32 NEW TRACKS IN NORTH AMERICA. 
Cooke’s Range and these mountains, and soon entered a ravine _ 
leading up to them. After ascending for seven miles, ve 
were gladdened by the sight of a little water trickling ove 
some rocks. The first glance satisfied me that all was might, 
and in a few minutes holes were dug in the dry bed, whid 
quickly filled with good spring water. 4 
The water question being thus satisfactorily dosdeds 4 
messenger was sent back for the whole party, while W 
continued our ride for the purpose of exploring the moum 
tains, and of finding a cafion supposed to cut through the 
near our point of junction. We had received very conflicti 
reports about this range (the Burro Mountains). Ata distan 
of some twenty or thirty miles it does not appear an imposit 
obstacle, for it seems to consist of three mountain masse 
united by two long low ridges ; but on approaching these ridg 
they turned out really to be only long undulations of ti 
plain, which hide from view very rough and formidab! 
mountains behind them. Our first surprise occurred whe 
on reaching the top of the ridge, we found the real mountai: 
still in front of us. We pressed on, however, and after a fe 
hours’ more riding the crest of the main range was gaine 
and one of the grandest panoramas I have ever seen wé 
disclosed to us on all sides. 
To the south lay numerous isolated ranges and peak 
whose names we did not know, stretching far into old Mexia 
and rising out of the great Madre Plateau, which lay betwee 
us and them like lofty rock islands from a motionless sea. 
the south-east the graceful Florida Mountains retained the 
usual outline, while far beyond them the curious peaks of 
situated east of the Rio Grande more than a hundred mi 
