12 



more numerovis and soon the valleys and whole mountain 

 sides were overgrown with the big candelabre Cacti which 

 were full of bright small scarlet flowers which covered 

 some of the stems entirely. 



Along the mountain-streams the vegetation looked almost 

 luxuriant and as we at last came into a civilized zone 

 the Lomhardy Poplar was a feature of the landscape. 



Late in the evening in total darkness we arrived in 

 Santiago and found lodgings in the Hotel Oddo^ which is 

 kept by a Frenchman and ... by rats ! — 



The situation of Santiago is one of the finest in the 

 world. It lies in a plain between the Cordilleras and the 

 Maritime Andes so that it is surrounded by the most 

 beautiful Alpine panorama one can imagine. 



In the midst of the town at one end of the wide boule- 

 vard or "avenida" which transverses it, is a large rock or 

 small stony mountain which has been planted as a public 

 park — the Santa Lucia. 



Facing the „avenida" gorgeous stairways of cut stone 

 lead up to it, but in other places little winding stairs cut 

 in the rock and overhung by the luxuriant vegetation give 

 a more private access to its heights. 



One morning during my stay at Santiago I took one of 

 these little roads and at about half way following a stone 

 ballustrade the stairs formed an angle and into that angle 

 a thin stream of water spluttered into a shallow stone-basin, 

 whilst Eucalypti and Cypres-trees were growing near. 



The stone ballustrade was overgrown with scarlet Gera- 

 niums and some Fuchsias formed the underwood. 



As I was leaning over the balustrade looking at the 

 flowers I suddenly heard a shrill scream and behold in 

 front of me stood in mid air not three feet away from 

 me an Oldgold-capped Green Humming-bird. 



It stood in the air for a while then suddenly dropped 

 into the shallow water of the basin and began to splash 

 to its hearts content all the time playing with the gor- 

 geous oldgold coloured feathers of its head. 



And as it was washing I heard another scream and a 



Notes from the Leyden IMuseum, Vol. XXXV. 



