The Mountain Region, or Montana, runs parallel to the Pacific, and from 20 to 50 milers from the shores. It comprehends the central portion of the Andes, namely, the northern part of the Bolivian Andes and the whole of the Peruvian Andes. The Andes here consist of two very lofty chains, which with the country lying between them, known as the teble-land of Cuzco, the valley of the Rio Jauja, the table-land of Pasco, and the valley of the Maranon, are described under ANDES, vol. L cols. 352-355.
The Table-land of Cuzco extends from the mountains of Vilcanota, its southern boundary, to about 30' S. lat., or more than 150 miles from south to north, and about 100 miles from east to west. Its ?urfaca is very uneven, being traversed by several ridges of broad backed hills rising with a tolerably steep ascent, and running from the south, where they are connected with the mountains of Vilcauota, towards thenorth-north-west, parallel to the great chains of the Andes, which inclose this region. Tho valleys between these ridges are usually several miles wide, but their surface is diversified by low emieences. The whole region declines towards the north. The town of Cuzco (13' 31' S. lat) is 11,380 feet above the sea-level. In the most elevated districts south and west of Cuzco the only cultivated grain is the guinea (Chenopodium quinoa). In the lower parts of the valleys north of 13' S. lat. the agricultural products consist of maize, sweet potatoes, yucas, and plantains. The sugar-cane succeeds very well, and is cultivated in some parts, but not extensively. The moun tains which inclose these valleys are covered with thick forest; but trees are scarce in the more elevated districts, and in some of them are entirely wanting. Throughout this region a good deal of rain falls all the year round. In the valley of Paucartambo rain falls 300 days In the year.
The Vale of the Rio Jauja extends from the table-land of Pasco on the north, about 100 miles southward, between both ranges of the Andes, and in the widest part may be about 30 miles across. Its descent from the table-land is very rapid. At its southern extremity, near 12' 30' S. lat., it is probably leas than 8000 feet above the sea level. This valley is the most populous district of Peru, and contains several comparatively large towns. The northern districts produce abundance of wheat, maize, and the fruits of Europe; in the southern, yucas, plantains, and mandioe ere cultivated, and the sugar-cane and tobacco are grown to a considerable extent : but here, as in every other part of Peru, agriculture is carried on in the rudest possible manner.
The Tableland of Nero from south-west to north-east is about 60 miles wide, and in these parts it is inclosed by ranges which rise from 500 to 1000 feet above it There is here an ascent from the Pacific near the high euminit called La Viuda, about 11° 10' S. lat, 76' 30' W. long.; and a descent north of the Cerro Pasco, near 10' 30' S. 1st, 75' 40' W. long. The mountain masses are broken towards the north west and south-east by numerous river-courses, and do not constitute a determinate boundary, but sink imperceptibly lower. This is the highest of the table-lands Inclosed within the Andes, the level parts being 14,000 feet above the sea-level, which renders the so cold that thie district would have remained uninhabited but for the rich mines of Pasco, which have attracted a numerous population. The mean annual temperature probably does not exceed 40° Fahr. Even in the midst of summer, from May to November, the nights are cold ; and at ?un-rise all the country is covered with hoar-frost, at which time the thermometer indicates 32°. During the morning the sky, which is serene in the night-time, is covered with fogs accompanied by a strong wind. This is followed by a fall of snow mixed with hail. In the afternoon storms aro frequently experienced, accompanied by frightful thunder and hail, which sometimes cause great loss of property and life. In the winter, from November to March, the weather is much worse, as the snow-storms then last for weeks together. The table-laud is an uncultivated plain divided into a con siderable number of smaller plains by ridges of low hills rising a few hundred feet above their base. The eurface of the level parts consists partly of bare rocks or sand. The sand is partly covered with peat, or by swamps intersected with grassy tracts, which serve as pastm e ground for the llamas, which are kept in considerable numbers for the purpose of carrying the ore from the mines to the smelting-places. A great number of lakes are dispersed over the plain. They are very deep, and are the sources of some of the largest tributaries of the Amazonas. In the northern part of the plaiu is the Lake of Llauri ceche, the source of the Maranon. In the southern district is the Lake of Chinchayeecha, which is about 35 miles long, 7 miles wide, and 13,087 feet above the level of the sea. From it issues the prin cipal branch of the Jauja, one of the greatest affluents of the Rio UcayalL Near the eastern edge of the table-land is the Lake of Quiluacocha, whence the Rio Huallaga, an affluent of the Amazonas, issues.