The Sea and the Cave 75 



chasing lizards in a snow flurry albeit at a mighty slow pace, 

 for the ruins stand some 13,000 feet above sea level. We 

 found, however, that these lizards tended to run in under 

 one of the loose stones of masonry which had fallen from 

 the ruins, scattered everywhere over the high plain. By 

 turning over the smaller stones it was possible to catch 

 the lizard with a quick slap of the hand. I caught an inter- 

 esting new species of the same genus Liolaemus which I 

 had first taken at the Honcones Valley and of which by 

 this time, during our various collectings over western South 

 America, I must have picked up a dozen different species. 



Traveling on the west coast of South America was a 

 leisurely process forty years ago compared to what it is 

 today. We made three bites of the cherry, going first from 

 Valparaiso to Mollendo in an old-fashioned Chilean vessel, 

 the Lbnari. Then later we moved up the coast from Mol- 

 lendo to Callao and then from Callao to Panama, the three 

 laps consuming forty days. This of course gave a wonder- 

 ful opportunity to see this most entrancing coast line, since 

 we stopped, I think, at least once every day and cruised 

 along slowly close to the shore. The abundant bird fife and 

 its relation to the Humboldt current have been described 

 very adequately, but the beauty of the scenery has never 

 been exaggerated. I include the birds as part of the scenery, 

 the great long rippling fines of boobies which would cross 

 right over the ship, and the unbefievable number of cormo- 

 rants and pelicans. 



Once on this trip we occasioned considerable consterna- 

 tion. We put up at the Hotel Ratti in Jufiaca — concerning 

 which I remember only that the pillowcases stuck to the 

 pillows! But we had acquired a rare Armadillo at Viacha 



