"Why is that?" asked he.
"It is a sign that you will suffer for what you are doing to me."
The Pombo flung away the plate, and was much upset. He ordered a hole to be dug in the ground some way off, and the plates to be instantly buried. The soldiers, however, who had been entrusted with the order, seemed loth to touch the plates, and they had to be reprimanded and beaten by the Lamas before they would obey. At last, with their feet, they shoved the boxes of negatives to a spot some distance off, where, in dog fashion, they dug a deep hole with their hands in the muddy ground; and there, alas! my work of several weeks was covered for ever with earth.
Now came my paint-box with its cakes of water-colours.
"What do you do with these?" cried an angry Lama, pointing at the harmless colours.
"I paint pictures."
"No, you are lying. With the 'yellow' you find where gold is in the country, and with the 'blue' you discover where malachite is."
I assured them that this was not the case, and told them that, if they would untie me, I would, on recovering the use of my arms, paint a picture before them.
They prudently preferred to leave me tied up.
Their whole attention was now drawn to a considerable sum in silver and gold which they found in the cases, and the Pombo warned the people that not one coin must be stolen.