Geological Observations on South America. Darwin Charles

in the valley of Cachapual.

      Horizontal elevation of the Cordillera.

      Formation of valleys.

      Boulders moved by earthquake-waves.

      Saline superficial deposits.

      Bed of nitrate of soda at Iquique.

      Saline incrustations.

      Salt-lakes of La Plata and Patagonia; purity of the salt; its origin.

      The space between the Cordillera and the coast of Chile is on a rude average from eighty to above one hundred miles in width; it is formed, either of an almost continuous mass of mountains, or more commonly of several nearly parallel ranges, separated by plains; in the more southern parts of this province the mountains are quite subordinate to the plains; in the northern part the mountains predominate.