Natural- His lory Collectors, 



6407 



what a road we have to take. On the opposite horizon the sun-covered 

 central range ought to be visible, but clouds concealed it during my 

 stay. 



August 1*2. — My luggage arrived yesterday; the ants have made 

 sad havoc amongst the butterflies, eating their heads and bodies 

 lamentably, although shut up in a writing-case in my carpet-bag ; the 

 bulk are, however, safe, having been placed in a light box impregnated 

 with petroline. 



Bogota, August 28. — The first few miles out of Honda are really 

 awful for one unaccustomed to these roads ; the slopes we had to 

 ascend and descend looked almost perpendicular ; some of them were 

 just like going down the outside of the dome of St. Paul's, where a slip 

 of the animal could send you further than was amusing, whilst the 

 ascents were done by fair scrambling up of the mules, during which it 

 was hard to avoid slipping off over the tail; nevertheless an hour or 

 two makes you regard all this with perfect indifference, so steady are 

 the mules. As we rode along, gradually ascending, we obtained 

 magnificent views of the valley of the Magdalena, with the broad river 

 winding through perpendicular cliffs, beyond the range of the Andes, 

 and far away over them, towering at a height inconceivable, the snowy 

 peak of Tolima, one of the central range, conical and massive, far 

 above the clouds that floated along the sides of the lower mountains. 

 Higher and higher as we wound through the mountain-passes, amid 

 woods and torrent-beds, the views of the lower country became more 

 and more splendid ; mountains, which from Honda looked important, 

 sank down to a mere portion of the wild confusion of hills below us : 

 if the bottom of the Wharfe, from Bardentown to Bolton Abbey, were 

 dry, and you had to ride from the latter to the former along the river- 

 bed, you would be doing what there is any quantity of between here 

 and Honda; you have to clamber up places jump by jump, which is 

 bad enough, but more agreeable than going down smooth places like 

 the outside of a monstrous stone loaf, and this, you will please to ob- 

 serve, is the high road between the capital of New Grenada and its 

 principal sea-port. The plain of Bogota, situated 10,000 feet above 

 the level of the sea, seems of enormous extent, and is bounded on 

 every side by ranges of mountains of moderate height; westward, over 

 the nearer hills, Tolima, with his snowy head and a long range near 

 him are visible in the morning. The plain is rather swampy ; I noticed 

 the beautiful little Colias Dimera flying in great numbers, and settling 

 in damp spots in the road. In dry weather you have as good a road 

 to canter on as there is in England, but in wet — I won't say — it must 



