AYMARA MEN, PUNO.
The Aymara men wear short trousers, very broad in the legs, and incase their feet in sandals, or shoes of rawhide. They wear ponchos over their shoulders, and on their heads they constantly have skull-caps, which are covered, when out of doors, with broad hats of braided grass. Men and women keep the hair long; it is invariably black, except in extreme age, when it assumes the frost that never melts, like the hair of people in other parts of the world.
AYMARA WOMAN, PUNO.
Though living side by side for centuries the Aymaraes and Quichuas preserve their distinctness, rarely associating, and never uniting in marriage. The Aymaraes hold their market at Puno in the plaza in front of the cathedral, as already described, but the Quichua market is held in another square. A Quichua woman can be distinguished from an Aymara one at a glance, as she is without the remarkable head-covering, but the dress of the men has only some slight points of difference, that cannot be observed by a stranger. The Aymaraes are thought to represent an older race than the Quichuas; the men are larger and more powerful, but the women are less inclined to good looks.
Though the two people remain distinct they are perfectly friendly, and their huts are often quite near each other. In their resistance to the Spanish conquest they made common cause, and in every revolt against their oppressors they have fought side by side. Both are grave, dignified, silent, and sad, and as we look at them they seem to be musing over the misfortunes of the last three centuries, and the degradation that has followed the occupation of their land by the avaricious invaders.
These musings of Frank and Fred were cut short by the announcement that the boat was ready. Pushing along the tortuous channel through the reeds they made slow progress; but all journeys have an end, and in due time they reached the steamboat. Steam was already up, and as soon as the party was on board, with its belongings, the paddles were put in motion, and the prow turned in the direction of Titicaca Island.