Rocky Mountams. 71 



ding stone, which lie near the base of the mountains. In 

 the instances which came under our notice, the absence of 

 colour and the want of cement, may very probably have been 

 accidental. The finer varieties of the sandstone are often 

 met with in the immediate neighbourhood of the granite, 

 and are of a compact structure, and an intense colour. Red 

 is the prevailing colour in every part of the stratum, but 

 stripes of yellow, gray, and white, are frequently interspers- 

 ed. In hardness and other sensible properties, it varies widely 

 at different points. In many instances it is entirely similar to 

 the sandstone about New Brunswick, in New Jersey, at 

 Nyac, and along the Tappan bay in New York, and parti- 

 cularly that variety of it which is quarried at Nyac, and ex- 

 tensively used in the cities of New York and Albany, for 

 building. It contains a little mica in small scales. Oxide of 

 iron predominates in the cement, and the ore denominated 

 the brown oxide, occurs in it, in reniform, botryoidal and 

 irregular masses. 



A few miles above our mid-day encampment, we entered 

 the valley of a small creek, tributary from the southeast to 

 the stream we had been ascending, but this we found so nar- 

 row and so obstructed by fallen masses of rocks, and almost 

 impenetrable thickets of alders and willows, as to render our 

 progress extremely tedious and painful. We were several 

 times induced to attempt passing along the bed of the stream, 

 but as the mud was in many places very deep, this was done 

 at the cost of the most violent and fatiguing exertions, on the 

 part of our horses, and the risk to ourselves of being thrown 

 with our baggage into the stream. With the hope of finding 

 an easier route across the hills, we ascended with much dif- 

 ficulty a craggy and abrupt ravine, until we had attained 

 nearly the elevation of the precipitous ramparts, which hem- 

 med in the narrow valley of the creek; but all we gained by 

 this ascent, was the opportunity of looking down upon a few 

 of our companions, still lingering below, diminished to the 



