Note 61 — Chapter XVIII · VOYAGE FROM MUSCLESHELL RIVER TO FORT MC KENZIE, FROM JULY 28TH TO AUGUST 9TH

Similar sand-stone strata are said to occur in other parts of North America; and, in South America, Poeppig seems to have met with them, as he describes them in the following passage:—"Towards noon we approached the highest point on this road, the Alto de Lacchagual (4718 metres, according to Rivero). We were much struck with the sand-stone rocks, which we approached about the half way of the journey, after having already seen them ever since the morning, in different directions before us. As isolated masses, of the most varied forms, they extend in rows along the ridge of the far-stretching chain of hills, and form, in many places, really gigantic walls. Low groups, probably only broken fragments, lie scattered irregularly around, but high, apparently regular pillars rise far above them in the distance, that look partly like basalt, for which they are taken at Lima; partly like works constructed by art. By their symmetrical arrangement they sometimes seem to be the ruins of an immensely large building; at others, appear like large regular quadrangles with square gates, between what seem to be high bastions. The form of the inverted cone occurs here as among the rocks at Adersbach, only the proportions must be conceived as suitable to the Andes, for many of these dark pillars are, undoubtedly, several hundred feet high. The eye exerts itself in vain to discover the termination of these stony columns. They vanish at a great distance in the north-west, between similar lines, which appear to meet them at a certain angle. At one place only we approached them close enough to be able to examine at least the lowest fragments; we saw, however, little more than a very soft, coarse sand-stone, of a whitish colour, which has become black only by the action of the air, and decomposition of the surface. These remarkable groups have no particular name, and no popular tradition is connected with their romantic forms, as in the Hartz. The Peruvian possesses, in this respect, less imagination than the Chileno, who makes something out of every rock, the form of which is unusual; sees a church on the summit of the Andes of Santa Rosa, and, in a lateral valley of the road from Mendoza, fancies that he discovers a palace, and a long procession of monks performing penance."—(Reisebeschreibung, Vol. II. p. 48).—Maximilian.