THE RETURN BY ANOTHER TRAIL. 355 
branched off from the Batopilas, led 
along dizzy cliffs, holding to the sides of 
the steep mountain until it reached a 
height fully equal to our own, and finally 
disappeared in an enormous cave. This 
must have been capable of containing 
hundreds of people, as it was over a mile 
distant, and at that distance we could 
perfectly discern its mouth and even its 
interior walls. It was the dizziest climb 
to a home I have ever read of or 
seen. 
That afternoon I came to the farms of 
some civilized Tarahumaris, built on the 
very steep mountain side, on which the 
dirt was held back by terraces or rude re¬ 
taining walls, so very similar to those seen 
around the ruins of Northwestern Chi¬ 
huahua, supposed to be Toltec or Aztec, 
that I could not help thinking that there 
