observation which rather damped my ardour.
The breakfast-party was large; there were
ourselves, several Creole ladies and gentlemen,
two French officers, and five children. Among
the things at table with which I was not familiar,
were a párga fish weighing fifteen pounds,
the alligator, or, as it ought to be called,
advocate's pear, and the fruit of the passion-flower
creeper, which is as big as a pumpkin, and not
less insipid. The párga might be called the
sea-perch for its colour, shape, and taste. It is
common enough, and I had seen it before, but
never of such a size. The alligator pear has
been often described, and it is said that a good
deal of practice in eating it is needed before
a relish for it can be acquired. To me its
flavour seemed to be a compound of the tastes
of pumpkin, melon, and very mouldy Stilton
cheese.

At two P.M., our shambling equipage, the
vampiro, came flapping up to the door, drawn by
three rat-like ponies, who, however, soon proved
that they had some mettle in them. The road,
which is about twenty-five feet broad, and not
an intolerably bad one after fairly quitting
Maquetia, skirts, in a perpetual zigzag, the eastern
side of the great ravine called Quebráda de Tipe.
The western side of this ravine, which is a mile
or two broad, leads directly from Carácas to the
Bay of Catia, already mentioned as a desirable
harbour. Along this side of the ravine, surveys
for a railroad were made by Stephenson, which
have been repeated by a gentleman who arrived
at Carácas at the same time as myself. The
difficulties of this route for locomotives are,
perhaps, not insurmountable, but they seem at
least to be greater than any that have yet been
overcome elsewhere.

For the first thousand feet of elevation our
progress was slow, as the clouds of red dust
were literally suffocating, and the heat so great
that even the case-hardened driver was fain to
take things quietly. Besides, no little management
was required in order to pass safely the
strings of cattle, asses, and pedestrians, and the
numerous carts we met or overtook. When
once we had reached the elevation of a thousand
feet, we perceived a marked change in the
temperature, and began to be repaid for our
previous sufferings by a fine view over the
Quebráda, the narrow line of coast and the ocean.
The whole distance, between Maquetia and
Carácas by this road, is about twenty miles,
while, as the crow flies, from La Guaira to
Carácas is not more than nine miles. Here and
there we came to a venta, or poor inn, where
the carters, carriers, and coachmen get a drink
of aguardiente, or fire-water, as rum is here
called, while their wretched animals take a few
minutes' rest, if rest that can be called which is
robbed of its solace by the swarms of flies. At one
place our coachman, an Italian (it is curious that
the principal Jehus on this road are Italians),
requested us to hold our noses, at the same time
applying the lash vigorously to his ponies. As
we galloped by, a flock of zamuros, or small
vultures, rose from the body of a horse, which
might very easily have been pitched over the
precipice by its owner; but no South American
would ever think of giving himself a little trouble
to oblige the public. We stopped at a venta
half way, and changed horses. Three or four
rough-looking fellows, with guns and dogs, were
smoking there. They said they had been out all
day, and had killed four quail, and seen a few
partridges. We had now ascended about five
thousand feet, and it was comparatively quite
cold. The road, too, was less steep, and we
started with our fresh horses at great speed.
This rate of travelling is not so pleasant on such
a road to those who cross it for the first time.
The turns were so abrupt as to be quite
invisible while one was approaching the precipice,
from which they diverged almost at right angles.
We seemed to be galloping straight into the
abyss, and we did reach its very brink, and
then swept round by a turn in the road, which
only at that moment showed itself. Until
habit deadens sensation, one cannot but feel a
little nervous at such charioteering, and the
more so as dreadful accidents have actually
occurred. There are similar roads over the
mountains in Peru, and it is said that a late
president of that country got so alarmed on one
occasion, that he shouted out to the youth who
was driving, to stop. The mozo, however,
rather enjoying the joke, drove on faster
than ever, till the president, drawing out a
pistol, called to him that he would shoot
him dead unless he pulled up instantly. This
was a hint not to be disregarded, so the
youth obeyed, but turned round and said,
with the usual freedom or impudence of the
country, " Truly you're a fine fellow to be
President of Peru, if you are afraid at such a trifle
as this."

Two miles from the place of changing horses,
the road begins to descend, and we went on with
increasing speed. The road now grew narrower
and narrower at every turn, and the view more
confined. At length, about half-past five P.M.,
we came suddenly in sight of Carácas, which is
not seen from any distance by this route. About
fifty students, wandering in cap and gown along
the road, were the first sign of our approaching
the capital. We next plunged into some dirty
lanes, and then suddenly emerged into the paved
streets of the city. Along these, Francisco, our
driver, urged his ponies with all the speed they
could muster, at the same time cracking his
whip with reports like those of a pistol, to
announce his arrival. The result of all this
energy was, that we were pitched against one
another, and up to the roof of the coach, in a
way that nearly dislocated our necks, and utterly
destroyed any dignity that we might otherwise
have assumed. The streets were full of
holes, over which we bounded in the most
unpleasant fashion, till we pulled up dead, with a
jerk that nearly sent us out of the windows, at