Many o f ihefe mountains, confift o f hills piled up
upon each other, like that o f Gorveya, which takes five
hours to afcend ; its fummit affords a beautiful plain,
with abundance of pafture, where the herds of Bifcay,
and Alaba remain for fome months. Amongft other
plants, it produces the Ribes, or black currant, whofe
leaves have a flavour o f pepper, and are reckoned ufe-
ful in gouty complaints. Near Durango the hills are
bare, and from their fteepnefs, very difficult to afcend-
Serantes, near Portugalete, is another High hill, in thé
form of a pyramid, and being feen at a great diftance,
is a good land mark for mariners, failing into the river o f
Bilbao-: from its fhape it feems as if it had been a volcano;
many have erroneoufly taken it, for the mine of
Somorroftro, but this is at a league diftance- There
are other mountains o f half a league or a league in
length, with craggy peaks, whofe fides neverthelefs admit
of cultivation, and dwellings, fuck as that o f Villaro |
others are low and flat topped, covered with earth;,
having farms and habitations, befides wood for charcoal,
and even meadows for pafture, extending to their,
fummit, but none yield produis in proportion to their
furface : for the vegetative fyftem riling in a perpendicular
line, an oblique fuperficies cannot fupport more
trees or plants than a plain o f equal bafis ; as on a triangle
one cannot raife more perpendiculars, than fuch as
fall on its immediate bafis.
Small
: Small rivers and brooks iifue from the crevices and
clefts of thefe mountains ; from Gorveya there run four,
which uniting with that from the great mountain o f Or*
duna, added to other torrents burfting through gullies
where there is no water in fumroef, frirve to form the
river of Bilbao: thefe are fo tremendous in winter, when
fwelled by heavy rains, as even to threaten the town
with deftrutftion, if they unfortunately met the tide at
high, water ; the inhabitants are often alarmed in this O 7
manner, and it is common with them to go about the
ftreets in boats at this feafon of the year.
I f we except the ploughed fields, and the bare tops of
fome jagged mountains, all the reft: are covered with
Woods, either for timber, or charcoal; fome are natural,
fuch a-s the holm, and arbutus, others are fowed, or
planted, particularly oaks, which grow very faft. Where
there are no woods, and a good depth o f foil, it produces
impenetrable thickets of the fhrub called Argoma, as well
asCantabrian heath(a), arid fine gorze. Higher up, where
there is lefs earth, the fides o f the hills, and the vallies*
have plenty of grafted chefnuts, which the Hamburgh
ihips carry away in great quantities from Bilbao* The
apple tree feems here to be in its natural foil, and thrives
admirably without cultivation ; the whole country pro-
* (a) Eiica cantábrica flore máximo Foliis myrti, íubtus iúcanis. Ray’ s Sym. 472.----
Andromeda Daboæcia. Linm . . ; , : ..
Ü a duces