Humbolt's travels and discoveries in South America . ate; and the inhabitants knowing that similarluminous exhalations had preceded the destruction offoui--iifths of the city of Cumana in 1797, were disposedto fear similar calamitous consequences in their ownneighbourhood. Humboldts first attempt to penetrateinto the ravine was frustrated by the luxuriance of thevegetation: but by the assistance of the natives, whowere rather anxious to have the German miners opinionof a fancied gold mine which lay in the desired route, apath was cleared through the thorny and intertwiningplants which obstruct
Humbolt's travels and discoveries in South America . ate; and the inhabitants knowing that similarluminous exhalations had preceded the destruction offoui--iifths of the city of Cumana in 1797, were disposedto fear similar calamitous consequences in their ownneighbourhood. Humboldts first attempt to penetrateinto the ravine was frustrated by the luxuriance of thevegetation: but by the assistance of the natives, whowere rather anxious to have the German miners opinionof a fancied gold mine which lay in the desired route, apath was cleared through the thorny and intertwiningplants which obstructed the woods. After ascertainingthat the supposed gold ore was but iron pyrites in abed of black marl, the travellers pursued their wayuntil they reached a lofty wall of rock rising perpendi-cularly to the height of nearly a mile. Here they sawtwo inaccessible caverns inhabited apparently by noc-turnal birds; it was from these caverns that the flameshad been observed to issue. Humboldt was unable toascertain the cause of these luminous The Jaguar. THE PLATEAU OF COCOLLAR. 25 Chapter III. The Plateau of Cocollai—View therefrom—Missions of San Antonio andGuanaguana—Perilcus passage into the Valley of Caripe—TheConvent of Caiipe—The Cave of Cuaeharo, and its nocturnal birds—Forest of Santa Maria—IMagnificent vegetation—The mission ofCatuaro—Condition of the Ne,gi-oes—The town of Cariaco—Its un-lioalthiness—Return to Cumana—General remarks on the Indian--of New AndiUusia —Effect of the Missions—The Aborigines ofAmerica. [1799.] Proceedixg from the plain of Cumanacoa toward themissions of San Antonio and Guanaguana, the travel-lers passed three days on the plateau of CocollaTj atthe farm of a Spaniard, who was the sole survivor ofmi expedition v/hicli had been sent into the New Worldto form establishments for supplying the Spanish navywith timber. The climate was delightful, and thescenery possessed a character of novelty and magni-ficence
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