338 



BARRENNESS — ANIMALS. 



April 



few shrubby bushes are seen. But over the wide desola- 

 tioil of the stony barren waste not a tree — not even a soli- 

 tary ' ombu' * — can be discerned. Scattered herds of ever- 

 wary guanacoes, startled at man's approach, neighing, stamp- 

 ing, and tossing their elegant heads ; a few ostriches striding 

 along in the distant horizon, and here and there a solitary con- 

 dor soaring in the sky, are the only objects which attract the 

 eye. Certainly, upon looking closely, some withered shrubs 

 and a yellow kind of herbage may be discerned ; and, in walk- 

 ing, thorns and prickles assure one painfully that the plain is 

 not actually a desert : but I am quite sure that the general 

 impression upon the mind is that of utter hopeless sterility. 

 Is it not remarkable that water-worn shingle stones, and dilu- 

 vial accumulations, compose the greater portion of these 

 plains ? On how vast a scale, and of what duration must have 

 been the action of those waters which smoothed the shingle 

 stones now buried in the deserts of Patagonia. 



Fresh water is seldom found in these wastes ; salinas-f* are 

 numerous. The climate is delightful to the bodily sensations ; 

 but for productions of the earth, it is almost as bad as any, 

 except that of the Arabian, or African deserts. Rain is sel- 

 dom known during three quarters of the year ; and even in the 

 three winter months, when it may be expected, but little falls 

 excepting on rare occasions, when it comes down heavily for 

 two or three days in succession. Sea winds sometimes bring 

 small misty rain for a few hours, at any time of year, but not 

 enough to do good to vegetable productions. The only ani- 

 mals which abound are guanacoes, and they care little for fresh 

 water, for they have often been seen drinking at the salinas. 

 The puma probably quenches its thirst in their blood ; of 

 other animals, supposed to require much liquid, there are none 

 in these regions. 



The climate is healthy and pleasant; generally a bright, sunny 

 day is succeeded by a cloudless and extremely clear night. In 



* A kind of elder, growing here and there in Patagonia and the Pam- 

 pas. See page 93. 



t Salt depositions or incrustations. 



