When they were nearing the end of their repast, and just as Fred was helping himself to more of the omelette, there was a trembling of the floor that brought the youths out of their chairs and caused the Doctor to assume an upright position. The movement lasted perhaps a quarter of a minute, and then ceased. "Take your seats again," said Dr. Bronson, "and finish your breakfast. We are in the land of the earthquake, and this is an every-day occurrence." He suited the action to his word, and sat down. The youths followed his example, and a moment's reflection told them that they ought not to be disturbed by such a trifling shake at the very beginning of their South American experience. [Illustration: IN THE LAND OF THE EARTHQUAKE.] CHAPTER VI. THE PARADISE OF EARTHQUAKES.--FROM GUAYAQUIL TO QUITO.--A RIDE OVER THE MOUNTAINS.--ALL CLIMATES UNITED IN ONE.--THE PLAINS OF ECUADOR.--CHIMBORAZO AND COTOPAXI. The incident of the breakfast naturally drew their attention to the earthquakes that frequently shake the mountainous parts of South America, and render life and property more uncertain than in regions which are not subject to these disturbances. "Ecuador may be considered the paradise of the earthquake," said the Doctor, "though it is not much ahead of Peru and Chili in that respect. To give a list of the earthquakes that have destroyed life and property in this country since it first became known to the Spaniards would be to recite a long series of dates; Guayaquil has been shaken up a great many times, but it has suffered less than the capital. Here, at the sea-coast, we are somewhat removed from the centre of the disturbance, but by no means out of its reach." "We will hope," said Fred, "that the violent earthquakes will postpone themselves until our departure." Dr. Bronson and Frank emphatically approved Fred's suggestion, and the Doctor proceeded with his comments. "The central portion of Ecuador," said he, "is at an elevation of several thousand feet, and contains many active volcanoes. The valleys in which are the cities and cultivated part of the country are rarely less than 6000 feet above the level of the sea, and some of them rise to 10,000 or 12,000. The highest of the mountains is Chimborazo, 21,422 feet high; it was for a long time supposed to be the highest mountain of America, but modern surveys have shown that it has several superiors. It is the sixth in elevation of the chain of the Andes, and these in turn are surpassed, in the Old World, by several of the Himalayas. The best known of the active volcanoes is Cotopaxi, nearly 19,000 feet high, but there are others that rival it in destructive energy.