The Plain Bordering The Valley Has
Here Attained An Elevation Of About 1100 Feet Above The River,
And Its Character Was Much Altered.
The well-rounded pebbles
of porphyry were mingled with many immense angular
fragments of basalt and of primary rocks.
The first of these
erratic boulders which I noticed, was sixty-seven miles distant
from the nearest mountain; another which I measured
was five yards square, and projected five feet above the
gravel. Its edges were so angular, and its size so great, that
I at first mistook it for a rock _in situ_, and took out my
compass to observe the direction of its cleavage. The plain here
was not quite so level as that nearer the coast, but yet in
betrayed no signs of any great violence. Under these
circumstances it is, I believe, quite impossible to explain the
transportal of these gigantic masses of rock so many miles
from their parent-source, on any theory except by that of
floating icebergs.
During the two last days we met with signs of horses, and
with several small articles which had belonged to the Indians
- such as parts of a mantle and a bunch of ostrich feathers - ,
but they appeared to have been lying long on the ground.
Between the place where the Indians had so lately crossed
the river and this neighbourhood, though so many miles
apart, the country appears to be quite unfrequented. At first,
considering the abundance of the guanacos, I was surprised
at this; but it is explained by the stony nature of the plains,
which would soon disable an unshod horse from taking part
in the chase.
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