56 EXCURSIONS IN THE NEIGHBOURHOOD OF QUITO. 
nel, stands the town of Ambato. At the 
point where the road crosses it by a wooden 
bridge, the inhabitants have been for seve- 
ral years desultorily employed in forming a 
Socabon ; but war and bad government are 
sad deadeners of enterprize, even when 
the spirit is stronger than in South Ame- 
rica. 
The elevation of Ambato is 8,540 feet, 
the mean temperature about 61°, but its 
sheltered situation protects it from the cold 
winds of the mountains; while, for the 
same reason, there is an increase of re- 
flected heat ; so that it resembles a natural 
hot-house, producing not only peaches, 
Tunas, apples, pears, and other fruit in 
great abundance, but also in the necks or 
vegas of the river below the town, sugar- 
cane, of which there are several plantations. 
The town was nearly destroyed by the 
earthquake of 1797, and vestiges of the 
catastrophe are still evident; but it is in a 
remarkable degree more cheerful to the 
eye and feelings than Latacunga, or indeed 
any town betwixt Quito and Guayaquil. 
The sky is almost constantly bright, the 
temperature soft and agreeable; the space 
betwixt the town and the river is laid out 
in plantations and gardens, artificially irri- 
gated and shaded with groves of Capulis, 
willows, peach, and fig, mixed with roses; 
the fences are covered with the common 
Tropeolum ; and I have found growing 
among the stone-walls Mesembryanthe- 
mum crystallinum ; of its emigration to 
this country there is no record. A small 
degree of horticultural science would ren- 
der the gardens of Ambato highly produc- 
tive in objects of taste and utility. The 
fruits, flowers, and vegetables of a variety 
of temperatures might be combined and 
nat ed. Tunas are cultivated, both 
for the sake of the fruit, and for the pro- 
duction of the Cochineal, which, though 
rudely prepared, is of a good colour, and 
extensively employed in the manufacture 
of the coarse woollens called Bayetas. 
The dryness of the soil and mildness of 
the climate might be turned to account in 
Ec this branch of -— ‘with 8o 
CM E. 
den 
so employed can scarcely be put to any . 
other purpose. 
Ambato is famous for two articles of 
trade, betwixt which there seems no neces- 
sary connexion—óread and boots. Cer- 
tainly the bread is unequalled throughout 
the South; and I have seen boots, of which 
Mr. Hoby would not feel ashamed. — . 
On the 1st of December we continued 
our journey, leaving the main road to Guay- 
aquil, which passes the village of Mocha, 
to Chimborazo and Guaranda, we turned 
in a south-easterly direction, towards the 
village of Peliso, on the right bank of the 
river of Ambato, below its junction with 
that of Latacunga. The distance is about 
three leagues. The road lies over a level, 
cultivated country, crossing the little stream 
of Pachanlica. Near the village is a quaggy 
meadow, called Moya, forming the relic of 
the torrent of heated mud and water, which 
during the earthquake of 1797 was poured — 
out of Carguirazo, and overwhelmed the 
village with all the surrounding country ; 
in many places the whole surface of the 
soil was set in motion; farms and houses 
were transported from their sites, and over- 
whelmed in the miry deluge,@eaving not a 
wreck to indicate where they had existed. 
Opposite to Pelilco, on the left bank of the 
river is the village of Patati, famous for its 
fertility. The river is crossed by what is 
called a Taravita, a contrivance described 
by several travellers in South America, and 
rendered necessary in situations where the 
breadth and rapidity of the stream render 
the construction of a bridge too difficult or 
costly. On the evening of our arrival we 
visited the curate of the village, to make 
some inquiry relative to the road to Baños, 
and also to obtain some precise information 
as to the locality of a spot, the exhalations 
from which were said to be fatal to birds 
and animals that approached it. The ve- 
nerable pastor wondered we should trouble 
ourselves about such rubbish (porquerias) 
rather than look for mines of gold and sil- 
ver. Age was fast conducting him to the 
grave, yet he could imagine nothing valua- - j 
ble in the world but money. We obtained, 
however, some vague information as to the 
