304 
SCENES IN THE PACIFIC. 
chance to be lodged in some other dell, before it reach the 
Ocean or the Gulf, and the people follow it to its new loca¬ 
tion, they find perhaps no water there and cannot cultivate it 
Consequently they are often driven by dreadful want to some 
other point in quest of sustenance, where they may not find it, 
and perish among the parched highlands. For the space of 
twenty or thirty leagues from the Cape San Lucas the air is 
rendered mild and kindly by the sea breezes, and the ground 
in many parts being wet by. little currents of water running 
from the highlands, is very fruitful. From this section to 
Loretto, Latitude 26° 16' N., the heat is excessive, the soil dry 
and barren, and the surface of the country extremely craggy 
and forbidding. From Loretto northward to Todos Santos, 
the air is more temperate, the water in the mountains some¬ 
times freezes, and the soil is not so rugged and full of rocks, 
but is barren and desolate as that around Loretto. The mean 
range of temperature in the whole country in the summer 
season is from 60° to 74° Fahrenheit. The rains fall in 
the winter months ; are very severe, and of short duration. 
During the remainder of the year the air is dry and clear; 
and the sky more beautiful than the imagination can conceive. 
The range of mountains occupying the whole interior of 
this country, vary in height from one to five thousand feet 
above the level of the sea. They are almost bare of all ver¬ 
dure, mere brown piles of barrenness, sprinkled here and there 
with a cluster of briars, small shrubs, or dwarf trees. Among 
the ridges are a few spots to which the sweeping rains have 
spared a little soil. These, if watered by springs or streams, 
are beautiful and productive. There are also a few places 
near the coast which are well adapted to tillage and pastur- 
age. 
But the principal difficulty with this region, is one common 
to all countries of volcanic origin,—a scarcity of water. The 
porousness of the rocks allows it to pass under ground to the 
sea. Consequently one finds few streams and springs in 
Lower California. From the Cape San Lucas to the mouth of 
