485 



fallible signs, that we should soon be covered 

 by a thick fog; and lest our guides should 

 avail themselves of this circumstance to aban- 

 don us, we obliged those who carried the most 

 necessary instruments to precede us. We con- 

 tinued climbing the slopes, that lead toward 

 the crevice of Chacaito. The familiar loquacity 

 of the Creolian Blacks formed a striking con- 

 trast with the taciturn gravity of the Indians, 

 who had constantly accompanied us in the 

 Missions of Caripe. They amused themselves 

 by laughing at those, who had been in such 

 haste, to abandon an expedition so long prepar- 

 ing ; and above all, they did not spare a young 

 capuchin -monk, professor of mathematics, who 

 never ceased to boast of the advantages of physi- 

 cal strength and courage, possessed by all classes 

 of European Spaniards, over those born in Spa- 

 nish America. He had provided himself with 

 long slips of white paper, which were to be cut, 

 and flung on the savannah, to indicate to those 

 who strayed behind, the direction they ought to 

 pursue. The professor had even promised the 

 friars of his order, to fire off some rockets in 

 order to announce to the whole town of Carac- 

 cas, that we had succeeded in an enterprise, 

 which indeed to him alone appeared of great 

 importance. He had forgotten that his long 

 and heavy garments would embarrass him in 

 the ascent. Having lost courage long before 



