There being need of great haste, the master mason had decided to erect a temporary obstruction first. Some of the workers brought baskets of earth and pebbles from the river-bank, carrying their burdens on their shoulders, and dumped them into the opening. Others picked out the smaller fragments of stone from the débris of the tumbled-down section of the great wall, and of the avalanche that had slid down the mountainside, and threw them into the breach. It was surprising to see how rapidly the heap of material grew in height as the unbroken line of toilers filed past and deposited the contents of their baskets. Nor did they pause in their labors for food or drink. At frequent intervals they crammed handfuls of coca-leaves into their mouths, which they chewed or held in their cheeks so that they bulged out like a gopher’s. The effect of the drug derived from the dried leaves was to deaden all feelings of thirst, hunger, and fatigue. At night they ate a large quantity of thick porridge, made by boiling ground maize in water; after eating, each man took off his _poncho_, or cape, wrapped it tightly about himself, and lay down on the bare ground to sleep. By the end of the second day the ridge of earth and pebbles had reached a height of fifteen yards, and preparations were made to begin work on the wall proper on the following morning. The skilled masons had been engaged during this time in hewing the blocks of stone intended for the permanent structure. They used mallets of stone and chisels of tempered copper. The stones for the first layer, or foundation, were of large size and very heavy. They were rolled and pried into place by a swarm of workmen who used long, stout poles as levers. This accomplished, the horde again took up its baskets and brought pebbles and earth as heretofore. But this time the material was thrown on the ground in front of the wall-base and tamped into place, forming an inclined plane, the higher end of which was level with the top of the row of stones already in place. Other blocks of granite were now pried and rolled on the first tier; then the sloping plane was immediately filled in to reach the top of this layer. Thus the work continued for thirty days. And when the wall had reached the height of fifty feet it was considered finished. The tigers were again shut off from the valley, isolated in their own little world, to live their lives free from the destructive influences of man, and the inhabitants of the Inca’s domain were safe from the attacks of the ferocious creatures. Ted and Stanley felt sure that the Indians would never reopen the passage; they held the great beasts in superstitious awe and were afraid of them, and were only too glad to keep them prisoner where they belonged.