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he dined with us after his visit, we offer the account he gave of it to a number of gentlemen, with the spirit and merriment of a good actor on the stage. 'I have come, sir,' said the Colonel bowing, 'to pay my respects to the President of Bolivia.' Belzu, in a rage, 'You are the scoundrel who raised volunteers and fought against me.' Colonel, bowing again respectfully, 'Yes, sir; and in so doing did what every officer is expected to do, obeyed the authorities of my country.' Belzu, in greater rage, 'Get out of my sight, sir; if ever I hear of you taking part against me again, you will be shot in the centre of the plaza.' The Bolivians all laughed, and like himself, seemed to think it a very amusing visit."

We find in these volumes many interesting sketches of life, customs, and manners, marriage and funeral ceremonies, religious observances, balls and theaters, much about the slavery of the native Indian population; of the soil, climate, and productions. The extracts have already increased beyond our calculation, and we must hurry over the remainder of the volume. It is said that Mestizo and Spanish Creole girls have been known in Peru to bear children at eight and nine years of age. At Cochabamba twelve is considered the marriageable age; and at thirteen, girls have been known to bear children. We are disposed to be incredulous upon this point, without calling in question the veracity of the Lieutenant.

The city of Santa Cruz is quite a smart place, and that department of Bolivia is the rice-growing country. Tropical fruits are raised in the gardens, and all sorts of luxuries, conveniences, and necessaries foreign to us, flourish there abundantly. Chocolate, coffee, tobacco, vanilla, indigo, and pea nuts are mixed with wheat, maize, potatoes, and grapes. With the present indolence, every thing is plenty; with industry, produce of all kinds would be abundant. People consequently live here, many of them, without making a single exertionthe Indian servants do all the things necessary to keep up the lazy establishment of their Bolivian masters. We can not resist the temptation to make at least one more extract, giving the outline of the daily life of a family in the city of Santa Cruz.

"Very early in the morning, the Creole, getting out of bed, throws himself into a hamac; his wife stretches herself upon a bench near by, while the children seat themselves with their legs under them on the chairs, all in their night-dresses. The Indian servant-girl enters with a cup of chocolate for each member of the family. After which she brings some coals of fire in a silver dish. The wife lights her husband a segar, then one for herself. Some time is spent reclining, chatting, and regaling. The man

slowly pulls on his cotton trowsers, woollen coat, leather shoes, and vicuña hat, with his neck exposed to the fresh air-silk handkerchiefs are scarcehe walks to some near neighbors, with whom he again drinks chocolate, and smokes another segar.

"At midday a small low table is set in the middle of the room, and the family go to breakfast. The wife sits next to her husband; the women are very pretty, and affectionate to their husbands. He chooses her from among five, there being about that number of women to one man in the town. The children seat themselves, and the dogs form a ring behind. The first dish is a chupe of potatoes with large pieces of meat. The man helps himself first, and throws his bones straight across the table; a child dodges his head, to give it a free passage, and the dogs rush after it as it falls upon the ground-floor. A child then throws his bone, the mother dodges, and the dogs rush behind her. The second dish holds small pieces of beef without bones. Dogs are now fighting. Next comes a dish with finely-chopped beef; then beef-soup, vegetables and fruits; finally, coffee or chocolate. After breakfast the man pulls off his trowsers and coat, and lies down with his drawers in the hamac. His wife lights him a segar. She finds her way back to bed with her segar. The dogs jump up and lie down on the chairs the fleas bite them on the ground. The Indian girl closes both doors and windows, take the children out to play, while the rest of the family sleep.

"At 2 P.M., the church bells ring to let the people know the priests are saying a prayer for them, which rouses them up. The man rises, stretches his hand above his head and gapes; the dogs get down and whiningly stretch themselves; while the wife sets up in bed and loudly calls out for 'fire.' The Indian girl reäppears with a 'chunk' for her mistress to light her master another segar, and she smokes again herself. The dinner, which takes place between three and five, is nearly the same as breakfast, except when a beef is recently killed by the Indians, then they have a broil. The ribs and other long bones of the animal are trimmed of flesh, leaving the bones thinly coated with meat; these are laid across a fire and roasted; the members of the family while employed with them, look as if all were practising music.

"A horse is brought into the house by an Indian man, who holds while the 'patron' saddles and bridles him; he then puts on a large pair of silver spurs, which cost forty dollars, and mounting, he rides out of the front door to the opposite house; halting, he takes off his hat and calls out, 'Buenas tardes, Señoritas'-good evening, ladies. The ladies make their appearance at the door; one lights him a segar; another mixes him a glass of lemonade to refresh him after his ride. He remains in the saddle talking, while they lean gracefully against the door-posts, smiling with their bewitching eyes. He touches his hat and rides off to another neighbor. After spending the afternoon in this way, he rides into his house again. The In

dian holds the horse by the bridle while the master dismounts. Taking off the saddle, he throws it into one chair, the bridle into another, his spurs on a third, and himself into the hamac; the Indian leads out the horse, the dogs pull down the riding gear to the floor, and lay themselves on their usual bedsteads.

"Chocolate and segars are repeated ad libitum, and thus passes the time of a Bolivian gentleman. It could not but be expected, that men who could be content to spend life after such a fashion, would not be capable of much exertion, either physical or mental. There must be got among them some American ingenuity and enterprise-the beautiful señoritas must populate the States, not with the lazy, sleepy, indolent Creole, but with the go-a-head, wakeful, enterprising Yankee. Doubtless they, the Señoritas, would gladly go into the measure, if the views of a lady in La Paz are any guide to the sentiments of the mass. She seemed particularly fond of the United States, asking many questions, expressing her admiration of the people, but disapproving of some of their actions. She approved of the enterprise of Lieut. Gibbon, and expressed herself friendly to it; but concluded by saying "I believe the North-Americans will some day govern the whole of South-America.'

We assure her ladyship, that such is not at all our desire, but we must add, that the infusion of some of our superabundant spirit into her countrymen, or a judicious mixture of our population with the Bolivian, would be to the great advantage of the latter country. Nor was this North-American leaning to be found only among the whites. An old Indian Cayuba, of the Mojos tribe, was much surprised at the daguerreotype likeness of two ladies, and brought to Lieut. Gibbon a party of his friends, requesting him to show them the women" of his tribe"-expressing a desire to swap his wife for one of them. There seems to be, therefore, from the president to the muledriving Indian, a wish that the trading and mercantile interests of the countries traversed by the Amazon and its branches, should be opened to our occupancy. From the mouth of the Madeira, a branch of the Amazon, a distance of five hundred miles, vessels drawing six feet water can navigate at any season of the year; and Lieut. Gibbon estimates that a cargo of goods could arrive at La Paz, the commercial emporium of Bolivia, in fifty-nine days from Baltimore, by the route he travelled, which could be made entirely practicable in a little time and with but small expense.

But we have already lingered too long over these, to us, fascinating volumes. We must close here, without adding the many more paragraphs we had marked for insertion. We are

conscious that we have not done the reports of the two Lieutenants full justice, but what we have said, may send many who have the chance, to reading the results of their labors. When to all this, we add, that extensive and well-executed maps accompany the Reports, and that they themselves are beautifully and profusely illustrated, we have enumerated many things which ought to induce, not only the reading, but the study of them. It is to be hoped that the government will push forward a work so well begun, and endeavor to open a trade, which must, in a short time, be extensive and profitable, with the South-American Republics. Bound together as we are, both by political and natural bands, there ought to exist a close and active mercantile relation between the countries. Lieuts. Herndon and Gibbon have done their parts, and well too, to show the great facilities and advantages of such a trade, and it now remains in the hands of others, to carry forward into actual operation, what is proved by the expedition to be expedient and desirable.

MARRIAGE.

MARRIAGE is like a flaming candle-light,
Placed in the window on a summer-night,
Inviting all the insects of the air

To come and singe their pretty winglets there;
Those that are out, butt heads against the pane,
Those that are in, butt to get out again.

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