RIDE TO SANDY POINT. 87 



between settlements. At any rate, I did not feel the necessity of another 

 horse and thankfully declined my host's most generous offer. The fol- 

 lowing morning Mr. Felton very thoughtfully provided me with letters of 

 introduction to the various estancieros whom I would likely fall in with 

 along the route, and accompanying me to the crest of the high bluff over- 

 looking the Gallegos River, carefully pointed out the various landmarks 

 visible from our position and indicated the general direction and principal 

 features of the trail with such precision that I had no further difficulty on 

 that score. 



Bidding my host good bye, I started at a moderate gait for Guer Aike, 

 determined, if possible, to reach the estancia of Senor Kark on the Rio 

 Chico, some ten miles below Palli Aike, where I had been assured by Mr. 

 Felton that I should meet with a most hospitable reception and could pass 

 the night in comfort. In this I was not disappointed. Not only was I 

 most hospitably received and generously entertained by both Mr. Kark 

 and his wife, but on resuming my journey the following morning, that 

 most amiable lady insisted on providing me with a lunch, assuring me 

 that I should need it, in order to withstand the fatigue of the sixty-five- 

 mile ride which lay between me and Ooshi Aike, which I should be com- 

 pelled to make that night, or sleep on the high, barren pampa lying 

 between Palli Aike and that place. With some reluctance I took the 

 lunch so thoughtfully prepared by my hostess, little thinking at the time 

 with what appreciation it was destined to be devoured. Thanking the 

 lady for her kindness and accompanied by Mr. Kark, who had volunteered 

 to go with me for a short distance, in order to point out the proper place 

 at which to cross the River Chico and to indicate to me a cut-off by which 

 I could save some three or four miles. His mission fulfilled, he bade me 

 good bye and returned, while I continued on my journey. At this point 

 the River Chico meanders through a narrow valley enclosed on either side 

 by low hills capped with basalt. The river flows very near the surface, 

 with swamps and marshes on every side. There is an abundant growth 

 of tall grass which affords many advantages favorable for the nesting of 

 the myriads of ducks, geese, and other water fowl that frequent this stream. 

 After travelling a few miles along the south bank of the river, I came to 

 the tongue of a comparatively recent lava stream, which had been ejected 

 from an old volcano lying a few miles to the south of the stream and had 

 flowed down over the sides of the bluff and lay spread out as a thin sheet 



