Chapter XIV: Part II: South American Dominions (2)

The whole town and harbour being surrounded with high land, renders it a very safe place for shipping, particularly as this part of the Spanish main is subject to terrible storms. The mountains in the neighbourhood are of such an elevation, that one of them, called Monte Capiro, is constantly covered with thick dark clouds on its summit.

A small river which discharges itself into the harbour near the town, is salt to the distance of a quarter of a league from its estuary; this river is called the Cascajal.

The country in the neighbourhood of Porto Bello is very thinly inhabited; a few farms are found in the valleys, but the mountains are covered with thick and impenetrable forests, tenanted solely by wild animals.

The climate of this city is very unhealthy, as the heat is excessive, owing to the stagnation of the air by the wall of mountains enveloping the harbour. The humid exhalations from the forests cause frequent rains, which, though of short duration, pour down with astonishing violence. The nights are as suffocating as the days, accompanied with torrents of rain, bursts of thunder, and flashes of lightning, which fill the mind of an European on his first arrival with dread and horror. The caverns in the adjacent rocks re-echo the percussions of the thunders, and add to the dreadful noise, which is accompanied by the howlings of animals, particularly the monkeys.

The natives, as well as the Europeans, are carried off in great numbers by the fevers generated by the unhealthiness of the air, and it is this which will ever prevent Porto Bello from becoming a large city; no one living here, but those engaged in government offices, or in trade.

It is supplied with provisions from Carthagena, and fish of every quality are caught in the bay. Its manufactures are unimportant; but there are some sugar-houses in the town, where an inconsiderable quantity of that article is made. The great luxury at Porto Bello consists in the numerous streams of fresh water which pour down from the hills into the town; they are said however to be unwholesome, and to produce dysentery, if too freely used. Little reservoirs are formed here and there, shaded by trees, and in these the inhabitants bathe themselves every day.

Jaguars, and other animals, are said to enter Porto Bello during the night, and to carry off any domestic animals they meet with. They are slain in the woods by the negroes and Indians, who hunt them for the sake of a trifling reward, which is paid on their destruction.

The sloth is an animal very common in the vicinity of this city. Its habits are well known. Serpents of every deadly nature are extremely numerous. Frogs and toads are seen in such numbers after the showers, that the natives say every drop of water is changed into one of those nauseous animals. The country about Porto Bello, resembles in this instance the British settlements in some parts of North America, where toads and frogs cover the land after any humidity.

The city of Porto Bello is also called _San Felipe de Puerto Bello_; it consists of one principal street, extending along the shore, and crossed by several others up the side of the mountain. In it are two squares, two churches, two convents, a custom-house, and some other public buildings; at the east end of the town, in the quarter called Guinea, are the habitations of the free and enslaved negroes.

Formerly, when the galleons were permitted, this place had an annual fair, and was then excessively crowded with people. The houses at present are chiefly of wood with a few of stone, and the better sort do not amount to 150. This city is sixty miles north of Panama, and its climate is said to have been wonderfully improved by a cut which has been lately made through a neighbouring hill to admit a current of air. The governor, Don Vincente Emparan, has also levelled great part of the forests which formerly reached to the very gates of the town.

Sir Francis Drake took this place in 1596, and died in a subsequent voyage in its harbour.

When Porto Bello was taken and plundered by John Morgan, the town was ransomed for a large sum, which prevented his burning it.

In 1739, Admiral Vernon with six ships entered the harbour and made himself master of the place, after demolishing the forts. He afterwards bombarded Carthagena, and took Fort Chagre, near the mouth of the river of that name.

The population of Porto Bello is inconsiderable, being chiefly negroes and mulattoes, with about thirty white families, and the garrisons of the forts.

The third city of Panama is _St. Jago de Nata de los Cavalleros_, or _Nata_, so named from the Prince, or cacique, who reigned over this part of the province when it was explored in 1515 by Alonzo Perez de la Rua.

It is situated near the extremity of the Canataguan chain, fifty miles south-west of Panama, in north latitude 8° 35ʹ, and west longitude 81° 6ʹ, in a bay on the borders of the Pacific, which extends to the island Iguenas; it was founded by Gaspar de Espinosa, but the Indians burnt and plundered it shortly after its first erection; he again rebuilt it with the title of city.

At present it is a large place, the houses of which are built of unburnt bricks and mud. The inhabitants are a mixture of Spaniards and Indians; near it is a town called _Los Santos_, which has been built by people from Nata, for the sake of the excellent soil in its vicinity, on which they have formed extensive plantations.

The population of this town is greater than that of the city of Nata, and also consist of Spaniards and Indians.

In the province of Panama, there are many villages, and farms, some of which are inhabited by the Europeans and their descendants, and others by the Indians who have been converted.

_PROVINCE OF DARIEN._

The third and last province of Tierra Firme is that of Darien, bounded on the north by the Spanish Main, or Caribbean Sea, on the east by Carthagena, west by Panama, and south by the Pacific Ocean, and the province of Choco.

Darien is one of the largest provinces of Terra Firma; it is about 200 miles long and 80 broad, but is very thinly inhabited, and that almost wholly by the native tribes. The unhealthiness of the climate and the impenetrable forests preventing the formation of European settlements.

The valleys in Darien are so marshy, from the overflowing of the numerous rivers that the savages build their habitations in the branches of high trees. These rivers are in many parts very large, but most of them are not navigable, owing to the shoals, bars, and rapids in which they abound; most of them, however, roll down grains of gold.

A small fort which protects the gold mines of _Cana_ is the principal station of the Spaniards on the frontiers of Choco; its garrison is sent from Panama every month. _Santa Maria el Antigua del Darien_ was the first settlement of the Spaniards on the Atlantic coast, but as it did not flourish, it was soon abandoned.

The chief products of this province are cotton and tobacco; it may, however, be said to be now wholly in the power of the natives, who are scattered over the whole country, and amount to about 30,000 souls, with whom the Spaniards have been frequently at war, but have as yet gained no sensible advantages. In 1786, the viceroy of New Granada sent a formidable expedition against them, but the troops being unable to bear the inclemency of the climate, the army returned to Bogota without effecting any thing.

The gulf of Darien which is the mouth of the Rio Atrato, or rather a large arm of the sea, is the most important part of the northern coast, and contains several islands of considerable size. The river Atrato though very wide, has many shoals at its mouth, yet serves to export much of the internal produce of some of the settlements in the neighbouring provinces; its mouth is a noted smuggling station, where European goods are exchanged for the gold of Choco.

The capital is _Santa Cruz de Cana_, which we have mentioned; it was formerly a very considerable place, and there were nine other towns or missions, with several farms and hamlets, but most of these have been abandoned, owing to the ferocity of the Indians, and other causes. The Scotch once endeavoured to form a permanent settlement in this country; a company was chartered at Edinburgh, called the Scots Darien Company in 1695. In 1698 they fitted out a small armament, in the vessels of which were embarked a numerous body of colonists, with a governor, &c. and arriving on the Isthmus, they formed a settlement in a fine port on the north-west shore, in north latitude 9° 30ʹ, west longitude 77° 36ʹ, to which they gave the name of _New Caledonia_. Here several families were settled, but the Spanish government being alarmed, the British court refusing to acknowledge this act, and the success of the adventurers becoming daily greater, a force was sent against them, by which means they were ejected from the country in the latter end of the year 1699, or beginning of 1700.

_PROVINCE OF CARTHAGENA._

The next province of New Granada, in passing eastward from Tierra Firme, is Carthagena, so named from its capital: it is bounded on the north by the Spanish main, east by the great river Magdalena, south by the province of Antioquia, and west by the river and province of Darien. Its extent from east to west may be computed at fifty-three leagues, and from north to south at eighty-five.

This space is covered with mountains, savannahs and forests. The great plains or savannahs are those named _Zinu_, _Zamba_, _Tolu_, _Mompox_, _Barancas_, &c., all of which are highly fruitful valleys between the ridges of the hills. The settlements of the Europeans and natives are chiefly on the coast, or in these valleys; the hills and rivers are supposed to have formerly furnished much gold, with which a trade was carried on with the neighboring countries; and gold is said to have been so plentiful, that the natives were always ornamented with trinkets composed of that metal.

The soil of this province is very luxuriant, especially near the capital where it produces every thing in the greatest plenty. The trees attain an immense bulk, and form by their shades, pleasing retreats from the scorching rays of the sun. The mahogany or acajou, of which the canoes of the natives are formed, the white and red cedar, the maria, the balsam tree which yields an oil, the celebrated balsam of Tolu (so called from a town where it is gathered), the tamarind, the medlar, the sapote, papayo or papaw, guayubo, cassia, palm, and mançanillo, are a few of the species whose wood, fruit or sap, are so precious. The mançanillo derives its name from the Spanish word _mançan_, an apple, the fruit resembling the European apple in shape, colour and taste, but is of a poisonous nature; the juice of this tree is so acrid, that it blisters the skin of those employed in felling it, and it is reckoned dangerous to remain under its shade after a shower, as the droppings of its leaves have the same caustic quality.

The palms are of many different species, and form, by their broad and spreading leaves, elevated on lofty trunks, the great beauty of the scenery; of these, the produce is chiefly cocoa-nuts, dates and palm wine. The sensitive plant grows to the height of a foot and a half in the woods of Carthagena.

In its vast forests numerous tribes of wild animals are found; of these the jaguar or tiger, and the American leopard are very destructive to the cattle and domestic animals; the former grows to an amazing size, and is extremely ferocious; wild boars, foxes, armadilloes, squirrels, deer, rabbits and monkeys are produced in great plenty, most of which are eaten by the Indians and negroes whenever they catch them. The cattle and swine of this province are very numerous; their flesh, when salted, forms the principal article of commerce and of food.

Wild geese are caught in the lakes by means of an entertaining stratagem; in the places they frequent, the Indians put calabashes or gourds, which constantly floating on the surface of the water, cause no alarm to the geese, and when they are sufficiently accustomed to see them, the Indian gets into the water at a distance from the flock with a gourd over his head; he then advances amongst them, and draws them by the legs under the surface, until he has procured as many as he wants.

The birds of this province are both numerous and beautiful; amongst them the toucan with its large bill, the gallinazo vulture, which clears the country of all carcases or offensive matter, and the guacamayo or macaw, with its beautiful plumage and disagreeable voice, are the most singular.

Bats are so numerous in the city that they cover the streets in an evening in clouds, and there is not a house in which these nocturnal birds are not found. Of these the most formidable is the vampyre, which, according to the authority of Ulloa and other travellers, has been known to suck the blood of a sleeping person, at the same time fanning its victim with its broad wings.

The insects and reptiles peculiar to the climate are as numerous as the birds and beasts. Of these the centipede, the scorpion, the spider; and amongst the serpents, the rattle snake, the dart, and the dreadful corales, or coral snakes, are the most venomous, the bite of the latter being rarely cured. Whilst the feet of the pedestrian are insecure from the attacks of these dreadful creatures, his face is exposed to the venom of the mosquitoes, which attain a great size, and are exceeding troublesome.

The beds of the inhabitants of Carthagena are surrounded with gauze curtains to protect the sleeper from these insects, but this is unavailing; for another and almost imperceptible enemy creeps in through the threads, and annoys any part of the body which may be exposed; these are called manta blancas, or white cloaks (by their forming a cloud in the air of that colour); they cause no other pain than an intolerable itching.

The pique is also another disagreeable insect of this country, which penetrates the skin of the feet or hands, and causes intolerable pain; this animal it well known in the West Indies under the name of jigger, or chigoe.

Goods which belong to the merchants of Carthagena are frequently destroyed in a short time by a sort of moth, which perforates, in a single night, through and through the finest bales of cloth, linen, silks or laces; the only way they have of preventing this is to place them on benches away from the walls, and to smear the feet or supports with naptha.

The country produces neither wheat nor barley, but maize and rice in great plenty. Of the maize they form a kind of bread called bollo, which is used by the natives and Europeans; the negroes make greater use of the cassava bread, made from roots; in fact it is their chief food; whilst the opulent families use the flour of European wheat, imported from Spain. Sugar-cane plantations are very common, and rum is distilled in small quantities. The cotton-tree is cultivated, and the cacao of Carthagena is said to excel that of the Caraccas, both in its size and goodness.

Besides melons, grapes, oranges, dates, and fruits of other climes; the pine-apple, the plantain, banana, papaws, yams, mameis, sapotes, &c., grow here in great luxuriance, and afford, during the whole year, a great part of the nourishment of the people. The banana is a fruit something resembling in shape and appearance a cucumber; they are roasted, sliced, and served with brandy and sugar. The papaws resemble a lemon with a green rind, very juicy, and of a gentle acid taste. This fruit grows on a tree. The banana and plantain, like the pine-apple, are the produce of a shrub.

The guanabana resembles a melon in appearance and taste, but grows on a tree; the sapote is round, and about two inches in circumference, with a loose thin rind of a brown colour streaked with red; the inside of a bright red, and containing a little juice of a viscid nature; but as this fruit consists in its edible parts of many tough fibres, it is far from excellent. The mameis are of the same colour with the sapotes, only rather lighter; their rind adheres more firmly; they also contain a hard stone, and are in taste not unlike a plum.

The sutiles, or limes, are well known; their chief use is in cooking, the meat used by the settlers being always soaked in their juice, if intended to be roasted, or the juice is put into the water, if it is to be boiled; by which means the flesh is so softened, that it can be thoroughly done in an hour at farthest.

The country abounds in tamarinds, and produces all the other fruits common to the West Indies.

The want of oil is felt occasionally in Carthagena, as well as that of wine, when the supply from Spain does not arrive at the expected times. The inhabitants always make use of tallow-candles instead of lamps, and hogsʼ-lard for most of the things which oil and butter are required for. The tables of the higher classes are served with great splendour.

The inhabitants of this class usually make two meals a day, and a slight repast. Their breakfast generally consists of fried meats, pastry made of maize-flour, with chocolate. The dinner is of a more substantial nature, consisting of several meats, birds, &c., all of which they season highly with pimento; fruits and wines finish that meal, whilst at night, the regale consists only of sweetmeats and chocolate.

The Magdalena and the Cauca are the most important rivers in this province; but the great river Magdalena, dividing the province of Carthagena from that of Santa Marta, we shall have occasion to mention it more particularly in the description of the latter province. The Cauca flows partly through Carthagena, and joins the Magdalena below Mompox.

This country was first discovered by Rodrigo de Bastidas, who in 1502 visited the bay and coast, then called Caramari by the natives; in 1504, Juan de la Cosa, and Cristoval Guerra, began the war against the Indians, whose martial disposition afforded insurmountable obstacles to the conquest of the country; even the women fought against the invaders; their arms were poisoned arrows, so that the slightest wound proved fatal.

Alonzo de Ojeda, and Juan de la Cosa, again attacked these devoted people, but made no impression; they were followed by Gregorio Hernandez de Oviedo, who met with the same fortune; Don Pedro de Heredia, at last undertook the conquest of this country, and after meeting with some reverses, finally subdued the Indians in the year 1533, when he established the city of Carthagena.

The small ridge of the Andes which divides the bed of the Magdalena from the river of Darien, or Atrato, loses itself in this province; it is no-where of any great elevation.

The capital of the province is Carthagena, situated on a small peninsula, or sandy island, joined to some others and the continent by two artificial necks of land, the broadest of which is about seventy yards wide. This city stands in north latitude 10° 26ʹ 35ʺ, and in west longitude 75° 26ʹ 45ʺ.

The suburb, which is almost as large as the city itself, is placed on an island near the town, and has communication with it by means of a bridge. This suburb is called Xexemani, and is surrounded as well as the city with strong fortifications of freestone, built in the modern manner: at a small distance from the town on the main land, on a hill which commands both the fortifications, is a strong fort called St. Lorzaro; this hill is near 150 feet in height, and communicates with several others towards the east, which are still more elevated; they terminate in a mountain 552 feet above the sea, on the summit of which is the convent of the Augustins called Nuestra Senora de la Popa. From this place there is a most delightful prospect over an immense tract of country.

The bay of Carthagena is one of the largest, as well as one of the best on the whole coast; it extends two leagues and a-half from north to south, has capital anchorage, and being completely landlocked, is so smooth, that vessels ride as if they were on a river; the only fault of this bay, but which constitutes its chief defence, are numerous shoals near its entrance; these render it necessary to secure a good pilot in coming in. The entrance to it was formerly a considerable distance to the south of the city, through the strait of Bocca Chica, (or narrow mouth,) but since the attempt of Admiral Vernon on this port, the pass has been filled up, and a more commodious one, which formerly existed, has again been opened close to the place, and strongly fortified. Carthagena Bay abounds with fish and excellent turtles; and sharks are so numerous, as to render bathing highly dangerous.

The climate of the city and its environs is exceeding hot during the whole year; the season called winter, lasts from May to November, during which time there is a continued succession of storms, thunder, lightning and rain, which falls in such torrents, that the streets look like rivers; there is, however, an advantage attending this dreadful season, for as there is no good fresh water in the vicinity, the cisterns and tanks are then filled for the supply of the remaining months; from December to April, the weather is fine, and there are no rains, the heat is also somewhat abated by the north-east winds, which blow during those months.

This heat is so great during the rains, that the people have a livid wan complexion, and appear sluggish and worn-out on the least exertion. This is, however, only in appearance, for they enjoy in general, good health, and live to an advanced age, when not cut off by the disorders incident to the climate, some of which generally attack the Europeans on their first landing, and others are peculiar to the natives; the vomito prieto, or black vomit, is sometimes as fatal in its progress as it is at Vera Cruz, carrying off whole families.

The inhabitants of Carthagena are also very subject to the leprosy; to prevent the spreading of which, they have an hospital, in which persons suffering under that disorder are confined for life, with every accommodation that can be afforded them.

The city and suburbs are well laid out, the streets being straight, broad and well paved; the houses are chiefly of stone, and of one story above the ground-floor, with balconies in front; instead of windows they have lattices after the Spanish fashion. There is a handsome cathedral and several churches, convents and monasteries. The population is estimated at 25,000; of these, the descendants from the Indian tribes who occupy the suburbs, form by far the greater portion; the rest are Chapetones, or Europeans, who seldom remain here, if they acquire a fortune sufficient to enable them to return to Spain; they are the most opulent persons in the city.

White Creoles, or descendants of Spaniards born in the country, possess all the landed property, and have large estates in the province; the mulattoes, and descendants from negroes, Indians and whites, form the labouring classes.

Negroes are the slaves, but some of them from the law established in their favour, are from time to time enfranchised; they wear no other dress than a cotton covering about the waist. The dress of the whites is similar to that worn in Spain, only of lighter materials; whilst the other classes affect the same style of clothing. The opulent females pass their days swinging in cotton hammocks, and the women of all the castes are noted for their charity to suffering strangers, and are of a mild amiable disposition. The men are celebrated for their acuteness, and the early maturity of their faculties; and their facility in acquiring the mechanical arts is very great. Drinking brandy and chocolate, smoking cigars, and eating sweetmeats, are the prevalent luxuries, intermixed with a great fondness for dancing.

The governor, and the bishop of Carthegena reside in this city, and there is a court of inquisition which has cognisance of all religious matters in the provinces north of Quito. Besides these, there are various public offices for the receipt of customs, &c. The city enjoys a great trade with the interior, and by means of its port, with Spain, the West Indies, and other parts of the world.

The goods of Santa Fé de Bogota, Popayan, and Quito, are mostly transmitted to it; and Carthagena, from its advantageous situation, will most probably be a city of the first importance in Spanish America.

It has suffered since the year 1544, when it first became a place of note, from the attacks of European powers. It was then invaded by some French adventurers in 1585, and was pillaged and almost destroyed by Sir Francis Drake; but was rescued from the flames by a ransom paid by the neighbouring colonies. The French again pillaged it in 1597 under M. de Pointis and the Buccaneers. In 1741, Admiral Vernon and General Wentworth attacked Fort Bocca Chica, which was taken after eleven days siege, when they sailed up the bay, after removing all the obstructions in the channel with considerable difficulty; they destroyed several of the forts, and the enterprize was abandoned. It has lately been the scene of some actions between the insurgents and royalists.

The exports of this city, including that of the neighbouring ports of Santa Marta, Rio Hacha, and Porto Bello, which have all the most intimate connection with each other, without including the gold and silver, reaches annually to the value of 260,000_l._ in cotton, sugar, indigo, brazil-wood, cinchona of New Granada, balm of Tolu, and ipecacuanha; whilst the imports amount, in European goods, to the value of 866,000_l._ The towns of Carthagena are generally small; those of most note are,--

_Mompox_, in 9° 19ʹ north latitude, 74° 11ʹ west longitude, which is the most important town of Carthagena, next to its capital, and is situated on the Magdalena, 110 miles south-south-east of Carthagena, with a custom-house and fine quay built very high, on account of the periodical rises of the river in December, the floods then extending twelve or thirteen feet higher than its usual level. Mompox is about seven leagues above the confluence of the rivers Magdalena and Cauca.

_Tolu_, a small sea-port town, having a convenient harbour on the Spanish main, or gulf of Uraba, in 9° 32ʹ north latitude, 75° 30ʹ west longitude. In the environs of this town are found the trees which produce the balsam of Tolu, so excellent in pectoral complaints. Tolu is fifty miles south of Carthagena.

_St. Sebastian de Buenavista_, was formerly a town of much importance, but now decayed; it is situated 140 miles south-south-west of Carthagena, at the entrance of the Gulf of Darien.

_Barancas_, or _Baranca del Malambo_, a small sea-port near the estuary of the great river Magdalena, with a good harbour. This place has some commerce with the neighbouring ports, being a sort of magazine for the goods coming down the river from the interior; a branch of the river leading to Santa Marta, by which merchandize is transported thither. The principal article of its export consists in salt, plenty of which is procured close to the town. Barancas is twenty-five miles from Carthagena, in 11° 40ʹ north latitude, and 74° 30ʹ west longitude.

_Santa Maria_, thirty-two miles west of Carthagena.

_Puebla de Samba or Zamba_, and _Zinu_ are sea-ports in the great gulf of Darien, noted for the fertility of the country which surrounds them.

_Guamoco_, on the southern boundaries of the province, thirty-five miles north of Santa Fé de Antioquia; and--

The village of _Turbaco_, which is known from the circumstances of its being the resort of Europeans, who, arriving at Carthagena, find the summer heats too oppressive. This village, which is small, is situated a short distance inland from the capital, on the summit of a mountain nearly 980 feet above the level of the sea, at the entrance of a majestic forest of immense extent. The houses are built of bamboos, covered with palm leaves, and are plentifully supplied with water from numerous springs. The gardens are ornamented with beautiful trees and plants, and the whole place is so delightfully situated, and the air in general so cool, that it may be termed the paradise of Carthagena. It is also renowned for a singular marsh in its neighbourhood, which is embosomed amid a forest of palms, tolu trees, &c., having some little conical mounts rising twenty or thirty feet higher than the level of the swamp. They are eighteen or twenty in number, each one is formed of blackish clay, and has a small crater filled with water at its apex.

On approaching this pool a hollow moaning sound is heard at intervals, followed in fifteen or eighteen seconds, by an explosion of gas. Five of these detonations happen in about two minutes, frequently accompanied with an ejection of muddy water. These cones are called Los Volcanitos de Turbaco, and are situated about three miles and a half east of the village, at the elevation of more than 160 feet above it. The people say that the plain formerly sent forth flames, but that a priest of great sanctity, succeeded by frequently casting holy water towards it, in extinguishing the fire, after which it became a water volcano.

_PROVINCE OF SANTA MARTA._

The province of Santa Marta is divided from that of Carthagena by the great river Magdalena; it is bounded on the north by the Spanish Main, or Caribbean sea; on the east by Maracaybo, and the Rio de la Hacha, on the south by Santa Fé, and west by Carthagena; its extent is about 300 miles, whilst its breadth is only 200.

The discovery of this country dates from the third voyage of Columbus in 1497, when he explored the coast of the Spanish Main to Cape Vela.

This province was included in the grant made to Alonzo de Ojeda, his patent giving him authority over all the country situated between the Gulf of Darien, and Cape de la Vela, consequently including Darien, Carthagena, Santa Marta, and Maracaybo; these were then designated under the general name of New Andalusia.

His predecessor, Rodrigo de Bastidas, was as unfortunate as himself, for in 1524 he was murdered in his bed, by Pedro de Villaforte, one of his companions, because he would not allow his soldiers to plunder a certain Indian town. Pedro de Lugo, and his son Don Alfonso, succeeded Bastidas, but committed such crimes, that their authority soon ended.

The first regular system of government on this coast, was that of Pedro Arias de Avila, in 1514, but as no colonies were planted by him in Santa Marta, we must pass to that of Villaforte, which we have just mentioned; and as he proved unsuccessful, to that of Don Ximenes de Quesada, the conqueror of New Granada, who made this province the rallying place of his troops.

The climate is not so unhealthy or hot as that of Carthagena; the heat being moderated by the winds, which blow over the cold mountains of the Sierra de Abibe, and the Nevada of Santa Marta, whose summits reach far beyond the lower term of perpetual congelation.

The whole country of Santa Marta is full of lofty and impracticable mountains, which form part of the branch of the Caraccas; it produces some cotton, tobacco, palm wine, cacao, Brazil-wood, sugar, vanilla and maize, and a peculiar tree, whose unctuous leaves afford a substance used by the natives, as soap.

The mines are of very little importance; some gold is found in the river Ariguana, ninety miles from the capital; and at the village of Ocana copper ores are dug up.

The pearl fishery was formerly carried on at Carrizal, about forty miles east of the chief city, and was very productive. It is still followed on different parts of the coast, and yields some excellent pearls; but the undertaking appears to be badly conducted.

The valleys feed immense quantities of cattle, which are killed and salted for exportation; some mules are also reared.

The great features of the province of Santa Marta are the enormous height of its mountains, the most elevated of which is 16,000 feet above the level of the Caribbean sea, from which it is visible, and it is said to discharge streams of boiling sulphureous water from the crevices in its sides.

Long and very narrow vales, covered with thick forests, are formed by the Cordillera of Santa Marta; these vales usually run from north to south; at Cape Vela the mountains divide into two parallel ridges, forming three other valleys, ranging from east to west, and appearing to have been the beds of ancient lakes. The northern of these two ridges is the continuation of the Sierra Nevada of Santa Marta; and the southern that of the snowy summits of the province of Merida; they are again united by two arms, which prevented to all appearance, the issue of the waters in their vicinity. These three valleys extend to an immense distance, and are remarked for rising like steps one above the other, and for their elevation above the sea; that of Caraccas, the most easterly is the highest, being 2660 feet; the next, or basin of Aragua, is 1530; and the third, the reedy plain of Monai, or the Llanos, is only 5 or 600 feet above the level of the sea. The water of the lake of the plain of Caraccas has been drained through a cleft or crevice, called the Quebrada of Tipe; and the lake of Aragua appears to have gradually evaporated, leaving only ponds charged with muriate of lime, and small insulated masses of land.

The _Rio Grande de la Magdalena_, is a majestic navigable river, but of which there is at present very little known; for although M. Bouguer, the celebrated mathematician, travelled along the greater part of its banks, he has left a very imperfect memorial on the subject: it is said to rise about thirty miles east of Popayan, near the sources of the Cauca, in 8 degrees south latitude; and after a northerly course of immense length, receives the latter river, with which it has flowed in nearly a parallel line on the opposite side of the same chain of mountains. The river Funza or Bogota, after quitting the fall of the Tequendama, rushes with impetuosity through a long course into the bosom of this fine river, which also receives many others, and united with the Cauca, near Mompox, pours the confluent waters into the Caribbean sea by several branches, the great or main channel being in 11° north latitude, and 74° 40ʹ west longitude.

The Magdalena is subject to overflow in the month of December, at which time it rises thirteen or fourteen feet above the usual level at its mouth, and inundates and fertilizes the adjacent lands; thus the country near the ocean is a succession of extensive marshes, famous for the fine cacao produced in them.

The mountains bordering this river near Honda, are remarkable for the horizontal situations of their strata, which are clearly seen, on account of the faces of the rocks being so perpendicular as to resemble walls; when any of these hills are insulated, they form such a regular cone, and the strata are so uniformly and cylindrically disposed, that they seem rather the work of art than of nature. One of these exists about a league from Honda, on the road to Mariquita, and is of such an extraordinary shape, and so symmetrical, that M. Bouguer forbears describing it minutely, for fear of being thought to take the usual liberty imputed to travellers. Other mountains in the vicinity of this river assume the shapes of ancient and sumptuous edifices; of chapels, domes, castles and fortifications, consisting of long curtains surmounted with parapets. From the circumstance of the strata of all these corresponding in a singular manner, the celebrated _savan_, above mentioned, supposes that the valley must have been sunk by some sudden convulsion of nature, leaving the sides of those hills uncovered whose bases were of more solid materials than itself. The same thing is observable on the banks of the Orinoco, though nothing of the kind is to be seen in Peru, where nature is so infinitely varied in her Alpine scenery.

Most of the rivers which fall into the Magdalena are rapid, on account of the vicinity of the Cordilleras on each side. It may be easily imagined such streams cannot be crossed with stone bridges, in consequence of the immense pressure of the water, and because of the volumes of rock and earth which they roll from the interior. Bridges of most singular construction are therefore adopted, to facilitate the land journey from Santa Marta or Carthagena; roots of plants, twisted together into the form of cables, as thick as a manʼs thigh, are placed across the torrent; two of these are laid parallel to each other, at about four or five feet distance, and stretched on each side over a trestle of wood, having a windlass at one end to tighten them; over these cables are placed fascines, or branches of trees, and a little higher than the two bottom ropes, are fixed two slighter ones, in order to serve as balustrades. When a large river is crossed in this manner, the weight of the cables causes the bridge to form a considerable curve or concavity, and the traveller arriving in the centre, experiences a very unpleasant, and sometimes dangerous oscillation.

In other places, three or four thongs of leather are plied into a rope, which being made fast on the most elevated bank of the torrent, is carried over, and secured on the lower shore, so as to form an angle of fifteen or sixteen degrees; the passenger is suspended on the higher side to a sort of pulley formed by the bifurcation of two branches of a tree; the cord of leather is then tightened, and the traveller descends with such rapidity that sparks of fire are emitted from the pulley in consequence of the friction, and he is obliged to keep his head averted to prevent these sparks from falling in his eyes; a man is however placed on the upper bank, holding a long cord, which is attached to the body of the passenger, to check the too great rapidity of the descent.

Numbers of these flying machines, which are called tarabitas, are established on all the rivers connected with the Magdalena; and for the convenience of travellers, going and coming, they are placed alternately, as close to each other as the higher and lower shores of the streams afford proper opportunities.

The river Magdalena is infested with alligators, from eighteen to twenty feet in length, but they are said generally to fly from man, and only to attack him if they have by accident fed on human flesh.

In Santa Marta, and Carthagena, the banks of this river, which has been styled the Danube of New Granada, are famed for the excellent cacao they produce. The cacao, or chocolate-tree, is a native of Spanish America, about the size of a middling apple-tree, seldom exceeding the diameter of seven inches, and is extremely beautiful, when laden with its fruit, which are dispersed on short stalks over the stem and round the great branches, resembling citrons, from their yellow colour, and warty appearance. The leaves are alternate, stalked, drooping, about a foot long, and three inches broad, elliptic-oblong, pointed, slightly wavy, entire, and very smooth on both sides; with one mid-rib, and many transverse ones, connected by innumerable veins. The petals of the flower are yellow, the calyx of a light rose-colour, and the flowers themselves are small and placed on tufts on the sides of the branches, with single foot-stalks about an inch long.

Its fruit is red, or a mixture of red and yellow, and about three inches in diameter, with a fleshy rind half an inch thick; the pulp is whitish, and of the consistence of butter, containing the seed of which chocolate is made; these seeds are generally twenty-five in number in each fruit, and when fresh gathered, are of a flesh-colour, and form a nice preserve, if taken just before they ripen. Each tree yields about two or three pounds of fruit annually, and comes to maturity the third year after planting from the seed; it also bears leaves, flowers, or fruit, all the year round, the usual seasons for gathering being June and December.

In making chocolate, the seeds or kernels are first roasted, and then pulverised by mills or pounders; after which the fine powder is wrought into a paste with milk, orange-water, vanilla, spices, sugar, &c., and formed into cakes for sale.

So great is the demand for the chocolate of the Magdalena, that enough cannot be raised in the provinces above-mentioned, to supply the market, and they are obliged to import the cacao of the Caraccas and Guiana, in order to mix them with it. The excellence of the Magdalena chocolate, may be attributed to the marshy nature of the soil, as the plant never thrives where the ground is hard and dry, and they require to be shaded by other trees from the sun; and their branches, which commence from the ground, must never be allowed to exceed four or five, otherwise the fruit would not have sufficient nourishment. Weeds and shrubs must also be cleared away carefully from its roots, in order that it may derive as much humidity from the soil as possible. The other productions of this province are similar to those of Carthagena.

The government of Santa Marta contains from 250 to 300,000 souls.

_Capital._--The chief city of this province is _Santa Marta_, 100 miles north-east of Carthagena, in 11° 19ʹ 2ʺ north latitude, 74° 4ʹ 30ʺ west longitude, with a very large and convenient harbour, which is protected by lofty ridges, and has in front a round hill defending it on the side of the snowy mountains. This city, founded in 1554, was made the magazine of Ximenes de Quesada, from whence he explored and conquered New Granada. Sir Francis Drake reduced the place to ashes in 1596. The harbour has two forts for its defence, but the town has considerably declined of late years, having only a trifling trade with Carthagena, and the other Spanish ports. The climate, though exceedingly hot, is not so unhealthy as that of Carthagena; and the town is supplied with excellent water by the river Guayra, which passes close to it; the banks of this stream are adorned with beautiful trees, and are very fertile. Santa Marta is a bishopʼs see. The other towns of most note are--

_Puebla Cordova_, a small town on the coast, 20 miles south of Santa Marta.

_Puebla Nueva_, also a small town, 62 miles south of the capital.

_Teneriffe_, in 10° 2ʹ north latitude, 74° 30ʹ west longitude, 80 miles south-south-west of the capital.

_Ocana, or Santa Anna_, is a little town, near which copper is found, and situated on the Rio de Oro, 220 miles south of Santa Marta, in 7° 50ʹ north latitude, 73° 26ʹ west longitude.

_Puebla de los Reyes_, and _Tamalameque_, are two other small towns of the province, which also includes a district named _Rio de la Hacha_, of which the chief town is Hacha. This district bounds the province of Maracaybo in Caraccas on the west. The town of _Hacha_ is situated in 11° 28ʹ north latitude, 72° 46ʹ west longitude, 210 miles east-north-east of Carthagena, on a river of the same name, and close to its junction with the Caribbean sea; this river is navigable for light vessels, but the harbour is exposed to the north winds. Gold and precious stones are occasionally discovered in the district which bears the same name, the interior of which is covered with forests, and infested with jaguars and other wild beasts. The trade of this port, as well as that of Santa Marta, has been mentioned in treating of the commerce of Carthagena.

The neighbourhood of Rio de la Hacha is inhabited by a tribe of warlike and unsubdued Indians, called the _Goahiros_; their territory extending from the river La Hacha, to the province of Maracaybo along the coast for more than ninety miles, and equally far into the interior of the country.

The Spaniards have found it impracticable to reduce this nation, but missionaries have endeavoured to convert them without much effect. They are supposed to be the most ferocious race of the South American aborigines; and to amount, on a moderate computation, to 30,000 souls, being governed by a cacique, who lives in a fortified town on the summit of a small hill, called the Pap, or La Teta, some miles from the sea. The number of wild horses in this country is so great, that all their warriors are mounted, and armed with carabines and bows. They have been supplied with fire-arms by the contraband traders from Jamaica, with whom they carry on a very great traffic, particularly in time of war. Their principal aggressions are made on the Maracaybo side, so that the settlers in that province are obliged to be constantly on their guard.

When they are inclined to barter with the Spaniards, they carry their goods to Rio de la Hacha, for which place they set out in bands accompanied by their women and children, who are the bearers of the merchandise, which is chiefly exchanged for spirituous liquors, as they are so fond of these, that when they commit hostilities upon the settlers, the usual present to appease them consists of brandy.

Very few Spaniards dare to traverse this country, although the Goahiros frequent many of the Spanish towns. The English from the West India islands are the people they most respect, and with whom their chief connections are formed; they are supplied by them with arms, ammunition and clothing, for which they return pearls, dye-woods, horses, oxen and mules.

Feathers, and shining metals form the chief ornaments of the dress of these people, who are also very fond of displaying golden-nose-rings, ear-rings, and bracelets.

It is said that the Goahiros are so exceedingly savage, that even the English will not venture much on shore, but carry on their traffic on board their vessels, and depart the moment it is concluded. Ships which have the misfortune to be cast away on their coast, immediately become the prey of these Indians, who massacre the crews, and feed on their flesh.

The _Cocinas_ are another small nation, on the eastern part of the territory of the Goahiros, but are so pusillanimous, or probably so very inferior in strength, that the latter govern them with absolute power, and use them for slaves.

Besides these tribes, there are many others, who inhabit the province of Santa Marta and those adjoining, but little is known of their numbers, manners, customs, or even in some instances of their names.

_PROVINCE OF MERIDA._

MERIDA is bounded on the north by Maracaybo; east by Venezuela; west by Santa Marta; and south by Santa Fé and Juan de los Llanos.

Its great feature consists in the amazing elevation of a branch from the chain of the Andes, which entirely pervades this province on its western side, rising beyond the lower period of perpetual snow, and to the height of 15,000 feet above the level of the sea. The direction, &c. of this branch has been described in the general form of the Andes.

The climate of this province is very variable, on account of the vicinity of the snowy mountains and the unequal heights of the land; and when the westerly winds prevail, febrile diseases are common.

The rainy season lasts from March to November, during which time tide water descends in torrents; and rains are also frequent, but not so heavy in the other months.

Very little is ascertained concerning the interior of this country, but it produces maize, beans, peas, potatoes, cassada, wheat of the finest quality, barley, rye, &c. as well as the Tropical and European fruits in great plenty; also containing several plantations of sugar, cacao, and coffee; and the cattle are in such numbers, that meat is purchased at a very moderate price.

The Rio Apure, and some other rivers of considerable size, either rise or receive their tributary streams from the mountains of Merida, watering in their courses immense tracts of level and fertile land, which also extend from these mountains to the vicinity of the Orinoco.

_Capital._--The chief city of the province is _Merida_, from which the whole district has taken its name; this city is situated in 8° 10ʹ north latitude, and 73° 45ʹ west longitude, twenty-five leagues south-east of Varinas, 80 leagues south of Maracaybo, and 140 leagues south-east of Leon de Caraccas. It is the see of a bishop, and the residence of the governor, and is seated in a valley, three leagues long, and three quarters of a league in breadth, surrounded by lofty mountains. This vale is peculiarly productive in the necessaries and luxuries of life; and contains three rivers, the Mucujun, Albaregas, and Chama, which encompass the city, but are none of them navigable.

The chief plantations of the province are at a short distance from the capital, where a college and seminary for the priests is established, in which the inhabitants are educated; besides these buildings, are a handsome cathedral and three convents, with several chapels.

The population of Merida amounts to upwards of 11,000, composed of Spaniards, mestizoes, mulattoes, &c. The whites are chiefly employed in agricultural pursuits, and the people of colour in the manufacture of articles of cotton, and woollens.

This city was founded under the name of Santiago de los Caballeros, in 1558, by Juan Rodrigo Suarez; and at the period when the late dreadful earthquake overwhelmed the city of Caraccas, it shared the same fate, and was nearly destroyed, but has since been rebuilt, and become more populous than before.

_Pampeluna_, or _Pamplona_, is another town of the province of Merida towards its southern boundaries, in 6° 30ʹ north latitude, and 71° 36ʹ west longitude. In its neighbourhood some gold is occasionally found. This place is 170 miles north-north-east of Santa Fé de Bogota.

_St. Christoval_ is also another town, situated between the two latter, and

_La Grita_ is fifty miles south-south-west of Merida, where there is a chain of mountains called by the same name.

_PROVINCE OF SAN JUAN DE LOS LLANOS._

This province which is the most easterly one of the kingdom of New Granada, is bounded on the north by Varinas and Merida; on the east by Varinas; on the west by Santa Fé and Popayan, and south by the government of Quixos. Its limits are not accurately defined, the name signifying the Province of the Plains, which extend their dreary surfaces to an immense length in these regions; some of those on which numerous herds of cattle are fed being more than 2 or 300 leagues in length.

The capital of this province is the town of _San Juan de los Llanos_, at the distance of fifty miles east-south-east of Santa Fé de Bogota, in 3° north latitude, 73° 26ʹ west longitude. It was formerly celebrated for the gold found in its neighbourhood. This town was founded in 1555, and contains very few inhabitants.

In this province are several missions, established by the monks of Santa Fé de Bogota and the Jesuits; but very little is known concerning them, being chiefly establishments for the conversion of the different scattered tribes which roam over the country intercepted between the Andes and the Orinoco.

The _Rio Meta_, the _Vichada_, the _Casanare_, and several other fine streams flow through these plains, many of them taking their rise in the main chain of the Andes, and others in the branch called the Cordillera of the cataracts of the Orinoco.

The northern portion of the Llanos is sometimes styled the province of _Casanare_, of which _Pore_ is the chief town, situated in a hot climate and unhealthy situation; but its territory produces cacao, maize, yuccas, plantains, &c., and it has some trade in dressed leather, manufactured by the inhabitants from the skins of the numerous herds of cattle which feed in the plains, and from those of the venados or deer, with which the province abounds. The rivers and lakes furnish abundance of fish, and are the means of transporting the goods of New Granada to Caraccas and Guiana.

The city of _Pore_ or _San Josef de Pore_, is 133 miles north-east of Santa Fé de Bogota; 82 south of Pamplona, and in 5° 40ʹ north latitude, 72° 13ʹ west longitude; containing about 500 inhabitants.