The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1872-06-19

they arc now some distance above the sea level
snd .h sI,ss OF species OF broom, and number Of
Suu SMELLS [Bsttmne) found scattered over the
Rs a ,mmedistely back OF the town. and as far az
Sns sye could reach it was the same blank and
All the water used BY the inhabitants s distilled
rOn ne wsser and sold for two cents gallon
dstance of twe,g vaidera to the town Of Copapo
Vi We've leagues, has been OF great benefit
IN the developments OF the mineral resources OF the
Uass1s aia spsGlst sran was placed at Professor
rtor, but various circumstance rendered n limos
sible for him to do so, and we proceeded on our
caused by the non-arrival OF two OF the nartv So
had crossed to the opposite side Of the litte penn
Sula on which Cadera ts built. R-
Then for five days we went on, out or sigbt a,
land, with sunny skies and smooth seas and an
occasional wandering gull or school OF clumsy
proposes FOR company. We sailed by the shOres ~
Bolivia and the great desert OF Atacama reentered
the tropics after an absence OF three months passed
close to the Chincha islands famous for their i'm
mense guano deposits, and ON the evening OF the
21st dropped anchor In Paraca Bay, little harbor
lying between the peninsula OF Paracas and the
mainland. The following morning we paid our FIRST
visit to
THE "EMPrRE OF THE NcAs.n
One party went ashore with seines, guns, bOtani-
cal boxes, geological hammers, and all the para
phernalia OF collectors, while another proceeded
with Captain Johnson In the gig to Pisco, small
town on the coast about eight miles from our an
The heavy surf which beats on the beach and the
coming very near the shore at that place, and
long pier Of wood and iron has been built out into
the sea for more than half mile. The town itself
was utterly embarrassing, the houses rudely and
coarsely built, and the streets narrow and dirty.
The inhabitants derive large portion OF their sub
'Piscon and 'Itaa,n and the streets were filled at
some places with tall earthen jars labelled with one
OF those names They also export great quantities
After gathering specimens on the beach for
short time we hired horses and rode to fishing
station not far of, In order to make arrangements
At
Element consisted OF about one hundred huts, made
by binding twigs or canes to cr0ss-pieces running
hetween the corner posts, raftered sometimes with
the bones OF whales and r00led with SKINS often
not covered at ALL for this region practically rain
within the period Of which we have any historical
Notwithstanding over some hundreds OF years.
the population, and especially the Juvenile portion,
seemed far In excess OF the accommodations, by
virtue of that jaw OF increase giving the largest
family to the man least able to support one.
THE NUMBER OF BABIES AND VERY YOUNG CHILDREN
OF all sizes and shades Of color only equalled
by the variety OF ours, who playfuy dsported them
selves around our horses heels, and as the
an ancestry more Spanish. than Indian to
honnd-like animals down to mongrels OF the lowest
description. The women were sewing or washing
linen in front OF the huts while almost invariably
above them on the caves sat two or three gOrged,
sleepy, Acknowledging buzzards. The children
were playing indinerently with each other or the
dogs, one poor little fellow resting head so dis
tended from hydrocephalus that 1t dwarfed all the
rest of his body on the back OF a patient terrier.
The few men who were on shore were stretched
out lazily In the sum- waiting the return OF their
companions from the fishing grounds. We could
Just see their white sails far out at sea- but they
were brought skiliully through the breakers and
landed on the beach, Their contents were ex-
amined, the necessary arrangements made, and
we rode back to the town. Our return to the ves-
sci was enected with some difficulty.
The breeze had freshened and caused short chop
ping sea; the bay was covered with 'white caps;"
the wind came out dead ahead and prevented any
profitable use OF our sails, and the sun had gone
down behind the islands In the West, and the
moon rsen fatally collapsed, before we regained the
ship. We found that the day had been extraordi-
narily productive in every direction wonderful
pOrtant geological discoveries having been made.
MORE THAN TWENTY DIFFERENT SPECIES OF FISH
were obtained, more than half Of them entirely
new. There were eight species Of sharks alone,
only three having ever been described as belonging
to this coast. seal was shot and skinned; gigan-
shot and prepared for mounting. Among the most
interesting OF the latter was the scissor-bill
n n;n q msgraI species closely allied to one
isphere and is usually found along the coast of New
Jersey from early in May until the late autumn
OF their beak, which, differing from that OF spoon.
bill duck is nattened laterally, Is very thin and
Ss1 mas es sSsn
the upper. They ny along the water In immense
nocks, with this lower mandible half buried, and
dexterously use 1t to plough up small fish, We saw
also great numbers OF species OF cormorant called
the ''shag.'
Early in the morning few would come flying
into the bay around the point OF the peninsula,
coming apparently from some OF the islands. They
would soon be followed by others, and then for M
teen minutes by continual stream, sometimes In
single file, sometimes in broad densey- packed
columns They settled on the surface In very
limited area, looking from distance
LIKE A SMALL ISLAND,
and when for any reason they changed their loca-
ton the mapping OF their wings the water
sounded like the surf on sea beach, The contrast
between their manner OF flying and that of the peli
cans is very noticeable. The cormorants take
short, quick strokes, and keep the wings con-
tlnuay in motion; the others are more slow and
dignined in their movements, sailing rather than
dying pelican which was shot and preserved
measured five feet from beak to tail and feet
between the tips OF his wings. Buzzards without
number were seen, and also several magnificent
condOrs. The next day-the 23d-was spent in a
similar manner, collecting and continuing geo.
logical investigations, and about sunset we
started for our present station, and the following
afternoon rounded San Lorenzo Island and anchored
in Calais Bay-said to be the best harbor on the
Peruvian coast 1t is protected from the swell OF
the ocean by San Lorenzo, and the climate and
prevalent winds from the south render 1t safe at all
seasons. We will probably remain here few days
longer before leaving for the Galapagos Islands and
Dnrs