Groves of a tree of rich foliage, which was, the merchant told him, the liquid amber tree, grew near the road; while on both sides lofty mountains rose precipitously to a great height, their summits being clothed in snow.

Some of these, he heard, had in times past burnt with terrible fires, and vast quantities of melted rock flowed over the country, carrying destruction in its course.

In many cases the road was a mere track winding along the side of these mountains, with precipices yawning below.
A day's march through the mountains brought them into a lofty plateau, some seven thousand feet above the sea.

Here were wide-spreading forests of trees, which Roger recognized as large oaks and cypress.

Around the villages were clearings, and whereas in the plains below maize was chiefly cultivated, the largest proportion of the fields, here, were devoted to plantations of the aloe or maguey.