The surface is everywhere covered up by a thick bed of gravel, which extends far and wide over the open plain.

Water is extremely scarce, and, where found, is almost invariably brackish.
The vegetation is scanty; and although there are bushes of many kinds, all are armed with formidable thorns, which seem to warn the stranger not to enter on these inhospitable regions.
The settlement is situated eighteen miles up the river.

The road follows the foot of the sloping cliff, which forms the northern boundary of the great valley in which the Rio Negro flows.

On the way we passed the ruins of some fine estancias, which a few years since had been destroyed by the Indians.

They withstood several attacks.