Yet about half-way we passed some
old Indian ruins near Punta Gorda: I noticed also in front of some
of the valleys which branch off from the Despoblado, two piles of
stones placed a little way apart, and directed so as to point up
the mouths of these small valleys. My companions knew nothing about
them, and only answered my queries by their imperturbable "quien
sabe?"
I observed Indian ruins in several parts of the Cordillera: the
most perfect which I saw were the Ruinas de Tambillos in the
Uspallata Pass. Small square rooms were there huddled together in
separate groups: some of the doorways were yet standing; they were
formed by a cross slab of stone only about three feet high. Ulloa
has remarked on the lowness of the doors in the ancient Peruvian
dwellings. These houses, when perfect, must have been capable of
containing a considerable number of persons. Tradition says that
they were used as halting-places for the Incas, when they crossed
the mountains. Traces of Indian habitations have been discovered in
many other parts, where it does not appear probable that they were
used as mere resting-places, but yet where the land is as utterly
unfit for any kind of cultivation as it is near the Tambillos or at
the Incas Bridge, or in the Portillo Pass, at all which places I
saw ruins.
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