of schinus molle, cactus, agave, and molina, are 
scattered over the barren plain : and we see in 
the foreground lamas (camelus lacma) sketched 
from nature, and groups of Indians going to the 
market of Lican. The flank of the mountain 
presents that gradation of vegetable life, which I 
have endeavoured to trace in my chart of the 
Geography of plants, and which may be followed 
on tfee western top of the Andes from the im- 
penetrable groves of palm trees to the perpetual 
snows, bordered by thin layers of lichens. 
At three thousand five hundred metres abso- 
lute height, the ligneous plants with coriaceous 
and shining leaves nearly disappear. The re- 
gion of shrubs is separated from that of the 
grasses by alpine plants, by tufts of nerteria, 
valerian, saxifrage, and lobelia, and by small 
cruciferous plants. The grasses form a very 
broad belt, covered at intervals with snow, which 
remains but a few days. This belt, called in the 
country the jpajonal^ appears at a distance like a 
gilded yellow carpet. Its colour forms an agree- 
able contrast with that of the scattered masses of 
snow ; and is owing to the stalks and leaves of 
the grasses burnt by the rays of the sun in the 
seasons of great draught. Above the pajonal 
lies the region of cryptogamous plants, which 
here and there cover the porphyritic rocks desti- 
tute of vegetable earth. Farther on, at the limit 
