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San Martin was on the point of declaring war on Colombia, a fatal step which was prevented by the pressure of other more urgent matters, and perhaps because the victories of Bombona and Pichincha were too recent to encourage any disregard of the conquerors. As soon as Bolivar arrived in Quito, he decided to go to Guayaquil to take the situation in hand.
We observed this phenomenon at Vesuvius in 1805, while the mountain threw out incandescent scoriae; we were witnesses of it in 1802, on the brink of the immense crater of Pichincha, from which, nevertheless, at that time, clouds of sulphureous acid vapours only issued.
This structure is peculiar to Antisana and Pichincha, two burning mountains of the province of Quito; and the absence of the conic form ought never to be considered as a reason excluding the idea of a volcanic origin. I shall develop, in the progress of this work, some of the analogies, which I think I have perceived between the physiognomy of volcanoes and the antiquity of their rocks.
Here we find the gigantic Chimborazo, an extinct volcano whose summit is white with snow; Carihuairazo and Illiniza, a lofty pointed peak like the Matterhorn; Corazon, a snow-clad dome, reaching a height of 15,871 feet; Atacazo and Pichincha, the latter an extinct volcano reaching an elevation of 15,920 feet; such is the western chain, remarkable for its straightness, the volcanic cones being planted in one grand procession from south to north.
Canterac, in his retreat, was forced to cover 450 miles of very rough country, and lost a large part of his army. A festivity following this success was the occasion of generous words exchanged between the victor of Bombona and the conqueror of Pichincha. Sucre said: "Led by the Liberator, we can expect nothing but victory!"
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