533 



part of the valley, which opens toward Cape 

 Blanco. In going from Caraccas, we pass near 

 the great barracks of San Carlos over a barren 

 and rocky soil. Scarcely a few plants of arge- 

 mone mexicana are to be found. The gneiss 

 appears every where above ground. We might 

 have fancied ourselves on the table-land of Frei- 

 berg. We crossed first the little rivulet of Agua 

 Salud, a limpid water, which has no mineral 

 taste, and then the Rio Caraguata # . The road 

 is commanded on the right by the Cerro de 

 Avila and the Cumbre ; and on the left, by the 

 mountains of Aguas Negras. This defile is 

 very interesting in a geological point of view ; 

 at this spot the valley of Caraccas communi- 

 cates by the vallies of Tacagua and of Tipe 

 with the coast near Catia. A ridge of rock, 

 the summit of which is forty toises above the 

 bottom of the valley of Caraccas, and more 

 than three hundred toises above the valley of 

 Tacagua, divides the waters which flow into 

 the Rio Guayra and toward Cape Blanco. 

 On this point of division, at the entrance of 

 the branch, the view is highly pleasing. The 

 climate changes as we descend toward the 

 west. In the valley of Tacagua we found 

 some new habitations, conucos of maize and 

 plantains. A very extensive plantation of tu- 



* Gneiss, hor. 12 } dip 70° west. 



