THEIB APPEABANCE ON THE COAST. 297 



at the latter the Cordilleras rise abruptly, and fill the whole 

 space as far as Cape Victoria (lat. 52 22'). The region 

 between Cape Horn and the southern extremity of the 

 continent somewhat resembles the origin of the Pyrenees 

 between Cape Creux (near the gulf of Rosas) and the 

 Col des Perdus. The height of the Patagonian chain is not 

 known ; it appears, however, that no summit south of the 

 parallel of 48 attains the elevation of the Canigou (1430 

 toises), which is near the eastern extremity of the Pyre- 

 nees. In that southern country, where the summers are so 

 cold and short, the limit of eternal snow must lower at 

 least as much as in the northern hemisphere, in Norway, in 

 lat. 63 and 64; consequently below 800 toises. The great 

 breadth, therefore, of the band of snow that envelopes these 

 Patagonian summits, does not justify the idea which tra- 

 vellers form of their height in 40 south latitude. As 

 we advance towards the island of Chiloe, the Cordilleras 

 draw near the coast ; and the archipelago of Chonos or 

 Huaytecas appears like the vestiges of an immense group of 

 mountains overwhelmed by water. Narrow estuaries fill 

 the lower vallies of the Andes, and remind us of the fjords 

 of Norway and Greenland. We there find, running from 

 south to north, the Nevados de Maca (lat. 45 19'), of 

 Cuptano (lat. 44 58'), of Yanteles (lat. 43 52'), of Cor- 

 covado, Chayapirca (lat. 42 52') and of Llebean (lat. 41 

 49'). The peak of Cuptana rises like the peak of Teneriffe, 

 from the bosom of the sea ; but being scarcely visible at 

 thirty-six or forty leagues distance, it cannot be more than 

 1500 toises high. Corcovado, situated on the coast of the 

 continent, opposite the southern point of the island of 

 Chiloe, appears to be more than 1950 toises high; it is 

 perhaps the loftiest summit of the whole globe, south of the 

 parallel of 42 south latitude. On the north of San Carlos 

 de Chiloe, in the whole length of Chile to the desert of 

 Atacama, the low western regions not having been over- 

 whelmed by floods, the Andes there appear farther from the 

 coast. The Abbe Molina affirms that the Cordilleras of 

 Chile form three parallel chains, of which the intermediary 

 is the most elevated ; but to prove that this division is far 

 from general, it suffices to recollect the barometric survey 

 made by MM. Bauza and Espinosa, m 1794, between Men- 



