10 IN THE WILDS OF SOUTH AMERICA 



a bend in the narrow mountain trail, and we knew that 

 the end of our journey, at least for the present, was near. 



Downward we rode, always downward, with the valley 

 still several hundreds of feet below, and the mountains 

 towering thousands of feet in the rear. 



Here and there a bit of humanity flashed into view near 

 one of the lonely haciendas snugly nestling in some seem- 

 ingly inaccessible niche in the mountainside. To our right, 

 a solitary monastery perched upon a barren peak, with its 

 separate narrow trail leading from the dizzy height and 

 winding its tortuous course along the jutting precipice un- 

 til lost in the filmy haze. 



Ahead, a black mass that dissolved itself into one im- 

 mense flock of vultures appeared on the landscape. This 

 was their season of harvest and the quarrelsome scavengers 

 were reluctant to leave their repast an unfortunate burro 

 that had been abandoned on the trail. 



With a feeling of repugnance, we spurred our horses on 

 to greater effort, and at last our anticipations were realized 

 as, rounding an abrupt point, we beheld Cali directly at 

 our feet. A half -hour later we had clattered through a green 

 arch formed by four magnificent ceibas that stood like sen- 

 tinels guarding the approach to the city, crossed the bridge 

 spanning the Rio Cali, wended our way up the stone-paved 

 streets, and drawn rein in the patio of the Hotel Central. 



Cali is a typical Colombian city. At first the uniformly 

 low, whitewashed buildings with barred windows, thick 

 adobe walls, and pretty patios, or inner courts, thrust them- 

 selves forcibly upon the attention, on account of the sharp 

 contrast to the style of architecture to which the American 

 is accustomed; but later one accepts them as a matter of 

 course quite in harmony with the monotonous and easy- 

 going life of most Latin-American cities. 



There is nothing particularly modern about Cali; but 

 the city is interesting, perhaps for that very reason. I saw 

 not a single chimney, nor was there a pane of glass any- 

 where except in the huge cathedral facing the verdure-laden 



