we found it desirable to include in each box a cake of laundry soap,
two yards of dish toweling, and three empty cotton-cloth bags, to be
used for carrying lunches and collecting specimens. The most highly
appreciated article of food in our boxes was the rolled oats, a dish
which on account of its being already partially cooked was easily
prepared at high elevations, where rice cannot be properly boiled. It
was difficult to satisfy the members of the Expedition by providing
the right amount of sugar. At the beginning of the field season the
allowance--one third of a pound per day per man--seemed excessive, and
I was criticized for having overloaded the boxes. After a month in the
field the allowance proved to be too small and had to be supplemented.

Many people seem to think that it is one of the duties of an explorer
to "rough it," and to "trust to luck" for his food. I had found on
my first two expeditions, in Venezuela and Colombia and across South
America, that the result of being obliged to subsist on irregular
and haphazard rations was most unsatisfactory. While "roughing it"
is far more enticing to the inexperienced and indiscreet explorer,
I learned in Peru that the humdrum expedient of carefully preparing,
months in advance, a comprehensive bill of fare sufficiently varied,
wholesome, and well-balanced, is "the better part of valor," The truth
is that providing an abundance of appetizing food adds very greatly
to the effectiveness of a party. To be sure, it may mean trouble
and expense for one's transportation department, and some of the
younger men may feel that their reputations as explorers are likely
to be damaged if it is known that strawberry jam, sweet chocolate and
pickles are frequently found on their menu! Nevertheless, experience
has shown that the results of "trusting to luck" and "living as the
natives do" means not only loss of efficiency in the day's work, but
also lessened powers of observation and diminished enthusiasm for