Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1890-07-05


quate idea of the awe-inspiring grandeur
of the Andes; and certainly no pen-picture
can do them faintest justice. Moses may
have beheld similar sights on cloud-wrap-
ped Sinai, when the glory of heaven was
upon 1t, as he listened to the voice of the
Lord. As our journey led near to the Bo-
hvian headwaters of the Amazon, we
crossed the last interior spur of the An
dean system. Not many of the Anglo
Saxon race have ever penetrated these in
nermost recesses of the mountains, and of
that number few were women.
This seventh range shows, for three hun
dred miles, a succession of sharp, snow
capped peaks, each presenting to the west
ward sheer cliff, many thousands of feet
high, which looks like a gigantic sugar.
loaf, split in the middle, the fallen half
piled below in a chaos of slate-like debris
Seen from distance, their bare and to-
tally inaccessible sides look black as ink.
in contrast with the extensive snow-felds
above, which the foot of man or beast has
never trodden. Occasionally condor is
seen-the poets proud bird of the Andes"
slowly circling to his home above the
clouds.
For most of the way the road winds
round and round the mountain sides at an
enormous hight, up and down, and sharply
curving, sometimes being a regular series
of stairs cut into the solid rock. One of
these stair-like passages is several miles
long, with abrupt turns and zigzags, up
and down which our beasts picked their
way with utmost care.
In this sort of travelling the great point
is 20 gain perfect confidence in your ami
NAL, and be sure that the saddle-girths are
kept as tight as he can bear; then to fix
your eyes on the heavenly views, regard
less of sublunary things. Not an easy
thing at ali times, to keep your head In
the clouds while maintaining firm seat
on the back of mule
Such waterfalls and cascades as come
tumbling down from unknown nights to
the valley, far, far Below; some of them
rivaling in magni6cence our own Niagara
or anything the Yosemite can show;
while the river which fills the center of
the narrow valley, so far below our aerial
track that it looks like a thread of silver,
is in reality a raging cataract, dashing
over giant boulders with a noise like thun-
der, for more than fifty miles outdoing the
rapids above Niagara, and nowhere nayi-
gable in all its course. There are mount
aims on every hand, mountains every-
where, stretching away in the horizon !:
while the range on the opposite side of
the valley, parallel to this we are slowly
traversing, appears almost near enough to
toss stone from one to the other.
When the lowiands were reached, came
the new experience of fording the many
small rivers that flow into the larger one;
but We found it preferable to most of the
bridges along the route-frail structures
swung from tree to tree, and swaving like
cradles beneath us. AT one point the road
for a number miles lay directly through
the bed of river, whose clear waters. not
deep but rapid, foamed noisily along over
the rocks
When once in the valley, no words can
tell the beauty and luxuriance of the tropi-
cal vegetation in solitudes where "Near to
Natures Heart" is not an empty idea.
There were groves of wild banana trees,
whose broad leaves of brightest green are
each large enough for tent; towering
palms of many species, wonderful orchids,
shining foliage, beautiful flowers and enor-
nous ferns whose perfect fronds waved high
above our heads. And then the birds of
brilliant plumage-parrots, macaws, paro-
quets-the monkeys chattering among the
trees, gorgeous butterflies as large as the
palm of your hand, beetles dressed in green
and blue and gold, and other wonders en-
countered at every step
A portion of the highway to Yungas'
capital is mere foot-path running
through the coffee groves of private plan
tations, and between orange and lime trees
crowded so closely together as to rake off
our hats with their branches, and render
imminent the fate of Absalom. The
lower hillsides are mostly laid out in ter
raced slopes for the cultivation of cocoa.
the great industry of the valley. Except
in two or three villages, there are few in
habitants in all this distance but those of
Indians-these latter are generally of air.
lest structure, being poles stuck in the
ground, matched with grass, and walled
with giant fern leaves closely interviewer.
Where every prospect pleases, and only
man is vile" might well be sung at Yum
gas. There are many grottoes or minia-
tune caverns by the wayside, formed by
springs or waterfalls forcing their way
through heaped-up boulders, where every
inch of rock is thickly covered with the
most beautiful MOSES and delicate maiden
hair ferns, overhung by gigantic fronds
and brilliant flowers
Passing one of these, we saw inside
number of half-naked Indian women wash
ing their clothes in the clear cascade,
while their lazy lords sat by circulating
sundry jugs and bottles among themselves.
1t happened at the moment that the doctor
and | were tagging in the rear, and as we
rode by the customary "Buenos dias"
good day. on our part, and Mama" on
theirs were exchanged-the latter word
not meaning MOTHER as might be inferred
but in Quichua language token of greet
ing and respect. To our surprise, up
sprang three of the Indians calling on US
to stop, and who, in spite of all our efforts
at speed kept almost within reach of u.s.
Up hill and down we went mile or more
until in particularly bad piece of road
where the narrow trail had not only the
usual precipice on one side and wall of
rock on the other, but turned an abrupt
curve that hid US from our companions.
we were stopped short by the hand of an
Indian grabbing the bride of each mule
Naturally, we imagined them to be part
of the robber gang; but while the doctor
fumbled in his saddle bag for a pistol
which wasn't there, the third Indian, with
the lowest of salaams, held up bottle and
tiny glass and humbly insisted on drinking
healths with us. To resist their drunken
caprice would have been folly, so we both
put the dirty glass to our lips with due
ceremony and "iSalud'' Ito your health, OF
course without tasting the beverage, what
ever it may have been, and then, whipping
up our weary nags, We tossed some small
coin to the convivial Quichuas, and left
them happy by the wayside.
FANNIE B. WARD.
II About to Travel or Emigrate.
The voyager cannot be provided with
safer remedy and protective medicine than
Hostetters Stomach Bitters. Abundant