JTATIYE TILLAGE. 
281 
thick forest. Looking downward, the eye rested on the tops 
of the trees, which, at eight hundred feet below the road, 
formed a carpet of verdure of a dark and uniform tint. The 
openings in the forest appeared like vast funnels, in which 
we could distinguish by their elegant forms and pinnated 
leaves, the Praga and Irasse palms. But what renders this 
spot eminently picturesque, is the aspect of the Sierra del 
Guacharo. Its northern slope, in the direction of the gulf 
of Cariaco, is abrupt. It presents a wall of rock, an almost 
vertical profile, exceeding 3000 feet in height. The vegeta- 
tion which covers this wall is so scanty, that the eye can 
follow the lines of the calcareous strata. The summit of 
the Sierra is flat, and it is only at its eastern extremity, 
that the majestic peak of the Guacharo rises like an inclined 
pyramid. Its form resembles that of the needles and horns * 
of the Alps. 
The savannah we crossed to the Indian village of Santa 
Cruz is composed of several smooth plateaux, lying above 
each other like terraces. This geological phenomenon, which 
is repeated in every climate, seems to indicate a long abode 
of the waters in basins that have poured them from one to 
the other. The calcareous rock is no longer visible, but is 
covered with a thick layer of mould. The last time we saw 
it in the forest of Santa Maria it was slightly porous, and 
looked more like the limestone of Cumanacoa than that of 
Caripe. We there found brown iron-ore disseminated in 
patches, and if we were not deceived in our observation, a 
Cornu-ammonis, which we could not succeed in our attempt 
to detach. It was seven inches indiameter. Tins fact is the 
more important, as in this part of America we have never 
seen ammonites. The Mission of Santa Cruz is situated in 
the midst of the plain. We reached it towards the evening, 
suffering much from thirst, having travelled nearly eight 
hours without finding water. The thermometer kept at 26°; 
accordingly we were not more than 190 toises above the 
level of the sea. 
We passed the night in one of those ajupas called King’s 
houses, which, as 1 have already said, serve as tarnbos or 
caravanserais to travellers. The rains prevented any obser- 
vations of the stars; and the next day, the 23rd of Sep 
• The ShreckhSrner, the Finsteraarhorn, &c. 
