308 CORDILLEEA DE LA STJMA PAZ. 



Eio de Patias, which receives the Guativa, the Guacnicon, 

 and the Quilquase. The table-land or intermediary basin 

 has great inequalities ; it is partly filled by the Paramos of 

 Pitatumba and Paraguay, and the separation of the two 

 chains appeared to me indistinct as far as the. parallel of 

 Almaguer (lat. 1 54 f ; long. 79 15'). The general direction 

 of the Andes, from the extremity of the basin of the pro- 

 vince of Quito to the vicinity of Popayan, changes from 

 N. 8 E. to N. 36 E. ; and follows the direction of the coast 

 of Esmeralda and Barbacoas. 



On the parallel of Almaguer, or rather a little north-east 

 of that town, the geological structure of the ground displays 

 very remarkable changes. The Cordillera, to which we have 

 given the name of ' eastern,' that of the lake of Sebondoy, 

 widens considerably between Pansitara and Ceja. The knot 

 of the Paramo de las Papas and of Socoboni gives birth to 

 the great rivers of Cauca and Magdalena, and is divided 

 into two chains, latitude 2 5' east and west of La Plata, 

 Vieja, and Timana. These two chains continue nearly paral lei 

 as far as 5 of latitude, and they bound the longitudinal 

 valley through which winds the Bio Magdalena. We shall 

 give the name of the eastern Cordillera of New Grenada to 

 that chain which stretches towards Santa Pe de Bogota, and 

 the Sierra Nevada de Merida, east of Magdalena ; the chain 

 which lies between the Magdalena and the Cauca, in the 

 direction of Mariquita, we will call the central Cordillera of 

 New Grenada ; and the chain which continues the Cordillera 

 de la Costa from the basin of Almaguer, and separates the 

 bed of the Bio Cauca from the platiniferous territory of 

 Choco, we will designate the western Cordillera of New 

 Grenada. For additional clearness, we may also name the 

 chain, that of Suma Paz, after the colossal group of moun- 

 tains on the south of Santa Fe de Bogota, which empties the 

 waters of its eastern declivity into the Bio Meta. The 

 second chain may bear the name of the chain of Guanacaa 

 or Q.uindiu, after the two celebrated passages of the Andes, 

 on the road from Santa Fe de Bogota to Popayan. The 

 third chain may be called the chain of Choco, or of the 

 shore. Some leagues south of Popayan (lat. 2 21' N.), 

 west of Paramo de Palitara and the volcano of Purace, a 

 lidge of mica-slate runs from the knot of the mountains of 



