eastern forests the tiny _piúm_ fly (_Trombidium_, sp.?) is a veritable pest. Of the insects which infest dwellings and prey upon their human inmates, such as fleas, bed-bugs, roaches, &c., Ecuador has more than a bountiful supply. Lice-eating is a widely prevalent habit among the Indians and mestizos, and demonstrates how numerous these parasites are among the people. A good illustration of the prevalence of house-infesting animals and insects is given by Mr Whymper (_op. cit._ p. 391), who made a collection of 50 different specimens of the vermin which infested his bedroom in Guayaquil. _Population._--The indigenous population of Ecuador was originally composed of two distinct races--the Quitus and Caras, the former being the older, and the latter presumably of Quichua origin. The Caras, according to tradition, entered the country from the coast, and had thoroughly established themselves there long before the conquest by the Inca rulers Tupac-Yupanqui and his son Huayna-Capac. This conquest was comparatively easy because the Caras spoke a dialect of the same language, and were not greatly unlike their conquerors in manners and customs. The present Indian population of Ecuador, excepting those of the trans-Andean region, may be considered as descendants of these two races. They are subjected to incredible abuses under Spanish colonial rule, their numbers being reduced to a fraction of the former population, and even yet they are subjected to a kind of debt-bondage which is slavery in all but the name. Notwithstanding all this they still represent from two-thirds to three-fourths of the actual population of Ecuador. East of the Andes the forests are inhabited by tribes of what are termed "aucas" or "infieles" (infidels)--Indians who are independent of both church and political control. Missions have been established among some of the tribes, but their influence reaches only a small part of the wild inhabitants of this extensive region.