The Republican journal., 1905-11-30
Crossing the Andes in 1905
by Winding Trails Near Their Southern
4 End.
Especial Correspondence of The Journa

comprises Cnfo6 ulSllucU cndlLS IUe ELL
tire mountain belt having an average
width of $50 miles. The easternmost
Cordillera is known as the Paramillos,
and the westernmost as the Combre.
The central cOrdillera is the highest
continuous section of the Andean wall
from Panama to Patagonia, there be-
ing only two gaps between Aconcagua
and Maypu-a distance OF 100 miles,
where the crest falls below 19, 600 feet;
and both Aconcagua and Tupnngato
exceed 1900 feet. Having climbed the
Paramillos range we found ourselves
on the summit about two O'Clock one
afternoon, at height of 5000 feet
above the sea and about 1000 above
Mendoza. 1t was bitterly cold even
here, the ground covered with snow
and d tremendous wind sweeping over
the crest; but the scenery, which had
increased in grandeur-every hour, re-
paid a thousand fold the toll of the
ascent. Mendoza appeared to lie
directly at our feet, SO near that we
could count its white houses and trace
the shaded streets and pIazas, the out
lying farms and vineyards. blue
ocean Of beauty was rolling above US,
in which 'earth ana sky seemed clos
ing together like book that is read. >
The stupenduous wall of the central
Cordillera filed the western horizon,
and Tupungapo in frownlng majesty,
with his head above the clouds, Wa
surrounded by hundred Andean kings,
with snowy ermine falling from their
stately shoulders Below lay the
beautiful, happy world-the cruel,
wicked world-the world of graves and
tears and tragedles-as you will; above,
only the tenants of the many man
SlonS.'
Nine eyes have seen the glory of the
coming of the Lord" sang the tenor of
our party in uncomfortable enthusiasm;
but the thought uppermost in my mind
was this. The Lord in His holy temple,
let all the earth keep silence before
Him.
There could be no halt in so desolate
place and the way was long to shelter,
which must be reached before nightfall.
We descended rapidly from the crest,
through incomparably glorious vistas
to the gorge of the Uspallata river;
where, just as darkness rendered the
path perilously obscure, the best hotel
in all the Cordillera was reached. Here
we found many travellers, going to or
coming from Chilli roaring fires and an
excellent dinner-in short all the COM
forts of civilization, including good
heart of the Andes.
1t is worth having been born to see
sunrise in the Uspallata gorge. The
first golden CLEANS slanting upward
over the TiramilloS-the outer, or east
ern wall of the Andes running north
and south-touch the snowy peaks of
the cordillera as by magic wand and
change them from CHASTITY white to
vivid scarlet; while the lower ravines
remain in darkest shadow. Gradually
the spaces below the snow fields catch
the light and flush from dusky gray to
warmest crimson, frlnged with olive
tinted yerdure at the base. Now the
shadoW-llne is at the bottom of the
Andean wall, slowly receding across
the intervening valley, until it diSap-
pears behind the Paramllos: while a
splendid blaze of color floods the Us
pallata, and the monarchs have mantled
their snowy ermine in crimson, scarlet
and gold. Many of my readers may re-
member an Old painting in the Capitol
at Washington, called "The heart of
the Andes by Bierstadt | believe
which has been frequently criticised as
TOO vid in coloring: but all who have
seen Il sunrise in the mountains can
testify that the artist has been more
sparng than nature in the use of bril-
liant tlntS.
The tabie-lanG of the Ustallapa con-
tluues about ten miles, till the valley
of the Plchluta river is reached. The
trail ascends this valley and turns
across the Intervening ridge to the
Mendoza river. The Pichiuta is a
sparkling stream of excellent water,
with plenty OF pasturage and fuel along
its banks, but the water OF the Mendoza
is muddy and has bracksh taste. The
difference between the rivers OF the
eastern and western slopes of this part
of the Andes IS very marked. The
streams that flow down the western
side are clear and pure, while on the
eastern side they are mostly muddy and
SO impregnated with salt and lime as to
be unit for drinking or cooking pur-
poses. The banks of the mountains
are nearly always covered with in
clustations of impure saltpeter, and
the water OF some of them is so bad
that cattle are poisoned by it.
Up and up we climbed, by ZigZag |
paths, occasionally hating to give our
mules a breathing spell and to gaze
upon the awful grandeur of the scene
grim heights, standing shoulder to
shoulder on every side far as the eye
could reach: below and around us the |
yaWning chasms of incalculable depths; !
before us an eternal barrier looming to i
the skies; and looking backward no
mortal eye could trace the path by
which we had come. The greatest
danger to be apprehended here (if one
has steady nerves and a trusty mule,
without which indispensable he has no
business to come is from obstruction
on the paths which are cut in the FACE /
of the mountains and are often so mar
row that two mules with their loads |
could not possibly pass going in oppo
site directions. At intervals the trail |
is widened little, for the convenience |
of trains which may meet, and each /
train must watch for others and avoid !
meeting them in the narrow spots.
Meet they must somewhere, and fire.
quentIy, for there is as much travel in |
one direction as in the other. 1t is
fearful thing at its best-a moment of |
terror and suspense, when helpless hui |
man atoms, poised in mid air, realize
to the full their owp significance. On |
a narrow shelf away up in the blue, |
with wall of solid rock on one side |
and Oh the other a sheer precipice thou
sands Of feet higher than the highest |
church steeple you ever saviour life |
depends solely upon the sagacity of