ii4 Recreations of a Sportsman 



every turn, while trees of extraordinary height, 

 or of peculiar shape constantly diverted the eye, 

 and far away, where one could see through the 

 forest, the maze of columns could be seen like 

 the masts of ships, with yards triced up, along 

 the docks of some great seaport. On a little 

 mound-like island off this coast I found them so 

 closely packed that progress was almost impos- 

 sible. Photographs fail to convey an impression 

 of the dignity and size of the forest, as the trails 

 are along the lines of least resistance, and where 

 the saguaro is at its best, away from the road, 

 progress is extremely difficult, often impossible, 

 to the man without armor, and even then, the 

 needle-like spines, darts, and claws of countless 

 cacti are reaching out from everywhere, punc- 

 turing the heaviest leather, and productive of 

 woe and interjections. 



The saguaro (Cereus giganteus), seeming 

 pillars of some great temple, so perfect are they 

 in outline, so symmetrical, are dominant fea- 

 tures in the landscape, often three feet in diam- 

 eter, richly fluted, and spined in long regular 

 lines, and of a deep rich green which stands 

 out against the blue sky with startling vividness. 

 There was an entrancing variety in the shades 

 of green. Sometimes it had a radiant yellow 

 tint; now was purple or yellow, and we were 

 continually stopping to measure with the eye 

 some more than ordinarily spectacular giant, or 



