[Illustration: A REDUCED HUMAN HEAD.] To revert to politics, the sore feeling engendered by the war between Chili and Peru has been much embittered by the conduct of Chili in the case of the Tacna and Arica provinces. It has often been said that treaties between nations are only made to be torn up, and this is evidently how Chili regards them. By the Treaty of Ancon, which was signed after the war on October 20th, 1883, the province of Tarapaca, which is extremely rich in nitrates, was ceded to Chili, while the provinces of Tacna and Arica were to remain in the possession of Chili for ten years as from the date of the treaty. At the end of that time, a plebiscite of the inhabitants of the provinces was to be taken on the point whether they preferred the territory to remain under the sovereignty of Chili. The clause in the treaty concludes: “The country in whose favour the provinces be annexed shall pay to the other the sum of £1,000,000.” Although twenty-nine years have passed since the signing of that treaty no plebiscite has yet been taken, and Peru charges her neighbours with always raising technical difficulties whenever the question of taking the vote is mooted. She prefers an even more serious charge than this, alleging that, as the time when the plebiscite must, owing to international pressure, be taken draws nearer, Chili is making it so hot for the Peruvians in the two provinces under dispute that they are unable to live there. The object of this is, of course, that the plebiscite shall have only one result, and that in favour of Chili. In this country of marvels, a word must be given to coca, that wonderful plant which grows in the warm valleys of Peru and Bolivia, and will not flourish anywhere else. It grows in the form of a shrub, and seldom exceeds six feet in height. For centuries past the Peruvian Indians have recognised its dietetic value. It is at once refreshing and stimulating; it must be nutritious also, for a native can work for an extreme length of time without troubling about any other form of food. The local way of taking it is by chewing, generally with the admixture of a little lime. When infused, it makes a very refreshing beverage. Its value in medicine is also great, for it is the source of that indispensable alkaloid cocaine. The collection of the coca leaves involves much care, as they have to be gathered one by one for fear of injuring the plant. The person who has charge of this operation places a mantle alongside each plant and throws into this the leaves which he gathers. The preservation of the leaves is also a difficult matter; if too dry they become reduced to powder; if too damp they decompose. In the countries to which they are exported, the coca leaves, in the dried form, are used for making wines, tonics, and medicinal syrups.