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CENTRAL CHILE 



a little charqui. But these men come down from their bleak 

 habitations only once in every fortnight or three weeks. 



During my stay here I thoroughly enjoyed scrambling 

 about these huge mountains. The geology, as might have 

 been expected, was very interesting. The shattered and baked 

 rocks, traversed by innumerable dykes of greenstone, showed 

 what commotions had formerly taken place. The scenery 

 was much the same as that near the Bell of Quillota — dry 



CACTUS ; CEREUS PERUVIANA. 



barren mountains, dotted at intervals by bushes with a scanty 

 foliage. The cactuses, or rather opuntias, were here very 

 numerous. I measured one of a spherical figure, which, includ- 

 ing the spines, was six feet and four inches in circumference. 

 The height of the common cylindrical, branching kind, is from 

 twelve to fifteen feet, and the girth (with spines) of the branches 

 between three and four feet. 



A heavy fall of snow on the mountains prevented me, during 

 the last two days, from making some interesting excursions. 

 I attempted to reach a lake which the inhabitants, from some 



