The trip across the continent of South America is now made very comfortably by train. The start is from the very pleasant station of the State Railway of Valparaiso. For a number of miles the tracks run almost along the water’s edge, and thus afford many beautiful views of the blue bay of Valparaiso. The trains on this road are very comfortable, for the Chilean State Railway is one of the very few railroads in South America that provide Pullman cars for their patrons. After leaving Viña del Mar the line soon abandons the bay, and threads its way through the coast range of mountains. One gets many glimpses of the higher Andes through the passes, and there are also green glens where advantage has been taken of the running water for irrigation. Cacti become very abundant, and one is reminded of the plateaus of Mexico, for these silent sentinels seem to keep watch over the herds of sheep and goats that feed on the slopes. Any one who has seen Southern Chile first will notice the difference as soon as the train leaves Santiago. The progressive dryness of the climate has a pronounced effect on the vegetation. The cacti are frequently from twelve to fifteen feet in height, and their entire surface is covered with stout, curved spines. [Illustration: THE ACONCAGUA RIVER.] After creeping along the shore and then through a valley, the railroad soon joins the Aconcagua River, which leaps and foams along, thus forming a series of diminutive cascades. In the winter time the change in temperature is very marked as the upward climb continues. In places the valley spreads out to quite generous proportions, and one will see _haciendas_ that are well kept up and which show evidence of careful cultivation. Contrast is afforded by the sight of oxen drawing one-handled, wooden ploughs. How powerful must have been the Moorish influence in Spain, for these ploughs are exact duplicates of the plough of ancient Chaldea and Egypt, which was carried along the coast of Barbary into Spain, and left there as a heritage to the Spaniards, who introduced it into the New World. The general impression left with the traveller over this route, between Valparaiso and Santiago, is one of comparative barrenness and desolation.