198 
GUATEMALA. 
clayey in taste. Almost directly over the town, the volcano 
of Monte Rico, long extinct, is the most striking feature in 
the landscape. Cultivated to the very edge of the crater, 
which is said to contain a large lake, the fertility of the 
fields was greatest at the 
top, — due, no doubt, to 
the waters of the crater; 
while the lower slopes are 
comparatively dry and bar¬ 
ren. Around the base are 
many smaller cones, which 
remind one of those which 
dot the slopes of AEtna and 
give the Sicilian volcano 
the name “Mother of 
Mountains.” Not a league 
beyond we crossed the only 
clear stream we saw all 
day; but even this water 
was not very pleasing to 
the taste. Bars across the 
road made us fear we had 
missed the path and were 
no longer in the “ camino 
real; ” we were, neverthe¬ 
less. At Piedras Gordas, 
in the afternoon, we stopped for food, in hopes of hearing 
tidings of our guide and mozos, who had started before us. 
Our frugal meal of plantains, tortillas, and red bananas 
was constantly interrupted by the pigs who were stealing 
the sacaton from our hungry animals. For miles there 
were booths and stone fireplaces marking the camps of the 
Mozo on the Road. 
