Travels in Peru, on the Coast, in the Sierra, Across the Cordilleras and the Andes, into the Primeval Forests Part 4

An intolerable annoyance experienced in visiting the theatre at Lima is caused by the swarms of fleas which infest every part of the house, but most especially the boxes. Unfortunately, this nuisance is irremediable, and the visitor must be blessed with a large amount of endurance who can patiently sit out a whole evening's entertainments.

Not far from the theatre is situated the circus for c.o.c.k-fighting (_Coliseo de gallos_), where fights (_peleas_) take place daily. The Coliseo is a large amphitheatre, with an arena in the middle. The game-c.o.c.ks trained for this sport have the spur removed from the right foot and in its stead is subst.i.tuted a small sharp steel blade, curved and shaped like a scythe. One or other of the animals is frequently killed at the first spring; and when that is not the case they continue fighting until they die of wounds and exhaustion. It is a cruel sport, and a worthy pendant to bull-fighting. The first Coliseo was erected in 1762, by Don Juan Garrial. The present building, in the Plazuela de Santa Catalina, is a very handsome structure, and Lima may fairly boast of possessing the finest circus for c.o.c.k-fighting in all the world.

In the same square with the _Coliseo de gallos_ is the tennis-court, a s.p.a.cious area, surrounded by high walls. It is not now so much resorted to as formerly, for the Creoles are not so fond of tennis as the Spaniards.

A beautiful stone bridge unites the town with the suburb of San Lazaro. This bridge was built in the years 1638-1640, when the Marquis de Montes Claros was viceroy of Peru. The plan was designed by Fray Geronimo Villegas, an Augustine monk. It is 530 feet long, and has six arches rising thirty-seven feet above the surface of the water. The foundation of the piers is composed of square blocks of stone, the piers themselves are of brick, and the parapet of cemented stone work.

The erection of this bridge cost 400,000 dollars. A sufficient proof of its strength and solidity is the fact that it survived the earthquakes of 1687 and 1746, which shattered all other parts of Lima.

In the earthquake of 1746 the first arch, on which stood an equestrian statue of Philip V., was destroyed, but it is now restored. It has on one side two towers, with a dial in the middle.

The city of Lima, with the exception of a portion of the north side, and the suburb of San Lazaro, is surrounded by a wall built of brick.

This wall was constructed in the year 1585, when the Duque de la Plata was viceroy. It is the work of a Fleming, named Pedro Ramon. This wall is between eighteen and twenty feet high. Its breadth at the base is from ten to twelve feet, and at the top nine feet. It does not therefore afford sufficient s.p.a.ce for mounting large guns. Along the whole extent of the wall there are thirty-four bastions. In the year 1807, this wall, which had fallen into a very ruinous condition, was repaired by order of the viceroy Abascal, and put into a condition to be mounted with artillery. On each side commodious pathways were made, and along the inner side powder magazines were constructed. At present these fortifications are in a state of complete dilapidation. The paths, which are obstructed by rubbish, are almost impa.s.sable, and the powder magazines are destroyed. The city wall of Lima has nine gates (_Portadas_). Of these, six only are now open, viz., the Portadas of Maravillas, Barbones, Cocharcas, Guadelupe, Juan Simon, and Callao; the three others, the Portadas of Martinete, Monserrat, and Santa Catalina, are walled up. At every one of the open gates there are stationed custom-house guards, whose chief duty consists in preventing the smuggled introduction of unstamped silver (_plata de pina_). In the direction of the suburb of San Lazaro, the city cannot be closed, as the wall does not extend to that part. Between San Lazaro, and the high road to Cero de Pasco, is the _Portada de Guias_; this, however, is not properly a gate, but a small custom-house. In this direction it is easy to gain entrance to the city from the river, and consequently it is here that most of the contraband silver, brought from the mountains, is smuggled.

Among the fortifications of Lima may be included the pretty little castle of Santa Catalina, situated at the eastern end of the city, between the Portada de Cocharcas and the Portada de Guadelupe, at the distance of about two hundred yards from the city wall. It is surrounded by rather high walls, and is flanked by two bastions. The interior of this citadel is very well arranged, and is kept much cleaner than such places usually are in Peru. It contains stores of arms and barracks for the artillery. The largest barracks in Lima are those of the infantry, _Quartel de Infanteria_, in the Colegio. They are remarkable for want of cleanliness, and like most of the public buildings in this interesting city, going fast to decay.

FOOTNOTES:

[Footnote 5: The city of Lima was founded by Don Francisco Pizarro on the 6th of January, 1534. As it was the day of the Epiphany, Lima received the t.i.tle of _Ciudad de los Reyes_ (City of the Kings).

Historical records vary respecting the day and the year of the foundation of Lima; but I have reason to believe that the date I have mentioned above is perfectly correct.]

[Footnote 6: The _Vara Castellana_ is equal to 33 inches English measure.]

[Footnote 7: The females who retire to these establishments are called _Beatas_ (Bigots). The term _Beaterio_ signifies a house for Bigots.--T.]

[Footnote 8: According to some accounts this establishment was inst.i.tuted in 1654, by Mateo Pastor de Velasco, a native of Portollano in Spain.]

[Footnote 9: In these shops any one may purchase for a trifle one of the most deadly poisons (Strichnos Ignatia, L.). It is made up into what are called _Pepitas de Cabalonga_. It is used in Lima for poisoning dogs.]

[Footnote 10: This highly valuable and interesting collection of portraits is now removed from the palace to the museum. It is curious to mark the progressive changes of costume, and to observe the various physiognomies, especially if we reflect on the history of the men whose traits denote such striking differences of character. Almost all these portraits are distinguished by an air of tranquil gravity which in some is combined with true kingly dignity, and in others with an expression of fierceness. The handsomest head of the whole series is decidedly that of Francisco Pizarro. His features bear the stamp of manly energy, and his whole countenance is characterized by courage and candor. The nose has the prominent Arabic form, and the forehead is high and expanded. The thick beard, covering the mouth and chin, gives a gloomy and resolute character to the face. In this series of portraits there is one representing a priest with the vice-regal insignia.]

[Footnote 11: By a singular coincidence, the t.i.tle of Conde de los Andes (Count of the Andes) was conferred on La Serna by King Ferdinand at Madrid on the 9th of December, 1824, being the very day on which he gained the battle of Ayacucho, the results of which gave the Spanish dominion in South America its death-blow.]

[Footnote 12: The above particulars are collected from the _Historia del descubrimiento y conquista de la Provincia del Peru_, by Augustin de Zarate.]

[Ill.u.s.tration: CHILIAN INDIAN MOTHER.]

[Ill.u.s.tration: LADY OF LIMA.]

[Ill.u.s.tration: PERUVIAN MONK.]

[Ill.u.s.tration: PERUVIAN FARMER.]

CHAPTER V.

Population of Lima--Its diminution--Different races of the Inhabitants--Their characteristics--Amus.e.m.e.nts--Education--The women of Lima--Their Costume--The _Saya y Manto_--Female domestic life--Love of dress--Beatas--Indians--Slaves--Bosales--Free Creoles--Negroes--Negresses--Black Creoles--Their varieties--Mestizos--Mulattoes--Palanganas--Zambos--Chinos--Foreigners in Lima--Corruption of the Spanish language.

Proceeding from the sh.e.l.l to the kernel, we will now take a glance at the inhabitants of the capital of Peru: first, surveying the native in his fatherland, and next, the foreign settler in his adopted country.

The population of Lima has at various periods undergone remarkable fluctuations. In the year 1764 the number of the inhabitants was stated to be 54,000; in 1810, 87,000; in 1826, 70,000; in 1836, 54,600; and in 1842, 53,000. Of most of these estimates I entertain some degree of distrust, as they are merely founded on general calculations, and are not the results of careful numbering. Certain it is, however, that the population of Lima has very considerably decreased since the declaration of independence. This is sufficiently proved by the fact that several parts of the city are now totally uninhabited: the houses falling to decay, and the gardens lying waste.

The cause of this diminished population is easily explained by the physical and political condition of the country. Earthquakes have, at various times, buried thousands of people beneath the ruins of their own dwellings; the war of independence was attended by vast sacrifices of life; banishment and voluntary emigration have removed from Lima the families of some of the princ.i.p.al citizens; and epidemic disease, the natural consequence of defective police regulations, has swept away countless mult.i.tudes of the inhabitants. The number of new settlers is very inconsiderable; and for several past years the number of deaths has nearly doubled that of the births. There appears no reason to doubt that this decrease of population will continue; because, as will presently be seen, the causes to which it is a.s.signable cannot be checked, inasmuch as they are intimately blended with the character of the nation. Most of these causes operate not only in the capital, but over the whole country; indeed, in the latter their influence is in some instances much greater; for example, in the interior of Peru the loss of life attendant on the war was relatively much greater than in Lima. This favored country, which extends from the 3d to the 22d degree of south lat.i.tude, and which contained at the time of its conquest by the Spaniards an immense population, though its amount is not known with numerical exact.i.tude, now counts only 1,400,000 inhabitants.

In the tax registers, drawn up during the protectorate of Santa Cruz, in 1836, the number of the inhabitants of Lima is represented as follows:--

Male. Female. Total.

1. White Creoles (being the descendants of foreigners, but chiefly of Spaniards) 9,423 10,170 19,593

2. Indians 2,561 2,731 5,292

3. People of Color (mixed races) 11,771 12,355 24,126

4. Slaves 2,186 3,606 4,792

5. Ecclesiastics (Lay and Monastic) 475 350 825 ------ ------ ------ In all 26,416 29,212 54,628

From the above it appears that in every cla.s.s (No. 5 excepted) there is a preponderance of females; and that on the whole population of 54,628 individuals there is a surplus of 2796 women. About one in every sixty-six individuals belongs to the priesthood.

Possibly in no other place in the world is there so much variety of complexion and physiognomy as in Lima. From the delicately fair creole daughter of European parents, to the jet black Congo negro, people of every gradation of color are seen living in intimate relation one with another. The two extreme cla.s.ses--the whites and blacks--are as distinct in character as in color, and of either of those it is no difficult task to give an accurate portraiture. But it is different with the mixed races. To define their characteristics correctly would be impossible, for their minds partake of the mixture of their blood.

As a general rule, it may fairly be said that they unite in themselves all the faults, without any of the virtues, of their progenitors. As men they are greatly inferior to the pure races, and as members of society they are the worst cla.s.s of citizens. Here, as well as in the following delineations of the different races, I wish my observations to be understood only in a general sense. I have met with some honorable exceptions; though, unfortunately, they were mere solitary luminaries, whose transient light has been speedily obscured by the surrounding darkness.

The white Creoles, who, with very few exceptions, are the descendants of Spaniards, const.i.tute somewhat less than a third part of the population of Lima. They are slender in figure and of middling height. Their features are strongly marked, their complexions fair and pale, and their hair is of the darkest black. The men are feeble and look prematurely old. Their countenances, though not devoid of dignity, have a sort of sensual expression. They are effeminate, and disinclined to any kind of active exertion. If they ride the distance of ten miles, they think they have performed a feat of heroism worthy to be recorded in the state archives. If the white Creoles are inferior to the Spaniards in physical organization, they are no less beneath them in qualities of mind. They shrink from anything that demands intellectual exertion. In short, they are sworn enemies to business of every kind, and those who are obliged to work for their own support, make choice of some occupation which, like that of a shopman, affords them ample time to smoke cigars and to gossip with their neighbors. The richer cla.s.ses give themselves up wholly to idleness. They walk about and visit their acquaintances, or they lounge in shops or at the corners of streets, and in that manner they often amuse themselves for half a day. Those who are owners of plantations occasionally ride through them to receive reports from their mayordomos. Their afternoons are usually spent in the _Coliseo de gallos_, in the coffee-houses, or at the gaming-table. The white Creoles are as pa.s.sionately fond of gaming as the Spaniards, and sums equal to those staked at the gaming-tables of Mexico and the Havannah are daily lost and won in Lima. Though games of hazard are prohibited, yet they are very publicly played, and it is only now and then that the police enforce the regulations of the law by the seizure of a bank.

Gaming in Lima is carried on very quietly, and the most determined gamblers do not show themselves very much excited either by losses or winnings. The discovery of false dice, however, creates bitter feelings of animosity, which not unfrequently lead to a.s.sa.s.sination. Of this I knew several instances when I was in the interior of the country.

The intellectual culture of the white Creole of Lima is exceedingly defective. He is not wanting in talent; but an imperfect system of education affords him no opportunity for the development of his faculties, and innate indolence is a bar to his self-improvement by study. He seldom rises above the level of every-day life, and is ignorant of everything beyond the boundary of the city, or, at all events, of the province in which he was born. I have often been amazed at the monstrous ignorance of so-called educated Peruvians, respecting the situation, the extent, the physical formation, and the productions of their native country.

On the other hand, it must not be forgotten that Lima has been the birthplace of several white Creoles, whose talents and learning have honorably distinguished them from the rest of their countrymen. For example, Don Tomas de Salazar, author of the "Interpretaciones de los Leyes de Indias."[13] Don Miguel Nunez de Rojas, the learned Judge of Confiscations in the Spanish war of succession, and Don Alonzo Conde de San Donas, who in the reign of Philip IV. was Spanish Amba.s.sador at the Court of France. Among those eminent in literature may be named Don Pedro de la Reyna Maldonado, and the poet Don Diego Martinez de Rivera, of whom Cervantes in his "Galatea" says--

Su divina ingenio ha producido En Arequipa eterna Primavera.[14]

Several monks distinguished for learning have been white Creoles, and an eminent individual of that race was Don Hipolito Unanue, the author of the "Guide to Peru," and "Observations on the Climate of Lima, and its Influence on organized Beings, especially Man;"[15] a Treatise on the Cocoa-tree, &c. In more recent times, Don Mariano Eduardo de Rivero has zealously devoted himself to the study of natural history and antiquities.

But in spite of his faults, the Lima Creole has his good qualities.

He is an enemy to strong drinks. When he takes wine it is usually of some sweet kind, and of that he partakes very sparingly. A white Creole in a state of intoxication would, indeed, be a rare sight. Not so in the interior of the country, where the whites are remarkable for intemperate drinking.

Far superior to the men, both physically and intellectually, are the women of Lima. Nature has lavishly endowed them with many of her choicest gifts. In figure they are usually slender and rather tall, and they are especially remarkable for small, elegantly formed feet. Their fair faces, from which the glowing breath of the tropics banishes every trace of bloom, are animated by large, bright, dark eyes. Their features are pleasing--the nose being well formed, though in general not small--the mouth invariably adorned with two rows of brilliant white teeth,[16] and their long black hair, arranged in plaits, falls gracefully over the bosom and shoulders. Add to all this a captivating grace of manner and deportment, joined to an exceeding degree of gentleness and amiability, and it will be readily admitted that the Limena is a n.o.ble specimen of female loveliness.

At home, especially in the summer season, the ladies of Lima dress lightly and even negligently. For visiting, or going to the theatres, they adopt the French fas.h.i.+on. When walking in the streets, attending church, joining religious processions, &c., they appear in a very singular costume, peculiar to Lima, and consisting of two garments called the _Saya_ and the _Manto_. Of the saya there are two kinds.

The one called the _Saya ajustada_, was formerly in general use, but is now seldom seen. It consists of a petticoat, or skirt of thick stiff silk, plaited at top and bottom, in small fluted folds, drawn very close together at the waist and widening towards the ankles, beneath which the saya does not descend. It is tight to the form, the outline of which it perfectly displays, and its closeness to the limbs naturally impedes rapid movement. When wearing the _Saya ajustada_, the ladies find it no very easy task to kneel down at church, and at the termination of every genuflexion, they are obliged to twist and twirl about for a considerable time before they can again stand on their feet.[17]

The other description of saya is called the Saya _culeca_, or the _Saya desplegada_. It is plaited close at the waist, and from thence downwards it stands out like a hooped petticoat. This sort of saya is made by first being plaited both at top and bottom like the _Saya ajustada_; but, afterwards, the lower plaits are undone to form the _Saya desplegada_. The saya is always made of some dark-colored silk, black, green, blue, or cinnamon color.

The _Manto_ is a veil of thick black silk fastened by a band at the back of the waist, where it joins the _saya_. From thence it is brought over the shoulders and head, and drawn over the face so closely that only a small triangular s.p.a.ce, sufficient for one eye to peep through, is left uncovered. A rich shawl thrown over the shoulders conceals the whole of the under garment, except the sleeves. One of the small, neatly-gloved hands, confines the folds of the _manto_, whilst the other holds a richly embroidered pocket-handkerchief.