hills, we struck up the flank of the great mountain mass
itself. Mounting higher and higher, a great panorama presented itself
behind and below us, including the Chiapa valley, with the hills beyond
it. It was, however, merely extensive, and not particularly beautiful
or picturesque. As we followed the slope towards the crest, into the
narrowing valley, the scene became bolder, until we were at the very
edge of a mighty chasm, which yawned sheer at our side. Following it, we
saw the gorge suddenly shallow hundreds of feet by a vast precipice of
limestone rock rising from its bottom. Having passed this, we journeyed
on up the canon, lessened in grandeur, but still presenting pretty bits
of scenery. Up to this point, limestone had prevailed, but from here on,
we passed over various formations--heavy beds of sand or clay, lying
upon conglomerates and shales. The road wound astonishingly, and at one
point, coming out upon a hog's-back ridge, we found that we had actually
made a loop, and stood directly above where we had been some time
before. Near sunset, we reached the summit, and looked down upon the
little town of Ixtapa, upon a high _llano_ below, and seeming to be a
half-hour's ride distant. Descending on to the _llano_, we found it
intersected by deep and narrow gorges; following along the level, narrow
ridge, surrounded by ravines on every side, except the one from which we
had approached, we presently descended, along its flank, the bank of the
deepest of these _barrancas_. The sun had set long before we reached
the bottom, and through the darkness, we had to climb up over the steep
dugway in the sandy clay to the village, which we reached at seven. The
little room supplied us for a sleeping-place was clean and neat, the
floor was strewn with fresh and fragrant pine-needles, and the wooden
beds were supplied with _petates_. Leaving before eight, the following
morning, we travelled through a beautiful canon, with an abundant stream
of whitish-blue water, tumbling in fine cascades among the rocks, and
dashing now and then into deep pools of inky blackness. Having passed
through it, our bridle-trail plunged abruptly downward. From it, we
looked upon a neighboring slope, cut at three different levels, one
above the other, for the cart-road. Passing next through a small canon
of little beauty, but where the air was heavy with an odor like vanilla,
coming from sheets of pale-purple or violet flowers, on trees of eight
or t