. The land of Bolivar; or, War, peace, and adventure in the Republic of Venezuela . ents, and the givenwords having been rummaged out from the lumber-room of memory, they were used in their properorder and sequence, and my way was then pursuedrejoicingly. An acquaintance of mine had a stillnarrower escape, for being out at night without thecountersign, he was fired at by the guard, but wasfortunate enough to escape any serious physicaldamage. In another instance, a Venezuelan soldierhad received his orders to challenge by asking, Who goes there ! three times, and if no responsewas given, then
. The land of Bolivar; or, War, peace, and adventure in the Republic of Venezuela . ents, and the givenwords having been rummaged out from the lumber-room of memory, they were used in their properorder and sequence, and my way was then pursuedrejoicingly. An acquaintance of mine had a stillnarrower escape, for being out at night without thecountersign, he was fired at by the guard, but wasfortunate enough to escape any serious physicaldamage. In another instance, a Venezuelan soldierhad received his orders to challenge by asking, Who goes there ! three times, and if no responsewas given, then to fire. Whilst on duty at thecuartel he heard a footstep, and instead of carryingout the spirit of his orders, he obeyed them literally;simply cried, Alto! Quien vive, tres veces ? (Stop !Who goes there, three times ?), and then bang wenthis musket, to the detriment of the pedestrian. The capital stands upon what is said to have beenthe bed of a lake, dried up and elevated by theaction of an earthquake. There is nothing Indianabout Caracas except its name ; no trace is left, in. CO <O cc< Chap, ii.] CARACAS. 29 the present city, of the hardy race who inhabitedthis beautiful valley before the advent of Don Diegode Losada. A orammar of the languao-e of the abori-gines was printed in 1683, but the book is nowextremely rare.* From a limited knowledge of Tam-anak words, I judge that the Cumanagota has aclose affinity to it. If Father Euiz Blancos dictionarymay be trusted, the w^arlike Cumanagotos had neitherGod nor devil. The climate of Caracas is a perpetual spring, andalthough, like all tropical regions, sometimes liable tosudden and unexpected changes of temperature, it isremarkably healthy. The atmosphere is clear, andthe air pure and delicious. Situated as it is 3000 feetabove the level of the sea, at the entrance to a fertilevalley, and surrounded by lofty mountains, the sceneryaffords varied landscapes, alike pleasing to the eyeand suggestive to the imagination. The av
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