XII 
THE BELL OF QUILL OTA 
2 73 
hundred thousand. Every year in the early spring, in August, 
very many are cut down, and when the trunk is lying on the 
ground, the crown of leaves is lopped off. The sap then 
immediately begins to flow from the upper end, and continues 
so doing for some months ; it is, however, necessary that a thin 
slice should be shaved off from that end every morning, so as 
to expose a fresh surface. A good tree will give ninety 
gallons, and all this must have been contained in the vessels of 
the apparently dry trunk. It is said that the sap flows much 
more quickly on those days when the sun is powerful ; and 
likewise, that it is absolutely necessary to take care, in cutting 
down the tree, that it should fall with its head upwards on the 
side of the hill; for if it falls down the slope, scarcely any sap 
will flow; although in that case one would have thought that 
the action would have been aided, instead of checked, by the 
force of gravity. The sap is concentrated by boiling, and is 
then called treacle, which it very much resembles in taste. 
We unsaddled our horses near the spring, and prepared to 
pass the night. The evening was fine, and the atmosphere so 
clear that the masts of the vessels at anchor in the bay of 
Valparaiso, although no less than twenty-six geographical miles 
distant, could be distinguished clearly as little black streaks. 
A ship doubling the point under sail appeared as a bright 
white speck. Anson expresses much surprise, in his voyage, 
at the distance at which his vessels were discovered from the 
coast ; but he did not sufficiently allow for the height of the 
land and the great transparency of the air. 
The setting of the sun was glorious ; the valleys being black, 
whilst the snowy peaks of the Andes yet retained a ruby tint. 
When it was dark, we made a fire beneath a little arbour of 
bamboos, fried our charqui (or dried slips of beef), took our 
mate, and were quite comfortable. There is an inexpressible 
charm in thus living in the open air. The evening was calm 
and still ;—the shrill noise of the mountain bizcacha, and the 
faint cry of a goatsucker, were occasionally to be heard. 
Besides these, few birds, or even insects, frequent these dry, 
parched mountains. 
August 17th .—In the morning we climbed up the rough 
mass of greenstone which crowns the summit. This rock, as 
T 
