AND AMERICAN RURAL SPORTS. 19 
into this great danger; these must be wicked men, or you 
would not pass such judgment upon them; but what have I 
done, that I should share the punishment due to their 
crimes.’ 
‘¢ The earnestness of this bigot, and his want of charity, 
excited our laughter,—and it was some time before the 
coward could be convineed that we had killed the animal, 
or even get him to turn his face towards it. After his 
fears had subsided, however, he assisted us in getting the 
animal to our cave, where we skinned it, and threw the 
earcase to be devoured by the vultures. Wehad thus en- 
joyed one of the most splendid views on earth, and been 
unexpectedly successful in destroying an animal, that not 
unfrequently caused terror among some of the inhabitants 
of the country, and were therefore anxious to preserve 
the skin, as an evidence of our success, to be exhibited on 
our return to our friends. 
‘¢ After drawing on our humble store of provisions, we 
endeavoured to repose for the remainder of the night, pre- 
paratory to a very early start the next morning for the 
completion of our ascent of the mountain. We were dis- 
turbed, about day-break, by our guide, who had just risen, 
and, departing from the cave, left us altogether, and re- 
turned home. This man was a native Indian, but had be- 
come a proselyte to the Roman Church, and belonged to 
one of the missionary establishments near Caraccas; in 
consequence of which he had made some progress in the 
knowledge of the Spanish language, and him, with those 
of his fellows who had shared like advantages, were more 
often chosen as guides than the other inhabitants; but, as 
in the instance cited, they often proved faithless, and 
sometimes treacherous. We suspected him of cowardice 
several times, for on different occasions he warned us of 
dangers and saw difficulties when neither were at hand; 
but we dreamed not that he would forsake us or the pro- 
tection we were able to afford him. In this unexpected di- 
lemma, we were somewhat at a loss to decide, whether to 
persevere in ascending the mountain, or finish our hunt- 
ing, while we gradually approached the city. We however 
decided on the former course, as a successful attempt was 
a consummation which but few had experienced. We 
therefore, shortly after day-break, started on our enterprise 
of ascending the mountain, and continued our passage 
slowly and steadily until ten o’clock. We had con- 
sumed about six hours, and finding our difficulties increas- 
ing so fast, we were convinced that we had mistaken the 
proper course, and resolved to retrace our steps. Al- 
though the temperature was not above 50°, we had 
laboured so hard during the last hour, that we perspired 
profusely. We had now passed the boundary of. vegeta- 
tion;—all beyond were rocks and precipices, insurmount- 
able by human effort,—and the greatest exertion would 
not convey us but a few hundred feet further up the 
mountain; we therefore tarried about half an hour, to take 
another view of the country before us, and then begin our 
retrograde movements. We continued descending until 
nearly one o’clock, and discovered at length that we had 
also lost our backward track; this caused us to halt, and 
endeavour to find the proper course,—but failing in this, 
we proceeded on our way. 
‘<Tt was two o’clock, and the clouds, which for half an 
hour had began to thicken about the mountain’s brow, now 
rolled furiously immediately over our heads, impelled by 
a wind that prostrated the decayed trunks of trees, and 
leafy branches, with the violence of a hurricane. We were 
convinced a fearful storm of rain would follow, and we 
lost no time in seeking refuge from it among the crevices 
of the rocks. The rain soon began to fall in torrents, 
which continued, with unabated vehemence, for nearly 
two hours, and then gave way to a clear sunshine and a 
cloudless sky, so that we renewed our descent. But new 
difficulties presented themselves, that we did not calculate 
would be so unpleasant. The fissures and ravines of the 
mountain were sow streams of water, which before were 
dry and parched; places had become slippery and danger- 
ous, on which before we could have placed our feet with 
firmness and safety; and, worst of all, we had arrived on 
the brink of a ravine, so broad and deep, and withal foam- 
ing with cataracts and flood, that made the head giddy to 
behold. This gulf was the receptacle of all the storm- 
created streams that flowed down the northern side of the 
mountain, and the concentration of these waters had form- 
ed a terrible and angry deluge. We had no alternative 
but to go up or down, along the edges of the frightful 
precipice of this abyss, —so we determined on the former, 
as most likely to reach the much desired path we had trod- 
den while ascending the mountain, but we now encoun- 
tered a new difficulty that was far more formidable than 
any thing we had yet contended with. 
‘Tt is a remarkable feature of that climate, especially 
among the highlands, that mists and fogs arise suddenly 
after storms, with a density that almost precludes belief; 
but whether these are caused by the influence of a vertical 
sun, assisted by the heat of the rocks over which these 
waters flow, that produce a sudden evaporation, I cannot 
decide; nor have I ever heard it satisfactorily accounted 
for. But in one of these vapours my friend and self were 
doomed to be involved, and one too, that was so imper- 
vious to vision, as to preclude us from distinguishing any 
object more than a few feet distance. We had by this 
time reached a platform of the rock, and thinking it ex- 
ceedingly hazardous to persevere in our efforts, I earnestly 
