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PUBLISHED BY OLIVER k BOYD. EDINBURGH.

TRAVELS AND RESEARCHES

BARON HUMBOLDT.

OLIVER & BOYJD, EDINBURGH.

THE

TRAVELS AND RESEARCHES

ALEXANDER VON HUMBOLDT :

BEING A CONDENSED

NARRATIVE OF HIS JOURNEYS

IN THE

EQUINOCTIAL REGIONS OF AMERICA,

AND IN

ASIATIC RUSSIA;

TOGETHER WITH

ANALYSES OF HIS MORE IMPORTANT
INVESTIGATIONS.

BY W. MACGILLIVRAY, A. M.,

Con-servator of the Museums of the Rojal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh, Member of
the Natural History Societies of Edinburgh and Philadelphia, &c.

W ITH A PORTRAIT OF HUMBOLDT BY HORSBURGH, A MAP OF THE ORINOCO
BY BRUCE, AND FIVE ENGRAVINGS BY JACKSON.

LIBRARY
CHESTNUT HILL, MASS,
EDINBURGH;

OLIVER & BOYD, TWEEDDALE COURT ;
AND SIMPKIN & MARSHALL, LONDON.
MDCCCXXXII.

ENTERED IN STATIONERS’ HALE.

Printed by Oliver & Boyd,
Tweeddale Court, High Street, Edinburgh.

PREFACE.

The celebrity which Baron Humboldt enjoys, and
which he has earned by a life of laborious investiga-
tion and perilous enterprise, renders his name fami-
liar to every person whose attention has been drawn
to political statistics or natural philosophy. In the
estimation of the learned no author of the present
day occupies a higher place among those who have
enlarged the boundaries of human knowledge. To
every one accordingly whose aim is the general culti-
vation of the mental faculties, his works are recom-
mended by the splendid pictures of scenery which
they contain, the diversified information which they
afibrd respecting objects of imiversal interest, and
the graceful attractions with which he has succeed-
ed in investing the majesty of science.

These considerations have induced the Publishers
to offer a condensed account of his Travels and Re-
searches, such as, without excluding subjects even
of laboured investigation, might yet chiefly embrace
those which are best suited to the purposes of the
general reader. The public taste has of late years
gradually inclined towards objects of useful know-
ledge, — works of imagination have in a great mea-

PREFACE.

sure given place to those occupied with descriptions
of nature, physical or moral, — and the phenomena
of the material world now afford entertainment to
many who in former times would have sought for it
at a different source. Romantic incidents, perilous
adventures, the struggles of conflicting armies, and
vivid delineations of national manners and indivi-
dual character, naturally excite a lively interest in
every bosom, whatever may be the age or sex ; hut,
surely, the great facts of creative power and wis-
dom, as exhibited in regions of the globe of which
they have no personal knowledge, are not less cal-
culated to fix the attention of all reflecting minds.
The magnificent vegetation of the tropical regions,
displaying forests of gigantic trees, interspersed with
the varied foliage of innumerable shrubs, and adorn-
ed with festoons of climbing and odoriferous plants ;
the elevated table-lands of the Andes, crowned by
volcanic cones, whose summits shoot high into the
region of perennial snow ; the earthquakes that have
desolated populous and fertile countries ; the vast
expanse of the Atlantic Ocean, with its circling cur-
rents; and the varied aspect of the heavens in those
distant lands, — are subjects suited to the taste of
every individual who is capable of contemplating
the wonderful machinery of the universe.

It is unnecessary here to present an analysis of
the labours of the illustrious philosopher whose foot-
steps are traced in this volume. Sufl&ce it to observe,
that some notices respecting his early life introduce

PREFACE.

the reader to an acquaintance with his character and
motives, as the adventurous traveller, who, cross-
ing the Atlantic, traversed the ridges and plains of
Venezuela, ascended the Orinoco to its junction with
the Amazon, sailed down the former river to the
capital of Guiana, and after examining the Island
of Cuba mounted by the valley of the Magdalena
to the elevated platforms of the Andes, explored the
majestic solitudes of the great cordilleras of Quito,
navigated the margin of the Pacific Ocean, and wan-
dered over the extensive and interesting provinces
of New Spain, whence he made his way back by
the United States to Europe. The publication of
the important results of this journey was not com-
pleted when he undertook another to Asiatic Russia
and the confines of China, from which he has but
lately returned.

From the various works which he has given to the
world have been derived the chief materials of this
narrative ; and, when additional particulars were
wanted, application was made to M. de Humboldt
himself, who kindly pointed out the sources whence
the desired information might bo obtained. The
life of a man of letters, he justly observed, ought
to be sought for in his books ; and for this reason
little has been said respecting his occupations during
the intervals of repose which have succeeded his pe-
rilous journeys.

It is only necessary further to apprize the reader,
that the several measurements, the indications of the

PREFACE.

thermometer, and the value of articles of industry
or commerce, which in the original volumes are ex-
pressed according to French, Spanish, and Russian
usage, have been reduced to English equivalents.

Finally, the Publishers, confident that this abridg-
ed account of the travels of Humboldt will prove
beneficial in dilfusing a knowledge of the researches
of that eminent naturalist, and in leading to the
study of those phenomena which present themselves
daily to the eye, send it forth with a hope that its
reception will be as favourable and extensive as that
bestowed upon its predecessors.

Edinburgh, October 1832.

CONTENTS.

CHAPTER I.

lUTRODUCTIOX.

Birth and Education of Humboldt — His early Occupations— He re-
solves to visit Africa — Is disappointed in his Views, and goes to
Madrid, where he is introduced to the King and obtains Per-
mission to visit the Spanish Colonies — Observations made on the
Journey through Spain — Geological Constitution of the Country
between Madrid and Corunna— Climate— Ancient Submersion of
the Shores of the Mediterranean — Reception at Corunna, and
Preparations for the Voyage to South America, P^g® H

CHAPTER 11.

VOYAGE FROM CORUNNA TO TENERIFFE.

Departure from Corunna — Currents of the Atlantic Ocean — Ma-
rine Animals — Falling Stars — Swallows — Canary Islands — Lan-
cerota — Fucus vitifolius — Causes of the Green Colour of Plants
— La Graciosa — Stratified Basalt alternating with Marl — Hya-
lite— Quartz Sand — Remarks on the Distance at which Moun-
tains are visible at Sea, and the Causes by which it is modified —
Landing at Teneriffe, 25

CHAPTER III.

' ISLAND OF TENERIFFE.

Santa Cruz — Villa de la Laguna— Guanches — Present Inhabitants

of Teneriffe — Climate — Scenery of the Coast — Orotava Dragon-

— Ascent of the Peak — Its Geological Character — Eruptions
— Zones of Vegetation — Fires of St John, 41

CONTENTS.

CHAPTER IV.

PASSAGE FROM TENERIFFE TO CTIMANA.

Departure from Santa Cruz — Floating Seaweeds — Flying-fish —
Stars — Malignant Fe-ver — Island of Tobago — Death of a Pas-
senger— Island of Coche — Port of Cumana — Observations made
during the Voyage; Temperature of the Air; Temperature of
the Sea ; Hygrometrical State of the Air ; Colour of the Sky and
Ocean, Page 55

CHAPTER V.

CTJMANA.

Landing at Cumana — Introduction to the Governor — State of the
Sick — Description of the Country and City of Cumana — Mode of
Bathing in the Manzanares — Port of Cumana — Earthquakes ;
Their Periodicity ; Connexion with the State of the Atmosphere ;
Gaseous Emanations; Subterranean Noises; Propagation of
Shocks; Connexion between those of Cumana and the West In-
dies; and General Phenomena, 68

CHAPTER VI.

RESIDENCE AT CUMANA.

Lunar Halo — African Slaves — Excursion to the Peninsula of Araya
— Geological Constitution of the Country — Salt-works of Araya
— Indians and Mulattoes — Pearl-fishery — Maniquarez — Mexi-
can Deer — Spring of Naphtha, 77

CHAPTER VII.

MISSIONS OF THE CHAYMAS.

Excursion to the Missions of the Chayma Indians — Remarks on
Cultivation — The Impossible — ^Aspect of the Vegetation — San

CONTENTS.

Fernando Account of a Man who suckled a Child — Cumanacoa

Cultivation of Tobacco — Igneous Exhalations— Jaguars^ —

Mountain of Cocollar — Turimiquiri — Missions of San Antonio
and Guanaguana,

CHAPTER VIII.

EXCURSION CONTINUED, AND RETURN TO CUMANA.
Convent of Caripe — Cave of Guacharo, inhabited by Nocturnal
Birds — Purgatory — Forest Scenery — Howling Monkeys — Vera
Cruz — Cariaco — Intermittent Fevers — Cocoa-trees — Passage
across the Gulf of Cariaco to Cumana, 99

CHAPTER IX.

INDIANS or NEW ANDALUSIA.

Physical Constitution and Manners of the Chaymas — Their Lan-
guages— American Races, Ill

CHAPTER X.

RESIDENCE AT CUMANA.

Residence at Cumana — Attack of a Zambo — Eclipse of the Sun —
Extraordinary Atmospherical Phenomena — Shocks of an Earth-
quake— Luminous Meteors, 121

CHAPTER XL

VOYAGE FROM CUMANA TO GUAYRA.

Passage fronj Cumana to La Guayra — Phosphorescence of the Sea

Group of tlie Caraccas and Chimanas — Port of New Barcelona

La Guayra— Yellow Fever — Coast and Cape Blanco Road from

La Guayra to Caraccas, 128

CONTENTS.

CHAPTER XII.

CITY OF CARACCAS AND SURROUNDING DISTRICT.

City of Caraccas — General View of Venezuela — Population — Cli-
mate— Character of the Inhabitants of Caraccas — Ascent of the
Silla — Geological Nature of the District and the Mines, Page 143

CHAPTER XIII.

EARTHQUAKES OF CARACCAS.

Extensive Connexion of Earthquakes — Eruption of the Volcano of
St Vincent’s — Earthquake of the 26th March 1812 — Destruc-
tion of the City — Ten Thousand of the Inhabitants killed — Con-
sternation of the Survivors — Extent of the Commotions, 157

CHAPTER XIV.

JOURNEY FROM CARACCAS TO THE LAKE OF VALENCIA.

Departure from Caracceis — La Buenavista — Valleys of San Pedro
and the Tuy — Manterola — Zamang-tree — Valleys of Aragua — i
Lake of Valencia — Diminution of its Waters — Hot Springs —
Jaguar — New Valencia — Thermal Waters of La Trinchera —
Porto Cabello — Cow-tree — Cocoa-plantations — General View of
the Littoral District of Venezuela, 166

CHAPTER XV.

JOURNEY ACROSS THE LLANOS, FROM ARAGUA TO SAN
FERNANDO.

Mountains between the Valleys of Aragua and the Llanos — Their
Geological Constitution — The Llanos of Caraccas — Route over
the Savannah to the Rio Apure — Cattle and Deer — Vegetation
— Calabozo — Gymnoti or Electric Eels — Indian Girl — Alligators
and Boas — Arrival at San Fernando de Apure, 186

CONTENTS.

CHAPTER XVI.

VOYAGE DOWN THE RIO APURE.

San Fernando — Commencement of the Rainy Season — Prog;ress of
Atmospherical Phenomena — Cetaceous Animals — Voyage down
the Rio Apure — Vegetation and Wild Animals — Crocodiles,
Chiguires, and Jaguars — Don Ignacio and Donna Isabella —
Water-fowl — Nocturnal Howlings in the Forest — Caribe-fish —
Adventure with a Jaguar — Manatees — Mouth of the Rio
Apure, Pag® 202

CHAPTER XVII.

VOYAGE UP THE ORINOCO.

Ascent of the Orinoco — Port of Encaramada — Traditions of a Uni-
versal Deluge — Gathering of Turtles’ Egg^ — Two Species de-
scribed— Mode of collecting the Eggs and of manufacturing the
Oil — Probable Number of these Animals on the Orinoco — Decora-
tions of the Indians — Encampment of Pararuma — Height of the
Inundations of the Orinoco — Rapids of Tabage, 219

CHAPTER XVIII.

VOYAGE UP THE ORINOCO CONTINUED.

Mission of Atures — Epidemic Fevers — Black Crust of Granitic
Rocks — Causes of Depopulation of the Missions — Falls of Apures
—Scenery-Anecdote of a Jaguar— Domestic Animals— Wild

Man of the Woods — Mosquitoes and other poisonous Insects

Mission and Cataracts of Maypures— Scenery— Inhabitants—
Spice-trees— San Fernando de Atabipo— San Baltasar— The
Mother’s Rock— Vegetation— Dolphins— San Antonio de Javi-
ta— Indians— Elastic Gum— Serpents— Portage of the Pimichin
—Arrival at the Rio Negro, a Branch of the Amazon-Ascent
of the Casiquiare, 239

CONTENTS.

CHAPTER XIX.

ROUTE FROM ESMERALDA TO ANGOSTURA.

Mission of Esmeralda — Curare Poison — Indians — Duida Moun-
tain— Descent of the Orinoco — Cave of Ataruipe — Raudalito of
Carucari — Mission of Uruana — Character of the OtomacS' —
Clay eaten by the Natives — Arrival at Angostura — The Travel-
lers attacked by Fever — Ferocity of the Crocodiles, ....Page 272

CHAPTER XX.

JOURNEY ACROSS THE LLANOS TO NEW BARCELONA.
Departure from Angostura — Village of Cari — Natives — New Bar-
celona— Hot Springs — Crocodiles — Passage to Cumana, 288

CHAPTER XXI.

PASSAGE TO HAVANNAH, AND RESIDENCE IN CUBA.

Passage from New Barcelona to Havannah — Description of the
latter — Extent of Cuba — Geological Constitution — Vegetation —
Climate — Population — Agriculture — Exports — Preparations for
joining Captain Baudin’s Expedition — Journey to Batabano, and
Voyage to Trinidad de Cuba, 298

CHAPTER XXII.

VOYAGE FROM CUBA TO CARTHAGENA.

Passage from Trinidad of Cuba to Carthagena — -Description of the ,
latter — Village of Turbaco — Air-volcanoes — Preparations for j
ascending the Rio Magdalena, 309 •]

CONTENTS.

CHAPTER XXIII.

brieT account of the journey from carthagena

TO aUITO AND MEXICO.

Ascent of the Rio Magdalena — Santa Fe de Bogota — Cataract of
Tequendama — Natural Bridges of Icononzo — Passage of Quin-
diu — Cargueros — Popayan— Quito — Cotopaxi and Chimborazo —
Route from Quito to Lima — Guayaquil — Mexico — Guanaxuato —
Volcano of Jorullo— Pyramid of Cholula, Page 323

CHAPTER XXIV.

DESCRIPTION OF NEW SPAIN OR MEXICO.

General Description of New Spain or Mexico — Cordilleras — Cli-
mates— Mines — Rivers — Lakes — Soil — Volcanoes — Harbours —
Population — Provinces — Valley of Mexico, and Description of
the Capital — Inundations, and W orks undertaken for the Purpose
of preventing tliem, 343

CHAPTER XXV.

STATISTICAL ACCOUNT OF NEW SPAIN CONTINUED.

Agriculture of Mexico — Banana, Manioc, and Maize — Cereal

Plants — Nutritive Roots and Vegetables — Agave Americana

Colonial Commodities — Cattle and Animal Productions, 375

CHAPTER XXVI.

MINES OF NEW SPAIN.

Mining Districts— Metalliferous Veins and Beds Geological Re-

lations of the Ores— Produce of the Mines_Recapitulation,..390

CONTENTS.

’ CHAPTER XXVII.

PASSAGE FROM VERA CRUZ TO CUBA AND PHILADELPHIA,
AND VOYAGE TO EUROPE.

Departure from Mexico — Passage to Havannah and Philadelphia —
Return to Europe — Results of the Journeys in America, Page 401

CHAPTER XXVIII.

JOURNEY TO ASIA.

Brief Account of Humboldt’s Journey to Asia, with a Sketch of the
Four great Chains of Mountains which intersect the Central Part
of that Continent, 407

ENGRAVINGS.

Portrait of Baron F. H. A. Humboldt, — To face the

Vignette.

Vignette — Basaltic Rocks and Cascade of Regia.

Dragon-tree of Orotava, Page 48

Humboldt’s Route on the Orinoco,....' 129

.Jaguar, or American Tiger, 212

Air- volcanoes of Turbaco, 31®1

Costume.? of the Indians of Mechoacan,

THE

TRAVELS AND RESEARCHES

BARON HUMBOLDT.

CHAPTER I.

Introduction.

Birth and Education of Humboldt — His early Occupations — He re-
solves to visit Africa — Is disappointed in his Views, and goes to
Madrid, where he is introduced to the King, and obtains Per-
mission to visit the Spanish Colonies — Observations made on the
Journey through Spain — Geological Constitution of the Country
between Madrid and Corunna — Climate — Ancient Submersion of
the Shores of the Mediterranean — Reception at Corunna, and
Preparations for the Voyage to South America.

WiTH the name of Humboldt we associate all that
is interesting in the physical sciences. No traveller
who has visited remote regions of the globe, for the
purpose of observing the varied phenomena of na-
ture, has added so much to our stock of positive
knowledge. While the navigator has explored the
coasts of unknown lands, discovered islands and
shores, marked the depths of the sea, estimated the
force of currents, and noted the more obvious traits
in the aspect of the countries at which he has touch-
ed ; while the zoologist has investigated the inulti-

INTRODUCTORY REMARKS.

plied forms of animal life, the botanist the diversi-
fied vegetation, the geologist the structure and rela-
tions of the rocky masses of which the exterior of
the earth is composed ; and while each has thus con-
tributed to the illustration of the wonderful con-
stitution of our planet, the distinguished traveller
whose discoveries form the subject of this volume
stands alone as uniting in himself a knowledge of
all these sciences. Geography, meteorology, mag-
netism, the distribution of heat, the various depart-
ments of natural history, together with the affinities
of races and languages, the history of nations, the
political constitution of countries, statistics, com-
merce, and agriculture, — all have received accumu-
lated and valuable additions from the exercise of his
rare talents. The narrative of no traveller there-
fore could be more interesting to the man of varied
information. But as from a work like that of which
the present volume constitutes a part subjects strict- :
ly scientific must he excluded, unless when they :
can be treated in a manner intelligible to the pub-
lic at large, it may here he stated, that many of the
investigations of which we present the results, must
be traced in the voluminous works which the author
himself has published. At the same time enough will
be given to gratify the scientific reader ; and while
the narrative of personal adventure, the diversified
phenomena of the physical world, the condition of
societies, and the numerous other subjects discuss-
ed, will afford amusement and instruction, let it be
remembered that truths faithfully extracted from
the book of nature are alone calculated to enlarge the
sphere of mental vision ; and that, while fanciful
description is more apt to mislead than to direct

BIRTH AND EDUCATION OF HUMBOLDT. 19

tlie footsteps of the student, there is reflected from
the actual examination of the material universe a
light which never fails to conduct the mind at once
to sure knowledge and to pious sentiment.

Frederick Henry Alexander Von Humboldt was
born at Berlin on the 14th of September 1769. He
received his academic education at Gottingen and
Frankfort on the Oder. In 1 790 he visited Holland
and England in company with Messrs George For-
ster and Van Geuns, and in the same year published
his first work, entitled “ Observations on the Basalts
of the Rhine.” In 1791 he went to Freyberg to re-
ceive the instructions of the celebrated Werner, the
founder of geological science. The results of some
of his observations in the mines of that district were
published in 1793, under the title of Specimen Florce
Frihergensis Suhterranece.

Having been appointed assessor of the Council of
Mines at Berlin in 1792, and afterwards director-
general of the mines of the principalities of Baireuth
and Anspach in Franconia, he directed his efforts to
the formation of public establishments in these dis-
tricts ; but in 1795 he resigned his office with the
view of travelling, and visited part of Italy. His
active and comprehensive mind engaged in the study
of all the physical sciences ; but the discoveries of
Galvani seem at this period to have more particularly
attracted his attention. The results of his experi-
ments on animal electricity were published in 1796,
wdth notes by Professor Blumenbach. In 1795 he
had gone to Vienna, where he remained some time,
ardently engaged in the study of a fine collection of
exotic plants in that city. He travelled through se-
veral cantons of Salzburg and Styria with the cele-

VISIT TO PARIS.

brated Von Buchj but was 'prevented by the war
which then raged in Italy from extending his journey
to that country, whither he was anxious to proceed
for the purpose of examining the volcanic districts
of Naples and Sicily. Accompanied by his brother
William Von Humboldt and Mr Fischer, he then
visited Paris, where he formed an acquaintance with
M. Aime Bonpland, a pupil of the School of Medi-
cine and Garden of Plants, who, afterwards becom-
ing his associate in travel, has greatly distinguished
himself by his numerous discoveries in botany.

Humboldt, from his earliest youth, had cherish-
ed an ardent desire to travel into distant regions j
little known to Europeans, and, having at the age j
of eighteen resolved to visit the New Continent, ’
he prepared himself by examining some of the most ;
interesting parts of Europe, that he might be enabled !
to compare the geological structure of these two por- |
tionsof the globe, and acquire a practical acquaintance j
with the instruments best adapted for aiding him in i
his observations. Fortunate in possessing ample pe-
cuniary resources, he did not experience the priva-
tions which have disconcerted the plans and retarded
the progress of many eminent individuals ; but, not
the less subject to unforeseen vicissitudes, he had to
undergo several disappointments that thwarted the
schemes which, like all men of ardent mind, he had
indulged himself in forming. Meeting with a per-
son passionately fond of the fine arts, and anxious
to visit Upper Egypt, he resolved to accompany him
to that interesting country ; but political events in-
terfered and forced him to abandon the project. The
knowledge of the monuments of the more ancient
nations of the Old World, which he acquired at

JOURNEY TO SPAIN.

this period, was subsequently of great use to him
ill his researches in the New Continent. An ex-
pedition of discovery to the southern hemisphere,
under the direction of Captain Baudin, then pre-
paring in France, and with which MM. Michaux
and Bonpland were to be associated as naturalists,
held out to him the hope of gratifying his desire of
exploring unknown regions. But the war which
broke out in Germany and Italy compelled the go-
vernment to withdraw the funds allotted to this
enterprise. Becoming acquainted with a Swedish
consul who happened to pass through Paris, with
the view of embarking at [Marseilles on a mission
to Algiers, he resolved to embrace the opportunity
thus offered of visiting Africa, in order to examine
the lofty chain of mountains in the empire of Moroc-
co, and ultimately to join the body of scientific men
attached to the French army in Egypt. Accom-
panied by his friend Bonpland, he therefore betook
himself to Marseilles, where he waited for two
months the arrival of the frigate which was to con-
vey the consul to his destination. At length, learn-
ing that this vessel had been injured by a storm, he
resolved to pass the winter in Spain, in hopes of
finding another the following spring.

On his way to Madrid, he determined the geo-
graphical position of several important parts, and
ascertained the height of the central plain of Castile.
Ill March 1799 he was presented at the court of
Aranjuez, and graciously received by the king, to
whom he explained the motives which induced him
to undertake a voyage to the New Continent. Be-
ing seconded in his application by the representations
of an enlightened minister, Don Mariano Luis de

GEOLOGY AND CLIMATE OF SPAIN.

Urquijo^ he to his great joy obtained leave to visit
and explore, without impediment or restriction, all
the Spanish territories in America. The impatience
of the travellers to take advantage of the permission
thus granted did not allow them to bestow much
time upon preparations ; and about the middle of
May they left Madrid, crossed part of Old Castile,
Leon, and Galicia, and betook themselves to Co-
runna, whence they were to sail for the island of
Cuba.

According to the observations made by our travel-
lers, the interior of Spain consists of an elevated table-
land, formed of secondary deposites, — sandstone,
gypsum, rock-salt, and Jura limestone. The climate
of the Castiles is much colder than that of Toulon
and Genoa, its mean temperature scarcely rising to
59° of Fahrenheit’s thermometer. The central plain
is surrounded by a low and narrow belt, in several
parts of which the fan-palm, the date, the sugar-cane,
the banana, and many plants common to Spain and
the north of Africa vegetate, without suffering from
the severity of the winter. In the space included
between the parallels of thirty -six and forty degrees
of north latitude the mean temperature ranges from
62-6° to 68-2° Fahrenheit, and by a concurrence of
favourable circumstances this section has become the
principal seat of industry and intellectual cultivation.

Ascending from the shores of the Mediterranean,
towards the elevated plains of La Mancha and the
Castiles, one imagines that he sees far inland, in the
extended precipices, the ancient coast of the Penin-
sula ; a circumstance which brings to mind the tradi-
tions of the Samothracians and certain historical testi-
monies, according to which the bursting of the waters

ARRIVAIi AT CORUNNA.

through the Dardanelles, while it enlarged the ba-
sin of the Mediterranean, overwhelmed the southern
part of Europe. The high central plain just de-
scribed would, it may be presumed, resist the ef-
fects of the inundation until the escape of the waters
by the strait formed between the Pillars of Hercules
had gradually lowered the level of the Mediterra-
nean, and thereby once more laid bare Upper Egypt
on the one hand, and on the other, the fertile val-
leys of Tarragon, Valentia, and Murcia.

From Astorga to Corunna the mountains gra-
dually rise, the secondary strata disappear by de-
grees, and the transition rocks which succeed an-
nounce the proximity of primitive formations. Large
mountains of graywacke and gray wacke- slate pre-
sent themselves. In the vicinity of the latter town
are granitic summits which extend to Cape Orte-
gal, and which might seem, with those of Brittany
and Cornwall, to have once formed a chain of
mountains that has been broken up and submersed.
This rock is characterized by large and beautiful
crystals of felspar, and contains tin-ore, which is
worked with much labour and little profit by the
Galicians.

On arriving at Corunna, they found the port
blockaded by the English, for the purpose of inter-
rupting the communication between the mother-
country and the American colonies. The principal
secretary of state had recommended them to Don
Rafael Clavigo, recently appointed director-general
of the maritime posts, who neglected nothing that
could render their residence agreeable, and advis-
ed them to embark on board the corvette Pizarro
bound for Havannah and Mexico. Instructions were

TEMPERATURE OF THE SEA.

given for the safe disposal of the instruments^ and
the captain was ordered to stop at Tenerilfe so long
as should he found necessary to enable the travellers
to visit the port of Orotava and ascend the Peak.

During the few days of their detention, they oc-
cupied themselves in preparing the plants which
they had collected, and in making sundry observa-
tions. Crossing to Ferrol they made some inter-
esting experiments on the temperature of the sea j
and the decrease of heat in the successive strata of j
the water. The thermometer on the bank and near I
it was from 54° to 55'9°, while in deep water it i
stood at 59° or 59*5°, the air being 55°. The fact
that the proximity of a sand-bank is indicated by a
rapid descent of the temperature of the sea at its
surface, is of great importance for the safety of na-
vigators ; for, although the use of the thermometer
ought not to supersede that of the lead,' variations of
temperature indicative of dan ger may be perceived by
it long before the vessel reaches the shoal. A heavy
swell from the north-west rendered it impossible to
continue their experiments. It was produced by a
storm at sea, and obliged the English vessels to re-
tire from the coast, — a circumstance which induced
our travellers speedily to embark their instruments
and baggage, although they were prevented from
sailing by a high westerly wind that continued for
several days.

DEPARTURE FROM CORUNNA.

CHAPTER 11.

Voyage from Corunna to Teneriffe.

Departure from Corunna — Currents of the Atlantic Ocean — Ma-
rine Animals — Falling' Stars — Swallows — Canary Islands — Lan-
cerota — Fucus vitifolius— Causes of the Green Colour of Plants
— La Graciosa — Stratified Basalt alternating with Marl — Hya-
lite— Quartz Sand — Remarks on the Distance at which Mountains
are visible at Sea, and the Causes by which it is modified — Land-
ing at Teneriffe.

The wind having come round to the north-east,
the Pizarro set sail on the afternoon of the 5th of
June 1799, and after working out of the narrow
passage passed the Tower of Hercules, or light-
house of Corunna, at half-past six. Towards even-
ing the wind increased, and the sea ran high. They
directed their course to the north-west, for the pur-
pose of avoiding the English frigates which were
cruising off the coast, and about nine spied the fire
of a fishing-hut at Lisarga, which was the last ob-
ject they beheld in the west of Europe. As they
advanced, the light mingled itself with the stars
which rose on the horizon. Our eyes,” says Hum-
boldt, " remained involuntarily fixed upon it. Such
impressions do not fade from the memory of those
who have undertaken long voyages at an age when
the emotions of the heart are ih full force. How
many recollections are awakened in the imagination

EQUINOCTIAL CURRENT.

by a luminous point, which in the middle of a dark
night, appearing at intervals above the agitated
waves, marks the shore of one’s native land !”

They were obliged to run under courses, and
proceeded at the rate of ten knots, although the
vessel was not a fast sailer. At six in the morning
she rolled so much that the fore topgallant-mast
was carried away. On the 7th they were in the
latitude of Cape Finisterre, the group of granitic
rocks on which, named the Sierra de Torinona, is
visible at sea to the distance of 59 miles. On the
8th, at sunset, they discovered from the mast-head
an English convoy; and to avoid them they altered
their course during the night. On the 9th they
began to feel the effect of the great current which
flows from the Azores towards the Straits of Gibral-
tar and the Canaries. Its direction was at first east
by south ; but nearer the inlet it became due east,
and its force was such as, between 37° and 30° lat.,
sometimes to carry the vessel, in twenty-four hours,
from 21 to 30 miles eastward.

Between the tropics, especially from the coast of
Senegal to the Caribbean Sea, there is a stream
that always flows from east to west, and which is
named the Equinoctial Current. Its mean rapidity
may be estimated at ten or eleven miles in twenty-
four hours. This movement of the waters, which is i
also observed in the Pacific Ocean, having a direction
contrary to that of the earth’s rotation, is supposed
to be connected with the latter only in so far as it
changes into trade-winds those aerial currents from
the poles, which, in the lower regions of the atmo-
sphere, carry the cold air of the high latitudes to- i
wards the equator ; and it is to the general impulse ■

GULF-STREAM.

which these winds give to the surface of the ocean
that the phenomenon in question is to be attributed.

This current carries the waters of the Atlantic
towards the Mosquito and Honduras coasts^ from
which they move northwards^ and passing into the
Gulf of Mexico follow the bendings of the shore
from Vera Cruz to the mouth of the Rio del Norte,
and from thence to the mouths of the Mississippi
and the shoals at the southern extremity of Florida.
After performing this circuit, it again directs it-
self northward, rushing with great impetuosity
through the Straits of Bahama. At the end of these
narrows, in the parallel of Cape Canaveral, the
flow, which rushes onward like a torrent sometimes
at the rate of five miles an hour, runs to the north-
east. Its velocity diminishes and its breadth en-
larges as it proceed^ northward. Between Cape
Biscayo and the Bank of Bahama the width is
only 52 miles, while in 28^° of lat. it is 59 ; and
in the parallel of Charlestown, opposite Cape Hen-
lopen, it is from 138 to 173 miles, the rapidity being
from three to five miles an hour where the stream is
narrow, and only one mile as it advances towards
the north. To the east of Boston and in the meri-
dian of Halifax the current is nearly 276 miles
broad. Here it suddenly turns towards the east ; its
western margin touching the extremity of the great
bank of Newfoundland. From this to the Azores
it continues to flow to the E. and E.S.E., still re-
taining part of the impulse which it had received
nearly 1150 miles distant in the Straits of Florida.
In the meridian of the Isles of Corvo and Flores, the
most western of the Azores, it is not less than 552
miles in breadth. From the Azores it directs itself

GUIiF-STEEAM MARINE ANIMALS.

towards the Straits of Gibraltar, the island of JMa-
deira, and the Canary Isles. To the south of Ma-
deira we can distinctly follow its motion to the
S.E. and S.S.E. bearing on the shores of Africa,
between Capes Can tin and Bojador. Cape Blanco,
which, next to Cape Verd, farther to the south, is
the most prominent part of that coast, seems again
to influence the direction of the stream ; and in
this parallel it mixes with the great equinoctial
current as already described.

In this manner the waters of the Atlantic, be-
tween the parallels of IP and 43°, are carried round
in a continual whirlpool, which Humboldt calcu-
lates must take two years and ten months to per-
form its circuit of 13,118 miles. This great current
is named the Gulf-stream. Olf the coast of New-
foundland a branch separates from it, and runs from
S.W. to N.E. towards the coasts of Europe.

From Corunna to 36° of latitude, our travel-
lers had scarcely seen any other animals than
terns (or sea-swallows) and a few dolphins ; but
on the 11th June they entered a zone in which the
whole sea was covered with a prodigious quantity of
medusae. The vessel was almost becalmed ; but the
mollusca advanced towards the south-east with a ra-
pidity equal to four times that of the current, and con-
tinued to pass nearly three quarters of an hour, after
which only a few scattered individuals were seen.
Among these animals they recognised the Medusa
aurita of Baster, the M. pelagica of Bose, and a
third approaching in its characters to the M. hyso-
cella, which is distinguished by its yellowish-brown
colour, and by having its tentacula longer than the
body. Several of them were four inches in diame-

MEDUSjE FALLING STARS.

terj and the bright reflection from their bodies con-
trasted pleasantly with the azure tint of the sea.

On the morning of the 13th J une, in lat. 34° 33',
they observed large quantities of the Dagysa no-
tata, of which several had been seen among the me-
dusae, and which consist of little transparent gela-
tinous sacs, extending to 1 4 lines, with a diameter
of 2 or 3, and open at both ends. These cylinders
are longitudinally agglutinated like the cells of
a honeycomb, and form strings from six to eight
inches in length. They observed, after it became
dark, that none of the three species of medusa
which they had collected emitted light unless they
were slightly shaken. When a very irritable indi-
vidual is placed on a tin plate, and the latter is
struck with a piece of metal, the vibrations of the
tin are sufficient to make the animal shine. Some-
times, on galvanizing medusae, the phosphorescence
appears at the moment when the chain closes, al-
though the exciters are not in direct contact with
the body of the subject. The fingers, after touch-
ing it, remain luminous for two or three minutes.
Wood, on being rubbed with a medusa, becomes lu-
minous, and, after the phosphorescence has ceased,
it may be rekindled by passing the dry hand over
it ; but when the light is a second time extinguish-
ed it cannot be reproduced.

Between the island of Madeira and the coast of
Africa, they were struck by the prodigious quantity
of falling stars, which continued to increase as they
advanced southward. These meteors, Humboldt
remarks, are more common and more luminous in
certain regions of the earth than in others. He has
nowhere seen them more frequent than in the vi-

SWALLOW LANCEROTA.

cinity of the volcanoes of Quito, and in that part of
the South Sea which washes the shores of Guatimala.
According to the observations of Benzenherg and
Brandes, many falling stars noticed in Europe were
only 63,950 yards, or a little more than 36 miles
high; and one was measured, the elevation of which
did not exceed 29,843 yards, or about 17 miles.
In warm climates, and especially between the tro-
pics, they often leave behind them a train which
remains luminous for twelve or fifteen seconds. At
other times they seem to burst, and separate into a
number of sparks. They are generally much lower
than in the north of Europe. These meteors can he
observed only when the sky is clear ; and perhaps
none has ever been seen beneath a cloud. Accord-
ing to the observations of M. Arago, they usually
follow the same course for several hours ; and in
this case their direction is that of the wind.

When the voyagers were 138 miles to the east of 1
Madeira, a common swallow {Hirundo rusticd) '
perched on the topsail-yard, and was caught. What
could induce a bird, asks our traveller, to fly so far I
at this season, and in calm weather In the expe- I
dition of Entrecasteaux, a swallow was also seen j
at the distance of 207 miles olf Cape Blanco ; hut
this happened about the end of October, and M.
Lahillardiere imagined that it had newly arrived
from Europe.

The Pizarro had been ordered to touch at Lan-
cerota, one of the Canaries, to ascertain whether the
harbour of Santa Cruz in Tenerilfe was blockaded
by the English ; and on the 16th, in the afternoon,
the seamen discovered land, which proved to he
that island. As they advanced, they saw first the

ISLAND OF LANCEROTA.

island of Forteventura, famous for the number of
camels reared upon it, and soon after the smaller
one of Lohos. Spending part of the night on deck,
the naturalists viewed the volcanic summits of Lan-
cerota illumined by the moon, and enjoyed the
beautiful serenity of the atmosphere. After a time,
great black clouds, rising behind the volcano, shi*oud-
ed at intervals the moon and the constellation of
Scorpio. They observed lights carried about on the
shore, probably by fishermen, and having been em-
ployed occasionally during their passage in reading
some of the old Spanish voyages, these moving
fires recalled to their imagination those seen on the
island of Guanahani on the memorable night of the
discovery of the New World.

In passing through the archipelago of small
islands, situated to the north of Lancerota, they
were struck by the configuration of the coasts, which
resembled the banks of the Rhine near Bonn. It
is a remarkable circumstance, our author observes,
that, while the forms of animals and plants exhibit
the greatest diversity in different climates, the rocky
masses present the same appearances in both he-
mispheres. In the Canary Isles, as in Auvergne,
in the Mittelgebirge, in Bohemia, in Mexico, and
on the banks of the Ganges, the trap formation dis-
plays a symmetrical arrangement of the mountains,
exhibiting truncated cones and graduated platforms.

The whole western part of Lancerota announces
the character of a country recently deranged by vol-
canic action, every part being black, arid, and desti-
tute of soil. The Abbe Viera relates, that in 1730
more than half of the island changed its appearance.
The great volcano ravaged the most fertile and best

32 VOLCANO OP LANCEROTA.

cultivated district, and entirely destroyed nine villa-
ges. Its eruptions were preceded by an earthquake,
and violent shocks continued to be felt for several
years, — a phenomenon of rare occurrence, the agita-
tion of the ground usually ceasing after a disengage-
ment of lava or other volcanic products. The sum-
mit of the great crater is rounded, and its absolute
height does not appear to be much above 1918 feet.
The island of Lancerota was formerly named Tite-
roigotra, and at the time of the arrival of the Spa-
niards its inhabitants were more civilized than the
other Canarians, living in houses built of hewn stone,
while the Guanches of Teneriffe resided in caves.
There was then a very singular institution in the
island. The women had several husbands, each of
whom enjoyed the prerogative belonging to the head
of a family in succession, the others remaining for
the time in the capacity of common domestics.*

The occurrence, between the islands of Alegranza
and Montana Clara, of a singular marine production,
with light-green leaves, which was brought up by
the lead from a great depth, affords our author, in
his narrative, an opportunity of stating some inte-
resting facts respecting the colouring of plants. This
seaweed, growing at the bottom of the ocean at a
depth of 205 feet, had its vine-shaped leaves as

* A similar practice is stated by Mr Fraser, in his “ Journal of
a Tour through the Himala Mountains,” p. 206, to occur in seve-
ral of the hill provinces of India. “ It is usual all over the country
for the future husband to purchase his wife from her parents ; and
the sum thus paid varies of course with the rank of the purchaser.
The difficulty of raising this sum, and the alleged expense of main-
taining women, may in part account for, if it cannot excuse, a most
disgusting usage, which is universal over the country. Three or
four or more brothers marry and cohabit with one woman, who is the
wife of all. They are unable to raise tlie requisite sum individually,
and thus club their shares, and buy this one common spouse.”

COLOUR OP MARINE PLANTS.

green as those of our gramineie. According to Bou-
guer’s experiments^ light is weakened after a pass-
age of 192 feet, in the proportion of 1 to 1477'8.
At the depth of 205, this fucus could only have
had light equal to half of that supplied by a candle
seen at the distance of a foot. The germs of several
of the liliacese, the embryo of the mallows and other
families, the branches of some subterranean plants,
and vegetables transported into mines in which the
air contains hydrogen or a great quantity of azote,
become green without light. From these facts one
might be induced to think that the existence of car-
buret of iron, which gives the green colour to the
parenchmay of plants, is not dependent upon the
presence of the solar rays only. Turner and many
other botanists are of opinion that most of the sea-
weeds which we find floating on the ocean, and
which in certain parts of the Atlantic present the
appearance of a vast inundated meadow, grow ori-
ginally at the bottom of the sea, and are torn off by
the waves. If this opinion be correct, the family
of marine algae presents great difificulties to those
physiologists who persist in thinking that, in all
cases, the absence of light must produce blanching.

The captain, having mistaken a basaltic rock for
a castle, saluted it, and sent one of the officers to
inquire if the English were cruising in those parts.
Our travellers took advantage of the boat to examine
the land, which they had regarded as a prolongation
of the coasts of Lancerota, but which turned out
to be the small island of La Graciosa. " Nothing,”
says Humboldt, “ can express the emotion a natu-
ralist feels when for the first time he lands in a place
which is not European. The attention is fixed

VILLA DE LA LAGUNA.

which derive their nourishment more from the air
than from the soil, reminded them by their aspect
that the Canaries belong to Africa, and even to the
most arid part of that continent.

The captain of the Pizarro having apprized them
that, on account of the blockade by the English,
they ought not to reckon upon a longer stay than
four or five days, they hastened to set out for the
port of Orotava, where they might find guides for
the ascent of the Peak ; and on the 20th, before
sunrise, they were on the way to Villa de la Laguna,
which is 2238 feet higher than the port of Santa
Cruz. The road to this place is on the right of a
torrent which, in the rainy season, forms beautiful
falls. Near the town they met with some white
camels, employed in transporting merchandise.
These animals, as well as horses, were introduced
into the Canary Islands in the fifteenth century
by the Norman conquerors, and were unknown to
the Guanches. Camels are more abundant in Lan-
cerota and Forteventura, which are nearer the con-
tinent, than at Tenerilfe, where they very seldom
propagate.

The hill on which the Villa de la Laguna stands
belongs to the series of basaltic mountains, which
forms a girdle around the Peak, and is independent
of the newer volcanic rocks. The basalt on which
the travellers walked was hlackish-hrown, compact,
and partially decomposed. They found in it horn-
blende, olivine, and transparent pyroxene, with
lamellar fracture, of an olive-green tint, and often
crystallized in six-sided prisms. The rock of Laguna
is not columnar, hut divided into thin beds, inclined
at an angle of from 30° to 48°, and has no appear-

ROCA DEL OESTE.

Exposed to the sun’s rays the thermometer rose in
the former to 124-2°, and in the latter to 104°;
while in the shade the temperature of the air was
81-5°, being 14° higher than the sea air. The quartzy
sand contains fragments of felspar. Pieces of gra-
nite have been observed at Tenerilfe ; and the island
of Gomera, according to M. Broussonet, contains a
nucleus of mica-slate. From these facts Humboldt
infers that^'^in the Canaries, as in the Andes of Qui-
to, in Auvergne, Greece, and most parts of the globe,
the subterranean fires have made their way through
primitive rocks.

Having re-embarked, they hoisted sail, and en-
deavoured to get out again by the strait which se-
parates Alegranza from Montana Clara ; but, the
wind having fallen, the currents drove them close
upon a rock marked in old charts by the name of
Infierno, and in modern ones under that of Koca del
Oeste, — a basaltic mass which has probably been
raised by volcanic agency. Tacking during the night
between Montana Clara and this islet, they were
several times in great danger among shelves towards
which they were drawn by the motion of the water ;
but the wind freshening in the morning, they suc-
ceeded in passing the channel, and sailed along the
coasts of Lancerota, Lobos, and Forteventura.

The haziness of the atmosphere prevented them
from seeing the Peak of Tenerifife during the whole
of their passage from Lancerota ; but our traveller,
in his narrative, states the following interesting cir-
cumstances relative to the distance at which moun-
tains may be seen. If the height of the Peak,
he says, is 12,182 feet, as indicated by the last
trigonometrical measurement of Borda, its summit

DISTANCE AT WHICH MOUNTAINS

ought to be visible at the distance of ]48 miles,
supposing the eye at the level of the ocean, and the
refraction equal to 0‘079 of the distance. Navigators
who frequent these latitudes find that the Peaks of
Teneriffe and the Azores are sometimes observed at
very great distances, while at other times they can-
not be seen when the interval is considerably less, al-
though the sky is clear. Such circumstances are of
importance to navigators, who, in returning to Eu-
rope, impatiently wait for a sight of these mountains
to rectify their longitude. The constitution of the
atmosphere has a great influence on the visibility of
distant objects, the transparency of the air being
much increased when a certain quantity of water is
uniformly diffused through it.

It is not surprising that the Peak of Teneriffe
should be less frequently visible at a great distance
than the tops of the Andes, not being like them in-
vested with perpetual snow. The Sugar-loaf which
constitutes the summit of the former, no doubt re-
flects a great degree of light, on account of the white
colour of the pumice with which it is covered ; but
its height does not form a twentieth part of the total
elevation, and the sides of the volcano are coated
with blocks of dark-coloured lava, or with luxuriant
vegetation, the masses of which reflect little light,
the leaves of the trees being separated by shadows
of greater extent than the illuminated parts.

Hence the Peak of Teneriffe is to be referred to
the class of mountains which are seen at great dis-
tances only in what Bouguer calls a negative man-
ner, or because they intercept the light transmitted
from the extreme limits of the atmosphere ; and we
perceive their existence only by means of the dif-

MAY BE SEEN AT SEA.

ference of intensity that subsists between the light
which surrounds them, and that reflected by the par-
ticles of air placed between the object of vision and
the observer. In receding from Teneriffe, the Sugar-
loaf is long seen in a positive manner, as it reflects
a whitish light, and detaches itself clearly from the
sky ; but as this terminal cone is only 512 feet
high, by 256 in breadth at its summit, it has been
questioned whether it can be visible beyond the dis-
tance of 138 miles. If it be admitted that the mean
breadth of the Sugar-loaf is 639^ feet, it will
still subtend, at the distance now named, an angle
of more than three minutes, which is enough to
render it visible ; and were the height of the cone
greatly to exceed its basis, the angle might be still
less, and the mass yet make an impression on our
organs ; for it has been proved by micrometrical
observations, that the limit of vision is one minute
only when the dimensions of objects are the same
in all directions.

As the visibility of an object, which detaches it-
self from the sky of a brown colour, depends on
the quantities of light the eye meets in two lines,
of which one ends at the mountain and the other
is prolonged to the surface of the aerial ocean, it
follows that the farther we remove from the object,
the less also becomes the difference between the
light of the surrounding atmosphere and that of the
strata of air placed before the mountain. For this
reason, when summits of low elevation begin to ap-
pear above the horizon, they are of a darker tint
than those more elevated ones which we discover at
very great distances. In like manner, the visibility
of mountains which are only negatively perceived.

DISTANCE AT WHICH MOUNTAINS

does not depend solely upon the state of the low
regions of the air, to which our meteorological ob-
servations are confined, hut also upon its transpa- ;
rency and physical constitution in the most elevated i
parts ; for the image is more distinctly detached, ■
the more intense the aerial light which comes from
the limits of the atmosphere has originally been, or
the less it has lost in its passage. This in a certain,
degree accounts for the circumstance, that the Peak*
is sometimes visible and sometimes invisible to
navigators who are equally distant from it, when
the state of the thermometer and hygrometer is pre-
cisely the same in the lower stratum of air. It is
even probable, that the chance of perceiving this
volcano would not be greater, were the cone equal,
as in Vesuvius, to a fourth part of the whole height.
The ashes spread upon its surface do not reflect so
much light as the snow with which the summits of
the Andes are covered, but, on the contrary, make
the mountain, when seen from a great distance,
become more obscurely detached, and assume a
brown tint. They contribute, as it were, to equa-
lise the portions of aerial light, the variable dilfer-
ence of which renders the object more or less dis-
tinctly visible. Bare calcareous mountains, sum-
mits covered with granitic sand, and the elevated
savannahs of the Andes, which are of a bright yel-
low colour, are more clearly seen at small distances
than objects that are perceived only in a negative
manner ; but theory points out a limit beyond which
the latter are more distinctly detached from the
azure vault of the sky.

The aerial light projected on the tops of hills in-
creases the visibility of those which are seen posi-

MAY BE SEEN AT SEA.

lively, but diminishes that of such as are detached
with a brown colour, Bouguer, proceeding on theo.-
retical data, has found that mountains which are
seen negatively cannot be perceived at distances
exceeding 121 miles; but experience goes against
this conclusion. The Peak of Tenerilfe has often been
observed at the distance of 124, 131, and even 138
miles ; and the summit of Mowna-Roa in the Sand-
wich Isles, which is probably 16,000 feet high, has
been seen, at a period when it was destitute of snow,
skirting the horizon from a distance of 183 miles.
This is the most striking example yet known of the
visibility of high land, and is the more remarkable
that the object was negatively seen.

The atmosphere continuing hazy, the navigators
did not discover the island of Grand Canary, not-
withstanding its height, until the evening of the
18th J line. On the following day they saw the point
of Naga, but the Peak of Tenerilfe still remained
invisible. After repeatedly sounding, on account
of the thickness of the mist, they anchored in the
road of Santa Cruz, when at the moment they be-
gan to salute the place the fog instantaneously dis-
persed, and the Peak of Teyde, illuminated by the
first rays of the sun, appeared in a break above the
clouds. Our travellers betook themselves to the
bow of the vessel to enjoy the majestic spectacle,
when, at the very moment, four English ships were
seen close astern. The anchor was immediately got
up, and the Pizarro stood in as close as possible, to
place herself under the protection of the fort.

While waiting the governor’s permission to land,
Humholdt employed the time in making observa-
tions for determining the longitude of the mole of

LANDING AT SANTA CKUZ.

Santa Cruz and the dip of the needle. Berthoud’s I
chronometer gave 18° 33' 10"^ the accuracy of which |
result^ although differing from the longitude assign- 1
ed by Cook and others^ was afterwards confirmed F
by Krusenstern^ who found that port 16° 12' 45"
west of Greenwich^ and consequently 18° 33' 0"|
west of Paris. The dip of the magnetic needle f
was 62° 24', although it varied considerably in dif-
ferent places along the shore. After undergoing ■
the fatigue of answering the numberless questions^
proposed by persons who visited them on board,'
our travellers were at length permitted to land.

SANTA CRUZ OF TENERIFPE.

CHAPTER III.

Island of Teneriffe.

Santa Cruz — Villa de la Laguna — Guanches — Present Inhabitants
of Teneriffe — Climate — Scenery of the Coast — Orotava — Dragon-
tree — Ascent of the Peak — Its Geological Character — Eruptions
— Zones of Vegetation — Fires of St John.

Santa Cruz, the Anaja of the Guanches^, which is
a neat town with a population of 8000 persons, may
be considered as a great caravansera situated on the
road to America and India, and has consequently
been often described. The recommendations of tlie
court of Madrid procured for our travellers the most
satisfactory reception in the Canaries. The cap-
tain-general gave permission to examine the island,
and Colonel Armiaga, who commanded a regiment
of infantry, extended his hospitality to them, and
showed the most polite attention. In his garden
they admired the banana, the papaw, and other
plants cultivated in the open air, which they had
before seen only in hothouses.

In the evening they made a botanical excursion
towards the fort of Passo Alto, along the basaltic
rocks which close the promontory of Naga, but had
little success, as the drought and dust had in a man-
ner destroyed the vegetation. The Cacalia kleinia,
Euphorbia canariensis, and other succulent plants.

VILLA DE LA LAGUNA.

which derive their nourishment more from the air
than from the soil, reminded them by their aspect
that the Canaries belong to Africa, and even to the
most arid part of that continent.

The hill on which the Villa de la Laguna stands
belongs to the series of basaltic mountains, which
forms a girdle around the Peak, and is independent
of the newer volcanic rocks. The basalt on which
the travellers walked was blackish-brown, compact,
and partially decomposed. They found in it horn-
blende, olivine, and transparent pyroxene, with
lamellar fracture, of an olive-green tint, and often
crystallized in six-sided prisms. The rock of Laguna
is not columnar, but divided into thin beds, inclined
at an angle of from 30° to 48°, and has no appear-

VILLA DE LA LAGUNA.

ance of having been formed by a current of lava
from the Peak. Some arborescent Euphorbise, Ca-
calia kleinia^ and Cacti^, were the only plants observ-
ed on these parched acclivities. The mules slipped
at every step on the inclined surfaces of the rock,
although traces of an old road were observable,
which, with the numerous other indications that
occur in these colonies, alford evidence of the activity
displayed by the Spanish nation in the sixteenth
century.

The heat of Santa Cruz, which is sulfocating, is
in a great measure to be attributed to the reverbe-
ration of the rocks in its vicinity ; but as the tra-
vellers approached Laguna they became sensible of
a very pleasant diminution of temperature. In fact,
the perpetual coolness which exists here renders it
a delightful residence. It is situated in a small
plain, surrounded by gardens, and commanded by
a hill crowned with the laurel, the myrtle, and the
arbutus. The rain, in collecting, forms from time
to time a kind of large pool or marsh, which has
induced travellers to describe the capital of Tene-
riffe as situated on the margin of a lake. The town,
which was deprived of its opulence in consequence
of the port of Garachico having been destroyed by
the lateral eruptions of the volcano, has only 9000
inhabitants, of which about 400 are monks. It is
surrounded by numerous windmills for corn. Hum-
boldt observes, that the cereal grasses were known
to the original inhabitants, and that parched barley
flour and goat’s milk formed their principal meals.
This food tends to show that they were connected
with the nations of the Old Continent, perhaps even
with those of the Caucasian race, and not with the

GUANCHES.

inhabitants of the New World, who, previous to
the arrival of the Europeans among them, had no
knowledge of grain, milk, or cheese.

The Canary Islands were originally inhabited by
a people famed for their tall stature, and known
by the name of Guanches. They have now en-
tirely disappeared under the oppression of a more
powerful and more enlightened race, which, assum-
ing the superiority supposed to be sanctioned by
civilisation and the profession of the Christian faith,
disposed of the natives in a manner little accordant
with the character of a true follower of the cross.
The archipelago of the Canaries was divided into
small states hostile to each other ; and in the fifteenth
century, the Spaniards and Portuguese made voy-
ages to these islands for slaves, as the Europeans
have latterly been accustomed to do to the coast of
Guinea. One Guanche then became the property of
another, who sold him to the dealers ; while many,
rather than become slaves, killed their children and
themselves. The natives had been greatly reduced
in this manner, when Alonzo de Lugo completed
their subjugation. The residue of that unhappy
people perished by a terrible pestilence, which was
supposed to have originated from the bodies left ex-
posed by the Spaniards after the battle of Laguna.
At the present day, no individual of pure blood
exists in these islands, where all that remains of
the aborigines are certain mummies, reduced to an
extraordinary degree of desiccation, and found in the
sepulchral caverns which are cut in the rock on the
eastern slope of the Peak. These skeletons contain
remains of aromatic plants, especially the Chenopo-
dium ambrosioides, and are often decorated with

CLIMATE OF TENERIFFE.

small laces^ to whicli are suspended little cakes of
baked earth.

The people who succeeded the Guanches were
descended from the Spaniards and Normans. The
present inhabitants are described by our author as
being of a moral and religious character, but of a rov-
ing and enterprising disposition, and less industrious
at home than abroad. The population in 1790 was
174,000. The produce of the several islands con-
sists chiefly of wheat, barley, maize, potatoes, wine,
a great varietj'^ of fruits, sugar, and other articles of
food ; but the lower orders are frequently obliged to
have recourse to the roots of a species of fern. The
principal objects of commerce are wine, brandy,
archil (a kind of lichen used as a dye), and soda.

Tenerilfe has been praised for the salubrity of its
climate. The ground of the Canary Islands rises
gradually to a great height, and presents, on a small
scale, the temperature of every zone, from the in-
tense heat of Africa to the cold of the Alpine re-
gions; so that a person may have the benefit of
whatever climate best suits his temperament or dis-
ease. A similar variety exists as to the vegetation ;
and no country seemed to our travellers more fitted
to dissipate melancholy, and restore peace to an
agitated mind, than TeneriflTe and Madeira, where
the natural beauty of the situation, and the salu-
brity of the air, conspire to quiet the anxieties of
the spirit and invigorate the body, while the feel-
ings are not harassed by the revolting sight of slav-
ery, which exists in almost all the European colonies.

In winter the climate of Laguna is excessively
foggy, and the inhabitants often complain of cold,
although snow never falls. The lowest height at

VEGETATION OF TENERIFFE.

which it occurs annually in Teneriffe has not
been ascertained ; hut it has been seen in a place
lying above Esperanza de la Laguna, close to the
town of that name, in the gardens of which the
breadfruit-tree (^Artocarpus incisd), introduced by
M. Broussonet, has been naturalized. In connexion
with this subject, Humboldt remarks, that in hot
countries the plants are so vigorous that they can
bear a greater degree of frost than might be ex-
pected, provided it be of short duration. The ba-
nana is cultivated in Cuba, in places where the
thermometer sometimes descends to very near the
freezing-point ; and in Spain and Italy, orange and
date trees do not perish, although the cold may be
two degrees below zero. Trees growing in a fertile
soil are remarked by cultivators to be less delicate, and
less affected by changes of temperature, than those
planted in land that affords little nutriment.

From Laguna to the port of Orotava, and the
western coast of Teneriffe, the route is at first over
a hilly country covered by a black argillaceous soil.
The subjacent rock is concealed by layers of ferru-
ginous earth ; but in some of the ravines are seen
columnar basalts, with recent conglomerates, resem-
bling volcanic tufas lying over them, which contain
fragments of the former, and also, as is asserted,
marine petrifactions. This delightful country, of
which travellers of all nations speak with enthusiasm,
is entered by the valley of Tacoronte, and presents
scenes of unrivalled beauty. The seashore is orna-
mented with palms of the date and cocoa species.
Farther up, groups of musse and dragon-trees pre-
sent themselves. The declivities are covered with
vines. Orange-trees, myrtles, and cypresses, sur-

SCENE RY DUR ASNO.

round the chapels that have been raised on the little
hills. The lands are separated by enclosures form-
ed of the agave and cactus. Multitudes of crypto-
gamic plants, especially ferns, cover the walls. In
winter, while the volcano is wrapped in snow,
there is continued spring in this beautiful district ;
and in summer, towards evening, the sea-breezes
diffuse a gentle coolness over it. From Tegueste
and Tacoronte to the village of San J uan de la Ram-
bla, the coast is cultivated like a garden, and might
be compared to the neighbourhood of Capua or Va-
lentia ; but the western part of Teneriffe is much
more beautiful, on account of the proximity of the
Peak, the sight of which has a most imposing effect,
and excites the imagination to penetrate into the
mysterious source of volcanic action. For thou-
sands of years no light has been observed at the
summit of the mountain, and yet enormous lateral
eruptions, the last of which happened in 1798,
prove the activity of a fire which is far from being
extinct. There is, besides, something melancholy
in the sight of a crater placed in the midst of a fer-
tile and highly-cultivated country.

Pursuing their course to the port of Orotava, the
travellers passed the beautiful hamlets of Matanza
and Vittoria (slaughter and victory), — names which
occur together in all the Spanish colonies, and pre-
sent a disagreeable contrast to the feelings of peace
and quiet which these countries inspire. On their
way they visited a botanic garden at Durasno, where
they found M. Le Gros, the French vice-consul, who
subsequently served as ail excellent guide to the
Peak. The idea of forming such an establishment
at Teneriffe originated with the Marquis de Nava,

OROTAVA.

Dragon-tree of Orotava. il

who thought that the Canary Islands afford the most |
suitable place for naturalizing the plants of the East \
and West Indies^ previous to their introduction to ^
Europe. They arrived very late at the port, and
next morning commenced their journey to the Peak,
accompanied by M. Le Gros, M. Lalande, secretary
of the French consulate at Santa Cruz, the English
gardener of Durasno, and a number of guides.

Orotava, the Taoro of the Guanches, is situated
on a very steep declivity, and has a pleasant aspect
wdien viewed from a distance, although the houses,
when seen at hand, have a gloomy appearance. One
of the most remarkable objects in this place is the
dragon-tree in the garden of M. Franqui, of which
an engraving is here presented, and which our tra-

DRAGON-TREE OP OROTAVA.

vellers found to be about 60 feet high, with a cir-
cumference of 48 feet near the roots. The trunk di-
vides into a great number of branches, which rise
in the form of a candelabrum, and are terminated
by tufts of leaves. This tree is said to have been
revered by the Guanches as the ash of Ephesus
was by the Greeks ; and in 1402, at the time of the
first expedition of Bethencour, was as large and as
hollow as our travellers found it. As the species
is of very slow growth, the age of this individual
must be great. It is singular, that the dragon-tree
should have been cultivated in these islands at so
early a period, it being a native of India, and no-
where occurring on the African continent.

Leaving Orotava they passed by a narrow and
stony path through a beautiful wood of chestnuts
to a place covered with brambles, laurels, and
arborescent heaths, where, under a solitary pine,
known by the name of Pino del Dornajito, they
procured a supply of water. From this place to
the crater they continued to ascend without crossing
a single valley, passing over several regions distin-
guished by their peculiar vegetation, and rested
during part of the night in a very elevated position,
where they suffered severely from the cold. About
three in the morning they began to climb the Su-
gar-loaf, or small terminal cone, by the dull light
of fir-torches, and examined a small subterranean
glacier or cave, whence the towns below are supplied
with ice throughout the summer.

In the twilight they observed a phenomenon not
unusual on high mountains, — a stratum of white
clouds spread out beneath, concealing the face of
the ocean, and presenting the appearance of a vast

ASCENT OF THE PEAK.

plain covered with snow. Soon afterwards another I
very curious sight occurred, namely, the semblance
of small rockets thrown into the air, and which
they at first imagined to he a certain indication of
some new eruption of the great volcano of Lance-
rota. But the illusion soon ceased, and they found
that the luminous points were only the images of ■
stars magnified and refracted by the vapours. They !
remained motionless at intervals, then rose perpen- ;
dicularly, descended sidewise, and returned to their
original position. After three hours’ march over an
extremely rugged tract, the travellers reached a
small plain called La Ramhleta, from the centre of
which rises the Piton or Sugar-loaf. The slope of
this cone, covered with volcanic ashes and pumice,
is so steep that it would have been almost impossible
to reach the summit, had they not ascended by an
old current of lava, which had in some measure re-
sisted the action of the atmosphere.

On attaining the top of this steep, they found the
crater surrounded by a wall of compact lava, in which,
however, there was a breach affording a passage to
the bottom of the funnel or caldera, the greatest dia-
meter of which at the mouth seemed to be 320 feet.
There were no large openings in the crater; but aque-
ous vapours were emitted by some of the crevices, in
which heat was perceptible. In fact, the volcano has
not been active at the summit for thousands of years,
its eruptions having been from the sides, and the depth
of the crater is only about 106 feet. After examin-
Hig the objects that presented themselves in this ele-
vated spot and enjoying the vast prospect, the tra-
vellers commenced their descent, and towards even-
ing reached the port of Orotava.

PEAK OF TENERIFFE.

The Peak of Teneriffe forms a pyramidal mass,
having a circumference at the base of more than
115,110 yards, and a height of 12,176 feet* Two-
thirds of the mass are covered with vegetation the
remaining part being steril, and occupying about
ten square leagues of surface. The cone is very
small in proportion to the size of the mountain,
it having a height of only 537 feet, or of the
whole. The lower part of the island is composed
of basalt and other igneous rocks of ancient for-
mation, and is separated from the more recent
lavas and the products of the present volcano
by strata of tufa, puzzolana, and clay. The first
that occur in ascending the Peak are of a black co-
lour, altered by decomposition, and sometimes po-
rous. Their basis is wacke, and has usually an irre-
gular, but sometimes a conchoidal fracture. They
are divided into very thin layers, and contain oli-
vine, magnetic iron, and augite. On the first ele-
vated plain, that of Retama, the basaltic deposites
disappear beneath heaps of ashes and pumice. Be-
yond this are lavas, with a basis of pitch-stone and
obsidian, of a blackish-brown or deep olive-green
colour, and containing crystals of felspar, which are

* Various measurements have been made of the height of the'
Peak of Teneriffe ; but Humboldt, after enumerating fourteen, states
that the following alone can be considered as deserving of confidence :

Borda’s, by trigonometry, 1905 toises.

Borda’s, by the barometer, 1976

Lamanou’s, by the same, 1902

Cordier’s, by the same, 1920

The average of these four observations makes the height 1926
toises ; but if the barometric measurement of Borda he rejected, as
liable to objections particularly stated by our author, the mean of
the remaining measurement is 1909 toises, or 12,208 English feet.
It is seen above, that the height adopted by Humboldt is 1904 toises,
or 12,176 English feet.

VOLCANIC BKUPTIONS.

seldom vitreous. In the middle of the Malpays orj
second platform are found, amongst the glassy kinds, I
blocks of greenish- gray clinkstone or porphyry-slate. '
Obsidian of several varieties is exceedingly abundant
on the Peak, as well as pumice, the latter being ge-
nerally of a white colour ,* and the crater contains
an enormous quantity of sulphur.

The oldest written testimony, in regard to the ac-;
tivity of the volcano, dates at the beginning of the
sixteenth century, and is contained in the narrative
of Aloysio Cadamusto, who landed in the Canaries in
1505. In 1558, 1646, and 1677^ eruptions took place
in the isle of Palma ; and on the 31st December 1704,
the Peak of Teneriffe exhibited a lateral burst, pre-
ceded by tremendous earthquakes. On the 5th of
January 1705, another opening occurred, the lavas
produced by which filled the whole valley of Fas-
nia. This aperture closed on the 13th of January;
but on the 2d of February, a third formed in the
Cannada de Arafo, the stream from which divided
into three currents. On the 5th May 1706, another
eruption supervened, which destroyed the populous
and opulent city of Garachico. In 1730, on the 1st
September, the island of Lancerota was violently
convulsed; and on the 9th June 1798, the Peak
emitted a great quantity of matter, which continued
to run three months and six days.

The island of Tenerilfe presents five zones of tege-
tation, arranged in stages one above another, and
occupying a perpendicular height of 3730 yards.

1. The Region of Vines extends from the shores
to an elevation varying from 430 to 640 yards, and is
the only part carefully cultivated. It exhibits vari-
ous species of arborescent Euphorbise, Mesembryan-

ZONES OP VEGETATION.

tliema, the Cacalia Kleinia, the Dracoena, and other
plants, whose naked and tortuous trunks, succulent
leaves, and bluish-green tints, constitute features
distinctive of the vegetation of Africa. In this zone
are raised the date-tree, the plantain, the sugar-
cane, the Indian-fig, the arum colocasia, the olive,
the fruit-trees of Europe, the vine, and wheat.

2. The Region of Laurels is that which forms
the woody part of Tenerilfe, where the surface of
the ground is always verdant, being plentifully
watered by springs. Four kinds of laurel, an oak,
a wild olive, two species of iron -tree, the arbutus
callicarpa, and other evergreens adorn this zone.
The trunks are covered by the ivy of the Canaries
and various twining shrubs, and the woods are filled
with numerous species of fern. The hypericum,
and other showy plants, enrich with their beautiful
flowers the verdant carpet of moss and grass.

3. The Region of Pines, which commences at
the height of 1920 yards, and has a breadth of 850,
is characterized by a vast forest of trees, resembling
the Scotch fir, intermixed with juniper.

4. The fourth zone is remarkable chiefly for the
profusion of retama, a species of broom, which forms
oases in the midst of a wide sea of ashes. It grows
to the height of nine or ten feet, is ornamented with
fragrant flowers, and furnishes food to the goats,
which have run wild on the Peak from time im-
memorial.

5. The fifth zone is the Region of the Grasses,
in which some species of these supply a scanty
covering to the heaps of pumice, obsidian, and lava.
A few cryptogamic plants are observed higher ; but
the summit is entirely destitute of vegetation.

FIRES OF ST JOHN.

Thus the whole island may he considered as a fo-
rest of laurels, arbutuses, and pines, of which the ex-
ternal margin only has been in some measure cleared,
while the central part consists of a rocky and steril
soil, unfit even for pasturage.

The following day was passed by our travellers
in visiting the neighbourhood of Orotava, and en- ,
joying an agreeable company at Mr Cologan’s. On
the eve of St John, they were present at a pasto-
ral fete in the garden of Mr Little, who had re-
duced to cultivation a hill covered with volcanic sub-
stances, from which there is a magnificent view of
the Peak, the villages along the coast, and the isle of
Palma. Early in the evening, the volcano sud- '
denly exhibited a most extraordinary spectacle, the |
shepherds having, in conformity to ancient custom, |
lighted the fires of St John ; the scattered masses of |
which, with the columns of smoke driven by the
wind, formed a fine contrast to the deep verdure |
of the woods that covered the sides of the moun- !
tain, while the silence of nature was broken at in- J
tervals by the shouts of joy which came from afar, j

departure from SANTA CRUZ.

CHAPTER IV.

Passage from Teneriffe to Cumana.

Departure from Santa Cruz — Floating Seaweeds — Flying-fish—
Stars — Malignant Fever — Island of Tobago — Death of a Pas-
senger— Island of Coche — Port of Cumana — Observations made
during the Voyage; Temperature of the Air; Temperature of
the Sea ; Hygrometrical State of the Air ; Colour of the Sky and
Ocean.

Having sailed from Santa Cruz on the evening
of the 25th of June, with a strong wind from the
north-east, our travellers soon lost sight of the Ca-
nary Islands, the mountains of which were cover-
ed with reddish vapour, the Peak alone appearing
at intervals in the breaks. The passage from Te-
nerilfe to Cumana was performed in twenty days,
the distance being 3106 miles.

The wind gradually subsided as they retired from
the African coast. Short calms of several hours
occasionally took place, which were regularly inter-
rupted by slight squalls, accompanied by masses of
dark clouds, emitting a few large drops of rain, but
without thunder. To the north of the Cape Verd
Islands they met with large patches of floating sea-
weed {Fucus natam), which grows on submarine
rocks, from the equator to forty degrees of lati-
tude on either side. These scattered plants, how-
ever, must not be confounded with the vast beds.

FLOATING SEAAVEEDS.

said by Columbus to resemble extensive meadows,
and which inspired with terror the crew of the Santa
Maria. From a comparison of numerous journals
it appears that there are two such fields of seaweed
in the Atlantic. The largest occurs a little to the
west of the meridian of Fayal, one of the Azores,
between 25° and 36° of latitude. The tempera-
ture of the ocean there is between 60-8° and 68° ;
and the north-west winds, which blow sometimes
with impetuosity, drive floating islands of those
weeds into low latitudes, as far as the parallels of
24° and even 20°. Vessels returning to Europe
from Monte Video, or the Cape of Good Hope, pass
through this marine meadow, which the Spanish
pilots consider as lying half-way between the West
Indies and the Canaries. The other section is not so
well known, and occupies a smaller space between
lat. 22° and 26° of N., two hundred and seventy-six
miles eastward of the Bahama Islands.

Although a species of seaweed, the Laminaria pi/-
rifera of Lamouroux, has been observed with stems
850 feet in length, and although the growth of these
plants is exceedingly rapid, it is yet certain that in
those seas the fuci are not fixed to the bottom, but
float in detached parcels at the surface. In this state
vegetation, it is obvious, cannot continue longer than
in the branch of a tree separated from the trunk ;
and it may therefore be supposed, that floating masses
of these weeds occurring for ages in the same posi-
tion owe their origin to submarine rocks, which con-
tinually supply what has been carried off by the equi-
noctial currents. But the causes by which these
plants are detached are not yet sufficiently known,
although the author just named has shown that fuci

FLYING-FISH. 57

in general separate with great facility after the pe-
riod of fructification.

Beyond 22° of latitude they found the surface of
the sea covered with flying-fish {Exocetus volitans),
which sprung into the air to a height of twelve, fifteen,
and even eighteen feet, and sometimes fell on the deck.
The great size of the swimming-bladder in these
animals, being two-thirds the length of their body,
as well as that of the pectoral fins, enable them to
traverse in the air a space of twenty-four feet hori-
zontal distance before falling again into the water.
They are incessantly pursued by dolphins while un-
der the surface, and when flying are attacked by
frigate-birds and other predatory species. Yet it
does not seem that they leap into the atmosphere
merely to avoid their enemies ; for, like swallows,
they move by thousands in a right line, and always
in a direction opposite to that of the waves. The
air contained in the swimming-bladder had been
supposed to be pure oxygen ; but Humboldt found it
to consist of ninety-four parts of azote, four of oxy-
gen, and two of carbonic acid.

On the 1st July they met with the wreck of a
vessel, and on the 3d and 4th crossed that part of the
ocean where the charts indicate the bank of the Maal-
Stroom, which, however, is of very doubtful existence.
As they approached this imaginary whirlpool they
observed no other motion in the waters than that
produced by a current bearing to the north-west.

Prom the time when they entered the torrid zone
(the 27th June) they never ceased to admire the
nocturnal beauty of the southern sky, which gradu-
ally disclosed new constellations to their view. “ One
experiences an indescribable sensation,” says Hum-

CONSTE LLATIONS.

boldtj '^wheiij as he approaches the equator, and es- I
pecially in passing from the one hemisphere to the |
other, he sees the stars with which he has been ftu 1
miliar from infancy gradually approach the horizon 1
and finally disappear. Nothing impresses more vi- I
vidly on the mind of the traveller the vast distance j
to which he has been removed from his native coun- ]
try than the sight of a new firmament. The group- |
ing of the larger stars, the scattered nehulce rivalling |
in lustre the milky- way, and spaces remarkable for |
their extreme darkness, give the southern heavens a •
peculiar aspect. The sight even strikes the imagi-
nation of those who, although ignorant of astronomy,
find pleasure in contemplating the celestial vault,
as one admires a fine landscape or a majestic site.
Without being a botanist, the traveller knows the
torrid zone by the mere sight of its vegetation ; and
without the possession of astronomical knowledge
perceives that he is not in Europe, when he sees
rising in the horizon the great constellation of the
Ship, or the phosphorescent clouds of Magellan.

In the equinoctial regions, the earth, the -sky, and
all their garniture, assume an exotic character.”

The intertropical seas being usually smooth, and
the vessel being impelled by the gentle breezes of
the trade-wind, the passage from the Cape Verd
Islands to Cumana was as pleasant as could be de-
sired ; but as they approached the West Indies a
malignant fever disclosed itself on board. The ship
was very much encumbered between decks, and
from the time they passed the tropic the thermo-
meter stood from 93° to 96-8°. Two sailors, seve-
ral passengers, two negroes from the coast of Guinea,
and a mulatto child, were attacked. An ignorant

MALIGNANT FEVER ON BOARD.

Galician surgeon ordered bleedings, to obviate the
“ heat and corruption of the blood but little exer-
tion had been made in attempting to diminish the
danger of infection, and there was not an oimce of
bark on board. A sailor, who had been on the point
of expiring, recovered his health in a singular man-
ner. His hammock having been so hung that the
sacrament could not be administered to him, he was
removed to an airy place near the hatchway, and left
there, his death being expected every moment. The
transition from a hot and stagnant to a fresher and
purer atmosphere gradually restored him, and his
recovery furnished the doctor with an additional
proof of the necessity of bleeding and evacuation, — a
treatment of which the fatal effects soon became per-
ceptible.

On the 13th, early in the morning, very high land
was seen. The wind blew hard, the sea was rough,
large drops of rain fell at intervals, and there was
every appearance of stormy weather. Considerable
doubt existed as to the latitude and longitude, which
was, however, removed by observations made by our
travellers, and the appearance of the island of Toba-
go. This little island is a heap of rocks, the dazzling
whiteness of which forms an agreeable contrast with
the verdure of the scattered tufts of trees upon it.
The mountains are crowned with very tall opuntise,
which alone are enough to apprize the navigator that
he has arrived on an American coast.

After doubling the north cape of Tobago and the
point of St Giles, they discovered from the mast-head
what they regarded as a hostile squadron ; which,
however, turned out to be only a group of rocks.
Crossing the shoal which joins the former island to

MALIGNANT PEVBR.

Grenada, they found that, although the colour of
the sea was not visibly changed, the thermometer in-
dicated a temperature several degrees lower than that
of the neighbouring parts. The wind diminished
after sunset, and the clouds dispersed as the moon
reached the zenith. Numerous falling-stars were
seen on this and the following nights.

On the 14th, at sunrise, they were in sight of the
Bocca del Drago, and distinguished the island of
Chacachacarreo. When 17 miles distant from the
coast, they experienced, near Punta de la Baca, the
effect of a current which drew the ship southward.
Heaving the lead, they found from 230 to 275 feet,
with a bottom of very fine green clay, — a depth much
less than, according to Dampier’s rule, might have
been expected in the vicinity of a shore formed of
very elevated and perpendicular mountains.

The disease which had broken out on board the
Pizarro made rapid progress from the time they ap-
proached the coast. The thermometer kept steady
at night between 71 ‘6° and 73’4°, and during the day
rose to between 75‘2° and 80‘6°. The determina-
tion to the head, the extreme dryness of the skin,
the prostration of strength, and all the other symp-
toms became more alarming ; but it was hoped that
the sick would recover as soon they were landed
on the island of St Margaret or at the port of Cu-
mana, both celebrated for their great salubrity. This
hope, however, was not entirely realized, for one of
the passengers fell a victim to the distemper. He was
an Asturian, nineteen years of age, the only son of
a poor widow. Various circumstances combined to
render the death of this young man affecting. He
was of an exceedingly gentle disposition, bore the

MALIGNANT FEVER.

marks of great sensibility, and had left his native
land against his inclination, with the view of earn-
ing an independence and assisting his reluctant mo-
ther, under the protection of a rich relation, who re-
sided in the island of Cuba. From the commence-
ment of his illness he had fallen into a lethargic
state, interrupted by accessions of delirium, and on
the third day expired. Another Asturian, who was
still younger, did not leave the bed of his dying
friend for a moment, and yet escaped the disease.
He had intended to accompany his countryman to
Cuba, to be introduced by him to the house of his
relative, on whom all their hopes rested ; and it was
distressing to see his deep sorrow, and to hear him
curse the fatal counsels which had thrown him into
a foreign climate, where he found himself alone and
destitute.

"We were assembled on the deck,” says our elo-
quent author, " absorbed in melancholy reflections.
It was no longer doubtful that the fever which pre-
vailed on board had of late assumed a fatal charac-
ter. Our eyes were fixed on a mountainous and
desert coast, on which the moon shone at intervals
through the clouds. The sea, gently agitated, glowed
with a feeble phosphoric light. No sound came on
the ear save the monotonous cry of some large sea-
birds that seemed to be seeking the shore. A deep
calm reigned in these solitary places ; but this calm
of external nature accorded ill with the painful feel-
ings which agitated us. About eight the death-bell
was slowly tolled. At this doleful signal the sailors
ceased from their work, and threw themselves on
their knees to offer up a short prayer ; an affecting
ceremony, which, while it recalls the times when the
primitive Christians considered themselves as mem-

MALIGNANT FEVEK.

bers of the same family^ seems to unite men by the
feeling of a common evil. In the course of the night
the body of the Asturian was brought upon deck,
and the priest prevailed upon them not to throw it
into the sea until after sunrise, in order that he might
render to it the last rites, in conformity to the prac-
tice of the Romish church. There was not an indi-
vidual on board who did not feel for the fate of this
young man, whom we had seen a few days before
full of cheerfulness and health.”

The passengers who had not been atfected by the
disease resolved to leave the ship at the first place
where she should touch, and there wait the arrival
of another packet to convey them to Cuba and
Mexico. Our travellers also thought it prudent to
land at Cumana, more especially as they wished not.
to visit New Spain until they had remained for some
time on the coasts of Venezuela and Paria, and
examined the beautiful plants of which Bose and
Bredemeyer collected specimens on their voyage to
Terra Firma, and which Humboldt had seen in the
gardens of Schbnhrunn and Vienna. This resolution
had a happy influence upon the direction of their jour-
ney, as will subsequently be seen, and perhaps was
the occasion of securing for them the health which
they enjoyed during a long residence in the equi-
noctial regions. They were by this means fortunate
enough to pass the time when a European recently
landed runs the 'greatest danger of being affected by
the yellow fever, in the hot but very dry climate of
Cumana, a city celebrated for its salubrity.

As the coast of Paria stretches to the west, in
the form of perpendicular cliffs of no great height,
they were long without perceiving the bold shores
of the island of St Margaret, where they intended

COAST OF NEW ANDALUSIA.

to stop for the purpose of obtaining information re-
specting the English cruisers. Toward , eleven in
the morning of the 15th, they observed a very low
islet covered with sand, and destitute of any trace
of culture or habitation. Cactuses rose here and
there from a scanty soil which seemed to have an
undulating motion, in consequence of the extra-
ordinary refraction the solar rays undergo in pass-
ing through the stratum of air in contact with a
strongly-heated surface. The deserts and sandy shores
of all countries present this appearance. The aspect
of this place not corresponding with the ideas which
they had formed of the island of Margaretta, and
the greatest perplexity existing as to their position
and course, they cast anchor in shallow water, and
were visited by some Guayquerias in two canoes,
constructed each of the single trunk of a tree. These
Indians, who were of a coppery colour and very tall,
informed them that they had kept too far south,
that the low islet near which they were at anchor
was the island of Coche, and that Spanish vessels
coming from Europe usually passed to the north-
ward of it. The master of one of the canoes offered
to remain on hoard as coasting pilot, and towards
evening the captain set sail.

On the 16th they beheld a verdant coast of pic-
turesque appearance ; the mountains of New An-
dalusia hounded the southern horizon, and the city
of Cumana and its castle appeared among groups
of trees. They anchored in the port about nine
in the morning, when the sick crawled on deck to
®wjoy the sight. The river was bordered with co-
coa-trees more than sixty feet high, — the plain was
covered with tufts of cassias, capers, and arbores-
cent mimosas, while the pinnated leaves of the

64 TEMPERATURE DURING THE VOYAGE.

palms were conspicuous on the azure of a sky un-
sullied by the least trace of vapour. A dazzling
light was spread along the white hills clothed with
cylindrical cactuses, and over the smooth sea, the
shores of which were peopled by pelicans, egrets,
and flamingoes. Every thing announced the mag-
nificence of nature in the equinoctial regions.

Before accompanying our learned friends to the
city of Cumana, we may here take a glance of the
physical observations made by them during the
voyage, and which refer to the temperature of the
air and sea, and other subjects of general interest.

Temperature of the Air. — In the basin of the
northern Atlantic Ocean, between the coasts of Eu-
rope, Africa, and America, the temperature of the
atmosphere exhibits a very slow increase. From
Corunna to the Canary Islands, the thermometer,
observed at noon and in the shade, gradually rose
from 50° to 64°, and from Tenerilfe to Cumana from
64° to 77°* The maximum of heat observed during
the voyage did not exceed 79'9°«

The extreme slowness with which the tempera-
ture increases during a voyage from Spain to South
America is highly favourable to the health of Eu-
ropeans, as it gradually prepares them for the in-
tense heat which they have to experience. It is in
a great measure attributable to the evaporation of
the water, augmented by the motion of the air and
waves, together with the property possessed by trans-
parent liquids of absorbing very little light at their
surface. On comparing the numerous observations
made by navigators, we are surprised to see that
in the torrid zone, in either hemisphere, they have
not found the thermometer to rise in the open sea
aboye 93° ; while in corresponding latitudes on the

TEMPERATURE OF THE SEA.

continents of Asia and Africa, it attains a much
greater elevation. The difference between the tem-
perature of the day and night is also less than on
land.

Temperature of the Sea. — From Corunna to the
mouth of the Tagus, the temperature of the sea
varied little (between 59° and 60 8°) ; but from lat.
39° to 10° N., the increase was rapid and generally
uniform (from 59° to 78’4°), although inequalities
occurred, probably caused by currents. It is very
remarkable that there is a great uniformity in the
maximum of heat every where in the equinoctial
waters. This maximum, which varies from 82° to
84-2°, proves that the ocean is in general warmer
than the atmosphere in direct contact with it, and
of which the mean temperature near the equator is
from 78 8° to 80-6°.

Hygrometrical State of the Air. — During the
whole of the voyage, the apparent humidity of the
atmosphere indicated by the hygrometer underwent
a sensible increase. In July, in lat. 13° and 14° N.,
Saussure’s hygrometer marked at sea from 88° to
92°, in perfectly clear weather, the thermometer
being at 75-2°. On the banks of the Lake of Geneva
the mean humidity of the same month is only 80°,
the average heat being 66-2°. On reducing these
observations to a uniform temperature, we find that
the real humidity in the equinoctial basin of the
Atlantic Ocean is to that of the summer months
at Geneva as 12 to 7- This astonishing degree of
moisture in the air accounts to a great extent for
the vigorous vegetation which presents itself on the
c'oasts of South America, where so little rain falls
throughout the year.

COLOUR OF THE SKY.

Intensity of the Colour of the Sky and Ocean

From the coasts of Spain and Africa to those of
South America, the azure colour of the sky in-
creased from 13° to 23° of Saussure’s cyanometer.
From the 8th to the 12th of July, in lat. 12|*
and 14° N., the sky, although free of vapour, was of
an extraordinary paleness, the instrument indicat-
ing only 16° or 17°, although on the preceding days
it had been at 22°. The tint of the sky is general-
ly deeper in the torrid zone than in high latitudes,
and in the same parallel it is fainter at sea than on
land The latter circumstance may be attributed
to the quantity of aqueous vapour which is con-
tinually rising towards the higher regions of the
air from the surface of the sea. From the zenith to
the horizon, there is in all latitudes a diminution of
intensity, which follows nearly an arithmetical pro-
gression, and depends upon the moisture suspended
in the atmosphere. If the cyanometer indicate this
accumulation of vapour in the more elevated por-
tion of the air, the seaman possesses a simpler me-
thod of judging of the state of its lower regions, by
observing the colour and figure of the solar disk at
its rising and setting. In the torrid zone, where
meteorological phenomena follow each other with
great regularity, the prognostics are more to be de-
pended upon than in northern regions. Great pale-
ness of the setting sun, and an extraordinary dis-
figuration of its disk, almost certainly presage a
storm ; and yet one can hardly conceive how the
condition of the lower strata of the air, which is
announced in this manner, can be so intimately
connected with those atmospherical changes that
take place within the space of a few hours.

COLOUR OF THE OCEAN.

Mariners are accustomed to observe the appear-
ances of the sky more carefully than landsmen, and
among the numerous meteorological , rules which
pilots transmit to each other, several evince great sa-
gacity. Prognostics are also in general less uncer-
tain on the ocean, and especially in the equinoctial
parts of it, than on land, where the inequalities of
the ground interrupt the regularity of their mani-
festation.

Humboldt also applied the cyanometer to mea-
sure the colour of the sea. In fine calm weather,
the tint was found to be equal to 33°, 38°, some-
times even 44° of the instrument, although the
sky was very pale, and scarcely attained 14° or
15°. When, instead of directing the apparatus
to a great extent of open sea, the observer fixes
his eyes on a small part of its surface viewed
through a narrow aperture, the water appears of a
rich ultramarine colour. Towards evening again,
when the edge of the waves, as the sun shines
upon them, is of an emerald-green, the surface of
the shaded side reflects a purple hue. Nothing
is more striking than the rapid changes which
the colour of the sea undergoes under a clear sky,
* in the midst of the ocean and in deep water, when
it may be seen passing from indigo-blue to the
deepest green, and from this to slate-gray. The
blue is almost independent of the reflection of the
atmosphere. The intertropical seas are in general
of a deeper and purer tint than in high latitudes, and
the ocean often remains blue, when, in fine weather,
roore than four-fifths of the sky are covered with
bght and scattered clouds of a white colour.

LANDING AT CUMANA.

CHAPTER V.

Cumana.

Landing at Cumana — Introduction to the Governor — State of the
Sick — Description of the Country and City of Cumana — Mode of
Bathing in the Manzanares — Port of Cumana — Earthquakes;
Their Periodicity; Connexion with the State of the Atmosphere;
Gaseous Emanations ; Subterranean Noises ; Propagation of
Shocks; Connexion between those of Cumana and the West In-
dies ; and General Phenomena.

The city of Cumana, the capital of New Andalusia,
is a mile distant from the landing-place, and in
proceeding towards it our travellers crossed a large
sandy plain, which separates the suburb inhabited
by the Guayqueria Indians from the seashore. The
excessive heat of the atmosphere was increased by
the reflection of the sun’s rays from a naked soil,
the thermometer immersed in which rose to 99 9°.
In the little pools of salt water it remained at 86 9°,
while the surface of the sea in the port generally
ranges from 77'4° to 79’3°. The first plant gathered
by them was the Avicennia tomentosa, which is re-
markable for occurring also on the Malabar coast,
and belongs to the small number that live in so-
ciety, like the heaths of Europe, and are seen in the
torrid zone only on the shores of the ocean and the
elevated platforms of the Andes.

Crossing the Indian suburb, the streets of which
were very neat, they were conducted by the captain

INTRODUCTION TO THE GOVERNOR.

of the Pizarro to the governor of the province, Don
Vicente Emparan, who received them with frank-
ness; expressed his satisfaction at the resolution
which they had taken of remaining for some time
in New Andalusia ; showed them cottons dyed with
native plants and furniture made of indigenous
wood ; and surprised them with questions indicative
of scientific attainments. On disembarking their
instruments, they had the pleasure of finding that
none of them had been damaged. They hired a
spacious house in a situation favourable for astrono-
mical observations, in which they enjoyed an agree-
able coolness when the breeze arose, the windows
being without glass, or even the paper panes which
are often substituted for it at Cumana.

The passengers all left the vessel. Those who
had been attacked by the fever recovered so very
slowly, that some were seen a month after, who,
notwithstanding the care bestowed upon them by
their countrymen, were still in a state of extreme
debility. The hospitality of the inhabitants of the
Spanish colonies is such that the poorest stranger is
sure of receiving the kindest treatment. Among
the sick landed here was a negro, who soon fell into
a state of insanity and died ; which fact our author
mentions, as a proof that persons born in the torrid
zone are liable to suffer from the heat of the tropics
after having resided in temperate climates. This
individual, who was a robust young man, was a na-
tive of Guinea, but had lived for some years on the
elevated plain of Castile.

The soil around Cumana is composed of gypsum
and calcareous breccia, and is supposed at a remote
period to have been covered by the sea. The neigh-

CITY OF CUM ANA.

bourhood of the city is remarkable for the woods of
cactus which are spread over the arid lands. Some
of these plants were thirty or forty feet high, covered
with lichens, and divided into branches in the form
of a candelabrum. When the large species grow in
groups they form a thicket which, while it is almost
impenetrable, is extremely dangerous on account of
the poisonous serpents that frequent it.

The fortress of St Antonio, which is built on a
calcareous hill, commands the town and forms a
picturesque object to vessels entering the port. On
the south-western slope of the same rock are the
ruins of the castle of St Mary, from the site of which
there is a fine view of the Gulf, together with the
island of Margaretta and the small isles of Caraccas,
Picuita, and Boracha, which present the most sin-
gular appearances from the effect of mirage.

The city of Cumana, properly speaking, occupies
the ground that lies between the castle of St Anto-
nio and the small rivers Manzanares and Santa
Catalina. It has no remarkable buildings, on ac-
count of the violent earthquakes to which it is sub-
ject. The suburbs are almost as populous as the,
town itself, and are three in number : namely, Ser-
ritos, St Francis, and that of the Guayquerias. The
latter is inhabited by a tribe of civilized Indians,
who, for upwards of a century, have adopted the
Castilian language. The whole population in 1802
was about eighteen or nineteen thousand.

The plains which surround the city have a parch-
ed and dusty aspect. The hill on which the fort
of St Antonio stands is also bare, and composed of
calcareous breccia, containing marine shells. South-
ward, in the distance, is a vast curtain of inacces-

BATHING IN THE KIVER.

sible mountains^ also of limestone. These ridges
are covered by majestic forests, extending along the
sloping ground at their base to an open plain in the
neighbourhood of Cumana, through which the river
Manzanares winds its way to the sea, fringed with
mimosas, erythrinas, ceibas, and other trees of gi-
gantic growth.

This river, the temperature of which in the sea-
son of the floods descends as low as 71 ’6°, when that
of the air is as high as 91°, is an inestimable bene-
fit to the inhabitants ; all of whom, even the women
of the most opulent families, learn to swim. The
mode of bathing is various. Our travellers frequent-
ed every evening a very respectable society in the
suburb of the Guayquerias. In the beautiful moon-
light chairs were placed in the water, on which were
seated the ladies and gentlemen, lightly clothed.
The family and the strangers passed several hours
in the river, smoking cigars and chatting on the
usual subjects of conversation, such as the extreme
drought, the abundance of rain in the neighbouring
districts, and the female luxury which prevails in
Caraccas and Havannah. The company were not
disturbed by the havas, or small crocodiles, which
are only three or four feet long, and are now ex-
tremely rare. Humboldt and his companions did
not meet with any of them in the Manzanares ;
but they saw plenty of dolphins, which some-
times ascended the river at night, and fright-
ened the bathers by spouting water from their
nostrils.

The port of Cumana is capable of receiving all
the navies of Europe ; and the whole of the Gulf of
Cariaco, which is forty-two miles long and from seven

EARTHQUAKES.

to nine miles broad, alfords excellent anchorage.
The hurricanes of the West Indies are never expe-
rienced on these coasts, where the sea is constantly
smooth, or only slightly agitated by an easterly wind.
The sky is often bright along the shores, while stormy
clouds are seen to gather among the mountains.
Thus, as at the foot of the Andes, on the western
side of the continent, the extremes of clear weather
and fogs, of drought and heavy rain, of absolute
nakedness and perpetual verdure, present them-
selves on the coasts of New Andalusia.

The same analogy exists as to earthquakes, which
are frequent and violent at Cumana. It is a gene-
rally-received opinion that the Gulf of Cariaco owed
its existence to a rent of the continent, the remem-
brance of which was fresh in the minds of the na-
tives at the time of Columbus’ third voyage. In
1530, the coasts of Faria and Cumana were agitated
by shocks ; and towards the end of the sixteenth
century, earthquakes and inundations very often
occurred. On the 21st October 1766, the city of
Cumana was entirely destroyed in the space of a
few minutes. The earth opened in several parts
of the province, and emitted sulphureous waters.
During the years 1766 and 1767^ the inhabitants
encamped in the streets, and they did not begin
to rebuild their houses until the earthquakes took
place only once in four weeks. These commotions
had been preceded by a drought of fifteen months,
and were accompanied and followed by torrents of
rain which swelled the rivers.

On the 14th December 1797^ more than four-
fifths of the city were again entirely destroyed.
Previous to this, the shocks had been horizontal

GENERAL REMARKS ON EARTHQUAKES. 73

oscillations; but the shaking now felt was that of
an elevation of the ground^ and was attended *hy a
subterraneous noise, like the explosion of a mine at
a great depth. The most violent concussion, however,
was preceded by a slight undulating motion, so that
the inhabitants had time to escape into the streets ;
and only a few perished, who had betaken them-
selves for safety to the churches. Half an hour be-
fore the catastrophe, a strong smell of sulphur was
experienced near the hill of the convent of St Fran-
cis ; and on the same spot an internal noise, which
seemed to pass from S.E. to N.W., was heard loud-
est. Flames appeared on the banks of the Man-
zanares and in the Gulf of Cariaco. In describing
this frightful convulsion of nature, our author en-
ters upon general views respecting earthquakes, of
which a very brief account may be here given.

The great earthquakes which interrupt the long
series of small shocks, do not appear to have any
stated times at Cumana, as they have occurred at
intervals of eighty, of a hundred, and sometimes
even of less than thirty years ; whereas, on the coasts
of Peru, — at Lima, for example, — there is, without
doubt, a certain degree of regularity in the periodi-
cal devastations thereby occasioned.

It has long been believed at Cumana, Acapulco,
and Lima, that there exists a perceptible relation
between earthquakes and the state of the atmosphere
which precedes these phenomena. On the coasts of
New Andalusia the people become uneasy when, in
excessively hot weather and after long drought, the
breeze suddenly ceases, and the sky, clear at the
zenith, presents the appearance of a reddish vapour
near the horizon. But these prognostics are very

EARTHQUAKES.

uncertain, and the dreaded evil has arrived in all
kinds of weather.

Under the tropics the regularity of the horary
variations of the barometer is not disturbed on the
days when violent shocks occur. In like manner,
in the temperate zone the aurora borealis does not
always modify the variations of the needle, or the
intensity of the magnetic forces.

When the earth is opened and agitated, gaseous
emanations occasionally escape in places consider-
ably remote from imextinguished volcanoes. At
Cumana, flames and sulphureous vapours spring
from the arid soil, while in other parts of the same
province it throws out water and petroleum. At
Riobamba, a muddy inflammable mass called moya
issues from crevices which close again, and forms
elevated heaps. Flames and smoke were also seen
to proceed from the rocks of Alvidras, near Lisbon,
during the earthquake of 1755, by which that city
was ravaged. But in the greater number of earth-
quakes it is probable that no elastic fluids escape
from the ground, and when gases are evolved, they
more frequently accompany or follow than precede
the shocks.

The subterranean noise which so frequently at-
tends earthquakes, is generally not proportionate to
the strength of the shocks. At Cumana it always
precedes them, while at Quito, and for some time
past at Caraccas and in the West India Islands, a
noise like the discharge of a battery was heard long
after the agitation had ceased. The rolling of thun-
der in the bowels of the earth, which continues for
months, without being accompanied by the least
shaking, is a very remarkable phenomenon.

EARTHQUAKES.

In all countries subject to earthquakes the point
at which the effects are greatest is considered as the
source or focus of the shocks. We forget that the
rapidity with which the undulations are propagated
to great distances, even across the basin of the
ocean, proves the centre of action to be very remote
from the earth’s surface. Hence it is clear that earth-
quakes are not restricted to certain species of rocks,
as some naturalists assert, but pervade all ; although
sometimes, in the same rock, the upper strata seem
to form an insuperable obstacle to the propagation
of the motion. It is curious also, that in a district
of small extent, certain formations interrupt the
shocks. Thus, at Cumana, before the catastrophe
of 1797^ the earthquakes were felt only along the
southern or calcareous coast of the Gulf of Caria-
co, as far as the town of that name, while in the
peninsula of Araya, and at the village of Maniqua-
rez, the ground was not agitated. At present, how-
ever, the peninsula is as liable to earthquakes as
the district around Cumana.

In New Andalusia, as in Chili and Peru, the
shocks follow the line of the shore, and extend but
little into the interior, — a circumstance which in-
dicates an intimate connexion between the causes
that produce earthquakes and volcanic eruptions.
If the land along the coasts is most agitated because
it is generally lowest, why should not the shocks
be equally strong in the savannahs, which are only
a few yards above the level of the sea ?

The earthquakes of Cumana are connected with
those of the West Indies, and are even suspected to
have some relation to the volcanic phenomena of
the Andes. On the 4th November 1797^ the

EARTHQUAKES.

province of Quito underwent so violent a com-
motion that 40,000 persons were destroyed ; and at
the same period shocks were experienced in the
Eastern Antilles, followed by an eruption of the
volcano of Guadaloupe, in the end of September
1798. On the 14th December the great concussion
took place at Cumana.

It has long been remarked that earthquakes ex-
tend their elfects to much greater distances than
volcanoes ; and it is probable, as has just been men-
tioned, that the causes which produce the former
have an intimate connexion with the latter. When
seated within the verge of a burning crater, one feels
the motion of the ground several seconds before each
partial eruption. The phenomena of earthquakes
seem strongly to indicate the action of elastic fluids
endeavouring to force their way into the atmo-
sphere. On the shores of the South Sea the concus-
sion is almost instantaneously communicated from
Chili to the Gulf of Guayaquil, over a space of 2070
miles. The shocks also appear to be so much the
stronger the more distant the country is from active
volcanoes; and a province is more agitated, the
smaller the number of funnels by which the sub-
terranean cavities communicate with the open air.

LUNAR HALOES.

CHAPTER VI.

Residence at Cumana.

Lunar Halo— African Slaves — Excursion to the Peninsula of Araya

Geological Constitution of the Country — Salt-works of Araya

Indians and Mulattoes — Pearl-fishery — Maniquarez — Mexi-
can Deer — Spring of Naphtha.

The occupations of our travellers were much dis-
turbed during the first weeks of their abode at Cu-
mana by the intrusion of persons desirous of exa-
mining their astronomical and other instruments.
They however determined the latitude of the great
square to be 10° 27' 52", and its longitude 66° 30' 2".

On the 17th of August, a halo of the moon attract-
ed the attention of the inhabitants, who viewed it
as the presage of a violent earthquake. Coloured
circles of this kind, Humboldt remarks, are much
rarer in the northern than in the southern countries
of Europe. They are seen more especially when
the sky is clear and the weather settled. In the
torrid zone they appear almost -every night, and
often in the space of a few minutes disappear se-
veral times. Between the latitude of 15° N. and
the equator he has seen small haloes aroimd the
planet Venus, but never observed any in connexion
with the fixed stars. While the halo was seen
at Cumana, the hygrometer indicated great humi-
dity, although the atmosphere was perfectly trans-

AFRICAN SLAA^ES.

parent. It consisted of two circles ; a larger, of a
whitish colour, and 44° in diameter, and a smaller,
displaying all the tints of the rainbow, and 1° 43'
in diameter. The intermediate space was of the
deepest azure.

Part of the great square is surrounded with ar-
cades, over which is a long wooden gallery, where
slaves imported from the coast of Africa are sold.
These were young men from fifteen to twenty
years of age. Every morning cocoa-nut oil was
given them, with which they rubbed their skin, to
render it glossy. The persons who came to pur-
chase them examined their teeth, as we do those of
horses, to judge of their age and health. Yet the
Spanish laws, according to our author, have never
favoured the trade in African slaves, the number of
whom in 1800 did not exceed 6000 in the two pro-
vinces of Cumana and Barcelona, while the whole
population was estimated at 110,000.

The first excursion which our travellers made
was to the peninsula of Araya. They embarked on
the Manzanares, near the Indian suburb, about two
in the morning of the 19th August. The night
was delightfully cool. Swarms of shining insects
{Elater noctilucus) sparkled in the air along the
banks of the river. As the boat descended the
stream they observed a company of negroes dancing
to the music of the guitar by the light of bonfires,—
a practice which they prefer to mere relaxation or
sleep, on their days of rest.

The bark in which they passed the Gulf of Cari-
aco was commodious, and large skins of the jaguar
were spread for their repose during the night. The
cold, however, prevented them from sleeping, al-

EXCURSION TO ARAYA.

though, as they were surprised to find, the thermo-
meter was as high as 71 ‘2°. The circumstance that
in a warm country a degree of cold which would be
productive of no inconvenience to the inhabitant
of a temperate climate, excites a disagreeable feeL
ing, is worthy of the attention of physiologists.
When Bouguer reached the summit of Pelee, in
the island of Martinico, he trembled with cold, al-
though the heat was above 70 7°; and in heavy
showers at Cumana, when the thermometer indi-
cates the same temperature, the inhabitants make
bitter complaints.

About eight in the morning they landed at the
point of Araya, near the new salt-works, which are
situated in a plain destitute of vegetation. From
this spot are seen the islet of Cubagua, the lofty
hills of Margaretta, the ruins of the castle of St
Jago, the Cerro de la Vela, and the limestone ridge
of the Bergantin, bounding the horizon toward the
south. Here salt is procured by digging brine-pits
in the clayey soil, which is impregnated with mu-
riate of soda. In 1799 and 1800, the consumption
of this article in the provinces of Cumana and Bar-
celona amounted to 9000 or 10,000 fanegas, each
16 arrobas, or 405 f lbs. avoirdupois. Of this quan-
tity the salt-works of Araya yield only about a
third part ; the rest being obtained from sea- water
in the Morro of Barcelona, at Pozuelos, at Piritu,
and in the Golfo Triste.

In order to understand the geological relations of
this saliferous clay, it is necessary to follow our au-
thor in his exposition of the nature of the neigh-
bouring country. Three great parallel chains of
mountains extend from east to west. The two most

PENINSULA OF ARAYA.

northerly, which are primitive, constitute the cor-
dilleras of the island of Margaretta, as well as of
Araya. The most southerly, the cordillera of Ber-
gantin and Cocollar, is secondary, although more
elevated than the others. The two former have
been separated by the sea, and the islets of Coche
and Cubagua are supposed to be remnants of the
submersed land. The Gulf of Cariaco divides the
chains of Araya and Cocollar, which were connect-
ed, to the east of the town of Cariaco, between the
lakes of Campoma and Putaquao, by a kind of dike.
This barrier, which had the name of Cerro de Mea-
pire, prevented, in remote times, the waters of the
Gulf of Cariaco from uniting with those of the Gulf
of Paria.

The western slope of the peninsula of Araya, and
the plains on which rises the castle of St Antony,
are covered with recent deposites of sandstone, clay,
and gypsum. Near Manifuarez, a conglomerate with
calcareous cement rests on the mica-slate ; while on
the opposite side, near Punta Delgada, it is superim-
posed on a compact bluish-gray limestone, contain-
ing a few organic remains, traversed by small veins
of calcareous spar, and analogous to that of the Alps.

The saliferous clay is generally of a smoke-gray
colour, earthy and friable, but encloses masses of
a dark-brown tint and more solid texture. Sele-
nite and fibrous gypsum are disseminated in it.
Scarcely any shells are to be seen, although the ad-
jacent rocks contain abundance of them. The mu-
riate of soda is not discoverable by the naked eye ;
but when a mass is sprinkled with rain-water and
exposed to the sun, it appears in large crystals. In
the marsh to the east of the castle of St Jago, which

SALT-WORKS OF ARAYA.

receives only rain- water, crystallized and very pure
muriate of soda forms, after great droughts, in masses
of large size. The new salt-works of Araya have five
very extensive reservoirs, with a depth of eight inches,
and are supplied partly with sea- water and partly
with rain. The evaporation is so rapid, that salt is
collected in eighteen or twenty days after they are
filled; and it is freer from earthy muriates and sul-
phates than that of Europe, although manufactured
with less care.

After examining these works, they departed at
the decline of day, and proceeded toward an Indian
cabin some miles distant. Night overtook them
in a narrow path between a range of perpendicular
rocks and the sea. Arriving at the foot of the old
castle of Araya, which stands on a hare and arid
mountain, and is crowned with agave, columnar cac-
tus, and prickly mimosas, they were desirous of stop-
ping to admire the majestic spectacle, and observe the
setting of the planet Venus ; but their guide, who
was parched with thirst, earnestly urged them to re-
turn, and hoped to work on their fears by continu-
ally warning them of jaguars and rattlesnakes.
They at length yielded to his solicitations ; but, after
proceeding three-quarters of an hour along a shore
covered by the tide, they were joined by the negro
that carried their provisions, who led them through
a wood of nopals to the hut of an Indian, where they
were received with cordial hospitality. The several
classes of natives in this district live by catching fish,
part of which they carry to Cumana. The wealth
of the inhabitants consists chiefly of goats, which are
of a very large size, and brownish-yellow colour.
They are marked like the mules, and roam at large.

PEARL-FISHERIES.

Among the mulattoes^ whose hovels surrounded
the salt-lake near which they had passed the night,
they found an indigent Spanish cobbler, who received
them with an air of gravity and importance. After
amusing them with a display of his knowledge, he
drew from a leathern hag a few very small pearls,
which he forced them to accept, enjoining them to
note on their tablets, that a poor shoemaker of
Araya, but a white man, and of noble Castilian de-
scent, was enabled to give them what, on the other
side of the sea, would be sought for as a thing of
great value.”

The pearl-shell {Avicula margaritifera) is abun-
dant on the shoals which extend from Cape Paria
to the Cape of Vela. Margarita, Cuhagua, Coche,
Punta Araya, and the mouth of the Rio la Hacha,
were as celebrated in the sixteenth century for them,
as the Persian Gulf was among the ancients. At
the beginning of the conquest, the island of Coche
alone furnished 1500 marks (1029 Troy pounds)
monthly. The portion which the king’s officers
drew from the produce of the pearls amounted to
iJ3406, 5s. ; and it would appear, that up to 1 530,
the value of those sent to Europe amounted, at a
yearly average, to more than £130,000. Towards
the end of the sixteenth century, this fishery dimi-
nished rapidly ; and, according to Laet, had been
long given up in 1683. The artificial imitations,
and the great diminution of the shells, rendered it
less lucrative. At present, the Gulf of Panama and
the mouth of the Rio de la Hacha are the only parts
of South America in which this branch of industry
is continued.

On the morning of the 20th, a young Indian con-

GEOLOGICAL PHENOMENA.

ducted the travellers over Barigon and Caney, to
the village of Maniquarez. The thermometer kept
as high as 78 5°, and before their guide had travel-
led a league^, he frequently sat down to rest himself,
and expressed a desire to repose under the shade of a
tamarind-tree until night should approach. Hum-
boldt explains the circumstance, that the natives
complain more of lassitude under an intense heat
than Europeans not inured to it, by a reference to
their listless disposition, and their not being excited
by the same stimulus.

In crossing the arid hills of Cape Cirial, they per-
ceived a strong smell of petroleum, the wind blow-
ing from the side where the springs of that sub-
stance occur. Near the village of Maniquarez, they
found the mica-slate cropping out from below the
secondary rocks. It was of a silvery white, con-
tained garnets, and was traversed by small layers
of quartz. From a detached block of this last, found
on the shore, they separated a fragment of cyanite,
the only specimen of that mineral seen by them in
South America.

A rude manufacture of pottery is carried on at
that hamlet by the Indian women. The clay is
produced by the decomposition of mica-slate, and is
of a reddish colour. The natives, being unacquaint-
ed with the use of ovens, place twigs around the
vessels, and bake them in the open air.

At the same place they met with some Creoles who
had been hunting small deer in the uninhabited islet
of Cubagua, where they are very abundant. These
creatures are of a brownish-red hue, spotted with
white, and of the latter colour beneath. They belong
to the species named by naturalists Cervm Mexicanus.

EYE-STONES.

In the estimation of the natives, the most curious
production of the coast of Araya is what they call
the eye-stone. They consider it as both a stone and
an animal, and assert, that when it is found in the
sand it is motionless ; whereas on a polished surface,
as an earthen plate, it moves when stimulated by
lemon-juice. When introduced into the eye, it ex-
pels every other substance that may have accidental-
ly insinuated itself. The people offered these stones
to the travellers by hundreds, and wished to put
sand into their eyes, that they might try the power
of this wondrous remedy; which, however, was no-
thing else than the operculum of a small shell-fish.

Near Cape de la Brea, at the distance of eighty
feet from the shore, is a small stream of naphtha,
the produce of which covers the sea to a great extent.
It is a singular circumstance that this spring issues
from mica-slate, all others that are known belong-
ing to secondary deposites.

After examining the neighbourhood of Mani-
quarez, the adventurers embarked at night in a
small fishing-boat, so leaky that a person was con-
stantly employed in baling out the water with a
calabash, and arrived in safety at Cumana.

EXCURSION TO SAN FERNANDO.

CHAPTER VII.

Missions of the Chaymas.

Excursion to the Missions of the Chayma Indians — Remarks on
Cultivation — The Impossible — Aspect of the Vegetation — San
Fernando — Account of a Man who suckled a Child — Cumanacoa
— Cultivation of Tobacco — Igneous Exhalations — Jaguars —
Mountain of Cocollar — Turimiquiri — Missions of San Antonio
and Guanaguana.

On the 4th of September, at an early hour, our tra-
vellers commenced an excursion to the missionary
stations of the Chayma Indians, and to the lofty
mountains which traverse New Andalusia. The
morning was deliciously cool ; and from the summit
of the hill of San Francisco they enjoyed in the short
twilight an extensive view of the sea, the adjacent
plain, and the distant peaks. After walking two
hours they arrived at the foot of the chain, where
they found dilferent rocks, together with a new
and more luxuriant vegetation. They observed that
the latter was more brilliant wherever the limestone
was covered by a quartzy sandstone, — a circum-
stance which probably depends not so much on the
nature of the soil as on its greater humidity ; the
thin layers of slate-clay which the latter contains pre-
venting the water from filtering into the crevices of
the former. In those moist places they always dis-
covered appearances of cultivation, huts inhabited by

STATE OP CULTIVATION.

mestizoes, and placed in the centre of small en-
closures, containing papaws, plantains, sugar-canes,
and maize. In Europe, the wheat, barley, and other
kinds of grain, cover vast spaces of ground, and, in
general, wherever the inhabitants live upon corn, the
cultivated lands are not separated from each other
by the intervention of large wastes ; hut in the torrid
zone, where the fertility of the soil is proportionate to
the heat and humidity of the air, and where man has
appropriated plants that yield earlier and more abun-
dant crops, an immense population finds ample sub-
sistence on a narrow space. The scattered disposi-
tion of the huts in the midst of the forest indicates
to the traveller the fecundity of nature.

In so mild and uniform a climate, the only urgent
want of man is that of food ; and in the midst of
abundance, his intellectual faculties receive less im-
provement than in colder regions, where his necessities
are numerous and diversified. While in Europe, we
judge of the inhabitants of a country by the extent
of laboured ground ; in the warmest parts of South
America, populous provinces seem to the traveller
almost deserted, because a very small extent of soil
is sufficient for the maintenance of a family. The in-
sulated state in which the natives thus live, prevents
any rapid progress of civilisation, although it deve-
lops the sentiments of independence and liberty.

As the travellers penetrated into the forest, the
barometer indicated the progressive elevation of the
land. About three in the afternoon they halted on
a small flat, where a few houses had been erected
near a spring, the water of which they found deli-
cious. Its temperature was 72‘5°, while that of the
air was 83'7°. From the top of a sandstone-hill

THE IMPOSSIBLE.

in the vicinityj they had a splendid view of the sea
and part of the coast, while in the intervening space,
the tops of the trees, intermixed with flowery lianas,
formed a vast carpet of deep verdure. As they ad-
vanced toward the south-west, the soil became dry
and loose. They ascended a group of rather high
mountains, destitute of vegetation, and having steep
declivities. This ridge is named the Impossible, it
being imagined that, in case of invasion, it might
afford a safe retreat to the inhabitants of Cumana.
The prospect was finer and more extensive than
from the fountain above mentioned.

They arrived on the summit only a little before
dusk. The setting of the sun was accompanied by a
very rapid diminution of temperature, the thermo-
meter suddenly falling from 77’4° to 70'3°, although
the air was calm. They passed the night in a
house at which there was a military post of eight
men, commanded by a Spanish sergeant. When,
after the capture of Trinidad by the English in 1797^
Cumana was threatened, many of the people fled
to Cumanacoa, leaving the more valuable of their
property in sheds constructed on this ridge. The so-
litude of the place reminded Humboldt of the nights
which he had passed on the top of St Gothard. Seve-
ral parts of the surrounding forests were burning, and
the reddish flames arising amidst clouds of smoke,
presented a most impressive spectacle. The shepherds
set fire to the woods for the purpose of improving
the pasturage, though conflagrations are often caused
by the negligence of the wandering Indians. The
number of old trees on the road from Cumana to Cu-
nianacoa has been greatly reduced by these accidents;
and in several parts of the province the dryness has

DESCENT OF THE IMPOSSIBLE.

increased, owing both to the diminution of the fo-
rests, and the frequency of earthquakes which pro-
duce crevices in the soil.

Leaving the Impossible on the 5th before sunrise,
they descended by a very narrow path bordering on
precipices. The summit of the ridge was of quartzy
sandstone, beneath which the Alpine limestone re-
appeared. The strata being generally inclined to
the south, numerous springs gush out on that side,
and in the rainy season form torrents which fall
in cascades, shaded by the hura, the cuspa, and the
trumpet-tree. The cuspa, which is common in the
neighbourhood of Cumana, had long been used for
carpenter- work, but has of late attracted notice as a
powerful tonic or febrifuge.

Emerging from the ravine which opens at the foot
of the mountain, they entered a dense forest, tra-
versed by numerous small rivers, which were easily
forded. They observed that the leaves of the cecro-
pia were more or less silvery according as the soil
was dry or marshy, and specimens occurred in which
they were entirely green on both sides. The roots
of these shrubs were concealed beneath tufts of dor-
stenia, a plant which thrives only in shady and
moist places. In the midst of the forest they found
papaws and orange-trees bearing excellent fruit,
which they conjectured to be the remains of some
Indian plantations, as in these countries they are
no more indigenous than the banana, the maize,
the manioc, and the many other useful plants whose
native coimtry is imknown, although they have ac-
companied man in his migrations from the most re-
mote periods.

“ When a traveller newly arrived from Europe,”

VEGETATION OF NEW ANDALUSIA.

says Humboldtj “ penetrates for the first time into
the forests of South America^ nature presents her-
self to his view in an unexpected aspect; the objects
by which he is surrounded bear but a faint resem-
blance to the pictures drawn by celebrated writers
on the banks of the Mississippi^ in Florida, and in
other temperate regions of the New World. He
perceives at every step, that he is not upon the verge,
but in the centre of the torrid zone, — not in one of
the West India islands, but upon a vast continent,
where the mountains, the rivers, the mass of vege-
tation, and every thing else, are gigantic. If he be
sensible to the beauties of rural scenery, he finds it
difficult to account to himself for the diversified
feelings which he experiences : he is unable to de-
termine what most excites his admiration ; whether
the solemn silence of the wilderness, or the indivi-
dual beauty and contrast of the forms, or the vigour
and freshness of vegetable life that characterize the
climate of the tropics. It might be said that the
earth, overloaded with plants, does not leave them
room enough for growth. The trunks of the trees
are every where covered with a thick carpet of ver-
dure ; and were the orchideae and the plants of the
genera Piper and Pothos, which grow upon a single
courbaril or American fig-tree, transferred to the
ground, they would cover a large space. By this
singular denseness of vegetation, the forests, like the
rocks and mountains, enlarge the domain of organic
nature. The same lianas, which creep along the
ground, rise to the tops of the trees, and pass from
the one to the other at a height of more than a
hundred feet. In consequence of this intermixture
of parasitic plants, the botanist is often led to con-

FOREST BIRDS SAN FERNANDO.

found the flowers, fruits, and foliage, which belong
to different species.”

The philosophers walked for some hours under the
shade of these arches, which scarcely admitted an
occasional glimpse of the clear blue sky, and for the
first time admired the pendulous nests of the orioles,
which mingled their warblings with the cries of the
parrots and macaws. The latter fly only in pairs,
while the former are seen in flocks of several hun-
dreds. At the distance of about a league from the
village of San Fernando, they issued from the woods,
and entered an open country, covered with aquatic
plants from eight to ten feet high ; there being no
meadows or pastures in the lower parts of the torrid
zone as in Europe. The road was bordered with a
kind of bamboo rising more than forty feet. These
plants, according to Humboldt, are less common in
America than is usually supposed, although they
form dense woods in New Grenada and Quito, and
occur abundantly on the western slope of the Andes.

They now entered San Fernando, which is situated
in a narrow plain, and bounded by limestone rocks.
This was the first missionary station they saw in
America. The houses of the Chayma Indians were
built of clay, strengthened by lianas, and the streets
were straight, and intersected each other at right
angles. The great square in the centre of the village
contains the church, the house of the missionary,
and another, destined for the accommodation of tra-
vellers, which bears the pompous name of the king’s
house (Casa del Rey). These royal residences occur
in all the Spanish settlements, and are of the great-
est benefit in countries where there are no inns.

They had been recommended to the friars, who

FRANCISCO LOZANO.

superintend the missions of the Chaymas, by their
syndic at Cumana, and the superior^ a corpulent
and jolly old capuchin^ received them with kind-
ness. This respectable personage, seated the greater
part of the day in an arm-chair, complained bitter-
ly of the indolence of his countrymen. He consi-
dered the pursuits of the travellers as useless, smiled
at the sight of their instruments and dried plants,
and maintained that of all the enjoyments of life,
without excepting sleep, none could be compared
with the pleasure of eating good beef.

This mission was founded about the end of the
seventeenth century, near the junction of the Man-
zanares and Lucasperez ; but, in consequence of a
fire, was removed to its present situation. The num-
ber of families now amounted to a hundred, and, as
the head of the establishment observed, the custom
of marrying at a very early age contributes greatly
to the rapid increase of population.

In the village of Arenas, which is inhabited by
Indians of the same race as those of San Fernando,
there lived a labourer, Francisco Lozano, who had
suckled a child. Its mother happening to be sick,
he took it, and in order to quiet it, pressed it to his
breast, when the stimulus imparted by the sucking
of the child caused a flow of milk. The travel-
lers saw the certiflcate drawn up on the spot to at-
test this remarkable fact, of which several eyewit-
nesses were still living. The man was not at Are-
nas during their stay at the mission, but afterwards
visited them at Cumana, accompanied by his son,
when M. Bonpland examined his breasts, and found
them wrinkled, like those of women who have nursed.
He was not an Indian, but a white descended from

CUMANACOA.

European parents. Alexander Benedictus relates a
similar case of an inhabitant of Syria, and other au-
thors have given examples of the same nature.

Returning towards Cumana, they entered the
small town of Cumanacoa, situated in a naked and
almost circular plain, surrounded by lofty moim-
tains, and containing about two thousand three
hundred inhabitants. The houses were low and
slight, and with very few exceptions built of wood.
The travellers were surprised to find the column of
mercury in the barometer scarcely 7*3 lines shorter
than on the coast. The hollow in which the town
is erected is not more than 665 feet above the
level of the sea, and only seven leagues from. Cu-
mana ; but the climate is much colder than in the
latter place, where it scarcely ever rains ; whereas
at Cumanacoa there are seven months of severe
weather. It was during the winter season that our
travellers visited the missions. A dense fog covered
the sky every night ; the thermometer varied from
64-8° to 68° ; and Deluc’s hygrometer indicated 85°.
At ten in the morning the thermometer did not rise
above 69-8°, but from noon to three o'clock attained
the height of from 78’8° to 80‘6°. About two, large
black clouds regularly formed, and poured down
torrents of rain, accompanied by thunder. At five
the rain ceased, and the sun reappeared; but at eight
or nine the fog again commenced. In consequence of
the humidity, the vegetation, although not very diver-
sified, is remarkable for its freshness. The soil is high-
ly fertile; but the most valuable production of the
district is tobacco, the cultivation of which in the pro-
vince of Cumana is nearly confined to this valley.

Next to the tobacco of Cuba and the Rio Negro,

TOBACCO MOUNTAINS.

that grown here is the most aromatic. The seed is
sown in the beginning of September^, and the coty-
ledons appear on the eighth day. The young plants
are then covered with large leaves to protect them
from the sun. A month or two after^ they are
transferred to a rich and well-prepared soil, and
disposed in rows, three or four feet distant from each
other. The whole is carefully weeded, and the prin-
cipal stalk is several times topped, until the leaves
are mature, when they are gathered. They are then
suspended by threads of the*Affave Americana, and
their ribs taken out ; after which they are twisted.
The cultivation of tobacco was a royal monopoly,
and employed about 1500 persons. Indigo is also
raised in the valley of Cumanacoa.

This singular plain appeared to be the bed of an
ancient lake. The surrounding mountains are all
precipitous, and the soil contains pebbles and bivalve
shells. One of the gaps in the range, they were in-
formed, was inhabited by jaguars, which passed the
day in caves, and roamed about the plantations at
night. The preceding year, one of them had de-
voured a horse belonging to a farm in the neigh-
bourhood. The groans of the dying animal awoke
the slaves, who went out armed with lances and
large knives, with which they despatched the tiger
after a vigorous resistance.

From two caverns in this ravine there at times
issue flames, which illumine the adjacent moun-
tains, and are seen to a great distance at night.
The phenomenon was accompanied by a long-con-
tinued subterraneous noise at the time of the last
earthquake. A first attempt to penetrate into this
pass was rendered unsuccessful, by the strength
of the vegetation and the intertwining of lianas

94 JAGUARS SEARCH FOR A GOLD MINE.

and thorny plants ; but the inhabitants becoming
interested in the researches of the travellers^ and
being desirous to know what the German miner
thought of the gold ore which they imagined to
exist in it, cleared a path through the woods. On
entering the ravine they found traces of jaguars;
and the Indians returned for some small dogs,
upon which they knew these animals would spring
in preference to attacking a man. The rocks that
bound it are perpendicular, and what geologists
term Alpine limestone. The excursion was rendered
hazardous by the nature of the ground ; but they at
length reached the pretended gold mine, which was
merely an excavation in a bed of black marl contain-
ing iron pyrites, a substance which the guides in-
sisted was no other than the precious metal.

They continued to penetrate into the crevice, and
after undergoing great fatigue, reached a wall of
rock, which, rising perpendicularly to the height of
5116 feet, presented two inaccessible caverns inha-
bited by nocturnal birds. Halting at the foot of one
of the caves from which flames had been seen to
issue, they listened to the remarks of the natives
respecting the probability of an increase in the fre-
quency of the agitations to which New Andalusia had
so often been subjected. The cause of the luminous
exhalations, however, they were unable to ascertain;

On the 12th they continued their journey to the
convent of Caripe, the principal station of the Chay-
ma missions, choosing, instead of the direct road,
the line of the mountains Cocollar and Turimiquiri.
At the Hato de Cocollar, a solitary farm situated on
a small elevated plain, they rested for some time,
and had the good fortune to enjoy at once a delight-
ful climate and the hospitality of the proprietor.

VIEW FROM THE COCOLLAR.

From this elevated point, as far as the eye could
reach, they saw only naked savannahs, although in
the neighbouring valleys they found tufts of scattered
trees, and a profusion of beautiful flowers. The upper
part of the mountain was destitute of wood, though co-
vered with gramineous plants, — a circumstance which
Humboldt attributes more to the custom of burning
the forests than to the elevation of the ground, which
is not sufficient to prevent the growth of trees.

Their host, Don Mathias Yturburi, a native of Bis-
cay, had visited the New World with an expedition,
the object of which was to form establishments for pro-
curing timber for the Spanish navy. But these natives
of a colder climate were unable to support the fatigue
of so laborious an occupation, the heat, and the effect
of noxious vapours. Destructive fevers carried olf
most of the party, when this individual withdrew
from the coast, and settling on the Cocollar, became
the undisturbed possessor of five leagues of savannahs,
among which he enjoyed independence and health.

Nothing,” says Humboldt, can be compared
to the impression of the majestic tranquillity left on
the mind by the view of the firmament in this soli-
tary place. Following with the eye, at evening-
tide, those meadows which stretch along the horizon,
and the gently-undulated plain covered with plants,
we thought we saw in the distance, as in the deserts
of the Orinoco, the surface of the ocean supporting
the starry vault of heaven. The tree under which
we were seated, the luminous insects that vaulted
in the air, and the constellations which shone in the
south, seemed to tell us that we were far from our
native land. In the midst of this exotic nature,
when the bell of a cow or the lowing of a bull was
heard from the bottom of a valley, the remembrance

SIERRA DE LOS TAGERES.

of our country was suddenly awakened by the sounds.
They were like distant voices, that came from be-
yond the ocean, and by the magic of which we were
transported from the one hemisphere to the other.
Strange mobility of the human imagination, the
never- failing source of our enjoyments and griefs !”

In the cool of the morning, they commenced the
ascent of Turimiquiri, the summit of the Cocollar,
which with the Brigantine forms a mass of moun-
tains, formerly named by the natives the Sierra de
los Tageres. They travelled part of the way on
horses, which are left to roam at large in these
wilds, though some of them have been trained to the
saddle. Stopping at a spring which issued from a
bed of quartzy sandstone, they found its temperature
to be 69'8°. To the height of 4476 feet, this moun-
tain, like those in its vicinity, was covered with gra-
mineous plants. The pastures became less rich in
proportion to the elevation, and wherever the scatter-
ed rocks afforded a shade lichens and mosses occur-
red. The summit is 4521 feet above the level of the
sea. The view from it was extensive and highly pic-
turesque : chains of mountains, running from east
to west, enclosed longitudinal valleys, which were
intersected at right angles by numberless ravines.
The distant peninsula of Araya formed a dark streak
on a glittering sea, and the more distant rocks of
Cape Macanao rose amidst the waters like an im-
mense rampart.

On the 14th of September, they descended the
Cocollar in the direction of San Antonio, where
was also a mission. After passing over savannahs
strewed with blocks of limestone, succeeded by a
dense forest and two very steep ridges, they came
to a beautiful valley, about twenty miles in length.

GUANAGUANA AND SAN ANTONIO. 97

in which are situated the missions of San Antonio
and Guanaguana. Stopping at the former only to
open the barometer and take a few altitudes of the
suuj they forded the rivers Colorado and Guara-
piche, and proceeding along a level and narrow road
covered with thick mud, amid torrents of rain, reach-
ed in the evening the latter of these stations, where
they were cordially received by the missionary.
This village had existed only thirty years on the
spot which it then occupied, having been transferred
from a place more to the south. Humboldt re-
marks, that the facility with which the Indians re-
move their dwellings is astonishing, there being
several small towns in South America which have
thrice changed their situation in less than half a
century. These compulsory migrations are not un-
frequently caused by the caprice of an ecclesiastic ;
and as the houses are constructed of clay, reeds,
and palm-leaves, a hamlet shifts its position like a
camp.

The mission of San Antonio had a small church
with two towers, built of brick and ornamented
with Doric columns, the wonder of the country ; but
that of Guanaguana possessed as yet no place of wor-
ship, although a spacious house had been built for
the padre, the terraced roof of which was ornamented
with numerous chimneys like turrets, and which,
he informed the travellers, had been erected for no
other purpose than to remind him of his native
country. The Indians cultivate cotton. The ma-
chines by which they separate the wool from the seeds
are of very simple construction, consisting of wooden
cylinders of very small diameter, made to revolve
by a treadle. Maize is the article on which they

VALLEY OP CARIPE.

principally depend for food ; and when it happens
to be destroyed by a protracted drought, they be-
take themselves to the surrounding forests, where
they find subsistence in succulent plants, cabbage-
palms, fern-roots, and the produce of various trees.

Proceeding towards the valley of Caripe, the tra-
vellers passed a limestone ridge which separates it
from that of Guanaguana, — an undertaking which
they found rather difficult, the path being in several
parts only fourteen or fifteen inches broad, and the
slopes being covered with very slippery turf. When
they had reached the summit, an interesting spec-
tacle presented itself to their view, consisting of the
vast savannahs of Maturin and Rio Tigre, the Peak
of Turimiquiri, and a multitude of parallel hills
resembling the waves of a troubled ocean.

Descending the height by a winding path, they
entered a woody country, where the ground was
covered by moss and a species of Drosera. As they
approached the convent of Caripe, the forests grew
more dense, and the power of vegetation increased.
The calcareous strata became thinner, forming gra-
duated terraces, while the stone itself assumed a
white colour, with a smooth or imperfectly conchoi-
dal fracture. This rock Humboldt considers as ana-
logous to the J ura deposites. He found the level of
the valley of Caripe 1279 feet higher than that of
Guanaguana. Although the former is only sepa-
rated from the latter by a narrow ridge, it affords a
complete contrast to it, being deliciously cool and
salubrious, while the other is remarkable for its great
heat.

CONVENT OF CARIPE.

CHAPTER VIII.

Excursion continued, and Return to Cumana.

Convent of Caripe — Cave of Guacharo, inhabited by Nocturnal
Birds — Purgatory — Forest Scenery — Howling Monkeys — Vera
Cruz — Cariaco — Intermittent Fevers — Cocoa-trees — Passage
across the Gulf of Cariaco to Cumana.

Arriving at the hospital of the Arragonese Capu-
chins, which was backed by an enormous wall of rocks
of resplendent whiteness, covered with a luxuriant
vegetation, our travellers were hospitably received by
the monks. The superior was absent ; hut having
heard of their intention to visit the place, he had pro-
vided for them whatever could serve to render their
abode agreeable. The inner court, surrounded by
a portico, they found highly convenient for setting
up their instruments and making observations. In
the convent they found a numerous society, consist-
ing of old and infirm missionaries, who sought for
health in the salubrious air of the mountains of Ca-
ripe, and younger ones newly arrived from Spain.
Although the inmates of this establishment knew
that Humboldt was a Protestant, they manifest-
ed no mark of distrust, nor proposed any indiscreet
question, to diminish the value of the benevo-
lence which they exercised with so much liberality^
Even the light of science had in some degree ex-
tended to this obscure place ; for, in the library of

100

CLIMATjE of caripe.

the superior, they found among other books the
Traite d’Electricite by the Abbe Nollet, and one of
the monks had brought with him a Spanish transla-
tion of Chaptal’s Treatise on Chemistry.

The height of this monastery above the sea is
nearly the same as that of Caraccas and the in-
habited parts of the Blue Mountains of Jamaica.
The thermometer was between 60'8° and 63° at
midnight, between 66-2° and 68° in the morning,
and only 69’8° or 72‘5° about one o’clock. The
mean temperature, inferred from that of the month
of September, appears to be 65-3°. This degree
of heat is sufficient to develop the productions of
the torrid zone, although much inferior to that of
the plains of Cumana. Water exposed in vessels of
porous clay cools during the night as low as 55-4°.
The mild climate and rarefied air of this place have
been found highly favourable to the cultivation of
coffee, which was introduced into the province by
the prefect of the Capuchins, an active and enlight-
ened man. In the garden of the community were
many culinary vegetables, maize, the sugar-cane,
and five thousand coffee-trees.

The greatest curiosity in this beautiful and salu-
brious district is a cavern inhabited by nocturnal
birds, the fat of which is employed in the missions
for dressing food. It is named the Cave of Gua-
charo, and is situated in a valley three leagues dis-
tant from the convent.

On the 18th of September our travellers, accom-
panied by most of the monks and some of the In-
dians, set out for this aviary, following for an hour
and a half a narrow path, leading across a fine plain
covered with beautiful turf ; then, turning westward

CAVE OF GUACHARO.

101

along a small river which issues from the cave, they
proceeded, during three quarters of an hour, some-
times walking in the water, sometimes on a slippery
and miry soil between the torrent and a wall of
rocks, until they arrived at the foot of the lofty
mountain of Guacharo. Here the torrent ran in a
deep ravine, and they went on under a projecting
cliff which prevented them from seeing the sky,
until at the last turning they came suddenly
upon the immense opening of the recess, which is
eighty-five feet broad and seventy-seven feet high.
The entrance is toward the south, and is form-
ed in the vertical face of a rock, covered with
trees of gigantic height, intermixed with numerous
species of singular and beautiful plants, some of
which hang in festoons over the vault. This luxu-
riant vegetation is not confined to the exterior of
the cave, but appears even in the vestibule, where
the travellers were astonished to see heliconias nine-
teen feet in height, palms, and arborescent arums.
They had advanced about four hundred and sixty
feet before it became necessary to light their torches,
when they heard from afar the hoarse screams of
the birds.

The guacharo is the size of a domestic fowl, and has
somewhat the appearance of a vulture, with a mouth
like that of a goatsucker. It forms a distinct genus
in the order Passeres, differing from that just named
in having a stronger beak, furnished with two den-
ticulations, though in its manners it bears an affinity
to it as well as to the Alpine crow. Its plumage is
dark bluish-gray, minutely streaked and spotted with
deep-brown, the head, wings, and tail, being marked
with white spots bordered with black. The extent

102

NOCTURNAL BIRDS.

of the wings is three feet and a half. It lives on
fruits, but quits the cave only in the evening. The
shrill and piercing cries of these birds, assembled in
multitudes, are said to form a harsh and disagreeable
noise, somewhat resembling that of a rookery. The
nests, which the guides showed by means of torches
fastened to a long pole, were placed in funnel-
shaped holes in the roof. The noise increased as
they advanced, the animals being frightened by the
numerous lights.

About midsummer every year, the Indians armed
with poles enter the cave, and destroy the greater
part of the nests. Several thousands of.young birds
are thus killed, and the old ones hover around, ut-
tering frightful cries. Those which are secured in
this manner are opened on the spot, to obtain the
fat which exists abundantly in their abdomen, and
which is subsequently melted in clay vessels over
fires of brushwood. This substance is semifluid,
transparent, destitute of smell, and keeps above a
year without becoming rancid. At the convent of
Caripe it was used in the kitchen of the monks, and
our travellers never found that it commimicated
any disagreeable smell or taste to the food.

The guacharoes would have been long ago de-
stroyed, had not the superstitious dread of the In-
dians prevented them from penetrating far into the
cavern. It also appears, that birds of the same spe-
cies dwell in other inaccessible places in the neigh-
bourhood, and that the great cave is repeopled by
colonies from them. The hard and dry fruits which
are found in the crops and gizzards of the young
ones are considered as an excellent remedy against
intermittent fevers, and regularly sent to Cariaco

INTERIOR OF THE CAVE.

103

and other parts of the lower districts where such
diseases prevail.

The travellers followed the banks of the small river
which issues from the cavern as far as the mounds of
calcareous incrustations permitted them, and after-
wards descended into its bed. The cave preserved
the same direction, breadth, and height, as at its
entrance, to the distance of 1554 feet. The natives
having a belief that the souls of their ancestors in-
habit its deep recesses, the Indians who accompa-
nied our travellers could hardly be persuaded to
venture into it. Shooting at random in the dark,
they obtained two specimens of the guacharo. Hav-
ing proceeded to a certain distance, they came to a
mass of stalactite, beyond which the cave became
narrower, although it retained its original direction.
Here the rivulet had deposited a blackish mould re-
sembling that observed at Muggendorf in Franconia.
The seeds, which the birds carry to their young, spring
up wherever they are dropped into it ; and M. Hum-
boldt and his friend were astonished to find blanched
stalks that had attained a height of two feet.

As the missionaries were unable to persuade the
Indians to advance farther, the party returned. The
river, sparkling amid the foliage of the trees, seemed
like a distant picture, to which the mouth of the
cave formed a frame. Having sat down at the en-
trance to enjoy a little needful repose, they partook
of a repast which the missionaries had prepared,
and in due time returned to the convent.

The days which our travellers passed at this re-
ligious house glided hastily and pleasantly past.
From morning to night they traversed the forests
and mountains collecting plants ; and when the rains

104

DESCENT or THE BRIGANTINE.

prevented them from making distant excursions,
they visited the huts of the Indians ; returning to the
good monks only when the sound of the hell called
them to the solace of the refectory. Sometimes also
they followed them to the church, to witness the re-
ligious instruction given to the Indians ; which was
found a difficult task, owing to the imperfect know-
ledge of the Spanish language possessed by the latter.
The evenings were employed in taking notes, dry-
ing plants, and sketching those that appeared new.

The natural beauties of this interesting valley en-
gaged them so much, that they were long in per-
ceiving the embarrassment felt by their kind enter-
tainers, who had now but a very slender store of
wine and bread. At length, on the 22d Septem-
ber, they departed, followed by four mules carrying
their instruments and plants. The descent of the
rugged chain of the Brigantine and Cocollar, which
is about 4400 feet in height, is exceedingly difficult.
The missionaries have given the name of Purga-
tory to an extremely steep and slippery declivity at
the base of a sandstone rock, in passing which the
mules, drawing their hind legs under their bodies,
slide down at a venture. From this point they saw
toward the left the great peak of Guacharo, which
presented a very picturesque appearance ; and soon
after entered a dense forest, through which they
descended for seven hours in a kind of ravine, the
path being formed of steps from two to three feet
high, over which the mules leaped like wild goats.
The creoles have sufficient confidence in these ani-
mals to remain in their saddles during this dangerous
passage ; but our travellers preferred walking.

The forest was exceedingly dense, and consisted

VEGETATION AND ANIMALS.

105

of trees of stupendous size. The guides pointed out
some whose height exceeded 130 feet, while the dia-
meter of many of the curucays and hymendas was
more than three yards. Next to these, the plants
which most attracted their notice were the dra-
gon’s-blood {Croton sanguijluum), the purple juice
of which flowed along the whitish bark, various spe-
cies of palms, and arborescent ferns of large size.
The old trunks of some of the latter were covered
with a carbonaceous powder, having a metallic lus-
tre like graphite.

As they descended the mountain the tree-ferns
diminished, while the number of palms increased.
Large- winged \)vAXev?de% {nymphales) became more
common, and every thing showed that they were
approaching the coast. The weather was cloudy,
the heat oppressive, and the howling of the mon-
keys gave indication of a coming thunder-storm.
These creatures, the arguatoes, resemble a young
bear, and are about three feet long from the top of
the head to the root of the tail. The fur is tufty
and reddish-brown, the face blackish-blue, with
a bare and wrinkled skin, and the tail long and
prehensile.

While engaged in observing a troop of them
cross the road upon the horizontal branches of the
trees, the travellers met a company of naked Indians
proceeding towards the mountains of Caripe. The
men were armed with bows and arrows, and the
women, heavily laden, brought up the rear. They
marched in silence, with their eyes fixed on the
ground. Our philosophers, oppressed with the in-
creasing heat and faint with fatigue, endeavoured
to learn from them the distance of the missionary

106

VERA CRUZ AND CATUARO.

convent of Vera Cruz, where they intended to pass
the night; hut little information could he obtained
on account of their imperfect knowledge of the Spa-
nish language.

Continuing to descend amid scattered blocks, they
unexpectedly found themselves at the end of the fo-
rest, when they entered a savannah, the verdure of
which had been renewed by the winter rains. Here
they had a splendid view of the Sierra del Guacharo,
the northern declivity of which presented an almost
perpendicular wall, exceeding 3200 feet in height,
and scantily covered with vegetation. The ground
before them consisted of several level spaces, lying
above each other like vast steps. The mission of
Vera Cruz, which is situated in the middle of it,
they reached in the evening, and next day continued
their journey toward the Gulf of Cariaco.

Proceeding on their way, they entered another
forest, and reached the station of Catuaro, situated
in a very wild spot, where they lodged at the house
of the priest. Their host was a doctor of divinity, a
thin little man, of petulant vivacity, who talked con-
tinually of a lawsuit in which he was engaged with
the superior of his convent, and wished to know what
Humboldt thought of free-will and the souls of ani-
mals. At this place they met with the corregidor
of the district, an amiable person, who gave them
three Indians to assist in cutting a way through the
forest, the lianas and intertwining branches having
obstructed the narrow lanes. The little missionary,
however, insisted on accompanying them to Cariaco,
and contrived to render the road extremely tedious
by his observations on the necessity of the slave-
trade, the innate wickedness of blacks, and the be-

CARIACO — INTERMITTENT FEVER. 107

nefit which they derived from being reduced to
bondage by Christians.

The road which they followed through the forest
of Catuaro resembled that of the preceding day. The
clay, which filled the path and rendered it excessive-
ly slippery, was produced by layers of sandstone
and slate-clay which cross the calcareous strata. At
length, after a fatiguing march, they reached the
town of Cariaco, on the coast, where they found a
great part of the inhabitants confined to their beds
with intermittent fever. The low situation of the
place as well as of the surrounding district, the
great heat and moisture, and the stagnant marshes
generated during the rainy season, are supposed to
be the causes of this disease, which often assumes a
malignant character, and is accompanied with dy-
sentery. Men of colour, and especially creole ne-
groes, resist the influence of the climate much better
than any other race. It is generally observed, how-
ever, that the mortality is less than might be sup-
posed ; for although intermittent fevers, when they
attack the same individual several years in succes-
sion, alter and weaken the constitution, they do not
usually cause death. It is remarkable, that the na-
tives believe the air to have become more vitiated in
proportion as a larger extent of land has been cul-
tivated j but the miasmata from the marshes, and
the exhalations from the mangroves, avicennise, and
other astringent plants growing on the borders of the
sea, are probably the real causes of the unhealthiness
of the coasts.

In 1800 the town of Cariaco contained more than
6000 inhabitants, who were actively employed in
the cultivation of cotton, the produce of which ex-

108

GULF OF CARIACO.

ceeded 10,000 quintals (9057 fts. avoirdupois). The
capsules, after the separation of the wool, were care-
fully burnt, as they were thought to occasion noxious
exhalations when thrown into the river. Cacao and
sugar were also raised to a considerable extent.

As our travellers were not sufficiently inured to
the climate, they considered it prudent to leave
Cariaco as expeditiously as possible on account of
the fever. Embarking early in the morning, they
proceeded westward along the river of Carenicuar,
which flows through a deep marshy soil covered
with gardens and plantations of cotton. The Indian
women were washing their linen with the fruit of the
parapara {Sapindus saponarid). Contrary winds,
accompanied with heavy rain and thunder, render-
ed the voyage disagreeable ; more especially as the
canoe was narrow and overloaded with raw sugar,
plantains, cocoa-nuts, and passengers. Swarms of
flamingoes, egrets, and cormorants, were flying to-
ward the shore, while the alcatras, a large species
of pelican, less affected by the weather, continued
fishing in the bay. The general depth of the sea is
from 288 to 320 feet ; but at the eastern extremity
of the gulf it is only from nineteen to twenty-five
feet for an extent of seventeen miles, and there is
a sandbank, which at low water resembles a small
island. They crossed the part where the hot springs
rush from the bottom of the ocean ; but it being high
water the change of temperature was not very per-
ceptible. The contrary winds continuing, they
were forced to land at Pericautral, a small Wm on
the south side of the gulf. The coast, although co-
vered by a beautiful vegetation, was almost desti-
tute of human labour, and scarcely possessed seven

KETURN TO CUMANA.

109

hundred Inhabitants. The cocoa-tree is the prin-
cipal object of cultivation. This palm thrives best
in the neighbourhood of the sea, and like the sugar-
cane, the plantain, the mammee-apple, and the al-
ligator-pear, may be watered either with fresh or
salt water. In other parts of America it is generally
nourished around farm-houses ; but along the Gulf
of Cariaco it forms real plantations, and at Cumana
they talk of a hacienda de coco, as they do of a ha-
cienda de canna, or de cacao. In moist and fertile
ground it begins to bear abundantly the fourth
year ; but in dry soils it does not produce fruit un-
til the tenth. Its duration does not generally ex-
ceed ninety or a hundred years j at which period its
mean height is about eighty feet. Throughout this
coast a cocoa-tree supplies annually about a hundred
nuts, which yield eight fiascos of oil. The fiasco is
sold for about sixteenpence. A great quantity is
made at Cumana, and Humboldt frequently wit-
nessed the arrival there of canoes containing 3000
nuts. The oil, which is clear and destitute of smell,
is well adapted for burning.

After sunset they left the farm of Pericautral,
and at three in the morning reached the mouth of
the Manzanares, after passing a very indifferent
night in a narrow and deeply-laden canoe. Hav-
ing been for several weeks accustomed to mountain
scenery, gloomy forests, and rainy weather, they
were struck by the bareness of the soil, the clearness
of the sky, and the mass of reflected light by which
the neighbourhood of Cumana is characterized. At
sunrise they saw the zamuro vultures {Vultur
aura) perched on the cocoa-trees in large flocks.
These birds go to roost long before night, and do

SLEEP OF PLANTS.

not quit their place of repose until after the heat of
the solar rays is felt. The same idleness, as it were,
is indulged by the trees with pinnate leaves, such as
the mimosas and tamarinds, which close these organs
half an hour before the sun goes down, and unfold
them in the morning only after he has been some
time visible. In our climates the leguminous plants
open their leaves during the morning twilight.
Humboldt seems to think that the humidity depo-
sited upon the parenchyma by the refrigeration of
the foliage, which is the effect of the nocturnal ra-
diation, prevents the action of the first rays of the
sun upon them.

NATIVE RACES.

Ill

CHAPTER IX.

Indians of New Andalusia.

Physical Constitution and Manners of the Chaymas — Their Lan-
guages— American Races.

It is the custom of Humboldt, in his " Journey to
the Equinoctial Regions/’ to stand still after an ex-
cursion, reflect, and present to his readers the result
of his inquiries on any subject that has fixed his
attention. For example, on concluding the narra-
tive of his visit to the Chayma missions, he gives a
general account of the aborigines of New Andalu-
sia, of which an abridgment is here offered.

The north-eastern part of Equinoctial America,
Terra Firma, and the shores of the Orinoco, resem-
ble, in the multiplicity of the tribes by which they
are inhabited, the defiles of Caucasus, the mountains
of Hindookho, and the northern extremity of Asia,
beyond the Tungooses and the Tartars of the mouth
of the Lena. The barbarism which prevails in these
various regions is perhaps less owing to an original
absence of civilisation than to the effects of a long
debasement ; and if every thing connected with the
first population of a continent were known, we
should probably find that savages are merely tribes
banished from society and driven into the forests.
At the commencement of the conquest of America,
the natives were collected into large bodies only on

112

NU3IBER OF ABORIGINES.

the ridge of the Cordilleras and the coast opposite to
Asia, while the vast savannahs, and the great plains
covered by forests and intersected by rivers, present-
ed wandering tribes, separated by differences of lan-
guage and manners.

In New Andalusia, Cumana, and New Barcelona,
the aborigines still form fully one-half of the scanty
population. Their number may be about 60,000,
of which 24,000 inhabit the first of these provinces.
This amount appears large when we refer to the hunt-
ing tribes of North America, but seems the reverse
when we look to those districts of New Spain where
agriculture has been followed for more than eight
centuries. Thus, the intendancy of Oaxaca, which
forms part of the old Mexican empire, and which
is one-third smaller than the two provinces of Cu-
mana and Barcelona, contains more than 400,000
of the original race. The Indians of Cumana do
not all live assembled in the missions, some being
found dispersed in the neighbourhood of towns along
the coasts. The stations of the Arragonese Capu-
chins contain 15,000, almost all of the Chayma
tribe. The villages, however, are less crowded than
in the province of Barcelona, their indigenous popu-
lation being only between five and six hundred;
whereas, more to the west, in the establishments
of the Franciscans of Piritoo, there are towns of
2000 or 3000 inhabitants. Besides the 60,000 na-
tives of the provinces of Cumana and Barcelona,
there are some thousands of Guaraounoes who have
preserved their independence in the islands at the
mouth of the Orinoco. Excepting a few families,
there are no wild Indians in New Andalusia.

The term wild or savage, Humboldt says he uses

WILD AND CIVILIZED INDIANS.

113

with regret, because it implies a difference of culti-
vation which does not always exist between the
reduced or civilized Indian, living in the missions,
and the free or independent Indian. In the fo-
rests of South America there are tribes which dwell
in villages, rear plantains, cassava, and cotton,
and are scarcely more barbarous than those in the
religious establishments, who have been taught to
make the sign of the cross. It is an error to consi-
der all the free natives as wandering hunters ; for
agriculture existed on the continent long before
the arrival of the Europeans, and still exists be-
tween the Orinoco and the Amazons, in districts
to which they have never penetrated. The sys-
tem of the missions has produced an attachment
to landed property, a fixed residence, and a taste
for quiet life ; but the baptized Indian is often
as little a Christian as his heathen brother is an
idolater, — both discovering a marked indifference
for religious opinions, and a tendency to worship
nature.

There is no reason to believe, that in the Spanish
colonies the number of Indians has diminished since
the conquest. There are still more than six mil-
lions of the copper-coloured race in both Americas ;
and although tribes and languages have been de-
stroyed or blended in those colonies, the natives have
in fact continued to increase. In the temperate
zone the contact of Europeans with the indigenous
population becomes fatal to the latter ; but in South
America the result is different, and there they do
not dread the approach of the whites. In the form-
er case a vast extent of country is required by the
Indians, because they live by hunting ; but in the

114

PROGRESS OF THE MISSIONS.

latter a small piece of ground suffices to alford sub-
sistence for a family.

In these provinces the Europeans advance slowly;
and the religious orders have founded establish-
ments between the regions inhabited by them and
those possessed by the independent Indians. The
missions have no doubt encroached on the liberty
of the natives, but they have generally been fa-
vourable to the increase of the population. As the
preachers advance into the interior the planters in-
vade their territory ; the whites and the castes of
mixed breed settle among the Indians ; the missions
become Spanish villages ; and finally, the old inha-
bitants lose their original manners and language.;
In this way civilisation advances from the coasts to-^
wards the centre of the continent.

New Andalusia and Barcelona contain more than
fourteen tribes of Indians. Those of the former are
th? Chaymas, Guayquerias, Pariagotoes, Quaquas,
Aruacas, Caribs, and Guaraounoes ; and those of the
latter, the Cumanagatoes, Palenkas, Caribs, Piritoos,
Tomoozas, Topocuares, Chacopatas, and Guarivas.
The precise number of the Guaraounoes, who live in
huts elevated on trees at the mouth of the Ori-
noco, is not known. There are two thousand Guay-
querias in the suburbs of Cumana and the penin-
sula of Araya. Of the other tribes the Chaymas of
the mountains of Caripe, the Caribs of New Barce-
lona, and the Cumanagatoes of the missions of Pi-
ritoo, are the most numerous. The language of the
Guaraounoes, and that of the Caribs, Cumanagatoes,
and Chaymas, are the most general, and seem to
belong to the same stock.

Although the Indians attached to the missions

CHARACTER OF THE INDIANS.

115

are all agriculturists, cultivate the same plants, build
their huts in the same manner, and lead the same
kind of life, yet the shades by which the several
tribes are distinguished remain unchanged. There
are few of these villages in which the families
do not belong to dilferent tribes, and speak dif-
ferent languages. The missionaries have, indeed,
prohibited the use of various practices and cere-
monies, and have destroyed many superstitions;
but they have not been able to alter the essential
character common to all the American races, from
Hudson’s Bay to the Straits of Magellan. The in-
structed Indian, more secure of subsistence than
the untamed native, and less exposed to the fury of
hostile neighbours or of the elements, leads a more
monotonous life, possesses the mildness of character
which arises from the love of repose, and assumes a
sedate and mysterious air; but the sphere of his
ideas has received little enlargement, and the ex-
pression of melancholy which his countenance ex-
hibits is merely the result of indolence.

The Chaymas, of whom more than fifteen thou-
sand inhabit the Spanish villages, and who border on
the Cumanagatoes toward the west, the Guaraounoes
toward the east, and the Caribs toward the south,
occupy part of the elevated mountains of the Cocollar
and Guacharo, as also the banks of the Guarapiche,
Rio Colorado, Areo, and the Cano of Caripe. The
first attempt to reduce them to subjection was made
in the middle of the seventeenth century by Father
Francisco of Pamplona, a person of great zeal and
intrepidity. The missions subsequently formed
among these people suffered greatly in 1681, 1697,
and 1720, from the invasions of the Caribs ; while

116

CHAYMAS ;

during six years subsequently to 1730^ the popula-
tion was diminished by the ravages of the small-pox.

The Chaymas are generally of low stature, their
ordinary height being about five feet two inches ;
but their figures are broad and muscular. The
colour of the skin is a dull brown inclining to red.
The expression of the countenance is sedate and
somewhat gloomy; the forehead is small and re-
tiring ; the eyes sunk, very long and black, but not
so small or oblique as in the Mongolian race ; the
eyebrows slender, nearly straight, and black or dark-
brown, and the eyelids furnished with very long
lashes ; the cheekbones are usually high ; the hair
straight ; the beard almost entirely wanting, as in the
same people, from whom, however, they differ es-
sentially in having the nose pretty long. The mouth
is wide, the lips broad but not prominent, the chin
extremely short and round, and the jaws remarkable
for their strength. The teeth are white and sound,
the toothach being a disease with which they are
seldom afflicted. The hands are small and slender,
while the feet are large and the toes possessed of
an extraordinary mobility. They have so strong a
family look, that on entering a hut it is often diffi-
cult, among grown up persons, to distinguish the
father from the son. This is attributable to the cir-
cumstance of their only marrying in their own tribe,
as well as to their inferior degree of intellectual im-
provement ; the differences between uncivilized and
cultivated man being similar to those between wild
and domesticated animals of the same species.

As they live in a very warm country they
are excessively averse to clothing. In spite of the
remonstrances of the monks, men and women re-

THEIR MANNERS.

117

main naked while within their houses ; and, when
they go out, wear only a kind of cotton gown scarce-
ly reaching to the knees. The dress of the men has
sleeves, while that of the women and hoys has none,
the arms, shoulders, and upper part of the breast
being uncovered. Till the age of nine the girls are
allowed to go to church naked. The missionaries
complain that the feeling of modesty is very little
known to the younger of the sex. The women are
not handsome ; but the maidens have a kind of plea-
sant melancholy in their looks. No instances of na-
tural deformity occurred to the travellers. Humboldt
remarks, that deviations from nature are exceedingly
rare among certain races of men, especially such as
have the skin highly coloured ; an effect which he
does not ascribe solely to a luxurious life or the
corruption of morals, hut rather imagines that the
immunity enjoyed by the American Indians arises
from hereditary organization. The custom of marry-
ing at a very early age, which depends upon the
same circumstance, is stated to he no way detrimen-
tal to population. It occurs in the most northern
parts of the continent as well as in the warmest,
and, therefore, is not dependent upon climate.

They have naturally very little hair on the chin,
and the little that appears is carefully plucked
out. This thinness of the heard is common to the
American race, although there are tribes, such as
the Chipeways and the Patagonians, in which it
assumes respectable dimensions.

The Chaymas lead a very regular and uniform
life. They go to bed at seven and rise at half after
four. The inside of their huts is kept very clean, and
their hammocks, utensils, and weapons, are arranged

118

INTELLECTUAL FACULTIES.

in the greatest order. They bathe every day^ and,
being generally naked, are thus exempted from the
filth principally caused by clothing. Besides their
cabin in the' village, they usually have a smaller one,
covered with palm or plantain leaves, in some soli-
tary place in the woods, to which they retire as
often as they can ; and so strong is the desire among
them of enjoying the pleasures of savage life, that
the children sometimes wander entire days in the
forests. In fact the towns are often almost wholly
deserted. As in all semi-barbarous nations, the wo-
men are subjected to privation and suffering, the
hardest labour falling to their share.

The Indians learn Spanish with extreme diffi-
culty ; and even when they perfectly understand the
meaning of the words, are unable to express the
most simple ideas in that language without embar-
rassment. They seem to have as little capacity for
comprehending any thing belonging to numbers ; the
more intelligent counting in Spanish with the ap-
pearance of great effort only as far as thirty, or per-
haps fifty, while in their own tongue they cannot
proceed beyond five or six. The construction of the
American dialects is so different from that of the se-
veral classes of speech derived from the Latin, that
the Jesuits employed some of the more perfect among
the former instead of their own ; and had this sys-
tem been generally followed the greatest benefit
would have resulted from it. The Chayma appear-
ed to Humboldt less agreeable to the ear than that of
the other South American tribes.

The Pariagotoes, or Parias, formerly occupied
the coasts of Berbice and Essequibo, the peninsula
of Paria, and the plains of Piritoo and Parima.

OTHER NATIVE TRIBES.

119

Little informatioiij however, is furnished respecting
them.

The Guaraounoes are dispersed in the delta of
the Orinoco, and owe their independence to the na-
ture of their country. In order to raise their houses
above the inundations of the river, they support
them on the trunks of the mangrove and mauritia
palm. They make bread of the flour obtained from
the pith of the latter tree. Their excellent qualities as
seamen, their perfect knowledge of the mouths and in-
osculations of that magnificent stream, and their great
number, give them a certain degree of political im-
portance. They run with great address on marshy
ground, where the whites, the negroes, or other In-
dian tribes, will not venture ; and this circumstance
has given rise to the idea of their being specifically
lighter than the rest of the natives.

The Guayquerias are the most intrepid fisher-
men of these countries, and are the only persons
well acquainted with the great bank that surrounds
the islands of Coche, Margarita, Sola, and Testigos.
They inhabit Margarita, the peninsula of Araya,
and a suburb of Cumana.

The Quaquas, formerly a very warlike tribe, are
now mingled with the Chaymas attached to the mis-
sions of Cumana, although their original abode was
on the banks of the Assiveru.

The Cumanagatoes, to the number of more than
twenty thousand, subject to the Christian stations
of PiritoOj live westward of Cumana, where they
cultivate the ground. At the beginning of the six-
teenth century they inhabited the mountains of the
Brigantine and Parabolota.

The Caribbees of these countries are part of the
remnant of the great Carib nation.

120

AMERICAN RACES.

The natives of America may he divided into two
great classes. To the first belong the Esquimaux of
Greenland, Labrador, and Hudson’s Bay, and the in-
habitants of Behring’s Straits, Alaska, and Prince
William’s Sound. The eastern and western branches
of this great family, the Esquimaux proper and the
Tschougages, are united by the most intimate simi.
larity of language, although separated to the im-
mense distance of eight hundred leagues. The in-
habitants of the north-east of Asia are evidently of
the same stock. Like the Malays, this hyperborean
nation resides only on the seacoast. They are of
smaller stature than the other Americans, lively
and loquacious. Their hair is straight and black ;
but their skin is originally white, in which respect
they essentially difier from the other class.

The second race is dispersed over the various re-
gions of the continent, from the northern parts to the
southern extremity. They are of larger size, more
warlike, and more taciturn, and differ in the colour
of their skin. At the earliest age it has more or
less of a coppery tinge in most of the tribes, while in
others the children are fair, or nearly so ; and certain
tribes on the Orinoco preserve the same complexion
during their whole life. Humboldt is of opinion
that these differences in colour are but slightly in-
fluenced by climate or other external circumstances,
and endeavours to impress the idea that they depend
on the original constitution.

TRAVELLERS ATTACKED BY A ZAMBO. 121

CHAPTER X.

Residence at Cumana.

Residence at Cumana — Attack of a Zambo — Eclipse of the Sun —
Extraordinary Atmospherical Phenomena — Shocks of an Earth-
quake— Luminous Meteors.

Our travellers remained a month longer at Cumana.
As they had determined to make a voyage on the
Orinoco and Rio Negro, preparations of various kinds
were necessary ; and the astronomical determination
of places being the most important object of this un-
dertaking, it was of essential advantage to observe
an eclipse of the sun which was to happen in the
end of October.

On the 27th, the day before the obscuration,
they went out in the evening, as usual, to take the
air. Crossing the beach which separates the suburb
of the Guayquerias from the landing-place, they
heard the sound of footsteps behind, and on turning
saw a tall Zambo, who, coming up, flourished a
great palm-tree bludgeon over Humboldt’s head.
He avoided the stroke by leaping aside j but Bon-
pland was less fortunate, for, receiving a blow
above the temple, he was felled to the ground.
The former assisted his companion to rise, and both
now pursued the ruffian, who had run off with
one of their hats, and on being seized, drew a
long knife from his trousers. In the mean time

122 REMARKABLE ATMOSPHERIC PHENOMENA.

some Biscayan mercliants^ who were walking on the
shore, came to their assistance ; when the Zamho,
seeing himself surrounded, took to his heels and
sought refuge in a cowhouse, from which he was led
to prison. The inhabitants showed the warmest
concern for the strangers, and although Bonpland
had a fever during the night he speedily recovered.
The object of the Zambo, who soon afterwards suc-
ceeded in escaping from the castle of San Antonio,
was never satisfactorily made out.

Notwithstanding this untoward accident Hum-
boldt was enabled to observe the eclipse. The days
which preceded and followed it displayed very re-
markable atmospheric phenomena. It was what is
called winter in those countries. From the 10th of
October to the 3d of November a reddish vapour rose
in the evening, and in a few minutes covered the sky.
The hygrometer gave no indication of humidity.
The diurnal heat was from 82-4° to 89’6°. Some-
times in the midst of the night the mist dis-
appeared for a moment, when clouds of a brilliant
whiteness formed in the zenith, and extended towards
the horizon. On the 18th of October they were
so transparent that they did not conceal stars even
of the fourth magnitude, and the spots of the moon
were very clearly distinguished. They were ar-
ranged in masses at equal distances, and seemed to
be at a prodigious height. From the 28th of Octo-
ber to the 3d of November the fog was thicker than
it had yet been. The heat at night was stifling, al-
though the thermometer indicated only 78'8°. The
evening breeze was no longer felt ; the sky appear-
ed as if on fire, and the ground was every where
cracked and dusty. On the 4th of November, about

EARTHQUAKE.

123

two in the afternoon, large clouds of extraordi-
nary blackness enveloped the mountains of the
Brigantine and Tataraqual, extending gradually to
the zenith. About four, thunder was heard over-
head, but at an immense height, and with a dull
and often interrupted sound. At the moment of
the strongest electric explosion, two shocks of an
earthquake, separated by an interval of fifteen se-
conds, were felt. The people in the streets filled
the air with their cries. Bonpland, who was ex-
amining plants, was nearly thrown on the floor,
and Humboldt, who was lying in his hammock, felt
the concussion strongly. Its direction was from north
to south. A few minutes before the first, there
was a violent gust of wind followed by large drops
of rain. The sky remained cloudy, and the blast was
succeeded by a dead calm which continued all night.
The setting of the sun presented a scene of great mag-
nificence. The dark atmospheric shroud was rent
asunder close to the horizon, and the sun appeared
at 12° of altitude on an indigo ground, its disk
enormously enlarged and distorted. The clouds were
gilded on the edges, and bundles of rays reflecting
the most brilliant prismatic colours extended over
the heavens. About nine in the evening there was
a third shock, which, although much slighter, was
evidently attended with a subterranean noise. The
barometer was a little lower than usual, but the
progress of the horary variations was in no way in-
terrupted. In the night, between the 3d and 4th of
November, the red vapour was so thick that the
place of the moon could be distinguished only by a
beautiful halo, 20° in diameter.

Scarcely twenty, two months had elapsed since

124

EXTRAORDINARY DISPLAY

the almost total destruction of Cumana by an earth-
quake ; and as the people look on the vapours, and
the failure of the breeze during the night, as prog-
nostics of disaster, the travellers had frequent visits
from persons desirous of knowing whether their in-
struments indicated new shocks on the morrow. On
the 5th, precisely at the same hour, the same pheno-
mena recurred, but without any agitation ; and the
gust accompanied by thunder returned periodically
for five or six days.

This earthquake, being the first that Humboldt
ever felt, made a strong impression upon him ; but
scenes of this kind afterwards became so familiar as
to excite little apprehension. It appeared to have
a sensible influence on the magnetical phenomena.
Soon after his arrival on the coasts of Cumana, he
found the dip of the needle 43-5.3° of the centesimal
division. On the 1st of November it was 43-65°.
On the 7th, three days after the concussion, he was
astonished to find it no more than 42-75°, or 90
centesimal degrees less. A year later, on his return
from the Orinoco, he still found it 42-80°, though
the intensity of the magnetic forces remained the
same after as before the event under consideration,
being expressed by 229 oscillations in ten minutes of
time. On the 7th November he observed the mag-
netic variation to be 4° 13' 50" E.

The reddish vapour which appeared about sunset
ceased on the 7th of November. The atmosphere
then assumed its former purity ; and the night of the
11th was cool and extremely beautiful. Towards
morning a very extraordinary display of luminous
meteors was observed in the east by M. Bonpland,
who had risen to enjoy the freshness of the air

OF LUMINOUS METEORS.

125

in the gallery. Thousands of fire-balls and falling-
stars succeeded each other during four hours^ hav-
ing a direction from north to south, and filling a
space of the sky extending from the true east 30 de-
grees on either side. They rose above the horizon
at E.N.E. and at E., described arcs of various sizes,
and fell toward S., some attaining a height of 40°,
and all exceeding 25° or 30°. No trace of clouds
was to be seen, and a very slight easterly wind blew
in the lower regions of the atmosphere. All the me-
teors left luminous traces from five to ten degrees
in length, the phosphorescence of which lasted seven
or eight seconds. The fire-balls seemed to explode,
but the largest disappeared without scintillation;
and many of the falling-stars had a very distinct
nucleus, as large as the disk of Jupiter, from which
sparks were emitted. The light occasioned by them
was white, — an effect which must be attributed to
the absence of vapours ; stars of the first magnitude
having, within the tropics, a much paler hue at their
rising than in Europe.

As the inhabitants of Cumana leave their houses
before four, to attend the first morning mass, most
of them were witnesses of this phenomenon, which
gradually ceased soon after, although some were
still perceived a quarter of an hour before sunrise.

The day of the 12th November was exceedingly
hot, and in the evening the reddish vapour reappear-
ed in the horizon, and rose to the height of 14°.
This was the last time it was seen that year.

The researches of M. Chladni having directed the
attention of the scientific world to fire-balls and fall-
ing-stars at the period of Humboldt’s departure from
home, he did not fail to inquire, during his jour-

126 LUMINOUS METEORS.

ney from Caraccas to the Rio Negro, whether the
meteors of the 12th November had been seen. He
found that they had been observed by various indi-
viduals in places very remote from each other ; and
on returning to Europe was astonished to find that
they had been seen there also. The following is a
brief account of the facts relating to these pheno-
mena : — 1st, The luminous meteors were seen in
the E. and E.N.E. at 40° of elevation, from 2 to 6
A.M., at Cumana, in lat. 10° 27' 52", long. 66° 30' ;
at Porto Cabello, in lat. 10° 6' 52", long. 67° 5' ; and
on the frontiers of Brazil, near the equator, in long.
70° west. 2dly, The Count de Marbois observed
them in French Guiana, lat. 4° 56' long. 54° 35'.
3dly, Mr Ellicot, astronomer to the United States,
being in the Gulf of Florida on the 12th November,
saw an immense number of meteors, some of which
appeared to fall perpendicularly ; and the same phe-
nomenon was perceived on the American continent
as far as lat. 30° 42'. 4thly, In Labrador, in lat.
56° 55', and lat. 58° 4' ; in Greenland, in latitudes
61° 5' and 64° 14', the natives were frightened by the
vast quantity of fire-balls that fell during twilight,
some of them of great size. 5thly, In Germany,
Mr Zeissing, vicar of Itterstadt near Weimar, in
lat. 50° 59', long. 9° 1' E., observed between 6 and
7 in the morning of the 12th November some fall-
ing-stars having a very white light. Soon after
reddish streaks appeared in the S. and S.W. ; and
at dawn the south-western part of the sky was from
time to time illuminated by white lightning run-
ning in serpentine lines along the horizon.

Calculating from these facts, it is manifest that
the height of the meteors was at least 1419 miles;

LUMINOUS METEORS.

127

and as near Weimar they were seen in the S. and
S.W., while at Cumana they were observed in the E.
and N.E.j we must conclude that they fell into the
sea between Africa and South America^ to the west
of the Cape Verd Islands.

Without entering into the learned discussion,
which Humboldt submits to his readers, respect-
ing the nature of these luminous bodies, we shall
merely observe, that he found falling-stars more fre-
quent in the equinoctial regions than in the tem-
perate zone, and also that they occurred oftener over
continents and near certain coasts than on the ocean.
He states that on the platform of the Andes, there
was observed, upwards of forty years ago, a pheno-
menon similar to that related above as having oc-
curred at Cumana. From the city of Quito an
immense number of meteors was seen rising over
the volcano of Cayamho, insomuch that the whole
mountain was thought to he on fire. They con-
tinued more than an hour, and a religious proces-
sion was about to be commenced, when the true
nature of the luminous appearance was discovered.

128

DEPARTURE FROM CUMANA.

CHAPTEU XI.

Voyage from Cumana to Guayra.

Passage from Cumana to La Guayra — Phosphorescence of the Sea —
Group of the Caraccas and Chimanas — Port of New Barcelona —
La Guayra — ^Yellow Fever — Coast and Cape Blanco — Road from
La Guayra to Caraccas.

Having completed the partial investigations which
their short residence admitted^ and having in some
measure become acclimatized^ the adventurous phi-
losophers prepared to leave Cumana. Passing by
sea to La Guayra, they intended to take up their
abode in the town of Caraccas until the rainy season
should he over ; from thence to traverse the Llanos,
or great plains, to the missions of the Orinoco ; to go
up that river as far as the Rio Negro ; and to return
to Cumana by Angostura, the capital of Spanish
Guiana.

On the 16th November, at eight in the evening,
they took their passage in one of the boats which
trade between these coasts and the West India islands.
They are thirty-two feet long, three feet high at
the gunwale, without decks, and generally carry
from 200 to 250 quintals (181 to 226 cwts. avoirdu-
pois). Although the sea is very rough from Cape
Codera to La Guayra, and these boats have an
enormous triangular sail, there had not been an in-
stance for thirty years of the loss of one of them on

PHOSPHORESCENCE OF THE SEA.

131

the passage from Cumana to Caraccas, so great is
the skill of the Guayqueria pilots. They descend-
ed the Manzanares with rapidity, delighted with the
sight of its marginal cocoa-trees, and the glitter of
the thorny hushes covered with noctilucous insects,
and left with regret a country in which every
thing had appeared new and marvellous. Pass-
ing at high water the bar of the river, they entered
the Gulf of Cariaco, the surface of which was gently
.ippled by the evening breeze. In a short time the
coasts were recognised only by the scattered lights
of the Indian fishermen.

As they advanced toward the shoal that surrounds
Cape Arenas, stretching as far as the petroleum
springs of Maniquarez, they enjoyed one of those
beautiful sights which the phosphorescence of the
sea so often displays in tropical climates. When the
porpoises, which followed the boat in bands of fifteen
or sixteen, struck the surface of the water with their
tails, they produced a brilliant light resembling
flames. Each troop left behind it a luminous track ;
and as few sparks were caused by the motion of an
oar or of the boat, Humboldt conjectured that the
vivid glow produced by these cetaceous animals was
owing not to the stroke of their tails alone, but also
to the gelatinous matter which envelops their bo-
dies, and which is detached by the waves.

At midnight they found themselves among some
rocky islets, rising in the form of bastions, and con-
stituting the group of the Caraccas and Chimanas.
iMany of these eminences are visible from Cumana,
and present the most singular appearances under
the effect of mirage. Their height, which is pro-
bably not more than 960 feet, seemed much greater

132

ISLAND OF BORACHA.

when enlightened by the moon, which now shone in
a clear sky. The travellers were becalmed in the
neighbourhood of these islands, and at sunrise drift-
ed toward Boracha, the largest of them. The tem-
perature had sensibly increased, in consequence of
the rocks giving out by radiation a portion of the
heat which they had absorbed during the day. As
the sun rose, the cliffs projected their lengthened
shadows on the ocean, and the flamingoes began to
fish in the creeks. These insular spots were all un-
inhabited ; but on one of them, which had formerly
been the residence of a family of whites, there were
wild goats of a large size and brown colour. The
inhabitants had cultivated maize and cassava ; but
the father, after the death of his children, having
purchased two black slaves, was murdered by them.
One of the assassins subsequently informed against
his accomplice, and at the time of Humboldt’s visit
was hangman at Cumana.

Proceeding onwards, they anchored for some
hours in the road of New Barcelona, at the mouth
of the river Neveri, which is full of crocodiles.
These animals, especially in calm weather, occa-
sionally make excursions into the open sea, — a fact
which is interesting to geologists, on account of the
mixture of marine and fresh water organic remains
that are occasionally observed in some of the more
recent deposites. The port of Barcelona had at
that time a very active commerce, arising from the
demand in the West Indies for salted provision,
oxen, mules, and horses ; the merchants of the Ha-
vannah being the principal purchasers. Its situa-
tion is extremely favourable for this exportation,
the animals arriving in three days from the Llanos,

MORRO DE BARCELONA.

133

while they take more than double that time to
reach Cumana^ on account of the chain of mountains
which they have to cross. Eight thousand mules
were embarked at Barcelona^ six thousand at Porto
Cabello, and three thousand at Carupano, in 1799
and 1800, for the several islands.

Landing on the right bank of the river, they
ascended to a small fort, the Morro de Barcelona,
built on a calcareous rock, at an elevation of about
400 feet above the sea, but commanded by a much
higher hill on the south. Here they observed a
very curious geological phenomenon, which recurred
in the Cordilleras of Mexico. The limestone, which
had a dull, even, or flat conchoidal fracture, and
was divided into very thin strata, was traversed by
layers of black slaty jasper, with a similar frac-
ture, and breaking into fragments having a paral-
lelopipedal form. It did not exhibit the little veins
of quartz so common in Lydian stone, and was de-
composed at the surface into a yellowish-gray crust.

Setting sail on the 19th at noon, they found the
temperature of the sea at its surface to be 78*6° ;
but when passing through the narrow channel
which separates the Piritoos, in three fathoms it
Was only 76’ 1°. These islands do not rise more
than eight or nine inches above the mean height
of the tide, and are covered with long grass. To
the westward of the Morro de Barcelona and the
mouth of the river Unare, the ocean became more
and more agitated as they approached Cape Codera,
the influence of which extends to a great distance.
Beyond this promontory it always runs very high,
although a gale of wind is never felt along this
coast. It blew fresh during the night, and on

]34

MANGROVES.

the 20th, at sunrise, they were so far advanced as to
be in expectation of doubling the Cape in a few
hours ; hut some of the passengers having sulfered
from sea-sickness, and the pilot being apprehensive
of danger from the privateers stationed near La
Guayra, they made for the shore, and anchored at
nine o’clock in the Bay of Iliguerota, westward of
the Rio Capaya.

On landing, they found two or three huts in-
habited by mestizo fishermen, the livid tint of whom,
together with the miserable appearance of their
children, gave indication of the unhealthy nature of
the coast. The sea is so shallow that one cannot go
ashore in the smallest boat without wading. The
woods come nearly to the beach, which is covered
with mangroves, avicennias, manchineel-trees, and
Suriana maritima, called by the natives romero de
la mar. Here as elsewhere the insalubrity of the air
is attributed to the exhalations from the first of these
plants. A faint and sickly smell was perceived, re-
sembling that of the galleries of deserted mines. The
temperature rose to 93-2°, and the water along the
whole coast acquired a yellowish-brown tint where-
ever it was in contact with these trees.

Struck by this phenomenon, Humboldt gather-
ed a considerable quantity of branches and roots,
with the view of making experiments on the man-
grove upon his arrival at Caraccas. The infusion
in warm water was of a brown colour, and had an
astringent taste. It contained extractive matter and
tannin. When kept in contact with atmospheric
air under a glass jar for twelve days, the purity of the
latter was not perceptibly affected. The wood and
roots placed under water were exposed to the rays of

LOW SHORES OF TROPICAL REGIONS. 135

the sun. Bubbles of air were disengaged, which at
the end of ten days amounted to a volume of 40 cubic
inches. These consisted of azote and carbonic acid,
with a trace of oxygen. Lastly, the same substances
thoroughly wetted were enclosed with a given vo-
lume of atmospheric air in a phial. The whole of
the oxygen disappeared. These experiments led
him to think that it is the moistened bark and fibre
that act upon the atmosphere, and not the brownish
water which formed a distinct belt along the coast.
Many travellers attribute the smell perceived among
mangroves to the disengagement of sulphuretted hy-
drogen, but no appearance of this kind was observed
in the course of these investigations.

" Besides,” says Humboldt, “ a thick wood cover-
ing a muddy groimd would diffuse noxious exhala-
tions in the atmosphere, were it composed of trees
which in themselves have no deleterious property.
Wherever mangroves grow on the margin of the
sea, the beach is peopled with multitudes of mol-
lusca and insects. These animals prefer the shade
and a faint light ; and find shelter from the waves
among the closely interlaced roots which rise like
lattice- work above the surface of the water. Shells
attach themselves to the roots, crustaceous animals
nestle in the hollow trunks, the seaweeds which
the wind and tide drive upon the shbre remain
hanging upon the recurved branches. In this man-
ner the maritime forests, by accumulating masses
of mud among their roots, extend the domain of the
continents; but, in proportion as they gain upon
the sea, they scarcely experience any increase in
breadth, their very progress becoming the cause of
their destruction. The mangroves and the other

136

CAPE CODERA.

plants with which they always associate die as the
ground dries, and when the salt water ceases to
bathe them. Centuries after, their decayed trunks,
covered with shells, and half buried in the sand,
mark both the route which they have followed in
their migrations, and the limit of the land which
they have wrested from the ocean.”

Cape Codera, seven miles distant from the Bay of
Iliguerota, is more imposing on account of its mass
than for its elevation, which appeared to he only
1280 feet. It is precipitous on the north, west, and
east. Judging from the fragments of rock foimd
along the coast, and from the hills near the town,
it is composed of foliated gneiss, containing nodules
of reddish felspar, and little quartz. The strata
next the hay have the same dip and direction as the
great mountain of the Silla, which stretches from
Caraccas to Maniquarez in the Isthmus of Araya,
and seem to prove that the primitive chain forming
that neck of land, after being disruptured or swal-
lowed up by the sea along an extent of 121 miles,
reappears at Cape Codera, and runs westward in an
unbroken line. Toward the north the cape forms
an immense segment of a sphere, and at its foot
stretches a tract of low land, known to navigators
by the name of the Points of Tutumo and of San
Francisco.

The passengers in the boat dreaded the rolling in
a rough sea so much, that they resolved to proceed
to Caraccas by land, and M. Bonpland, following
their example, procured a rich collection of plants.
Humboldt, however, continued the voyage, as it
seemed hazardous to lose sight of the instruments.

Setting sail at the beginning of the night they

ARRIVAL AT LA GUAYRA.

137

doubled Cape Codera with ditficulty, the wind be-
ing unfavourable^ and the surges short and high.
On the 21st of November, at sunrise, they were op-
posite Curuao, to the west of the Cape. The Indian
pilot was frightened at seeing an English frigate
only a mile distant ; but they escaped without attract-
ing notice. The mountains were every where preci-
pitous, and from 3200 to 4300 feet high, while along
the shore was a tract of low humid land, glowing
with verdure, and producing a great part of the fruits
found so abundantly in the neighbouring markets.
The peaks of Niguatar and the Silla of Caraccas
form the loftiest summits of this chain. In the
fields and valleys the sugar-cane and maize are cul-
tivated. To the west of Caravalleda the declivities
along shore are again very steep. After passing this
place they discovered the village of Macuto, the black
rocks of La Guayra covered with batteries, and in
the distance the long promontory of Cabo Blanco,
with conical summits of dazzling whiteness.

Humboldt landed at Guayra, and in the evening
arrived at Caraccas, four days sooner than his fel-
low-travellers, who had suffered greatly from the
rains and inundations. The former he describes as
rather a road than a port, the sea being always agi-
tated, and ships suffering from the action of the wind,
the tideways, the bad anchorage, and the worms.
The lading is taken in with difficulty. The free mu-
lattoes and negroes, who carry the cocoa on board
the ships, are remarkable for their strength. They
go through the water up to their middles, although
this place abounds in sharks, from which, however,
they have in reality nothing to dread. It is singu-
lar, that while these animals are dangerous and

138

SHARKS — GUAYRA.

bloodthirsty at the island opposite the coast of Carac-
caSj at the Roques, at Buenos Ayres, and at Curas-
sao, they do not disturb persons swimming in the
ports of Guayra and Santa Martha. As an analogous
fact, Humboldt mentions that the crocodiles of one
pool in the Llanos are cowardly, while those of ano-
ther attack with the greatest fierceness.

The situation of La Guayra resembles that of
Santa Cruz in Tenerifle ; the houses, which are built
on a flat piece of ground about 640 feet broad,
being backed by a wall of rock, beyond which is a
chain of mountains. The town consists of two pa-
rallel streets, and contains 6000 or 8000 inhabi-
tants. The heat is greater than even at Cumana,
Porto Cabello, or Coro, the seabreeze being less felt,
and the temperature being increased by the radiant
caloric emitted by the rocks after sunset.

The examination of the thermometrical observa-
tions, made at La Guayra during nine months by
Don Joseph Herrera, enabled Humboldt to compare
the climate of that port with those of Cumana, Ha-
vannah, and Vera Cruz. The result of this compa-
rison was, that the first mentioned is one of the hottest
places on the globe ; that the quantity of heat which
it receives in the course of a year is a little greater
than that experienced at Cumana ; but that in No-
vember, December, and January, the atmosphere
cools to a lower point. The mean temperature of
the year in these several districts is as follows : — At
La Guayra, nearly 82-6°; at Cumana, 81-2°; at
Vera Cruz, 77‘7°; at Havannah, 78'I°; while at
Rio Janeiro it is 74'5° j at Santa Cruz in Tenerilfe,
71 "4°; at Cairo, 72 ’3° ; and at Rome, 60-4°.

At the time of Humboldt’s visit to La Guayra,

YELLOW FEVEK.

139

the yellow fever, or calentura amarilla, had been
known only two years there, and the mortality had
not been very great, as the confluence of strangers
was less than at Havannah and Vera Cruz. Some
individuals, even creoles and mulattoes, were occa-
sionally taken olf by remittent attacks, complicated
with bilious symptoms and hemorrhages, and their
death often alarmed unseasoned Europeans ; but the
disease was not propagated. On the coast of Terra
Firma this malignant typhus was known only at
Porto Cabello, Carthagena, and Santa Martha. But
since 1797 things have changed. The extension of
commerce having caused an influx of Europeans and
seamen from the United States, the distemper in
question soon appeared. It is maintained by some,
that it was introduced by a brig from Philadelphia,
while others think it took its birth in the country
itself, and attribute its origin to a change in the
constitution of the atmosphere caused by the over-
flowings of the Rio de la Guayra, which inundated
the town. This fever has since continued its ravages,
and has proved fatal not only to troops newly ar-
rived from Spain, but also to those raised far from
the coast, in the Llanos between Calabozo and Uri-
tuco, a region nearly as hot as La Guayra itself. It
scarcely ever passes beyond the ridge of mountains
that separates this province from the valley of Carac-
cas, which has long been exempted from it. The
following are the principal pathological facts having
reference to this frightful pestilence : —

When a great number of persons, born in a cold
climate, arrive at a port in the torrid zone, the insa-
lubrity of which has not been particularly dreaded
by navigators, the American typhus (black vomit-

140

YELLOW FEVER.

ing, or yellow fever) makes its appearance. These
persons, we may add, are not affected by it during
the passage; it manifests itself only on the spot.
Has the constitution of the atmosphere been changed
asks Humboldt ; or, has a new form of disease de-
veloped itself in individuals whose excitability is
raised to a high pitch ?

The malady forthwith attacks other Europeans
born in warmer countries. Immediate contact does
not increase the danger, nor does seclusion diminish
it. When the sick are removed to the interior, and
especially to cooler and more elevated places, they
do not communicate the typhus to the inhabitants.
Whenever a considerable diminution of temperature
occurs, the distemper usually ceases ; but it again
begins at the commencement of the hot season, al-
though no ship may have entered the harbour for
several months.

The yellow fever disappears periodically at Ha-
vannah and at Vera Cruz, when the north winds
carry the cold air of Canada towards the Mexican
Gulf; but as Porto Cabello, La Guayra, New Bar-
celona, and Cumana, possess an extreme equality of
temperature, it is probable that it will become per-
manent there. Happily, the mortality has dimi-
nished since the treatment has been varied accord-
ing to the modifications which the disease assumes.
In well-managed hospitals, the number of deaths is
often reduced to eighteen or fifteen in a hundred ;
but when the sick are crowded together, the loss
increases to one-half or even more.

To the west of La Guayra there are several in-
dentations of the land which furnish excellent an-
chorage. The coast is granitic, and a great portion

KOAD TO CARACCAS.

141

of it extremely unhealthy. At Cape Blanco the
gneiss passes into mica-slate, containing beds of chlo-
rite-slate, in which garnets and magnetic sand occur.
On the road to Catia the chlorite-slate is seen pass-
ing into hornblende-slate. At the foot of the pro-
montory the sea throws on the beach rolled frag-
ments of a granular mixture of hornblende and
felspar, in which traces of quartz and pyrites are
recognised. On the western declivity of that hill
the gneiss is covered by a recent sandstone or con-
glomerate, in which are observed angular fragments
of gneiss, quartz, and chlorite, magnetic sand, ma-
drepores, and bivalve shells. The latitude of the
Cape is 10° 36' 45" ; that of La Guayra is 10° 36' 19",
its longitude 67° 5' 49".

The road from La Guayra to Caraccas resembles
the passages over the Alps ; but, as it is kept in
tolerable repair, it requires only three hours to go
with mules from the port to the capital, and two
hours to return. The ascent commences with a
ridge of rocks, and is extremely laborious. In the
steepest parts the path winds in a zigzag manner.
At the Salto, or Leap, there is a crevice which is
passed by a drawbridge, and on the summit of the
mountain are fortifications. Half-way is La Ven-
ta (the Inn) ; beyond which there is a rise of 960
feet to Guayavo, which is not far from the highest
part of the route. At the fort of La Cuchilla
Humboldt was nearly made prisoner by some
Spanish soldiers, whom he, however, contrived to
pacify. Round the little inn several travellers
were assembled, who were disputing on the efforts
that had been made towards obtaining independ-
ence; on the hatred of the mulattoes against the

142

GEOLOGY OF THE DISTRICT.

free negroes and whites ; the wealth of the monks ;
and on the difficulty of holding slaves in obedience.
From Guayavo the road passes over a smooth table-
land covered with Alpine plants ; and here is seen
for the first time the capitals standing nearly 2000
feet lower, in a beautiful valley enclosed by lofty
mountains. /

The ridges between La Guayra and Caraccas con-
sist of gneiss. On the south side the eminence, which
bears the name of Avila, is traversed by veins of
quartz, containing rutile in prisms of two or three
lines in diameter. The gneiss of the intervening
valley contains red and green garnets, which disap-
pear when the rock passes into mica-slate. Near the
cross of La Guayra, half a league distant from Carac-
cas, there were vestiges of blue copper-ore disseminat-
ed in veins of quartz, and small layers of graphite.
Between the former point and the spring of Sanchor-
quiz, were beds of bluish-gray primitive I limestone,
containing mica, and traversed by veins of white cal-
careous spar. In this deposite were found crystals of
pyrites and rhomboidal fragments of sparry iron-ore.

VENEZUELA.

143

CHAPTER XII.

City of Caraccas and surrounding District.

City of Caraccas — General View of Venezuela — Population — Cli-
mate— Character of the Inhabitants of Caraccas — Ascent of the
Silla — Geological Nature of the District, and the Mines.

Caraccas, the capital of the former captain-general-
ship of Venezuela, is more known to Europeans on
account of the earthquakes by which it was deso-
lated than from its importance in a political or com-
mercial point of view. At the present day it is the
chief city of a district of the same name, forming part
of the republic of Columbia ; though, at the time of
Humboldt’s visit, it was the metropolis of a Spanish
colony which contained nearly a million of inhabit-
ants, and consisted of New Andalusia, or the province
of Cumana, New Barcelona, Venezuela or Caraccas,
Coro, and Maracayho, along the coast ; and in the
interior, the provinces of Varinas and Guiana.

In a general point of view Venezuela presents
three distinct zones. Along the shore, and hear the
chain of mountains which skirts it, we find cultivated
land ; behind this, savannahs or pasturages ; and
beyond the Orinoco, a mass of forests, penetrable *
only by means of the rivers by which it is traversed.
In these three belts, the three principal stages of
civilisation are foimd more distinct than in almost
any other region. We have the life of the wild

144

THREE DISTINCT ZONES.

hunter in the woody district — the pastoral life in
the savannahs — and the agricultural in the valleys
and plains which descend to various parts of the
coast. Missionaries and a few soldiers occupy ad-
vanced posts on the southern frontiers. In this
section are felt the preponderance of force and the
abuse of power. The native tribes are engaged in
perpetual hostilities ; the monks endeavour to aug-
ment the little villages of their missions by availing
themselves of the dissensions of the Indians ; and
the soldiers live in a state of war with the clergy.
In the second division^ that of the plains and prairies,
where food is extremely abundant, little advance has
been made in civilisation, and the inhabitants live in
huts partly covered with skins. It is in the third
district alone, where agriculture and commerce are
pursued, that society has made any progress.

In following our travellers through these interest-
ing countries, it is necessary that we lose sight in
some measure of the present constitution of the South
American states, and view them simply as Spanish
provinces. When we seek, says Humboldt, to
form a precise idea of those vast regions, which for
ages have been governed by viceroys and captains-
general, we must fix our attention on several points.
We must distinguish the parts of Spanish Ame-
rica that are opposite to Asia, and those that are
washed by the Atlantic, — we must observe where
the greatest part of the population is placed, whether
near the coast or in the interior, or on the table-
lands of the Cordilleras, — we must determine the
numerical proportions between the natives and other
inhabitants, and examine to what race, in each part
of the colonies, the greater number of whites be-

POPULATION OF VENEZUELA.

145

long. The inhabitants of the different districts
of the mother-country preserve in some measure
their moral peculiarities in the New Worlds al-
though they have undergone various modifications
depending upon the physical constitution of their
new abode.

In Venezuela, whatever is connected with an
advanced state of civilisation is found along the
coast, which has an extent of more than two hun-
dred leagues. It is washed by the Caribbean Sea,
a kind of Mediterranean, on the shores of which
almost all the European nations have founded colo-
nies, and which commvmicates at several points with
the Atlantic Ocean. Possessing much facility of
intercourse with the inhabitants of other parts of
America, and with those of Europe, the natives
have acquired a great degree of knowledge and
opulence.

The Indians constitute a large proportion of the
agricultural residents in those places only where
the conquerors found regular and long-established
governments, as in New Spain and Peru. In the
province of Caraccas, for example, the native po-
pulation is inconsiderable, having been in 1800 not
more than one-ninth of the whole, while in Mexico
it formed nearly one-half. The black slaves do
not exceed one-fifteenth of the general mass, where-
as in Cuba they were in I8II as one to three, and
in other West India islands still more numerous. In
the Seven United Provinces of Venezuela, there
were 60,000 slaves ; while Cuba, which has but
one-eighth of the extent, had 212,000. The blacks
of these countries are so unequally distributed, that
in the district of Caraccas alone there were nearly

146

CITY OF CARACCAS.

40,000, of which one-fifth were mulattoes. Hum-
boldt estimates the creoles, or Hispano- Americans, at
210,000 in a population of 900,000, and the Euro-
peans, not including troops, at 12,000 or 15,000.

Caraccas was then the seat of an audiencia, or
high court of justice, and one of the eight arch-
bishoprics into which Spanish America was divid-
ed. Its population in 1800 was about 40,000. In
1766 great devastation was made by the small-pox,
from 6000 to 8000 individuals having perished ; but
since that period inoculation has become general.
In 1812 the inhabitants amounted to 50,000, of
which 12,000 were destroyed by the earthquakes ;
while the political events which succeeded that ca-
tastrophe reduced their number to less than twenty
thousand.

The town is situated at the entrance of the val-
ley of Chacao, which is ten miles in length, eight
and a half miles in breadth, and about 2650 feet
above the level of the sea. The ground occupied
by it is a steep uneven slope. It was founded by
Diego de Losada in 1567- Three small rivers de-
scending from the mountains traverse the line of its
direction ; it contained eight churches, five convents,
and a theatre capable of holding 1500 or 1800 per-
sons. The streets were wide, and crossed each other
at right angles ; the houses spacious and lofty.

The small extent of the valley, and the proximity
of the mountains of Avila and the Silla, give a stern
and gloomy character to the scenery, particularly in
November and December, when the vapours accu-
mulate towards evening along the high grounds;
in June and July, however, the atmosphere is clear
and the air pure and delicious. The two rounded

CLIMATE.

147

summits of the latter are seen from Caraccas, nearly
under the same angle of elevation as the Peak of
Tenerilfe is observed from Orotava. The first half
of the ascent is covered with grass ; then succeeds
a zone of evergreen trees ; while above this the rocky
masses rise in the form of domes destitute of vegeta-
tion. The cultivated region below forms an agree-
able contrast to the sombre aspect of the towering
ridges which overhang the town, as well as of the
hills to the north.

The climate of Caraccas is a perpetual spring, the
temperature by day being between 68° and 79°^ and
by night between 60° and 64°. It is, however, liable
to great variations, and the inhabitants complain of
having several seasons in twenty-four hours, as well
as a too rapid transition from one to another. In
January, for example, a night of which the mean
heat does not exceed 60° is followed by a day in
which the thermometer rises above 71° in the shade.
Although in our mild climates oscillations of this
kind produce no disagreeable effects, yet in the tor-
rid zone Europeans themselves are so accustomed to
uniformity in the temperature, that a difference of
a few degrees is productive of unpleasant sensations.
This inconvenience is aggravated here by the posi-
tion of the town in a narrow valley, which is at one
time swept by a wind from the coast, loaded with
humidity, and depositing its moisture in the higher
regions as the warmth decreases ; and at another by
a dry breeze from the interior, which dissipates the
vapours and unveils the mountain-summits. This
inconstancy of climate, however, is not peculiar to
Caraccas, but is common to the whole equinoctial
regions near the tropics. Uninterrupted serenity

148

CULTIVATION.

during a great part of the year prevails only in the
low districts adjoining the sea, or on the elevated
table-lands of the interior. The intermediate zone is
misty and variable.

In this province the sky is generally less blue than
at Cumana.- The intensity of colour measured by
Saussure’s cyanometer was commonly 18°, and
never above 20°, from November to January, while
on the coasts it was from 22° to 25°. The mean
temperature is estimated by Humboldt at 68° or
72°. The heat very seldom rises to 84°, and in
winter it has been observed to fall as low as 52°.
The cold at night is more felt on account of its being
usually accompanied by a misty sky. Rains are very
frequent in April, May, and June. No hail falls
in the low regions of the tropics, but it is seen here
every fourth or fifth year.

The colfee-tree is much cultivated in the val-
ley, and the sugar-cane thrives even at a still
greater height. The banana, the pine-apple, the
vine, the strawberry, the quince, the apple, the
peach, together with maize, pulse, and corn, grow
in great perfection. But although the atmospheric
constitution of this Alpine vale be favourable to di-
versified culture, it is not equally so to the health
of the inhabitants, as the inconstancy of the weather,
and the frequent suppression of cutaneous perspira-
tion, give rise to catarrhal affections ; and a Euro-
pean, once accustomed to the violent heat, enjoys
better health in the low country, where the air is
not very humid, than in the elevated and cooler
districts.

The travellers remained two months at Caraccas,
where they lived in a large house in the upper

RESIDENCE AT CARACCAS.

149

part of the town, from which they had an exten-
sive view of the mountain-plain, the ridge of the
Gallipano, and the summit of the Silla. It was the
season of drought, and the conflagrations intended to
improve the pasturage produced the most singular
effects when seen at night.

They experienced the greatest kindness from all
classes of the inhabitants, and more especially from
the captain-general of the province, M. de Guevara
Vascongelos. Caraccas being situated on the con-
tinent, and its population less mutable than that of
the islands, the national manners had not under-
gone so material a change. Notwithstanding the
increase of the blacks, says Humboldt, at Caraccas
and the Havannah, we seem to be nearer Cadiz
and the United States than in any other part of
the New World. There was nothing to be seen of
the cold and assuming air so common in Europe ,-
on the contrary, conviviality, candour, uniform
cheerfulness, and politeness of address, character-
ized the natives of Spanish origin. The travellers
found in several families a taste for instruction,
some knowledge of French and Italian literature,
and a particular predilection for music. But there
was a total deficiency of scientific attainments ; nor
had the simplest of all the physical sciences, botany,
a single cultivator. Previous to 1806 there were no
printing-offices in Caraccas.

Believing that in, a country which presents such
enchanting views, and exhibits such a profusion of
natural productions, he should find many persons
well acquainted with the surrounding mountains,
Humboldt yet failed to discover one individual who
had visited the summit of the Silla. But the go»-

150

ASCENT OP THE SILLA.

vernor having ordered the proprietor of a plantation
to furnish the philosophers with negro guides who
knew something of the way, they prepared for the
ascent.

As in the whole month of December, the moun-
tain had appeared only five times without clouds,
and as at that season two clear days seldom succeed
each other, they were advised to choose for their
excursion an interval when, the clouds being low,
they might hope, by passing through them, to enter
into a transparent atmosphere. They spent the
night of the 2d January at a coffee-plantation, near
a ravine, in which the little river Chacaito formed
some fine cascades. At five in the morning they
set out, accompanied by slaves carrying their instru-
ments, and about seven reached a promontory of the
Silla, connected with the body of the mountain by
a narrow dyke. The weather was fine and cool.
They proceeded along this ridge of rocks, between
two deep valleys covered with vegetation ; the large,
shining, and coriaceous leaves, illumined by the sun,
presenting a very picturesque appearance. Beyond
this point the ascent became very steep, the ac-
clivity being often from 32° to 33°. The surface was
covered with short grass, which afforded no support
when laid hold of, and it was impossible to imprint
steps in the gneiss. The persons who had accom-
panied them from the town were discouraged, and
at length retired.

Slender streaks of mist began to issue from the
woods, and afforded indications of a dense fog. The
familiar loquacity of the negro creoles formed a
striking contrast to the gravity of the Indians who
had attended the travellers in the missions of Ca-

VEGETATION AND MINERALS.

151

ripe. They amused themselves at the expense of
the deserters, among whom was a young Capuchin
monk, a professor of mathematics, who had promised
to fire olf rockets from the top of the mountain, to
announce to the inhabitants of Caraccas the success
of the expedition.

The eastern peak being the most elevated, they
directed their course to it. The depression between
the two summits has given rise to the name SilUi,
which signifies a saddle. From this hollow a ravine
descends towards the valley of Caraccas. This nar-
row opening originates near the western dome, and
the eastern summit is accessible only by going first
to the westward of it, straight over the promontory
of the Puerta.

From the foot of the cascade of Chacaito to an
elevation of 6395 feet they found only savannahs
or pastures, among which were observed two small
liliaceous plants with yellow flowers and some bram-
bles. Mixed with the latter they expected to find a
wild rose, but were disappointed ; nor did they sub-
sequently meet with a single species of that genus in
any part of South America.

Sometimes lost in the mist, they made their way
with difficulty, and there being no path, they were
obliged to use their hands in climbing the steep and
slippery ascent. A vein of porcelain-clay, the re-
mains of decomposed felspar, attracted their atten-
tion. Whenever the clouds surrounded them the
thermometer fell to 53-6° ; but when the sky was
clear it rose to 69-8°. At the height of 6011 feet
they saw in a ravine a wood of palms, which form-
ed a striking contrast with the willows scattered at
the bottom of the valley.

152

ALPINE PLANTS.

After proceeding four hours across the pastures
they entered a small forest. The acclivity became
less steep, and they observed a profusion of rare and
beautiful plants. At the height of 6395 feet the
savannahs terminate, and are succeeded by a zone
of shrubs, with tortuous branches, rigid leaves, and
large purple flowers, consisting of rhododendra, thi-
baudiae, andromedse, vaccinia, and befariae.

Leaving this little group of Alpine plants they
again found themselves in a savannah, and climbed
over part of the western dome, to descend into the
hollow which separates the two summits. Here
the vegetation was so strong and dense, that they
were obliged to cut their way through it. On a
sudden they were enveloped in a thick mist, and
being in danger of coming inadvertently upon the
brink of an enormous wall of rocks, which on the
north side descends perpendicularly to the depth of
more than 6000 feet, were obliged to stop. At this
point, however, the negroes who carried their pro-
visions, and who had been detained by the recre-
ant philosopher already mentioned, overtook them,
when they made a poor repast, the negroes or the
padre having left nothing but a few olives and a lit-
tle bread. The guides were discouraged, and were
with difficulty prevented from returning.

In the midst of the fog the electrometer of Volta,
armed with a smoking match, gave very sensible
signs of atmospheric electricity, varying frequently
from positive to negative, and this, together with
the conflict of small currents of air, appeared to indi-
cate a change of weather. It was only two in the af-
ternoon, and they yet entertained some hope of reach-
ing the eastern summit before sunset, and of returning

IMMENSE PRECIPICE.

153

to the hollow separating the two peaks, where they
might pass the night. With this view they sent half
of their attendants to procure a supply, not of olives
but of salt beef. These arrangements were scarcely
made when the east wind began to blow violently,
and in less than two minutes the clouds disappeared.
The obstacles presented by the vegetation gradually
diminished as they approached the eastern summit,
in order to attain which it was necessary to go close
to the great precipice. Hitherto the gneiss had pre-
served its lamellar structure ; but as they climbed
the cone of the Silla they found it passing into
granite, containing instead of garnets a few scatter-
ed crystals of hornblende. In three quarters of an
hour they reached the top of the pyramid, which
was covered with grass, and for a few minutes en-
joyed all the serenity of the sky. The elevation be-
ing 8633 feet, the eye commanded a vast range of
country. The slope, which extends nearly to the
sea, had an angle of 53° 28', though when viewed
from the coast it seems perpendicular. Humboldt re-
marks that a precipice of 6000 or 7000 feet is a phe-
nomenon much rarer than is usually believed, and
that a rock of 1600 feet of perpendicular height
has in vain been sought for among the Swiss Alps.
That of the Silla is partly covered with vegetation,
tufts of befariae and andromedse appearing as if sus-
pended from the rock.

Seven months had elapsed since they were on
the summit of the Peak of Tenerifife, where the
apparent horizon of the sea is six leagues farther
distant than on the Silla ; yet while the boundary-
line was seen distinct in the former place, it was
completely blended with the air in the latter. The

154

BEES SUMMIT OF THE SILLA.

western dome concealed the town of Caraccas ; but
they distinguished the villages of Chacao and Pe-
tare, the coffee-plantations, and the course of the
Rio Guayra. While they were examining the part
of the sea where the horizon was well defined, and
the great chain of mountains in the distant south,
a dense fog arose from the plains, and they were
obliged to use all expedition in completing their
observations.

When seated on the rock, employed in determin-
ing the dip of the needle, Humboldt found his hands
covered by a species of hairy bee, a little smaller
than the honey-bee of Europe. These insects make
their nest in the ground, seldom fly, move very
slowly, and are apt to use their sting, the guides as-
serting that they do so only when seized by the legs.

The temperature varied from 52° to 5^°, according
as the weather was calm or otherwise. The dip of
the needle was one centesimal degree less than at Ca-
raccas. The breeze was from the east, which might
indicate that the trade-winds extend in this latitude
much higher than 9600 feet. The blue of the at-
mosphere was deeper than on the coasts, Saussure’s
cyanometer indicating 26'5°, while at Caraccas it
generally gave only 18° in fine dry weather. The
phenomenon that most struck the travellers was the
apparent aridity of the air, which seemed to increase
as the mist thickened, the hygrometer retrograding,
and their clothes remaining dry.

As it would have been imprudent to remain long
in a dense fog, on the brink of a precipice, the tra-
vellers descended the eastern dome, and, on regain-
ing the hollow between the two summits, were
surprised to find round pebbles of quartz, a phe-

DESCENT ORES.

155

nomenon which perhaps indicates that the moun-
tain has been raised by a power applied from below.
Relinquishing their design of passing the night in
that valley, and having again found the path which
they had cut through the wood, they soon arrived
at the district of resinous shrubs, where they linger-
ed so long collecting plants that darkness surprised
them as they entered the savannah. The moon
was up, but every now and then obscured by clouds.
The guides who carried the instruments slunk olf
successively to sleep among the cliffs ; and it was not
until ten that the travellers arrived at the bottom
of the ravine, overcome by thirst and fatigue.

During the excursion to the Silla, and in all their
walks in the valley of Caraccas, they were very at-
tentive to the indication of ores which they found
in the gneiss mountains. In America that rock
has not hitherto been found to be very rich in metals,
the most celebrated mines of Mexico and Peru be-
ing in primitive and transition slate, trap, porphyry,
gray wacke, and Alpine limestone. In several parts
of the region now visited a small quantity of gold
was found disseminated in veins of quartz, sulphu-
retted silver, blue copper-ore, and leadglance ; but
these deposites did not seem of any importance. In
the group of the western mountains of Venezuela,
the Spaniards, in 1551, attempted the gold mine of
Buria, but the works were soon given up. In the vi-
cinity of Caraccas some had also been wrought, but
to no great extent. In short, the mines here afforded
little gratification to the cupidity of the conquerors,
and were almost totally abandoned, those of Arva,
near San Felipe el Fuerte, being the only ones in
operation when Humboldt visited the coimtry.

156

HAVINE OF TIPE.

In the course of their investigations the travellers
examined the ravine of Tipe, situated in that part of
the valley which opens toward Cape Blanco. The
first portion of the road was over a barren and rocky
soil, on which grew a few plants of Argemone Mexi.
cana. On either side of the defile was a range of
bare mountains, and at this spot the plain on which
the town is built communicates with the coast near
Catia by the valleys of Tacagua and Tipe. In
the former they found some plantations of maize
and plantains, and a very extensive one of cactuses
fifteen feet high. They met with several veins of
quartz, containing pyrites, carbonated iron-ore, sul-
phuretted silver, and gray copper. The works that
had been undertaken were superficial, and now
filled up.

PHENOMENA OF EARTHQUAKES.

157

CHAPTER XIII.

Earthquakes of Caraccas.

The valley of Caraccas, a few years after Hum-
boldt’s visit, became the theatre of one of those phy-
sical revolutions which from time to time produce
violent alterations upon the surface of our planet ;
involving the overthrow of cities, the destruction of
human life, and a temporary agitation of those ele-
ments of nature on which the system of the uni-
verse is founded. In the narrative of his Journey
to the Equinoctial Regions of the New Continent,
he has recorded all that he could collect with cer-
tainty respecting the earthquake of the 26th March
1812, which destroyed the city of Caraccas, together
with 20,000 inhabitants of the province of Venezuela.

When our travellers visited those countries, they
found it to be a general opinion, that the eastern
parts of the coasts were most exposed to the de-
structive effects of such concussions, and that the
elevated districts, remote from the shores, were in
a great measure secure ; but in 1811 all these ideas
were proved groundless.

At Humboldt’s arrival in Terra Firma, he was

158 EARTHQUAKE OF CARACCAS.

struck with the connexion which appeared between
the destruction of Cumana in 1797 and the erup-
tion of volcanoes in the smaller West India islands.
A similar principle was manifested in 1812, in the
case of Caraccas. From the beginning of 1811 till
1813, a vast extent of the earth’s surface, limited by
the meridian of the Azores, the valley of the Ohio,
the cordilleras of New Grenada, the coasts of Ve-
nezuela, and the volcanoes of the West Indies, was
shaken by subterranean commotions, indicative of
a common agency exerted at a great depth in the
interior of the globe. At the period when these
earthquakes commenced in the valley of the Missis-
sippi, the city of Caraccas felt the first shock in
December 1811, and on the 26th March of 1812 it
was totally destroyed.

“ The inhabitants of Terra Firma were ignorant
of the agitation, which on the one hand the vol-
cano of the island of St Vincent had experienced,
and on the other the basin of the Mississippi, where,
on the 7th and 8th of February 1812, the ground
was day and night in a state of continual oscillation.
At this period the province of Venezuela laboured
under great drought ; not a drop of rain had fallen
at Caraccas, or to the distance of 311 miles around,
during the five months which preceded the destruction
of the capital. The 26th March was excessively hot ;
the air was calm and the sky cloudless. It was
Holy Thursday, and a great part of the population
. was in the churches. The calamities of the day
were preceded by no indications of danger. At
seven minutes after four in the evening the first
commotion was felt. It was so strong as to make
the bells of the churches ring. It lasted from five

PROGRESS OF THE SHOCKS.

159

to six seconds, and was immediately followed by
another shock of from ten to twelve seconds, during
which the ground was in a continual state of undu-
lation, and heaved like a fluid under ebullition.
The danger was thought to be over, when a prodi-
gious subterranean noise was heard, resembling the
rolling of thunder, but louder and more prolong-
ed than that heard within the tropics during thun-
der-storms. This noise preceded a perpendicular
motion of about three or four seconds, followed by
an undulatory motion of somewhat longer duration.
The shocks were in opposite directions, from north
to south and from east to west. It was impossible
that any thing could resist the motion from beneath
upwards, and the undulations crossing each other.
The city of Caraccas was completely overthrown.
Thousands of the inhabitants (from nine to ten
thousand) were buried under the ruins of the
churches and houses. The procession had not yet
set out ; but the crowd in the churches was so great,
that nearly three or four thousand individuals were
crushed to death by the falling in of the vaulted roofs.
The explosion was stronger on the north side of the
town, in the part nearest the mountain of Avila
and the Silla. The churches of the Trinity and
Alta Gracia, which were more than a hundred and
fifty feet in height, and of which the nave was sup-
ported by pillars from twelve to fifteen feet in dia-
meter, left a mass of ruins nowhere higher than five
or six feet. The sinking of the ruins has been so
great, that at present hardly any vestige remains
of the pillars and columns. The barracks called El
Quartel de San Carlos, situated further to the
north of the church of the Trinity, on the road to

160 DESTRUCTION OF THE CITY.

the customhouse de la Pastora, almost entirely dis-
appeared. A regiment of troops of the line, which
was assembled in it under arms to join in the pro-
cession, was, with the exception of a few individuals,
buried under this large building. Nine- tenths of
the fine town of Caraccas were entirely reduced to
ruins. The houses which did not fall, as those of
the street of San Juan, near the Capuchin Hospital,
were so cracked that no one could venture to live
in them. The effects of the earthquake were not
quite so disastrous in the southern and western parts
of the town, between the great square and the ra-
vine of Caraguata ; — there the cathedral, supported
by enormous buttresses, remains standing.

" In estimating the number of persons killed in
the city of Caraccas at nine or ten thousand, we do
not include those unhappy individuals who were
severely wounded, and perished several months after
from want of food and proper attention. The night
of Holy Thursday presented the most distressing
scenes of desolation and sorrow. The thick cloud
of dust, which rose above the ruins and darkened
the air like a mist, had fallen again to the ground ;
the shocks had ceased ; never was there a finer or
quieter night, — the moon, nearly at the full, illu-
minated the rounded summits of the Silla, and the
serenity of the heavens contrasted strongly with the
state of the earth, which was strewn with ruins and
dead bodies. Mothers were seen carrying in their
arms children whom they hoped to recall to life ;
desolate females ran through the city in quest of a
brother, a husband, or a friend, of whose fate they
were ignorant, and whom they supposed to have been
separated from them in the crowd. The people press-

INHUMATION OF THE WOUNDED.

161

ed along the streets^ which now could only he dis-
tinguished by heaps of ruins arranged in lines.

“ All the calamities experienced in the great earth-
quakes of Lisbon, Messina, Lima, and Riobamba,
were repeated on the fatal day of the 26th March
1812. The wounded, buried under the ruins, im-
plored the assistance of the passers by with loud
cries, and more than two thousand of them were
dug out. Never was pity displayed in a more af-
fecting manner ; never, we may say, was it seen
more ingeniously active, than in the efforts made to
succour the unhappy persons whose groans reached
the ear. There was an entire want of instruments
adapted for digging up the ground and clearing
away the ruins, and the people were obliged to use
their hands for the purpose of disinterring the living.
Those who were wounded, as well as the patients
who had escaped from the hospitals, were placed on
the bank of the little river of Guayra, where they
had no other shelter than the foliage of the trees.
Beds, linen for dressing their wounds, surgical in-
struments, medicines, in short every thing necessary
for their treatment, had been buried in the ruins.
During the first days nothing could be procured, —
not even food. Within the city water became equal-
ly scarce. The commotion had broken the pipes of
the fountains, and the falling in of the earth had
obstructed the springs which supplied them. To
obtain water it was necessary to descend as far as
the Rio Guayra, which was considerably swelled,
and there were no vessels for drawing it.

‘‘ There remained to be performed towards the
dead a duty imposed alike by piety and the dread of
infection. As it was impossible to inter so many

162 MORAL EFFECTS OF THE EARTHQUAKE.

thousands of bodies half buried in the ruins^ com-
missioners were appointed to burn them. Funeral-
piles were erected among the heaps of rubbish.
This ceremony lasted several days. Amid so many
public calamities, the people ardently engaged in
the religious exercises which they thought best
adapted to appease the anger of heaven. Some
walked in bodies chanting funeral-hymns, while
others, in a state of distraction, confessed themselves
aloud in the streets. In this city was now repeated
what had taken place in the province of Quito af-
ter the dreadful earthquake of the 4th February
1797. Marriages were contracted between persons
who for many years had neglected to sanction their
union by the sacerdotal blessing. Children found
parents in persons who had till then disavowed
them ; restitution was promised by individuals who
had never been accused of theft ; and families, who
had long been at enmity, drew together from the
feeling of a common evil. But while in some this
feeling seemed to soften the heart and open it to
compassion, it had a contrary elfect on others, ren-
dering them more obdurate and inhumane. In great
calamities vulgar minds retain still less goodness than
strength ; for misfortune acts like the pursuit of lite-
rature and the investigation of nature, which exer-
cise their happy influence only upon a few, giving
more warmth to the feelings, more elevation to the
mind, and more benevolence to the character.

“ Shocks so violent as these, which in the space
of one minute overthrew the city of Caraccas, could
not be confined to a small portion of the continent.
Their fatal effects extended to the provinces of Vene-
zuela, Varinas, and Maracaybo, along the coast,

EXTENT OF DAMAGE.

163

and were more especially felt in the mountains of
the interior. La Guayra, Mayguetia^ Antimana,
Baruta, La Vega^ San Felipe/ and Merida, were
almost entirely destroyed. The number of dead
exceeded four or five thousand at La Guayra, and
at the villa de San Felipe, near the copper-mines of
Aroa. The earthquake would appear to have been
most violent along a line running from E. N. E. to
W. S. W., from Guayra and Caraccas towards the
high mountains of Niquitas and Merida. It was
felt in the kingdom of New Grenada, from the ra-
mifications of the lofty Sierra of Santa Martha to
Santa Fe de Bogota, and Honda on the hanks of
the Magdalena, 620 miles distant from Caraccas.
In all parts it was more violent in the cordilleras of
gneiss and mica-slate, or immediately at their base,
than in the plains. This dilference was particular-
ly remarkable in the savannahs of Varinas and Ca-
sanare. In the valleys of Aragua, situated between
Caraccas and the town of San Felipe, the shocks
were very weak. La Victoria, Maracay, and Va-
lencia, scarcely suffered, notwithstanding the proxi-
mity of the capital. At Valecillo, not many leagues
distant from Valencia, the ground opened and emit-
ted so great a mass of water that a new torrent was
formed. The same phenomenon took place near
Porto Cahello. On the other hand, the Lake of
Maracayho underwent considerable diminution. At
Coro no commotion was felt, although the town was
situated on the coast between other towns which suf-
fered. The fishermen who had passed the day of the
26th March in the island of Orchila, 130 miles N. E.
of La Guayra, were not sensible of any shock.”

Toward the east of Caraccas the commotions were

164

COMMOTIONS OF THE EARTH

very violent, especially beyond Caurimare, in the
valley of Capaya, and as far as the meridian of Cape
Codera, while they were very feeble on the coasts
of New Barcelona, Cumana, and Paria, though
these shores are known to have been formerly shaken
by volcanic vapours.

Fifteen or eighteen hours after the great catas-
trophe the ground ceased to be agitated ; but subse-
quently to the 27th the tremblings recommenced,
and were accompanied with very loud subterranean
noises. Frequently not less than fifteen oscillations
were felt in one day. On the 5th April there was
an earthquake almost as severe as that of the 12th
March. The surface was in continuous undulation
during several hours, large masses of earth fell in
the mountains, and enormous rocks were detached
from the Silla.

While violent agitations were experienced in the
valley of the Mississippi, in the island of St Vin-
cent, and in the province of Venezuela, a subterra-
nean noise, resembling an explosion of artillery, was
heard at Caraccas, at Calabozo, and on the banks of
the Rio Apure, over the space of four thousand
square leagues. This sound began at two in the
morning of the 30th April, and was as loud on the
coast as at the distance of eighty leagues. It was
every where taken for the firing of guns. On the
sarne day a great eruption of the volcano of the
island of St Vincent took place. This mountain
had not ejected lava since I7I8, and hardly any
smoke was issuing from it, when in May 1811, fre-
quent shocks occurred, and a discharge of ashes, at-
tended with a tremendous bellowing, followed on
the 27th April next year. On the 30th the lava

IN OTHER DISTRICTS.

165

flowed^ and after a course of four hours reached the
sea. The explosions resembled alternate volleys
of very large cannon and musketry. As the space
between the volcano of St Vincent and the Rio
Apure is 725 miles, these were heard at a distance
equal to that between Vesuvius and Paris, and
must have been propagated by the earth, and not
by the air.

After adducing numerous instances of the coinci-
dence of volcanic eruptions and earthquakes, Hum-
boldt endeavours to prove that subterranean com-
munications extend to vast distances, that the phe-
nomena of volcanoes and earthquakes are intimately
connected, and that the latter have certain lines of
direction.

166

DEPAKTURE FROM CARACCAS.

CHAPTER XIV.

Journey from Caraccas to the Lake of Valencia.

Departure from Caraccas — La Buenavista — Valleys of San Pedro

and the Tuy — Manterola — Zaraang-tree — Valleys of Aragua

Lake of Valencia — Diminution of its Waters — Hot Springs

Jaguar — New Valencia — Thermal Waters of La Trinchera

Porto Cabello — Cow-tree — Cocoa-plantations — General View of
the Littoral District of Venezuela.

Leaving the city of Caraccas^ on their way to the
Orinoco, our travellers slept the first night at the
base of the woody mountains which close the valley
toward the south-west. They followed fhe right hank
of the Rio Guayra, as far as the village of Antimano,
by an excellent road, partly scooped out of the rock.
The mountains were all of gneiss or mica-slate. A
little before reaching that hamlet they observed two
large veins of gneiss in the slate, containing balls of
granular diabase or greenstone, composed of felspar
and hornblende, with garnet disseminated. In
the vicinity all the orchards were full of peach-trees
covered with flowers. Between Antimano and Ajun-
tas, they crossed the Rio Guayra seventeen times,
and proceeded along the bottom of the valley.
The river was bordered by a gramineous plant, the
Gynerium saccharoides, which sometimes reaches
the height of 32 feet, while the huts were sur-
romided by enormous trees of Laurus persea,

COFFEE-PL ANTAT IONS.

167

covered by creepers. They passed the night in a
sugar-plantation. In a square house were nearly
eighty negroes^ lying on skins of oxen spread on the
floor^ while a dozen fires were burning in the yard,
at which people were cooking.

A great predilection for the culture of the eoflee-
tree was entertained in the province. The young
plants were chiefly procured by exposing the seeds
to germination between plantain-leaves. They were
then sown, and produced shoots better adapted to
bear the heat of the sun than such as spring up in
the shade of the plantations. The tree bears flowers
only the second year, and its blossoms last only
twenty- four hours. The returns of the third year are
very abundant ; at an average each plant yielding
a pound and a half or two pounds of cofiee. Hum-
boldt remarks, that although it is not yet a century
since the first trees were introduced at Surinam
and in the West Indies, the produce of America
already amounts to fifteen millions of piasters, or
£2,437,500 sterling.

On the 8th February the travellers set out at
sunrise, and after passing the junction of the two
small rivers, San Pedro and Macarao, which form
the Rio Guayra, ascended a steep hill to the table-
land of La Buenavista. The country here had a
wild appearance, and was thickly wooded. The
road, which was so much frequented that long files
of mules and oxen met them at every step, was
cut out of a talcose gneiss, in a state of decom-
position. Descending from that point, they came
upon a ravine, in which a fine spring formed several
cascades. Here they found an abundant and diver-
sified vegetation, consisting of arborescent ferns.

168

VALLEY OF THE TUY.

more than 27 feet high, heliconias, plumerias, hrow-
nese, gigantic figs, palms, and other plants. The
brownea, which bears four or five hundred purple
flowers in a single thyrsus, reaches the height of
fifty or sixty feet.

At the base of the wooded mountain of Higuerota
they entered the small village of San Pedro, situated
in a basin where several valleys meet. Plantains,
potatoes, and coffee, were sedulously cultivated.
The rock was mica-slate, filled with garnets, and
containing beds of serpentine of a fine green, varied
with spots of a lighter tint.

Ascending from the low ground, they passed by
the farms of Las Lagunetas and Garavatos, near the
latter of which there is a mica-slate rock of a singu-
lar form, — that of a ridge, or wall, crowned by a
tower. The country is mountainous, and almost
entirely uninhabited ; but beyond this they entered
a fertile district, covered with hamlets and small
towns. This beautiful region is the valley of the
Tuy, where they spent two days at the plantation
of Don Jose de Manterola, on the bank of the river,
the water of which was as clear as crystal. Here
they observed three species of sugar-cane, the old
Creole, the Otaheitan, and the Batavian, which are
easily distinguished, and of which the most valuable
is the Otaheitan, as it not only yields a third more
of juice than the Creole cane, but furnishes a much
greater quantity of fuel.

As this valley, like most other parts of the Spa-
nish colonies, has its gold mine, Humboldt was de-
sired to visit it. In the ravine leading to it an enor-
mous tree fixed the attention of the travellers. It
had grown on a steep declivity above a house, which

GIGANTIC TREE.

169

it was apprehended it might injure in its fall^ should
the earth happen to give way. It had therefore
been burnt near the root, and cut so as to sink be-
tween some large fig-trees, which would prevent
it from rolling down. It was eight and a half
feet in diameter at the lower end, four feet five
inches at the other (the top having been burnt off),
and one hundred and sixty feet in length. The
rocks were mica-slate passing into talc-slate, and
contained masses of bluish granular limestone, to-
gether with graphite. At the place where the gold
mine was said to have been, they found some ves-
tiges of a vein of quartz ; but the subsidence of
the earth, in consequence of the rain, rendered it
impossible to make any observation. The travellers,
however, found a recompense for their fatigues in
the harvest of plants which they made in the thick
forest abounding in cedraelas, browneas, and fig-
trees. They were struck by the woody excrescences,
which, as far as twenty feet above the ground, aug-
ment the thickness of the latter. Some of these
trunks were observed to be twenty- three feet in dia-
meter near the roots.

At the plantation of Tuy, the dip of the needle
was 4T6°, and the intensity of the magnetic power
was indicated by 228 oscillations in ten minutes.
The variation of the former was 4° 30' N. E. The
zodiacal light appeared almost every night with ex-
traordinary brilliancy.

On the Ilth, at sunrise, they left the plantation
of Manterola, and proceeded along the beautiful
banks of the river. At a farm by the way they
found a negress more than a hundred years old,
seated before a small hut, to enjoy the benefit of the

170

ZAMANG OF GUAYRA.

sun’s raySj the heat of which, according to her grand-
son, kept her alive. As they drew near to Victoria
the ground became smoother, and resembled the
bottom of a lake, the waters of which had been
drained off. The neighbouring hills were composed
of calcareous tufa. Fields of corn were mingled
with crops of sugar-canes, coffee, and plantains.
The level of the country above the sea is only from
576 to 640 yards ; and, except in the district of
Quatro Villas in the island of Cuba, wheat is scarce-
ly cultivated in large quantities in any other part
of the equinoctial regions. La Victoria and the
neighbouring village of San Matheo yielded 4000
quintals, or 3622 cwt. annually. It is sown in De-
cember, and is fit for being cut in seventy or seventy-
five days. The grain is large and white, and the
average produce is three or four times as much as
in Europe. The culture of the sugar-cane, however,
is still more productive.

Proceeding slowly on their way, the travellers
passed through the villages of San Matheo, Tur-
mero, and Maracay, where every thing was indica-
tive of prosperity. “ On leaving the village of
Turmero,” says Humboldt, “ we discover, at the
distance of a league, an object which appears on the
horizon like a round hillock, or a tumulus covered
with vegetation. It is not a hill, however, nor a
group of very close trees, but a single tree, the cele-
brated Zamang of Guagra, known over the whole
province for the enormous extent of its branches,
which form a hemispherical top 614 feet in circum-
ference. The zamang is a beautiful species of mi-
mosa, whose tortuous branches divide by forking.
Its slim and delicate foliage is agreeably detached on

POPULATION.

171

the blue of the sky. We rested a long while be-
neath this vegetable arch. The trunk of the Guayra
zamang, which grows on the road from Turmero
to Maracay, is not more than 64 feet high and
9^ feet in diameter; but its real beauty consists
in the general form of its top. The branches stretch
out like the spokes of a great umbrella, and all in-
cline towards the ground, from which they uniform-
ly remain twelve or fifteen feet distant. The cir-
cumference of the branches or foliage is so regular,
that I found the different diameters 205 and 198
feet. One side of the tree was entirely stripped of
leaves from the effect of drought, while on the other
both foliage and flowers remained. The branches
were covered with creeping plants. The inhabitants
of these valleys, and especially the Indians, have a
great veneration for the Guayra zamang, which the
first conquerors seem to have found nearly in the
same state as that in which we now see it. Since
it has been attentively observed, no change has been
noticed in its size or form. It must be at least
as old as the dragon-tree of Orotava. Near Tur-
mero and the Hacienda de Cura, there are other trees
of the same species, with larger trunks ; but their
hemispherical tops do not spread so widely.”

The valleys of Aragua at this time contained
more than 52,000 inhabitants, on a space thirteen
leagues in length and two in breadth ; making 2000
to a square league, which is almost equal to the
densest population of France. The houses were all
of masonry, and every court contained cocoa-trees,
rising above the habitations ; besides wheat, sugar,
cacao, cotton, and coffee, indigo is cultivated to a
great extent.

172

VALLEYS OP ARAGUA.

In this district the travellers experienced the
greatest kindness, more especially from the persons
with whom they had associated in Caraccas, and who
possessed large estates in these highly-improved and
beautiful plains. At the Hacienda de Cura they
spent seven very agreeable days, in a small habita-
tion surrounded by thickets, on the Lake of Valen-
cia. Their host. Count Tovar, had begun to let
out lands to poor persons, with the view of render-
ing slaves less necessary to the landholders ; and
his example was happily followed by other proprie-
tors. Here they lived after the manner of the rich ;
they bathed twice, slept three times, and made three
meals in twenty-four hours.

The valleys of Aragua form a narrow basin be-
tween granitic and calcareous mountains of unequal
height. On the north they are separated from the
coast by the Sierra Mariara, and on the south from
the steppes by the chain of Guacimo and Yusma.
On the east and west they are bounded by hills
of smaller elevation, the rivers from which unite
their streams, and are collected in an inland lake,
which has no communication with the sea. This
body of water, named the Lake of Valencia, and
by the Indians called Tacarigua, is larger than the
Lake of Neufchatel, but in its general form has
more resemblance to that of Geneva. The southern
banks are desert, and backed by a screen of high
mountains, while the northern shores are decked
with the rich cultivation of the sugar-cane, coffee-
tree, and cotton. “ Paths bordered with cestrum,
azedarach, and other shrubs always in flower, tra-
verse the plain and join the scattered farms. Every
house is surrounded by a tuft of trees. The ceiba.

LAKE OF VALENCIA.

173

with large yellow flowers, gives a peculiar character
to the landscape, as it unites its branches with those
of the purple erythrina. The mixture and bril-
liancy of the vegetable colours form a contrast to the
imvaried tint of a cloudless sky. In the dry season,
when the burning soil is covered with a wavy va-
pour, artificial irrigations keep up its verdure and
fecimdity. Here and there the granitic rocks pierce
the cultivated land, and enormous masses rise ab-
ruptly in the midst of the plain, their bare and fis-
sured surfaces affording nourishment to some succu-
lent plants, which prepare a soil for future ages.
Often on the summit of these detached hills, a fig-
tree or a clusia, with juicy leaves, have fixed their
roots in the rock, and overlook the landscape. With
their dead and withered branches they seem like
signals erected on a steep hill. The form of these
eminences reveals the secret of their origin ; for
when the whole of this valley was filled with water,
and the waves beat against the base of the peaks of
Mariara, the Devil’s Wall, and the coast chain, these
rocky hills were shoals or islets.”

But the Lake of Valencia is remarkable for other
circumstances than its beauties. From a careful
examination, Humboldt was convinced that in
very remote times, the whole valley from the
mountains of Cocuyza to those of Torito and
Nirgua, and from the Sierra of Mariara to that
of Guigue, Guacimo, and La Palma, had been
filled with water. The form of the promontories
and their abrupt slopes indicate the shores of an
Alpine lake. The same little shells (helicites and
valvatse), which occur at the present day in the
Lake of Valencia, are found in layers three or four

174

LAKE OP VALENCIA.

feet thick in the heart of the country, as far as Tur-
mero and La Concesion near Victoria. These facts
prove a retreat of the waters ; hut no evidence exists
that any considerable diminution of them has taken
place in recent times, although within the thirty
years preceding Humboldt's visit the gradual de-
siccation of this great basin had excited general at-
tention. This, however, is not dependent upon sub-
terranean channels, as some suppose, but upon the
effects of evaporation, increased by the changes ope-
rated upon the surface of the country. Forests, by
sheltering the soil from the direct action of the sun,
diminish the waste of moisture ; consequently, when
they are imprudently destroyed, the springs become
less abundant, or are entirely dried up. Till the
middle of the last century, the mountains that sur-
round the valleys of Aragua were covered with
woods, and the plains with thickets interspersed
with large trees. As cultivation increased the syl-
van vegetation suffered ; and as the evaporation in
this district is excessively powerful, the little rivers
were dried up in the lower portion of their course
during a great part of the year. The land that sur-
rounds the lake being quite flat and even, the de-
crease of a few inches in the level of the water ex-
posed a vast extent of ground, and as it retired the
planters took possession of the new land.

The idea that the lake will soon entirely disap-
pear, Humboldt treats as chimerical, considering it
probable that a period will shortly arrive when the
supply of water by the rivers and the evaporation
will balance each other. The mean depth is from 77
to 96 feet, and there are some parts not less than 224
or 256 feet. The length is thirty-four and a half

LAKE OF VALENCIA.

175

miles, and the breadth four or five. The tempera-
ture at the surface, in February, was from 73 ‘4° to
74-7°/ which was a little lower than the mean tem-
perature of the air.

The Lake of Valencia is covered with beautiful
islands to the number of fifteen, some of which are
cultivated. It is well stocked with fish, although
it furnishes only three kinds, which are soft and
insipid. A small crocodile, the bava, which gene-
rally attains the length of three or four feet, is
very common; but it is remarkable that neither
the lake nor any of the rivers which flow into it,
have any large alligators, though these animals
abound a few leagues olf, in the streams that unite
with the Apure and Orinoco, or pass directly into
the Caribbean Sea. The islands are of gneiss, like
the surrounding country. Of the plants which they
produce, many have been believed to be peculiar
to the district, such as the papaws of the lake, and
the tomatoes of the island of Cura. The aquatic
vegetation along the shores reminded the travellers
of the lakes of Europe, although the species of po-
tamogeton, chara, and equisetum, were peculiar to
the New Continent.

Some of the rivers that flow into this fine sheet of
water owe their origin to hot springs, of which, how-
ever, the travellers were able to examine only those
of Mariara and Las Trincheras. In going up the
Cura toward its source, the mountains of Mariara
are seen advancing into the plain, in the form of
Hn amphitheatre composed of steep rocks, crown-
ed by serrated peaks. The central point is named
Rincon del Diablo. These masses are composed of a
coarse-grained granite, and are partially covered

176

HOT SPRINGS OF MARIARA.

with vegetation. In the hills toward the east of the
Rincon is a ravine containing several small basins,
the two uppermost of which are only eight inches
in diameter, while the three lower are from two
to three feet. Their depth varies from three to
fifteen inches, and their temperature is from 133°
to 138°. The hot water from these funnels forms a
rill, which thirty feet lower has a temperature of
only 1 18’4°, These springs are slightly impregnated
with sulphuretted hydrogen gas, the fluid having
a thin pellicle of sulphur; while a few plants in the
vicinity are crusted with the same substance. To
the south of this ravine, in the plain extending to the
shores of the lake, is another fountain of the same
kind, which issues from a crevice. The water, which
is not so hot, collects in a basin fifteen or eighteen
feet in diameter and three feet deep, in which the
slaves of the neighbouring plantations wash at the
end of the day. Here the travellers also bathed,
and afterwards found in the surrounding woods a
great variety of beautiful plants.

While drying themselves in the sun, after coming
out of the pool, a little mulatto approached them,
bowing gravely, and making a long speech on the
virtues of the water. Showing them his hut, he
assm-ed them they should find in it all the conve-
niences of life ; but his attentions ceased the mo-
ment he heard they had come merely to satisfy their
curiosity, and had no intention to try the efficacy
of the baths. They are said to be used with success
in rheumatic swellings, old ulcers, and the dreadful
affections of the skin called bubas.

On the 21st February, the travellers set out from
the Hacienda de Cura for Guacara and New Va-

NEW VALENCIA.

177

lencia. As the heat was excessive^ they preferred
travelling by night. Near the hamlet of Punta
Zamuro, at the foot of the lofty mountains of Las
ViruelaSj the road was bordered by large mimosas
sixty feet in height, and with horizontal branches
meeting at a distance of more than fifty yards,
so as to form a most beautiful canopy of verdure.
The night was gloomy, and the Rincon del Diablo
with its serrated cliffs appeared from time to time
illuminated by the burning of the savannahs. At
a place where the wood was thickest their horses
were frightened by the yelling of a large jaguar,
which seemed to follow them closely, and which
they were informed had roamed among these moun-
tains for three years, having escaped the pursuit of
the most intrepid hunters.

They spent the 22d in the house of the Marquis
de Foro, at the village of Guacara, a large Indian
community ; and on the 23d, after visiting Mocundo,
an extensive sugar-plantation near it, they continued
their journey to New Valencia. They passed a
little wood of palms, of the genus Corypha, the
withered foliage of which, together with the camels
feeding in the plain, and the undulating motion of
the vapours on the arid soil, gave the landscape
quite an African character. The sterility of the
land increased as they advanced towards the city,
which is said to have been founded in 1555 by
Alonzo Diaz Moreno, and contains a population
of six or seven thousand individuals. The streets
are broad ; and as the houses are low, they occu-
pied a large extent of ground. Here the termites
or white ants were so numerous, that their excava-
tions resembled subterranean canals, which, being

178 HOT SPRINGS OF LA TRINCHERA.

filled with water in rainy weather^ became extreme-
ly dangerous to the buildings.

On the 26th they set out for the farm of Barbula,
to examine a new road that was making from the
city to Porto Cabello ; and on the 27th visited the
hot springs of La Trinchera, three leagues from Va-
lencia. These fountains were so copious as to form
a rivuletj which, during the greatest droughts, was
two feet deep and eighteen wide. The temperature
of the water was ]94’5°. Eggs immersed in them
were boiled in less than four minutes. They issued
from granite, and were strongly impregnated with
sulphuretted hydrogen. A sediment of carbonate
of lime was deposited, and the most luxuriant vege-
tation surrounded the basin, — mimosas, clusias, and
fig-trees, pushing their roots into the water, and ex-
tending their branches over it. Forty feet distant
from these remarkable sources there rose others
which were of the ordinary temperature. Hum-
boldt remarks, that in all climates people show the
same predilection for heat. In Iceland the first
Christian converts would be baptized only in the
tepid streams of Hecla ; and in the torrid zone, the
natives flock from all parts to the thermal waters.
The river which is formed by the fountains of La
Trinchera runs toward the north-east, and near the
coast expands to a considerable size.

Descending toward Porto Cabello, the travellers
passed through a very picturesque district, beauti-
fied by a most luxuriant vegetation and numerous
cascades. A stratified coarse-grained granite oc-
curred near the road. The heat became sutFocating
as they approached the coast, and a reddish vapour
veiled the horizon. In the evening they reached

PORTO CABELLO.

179

the town, where they were kindly received by a
French physician, M. Juliac, whose house contain-
ed an interesting collection of zoological subjects.
This gentleman was principal surgeon to the royal
hospital, and was celebrated for his profound ac-
quaintance with the yellow fever. He stated, that
when he had treated his patients by bleeding, ape-
rients, and acid drinks, in hospitals where the sick
were crowded, the mortality was 33 in 100 among the
white creoles, and 65 in 100 among recently-disem-
barked Europeans; but that since a stimulating
treatment, and the use of opium, benzoin, and alco-
holic draughts had been substituted for the old debi-
litating method, the mortality had been reduced to
20 in 100 among Europeans, and 10 among natives.

The heat of Porto Cabello is not so intense as
that of La Guayra, the breeze being stronger and
more regular, and the air having more room to cir-
culate between the coast and the mountains. The
cause of the insalubrity of the atmosphere is there-
fore to be sought for in the exhalations that arise
from the shore to the eastward, where at the begin-
ning of the rainy season tertian fevers prevail, which
easily degenerate into the continued typhoid. It has
been observed that the mestizoes employed in the
salt-works have a yellower skin when they have suf-
fered several successive years from these fevers. The
fishermen assert, that the unwholesomeness of the
air is owing to the overflowings of the rivers and
not to inundations of the sea, and it has been found
that the extended cultivation along the banks of the
Rio Estevan has rendered them less pestilential.

The salt-works are similar to those of Araya,
near Cumana, but the earth at Porto Cabello con-

180

COW-TREE.

tains less muriate of soda. As the employment is very
unhealthy, the poorest persons alone engage in it.
The defence of the coasts of Terra Firma was main-
tained at six points, the castle of San Antonio at Cu-
mana, the fortifications of La Guayra, Porto Cahello,
Fort St Charles, and Carthagena. Next to Cartha-
gena the most important place is Porto Cahello. The
harbour is one of the finest in the world, resembling
a basin or little inland lake, opening to the westward
by a passage so narrow that only one vessel can an-
chor at a time, and is defended by batteries. The
upper part of it is marshy ground filled with stag-
nant and putrid water. At the time of Humboldt’s
visit the number of inhabitants was 9000.

Leaving Porto Cahello on the 1st March at sun-
rise, our travellers were astonished at the number of
boats which they saw laden with fruit for the mar-
ket. They returned to the valleys of Aragua, and
again stopped at the farm of Barbula. Having
heard of a tree, the juice of which resembles milk,
and is used as an article of food, they visited it, and
to their surprise found that the statements which had
been made to them with respect to it were correct.
It is named the polo de vaca or cow -tree, and has
oblong pointed leaves, with a somewhat fleshy fruit
containing one or sometimes two nuts. When an
incision is made in the trunk, there issues abundant-
ly a thick glutinous milky fluid, perfectly free from
acrimony, and having an agreeable smell. It is
drunk by the negroes and free people who work
in the plantations, and the travellers took a consi-
derable quantity of it without the least injurious
effect. When exposed to the air, this juice presents
on its surface a yellowish cheesy substance, in mem-

COW-TREE.

181

braiious layers, which are elastic, and in five or six
days become sour, and afterwards putrefy.

The cow-tree appears to be peculiar to the litto-
ral cordillera, and occurs most plentifully between
Barbula and the Lake of Maracaybo.

“Among the many curious phenomena,” says
Humboldt, “ which presented themselves to me in
the course of my travels, I confess there were few
by which my imagination was so powerfully affected
as the cow-tree. All that relates to milk and to the
cereal plants inspires us with an interest, which is not
merely that of the physical knowledge of things, but
which connects itself with another order of ideas and
feelings. We can hardly imagine how the human spe-
cies could exist without farinaceous substances, and
without the nutritious fluid which the breast of the
mother contains, and which is appropriated to the
condition of the feeble infant. The amylaceous mat-
ter of the cereal plants, — the object of religious ve-
neration among so many ancient and modern na-
tions,— is distributed in the seeds, and deposited in
the roots of vegetables ; while the milk which we
use as food appears exclusively the product of ani-
mal organization. Such are the impressions which
we receive in early childhood, and such is the source
of the astonishment with which we are seized on
first seeing the cow-tree. Magnificent forests, ma-
jestic rivers, and lofty mountains clad in perennial
snows, are not the objects which we here admire.
A few drops of a vegetable fluid impress us with an
idea of the power and fecundity of nature. On the
parched side of a rock grows a tree with dry and
leathery foliage, its large woody roots scarcely pene-
trating into the ground. For several months in the

182

CARNIVAL.

year its leaves are not moistened by a shower ; its
branches look as if they were dead and withered ;
but when the trunk is bored^ a bland and nourish-
ing milk flows from it. It is at sunrise that the
vegetable fountain flows most freely. At that time
the blacks and natives are seen coming from all
parts, provided with large bowls to receive the milk,
which grows yellow and thickens at its surface.
Some empty their vessels on the spot, while others
carry them to their children. One imagines he sees
the family of a shepherd who is distributing the milk
of his flock.”

The travellers had resolved to visit the eastern
extremity of the cordilleras of New Grenada, where
they end in the Paramos of Tirnotes and Niquitas ;
but learning at Barbula that this excursion would
retard their arrival at the Orinoco thirty-five days,
they judged it prudent to relinquish it, lest they
should fail in the real object of their journey, that of
ascertaining by astronomical observations the point
at which the Rio Negro and the River of Amazons
communicate with the former stream. They therefore
returned to Guacara, to take leave of the family of
the Marquis del Toro, and pass three days more on
the shores of the Lake of Valencia. It happened to
be the time of carnival, and all was gayety. The
games in which the common people indulged were
occasionally not of the most pleasant kind. Some led
about an ass laden with water, with which they
sprinkled the apartments wherever they found an
open window ; while others, carrying bags full of
the hairs of the Dolichos pruriens, which excite
great irritation of the skin, blew them into the faces
of those who were passing by. From Guacara they

PLANTATIONS OF CACAO.

183

returned to New Valencia, where they found a few
French emigrants, the only ones they saw during
five years in the Spanish colonies.

The cacao-plantations have always been consider-
ed as the principal source of the prosperity of these
countries. The tree ( Theohroma cacao) which pro-
duces this substance is not now found wild in the
woods to the north of the Orinoco, and begins to be
seen only beyond the cataracts of Atures and May-
pures ; but it abounds near the Ventuaro, and on
the Upper Orinoco. In the plantations it vegetates
so vigorously, that flowers spring out even from the
woody roots wherever they are left uncovered. It
suffers from the north-east winds ; and the heavy
showers that fall during the winter season, from De-
cember to March, are very injurious to it. Great
humidity is favourable only when it augments
gradually, and continues a long time without in-
terruption. In the dry season, when the leaves and
young fruit are wetted by a heavy shower, the lat-
ter falls to the ground. For these reasons the ca-
cao-harvest is very uncertain, and the causes of fail-
ure are increased by the depredations of worms, in-
sects, birds, and quadrupeds. This branch of agri-
culture has the disadvantage, moreover, of obliging
the new planter to wait eight or ten years for the
fruit of his labours, and of yielding an article of
very difficult preservation ; but it requires a much
less number of slaves than most others, one being
sufficient for a thousand trees, which at an average
yield twelve fanegas annually. It appeared pro-
bable, that from 1800 to 1806 the yearly produce
of the cacao-plantations of the capitania-general of
Caraccas was at least 193,000 fanegas, or 299,200

184

CONSUMPTION OF CACAO.

bushels, of which the province of Caraccas furnished
three-fourths. The crops are gathered twice a-year,
at the end of June and of December.

Humboldt states, as the result of numerous local
estimates, that Europe consumes, —

23.000. 000 pounds of cacao, at 12 fr. per cwt.= 27,600,000 fr.

32.000. 000 pounds of tea, at 4 fr. per lb. =128,000,000

140.000. 000 pounds of coffee, at 114 fr. per cwt.= 159,000,000

450.000. 000 pounds of sugar, at 54 fr. per cwt. =243,000,000

Total value, £23,250,000 sterling, or 558,000,000 fr.

The late wars have had a very injurious effect on
the cacao-trade of Caraccas ; and the cultivation of
this article seems to be gradually declining. It is as-
serted that the new plantations are not so productive
as the old, the trees not acquiring the same vigour,
and the harvest being later and less abundant. This
is supposed to be owing to exhaustion of the land ;
but Humboldt attributes it rather to the diminu-
tion of moisture caused by cropping.*

In concluding his remarks on the province of Ve-
nezuela, our author gives a general view of the soil
and metallic productions of the districts of Aroa,
Barquesimeto, and Carora. From the Sierra Ne-
vada of Merida, and the Paramos of Niquitao, Bo-
cono, and Las Rosas, the eastern Cordillera of New
Grenada decreases so rapidly in height, that be-
tween the ninth and tenth degrees of latitude it
forms only a chain of hills, which separate the rivers

• Accord!^ to Macculloch, the little use made of this excellent
beverage in England may be ascribed to the oppressiveness of the
duties with which it has been loaded, and not to its being unsuitable
to the public taste. “ At this moment (May 1831),” he says,
“ Trinidad and Grenada cacao is worth in bond, in the London mar-
ket, from 24s. to 65s. a-cwt. ; while the duty is no less than 65s.,
being nearly 100 per cent, upon the finer qualities, and no less than
230 per cent, upon those that are inferior !” — Macculloch' s Dic-
tionary of Commerce, art. Cacao.

GEOLOGY OF THE DISTRICT.

185

that join the Apure and the Orinoco from those that
flow into the Caribbean Sea or the Lake of Valen-
cia. On this ridge are built the towns of Nirgua^
San Felipe, Barquesimeto, and Tocuyo. The ground
rises toward the south.

In the cordillera just described, the strata usual-
ly dip to the N.W. ; so that the waters flow in that
direction over the ledges, forming those numerous
torrents and rivers, the inundations caused by which
are so fatal to the health of the inhabitants from
Cape Codera to the Lake of Maracaybo.

Of the streams that descend N.E. toward the coast
of Porto Cabello and La Puenta de Hicacos, the
most remarkable are the Tocuyo, Aroa, and Tara-
cuy ; the valleys of which, were it not for morbid
miasmata, would perhaps be more populous than
those of Aragua, as the soil is prolific and the waters
navigable. In a lateral valley, opening into that of
the Aroa, are copper-mines ; and in the ravines
nearer the sea are similar ores and gold- washings.
The total produce of both amounts to a quantity
varying from 1087 to 1358 cwts. of excellent metal.
Indications of silver and gold have been found in
various parts.

The Savannahs or Llanos of Monai and Carora,
separated from the great plains of Portuguesa and
Calabozo by the mountainous tract of Tocuyo and
Migua, although bare and arid, are oppressed with
miasmata j and Humboldt seems to think that their
insalubrity may be owing to the disengagement of
sulphuretted hydrogen gas.

186

URSINE, OR HOWLING MONKEYS.

CHAPTER XV.

Journey across the Llanos, fromAragua to San Fernando.

From the chain of mountains which borders the
Lake of Valencia toward the south, there stretches
in the same direction a vast extent of level land,
constituting the Llanos or Savannahs of Caraccas ;
and from the cultivated and populous district of
Aragua, embellished with mountains and rivers and
teeming with vegetation, one descends into a parch-
ed desolate plain, bounded by the horizon. On
this route we now accompany our travellers, who
on the 6th March left the valleys of Aragua, and
keeping along the south-west side of the lake, pass-
ed over a rich champaign country covered with cala-
bashes, water-melons, and plantains. The rising of
the sun was announced by the howling of monkeys,
of which they saw numerous bands moving as in
procession from one tree to another. These crea-
tures (the Simla ursina) execute their evolutions
with singular uniformity. When the boughs of two
trees do not touch each other, the leader of the party
swings himself by the tail upon the nearest twigs.

VIIil/A DE CURA.

187

the rest following in regular succession. The dis-
tance to which their bowlings may he heard was as-
certained by Humboldt to be 1705 yards. The
Indians assert that one always chants as leader of
the choir; and the missionaries say that when a
female is on the point of bringing forthj the bowl-
ings are suspended till the moment when the yoimg
appears.

The travellers passed the night at the village of
Guigue near the lake, where they lodged with an
old sergeant, a native of Murcia, who amused them
with a recital of the history of the world in Latin,
which he had learned among the Jesuits. Leaving
this place, they began to ascend the chain of moun-
tains which extends towards La Palma, and from
the top of an elevated platform took their last view
of the valleys of Aragua. The rock was gneiss with
auriferous veins of quartz. Arriving at the hamlet
of Maria Magdalena, they were stopped by the in-
habitants, who wanted to force their muleteers to
hear mass. Seven miles farther on they came to
the Villa de Cura, situated in an arid valley almost
destitute of vegetation. Here they remained for the
night, and joined an assembly of nearly all the re-
sidents in the town to admire in a magic-lantern
a view of the great capitals of Europe. This place,
which contains a population of four thousand, is
celebrated for the miracles performed by an image of
the Virgin found by an Indian in a ravine.

Continuing to descend the southern declivity of
the range, they passed part of the night of the 11th
at the village of San Juan, remarkable for its hot-
springs and the singular form of two mountains in
the neighbourhood, called the Morros, which rise

188

MOUNTAINS OF ARAGUA.

like slender peaks from a wall of rocks. At two
in the morning they continued their journey by
Ortiz and Parapara to the Mesa de Paja. The
ground over which they travelled forms the ancient
shore of the Llanos ; and, as the chain has now
been traversed, it may be interesting to present a
brief view of its geological constitution.

In the Sierra de Mariara, near Caraccas, the rock
is coarse-grained granite. The valleys of Aragua,
the shores of the Lake of Valencia, its islands, and
the southern branch of the coast chain, are of gneiss
and mica-slate, which are auriferous. At San Juan
some of the rocks were gneiss passing into mica-slate.
On the south of this place the gneiss is concealed
beneath a deposite of serpentine, which, farther
south, passes into or alternates with greenstone.
This rock is now the principal one, and in the midst
of it rise the Morros of San Juan, composed of crys-
talline limestone of a greenish-gray colour, and
containing masses of dark-blue indurated clay. Be-
hind the Morros is another compact limestone con-
taining shells. The valley that descends from San
Juan to the Llanos is filled with trap-rocks lying
upon green-slate. Lower down the rocks take a
basaltic aspect. Farther south the slates disappear,
being concealed under a trap-deposite of varied ap-
pearance, but assuming an amygdaloidal character,
and on the margin of the plain is seen a formation
of clinkstone or porphyry-slate.

The travellers now entered the basin of the Llanos.
The sun was almost in the zenith, the ground was at
the temperature of 118° or 122°, and the suflbcating
heat was augmented by the whirls of dust which
incessantly arose from the surface of the steril soil.

BNTri^NCE OF THE LLANOS. 189

All around, the plains seemed to ascend into the
sky. The horizon in some parts was clear and dis-
tinct, while in others it seemed undulating or blend-
ed with the atmosphere. The trunks of palm-trees,
stripped of their foliage, and seen from afar through
the haze, resembled the masts of ships discovered on
the verge of the ocean.

In order to give some interest to the narrative of
a journey across a tract of so monotonous an aspect,
Humboldt presents a general view of the plains of
America, contrasted with the deserts of Africa, and
the fertile steppes of Asia, of which, however, the
most striking points alone can be here taken. There
is something awful and melancholy, he says, in the
uniform aspect of these savannahs, where every thing
seems motionless, and where the shadow of a cloud
hardly ever falls for months. He even doubts whether
the first sight of the Andes or of the Llanos excites
most astonishment; for as mountainous countries
have a similarity of appearance, whatever may be
the elevation of their summits, the view of a very
elevated range is perhaps not so striking as that of
a boundless plain, spread out like an ocean, and
on all sides mixing with the sky.

It has been said that Europe has its heaths,
Asia its steppes, Africa its deserts, and America its
savannahs ; and these great divisions of the globe
have been characterized by these circumstances.
But as the term heath always supposes the existence
of plants of that name, and as all the plains of Eu-
rope are not heathy, the description is incorrect. Nor
are the steppes of Asia always covered with saline
plants, some of them being real deserts ; neither are
the American Llanos always grassy. Instead of de-

190

REMARKS ON DESERTS.

signaling the vast levels of these dilferent regions
by the nature of the plants which they produce, it
seems proper to distinguish them into deserts, and
steppes or savannahs, by which terms would be
meant plains destitute of vegetation, or covered with
grasses or small dicotyledonous plants. The savan-
nahs of North America have been designated by the
name of prairies or meadows ; but the phrase is
not very applicable to pastures which are often dry.
The Llanos and Pampas of South America are real
steppes, displaying a beautiful verdure in the rainy
season, but during great droughts assuming the as-
pect of a desert. The grass is then reduced to pow-
der, the ground cracks, and the alligators and ser-
pents bury themselves in the mud, where they re-
main in a state of lethargy till they are roused by the
showers of spring. On the borders of rivulets, how-
ever, and aroimd the little pools of stagnant water,
thickets of the Mauritia palm preserve a brilliant
verdure, even during the driest part of the year.

The principal characteristic of the savannahs of
South America is the entire want of hills. In a
space extending to 387 square miles, there is not
a single eminence a foot high. These plains, how-
ever, present two kinds of inequalities: the han-
cos, consisting of broken strata of sandstone or
limestone, which stand four or five feet above the
surface; and the mesas, composed of small flats
or convex mounds, rising gradually to the height
of a few yards. The uniform aspect of these flats,
the extreme rarity of inhabitants, the fatigue of
travelling under a burning sky amid clouds of
dust, the continual recession of the horizon, and
the successive appearance of solitary palms, make

MOUNTAINS OF SOUTH AMERICA.

191

the steppes appear far more extensive than they really
are. It has even been imagined that the whole eastern
side of South America^ from the Orinoco and the
Apure to the Plata and the Straits of Magellan^ is
one great level ; hut this is not the case. In order to
understand their limitations it will be necessary to
take a general view of the mountain-ranges.

The cordillera of the coasts where the high^l
summit is the Silla of Caraccas, and which is con-
nected by the Paramo de las Rosas to the Nevado
de Merida, and the Andes of New Grenada, has
already been described. A less elevated but much
larger group of mountains extends from the mouths
of the Guaviare and the Meta, the source of the Ori-
noco, the Marony, and the Essequibo, toward French
and Dutch Guiana. This, which is named the cor-
dillera of Parime, may be followed for a length of
863 miles, and is separated from the Andes of New
Grenada by a space 276 miles in breadth. A third
chain of mountains, which connects the Andes of
Peru with the mountains of Brazil, is the cordillera
of Chiguitos, dividing the rivers flowing into the
Amazon from the tributaries of the Plata.

These three transverse chains or groups, extend-
ing from west to east within the limits of the torrid
zone, are separated by level tracts forming the plains
of Caraccas or of the Lower Orinoco, the flats of
the Amazon and Rio Negro, and those of Bue-
nos Ayres or La Plata. The middle basin, known
by the colonists under the name of the bosques or
selvas of the Amazon, is covered with trees; the
southern, the pampas of Buenos Ayres, with grass ;
and the northern, the llanos of Varinas and Carac-
cas, with plants of various kinds.

192

MOUNTAINS OF SOUTH AMERICA.

The western coasts of South America are bor-
dered by a wall of mountains^ pierced at intervals
by volcanic fires^ and constituting the celebrated
cordillera of the Andes^ the mean height of which
is 11,830 feet. It extends in the direction of a
meridian, sending out two lateral branches, one in
lat. 10° north, being that of the coast of Caraccas,
the other in lat. 16° and 18° south, forming the
cordillera of Chiquitos, and widening eastward in
Brazil into vast table-lands. Between these lines
is a group of granitic mountains, running from 3°
to 7° north latitude, in a direction parallel to the
equator, but not united to the Andes. These three
chains have no active volcanoes, and none of their
summits enter the line of perpetual snow. They are
separated by plains, which are closed toward the
west and open toward the east; and they are so
low, that were the Atlantic to rise 320 feet at the
mouth of the Orinoco and 1280 feet at the mouth
of the Amazon, more than the half of South Ame-
rica would be covered, and the eastern declivity of
the Andes would become a shore of the ocean.

We now accompany the travellers on their route
from the northern side of the Llanos to the banks
of the Apure, in the province of Varinas. After
passing two nights on horseback, they arrived at a
little farm called El Cayman, where was a house
surrounded by some small huts covered with reeds
and skins. They found an old negro who had the
management of the farm during his master’s ab-
sence. Although he told them of herds composed
of several thousand cows, they asked in vain for
milk, and were obliged to content themselves with

some muddy and fetid water drawn from a neigh-

ALLIGATOR MIRAGE.

193

bouring pool, of which they contrived to drink by
using a linen cloth as a filter. When the mules
were unloaded, they were set at liberty to go and
search for water, and the strangers following them
came upon a copious reservoir surrounded with
palm-trees. Covered with dust and scorched by
the sandy wind of the desert, they plunged into the
pool, but had scarcely begun to enjoy its coolness
when the noise of an alligator floundering in the mud
induced them to make a precipitate retreat. Night
coming on, they wandered about in search of the farm
without succeeding in finding it, and at length re-
solved to seat themselves under a palm-tree, in a dry
spot surrounded by short grass, when an Indian, who
had been on his round collecting the cattle, coming
up on horseback, was persuaded, though not without
diflficulty, to guide them to the house. At two in the
morning they set off, with the view of reaching Cala-
bozo before noon. The aspect of the country continued
the same. There was no moonlight, but the great
masses of nebulae illumined part of the terrestrial
horizon as they set out. As the sun ascended, the
phenomena of mirage presented themselves in all
their modifications. The little currents of air that
passed along the ground had so variable a tem-
perature, that in a herd of wild cows some appeared
with their legs raised from the surface, while others
rested upon it. The objects were generally sus-
pended, but no inversion was observed. At sunrise
the plains assumed a more animated appearance;
the horses, mules, and oxen, which graze on them
in a state of freedom, after having reposed during
the night beneath the palms, now assembled in
crowds. As the travellers approached Calabozo, they

194

VEGETATION OF THE LLANOS.

saw troops of small deer feeding in the midst of the
cattle. These animals, which are called matacani,
are a little larger than the roe of Europe, and have
a sleek fawn-coloured pile, spotted with white. Some
of them were entirely of the latter hue. Their flesh
is good ; and their number is so great that a trade
in their skins might he carried on with advantage,
hut the inhabitants are too indolent to engage in
any active occupation.

These steppes were principally covered with
grasses of the genera killingia, cenchrus, and pas-
palum, which at that season scarcely attain a height
of nine or ten inches near Calabozo and St Jerome
del Pirital, although on the banks of the Apure
and Portuguesa they rise to the length of four feet.
Along with these were mingled some turnerse, mal-
vacese, and mimosse. The pastures are richest on
the banks of the rivers, and under the shade of co-
rypha palms. These trees were singularly uniform in
size ; their height being from twenty-one to twenty-
five feet, and their diameter from eight to ten inches.
The wood is very hard, and the fan-like leaves are
used for roofing the huts scattered over the plains.
A few clumps of a species of rhopala occur here and
there.

The philosophers suffered greatly from the heat in
crossing the Mesa de Calabozo. Whenever the wind
blew, the temperature rose to 104° or 106°, and the
air was loaded with dust. The guides advised them
to fill their hats with the rhopala leaves, to prevent
the action of the solar rays on the head, and from
this expedient they derived considerable benefit.

At Calabozo they experienced the most cordial
hospitality from the administrator of the Real Ha-

CALABOZO CATTLE.

195

cienda, Don Miguel Cousin. The town, which is
situated between the Guarico and the Urituco, has
a population of 5000. The principal wealth of the
inhabitants consists of cattle, of which it was com-
puted that there were 98,000 in the neighbouring
pastures. M. Depons estimates the number in the
plains, extending from the mouths of the Orinoco to
the Lake of Maracayho, at 1,200,000 oxen, 180,000
horses, and 90,000 mules ; and in the Pampas of
Buenos Ayres, it is believed that there are 12,000,000
of cows and 3,000,000 of horses, not including cat-
tle which have no acknowledged owner. In the
Llanos of Caraccas, the richer proprietors of the great
hatos, or cattle-farms, brand 14,000 head every
year, and sell 5000 or 6000. The exportation from
the whole capitania-general amounts annually to
174,000 skins of oxen and 11,500 of goats, for the
West India Islands alone. This stock was first in-
troduced about 1548 by Christoval Rodriguez. They
are of the Spanish breed, and their disposition is so
gentle that a traveller runs no risk of being attacked
or pursued by them. The horses are also descended
from ancestors of the same country, and are gene-
rally of a brown colour. There were no sheep in the
plains.

Humboldt remarks, that when we hear of the
prodigious numbers of oxen, horses, and mules,
spread over the plains of America, we forget that
in civilized Europe the aggregate amount is not less
surprising. According to M. Peuchet, France feeds
6,000,000 of the large horned class; and in the
Austrian monarchy, the oxen, cows, and calves, are
estimated by Mr Lichtenstein at about 13,400,000.

At Calabozo, in the midst of the Llanos, the tra-

196

ELECTRIC EELS.

vellers found an electrical apparatus nearly as com-
plete as those of Europe, made by a person who
had never seen any such instrument, had received
no instructions, and was acquainted with the phe-
nomena of electricity only by reading the Trea-
tise of Sigaud de la Fond, and Franklin’s Memoirs.
Next to this piece of mechanism, the objects that ex-
cited the greatest interest were the electrical eels, or
gymnoti, which abound in the basins of stagnant
water and the confluents of the Orinoco. The dread
of the shocks given by these animals is so great
among the common people and Indians, that for
some time no specimens could be procured, and one
which was at length brought to them, afforded very
unsatisfactory results.

On the 19th March, at an early hour, they set
off for the village of Rastro de Abaxo, whence
they were conducted by the natives to a stream
which, in the dry season, forms a pool of muddy
water surrounded by trees. It being very difficult
to catch the gymnoti with nets, on account of their
extreme agility, it was resolved to procure some by in-
toxicating or benumbing them with the roots of cer-
tain plants, which when thrown into the water pro-
duce that effect. At this juncture the Indians in-
formed them that they would fish with horses, and
soon brought from the savannah about thirty of these
animals, which they drove into the pool.

‘‘ The extraordinary noise caused by the horses’
hoofs makes the fishes issue from the mud, and ex-
cites them to combat. These yellowish and livid
eels, resembling large aquatic snakes, swim at the
surface of the water, and crowd under the bellies of
the horses and mules. The struggle between ani-

FISHING WITH HORSES.

197

mals of so different an organization affords a very
interesting sight. The Indians^ furnished with har-
poons and long slender reeds, closely surround the
pool. Some of them climb the trees, whose branches
stretch horizontally over the water. By their wild
cries and their long reeds, they prevent the horses
from coming to the edge of the basin. The eels,
stunned by the noise, defend themselves by re-
peated discharges of their electrical batteries, and
for a long time seem likely to obtain the vic-
tory. Several horses sink under the violence of the
invisible blows which they receive in the organs
most essential to life, and, benumbed by the force
and frequency of the shocks, disappear beneath the
surface. Others, panting, with erect mane, and
haggard eyes expressive of anguish, raise themselves
and endeavour to escape from the storm which over-
takes them, but are driven back by the Indians.
A few, however, succeed in eluding the active vigi-
lance of the fishers ; they gain the shore, stumble at
every step, and stretch themselves out on the sand,
exhausted with fatigue, and having their limbs be-
numbed by the electric shocks of the gymnoti.

“ In less than five minutes two horses were killed.
The eel, which is five feet long, presses itself against
the belly of the horse, and makes a discharge along
the whole extent of its electric organ. It attacks at
once the heart, the viscera, and the caeliac plexus of
the abdominal nerves. It is natural that the effect
which a horse experiences should be more powerful
than that produced by the same fish on man, when
he touches it only by one of the extremities. The
horses are probably not killed but only stunned ;
they are drowned from the impossibility of rising

198

DESCRIPTION OF THE

amid the prolonged struggle between the other horses
and eels.”

The gyranoti at length dispersed, and approached
the edge of the pool, when five of them were taken
by means of small harpoons fastened to long cords.
A few more were caught towards evening, and there
was thus obtained a sufficient number of specimens
on which to make experiments. The results of
Humboldt’s observations on these animals may be
stated briefly as follows : —

The gymnotus is the largest electrical fish known,
some of those measured by him being from 5 feet 4
inches to 5 feet 7 inches in length. One, 4 feet 1
inch long, weighed 15f Troy pounds, and its trans-
verse diameter was 3 inches 7i lines. The colour
was a fine olive-green ; the under part of the head
yellow mingled with red. Along the back are two
rows of small yellow spots, each of which contains
an excretory aperture for the mucus, with which
the skin is constantly covered. The swimming-
bladder is of large size, and before it is situated
another of smaller dimensions ; the former separated
from the skin by a mass of fat, and resting upon the
electric organs, which occupy more than two-thirds
of the fish.

It would be rash to expose one’s self to the first
shocks of a very large individual, — the pain and
numbness which follow in such a case being ex-
tremely violent. When in a state of great weak-
ness, the animal produces in the person who touches
it a twitching, which is propagated from the hand
to the elbow ; a kind of internal vibration lasting
two or three seconds, and followed by painful torpi-
dity, being felt after every stroke. The electric energy

GYMNOTUS ELECTRTCUS.

199

depends upon the will of the creature^ and it directs
it toward the point where it feels most strongly irri-
tated. The organ acts only under the immediate
influence of the brain and heart ; for, when one of
them was cut through the middle, the fore part of the
body alone gave shocks. Its action on man is trans-
mitted and intercepted by the same substances that
transmit and intercept the electrical current of a
conductor charged by a Leyden jar or a Voltaic pile.
In the water the shock can be conveyed to a con-
siderable distance. No spark has ever been observed
to issue from the body of the eel when excited.

The gymnoti are objects of dread to the natives,
and their presence is considered as the principal
cause of the want of fish in the pools of the Llanos.
All the inhabitants of the waters avoid them ; and
the Indians asserted that when they take young al-
ligators and these animals in the same net, the latter
never display any appearance of wounds, because
they disable their enemies before they are attacked
by them. It became necessary to change the di-
rection of a road near Urituco, solely because they
were so numerous in a river that they killed many
mules in the course of fording it.

On the 24th March the travellers left Calabozo,
and advanced southward. As they proceeded they
found the country more dusty and destitute of
herbage. The palm-trees gradually disappeared.
From eleven in the morning till sunset the ther-
mometer kept at 95°. Although the air was calm
at the height of eight or ten feet, the ground was
swept by little currents which raised clouds of dust.
About four in the afternoon, they observed in the
savannah a young Indian girl, twelve or thirteen

200

INDIAN GIRL — CROCODILES.

years of age, quite naked, lying on her back, ex-
hausted with fatigue and thirst, and with her eyes,
nostrils, and mouth, filled with dust. Her breath-
ing was stertorous, and she was unable to answer
the questions put to her. Happily one of the mules
was laden with water, the application of which to
her face aroused her. She was at first frightened,
but by degrees took courage, and conversed with
the guides. As she could not be prevailed upon to
mount the beasts of burden, nor to return to Urituco,
she was furnished with some water ; upon which she
resumed her way, and was soon separated from her
preservers by a cloud of dust.

In the night they forded the Rio Urituco, which
is filled with crocodiles remarkable for their ferocity,
although those of the Rio Tisnao in the neighbour-
hood are not at all dangerous. They were shown
a hut or shed, in which a singular scene had been
witnessed by their host of Calabozo, who, having
slept in it upon a bench covered with leather, was
awakened early in the morning by a violent shak-
ing, accompanied with a horrible noise. Presently
an alligator two or three feet long issued from under
the bed, and darted at a dog lying on the threshold,
but missing him ran toward the river. When the
spot where the bench stood was examined, the dried
mud was found turned up to a considerable depth,
where the alligator had lain in its state of torpidity
or summer sleep. The hut being situated on the
edge of a pool, and inundated during part of the
year, the animal had no doubt entered at that
period and concealed itself in the mire. The In-
dians often find enormous boas, or water-serpents,
in the same lethargic state.

MESA DE PAVONES.

201

On the 25th March they passed over the smooth-
est part of the steppes of Caraccas, the Mesa de Pa-
vones. As far as the eye could reach, no object
fifteen inches high could be discovered excepting
cattle, of which they met some large herds accom-
panied by flocks of the crotophaga ani, a bird of a
black colour with olive reflections. They were
exceedingly tame, and perched upon the quadrupeds
in search of insects.

Wherever excavations had been made, they found
the rock to be old red sandstone or conglomerate, in
which were observed fragments of quartz, kiesel-
schiefer, and lydian stone. The cementing clay is
ferruginous, and often of a very bright red. This
formation, which covers an extent of several thou-
sand square leagues, rests on the northern margin
of the plains upon transition-slate, and to the south
upon the granites of the Orinoco.

After wandering a long time on the desert and
pathless savannahs of the Mesa de Pavones, they
were agreeably surprised to find a solitary farm-house
surrounded with gardens and pools of clear water.
Farther on they passed the night near the village
of San Geronymo del Guyaval, situated on the
banks of the Rio Guarico, which joins the Apure.
The ecclesiastic, who was a young man, and had no
other habitation than his church, received them in
the kindest manner. Crossing the Guarico they en-
camped in the plain, and early in the morning pur-
sued their way over low grounds which are often
inundated. On the 27th they arrived at the Villa
de San Fernando, and terminated their journey
over the Llanos.

202

SAN FERNANDO DE APURE.

CHAPTER XVI.

Voyage down the Rio Apure.

San Fernando — Commencement of the Rainy Season — Progress of
Atmospherical Phenomena— Cetaceous Animals — Voyage down
the Rio Apure — Vegetation and Wild Animals— Crocodiles,
Chiguires, and Jaguars — Don Ignacio and Donna Isabella — Wa-
ter-fowl— Nocturnal Howlingsin the Forest — Caribe-Fish — Ad-
venture with a Jaguar — Manatees— Mouth of the Rio Apure.

The town of San Fernando, which was founded
only in 1789, is advantageously situated on a large
navigable river, the Apure, a tributary of the
Orinoco, near the mouth of another stream which
traverses the whole province of Varinas, all the
productions of which pass through it on their way
to the coast. It is during the rainy season, when
the rivers overflow their hanks and inundate a
vast extent of country, that commerce is most ac-
tive. At this period the savannahs are covered with
water to the depth of twelve or fourteen feet, and.
present the appearance of a great lake, in the midst
of which the farm-houses and villages are seen ris-
ing on islands scarcely elevated above the surface.
Horses, mules, and cows, perish in great numbers,
and afford abundant food to the zamuros or carrion
vultures, as well as to the alligators. The inhabit-
ants, to avoid the force of the currents, and the
danger arising from the trees carried down by them.

INTENSE HEAT THUNDER.

203

instead of ascending the course of the rivers, find it
safer to cross the flats in their boats.

San Fernando is celebrated for the excessive heat
which prevails there during the greater part of the
year. The travellers found the white sand of the
shores, wherever it was exposed to the sun, to have
a temperature of 126‘5°, at two in the afternoon.
The thermometer, raised eighteen inches above the
sand, indicated 109° ; and at six feet, 101’7°* The
temperature of the air in the shade was 97°- These
observations were made during a dead calm, and
when the wind began to blow, the heat increased
three degrees.

On the 28th March, Humboldt and his compa-
nion being on the shore at sunrise, heard the thun-
der rolling all around, although as yet there were
only scattered clouds, advancing in opposite direc-
tions toward the zenith. Deluc’s hygrometer was
at 53°, the thermometer stood at 74’7^ and the elec-
trometer gave no particular indication. As the clouds
mustered, the blue of the sky changed to deep azure,
and then to gray; and when it was completely overcast
the thermometer rose several degrees. Although a
heavy rain fell, the travellers remained on the
shore to observe the electrometer. When it was
held at the height of six feet from the ground, the
pith-balls generally separated only a few seconds
before the lightning was seen. The separation was
four lines. The electric charge remained the same
for several minutes, and there were repeated oscil-
lations from positive to negative. Toward the end
of the storm the west wind blew with great impe-
tuosity, and when the clouds dispersed the thermo-
meter fell to 71‘6°-

204

PROGRESS OF ATMOSPHERIC

Humboldt states, that he enters into these details
because Europeans usually confine themselves to a
description of the impressions made on their minds
by the solemn spectacle of a tropical thunder-storm ;
and because, in a country where the year is divided
into two great seasons of drought and rain, it is in-
teresting to trace the transition from the one to the
other. In the valleys of Aragua, he had from the
18th of February observed clouds forming in the
evening, and in the beginning of March the ac-
cumulation of vesicular vapours became visible.
Flashes of lightning were seen in the south, and
at sunset Volta’s electrometer regularly display-
ed positive indications, the separation of the pith-
balls being from three to four lines. After the 26th
of the latter month, the electrical equilibrium of the
atmosphere seemed broken, although the hygrome-
ter still denoted great dryness.

The following is an account of the atmospheric
phenomena in the inland districts to the east of the
cordilleras of Merida and New Grenada, in the
Llanos of Venezuela, and the Rio Meta, from the
fourth to the tenth degree of north latitude, where-
ever the rains continue from May to October, and
consequently include the period of the greatest heat,
which is in July and August : — Nothing can equal
the purity of the atmosphere from December to Fe-
bruary. The sky is then constantly without clouds,
and should one appear, it is a phenomenon that
occupies all the attention of the inhabitants. The
breeze from the east and north-east blows with vio-
lence. As it always carries with it air of the same
temperature, the vapours cannot become visible
through refrigeration. Towards the end of Febru-

PHENOMENA IN THE INTERIOK.

205

ary and the beginning of March the blue of the sky
is less intense ; the hygrometer gradually indicates
greater humidity; the stars are sometimes veiled
by a thin stratum of vapours ; their light ceases to
be tranquil and planetary ; and they are seen to
sparkle from time to time at the height of 20° above
the horizon. At this period the breeze diminishes
in strength, and becomes less regular, being more
frequently interrupted by dead calms. Clouds ac-
cumulate towards the south-east, appearing like dis-
tant mountains with distinct outlines. From time
to time they are seen to separate from the horizon,
and traverse the celestial vault with a rapidity which
has no correspondence with the feebleness of the
wind that prevails ip the lower strata of the air.
At the end of March the southern region of the at-
mosphere is illuminated by small electric explosions,
like phosphorescent gleams confined to a single group
of vapours. From this period the breeze shifts at
intervals, and for several hours, to the west and
south-west, alfording a sure indication of the ap-
proach of the rainy season, which on the Orinoco
commences about the end of April. The sky begins
to be overcast, its azure colour disappears, and a gray
tint is uniformly diffused over it. At the same time
the heat of the atmosphere gradually increases, and
instead of scattered clouds the whole vault of the
heavens is overspread with condensed vapours. The
howling-monkeys begin to utter their plaintive
cries long before sunrise. The atmospheric electri-
city which, during the period of the greatest drought,
from December to March, had been almost con-
stantly in the daytime from 1*7 to 2 lines to Volta’s
electrometer, becomes extremely variable after March.

206

ATMOSPHERIC PHENOMENA.

During whole days it appears null^ and again^ for
some hours, the pith-halls of the electrometer diverge
from three to four lines. The atmosphere, which
in the torrid as in the temperate zone is generally
in a state of positive electricity, passes alternately,
in the course of eight or ten minutes, to the nega-
tive state. The rainy season is that of thunder-
storms ; and yet I have found, from numerous ex-
periments made during three years, that at this sea-
son the electric tension is less in the lower regions
of the atmosphere. Are thunder-storms the elfect
of this unequal change of the different superimposed
strata of the air ? What prevents the electricity
from descending towards the earth in a stratum of
air which has become more humid since the month
of March ? At this period the electricity, in place
of being diffused through the whole atmosphere,
would seem to be accumulated on the outer envelope
at the surface of the clouds. According to M. Gay
Lussac, it is the formation of the cloud itself that
carries the fluid toward the surface. The storm
rises in the plains two hours after the sun passes
through the meridian, and therefore shortly after
the period of the maximum of the diurnal heat in
the tropics. In the inland districts it is exceedingly
rare to hear thunder at night or in the morning,
nocturnal thunder-storms being peculiar to certain
valleys of rivers which have a particular climate.”

It may be interesting to present a very brief state-
mentof Humboldt’s explanation of these phenomena:
— The season of rains and thunder in the northern
equinoctial zone coincides with the passage of the sun
through the zenith of the place, the cessation of the
breezes or north-east winds, and the frequency of

ATMOSPHERIC PHENOMENA. 207

calms, and furious currents of the atmosphere from
the south-east and south-west, accompanied with a
cloudy sky. While the breeze from the north-east
blows, it prevents the atmosphere from being satu-
rated with moisture. The hot and loaded air of the
torrid zone rises and flows otf again towards the
poles, while inferior currents from these last, bring-
ing drier and colder strata, take the place of the
ascending columns. In this manner the humidity,
being prevented from accumulating, passes off to-
wards the temperate and colder regions, so that the
sky is always clear. When the sun, entering the
northern signs, rises towards the zenith, the breeze
from the north-east softens, and at length ceases ;
this being the season at which the difference of
temperature between the tropics and the contigu-
ous zone is least. The column of air resting on
the equinoctial zone becomes replete with vapours,
because it is no longer renewed by the current
from the pole ; clouds form in this atmosphere, sa-
turated and cooled by the effects of radiation and
the dilatation of the ascending air, which increases
its capacity for heat in proportion as it is rarefied.
Electricity accumulates in the higher regions in con-
sequence of the formation of the vesicular vapours,
the precipitation of which is constant during the
day, but generally ceases at night. The showers
are more violent, and accompanied with electrical
explosions, shortly after the maximum of the diur-
nal heat. These phenomena continue until the sun
enters the southern signs, when the polar current is
re-established, because the difference between the
heat of the equinoctial and temperate regions is daily
increasing. The air of the tropics being thus re-

208

VOYAGE DOWN THE APURE.

newed, the rains cease^ the vapours are dissolved,
and the sky resumes its azure tint.

At San Fernando, Humboldt observed in the
river long files of cetaceous animals, resembling the
common porpoise. The crocodiles seemed to dislike
them, and dived whenever they approached. They
were three or four feet long, and appear to be
peculiar to the great streams of South America, as
he saw some of them above the cataracts of the
Orinoco, whither they could not have ascended from
the sea.

The rainy season had now commenced, and as
the way to that river by land lies across an un-
healthy and uninteresting flat, they preferred the
longer way by the Rio Apure, and embarked in a
large canoe or lancha, having a pilot and four In-
dians for crew. A cabin was constructed in the
stern, of sufficient size to hold a table and benches,
and covered with corypha-leaves. They put on board
a stock of provisions for a month, while the capuchin
missionary, with whom they had lodged during
their stay, supplied them with wine, oranges, and
tamarinds. Fishing-instruments, fire-arms, and some
casks of brandy, for bartering with the natives, were
added to their store. On the 30th March, at four
in the afternoon, they left San Fernando, accompa-
nied by Don Nicolas Sopo, brother-in-law of the
governor of the province. The river abounds in fish,
manatees, and turtles, and its banks are peopled by
numberless birds, of which the pauxi and guacha-
raca are the most useful to man. Passing the mouth
of the Apurito, they coasted the island of the same
name, formed by the Apure and Guarico, and which
is seventy-six miles in length. On the banks they

WILD ANIMALS.

209

saw huts of the Yaruroes, who live by hunting and
fishing, and are very skilful in killing jaguars, the
skins of which they dispose of in the Spanish vil-
lages. The night was passed at Diamante, a small
sugar-plantation.

On the 31st a contrary wind obliged them to re-
main on shore till noon, when they embarked, and
as they proceeded found the river gradually widen-
ing ; one of its banks being generally sandy and bar-
ren, the other higher and covered with tall trees.
Sometimes, however, it was bordered on both sides
by forests, and resembled a straight canal 320 yards
in breadth. Bushes of sauso (Hermesia castaneifo-
lia) formed along the margins a kind of hedge about
four feet high, in which the jaguars, tapirs, and pe-
caris, had made openings for the purpose of drink-
ing ; and as these animals manifest little fear at the
approach of a boat, the travellers had the pleasure
of viewing them as they walked slowly along the
shore, until they disappeared in the forest. When
the sauso-hedge was at a distance from the current,
crocodiles were often seen in parties of eight or ten,
stretched out on the sand motionless, and with their
jaws opened at right angles. These monstrous rep-
tiles were so numerous, that throughout the whole
course of the river there were usually five or six in
view, although the waters had scarcely begun to rise,
and hundreds were still buried in the mud of the
savannahs. A dead individual which they found
was 17 feet 9 inches long, and another, a male,
was more than 23. This species is not a cay-
man or alligator, but a real crocodile, with feet
dentated on the outer edge like that of the Nile.
The Indians informed them, that scarcely a year

210

CROCODILES AND CHIGUIRES.

passes at San Fernando without two or three per-
sons being drowned by them, and related the his-
tory of a young girl of Urituco who, by singular
presence of mind, made her escape from one.
Finding herself seized and carried into the water,
she felt for the eyes of the animal, and thrust her
fingers into them ; when the crocodile let her loose,
after biting off the lower part of her left arm. Not-
withstanding the quantity of blood which she lost,
she was still able to reach the shore by swimming
with the right hand. Mungo Park’s guide, Isaaco,
effected his preservation from a crocodile by employ-
ing the same means. The motions of these animals
are abrupt and rapid when they attack an object, al-
though they move very slowly when not excited. In
running they make a rustling noise, which seems to
proceed from their scales, and appear higher on their
legs than when at rest, at the same time bending the
hack. They generally advance in a straight line, hut
can easily turn when they please. They swim with
great facility, even against the most rapid current.
On the Apure they seemed to live chiefly on the chi-
guires {Cavia capyhara), which feed in herds on the
banks, and are of the size of our pigs. These crea-
tures have no weapons for defence, and are alter-
nately the prey of the jaguars on land and of the
crocodiles in the water.

Stopping below the mouth of the Cano de la
Figuera, in a sinuosity called La Vuelta del Joval,
they measured the velocity of the current at its sur-
face, which was only 3‘4 feet in a second. Here
they were surrounded by chiguires, swimming like
dogs, with the head and neck out of the water.
A large crocodile, which was sleeping on the shore

Jaguar, or American Tiger.

JAGUAR.

213

in the midst of a troop of these animals, awoke at
the approach of the canoe, and moved slowly into
the stream without frightening the others. Near
the Joval every thing assumed a wild and awful
aspect. Here they saw an enormous jaguar stretched
beneath the shade of a large zamang or mimosa. It
had just killed a chiguire, which it held with one
of its paws, while the zamuro- vultures were assem-
bled in flocks around it. It was curious to observe
the mixture of boldness and timidity which these
birds exhibited, for although they advanced within
two feet of the tiger, they instantly shrunk back at
the least motion which he made. In order to examine
more nearly their manners, the travellers went into
the little boat ; when the tyrant of the forest with-
drew behind the sauso-bushes, leaving his victim,
which the vultures in the mean time attempted to
devour, but were soon put to flight by his rushing
into the midst of them.*

* In the province of Tucuman, the common mode of killing the .
jaguar is to trace him to his lair, by the wool left on the bushes, if
he has carried off a sheep, or by means of a dog trained for the pur-
pose. On finding the enemy the gaucho puts himself into a position
tor receiving him on the point of a bayonet or spear, at the first
spring which he makes, and thus waits until the dogs drive him out ;
an exploit which he performs with such coolness and dexterity that
there is scarcely an instance of failure. “ In a recent instance, re-
lated by our capitaz, the business was not so quickly completed.
The animal lay stretched at full length on the ground, like a gorged
cat. Instead of showing anger and attacking his enemies with fury,
he was playful, and disposed rather to parley with the dogs with
good humour than to talce their attack in sober earnestness. He
was now fired upon, and a ball lodged in his shoulder ; on which he
sprung so quickly on his watching assailant, that he not only buried
the bayonet in his body, but tumbled over the capitaz who held it,
and they floundered on the ground together, the man being com-
pletely in his clutches. ‘ I thought,’ said the brave fellow, ‘ I was
no longer a capitaz, while I held my arm up to protect my throat,
which the animal seemed in the act of seizing ; but when I expected
to feel his fangs in my flesh, the green fire of his eyes which blazed

214

JAGUAR-HUNTER.

Continuing to descend the river, they met with
a great herd of chiguires that the tiger had dis-
persed, and from which he had selected his prey.
These animals seemed not to he afraid of men, for
they saw the travellers land without agitation, hut
the sight of a dog put them to flight. They ran so
slowly that the people succeeded in catching two
of them. It is the largest of the Glires or gnaw-
ing animals. Its flesh has a disagreeable smell of
musk, although hams are made of it in the country,^
which are eaten during Lent ; as this quadruped,
according to ecclesiastical zoology, is esteemed a fish.

The travellers passed the night as usual in the
open air, although in a plantation, the proprietor of
which, a jaguar-hunter, half-naked and as brown
as a Zambo, prided himself on being of the Euro-
pean race, and called his wife and daughter, who
were as slightly clothed as himself, Donna Isabella
and Donna Manuela. Humboldt had brought a
chiguire ; hut his host assured him such food was not
fit for white gentlemen like them, at the same time
offering him venison. As this aspiring personage
had neither house nor hut, he invited the strangers to
sling their hammocks near his own, between two
trees ; which they accordingly did. They soon found
reason, however, to regret that they had not obtained
better shelter ; for after midnight a thunder-storm
came on, which wetted them to the skin. Donna Isa-
bella’s cat had perched on one of the trees, and fell into
a cot, the inmate of which imagined he was attacked
by some wild beast, and could hardly be quieted.

upon me, flashed out in a moment. He fell on me, and expired at
the very instant I thought myself lost for ever.’ ” — Captain An-
drews' Travels in South America, vol. i. p. 219.

SCENERY OF THE APURE.

215

At sunriscj the lodgers took leave of Don Ignacio
and his lady, and proceeded on their voyage. The
weather was a little cooler, the thermometer having
fallen from 86° to 75°, hut the temperature of the
river continued at 79° or 80°. One might imagine
that on smooth ground, where no eminence can be
distinguished, the stream would have hollowed out
an even bed for itself ; but this is by no means the
case ; the two banks not opposing equal resistance
to the water. Below the Joval the mass of the cur-
rent is a little wider, and forms a perfectly straight
channel, margined on either side by lofty trees. Ik
was here about 290 yards broad. They passed a
low island densely covered by flamingoes, roseate
spoonbills, herons, and water-hens, which presented
a most diversified mixture of colours. On the right
bank they found a little Indian mission, consisting
of sixteen huts constructed of palm-leaves, and inha-
bited by a tribe of the Guamoes. These Christians
were unable to furnish them with the provisions
which they wanted, but hospitably oflered them dried
fish and water. The night was spent on a bare and
very extensive beach. The forest being impenetrable,
they had great difficulty in obtaining dry wood to
light fires for the purpose of keeping off" the wild
beasts. But the night was calm, with beautiful
moonlight. Finding no tree on the banks, they stuck
their oars in the sand, and suspended their hammocks
upon them. About eleven there arose in the wood so
terrific a noise that it was impossible to sleep. The
Indians distinguished the cries of sapajous, alouates,
jaguars, cougars, pecaris, sloths, carassows, panakas,
and other gallinaceous birds. When the tigers ap-
proached the edge of the forest, a dog which the

216

NOCTURNAL HOWLINGS.

travellers had began to howl and seek refuge under
their cots. Sometimes^ after a long silencOj the cry
of the ferocious animal came from the tops of the
trees, when it was followed by the sharp and long
whistling of the monkeys. Humboldt supposes the
noise thus made by the inhabitants of the thicket,
at certain hours of the night, to be the effect of some
contest that has arisen among them.

On the 2d April they set sail before sunrise.
The river was ploughed by porpoises, and the shore
crowded with aquatic birds; while some of the latter,
perched on the floating timber, were endeavouring
to surprise the fish that preferred the middle of the
stream. The navigation is rather dangerous, on ac-
count of the large trees which remain obliquely fixed
in the mud, and the canoe touched several times.
Near the island of Carizales, they saw enormous
trunks covered with plotuses or darters, and below
it observed a diminution of the waters of the river,
owing to infiltration and evaporation. Near the
Vuelta de Basilio, where they landed to gather
plants, they saw on a tree two beautiful jet-black
monkeys of an unknown species, and also a nest
of iguanas, which was pointed out by the Indians.
The flesh of this lizard is very white, and, next to
that of the armadillo, is the best food to be found
in the huts of the natives. Towards evening it
rained, and swallows were seen skimming along the
water. They also saw a flock of parrots pursued by
hawks. The night was passed on the beach.

On the 3d they proceeded down the river in their
solitary course. The sailors caught the fish known
in the country by the nameof caribe; which, although
only four or five inches in length, attacks persons

ADVENTURE WITH A JAGUAR. 217

who go into the water, and with its sharp triangular
teeth often tears considerable portions of flesh from
their legs. When pieces of meat are cast into the
river, clouds of these little fishes appear in a few
minutes. There are three varieties in the Orinoco; one
of which seems to he the Salmo rhombem of Lin-
naeus. At noon they stopped in a desert spot called
Algodonal, when Humboldt left his companions and
went along the beach to observe a group of crocodiles
sleeping in the sun. Some little herons of a white
colour were walking along their backs, and even on
their heads. As he was proceeding, his eyes directed
towards the river, he discovered recent footmarks
of a beast of prey, and turning toward the forest,
found himself within eighty steps of an enormous-
ly large jaguar. Although extremely frightened,
he yet retained sufficient command of himself to
follow the advice which the Indians had so often
given, and continued to walk without moving his
arms, making a large circuit toward the edge of the
water. As the distance increased he accelerated his
pace, and at length, judging it safe to look about,
did so, and saw the tiger in the same spot. Ar-
riving at the boat out of breath, he related his ad-
venture to the natives, who seemed to think it no-
thing extraordinary. In the evening they passed
the mouth of the Cano del Manati, so named on
account of the vast number of manatees caught there.
This aquatic herbivorous animal generally attains
the length of ten or twelve feet, and abounds in the
Orinoco below the cataracts, the Rio Meta, and the
Apure. The flesh, although very savoury and re-
sembling pork, is considered unwholesome ; but it
is in request during Lent, being classed by the

218

MANATEES.

monks among fishes. The fat is used for lamps in
the churches, as well as for cooking ; while the hide
is cut into slips to supply the place of cordage. Whips
are also made of it in the Spanish colonies for the
castigation of negroes and other slaves. The fires
lighted by the boatmen on the shore attracted the
crocodiles and dolphins. Two persons kept watch
during the night. A jaguar with her cub approach-
ed the encampment, hut was driven away by the
attendants ; and soon after the dog was bitten in the
nose by a large bat or vampire.

On the 4th they intended to pass the night at
Vuelta del Palmito ; but as the Indians were going
to sling the hammocks they found two tigers con-
cealed behind a tree, and it was judged safer to re-
emhark and sleep on the island of Apurito. Mul-
titudes of gnats made their appearance regularly
at sunset, and covered their faces and hands. On
the 5th they were much struck by the diminution
the waters of the Apure had undergone, which they
attributed chiefly to absorption by the sand and eva-
poration. It was only from 128 to 170 yards broad,
and about twenty feet deep. Humboldt estimates
the mean fall of this river at 14 inches in a mile.
The canoe touched several times on shoals as they
approached the point of junction, and it became ne-
cessary to tow it by means of a line.

THE ORINOCO.

219

CHAPTER XVII.

Voyage up the Orinoco.

Ascent of the Orinoco — Port of Encaramada — Traditions of a Uni-
versal Deluge — Gathering of Turtles’ Eggs — Two Species de-
scribed— Mode of collecting the Eggs and of manufacturing the
Oil — Probable Number of these Animals on the Orinoco — Decora-
tions of the Indians — Encampment of Pararuma — Height of the
Inundations of the Orinoco — Rapids of Tabage.

Leaving the Rio Apure the travellers entered the
Orinoco, and presently found themselves in a coun-
try of an entirely different aspect. As far as the eye
could reach there lay before them a sheet of water,
the waves of which, from the conflict of the breeze
and the current, rose to the height of several feet.
The long files of herons, flamingoes, and spoonbills,
which were observed on the Apure, had disappeared ;
and all that supplied the place of those multitudes
of animated beings by whom they had been lately
accompanied, was here and there a crocodile swim-
ming in the agitated stream. The horizon was
bounded by a girdle of forests, separated from the
river by a broad beach, the bare and parched sur-
face of which refracted the solar rays into the sem-
blance of pools.

The wind was favourable for sailing up the
Orinoco; but the short broken waves at the junc-
tion of the two rivers were exceedingly disagreeable.
They passed the Punta Curiquima, a granitic pro-
montory, between which and the mouth of the

220

CARIB INDIANS.

Apure, the breadth of the stream was ascertained
to be 4063 yards^ and in the rainy season it ex-
tends to 11^760. The temperature of the water
was in the middle of the current 82 9°j and near the
shores, 84-6°. They first went up toward the south-
west as far as the shore of the Guaricoto Indians
on the left bank, and then toward the south. The
mountains of Encaramada, forming a continued
chain from west to east, seemed to rise from the wa-
ter as distant land rises on the horizon at sea. The
beach was composed of clay intermixed with scales
of mica, deposited in very thin strata. At the port
of Encaramada, where they stopped for some time,
they met with a Carib cacique going up the river
in his canoe to gather turtles’ eggs. He was armed
with a bow and arrows, as were his attendants, and,
like them, he was naked and painted red. These
Indians were tall and athletic, and, with their
hair cut straight across the forehead, their eyebrows
painted black, and their gloomy but animated coun-
tenances, had a singular appearance. The travel-
lers were surprised to find that the anterior portion
of the cranium is not so depressed as those of the
Caribs are usually represented to be. The women
carried their infants on their backs. The shore is
here formed by a rock forty or fifty feet high, com-
posed of blocks of granite piled upon each other;
the surface of which was of a dark-gray colour, al-
though the interior was reddish-white. The night
was passed in a creek opposite the mouth of the Rio
Cabullare. The evening was beautiful, with moon-
light ; but towards twelve the north-east wind blew
so violently that they became apprehensive for the
safety of their canoe.

TRADITIONS OF A DELUGE.

221

On the 6thj continuing to ascend, they saw the
southern side of the mountains of Encaramada,
which stretch along the right bank of the river,
and are inhabited by Indians of a gentle charac-
ter, and addicted to agriculture. There is a tradi-
tion here, and elsewhere on the Orinoco, among the
natives, “ That at the time of the Great Waters,
when their fathers were obliged to betake them-
selves to their canoes in order to escape the general
inundation, the waves of the sea beat upon the
rocks of Encaramada.” When the Tamanacs are
asked how the human race survived this great de-
luge, they say, “ That a man and a woman saved
themselves upon a high mountain called Tamana-
cu, situated on the bank of the Aseveru, and that,
throwing behind them, over their heads, the fruits
of the Mauritia palm, they saw arising from the
nuts of these fruits the men and women who re-
peopled the earth.” Thus, among the natives of
America, a fable similar to that of Pyrrha and Deu-
calion commemorates the grand catastrophe of a ge-
neral inundation. Humboldt, in reference to the
same event, mentions that hieroglyphic figures are
often found along the Orinoco sculptured on rocks
now inaccessible but by scaffolding, and that the
natives, when asked how these figures could have
been made, answer with a smile, as relating a fact
of which a stranger alone could be ignorant, “ That
at the period of the Great Waters their fathers went
to that height in boats.”

" These ancient traditions of the human race,”
says Humboldt, “ which we find dispersed over the
surface of the globe, like the fragments of a vast
shipwreck, are of the greatest interest in the philo-

222

TRADITIONS OP A DELUGE.

sophical study of our species. Like certain families
of plants, which, notwithstanding the diversity of
climates and the influence of heights, retain the im-
press of a common type, the traditions respecting
the primitive state of the globe present among all
nations a resemblance that fills us with astonish-
ment ; so many different languages belonging to
branches which appear to have no connexion with
each other, transmit the same facts to us. The sub-
stance of the traditions respecting the destroyed
races and the renovation of nature is every where
almost the same, although each nation gives it a
local colouring. In the great continents, as in the
smallest islands of the Pacific Ocean, it is always on
the highest and nearest mountain that the remains
of the human race were saved ; and this event ap-
pears so much the more recent the more unculti-
vated the nations are, and the shorter the period
since they have begun to acquire a knowledge of
themselves. When we attentively examine the
Mexican monuments anterior to the discovery of
America, — penetrate into the forests of the Orinoco,
and become aware of the smallness of the European
establishments, their solitude, and the state of the
tribes which retain their independence, — we cannot
allow ourselves to attribute the agreement of these
accounts to the influence of missionaries and to
that of Christianity upon national traditions. Nor
is it more probable that the sight of marine bodies,
found on the summits of mountains, presented to the
tribes of the Orinoco the idea of those great inunda-
tions which for some time extinguished the germs
of organic life upon the globe. — The country which
extends from the right bank of the Orinoco to the

EGG-HARVEST.

223

Casiquiare and the Rio Negro consists of primitive
rocks. I saw there a small deposite of sandstone or
conglomerate, hut no secondary limestone, and no
trace of petrifactions.”

At eleven in the morning the travellers landed
on an island celebrated for the turtle fishery, or the
“ harvest of eggs,” which takes place annually. Here
they found encamped more than 300 Indians of dif-
ferent races, each tribe, distinguished by its peculiar
mode of painting, keeping separate from the rest, to-
gether with a few white men who had come to pur-
chase egg-oil from them. The missionary of Uruana,
whose presence was necessary to procure a supply
for the lamp of the church and keep the natives in or-
der, received the strangers with kindness, and made
the tour of the island with them ; showing them, by
means of a pole which he thrust into the sand, the
extent of the stratum of eggs, that had been depo-
sited wherever there were no eminences. The In-
dians asserted, that in coming up the Orinoco, from
its mouth to the junction of the Apure, there is no
place where eggs can be collected in abundance ; and
the only three spots where the turtles assemble annu-
ally in great numbers are situated between the mouth
of the Apure and the great cataracts. These animals
do not seem to pass beyond the falls, the species found
above Atures and Maypures being different.

The arrau or tortuga, which deposites the eggs
that are so much valued on the Lower Orinoco,
is a large fresh-water tortoise, with webbed feet,
a very flat head, a deep groove between the eyes,
and an upper shell composed of five central, eight
lateral, and twenty-four marginal scutella or plates.
The colour is dark-gray above and orange beneath.

224

AQUATIC TORTOISES.

When of full size it weighs from forty to fifty pounds.
The eggs are much larger than those of a pigeon,
and are covered with a calcareous crust.

The terekay, the species which occurs above the
cataracts, is much smaller. It has the same num-
ber of dorsal plates, but the colour is olive green,
with two spots of red mixed with yellow on the top
of the head, and a prickly appendage under the
chin. The eggs have an agreeable taste, and are
much sought after, but are not deposited in masses
like those of the tortuga. This variety is found below
the cataracts as well as in the Apure, the Urituco,
the Guarico, and the small rivers of the Llanos of
Caraccas.

The period at which the arrau deposites its eggs is
when the river is lowest. About the beginning of
February these creatures issue from the water and
warm themselves on the beach, remaining there
a great part of the day. Early in the month of
March they assemble on the islands where they
breed, when thousands are to be seen ranged in files
along the shores. The Indians place sentinels at
certain distances, to prevent them from being dis-
turbed, and the people who pass in boats are told to
keep in the middle of the river. The laying of the
eggs begins soon after sunset, and is continued
throughout the night. The animal digs a hole three
feet in diameter and two in breadth with its hind
feet, which are very long and furnished with crook-
ed claws. So pressing is the desire which it feels
to get rid of its burden, that great confusion pre-
vails, and an immense number of eggs is broken.
Some of the tortoises are surprised by day before
they have finished the operation, and, becoming in-

HARVEST OF TORTOISE-EGGS.

225

sensible to danger, continue to work with the great-
est diligence even in the presence of the fishers.

The Indians assemble about the beginning of
April, and commence operations under the direction
of the missionaries, who divide the egg-ground into
portions. The leading person among them first
examines, by means of a long pole or cane, how far
the bed extends, and then allots the shares. The
natives remove the earth with their hands, gather
up the eggs, and carry them in baskets to the
camp, where they throw them into long wooden
troughs filled with water. They are next broken
and stirred, and remain exposed to the sun, un-
til the yolk, which swims at the surface, has time
to inspissate, when it is taken off and boiled. The
oil thus obtained is limpid and destitute of smell,
and is used for lamps as well as for cooking. The
shores of the missions of Uruana furnish 1000 bo-
tijas or jars annually, and the three stations jointly
may be supposed to furnish 5000. It requires 5000
eggs to fill a jar ; and if we estimate at 100 or 116
the number which one tortoise produces, and allow
one-third to be broken at the time of laying, we
may presume that 330,000 of these animals assem-
ble every year, and lay 33,000,000 of eggs. This
calculation, however, is much below the truth.
Many of them lay only 60 or 70j great numbers
of them again are devoured by jaguars; the In-
dians take aw'ay a considerable quantity to eat
them dried in the sun, and break nearly as many
while gathering them ; and, besides, the proportion
that is hatched is such, that Humboldt saw the
whole shore near the encampment of Uruana swarm-
ing with young ones. Moreover, all the arraus do

226

ASCENT OF THE ORINOCO.

not assemble on the three shores of the encamp-
ments, but many lay elsewhere. The number which
annually deposite their eggs on the shores of the
Lower Orinoco may, therefore, be estimated at little
short of a million. The travellers were shown the
shells of large turtles which had been emptied by
the jaguars. These animals surprise them on the
sand, and turn them on their back in order to de-
vour them at their ease ; they dig up the eggs also ;
and, together with the gallinazo vulture and the
herons, destroy thousands of their brood.

After procuring some fresh provision, and taking
leave of the missionary, they set sail in the after-
noon. The wind blew in squalls, and after they
had entered the mountainous part of the country,
they found the canoe not very safe when under
sail ; but the master was desirous of showing off to
the Indians, and in going close upon the wind al-
most upset his vessel, which filled with water, and
nearly foundered. In the evening they landed on a
barren island, where they supped under a beautiful
moonlight, with turtle-shells for seats, and indulged
their imagination with the picture of a shipwrecked
man, wandering on the desert shores of the Orinoco
amid rivers full of crocodiles and caribe fishes. The
night was intensely hot, and not finding trees on
which to sling their hammocks, they slept on skins
spread on the ground. To their surprise the jaguars
swam to the island, although they had kindled fires
to prevent them; but these animals did not venture
to attack them.

On the 7th they passed the mouth of the Rio
Arauca, which is frequented by immense numbers
of birds. They also saw the mission of Uruana, at

MOUNTAINOUS DISTRICT.

227

the foot of a mountain composed of detached blocks of
granite^ in the caverns formed by which hieroglyphic
figures are sculptured. Measuring the breadth of
the Orinoco here, they found it, at a distance of
670 miles from the mouth, to be 5700 yards, or
nearly three miles. The temperature of the water
at its surface was 82°. As the strength of the
current increased the progress of the boat became
much slower, while at one time the woods de-
prived them of the wind, and at another a violent
gust descended from the mountain-passes. Opposite
the lake of Capanaparo, which communicates with
the river, the number of crocodiles was increased.
The Indians asserted that they came in troops to
the water from the savannahs, where they lie buried
in the solid mud until the first showers awaken
them. Humboldt remarks, that the dry season of
the torrid zone corresponds to the winter of the
temperate regions of the globe ; and that while the
alligators of North America become torpid through
excess of cold, the crocodiles of the Llanos are reduced
to the same state through deficiency of moisture.

They now entered the passage of the Baraguan,
where the Orinoco is hemmed in by precipices of gra-
nite, forming part of a range of mountains through
which it has found or forced a channel. Like all
the other granitic hills which they observed on this
river, they were formed of enormous cubical masses
piled upon each other. Landing in the middle of
the strait, they found the breadth of the stream to
be 1895 yards. They looked in vain for plants in
the fissures of the rocks ; but the stones were cover-
ed with multitudes of lizards. There was not a
breath of wind, and the heat was so intense that

228

INTENSE HEAT.

the thermometer placed against the rock rose to
122-4°. “ How vivid/' says Humboldt^ " is the

impression which the noontide quiet of nature pro-
duces in these burning climates ! The beasts of the
forest retire to the thickets, and the birds conceal
themselves among the foliage or in the crevices of
rocks. Yet amid this apparent silence, should one
listen attentively, he hears a stifled sound, a con-
tinued murmur, a hum of insects, that fill the lower
strata of the air. Nothing is more adapted to ex-
cite in man a sentiment of the extent and power of
organic life. Myriads of insects crawl on the ground,
and flutter round the plants scorched by the heat
of the sun. A confused noise issues from every bush,
from the decayed trunks of the trees, the fissures of
the rocks, and from the ground, which is under-
mined by lizards, millipedes, and blind worms. It
is a voice proclaiming to us that all nature breathes,
that under a thousand ditferent forms life is dilfused
in the cracked and dusty soil, as in the bosom of
the waters, and in the air that circulates around
us.” The water of the river was very disagreeable
here, as it had a musky smell and a sweetish taste.
In some parts it was pretty good ; but in others it
seemed loaded with gelatinous matter, which the
natives attribute to putrified crocodiles.

After sleeping at the foot of an eminence they
continued their voyage, and passed the mouths of
several rivers ; and on the 9th arrived, early in the
morning, at the beach of Pararuma, where they
found an encampment of Indians, who had assem-
bled to search the sands for turtles’ eggs. The pilot,
who had brought them from San Fernando de
Apure, would not undertake to accompany them far-

PARARUMA EGGS INDIANS.

229

ther ; but they procured a boat from one of the mis-
sionaries who had come to the egg- harvest.

This assemblage or encampment afforded to the
travellers an interesting subject of study. " How
difficult/’ says Humboldt^ " to recognise in this in-
fancy of society, this collection of dull, taciturn, and
unimpassioned Indians, the original character of
our species ! Human nature is not seen here ar-
rayed in that gentle simplicity of which poets in
every language have drawn such enchanting pic-
tures. The savage of the Orinoco appeared to us
as hideous as the savage of the Mississippi, described
by the philosophical traveller who best knew how
to paint man in the various regions of the globe.
One would fain persuade himself that these natives
of the soil, crouched near the fire, or seated on large
shells of turtles, their bodies covered with earth and
grease, and their eyes stupidly fixed for whole hours
on the drink which they are preparing, far from
being the original type of our species, are a degene-
rated race, the feeble remains of nations which,
after being long scattered in the forests, have been
again immersed in barbarism.”

Red paint is the ordinary decoration of these
tribes. The most common kind is obtained from
the seeds of the Bixa orellana, and is called anotto,
achote, or roucou. Another much more expensive
species is extracted from the leaves of Bignonia chica.
Both these are red; but a black ingredient is obtained
from the Genipa Americana, and is called earn to.
These pigments are mixed with turtle-oil or grease,
and are variously applied according to national or
individual taste. The Caribs and Otomacs colour
only the head and hair, while the Salivas smear

230

ENCAMPMENT OP INDIANS.

the whole body; but there prevails in general as
great a diversity in the mode of staining as is found
in Europe in respect to dress ; and at Pararuma the
travellers saw some Indians painted with a blue
jacket and black buttons. Women advanced in years
are fonder of being thus ornamented than the younger
ladies ; and so expensive is this mode of decoration,
that an industrious man can hardly gain enough
by the labour of a fortnight to adorn himself with
chica, of which the missionaries make an article of
traffic. After all, the paintings that cost so much
are liable to be elfaced by a heavy shower ; although
the caruto long resists the action of water, as the
travellers found by disagreeable experience ; for hav-
ing one day in sport marked their faces with spots
and strokes of it, it was not entirely removed till
after a long period. It has been supposed that this
usage prevents the Indians from being stung by in-
sects ; but this was found to be incorrect. The pre-
ference given by the American tribes to the red co-
lour, Humboldt supposes to be owing to the tendency
which nations feel to attribute the idea of beauty to
whatever characterizes their national complexion.

The encampment of Pararuma also afforded the
travellers an opportunity of examining several ani-
mals they had not before seen alive, and which
the Indians brought to exchange with the mission-
aries for fish-hooks and other necessaries. Among
these specimens were gallitoes, or rock-manakins,
monkeys of different species, of which the titi or
Simia sciurea seems to have been a special favourite
with Humboldt. He mentions a very interesting
fact illustrative of the sagacity of this creature. One
which he had purchased of the natives distinguish-

SAGACITY OF THE TITI MONKEY.

231

ed the diiFerent plates of a work on natural history
so well, that when an engraving which contained
zoological representations was placed before it, it
rapidly advanced its little hand to catch a gras-
hopper or a wasp ; which was the more remarkable
as the figures were not coloured. Humboldt observes,
that he never heard of any the most perfect picture
of hares or deer producing the least effect upon a
hound, and doubts if there be a well-ascertained ex-
ample of a dog having recognised a full-length por-
trait of its master.

The canoe which they had procured was forty-
two feet long and three broad. The missionary of
Atures and Maypures had offered to accompany
them as far as the frontiers of Brazil, and made pre-
parations for the voyage. Two Indians who were
to form part of the crew were chained during the
night to prevent their escape ; and on the morning
of the 10th the company set out. The vessel was
found to be extremely incommodious. To gain
something in breadth a kind of frame had been ex-
tended over the gunwale in the hinder part of it ;
but the roof of leaves which covered it was so low,
that the travellers were obliged to lie down, or
sit nearly double, while in rainy weather the feet
were liable to be wetted. The natives, seated two
and two, were furnished with paddles three feet
long, and rowed with surprising uniformity to the
cadence of a monotonous and melancholy song.
Small cages containing birds and monkeys were sus-
pended to the shed, and the dried plants and instru-
ments were placed beneath it. To their numerous
inconveniences was added the continual torment of
the mosquitoes, which they were unable by any

232

SCENERY CARICHANA.

means to alleviate. Every nighty when they estab-
lished their watch, the collection of animals and
instruments occupied the centre, around which were
placed first their own hammocks, and then those
of the Indians, while fires were lighted to intimi-
date the jaguars. At sunrise the monkeys in the
cages answered the cries of those in the forests, af-
fording an affecting display of sympathy between
the captive and the free.

Above the deserted mission of Pararuma the river
is full of islands, and divides into several branches.
Its total breadth is about 6395 yards. The country
becomes more wooded. A granitic prism, termi-
nated by a flat surface covered with a tuft of trees,
rises to the height of 213 feet in the midst of the forest.
Farther on the river narrows ; and upon the east is
an eminence, on which the Jesuits formerly main-
tained a garrison for protecting the missions against
the inroads of the Caribs, and for extending what,
in the Spanish colonies, was called the conquest of
souls, which of course was effected through the con-
quest of bodies. The soldiers made incursions into
the territories of the independent Indians, killed all
who offered resistance, burned their huts, destroyed
the plantations, and made prisoners of the old men,
women, and children, who were afterwards divided
among their establishments. The river again con-
tracted, and rapids began to make their appearance,
the shores becoming sinuous and precipitous. In a
bay between two promontories of granite, they
landed at what is called the Port of Carichana, and
proceeded to the mission of that name, situated at
the distance of two miles and a half from the bank,
where they were hospitably received at the priest’s

INDIANS VEGETATION.

233

house. The Christian converts at this station were
Salivas, a social and mild people, having a great
taste for music.

Among these Indians they found a white woman,
the sister of a Jesuit of New Grenada, and expe-
rienced great pleasure in conversing with her with-
out the aid of a third person. In every mission,
says Humboldt, there are at least two interpreters,
for the purpose of communicating between the monks
and the catechumens, the former seldom studying
the language of the latter. They are natives, some-
what less stupid than the rest, but ill adapted for
their office. They always attended the travellers in
their excursions ; but little more could be got from
them than a mere affirmation or negation. Some-
times, in attempting to hold intercourse with the
Indians, he preferred the language of signs, — a me-
thod which he recommends to travellers, as the va-
riety of languages spoken on the Meta, Orinoco,
Casiquiare, and Rio Negro, is so great, that no one
could ever make himself understood in them all.

The scenery around the mission of Carichana ap-
peared delightful. The village was situated on a
grassy plain, bounded by mountains. Banks of rock,
often more than 850 feet in circumference, scarcely
elevated a few inches above the savannahs, and
nearly destitute of vegetation, give a peculiar cha-
racter to the country. On these stony flats they
eagerly observed the rising vegetation in the differ-
ent stages of its development : Lichens cleaving the
rock and collected into crusts ; a few succulent
plants growing among little portions of quartz-sand ;
and tufts of evergreen shrubs springing up in the
black mould deposited in the hollows. At the dis-

234

MARKS OF INUNDATIONS.

tance of eight or ten miles from the religious house
they found a rich and diversified assemblage of
plants, among which M. Bonpland obtained nume-
rous new species. Here grew the Dipterix odorata,
which furnishes excellent timber, and of which the
fruit is known in Europe by the name of tonkay or
tongo bean.

In a narrow part of the river the marks of the
great inundations were 45 feet above the surface ;
but at various places black bands and erosions are
seen, 106 or even 138 feet above the present highest
increase of the waters. “ Is this river, then,” says
Humboldt, ‘‘ the Orinoco, which appears to us so
imposing and majestic, merely the feeble remnant
of those immense currents of fresh water which,
swelled by Alpine snows or by more abundant
rains, every where shaded by dense forests and des-
titute of those beaches that favour evaporation, for-
merly traversed the regions to the east of the Andes,
like arms of inland seas ? What must then have
been the state of those low countries of Guiana,
which now experience the effects of annual inunda-
tions ? What a prodigious number of crocodiles, la-
mantines, and boas, must have inhabited these vast
regions, alternately converted into pools of stagnant
water and arid plains ! The more peaceful world
in which we live has succeeded to a tumultuous
world. Bones of mastodons and real American ele-
phants are found dispersed over the platforms of the
Andes. The megatherium inhabited the plains of
Uruguay. By digging the earth more deeply in
high valleys, which at the present day are unable
to nourish palms or tree-ferns, we discover strata of
coal containing gigantic remains of monocotyledo-

RAPIDS AND THUNDER-STORM.

235

nous plants. There was therefore a remote period,
when the tribes of vegetables were differently dis-
tributed ; when the animals were larger, the rivers
wider and deeper. There stop the monuments of
nature which we can consult. We are ignorant if
the human race, which at the time of the discovery
of America scarcely presented a few feeble tribes to
the east of the Cordilleras, had yet descended into
the plains, or if the ancient tradition of the Great
Waters, which we find among all the races of the
Orinoco, Erevato, and Caura, belong to other cli-
mates, whence it had been transferred to this part
of the new continent.”

On the 11th they left Carichana at two in the
afternoon, and found the river more and more en-
cumbered by blocks of granite. At the large rock
known by the name of Piedra del Tigre, the depth
is so great that no bottom can be found with a line
of 140 feet. Towards evening they encoxmtered
a thunder-storm, which for a time drove away the
mosquitoes that had tormented them during the
day. At the cataract of Cariven the current was
so rapid that they had great difficulty in landing ;
but at length two Saliva Indians swam to the shore,
and drew the canoe to the side with a rope. The
thunder continued a part of the night, and the
river increased considerably. The granitic rock on
which they slept, is one of those from which tra-
vellers on the Orinoco have heard subterranean
sounds, resembling those of an organ, emitted about
sunrise. Humboldt supposes that these must be
produced by the passage of rarefied air through
the fissures, and seems to think, that the impulse
of the fluid against the elastic scales of mica which

236

MYSTERIOUS SOUNDS.

intercept the crevices may contribute to modify their
expression.*

On the 12th they set off at four in the morning.
The Indians rowed twelve hours and a half with-
out intermission^ during which time they took no
other nourishment than cassava and plantains. The
bed of the river, to the length of 1280 yards, was
full of granite rocks, the channels between which
were often very narrow, insomuch, that the canoe
was sometimes jammed in between two blocks.
When the current was too strong the sailors leapt
out, and warped the boat along. The rocks were of
all dimensions, roimded, very dark, glossy like lead,
and destitute of vegetation. No crocodiles were
seen in these rapids. The left hank of the Orinoco,
from Cahruto to the mouth of the Kio Serianico, a
distance of nearly two degrees of latitude, is entirely

* Many examples of mysterious sounds produced under similar
circumstances are on record. In the autumn of 1828, a recent tra-
veller crossing the Pyrenees, when in a wild pass with the Mala-
detta mountain opposite, heard “ a dull, low, moaning, jEolian sound,
which alone broke upon the deathly silence, evidently proceeding
from the body of this mighty mass.” The air was perfectly cahn,
and clear to an extraordinary degree ; no waterfall could be seen
even with the aid of a telescope, and no cause could be assigned for
the phenomenon, unless the sun’s rays, “ at that moment impinging
in all their glory on every point and peak of the snowy heights,”
had some share “ in vibrating these mountain-chords.” — iV. M,

Mag. XXX. 341. The granite statue of Memnon is well known to

have emitted sounds when the morning beams darted upon it ; and
MM. Jomard, Jollois, and Devilliers, heard a noise resembling that
of the breaking of a string, which proceeded at sunrise from a
monument of granite situated near the centre of the spot on which
stands the palace of Carnac. Singular sounds have been heard
from the interior of a mountain near Tor, in Arabia Petraea. They
are familiar to the natives, who ascribe them to a convent of monl^
miraculously preserved under ground, and were heard by M. Seet-
zen and Mr Gray, tlie only European travellers who have visited
the place. For an account of these curious phenomena, the reader
may be referred to Dr Brewster’s Letters on Natural Magic, form-
ing No. XXXIII. of the Family Library.

MAJESTIC SCENERY SAN BORJA. 237

uninhabited ; but to the westward of these rapids an
enterprising individual, Don Felix Relinchon, had
formed a village of Jaruro and Otomac Indians.
At nine in the morning they arrived at the mouth
of the Meta, which, next to the Guaviare, is the
largest river that joins the Orinoco. At the union
of these streams the scenery is of a very impressive
character. Solitary peaks rise on the eastern side,
appearing in the distance like ruined castles, while
vast sandy shores intervene between the bank and
the forests. They passed two hours on a large rock
in the middle of the Orinoco, upon which Hum-
boldt succeeded in fixing his instruments, and in
determining the longitude of the embouchure of the
Meta ; a river which will one day be of great politi-
cal importance to the inhabitants of Guiana and
Venezuela^ as it is navigable to the foot of the An-
des of New^Grenada. Above this point the current
was comparatively free from shoals ; and in the
evening they reached the Rapids of Tabaje. As
the Indians would not venture to pass them they
were obliged to land and repose on a craggy plat-
form having a slope of more than eighteen degrees,
and having its crevices filled with bats. The cries
of the jaguar were heard very near during the
whole night ; the sky was of a tremendous black-
ness; and the hoarse noise of the rapids blended
with the thunder which rolled at a distance amongst
the woods.

Early in the morning they cleared the rapids, and
disembarked at the new mission of San Borja,
where they found six houses inhabited by uncate-
chised Guahiboes, who differed in nothing from the
wild natives. The faces of the young girls were

238

MISSION OF SAN BORJA.

marked with black spots. This people had not
painted their bodies, and several of them had beards,
of which they seemed proud, taking the travellers
by the chin, and showing by signs that they were
like themselves. In continuing to ascend the river
they found the heat less intense, the temperature
during the day being 79° or 80°, and at night about
75° ; but the torment of the mosquitoes increased.
The crocodiles which they saw were all of the ex-
traordinary size of 24 or 25 feet.

The night was spent on the beach ; but the suf-
ferings inflicted by the flies induced the travellers to
start at five in the morning. On the island of Gua-
chaco, where they stopped to breakfast, they found
the granite covered by a sandstone or conglomerate,
containing fragments of quartz and felspar cemented
by indurated clay, and exhibiting small veins of
brown iron-ore. “Passing the mouth of the Rio Pa-
rueni, they slept on the island of Panumana, which
they found rich in plants, and where they again
observed the low shelves of rock partially coated
with the vegetation which they had admired at
Carichana.

MISSION OF ATURES.

239

CHAPTER XVIII.

Voyage up the Orinoco continued.

Mission of Atures — Epidemic Fevers — Black Crust of Granitic
Rocks — Causes of Depopulation of the Missions — Falls of Apures
— Scenery — Anecdote of a Jaguar — Domestic Animals — Wild

Man of the Woods — Mosquitoes and other poisonous Insects

Mission and Cataracts of Maypures — Scenery — Inhabitants

Spice-trees — San Fernando de Atabapo — San Baltasar The

Mother’s Rock — Vegetation — Dolphins — San Antonio de Javi*
ta — Indians — Elastic Gum — Serpents — Portage of the Pimichin
— Arrival at the Rio Negro, a Branch of the Amazon — Ascent
of the Casiquiare.

Leaving the island of Panumana at an early hour
the navigators continued to ascend the Orinoco, the
scenery on which became more interesting the near-
er they approached the great cataracts. The sky
was in part obscured, and lightnings flashed among
the dense clouds ; but no thunder was heard. On
the western bank of the river they perceived the fires
of an encampment of Guahiboes, to intimidate whom
some shots were discharged by the direction of the
missionary. In the evening they arrived at the foot
of the great fall, and passed the night at the mission
of Atures in its neighbourhood. The flat savannah
which surrounds the village seemed to Humboldt
to have formerly been the bed of the Orinoco.

This station was found to be in a deplorable
state, the Indians having gradually deserted it
until only forty-seven remained. At its founda-

240

NOXIOUS EXHALATIONS EBOM

tion in 1748 several tribes had been assembled^ which
subsequently dispersed, and their places were sup-
plied by the Guahiboes, who belong to the lowest
grade of uncivilized society, and a few families of
Macoes. The epidemic fevers, which prevail here at
the commencement of the rainy season, contributed
greatly to the decay of the establishment. This
distemper is ascribed to the violent heats, excessive
humidity of the air, bad food, and, as the natives
believe, to the noxious exhalations that rise from
the bare rocks of the rapids. This last is a curious
circumstance, and, as Humboldt remarks, is the
more worthy of attention on account of its being
connected with a fact that has been observed in
several parts of the world, although it has not yet
been sufficiently explained.

Among the cataracts and falls of the Orinoco,
the granite rocks, wherever they are periodically
submersed, become smooth and seem as if coated
with black lead. The crust is only 0-3 of a line in
thickness, and occurs chiefly on the quartzy parts of
the stone, which is coarse grained, and contains
solitary crystals of hornblende. The same appear-
ance is presented at the cataracts of Syene as well
as those of the Congo. This black deposite, accord-
ing to Mr Children’s analysis, consists of oxide of
iron and manganese, to which some experiments of
Humboldt induced him to add carbon and super-
carburetted iron. The phenomenon has hitherto
been observed only in the torrid zone, in rivers that
overflow periodically and are bounded by primitive
rocks, and is supposed by our author to arise from
the precipitation of substances chemically dissolved
in the water, and not from an efflorescence of mat-

DEPOPULATION OF THE MISSIONS. 241

ters contained in the rocks themselves. The In-
dians and missionaries assert, that the exhalations
from these rocks are unwholesome, and consider it
dangerous to sleep on granite near the river; and our
travellers, without entirely crediting this assertion,
usually took care to avoid the black rocks at night.
But the danger of reposing on them, Humboldt
thinks, may rather he owing to the very great de-
gree of warmth they retain during the night, which
was found to he 85-5°, while that of the air was 78-8°.
In the day their temperature was 118-4°, and the
heat which they emitted was stifling.

Among the causes of the depopulation of the
missions, Humboldt mentions the general insalu-
brity of the climate, bad nourishment, want of pro-
per treatment in the diseases of children, and the
practice of preventing pregnancy by the use of dele-
terious herbs. Among the savages of Guiana, when
twins are produced one is always destroyed, from
the idea that to bring more than one at a time into
the world is to resemble rats, opossums, and the
vilest animals, and that two children horn at once
cannot belong to the same father. When any phy-
sical deformity occurs in an infant, the father puts
it to death, and those of a feeble constitution some-
times undergo the same fate, because the care which
they require is disagreeable. " Such,” says Hum-
boldt, " is the simplicity of manners, — the boasted
happiness of man, in the state of nature ! He kills
his son to escape the ridicule of having twins, or to
avoid travelling more slowly, — in fact, to avoid a
little inconvenience.”

The two great cataracts of the Orinoco are form-
ed by the passage of the river across a chain of gra-

242

CATAKACTS OF THE ORINOCO.

nitic mountains, constituting part of the Parime
range. By the natives they are called Mapara and
Quittuna ; but the missionaries have denominated
them the falls of Atures and Maypures, after the
first tribes which they assembled in the nearest vil-
lages. They are only 41 miles distant from each
other, and are not more than 345 miles west of the
cordilleras of New Grenada. They divide the Chris-
tian establishments of Spanish Guiana into two
unequal parts ; those situated between the lower ca-
taract, or that of Apures, being called the missions
of the Lower Orinoco, and those between the upper
cataract and the mountains of Duida, being called
the missions of the Upper Orinoco. The length
of the lower section, including its sinuosities, is
897 miles, while that of the upper is 576 miles.
The navigation of the river extends from its
mouth to the point where it meets the Anaveni
near the lower cataract, although in the upper part
of this division there are rapids which can be passed
only in small boats. The principal danger, how-
ever, is that which arises from natural rafts, con-
sisting of trees interwoven with lianas, and covered
with aquatic plants carried down by the current.
The cataracts are formed by bars stretching across
the bed of the river, which forces its way through
a break in the mountains ; but beyond this rugged
pass the course is again open for a length of more
than 576 miles.

The scenery in the vicinity of the lower fall is
described as exceedingly beautiful. To the west of
Atures, a pyramidal mountain, the Peak of Uniana,
rises from a plain to the height of nearly 3200
feet. The savannahs, which are covered with

SCENERY OF THE LOWER CATARACT. 243

grasses and slender plants^ though never inundated
by the river, present a surprising luxuriance and
diversity of vegetation. Piles of granitic blocks rise
here and there, and at the margins of the plains
occur deep valleys and ravines, the humid soil of
which is covered with arums, heliconias, and lia-
nas. The shelves of primitive rocks, scarcely elevated
above the plain, are partially coated with lichens and
mosses, together with succulent plants, and tufts of
evergreen shrubs with shining leaves. On all sides
the horizon is bounded by mountains, overgrown with
forests of laurels, among which clusters of palms rise
to the height of more than a hundred feet, their slen-
der stems supporting tufts of feathery foliage. To
the east of Atures other mountains appear, the ridge
of which is composed of pointed clilfs, rising like
huge pillars above the trees. When these columnar
masses are situated near the Orinoco, flamingoes,
herons, and other wading birds, perch on their sum-
mits, and look like sentinels. In the vicinity of the
cataracts, the moisture which is diffused in the air
produces a perpetual verdure, and wherever soil has
accumulated on the plains, it is occupied by the
beautiful shrubs of the mountains.

The rainy season had scarcely commenced, yet
the vegetation displayed all the vigour and bril-
liancy which, on the coast, it assumes only towards
the end of the rains. The old trunks were deco-
rated with orchidese, bannisterias, bignonias, arums,
and other parasitic plants. Mimosas, figs, and lau-
rels, were the prevailing trees in the woody spots ;
and in the vicinity of the cataract were groups of
heliconias, bamboos, and palms.

Along a space of more than five miles, the bed of

244

CATARACTS OF THE ORINOCO.

the Orinoco is traversed by numerous dikes of rock,
forming natural dams, filled with islands of every
form, some rocky and precipitous, while others re-
semble shoals. By these the river is broken up
into torrents, which are ever dashing their spray
against the rocks. They are all furnished with
sylvan vegetation, and resemble a mass of palm-trees
rising amidst the foam of the waters. The current
is divided into a multitude of rapids, each endea-
vouring to force a passage through the narrows, and
is every where engulfed in caverns, in one of which
the travellers heard the water rolling at once over
their heads and beneath their feet.

Notwithstanding the formidable aspect of this
long succession of falls, the Indians pass many of
them in their canoes. When ascending they swim
bn before, and after repeated efforts succeed in fix-
ing a rope to a point of rock, and thus draw the
canoe up the rapid. Sometimes it fills with water,
and is not unfrequently dashed to pieces against the
shelves, upon which the sailors again swim, though
not without difficulty, through the whirlpools to the
nearest island. When the bars are very high the
vessels are taken ashore, and drawn upon rollers,
made of the branches of trees, to a place where the
river again becomes navigable. During the flood,
however, this operation is seldom necessary.

Although the rapids of the Orinoco form a long
series of falls, the noise of which is heard at the dis-
tance of more than three miles, yet the rocks were
found by Humboldt not to have a greater height
than thirty feet perpendicular. He thinks it pro-
bable that a considerable part of the water is lost by
passing into subterranean cavities, independently of

ANECDOTE OP A JAGUAR.

245

that which disappears by being dispersed in the at-
mosphere. Numberless holes and sinuosities are
formed in the crevices by the friction of the sand
and quartz pebbles ; but he does not consider that
any great change is elfected in the general form of
the cataracts by the action of the water, the granite
being too hard to be worn away to a great extent.
The Indians assert that the stony barriers preserve
the same aspect ; but that the partial torrents into
which the river divides itself are changed in their
direction, and carry sometimes more sometimes less
water towards one or other bank.

When the rush of the cataracts is heard in the
plain that surrounds the mission of Atures, one
imagines he is near a coast skirted by reefs and
breakers. The noise is thrice as loud by night as
by day. This circumstance had struck the padre
and the Indians, and Humboldt attributes it to the
c^sation of the sun’s action, which is productive of
numberless currents and undulations of the air, im-
peding the progress of sound by presenting spaces
of different density.

The jaguars, which abound every where on the
Orinoco, are so numerous here that they come into
the village, and devour the pigs of the poor Indians.
The missionary related a striking instance of the fami-
liarity of these animals : — Two Indian children, a
boy and girl eight or nine years of age, were sitting
among the grass near the village of Atures, in the
midst of a savannah. It was two in the afternoon
when a jaguar issued from the forest and approached
the children, gamboling around them ; sometimes
concealing itself among the long grass, and again
springing forward, with his back curved and his

246

ANECDOTE OF A JAGUAR.

head lowered^ as is usual with our cats. The little
boy was unaware of the danger in which he was
placed, and became sensible of it only when the ja-
guar struck him on the head with one of his paws.
The blows thus inflicted were at first slight, but
gradually became ruder. The claws of the jaguar
wounded the child, and blood flowed with violence.
The little girl then took up a branch of a tree and
struck the animal, which fled before her. The In-
dians hearing the cries of the children, ran up and
saw the jaguar, which bounded olF without showing
any disposition to defend itself.” “ What,” asks
Humboldt, meant this fit of playfulness in an ani-
mal which, although not difficult to be tamed in our
menageries, is always so ferocious and cruel in the
state of freedom } If we choose to admit that, being
sure of its prey, it played with the young Indian
as the domestic cat plays with a bird, the wings
of which have been clipped, how can we account
for the forbearance of a large jaguar when pursued
by a little girl } If the jaguar was not pressed by
hunger, why should it have gone up to the chil-
dren There are mysteries in the affections and ha-
treds of animals. We have seen lions kill three or
four dogs which were put into their cage, and in-
stantly caress another which had the courage to seize
the royal beast by the mane. Man is ignorant of the
sources of these instincts. It would seem that weak-
ness inspires more interest the more confiding it is.”

The cattle introduced by the Jesuits had entire-
ly disappeared ; but the Indians rear the common
pig and another kind peculiar to America, and
known in Europe by the name of pecari. A third
species of hog, the Apida, which is of a dark-brown

WILD HOGS MONKEYS — MOSQUITOES. 247

colour, wanders in large herds composed of several
hundreds. M. Bonpland, when upon a botanical
excursion, saw a drove of these animals pass near
him. It marched in a close body ; the males be-
fore, and each sow accompanied by her young.
The natives kill them with small lances tied to
cords. At the mission they saw a monkey of a
new species, which had been brought up in cap-
tivity, and which every day seized a pig in the
court-yard, and remained upon it from morning to
night, in all its wanderings in the savannahs. Here,
for the first time, they heard of the hairy man of
the woods, a large animal of the ape kind, which,
according to report, carries off women, builds huts,
and sometimes eats human flesh. Father Gili grave-
ly relates the history of a lady of San Carlos, who
passed several years with one, which she left only
because she and the children she had to him were
tired of living far from the church and the sacra-
ments. In all his travels in America, Humboldt
found no traces of a large anthropomorphous mon-
key, although in several places, very distant from
each other, he heard similar accounts of it.

Flies of various kinds unceasingly tormented the
travellers ; mosquitoes and simulia by day, and
zancudoes by night. The missionary, observing
that the insects were more abimdant in the lowest
stratum of the atmosphere, had constructed near
the church a small apartment supported upon palm-
trunks, to which they retired in the evening to dry
their plants and write their journals.* At May-

A similar expedient was tried by a British officer who had
.ioined the insurgents under Bolivar, in 1818. “ These insects,” (the

248

MOSQUITOES.

pures the Indians leave the village at night, and
sleep on the little islands in the midst of the cata-
racts, where the insects are less numerous. Hum-
boldt gives an elaborate account of these creatures,
of which, however, the most interesting particulars
alone can be here extracted. In the missions of the
Orinoco, when two persons meet in the morning,
the first questions are, — “ How did you find the
zancudoes during the night ? How are we to-day
for the mosquitoes ?” The plague of these animals,
however, is not so general in the torrid zone as is
commonly believed. On the table-lands that have
an elevation of more than 2558 feet, and in very
dry plains at a distance from rivers, they are not
more numerous than in Europe ; but along the
valleys, as well as in moist places on the coast,
they continually harass the traveller; the lower
stratum of air, to the height of fifteen or twenty
feet, being filled with a cloud of venomous in-
sects. It is a remarkable circumstance that on the
streams, the water of which is of a yellowish-brown
colour, the tipulary flies do not make their ap-
pearance. Not less astonishing is the fact, that the
different kinds do not associate together ; but that

mosquitoes), says he, “ do not rise high in the air, but are gene-
rated and remain near the wet banks ot the river. I found a tree
in the neighbourhood, which I ascended nearly to its top with a
cord. This I attached firmly to the branches, and then fixed it
round me, so that I could not fall, but sit with safety, although not
with much comfort. It was, however, with me here as with many
in various situations in life — I could estimate the nature and ex-
tent of my pleasures and my difficulties merely by comparison ; and,
certainly, although the being tied to the top of a tree as a sleeping-
place was not very agreeable, it was far preferable to being among
swarms of hungry mosquitoes where I had previously lodged. 1
enjoyed several hours’ steep and awoke considerably refreshed.” —
Robinson's Journal of an Expedition up the Orinoco and Ar-
auca.

PASSAGE OP THE CATARACTS.

249

at certain hours of the day, distinct species, as the
missionaries say, mount guard. From half after
six in the morning till five in the afternoon the
air is filled with mosquitoes, which are of the
genus Simulium, and resemble a common fly. An
hour before sunset small gnats, called tempraneroes,
succeeded them, to disappear between six and seven ;
after which zancudoes, a species of gnat with very
long legs, come abroad and continue until near sun-
rise, when the former again take their turn. Per-
sons born in the country, whether whites, mulattoes,
negroes, or Indians, all suffer from the sting of these
insects, although not so severely as recently-arrived
Europeans.

The travellers, after remaining two days in the
vicinity of the cataract of Atures, proceeded on the
17th to rejoin their canoe, already conducted by
eight Indians of the mission through the rapids, and
reached it about eleven in the morning, accompanied
by Father Zea, who had procured a small stock of
provisions, consisting of plantains, cassava, and fowls.
The river was now free from shoals ; and after a few
hours they passed the rapids of Garcita, and per-
ceived numerous small holes, at an elevation of more
than 190 feet above the level of the current, which
appeared to have been caused by the erosion of the
waters. The night was spent in the open air, on
the left bank.

On the 1 8th they set out at three in the morning,
and near five in the afternoon reached the Raudal
des Guahiboes, on the dike of which they landed
while the Indians were drawing up the boat. The
gneiss rock exhibited circular holes, produced by the
friction of pebbles, in one of which they prepared a

250

MISSION OF MAYPUBES.

beverage consisting of water^ sugar^ and the juice of
acid fruitSj for the purpose of allaying the thirst of
the missionary who was seized by a fever fit ; after
which they had the pleasure of bathing in a quiet
place in the midst of the cataracts. After an hour’s
delay, the boat having been got up, they re-em-
barked their instruments and provisions. The ri-
ver was 1705 yards broad, and had to be crossed ob-
liquely, at a part where the waters rushed with
extreme rapidity towards the bar over which they
were precipitated. In the midst of this dangerous
navigation they were overtaken by a thunder-
storm accompanied by torrents of rain ; and after
rowing twenty minutes, found that so far from
having made progress they were approaching the
fall. But, as the Indians redoubled their efforts, the
danger was escaped, and the boat arrived at night-
fall in the port of Maypures. The night was ex-
tremely dark, and the village was at a consider-
able distance ; still, as the missionary caused copal-
torches to be lighted, they proceeded. As the rain
ceased the zancudoes re-appeared, and the flam-
beaux being extinguished, they had to grope their
way. One of their fellow-travellers, Don Nicolas
Soto, slipped from a round trunk on which he at-
tempted to cross a gully, but fortunately received
no injury. To add to their distress, the pilot talked
incessantly of venomous snakes, water-serpents, and
tigers. On their arrival at the mission they found
the inhabitants immersed in profound sleep, and
nothing was heard but the cries of nocturnal birds
and the distant roar of the cataract.

At the village of Maypures they remained three
days, for the purpose of examining the neighbour-

UPPER CATARACT.

251

hood. The cataract, called by the Indians Quit-
tuna, is formed by an archipelago of islands, filling
the bed of the river to the length of 6395 yards,
and by dikes of rock which occasionally join them
together. The largest of these shelves or bars are at
Purimarimi, Manimi, and the Salto de la Sardina,
the last of which is about nine feet high. To ob-
tain a full view of the falls, the travellers fre-
quently ascended the eminence of Manimi, a gra-
nitic ridge rising from the savannah, to the north
of the church. When one attains the summit of
the rock,” says Humboldt, “ he suddenly sees a
sheet of foam a mile in extent. Enormous masses
of rock, of an iron blackness, emerge from its bo-
som, some of a mammillar form, and grouped like
basaltic hills ; others resembling towers, castles, and
ruins. Their dark colour contrasts with the silvery
whiteness of the foam. Every rock and islet is
covered with tufts of stately trees. From the base
of these prominences, as far as the eye can reach,
there hangs over the river a dense mist, through
which the tops of majestic palms are seen to pene-
trate. At every hour of the day this sheet of foam
presents a different aspect. Sometimes the moun-
tain isles and palms project their long shadows over
it ; sometimes the rays of the setting sun are re-
fracted in the humid cloud that covers the cataract,
when coloured arches form, vanish, and re-appear
by turns.”

The mountain of Manimi forms the eastern limit
of a plain, which presented the same appearance as
that of Atures. Toward the west is a level space
formerly occupied by the waters of the river, and
exhibiting rocks similar to the islands of the cata-

252

MISSION OP MAYPURES.

racts. These masses are also crowned with palms ;
and one of them, called Keri, is celebrated in the
country for a white spot, which Humboldt supposed
to be a large nodule of quartz. In an islet amidst
the rush of waters there is a similar spot. The
Indians view them with a mysterious interest, be-
lieving they see in the former the image of the
moon, and in the latter that of the sun.

The inhabitants of the mission were Guahiboes
and Macoes. In the time of the Jesuits the num-
ber was six hundred, but it had gradually fallen to
less than sixty. They are represented as gentle,
temperate, and cleanly. They cultivate plantains
and cassava, and, like most of the Indians of the
Orinoco, prepare nourishing drinks from the fruits
of palms and other plants. Some of them were oc-
cupied in manufacturing a coarse pottery. Cattle,
and especially goats, had at one time multiplied
considerably at Maypures; but at the period of
Humboldt’s visit none were to be seen in any mis-
sion of the Orinoco. Tame macaws were seen round
the huts, and flying in the fields like pigeons. Their
plumage being of the most vivid tints of purple,
blue, and yellow, these birds are a great ornament
to the Indian farm-yards.

Round the village there grows a majestic tree of
the genus XJnona, with straight branches rising in
the form of a pyramid. The infusion of the aro-
matic fruit is a powerful febrifuge, and is used as
such in preference to the astringent bark of the Cin-
chona or Bonplandia trifoliata.

The longitude of this place was found to be 68°
17' 9", the latitude 5° 13' 57", differing from the best
maps then existing by half a degree of longitude and

PASSAGE OF THE UPPER CATARACT. 253

as much of latitude. The thermometer during the
night indicated from 80° to 84°^ and in the day 86°.
The water of the river was 81 *7°^ and that of a
spring 82°.

Having spent some days at the mission of May-
pures, the travellers embarked at two in the after-
noon in the canoe procured at the turtle island,
which, although considerably damaged by the care-
lessness of the Indians, was judged sufficient for the
long voyage they had yet to perform. Above the
great cataracts they found themselves as it were in a
new world. Toward the east, in the extreme distance,
rose the great chain of the Cimavami mountains,
one of the peaks of which, named Calidamini, re-
flects at sunset a reddish glare of light. After encoun-
tering one more rapid they entered upon smooth
water, and passed the night in a rocky island.

On the 22d they set out at an early hour. The
morning was damp hut delicious, and not a breath
of wind was felt ; a perpetual calm reigning to the
south of the cataracts, which Humboldt attributes
to the windings of the rivers, the shelter of moun-
tains, and the almost incessant rains. In the valley
of the Amazon, on the contrary, a strong breeze
rises every day at two in the afternoon, which, how-
ever, is felt only along the line of the current. It
always moves against the stream, and by means of
it a boat may go up the Amazon under sail a length
of 2590 miles. The great salubrity of this district
is probably owing to the gale. They passed the
mouths of several streams, and admired the gran-
deur of the cerros of Lipapo, a branch of the cordil-
lera of Parime, the aspect of which varied every hour
of the day. At sunrise, the dense vegetation with

254

SCENERY OF THE UPPER ORINOCO.

which they are covered was tinged with a dark-
green inclining to brown, while broad and deep
shadows were projected over the neighbouring plain,
forming a strong contrast with the vivid light diffused
around. Toward noon the shadows disappeared,
and the whole group was veiled in an azure vapour,
which softened the outlines of the rocks, moderated
the effects of light, and gave the landscape an aspect
of calmness and repose. Landing at the mouth of
the Rio Vichada to examine the vegetation, they
found numberless small granitic rocks rising from
the plain, and presenting the appearance of prisms,
ruined columns, and towers. The forest was thin,
and at the confluence of the two rivers, the rocks
and even the soil were covered with mosses and
lichens. M. Bonpland found several specimens of
Laurus cinnamomoides, a very aromatic species of
cinnamon, which, together with the American nut-
meg, the pimento, and Laurus pucker i, Humboldt
remarks, would have become important objects of
trade, had not Europe, at the period when the New
World was discovered, been already accustomed to
the spices of India. The travellers rested at night on
the bank of the Orinoco, at the mouth of the Zama.
This river is one of those which are said to have black
water, as it appears of a dark-brown or greenish-
black ; and here they entered the system of rivers
to which the name of Aguas Negras is given. The
colour is supposed to be owing to a solution of ve-
getable matter, and the Indians attribute it to the
roots of sarsaparilla.

At five in the morning of the 23d they continued
their voyage, and passed the mouth of the Rio Ma-
taveni. The banks were still skirted by forests, but

SAN FERNANDO DE ATABIPO.

255

the mountains on the east retired farther back. The
traces left by the floods were not higher than eight
feet. At the place where they passed the nighty
multitudes of bats issued from the crevices, and ho-
vered around their hammocks. Next day a violent
rain obliged them to set out at a very early hour.
In the afternoon they landed at the Indian planta-
tions of San Fernando, and after midnight arrived
at the mission, where they were received with the
kindest hospitality.

The village of San Fernando de Atabipo is si-
tuated near the confluence of the Orinoco, the Ata-
bipo, and the Guaviare ; the latter of which Hum-
boldt thinks might with more propriety be consider-
ed the continuation of the Orinoco than a branch.
The number of inhabitants did not exceed 226.
The missionary had the title of president of the sta-
tions on the Orinoco, and superintended the twenty-
six ecclesiastics settled on its banks, as well as on those
of the Rio Negro, Casiquiare, Atabipo, and Caura.
The Indians were a little more civilized than the
inmates of the other establishments, and cultivated
cacao in small quantities, together with cassava and
plantains. They were surrounded with good pastur-
age, but not more than seven or eight cows were to be
seen. The most striking object in the neighbourhood
was the pirijao palm, which has a thorny trunk
more than sixty-four feet high, pinnated leaves, and
clusters of fruits two or three inches in diameter,
and of a purple colour. The fruit furnishes a fari-
naceous substance, of a colour resembling that of
the yolk of an egg, which when boiled or roasted
affords a very wholesome and agreeable aliment.

On entering the Rio Atabipo the travellers found

256

CHANGE OF SCENERY.

a great change in the scenery, the colour of the
stream, and the constitution of the atmosphere. The
trees were of a different species ; the mosquitoes had
entirely disappeared, and the waters, instead of be-
ing turbid, and loaded with earthy matter, were of
a dark colour, clear, agreeable to the taste, and two
degrees cooler. So great is their transparency, that
the smallest fishes are distinguishable at the depth
of twenty or thirty feet, and the bottom, which
consists of white quartzy sand, is usually visible.
The banks covered with plants, among which rise
numerous palms, are reflected by the surface of the
river with a vividness almost as bright as that of
the objects themselves. Above the mission no cro-
codiles occur, but their place is supplied by bavas
and fresh- water dolphins. The chiguires, howling-
monkeys, and zamuro-vultures had disappeared,
though jaguars were still seen, and the water-snakes
were extremely numerous.

On the 26th the travellers advanced only two or
three leagues, and passed the night on a rock near
the Indian plantations of Guapasoso. At two in
the morning they again set out, and continued to
ascend the river. About noon they passed the gra-
nitic rock named Piedra del Tigre, and at the close
of the day had great difficulty in finding a suitable
place for sleeping, owing to the inundation of the
banks. It rained hard from sunset, and as the mis-
sionary had a fit of tertian fever they re-embarked
immediately after midnight. At dawn they landed
to examine a gigantic ceiba-tree, which was nearly
128 feet in height, with a diameter of fifteen or six-
teen feet. On the 29th the air was cooler, but loaded
with vapours, and the current being strong they ad-

ANECDOTE OF AN INDIAN WOMAN. 257

vanced slowly. It was night when they arrived
at the mission of San Baltasar, where they lodged
with a Catalan priest, a lively and agreeable person^
The village was built with great regularity, and the
plantations seemed better cultivated than elsewhere.

At a late hour in the morning they left his abode,
and after ascending the Atabipo for five miles en-
tered the Rio Temi. A granitic rock on the west-
ern bank of the former river attracted their atten-
tion. It is called the Piedra de la Guahiba or
Piedra de la Madre, and commemorates one of those
acts of oppression of which Europeans are guilty in
all countries whenever they come into contact with
savages. In 1797j the missionary of San Fernando
had led his people to the banks of the Rio Gua-
viare on a hostile excursion. In an Indian hut they
found a Guahibo woman, with three children, oc-
cupied in preparing cassava-flour. She and her
little ones attempted to escape, but were seized and
carried away. The unhappy female repeatedly fled
with her children from the village, but was always
traced by her Christian countrymen. At length
the friar, after causing her to be severely beaten,
resolved to separate her from her family, and sent
her up the Atabipo toward the missions of the Rio
Negro. Ignorant of the fate intended for her, but
judging by the direction of the sun that her perse-
cutors were carrying her far from her native coun-
try, she burst her fetters, leaped from the boat, and
swam to the left bank of the river. She landed on a
rock ; but the president of the establishment ordered
the Indians to row to the shore and lay hands on her.
She was brought back in the evening, stretched upon
the bare stone (the Piedra de la Madre), scourged

258 ANECDOTE OF AN INDIAN WOMAN.

with straps of manatee leather, which are the or-
dinary whips of the country, and then dragged to
the mission of Javita, her hands hound behind her
back. It was the rainy season, the night was ex-
cessively dark, forests believed to be impenetrable
stretched from that station to San Fernando over
an extent of 86 miles, and the only communication
between these places was by the river ; yet the
Guahibo mother, breaking her bonds, and eluding
the vigilance of her guards, escaped under night,
and on the fourth morning was seen at the vil-
lage, hovering around the hut which contained
her children. On this journey she must have im-
dergone hardships from which the most robust man
would have shrunk ; was forced to live upon ants,
to swim numerous streams, and to make her way
through thickets and thorny lianas. And the re-
ward of all this courage and devotion was — her re-
moval to one of the missions of the Upper Orinoco,
where, despairing of ever seeing her beloved chil-
dren, and refusing all kind of nourishment, she
died, avictim to the bigotry and barbarity of wretches
blasphemously calling themselves the ministers of a
religion which inculcates universal benevolence.

Above the mouth of the Guasucavi the travellers
entered the Rio Temi, which runs from south to
north. The ground was flat and covered with trees,
over which rose the pirijao palm with its clusters of
peach-like fruits, and the Mauritia aculeata, with
fan-shaped leaves pointing downwards, and marked
with concentric circles of blue and green. Wherever
the river forms sinuosities the forest is flooded to
a great extent ; and, to shorten the route, the boat
frequently pushed through the woods along open

ASCENT OF THE EIO TEMI.

259

avenues of water four or five feet broad. An Indian
furnished with a large knife stood at the bow con-
tinually cutting the branches which obstructed the
passage. In the thickest part of it a shoal of fresh-
water dolphins issued from beneath the trees and
surrounded the vessel. At five in the evening the
travellers, after sticking for some time between two
trunks and experiencing other difficulties, regained
the proper channel, and passed the night near one of
the columnar masses of granite which occasionally
protrude from the level surface.

Setting out before daybreak, they remained in
the bed of the river till sunrise, when, to avoid
the force of the current, they again entered the in-
undated forest ; and soon arriving at the junction of
the Temi with the Tuamini, they followed the lat-
ter toward the south-west. At eleven they reached
San Antonio de Javita, where they had the pleasure
of finding a very intelligent and agreeable monk :
though they were obliged to remain nearly a week
while the boat was carried by land to the Rio Ne- -
gro. For two days the travellers had felt an ex-
traordinary irritation on the joints of the fingers
and on the back of the hands, which the missionary
informed them was caused by insects. Nothing could
be distinguished with a lens but parallel streaks of a
whitish colour, the form of which has obtained for
these animalculse the name of aradores, or plough-
men. A mulatto woman engaged to extirpate them
one by one, and, digging with a small bit of pointed
wood, at length succeeded in extracting a little round
bag ; but Humboldt did not possess sufficient pa-
tience to wait for relief from so tedious an operation.
Next day, however, an Indian effected a radical cure

260 •

MISSION OP SAN ANTONIO.

by means of the infusion of bark stripped from a
certain shrub.

In 1755, before the expedition to the boundaries,
the country between the missions of Javita and Sail
Baltasar was dependent on Brazil, and the Portu-
guese had advanced from the Rio Negro as far as
the banks of the Temi. An Indian chief named
Javita, one of their auxiliaries, pushed his hostile
excursions to a distance of more than 345 miles ;
and, being furnished with a patent for drawing the
natives from the forest “ for the conquest of souls,”
did not fail to make use of it for selling slaves to
his allies. When Solano, one of the leaders of the
expedition just described, arrived at San Fernan-
do de Atabipo, he seized the adventurer, and by
treating him with gentleness gained him over to
the interests of the Spaniards. He was still living
when the travellers proceeded to the Rio Negro;
and, as he attended them on all their botanical
excursions, they obtained much information from
him. He assured them, that he had seen almost
all the Indian tribes which inhabit the vast coun-
tries between the Upper Orinoco, the Rio Negro,
the Irinida, and the Jupura, devour human flesh.
Their cannibalism he considered as the effect of a
system of revenge, as they eat only enemies who
are made prisoners in battle.

The climate of the mission of San Antonio de
Javita is so rainy that the sun and stars are seldom
to be seen, and the padre informed the travellers
that it sometimes rained without intermission for
four or five months. The water that fell in five
hours on the 1st of May, Humboldt found to be
21 lines in height, and on the 3d of May he col-

GIGANTIC TREES ELASTIC GUM.

261

lected 14 lines in three hours ; whereas at Paris
there fall only 28 or 30 lines in as many weeks. The
temperature is lower than at Maypures, hut higher
than on the Rio Negro ; the thermometer standing at
80° or 80 6° by day, and at 69 8° by night.

The Indians of the mission amounted only to 160.
Some of them were employed in the construction of
boats, which are formed of the trunks of a species of
laurel {Ocotea cymharum), hollowed by means of
fire and the axe. These trees attain a height of
more than a hundred feet, and have a yellow resin-
ous wood which emits an agreeable odour. The forest
between Javita and Pimichin affords an immense
quantity of gigantic timber, as tall occasionally as 116
or 117 feet ; but as the trees give out branches only
towards the summit, the travellers were disappoint-
ed, amid so great a profusion of unknown species,
in not being able to procure the leaves and flowers.
Besides, as it rained incessantly so long a time,
M. Bonpland lost the greater part of his dried spe-
cimens. Although no pines or firs occur in these
woods, balsams, resins, and aromatic gums, are abun-
dantly furnished by many other trees, and are col-
lected as objects of trade by the people of Javita.

At the mission of San Baltasar they had seen
the natives preparing a kind of elastic gum, which
they said was found under ground ; and in the fo-
rests at Javita, the old Indian who accompanied
them showed that it was obtained by digging seve-
ral feet deep among the roots of two particular trees,
the Hevea of Auhlet and one with pinnate leaves.
This substance, which hears the name of dapicho,
is white, corky, and brittle, with a laminated struc-
ture and undulating edges j but on being roasted it

262

NATIVE INDIANS.

assumes a black colour, and acquires the properties
of caoutchouc.

The natives of these countries live in hordes of
forty or fifty, and unite under a common chief only
when they wage war with their neighbours. As
the dilferent tribes speak different languages they
have little communication. They cultivate cassava,
plantains, and sometimes maize; but shift from place
to place, so that they entirely lose the advantages
resulting in other countries from agricultural ha-
bits. They have two great objects of worship, — the
good principle, Cachimana, who regulates the sea-
sons and favours the harvests ; and the evil prin-
ciple, Jolokiamo, less powerful, but more active and
artful. They have no idols ; but the botuto, or
sacred trumpet, is an object of veneration, the ini-
tiation into the mysteries of which requires pure
manners and a single life. Women are not permit-
ted to see it, and are excluded from all the ceremo-
nies of this religion.

It took the Indians more than four days to drag
the boat upon rollers to the Rio Pimichin. One of
them, a tall strong man, was bitten by a snake, and
was brought to the mission in a very alarming con-
dition. He had dropped down senseless, and was
afterwards seized with nausea, vertigo, and a de-
termination of blood to the head, but was cured
by an infusion of raiz de mato; respecting the plant
furnishing which Humboldt could obtain no satis-
factory information, although he supposes it to be of
the family of Apocynese. In the hut of this indivi-
dual he observed balls of an earthy and impure salt,
two or three inches in diameter. It is obtained by
reducing to ashes the spadix and fruit of a palm-tree.

forests SNAKES — RIO NEGRO.

263

and consists of muriate of potash and soda, caustic
lime, and other ingredients. The Indians dissolve a
few grains in water, which they drop on their food.

On the 5th May the travellers set olf on foot to fol-
low their canoe. They had to ford numerous streams,
the passage of which was somewhat dangerous on
account of the number of snakes in the marshes.
After passing through dense forests of lofty trees,
among which they noted several new species of coffee
and other plants, they arrived toward evening at a
small farm on the Pimichin, where they passed the
night in a deserted hut, not without apprehension of
being bitten by serpents, as they were obliged to lie
on the floor. Before they took possession of this shed
their attendants killed two great Mapanare snakes,
and in the morning a large viper was found beneath
the jaguar-skin on which one of them had slept.
This species of serpent is white on the belly, spot-
ted with brown and black on the back, and grows
to the length of four or five feet. Humboldt re-
marks, that if vipers and rattlesnakes had such a
disposition for offence as is usually supposed, the
human race could not have resisted them in some
parts of America.

Embarking at sunrise they proceeded down the
Pimichin, which is celebrated for the number of its
windings. It is navigable during the whole year,
and has only one rapid. In four hours and a half
they entered the Rio Negro. The morning,” says
Humboldt, “ was cool and beautiful ; we had been
confined thirty-six days in a narrow canoe, so un-
steady that it would have been overset by any one
rising imprudently from his seat, without warning
the rowers to preserve its balance by leaning to the

264

KIO NEGRO A TRIBUTARY

opposite side. We had suffered severely from the
stings of insects, but we had withstood the insalu-
brity of the climate ; we had passed without acci-
dent the numerous falls and bars that impede the
navigation of the rivers, and often render it more
dangerous than long voyages by sea.

“ After all that we had endured, I may be allowed,
to mention the satisfaction which we felt in having
reached the tributaries of the Amazon, — in having
passed the isthmus which separates two great sys-
tems of rivers, — and in having attained a certainty
of fulfilling the most important object of our jour-
ney,— that of determining by astronomical observa-
tions the course of that arm of the Orinoco which
joins the Rio Negro, and whose existence had been
alternately proved and denied for half a century. In
these inland regions of the New Continent we almost
accustom ourselves to consider man as inessential to
the order of nature. The earth is overloaded with
plants, of which nothing impedes the development.
An immense layer of mould evinces the uninter-
rupted action of the organic powers. The crocodiles
and boas are masters of the river; the jaguar, pe-
cari, dante, and monkeys of numerous species, tra-
verse the forest without fear and without danger,
residing there as in an ancient heritage. On the
ocean and on the sands of Africa, we with difficulty
reconcile ourselves to the disappearance of man ;
but here his absence, in a fertile country clothed
with perpetual verdure, produces a strange and
melancholy feeling.”

The Rio Negro, which flows eastward into the
Amazon, was for ages considered of great political
importance by the Spanish government, as it would

OP THE AMAZON.

265

have furnished to the Portuguese an easy introduc-
tion into the missions of Guiana. The jealousies
of these rival nations, the ignorance and diversified
languages of the Indians, the difficulty of pene-
trating into these inland regions, and other causes,
rendered the knowledge of the sources as well as
the tributaries of the Negro and Orinoco extremely
defective. To endeavour to throw some light on
this geographical point, and in particular to de-
termine the course of that branch of the Orinoco
which joins the Rio Negro, was the great object of
Humboldt’s journey. This last, or Black River, is so
named on account of the dark colour of its waters,
which are of an amber hue wherever it is shallow,
and dark-brown wherever the depth is great. After
^ entering it by the Pimichin, and passing the rapid at
the confluence of the two streams, the travellers soon
reached the mission of Maroa, containing 150 In-
dians, where they purchased some fine toucans. Pass-
ing the station of Tomo they visited that of Davipe,
where they were received by the missionary with
great hospitality. Here they bought some fowls
and a pig, which interested their servants so much
that they pressed them to depart, in order to reach
the island of Dapa where the animal might be roast-
ed. They arrived at sunset, and found some cul-
tivated ground and an Indian hut. Four natives
were seated round a fire eating a kind of paste,
consisting of large ants, of which several bags were
suspended over the fire. There were more than
fourteen persons in this small cabin, lying naked in
hammocks placed above each other. They received
Father Zea with great joy, and two young women
prepared cassava-cakes ; after which the travellers

266

MISSION OF SAN CARLOS.

retired to rest. The family slept only till two in
the morning, when they began to converse in their
hammocks. This custom of being awake four or
five hours before sunrise Humboldt found to be
general among the people of Guiana; and, hence,
when an attempt is made to surprise them, the first
part of the night is chosen for the purpose.

Proceeding down the Rio Negro they passed the
mouth of the Casiquiare, the river by which a com-
munication is effected between the former and the
Orinoco ; and towards evening reached the mission
of San Carlos del Rio Negro, with the commander
of which they lodged. The military establishment
of this frontier post consisted of seventeen soldiers,
ten of whom were detached for the security of the
neighbouring stations. The voyage from the mouth
of the Rio Negro to Grand Para occupying only
twenty or twenty-five days, it would not have taken
much more time to have gone down the Amazon
to the coast of Brazil, than to return by the Casi-
quiare and Orinoco to that of Caraccas ; but our tra-
vellers were informed that it was difficult to pass
from the Spanish to the Portuguese settlements;
and it was well for them that they declined this
route, for they afterwards learned that instructions
had been issued to seize and convey them to Lis-
bon. This project, however, was not countenanced
by the government at home, who, when informed
of the zeal of its subaltern agents, gave instant orders
that the philosophers should not be disturbed in their
pursuits.

Among the Indians of the Rio Negro they found
some of those green pebbles known by the name of
Amazon-stones, and which are worn as amulets.

AMAZON-STONES CASIQUIARE. 267

The form usually given to them is that of the Perse-
politan cylinders longitudinally perforated. These
hard substances denote a degree of civilisation supe-
rior to that of the present inhabitants, who, so far
from being able to cut them, imagine that they are
naturally soft when taken out of the earth, and
harden after they have been moulded by the hand.
They were found to be jade or saussurite, approach-
ing to compact felspar, of a colour passing from
apple to emerald green, translucent on the edges,
and taking a fine polish ; but the substance usually
called Amazon-stone in Europe is different, be-
ing a common felspar of a similar colour, coming
from the Uralian Mountains and Lake Onega in
Russia.

Connected with this mineral are the warlike wo-
men, whom the travellers of the sixteenth century
named the Amazons of the New World ; and re-
garding whom Humboldt found no satisfactory ac-
counts, although he is disposed to believe that their
existence was not merely imaginary.

The travellers passed three days at San Carlos,
watching the greater part of each night, in the hope
of seizing the moment of the passage of some star
over the meridian ; but the sky was continually
obscured by vapours. On the 10th May they em-
barked a little before sunrise to go up the Rio Negro.
The morning was fine, but as the heat increased the
firmament became darkened. Passing between the
islands of Zaruma and Mibita, covered with dense
vegetation, and ascending the rapids of the Piedra
de Uinumane, they entered the Casiquiare at the
distance of 9^ miles from the fort of San Carlos.
The rock at the rapids was granite, traversed by

268 ASCENT OF THE CASIQUIARE.

numerous veins of quartz several inches broad. The
night was spent at the mission of San Francisco
SolanOj on the left hank of the Casiquiare. The
Indians were of two nations, the Pacimonales and
Cheruvichahenas ; and from the latter the travellers
endeavoured to obtain some information respecting
the upper part and sources of the Rio Negro, hut
without success. In one of the huts of the former
tribe they purchased two large birds, a toucan
and a macaw, to add to the already considerable
stock which they possessed. Most of the animals
were confined in small cages, while others ran at
liberty all over the boat. At the approach of rain,
the macaws uttered frightful screams, the toucan
was desirous of gaining the shore in order to fish,
and the little monkeys went in search of Father Zea
to obtain shelter in his large sleeves. At night the
leather case containing their provisions was placed in
the centre ; then the instruments and cages ; around
which were suspended the hammocks of the travel-
lers ; and beyond them the Indians slept, protected
by a circle of fires to keep olf the jaguars.

On the 11th they left the mission of San Francis-
co Solano at a late hour to make a short day’s jour-
ney, for the vapours had begun to break up, and the
travellers were unwilling to go far from the mouth
of the Casiquiare without determining the longi-
tude and latitude. This they had an opportunity
of doing at night in the neighbourhood of a solitary
granite rock, the Piedra di Culimacari, which they
found to be in lat. 2° 0' 42" north, and long. 67“
13' 26" west. The determination was of great im-
portance in a geographical and political point of
view, for the greatest errors existed in maps, and

MOSQUITOES — INDIANS.

269

the equator had been considered as the boundary
between the Spanish and Portuguese possessions.

Leaving the Rock of Culimacari at half after one
in the morning, they proceeded against the current,
which was very rapid. The waters of the Casi-
quiare are white, and the mosquitoes again com-
menced their invasions, becoming more numerous
as the boat receded from the black stream of the Rio
Negro. In the whole course of the Casiquiare they
did not 'find in the Christian settlements a popula-
tion of 200 individuals, and the free Indians have
retired from its banks. During a great part of the
year the natives subsist on ants. At the mission
of Mandavaca, which they reached in the evening,
they found a monk who had spent twenty years in
the country, and whose legs were so spotted by the
stings of insects that the whiteness of the skin could
scarcely be perceived. He complained of his soli-
tude, and the sad necessity which often compelled
him to leave the most atrocious crimes unpunished.
An indigenous alcayde, or overseer, had a few years
before eaten one of his wives, after fattening her by
good feeding. “ You cannot imagine,” said the
missionary, " all the perversity of this Indian family.
You receive men of a new tribe into the village ;
they appear to be good, mild, and industrious ; but
suffer them to take part in an incursion to bring in
the natives, and you can scarcely prevent them from
murdering all they meet, and hiding some portions
of the dead bodies.” The travellers had in their
canoe a fugitive Indian from the Guaisia, who in a
few weeks had become sufficiently civilized to be
very useful. As he was mild and intelligent, they
had some desire of taking him into their service ;

270 SCENERY OF THE CASIQUIARE.

but discovering that his anthropophagous propensi-
ties remained they gave up the idea. He told them
that " his relations (the people of his tribe) preferred
the inside of the hands in man, as in bears,” accom-
panying the assertion with gestures of savage joy.

Although the Indians of the Casiquiare readily
return to their barbarous habits, they manifest,
while in the missions, intelligence, industry, and a
great facility in learning the Spanish tongue. As
the villages are usually inhabited by three or four
tribes who do not understand each other, the lan-
guage of their instructor affords a general means of
communication. The soil on the Casiquiare is of
excellent quality. Rice, beans, cotton, sugar, and
indigo, thrive wherever they have been tried ; but
the humidity of the air, and the swarms of insects,
oppose almost insuperable obstacles to cultivation.
Immense bands of white ants destroy every thing
that comes in their way, insomuch, that when a mis-
sionary would cultivate salad or any European cu-
linary vegetable, he fills an old boat with soil, and
having sown the seeds suspends it with cords, or ele-
vates it on posts.

From the 14th to the 21st the travellers continued
to ascend the Casiquiare, which flowed with consi-
derable rapidity, having a breadth of 426 yards,
and bordered by two enormous walls of trees hung
with lianas. No openings could be discovered in
these fences ; and at night the Indians had to cut a
small spot with their hatchets to make room enough
for their beds, it being impossible to remain in the
canoe on account of the mosquitoes and heavy rains.
Great difl&culty was experienced in finding wood to
make a fire, the branches being so full of sap that

BIFURCATION OF THE ORINOCO. 271

they would scarcely burn. On shore the pothoses,
arums, and lianas, furnished so thick a covering,
that although it rained violently they were com-
pletely sheltered. At their last resting-place on the
Casiquiare, the jaguars carried olf their great dog
while they slept.

On the 21st May they again entered the channel
of the Orinoco, three leagues below the mission of
Esmeralda. Here the scenery wore a very imposing
aspect, lofty granitic mountains rising on the north-
ern bank. The celebrated bifurcation of the river
takes place in this manner : The stream, issuing
from among the mountains, reaches the opening of a
valley or depression of the ground which terminates
at the Rio Negro, and divides into two branches.
The principal branch continues its course toward
the west -north-west, turning round the group of the
mountains of Parime, while the other flows off south-
ward and joins the Rio Negro. By this latter
branch our travellers ascended from the river just
mentioned, and again entered the Orinoco, four
weeks after they had left it near the mouth of the
Guaviare. They had still a voyage of 863 miles
to perform before reaching Angostura.

272

BIOUNTAINS OF DUIDA.

CHAPTER XIX.

Route from Esmeralda to Angostura.

Mission of Esmeralda — Curare Poison — Indians — Duida Moun-
tain— Descent of the Orinoco — Cave of Ataruipe — Raudalito of
Carucari — Mission of Uruana — Character of the Otomacs —
Clay eaten by the Natives — Arrival at Angostura — The Travel-
lers attacked by Fever — Ferocity of the Crocodiles.

Opposite the point where the division of the river
takes place, there rises in the form of an amphi-
theatre a group of granitic mountains, of which
the principal one bears the name of Duida. It is
about 8500 feet high ; and being perpendicular on
the south and west, bare and stony on the sum-
mit, and clothed on its less steep declivities with
vast forests, presents a magnificent spectacle. At
the foot of this huge mass is placed the most solitary
and remote Christian settlement on the Upper Ori-
noco,— the mission of Esmeralda, containing eighty
inhabitants. It is surrounded by a beautiful plain,
covered with grasses of various species, pine-apples,
and clumps of Mauritia palm, and watered by lim-
pid rills.

There was no monk at the village ; but the tra-
vellers were received with kindness by an old offi-
cer, who, taking them for Catalonian shopkeepers,
admired their simplicity when he saw the bundles
of paper in which their plants were preserved, and

CURARE POISON.

273

which he supposed they intended for sale. Not-
withstanding the smallness of the mission three In-
dian languages were spoken in it ; and among the in-
habitants were some ZamboeSj mulattoes, and cop-
per-coloured people. A mineralogical error gave ce-
lebrity to Esmeralda, the rock-crystals and chlori-
tic quartzes of Duida having been mistaken for dia-
monds and emeralds. The converts live in great
poverty, and their misery is augmented by prodigi-
ous swarms of mosquitoes. Yet the situation of the
establishment is exceedingly picturesque ; the sur-
rounding country is possessed of great fertility ; and
plantains, indigo, sugar, and cacao, might be pro-
duced in abundance.

This village is the most celebrated spot on the
Orinoco for the manufacture of the curare, a very
active poison employed in war and in the chase#, as
well as a remedy for gastric obstructions. Erro-
neous ideas had been entertained of this substance ;
but our travellers had an opportunity of seeing it
prepared. When they arrived at Esmeralda, most
of the Indians had just finished an excursion to
gather juvias or the fruit of the bertholletia, and
the liana which yields the curare. Their return
was celebrated by a festival, which lasted several
days, during which they were in a state of intoxi-
cation. One less drunk than the rest was employ-
ed in preparing the poison. He was the chemist
of the place, and boasted of his skill, extolling the
composition as superior to any thing that could be
made in Europe. The liana which yields it is named
bejuco, and appeared to be of the Strychnos family.
The branches are scraped with a knife, and the
bark that comes off is bruised, and reduced to very

274

CURARE POISON.

thin filaments on the stone employed for grinding
cassava. A cold infusion is prepared by pouring
water on this fibrous mass^ in a funnel made of a
plantain-leaf rolled up in the form of a cone^ and
placed in another somewhat stronger made of palm-
leaves, the whole supported by a slight framework.
A yellowish fluid filters through the apparatus. It
is the venomous liquor ; which, however, acquires
strength only when concentrated by evaporation in
a large earthen pot. To give it consistence, it is
mixed with a glutinous vegetable juice, obtained
from a tree named kiracaguera. At the moment
when this addition is made to the fluid, now kept
in a state of ebullition, the whole blackens, and
coagulates into a substance resembling tar or thick
syrup. The curare may be tasted without danger ;
fof, like the venom of serpents, it only acts when in-
troduced directly into the blood, and the Indians
consider it as an excellent stomachic. It is univer-
sally employed by them in hunting, the tips of
their arrows being covered with it ; and the usual
mode of killing domestic fowls is to scratch the skin
with one of these infected weapons. Other species of
vegetable poison are manufactured in various parts
of Guiana.

After seeing this composition prepared, the phi-
losophers accompanied the artist to the festival of
the juvias. In the hut where the revellers were as-
sembled, large roasted monkeys blackened by smoke
were ranged against the wall. Humboldt imagines
that the habit of eating animals so much resembling
man has in some degree contributed to diminish the
horror of anthropophagy among savages. Apes when
thus cooked, and especially such as have a very

INDIAN FEAST — DUIDA.

275

round head, hear a hideous likeness to a child ; and
for this reason such Europeans as are obliged to feed
upon them separate the head and hands before the
dish is presented at their tables. The flesh is very
lean and dry.

Among the articles brought by the Indians from
their expedition were various interesting vegetable
productions ; fruits of dilferent species, reeds up-
wards of fifteen feet long, perfectly straight and free
of knots, and bark used for making shirts. The
women were employed in serving the men with the
food already mentioned, fermented liquors, and palm-
cabbage, but were not permitted to join in the festi-
vities. Among all the tribes of the Orinoco the fe-
males live in a sort of slavery, almost the whole labour
devolving upon them. Polygamy is frequently prac-
tised, and on the other hand a kind of polyandry is
established in places where the fair sex are less nu-
merous. When a native who has several wives be-
comes a Christian, the missionaries compel him to
choose her whom he prefers and to dismiss the others.

The summit of Duida is so steep that no person
has ever ascended it. At the beginning and end of
the rainy season, small flames, which appear to shift,
are seen upon it. On this account the mountain
has been called a volcano, which, however, it is not.
The granite whereof it is composed is full of veins,
some of which being partly open, gaseous and in-
flammable vapours may pass through them ; for it
is not probable that the flames are caused by light-
ning, the humidity of the climate being such that
plants do not readily take fire.

The travellers had an opportunity of seeing at
Esmeralda some of the dwarf and fair Indians,

276 PROGRESS DOWN THE RIVER.

that ancient traditions had mentioned as living near
the sources of the Orinoco. The Guaicas, or di-
minutive class, whom they measured, were in ge-
neral from 4 feet 10| to 4 feet 11^ inches in height ;
and it was said that the whole trihe was of the same
stature. The Guahariboes, or fair variety, were si-
milar to the others in form and features, and differed
only in having the skin of a lighter tint.

On the 23d May the travellers left the mission
of Esmeralda in a state of languor and weakness,
caused by the torment of insects, had nourishment,
and a long voyage performed in a narrow and
damp boat. They had not attempted to ascend the
Orinoco towards its sources, as the country above
that station was inhabited by hostile Indians; so
that of the two geographical problems connected
with the river, — the position of its sources and the
nature of its communication with the Rio Negro, —
they had been obliged to content themselves with
the solution of the latter. When they embarked
they were surrounded by the mulattoes and others
who considered themselves Spaniards, and who en-
treated them to solicit from the governor of Angostura
their return to the Llanos, or at least their removal
to the missions of the Rio Negro. Humboldt plead-
ed the cause of these proscribed men at a subsequent
period ; but his efforts were fruitless. The weather
was very stormy, and the summit of Duida was en-
veloped in clouds ; but the thimders which rolled
there did not disturb the plains. Nor did they, ge-
nerally speaking, observe in the valley of the Ori-
noco those violent electric explosions which almost
every night, during the rainy season, alarm the tra-
veller along the Rio Magdalena. After four hours’

CAVE OF ATARUIPE.

277

navigation in descending the stream, they arrived
at the bifurcation, and reposed on the same beach of
the Casiquiare where, a few days before, their dog
had been carried off by the jaguars. The cries of
these animals were again heard through the whole
night. The black tiger also occurs in these districts.
It is celebrated for its strength and ferocity, and
appears to be larger than the other, of which, how-
ever, it is probably a variety.

Leaving their resting-place before sunrise, and
sailing with the current, they passed the mouths of
the Cunucunumo, Guanami, and Puruname. The
country was entirely desert, although rude figures
representing the sun, the moon, and difierent ani-
mals, are to be seen on the granite rocks ; attesting
the former existence of a people more civilized than
any that they had seen.

On the 27th May they reached the mission of San
F ernando de Atabipo, where they had lodged a month
before on their ascent toward the Rio Negro. The
president had allowed himself to become very un-
easy respecting the object of their journey; and re-
quested Humboldt to leave a writing in his hands,
bearing testimony to the good order that prevailed in
the Christian settlements on the Orinoco, and the
mildness with which the natives were treated. This,
however, he declined. From this point they retraced
their former route, and passed the cataracts. On the
31st, they landed before sunset at the Puerto de la
Expedicion, for the purpose of visiting the cave of
Ataruipe, which is the sepulchre of an extinct nation.

"We climbed,” says Humboldt, " with difficulty
and not without danger, a steep rock of granite, en.
tirely destitute of soil. It would have been almost

278

SPLENDID SCENERY.

impossible to fix the foot on this smooth and highly-
inclined surface, had not large crystals of felspar,
which had resisted decomposition, projected from
the rock so as to present points of support. Scarcely
had we reached the summit of the mountain when
we were struck with astonishment at the extraordi-
nary appearance of the surrounding country : The
foamy bed of the waters was filled with an archi-
pelago of islands covered with palms. Toward the
west, on the left bank of the Orinoco extended the
savannahs of the Meta and Casanare, like a sea of
verdure, the misty horizon of which was illuminated
by the rays of the setting sun. The mighty orb,
like a globe of fire suspended over the plain, and
the solitary peak of Uniana, which appeared more
lofty from being wrapped in vapours that softened
its outlines, contributed to impress a character of
sublimity upon the scene. We looked down into a
deep valley enclosed on every side. Birds of prey
and goatsuckers winged their solitary way in this
inaccessible circus. We found pleasure in following
their fleeting shadows as they glided slowly over
the flanks of the rock.

A narrow ridge led us towards a neighbouring
mountain, the rounded summit of which supported
enormous blocks of granite. These masses are more
than 40 or 50 feet in diameter, and present a form
so perfectly spherical, that, as they seem to touch the
ground only by a small number of points, it might
be supposed that the slightest shock of an earth-
quake would roll them into the abyss. I do not
remember to have seen anywhere else a similar phe-
nomenon amid the decompositions of granitic depo-
sites. If the balls rested upon a rock of a different

SEPULCHRAL CAVE.

279

nature, as is the case with the blocks of Jura, it
might be supposed that they had been rounded by
the action of water, or projected by the force of an
elastic fluid ; but their position on the summit of a
hill of the same nature, renders it more probable
that they owe their origin to a gradual decomposi-
tion of the rock.

The most remote part of the valley is covered
by a dense forest. In this shady and solitary place,
on the declivity of a steep mountain, opens the cave
of Ataruipe. It is less a cave than a projecting
rock, in which the waters have scooped a great
hollow, when, in the ancient revolutions of our
planet, they had reached to that height. In this
tomb of a whole extinct tribe we soon counted nearly
600 skeletons in good preservation, and arranged so
regularly that it would have been difficult to make
an error in numbering them. Each skeleton rests
upon a kind of basket formed of the petioles of
palms. These baskets, which the natives call 7na-
pires, have the form of a square bag. Their size is
proportional to the age of the dead ; and there
are even some for infants which had died at the
moment of birth. We saw them from ten inches
and a half to three feet six inches and a half in
length. All the skeletons are bent, and so entire
that not a rib or a bone of the fingers or toes is
wanting. The bones have been prepared in three
different ways, — whitened in the air and sun, dyed
red with onoto, a colouring matter obtained from
the Bixa orellana ; or, like mummies, covered with
odorous resins, and enveloped in leaves of heliconia
and banana. The Indians related to us that the
corpse is first placed in the humid earth, that the

280

SEPULCHRAL CAVE.

flesh may be consumed by degrees. Some months
after, it is taken out, and the flesh that remains
on the bones is scraped off with sharp stones.
Several tribes of Guiana still follow this practice.
Near the mapires or baskets there were vases of half-
burnt clay, which appeared to contain the bones of the
same family. The largest of these vases or funereal
urns are three feet two inches high, and four feet
six inches long. They are of a greenish-gray colour,
and have an oval form, not unpleasant to the eye.
The handles are made in the form of crocodiles or
serpents, and the edge is encircled by meanders, la-
byrinths, and grecques, with narrow lines variously
combined. These paintings are seen in all countries,
among nations placed at the greatest distances from
each other, and the most different in respect to civi-
lisation. The inhabitants of the little mission of
Maypures execute them at the present day on their
most common pottery. They adorn the shields of
the Otaheitans, the fishing-instruments of the Es-
quimaux, the walls of the Mexican palace of Mitla,
and the vases of Magna Grsecia.

We opened, to the great concern of our guides,
several mapires, for the purpose of attentively exa-
mining the form of the skulls. They all presenter!
the characters of the American race, — two or three
Mily approached the Caucasian form. We took
several skulls, the skeleton of a child of six or seven
years, and those of two full-grown men, of the na-
tion of the Atures. All these bones, some painted
red, others covered with odorous resins, were placed
in the mapires or baskets already described. They
formed nearly the whole lading of a mule ; and, as
we were aware of the superstitious aversion which

SBPULCHKAIi CAVE.

281

the natives show towards dead bodies, after they
have given them burial, we carefully covered the
baskets with new mats. Unfortunately for us, the
penetration of the Indians, and the extreme delicacy
of their organs of smell, rendered our precautions use-
less. Wherever we stopped, — in the Carib missions,
in the midst of the Llanos, between Angostura and
New Barcelona, — the natives collected around our
mules to admire the monkeys which we had brought
from the Orinoco. These good people had scarcely
touched our baggage when they predicted the ap-
proaching death of the beast of burden that carried
the dead.' In vain we told them that they were
deceived in their conjectures, that the panniers con-
tained bones of crocodiles and lamantins ; they per-
sisted in repeating, that they smelt the resin which
surrounded the skeletons, and that ^ they were some
of their old relatives.’

“We departed in silence from the cave of Ataruipe.
It was one of those calm and serene nights which
are so common in the torrid zone. The stars shone
with a mild and planetary light ; their scintillation
was scarcely perceptible at the horizon, which seem-
ed illuminated by the great nebulae of the southern
hemisphere. Multitudes of insects diffused a red-
dish light over the air. The ground, profusely co-
vered with plants, shone with those living and mov-
ing lights as if the stars of the firmament had fallen
upon the savannah. On leaving the cave, we re-
peatedly stopped to admire the beauty this extra-
ordinary place. The scented vanilla and festoons of
bignoniae decorated its entrance ; while the summit
of the overhanging hill was crowned by arrowy
palm-trees tliat waved murmuring in the air.”

282

CATARACTS OF ATTTRES.

Similar caves are said to exist to the north of the
cataracts ; hut the tombs of the Indians of the Ori-
noco have not been sufficiently examined, because
they do not, like those of Peru, contain treasures.

The travellers staid at the mission of Atures only
so long as ■was necessary for the passage of their ca-
noe through the great falls. The priest, Bernardo
Zea, who had accompanied them to the Rio Negro,
remained behind. His ague had not been removed;
but its attacks had become an habitual evil, to which
he now paid little attention. Fevers of a more de-
structive kind prevailed in the establishment, in-
somuch that the greater part of the inmates were
confined to their hammocks. Again embarked on
the Orinoco the travellers ventured to descend the
lower half of the rapids of Atures, landing here and
there to climb the rocks, among which the golden
manakin {Pipra rupicolay, one of the most beau-
tiful birds of the tropics, builds its nest. At the
Raudalito of Carucari, they entered some of the
caverns formed by the piling up of granite blocks,
and enjoyed the extraordinary spectacle of the river
dashing in a sheet of foam over their heads. The
boat was to coast the eastern bank of a narrow
island, and take them in after a long circuit ; but
it did not make its appearance, and night approach-
ing, together with a tremendous thunder-storm,
M. Bonpland was desirous of swimming across,
in order to seek assistance at Atures from Father
Zea. Humboldt and the other person who was
with them dissuaded him with difficulty from
so hazardous an enterprise ; and shortly after
two large crocodiles made their appearance, at-
tracted by the plaintiye cries of the monkeys. At

CLAY EATEN BY THE OTOMACS.

283

length the Indians arrived with the vessel, and the
navigation was continued during part of the night.
At Carichana the missionary received them with
kindness. Here the travellers remained some days
to recruit their exhausted strength, and M. Bonpland
had the satisfaction of dissecting a manatee.

From* Carichana they went in two days to the
mission of Uruana, the situation of which is ex-
tremely picturesque, the village being placed at the
foot of a lofty granitic moVintain, the columnar
rocks appearing at intervals above the trees. Here
the river is more than 4263 yards broad, and runs
in a straight line directly east. The hamlet is in-
habited by the Otomacs, one of the rudest of the
American tribes. These Indians swallow quan-
tities of earth for the purpose of allaying hunger.
When the waters are low they live on fish and tur-
tles ; but when the rivers swell, and it becomes dif-
ficult to procure that food, they eat daily a large
portion of clay. The travellers found in their huts
heaps of it in the form of balls, piled up in pyramids
three or four feet high. This substance is fine and
imctuous, of a yellowish-gray’ colour, containing
silica and alumina, with three or four per cent, of
lime. Being a restless and turbulent people, with
unbridled passions and excessively given to in-
toxication, the little village of Uruana is more
dilficult to govern than any of the other missions.
By inhaling at the nose the powder obtained from
the pods of the Acacia niopo they throw them-
selves into a state of intoxication bordering on mad-
ness, that lasts several days, during which dreadful
murders are committed. The most vindictive cover
the nail of the thumb with the curare poison, the

284

PROGRESS DOWN THE ORINOCO.

slightest scratch being thus sufficient to produce
death. When this crime is perpetrated at night
they throw the body into the river. “ Every time,”
said the monk, “ that I see the women fetch water
from a part of the shore to which they do not usu-
ally go for it, I suspect that a murder has been com-
mitted in my mission.”

On the 7th June the travellers took leave of Father
Ramon Bueno, whom Humboldt eulogizes as the
only one of ten missionaries of Guiana whom they
had seen who appeared to be attentive to any thing
that regarded the natives. The night was passed at
the island of Cucurupara, to the east of which is the
mouth of the Cano de la Tortuga. On its southern
bank is the almost deserted station of San Miguel
de la Tortuga, in the neighbourhood of which, ac-
cording to the Indians, are otters with a very fine
fur, and lizards with two feet.

From the island of Cucurupara to Angostura
the capital of Guiana, a distance of little less than
328 miles, the travellers were only nine days on
the water. On the 8th June they landed at a farm
opposite the mouth of the Apure, where Hum-
boldt obtained some good observations of latitude
and longitude ; and on the 9th met a great num-
ber of boats laden with goods, on their way to that
river. Here Don Nicolas Soto, who had accom-
panied them on their voyage to the Rio Negro, took
leave and returned to his family. As they advanced
the population became more considerable, consisting
almost exclusively of whites, negroes, and mulattoes.
On the 11th they passed the mouth of the Rio Cau-
ra, near which is a small lake formed in 1790 by
the sinking of the ground in consequence of an earth-

ARRIVAL AT ANGOSTURA.

.285

quake. The Boca del Infierno and the Raudal de
Camiseta, a series of whirlpools and rapids caused
by a chain of small rocks, were the only remarkable
features that occurred until they reached Angostura.

On arriving at the capital, they hastened to pre-
sent themselves to Don Felipe de Ynciarte the go-
vernor of Guiana, who received them in the most
obliging manner. A painful circumstance forced
them to remain a whole month in this place. They
were both, a few days after their arrival, attacked
by a disorder, which in M. Bonpland assumed the
character of a typhoid fever. A mulatto servant,
who had attended them from Cumana, was simi-
larly affected. His death was announced on the
ninth day ; but he had only fallen into a state of
insensibility which lasted several hours, and was
followed by a salutary crisis. Humboldt escaped
with a very violent attack, during which he was
made to take a mixture-of honey and the extract
of Cortex angosturce. He recovered on the follow-
ing day. His fellow-traveller remained in a very
alarming state for several weeks, but retained suf-
ficient strength of mind to prescribe for himself.
His fever was incessant, and complicated with dy-
sentery ; but, in his case too, the issue was favour-
able. At this period no epidemic prevailed in the
town, and the air was salubrious ; so that the germ
of the disease had probably been caught in the
damp forests of the Upper Orinoco.

Angostura, so named from its being placed on a
narrow part of the river, stands at the foot of a hill
of hornblende-slate, destitute of vegetation. The
streets are regular, and generally parallel to the course
of the stream. The houses are high, agreeable, and

286

ANGOSTUBA — CROCODILES,

built of stone; although the town is not exempt
from earthquakes. At the period of this visit the
population was only 6000, There is little variety in
the surrounding scenery ; but the view of the river is
singularly majestic. When the waters are high they
inundate the quays, and it sometimes happens that
even in the streets imprudent persons fall a prey to
the crocodiles, which are very numerous,

Humboldt relates that, at the time of his stay
at Angostura, an Indian from the island of Mar-
garita having gone to anchor his canoe in a cove
where there were not three feet of water, a very
fierce crocodile that frequented the spot seized him
by the leg and carried him off. With astonishing
courage he searched for a knife in his pocket, but
not finding it, thrust his fingers into the animal’s
eyes. The monster, however, did not let go his
hold, but plunged to the bottom of the river, and,
after drowning his victim, came to the surface and
dragged the body to an island.

The number of individuals who perish annually
in this manner is very great, especially in villages
where the neighbouring grounds are inundated.
The same crocodiles remain long in the same places,
and become more daring from year to year, espe-
cially, as the Indians assert, if they have once tasted
human flesh. They are not easily killed, as their skin
is impenetrable, — the throat and the space beneath
the shoulder being the only parts where a ball or
spear can enter. The natives catch them with large
iron hooks baited with meat, and attached to a chain
fastened to a tree. After the animal has struggled
for a considerable time, they attack it with lances.
Affecting examples are related of the intrepidity

CROCODILES.

287

of African slaves in attempting to rescue their mas-
ters from the jaws of these voracious reptiles. Not
many years ago, in the Llanos of Calahozo, a negro,
attracted by the cries of his owner, armed himself
with a long knife, and, plunging into the river,
forced the animal, by scooping out its eyes, to leave
its prey and take to flight. The natives being daily
exposed to similar dangers think little of them.
They observe the manners of the crocodile as the
torero studies those of the bull ; and quietly calcu-
late the motions of the enemy, its means of attack,
and the degree of its audacity.

The general nature of the vast regions bordering
on the Orinoco may be sufficiently learned from the
above condensed narrative ; and we think it unne-
cessary to follow our learned author through his de-
scription of that portion of the river which extends
from Angostura to its mouths, especially as it is not
founded on personal observation.

288

JOURNEY FROM ANGOSTURA

CHAPTER XX.

Journey across the Llanos to New Barcelona.

Departure from Angostura — Village of Cari — Natives — New Bar-
celona— Hot Springs — Crocodiles — Passage to Cumana.

It was night when our travellers for the last time
crossed the bed of the Orinoco. They intended to
rest near the little fort of San Rafael, and in the
morning begin their journey over the Llanos of
Venezuela, with the view of proceeding to Cumana
or New Barcelona, whence they might sail to the
island of Cuba and thence again to Mexico. There
they purposed to remain a year, and to take a pass-
age in the galleon from Acapulco to Manilla.

The botanical and geological collections which
they had brought from Esmeralda and the Rio Ne-
gro had greatly increased their baggage ; and as it
would have been hazardous to lose sight of such
stores, they journeyed but slowly over the deserts,
which they crossed in thirteen days. This eastern
part of the Llanos, between Angostura and Barce-
lona, is similar to that already described on the
passage from the valley of Aragua to San Fernando
de Apure ; but the breeze is felt with greater force,
although at this period it had ceased. They spent
the first night at the house of a Frenchman, a na-
tive of Lyons, who received them with the kindest
hospitality. He was employed in joining wood by

TO BARCELONA CARIBS.

289

means of a kind of glue called guayca, which re-
sembles the best made from animal substances^ and
is found between the bark and alburnum of the
Combretum guayca, a kind of creeping plant.

On the third day they arrived at the missions of
Cari. Some showers had recently revived the vege-
tation. A thick turf was formed of small grasses and
herbaceous sensitive plants, while a few fan-palms,
rhopalas, and malphighias, rose at great distances
from each other. The humid spots were distin-
guishable by groups of mauritias, which were loaded
with enormous clusters of red fruit. The plain
undulated from the elfect of mirage, the heat was
excessive, and the travellers found temporary relief
under the shade of the trees, which had, however,
attracted numerous birds and insects.

On the 13th July they arrived at the village of
Cari, where, as usual, they lodged with the clergy-
man, who could scarcely comprehend how natives of
the north of Europe should have arrived at his dwell-
ing from the frontiers of Brazil. They found more
than 500 Caribs in the hamlet, and saw many more
at the surrounding missions. They were of large
stature, from five feet nine inches to six feet two.
The men had the lower part of the body wrapped
in a piece of dark-blue cloth, while the women had
merely a narrow band. This race differs from the
other Indians, not only in being taller, but also in
the greater regularity of their features, in having
the nose less flattened, and the cheekbones less pro-
minent. The hair of the head is partially shaven,
only a circular tuft being left on the top, — a custom
that might be supposed to have been borrowed from
the monks, but which is equally prevalent among

290

CARIB MISSIONS.

those who have preserved their independence. Both
males and females are careful to ornament their per-
sons with paint. The Caribs^ once so powerful, now
inhabit but a small part of the country which they
occupied at the time when America was discovered.
They have been exterminated in the West India
Islands and the coasts of Darien, hut in the pro-
vinces of New Barcelona and Spanish Guiana have
formed populous villages, under the government of
the missions. Humboldt estimates the number in-
habiting the Llanos of Piritoo and the hanks of the
Caroni and Cuyuni at more than 35,000, and the
total amount of the pure race at 40,000.

The missionary led the travellers into several
huts, where they found the greatest order and clean-
liness, hut were shocked by the torments that the
women inflicted on their infants, for the purpose of
raising the flesh in alternate hands from the ankle
to the top of the thigh ; a practice which the monks
had in vain attempted to abolish. This efiect was
produced by narrow ligatures, which seemed to ob-
struct the circulation of the blood, although it did not
weaken th e action of the muscles. The forehead, how-
ever, was not flattened, hut left in its natural form.

On leaving the mission the philosophers had
some difficulty in settling with their Indian mule-
teers, who had discovered among the baggage the
skeletons brought from the cavern of Ataruipe, and
were persuaded that the animals which carried such
a load would perish on the journey. The Rio Cari
was crossed in a boat, and the Rio de Agua Clara
by fording. The same objects every where recurred ;
huts constructed of reeds and roofed with skins;
mounted men guarding the herds ; cattle, horses.

ROBBERS.

291

and mules, running half wild. No sheep or goats
were seen, these animals being unable to escape from
the jaguars.

On the 15th they arrived at the Villa del Pao,
where they found some fruit-trees as well as cocoa-
palms, which properly belong to the coast. As they
advanced the sky became clearer, the soil more
dusty, and the atmosphere more fiery. The intense
heat, however, was not entirely owing to the tem-
perature of the air, but arose partly from the fine
sand mingled with it. On the night of the 16th they
rested at the Indian village of Santa Cruz de Ca-
chipo. The warmth had increased so much that they
would have preferred travelling by night ; but the
country was infested by robbers, who murdered the
whites that fell into their hands. These were male-
factors who had escaped from the prisons on the
coast and from the missions, and lived in the Llanos
in a manner similar to that of the Bedouin Arabs.
Those vast plains, Humboldt thinks, can hardly
ever be subjected to cultivation, although he is per-
suaded that in the lapse of ages, if placed under a
government favourable to industry, they will lose
much of the wild aspect which they have hitherto
retained.

After travelling three days they began to perceive
the chain of the mountains of Cumana, which sepa-
rates the Llanos from the coast of the Caribbean Sea.
It appeared at first like a fog-bank, which by degrees
condensed, assumed a bluish tint, and became bounded
by sinuous outlines. Although the Llanos of Ve-
nezuela are bordered on the south by granitic moun-
tains, exhibiting in their broken summits traces of
violent convulsions, no blocks were found scattered

292

ARRIVAL AT NEAV BARCELONA.

upon them. The same remark is to be made in re-
gard to the other great plains of South America.
These circumstances^ as Humboldt remarks, seem
to prove that the granitic masses scattered over the
sandy plains of the Baltic are a local phenomenon,
and must have originated in some great convulsion
which took place in the northern regions of Europe.

On the 23d July they arrived at the town of
New Barcelona, less fatigued by the heat, to which
they had been so Idng accustomed, than harassed by
the sand-wind, that causes painful chaps in the
skin. They were kindly received by a wealthy
merchant of French extraction, Don Pedro Lavie.
This town was founded in 1637, and in 1800 con-
tained more than 1 6,000 inhabitants. The climate
is not so hot as that of Cumana, hut very damp,
and in the rainy season rather unhealthy. M. Bon-
pland had by this time regained his strength and
activity, but his companion suffered more at Bar-
celona than he had done at Angostura. One of
those extraordinary tropical rains, during which
drops of enormous size fall at sunset, had produced
uneasy sensations that seemed to threaten an at-
tack of typhus, a disease then prevalent on the
coast. They remained nearly a month at Barce-
lona, where they found their friend Juan Gonzales,
who, having resolved to go to Europe, meant to ac-
company them as far as Cuba.

At the distance of seven miles to the south-east
of New Barcelona rises a chain of lofty mountains
connected with the Cerro del Bergantin, which is
seen from Cumana. When Humboldt’s health was
sufficiently restored, the travellers made an excur-
sion in that direction, for the purpose of examining

HOT-SPRINGS CROCODILES. 293

the hot-springs in the neighbourhood. These are
impregnated with sulphuretted hydrogen, and issue
from a quartzose sandstone, lying on a compact lime-
stone resembling that of Jura. The temperature of
the water was 109’8°. Their host had lent them
one of his finest saddle-horses, warning them at the
same time not to ford the little river of Narigual,
which is infested with crocodiles. They passed over
by a kind of bridge formed of the trunks of trees,
and made their animals swim, holding them by the
bridles. Humboldt’s suddenly disappeared, and the
guides conjectured that it had been seized by the
caymans.

The crocodiles of the Rio Neveri are numerous,
but less ferocious than those of the Orinoco. The
people of New Barcelona convey wood to market,
by floating the logs on the river, while the proprie-
tors swim here and there to set them loose when
tliey are stopped by the banks. This could not be
done in most of the South American rivers infested
by those animals. There is no Indian suburb as
at Cumana, and the few natives seen in the town,
are from the neighbouring missions, or inhabitants
of huts scattered in the plain. They are of a mixed
race, indolent, and addicted to drinking.

The packet-boats from Corunna to Havannah
and Mexico had been due three months, so that
they were supposed to have been taken by the Eng-
lish cruisers ; when our travellers, anxious to reach
Cumana, in order to avail themselves of the first op-
portunity for Vera Cruz, hired an open vessel. It
was laden with cacao, and carried on a contraband
trade with the island of Trinidad ; for which reason
the proprietor thought he had nothing to fear from

294 ARRIVAL AT CUMANA.

the British ; but they had scarcely reached the nar-
row channel between the continent and the islands
of Borracha and the Chimanas, when they met an
armed boat which, hailing them at a great distance,
fired some musket-shot at them. It belonged to a
privateer of Halifax, and the travellers were forth-
with carried on board ; but, while Humboldt was
negotiating in the cabin, a noise was heard upon
deck, and something was whispered to the master,
who instantly left him in consternation. An Eng-
lish sloop of war, the Hawk, had come up, and
made signals to the latter to bring to ; which he not
having promptly obeyed, a gun was fired, and a mid-
shipman sent to demand the reason. Humboldt
accompanied this officer to the sloop, where Captain
Gamier received him with the greatest kindness.
Next day they continued their voyage, and at nine
in the morning reached the Gulf of Cariaco. The
castle of San Antonio, the forest of cactuses, the scat-
tered huts of the Guayquerias, and all the features
of a landscape well known to them, rose upon the
view ; and as they landed at Cumana they were
greeted by their numerous friends, who were over- .
joyed to find untrue a report of their death on the
Orinoco, which had been current for several months.
The port was every day more strictly blockaded,
and the vain expectation of Spanish packets retained
them two months and a half longer ; during which
time they occupied themselves in completing their
investigation of the plants of the country ; in exa-
mining the geology of the eastern part of the penin-
sula of Araya ; and in making astronomical obser-
vations, together with experiments on refraction,
evaporation, and atmospheric electricity. They also

NATIVE ALUM.

295

sent off some of their more valuable collections to
France.

Having been informed that the Indians brought
to the town considerable quantities of native alum
found in the mountains^ they made an excursion for
the purpose of ascertaining its position. Disembark-
ing near Cape Caney they inspected the old salt-
pitj now converted into a lake by an irruption of the
sea; the ruins of the castle of Araya; and the lime-
stone-mountain of Barigon, which contained fossil
shells in perfect preservation. When they visited
that peninsula the preceding year^ there was a
dreadful scarcity of water. But during their absence
on the Orinoco it had rained abundantly on various
parts along the coast ; and the remembrance of these
showers occupied the imagination of the natives as
a fall of meteoric stones would engage that of the
naturalists of Europe.

Their Indian guide was ignorant of the situation
of the alum^ and they wandered for eight or nine
hours among the rocks, which consisted of mica-slate
passing into clay-slate, traversed by veins of quartz,
and containing small beds of graphite. At length, de-
scending toward the northern coast of the peninsula,
they found the substance for which they were search-
ing, in a ravine of very difficult access. Here the mica-
slate suddenly changed into carburetted and shining
clay-slate, and the springs were impregnated with
yellow oxide of iron. The sides of the neighbouring
cliffs were covered with capillary crystals of sulphate
of alumina, and real beds, two inches thick, of native
alum, extended in the clay-slate as far as the eye
could reach. The formation appeared to be primi-
tive, as it contained cyanite, rutile, and garnets.

296

EUROPEAN NATIONS

Returning to Cumana, they made preparations
for their departure, and availing themselves of an
American vessel, laden at New Barcelona for Cuba,
they set out on the 16th November, and crossed for
the third time the Gulf of Cariaco. The night was
cool and delicious, and it was not without emotion
that they saw for the last time the disk of the moon
illuminating the summits of the cocoa-trees along
the hanks of the Manzanares. The breeze was
strong, and in less than six hours they anchored
near the Morro of New Barcelona.

The continental part of the New World is divid-
ed between three nations of European origin, of
which one, the most powerful, is of Germanic race,
and the two others belong to Latin Europe. The
latter are more numerous than the former ; the in-
habitants of Spanish and Portuguese America con-
stituting a population double that of the regions
possessed by the English. The French, Dutch, and
Danish possessions of the New Continent are of
small extent, and the Russian colonies are as yet of
little importance. The free Africans of Hayti are
the only other people possessed of territory, except-
ing the native Indians. The British and Portu-
guese colonists have peopled only the coasts opposite
to Europe ; but the Spaniards have passed over the
Andes, and made settlements in the most western
provinces, where alone they discovered traces of an-
cient civilisation. In the eastern districts, the in-
habitants who fell into the hands of the two former
nations were wandering tribes or hunters, while in
the remoter parts the Spaniards found agricultural
states and flourishing empires ; and these circum-
stances have greatly influenced the present condi-

IN AMERICA.

297

tion of these countries. Among other instances
may be mentioned the almost total exclusion of Af-
rican slaves from the latter colonies, and the com-
fortable condition of the natives of American race,
who live by agriculture, and are governed by Eu-
ropean laws.

But with respect to the political constitution and
relations of the provinces visited by the travellers,
it is not expedient here to enter into the details
which they have given, more especially as those
colonies have lately undergone revolutions that
have converted them into independent states, the
history of which would afford materials for many
volumes. The very interesting sketch of the phy-
sical constitution of South America presented by
Humboldt must also be passed over, because, in the
condensed form to which it would necessarily be re-
duced, it could not afford an adequate idea of the
subject. We must therefore, with our travellers,
take leave of Terra Firma, and accompany them on
their passage to Havannah.

298

VOYAGE TO CUBA.

CHAPTER XXI.

Passage to Havannah, and Residence in Cuba.

Humboldt and his companion sailed from the Road
of New Barcelona on the 24th November at nine in
the evening, and next day at noon reached the island
of Tortuga, remarkable for its lowness and want of
vegetation. On the 26th there was a dead calm,
and about nine in the morning a fine halo formed
round the sun, while the temperature of the air fell
three degrees. The circle of this meteor, which was
one degree in breadth, displayed the most beautiful
a)lours of the rainbow, while its interior and the
whole vault of the sky was azure without the least
haze. The sea was covered with a bluish scum,
which under the microscope appeared to he formed
of filaments, that seemed to he fragments of fuci.
On the 27th they passed near the island of Orchila,
composed of gneiss and covered with plants, and
toward sunset discovered the summits of the Roca
de Afuera, over which the clouds were accumulated.
Indications of stormy weather increased, the waves
rose, and waterspouts threatened. On the night of
the 2d December a curious optical phenomenon pre-

HAVANNAH.

299

sen ted itself. The full moon was very high. On its
side, forty-five minutes before its passage over the
meridian, a great arc suddenly appeared, having tlie
prismatic colours, hut of a gloomy aspect. It seemed
higher than the moon, had a breadth of nearly two
degrees, and remained stationary for several mi-
nutes ; after which it gradually descended, and sank
below the horizon. The sailors were filled with as-
tonishment at this moving arch, which they sup-
posed to announce wind. Next night M. Bonpland
and several passengers saw, at the distance of a
quarter of a mile, a small flame, which ran on the
surface of the sea towards the south-west, and illu-
minated the atmosphere. On the 4th and 6th they
encountered rough weather, with heavy rain ac-
companied by thunder, and were in considerable
danger on the bank of Vibora. At length, on the
19th, they anchored in the port of Havannah, after
a boisterous passage of twenty-five days.

Cuba is the largest of the West India Islands, and
on account of its great fertility, its naval establish-
ments, the nature of its population, — of which three-
fifths are composed of free men, — and its geographical
position, is of great political importance. Of all the
Spanish colonies it is that which has most prospered ;
insomuch, that not only has its revenue sufficed for
its own wants, but during the struggle between the
mother-country and her continental provinces, it
furnished considerable sums to the former.

The appearance which Havannah presents at the
entrance of the port is exceedingly beautiful and
picturesque. The opening is only about 426 yards
wide, defended by fortifications ; after which a
basin, upwards of two miles in its greatest dia-
meter, and commimicating with three creeks, ex-

300

HAVANNAH.

pands to the view. The city is built on a promon-
tory, bounded on the north by the fort of La Punta,
and on the south by the arsenals. On the western
side it is protected by two castles, placed at the
distance of 1407 and 2643 yards, the intermediate
space being occupied by the suburbs. The public
edifices are less remarkable for their beauty than
for the solidity of their construction, and the streets
are in general narrow and unpaved, in consequence
of" which they are extremely dirty and disagreeable.
But there are two fine public walks to which the
inhabitants resort.

Although the town of Havannah, properly so
called, is only 1918 yards long and 1066 broad, it
contains more than 44,000 inhabitants. The two
great suburbs of Jesu-Maria and the Salud accom-
modate nearly an equal population. In 1810 the
amount was as follows : —

Whites,

Free Pardos, or copper-coloured men,..

Free Blacks,

Pardos Slaves,

Black Slaves,

41,227

iSe

2,297 1 28 728
26,431 ;

96,304

There are two hospitals in the town, the number
of sick admitted into which is considerable. Owing
to the heat of the climate, the filth of the town, and
tlie influenceof the shore, there is usually a great accu-
mulation of disease, and the yellow fever or black vo-
miting is prevalent. The markets are well supplied.

A peculiar character is given to the landscape in
the vicinity of Havannah by the palma real {Oreo-
doxa regia), the trunk of which, enlarged a little
towards the middle, attains a height varying from 60
to 85 feet, and is crowned by pinnated leaves rising

EXTENT AND GEOLOGY OF CUBA.

301

perpendicularly, and curved at the point. Nume-
rous country-houses of light and elegant construc-
tion surround the bay, to which the proprietors re-
treat when the yellow fever rages in the town.

The island of Cuba is nearly as large as Portu-
gal ; its greatest length being 783^ miles, and its
mean breadth 5 If miles. More than four-fifths of
its extent is composed of low lands ; but it is tra-
versed in various directions by ranges of mountains,
the highest of which are said to attain an altitude
of 7674 feet. The western part consists of gra-
nite, gneiss, and primitive slates ; which, as well as
the central district, contains two formations of com-
pact limestone, one of argillaceous sandstone, and
another of gypsum. The first of these presents large
caves near Matanzas and Jaruco, and is filled with
numerous species of fossils. The secondary forma-
tions to the east of the Havannah are pierced by
syenitic and euphotide rocks, accompanied with ser-
pentine. No volcanic eruptions, properly so called,
have hitherto been discovered.

Owing to the cavernous structure of the limestone
deposites, the great inclination of their strata, the small
breadth of the island, and the frequency and naked-
ness of the plains, there are very few rivers of any
magnitude, and a large portion of the territory is sub-
ject to severe droughts. Yet the undulating surface
of the country, the continually renewed verdure,
and the distribution of vegetable forms, give rise to
the most varied and beautiful landscapes. The hills
and savannahs are decorated by palms of several
species, trees of other families, and shrubs constant-
ly covered with flowers. Wild orange-trees ten or
fifteen feet in height, and bearing a small firuit, are
common, and probably existed before the introduc-

302 VEGETATION^ CLIMATE, POPULATION,

tion of the cultivated variety by Europeans. A
species of pine {Pinus occidentalism occurs here and
in St Domingo, hut has not been seen in any of the
other West India Islands.

The climate of Havannah, although tropical, is
marked hy an unequal distribution of heat at dif-
ferent periods of the year, indicating a transition
to the climates of the temperate zone. The mean
temperature is 78'3°, but in the interior only 73'4°.
The hottest months, July and August, do not give
a greater average than 82’4°, and the coldest, De-
cember and January, present the mean of 69’8°. In
summer the thermometer does not rise above 82°
or 86°, and its depression in winter so low as 50° or
53 5° is rare. When the north wind blows several
weeks, ice is sometimes formed at night at a little
distance from the coast, at an inconsiderable eleva-
tion above the sea. Yet the great lowerings of tem-
perature which occasionally take place are of so short
duration, that the palm-trees, bananas, or the sugar-
cane, do not suffer from them. Snow never falls,
and hail so rarely that it is only observed during
thunder-storms, and with blasts from the S.S.W.
once in fifteen or twenty years. The changes how-
ever are very rapid, and the inhabitants complain
of cold when the thermometer falls quickly to 76°.
Hurricanes are of much less frequent occurrence in
Cuba than in the other West India Islands.

In 1817 the population was estimated at 630,980.
There were 290,021 whites, 115,691 free copper-
coloured men, and 225,268 slaves. The original
inhabitants have entirely disappeared, as in all the
other West India Islands. Intellectual cultivation
is almost entirely restricted to the whites ; and al-
though in Havannah the first society is not per-

AND AGRICULTURE OF CUBA.

303

ceptibly inferior to that of the richest commerciai
cities in Europe^ a rudeness of manners prevails in
the small towns and plantations.

The common cereal grasses are cultivated in Cu-
ha, together with the tropical productions peculiar
to these countries ; hut the principal exports consist
of tobacco, colfee, sugar, and wax. The sugar-cane
is planted in the rainy season, from J uly to Octo-
ber, and cut from February to May. The rapid
diminution of wood in the island has caused the
want of fuel to be felt in the manufacture of sugar,
and Humboldt, during his stay, attempted several
new constructions, with the view of diminishing the
expenditure of it.*

The tobacco of Cuba is celebrated in every part of
Europe. The districts which produce the most aro-
matic kind are situated to the west of the Havannah,
in the Vuelta de Abago ; but that grown to the east
of the capital on the banks of the Mayari, in the
province of Santiago, at Himias, and in other places,
is also of excellent quality. In 1827 the produce
was about 113,214 cwts., of which 17,888 were ex-
ported. The value of this commodity shipped in
1828 was £105,991, 13s. 4d., and in 1829, £142,910.
Cotton and indigo, although cultivated, are not to
any extent made articles of commerce.

Towards the end of April the travellers, having
finished the observations which they had proposed

• By the Custom-house returns, 156,158,924 lbs. of sugar were
exported from Cuba in 1827 ; and if the quantity smuggled be
estimated at one-fourth more, the total amount would be nearly
200,000,000 lbs.* In the same year the exportation of coffee
amounted to upwards of 50,000,000 lbs., but it has since fallen off

considerably. See Macculloch' s Diet, of Commerce, art. Haran-

nah.

304 PREPARATIONS FOR LEAVING CUBA.

to make, were on the point of sailing to Vera
Cruz ; but intelligence communicated by means
of the public papers respecting Captain Baudin’s
expedition, led them to relinquish the project of
crossing Mexico in order to proceed to the Philip-
pine Islands. It had been announced that two
French vessels, the Geographe and the Naturaliste,
had sailed for Cape Horn, and that they were to go
along the coast of Chili and Peru, and from thence
to New Holland. Humboldt had promised to join
them wherever he could reach the ships, and M.
Bonpland resolved to divide their plants into three
portions, one of which was sent to Germany by way
of England, another to France by Cadiz, and the
third left in Cuba. Their friend Fray Juan Gon-
zales, an estimable young man, who had followed
them to the Havannah on his way to Spain, car-
ried part of their collections with him, including the
insects found on the Orinoco and Rio Negro ; hut
the vessel in which he embarked foundered in a
storm on the coast of Africa. General Don Gonzalo
O’Farrill being then in Prussia as minister of the
Spanish court, Humboldt was enabled, through the
agency of Don Ygnacio, the general’s brother, to
procure a supply of money ; and having made all
the necessary preparations for the new enterprise,
freighted a Catalonian sloop for Porto Bello, or Car-
thagena, according as the weather should permit.

On the 6th March the travellers, finding that
the vessel was ready to receive them, set out for
Batabano, where they arrived on the 8th. This
is a poor village surrounded by marshes, covered
with rushes and plants of the Iris family, among
which appear here and there a few stunted palms.

TURTLE-FISHING.

305

The marshes are infested by two species of crocodile,
one of which has an elongated snout, and is very fe-
rocious. The back is dark-green, the belly white,
and the flanks are covered with yellow spots.

On the 9th of March our travellers again set sail
in a small sloop, and proceeded through the gulf of
Batabano, which is bounded by a low and swampy
coast. Humboldt employed himself in examining
the influence which the bottom of the sea produces
on the temperature of its surface, and in determining
the position of some remarkable islands. The water
of the gulf was so shallow, that the sloop often
struck ; but the ground being soft and the weather
calm, no damage was sustained. At sunset they
anchored near the pass of Don Cristoval, which was
entirely deserted, although in the time of Columbus
it was possessed by fishermen. The inhabitants of
Cuba then employed a singular method for procur-
ing turtles ; they fastened a long cord to the tail of
a species of echineis or sticking-fish, which has a
flat disk with a sucking apparatus on its head. By
means of this it stuck to the turtle, and was pulled
ashore carrying the latter with it. The same ar-
tifice is resorted to by the natives of certain parts of
the African coast.

They were three days on their passage through
the Archipelago of the Jardines and Jardinillos,
small islands and shoals partly covered with vegeta-
tion ; remaining at anchor during the night, and in
the day visiting those which were of most easy access.
The rocks were found to be fragmentary, consisting
of pieces of coral, cemented by carbonate of lime,
and interspersed with quartzy sand. On the Cayo
Bonito, where they first landed, they observed a

306

CAYO FLAMENCO.

layer of sand and broken shells five or six inches
thick, covering a formation of madrepore. It was
shaded by a forest of rhizophorae, intermixed with
euphorbise, grasses, and other plants, together with
the magnificent Tournefortia gnaphalioides, with
silvery leaves and odoriferous flowers. The sailors
had been searching for langoustes; but not finding
any, avenged themselves on the young pelicans
perched on the trees. The old birds hovered around,
uttering hoarse and plaintive cries, and the young
defended themselves with vigour, although in vain ;
for the sailors, armed with sticks and cutlasses,
made cruel havoc among them. “ On our arrival,"
says Humboldt, “ a profound calm prevailed on
this little spot of earth ; but now every thing seem-
ed to say, — Man has passed here.”

On the morning of the 11th they visited the Cayo
Flamenco, the centre of which is depressed, and
only 15 inches above the surface of the sea. The
water was brackish, while in other cayos it is quite
fresh ; a circumstance difficult to be accounted for
in small islands scarcely elevated above the ocean,
unless the springs be supposed to come from the
neighbouring coast by means of hydrostatic pressure.
Humboldt was informed by Don Francisco le Maur,
that in the bay of Xagua, to the east of the Jardin-
illos, fresh water gushes up in several places from
the bottom with such force as to prove dangerous for
small canoes. Vessels sometimes take in supplies
from them ; and the lamantins, or fresh- water ce-
tacea, abound in the neighbourhood.

To the east of Cape Flamenco they passed close
to the Piedras de Diego Perez, and in the even-
ing landed at Cayo de Piedras, two rocks forming

RIO GUAURABO.

307

the eastern extremity of the Jardinillos^ on which
many vessels are lost. They are nearly destitute
of shrubsj the shipwrecked crews having cut them
down to make signals. Next day, turning round
the passage between the northern cape of the Cayo
and the island of Cuba, they entered a sea free
from breakers, and of a dark-blue colour ; the in-
crease of temperature in which indicated a great
augmentation of depth. The thermometer was at
79 2°; whereas in the shoal- water of the Jardinillos
it had been seen as low as 72’7°j the air being from
77° to 80*6° during the day. Passing in succession
the marshy coast of Camareos, the entrance of the
Bahia deXagua, and the mouth of the Rio San Juan,
along a naked and desert coast, they entered on the
14th the Rio Guaurabo to land their pilot. Dis-
embarking in the evening, they made preparations
for observing the passage of certain stars over the
meridian, but were interrupted by some merchants
that had dined on board a foreign ship newly ar-
rived, and who invited the strangers to accompany
them to the town ; which they did, mounted two
and two on the same horse. The road to Trinidad
is nearly five miles in length, over a level plain
covered with a beautiful vegetation, to which the
Miraguama palm, a species of corypha, gave a pe-
culiar character. The houses are situated on a
steep declivity, about 746 feet above the level of
the sea, and command a magnificent view of the
ocean, the two ports, a forest of palms, and the moun-
tains of San Juan. The travellers were received
with the kindest hospitality by the administrator of
the Real Hacienda, M. Munoz. The Teniente Go-
vernador, who was nephew to the celebrated astro-

308 RECEPTION AT TRINIDAD OF CUBA.

nomer Don Antonio Ulloa^ gave them a grand en-
tertainment, at which they met with some French
emigrants of Saint Domingo. The evening was
passed very agreeably in the house of one of the
richest inhabitants, Don Antonio Padron, where they
found assembled all the select company of the place.
Their departure was very unlike their entrance ; for
the municipality caused them to be conducted to the
mouth of the Rio Guaurabo in a splendid carriage,
and an ecclesiastic dressed in velvet celebrated in a
sonnet their voyage up the Orinoco.

The population of Trinidad, with the surrounding
farms, was stated to be 19,000. It has two ports at
the distance of about four miles, Puerto Casilda
and Puerto Guaurabo. On their return to the latter
of these the travellers were much struck by the
prodigious number of phosphorescent insects which
illuminated the grass and foliage. These insects
{plater noctilucus) are occasionally used for a lamp,
being placed in a calabash perforated with holes ;
and a young woman at Trinidad informed them
that, during a long passage from the mainland, she
always had recourse to this light when she gave her
child the breast at night, the captain not allowing
any other on board for fear of pirates.

DEPARTURE FROM CUBA.

309

CHAPTER XXII.

Voyage from Cuba to Carthagena.

Passage from Trinidad of Cuba to Carthagena — Description of the
latter — Village of Turbaco — Air-volcanoes — Preparations for
ascending the Rio Magdalena.

Leaving the island of Cuba the travellers proceed-
ed in a S.S.E. direction, and on the morning of the
17th approached the group of the Little Caymans,
in the neighbourhood of which they saw numerous
turtles of extraordinary size, accompanied by mul-
titudes of sharks. Passing a second time over the
great hank of Vibora, they remarked that the colour
of the troubled waters upon it was of a dirty-gray,
and made observations on the changes of temperature
at the surface produced by the varying depth of the
sea. On quitting this shoal they sailed between
the Baxo Nueva and the lighthouse of Camboy.
The weather was remarkably fine, and the surface
of the bay was of an indigo-blue or violet tint, on
account of the medusse which covered it. Haloes
of small dimensions appeared round the moon.
The disappearance of one of them was follow-
ed by the formation of a great black cloud, which
emitted some drops of rain ; but the sky soon re-
sumed its serenity, and a long series of falling-stars
and fire-balls were seen moving in a direction con-
trary to the wind in the lower regions of the atmo-

310

LANDING AT THE KIO SINU.

sphere, which blew from the north. During the
whole of the 23d March not a single cloud was
seen in the firmament, although the air and the
horizon were tinged with a fine red colour; but
towards evening large bluish clouds formed, and
when they disappeared, converging hands of fleecy
vapours were seen at an immense height. On the
24th they entered the kind of gulf hounded hy
the shores of Santa Martha and Costa Rica, which
is frequently agitated by heavy gales. As they ad-
vanced toward the coast of Darien the north-east
wind increased to a violent degree, and the waves
became very rough at night. At sunrise they per-
ceived part of the archipelago of St Bernard, and
passing the southern extremity of the Placa de San
Bernardo, saw in the distance the mountains of
Tigua. The stormy weather and contrary winds
induced the master of the vessel to seek shelter in
the Rio Sinu, after a passage of sixteen days.

Landing again on the continent of South Ame-
rica, they betook themselves to the village of Za-
pote, where they found a great number of sailors,
all men of colour, who had descended the Rio Sinu
in their barks, carrying maize, bananas, poultry,
and other articles, to the port of Carthagena. The
boats are flat-bottomed, and the wind having blown
violently on the coast for ten days, they were unable
to proceed on their voyage. These people fatigued
the travellers with idle questions about their books
and instruments, and tried to frighten them with
stories of boas, vipers, and jaguars. Leaving the
shores, which are covered with Rhizophorce, they en-
tered a forest remarkable for the great variety of
palm-trees which it presented. One of them, the

PALM-WINE.

311

Meis melanococca, is only six feet four inches high,
but its spathse contain more than 200,000 flowers,
a single specimen furnishing 600,000 at the same
time. The kernels of the fruit are peeled in water,
and the layer of oil that rises from them, after being
purified by boiling, yields the manteca de corozo,
which is used for lighting churches and houses.

After an hour’s walk they found several inhabi-
tants collecting palm-wine. The tree which affords
this liquid is the Falma dolce or Cocos hutyracea.
The trunk, which diminishes but little towards the
summit, is first cut down, when an excavation
eighteen inches long, eight broad, and six in depth,
is made below the place at which the leaves and
spathse come off. After three days the cavity is
found filled with a yellowish-white juice, having
a sweet and vinous flavour, which continues to flow
eighteen or twenty days. The last that comes is
less sweet, but having a greater quantity of alcohol,
it is more highly esteemed. On their way back to
the shore they met with Zambos carrying on their
shoulders cylinders of palmetto three feet in length,
of which an excellent food is prepared. Night sur-
prised them ; and, having broken an oar in return-
ing on board, they found some diflficulty in reaching
the vessel.

The Rio Sinu is of the highest importance for
provisioning Carthagena. The gold-washings which
were formerly of great value, especially between its
source and the village of San Geronimo, have al-
most entirely ceased, although the province of An-
tioquia still furnishes, in its auriferous veins, a vast
field for mining speculations. It would, however,
he of more importance to direct attention to the cuL

312

BOISTEROUS WEATHER.

tivation of colonial produce in these districts, especi-
ally that of cacao, which is of superior quality. The
real febrifuge Cinchona also grows at the source of
the Rio Sinu, as well as in the mountains of Ahibe
and Maria ; and the proximity of the port of Car-
thagena would enhance its value in the trade with
Europe.

On the 27th March the sloop weighed anchor at
sunrise. The sea was less agitated, although the wind
blew as before. To the north was seen a succession
of small conical mountains, rising in the midst of
savannahs, where the balsam of Tolu, formerly so
celebrated as a medicament, is still gathered. On
leaving the gulf of Morosquillo they found the waves
swelling so high, that the captain was glad to seek for
shelter, and lay to on the north of the village of
Rincon ; but discovering that they were upon a co-
ral rock, they preferred the open water, and finally
anchored near the isle of Arenas, on the night of the
28th. Next day the gale blew with great violence ;
but they again proceeded, hoping to be able to reach
the Boca Chica. The sea was so rough as to break
over the deck, and while they were running short
tacks, a false manoeuvre in setting the sails exposed
them for some minutes to imminent danger. It
was Palm Sunday; and a Zambo, who had fol-
lowed them to the Orinoco and remained in their
service until they returned to France, did not fail
to remind them, that on the same day the preceding
year they had undergone a similar danger near the
mission of Uruana. After this they took refuge in
a creek of the isle of Baru.

As there was to be an eclipse of the moon that
night, and next day an occultation of a Virginis,

DANGER FROM MAROON NEGROES.

313

Humboldt insisted that the captain should allow one
of the sailors to accompany him by land to the Boca
Chica, the distance being only six miles ; but the
latter refused, on account of the savage state of the
country, in which there was neither path nor habi-
tation ; and an incident which occurred justified his
prudence. The travellers were going ashore to ga-
ther plants by moonlight, when there issued from
the thicket a young negro loaded with fetters, and
armed with a cutlass. He urged them to disem-
bark on a beach covered with large RMzophorce
among which the sea did not break, and offered to
conduct them to the interior of the island of Baru
if they would give him some clothes ; but his cun-
ning and savage air, his repeated inquiries as to
their being Spaniards, and the unintelligible words
addressed to his companions who were concealed
among the trees, excited their suspicions, and in-
duced them to return on board. These blacks were
probably Maroon negroes, who had escaped from
prison. The appearance of a naked man, wan-
dering on an uninhabited shore, and unable to rid
himself of the chains fastened round his neck and
arm, left a painful impression on the travellers ; but
the sailors felt so little sympathy with these miser-
able creatures, that they wished to return and seize
the fugitives, in order to sell them at Carthagena.

Next morning they doubled the Punta Gigantes,
and made sail towards the Boca Chica, the entrance
to the port of Carthagena, which is eight or ten
miles farther up. On landing, Humboldt learned
that the expedition appointed to make a survey of
the coast under the command of M. Fidalgo had
not yet put to sea, and this circumstance enabled

314

CARTHAGENA.

him to ascertain the astronomical position of several
places which it was of importance to determine.

During the six days of their stay at Carthagena,
they made excursions in the neighbour hood^ more
especially in the direction of the Boca Grande, and
the hill of Popa, which commands the town. The
port or bay is nearly eleven miles and a half long.
The small island of Tierra Bomba, at its two extre-
mities, which approach, the one to a neck of land
from the continent, the other to a cape of the isle
of Bani, forms the only entrance to the harbour.
One of these, named Boca Grande, has been arti-
ficially closed, for the defence of the town, in conse-
quence of an attack attended with partial success
made by Admiral Vernon in 1741. The extent of the
work was 2640 varas, or 2446 yards, and as the water
was from 16 to 20 feet deep, a wall or dike of stone,
from 16 to 21 feet high, was raised on piles. The
other opening, the Boca Chica, is from 36 to 38 yards
broad, but is daily becoming narrower, while the
currents acting upon the Boca Grande have opened
a breach in it, which they are continually extending.

The insalubrity of Carthagena, which has been
exaggerated, varies with the state of the great
marshes that surround it. The Cienega de Tesca,
which is upwards of eighteen miles in length, com-
municates with the ocean ; and, when in dry years
the salt water does not cover the whole plain, the
exhalations that rise from it during the heat of the
day become extremely pernicious. The hilly ground
in the neighbourhood of the town is of limestone,
containing petrifactions, and is covered by a gloomy
vegetation of cactus, Jatropha gossypifolia, croton,
and mimosa. While the travellers were searching

RELIGIOUS MUMMERY.

315

for plants, their guides showed them a thick hush
of acacia cornigera, which had acquired celebrity
from the following occurrence : A woman, wearied
of the well-founded jealousy of her husband, bound
him at night with the assistance of her paramour,
and threw him into it. The thorns of this species
of acacia are exceedingly sharp, and of great length,
and the shrub is infested by ants. The more the
unfortunate man struggled, the more severely was
he lacerated by the prickles, and when his cries at
length attracted some persons who were passing, he
was found covered with blood, and cruelly torment-
ed by the ants.

At Carthagena the travellers met with several
persons whose society was not less agreeable than
instructive ; and in the house of an officer of artillery,
Don Domingo Esquiaqui, found a very curious col-
lection of paintings, models of machinery, and mi-
nerals. They had also an opportunity of witnessing
the pageant of the Pascua. Nothing, says Hum-
boldt, could rival the oddness of the dresses of the
principal personages in these processions. Beggars,
carrying a crown of thorns on their heads, asked
alms, with crucifixes in their hands, and habited in
black robes. Pilate was arrayed in a garb of striped
silk, and the apostles, seated round a large table
covered with sweetmeats, were carried on the shoul-
ders of Zamhos. At sunset, effigies of Jews in
French vestments, and formed of straw and other
combustibles, were burnt in the principal streets.

Dreading the insalubrity of the town, the travel-
lers retired on the 6th April to the Indian village
of Turhaco, situated in a beautiful district, at the
entrance of a large forest, about 17i miles to the
south-west of the Popa, one of the most remarkable

316

VILLAGE OF TURBACO.

summits in the neighbourhood of Carthagena. Here
they remained until they made the necessary pre-
parations for their voyage on the Rio Magdalena,
and for the long journey which they intended to
make to Bogota, Popayan, and Quito. The village
is about 1151 feet above the level of the sea. Snakes
were so numerous that they chased the rats even in
the houses, and pursued the hats on the roofs. From
the terrace surrounding their habitation, they had a
view of the colossal mountains of the Sierra Nevada
de Santa Marta, part of which was covered with
perennial snow. The intervening space, consisting
of hills and plains, was adorned with a luxuriant
vegetation, resembling that of the Orinoco. There
they found gigantic trees, not previously known, such
as the Rhinocarpus excelsa, with spirally-curved
fruit, the Ocotea turbacemis, and the Cavanillesia
platanifoUa ; the large five- winged fruit of which
is suspended from the tips of the branches like paper
lanterns. They botanized every day in the woods
from five in the morning till night, though they
were excessively annoyed by mosquitoes, zancudoes,
xegens, and other tipulary insects. In the midst of
these magnificent forests they frequently saw plan-
tations of bananas and maize, to which the Indians
are fond of retiring at the end of the rainy season.

The persons who accompanied the travellers on
these expeditions often spoke of a marshy ground
situated in the midst of a thicket of palms, and which
they designated by the name of Los Volcancitos.
They said that, according to a tradition preserved
in the village, the ground had formerly been ignited,
but that a monk had extinguished it by frequent
aspersions of holy water, and converted the fire-
volcano into a water-volcano. Without attaching

Air-volcanoes of Turbaco.

voLCANciroH or T' : -o

much credit to this tradition, the phil<>6opber; 1\ .
■red their guides to lead^tlieiu to the spot. Alh'c
traversing a space of about 53(K3 yard.s, covered with
trun^vs of CawmiUemi, Viragra mperha, and eV//-
romrpus, and in which there app<?arert h*'re and
there projections of a limestone rock coritaioiiig pe-
' '^ified corals, tliey reached an open place of about
^>3 feet square, entirely destitute of vegetation,
- margined with tufts of Bromdia kara.taft, T'lie

• arface was compos <d' lay::r,s o( clay i>l' a dark-

ray colour, craf by hsircation into pentagonal
;d heptaf.e.'t i! ■ nc’-' Tbr- voicancitos consist of

been or t - tfuw - 'U'd cones ri.sing in the

: ddle of thci ,ind navinc a height of from

• J to 25 feet. The on): ^ eb var.-d wer* on thes<nith-

• !i side, and tlunr irenr.’!;^ n. oe. was

-in 78 to85 ^ i '■■'50*' tb orix-.f jh<*se

. ad-volcanf«^**, >;;*cv T ,^0 t b; **; to i-..- 'i-mujiated

• an apcrtiirc, froRi Hi t ■ 30 inches in diameter
ied tyith water, through which air-bubbles ob-
■ ued a passage ; about five explosions usually tak-
■: plac^ in two minutes. Th'.* force .eith v.hich

air rises \v:e;id (e&?! to be iyey- 'raon e-’ O'*

;;ig s:’h*-;0, o jind a

. ber loud b 'O', a?, mbn,* •*, nre<'*< y;-;.

O' disengagenc-u? **1 -i fi-heeu or tisgt - ..tu
•> sen of the bulthle!- .‘..rneo>,ry *2 to ) cubic

be-; of elastic f! u.<-; :.f- ? •. r p<.-wee of expa^don

■ ■ often so grm ov*e< sister Avas projected
‘ itiid the crater, -o T e d .’ver its brim. Some
' ibe openings by %yh ci u.-r eacapt'd were situated
the plain without leeng ■‘urroiimjed by any pro-
5 ojjience of the ground. It was ohst^rved that when
.he apertures, which are not placed at the sum-
xait of the cones, and ire enclosed by a U i:*-

VOLCANCITOS OF TURBACO.

319

much credit to this tradition^ the philosophers de-
sired their guides to lead them to the spot. After
traversing a space of about 5300 yards, covered with
trunks of Cavanillesia, Piragra superha, and Gy-
rocarpus, and in which there appeared here and
there projections of a limestone rock containing pe-
trified corals, they reached an open place of about
908 feet square, entirely destitute of vegetation,
but margined with tufts of Bromelia karatas. The
surface was composed of layers of clky of a dark-
gray colour, cracked by desiccation into pentagonal
and heptagonal prisms. The volcancitos consist of
fifteen or twenty small truncated cones rising in the
middle of this area, and having a height of from
19 to 25 feet. The most elevated were on the south-
ern side, and their circumference at the base was
from 78 to 85 yards. On climbing to the top of these
mud- volcanoes, they found them to he terminated
by an aperture, from 16 to 30 inches in diameter
filled with water, through which air-buhbles ob-
tained a passage ; about five explosions usually tak-
ing place in two minutes. The force with which
the air rises would lead to the supposition of its
being subjected to considerable pressure, and a
rather loud noise was heard at intervals, preceding
the disengagement of it fifteen or eighteen seconds.
Each of the bubbles contained from 12 to 14^ cubic
inches of elastic fluid, and their power of expansion
was often so great that the water was projected
beyond the crater, or flowed over its brim. Some
of the openings by which air escaped were situated
in the plain without being surrounded by any pro-
minence of the ground. It was observed that when
the apertures, which are not placed at the sum-
mit of the cones, and are enclosed by a little

320

VOLCANCITOS AND VEGETATION.

mud wall from 10 to 15 inches high^ are nearly conti-
guouSj the explosions did not take place at the same
time. It would appear that each crater receives
the gas by distinct canals, or that these, terminat-
ing in the same reservoir of compressed air, op-
pose greater or less impediments to the passage of
the aeriform fluids. The cones have no doubt been
raised by these fluids, and the dull sound that
precedes the disengagement of them indicates that
the ground is hollow. The natives asserted that
there had been no observable change in the form
and number of the cones for twenty years, and that
the little cavities are filled with water even in the
driest seasons. The temperature of this liquid was
not higher than that of the atmosphere ; the lat-
ter having been 81-5°, and the former 80-6° or 81°,
at the time of Humboldt’s visit. A stick could easily
be pushed into the apertures to the depth of six or
seven feet, and the dark-coloured clay or mud was
exceedingly soft. An ignited body was immediately
extinguished on being immersed in the gas collected
from the bubbles, which was found to be pure azote.

The stay which our travellers made at Turbaco
was uncommonly agreeable, and added greatly to
their collection of plants. “ Even now,” says Hum-
boldt, writing in 1831, " after so long a lapse of
time, and after returning from the banks of the Obi
and the confines of Chinese Zungaria, these bam-
boo thickets, that wild luxuriance of vegetation,
those orchidese covering the old trunks of the ocotea
and Indian fig, that majestic view of the snowy
mountains, that light mist filling the bottom of the
valleys at sunrise, those tufts of gigantic trees rising
like verdant islets from a sea of vapours, incessantly
present themselves to my imagination. At Turbaco

PREPARATIONS FOR DEPARTURE.

321

we lived a simple and laborious life. We were
young; possessed a similarity of taste and disposition;
looked forward to the future with hope ; were on the
eve of a journey which was to lead us to the highest
summits of the Andes, and bring us to volcanoes in
action in a country continually agitated by earth-
quakes ; and we felt ourselves more happy than at
any other period of our distant expedition. The
years which have since passed, not all exempt from
griefs and pains, have added to the charms of these
impressions ; and I love to think that, in the midst
of his exile in the southern hemisphere, in the soli-
tudes of Paraguay, my unfortunate friend, M. Bon-
pland, sometimes remembers with delight our bo-
tanical excursions at Tui'baco, the little spring of
Torecillo, the first sight of a gustavia in flower, or
of the cavanillesia loaded with fruits having mem-
branous and transparent edges.”

M. Bonpland’s health having suffered severely dur-
ing the navigation of the Orinoco and Casiquiare,
they resolved to provide themselves with all the con-
veniences necessary to secure their comfort during
the ascent of the Rio Magdalena. They were ac-
companied on this voyage by an old French physi-
cian, M. de Rieux, and two Spaniards. Leaving
Turbaco after a stay of ten days, in a cool and very
dark night they passed through a wood of bamboos
rising from 40 to 50 feet. At daybreak they reach-
ed Arjona on the borders of the forest, crossed an
arm of the Rio Magdalena in a canoe, and arrived
at Mahates, where they had to wait nearly all day
for the mules which were to convey their baggage
to the place of embarkation. It was excessively hot,
without a breath of wind, and to add to their vexa-

322

BARANCAS NUEVAS.

tion, their only remaining barometer had been
broken in passing the canal ; but they consoled them-
selves by examining some beautiful species of par-
rots which they obtained from the natives.

On the 20th Aprils at three in the morning,
the air feeling deliciously cool, although the ther-
mometer was at 71 ‘6°^ they were on their journey
to the village of Barancas Nuevas, amid a forest
of lofty trees. Half-way between Mahates and
that hamlet they found a group of huts elegantly
constructed of bamboos, and inhabited by Zambos.
Humboldt remarks, that the intermixture of Indi-
ans and negroes is very common in those countries,
and that the women of the American tribes have a
great liking to the men of the African race. To the
east of Mahates the, limestone formation, containing
corals, ceases to appear ; the predominant rocks being
siliceous with argillaceous cement, forming alter-
nating beds of small-grained quartzose and slaty
sandstone, or conglomerates containing angular frag-
ments of lydian-stone, clay-slate, gneiss, and quartz,
and varying in colour from yellowish- gray to brown-
ish-red.

Hitherto the narrative of the important journey
performed by Humboldt and Bonpland, through
those little known but highly interesting regions
of South America which were visited by them, has
been given as much in detail as is consistent with
the nature of a work like the present ; but here, as
no minute account of their further progress has yet
been laid before the public, we must cease to follow
them step by step, and content ourselves with a
brief narrative of their proceedings.

ASCENT OF THE BIO MAGDALENA.

323

CHAPTER XXIIL

Brief Account of the Journey from Carthagena to Quito
and Mexico,

Ascent of the Rio Meigdalena — Santa Fe de Bogota — Cataract of
Tequendama — Natural Bridges of Icononzo — Passage of Quin-
din — Cai^ueros — Popayan — Quito — Cotopaxi and Chimborazo —
Route from Quito to Lima — Guayaquil — Mexico — Guanaxuato —
Volcano of Jorullo — Pyramid of Cholula.

It has been already stated that Humboldtj previously
to leaving PariS;, had promised Baudin, that should
his projected expedition to the southern hemisphere
ever take place, he would endeavour to join it; and
also that information received by him at Cuba had
induced him to relinquish plans subsequently formed,
and re-embark for the continent of South America,
with the view of proceeding to Guayaquil or Lima,
where he expected to meet the navigators. Accord-
ingly he went to Carthagena, where he learned that
the season Was too far advanced for sailing from
Panama to Guayaquil. Giving up, therefore, his
intention of crossing the isthmus of Panama, he
passed some days in the forests of Turbaco, and
afterwards made preparations for ascending the Rio
Magdalena.

This river, from its sources near the equator, flows
almost directly north. “ Nature,” says a traveller
who sailed up it in 1823, " seems to have designedly

324

KIO MAGDALENA.

dug, the bed of the Magdalena in the midst of the
cordilleras of Colombia, to form a canal of commu-
nication between the mountains and the sea ; yet it
would have made nothing but an unnavigable tor-
rent, had not its course been stopped in many parts
by masses of rock disposed in such a manner as to
break its violence. Its waters thus arrested flow
gently into the plains of the provinces of Santa
Martha and Carthagena, which they fertilize and
refresh by their evaporation. Three very distinct
temperatures reign on the Magdalena. The sea-
breezes blow from its mouth as far as Monpox ;
from this town to Morales not a breath of air tem-
pers the heat of the atmosphere, and man would
become a victim to its power, but for the abundant
dews which fall during the night ; from Morales as
far as the sources of the Magdalena, the south wind
moderates the heat of the day, and forms the third
temperature. These land-breezes cause the naviga-
tion of the Magdalena to be rarely fatal to Euro-
peans.”* But, according to the same author, multi-
tudes of animals of various species continually harass
the traveller. He cannot bathe on account of the
caymans, and if he venture on shore he is in dan-
ger of being bitten by serpents.

The voyage up this river, which lasted thirty-five
days, was not performed without hazard and incon-
venience. Humboldt sketched a chart of it, while
his friend was busily occupied in examining the
rich and beautiful vegetation of its banks. Disem-
barking at Honda, they proceeded on mules by dan-
gerous paths, through forests of oaks, melastomse.

• Mollien’s Travels in Colombia.

SANTA FE DE BOGOTA.

325

and cinchonsej to Santa Fe de Bogota the capital
of New Grenada. This city stands in a beautiful
valley surrounded hy lofty mountains,, and which
would appear to have been at a former period the bed
of a great lake. Here the travellers spent several
months in exploring the mineralogical and botanical
treasures of the country, the magnificent cataract
of Tequendama, and the extensive collections of the
celebrated Mutis.

The elevated plain on which this metropolis is
built, is 8727 feet above the level of the sea, and
is consequently higher than the summit of St Ber-
nard. The river of Funza, usually called Rio de
Bogota, which drains the valley, has forced its way
through the moimtains to the south-west of Santa
Fe, and near the farm of Tequendama rushes from
the plain by a narrow outlet into a crevice, which
descends towards the bed of the Rio Magdalena.
Respecting this ravine, Gonzalo Ximenes de Que-
sada, the conqueror of the country, found the fol-
lowing tradition disseminated among the people : —
In remote times the inhabitants of Bogota were bar-
barians, living without religion, laws, or arts. An old
man on a certain occasion suddenly appeared among
them, of a race unlike that of the natives, and hav-
ing a long bushy beard. He instructed them in the
arts ; but he brought with him a very malignant,
although very beautiful woman, who thwarted all
his benevolent enterprises. By her magical power
she swelled the current of the Funza, and inun-
dated the valley; so that most of the inhabitants per-
ished, a few only having found refuge in the neigh-
bouring mountains. The aged visiter then drove
his consort from the earth, and she became the moon.

326

CATAKACT OF TEQUENDAMA.

He next broke the rocks that enclosed the valley on
the Tequendama side^ and by this means drained olf
the waters ; then he introduced the worship of the
sun, appointed two chiefs, and finally withdrew to
a valley where he lived in the exercise of the most
austere penitence during 2000 years.

The cataract of Tequendama presents an assem-
blage of all that is picturesque. The river a little
above it is 144 feet in breadth, but at the crevice
narrows to a width of not more than 12 yards. The
height of the fall, which forms a double bound, is 574
feet, and the column of vapour that rises from it is
visible from Santa Fe at the distance of 17 miles.
The vegetation at the foot of the precipice has a to-
tally different appearance from that at the summit ;
and while the spectator leaves behind him a plain in
which the cereal plants of Europe are cultivated,
and sees around him oaks, elms, and other trees re-
sembling those of the temperate regions of the north-
ern hemisphere, he looks down upon a country
covered with palms, bananas, and sugar-canes.

Leaving Santa Fe, in September 1801, the tra-
vellers passed the natural bridges of Icononzo, formed
by masses of rock lying across a ravine of immense
profundity. The valleys of the cordilleras are gene-
rally crevices, the depth of which is often so great,
that were Vesuvius seated in them its summit would
not exceed that of the nearest mountains. One of
these, that, namely, of Icononzo or Pandi, is pecu-
liarly remarkable for the singular form of its rocks,
the naked tops of which present the most pictu-
resque contrast with the tufts of trees and shrubs
which cover the edges of the gulf. A torrent,
named the Summa Paz, forms two beautiful cas-

NATURAL BRIDGES — ANDES. 327

cades where it enters the chasm^ and where it again
escapes from it. A natural arch^ 47^ feet in length
and 39 in breadth, stretches across the fissure at
a height of 318 feet above the stream. Sixty-four
feet below this bridge is a second composed of three
enormous masses of rock, which have fallen so as to
support each other. In the middle of it is a hole
through which the bottom of the cleft is seen. The
torrent, viewed from this place, seemed to flow
through a dark cavern, whence arose a doleful
sound, emitted by the nocturnal birds that haunt
the abyss, thousands of which were seen flying over
the surface of the water, supposed by Humboldt
from their appearance to be goatsuckers.

In the kingdom of New Grenada, from 2° 30' to
5’ 15' of north latitude, the cordillera of the Andes
is divided into three parallel chains. The eastern
one separates the valley of the Rio Magdalena from
the plains of the Rio Meta, and on its western de-
clivity are the natural bridges of Icononzo above
mentioned. The central chain, which parts the
waters between the basin of the Rio Magdalena
and that of the Rio Cauca, often attains the limits
of perpetual snow, and shoots far beyond it in the
colossal summits of Guanacas, Baragan, and Quin-
diu. The western ridge cuts olf the valley of Cauca
from the province of Choco and the shores of the
South Sea. In passing from Santa Fe to Popayan
and the banks of the river now mentioned, the tra-
veller has to descend the eastern chain, either by the
Mesa and Tocayma or the bridges of Icononzo, tra-
verse the valley of the Rio Magdalena, and cross the
central chain, as Humboldt did, by the mountain of
Quindiu.

328

PASSAGE OP THE QUINDIU.

This mountain, which is considered as the most
difficult passage in the cordilleras, presents a thick
uninhabited forest, which, in the finest season, can-
not be passed in less than ten or twelve days. Tra-
vellers usually furnish themselves with a month’s
provision, as it often happens that the melting of
the snow, and the sudden floods arising from it, pre-
vent them from descending. The highest point of
the road is 11,499J feet above the level of the sea,
and the path, which is very narrow, has in several
places the appearance of a gallery dug in the rock
and left open above. The oxen, which are the beasts
of burden commonly used in the country, can scarce-
ly force their way through these passages, some of
which are 6562 feet in length. The rock is covered
with a thick layer of clay, and the numerous gul-
lies formed by the torrents are filled with mud.

In crossing this mountain the philosophers, follow-
ed by twelve oxen carrying their collections and in-
struments, were deluged with rain. Their shoes were
torn by the prickles which shoot out from the roots
of the bamboos, so that, unwilling to be carried on
men’s backs, they were obliged to walk barefooted.
The usual mode of travelling, however, is in a chair
tied to the back of a cargnero or porter. When one
reflects on the enormous fatigue to which these
bearers are exposed, he is at a loss to conceive how
the employment should be so eagerly embraced by
all the robust young men who live at the foot of
the Andes. The passage of Quindiu is not the
only part of South America which is traversed in
this manner. The whole province of Antioquia is
surrounded by mountains so difficult to be crossed,
that those who refuse to trust themselves to the

CARGUEBOSj OR MEN-CARRIERS. 329

skill of a carguero, and are not strong enough to
travel on foot^ must relinquish all thoughts of leaving
the country. The number of persons who follow
this laborious occupation, at Choco, Hague, and
Medellin, is so great that our travellers sometimes
met a file of fifty or sixty. Near the mines of Mexico
there are also individuals who have no other employ-
ment than that of carrying men on their backs.

The cargueros, in crossing the forests of Quindiu,
take with them bundles of the large oval leaves of the
vijao, a plant of the banana family, the peculiar
varnish of which enables them to resist rain. A
hundredweight of these leaves is sufficient to cover
a hut large enough to hold six or eight persons.
When they come to a convenient spot where they
intend to pass the night, the carriers lop a few
branches from the trees, with which they con-
struct a frame ; it is then divided into squares by
the stalks of some climbing plant, or threads of agave,
on which are hung the vijao leaves, by means of a
cut made in their midrib. In one of these tents,
which are cool, commodious, and perfectly dry, our
travellers passed several days in the valley of Bo-
quia, amidst violent and incessant rains.

From these mountains, where the truncated cone
of Tolima, covered with perennial snow, rises amidst
forests of styrax, arborescent passiflorse, bamboos, and
waxpalms, they descended into the valley of Cauca
towards the west. After resting some time at Ca-
thago and Buga, they coasted the province of Choco,
where platina is found among rolled fragments of
basalt, greenstone, and fossil wood.

They then went up by Caloto and the mines of
Quilichao to Popayan, which is situated at the base

330

RIO VINAGRE.

of the snowy mountains of Purace and Sotara. This
city^ the capital of New Grenada, stands in the beau-
tiful valley of the Rio Cauca, at an elevation of 5906
feet above the sea, and enjoys a delicious climate.
On the ascent from Popayan towards the summit of
the volcano of Purace, at a height of 8694 feet, is a
small plain inhabited by Indians, and cultivated
with the greatest care. It is hounded by two ra-
vines, on the brink of which is placed a village of the
same name. The gardens, which are enclosed with
hedges of euphorbium, are watered by the springs
that issue abundantly from the porphyritic rock ;
and nothing can be more agreeable than the con-
trast between the beautiful verdure of this plain and
the chain of dark mountains surrounding the vol-
cano. The hamlet of Purace, which the travellers
visited in November 1801, is celebrated for the fine
cataracts of the Rio Vinagre, the waters of which
are acid. This little river is warm towards its source,
and after forming three falls, one of which is 394
feet in height and is exceedingly picturesque, joins
the Rio Cauca, which for 14 miles below the junc-
tion is destitute of fish. The crater of the volcano
is filled with boiling water, which, amid frightful
noises, emits vapours of sulphuretted hydrogen.

The travellers then crossed the precipitous cordil-
leras of Almaquer to Pasto, avoiding the infected
and contagious atmosphere of the valley of Patia.
From the latter town, which is situated at the foot
of a burning volcano, they traversed the elevated
platform of the province of Los Pastos, celebrated for
its great fertility; and after a journey of four months,
performed on mules, arrived at Quito on the 6th
January 1802.

QUITO.

331

The climate of this province is remarkably agree-
able, and almost invariable. During the months of
December, January, February, and March, it gene-
rally rains every afternoon from half-past one to
five ; but even at this season the evenings and morn-
ings are most beautiful. The temperature is so mild
that vegetation never ceases. “^From the terrace of the
government palace there is one of the most enchant-
ing prospects that human eye ever witnessed, or na-
ture ever exhibited. Looking to the south, and glanc-
ing along towards the north, eleven mountains cover-
ed with perpetual snow present themselves, their
bases apparently resting on the verdant hills that sur-
round the city, and their heads piercing the blue arch
of heaven, while the clouds hover midway down
them, or seem to crouch at their feet. Among these
the most lofty are Cayambeurcu, Imbaburu, Ilinisa,
Antisana, Chimborazo, and the beautifully-magni-
ficent Cotopaxi, crowned with its volcano.”*

Nearly nine months were devoted to researches
of various kinds. They made excursions to the
snowy mountains of Antisana, Cotopaxi, Tun-
guragua, and Chimborazo, the latter of which was
considered as the highest on the globe until it
was found to be exceeded by some of the colossal
summits of the Himmaleh, and even by several in
Upper Peru. In all these journeys they were ac-
companied by a young man, son of the Marquis of
Selva-alegre, who subsequently followed them to
Peru and Mexico.t They twice ascended to the

* Stevenson’s Residence in South America, vol. ii. p. 324.

•f" This accomplished individual, Don Carlos Montufar, of whom
our author speaks with approbation, having’ connected himself with
the popular party in the struggles of which the Spanish colonies
have lately been the theatre, was seized in Quito, in 1811, by Don

332

COTOPAXI.

volcanic summit of Pichinchaj where they made ex-
periments on the constitution of the air^ — its elasti-
city, its electrical, magnetic, and hygroscopic quali-
ties,— and the temperature of boiling water.

Cotopaxi is the loftiest of those volcanoes of the
Andes which have produced eruptions at recent pe-
riods ; its absolute height being 18,878 feet. It is
consequently 2625 feet higher than Vesuvius would
be were it placed on the top of the Peak of Tenerilfe.
The scoriae and rocks ejected by it, and scattered
over the neighbouring valleys, would form a vast
mountain of themselves. In 1738 its flames rose
2953 feet above the crater ; and in 1744 its roarings
were heard as far as Honda, on the Magdalena, at
a distance of 690 miles. On the 4th April 1768,
the quantity of ashes thrown out was so great, that
in the towns of Hambato and Tacunga the inha-
bitants were obliged to use lanterns in the streets.
Tha explosion which took place in January 1803
was preceded by the sudden melting of the snows
which covered the surface; and our travellers, at
the port of Guayaquil, 179^ miles distant, heard
day and night the noises proceeding from it, like
discharges of a battery.

This celebrated mountain is situated to the south-
east of Quito, at the distance of 41 miles, in the
midst of the Andes. Its form is the most beautiful
and regular of all the colossal summits of that
mighty chain ; being a perfect cone, which is covered
with snow, and shines with dazzling splendour at
sunset. No rocks project through the icy covering.

Toribio Montes, sentenced as a traitor, and shot through the back ;
after which his heart was taken out and burnt. — See Stevenson's
Residence in South America^ vol. iii. p. 44.

RIDGE OF THE ANDES.

333

except near the edge of the crater, which is sur-
rounded by a small circular wall. In ascending it
is extremely difficult to reach the lower bound-
ary of the snows, the cone being surrounded by
deep ravines ; and, after a near examination of the
summit, Humboldt thinks he may assert that it
would be altogether impossible to reach the brink
of the crater.

It was mentioned that, in the kingdom of New
Grenada, the cordilleras of the Andes form three
chains, in the great longitudinal valleys of which
flow two large rivers. To the south of Popayan,
on the table-land of Los Pastos, these three chains
unite into a single group, which stretches far be-
yond the equator. This group, in the kingdom of
Quito, presents an extraordinary appearance from
the river of Chota, the most elevated summits being
arranged in two lines, forming as it were a double
ridge to the cordilleras. These summits served for
signals to the French academicians when employed in
the measurement of an equinoctial degree. Bouguer
considered them as two chains, separated by a lon-
gitudinal valley ; but this valley Humboldt views
as the ridge of the Andes itself. It is an elevated
plain, from 8858 to 9515 feet above the level of
the sea; and the volcanic summits of Pichincha,
Cayambo, Cotopaxi, and other celebrated peaks, are,
he thinks, so many protuberances of the great mass
of the Andes. In consequence of the elevation of
the territory of Quito, these mountains do not seem
so high as many of much inferior altitude rising
from a lower basis.

On Chimborazo the line marking the inferior li-
mit of perpetual snow is at a height somewhat ex-

334

CHIMBORAZO.

ceeding that of Mont Blanc. On a narrow ledge,
which rises amidst the snows on the southern de-
clivity, our travellers attempted on the 23d June to
reach the summit. The point where they stopped
to observe the inclination of the magnetic meridian
was more elevated than any yet attained by man,
being 3609 feet higher than the summit of Mont
Blanc, and more than 3714 feet higher than La
Condamine and Bouguer reached in 1745 on the
Corazon. The ridge to which they climbed, and
beyond which they were prevented from proceeding
by a deep chasm in the snow, was 19,798 feet above
the level of the sea ; but the summit of the moun-
tain was still 1439 feet higher. The blood issued
from their eyes, lips, and gums. The form of Chim-
borazo is conical, but the top is not truncated like
that of Cotopaxi, being rounded or semicircular in
outline.

While at Quito, Humboldt received a letter from
the National Institute of France, by which he was
apprized that Captain Baudin had set out for New
Holland by the Cape of Good Hope. He was obliged
therefore to renounce all thoughts of joining the ex-
pedition, although the hope of being able to meet it
had induced him to relinquish his plan of proceeding
from Cuba to Mexico and the Philippine Islands,
and had led him upwards of 3452 miles southward.
The travellers, however, consoled themselves with the
thought of having examined regions over which the
eye of science had never before glanced; and, resolv-
ing henceforth to trust solely to their own resources,
after spending some months in exploring the Andes,
they set out in the direction of Lima.

They first pointed their course to the great River

UPPER AMAZON.

335

Amazon, visiting the ruins of Lactacunga, Ham-
bato, and Riobamba, in a country the face of which
was entirely changed by the frightful earthquakes
of 1797j that destroyed nearly 40,000 of the inha-
bitants. They then with great ditficulty passed
to Loxa, where in the forests of Gonzanama and
Malacates they examined the trees which yield the
Peruvian bark. The vast extent of ground which
they traversed in the course of their expedition af-
forded them better opportunities than any botanist
had ever enjoyed of comparing the different species
of Cinchona.

Leaving Loxa they entered Peru byAyavaca and
Gouncabamba, traversing the ridge of the Andes
to descend to the River Amazon. In two days
they had to cross thirty-five times the Rio de Chay-
ma. They saw the magnificent remains of the
causeway of the Incas, which traversed the porphy-
ritic summits from Cusco to Assouay, at a height
varying from 7670 to 11,510 feet. At the village
of Chamaya, on a river of the same name, they
took ship and descended to the Amazon.

La Condamine, on his return from Quito to Para,
embarked on this river only below Quebrada de
Chuchunga ; and Humboldt, with the view of com-
pleting the map made by the French astronomer,
proceeded as far as the cataracts of Rentama. At
Tomependa, the principal place of the province of
Jaen de Bracamorros, he constructed a map of the
Upper Amazon, from his own observations as well
as from accounts received from the natives. Bon-
pland employed himself, as usual, in examining the
subjects of the vegetable kingdom, among which he
discovered several new species of Cinchona.

336

ARRIVAL AT LIMA.

Keturning to Peru^ our travellers crossed the cor-
dillera of the Andes the fifth time. In seven degrees
of south latitude they determined the position of the
magnetic equator, or the line in which the needle
has no inclination. They also examined the mines
of Hualgayoc, where large masses of native silver
are found at an elevation of 12,790 feet above the
sea, and which, together with those of Pasco and
Huantajayo, are the richest in Peru. From Caxa-
marca, celebrated for its hot-springs and the ruins
of the palace of Atahualpa, they went down to
Truxillo. In this neighbourhood are the remains
of the ancient Peruvian city Mansiche adorned by
pyramids, in one of which an immense quantity of
gold was discovered in the eighteenth century. De-
scending the western slope of the Andes they be-
held for the first time the Pacific Ocean, and the
long narrow valley bounded by its shores, in which
rain and thunder are unknown. From Truxillo
they followed the arid coast of the South Sea, and
arrived atLima, where they remained several months.
At the port of Callao, Humboldt had the satisfaction
of observing the transit of Mercury, although the
thick fog which prevails there sometimes obscures the
sun for many days in succession.

In January 1803 the travellers embarked for
Guayaquil, in the vicinity of which they found a
splendid forest of palms, plumeriae, tabernse-mon-
tanae, and scitaminese. Here also they heard the
incessant noises of the volcano of Cotopaxi, which
had experienced a tremendous agitation on the 6th
January. From Guayaquil they proceeded by sea
to Acapulco in New Spain. At first, Humboldt’s
intention was to remain only a few months in Mex-

JOURNEY TO MEXICO.

337

ico, and return as speedily as possible to Europe,
more especially as his instruments, and in particu-
lar the chronometers, were getting out of order, while
he found it impossible to procure others. But the
attractions of so beautiful and diversified a country,
the great hospitality of its inhabitants, and the dread
of the yellow fever of Vera Cruz, which usually at-
tacks those who descend from the mountains between
June and October, induced him to remain until the
middle of winter.

After making numerous observations and experi-
ments on the atmospherical phenomena, the horary
variations of the barometer, magnetism, and the na-
tural productions of the country, our travellers set out
in the direction of Mexico j gradually ascending by
the burning valleys of Mescala and Papagayo, where
the thermometer rose to 89'6° in the shade, and where
the river is crossed on fruits of Crescentia pinnata,
attached to each other by ropes of agave. Reaching
the elevated plains of Chilpantzuigo, Tehuilotepec,
and Tasco, which are situated at a height varying
from 3837 to 4476 feet above the sea, they entered
a region blessed with a temperate climate, and pro-
ducing oaks, cypresses, pines, tree-ferns, and the cul-
tivated cereal plants of Europe. After visiting the
silver-mines of Tasco, the oldest and formerly the
richest of Mexico, they went up by Cuernaraca and
Guachilaco to the capital. Here they spent some
time in the agreeable occupation of examining nu-
merous curiosities, antiquities, and institutions, in
making astronomical observations, in studying the
natural productions of the surrounding country,
and in enjoying the society of enlightened indivi-
duals. The longitude of Mexico, which had been
misplaced two degrees on the latest maps, was ac-

338

EXCURSIONS TO THE PROVINCES.

curately determined by a long series of observa-
tions.

Our travellers next visited the celebrated mines of
Moran and Real del Monte, and examined the obsi-
dians of Oyamel, which form layers in pearlstone and
porphyry, and were employed by the ancient Mexi-
cans for the manufacture of knives. The cascade of
Regia, a representation of which forms the vignette
to the present volume, is situated in the neighbour-
hood. The regularity of the basaltic columns is as re-
markable as that of the deposites of StaflFa. Most of
them are perpendicular ; though some are horizontal,
and others have various degrees of inclination. They
rest upon a bed of clay, beneath which basalt again
occurs. Returning from this excursion in July 1803,
they made another to the northern part of the king-
dom, in the course of which they inspected the aper-
ture made in the mountain of Suicog for the purpose
of draining the valley of Mexico. They next passed
by Queretaro, Salamanca, and the fertile plains of
Yrapuato, on the way to Guanaxuato, a large city
placed in a narrow defile, and celebrated for its mines.

There they remained two months, making re-
searches into the geology and botany of the neigh-
bouring country. From thence they proceeded by
the valley of San Jago to Valladolid, the capital of the
ancient kingdom of Mechoacan ; and, notwithstand-
ing a continuance of heavy autumnal rains, descended
by Patzquaro, which is situated on the edge of an
extensive lake towards the shores of the Pacific
Ocean, to the plains of Jorullo. Here they entered
the great crater, making their way over crevices ex-
haling ignited sulphuretted hydrogen, and experi-
encing much danger from the brittleness of the lava.

The formation of this volcano is one of the most

VOLCANO OF JORULLO.

339

extraordinary phenomena which have been observ-
ed on our globe. The plain of Malpais, covered
with small cones from six to ten feet in height, is
part of an elevated table-land hounded by hills of
basalt, trachyte, and volcanic tufa. From the pe-
riod of the discovery of America to the middle of the
last century, this district had undergone no change
of surface, and the seat of the crater was then co-
vered with a plantation of indigo and sugar-cane ;
when, in June 1759, hollow sounds were heard, and a
succession of earthquakes continued for two months,
to the great consternation of the inhabitants. From
the beginning of September every thing seemed to
announce the re-estahlishment of tranquillity ; but
in the night of the 28th the frightful subterranean
noises again commenced. The Indians fled to the
neighbouring mountains. A tract not less than
from three to four square miles in extent rose up in
the shape of a dome ,* and those who witnessed the
phenomenon asserted, that flames were seen issuing
from a space of more than six square miles, while
fragments of burning rocks were projected to an im-
mense height, and the surface of the ground undu-
lated like an agitated sea. Two brooks which wa-
tered the plantations precipitated themselves into
the burning chasms. Thousands of the small cones
described above, suddenly appeared, and in the
midst of these eminences, called hornitos or ovens,
six great masses, having an elevation of from 1312
to 1640 feet above the original level of the plain,
sprung up from a gulf running from N.N.E. to
S.S.W. The most elevated of these mounds is the
great volcano of Jorullo, which is continually burn-
ing. The eruptions of this central volcano conti-
nued till February 1760, when they became less fre-

340

VOLCANO OF JORULLO.

quent. The Indians^ who had abandoned all the
villages within thirty miles of it, returned once
more to their cottages, and advanced towards the
mountains of Aguasarco and Santa Ines, to con-
template the streams of fire that issued from the
numberless apertures. The roofs of the houses
of Queretaro, more than 166 miles distant, were
covered with volcanic dust. Mr Lyell (Principles
of Geology, vol. i. p. 379) states, on the authority of
Captain Vetch, that another eruption happened in
1819, accompanied by an earthquake, during which
ashes fell at the city of Guanaxuato, 140 miles dis-
tant from Jorullo, in such quantities as to lie six
inches deep in the streets.

When Humboldt visited this place, the natives
assured him that the heat of the hornitos had for-
merly been much greater. The thermometer rose
to 203° when placed in the fissures exhaling aqueous
vapour. Each of the cones emitted a thick smoke,
and in many of them a subterranean noise was
heard, which seemed to indicate the proximity of a
fluid in ebullition. Two streams were at that period
seen bursting through the argillaceous vaults, and
were found by the traveller to have a temperatui'e
of 126-9°. The Indians give them the names of the
two rivers which had been engulfed, because in se-
veral parts of the Malpais great masses of water are
heard flowing in a direction from east to west. Our
author considers all the district to be hollow ; but
Scrope and Lyell find it more suitable to their views
of volcanic agency to represent the conical form of
the ground as resulting from the flow of lava over
the original surface of the plain.

The Indians of this province are represented as
being the most industrious of New Spain. They

INDIANS OF MECHOACAN.

341

Costumes of the Indians of Mechoacan.

have a remarkable talent for cutting out images in
wood, and dressing them in clothes made of the pith
of an aquatic plant, which being very porous im-
bibes the most vivid colours. Two figures of this
kind, which Humboldt brought home for the Queen
of Prussia, are here represented. They exhibit the
characteristic traits of the American race, together
with a strange mixture of the ancient costume with
that which was introduced by the Spaniards.

From Valladolid, the ancient kingdom of Mechoa-
can, the travellers returned to Mexico by the eleva-
ted plain of Tolucca, after examining the volcanic
mountains in the vicinity. They also visited the ce-
lebrated cheiranthostsemon of Cervantes, a tree of
which it was at one time supposed there did not
exist more than a single specimen.

At that city they remained several months, for the

342 OCCUPATIONS OF THE TRAVELLERS.

purpose of arranging their botanical and geological
collections, calculating the barometrical and trigo-
nometrical measurements which they had made, and
sketching the plates of the Geological Atlas which
Humboldt proposed to publish. They also assisted
in placing a colossal equestrian statue of the king,
which had been cast by a native artist. In January
1804 they left Mexico with the intention of examining
the eastern declivity of the cordillera of New Spain.
They also measured the great pyramid of Cholula,
an extraordinary monument of the Toltecks, from
the summit of which there is a splendid view of the
snowy mountains and beautiful plains of Tlascala.
It is built of bricks, which seemed to have been
dried in the sun, alternating with layers of clay.
They then descended to Xalapa, a city placed at
an elevation of 4138 feet above the sea, in a de-
lightful climate. The dangerous road which leads
from it to Perote, through almost impenetrable fo-
rests, was thrice barometrically levelled by Hum-
boldt. Near the latter place is a mountain of ba-
saltic porphyry, remarkable for the singular form of
a small rock placed on its summit, and which is
named the Golfer of Perote. This elevation com-
mands a very extensive prospect over the plain of
Puebla and the eastern slope of the cordilleras of
Mexico, which is covered with dense forests. From
it they also saw the harbour of Vera Cruz, the castle
of St Juan of Ulloa, and the seacoast.

Before following our travellers across the Atlantic,
it may be useful to present a sketch of the valuable
observations recorded in Humboldt’s Political Es-
say on the Kingdom of New Spain, and which are
in part the result of his researches in that interest-
ing country.

INTRODUCTORY REMARKS.

343

CHAPTER XXIV.

Description of New Spain or Mexico.

General Description of New Spain or Mexico — Cordilleras — Cli-
mates— Mines — Rivers — Lakes — Soil — Volcanoes — Harbours —
Population — Provinces — Valley of Mexico, and Description of
the Capital — Inundations, and Works undertaken for the Purpose
of preventing them.

Previous to Humboldt’s visit to New Spain, the
information possessed in Europe respecting that in-
teresting and important country was exceedingly
meagre and incorrect. The ignorance of the Euro-
pean conquerors, the indolence of their successors,
the narrow policy of the government, and the want
of scientific enterprise among the Creoles and Spa-
niards, left it for centuries a region of dim obscurity
into which the eye of research was unable to pene-
trate. So inaccurate were the maps, that even the
latitude and longitude of the capital remained un-
fixed, and the inhabitants were thrown into con-
sternation by the occurrence of a total eclipse of
the sun on the 21st February 1803 ; the almanacs,
calculating from a false indication of the meridian,
having announced it as scarcely visible. The de-
termination of the geographical position of many of
the more remarkable places, that of the altitude of the
volcanic summits and other eminences, together with
the vast mass of intelligence contained in the Po-

344

SPANISH SETTLEMENTS.

litical Essay on New Spain^ served to dispel in
some measure the darkness ; and since the period of
Humboldt’s visit numerous travellers have contri-
buted so materially to our acquaintance with Mexico,
that it no longer remains among the least known of
those remote countries of the globe over which the
power of Europe has extended.

Although the independence of the American states
has now been confirmed, and their political rela-
tions entirely changed since the time our author was
there, the aspect of nature continues the same in
those extensive regions ; and, as we have less to do
with their history and national circumstances than
with the discoveries of the learned traveller, we
shall follow, as heretofore, his descriptions of the
countries examined by him in the relations in which
they then stood.

The Spanish settlements in the New Continent
formerly occupied that immense territory comprised
between 41° 43' of south latitude and 37° 48' of
north latitude, equalling the whole length of Af-
rica, and exceeding the vast regions possessed by
the Russian empire or Great Britain in Asia.
They were divided into nine great governments, of
which five, viz. the viceroyalties of Peru and New
Grenada, the capitanias-generales of Guatimala,
Porto Rico, and Caraccas, are entirely intertropical,
while the other four, viz. the viceroyalties of Mex-
ico and Buenos Ayres, and the capitanias-generales
of Chili and Havannah, including the Floridas, are
chiefly situated in the temperate zones. Mexico
was the most important, as well as the most civilized
of the whole, and was long considered as such by
the court of Madrid.

GEOGRAPHICAL RELATIONS OF MEXICO. 345

The name of New Spain was at first given in
1518 to the province of Yucatan, where the com-
panions of Grijalva were astonished at the civilisa-
tion of the inhabitants. Cortez employed it to de-
note the whole empire of Montezuma, though it was
subsequently used in various senses. Humboldt
designates by it the vast country which has for its
northern and southern limits the parallels of 38°
and 16°. The length of this region from S.S.E.
to N.N.W. is nearly 1678 miles ; its greatest breadth
994 miles. The isthmus of Tehuantepec, to the
south-east of the port of Vera Cruz, is the narrowest
part ; the distance from the Atlantic Ocean to the
South Sea being there only 155 miles. The question
of opening a communication by a canal between the
two oceans at this point, the isthmus of Panama,
or several others which he mentions, is fully dis-
cussed by the author. He discredits the idea that
the level of the South Sea is higher than that of
the Gulf of Mexico, and imagines that were a rup-
ture of the intervening barrier effected, the current
would establish itself in the direction opposite to
that usually apprehended.

When a general view is taken of the whole sur-
face of Mexico, it is seen that one-half is situated
within the tropic, while the rest belongs to the tem-
perate zone. This latter portion contains 775,019
square miles. The physical climate of a country
does not altogether depend upon its distance from the
pole, but also upon its elevation, its proximity to the
ocean, and other circumstances; so that of the 645,850
square miles in the torrid zone, more than three-
fifths have a cold, or at least temperate atmosphere.
The whole interior of Mexico, in fact, constitutes

346

PLATFORMS OF THE ANDES.

an immense table-land, having an elevation which
varies from 6562 to 8202 feet above the level of
the sea.

The chain of mountains which forms this vast plain
is continuous with the Andes of South America. In
the southern hemisphere the cordillera is every where
broken up by fissures or valleys of small breadth ;
but in Mexico it is the ridge itself that constitutes the
platform. In Peru the most elevated summits form
the crest of the Andes, while in the other the pro-
minences are irregularly scattered over the plain,
and have no relation of parallelism to the direction
of the cordillera. In Peru and New Grenada there
are transverse valleys, having sometimes 4590 feet
of perpendicular depth, which entirely prevent the
use of carriages; while in New Spain vehicles are
used along an extent of more than 1726 miles. The
general height of the table-land of Mexico is equal
to that of Mount Cenis, St Gothard, or the Great St
Bernard of the Swiss Alps ; and to determine this
circumstance Humboldt executed five laborious ba-
rometrical surveys, which enabled him to construct
a series of vertical sections of the country.

In South America the cordillera of the Andes pre-
sents plains completely level at immense altitudes,
such as that on which the city of Santa Fe de Bo-
gota stands, that of Caxamarca in Peru, and those
of Antisana, which exceed in height the summit of
the Peak of Teneriffe. But all these levels are of
small extent, and being separated by deep valleys
are of difiicult access. In Mexico, on the other
hand, vast tracts of champaign country are so
approximated to each other as to form but a single
plain occupying the elongated ridge of the cordil-

DIVERSITY OF CLIMATE.

347

lera^ and running from the 18th to the 40th degree
of north latitude. The descent towards the coasts
is hy a graduated series of terraces, which oppose
great difficulties to the communication between the
maritime districts and the interior, presenting at the
same time an extraordinary diversity of vegetation.

The plains along the coasts are the only parts
that possess a climate adapted to the productions of
the West Indies, — the mean temperature of those
situated within the tropics, and whose elevation does
not exceed 984 feet, being from 77° to 78*8°, which
is several degrees greater than the mean temperature
of Naples. These fertile regions, which produce
sugar, indigo, cotton, and bananas, are named Tier^
ras calientes. Europeans remaining in them for
any considerable time, particularly in the towns, are
liable to the yellow fever or black vomiting. On the
eastern shores the great heats are occasionally tem-
pered hy strata of refrigerated air brought from the
north hy the impetuous winds that blow from Octo-
ber to March, which frequently cool the atmosphere
to such a degree, that at Havannah the thermome-
ter descends to 32°, and at Vera Cruz to 60-8°.

On the declivities of the cordillera, at the eleva-
tion of 3937 or 4921 feet, there prevails a mild
climate, never varying more than four or five de-
grees. To this region, of which the mean annual
temperature is from 68° to 69-8°, the natives give the
name of Tierras templadas. Unfortunately these
tracts are frequently covered with thick fogs, as they
occupy the height to which the clouds usually as-
cend above the level of the sea.

The plains which are elevated more than 7218
feet above that level, and of which the mean tern-

348

DIVERSITY OF CLIMATE.

perature is under 62-6°;, are named Tierras frias.
The whole table-land of Mexico belongs to this de-
scription, which the natives consider cold, although
the ordinary warmth is equal to that of Rome. There
are plains of still greater elevation, on which, al-
though they have a mean temperature of from 51-8°
to 55-4°, equal to that of France and Lombardy, the
vegetation is less vigorous, and European plants do
not thrive so well as in their native soil. The win-
ters there are not extremely severe, but in summer
the sun has not sufficient power over the rarified
air to bring fruits to perfect maturity.

From the peculiar circumstances of New Spain,
as here sketched, the influence of geographical posi-
tion upon the vegetation is much less than that of
the height of the ground above the sea. In the
nineteenth and twentieth degrees of latitude, sugar,
cotton, cacao, and indigo, are produced abundantly
only at an elevation of from 1968 to 2625 feet.
Wheat thrives on the declivities of the mountains,
along a zone which commences at 4593 feet and
ends at 9843. The banana {Musa paradisiaca),
on the fruit of which the inhabitants of the tropics
chiefly subsist, is seldom productive above 5085
feet ; oaks grow only between 2625 and 9843 feet j
and pines never descend lower than 6096, nor rise
above 13,124 feet.

The internal provinces of the temperate zone en-
joy a climate essentially different from that of the
same parallels in the Old Continent. So remark-
able an inequality prevails indeed between the tem-
perature of the seasons, that while the winters re-
semble those of Germany the summers are like
those of Sicily. A similar difference exists between

MINES — RIVERS LAKES.

349

the other parts of America and the corresponding
latitudes in Europe ; hut it is less perceptible on the
western than on the eastern coasts.

New Spain possesses a peculiar advantage in
the circumstances under which the precious metals
have been deposited. In Peru the most important
silver mines^ those of Potosi, Pasco^ and Chota, are
placed at an immense elevation ; so thatj in working
them, men, provisions, and cattle, must be brought
from a distance ; but in Mexico the richest of these,
those, namely, of Guanaxuato, Zacatecas, Tasco,
and Real del Monte, are at moderate heights, and
surrounded by cultivated fields, towns, and villages.

There are few rivers of consequence in the country,
the Rio Bravo del Norte and the Rio Colorado being
the only ones of any magnitude. The former has
a course of 1767 miles, the latter of 863 ; but these
streams flow in the least cultivated parts of the
country, and can have little influence in a commer-
cial point of view until colonization shall extend to
their shores. In the whole equinoctial part of New
Spain there are only small rivulets, of which very
few can ever become interesting to the merchant.

The numerous lakes, the greater part of which
appear to be annually decreasing in size, are the
remains of immense basins of water that formerly
existed on the elevated plains. Of these may be
mentioned the lake of Chapala, nearly 2067 square
miles in extent ; those of the valley of Mexico,
which comprehend a fourth part of its surface; that
of Patzcuaro in Valladolid ; and, finally, the lakes
of Mexitlan and Parras in New Biscay.

The interior of New Spain, and especially a great
part of the elevated table-land of Anahuac, is arid

350 SNOW-LINE — temperatureI

•

and destitute of vegetation ; which arises from the
rapid evaporation in high plains, and the circum-
stance that few of the mountains enter the region
of perpetual snow, which under the equator com-
mences at the height of 15,748 feet, and in the 45th
degree of latitude at that of 8366 feet. In Mexico,
in the 19th and 20th degrees, perpetual frost com-
mences, according to Humboldt’s measurements, at
15,092 feet of elevation ; so that of the six colossal
summits, which are placed in the same line in the
19th parallel of latitude, only four, namely, the
Peak of Orizaba, Popocatepetl, Iztaccihuatl, and
Nevado de Tolucca, are clothed with perennial
snow ; while the Cofre de Perote and the Volcan
de Colmia remain uncovered during the greater part
of the year. None of the other mountains rise into
so lofty a region.

In general, in the equinoctial part of New Spain,
the soil, climate, and vegetation, present a similar
character to those of the temperate zone. Although
the table-lands are singularly cold in winter, the
temperature is much higher in summer than in the
Andes of Peru, because the great mass of the cordil-
lera of Mexico, and the vast extent of its plains, pro-
duce a reverberation of the sun’s rays never observed
in elevated countries of greater inequality.

To the north of 20° the rains, which fall only in
June, July, August, and September, very seldom
extend to the interior. The mountains, being com-
posed of porous amygdaloid and fissured porphyries,
present few springs ; the filtrated water losing itself
in the crevices opened by ancient volcanic erup-
tions, and issuing at the bottom of the cordilleras.

The aridity of the central plain, on which there

VOLCANOES — COASTS.

351

is a great deficiency of wood^ is prejudicial to the
working of the mines; and this natural evil has
been augmented since the arrival of Europeans, who
have not only destroyed the trees without planting
others, but have drained a large extent of ground,
and thus increased the saline efflorescences which
cover the surface and are hostile to cultivation. This
dryness, however, is confined to the more elevated
plains ; and the declivities of the cordillera be-
ing exposed to humid winds and fogs, their vegeta-
tion is uncommonly vigorous.

Mexico is less disturbed by earthquakes than
Quito, Guatimala, and Cumana, although these de-
structive commotions are by no means rare on the
western coasts, and in the neighbourhood of the ca-
pital, where, however, they are never so violent as
in other parts of America. There are only five
active volcanoes in all New Spain : Orizaba, Popo-
catepetl, Tustla, Jorullo, and Colima.

The physical situation of that kingdom confers in-
estimable advantages upon it, in a commercial point
of view. Under careful cultivation it is capable of
producing all that commerce brings together from
every part of the globe: sugar, cochineal, cacao,
cotton, colfee, wheat, hemp, flax, silk, oil, and
wine. It furnishes every metal, not even except-
ing mercury, and is supplied with the finest tim-
ber ; but the coasts oppose obstacles which it will
be difficult to overcome. The western shores are
indeed furnished with excellent harbours ; but the
eastern are almost entirely destitute of them, the
mouths of the rivers there being choked up with
sands, which are constantly adding to the land.'
Vera Cruz, the principal port on this side, is merely

352 TEMPESTS OF THE GULP OF MEXICO.

an open road. Both coasts, too, are rendered inacces-
sible for several months by severe tempests, which
prevent all navigation. The north winds, los nor-
tes, prevail in the Mexican Gulf from the autumnal
to the vernal equinox. They are very violent in
March, though usually more moderate in Septem-
ber and October. The navigators who have long
frequented the port of Vera Cruz are familiar with
the symptoms of the coming storm, which is pre-
ceded by a great change in the barometer, and a
sudden interruption in the regular occurrence of its
horary oscillations. At first a gentle land-wind blows
from W.N.W., and is succeeded by a breeze rising
from the N.E. then from the S. A suffocating heat
succeeds, and the water dissolved in the atmosphere
is precipitated on the walls and pavements. The
summits of Orizaba, of the Cofre de Perote, and
the mountains of Villa Rica, are cloudless, while
their bases are concealed by vapours. In this state
of the air the tempest commences, usually with great
impetuosity, and generally continues three or four
days. Occasionally, even in May, June, July, and
August, violent hurricanes are experienced in the
Gulf of Mexico. The navigation of thh western
coasts is very dangerous in July and August, when
sudden gales burst from the S.W.; and even in the
fine season, from October to May, furious winds
sometimes blow from the N.E. and N.N.E. In
short, all the coasts of New Spain are at certain pe-
riods dangerous to navigators.

It is probable that Mexico was formerly better in-
habited than it is at present ; but its population was
concentrated in a very small space in the neighbour-
hood of the capital. At the present day it is more

POPULATION OF NEW SPAIN.

353

generally distributed than it was before the con-
questj and the number of Indians has increased
during the last century. According to an imper-
fect census made in 1794, the return was estimated
at 5,200,000. The proportion of births to deaths,
during the time between that period and Humboldt’s
visit, was found, from data furnished by the clergy,
to be 170 : 100; while that of births to the total
amount he considers as 1 in 17, and of the deaths
as 1 in 30. The annual number at present born he
estimates at nearly 350,000, and that of deaths at
200,000. It would thus appear that, if this rate of
increase were not checked from time to time by some
extraordinary cause, the population of New Spain
would double every nineteen years. In the United
States generally it has doubled, since 1784, every
twenty or twenty-three years ; and in some of them
it doubles in thirteen or fourteen. In France, on the
other hand, the number of inhabitants would double
in 214 years were no wars or contagious diseases to
interfere. Such is the dilference between countries
that have long been densely peopled and those whose
civilisation is of recent date. Humboldt, from vari-
ous considerations, assumes the population of Mexico
in 1803 at 5,800,000 ; and thinks it extremely pro-
bable that in 1808 it exceeded 6,500,000.

The causes which retard the increase of numbers
in Mexico are the small-pox ; a disease called by
the Indians matlazahuatl ; and famine. The first
of these, which was introduced in 1520, seems to
exert its power at periods of 17 or 18 years. In
1763, and in 1779, it committed dreadful ravages,
having carried olf during the latter, in the capital
alone, more than 9000 persons. In 1797 it was less

354

EPIDEMIC DISEASES.

destructive, chiefly in consequence of the zeal with
which inoculation was propagated ; between 50,000
and 60,000 individuals having undergone the opera-
tion. The vaccine method was introduced in vari-
ous parts of Mexico and South America at the com-
mencement of the present century. Humboldt
mentions a curious circumstance, tending to show
that the discovery of our celebrated countryman.
Dr Jenner, had long been known to the country
people among the Andes of Peru. A negro slave,
who had been inoculated for the small-pox, showed
no symptom of the disease, and when the practition-
ers were about to repeat the operation, told them he
was certain that he should never take it ; for, when
milking cows in the mountains, he had been afiected
with cutaneous eruptions, caused, as the herdsmen
said, by the contact of pustules sometimes found on
the udders.

The frightful distemper called matlazahuatl, which
is peculiar to the Indian race, seldom appears more
than once in a century. It bears some resemblance
to the yellow fever or black vomiting, which, how-
ever, very seldom attacks the natives. The extent of
its ravages is not known with any degree of certainty,
and it has not yet been submitted to medical inves-
tigation. Torquedama asserts that in 1545 it de-
stroyed 800,000, and 2,000,000 in 1576 ; but these
estimates are considered by Humboldt as greatly
exaggerated.

A third obstacle to the progress of population in
New Spain is famine. The American Indians, na-
turally indolent, contented with the smallest quan-
tity of food on which life can be supported, and
living in a fine climate, merely cultivate as much

ELEMENTS OF THE POPULATION.

355

maize^ potatoes^ or wheat, as is necessary for their
own maintenance, or at most for the additional con-
sumption of the adjacent towns and mines. The
inhabitants of Mexico have increased in a greater
ratio than the means of subsistence, and accordingly,
whenever the crops fall short of the demand, or are
damaged by drought or other local causes, famine
ensues. With want of food comes disease; and
these visitations, which are of not unfrequent oc-
currence, are very destructive.

The working of the mines has also contributed to
the depopulation of America. At the period of the
conquest many Indians perished from excessive toil,
and, as they were forced from their homes to distant
places, they usually died without leaving progeny.
In New Spain, however, such labour has been free
for many years. The number employed in it does
not exceed 28,000 or 30,000, and the mortality among
them is not much greater than in other classes.

The Mexican population consists of the same ele-
ments as that of thg other Spanish colonies. Seven
races are distinguished : — I. Gachupines, or persons
born in Europe ; 2. Spanish Creoles, or Whites of
European extraction born in America ; 3. Mestizoes,
descendants of Whites and Indians ; 4. Mulattoes,
descendants of Whites and Negroes; 5. Zambos,
descendants of Negroes and Indians ; 6. Indians of
the indigenous race ; and, 7- African Negroes.

The Indians appear to constitute at least two-fifths
of the whole. Humboldt seems to favour the opinion,
that the Aztecs, who inhabited New Spain at the
period of the conquest, may have been of Asiatic
origin. As the migrations of the American tribes
have always taken place from north to south, the

356

CHARACTER OF THE INDIANS.

native population of this country must necessarily
consist of very heterogeneous elements. The num-
ber of languages exceeds 20 ; and of these fourteen
have tolerably complete grammars and dictionaries.
Most of these tongues, so far from being only dialects
of the same, as some authors have asserted, pre-
sent as little affinity to each other as the Greek and
the German. The variety spoken by the indigenous
inhabitants of America forms a very striking con-
trast with the small number used in Asia and
Europe. The Aztec or Mexican is the most widely
distributed.

The Indians of New Spain hear a general resem-
blance to those of Florida, Canada, Peru, and Bra-
zil. They have the same dingy copper colour,
straight and smooth hair, deficient heard, squat
body, elongated and oblique eyes, prominent cheek-
bones, and thick lips. But although the American
tribes have thus a certain uniformity of character,
they differ as much from each other as the numer-
ous varieties of the European or Caucasian race.
Those who live in this province have a more swar-
thy complexion than the inhabitants of the warm-
est parts of the South. They have also a much
more abundant beard than the other tribes, and
in the neighbourhood of the capital they even wear
small moustaches. Pursuing a quiet and indolent
life, and accustomed to uniform nourishment of a
vegetable nature, they would no doubt attain a very
great longevity were they not extremely addicted to
drunkenness. They exist in a state of great moral
degradation, being entirely destitute of religion, al-
though they have exchanged their original rites for
those of Catholicism. The men are grave, melan-

DISTKICTS OR INTENDANCIES. 357

cholic, and taciturn ; forming a striking contrast to
the negroes, who for this reason are preferred by
the Indian women. Long habituated to slavery,
they patiently suffer the privations to which they
are frequently subjected ; opposing to them only a
degree of cunning, veiled under the appearance
of apathy and stupidity. Although destitute of
imagination, they are remarkable for the facility
with which they acquire a knowledge of languages ;
and, notwithstanding their usual taciturnity, they
become loquacious and eloquent when excited by
important occurrences. It is unnecessary to speak
of the negroes, of whom there are very few in Mexi-
co, their character being the same as in other coun-
tries where slavery is permitted.

No city of the New Continent, not even except-
ing those of the United States, possesses more im-
portant scientific establishments than Mexico. Of
these Humboldt mentions particularly the School of
Mines, the Botanic Garden, which has however
fallen into a state of neglect, and the Academy of
Fine Arts. The influence of this institution is per-
ceptible in the symmetry of the buildings which
adorn the capital.

New Spain is divided into 15 districts, which
he arranges as follows : —

I. In the Temperate Zone — 82,000 square
leagues; 677^000 inhabitants, or 8 to the square
league — (1,059,193 square miles ; inhabitants to
the square mile).

A. Northern Region, in the interior.

1. Province of New Mexico, along the Rio del Norte, to the
north of the parallel of 3P.

358

DISTRICTS OR INTENDANCIES.

2. Intendancy of New Biscay, to the south-west of the Rio

del Norte, on the central tahle-land.

B. North-western Region, in the vicinity of the Pacific Ocean.

3. Province of New California, on the north-west coast of

North America.

4. Province of Old California, the southern extremity of which

enters the torrid zone.

5. Intendancy of La Sonora, which also passes the tropic.

C. North-eastern Region, adjoining the Gmf of Mexico.

6. Intendancy of San Luis Potosi.

II. In the Torrid Zone — 36,500 square leagues;
5,160,000 inhabitants, or 141 to the square league —
(471,470 square miles; inhabitants 11 to the square
mile).

D. Central Region.

7. Intendancy of Zacatecas.

8. Intendancy of Guadalaxara.

9. Intendancy of Guanaxuato.

10. Intendancy of Valladolid.

11. Intendancy of Mexico.

12. Intendancy of Puebla.

13. Intendancy of Vera Cruz.

E. South-western Region.

14. Intendancy of Oaxaca.

15. Intendancy of Merida.

Without attempting to present an analysis of our
author’s statistical account of these different pro-
vinces, we shall select from his descriptions those
parts which may prove most interesting to the
general reader.

1. The intendancy of Mexico is entirely within
, the torrid zone. More than two-thirds of it are
mountainous, and contain extensive plains elevated
from 2131 to 2451 feet above the sea. Only one
summit, theNevado deTolucca, 15,158feet in height,
enters the region of perpetual snow.

The valley of Mexico, or Tenochtitlan, which is
of an oval form, is situated in the centre of the cor-
dillera of Anahuac, and is 63 miles in length by

INTENDANCY OF MEXICO.

359

43 in breadth. It is surrounded by a ridge of
mountains^ more elevated on the southern side^,
where it is confined by the great volcanoes of La
Puebla, Popocatepetl, and Iztaccihuatl. The capi-
tal stands in the immediate vicinity of one of the
great lakes which exist in this beautiful valley, al-
though formerly it was placed on an island in that
sheet of water, and communicated with the shore by
three great dikes. This city is represented by Hum-
boldt as one of the finest ever built by Europeans
in either hemisphere, and all travellers agree in
admiring its beauty. “ From an eminence,” says
Captain Lyon in his interesting Journal, ‘^we came
suddenly in sight of the great valley of Mexico, with
its beautiful city appearing in the centre surround-
ed by diverging shady paseos, bright fields, and
picturesque haciendas. The great lake of Tezcuco
lay immediately beyond it, shaded by a low float-
ing cloud of exhalations from its surface, which hid
from our view the bases of the volcanoes of Popo-
catepetl and Iztaccihuatl ; while their snowy sum-
mits, brightly glowing beneath the direct rays of
the sun, which but partially illumined the plains,
gave a delightfully novel appearance to the whole
scene before me. I was, however, at this distance,
disappointed as to the size of Mexico ; but its live-
ly whiteness and freedom from smoke, the magni-
tude of the churches, and the extreme regularity of
its structure, gave it an appearance which can never
be seen in a European city, and declare it unique,
perhaps unequalled in its kind.”

The ground it occupies is every where perfectly le-
vel, the streets are regular and broad, the architecture
generally of a very pure style, and many of the

360

CITY OF MEXICO.

buildings are remarkably beautiful. Two kinds of
hewn stone, a porous amygdaloid and a glassy fel-
spar porphyry, are used. The houses are not loaded
with decorations, nor disfigured by wooden balconies
and galleries. The roofs are terraced; and the streets,
which are clean and well lighted, have very broad
pavements. The water of the lake is brackish, as is
that of all the wells ; but the city is supplied by
two fine aqueducts. The objects which generally
attract the notice of travellers are, 1 . The cathedral,
which has two towers ornamented with pilasters
and statues ; 2. The treasury ; 3. The convents, of
which the most distinguished is that of St Francis ;
4. The hospital ; 5. The acordada, a fine building,
of which the prisons are spacious and well aired ;
6. The school of mines ; 7- The botanical garden ;
8. The university ; 9. The academy of fine arts ;
10. The equestrian statue of Charles IV. in the
great square.

Few remains of ancient monuments are to be
found in the town or its vicinity. Of those that ex-
ist, the chief are the ruins of the Aztec dikes and
aqueducts ; the sacrificial stone, adorned with a re-
lievo representing the triumph of a Mexican king ;
the great calendar in the plaza mayor ; the colossal
statue of the goddess Teoyaomiqui in one of the
galleries of the university; the Aztec manuscripts
or hieroglyphical pictures preserved in the house of
the viceroys ; and the foundations of the palace be-
longing to the sovereigns of Alcolhuacan at Tezcuco.

The only remarkable antiquities in the valley of
Mexico are the remains of the two pyramids of San
Juan de Teotihuacan, to the north-east of the lake
of Tezcuco, consecrated to the sun and moon. One

ANCIENT MONUMENTS.

361

of these in its present state is a hundred and fifty
feet in height^ the other a hundred and forty-four.
The interior is clay mixed with small stones, while
the facings are of porous amygdaloid, and they are
surrounded by a group of smaller elevation, dis-
posed in a regular series. Another ancient object
worthy of notice is the military entrenchment
of Xochicalco, to the S.S.W. of the town of Cuer-
navaco, near Teteama. It consists of a hill 387
feet high, surrounded by ditches or trenches, and
divided into five terraces covered with masonry ;
the whole forming a truncated pyramid, the four
faces of which correspond to the four cardinal points.
The porphyritic stones are adorned with hierogly-
phical figures, among which are crocodiles, and men
sitting cross-legged in the Asiatic manner. Other
relics and places connected with the history of the
conquest are shown to the stranger ; but of these it is
unnecessary to speak.

Our author estimates the population of Mexico
as follows : —

Inhabitants.

White Europeans, 2,500

White Creoles, 65,000

Copper-coloured natives, 33,000

Mestizoes, mixture of Whites and Indians,.. 26,500
Mulattoes, 10,000

"^37,000

The annual number of births for a mean term of
100 years is 5930, and that of deaths 5050 ; while
in New Spain in general, the relation of the births
to the population is as 1 to 17, and that of the deaths
as 1 to 30, so that the mortality in the capital ap-
pears much greater. The great conflux of sick per-
sons to the hospitals, and on the other hand the

362

CONSUMPTION OF MEXICO.

celibacy of the numerous clergy, the progress of
luxury, and other causes, induce this disproportion.

According to researches made hy the Count de
Kevillagigedo, the consumption of Mexico in 1791
was as follows : —

I. ANIMAL, FOOD,

Oxen, 16,300

Calves, 450

Sheep, 278,923

Hogs, 50,676

Kids and Rabbits, 24,000

Fowls, 1,255,340

Ducks, 125,000

Turkeys, 205,000

Pigeons, 65,300

Partridges, 140,000

II. GRAIN.

Maize, or Indian corn — cargas of 3 fanegas, 117,224=545,219 I. S.
bushels.

Barley — cargas, 40,219=187,062 I. S. bushels.

Wheat flour, cargas of 12 arrobas, 130,000=353,229 cwt.

III. LIQUIDS,

Pulque, the fermented juice of agave — cargas, 294,790=800,987
cwts.

Wine and vinegar barrels of 4.^; arrobas, 4,507=71,756 I. S. galls.
Brandy — barrels, 12,000=191,052 I. S. galls.

Spanish oil— arrobas of 25 pounds, 5,585=15,530 I. S. galls.

The market is abundantly supplied with vege-
tables of numerous kinds, which are brought in
every morning hy the Indians in boats. Most of
these are cultivated on the chinampas or gardens,
some of which float upon the neighbouring sheet of
water, while others are fixed in the marshy grounds.*
The surface of the four principal lakes in the val-
ley of Mexico occupies nearly a tenth of its extent.

• “ These are long narrow stripes of ground redeemed from the
surrounding swamp, and intersected by small canals. They all ap-
peared to abound in very fine vegetables, and lively-foliaged pop-
lars generally shadowed their extremities. The little gardens con-
structed on bushes or wooden rafts no longer exist in the immediate
vicinity of Mexico ; but I learnt that some may yet be seen at
Inchimilco, a place near San Augustin de las Cuevas.” — Captain
LyorC s Journal of a Residence and Tour in the Republic of
Mexico^ vol. ii. p. 110.

LAKES INUNDATIONS.

363

or 168 square miles. The lake of Xochimilco con-
tains 49^, that of Tezcuco 77^ of San Christohal 27^,
and of Zumpango 9^%, square miles. The valley
itself is a basin enclosed by a wall of porphyritic
mountains, and all the water furnished by the sur-
rounding cordilleras is collected in it. No stream
issues from it excepting the brook of Tequisquiac,
which joins the Rio de Tula. The lakes rise by
stages in proportion to their distance from its centre,
or, in other words, from the site of the capital. Next
to the lake of Tezcuco, Mexico is the least elevated
point of the valley, the plaza mayor or great square
being only 1 foot 1 inch higher than the mean level
of its water, which is Ilf feet lower than that of
San Christobal. Zumpango, which is the most
northern, is 29 211 inches higher than the surface
of Tezcuco ; while that of Chaleo, at the southern
extremity, is only 3-632 feet more elevated than the
great square of Mexico.

In consequence of this peculiarity the city has
for a long series of ages been exposed to inundations.
The lake of Zumpango, swelled by an unusual rise
of the Rio de Guautitlan, flows over into that of San
Christobal, which again bursts the dike that sepa-
rates it from Tezcuco. The water of this last is con-
sequently augmented, and flows with impetuosity
into the streets of Mexico. Since the arrival of the
Spaniards the town has experienced five great floods,
the latest of which happened in 1629. In more
recent periods there have been several alarming ap-
pearances, but the city was preserved from any ac-
tual loss by the desague or canal, which was formed
for the purpose.

The situation of the capital is more exposed to dan-

364

WORKS UNDERTAKEN FOR

ger, because the bed of the lake is progressively ris-
ing in consequence of the mud carried into itj and the
difference between it and the level of the plain di-
minishing. Previous to the conquest, and for some
time after, it was defended by dikes ; but this me-
thod having been found ineffectual, the viceroy in
I6O7 employed Enrico Martinez, a native of Ger-
many, to effect the evacuation of the lakes. After
making an exact survey of the valley he presented
two plans for canals, the one to empty those of Tez-
cuco, Zumpango, and San Christobal, the other to
drain that of Zumpango alone. The latter scheme
was adopted, and in consequence, the famous sub-
terraneous gallery of Nochistongo was commenced
on the 28th November 1607- Fifteen thousand In-
dians were employed, and after eleven months of
continued labour the work was completed. Its
length was more than 21,654 feet, its breadth
11*482, and its height 13*780. On the opposite
side of the hill of Nochistongo is the Rio de Tula,
which runs into the Rio de Panuco, and from
the northern or further extremity of the gallery
an open trench, 28,216 feet long, was cut to carry
the water to the former river. Soon after the cur-
rent began to flow through this artificial channel,
it gradually occasioned depositions and erosions, so
that it became necessary to support the roof, which
was composed of marl and clay. For this purpose
wood was at first employed, and afterwards masonry;
but the arches being soon undermined, the passage
at length was obstructed.

Several plans were now proposed, and in 1614
the court of Madrid sent to Mexico a Dutch engi-
neer, Adrian Boot, who advised the construction of

PREVENTING THE INUNDATIONS.

365

great dikes after the Indian plan. A new viceroy,
however, having recently arrived, who had never
witnessed the elfects of an inundation, ordered Mar-
tinez to stop up the subterraneous passage, and make
the water of the upper lakes return to the bed of the
Tezcuco, that he might see if the danger were really
so great as it had been represented. Being con-
vinced that it was so, he ordered the German to re-
commence his operations in the gallery. The engi-
neer accordingly proceeded to clear it, and con-
tinued working until the 20th June 1629, when
finding the mass of water too great to be received
by this narrow outlet, he closed it in order to prevent
its destruction. In the morning the city of Mexico
was flooded to the depth of three feet, and, con-
trary to expectation, remained in that state for five
years. In this interval various plans were pro-
posed for draining the neighbouring lake, although
none of them was carried into elfect ; but the inun-
dation at length subsided in consequence of a suc-
cession of earthquakes.

Martinez, who had been imprisoned from a belief
that he had closed the gallery for the purpose of af-
fording the incredulous a proof of the utility of his
work, was now set at liberty, and constructed the
dike of San Christobal. He was ordered to enlarge
the gallery; but the operations were conducted with
very little energy, and in the end it was determined
to abandon the plan, to remove the top of the vault,
and to convert it into an open passage by cutting
through the hill. A lawyer, named Martin de Solis,
undertook the management of this enterprise ; though
it required nearly two centuries to complete the
work ; the canal not being opened in its whole length

366

INTENDANCY OF PUEBLA.

until 1789. As it now appears, it is stated l)y
Humboldt to be one of the most gigantic hydraulic
operations executed by man. Its length is 67,537
feet, its greatest depth 197, and its greatest breadth
361.

The safety of the capital depends, 1st, On the
stone dikes which prevent the water of the lake of
Zumpango from passing into that of San Christo-
bal, and the latter from flowing into the Tezcuco ;
2d, On the dikes and sluices which prevent the
lakes of Chaleo and Xochimilco from overflowing ;
3d, On the great cut of Enrico Martinez, by which
the Rio de Guautitlan passes across the hills into
the valley of Tula; and, 4th, On the canals by which
the Zumpango and San Christobal may be com-
pletely drained. These means however, expen-
sive and numerous as they must appear, are in-
sufficient to secure it against inundations proceed-
ing from the north and north-west ; and our author
asserts, that it will continue exposed to great risks
until a canal shall be directly opened from the lake
of Tezcuco.

The intendancy of Mexico contains, besides the
capital, several towns of considerable size, of which
the more important are, Tezcuco, Acapulco, Tolucca,
and Queretaro, the latter having a population of
thirty-five thousand.

2. The government of Puebla is wholly situated
in the torrid zone, and is bounded on the north-east
by that of Vera Cruz, on the south by the ocean,
on the east by the province of Oaxaca, and on the
west by that of Mexico. It is traversed by the
cordilleras of Anahuac, and contains the highest
mountain in New Spain, the volcano of Popo-

INTENDANCY OF GUANAXUATO. 367

catepetl. A great portion^ however^ consists of an
elevated plain^ on which are cultivated wheats maize,
agave, and fruit-trees.

The population is concentrated on this table-land,
extending from the eastern slope of the Nevados, or
Snowy Mountains, to the vicinity of Perote. It
exhibits remarkable vestiges of ancient Mexican ci-
vilisation. The great pyramid of Cholula has a
much larger base than any edifice of the kind in
the Old Continent, its horizontal breadth being not
less than 1440 feet ; but its present height is only
fifty-nine yards, while the platform on its summit
has a surface of 45,210 feet.

At the village of Atlixco is seen a cypress {Cu-
pressus disticha) 76 feet in circumference, which
is probably one of the oldest vegetable monuments
on the globe.* There are very considerable salt-
works in this intendancy, and a beautiful marble is
quarried in the vicinity of Puebla. The principal
towns are that just named, containing a population
of 67,800, Cholula, Tlascala, and Atlixco.

3. The intendancy of Guanaxuato, situated on
the ridge of the cordillera of Anahuac, is the most
populous in New Spain, and contains three cities,
Guanaxuato, Celayo, and Salvatierra, four towns,
37 villages, and 448 farms or haciendas. It is in

* On entering the gardens of Chapultepec (near Mexico), the
first object that strikes the eye is the magnificent cypress (Subino
Ahuahuete. or Cupressus disticha), called the Cypress of Mon-
tezuma. It had attained its full growth when that monarch was
on the throne (1520), so that it must now be at least 400 years
old, yet it still retains all the vigour of youthful vegetation. The
tnink is 41 feet in circumference, yet the height is so majestic as to
make even this enormous mass appear slender.” — Ward’s Mexico
in 1827, vol. ii. p. 230. The same author mentions another cypress,
38 feet in girth, and of equal height to that of Montezuma.

368 VALLADOLID — GUADALAXARA ZACATECAS.

general highly cultivated, and possesses the most
important mines in that section of the New World.

4. The intendancy of Valladolid is houndecl on the
north by the Rio de Lerma ; on the east and north-
east by that of Mexico ; on the south by the district
of Guanaxuato ; and on the west by the province
of Guadalaxara. Being situated on the western de-
clivity of the cordillera of Anahuac and intersected
by hills and beautiful valleys, it in general enjoys a
mild and temperate climate. The volcano of Jorul-
lo, already described, is situated in this intendancy,
which has three cities, three towns, and 263 villages.
The southern part is inhabited by Indians.

5. The province of Guadalaxara is bounded on
the north by the governments of Sonora and Du-
rango, on the east by those of Zacatecas and Guan-
axuato, on the south by the district of Valladolid,
and on the west by the Pacific Ocean. Its greatest
breadth is 345 miles, and its greatest length 407*
It is crossed from east to west by the Rio de San-
tiago, which is of considerable size. The eastern por-
tion consists of the elevated platform and western
declivity of the cordilleras of Anahuac. The mari-
time parts are covered with forests which abound
in excellent timber. The volcano of Colima, si-
tuated in this district, is the most western of those
of New Spain. It frequently throws up ashes and
smoke ; but its height is not so great as to carry its
summit into the region of perpetual snow. The
most remarkable towns are, Guadalaxara, which
has a population of 19,500, San Bias, a port at the
mouth of the Santiago, and Compostella.

6. The intendancy of Zacatecas, bounded on the
north by Durango, on the east by San Luis Potosi,

OAXACA ME RIDA.

369

on the south by Guanaxuato, and on the west by
Guadalaxara^ is 293 miles in lengthy and 176 in
breadth. The table-land, which forms its central
part, is composed of syenite and primitive slate.
Near Zacatecas are nine small lakes abounding in
muriate and carbonate of soda. This district is very
thinly peopled, although the town has 33,000 in-
habitants.

7. The intendancy of Oaxaca is one of the most
delightful countries in the New Continent, possess-
ing great fertility of soil and salubrity of climate.
It is bounded on the north by Guatimala ; on the
west by the province of Puebla ; and on the south
by the Pacific Ocean. The mountainous parts are
composed of granite and gneiss. The vegetation is
every where exceedingly beautiful. At the village of
Santa Maria del Tule, ten miles east of the capital,
there is an enormous trunk of Cupressus disticha,
118 feet in circumference, though it seems rather to
be formed of three stems grown into one.

The most remarkable object in this district is
the palace of Mitla, the walls of which are deco-
rated with grecques and labyrinths in mosaic, re-
sembling the ornaments of Tuscan vases. It con-
sists of three edifices, and is moreover distinguished
from other ancient Mexican buildings by six por-
phyritic columns which support the ceiling of a vast
hall. These pillars have neither base nor capital ;
each exhibits a single block of stone, and the height
is about sixteen feet. Oaxaca, the principal town,
contained, in the year 1792, twenty-four thousand
inhabitants. Some of the mines are very productive.

8. The intendancy of Merida comprehends the
great peninsula of Yucatan, situated between the

370

INTENDANCY OF

Bay of Campeachy and that of Honduras. It is
bounded on the south by Guatimala^ on the east by
the province of Vera Cruz, and on the west by the
English establishments which extend from the mouth
of the Rio Hondo to the north of the Bay of Hanover.
This peninsula is a vast plain^ intersected by a chain
of hills ; and though one of the warmest, it is at the
same time one of the healthiest provinces of equinoc-
tial America. The latter circumstance is to be at-
tributed to the extreme dryness of the soil and at-
mosphere. No European grain is produced; but
maize, jatropha^ and dioscorea are cultivated in
abundance. The Hoematoxylon or Campeachy
wood abounds in several districts. Merida, the
capital, has a population of 10,000.

9. The government of Vera Cruz extends along
the Mexican Gulf from the Rio Baraderas to the
great river of Panuco. The western part forms the
declivity of the cordilleras of Anahuac, from whence,
amid the regions of perpetual snow, the inhabitants
descend in a day to the burning plains of the coast.
In this district are displayed in a remarkable man-
ner the gradations of vegetation, from the level of the
sea to those elevated summits which are visited with
perennial frost. In ascending, the traveller sees the
physiognomy of the country, the aspect of the sky,
the form of the plants, the figures of animals, the man-
ners of the inhabitants and the kind of cultivation
followed by them, assuming a different appearance
at every step. Leaving the lower districts, covered
with a beautiful and luxuriant vegetation, he first
enters that in which the oak appears, where he has no
longer cause to dread the yellow fever, so fatal on the
coasts. Forests of liquidambar, near Xalapa, an-

VERA CRUZ.

371

nounce by their freshness the elevation at which
the strata of clouds^ suspended over the ocean, come
in contact with the basaltic summits of the cordil-
leras. A little higher the banana ceases to yield
fruit. At the height of San Miguel pines begin to
mingle with the oaks, which continue as far as the
plains of Perote, where the cereal vegetation of Eu-
rope is seen. Beyond this, the former alone cover
the rocks, the tops of which enter the region of per-
petual frigidity.

At the foot of the cordillera, in the evergreen fo-
rests of Papautla, Nautla, and S. Andre Tuxtla,
grows the vanilla, the fruit of which is used for
perfuming chocolate. The beautiful convolvulus,
whose root furnishes the jalap of the apothecaries,
grows near the Indian villages of Colipa and Mis-
autla. The pimento-myrtle is produced in the woods
which extend towards the river of Baraderas. On
the declivities of Orizaba, tobacco of excellent qua-
lity is cultivated ; and the sarsaparilla grows in the
moist and shady ravines. Cotton and sugar of ex-
cellent quality are produced along the greater part
of the coast.

In this intendancy are two colossal summits, —
the volcano of Orizaba, which after Popocatepetl is
the highest in New Spain, and the Cofre de Perote,
which is nearly 1312 feet more elevated than the
Peak of Teneriffe. In its northern part, near the
Indian village of Papautla, is a pyramidal edifice
of great antiquity situated in the midst of a thick
forest. It is not constructed of bricks, or clay mixed
with stone, and faced with amygdaloid, like those
of Cholula and Tectihuacan ; on the contrary, the
materials employed have been immense blocks of

372

VERA CRUZ.

porphyry. The base is an exact square, 82 feet on
each side, and the perpendicular height seems to
he about sixty. It is composed of several stages, of
which some are still distinguishable. A great stair
of 57 steps conducts to the truncated summit.

The most remarkable cities are Vera Cruz, Perote,
Cordoba, and Orizaba. The first of these, the centre
of European and West Indian commerce, is beauti-
fully and regularly built ; but it is situated in an
arid plain destitute of running water and partly
covered with shifting sand-hills, which contribute
to increase the suffocating heat of the aif. In the
midst of these downs are marshy lands covered
with rhizophorse and other plants. No stones for
architectural purposes are to be found near the city,
which is entirely constructed of coral rock drawn
from the bottom of the sea. The water is very bad,
and is obtained either by digging in the sandy soil,
or by collecting the rain in cisterns.

Xalapa, the population of which is estimated at
13,000, occupies a very romantic situation at the
foot of the basaltic mountain of Macultepec, sur-
rounded by forests of styrax, piper, melastomse, and
tree-ferns. The sky is beautiful and serene in
summer, but from December to February it has a
most melancholy aspect, and, whenever the north
wind blows, is overcast to such a degree that the
sun and stars are frequently invisible for two or
three weeks together. Some of the merchants of
Vera Cruz have country-houses at Xalapa, where
they enjoy a cool and agreeable retreat, while the
coast is almost uninhabitable, on account of the
intense heats, the mosquitoes, and the yellow fever.

10. The captaincy of San Luis Potosi embraces

NORTHERN DISTRICTS.

373

the whole north-eastern part of New Spain, and is
extremely diversified in its character. The only
portion which is cold and mountainous is that ad-
joining the province of Zacatecas, and in which are
the rich mines of Charcas, Guadalcagar, and Catorce.
There is a great extent of low ground, partly cul-
tivated, but for the most part barren and uninhabit-
ed. Its coast line is more than 794 miles in length ;
but hardly any commerce enlivens it, owing to the
deficiency of harbours. The mouths of the rivers,
too, are blocked up by bars, necks of land, and long
islands running parallel to the coast.

11 .NewBiscay orDurango occupies a greater space
of ground than Great Britain and Ireland, though
its population does not exceed 160,000. It is bound-
ed on the south by Zacatecas and Guadalaxara ; on
the south-east by San Luis ; and on the west by
Sonora. On the northern and eastern sides, for more
than 690 miles, it borders on an uncultivated coun-
try inhabited by independent Indians. This in-
tendancy comprehends the northern extremity of the
great table-land of Anahuac, which declines towards
the Rio Grande del Norte.

12. The province of Sonora is still more thinly
peopled than Durango. It extends on the shores of
the Gulf of California more than 966 miles.

13. New Mexico, which is very sparingly inhabit-
ed, stretches along the Rio Norte, and has a remark-
ably cold climate.

14. Old California equals England in extent of
territory, but has only a population of 9000. The
soil of this peninsula is parched and sandy, and the
vegetation feeble ; but the sky is constantly clear and
of a deep blue; the light clouds which sometimes ap-

374

CALIFORNIA.

pear presenting at sunset the most beautiful shades
of violet, purple, and green. A chain of moun-
tains, the highest of which is about 5000 feet, runs
through the centre of the peninsula, and is inhabited
by animals resembling the mouflon of Sardinia,
which the Spaniards call wild sheep. The princi-
pal attraction which California has afforded to Eu-
ropeans since the 16th century is the great quantity
of pearls found in it, and which, although frequent-
ly of an irregular form, are large and of a very beau-
tiful water. At the present day, however, this fish-
ery is almost entirely abandoned.

15. New California is a long and narrow country,
identifying itself with the shore of the Pacific Ocean
from the isthmus of Old California to Cape Mendo-
cino. It is extremely picturesque, and enjoys a
fertile well- watered soil, with a temperate climate.
Wheat, barley, maize, heans,and other useful plants,
thrive well, as do the vine and olive ; hut the popu-
lation is scanty compared to the territory. A cordil-
lera of small elevation runs along the coast, and the
forests and prairies are filled with deer of gigantic
size.

PLANTS CULTIVATED IN MEXICO. 375

CHAPTER XXV.

Statistical Account of Nem Spain continued.

Agriculture of Mexico — Banana, Manioc, and Maize — Cereal
Plants — Nutritive Roots and Vegetables — Agave Americana —
Colonial Commodities — Cattle and Animal Productions.

A COUNTRY extending from the sixteenth to the
thirty-seventh degree of latitude, and presenting a
great variety of surface, necessarily affords numerous
modifications of climate. Such is the admirable
distribution of heat on the globe, that the strata of
the atmosphere become colder as we ascend, while
those of the sea are warmest near the surface. Hence,
under the tropics, on the declivities of the cordilleras,
and in the depths of the ocean, the plants and ma-
rine animals of the polar regions find a temperature
suited to their development. It may easily be con-
ceived that, in a mountainous country like Mexico,
having so great a diversity of elevation, tempera-
ture, and soil, the variety of indigenous productions
must be immense ; and that most of the plants cul-
tivated in other parts of the globe may there find
situations adapted to their nature.

There, however, the principal objects of agriculture
are not the productions which European luxury
draws from the West India Islands, but the grasses,
nutritive roots, and the agave. The appearance of
the land proclaims to the traveller that the natives

376 MINES FAVOURABLE TO CULTURE.

are nourished by the soil^ and that they are inde-
pendent of foreign commerce. Yet agriculture is
by no means so flourishing as might he expected
from its natural resources^ although considerable
improvement has been eflected of late years. The
depressed state of cultivation, it is true, has been
attributed to the existence of numerous rich mines ;
but Humboldt, on the contrary, maintains that the
working of these ores has been beneficial in causing
many places to be improved which would other-
wise have remained steril. When a vein is opened
on the barren ridge of the cordilleras, the new co-
lonists can only draw the means of subsistence from
a great distance. Want soon excites to industry, and
farms begin to be established in the neighbourhood.
The high price of provisions indemnifies the cultiva-
tor for the hard life to which he is exposed, and the
ravines and valleys become gradually covered with
food. When the mineral treasures are exhausted,
the workmen no doubt emigrate, so that the popu-
lation is diminished ; but the settlers are retained
by their attachment to the spot in which they have
passed their childhood. The Indians, moreover, pre-
fer living in the solitudes of the mountains remote
from the whites, and this circumstance tends to in-
crease the number of inhabitants in such districts.

In describing the vegetable productions of New
Spain, our author begins with those which form the
principal support of the people, then treats of the class
which alfords materials for manufacture, and ends
with such as constitute objects of commerce.

The banana {Musa paradisiaca) is to the in-
habitants of the torrid zone what the cereal grasses,
— wheat, barley, and rye, — are to Western Asia and

BANANA.

377

Europe, and what the numerous varieties of rice
are to the natives of India and China. Forster
and other naturalists have maintained, that it did
not exist in America previous to the arrival of the
Spaniards, hut that it was imported from the Ca-
nary Islands in the beginning of the 16th century ;
and in support of this opinion may be adduced the
silence of Columbus, Alonzo Negro, Pinzon, Ves-
pucci, and Cortes, with respect to it. This circum-
stance, however, only proves the inattention of these
travellers to the productions of the soil ; and it is pro-
bable that the Musa presented several species indi-
genous to dilferent parts of both continents. The space
favourable to the cultivation of this valuable plant in
Mexico is more than 50,000 square leagues, and has
nearly a million and a half of inhabitants. In the
warm and humid valleys of Vera Cruz, at the foot of
the cordillera of Orizaba, the fruit occasionally ex-
ceeds 11 '8 inches in circumference, with a length of
seven or eight. A bunch sometimes contains from
1 60 to 180, and weighs from 66 to 88 lb. avoirdupois.

Humboldt doubts whether there is any other plant
on the globe which, in so small a space of ground,
can produce so great a mass of nutriment. Eight
or nine months after the sucker has been inserted
in the earth the banana begins to form its clusters,
and the fruit may be gathered in less than a year.
When the stalk is cut, there is always found among
the numerous shoots which have put forth roots
one that bears three months later. A plantation
is perpetuated without any other care than that of
cutting the stems on which the fruit has ripened,
and giving the earth a slight dressing. A spot of
1076 feet may contain at least from thirty to forty

378

BANANA MANIOC.

plants, which, in the space of a year, at a very mo-
derate calculation, will yield more than 4410 ib.
avoirdupois of nutritive substance. Our author es-
timates, that the produce of the banana is to that of
wheat as 133 : 1, and to that of potatoes as 44 : 1.

In America numerous preparations are made of
this fruit, both before and after its maturity. When
fully ripe it is exposed to the sun, and preserved
like our figs ; the skin becoming black, and exhaling
a peculiar odour like that of smoked ham. This
dry banana {platano passado), which is an object of
commerce in the province of Mechoacan, has an agree-
able taste, and is a very wholesome article of food.
Meal or flour is obtained from it, by being cut into
slices, dried in the sun, and pounded.

It is calculated that the same extent of grovmd in
Mexico on which the banana is raised is capable of
maintaining fifty individuals, whereas in Europe,
under wheat it would not furnish subsistence for
two ; and nothing strikes a traveller more than the
diminutive appearance of the spots under culture
round a hut which contains a numerous family.

The region where it is cultivated produces also the
valuable plant {Jatropha), of which the root, as is
well known, affords the flour of manioc, usually con-
verted into bread, and furnishes what the Spanish
colonists call pan de tierra caliente. This vege-
table is only successfully grown within the tropics,
and in the mountainous region of Mexico is never
seen above the elevation of 2625 feet. Two kinds
are raised, the sweet and the bitter. The root of
the former may be eaten without danger, while that
of the latter is a very active poison. Both may
be made into bread ; but the bitter is preferred for

MANIOC MAIZE.

379

this purpose, the poisonous juice being carefully se-
parated from the fecula, called cassava, before mak-
ing the dough. Raynal asserted that the manioc
was transported from Africa to America to serve for
the maintenance of the negroes; but our author
shows that it was cultivated there long before the
arrival of Europeans on that side of the Atlantic.
The bread made of it is very nutritive ; but, be-
ing extremely brittle, it does not answer for distant
carriage. The fecula, however, grated, dried, and
smoked, is used on journeys. The root loses its poi-
sonous qualities on being boiled, and in this state the
decoction is used as a sauce, although serious acci-
dents sometimes happen when it has not been long
enough exposed to heat. The husbandry of it, we
may observe, requires more care than that of the
banana. In this respect it resembles the potato;
and the roots are ripe in seven or eight months after
the slips have been planted.

The same region produces maize, the cultivation
of which is more extensive than that of the banana
and manioc. Advancing towards the central plains,
we meet with fields of this important plant all the
way from the coast to the valley of Tolucca, which
is upwards of 9186 feet above the sea. Although
a great quantity of other grain is produced in Mexi-
co, this must be considered as the principal food of
the people, as well as of most of the domestic ani-
mals, and the year in which the maize-harvest fails
is one of famine and misery to the inhabitants.
There is no longer a doubt among botanists that
this plant is of American origin, and that the Old
Continent received it from the New.

It does not thrive in Europe where the mean

380

CULTIVATION OF MAIZE.

temperature is less than 44° or 46°; and on the
cordilleras of New Spain rye and barley are seen to
vegetate vigorously where the cultivation of maize
would not he attended with success. On the other
hand, the latter thrives in the lowest plains of the
torrid zone, where wheat, barley, and rye, are not
found. Hence we cannot be surprised to hear that
it occupies a much greater extent in equinoctial
America than the grains of the Old Continent.

The fecundity of the Mexican variety is astonish-
ing. Fertile lands usually afford a return of 300 or
400 fold, and in the neighbourhood of Valladolid a
harvest is considered defective when it yields only
130 or 150. Even where the soil is most steril the
produce varies from sixty to eighty. The general
estimate for the equinoctial region of Mexico may
be considered as a hundred and fifty.

Of all the gramina cultivated by man, none is so
unequal as this in its produce, as it varies in the
same field according to the season from forty to
200 or 300 for one. If the harvests are good, the
agriculturist makes his fortune more rapidly than
with any other grain ; but frightful dearths some-
times occur, when the natives are obliged to feed on
unripe fruit, cactus-berries, and roots. Diseases
arise in consequence ; and these famines are usually
attended with a great mortality among the children.
Fowls, turkeys, and even cattle suffer, so that the tra-
veller can find neither eggs nor poultry. Scarcities of
less severity are not uncommon, and are especially
felt in the mining districts, where the vast numbers
of mules employed in the process of amalgamation
annually consume an enormous quantity of maize.

Numerous varieties of food are derived from this

MAIZE WHEAT.

381

plant. The ear is eaten raw or boiled. The grain
when beaten affords a nutritive bread called arepa,
and the meal is employed in making soups or gruels,
which are mixed with sugar, honey, and sometimes
even pounded potatoes. Many kinds of drink are also
prepared from it, some resembling beer, others cider.
In the valley of Tolucca the stalks are squeezed be-
tween cylinders, and from the fermented juice a spi-
ritous liquor, called pulque de mahis, is procured.

In favourable years Mexico yields a much larger
quantity than is necessary for its own consumption ;
but as this grain affords less nutritive substance in
proportion to its bulk than the corn of Europe, and
as the roads are generally difficult, obstacles are pre-
sented to its transportation, which, however, will
diminish when the country is more improved.

We come now to the cereal plants which have been
conveyed from the Old to the New Continent. A
negro slave of Cortes found among the rice, which
served to maintain the Spanish army, three or four
particles of wheat, which were sown, we may suppose,
before the year 1500. A Spanish lady, Maria d’Es-
cobar, carried a few grains to Lima, and their pro-
duce was distributed for three years among the new
colonists, each receiving twenty or thirty seeds. At
Quito the first European corn was sown near the
convent of St Francis by Father Jose Rixi, a native
of Flanders, and the monks still show, as a precious
relic, the earthen vessel in which the original wheat
came from Europe. " Why,” asks our author, “ have
not men preserved every where the names of those
who, in place of ravaging the earth, have enriched
it with plants useful to the human race ?”

The temperate region appears most favourable to
the cultivation of the cerealia, or nutritive grasses

382

CEREAL PLANTS

known to the ancients, namely, wheat, spelt, barley,
oats, and rye. In the equinoctial part of Mexico
they are nowhere grown in plains of which the
elevation is under 2625 feet ; and on the declivity
of the cordilleras between Vera Cruz and Acapulco
they commence at the height of 3937- At Xalapa
wheat is raised solely for the straw; for there it
never produces seed, although in Guatimala grain
ripens at smaller elevations.

Were the soil of New Spain watered by more fre-
quent showers, it would be one of the most fertile por-
tions of the globe. In the equinoctial districts of that
country there are only two seasons, — the wet, from
June or July to September or October, and the dry,
which lasts eight months. The rains, accompanied
with electrical explosions, commence on the eastern
coast, and proceed westward, so that they begin fif-
teen or twenty days sooner at Vera Cruz than on
the central plains. Sometimes they are seen, mixed
with sleet and snow, in the elevated parts during No-
vember, December, and January, but they last only
a few days. It is seldom that the inhabitants have
to complain of humidity, and the excessive drought
which prevails from June to September compels them
in many parts to have recourse to artificial irriga-
tion. In places not watered in this manner, the soil
yields pasturage only till March or April, after which
the south wind destroys the grass. This change
is more felt when the preceding year has been un-
usually dry, and the wheat suffers greatly in May.
The rains of June, however, revive the vegetation,
and the fields immediately resume their verdure.

In lands carefully cultivated the produce is sur-
prising, especially in those which are watered. In the
most fertile part of the table-land between Quere-

CULTIVATED IN NEW SPAIN.

383

taro and Leon, the wheat-harvest is 35 and 40 for 1 ;
and several farms can even reckon on 50 or 60 for
] . At Cholulo the common return is from 30 to 40,
hut it frequently exceeds from 70 to 80 for 1. In
the valley of Mexico maize yields 200, and wheat
18 or 20. The mean produce of the whole country
may be stated at 20 or 25 for 1. M. Ahad, a ca-
non of the metropolitan church of Valladolid de
Mechoacan, took at random from a field of wheat
forty plants, when he found that each seed had
produced forty, sixty, and even seventy stalks. The
number of grains which the ears contained frequent-
ly exceeded 100 or 120, and the average amount ap-
peared to be 90. Some even exhibited 160. A few
of the elevated tracts, however, are covered with a
kind of clay impenetrable by the roots of herbaceous
plants, and others are arid and naked, in which the
cactus and other prickly shrubs alone vegetate.

The following table exhibits the mean produce
of the cereal plants in different countries of both
continents : —

In France, from 5 to six OTains for 1.

In Hungary, Croatia, ana Sclavonia, from 8 to 10 grains.

In La Plata, 12 grains.

In the northern part of Mexico, 17 grains.

In equinoctial Mlexico, 24 grains.

In the province of Pasto in Santa Fe, 25 grains.

In the plain of Caxamarca in Peru, 18 to 20 grains.

The Mexican wheat is of the very best quality,
and equals the finest Andalusian. At Havannah
it enters into competition with that of the United
States, which is considered inferior to it; and when
greater facilities are afforded for exportation it will
become of the highest importance to Europe. In
Mexico grain can hardly he preserved longer than
two or three years; but the causes of this decay
have not been sufficiently investigated.

384

RYE OATS POTATOE S.

Rye and barley^ which resist cold better than
wheatj are cultivated on the highest regions, but
only to a small extent. Oats do not answer well in
New Spain, and are very seldom seen even in the
mother-country, where the horses are fed on barley.

The potato appears to have been introduced into
Mexico nearly at the same period as the cereal grasses
of the Old Continent. It is certain that it was not
known there before the arrival of the Spaniards,
at which epoch it was in use in Chili, Peru, Quito,
and New Grenada. It is supposed by botanists,
that it grows spontaneously in the mountainous re-
gions ; but our author asserts that this opinion is
erroneous, and that the plant in question is nowhere
to be found uncultivated in any part of the cordil-
leras within the tropics. According to Molina it is
a native of all the fields of Chili, where another
species, the Solanum cari, still unknown in Europe,
and even in Quito and Mexico, is grown ; and M.
Humboldt seems to consider that country as the ori-
ginal source of it. It is stated that Sir Walter Ra-
leigh found it in Virginia in 1584 ; and a question
arises, whether it arrived there from the north, or
from Chili, or some other of the Spanish colonies.
Our traveller seems to consider it not improbable
that it had been conveyed from some of the Spanish
colonies by the English themselves.

The plants cultivated in the highest and coldest
parts of the Andes and Mexican cordilleras are po-
tatoes, the Tropceolum esculentum, and the Cheno-
podium quinoa. The first of these are an important
object in the latter country, as they do not require
much humidity. The Mexicans and Peruvians
preserve them for a series of years, by destroying
their power of germinating by exposure to frost, and

PLANTS WITH NUTRITIVE ROOTS.

385

afterwards drying them, — a practice which our au-
thor thinks might he followed with advantage in
Europe. He also recommends obtaining the seeds
of the potatoes cultivated at Quito and Santa Fe,
which are a foot in diameter, and superior in qua-
lity to those in the Old Continent. It is unnecessary
to expatiate on the advantages derived from this in-
valuable root, the use of which now extends from
the extremity of Africa to Lapland, and from the
southern regions of America to Labrador.

The New World is very rich in plants with nu-
tritive roots. Next to the manioc and the potato, the
most important are the oca, the hatate, and the ig-
name. The first of these {Oxalis tuberosa) grows in
the cold and temperate parts of the cordilleras. The
igname {Dioscorea alata) appears proper to all the
equinoctial regions of the globe. Of the hatate {Con-
volvulus batatas'), several varieties are raised. The
cacomite, a species of Tigridia, the root of which
yields a nutritive farina ; numerous varieties of love-
apples {Solanum lycopersicum) ; the earth pistachio
or mani {Arachis hypogcea) ; and different species
of pimento {Capsicum), are the other useful plants
cultivated there.

The Mexicans now have all the culinary vege-
tables and fruit-trees of Europe ; but it has become
diflicult to determine which of the former they pos-
sessed before the arrival of the Spaniards. It is
certain, however, that they had onions, haricots,
gourds, and several varieties of Cicer ; and in gene-
ral, if we consider the garden-stuff’s of the Aztecs
and the great number of farinaceous roots cultivat-
ed in Mexico and Peru, we shall see that they were
not so poor in alimentary plants as some maintain.

2 A

386

FRUIT-TREES.

The central table-land of New Spain produces the
ordinary fruits of Europe in the greatest abundance ;
and the traveller is surprised to see the tables of the
wealthy inhabitants loaded with the vegetable pro-
ductions of both continents in the most perfect state.
Before the invasion of the Spaniards, Mexico and
the Andes presented several fruits having a great
resemblance to those of Europe. The mountainous
part of South America has a cherry, a nut, an apple,
a mulberry, a strawberry, a rasp, and a gooseberry,
which are peculiar to it. Oranges and citrons, which
are now cultivated there, appear to have been in-
troduced, although a small wild orange occurs in
Cuba and on the coast of Terra Firma. The olive-
tree answers perfectly in New Spain, but exists only
in very small numbers.

Most civilized nations procure their drinks from
the plants which constitute their principal nourish-
ment, and of which the roots or seeds contain saccha-
rine and amylaceous matter. There are few tribes,
indeed, which cultivate these solely for the purpose
of preparing beverages from them ; but in the New
Continent we find a people, who not only extracted
liquors from the maize, the manioc, and bananas,
but who raise a shrub of the family of the an-
anas for the express purpose of converting its juice
into a spiritous liquor. This plant, the maguey
{Agave Americana'), is extensively reared as far
as the Aztec language extends. The finest planta-
tions of it seen by our traveller were in the valley
of Tolucca and on the plains of Cholula. It yields
the saccharine juice at the period of inflorescence
only, the approach of which is anxiously observed.
Near the latter place, and between Tolucca and

AGAVE AMERICANA PULQUE. 387

Cacanumacan, a maguey eight years old gives signs
of developing its flowers. The bundle of central
leaves is now cut^ the wound is gradually enlai’ged
and covered with the foliage, which is drawn close
and tied at the top. In this wound the vessels seem
to deposite the juice that would naturally have gone
to expand the blossoms. It continues to run two
or three months, and the Indians draw from it three
or four times a-day. A very vigorous plant occa-
sionally yields the quantity of 454 cubic inches a-
day for four or five months. This is so much the
more astonishing, that the plantations are usually
in the most arid and steril ground. In a good soil
the agave is ready for being cut at the age of five
years ; but in poor land the harvest cannot be ex-
pected in less than eighteen.

This juice or honey has an agreeable acid taste,
and easily ferments on account of the sugar and
mucilage which abound in it. This process, which
is accelerated by adding a little old pulque, ends in
three or four days ; and the result is a liquor resem-
bling cider, but with a very unpleasant smell like
that of putrid meat. Europeans who can reconcile
themselves to the scent prefer the pulque to every
other liquor, and it is considered as stomachic, invi-
gorating, and nutritive. A very intoxicating brandy,
called mexical, is also obtained from it, and in some
districts is manufactured to a great extent.

The leaves of the agave also supply the place of
hemp and the papyrus of the Egyptians. The pa-
per on which the ancient Mexicans painted their
hieroglyphical figures was made of their fibres, ma-
cerated and disposed in layers. The prickles which
terminate them formerly served as pins and nails

388

WINE SUGAR.

to the Indians, and the priests pierced their arms and
breasts with them in their acts of expiation.

The vine is cultivated in Mexico, but in so small
a quantity that wine can hardly be considered as a
product of that country ; but the mountainous parts
of New Spain, Guatimala, New Grenada, and Ca-
raccas, are so well adapted for its growth, that at
some future period they will probably supply the
whole of North America.

Of colonial commodities, or productions which
furnish raw materials for the commerce and manufac-
turing industry of Europe, New Spain affords most
of those procured from the West Indies. The cul-
tivation of the sugar-cane has of late years been car-
ried to such an extent, that the exportation of sugar
from Vera Cruz amounts to more than half a million
of arrobas, or 12,680,000 lb. avoird. ; which, at 3
piasters the arroba, are equal to 5,925,000 francs,
or <£246,875 sterling. It was conveyed by the Spa-
niards from the Canary Islands into St Domingo,
from whence it was subsequently carried into Cuba
and the province just named. Although the mean
temperature best suited to it is ^5° or 77°^ it may
yet be successfully reared in places of which the an-
nual warmth does not exceed 66° or 68°; and as on
great table-lands the heat is increased by the rever-
beration of the earth, it is cultivated in Mexico to
the height of 4921 feet, and in favourable exposures
thrives even at an elevation of 6562. The greatest
part of the sugar produced in New Spain is con-
sumed in the country, and the exportation is very
insignificant compared with that of Cuba, Jamaica,
or St Domingo.

Cotton, flax, and hemp, are not extensively raised.

COLONIAL COMMODITIES.

389

and very little coffee is used in the country. Cocoa^
vanilla, jalap, and tobacco, are cultivated ; but of
the latter there is a considerable importation from
Havannah. Indigo is not produced in sufficient
quantity for home consumption.

Since the middle of the sixteenth century, oxen,
horses, sheep, and hogs, introduced by the conquer-
ors, have multiplied surprisingly in all parts of New
Spain, and more especially in the vast savannahs of
the provincias internas. The exportation of hides
is considerable, as is that of horses and mules.

Our common poultry have only of late years be-
gun to thrive in Mexico ; but there is a great va-
riety of native gallinaceous birds in that comitry,
such as the turkey, the hocco or curassow {Crax
nigra, C. globicera, C. pauxi), penelopes, and phea-
sants. The Guinea fowl and common duck are also
reared ; but the goose is nowhere to be seen in the
Spanish colonies.

The cultivation of the silkworm has never been ex-
tensively tried, although many parts of that continent
seem favourable to it. An enormous quantity of
wax is consumed in the festivals of the church ; and,
notwithstanding that a large proportion is collected
in the country, much is imported from Havannah.
Cochineal is obtained to a considerable amount.

Although pearls were formerly found in great
abundance in various parts of America, the fisheries
have now almost entirely ceased. The western
coast of Mexico abounds in cachalots or spermaceti-
whales {Fhyster macrocephalus) ; but the natives
have hitherto left the pursuit of these animals to
Europeans.

390 METALS OF THE ANCIENT MEXICANS.

CHAPTER XXVI.

Mines of New Spain.

Mining Districts — Metalliferous Veins and Beds — Geological Re-
lations of the Ores — Produce of the Mines — Recapitulation.

The mines of Mexico have of late years engaged
the attention and excited the enterprise of the
English in a more than ordinary degree. The sub-
ject is therefore one of much interest ; hut as later
information may be obtained in several works^ and
especially in Ward’s “ Mexico in 1827/' it is un-
necessary to follow our author in all his details.

Long before the voyage of Columbus, the na-
tives of Mexico were acquainted with the uses of
several metals, and had made considerable profi-
ciency in the various operations necessary for ob-
taining them in a pure state. Cortes, in the his-
torical account of his expedition, states that gold,
silver, copper, lead, and tin, were publicly sold in
the great market of Tenochtitlan. In all the large
towns of Anahuac gold and silver vessels were
manufactured, and the foreigners, on their first ad-
vance to Tenochtitlan, could not refrain from admir-
ing the ingenuity of the Mexican goldsmiths. The
Aztec tribes extracted lead and tin from the veins of
Tlacheo, and obtained cinnabar from the mines of
Chilapan. From copper, found in the mountains
of Zacotollan and Cohuixco, they manufactured

MINING DISTRICTS.

391

their arms, axes, chisels, and other implements.
With the use of iron they seem to have been un-
acquainted ; but they contrived to give the requisite
hardness to their tools by mixing a portion of tin
with the copper of which they were composed.

At the period when Humboldt visited New Spain,
it contained nearly 500 places celebrated for the me-
tallic treasures in their vicinity, and comprehending
nearly 3000 mines. These were divided into 37
districts, under the direction of an equal number of
councils {Diputaciones de mineria), as follows : —

I. INTENDANCY OF GUANAXTJATO.

1. Mining District of Guanaxuato.

II. INTENDANCY OF ZACATECAS.

2. Zacatecas. I 4. Fresnillo.

3. Sombrerete. | 6. Sierra de Pinos.

III. INTENDANCY OF SAN LUIS POTOSI.

6. Catorce. 9- Ojocaliente.

7. Potosi. 10. San Nicolas de Croix.

8. Charcas.

11. Pachuca.

12. El Doctor.

13. Zuriapan.

14. Tasco.

IV. INTENDANCY OF MEXICO.

15. Zacualpan.

Ifi. Sul tepee.

17. Temastaltepec.

V. INTENDANCY OF GUADALAXARA.

18. Bolanos.

19. Asientos de Ibarra.

20. Hostotipaquillo.

VI. INTENDANCY OF DURANGO.

21. Chihuahua. 24. CosiguiriachL

22. Parral. 25. Batopilas.

23. Guarisamey.

VII. INTENDANCY OF SONORA.

26. Alamos.

27. Copala.

28. Cosala.

29. San Francisco "Xavier de la

Huerta.

30. Guadalupe de la Puerta.

31. Santissima Trinidad de Pe-

na Blanca.

32. San Francisco Xavier de

Alisos.

392

METALLIFEROUS DEPOSITES.

VIII. INTENDANCY OF VALLADOLID.

Ji3. Angan^eo. 35. Zitaquaro.

34. Inguaran. 36. Tlalpajahua.

IX. INTENDANCY OF OAXACA.

37. Oaxaca.

X. INTENDANCY OF PUEBLA.

Several Mines.

XI. INTENDANCY OF VERA CRUZ.

Three Mines.

XII. OLD CALIFORNIA.

One Mine.

In the present state of the country the veins are
the most productive, and the minerals disposed in
beds or masses are very rare. The former are chiefly
in primitive or transition rocks, rarely in secondary
deposites. In the Old Continent granite, gneiss, and
mica-slate, form the central ridges of the mountain-
chains ; hut in the cordilleras of America these
rocks seldom appear externally, being covered by
masses of porphyry, greenstone, amygdaloid, basalt,
and other trap-formations. The coast of Acapulco is
composed of granite ; and as we ascend towards the
table-land of Mexico, we see it pierce the porphyry
for the last time between Zumpango and Sopilote.
Farther to the east, in the province of Oaxaca, gra-
nite and gneiss are visible in the high plains which
are of great extent, traversed by veins of gold.

Tin has not yet been observed in the granites of
Mexico. In the mines of Comarya syenite contains
a seam of silver ; while the vein of Guanaxuato, the
richest in America, crosses a primitive clay-slate
passing into talc-slate. The porphyries of Mexico
are for the most part eminently rich in gold and
silver. They are all characterized by the presence
of hornblende and the absence of quartz. Common

METALLIFEROUS DEPOSITES.

393

felspar is of rare occurrence, but the glassy variety
is frequently observed in them. The rich gold mine
of Villalpando, near Guanaxuato, traverses a por-
phyry, of which the basis is allied to clinkstone, and
in which hornblende is extremely rare. The veins
of Zuriapan intersect porphyries, having a green-
stone basis, and contain a great variety of interesting
minerals, such as fibrous zeolite, stilbite, grammatite,
pycnite, native sulphur, fluor, barytes, corky asbes-
tus, green garnets, carbonate and chromate of lead,
orpiment, chrysoprase, and fire-opal.

Among the transition rocks, containing ores of
silver, may be mentioned the limestone of the Real
del Cardonal, Xacala, and Lomo del Toro, to the
north of Zuriapan. In Mexico graywacke is also
rich in metals.

The silver-mines of the Real de Catorce, as well
as those of El Doctor and Xaschi, near Zuriapan,
traverse Alpine limestone, which rests on a conglo-
merate with siliceous cement. In that and the
Jura limestone are contained the celebrated silver-
mines of Tasco and Tehuilotepec, in the intendancy
of Mexico ; and in these calcareous rocks the me-
talliferous veins display the greatest wealth.

It thus appears that the cordilleras of Mexico
contain veins in a great variety of rocks, and that
the deposites which furnish almost all the silver ex-
ported from Vera Cruz are primitive slate, gray-
wacke, and Alpine limestone. The mines of Potosi
in Buenos Ayres are contained in primitive clay-
slate, and the richest of those of Peru in Alpine lime-
stone. Our author here observes, that there is scarce-
ly a variety of rock which has not in some country
been found to contain metals, and that the richness

394

MINES OF MEXICO.

of the veins is for the most part totally independent
of the nature of the beds which they intersect.

Great advantage is derived in working the Mexi-
can mineS;, from the circumstance that the most
important of them are situated in temperate regions
where the climate is favourable to agriculture.
Guanaxuatois placed in a ravine, the bottom of which
is somewhat lower than the level of the lakes of the
valley of Mexico. Zacatecas and the Real de Catorce
are a little higher; but the mildness of the air at
these towns, which are surrounded by the richest
mines in the world, is a contrast to the cold and dis-
agreeable atmosphere of the Peruvian districts.

The produce of the Mexican mines is very un-
equally apportioned. The 2,500,000 marks, or
1,541,015 troy pounds of silver annually exported
to Europe and Asia from Vera Cruz and Acapulco,
are drawn from a very small number. Guanaxuato,
Zacatecas, and Catorce, supply more than the half ;
and the vein of Guanaxuato alone yields more than
a fourth part of the whole silver of Mexico, and a
sixth of the produce of all America. The following
is the order in which the richest mines of New Spain
are placed, with reference to the quantity obtained
from them : —

Guanaxuato, in the intendancy of the same name.

Catorce, in the intendancy of San Luis Potosi.

Zacatecas, in the intendancy of the same name.

Real del Monte, in tlie intendancy of Mexico.

Bolanos, in the intendancy of Guadalaxara.

Guarisamey, in the intendancy of Durango.

Sombrerete, in the intendancy of Zacatecas.

Tasco, in the intendancy of Mexico.

Batopilas, in the intendancy of Durango.

Zuriapan, in the intendancy of Mexico.

F resnillo, in the intendancy of Zacatecas.

Ramos, in the intendancy of San Luis Potosi.

Parral, in the intendancy of Durango.

PRODUCE OF SILVER.

395

The veins of Tasco, Sultepec, Tlapujahua, and
PachucRj were first wrought hy the Spaniards.
Those of Zacatecas were next commenced^ and that
of San Barnabe was begun in 1548. The prin-
cipal one in Guanaxuato was discovered in 1558.
As the total produce of all in Mexico, until the
beginning of the eighteenth century, never exceed-
ed 369,844 troy pounds of gold and silver yearly,
it must be concluded, that during the sixteenth
little energy was employed in drawing forth their
stores.

The silver extracted in the thirty-seven districts
was deposited in the provincial treasuries estab-
lished in the chief places of the intendancies ; and
from the reports of these offices the quantity fur-
nished by the different parts of the country may be
determined. The following is an account of the
receipts of eleven of these boards from the year
1785 to 1789

Marks of Silver.

Guanaxuato, 2,469,000

San Luis Potosi, 1,515,000

Zacatecas, 1,205,000

Mexico, 1,055,000

Durango, 922,000

Rosario, 668,000

Guadalaxara, 509,000

Pachuca, 455,000

Bolanos, 864,000

Sombrerete, 320,000

Zuriapan, 248,000

Sum for five years, 9,730,000=5,997,633 troy pounds.

The mean produce of the mines of New Spain,
including the northern part of New Biscay and those
of Oaxaca, is estimated at above 1,541,015 troy
pounds of silver, — a quantity equal to two-thirds
of what is annually extracted from the whole globe.

396

PRODUCE OF GOLD.

and ten times as much as is furnished by all the
mines of Europe.

On the Other hand the produce of the Mexican
mines in gold is not much greater than those of
Hungary and Transylvania; amounting in ordinary
years only to 4315 troy pounds. In the former it is
chiefly extracted from river-deposites by washing.
Auriferous alluvia are common in the province of
Sonora^ and a great deal of gold has been collected
among the sands with which the bottom of the val-
ley of the Rio Hiaqui^ to the east of the missions of
Tarahumaraj is covered. Farther to the norths in
Pimeria Alta^ masses of native gold weighing five
or six pounds have been found. Part of it is also
extracted from veins intersecting the primitive
mountains. Veins of this metal are most frequent
in the province of Oaxaca, in gneiss and mica-slate.
The last rock is particularly rich in the mines of Rio
San Antonio. Gold is also found pure, or mixed
with silver-ore, in most of those which have been
wrought in Mexico.

The silver supplied by the Mexican veins is ex-
tracted from a great variety of minerals. Most of it
is obtained from sulphuretted silver, arsenical gray-
copper, muriate of silver, prismatic black silver-ore,
and red silver- ore. Pure or native silver is of com-
paratively rare occurrence.

Copper, tin, iron, lead, and mercury, are also pro-
cured in New Spain, but in very small quantities,
although it would appear that they might be found
to a great extent. The mercury occurs in various de-
posites, in beds, in secondary formations, and in veins
traversing porphyries ; but the amount obtained has
never been suflScient for the process of amalgamation.

GOLD AND SILVER OF AMERICA.

397

The total value of gold and silver extracted from
the mines of America, between 1499 and 1803, is
estimated by Humboldt at 5,706,700,000 piasters, or

(valuing the piaster at 4s.
sterling.

The annual produce of
World, at the beginning of
estimated as follows : —

Gold

Marks.

New Spain, 7,000

Peru, 3,400

Chili, 12,212

Buenos Ayres, 2,200

New Grenada, 20,505

Brazil, 29,900

4id.) £1,248,340,625

the mines of the New

the present

century.

Silver

Value in

Marks.

Dollars.

2,338,220

23,000,000

611,090

6,240,000

29,700

2,060,000

481,830

4,850,000

• • *

2,990,000

* . *

4,360,000

75,217 3,460,840 43,500,000

Valuing the dollar at 4s. 3d., the total annual pro-
duce would be £9,243,750.*

* According to Mr Ward (Mexico in 1827, vol. ii. p. 38), the
annual average produce of the Mexican mines, before the revolution
in 1810, amounted to 24,000,000 dollars, or £5,250,000, and the
average exports to 22,000,000, or £4,812,500 ; but since the revo-
lution the produce has been reduced to 11,000,000 dollars, or
£2,406,250, while the exports in specie have averaged 13,587,052
dollars, or £'2,970,198 each year. This reduction, it is unnecessary
to say, has been caused by the unsettled state of the country, the
emigration of the Old Spaniards, and the withdrawing of the funds
which kept the mines in operation. In 1812, according to the same
authority, the coinage had fallen to four and a half millions of dol-
lars. It rose successively to six, nine, eleven, and twelve millions,
which was the amount in 1819 in the capital alone. In 1820, the
revolution in Spain caused a considerable fluctuation, and the coin-
age fell to 10,406,154 dollars. In 1821, when the separation from
the mother-country became inevitable, the coinage sunk to five
millions ; from which it fell to three and a half) and continued in
that state during 1823 and 1824. In 1825, the foreign capitals in-
vested began to produce some effect ; but in 1826, the total amount
of coinage in the five mints of the Mexican republic did not exceed
7,463,300 dollars, or £1,632,594.

In 1827, seven English companies, one German, and two Ame-
rican, were employed in working mines in different parts of Mexico.

ENGLISH COMPANIES.

1. The Real del Monte Compan}', Captain Vetch, director, with
an invested capital of £400,000.

398

RECAPITULATION.

To conclude our brief account of Humboldt’s Po-
litical Essay on New Spain^ it may be useful to pre-
sent a few of the more interesting facts in the form
of a recapitulation.

Physical Aspect. — Along the centre of the coun-
try runs a chain of mountains, having a direction
from south-east to north-west, and afterwards from
south to north. On the ridge or summit of this
chain are extended vast table-lands or platforms,
which gradually decline towards the temperate zone,
their absolute height within the tropics being from
7545 to 7873 feet. The declivities of the cordilleras
are wooded, while the central table-land is usually
bare. In the equinoctial region the different climates
rise as it were one above another from the shore,
where the mean temperature is about 78°, to the
central plains, where it is about 62°.

Population. — The whole population is estimated
at 5,840,000, of which 4,500,000 are Indians,
1,000,000 creoles, and 70,000 European Spaniards.

2. The Bolanos Company, Captains Vetch and Lyon, directors,
with a capital of i; 150,000.

3. Tlalpujahua Company, Mr De Rivafinola, director, with a ca-
pital of £180,000.

4. Anglo-Mexican Company, Mr Williamson, director ; capital
£800,000.

5. United Mexican Company ; directors, Don Lucas Alaman,
Mr Glennie, and Mr Agassis ; capital £800,000.

6. The Mexican Company.

7. Catorce Company, Mr Stokes, director ; invested capital not
above £60,000.

At this period near^ three millions sterling of British capital
were invested in the Mfexican mines, or had been expended in en-
terprises immediately connected with them. The sudden change
of feeling with respect to these adventures, which took place in
EnglanJ in 1826, had nearly put a stop to the operations com-
menced with so much energy ; nut confidence having been in some
measure restored, it may be hoped tliat the mining companies will
yet prove of great advantage both to Britain and to Mexico.

RECAPITULATION.

399

Agriculture. — The hananaj manioc, maize, wheat,
and potatoes, constitute the principal food of the
people. The maguey or agave may he considered
as the Indian vine. Sugar, cotton, vanilla, cocoa,
indigo, tobacco, wax, and cochineal, are plentifully
produced. Cattle are abundant on the great savan-
nahs in the interior.

Mines. — The annual produce in gold is 4289 lb.
troy ; in silver, 1,439,832 lb. ; in all, 23,000,000 of
piasters (£5,031,250), or nearly half the quantity
annually extracted from the mines of America.
The mint of Mexico furnished from 1690 to 1803
more than 1,353,000,000 piasters (£295,968,750),
and from the discovery of New Spain to the com-
mencement of the nineteenth century, probably
2,028,000,000 piasters (£443,625,000). Three
mining districts, Guanaxuato, Zacatecas, and Ca-
torce, yield nearly half of all the gold and silver of
New Spain.

Manufactures. — The value of the produce of the
manufacturing industry of New Spain is estimated
at 7^000,000 or 8,000,000 of piasters (valuing the
piaster of exchange at 3s. 3^d., £1,152,083 to
£1,316,667). Cotton and woollen cloths, cigars,
soda, soap, gunpowder, and leather, are the prin-
cipal articles manufactured.

It is scarcely necessary to add, that the regions of
America, which at the time of Humboldt’s visit
were Spanish colonies, have, after a series of san-
guinary struggles, excited by the real or imagined
grievances under which the inhabitants laboured,
now succeeded in acquiring independence. This
condition is more suitable than subjection to a re-
mote power, protracted beyond the period at which

400

CONCLUDING REMAr’kS.

such settlements are themselves fit to become em-
pires. With colonies it is in some degree as with
children. They receive the protection necessary for
their growth, and obey at first from weakness and
attachment ; but beyond the stage at which they ac-
quire a right to think for themselves, the attempt to
perpetuate subordination necessarily excites a hatred
which effectually quenches the feeble gratitude that
man, in any condition, is capable of cherishing. The
political divisions of America, — the land of repub-
lican principles, — are foreign to our object, and
would require a more particular description than
they could receive in this volume.

VOYAGE TO EUROPE.

401

CHAPTER XXVIL

Passage from Vera Cruz to Cuba and Philadelphia,
and Voyage to Europe.

Departure from Mexico — Passage to Havannali and Philadelphia

— Return to Europe — Results of the Journeys in America.

Leaving the capital of New Spain our travellers
descended to the port of Vera Cruz^ which is situ-
ated among sand-hills, in a burning and unhealthy
climate. They happily escaped the yellow-fever, —
which prevails there and attacks persons who have
arrived from the elevated districts as readily as Eu-
ropeans who have come by sea, — and embarked in a
Spanish frigate for Havannah, where they had left
part of their specimens. They remained there two
months; after which they set sail for the United
States, on their passage to which they encountered
a violent storm that lasted seven days. Arriving
at Philadelphia, and afterwards visiting Washing-
ton, they spent eight weeks in that interesting coun-
try, for the purpose of studying its political consti-
tution and commercial relations. In August 1804
they returned to Europe, carrying with them the
extensive collections which they had made during
their perilous and fatiguing journeys.

The results of this expedition, conducted with so
much courage and zeal, have been of the highest

2 B

402

RESULTS OF THE JOURNEYS

importance to science. With respect to natural his-
tory, it may he stated generally, that the mass of in-
formation already laid before the public, as obtained
from the observation of six years, exceeds any thing
that had been presented by the most successful cul-
tivators of the same field during a whole lifetime.
Much light has been thrown on the migrations and
relations of the indigenous tribes of America, their
origin, languages, and manners. The Vues des
Cordillieres et Monumens des Peuples indigenes de
V Amerique, 2 vols. folio, published in 1811, con-
tains the fruit of researches into the antiquities of
Mexico and Peru, together with the description of
the more remarkable scenes of the Andes. It has
been translated into English by Mrs H. M. Wil-
liams. The animals observed have been described
in a work entitled Recueil d’ Observations de Zoo-
logie et d’Anatomie Com, parses, faites dans un
Voyage aux Tropiques, 2 vols. 4to.

In the department of botany the most important
additions have been made to science. Our travel-
lers brought with them to Europe an herbarium
consisting of more than 6000 species of plants, and
Bonpland’s botanical journal contained descriptions
of four thousand. The valuable works on this sub-
ject, that have appeared in consequence of the jour-
ney to America, form a new era in the history of
botany. They are as follow : —

1 . Essai sur la Geographie des Plantes, ou Ta-
bleau Physique des Regions Equinoxiales, fonde
sur des Observations et des Mesures faites depuis
le lOme degre de latitude australe, jusq’au lOme
degre de latitude boreale. 4to.

2. Plantes Equinoxiales Recueillies au Mexique,

IN AMERICA.

403

dans Vile de Cuba, dans les Provinces de Cara-
cas, de Cumana, &c. 2 vols. fol.

3. Monographie des Melastomes. 2 vols. fol.

4. Nova Genera et Species Plantarum. 3 vols. fol.

5. De Distributione Geographica Plantarum se-
cundum Coeli Temperiem et Altitudinem Montium
prolegomena. 8vo.

The Essay on the Geography of Plants presents
a general view of the vegetation, zoology, geological
constitution, and other circumstances, of the equi-
noctial region of the New Continent, from the level
of the sea to the highest summits of the Andes.
The second work is hy M. Bonpland, and contains
methodical descriptions, in Latin and French, of
the species observed ; together with remarks on their
medicinal properties and their uses in the arts.
The Monography of the Melastomse, which is also
from the pen of M. Bonpland, contains upwards of
150 species of these plants, with others collected by
M. Richard in the West Indies and French Guiana.

In his Essai Geognostique sur le Gisement des
Roches dans les deux Hemispheres, published in
1826, and translated into English, Humboldt pre-
sents a table of all the formations known to geolo-
gists, and institutes a comparison between the rocks
of the Old Continent and those of the cordillera of
the Andes.

The astronomical treatises have been published
in two quarto volumes, under the title of Recueil
d' Observations Astronomiques et de Mesures exe-
cutees dans le Nouveau Continent. This work con-
tains the original observations made between the 12th
degree of south latitude and the 41st degree of north
latitude, transits of the sun and stars over the meri-

404

RESULTS OF THE JOURNEYS

dian, occultations of satellites, eclipses, &c. ; a trea-
tise on astronomical refractions under the torrid
zone, considered as the effect of the decrement of
caloric in the strata of the atmosphere ; the baro-
metric measurement of the Andes of Mexico, Vene-
zuela, Quito, and New Grenada ; together with a
table of nearly 700 geographical positions. The
greatest pains have been taken to verify the calcu-
lations. Our author presented to the Bureau des
Longitudes his astronomical observations on the lu-
nar distances and the eclipses of Jupiter’s satellites,
together with the barometrical elevations, which
have been calculated and verified by M. Prony ac-
cording to the formulae of La Place.

In I8I7 Humboldt laid before the Academie des
Sciences his map of the Orinoco, exhibiting the
junction of that river with the Amazon by means
of the Casiquiare and Rio Negro.

The brief account of New Spain, which is pre-
sented in the preceding pages, has been extracted
from the Essai Politique sur la Nouvelle Espagne,
originally published in 2 vols. 4to, and translated
into English. With respect to Humboldt’s trans-
lators it may be remarked, that their want of scien-
tific knowledge, and more especially of natural his-
tory, renders the English very much inferior to the
French editions.

Most of the above-mentioned publications have ap-
peared in the names of both travellers. The various
works relating to the journey will make, when com-
. plete, twelve volumes in quarto, three in folio, two
collections of geographical designs, and one of pic-
turesque views. The detailed narrative of the expe-
dition occupies four of these volumes ; but an octavo

IN AMERICA.

405

edition has also been published under the title of
Voyage aux Regions Equinoxiales du Nouveau
Continent, pendant les annees 1799, 1800, 1801,
1802, 1803, et 1804. The translation of this work
by Mrs Williams is familiar to the English reader.

The labour necessary for reducing the observa-
tions made by our travellers to a condition fit for
the public eye must have been very great; yet, pos-
sessed of a mind not less characterized by activity
than the vastness of its acquirements, Humboldt in
the mean while engaged in various investigations,
which he has partly published in the foreign jour-
nals. In concert with M. Gay Lussac, with whom
he lived for several years in the most intimate
friendship, he has made numerous magnetic ex-
periments, and verified Biot’s theory respecting the
position of the magnetic equator. They have found
that the great mountain-chains, and even the active
volcanoes, have no appreciable influence on the mag-
netic power ; and have established the fact, that it
gradually diminishes as we recede from the equator.

On the return of the philosophers from America,
Bonpland was appointed by Bonaparte to the office
of superintending the gardens at Malmaison, where
the Empress Josephine, who was passionately fond
of flowers, had formed a splendid collection of exo-
tics. His amiable disposition, not less than his ac-
quirements, procured for him the esteem of all who
knew him. In 1818 he went to Buenos Ayres as
Professor of Natural History. In 1820 he under-
took an excursion to the interior of Paraguay ; but
when he arrived at St Anne on the eastern bank
of the Parana, where he had established a colony
of Indians, he was unexpectedly surrounded by a

406

bonpland’s captivity.

large body of soldiers, who destroyed the plantation
and carried him olf a prisoner. This was done by
the orders of Dr Francia the ruler of Paraguay;
and the only reason assigned was his having planted
the tea-tree peculiar to that country, and which
forms a valuable article of exportation. He was con-
fined chiefly in Santa Martha, but was allowed to
practise as a physician. Humboldt applied in vain
for the liberation of his friend, for whom he appears
to have cherished a sincere affection. According to
a late report, however, he has obtained his liberty,
and returned to Buenos Ayres.

In October 1818 our author was in London,
where it was said that the allied powers had re-
quested him to draw up a political view of the
South American colonies. In November of the same
year the King of Prussia granted him an annual
pension of 12,000 dollars, with the view of facilita-
ting the execution of a plan which he had formed
of visiting Asia, and especially the mountains of
Thibet. In the year 1822 he accompanied his ma-
jesty to the congress of Verona, and afterwards visit-
ed Venice, Rome, and Naples ; and, in 1827 and
1828, delivered at Berlin a course of lectures on the
physical constitution of the globe, which was attend-
ed by the royal family and the court. But, except-
ing the results of his investigations, which have
appeared at intervals, we have no particular account
of his occupations until 1829, when he undertook
another important journey to the Uralian Moun-
tains, the frontiers of China, and the Caspian Sea.

ASIATIC JOURNEY.

407

CHAPTER XXVIIL
Journey to Asia.

Brief Account of Humboldt’s Journey to Asia, with a Sketch of the
Four great Chains of Mountains which intersect the Central Part
of that Continent.

'No detailed narrative has yet been published of
Humboldt’s journey to Asiatic Russia ; and the only
sources of authentic information on the subject are
to be found in a work lately printed at Paris, un-
der the title of Fragmens de Geologie et de Clima-
tologie Asiatiques, par A. de Humboldt, from which
the following particulars are extracted : —

This illustrious traveller, accompanied by MM.
Ehrenberg and Gustavus Rose, embarked at Nijnei-
Novgorod on the Volga, and descended to Kasan
and the Tartar ruins of Bolgari. From thence he
went by Perm to Jekatherinenhurg on the Asiatic
side of the Uralian Mountains, — a vast chain com-
posed of several ranges running nearly parallel to
each other, of which the highest summits scarcely
attain an elevation of 4593 or 4920 feet, but which,
like the Andes, follows the direction of a meridian,
from the tertiary deposites in the neighbourhood of
Lake Aral to the greenstone rocks in the vicinity of
the Frozen Sea. A month was occupied in visiting
the central and northern parts of these mountains,
which abound in alluvial beds containing gold and
platina, the malachite mines of Goumeschevskoi,
the great magnetic ridge of Blagodad, and the

408

ASIATIC JOURNEY.

celebrated deposites at Mourzinsk, in which topaz
and beryl are found. Near Nijnei-Tagilsk^ a coun-
try which may be compared to Choco in South Ame-
rica^ a mass of platina weighing about 21| pounds
troy has been found.

From Jekatherinenburg the travellers proceeded
by Tioumen to Tobolsk on the Irtisch, and from thence
by Tara^ a steppe or desert of Baraba^ which is dread-
ed on account of the torments caused by the multi-
tudes of insects belonging to the family of Tipulce, to
Barnaoul on the banks of the Ob ; the picturesque
lake of Kolyvan; and the rich silver-mines of
Schlangenberg, Riddersk, and Z5nrianovski^ situated
on the south-western declivity of the Altaic range,
the highest summit of which is scarcely so elevated
as the Peak of Tenerilfe. The mines of Kolyvan
produce annually upwards of 49,842 troy pounds.

Proceeding southward from Riddersk to Oust-
Kamenogorsk, they passed through Boukhtarminsk
to the frontier of Chinese Zungaria. They even ob-
tained permission to cross the frontier, in order to
visit the Mongol post of Bates, or Khonimailakhou,
northward of the Lake Dzaisang. Returning from
this place to Oust-Kamenogorsk, they found the gra-
nite divided into nearly horizontal beds and overly-
ing a slate-formation, the strata of which were partly
inclined at an angle of 85° and partly vertical.

From Oust-Kamenogorsk they went along the
• steppe of the Middle Horde of the Kirghiz, by Semi-
polatinsk and Onisk and the lines of the Ichim Cos-
sacks and Tobol, to reach the southern part of the
Ural, where, in the vicinity of Miask, in a deposite
of very small extent and at a depth of a few inches,
were found three masses of native gold, two of which
weighed 18’36 and the other 28-36 pounds troy.

ASIATIC JOURNEY.

409

They next proceeded along the Southern Ural to
the fine quarries of green jasper at Orsk, where the
river J aik crosses the chain from east to west. From
thence they passed by Souberlinsk to Orenburg^ which
notwithstanding its distance from the Caspian Sea is
below the level of the ocean, and then visited the
famous salt-mine of Iletzki, situated in the steppe of
the Little Kirghiz Horde. They afterwards inspect-
ed the principal place of the Ouralsk Cossacks ; the
German colonies of the Saratov government on the
left hank of the Volga ; the great salt lake of Elton
in the steppe of the Kalmucks ; and a fine colony of
Moravians at Sarepta ; and, finally, arrived at As-
tracan. The principal objects of this excursion to the
Caspian Sea were, the chemical analysis of its wa-
ters, which Mr Rose intended to make ; the observa-
tion of the barometrical heights ; and the collection
of fishes for the great work of Baron Cuvier and M.
Valenciennes.

From Astracan, the travellers returned to Mos-
cow, by the isthmus which separates the Don and
the Volga, near Tichinskaya, and the country of the
Don Cossacks.

Of the heterogeneous materials composing the
Fragmens Asiatiques, part only of which is from
the pen of Humboldt, the memoir on the mountain-
chains and volcanoes in the interior of Asia is the only
one which can add any interest to our pages ; the
rest being of a character too strictly scientific. Of
this paper a brief account is here given.

In our present state of knowledge volcanic phe-
nomena are not to be considered as relating pecu-
liarly to the science of geology, hut rather as a de-
partment of general physics. When in action they
appear to result from a permanent communication

410

GENERAL OBSERVATIONS

between the interior of the globe, which is in a state
of fusion, and the atmosphere which envelopes the
hardened and oxidated crust of our planet. Masses
of lava issue like intermittent springs ; and the su-
perposition of their layers which takes place un-
der our eyes bears a resemblance to that of the an-
cient crystalline rocks. On the crest of the cordil-
leras of the New World, as well as in the south of
Europe and the western parts of Asia, an intimate
connexion is manifested between the chemical action
of volcanoes, properly so called, or those which pro-
duce rocks, — their form and position permitting the
escape of earthy substances in a state of fusion, —
and the mud- volcanoes of South America, Italy, and
the Caspian Sea, which at one period eject frag-
ments of rocks, flames, and acid vapours, and at
another vomit muddy clay, naphtha, and irrespir-
able gases. There is even an obvious relation be-
tween the proper volcano and the formation of beds
of gypsum and anhydrous rock-salt, containing pe-
troleum, condensed hydrogen, sulphuret of iron, and,
occasionally, large masses of galena; the origin of
hot-springs ; the arrangement of metallic deposites ;
earthquakes, which are ever and anon accompanied
by chemical phenomena ; and the sometimes sudden,
and the sometimes very slow elevations of certain
parts of the earth’s surface.

This intimate connexion between these diversi-
fied appearances has of late years served to eluci-
date many problems in geology and physics which
had previously been considered inexplicable. The
analogies of observed facts, and the strict investi-
gation of phenomena of recent occurrence, gradually
lead us to more probable conjectures as to the events
of those remote periods which preceded historical

ON VOLCANIC ACTION.

411

records. Volcanicity^ or the influence which the
interior of our planet exercises upon its external en-
velope in the various stages of its refrigeration, on
account of the unequal aggregation in which its
component substances occur, is, at the present day,
in a very diminished condition ; restricted to a small
number of points ,- intermittent ; simplified in its
chemical elfects; producing rocks only around small
circular apertures, or over longitudinal cracks of
small extent ; and manifesting its power, at great
distances, only dynamically, by shaking the crust
of our planet in linear directions, or in spaces which
remain the same during a great number of ages.
Previous to the existence of the human race, the ac-
tion of the interior of the globe upon the solid crust,
which was increasing in volume, must have modi-
fied the temperature of the atmosphere, and ren-
dered the whole surface capable of giving birth to
those productions which ought to be considered as
tropical, since, by the effect of the radiation and
refrigeration of the exterior, the relations of the
earth to a central body, the sun, began almost ex-
clusively to determine the diversity of geographical
latitudes.

In those primeval times, also, the elastic fluids,
the volcanic powers of the interior, more energetic
perhaps, and with more facility traversing the oxi-
dated and solidified crust of the globe, filled this
crust with crevices, and injected it with masses and
veins of basalt, metallic substances, and other mat-
ters, introduced after the solidification of the planet
had been completed. The period of the great geo-
logical revolutions was that when the communica-
tions between the fluid interior of the planet and its
atmosphere were more frequent, acting upon a greater

412

VOLCANIC AGENCY.

number of points, and when the tendency to estab-
lish these communications gave rise, in the line of
the long crevices, to the cordilleras of the Andes;
and Himmaleh Mountains, the chains of less ele-
vation, and the ridges whose undulations embellish
the landscape of our plains. Our author then men-
tions, as proofs of these protrusions, the sandstone
formations which extend from the plains of the
Magdalena and Meta, almost without interruption,
over platforms having an elevation varying from
8950 to 10,232 feet ; and the bones of antediluvian
animals intermingled on the summit of the Uralian
chain of northern Asia with transported deposites,
containing gold, diamonds, and platina. Another
evidence of this subterranean action of elastic fluids,
which heave up continents, domes, and mountain-
chains, displace rocks and the organic remains which
they contain, and produce eminences and depressions,
is the great sinking of the ground which occurs in
the west of Asia, of which the Caspian Sea and the
Lake Aral form the lowest part (320 and 205 feet
beneath the level of the ocean), but w'hich extends
far into the interior of the continent, stretching to
Saratov and Orenburg on the J aik, and probably to
the south-east as far as the lower course of the Si-
hon (Jaxartes) and the Amou (the Oxus of the
ancients). This depression of a continental mass
extending to more than 320 feet below the surface
of the ocean, he continues, has not hitherto obtained
the necessary consideration which its importance
demands, because it was not sufficiently known.
It appears to him to have an intimate connexion
with the upheaving of the Caucasian Mountains,
those of Hindoo-kho, and of the elevated plain of
Persia, which borders the Caspian Sea and the Ma-

VOLCANO IN CENTRAL ASIA.

413

var-ul-Nahar to the south ; and, perhaps, more to
the eastward, with the elevation of the great mass of
land, which is designated hy the vague and incor-
rect name of the central plain of Asia. This con-
cavity he considers as a crater-country, similar to
the Hipparchus, Archimedes, and Ptolemy, of the
moon’s surface, which have a diameter of more than
100 miles, and which may he rather compared with
Bohemia than with our volcanic cones and craters.

In the course of the journey which Humboldt
made in the summer of 1829 with MM. Ehren-
berg and Rose, he passed in seven weeks over the
frontiers of Chinese Zungaria, between the forts
of Oust-Kamenogorsk, and Boukhtarminsk, and
Khonimailakhou (a Chinese post to the north of
the Lake Dzaisang), the Cossack line of the Kirghiz
steppe, and the shores of the Caspian Sea. In the
important commercial towns of Semipolatinsk, Pe-
tropalauska, Troitzkaia, Orenburg, and Astracan,
he obtained from Tartars, Bucharians, and Tach-
kendis, information respecting the Asiatic regions
in the vicinity of their native country. At Oren-
burg, where caravans of several thousand camels
annually arrive, an enlightened individual, M. de
Gens, has collected a mass of materials of the high-
est importance for the geography of Central Asia.
Among the numerous descriptions of routes com-
municated by this person, our author found the fol-
lowing remark : — ‘‘ In proceeding from Semipola-
tinsk to Jerkend, when we were arrived at the Lake
Ala-koul or Ala-dinghiz, a little to the north-east
of the great Lake Balkachi which receives the wa-
ters of the Ele, we saw a very high mountain which
formerly vomited fire. Even now this mountain,
which rises in the lake like a little island, occasions

414

VOLCANO IN CENTRAL ASIA.

violent storms which incommode the caravans. For
this reason some sheep are sacrificed to this old
volcano by those who pass it.”

This account, which was obtained from a Tartar
who travelled at the commencement of the present
century, excited a lively interest in our author, more
especially as it brought to mind the burning vol-
canoes of the interior of Asia, made known through
the researches of Abel Remusat and Klaproth in
Chinese hooks, and whose great distance from the
sea has excited so much surprise. Soon after his
departure from Petersburg he received from M. de
Klosterman, imperial director of police at Semipo-
latinsk, the following particulars, which were ob-
tained from Bucharians and Tachkendis : —

The route from Semipolatinsk to Kouldja is
twenty-five days. It passes by the mountains Ala-
chan and Rondegatay, in the steppe of the Middle
Horde of the Kirghiz, the borders of the Lake Sa-
vande-koul, the Tarhagatai Mountains in Zungaria,
and the river Emyl. When it has been traversed,
the road unites with that which leads from Tchou-
geutchak to the province of Ele. From the banks
of the Emyl to the Lake Ala-koul the distance is
.39| miles. The Tartars estimate the distance of this
lake from Semipolatinsk at 301 miles. It is to the
right of the road, and extends from east to west
66;^ miles. In the midst of this lake rises a very
high mountain, named Aral-touhe. From this to
the Chinese post, situated between the little Lake
Janalache-koul and the river Baratara, on the hanks
of which reside Kalmucks, are reckoned 36 miles.”

It is evident that the same mountain is alluded
to in both these accounts ; and with the view of con-
necting it with the volcanoes discovered by Klaproth

MOUNTAIN-CHAINS.

415

and Abel Remusat mentioned in very ancient Chinese
books, as existing in the interior of Asia to the north
and south of Teen-shan, our author presents an ac-
count of the geography of this interesting region.

The middle and internal part of Asia, which
forms neither an immense aggregate of hills nor
a continuous platform, is intersected from east to
west by four great systems of mountains, which
have exercised a decided influence upon the move-
ments of nations. These systems are : 1. The Al-
taic, which is terminated to the west by the moun-
tains of the Kirghiz ; 2. Teen-shan ; 3. Kwan-
lun ; and, 4. The Himmaleh chain. Between the
Altaic range and Teen-shan are Zungaria and
the basin of the Ele; between Teen-shan and
Kwan-lun, Little or Upper Bucharia, or Cashgar,
Yarkand, Khoten, or Yu-thian, the great desert,
Toorfan, Khamil, and Tangout, or the Northern
Tangout of the Chinese, which must not be con-
founded with Thibet or Sefan. Lastly, between
Kwan-lun and the Himmaleh are Eastern and
Western Thibet, in which are Lassa and Ladak.
Were the three elevated plains situated between the
Altai, Teen-shan, Kwan-lun, and the Himmaleh,
to be indicated by the position of three Alpine lakes,
we might select for this purpose those of Balkachi,
Lop, and Tengri, which correspond to the plains of
Zungaria, Tangout, and Thibet.

1. System of the Altai. — It surrounds the sources
of the Irtisch and J enisei or Rem. To the east it
takes the name of Tangnou; between the lakes
Rossogol and Baikal, that of the Sayanian Moun-
tains ; beyond this it takes the name of Upper
Kentai, and the Davourian Mountains ; and, last-
ly, to the north-east it connects itself with the

416

ALTAIC SYSTEM.

Jablonnoiklirebet chain, Khingkhan, and the Al-
dan Mountains, which advance along the Sea of
Ochotzk. The mean latitude of its prolongation from
east to west is between 50° and 51° 30'. The Altaic
range, properly so called, scarcely occupies seven
degrees of longitude ; but the northern part of the
mountains, surrounding the great mass of elevated
land in the interior of Asia, and occupying the space
comprised between 48° and 51°, is considered as
belonging to this system, because simple names are
more easily retained by the memory, and because
that of Altai is more known to Europeans by its
great metallic richness, which amounts annually to
45,907 troy pounds of silver, and 1246 troy pounds
of gold. The Altaic Mountains are not a chain form-
ing the boundary of a country like the Himmaleh,
which limit the elevated plain of Thibet, and have
a rapid slope only on the side next to India, which
is lower. The plains in the neighbourhood of the
Lake Balkachi have not an elevation of more than
1920 feet above the sea.

Between the meridians of Oust-Kamenogorsk and
Semipolatinsk the Altaic system is prolonged, from
east to west under the parallels of 49 and 50 de-
grees by a chain of low mountains, over an extent
of 736 miles, as far as the steppe of the Kirghiz.
This ridge has been elevated through a fissure
which forms the line of separation of the streams of
the Sara-sou and Irtisch, and which regularly fol-
lows the same direction over an extent of 16 degrees
of longitude. It consists of stratified granites not
intermixed with gneiss, and of greenstone, porphyry,
jasper, and transition-limestone, in which there
occur various metallic substances. This low range
does not reach the southern extremity of the Ural,

TEEN-SHAN MOUNTAINS.

417

a chain which^ like the Andes, presents a long wall
running north and south, with metallic mines on its
eastern slope, but terminates abruptly in the meri-
dian of Sverinogovloskoi.

Here commences a remarkable region of lakes,
comprising the group of Balek-koul (lat. 51° 30'),
and that of Koumkoul (lat. 49° 45'), indicating
an ancient communication of a mass of water with
the Lake Ak-sakal, which receives the Tourgai and
the Kamichloi Irghiz, as well as with theLake Aral ;
and which would seem from Chinese accounts to
have formed part of a great plain extending to the
borders of the Frozen Sea.

2, System of Teen-shan. — The mean latitude
of this system is the 42d degree. Its highest sum-
mit is perhaps the mass of mountains covered with
perpetual snow, and celebrated under the name of
Bokhda-ovla, from which Pallas gave the designation
of Bogdo to the whole chain. From Bokhda-ovla
and Khatoun-bokhda, the Teen-shan mountains run
eastward towards Bar-koul, where they are sudden-
ly lowered so as to fall to the level of the elevated
desert, called the Great Gobi or Cha-mo, which ex-
tends from Koua-tcheou, a Chinese town, to the
sources of the Argoun. If we now return to Bokh-
da-ovla, we find the western prolongation of these
mountains stretching to Goudja and Koutche, then
between Lake Temoustou and Aksou to the north
of Cashgar, and running towards Samarcand. The
coimtry comprehended between the Altaic chain and
the Teen-shan mountains is shut up to the east,
beyond the meridian of Pekin, by the Khingkhan-
ovla, a lofty ridge, which runs from south-west
to north-east ; hut to the west it is entirely open.

418

TEEN-SHAN MOUNTAINS.

The case is very different with the country limit-
ed by the second and third systems, the Teen-shan
and Kwan-lun ranges; it being closed to the west by
a transverse ridge, which runs north and south, un-
der the name of Bolor or Belour-tagh, This chain
separates Little Bucharia from Great Bucharia, the
country of Cashgar, Badakshan, and Upper Dji-
houn. Its southern part, which is connected with
the Kwan-lun system, forms a part of the Tsung-
ling of the Chinese. To the north it joins the chain
which passes to the north-west of Cashgar. Be-
tween Khokand, Dervagel, and Hissar, conse-
quently between the still unknown sources of the
Sihon and Amou-deria, the Teen-shan rises be-
fore lowering again in the Kanat of Bochara, and
presents a group of high mountains, several of which
are covered with snow even in summer. More to
the east it is less elevated. The road from Semi-
polatinsk to Cashgar passes to the east of Lake
Balkachi and to the west of Lake Ossi-koul, and
crosses the Narim, a tributary of the Sihon. At
the distance of 69| miles from the Narim to the
south, it passes over the Rovat, which has a large
cave, and is the highest point before arriving at the
Chinese post to the south of the Ak-sou, the village
of Artuche, and Cashgar. This city, which is built
on the banks of the Ara-tumen, has 15,000 houses
and 80,000 inhabitants, although it is smaller than
Samarcand.

The western prolongation of the Teen-shan or
the Mouz-tagh, is deserving of particular exami-
nation. At the point where the Bolor or Be-
lour-tagh joins the Mouz-tagh at right angles, the
latter continues to run without interruption from

KWAN-LUN SYSTEM.

419

east to west, under the name of Asferah-tagh, to the
south of the Sihon, towards Kodjend and Ourat-
eppeh in Ferganah. This chain of Asferah, which
is covered with perpetual snow, separates the sources
of the Sihon (Jaxartes) from those of the Amou
(Oxus). It turns to the south-west nearly in the
meridian of Kodjend, and in this direction is named,
till it approaches Samarcand, Aktagh, or Al-Botous.
More to the west, on the fertile banks of the Kohik,
commences the vast depression of ground comprising
Great Bucharia and the country of Mavar-ul-Nahar;
but beyond the Caspian Sea, nearly in the same
latitude and in the same direction as the Teen-
shan range, is seen the Caucasus with its porphyries
and trachytes. It may, therefore, be considered as
a continuation of the fissure upon which the Teen-
shan is raised in the east, just as, to the west of the
great mass of mountains of Adzarbaidjan and Ar-
menia, Mount Taurus is a continuation of the ac-
tion of the fissure of the Himmaleh and Hindoo-
Coosh mountains.

3. Kwan-lun System. — The Kwan-lun or Koul-
komi chain is between Khoten, the mountains of
Khoukhou-noor and Eastern Thibet, and the
country named Katchi. It commences to the west
at the Tsung-ling mountains. It is connected with
the transverse chain of Bolor, as observed above,
and, according to the Chinese books, forms its south-
ern part. This corner of the globe, between Little
Thibet and the Boda Kohan, is very little known,
although it is rich in rubies, lapis lazuli, and mine-
ral turquois ; and, according to recent accounts, the
plain of Khorassan, which runs in the direction of
Herat, and limits the Hindoo-kho to the north,

420

HIMMALEH MOUNTAINS.

appears to be rather a continuation of the Tsung-
ling and of the whole system of Kwan-lun to the
west, than a prolongation of the Himmalehs, as is
commonly supposed. From the Tsung-ling the
Kwan-lun, or Koulkoun range, runs from west to
east towards the sources of the Hoang-ho or Yellow
River, and penetrates with its snowy summits into
Chen-si, a province of China. Nearly in the meri-
dian of these springs rises the great mass of moun-
tains on the Lake Khoukhou-noor, resting to the
north upon the snowy chain of the Nanshan or
Ki-leen-shan, which also runs from west to east.
Between Nanshan and Teen-shan, the heights of
Tangout limit the margin of the upper desert of
Gobi or Cha-mo, which is prolonged from south-
west to north-east. The latitude of the central part
of the Kwan-lun range is 35° 30'.

4. Himmaleh System. — This system separates
the valleys of Cashmere and Nepaul from Bootan
and Thibet. To the west it rises in the mountain
Javaher to an elevation of 25,746 feet, and to the
east in Dhwalagiri to 28,074 feet above the level
of the sea. Its general direction is from north-west
to south-east, and thus it is not at all parallel to the
Kwan-lun range, to which it approaches so near in
the meridian of Attok and Jellalabad that they
seem to form the same mass of mountains. Follow-
ing the Himmaleh range eastward, we find it bor-
dering Assam on the north, containing the sources of
the Brahmapoutra, passing through the northern
part of Ava, and penetrating into Y un-nan, a pro-
vince of China, to the west of Young-tchang. It
there exhibits pointed and snow-clad summits. It
bends abruptly to the north-east, on the confines of

VOLCANIC ELEVATION OF CHAINS.

421

Hou.kouang, Kiang-si, and Foukian, and advances
its snowy peaks towards the ocean ; the island of
Formosa, the mountains of which are in like man-
ner covered during the greater part of summer,
being its termination. Thus we may follow the
Himmaleh system as a continuous chain from the
Eastern Ocean, through Hindoo-kho, across Candahar
and Khorassan, to beyond the Caspian Sea in Adzar-
baidjan, along an extent of 73 degrees, or half the
length of the Andes. The western extremity, which
is volcanic (like the eastern part), loses its character
of a chain in the mountains of Armenia, which are
connected with Sangalou, Bingheul, and Kachmir-
daugh, in the pashalic of Erzeroum. The mean di-
rection of the system is north 55° west.

These mountain-chains, with their various rami-
fications and intervening platforms and valleys, af-
ford evidence to our author of revolutions anciently
undergone by the crust of the globe; these having
been elevated by matter thrust up in the line of enor-
mous cracks and fissures. The great depression of
Central Asia, spoken of above, he considers as having
been caused by the same action. Analogous to the
Caspian Sea and other cavities in this district, are
the lakes formed in Europe at the foot of the Alps,
and which also owe their origin to a sinking of the
ground. It is chiefly in the extent of this depres-
sion of Central Asia, and consequently in the space
where the resistance was least, that we find traces of
volcanic action. Several volcanoes are described in
this space by ancient Chinese writers, who also men-
tion a variety of volcanic products, such as sal ammo-
niac and sulphur, which form articles of commerce.

"We thus know,” says our author, " in the in-

422

VOLCANIC REGION OF

terior of Asia, a volcanic territory, the surface of
which is upwards of 2500 square geographical miles,
and which is from 1000 to 1400 miles distant from
the sea. It fills the half of the longitudinal valley
situated between the first and second system of
mountains. The principal seat of volcanic action
appears to be in the Teen-shan. Perhaps the co-
lossal Bokhda-ovla is a trachytic formation like
Chimborazo.” On both sides of the Teen-shan
violent earthquakes occur. The city of Aksou was
entirely destroyed at the commencement of the
eighteenth century by a commotion of this nature.
In Eastern Siberia the centre of the circle of shocks
appears to be at Irkutzk, and in the deep basin of
the Baikal Lake, in the vicinity of which volcanic
products are observed. But this point of the Al-
taic range is the extreme limit of these phenomena,
no earthquakes having been experienced farther to
the west, in the plains of Siberia, between the Al-
taic and Uralian ranges, or in any part of the latter.

The volcanic territory of Bichbalik is to the east
of the great depression of Asia. To the south and
west of this internal basin we find two cones in ac-
tivity,— Demavend, which is visible from Teheran,
and Seiban of Ararat, which is covered with vitreous
lavas. On both sides of the isthmus between the
Caspian and the Black Sea springs of naphtha and
mud-eruptions are numerous.

On the western margin of the great depression,
if we proceed from the Caucasian isthmus to the
north and north-west, we arrive at the territory of
the great horizontal and tertiary deposites of South-
ern Russia and Poland. Here we find igneous
rocks piercing the red sandstone of Jekaterinoslav,

CENTRAL ASIA.

423

together with asphaltum and springs impregnated
with sulphurous gases.

A phenomenon so great as that of the central de-
pression of Asia^ which resembles the circular val-
leys of the moon, could have been produced only by
a very powerful cause acting in the interior of the
earth. This cause, while forming the crust of the
globe by sudden raisings and sinkings, probably
filled with metallic substances the fissures of the
Uralian and Altaic chains.

It is not the custom of our author to detail per-
sonal adventures, his object being to give a scienti-
fic character to his narrative ; and for this reason his
relations may be less interesting to many readers
than some of the travels' and voyages which have of
late been so profusely offered to the public. He is
at present engaged in preparing an account of his
Asiatic tour, the full details of which will ap-
pear under the general title of “ A Journey to the
Uralian Range, the Mountains of Kolyvan, the
Frontier of Chinese Zungaria, and the Caspian Sea,
made by Order of the Emperor of Russia, in 1829,
by A. de Humboldt, G. Ehrenberg, and G. Rose.”
It will consist of three distinct works : — 1. A geolo-
gical and physical view of the north-west of Asia,
observations of terrestrial magnetism, and results of
astronomical geography, by Baron Humboldt. 2.
The mineralogical and geological details, the results
of chemical analysis, and the narrative of the jour-
ney, by M. Rose. 3. The botanical and zoological
part, with observations on the distribution of plants
and animals, by M. Ehrenberg.

Any formal eulogy on our illustrious author must
be altogether unnecessary, for his renown has extend-

424

CONCLUSION.

ed over all parts of the civilized worlds and, at the
present day, there is not a man of science in Europe
whose name is more familiar. Long after his ca-
reer shall have terminated, he will he remembered
as one of the chief ornaments of an age peculiarly
remarkable in the history of the world. As there
is a natural desire in most people to become ac-
quainted with the physical tenement of a mind
whose productions have excited interest, or afforded
useful knowledge, the publishers have endeavoured
to gratify it in some measure, by prefixing a por-
trait of this distinguished philosopher in his younger
days. It were easy to point out in this delineation
the most decided marks of that capacious intellect
and gentleness of disposition, — that combination of
power and benignity, — by which he is character-
ized j hut the physiognomist' needs no assistance in a
matter of this kind, for when the character is known,
it is easy to read it in the features.

THE END.

Printed by Oliver & Boyd,
Tweeddale Court, High Street, Edinburgh.

- ■*%?%' . ^VL''''^^‘; ' :

BOSTON COLLEGE LIBRARY
UNIVERSITY HEIGHTS
CHESTNUT HILL. MASS.

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same.

DOES HOY cmCIOAm

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Full text of "The travels and researches of Alexander von Humboldt: being a condensed narrative of his journeys in the equinoctial regions of America, and in Asiatic Russia; together with analyses of his more important investigations"

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