lamas which had conveyed
goods to the railway; at one place the numberless sacks of ore waiting to
be taken to the coast; at another the tall active chimneys of the
smelters, which suggested industry on a large scale. I took a number of
photographs under difficulties on that journey down the Andes.

At 7.30 p.m. on January 30th, 1912, I arrived safely at Lima, a distance
of 222 kil. from Oroya. The total distance from Iquitos to Lima over the
Andes was 2,079 kil., which distance I had performed in the record time
of one month, the time generally occupied by the usual travellers being
from fifty to seventy days.

[Illustration: Inca Remains near Cuzco.]

From Lima I proceeded early the next morning to Callao, the port for
Lima, a few kilometres farther, where at La Punta I touched the
Pacific Ocean, thus ending my trans-continental journey from Rio de
Janeiro, with its zigzags and deviations, 22,000 kil. in length, or
13,750 miles.

I was already in better health when I reached Lima. The violent changes
of climate from the hot valley of the Amazon to the snows of the Andes,
and from there to the sea-coast, had had a beneficial effect upon me. The
attack of beri-beri from which I had been suffering was gradually passing
away, my right foot, by the time I reached Lima, having slowly got back
almost to its normal size, although my toes were still atrophied. It is
well known that there is no better cure for beri-beri than sea air.

CHAPTER XXVII

The Peruvian Corporation Railway--The Land of the Incas--Lake
Titicaca--Bolivia--Chile--The Argentine--A Last Narrow
Escape--Back in England

LIMA is a beautiful city, as everybody knows. Its wonderful churches, its
clean streets, its commerce, the great charm of the people--indeed, the
Peruvians are the most cultivated and polished people in South America,
and the women the most beautiful--make it one of the most attractive
cities I visited on that continent.

I was, nevertheless, anxious to return quickly to Europe. I had no
strength left. The mental strain on that long journey had been so great
that I had lost my memory altogether.

Owing to the great kindness of the British Minister, Mr. C. des Graz, and
of Mr. Mockill, the chief of the Peruvian Corporation at Lima,
arrangements were made for me to travel in luxurious comfort through the
country of the Incas--so that, although terribly exhausted, I decided to
take a further journey in the interi