f the exceptional salubrity of the
climate. Now, at the time of the conquest of the country, a few
Spaniards settled here; upon which the Peruvians, in accordance with a
pre-arranged policy, entirely abandoned the town and retired to certain
secret hiding-places among the mountains, believing that the Spaniards
could not possibly contrive to exist here, if left entirely to
themselves. But, to the astonishment of the Peruvians, the Spaniards
not only contrived to exist, but they steadily increased and multiplied
to such an extent that there were some three hundred of them settled
here, and supporting themselves entirely upon the products of the
valley. Then came a change respecting which the Peruvians of to-day are
exceedingly reticent, but one thing is certain, Huancane developed a
remarkable and mysterious unhealthiness of climate that rapidly cleared
it of every Spaniard, so that for two or three years the town was
uninhabited and fell rapidly into decay; after which the Peruvians
returned to it, and have been here ever since. So much for the history
of Huancane.

"Ever since that time the Peruvians have been very jealously on the
watch against any return of the Spaniards to this part of the country; a
watch for them has always been maintained; and when, from time to time,
small parties have appeared in the neighbourhood they have--well--
vanished. Our friends here are very reticent about these
disappearances, too.

"Now, it seems that on the day of our arrival at the margin of the lake
we were seen and watched all day, under the impression that we were
Spaniards; and when night came and we slept, a party stole upon us,
stupefied us in some fashion--they did not explain how--and brought us
eight miles or so from our camp to the town, where, as I understand,
rather elaborate preparations were subsequently made for our dispatch
from this world to the next.

"That plan, as you know, fell through in consequence of certain remarks
which the exigencies of the situation prompted me to make. I somehow
had an idea that we were being mistaken for Spaniards; and the
decorating of us with those wreaths of flowers also seemed to me a
sinister sign; I therefore concluded that the moment for an explanation
had arrived; and I began by informing them that we were not Spaniards,
but were such inveterate enemies of them that we had sailed across the
Black Water in a great canoe for a whole moon and more with the express
object