138 NOTES OF A BOTANIST chap. 
fowl was boiled and plantains roasted for supper. 
Then, wrapped in my blanket and stretched on my 
mattress, with my feet near to a good fire, I pre- 
pared to pass the night, and I may say that how- 
ever much I might have suffered through the day, 
1 generally slept tolerably well and rarely suffered 
from cold. 
June 15. — We had heavy thunder-showers from 
2 to 4 A.M., and wet dripped from the roof on to the 
foot of my bed. The day was cold and drizzling 
throughout. Our course was still mostly along the 
top of the ridge, gradually ascending, rarely descend- 
ing a little to pass slight rivulets. About noon we 
reached the highest part at a place called the 
Ventanas" (windows), where the track ran along 
the edge of a steep barranco to the right, down 
which we looked into a tremendously deep valley, 
whose bottom was obscured by rolling mist, though 
we distinctly heard the murmuring of the nascent 
Bombonasa along it. Travellers and cargoes arrived 
pretty well soaked at the end of this day's journey, 
and the same was the case through nearly all the 
rest of the way. The ground to-day was mostly 
gravelly. 
J7me 16. — Again heavy showers before daylight 
which left the forest soaking wet for our journey. 
There was a little sun till 9 o'clock, then came on 
showers, which, with very short intervals, lasted 
till 4 P.M. Our cargueros were accustomed to 
breakfast at daybreak, I and my muchacho at the 
same hour made our coffee and cooked a fowl to 
be eaten on the way by some stream of cool water, 
whenever hunger should invite us. On reaching 
the first stream from our sleeping-place, the women 
