the Minas, from which it is separated by the valley of the Rio Polochic. 3. The Sierra de Chamá lies between the rivers Cahabon and Sarstun on the south, and the Rio Pasion on the north, ending in the Cockscomb Mountains of the territory of Balize. This range, as well as the last-named one, is composed of limestone.
4. The Sierra, or Mountain of Merendon, forms the boundary between Guatemala and Honduras. It branches off from the main body of the Cordillera in the department of Chiquimula, where its various spurs receive separate and distinct names.
A series of volcanoes, about twenty in number, extends across the country. They are not found in the main Cordillera, but occur in the extremities of its southern branches. A line drawn from northwest to southeast passes through the principal ones, and may be called the volcanic axis of the Cordillera of Guatemala. These volcanoes are divided into three sections—the western, the central, and the eastern. The first section comprises the two extinct volcanoes of Tacaná and Tajumulco, which are situated in the department of San Marcos. From the latter sulphur is mined.
The central section contains several active volcanoes, beginning with the group of Quezaltenango. The most important is the Cerro Quemado, which has an altitude of 10,200 feet above the sea-level. The last eruption of this volcano occurred in 1785. This group is bounded on the south by the volcano of Santa Maria (elevation, 11,480 feet). Going toward the southeast, one sees on the shores of the Lake of Atitlan the volcano of San Pedro (elevation, 8,200 feet), which is separated from that of Atitlan by an arm of this lake. Eruptions from the latter volcano took place in 1828, 1833, and 1852.
The next group is in the vicinity of Old Guatemala. To the southwest of this city lies the highest mountain in
