Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
trip she would have to do so alone. Luckily she finally gave up the idea, and on the morning
when my horses and Mr W.'s mules were packed and ready for the start, the good lady was
there sadly to bid us
bon voyage
.
Mr W. had not yet arrived, and so I chatted with a group of officers and friends who had
come to see me off. After a while Mr W. came hurrying towards me, but to my surprise he
was dressed in his usual grey business suit and wore his customary neat, grey felt hat, and this
led me to surmise that he had changed his mind about coming with me at the last moment.
After a hasty 'good morning' to everybody he said he was ready to start whenever I was, but
without wasting time I went to my pack-horse and took a set of riding togs and a cap out of
the saddlebags and told him to go and change into this more suitable outfit, but I had to argue
with him for quite a while before he trotted off to do as I had told him. Whilst he was away I
had visions of what was going to happen, and I realised that he thought he was merely going
out for a joyride in a park. After a while he returned, and soon we were going along the road
at a merry gait.
At first the road led over a flat stretch, but later we came to a hill. Mr W. was going ahead at a
lively trot, obviously not heeding my warning to be careful and to take his time. I had advised
him to bear in mind that we were in high altitudes where animals must not be hurried lest they
get mountain sickness, but with the novelty of sitting on a mule he merrily trotted up the hill
as if he were in a hurry to reach the mountains and valleys of his dreams. Presently his mule
began to stagger and sway from side to side, and suddenly collapsed as if it had been pole-
axed; what I had foreseen had happened; the animal was down with
sorroche
, as mountain
sickness is called in Peru.
Sorroche
claims many victims among beasts of burden, and frequently even men die of it.
There are several ways of giving relief to animals, and I always carried the necessary things
with me in case of accidents. One cure is to take a sharp penknife and cut a gash in the roof of
the mouth of the afflicted animal, the loss of blood relieving the pressure on the brain. Anoth-
er,morepleasantfirst-aidistocrushgarlicbetweentwostones,mixitwithpurealcoholinthe
hollow of the hand, and blow this strong-smelling concoction into the animal's nostrils. As a
general rule this soon makes the invalid react.
Luckily Mr W.'s mule soon showed signs of improvement and there was no need to give
it more than a few minutes' rest before we resumed the journey. The lesson had been a good
one, and Mr W. remembered it, for I never saw him hurry his animals again when we had to
climb a hill.
