10 THE CABINET OF NATURAL HISTORY, 
them to a board, with a pin, which passed through the 
middle of the body, and in that situation the animal as- 
sumed the chrysaline state,—the chrysalis was alive 
three or four days afterwards. The caterpillar was about 
an inch and a half long, and was marked with black bands 
and spots. 
17th. The Rose Bug, (melolontha multivora,) appears. 
Large numbers of these insects fill the air. A white sub- 
stance seems to be a favourite article to rest upon, such as 
bleached linen. They emit from them a juice similar to 
that of the grasshopper, but somewhat darker. Apterous 
animalcule, appear in rain water. When viewed through 
the solar miscroscope, the fore-part appeared truncated, and 
a little bristly; near the tail, there projected two or more 
plume-like hairs; in swimming it seemed to move only at 
the extremities, the middle part remaining still. This 
animal darted so swiftly through the water, whenever it 
was brought to the focus of the miscroscope, (owing, no 
doubt, to the heat of the concentrated rays,) that I could 
not accurately distinguish its component parts. To the 
naked eye, the animal has somewhat the shape of a tad- 
pole, the tail of which seemed forked. 
[ To be continued. | 
PASSAGE ACROSS THE GREAT CORDILLERA. 
I was steadily riding my mule at the rate of five 
miles an hour, in order to measure, by my watch, the 
breadth of the plains of Uspallata, when we met an old 
Gaucho huntsman, with two lads, and a number of dogs, 
which at once put a stop to my calculation. He had seve- 
ral loose horses, over one of which was hanging the car- 
cass of a guanaco. 
He had been hunting for lions, and had been among the 
mountains for two days, but had had little sport. The 
Gaucho was a fine picture of an old sportsman. Round 
his body were the ‘‘bolas’’ (balls,) which were covered 
with clotted blood. His knees were admirably protected 
from the bushes, by a hide, which was under his saddle, 
and which in front had the appearance of gambadoes. 
He was mounted on a good horse; his lasso, in coils, 
hung at his saddle. As soon as we stopped, he was sur- 
rounded by his dogs, which were a very odd pack. Some 
of them were very large, and some quite small, and they 
seemed to be all of different breeds; many had been lamed 
by the lions and tigers, and several bore honourable scars. 
I regretted very much indeed that I had not time to fol- 
low the sport, which must have been highly interesting. 
As soon as the dogs unkennel a lion or a tiger, they 
pursue him until he stops to defend himself. If the dogs 
fly upon him, the Gaucho jumps off his horse, and while 
the animal is contending with his enemies, he strikes 
him on the head with the balls, to which an extraordinary 
momentum can be given. If the dogs are at bay, and 
afraid to attack their foe, the Gaucho then hurls the lasso 
over him, and galloping away, he drags him along the 
ground, while the hounds rush upon him, and tear him. 
The mountains now seemed to be really over our heads, 
and we expected that we should have immediately to 
climb them, but for many hours we went over a plain as 
dry and barren as the country already described on the 
other side of Uspallata, and which wound its course among 
the mountains. At last we crossed a rapid torrent of 
water, and then immediately afterwards came to another, 
which takes its rise at the summit of the Andes, and whose 
course, and comparatively gradual descent, directs the pas- 
sage; and it is on this spot the traveller may proudly feel 
that he is at last buried among the mountains of the Andes. 
The surface of the rocks which surrounded us, afforded no 
pasture, and the gnarled wood and the stunted growth of 
the trees, announced the severity of the climate in winter; 
yet the forms of the mountains, and the wild groups in 
which they stood towering one above another, can only be 
viewed with astonishment and admiration. 
Although the sun was retiring, and the mules very tired, 
we wished to have gone on half an hour longer, but the 
peon assured us we should not find so good a place, and, 
pointing to some withered herbage, and some large loose 
stones, he earnestly advised me to stop, saying, ‘¢ Hai 
aqui pasto bueno para las mulas, y para su merced buen 
alojamiento, hai agua, aqui hai todo,”’ (here is pasture for 
the mules, and for your excellency good lodging, water, 
and everything.) We therefore dismounted near a spring, 
and having collected wood, and the miners having cooked 
our supper, we lay down on the ground to sleep. Theair 
was cool and refreshing, and the scene really magnifi- 
cent. 
As I lay on the ground upon my back, the objects 
around me gradually became obscure, while the sun, which 
had long ago set to us, still gilded the summits of the high- 
est mountains, and gave a sparkling brightness to the 
snow, which faded with the light of day. The scene un- 
derwent a thousand beautiful changes; but when it was all 
lost in utter darkness, save the bold outline which rested 
against the sky, it appeared more beautiful than ever. 
The peon, who was always very active, was up long 
before day-break, and we were awakened by the bell- 
mule, and the others which were now collected. We got 
up in the dark, and as our party were preparing to start, 
the group, though indistinctly seen by the blaze of the 
