At the end of the road our friends were deposited in a village which is chiefly inhabited by arrieros, or muleteers, and their families, together with a sprinkling of other natives more or less interested in the traffic passing between the capital and the seaport. The arrieros are a very important part of the mountain population of Ecuador, as there is no travel or transportation away from the rivers and wagon roads without them.
ARRIERO AND TRAVELLER.
Fred made the following note concerning the arrieros, and the journey towards Quito:
"The business is entirely in the hands of the natives or the half-breeds, as no genuine Spaniard would consider it high enough for his dignity. Some of the arrieros possess many mules, but the most of them have but half a dozen, or perhaps ten or twelve, and travel personally with their trains. The peons, or servants of the arrieros, are likewise of the native race, and accustomed all their lives to hardship and toil. Their wants are few, as they live on food that can be easily transported; their general outfit for the road is a cotton shirt and trousers, a straw hat, and a poncho, or blanket with a hole in the centre, through which the head is thrust. This poncho is striped with gay colors, and is very often quite attractive to the eye. Each arriero or peon carries his own food, which usually consists of a few red peppers, a bag of parched corn, and another of barley meal. With this slender nourishment they pass their lives on the rough roads among the mountains, and immediately on arriving from one hard journey they are ready for another.
IN HOLIDAY COSTUME.
"We were surrounded by half a dozen arrieros at once, and there was no difficulty in making a bargain, as several trains had just arrived from the mountains, and were anxious to return. We engaged five mules, three for ourselves, and two for our baggage; the owners endeavored to convince us that another animal was needed for the baggage, but as we had less than three hundred pounds of it altogether, we were not to be convinced. Our arriero promised to be ready to start early the next morning, but it was nearly noon before we got away. We tried to hurry him, but it was of no use; he was anxious enough before making the bargain, but now that it was settled, and competition was out of the way, his anxiety had ceased.