e apprehension of
blindness, I with great difficulty pursued my way. My mule could
scarcely wade through the sward, which was becoming more and more
thick; and night was advancing. I had lost all feeling in my feet, my
benumbed fingers could scarcely hold the bridle, and I well knew that
the nearest point at which I could obtain the shelter of a human
habitation was eight German miles distant. I was beginning to give
myself up for lost, when I observed a cave beneath an overhanging rock.
Mother Nature, in whose service I had undertaken my long and perilous
wanderings, at that critical juncture, provided for me a retreat,
though in one of her rudest sheltering places. I entered the cave,
which protected me securely against the wind and the snow. Having
unsaddled my mule, I made a bed of my saddle clothes and poncho. I tied
the animal to a stone, and whilst he eagerly regaled himself with the
little grass that was not buried beneath the snow, I satisfied my
hunger with some roasted maize and cheese.

Exhausted by the fatigue of the day, I lay down to sleep; but no sooner
had I fallen into a slumber, than I was awaked by a violent smarting
in my eyes, occasioned by the _surumpe_. There was no longer any hope
of sleep. The night seemed endless. When the dawn of morning appeared,
I made an effort to open my eyes, which were closed with coagulated
blood. On looking around me I beheld all the horror of my situation. A
human corpse had served for my pillow. Shuddering I went in search of
my mule, for I was eager to hurry from this dismal spot; but my misery
was not yet at an end. The poor beast lay dead on the ground; in his
ravenous hunger he had eaten of the poisonous _garbancillo_. What
could I do! In despair I turned back to the cave.

The sun had now fully risen, and his genial rays diffused warmth over
this frozen region. Somewhat roused by the reviving light and life
around me, I began to examine the body of my lifeless companion. Haply,
thought I, he may be one of my own race; a traveller who has perished
of cold and hunger. No. He was a half-caste Indian, and many deadly
wounds on his head showed that he had died of the slings of Indian
robbers, who had stripped him even of his clothes, and concealed the
body in the cave.

I seized my gun and shot a rock rabbit, then collecting some fuel, I
kindled a fire, and roasted the little animal, which afforded me a no
very savory breakfast. I then waited patiently in the hop