he animals
towards their boats.  The entire weight of the booty thus acquired was
eight hundred pounds.

Proceeding northwards, they saw several Indian towns, the people from
which came off in a curious kind of boat, bringing various sorts of
fish, wishing to exchange them for knives, beads, and looking-glasses.
Even the old men were as willing to accept such trifles as the young.
They, like the rest of their countrymen, appeared to be of a mild and
agreeable disposition.

The boats, if they could be so-called, were perfect novelties to the
voyagers.  They consisted of two large inflated skins fixed side by
side, with a board on the top of them, on which the paddler sat,
carrying his merchandise.  They are known as _balsas_.

The _Hind_ next came off the town of Normarena, governed by two
Spaniards.  Drake, wishing to obtain further refreshments, sent on shore
to invite them to traffic.  Rather from fear than love they consented,
and among other things sent off several llamas, which were in height and
length about the size of a small cow; but they must have been of great
strength, for three full-grown men and a boy were seen seated on the
back of one of them, their feet not reaching the ground.  The sheep, as
they were called, had necks like camels, but their heads much resembled
those of ordinary sheep.  Their wool was exceedingly fine.  The
Spaniards employed them to carry loads of silver from the mines.  The
voyagers heard that, throughout the province of Cuzco, so rich was the
soil that every hundred pounds of earth yielded twenty-five pounds of
pure silver.  This, of course, was an absurdity; but so inflamed were
their minds with ideas respecting the wealth of the country, that they
were ready to believe anything told them.

From this place no harbour in which the missing vessels could have taken
refuge was found, until the _Golden Hind_ arrived off the town of Arica,
on the 7th of February.  The country around it appeared rich and
fertile; the port was frequented by vessels from Lima and other parts of
Peru