ECUADOR 395 there are the smaller rivers Chinchipe, Morona, Tigre, and a few others, navigable for greater or lesser distances. N. of the Napo are the Putumayo and the Caqueta or Japura, both of considerable magnitude, but neither wholly within the territory of Ecuador. The first enters it near San Miguel, and after traversing the northern portion of Oriente in a generally S. E. direction, flows through the Brazilian forests to the Amazon. The second constitutes part of the K boundary line of the state. All the rivers on the W. side of the Cordillera Occi- dental hurry by briefer courses to the Pacific. The Guayaquil is formed by the union of nu- merous streams issuing from the mountains adjacent to Chimborazo, and falls into the gulf of Guayaquil ; it is navigable as far as Baba- hoyo, 75 m., and receives the waters of the Baba and the Daule. The Mira falls into the sea by several mouths at the northern extrem- ity of the coast ; the Esmeraldas into the Ancon de Sardincas; the Chones and the Charapoto into Caracas bay; and the Jubones and the Tumbez into the bay of Tumbez. All these, except the Guayaquil, are only navigable by boats, rafts, and small craft. Ecuador has no lakes properly so called ; but there are many lagoons, some in connection with the various tributary streams of the Marafion, others in the elevated table land formed by the eastern and western Cordilleras, and a few in the high plains of the Cordilleras. The Yaguarcocha, in the plains of Imbabura, is one of the largest. In the province of Guayas numerous lagoons are formed in the rainy season, which dwindle into stagnant pools in the dry months. Little has been done toward the examination of the special structure of the equatorial Andes. The characteristic syenitic rocks and porphyries occur here in as great abundance as elsewhere in the Andine system ; yet several important ridges and peaks are observed to be of trachy- tic formation. Chimborazo, Asuay, and many other mountains of either Cordillera, present the last named character ; and extensive tracts in the vicinity of Sangay and Cotopaxi are covered with lava, pumice stone, and cin- ders ; while ruined temples and causeways, the work of the incas, constructed almost wholly of freestone, attest the existence of this last in considerable quantities. Gold, silver, cop- per, iron, lead, zinc, and sulphuret of mercury occur in various parts. Gold is said to be washed down, by most of the rivers descending from the eastern declivities of the Andes ; but the gold mines of the elevated mesas of the Cordilleras were, in common with those of sil- ver and mercury, long ago abandoned. At present there are few gold mines, and these only in the mountains near the coast. Anti- mony, manganese, sulphur, salt, coal, and pe- troleum are found. But the only productive mining operations are those of iron and cop- per. The climate of Ecuador is as varied as the face of the country. In the wooded and marshy regions E. of the Cordilleras and in the lowlands on the west it is hot and moist ; while in the great^ valley between the eastern and western chains, the climate and temperature vary with the elevation of the plains, or their proximity to the mountains. There are but two seasons, summer and winter. The former commencing in June and lasting till Novem- ber, is the season of winds ; and the latter, be- ginning in December and ending in May, is the rainy season. This regular succession of the seasons, however, is known only in the table land between the mountains, and on the pla- teaus along the declivities of the western Cor- dillera. Hail and snow storms are common in the elevated plains of the Cordilleras, and frosts destroy the unripe cereals. The direc- tion of the wind changes with the localities. In the great inter-alpine valley, the prevailing wind is from the south, with an occasional norther ; but in the more elevated regions the wind currents are almost constantly from the east, sometimes increasing to terrible tempests. In the coast region the south wind prevails in summer and the north wind in winter. In the latter season the copious rains at the head waters of the rivers cause them to inundate the surrounding districts. After the floods subside, the region is for some time covered with a pestilential marsh, which sends forth myriads of noxious insects. Fevers are preva- lent during the wet season in the low country, which consequently has few inhabitants of Eu- ropean descent. The climate on the whole is salubrious, particularly that of the valley be- tween the Cordilleras. Intermittent and other fevers are frequent in the coast region; but they are unknown in the highlands, and pul- monary consumption is rarely heard of. Ele- phantiasis is common at Quito. In conse- quence of the equatorial position of Ecuador and its varying elevation, it has in close proximity all the productions of the tropical and temperate zones. In the plains of Quito are produced sugar cane, cotton, and maize, and higher up European cereals' and fruits. The low lands produce cacao, coffee, sugar cane, rice, cotton, pepper, tobacco, India rubber, co- C 1 gum, vanilla, sarsaparilla, and the tropical its, among which are chirimoyas, granadi- tas, aguacates, plantains, mameys, guavas, and a variety of melons. Besides cinchona (the original home of which is the southern frontier of Ecuador, and especially the region around Loja), there is an immense variety of medicinal roots and plants. The pita or American aloe, and the species of grass called pajon, from which are made the so-called Panama hats, are among the most useful productions of the country. The great forests present inexhaustible quan- tities of timber suitable for every purpose in ship building, house carpentry, and cabinet work. Among the woods are the guachapelf, which hardens in water or in contact with the humidity of the atmosphere, and the sindi- caspi, which burns freely when fresh cut. Agriculture is in a low condition ; the imple
