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"It will interest the Bolivians to see how this country is overrun with what Thady Gallagher calls the armed forces of an alien power." "What I say is this," said Thady Gallagher, grasping at his opportunity, "so long as the people of this country is kept in subjection and the cursed system of landlordism is supported "
"Having therefore been foiled in that direction, a force of Bolivians has been collected by a noted guerilla leader named Bajos; and this force, amounting to about a couple of thousand men, has entrenched itself in a strong position near Coroico, whence frequent destructive raids are being made into our newly won territory.
However the forest might bristle with undergrowth, they never thought of breaking down obstacles or of cutting them, as the equally practiced Bolivians did, with a knife.
Jim listened in silence to this outburst, and then somewhat inconsequently inquired: "Do you know whereabout this guerilla fort is situated, Jose?" "Yes, senor, I do," replied the man; "it is not more than a mile away from here, and I can lead you to the place by way of a road which the Bolivians would never suspect you of knowing."
"This gentleman is too delicate to sustain our kind of life," suggested Marcoy. "He is tired of skinning his hands and legs in our service, and eating peccary, monkey and snails as we do. His Bolivians are perhaps quite as useful for our service, and while he is rioting at Cuzco we may be enriching ourselves with cinchonas."
From that day onwards the Chilian navy maintained its status, and continues to rank as one of the most efficient in the world. This was proved shortly after its reorganization in the war which broke out in 1879 between the Chilians and the allied Peruvians and Bolivians. Hostilities were brought about by the vexed question of the ownership of the valuable nitrate provinces.
In a few minutes the bloody work was over; the corpses on the stairs were pulled away, and the assailants rushed upstairs to complete their work. But the Bolivians had now no stomach for further fight, and they threw down their arms, crying for mercy.
Possibly there may have been some battle, in which the Bolivians have been defeated. I would not have come ashore had I thought that the city was likely to be in this state of unrest. However, as we are here we may as well go forward; so come along, and let us get away from this frothing volcano as soon as we can.
But the tide of battle was not arrested at this point. It flowed to the north again, and the deserts in that neighbourhood witnessed a number of engagements, in all of which the Peruvians and Bolivians were worsted and forced to continue their retreat. The important town of Arica was captured on June 7 after a peculiarly sanguinary engagement.
The Bolivians believed that it was impossible for anybody to find the way to their stronghold unassisted, and therefore, as soon as the Chilian cavalry appeared, they had suspected treachery on the part of somebody, their suspicion focussing itself in this case upon the unfortunate Jose.
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