nstruct a mule trail along the
banks of the river through the grand canyon to enable the much-desired
coca and aguardiente to be shipped from Huadquina, Maranura, and Santa
Ann to Cuzco more quickly and cheaply than formerly. This road avoids
the necessity of carrying the precious cargoes over the dangerous
snowy passes of Mt. Veronica and Mt. Salcantay, so vividly described
by Raimondi, de Sartiges, and others. The road, however, was very
expensive, took years to build, and still requires frequent repair. In
fact, even to-day travel over it is often suspended for several days
or weeks at a time, following some tremendous avalanche. Yet it was
this new road which had led Melchor Arteaga to build his hut near
the arable land at Mandor Pampa, where he could raise food for his
family and offer rough shelter to passing travelers. It was this
new road which brought Richarte, Alvarez, and their enterprising
friends into this little-known region, gave them the opportunity of
occupying the ancient terraces of Machu Picchu, which had lain fallow
for centuries, encouraged them to keep open a passable trail over
the precipices, and made it feasible for us to reach the ruins. It
was this new road which offered us in 1911 a virgin field between
Ollantaytambo and Huadquina and enabled us to learn that the Incas,
or their predecessors, had once lived here in the remote fastnesses of
the Andes, and had left stone witnesses of the magnificence and beauty
of their ancient civilization, more interesting and extensive than any
which have been found since the days of the Spanish Conquest of Peru.

CHAPTER XVIII

The Origin of Machu Picchu

Some other day I hope to tell of the work of clearing and excavating
Machu Picchu, of the life lived by its citizens, and of the ancient
towns of which it was the most important. At present I must rest
content with a discussion of its probable identity. Here was a powerful
citadel tenable against all odds, a stronghold where a mere handful
of defenders could prevent a great army from taking the place by
assault. Why should any one have desired to be so secure from capture
as to have built a fortress in such an inaccessible place?

The builders were not in search of fields. There is so little arable
land here that every square yard of earth had to be terraced in
order to provide food for the inhabitants. They were not looking for
comfort or convenience. Safety was their primary consideration. They