On board ship at the Balboa docks, recently enlarged by the United States Government, the surroundings at high tide are beautiful. On three sides are green wooded hills, some of which might almost be dignified as mountains. The wide stream coming down at the northwest is the Pacific entrance to the Canal. Below are pretty islands to one of which, Naos, the breakwater, three and a quarter miles long, will extend. At low tide, when the water has fallen 18 feet, as it does twice in the twenty-four hours, an ugly expanse of flats is visible on each side of the channel. Should one spend the night here, he may be so fortunate as to see the sun or moon rise, not set, from the Pacific Ocean; so far west is Panama City of the western shore of South America, at least of Colombia, for the Isthmus runs east and west instead of north and south.

As the steamer leaves the dock, one should linger in the stern of the vessel to look back at the charming picture. Thus standing and gazing rearwards, the city of Panama will soon appear on the right, finely situated on a promontory with water on three sides, thus with excellent opportunities for drainage, and now as healthy a city as may be found in the Torrid Zone, surpassing in this particular many of those in temperate climes.

The Peaceful Ocean will gently “Rock the Cradle of the Deep” and the voyage will be a pleasure. Formerly ten days to Callao, it is now six or seven. The weather is warm, with summer clothes in order, probably until Paita is reached; so warm that enthusiasts only will care for the vigorous exercise of deck golf, yet not uncomfortably hot. The crossing of the equator is made without ceremony: even with careful inquiry it is difficult to ascertain just when the equinoctial line is passed. The Pole star has vanished, yet in our summer months a part of the constellation of the Dipper, still above the horizon, may be recognized far down the coast.

With no sight of land for three days, there will be time on this tranquil sea to brush up our Spanish, or if we have none to brush, at least to pick up a few words and phrases. Or there is opportunity for a brief review of South American history. Prescott perchance is in the library, or other books, historical or descriptive, of the various countries to be visited. That we see only what we are prepared to see is an old saying, as true of South America as of Europe. A slight knowledge of South American history and of present conditions will illumine the journey, increasing both pleasure and profit. A course of reading at home and a little study of Spanish will bring infinite reward. For those who have neglected this, brief allusions to facts of history, geography, etc., will be scattered here and there.

A Bit of History

Every one has heard of the Incas and of the conquest of Peru by Pizarro, but a few particulars of the remarkable subjugation of a great people will here be recalled. As early as 1524 Francisco Pizarro, incited by rumors at Panama of a country at the south marvellously rich in gold, for the purpose of exploration only, made his first expedition to Peru. Landing at Tumbes on the south shore of the Gulf of Guayaquil, he found an opulent city, whence he proceeded along the coast as far as Trujillo. Satisfied by this reconnoissance as to the great wealth of the country, he was obliged to return to Spain to procure royal warrant for the invasion. This gained he set out from Panama in January, 1531, upon his extraordinary career of conquest. Partners in his adventure were Diego de Almagro and a priest, Hernando de Luque.

Again landing at Tumbes he advanced overland southward and in a fertile valley founded the present city of Piura. Some months were here passed, a vain delay for reinforcements; Pizarro meanwhile learning of the quarrel between the two Inca princes, the brothers Atahuallpa and Huascar, and that the former, victorious, was now with a large retinue, ten days’ journey from Piura, at the town of Cajamarca whither he had gone to take the baths.

To attempt the conquest of a great empire with an army of less than 200 men seems preposterous indeed, but the bold, one would say insane, Pizarro, had he not succeeded, at length set out with 180 men, 67 of whom were cavalry. However, these last were equivalent to a mighty host; for horses, never before seen in this country, struck terror to the stoutest hearts. It was a hard march across the desert, then up over the great coast range of the Andes down to the longitudinal valley in which Cajamarca is situated. On the way they were met by messengers bearing royal gifts, with an invitation to visit the powerful ruler of this immense empire. Through narrow defiles where a large force might easily have been annihilated, the little army was permitted to march in safety. Upwards in bitter cold and rarefied air they toiled to a height of 12,000 feet or more until they looked down upon a beautiful valley, a prosperous city, and the camp of a great army.

With bold faces if quaking hearts they descended, November 15, 1532, to the city which they found deserted: that better accommodations, it was said, might be furnished to the distinguished guests. The next day, accepting the invitation of Pizarro that he should dine with him, Atahuallpa with a large retinue, unarmed, came in royal state to the Plaza. In place of the courteous greeting from Pizarro which was here due, a priest, Father Valverde, came forward. Having expounded the chief doctrines of the Christian religion he thereupon demanded the Inca’s allegiance to the Pope and to the Emperor Charles V. Upon Atahuallpa’s indignant rejection of this piece of bold and insolent presumption, Valverde called on Pizarro to make an assault. The signal was given, guns boomed, the cavalry charged upon the defenseless throng. Instead of the hospitality that had been proffered there was a scene of terrible slaughter. The Inca was seized and imprisoned, after which a ransom was arranged. The collection for this purpose of more than $15,000,000 worth of gold dishes, plate, and other objects was followed by a second act of perfidy. Accused of various crimes, Atahuallpa, instead of being released, was condemned to be burned at the stake; or if he would consent to embrace Christianity to have the easier death of strangulation. This he chose. Thus the courtly monarch of this highly civilized empire, one of the first on that continent to be baptized (revolting mockery) into the Christian faith, was ignominiously put to death after the most shameless betrayal of the rites of hospitality, the most brutal treachery, to be found on the pages of history.

Thus was accomplished the conquest of Peru. The Inca executed, his humble subjects made but little and sporadic resistance. Cuzco, the capital city, was visited and stripped of many of its treasures. For the conciliation of the populace, Manco, a younger brother of Atahuallpa, was crowned; but the real power was placed in the hands of one of Pizarro’s brothers.

Francisco then descended to the coast and, on January 6, 1535, founded on the banks of the Rimac, a capital which he named City of the Kings in honor of the Epiphany, although Lima, a corruption of Rimac, is the title by which it has been called. Such a beginning was naturally followed by a period of dissensions and murders, which lasted twenty years. For nearly three centuries a Spanish Viceroy ruled over the country, until in 1824, at Ayacucho on the highlands of Peru, the last battle of independence was fought, the whole of South America was liberated from the domination of Spain, and the realms of the Inca became free to develop a new civilization.

Panama to Salaverry. For three days after leaving Panama the ship is out of sight of land, which is again approached near the northern extremity of Peru. This coast is unlike that of any other country in the world, to the uninitiated presenting a series of surprises. The first is the climate, which in the Torrid Zone one naturally expects to be hot, at least at sea level. On the East Coast of South America this is the case, but not on the West after reaching Peru. Panama, Colombia, and Ecuador have ordinary tropical weather, continuous heat with plenty of rain and luxuriant vegetation. Peru is in striking contrast. From Paita, 5° south of the equator, throughout the journey of 1200 miles along the coast, all within the tropics, the weather is so cool at least half of the year that exercise is a pleasure, while wraps and steamer rugs are frequently desirable. Of this moderate temperature the chief cause is the Antarctic or Humboldt current, which flows along the coast from the South Polar regions until, at Point PariÑa, the western extremity of South America, it meets a hot stream and both turn westward across the Pacific. The proximity to the sea of the lofty range of the Andes also contributes to the coolness.

Another surprising phenomenon is the barren shore. The entire coast for 2000 miles, from Tumbes, to Coquimbo in Chile, is a genuine desert, save where, at considerable intervals, the fifty-eight streams in Peru, coming down from the mountains, afford opportunity for irrigation. The lack of verdure in Peru is not occasioned by the character of the soil; it arises simply from the absence of rain.

Paita. The fourth morning after leaving Panama the ship is likely to be at anchor in the harbor of Paita, having passed in the night the more northern Peruvian shore. Otherwise one might from a distance perceive near Point PariÑa the pipes and derricks of many oil wells. For the petroleum industry is important in Peru. In this Department, Piura, the oil regions cover an area as large as Holland. It is said that the petroleum is superior to that of the United States, having little paraffine and no odor; that the kerosene gives a better light, and that the crude oil may be employed as fuel after merely standing a few days in the open air. For the last ten years the oil has been thus used in the locomotives of the Oroya Railway; it is now similarly employed on the Peruvian steamers. There is a great field for the development of the industry in this and other districts of the country.

After several days on board ship most of the passengers improve the opportunity of going ashore. The regular fare as at other ports is forty centavos (twenty cents) each way for each person. Paita is a curious place, a small village, yet the third port in Peru in the amount of exports and imports, serving a considerable district including the city of Piura, with which it is connected by a railroad of standard gauge. The walls of the houses are of bamboo, set perpendicularly, some overspread with plaster often partly peeled off, others destitute of covering. Climbing the hills back of the town you will perceive a genuine desert, in the distance fringed by low mountains. “Paita,” said the Captain on my first voyage in 1903, “is the dryest place on earth.” From its appearance I was not inclined to dispute the fact, but having heard that it rains there once in seven years and in Iquique not at all I inquired how this might be. “That is easy,” replied the Captain. “In Iquique there are heavy dews, here nothing, and now it has skipped one shower and it is almost fourteen years since it has rained.” This was no idle jest. The drought continued until February, 1910, when there was a heavy shower, the first in nineteen years. There are no wells, hence all water is brought by rail and sparingly used; therefore there is no green. The town of Piura, on the contrary, 60 miles distant, is in an irrigated valley where the finest cotton is a staple production and where new irrigation canals are increasing the possibilities for agriculture. A few miles farther is Catacaos, where half of the 20,000 inhabitants are engaged in making the 260,000 Panama hats here annually produced. While Ecuador is the chief seat of the industry, hats may be purchased at Paita to better advantage than at Guayaquil. The natives who come on board ship bring various articles for sale, paroquets, mocking-birds, fruit, pottery, ancient and modern, as well as the Panama hats. These of good quality may be purchased at from $2.00 to $12 or $15 gold, the latter of the Monte Christo quality, all at about one-fourth of the price commonly asked for a similar article in New York. The best are rarely found in the United States at any price.

Some day Paita with its excellent harbor will become a port of great importance. A railroad 400 miles long is planned and has been surveyed to Melendez on the MaraÑon, the larger of the two rivers (the other, the Ucayali) uniting to form the Amazon. Crossing the Andes in one of its lowest sections, where a short tunnel at 5000 feet altitude will serve instead of the long ones, above 10,000 and 15,000 feet, through the mountains farther south, this road will bring the rubber country in the neighborhood of Iquitos, the chief port on the upper Amazon, within two weeks of New York, instead of the four or five weeks by way of ParÁ. On this route, too, are said to be millions of tons of iron, as well as coal and other minerals.

On leaving Paita, if not before, the tourist will be likely to feel the need of heavier underwear. The air in winter is damp and chilly. The temperature in my cabin was 60°. At this season clouds generally conceal the sun, making a gloomy sea, and the little patches of blue sky are small.

EtÉn, the next port, 161 miles farther south, the ship is likely to reach the next morning. An iron pier 2000 feet long is noticeable, though a good distance away. Callao is the only seaport below Panama having docks which may be approached by large ships. The slope of the beaches is so gradual that even for the use of the lighters long piers are necessary. EtÉn has an especially poor anchorage, an open roadstead where there is often a moderate swell, so that the passing traveler seldom goes ashore. Frequently passengers must be taken on board by means of a sort of barrel or hogshead destitute of one side. One person sits, another stands on the edge. Thus they are raised with windlass, chain, and pulley, and gently deposited on deck.

Pacasmayo, 34 miles farther, is usually visited the same day. This is quite a town with a railroad running 85 miles up country, some day to be prolonged to Cajamarca, now rather difficult of access.

The coast presents for the most part a study in browns, diversified by occasional patches of green, the size of which varies with that of the stream coming down from the mountains and the extent of irrigation in the valley. The great mountain range is surprisingly near the sea. There are indeed foothills, and in the northern and southern sections of Peru, back of the high bluffs which generally line the coast, a plain stretches away to lofty mountains. These, however, are near enough to be always in sight if it were not for another peculiarity of this rainless coast, the low clouds or mist which too often conceal or obscure them. Along the central portion of Peru beginning with Salaverry, the mountains come down to the shore in many bold headlands and are sometimes so disposed as to present an appearance of several ranges of varying altitudes, the rearmost, a frowning almost perpendicular black wall, which, back of Chimbote and Samanco, rises to the extraordinary height of 15,000 to 18,000 feet. Barely, a snow-crowned summit is there seen peeping over a depression in the Black Range, the north peak of the great HuascarÁn, 21,812 feet above the sea, first ascended in 1908 by Miss Annie S. Peck with two Swiss guides. At present HuascarÁn is called the second highest measured mountain in America, but it is far more difficult to climb than Aconcagua, now holding first place. Had one a clear view of these great ranges, the voyage to the mountain lover would be of real fascination. As it is, the long halts at the various ports to discharge and receive freight become a trifle monotonous. Possibly, after the opening of the Canal, there will be through service with direct express to Callao from Panama.