1977 
Cordillera, all conspire to increase the sadness of the scene, 
which looks as if a neutral tint were passed over the whole 
landscape. But all this is amply compensated by the 
beauty of the nights in fine weather, especially on the hills 
above the town, which command a view of the snowy ranges 
that surround the plains of Bourbon; the colour of the sky 
is deep indigo, and the stars shine with a splendour that 
can be but faintly conceived by those who have witnessed 
their brilliance on a clear frosty night in Britain, 
Few plants are to be found in the immediate neighbour- 
hood of Pasco; those which occur most frequently are 
grasses, a few Gentians, Lupinus nubigenus, and some 
Composite. The latter are generally found on the plains 
and without stems; the lower part of the flower being com- 
pletely imbedded in the turf. The pappus of Werneria 
rigida is used as tinder. The Gentians are most common 
on the limestone rocks. The state of my health prevented 
me from proceeding to the vallies eastward of Pasco, which 
had been my intention when I left the coast: this was the more 
mortifying, as I was within two days journey of Huanuco, 
the centre of the district from which Ruiz and Pavon 
obtained the greatest part of their collections. While in 
Pasco, I received several letters from Dr. Peeppig, who 
crossed the Cordillera about a fortnight before us. He had 
suffered severely from the puna, and continued dangerously 
ill during the few days he remained in Pasco, from whence 
he passed on through Huanuco, to Pampayaca, the most 
remote estate on the river Hualluga. Previous to leaving 
Chili, this accomplished and enterprising Naturalist had spent 
eight months in exploring the interior of the province of Con- 
cepcion, and had examined the Flora of an extensive district 
in the mountains adjacent to the volcano of Antujo, where no 
Botanist had ever before penetrated. Dr. Poeppig's Chilian 
collections are among the most extensive and valuable ever 
made in South America. In Peru, his intention was to 
€xamine the productions of the country bordering on the 
river Hualluga, and then to endeavour to descend by that 
stream to the Amazons, and return by way of Para to Europe. 
