THE FORESTS OF ALAUSI 233 



unsafe to leave my goods a moment. Yet even 

 such an " Ager Syrticus " has its points of interest, 

 for on this place is seen the dividing of the waters 

 of the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. We passed 

 many small streams, some rising on the paramo 

 and some in the Western Cordillera, but all running 

 eastward to join the Great River, with whose waters 

 and forests I was long so familiar ; when, however, 

 we approached the southern side of the paramo, we 

 came on the Rio de Pumachaca (River of the Bridge 

 of Tigers), a considerable stream rising in the 

 Eastern Cordillera and running westward towards 

 the Pacific ; it is, in fact, one of the sources of the 

 river Yaguachi, which enters the Gulf of Guayaquil. 

 From the Pumachaca northward, until very near 

 Quito, all the streams of the central plain between 

 the two branches of the Cordillera flow eastward, 

 and unite in the gorge of Bafios to form the river 

 Pastasa, which speedily reaches the Amazonian 

 plain, and thence the Atlantic ; but the streams 

 around Quito itself unite to form the river of 

 Esmeraldas, and seek the Pacific. Near the 

 Pumachaca there was rather more vegetation ; 

 patches of Cyperaceae were dotted with the white 

 flowers of a minute Lobelia, which I have seen in 

 many similar situations, and groups of Cactus were 

 draped over by an Atropa, remarkable for its 

 aromatic leaves. It is singular that in so deadly 

 a genus all the species I have seen in the Quitonian 

 Andes have edible though very acid fruit, and that 

 the shoots are cropped by asses and llamas. 



As we descended from the southern side of the 

 paramo, the Hedyotis began to be mixed with a 

 small labiate shrub of very similar foliage, and 



