Very little has been done in mining in the immediate neighbourhood of Cochabamba, as from its great distance from the coast the carriage of any but the richest silver ores would be too expensive to leave any profit for the miner. There is, however, without doubt, immense wealth in minerals in all the hills encircling the plain in which the city stands, and, in proof of this, I was shown many specimens of manganese, silver, and lead ores that had been taken from the outcrop of the lodes in the district. These minerals must remain unexplored until the railway and navigation of the Madeira valley shall have opened up Eastern Bolivia, and caused good roads to be made from the head-waters of the Madeira and Amazon to the interior of the republic.
The people of Cochabamba, of all classes and shades of public opinion, are resolved to do all that lies in their power to assist this enterprise to completion, for they see in it their only hope of emancipating themselves from the heavy costs and charges levied upon all their European necessities by the merchants of La Paz and the Peruvian ports on the Pacific coast, as also their only hope of securing an outlet for those abundant agricultural products that are now lost for want of customers.
FOOTNOTES
[3] The average yearly shipments of Peruvian bark from Arica amount to 9611 cwts., of 100 lbs. each, having a cash value at the port of about £118,300. ([See Appendix, p. 400.])
CHAPTER XXIV.
Shortest route to the Pacific coast from Cochabamba—Journey to Sucre viâ Totora determined upon—Leave Cochabamba in one of Haviland and Keay’s coaches—Dangers of the journey—Tarata and Cliza—The pampas compared to the plains of Central India—Punata—Señor Manuel Arauco, his house, family, museum, etc.—Manufacture of felt hats, ponchos, etc.—Arani—Lagoons near Vacas—Irrigation works—New road between Arani and Totora—Pocona—Totora—Proposed road from Totora to the river Chimoré—Probable future system of roads in the east of Bolivia—Misque—Ravines and river-courses used as roads—Aiquile—Chinguri—Quiroga—Palca—Cuestas Jaboncillo and Masa-Cruz—Canto Molino—Thermal spring of Huata—First view of Sucre.
From Cochabamba, the shortest route across the republic to the Pacific coast, is to go by Oruro to Tacna and Arica, and the road is a regularly travelled one, with posting-houses, which I have been told are the best in Bolivia. My business obliged me to visit Sucre, and I determined to make a round by Totora and Misque, in order to see a new cart-road that was in course of construction from Arani to Totora, at which place I hoped to obtain some information as to the practicability of a road from thence to the Chimoré, the proposed new port for the navigation enterprise of the Madeira River.
The only means of travelling in the interior of Bolivia is by mules; so I bargained with an arriero for the necessary animals for the journey to Sucre, at the rate of fifteen pesos, about £2 8s., for each animal, the arriero having to provide forage at his own expense. This is the best bargain to make, but the arrieros prefer getting the traveller to buy the forage, so that, acting in collusion with the villagers or posting-house keepers, they may be able to defraud the unfortunate traveller daily. The usual charge per mule from Cochabamba to Sucre is about twelve or thirteen pesos, say £2, inclusive of expenses for forage, etc.; but the route by Totora is longer than the route mostly used, which goes by San Pedro, so I had to pay a higher price. As some parts of the road are said to be infested by foot-pads, it is not advisable to travel alone; and as it would be difficult to find an honest arriero who would do so, it is just as well to make some inquiries about the arriero that offers his services, and secure one that is known to the merchants or respectable people. The gentry who in Bolivia practise the profession of mule-drivers, are not as a rule to be trusted with untold gold, but the “gay muleteer” seems all over the world to have rather a shady reputation; however, if a traveller secures an arriero that is well known to the merchants, he and his belongings will be perfectly safe.
On the 31st of August, I despatched my arriero ahead with my baggage and saddle-mules, and settled to leave Cochabamba in Messrs. Haviland and Keay’s coach about mid-day, the proprietors, my worthy American friends, having given me a free ride to Arani. We ought to have left at mid-day, but the prefect was behindhand with his despatches to the central government at Sucre, so we were detained for nearly an hour beyond the proper time of starting. The coaches are big, lumbering affairs, looking like a cross between a Spanish diligence and a French char-à-banc, but they are, by their weight and strength of springs and wheels, well suited to the extremely rough roads that have to be travelled over. They are drawn by six horses, driven in our case by an American coachman with a wooden leg, he having had his leg broken in one of the frequent upsets that the conveyances meet with. A Bolivian who travelled in my company to Totora, and who was contractor for the new road that I was going to see, was lame from the same cause; so when I took my seat, and said farewell to the friends who came to see me off, I must say I had serious misgivings as to whether I should reach the journey’s end in safety, and would far rather have mounted my mule, instead of accepting the seat in the coach.