villages, amidst groves of annonas and wild citrons, and in sight of the scattered vestiges of Peruvian palaces, they descended to the bed of the river Cutaco, in a narrow vale, at the depth of four thousand two hundred feet; and, pressing forward, through plantations of sugar canes, they ascended a forest, near immense ruins of the baths of the Incas. After this they crossed a chain of mountains, not far from a great causeway which those princes had constructed along the ridge of the Andes, from Cusco to Assuay and Caxamarca, and advanced to San Felipe. In their progress they had, with infinite difficulty, been able to save their instruments and collections, which were carried on the backs of fifteen or twenty oxen; for, in the space of three days, they had been obliged to ford one river nearly thirty times. After a rapid descent for more than a mile, they came to an Indian hamlet. Then, journeying sometimes through orange groves, and sometimes along mountains and valleys, and, finally, embarking in canoes on the river Chayma, the travellers at length arrived at the left bank of the river Amazon. They proceeded up this noble stream, as far as the cataracts of Tomeperda. Thence, directing their course toward the north-east, over the Andes, by the famous silver mines of Chota, they reached the town of Caxamarca; and, after a considerable descent on the western slope of the mountains, they descried, with delight, the great Pacific Ocean. They descended to its naked and sterile shores. These they skirted for a considerable distance, and, in October, arrived at Lima, where they continued some months to rest and refresh themselves.

From Callao, the port of Lima, they went by sea to Guayaquil, and thence in a frigate to Acapulco in New Spain.

Eighteenth Day's Instruction.

CHILI.

CHILI is a country distinguished not so much by its extent, or its present political importance, as by the mildness and amenity of its climate, the fertility of its soil in the valleys and lower parts, and its numerous and valuable natural productions. It extends from Peru on the north, as far as about the forty-fifth degree of south latitude, and is bounded towards the east by the provinces of Tucuman and Buenos Ayres, on the west by the Pacific Ocean, and on the south-east and south by Patagonia, or the land of Magellan.

At the time when the Spaniards first effected a landing in South America, the Incas of Peru had subdued the northern parts of Chili, and meditated the reduction of the whole country. The Spaniards took possession of Peru; and, in 1535, Diego Almagro, one of the Spanish chiefs, marched from Cusco to Chili, at the head of five hundred and seventy Europeans and fifteen thousand Peruvians. His troops experienced all the calamities arising from fatigue, from famine, and from the rigour of the climate, in regions so elevated that a degree of cold prevails almost equal to that within the polar circle. Two-thirds of his army perished in this expedition; and the survivors, when they arrived at the plains of Chili, had new difficulties to encounter. Such of the Chilese, as had been already subdued by the Incas, made no resistance; but several of the tribes, bold, intrepid, and inured to fatigue, long maintained their independence. Even to this day the mountainous territory is possessed by some tribes of the original inhabitants, who have carried on almost perpetual war against their invaders, during the course of two centuries.

That portion of the country which became subject to the Spanish government, was divided into thirteen districts. These are irregular in size and imperfectly designated. Some of them extend from the Andes to the sea; and others occupy but half that space, and are situated near the mountains, or upon the coast. In the late political contests betwixt Spain and her American colonies, the inhabitants of this country have declared themselves independent. The Indian possessions lie chiefly between the river Bibio and the island of Chiloe.

Of all the provinces of South America, Chili stands unrivalled for its picturesque beauty, and for the grandeur of its landscapes. The serenity of its sky, the constant mildness of its atmosphere, and its abundant fertility, render it a country extremely agreeable for residence. Though bordering on the torrid zone it never experiences extreme heat, for it is constantly refreshed by cooling breezes from the Andes and the sea. The seasons regularly succeed each other. Spring begins in September, summer in December, autumn in March, and winter in June.

European productions of nearly all kinds are well adapted for growth in Chili; particularly grain, olives, vines, fruit, flax, hemp, and garden herbs. In the northern districts are found an abundance of sugar-canes, coffee, cotton, cocoa-nut-trees, and other tropical productions. Maize, barley, peas, and potatoes, are well known to the Chilese. Of the last they have upwards of twenty distinct kinds; and it is conjectured that this valuable root was first brought into Europe from Chili. Many of the plants of this country are valuable as dyes, and others in medicine; and ornamental shrubs and flowers are innumerable. More than three-fourths of the trees of Chili are evergreen, and do not shed their leaves in winter. The wild animals are very numerous. Among the most remarkable of the quadrupeds, are the cloven-footed horse; and four small kinds of camels, called Ilamas, vicunas, huanacos, aud Peru camels.

Of these the two former are occasionally employed for carrying small burthens, and their hair or wool is woven by the inhabitants into useful articles of various kinds. Among the birds are the condor, a species of vulture, of size so immense that it sometimes measures sixteen feet from tip to tip of its extended wings; the mocking bird, a small species of ostrich; parrots and humming-birds of numerous kinds; the reptiles and serpents are not numerous; but the fish and insects are of various and extremely interesting species. Oysters are here excellent and in great abundance; and there are many kinds of lobsters and crabs. But nature has not exhausted her bounty on the surface of the earth; the minerals and metals are extremely abundant. Veins of gold, silver, copper, lead, and tin, are found in several parts of the mountains. A little hill, north-east of Talca, is said to be almost wholly composed of amethysts. Turquoises, emeralds, and topazes, are also found in some parts of the country. Spar, crystal, agate, and jasper, are of various and beautiful kinds. Some of the mountains contain asbestos, mica, or Muscovy glass, and rock salt; the last is abundant, and often crystallized in cubes of various colours. Sulphur and bitumen are found in various parts. Of all the metals none occurs so frequently as gold. There is scarcely a mountain in the whole country, which does not, more or less, produce it: accordingly it is found in the soil of the plains and in the sand of nearly all the rivers; and several gold mines are wrought in different parts of the country.

The Chilese, like the Peruvians, are subject, though not to an equal extent, to the alarm of earthquakes. They usually calculate upon three or four shocks every year, but these are slight, and little attention is paid to them. Great earthquakes seldom happen. During a period of two hundred and forty-four years only five occurred. The first, in 1520, destroyed some villages in the southern provinces: the second, in 1647, ruined many of the houses of St. Jago: the third, in 1657,

destroyed a great part of the capital: during the fourth, which took place in June, 1730, the sea was driven against the city of Conception, and overthrew the walls; and the fifth, on the 26th of May, 1751, completely destroyed that city, which was again inundated. This last earthquake levelled with the ground all the fortresses and villages situated between the thirty-fourth and fortieth degrees of latitude. Its course was from north to south. About a quarter of an hour before its commencement there was a slight shock, accompanied by a ball of fire that precipitated itself from the Andes into the sea. The great shocks began about midnight, and continued four or five minutes each; but the earth was in a state of almost constant tremor till day-break. Just before the earthquake the sky was perfectly clear in every quarter; but, immediately after its commencement, the atmosphere became loaded with black clouds, which poured down an incessant rain for the space of eight days. At the end of this time there was a recurrence of slight trembling, which continued during a month, with short intervals of fifteen or twenty minutes between each. It is not, however, supposed that, on this occasion, any persons perished in the whole province, except seven invalids who were drowned in the city of Conception.

It will immediately be supposed that a country thus subject to earthquakes, must also have numerous volcanoes, and be subject to volcanic eruptions. This is the case. There are no fewer than fourteen mountains in a constant state of eruption, and a still greater number that discharge smoke only at intervals. These are all situated among the Andes. The greatest eruption ever known in Chili, was that of Peteroa, situated among the mountains north-west of the city of Conception. It took place on the 3d of December, 1760; and in the course of it the volcano formed a new crater, and a neighbouring mountain was rent asunder. The eruption was accompanied by an explosion so loud that it was heard throughout the whole country. The quan