JUNE 3, 1835.
Yerba Buena to Carizal. During the first part of the day we crossed
a mountainous rocky desert, and afterwards a long deep sandy plain,
strewed with broken sea-shells. There was very little water, and
that little saline: the whole country, from the coast to the
Cordillera, is an uninhabited desert. I saw traces only of one
living animal in abundance, namely, the shells of a Bulimus, which
were collected together in extraordinary numbers on the driest
spots. In the spring one humble little plant sends out a few
leaves, and on these the snails feed. As they are seen only very
early in the morning, when the ground is slightly damp with dew,
the Guasos believe that they are bred from it. I have observed in
other places that extremely dry and sterile districts, where the
soil is calcareous, are extraordinarily favourable to land-shells.
At Carizal there were a few cottages, some brackish water, and a
trace of cultivation: but it was with difficulty that we purchased
a little corn and straw for our horses.
JUNE 4, 1835.
Carizal to Sauce. We continued to ride over desert plains, tenanted
by large herds of guanaco. We crossed also the valley of Cha?eral;
which, although the most fertile one between Guasco and Coquimbo,
is very narrow, and produces so little pasture that we could not
purchase any for our horses.
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