Some of the loftiest and most extensive mountains in the world, are the
Andes, in South America. These stupendous hills, called by the Spaniards
the =Cordilleras=, (from the word _cord_ or _chain_,) =i. e.=, the
chains of the Andes, stretch north and south near the western coast,
from the isthmus of Darien, through the whole of the continent of South
America, to the straits of Magellan. In the north, there are three
chains of separate ridges; but in advancing from Popayan toward the
south, the three chains unite into a single group, which is continued
far beyond the equator. In Equador, near Quito, the more elevated
summits of this group are ranged in two rows, (as seen in the cut
below,) which form a double crest to the Cordilleras. The extent of the
Andes mountains is not less than four thousand three hundred miles, from
one end to the other.
[Illustration: THE CORDILLERAS, OR ANDES, NEAR QUITO.]
“Rocks rich in gems, and mountains big with mines,
That on the high equator ridgy rise,
Whence many a bursting stream auriferous plays.”—THOMSON.
In this country, the operations of nature appear to have been carried on
on a larger scale, and with a bolder hand, than elsewhere; and in
consequence, the whole is distinguished by a peculiar magnificence. Even
the plain of Quito, which may be considered as the base of the Andes, is
more elevated above the sea than the summits of many European mountains.
In different places the Andes rise more than one-third higher than the
famous peak of Teneriffe, the highest land in the ancient hemisphere.
Their cloud-enveloped summits, though exposed to the rays of the sun in
the torrid zone, are covered with eternal snows, and below them the
storm is seen to burst, and the exploring traveler hears the thunder
roll, and sees the lightnings dart beneath his feet. Throughout the
whole of the range of these extensive mountains, as far as they have
been explored, there is a certain boundary, above which the snow never
melts; which boundary, in the torrid zone, has been ascertained to be
fourteen thousand, six hundred feet, or nearly three miles above the
level of the sea.
The ascent to the plain of Quito, on which stands Chimborazo, Cotopaxi,
Pichincha, &c., is thus described by Don Juan de Ulloa:
“The ruggedness of the road from Taraguaga, leading up the mountain, is
not easily described. The declivity is so great, in some parts, that the
mules can scarcely keep their footing; and, in others, the acclivity is
equally difficult. The trouble of sending people before to mend the
road, the pain arising from the many falls and bruises, and the being
constantly wet to the skin, might be supported; but these inconveniences
are augmented by the sight of such frightful precipices and deep
abysses, as excite in the mind constant terror. The road, in some
places, is so steep, and yet so narrow, that the mules are obliged to
slide down without making any use whatever of their feet. On one side of
the rider, in this situation, rises an eminence of many hundred yards;
and, on the other, is an abyss of equal depth; so that, if he should
give the least check to his mule, and destroy the equilibrium, both must
inevitably perish.
“Having traveled nine days in this manner, slowly winding along the
sides of the mountains, we began to find the whole country covered with
a hoar-frost; and a hut, in which we reposed, had ice in it. At length,
after a perilous journey of fifteen days, we arrived upon a plain, at
the extremity of which stands the city of Quito, the capital of one of
the most charming regions in the world. Here, in the center of the
torrid zone, the heat is not only very tolerable, but, in some places,
the cold is even painful. Here the inhabitants enjoy the temperature and
advantages of perpetual spring; the fields being constantly covered with
verdure, and enameled with flowers of the most lively colors. But
although this beautiful region is more elevated than any other country
in the world, and it employs so many days of painful journey in the
ascent, it is itself overlooked by tremendous mountains, their sides
being covered with snow, while their summits are flaming with volcanoes.
These mountains seem piled one upon the other, and to rise, with great
boldness, to an astonishing hight. However, at a determined point above
the surface of the sea, the congelation is found at the same hight in
all the mountains. Those parts which are not subject to a continual
frost, have here and there growing upon them a species of rush,
resembling the broom, but much softer and more flexible. Toward the
extremity of the part where the rush grows, and the cold begins to
increase, is found a vegetable with a round bulbous head. Higher still,
the earth is bare of vegetation, and seems covered with eternal snow.
The most remarkable of the Andes are the mountains of Chimborazo,
Cotopaxi, and Pichincha.”