They had ponchos with them, strapped to the mules' backs, and each carried a clumsy umbrella to shield him from the fierce rays of the sun; but our two adventurers soon became so hardened and used to the climate, that they dispensed with the umbrellas altogether.
The sierra, or mountain range, over which they passed was about thirty miles in extent, being in some places quite level and open, but in others somewhat rugged and covered with large but thinly scattered trees, the most common of which had fine dark-green glossy leaves, with spikes of bright yellow flowers terminating the branchlets.

There were also many peculiar shrubs and flowering plants, of a sort that the travellers had never seen the like of in their native land.
"How I wish," said Martin with a sigh, as he rode along beside his friend Barney, "that I knew something of botany." Barney opened his eyes in surprise.

"Arrah! it's too much of a philosopher ye are already, lad.

What good would it do ye to know all the hard names that men have given to the flowers?
Sure I wance wint after the doctor o' a ship, to carry his box for him when he wint on what he called botanical excursions; and the poor cratur used to be pokin' his nose for iver down at the ground, an' peerin' through his green spectacles at miserable bits o' plants, an' niver seemin' to enjoy anything; when all the time _I_ was lookin' far fornint me, an' all around me, an' up at the sky, seem' ivery beautiful thing, and snifterin' up the sweet smells, an' in fact enjoyin' the whole univarse--an my pipe to boot--like an intelligent cratur." Barney looked round as he spoke, with a bland, self-satisfied expression of countenance, as if he felt that he had given a lucid definition of the very highest style of philosophy, and proved that he, Barney O'Flannagan, was possessed of the same in no common degree.
"Well, Barney," rejoined Martin, "since you give me credit for being a philosopher, I must continue to talk philosophically.

Your botanical friend took a _microscopic_ view of nature, while you took a _telescopic_ view of it.