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Show ·~----... ..... _........,___ Ex. Doc. No. 41. 75 we had a shower whi ·h s ar 1y sufTi ·rc1 to lay the dust, yet tLc whole face of th ' country b ·ars marks of rain~, and runnin g water m t with in no other part of our journey. Tb · auscnc ·of vq;etation wiJI, in snme m a~urc, ac ·ottnt for the d '<'P incisions mad· by running ·wat ·r in the earth. November 5.- Th' howitzers clid not reach camp ]a ~t ni~ltt, yet, the g rass was so bad, ancl our beds, on tht· round pebbll·S <'Verywhc• r • coveri n ~ the surface of the gro uncl, so UJH.:omlortaul ·, it was detnminecl to move ca mp. T h c G i I a now pre se nt ~ an in h o s pi lab 1 t' ] o o k ; the moun l a i n s of trap, granite, ;nul red sandstone, in irreg ular atul con fu sed strata , but g nerally dippin ~ sharply to the south, cluster ('io · ·together; a n d on e i g-n o r a n t o f t h c g r o u n d c o u l d n o l t e I 1 f r n m '" b a t d i r e t'l i o n the river came, or in what direction it ilowcd onw<Hd3 to its mouth. The vall ·y, not more than 300 feet frotn bas(' to base of these perp endi cular mountains, is deep, antl well g rown with willow, cottonwood, and mezq ui te . A t v c r a l p I an· s , p e r p en c l i c u 1 a r w a l 1 : o f trap d y 1· p r o j e cl e d fro m the opposite sicl \ or th' river, giving the id<·a that th' river watns ha~l once been d<nnmcd llp, and tll~'ll libnntl'd uy the blow of a giant; for the 'barrier was shattered-not worn away. In the ·oursc of ~ix mile: we had crossed an<l r '-crossed lhe riv r twic as many tim •s, wh n we left it by turning abruptly up a dry ravine to the south. This we followed for three mil •s, an<l cro. sed a ridg) at the base of adell -lh<"k mountain, (so natnl'd from its rc emblancc to the outline of a saddle,) and d ·scendt"d by anoth r dry ' reck to th 'an Pedro, running nearly north. 'Lte valley of lhi~ riv er i quite wicl ·,and is cover <1 with a dense g rowth of mczqnitc, (a<'a cia pro so pis,) colton wood, and willow, throu gh whi ·hit is hard to mov ·without h ing unhorsed. The whole app aran ·e gave gr at promise, but a ncar approach <·xhiuitcd the San IJedro, an in sig niflcant stream a few yards wide, an d on 1 y a foot d c qL For six miles w' followe~l the Gila. Th • pitahaya ;1n<l ev ry other variety of cactus flourished in great luxurianc '. The pitahay~, tall, er ct, and columnar in its app •arancr, ~rcw in every • crev1ce from the ba e to the top of the mountains, and in one pia ·e l saw it growing n ·arly to its full climcn : ions from a ·revi(' • not much broader than the back of' my sabre. The. c extraordinary looking plants seem to seck the wil<l ·st ancl most unfr 'q uenteu places. Th? rani'Te of mountains trav rse<l to-day is the same w have be n 1n for some clays, ancl is a continuation of that of Mount Orah~ m, .which t~trns sharply westward from Turnbull's peak, carrying With 1t the Gda. Saddlc-llack i · an isolated peak of r •<l sandston that has cv<'ry appearance of having once formed th tahlc lnnd, and being harder than the surrounding surface, havi11g witltstood th abra ion of water. The uplands overc.<l a u ual with mezquit ·, chitnuza, cphyclr:.P, the shrub with the uible nul, anrl cadus, of this a new and beau- |