PACKING  AND  SHIPPING  313

part  of  the  world  are  the  only  routes  to  these
inland  cities.  As  a  rule  they  are  hardly  wide
enough  for  two  mules  or  pack  animals  to  pass,
except  at  certain  localities.  On  one  side  they
are  bounded  by  the  walls  of  snow-tipped
mountains,  which  raise  their  majestic  heads
into  the  clouds,  while  on  the  other  yawning
abysses,  hundreds,  sometimes  thousands  of  feet
deep,  open  their  gaping  mouths,  along  the  botton
  of  which  winding  watercourses  wend  their
way  to  the  sea.
Many  of  the  ports  of  Latin  America  are
open  roadsteads,  such  for  instance  as  Mollendo,
  Peru,  one  of  the  gateways  to  the  interior
of  that  country  and  Bolivia  as  well.  At  certain ­
  seasons  of  the  year  it  is  almost  impossible
for  one  to  land  and  I  have  known  of  vessels  to
wait  as  long  as  six  weeks  before  getting  their
cargoes  discharged  into  the  rolling,  tossing
lighters  which  continually  thump  and  smash
against  the  side  of  the  ship.  After  the  lighters ­
  are  loaded,  they  in  turn  have  to  wait  days,
weeks  and  often  months  before  a  favorable
opportunity  arrives  for  getting  their  contents