Frank and Fred heard so much about the undeveloped sources of wealth in Bolivia that they were inclined to form stock companies for various enterprises out of which enormous amounts of money could be made. But as their previous dreams of this sort had amounted to nothing, they wisely forbore even going so far as to put their ideas on paper.
They heard of vast numbers of cattle on the pampas, or plains of eastern Bolivia, which could be bought for a few shillings each, and converted into beef and leather, at a great advance on the original cost. Their informant said they would yield a profit on their hides alone, while the beef could be sent to London, or other places of large demand, by some of the preservative processes that have been recently invented. Then they learned that Bolivia could supply fine woods for cabinet purposes, in inexhaustible quantities, from the forests on the lower slopes of the Andes, and the banks of the Beni and other rivers. They found, on consulting the statistics, that the country could export the following articles if it only had the means of transporting them:
Gold, silver, tin, copper, lead, quicksilver, chinchona bark, rubber, coffee, cacao, sugar, vanilla, balsams, copal, wax, dyes, sarsaparilla, tobacco, farina, cotton, llama and alpaca wool, cattle, hides, horns, tallow, dried meat, tiger and deer skins, furs, feathers, hammocks, and hats.
Glancing at the history of the country, Frank found that Bolivia was formerly a province of Peru, under the Spanish domination. It joined in the revolution in the early part of the present century, and, in common with the other dependencies of Spain on the west coast of South America, achieved its independence. In 1825 it was made a separate republic, and named Bolivia, in honor of General Bolivar, the leader of the revolution. It has had the usual checkered career of South American republics, with perhaps fewer insurrections than some of its fraternity. It formerly had a strip of sea-coast, but at present it has none; its coast possessions were annexed to Chili as one of the results of the late war, and for the future its must seek its commercial outlet through another country or by way of the Amazon River.
The steamer carried our friends across the lake in a northeasterly direction and entered the Bay of Huancané. They were landed at the little village of Vilquechico, whence there is a route through the eastern Andes to the head-waters of the Amazon. The alcalde of the village welcomed them to his dominions, and in true Spanish politeness announced that the village and all it contained were theirs. They didn't want the village, nor anything in it, except the means of getting out of it.
The Doctor explained that their desires could be gratified with mules and llamas for continuing their journey; for these they would pay promptly, and would likewise pay for everything they chose to buy. As for the village, they would be content to let it remain in its delightful position on the shore of Lake Titicaca.
It was easier to say "mules and llamas" than to obtain them. The alcalde issued orders for the people to bring all their spare animals; four saddle mules were needed for the journey, one for each of the party to ride, and a dozen mules or their equivalents in llamas were wanted for carrying the baggage and provisions. The offers of beasts of burden came in slowly, and it was necessary to send to Huancané, a town twelve miles away, to find a sufficient number. Most of the provisions for the party had been brought from Puno, as already stated, but there were still a few purchases to be made; it was decided to take matters leisurely, and accordingly the departure was fixed for the morning of the third day after their arrival.
Manuel was kept busy acting as an aid to the alcalde in collecting the animals; in the intervals of looking after them he bought whatever provisions were needed, and made bargains with the men who were to accompany the train. The supplies were almost identical with those for the journey from Quito to Napo, and therefore will not need repetition here.
