feet below us, and which, by way of distinction, we have called Island
lake. We had reached the upper limit of the piney region; as, above this
point, no tree was to be seen, and patches of snow lay everywhere around
us, on the cold sides of the rocks. The flora of the region we had
traversed since leaving our mules was extremely rich, and, among the
characteristic plants, the scarlet flowers of the _dodecatheon
dentatum_ everywhere met the eye, in great abundance. A small green
ravine, on the edge of which we were encamped, was filled with a profusion
of alpine plants, in brilliant bloom. From barometrical observations, made
during our three days' sojourn at this place, its elevation above the Gulf
of Mexico is 10,000 feet. During the day, we had seen no sign of animal
life; but among the rocks here, we heard what was supposed to be the bleat
of a young goat, which we searched for with hungry activity, and found to
proceed from a small animal of a gray color, with short ears and no tail--
probably the Siberian squirrel. We saw a considerable number of them, and,
with the exception of a small bird like a sparrow, it is the only
inhabitant of this elevated part of the mountains. On our return, we saw,
below this lake, large flocks of the mountain-goat. We had nothing to eat
to-night. Lajeunesse, with several others, took their guns, and sallied
out in search of a goat; but returned unsuccessful. At sunset, the
barometer stood at 20.522; the attached thermometer 50 deg.. Here we had the
misfortune to break our thermometer, having now only that attached to the
barometer. I was taken ill shortly after we had encamped, and continued so
until late in the night, with violent headache and vomiting. This was
probably caused by the excessive fatigue I had undergone, and want of
food, and perhaps, also, in some measure, by the rarity of the air. The
night was cold, as a violent gale from the north had sprung up at sunset,
which entirely blew away the heat of the fires. The cold, and our granite
beds, had not been favorable to sleep, and we were glad to see the face of
the sun in the morning. Not being delayed by any preparation for