THE VOYAGE OF THE BEAGLE 



121 



while crossing it, I saw two horses grazing: I immediately 

 hid myself in the long grass, and began to reconnoitre; but 

 as I could see no signs of Indians I proceeded cautiously on 

 my second ascent. It was late in the day, and this part of 

 the mountain, like the other, was steep and rugged. I was 

 on the top of the second peak by two o'clock, but got there 

 with extreme difficulty ; every twenty yards I had the cramp 

 in the upper part of both thighs, so that I was afraid I 

 should not have been able to have got down again. It was 

 also necessary to return by another road, as it was out of 

 the question to pass over the saddle-back. I was therefore 

 obliged to give up the two higher peaks. Their altitude was 

 but little greater, and every purpose of geology had been 

 answered; so that the attempt was not worth the hazard 

 of any further exertion. I presume the cause of the cramp 

 was the great change in the kind of muscular action, from 

 that of hard riding to that of still harder climbing. It is 

 a lesson worth remembering, as in some cases it might cause 

 much difficulty. 



I have already said the mountain is composed of white 

 quartz rock, and with it a little glossy clay-slate is associ- 

 ated. At the height of a few hundred feet above the plain, 

 patches of conglomerate adhered in several places to the 

 solid rock. They resembled in hardness, and in the nature 

 of the cement, the masses which may be seen daily forming 

 on some coasts. I do not doubt these pebbles were in a simi- 

 lar manner aggregated, at a period when the great calcare- 

 ous formation was depositing beneath the surrounding sea. 

 We may believe that the jagged and battered forms of the 

 hard quartz yet show the effects of the waves of an open 

 ocean. 



I was, on the whole, disappointed with this ascent. Even 

 the view was insignificant; — a plain like the sea, but with- 

 out its beautiful colour and denned outline. The scene, how- 

 ever, was novel, and a little danger, like salt to meat, gave 

 it a relish. That the danger was very little was certain, for 

 my two companions made a good fire — a thing which is never 

 done when it is suspected that Indians are near. I reached 

 the place of our bivouac by sunset, and drinking much mate, 

 and smoking several cigaritos, soon made up my bed for the 



