!i«!i!iil!i!iil!i!!i|lK^ TO THE RIGHT HON. LORD VISCOUNT MELVILLE, FIRST LORD OF ADMIRALTY, LORD PRIVY SEAL OF SCOTLAND, A MEMBER OF HIS MAJESTY'S MOST HONOURABLE PRIVY COUNCIL, isfc, is'c. (sfc, THIS WORK, REPLETE WITH NOVEL INFORMATION RELATIVE TO A COUNTRY WHICH CLAIMS, AT THE PRESENT MOMENT, FROM THE BRITISH PATRIOT, AND THE BRITISH STATESMAN, A MORE THAN COMMON INTEREST, IS VERY RESPECTFULLY DEDICATED BY HIS LOEDSHIP'S MOST DEVOTED AND OBEDIENT SERVANT, THE EDITOR. 4^ 33S227 THE EBITOM'S FKEFACE, RELATIVE to the progressive advances of civilization and society, in the Spanish colonies of South America, little has been hitherto known ; and this imperfedt knowledge has been, for the greater part, derived from polluted sources. The Spaniards by whom these colonies have been visited, and who have, on their return to the parent kingdom, drawn up the result of their observations, have been led by various motives, either personal, or founded in policy and the terrors of the inquisition, to have recourse to reticences and misrepresenta- tions, in whatever has regarded the social condition of the inhabitants, and their philosophical and scientific attainments. On another hand, the native writers have had uncommon im- pediments to encounter, in the illustrations at which they have aimed : but a few years have elapsed since they have had the advantage of a press, by which to disseminate their ideas ; and this facility they enjoy at certain intervals only, under the i most VI PRE^'ACE. most liberal and enlightened of their administrators. They were before under the necessity of transmitting their MS. pro- du6lions, destined for impression, to the capital of Spain, where they were in most instances lost to the public, either through the cupidity of the correspondents to whom the re- mittances, intended to defray the expences, were made, or through the restraints which are imposed, in every arbitrary government, on those who dare to give a full scope to their opinions. Those of the literati of Peru, on subje6ls apper- taining to the policy of states, have been occasionally pro- nounced with a boldness and a decision which mark a strong spirit of independence, in the periodical works established, within these few years, in the capital and other parts of that kingdom. By one of those casualties* (if this term can be applied to events arising from the preponderance of a formidable marine, and from an heroic ardour carrying with it a resistless force), by which Great Britain has appropriated to herself, in her different contests with Spain, so great a share of the colonial treasures belonging to the latter nation, several volumes of a periodical work, printed at Lima, and richly stored with * The capture of the St. Jago, bound from Callaoj the port of Lima, to Cadiz, in 1793. intelleSltial PEEFACE. vii tnlelle£lual treasures, fell into the hands of the Editor. The few specimens of their contents which he was enabled to give at the time*, on the eve of his being called abroad by his public duty, were favourably received : they indeed excited, among men of letters, a degree of surprize, which de- manded the evidence of the originals to attest their authen- ticity. It was suspe6led that a new Psalmanazar, or another Bamberger, of still more recent notoriety in literary imposture, had conceived and digested the plan of obtruding on the pub- lic credulity these scientific sketches, purporting to be from a part of the globe where not any degree of science could be rea- sonably supposed to exist. Such were the sentiments generally entertained in this coun- try, of the abje6l state of every description of knowledge in the South American continent, when the periodical work en- titled " El MercurioPeruano" (the Peruvian Mercury), strayed from its destination, to efface the impressions which had been made, and to substitute others very different in their nature. An Academical Society established in the capital of Peru, the members of which, in treating the diversified subje6ls of litera- ture, philosophy, history, &c. displayed a profound know- * Through the medium of the Monthly Magazine, in 1797, and the commence- ment of 1798. ledge Viii PREFACE. ledge of ancient and modern learning, was a novelty as wel- come as it was unexpe6ted. Whether that society still exists in Lima, is uncertain ; but it appears that the Peruvian Mer- cury, after having been progressively subje6ted to a variety of restraints, was discontinued somewhere about the year i/OO. On the following year, its learned editor, Don Jacinto Calero y Moreira, passed from Lima to Buenos- Ayres. From the above periodical work, as it was carried on during the first sixteen months, commencing with January 1791, and from various authentic sources*, of which the Editor has gladly availed himself, the " Present State of Peru" has been compiled. Whatever can tend to interest or amuse the British reader, has been sele6led, and given in a more or less abridged form, according to the relative importance and curiosity of the obje6ls of inquiry. A certain degree of arrangement has been followed in the introdu6tion of the different subjects, which, the Editor flatters himself, colledlively form a literary ollapodrida, a true Spanish dish, the ingredients of which are * In obtaining this information, the Editor has been laid under particular obli- gations, which he here most gratefully acknowledges, by Don Pedro d'Oribe y Vargas, a learned naturalist, now residing in this capital, to whom the public are in- debted for an interesting account of a Peruvian plant, the juice of which is a sure antidote against the bite of serpents, given in the Philosophical Magazine, vol. xii. p. 36. The queries relative to the phenomena of the climate of certain districts of Peru, were answered by this gentleman. SO PREFACE. iX SO seasoned, as to hold out the promise of becoming in a greater or less degree suitable to each palate : he has otherwise missed the aim he had in view. ( The old English saying, " to shoot at a pigeon and kill a crow," was, however, verified by him, when he obtained the set of Peruvian Mercuries, the selection from which forms the basis of his work. He was in quest, not of books, but of a valuable Peruvian remedy belonging to the vegetable kingdom (the carahuala), little known in this country. To the end that the adventure might be complete, he stumbled on a paint- ing, which he has employed, partly with a view to illustrate the subject matters of his work, and partly to render the work itself more agreeable to the reader, where such illustration was not absolutely necessary. The painting in question, the pro- du6tion of an untutored native, denied the advantages which the high cultivation of the arts in Europe affords, is in many of its parts finely executed, as will appear by the subje6ts that have been taken from it on the present occasion. It represents the Indian festival, in the great square of Lima, on the event of the accession of his present Catholic Majesty, Charles the Fourth, to the throne. In the engravings, the design of the artist has been strictly adhered to ; and it ought therefore to be noticed, that, as he was planted on an eminence, his pi6ture presents what is termed by painters a bird's-eye view. The curve b2 o£ PREFACE. of the petticoat in some of the female figures, may, with other pecuharities of a similar kind, be thus explained. It would be to anticipate the pleasure of the reader, whose industry, in the agreeable task of exploring what may be in a manner considered as a terra incognita, is not to be questioned, to point out to his notice all the curious and novel informa- tion he will obtain, by a perusal of the sheets now respe6lfully submitted to him. There are some leading points, however, on which it may not be inexpedient to touch in this Preface. One of these is, the extraordinary depopulation of the Indian tribes, since the conquest : from upwards of eight millions of souls, at which they were computed in 1551, they have been reduced to little more than half a million. They are, not- withstanding, absolutely necessary to the prosperity of the mines, which they alone, are capable of working, and which have progressively fallen off in their produce, in a nearly simi- lar ratio. A milder and better policy has been latterly adopted towards these unfortunate victims of Spanish ambition, and Spanish cupidity. Would that this observation could be made to apply to the condition of the negroes, whose lot in Peru appears to be rigorous, beyond any example that has been elsewhere furnished ! Natural history has been, within the last few years, en- riched PREFACE. XI riched by many important discoveries made in South America ; one of which, that of the bombyx papyri/ex, or paper-making silk-worm, is highly curious. Belonging to this department of science, and to divers others, the reader will derive much valuable information, from a perusal of what is given in the part of topography, and in the Appendix, containing, with other details of great interest, those of the travels of the mis- sionaries in the heretofore unexplored territories of Peru. In his researches into the literature of that country, he will find quo- tations from authors prohibited in Spain. " El Eusebio," a work in the Spanish language, on the same plan as the Emile of Rousseau, was, he will perceive, boldly cited by the learned and patriotic Bishop of Quito, in the eloquent dis- course he pronounced, at the first meeting of the Economical Society established in that city. An Index of the modern au- thors quoted in the Peruvian Mercury, is subjoined, to furnish some idea of the extent of the literary attainments made in that remote quarter of the globe. These attainments will con- stantly be proportioned to the industry employed in the acqui- sition of the means. Where books are sought after with so much avidity, and at so great a risk, the beams of mental illu- mination cannot fail to expand their celestial light, and to dis- pel the thick gloom of ignorance. JOSEPH SKINNER, Totlenham Court, January 30, 1805. LIST OF THE PLATES. fACK I. Indian representation of the costumes of the Ynca and his Queen, to face 1 9 II. Llamas, or Peruvian sheep, 51 III. BasiHo Huaylas, the Peruvian giant, 56 IV. Overseer of a royal Peruvian mine, 79 V. Female warrior of the Yurimagua tribe, .- 151 VI. Female Indian, habited as the Minerva of Peru, 204 VII. Indians, male and female, in burlesque costumes, 211 VIII. Fighter at a bull-feast, 217 IX. Female domestics who have adopted the Spanish dress, 224 X. A lady of Lima in her full dress, ••— • 229 XI. A female of Lima, of the middle class of society, 237 XII. Male inhabitant of Lima, of the middle class of society, 242 XIII. Female domestic of Lima, of the class of Quarterons, 253 XIV. Virgin of the Sun, 263 XV. Indian warrior belonging to a barbarous tribe, 272 XVI. Bozal, or raw negro residing in the distrift of Lima, 303 XVII. Civilized Indian wearing the poncho, 348 XVIII. A Mestizo of Quito professing a liberal art, accompanied by his pupil, 363 XIX. Mulattoes of Quito, 375 XX. Indian woman of a village near Lima, 400 CONTENTS. CONTENTS. PART I. THE PERUVIAN TERRITORY. PAGE General idea of Peru, 1 Vestiges of the Monuments of Ancient Peru, 10 Physical Geography of Peru, 19 PART II. NATURAL HISTORY. Historical sketch of the present state of the Botanical Science in Peru, 43 Zoology, 51 Antliropology, 52 PART III. MINERALOGY. Enumeration of the Mines of different metals in the Viceroyalty of Peru, 58 Historical and topographical description of the mountainous territory of Lauri-cocha, vulgarly denominated Pasco, 61 Account of the Quicksilver Mine of Huancavelica, 66 Condition of the miners of Peru, 70 PART IV. COMMERCE. Historical and political dissertation on the Commerce of Peru, 80 PART V. THE PERUVIAN CAPITAL. Historical and political reflections on the Population of Lima, 136 Ereiftion and establishment of the Royal Audience, or High Court of Justice, of Lima, 1 43 Historical details relative to the Provincial Councils of Lima, 156 History of the foundation, progress, and present state of the Royal University of St. Mark of Lima, 163 Benevolent Establishments, 177 Public Buildings, 198 Description of the Fountain in the great square of Lima, 203 Public Diversions, 21 1 Customs and Manners, 219 PAKT j Xiv CONTENTS. PART VI. INDIAN AND OTHER INHABITANTS OF PERU. PAGE Essay on the false Religion, and superstitious Customs, of the Peruvian Indians, 254 Account of the Costumes, Superstitions, and Exercises, of the Indians of the Pampa del Sacramento, and Andes Mountains of Peru, 26i Account of the Public Congregations of the Negroes residing in the distridl of Lima, ~ 291 PART VII. TOPOGRAPHY. Historical and chorographical description of the province ofChichas y Tarija, 304 Plan for gaining access to, and peopling, the Andes Mountains of the province of Guamalies, 337 Repopulation of the valley of Vitoc, 349 PART VIII. MISCELLANEOUS SUBJECTS OF LITERATURE AND PHILOSOPHY. Periodical Works, 357 Political Economy, 364 Biography, ••. 378 Longevity, 389 Meteorology, 390 APPENDIX. History of the Missions of Caxamarquilla, with the origin and loss of those of Manoa, 403 Peregrination, by the river Huallaga to the lake of Gran Cocama, in 1 790, .... 41 1 Peregrination, by the rivers Maranon and Ucayali, to the Manoa tribes, in 1791, 427 Entrances of the Missionaries into the mountainous territories of Peru, since the conquest, 444 Itinerary from Chavin to Chicoplaya, 471 THE PRESENT STATE OF PERU. PART I. THE PERUVIAN TERRITORY. GENEKAL IDEA OF PERU. nPHE produ6lions of the foreign writers who have attempted to describe Peru, abound for the greater part in fi6lions and absurdities. Among the Spanish authors who have treated of that country, the earher ones either compiled the relations of their own adventures, or introduced into their histories and annals what tradition had handed down to them. Of this class are Garcilaso, Herrera, Zarate, Gil Gonzales, &c. as are also all those by whom they have been followed, with the ex- ception of Don Ulloa, who, in the history of his voyage to South America, has treated of the customs, manners, and di- versions of the inhabitants. This illustrious author is the first among the Spanish writers, who, in describing these countries, has soared to the contemplation of man in his moral and phy- sical relations. B From 2 GENERAL IDEA OF I'EEU. From such loose materials as the above, and from the slight information which a few travellers have picked up in a cursory way, all the histories, refle£lions, charts, geographical tra6ts, and compendiums, which have been published respe6ling Peru on the banks of the Seine and of the Thames, have been com- piled. The spirit of system, national prejudices, ignorance, and caprice, have by turns so much influenced the greater part of these produ6tions, that the Peru which they describe to us, appears to be a country altogether different from the one with which we are practically acquainted. The consequence which we deduce from this exposition is, that we may, without presumption, set out by giving a gene- ral sketch of Peru, without fearing to incur the imputation of plagiarism ; and with the certainty of furnishing more precise, and, at the same time, more novel information, than any that has been hitherto given. This great empire, the foundation of which by the Incas remains enveloped in the obscurity of a series of fables, and of an uncertain tradition, has lost much of its local grandeur since the time when it was stripped, on the north side, of the provinces which form the kingdom of Quito*, and afterwards of those which, towards the east, constitute the viceroyalty of Buenos-Ayres-j- . Its present extent^ in length runs, north * In 1718. + In 1778. X The geographical map of Santa Cruz, and the hydrographical chart of Don Ulloa, inserted in the third volume of his voyage to South America, have been useful to us in fixing the longitudes and latitudes, respedling which Busching, Lacroix, and various other geographers, diiFer most essentially. and GENERAL IDEA OF PERU. and south, over a space of from four hundred and twenty to four hundred and fifty leagues, from two degrees to nearly twenty-three degrees of south latitude ; and its greatest breadth is from one hundred to one hundred and twenty leagues, east and west, from two hundred and ninety-seven to three hundred and ten degrees of west longitude, the first meridian being taken at the Peak of TenerifFe. The river of Guayaquil divides it from the new kingdom of Granada on the north side. The depopulated territory of Atacama separates it from the kingdom of Chile towards the south. Another horrible desart, of more than five hundred leagues extent, separates it towards the east from the provinces of Paraguay and Buenos- Ayres ; and lastly, the Pacific Sea washes its western shores. A chain of barren and rugged mountains ; several sandy plains, which in a manner reach from one extremity of the coast to the other ; and several lakes of many leagues in ex- tent, some of which are situated on the summits of the above chain of mountains, occupy a great part of the Peruvian terri- tory. Throughout, the breaks, and the vallies, which en- joy the benefit of irrigation, present to the view an extensive range of delightful plains, replete with cities and towns, and the climate of which is highly salubrious. That of the elevated spots of La Sierra is extremely cold. In the pampas, or plains, ofBombon*, Fahrenheit's thermometer is constantly at from thirty-four to forty degrees above zero. * These are plains of fifteen leagues in length, and five or six in breadth, which form a part of the sub-delegation of Tarma, and of the intendcncy of the same name: they are distant from Lima, in an eastern dire£lion, forty leagues. The lake of Chincha-y-cocha intersedls them in their length ; and they constitute the most lofty and most level part of La Sierra. B 2 The GENERAL IDEA OF PERU. The population of Peru, so far as relates to the original casts, is composed of Spaniards, Indians, and negroes. The secondary speciescs best known, and proceeding from a mix- ture of these three, are the mulatto, the offspring of the Spa- niard and negro woman; the Quarteron, of the mulatto wo- man and Spaniard ; and the Mestizo, of the Spaniard and Indian woman. The final subdivisions which are formed by the successive mixtures, are as many as the different possible Combinations of these primitive races. The rural operations of sowing and planting, as well as do- mestic employments, have constantly fallen to the lot of the negroes. It is true, indeed, that within these four years past several white people have engaged in these different tasks. Prior to this, any one, neither a negro nor a mulatto, who should have hired himself as a valet or a labourer, would have been in a manner reputed infamous: to such a length w^as prejudice, or it may perhaps be said, pride, carried on this head. There are many enlightened politicians, who think it would be very unfortunate for the kingdom, and more espe- cially for the capital, Lima, if this prejudice were to be en- tirely done away. The commerce of Peru has been considerably augmented, since it has, by the arrival of the merchant vessels of Spain by Cape Horn, and by the grant of an unrestrained commerce, freed itself from the oppression under which it groaned in the time of the Galeons, and of the fairs of Porto-Bello and Pa- nama. Prior to that epoch, the bulky and overgrown capitals circulated through, and were in a manner lost in, a few hands; and while the little trader tyrannized over the people, by regu- lating, at his own will, the prices of the various produ6lions and GENERAL IDKA OF PERU. and commodities, he himself received the law from the mono- polizing wholesale dealer. The negotiations of the capital with the interior were then, in a great measure, dependent on the intelligence and the decisions of the magistrates ; and the commerce with Spain owed its best security to the circulation of the silver entered in the bills of lading. Commerce, on the other hand, being at this time subdivided into so many smaller branches, maintains a greater number of merchants ; at the same time that the fortunes which accrue from it are not so numerous. It is necessary that a commercial man should combine his plans skilfully, and extend his speculations, to be enabled to acquire a handsome pro- perty. The manufactures of this country consist almost entirely of a few friezes, the use of which is in a manner confined to the In- dians and negroes. There are besides an inconsiderable num- ber of manufadlures of hats, cotton cloths, drinking glasses, &c. which do not, however, occupy much space in the scale of the riches of Peru. Sugar, Vicuna wool, cotton, Peruvian bark, copper, and cocoa (it is to be observed, however, that the two latter articles, as well as a considerable part of the Peruvian bark, are sent hither from Guayaquil, &c.), are the only commodities, the produce of our mines excepted, which we export. The mines are the principal, it may indeed be said, the only source of the riches of Peru. Notwithstandine: the little in- dustry which is employed in working them, and the small help which commerce affords to the miners, 534,000 marks of silver, and 6,380 of gold, were smelted and refined last year (1790) GENERAL IDEA OF PERU. (1790) in the royal mint of Lima ; and 5,206,906 piastres*, in both materials, were coined there -j-. From the mines of Gualgayoc:}:, and from that of Pasco §, about the one half of the silver which is annually smelted, coined, and wrought, is extracted. The mine of Guantajaya|| is abundant in ores and rich metallic veins, but does not yield in proportion, in consequence of the dearness of every neces- sary, as well for working as for convenience and subsistence. On account also of its distance from the capital, the benefits which would otherwise arise from it are lost : the ores of thirty marks the caxon^, do not pay themselves; and the same may be said of the produ6ls of the smaller and more superficial veins, which occasionally present themselves, and in which the silver is chiselled out. It is greatly to be hoped that the plan of transporting the produce of this mine to Calloa maybe adopted, since such an expedient would not only cause the * Dollars. t In tlie former year, 1789, 3,570,000 piastres in silver, and 766,768 in gold, were coined. I These mines are in the intendency of Truxillo, one hundred and seventy-eight leagues distant from Lima, and from Truxillo sixty-eight. § Otherwise called the inetallic mountain of Lauricocha. It is situated at the northern extremity of the plains of Bombon, and is distant from Lima forty-five leagues, and from Tarma twenty-two. II This mine, which, in opposition to the laws Nature generally observes, is situated in a very hot and sandy soil, is comprehended in the province of Tarapaca, in the intendency of Arequipa. It is distant from that intendency eighty leagues, from Lima three hundred, and from the port of Iquique nearly two leagues. % The caxon contains 6,250 pounds. mine GENERAL IDEA OP PERU. jT mine to flourish, but would be beneficial to all the adjacent provinces. That of Guarochiri*, the eiFedls of the abundance of which are more immediately felt in the capital, does not flourish in a degree which should apparently correspond with the richness of its ores, and the abundance of its metallic spots and veins. The adoption of the newly introduced method of amalgama- tion ; the employment of a sufficient number of Indian labour- ers, who may be engaged without difficulty ; and a few re- forms in the pradtical part of the laborious operations ; these are the only principles on which this mine, as well as all the others in the kingdom, can be brought into a truly flourishing condition. The navigation of Peru is limited. Our commerce in corn carries us to the ports of Chile ; with Guayaquil we carr}' on a traflSc in timber, &c. ; and, lastly, we make a few voyages to Chiloe, Juan-Fernandes, Valdivia, and Panama. We na- vigate with economy and with ease ; but are deficient in the scientific part, deriving no aid whatever from astronomy. Those who have the charge of our trading vessels have no skill beyond imitation. The hydrographical charts which are con- sulted, are, on many accounts, defe6tive ; and the situation of the coasts is more parallel than it is represented on them. On another hand, the fogs which almost constantly hover over the land, and hide it from the navigator's view, oblige him to make a circuitous course, by which his voyage is considerably * This mine extends, in a manner, over the whole of the province bearing its name, the capital of' which is the town of Guarochiri, distant from Lima seven- teen leagues, and from Tarma twenty-eight. It belongs to the intendency of Lima. protracted. GENERAL IDEA OP PEHU. protracted. Until about the year 1780, it was a source of vast riches to a commercial house to keep a vessel of its own em- ployed in the coasting trade ; but in proportion as mercantile speculations have been since multiplied, the price of freightage has been lowered, and the profits divided among a greater number of adventurers. The fishery is a branch of industry exclusively belonging to the Indians situated on the coast ; but they are destitute of skill, and, being at the same time unprovided with proper boats and fit instruments, keep constantly within sight of the coast, venturing but a very small distance to sea. Hence arise the scarcity and dearness of fish, so often experienced at Lima, and in all the places along the coast. A few years ago several boats of a particular construction were built, for the purpose of fishing throughout the whole extent of these seas ; but this scheme was shortly afterwards abandoned. The lakes of Peru afford but few fishes. Were the Indian to resort to them, he would not estimate the fruit of his labours : content with his maize and his dried pease, he considers the multiplicity of foods as a voluntary surrender of health and life. Agriculture might, generally speaking, be made to supply our wants, insomuch that our subsistence ought not to be so precarious as it is, nor so dependent on foreign aid. In the vallies adjacent to the capital, wheat may be cultivated with the greatest success. The bad, uneven roads, together with the delays and expence of carriage, almost entirely obstru6t the internal circulation of this kingdom, and are so many ob- stacles in the way of agriculture. The valley of Jauja*, affords many * This valley, the circumference of which is not more than seventeen leagues, is extremely GENERAL IDEA OP PERU. 9 many proofs in support of this proposition : the facihty with which it sends its maize and other produ6ls to the mine of Pasco, keeps it in a most flourishing condition. The natural history of Peru is fertile in prodigies. All the systems which have been formed in Europe on this subje6t» are capable of a thousand amplifications, whenever their theo- ries shall be applied to our natural productions. The moun- tains of Chanchamayo, Huanuco, Lamas *, &c. are so many privileged spots of Nature, relatively to the surprizing gaudi- ness and beauty of their produ6lions. The intervention of se- veral humid and hot climes, and the dread of the hostile Indi- ans who inhabit them, have contributed to with-hold from us much information on this head : there is, however, a great scope for investigation and description ; and accordingly the natural history of Peru will occupy no small space in our work. Knowledge is general throughout Peru, as well on account of the natural quickness and penetration of its native inhabi- tants, as through their fondness for study. In whatever does not require a meditated combination of ideas, the fair sex has commonly the advantage over ours. The Royal University of St. Mark of Lima, and, proportionally, the other universities of this kingdom, form a centre of literature, which diffuses an extremely populous. Atunjauja is the capital of the province of that name, de- pendent on the intendency of Tarma, from which it is distant ten leagues, and from Lima thirty-eight. * The mountains of Chanchamayo are distant from Tarma twenty-five leagues. TTiose of Huanuco are distant from Lima about eighty leagues. The mountains of Lamas extend from Tefe, the boundary of the Portuguese possessions, to the confines of the intendency of Truxillo. c abundant JO MONUMENTS OP ANCIENT PERU. abundant light to the whole of the circumference. Under their auspices, the moral and philosophical sciences have, latterly, made an incredible progress, having found their way into all the schools, and thence diffused themselves rapidly into every order of the state. It is our earnest wish that this philosophi- cal light may, by its permanence and efficacy, influence and ameliorate tlie common system of education. It is on that score alone, in the acceptation which embraces the whole ex- tent of the kingdom, that Peru is in some measure defe6tive. A good taste, urbanity, and a social disposition, are tlie here- ditary qualities of every Peruvian. We have thus fulfilled our promise, by giving an idea of Peru in general terms, not subje6l to a determinate point, either of history or of literature. It is a prefatory introdu6lion ; or, if. we may be permitted to adopt the phrase, a leisure compo- sition, which will give us a greater faciUty in treating, of ; the different subje6ts that regard the kingdom of Peru, as. they, may occasionally present themselves to our notice. VESTIGES OF THE MONUMENTS OF ANCIENT PERU. Scarcely does man begin to live, when every thing an- nounces to him his approaching dissolution. The elements destined to his nourishment, conspire to his destru6lion ; and the very globe he inhabits does not cease, by violent convul- sions, to endeavour to shake off a load by which it seems to be oppressed. In the mean time, immortality is that which causes in •MONUMENTS OF ANCIENT PERU. 1 1 in his mortal breast the most poignant and unquiet sensation. The desire of surviving his perishable existence, and of trans- mitting to posterity his heroical achievements, is an idol to which his last sacrifices are offered up. This enthusiasm, of equal antiquity with man himself, has constantly led him to have recourse to a thousand expedients, to elude, as it were, the painful limit of his inevitable destiny, and to avenge its attacks. Odoriferous and aromatic sub- stances, balsams, cedar, brass, and marble, on the one hand ; on the other, compositions replete with melody, brilliant re- citals, emblems, and fine images, which have an efficacious power to attra6l attention and excite surprize ; — such are the obstacles which the pride of mortals has opposed to the vora- ciousness of time. Hence have arisen mummies, which are preserved for thousands of years, reckoning from their origi- nal corruptibility ; the mausolea in which they are inclosed ; obelisks ; pyramids ; statues ; and all the monuments in which the chisel and the graver display their magic skill, to perpe- tuate the posthumous memory of the hero and the man of illus- trious birth. To this same principle we are indebted for poe- try, for history, whether traditional or expressed by sym- bols, and for all the sketches and designs in which the pencil manifests its powers. These precious trophies of the vanity and grandeur of men and of nations, destined to immortalize the triumphs of va- lour, of virtue, and, occasionally, of fanaticism, form, with- out doubt, an object worthy the consideration and study of the man of ktters. But for them, what information could we have obtained relative to those obscure ages which gave birth to monarchies, arts, and sciences, and in which modes and c 2 customs 12 MONUMENTS OF ANCIENT PERU. customs were first regulated ? To those ages in which the lyre, and the sweet harmony of vocal sounds, subdued the ferocious tyger, tamed the enraged lion, and softened the obdurate rocks ? A philosophical poet denied the eternity of the world, solely on this account, that, prior to the Theban war, and the destruction of Troy, no poems or monuments were to be found, to hand down the remembrance of those remarkable events which fame is wont to record, and which illustrate all ages*. But in succeeding times, and in the nations which pos- sessed the art of writing in all its perfection, the want of the press to renew the leaves which the moth or the corroding hand of time had destroyed, has rendered archeology, or the study of antiquities, indispensable, to fill up the chasms they have left, or to comment on the fables they have transmitted to us. In rectifying chronology and history, how useful has been the examination of the hieroglyphics and enigmas of the supersti- tious Egyptians, the ruins of Palmyra, the odes and descrip- tions of the Greeks, the busts and pyramids of Rome, &c. This subject, as it relates to Peru, acquires a new degree of value and interest. At the time of its conquest, the archives of Cuzco, Caxamarca, and Quito, were lost for ever. The fragile Quipos are now reduced to dust ; and the tradition of the me- morable events of the kingdom having by degrees become less and less perfeCt, through the ignorance and carelessness of those to whose charge it was entrusted, the observer is obliged to recur to the comparison, or, as it may be said, to the in- terpretation of the ancient fragments and ruins, to complete the imperfeCl picture of this ancient empire, as it has been * Lucretil, lib. v. ver. 325. sketched MONUMENTS OF ANCIENT PERU. 13 sketched by the pencil of Garcilaso. By the same means, the fables relative to its religion and policy, adopted by the latest historiographers, may be deciphered. The study of the mo- numents erefted by the Yncas, to display their power and re- cord their existence ; the recitals of their glories ; the tradi- tions and relics of their ancient usages and customs, which still remain among the modern Indians, who tenaciously pre- serve and repeat what their forefathers have, from time imme- morial, handed down to tl:|em ; and, lastly, the investigation of the works which were ere61;ed, either by magnificence or through necessity, unquestionably afford a new light, calcu- lated to remove the thick veil which is spread over the histori- cal and civil parts of the Peruvian monarchy, during the whole of the time that preceded its conquest. If the rage of avarice and ambition had been satisfied with raking up the bowels of the earth, the memorials of ancient Peru would have been multiplied and entire ; and while the delineation would have been more easy, the copy would have been more beautiful. But the execrable thirst of gold carried desolation to the sepulchres, which are the last asylum of mor- tals, but which were here no security to the ashes respe6led by the right of nations*. In the same way, however, as the fury of * In great conquests, havock and disorders are inevitable ; but those of the detes- table Cavvajal, and his friend Gonzalo Pizarro, were carried to an unheard-of ex- cess. The latter put to the torture several of tlie Indians who had fallen into his hands, to force them to discover the sepulchre of tiie Ynca Viracocha, in which much treasure was said to be concealed. It was found in the valley of Caxahuana, distant from Cuzco six leagues. Not content with glutting his avarice by the spoil and riches he found in the sepulchre, he burned the corpse of this monarch, and scat- tered 14 MONUMENTS OP ANCIENT PERU. of Cambyses could not prevent many inestimable remains of Egyptian learning from being handed dow n to the present times, so is the utter annihilation of the monuments of the Yncas far from having been accomplished. Their ruins are every where to be found ; and, in the midst of the ravages they have suffered, offer sufficient materials to form an estimate of the arts, sciences, and policy, of those by whom they were raised. The famous obelisks and statues of Tiahuanacu * ; together with the mausolea of Chahapoyas'f- ; works destined to chal- lenge tcred in the air his respeflable ashes. Don Pedro de la Gasca, a virtuous Spaniard, whose name ought to be engraven on all the public monuments of Peru, punished this and the other crimes of the perfidious Pizarro, by causing him to be decapitated beside the monument he had so scandalously outraged. The foreign writers who dwell so pertinaciously on the horrors which attended the conquest of Peru, when they exaggerate tiie misconduiSl of some of the early adventurers, ought not to forget the heroism and virtues of this learned president, and of many others, who, by imi- tating his example, have not only wiped away the national stains on this score, but have also rendered the Spanish name illustrious by their valour and heroic deeds. * This town, situated on the confines ot the city of la Paz, is unquestionably an- terior to tlie monarchy of the Yncas, notwithstanding one of them bestowed on it its present name, the origin of which is said to be as follows: the Ynca fell in tiiere with a iTiessenger, whose dispatch in travelling was so great, that it might be com- pared to the swiftness of the huanaco, an animal having some degree of reseinblance to the bouquctin, or wild goat of the AI[)S. The Ynca, alluding to this circum- stance, said to the messenger, when he v.as brouglit into his presence, Tia-Huanaco, be seated, huanaco. To perpetuate the remembrance of the celerity of the mes- senger, ar.d tlie condesceubion of the monarcli, tiiis name was suhstituted to the one the place ci'ginaliy bore. The formidable pyramid it contains, and the colossal statues ofston?, together witlv a variety of human figures nicely cut out of tlic same substanc?, ahhi u ,h decayed by titne, point out that this monument belonged to some gigantic uati^m. t The province of Chahapoyas contains buildings of stone, of a conicr.l shape, supporting MONUMENTS OP ANCIENT I'ERU. 15 lenge duration with eternity, not only on account of the soU- dity of their materials, but also of the sites on which they were erected, alike display their skill in sculpture, and their ambi- tion for immortality. That they were extremely solicitous on this head,, both with respe6t to the sculptures and the dead bodies, is attested by the multitude of mummies which, after a lapse of so many years, indeed, of so many ages, are to be found entire in the catacombs. The examination of them, may, perhaps, instru6t us in the mode by which they contrived to secure them from putrefa£tion, and from the destrudlive hand of time*. The ruins of Pachacamac ; the edifices of Cuzco and Quito ; the fortresses of Herbay and Caxahuana ; and the roads cut through the middle of the Cordillera mountains, the one more especially, in the formation of which the most elevated hills were to be made level with the vallies -f-, attest the skill of the ancient Indians in civil and military arcliite6ture. The supporting large unwieldy busts. They are situated on the declivities of mountains, and in spots so inaccessible, that, in their construftion, both the materials and the workmen must have been lowered down by the means of strong cordage. They ap- pear to have been the mausolea of certain caciques or principal people, who, being desirous to perpetuate their memory, endeavoured not only to secure these monu- ments from the ravages of time, by forming them of the most durable substance, but also from the rude attacks of man, by placing them where the precipice would pre- vent his approach. * It is conjedlured by some, that the Indians preserved the dead bodies, merely by exposing them to the adtion of frost. This supposition might be allowed, if these mummies were alone to be found in Sierra, and in the cold temperatures. But, on the other hand, they are to be met with in abundance, in catacombs dug out in the vallies, and in the warmer climates. t The authors of the Encyclopedia, under the head of America, deny the exist- ence l6 MONUMENTS OP ANCIENT PERU. The large apertures in the mountains of Escamora, Chilleo,' and Abitanis, abounding in gold ; those of Choquipina and Pozco, in sih^er ; those of Curahuara, in copper ; and those of Carabuco, in lead ; together with many other stupendous and magnificent labours of a similar nature, all undertaken in the time of the government of the Yncas, give an idea of their subterraneous and metallurgic archite6lure. The fragments of the great aquedu6ls of Lucanas, Conde- suyos, and an infinity of others, which, in the midst of preci- pices, conducled the water from the deepest vallies to the sum- mit of the highest hills, and to the distant plains ; the clefts of hills filled up with earth, to a\]gment the proportion of the cultivable lands — an enterprize which the observer cannot fail to contemplate with admiration and surprize ; and the very useful custom, still observed by the Indians of the present day, of uniting together like brethren, in the rural labours of the seed- time and the harvest, are so many incontestible proofs of the skill of this nation in hydraulics and agriculture. It is evident that in this description of knowledge, the Spaniards have not only made no advances, but have also lost many of the guides with which the example of the Indians might have furnished them. It was the custom of the native Peruvians to be interred with their apparel, arid other personal efFe6ts. Their sepulchres are rich depositaries of their paintings, manufa6tures, mecha- nical and warlike instruments, implements for fishing, &c. The modern Indians still preserve the industry of their fore- ence of these roads. To convince themselves, they have only to send some one to view the splendid vestiges of them which still remain. fathers, MONUMENTS OP ANCIENT PERU. J 7 fathers, in the weaving of lliellas, anacos, and chucesy and in the manufacture of topos, huaqueros, &c.* Of their ancient writing, some traces are to be found among the shepherds, who make use of quipos-f to reckon the num- ber, increase, or diminution of their flocks, not forgetting the day or hour on which a sheep died, a lamb was ewed, or one of the flock stolen. The language they employed when they invoked the prote6tion of the deity, may serve to give an idea of their oratory. Of their poetry and music many records still exist. The modern Indians, who are excessively fond of dancing, have not forgotten the wind instruments, and the immense variety of quick and lively airs which were the de- light of their ancestors. Their tradition has handed down a few idyls and odes, and many elegies, which are revived and augmented, as well by the Arabicus% as by the Spaniards, by • The lllella is a very fine square covering, adorned wirli much labour, which serves the Indians as a mantle. The anaco also forms a part of their dress, but is much larger. The chuce is a kind of carpet. The topo is a pin of gold, silver, or other metal, with a large solid head, eitlier circular or square, on which various figures are sculptured. Its use is to fasten the lllella at the breast, and to ornament it. The huaqiiert is a small earthen vessel. t The Peruvian trails of Madame Grasigny induced sn Italian nobleman, a member of the Academy of La Crusca, and a dutchess of the same uation, to write a large volume in quarto, entitled An Apology for the ^uipos. After introducing into this work what Garcilaso has written on the subjedV, the authors describe with so much confidence the grammar and di(2ionary of the ^ipos, and, in short, whatever relates to Quipographia, that we should have fancied we had fallen in with some ^Ipo-Camayu (secretary) of the Yncas, if, unfortunately, all the conjeiStures had not been utterly false. X Arabtcus. Name of the Peruvian poets, from which is derived that of the j'ara- vies, bestowed on their elegiac songs. The style, cfFe(5t, and peculiar music of D these 18 MONUMENTS OF ANCIENT PERU. by whom they are recited with the sweetness, tenderness, and soft melancholy, which are the soul of these compositions. The sciences which were cultivated by the Yncas with the greatest industry, were astronomy and medicine. Several pil- lars ere6ted to point out the equino6liaIs and solstices ; the names given to the planets ; the celestial observations relative to eclipses ; and those by which they kept their time, are so many data by which their progress in the former of these sci- ences may be calculated. Their acquirements in the latter may be estimated by the medical pra6lice of the Indians who in- habit the mountainous territory, and by the skill of the Cea- matas*, the successors of the ancient Ammitas. The government of the Caciques over several of the tribes, which they ruled without controul ; their inflexible justice ; and the order and economy they observed, are illustrative of the mild sway exercised in every part of Peru by the Yncas, during the existence of their monarchies. If to these materials, the examination of the Quechua tongue were to be added, an estimate might be formed, both of the degree of civilization they had attained, and of the duration of their empire. Words are the images of thought : the beauty and taste displayed in its delineation, and the vivacity with which it is represented, point out the ratio of the state and cultivation of the human mind. these compositions give them a decided advantage over all the similar ones of other nations, so far as they tend to inspire the human heart with sentiments of piety and love. * These are Indians of the province of Cheque Ceamata, situated in the inten- dency of La Paz, who, in imitation of the earlier physicians of Greece, travel over the kingdom, provided with herbs, drugs, &c. curing empirically, but often- times with great success. Plate PHYSICAL GEOGRAPHY OP PERU. IQ Plate I. contains the delineation of the costumes of the Ynca, and of his Queen, as represented by the modern Indians in their processions. PHYSICAL GEOGRAPHY OF PERU. The first obje6t which presents itself to the contemplation of the philosopher, in the history of the monuments of ancient Peru, is the delineation of the various dispositions and organi- zation of its vast territory. In tracing with his pen, amid the spoils and ravages of time and of war, the degree of cultiva- tion this famous nation had attained, when, without the help either of the Egyptians, the Phoenicians or the Greeks, it established wise laws, and made, in certain points of view, great advances in the arts and sciences, he finds it indispensably ne- cessary to examine the soil on which the ruins that are to guide and dire£l him in his researches are placed. The grandeur of the works ere6led by the hand of man, is not to be estimated solely by the sad remnants to which they are reduced : it is es- sential that the proportions of the land which served them as a support, should also enter into the calculation. The canal which waters the most fertile valley, does not display the same magnificence in itself, nor manifest an equal effort and skill on the part of the artificer, as that which, running between for- midable precipices, rises to the summit of the mountain, and pierces the deep cleft, which in magnitude equals its arm, or falls into the valley from between the brink and the declivity of lofty hills. On the other hand, as the qualities and cir- cumstances of regions influence the genius and character of those by whom they are peopled, without the physical know- D 2 ledge 20 PHYSICAL GEOGRAPHY OP PERU. ledge of Pern, it would be impossible to trace out the eminent advantages of its former or present inhabitants. In the general idea of Peru which we have given, we con- fined ourselves chiefly to the plans that had been suggested, in dividing, peopling, and cultivating its territory, by the dif- ferent views and interests of its conquerors. We presented to our readers a prefatory introdu6tion, a leisure composition, in which, noticing rapidly, and in substance, whatever this country owes to man, we prepared them for the elucidation of each of the parts contained in that valuable sketch of our po- litical geography. We now follow a different course. In naming Peru, we banish from our view its inhabitants and its cities, and annihilate even the superb towers of opulent Lima. The plains which our forefathers laboured and fertilized, dis- appear; and the delightful environs of Rimac present no other ornament than a multitude of shrubs and green meadows, which, ao-itated by the gentle breeze, rival the undulations and murmurs of the Pacific Ocean, as itVashes its banks. Having penetrated into the ages of remote antiquity, in search of the fragments of the edifices of the Yncas, to com- plete the history of their monuments, we now fix our atten- tion on those times when the human footstep had as yet left no print on the sands of this favoured region ; when its fer- tile plains were still uncultivated. Nature alone appears, wrapt up in a mysterious silence. Her powerful hand is about to give the last perfe6tion to the globe, and to support its equilibrium, by forming two distin6l worlds in one single con- tinent. It would appear, that after she had exercised herself on the burning sands of Africa, on the leafy and fragrant groves of Asia, and on the temperate and colder chmes of Europe, PHYSICAL GEOGRAPHY OF PERU. 21 Europe, she aimed at assembling together in Peru all the pro- duftions she had denied to the other three quarters, to repose there majestically, surrounded by each of them. Such and so great are the riches this admirable kingdom contains ! In describing its physical geography, it will not be inexpedient to adopt certain divisions. We shall, in the first place, treat of the general design of the two worlds which compose the two principal parts of Peru ; of tliose two worlds which form the august temple of our mother and liberal benefactress. Their limits, their dire6tions, their correspondences ; their respedtive advantages over the rest of the terraqueous globe ; and their preponderance and influx in the equilibrium of that globe, are obje6ls which, presenting themselves on a large scale, will lead and accustom us, without fatigue, to the de- tailed examination of whatever each of them in particular contains. O that any one could possess the divine and ener- getic pencil of Nature, to give to his portraits the colouring and delicacy with Avhich she has beautified the original ! Peru, the limits of which are traced out by the great phe- nomena that divide the provinces of its universal empire, forms, without doubt, the whole of the southern part of the Burning Zone, which runs north and south from the Equator to the Tropic of Capricorn, and west and east from the bor- ders of the Pacific Sea to the forests and desarts of the country of the Amazons, by which the eastern branch of the Cordillera of the Andes is terminated. Thus its greatest extension, which is to be measured in degrees of latitude, embraces a space of twenty- three degrees and a half, between Cape Palma on the confines of Pasto, and Morro-Moreno on those of the king- dom of Chile. Chosen to be the throne of light in the sou- thern 22 PHYSICAL GEOGRAPHY OP PERU. them hemisphere, it spreads precisely over the whole of the space which the sun declines from the centre of the sphere, to animate it by its benign influence. Its breadth, which we shall place between two hundred and ninety-seven and three hundred and ten degrees of longitude, the first meridian being taken at the Peak of TenerifFe, varies according as the coasts are at a greater or smaller distance from the Cordillera, or chain of mountains. From the Line to the eighth degree, there is a separation of about one hundred and twenty leagues ; but hence, insensibly as it were, gaining ground, its greatest distance, at the eighteenth degree, is reduced to seventy leagues only. By choosing a middle term between these two extremes, and allowing twenty leagues to the degree, the re- sult gives to Peru a plane superficies of 44,650 square leagues*. The whole of this vast superficies serves as a basis to the great Cordillera of the Andes, which, separating majestically beneath the Equator, and forming two branches, the eastern and the western, parallel to each other, and, for the greater part, to the southern coasts, proceeds on to the Tropic of Capricorn. In its way, the eastern branch takes a bend to- wards the south-east, and terminates in the plains. The western branch penetrates into the kingdom of Chile -f. The highest ■ * The limits which we ascribe to Peru, and which are deduced from the con- lemplation of the equinoxes, the solstices, and the varieties of the soil and climates, agree with those established by the political demarcations executed by the Yncas. f To elucidate this subjedl as much as possible, it is proper in this place to state, that the part of South America comprehended between the Equator and the Tropic of Capricorn, is divided, north and south, by three Cordilleras, or chains of moun- tains. First, tliat of Brazil, which, commencing about the Equinodlial Line, runs to PHYSICAL GEOGRAPHY OF PERU. 23 highest points of each of them are covered by a snow as an- cient as the world ; and their volcanoes, which vomit forth a perpetual fire in the region of frost and cold, present a terri- fic spe6lacle to the contemplative philosopher. If the worth of countries were to be estimated by the greater or less extension they afford to population and to agriculture, the Royal Cordillera would diminish the value of Peru, since its eminences and declivities, far from augmenting the pro- portion of cultivable land which would be found at the bases of this chain of mountains, diminish them extremely * ; but, in to the Sierras, or mountainous territory of Maldonado, in the river of La Plata. Secondly, the eastern one of Peru, which, originating in the snow-clad mountains of Santa Martha, on the confines of the northern sea, runs, as has been said, to- wards the Tropic, from whence it takes an inclined direiStion towards the south- east, and terminates in the plains of the great Chaco. Thirdly, the western one, which proceeds from Nortli America, passes the isthmus of Panama, and redoubles the whole of the southern coast to Cape Horn. Between the northern sea and the first Cordillera, lies Brazil ; between the first and second, lie the great and lofty plains of the country of the Amazons ; and, in the line in which these plains termi- nate, the second Cordillera commences, as does also Peru, which is comprehended within this one and the third. The ancient Yncas gave to each of them the name oi Bitisuyu, which signifies a ^i?«^ o/'j;ww ; and as the four cardinal points, which they called Tavantlnsuyu, were denoted by the subjugated nations which they viewed towards them, that of the ^ntis, which is to the east of Cuzco, gave the name, as well to the mountains which descend from the second Cordillera into the plains, as to this same Cordillera which precedes them. We still preserve these distin£lions, Jiaving corrupted the vi'ord ^nt'is into Andes, and afterwards applied the same term to the soutli Cordillera. We say that both these Cordilleras lie beneath the Equator, since, notwithstanding in the province of Popayan they are already divided and pa- rallel, their mountains are so low, that at two degrees to the north, they have not the fourth part of the elevation of those of the south. Hence it is that the climate is very different from that of high Peru. * Taking it for granted that, in consequence of the parched and dry state of the declivities 24 PHYSICAL GEOGRAPHY OF PERU. in return, it affords other advantages, which are not only able to keep up the balance, but also to give a preponderance to the side of the territory. For the architedlure of this Cordil- lera appears to be altogether distin61: from that which Nature displays in the organization of the rest of the globe ; or, rather, it is its design and completion. Divided into two parts, it composes as many worlds, the one high, the other low, in which, as has already been said, is united whatever distin- guishes Africa from Asia, and both of them conjointly from Europe. The high world occupies the ground which separates the two above-mentioned chains of mountains, the summits of which are distant from each other, ten, twenty, and, in some instances, fifty leagues. It indeed happens that in some places they meet and unite, by the interposition of a third Cor- dillera, which runs east and west. Such is that of Asuay and Moxanda, in the kingdom of Quito*. Notwithstanding its soil, declivities of the southern mountains, and of the insalubrity of the summits of the Cordillera, it would be impossible to people and cultivate them, we can venture to assert that, even if it were praHicable to execute both, the curvatures, declivities, and hollows of the mountains would not add one handful of useful soil to that which their bases would afford, if they did not exist. This proposition, paradoxical as it may appear, is an incontestible truth, since all the trees which are planted on the convex superficies of a mountain have to stand perpendicularly to the horizon, and must con- sequently have, on the horizontal base, as many points of correspondence and sup- port as they occupy in the mountain. Hence it results that, the space which the plane affords being already filled up, nothing more can be planted or sown in all the unequal surfaces of the mountain by which it is occupied. It is equally demon- strable, that a mountainous territory can contain no more houses or inliabitants than the base it occupies, supposing it levelled. • Father Ararich, in his complete history, in manuscript, of the missions to the Andes PHYSICAL GEOGRAPHY OF PERU. 25 soil, covered with verdure and foliage, is interrupted by innu- merable heaths and deep clefts, still it is very aptly described by a philosopher who had occasion to examine this Cordillera. In ascending^ savs he, the rude and terrtjic mountains which look towards the South Sea, it cannot possibly occur to the human mind, that' on their shoulders others of equal magnitude should rise, atid that all of them should serve to shelter, in their common bosom, that happy country where Nature, in her most bountiful mood, or rather, in her prodigality, has painted the image of terrestrial paradise*'. The low world is situated, with the interposition of the chain of mountains, between the western branch and the ocean, which are distant from each other from ten to twenty leagues. It consists of a multitude of sloping plains, which, descending from this branch, from the Line to Tumbes, ter- minate in immense forests, and hence advance towards the borders of the ocean, as if with a design to limit its em- pire. The above plains are separated from each other by val- lies, which, originating at the coast of the ocean, with a breadth of from three to eight leagues, take an eastern direc- tion, being bounded on the north and on the south by a series of hills, which, augmenting in proportion as they enter Sierra, divide the western chain, occasionally cross the subsequent space, interse61: the eastern chain, and terminate in the plains of the country of the Amazons, preserving a great resemblance to their origin -j-. By Andes mountains, asserts, that there is another of these juniStions in the province of Jaen De Bracamoros, • Bouguer, Figure de la Terre, p. 31. t By the description we are about to give, it will be apparent that Peru consists E entirely 26 * PHYSICAL GEOGRAPHY OF PERU. By this description it would appear, that the true dire6lion of the Peruvian Alps is by no means north and south, as has been asserted, and that those who, upon this ground, have fancied they could overturn, by a single effort, the systems of Copernicus and Newton, have not paid a sufficient attention to this subje6t. Formed of an infinite series of high mountains, which run west and east, or in a contrary direction, between the South Sea and the country of the Amazons, and rising to a prodigious height in the midst of their career, they unite, and appear to the view to take a third course*. The delight- ful entirely of two Cordilleras, which, by the declivities that unite them, form La Sierra, and one of which, by its opposite sides, composes the mountains of the An-