2Q TRAVELS AMONGST THE ORE AT ANDES, chap. ii. 



opinion, was likely to present difficulties.^ If this place could be 

 passed, I reckoned that we should be able to reach the top of the 

 mountain. A route could be traced through the great crevasses 

 by bearing to the west, and I proposed to work round the western 

 summit, to get between the two domes, and then to strike right 

 and left. 



Jean-Antoine and Louis were eager for an immediate start, 

 but I refused to break up headquarters at Guaranda until we 

 were assured that we could reach the south-west ridge by way 

 of the Arenal. There was a long interval about which we knew 

 nothing, and I despatched them at 2 p.m. on the 21st to endeav- 

 our to connect the lowest part that was visible from Guaranda 

 with the highest ground that we had seen from the Arenal ; 

 and instructed them, in the event of this appearing a promising 

 direction, to select a fit place for camping, if possible, at about 

 16,000 feet — that being the greatest height up to which it was 

 probable we should be able to force natives and mules.'' This was 

 a mission they were thoroughly competent to execute, and they 

 left me at Guaranda to carry on work in which they could have 

 rendered very little assistance. 



It is stated in the Introduction that the main object of 

 this journey was to observe the effects of low pressures ; that, 

 to experience them, it was necessary to get to great elevations ; 

 and that, in order to discriminate between the effects which might 

 properly be attributed to low pressures and those which might 

 be due to fatigue, it was necessary to eliminate the latter. To 

 accomplish this, it was obviously better to have dealings with 

 mountains easy of access than with those involving high gym- 

 nastics, and Chimborazo had seemed especially favourable for 



1 It will be explained at a later point why we considered this might be a 

 critical place. 



2 They took Aneroid F with them, in order that I might be able to form an 

 idea of the height they reached, and 1 set the pointer in the movable rim to let 

 them know when they had attained the desired elevation. 



