Chaparral 131 
ing little underbrush. On the hillsides were 
isolated clumps of the large-berried manzanita 
and scattered yuccas, and opposite, a bold 
cliff of deep red puddingstone. It was a 
transition as radical as one could find in 
so short a distance, from one zone to another, 
and illustrated, more than volumes of mete- 
orology, the effect of the sea and of mountain 
ranges upon climate. 
In its steep descent, the trail wound through 
thickets of California holly resplendent with 
great masses of scarlet berries. Following 
the course of a little stream, it passed through 
delightful groves of laurel, all in bloom, where 
the air was scented with the perfume of these 
California bay trees. But more beautiful 
than either was a grove of madrofia presently 
encountered, which I had not seen growing 
anywhere on the other side. The most 
charming member of the heath family, in the 
length and breadth of the land there is not 
a more patrician shrub or tree. Its bark, 
a pure Malay colour and as smooth as a Malay 
skin, fairly shines under its large and glossy 
leaves and the impression one receives in a 
clump of these trees is quite indescribable, 
suggesting an exquisite and highly-bred 
feminine personality. 
