Had Been Heard, And It Was Said The Expedition Could Only End In
Disaster, Especially As I Was Not Even Going To Get The Blessing Of
The Pai Before Starting.
I was fortunate, however, in securing the
companionship of an excellent man who bore the suggestive name of
"Old Stabbed Arm"; and Dona Dolores (Mrs. Sorrows), true to her name,
whom I engaged to make me about twenty pounds of chipa, said she
would intercede with her saint for me.
Loading the pack-horse with
chipa, beads, looking-glasses, knives, etc., Old Stabbed Arm and I
mounted our horses, and, each taking a spare one by the halter, drove
the pack-saddle mare in front, leaving the tenderhearted Mrs. Sorrows
weeping behind. The roads are simply paths through deep red sand,
into which the horses sank up to their knees; and they are so uneven
that one side is frequently two feet higher than the other, so we
could travel only very slowly. From time to time we had to push our
way into the dense forest on either side, in order to give space for
a string of bullock carts to go past. These vehicles are eighteen or
twenty feet long, but have only two wheels. They are drawn by ten or
twelve oxen, which are urged on by goads fastened to a bamboo, twenty
feet long, suspended from the roof of the cart, which is thatched
with reeds. The goads are artistically trimmed with feathers of
parrots and macaws, or with bright ribbons.
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