183-1.] THE BELL OF QUILLOTA. '1 L"> 



the upper end, and continues so doing for sonic months : it is. 

 however, necessary that a thin slice should be shaved off from that 

 end every morning, so as to expose a fresh surface. A good tree 

 will give ninety gallons, and all this must have been contained in 

 the vessels of the apparently dry trunk. It is said that the sap 

 flows much more quickly on those days when the sun is powerful ; 

 and likewise, that it is absolutely necessary to take care, in cutting 

 down the tree, that it should fall with its head upwards on the 

 side of the hill ; for if it falls down the slope, scarcely any sap will 

 flow ; although in that case one would have thought that the action 

 would have been aided, instead of checked, by the force of gravity. 

 The sap is concentrated by boiling, and is then called treacle, 

 which it very much resembles in taste. 



We unsaddled our horses near the spring, and prepared to pass 

 the night. The evening was fine, and the atmosphere so clear, that 

 the masts of the vessels at anchor in the bay of Valparaiso, although 

 no less than twenty-six geographical miles distant, could be dis- 

 tinguished clearly as little black streaks. A ship doubling the 

 point under sail, appeared as a bright white speck. Anson 

 expresses much surprise, in his voyage, at the distance at which 

 his vessels were discovered from the coast; but he did not 

 sufficiently allow for the height of the land, and the great 

 transparency of the air. 



The setting of the sun was glorious; the valleys being black 

 whilst the snowy psaks of the Andes yet retained a ruby tint. 

 When it was dark, Ave made a fire beneath a little arbour of 

 bamboos, fried our charqui (or dried slips of beef), took our mate, 

 and were quite comfortable. There is an inexpressible charm in thus 

 living in the open air. The evening was calm and still ; the shrill 

 noise of the mountain bizcacha, and the faint cry of a goatsucker, 

 were occasionally to be heard. Besides these, few birds, or even 

 insects, frequent these dry, parched mountains. 



Augmt 17M. In the morning we climbed up the rough mass of 

 greenstone which crowns the summit. This rock, as frequently 

 happens, was much shattered and broken into huge angular frag- 

 ments. I observed, however, one remarkable circumstance, namely, 

 that many of the surfaces presented every degree of freshness some 

 appearing as if broken the day before, whilst on others lichens had 

 either just become, or had long grown, attached. I so fully believed 

 that this was owing to the frequent earthquakes, that I felt inclined 



