old cabinet full of pretty large drawers, and pulling out one drawer, he showed us a surprising number of pieces of pure clean gold, some round, some long, some flat, some thick, all of irregular shapes, and worked roundish at the ends, with rolling along, some of these weighed a quarter of an ounce, some more, and some less, and as I lifted the drawer, I believe there could not be less than between twenty and thirty pounds' weight of it. interrupt my account with the relation of all the Then he pulled out another drawer, which was almost full of the same kind of drug, but as small as sand, the biggest not so big as pins' heads, and which might very properly be called After this sight a man was to be surprised at nothing he could see. I asked him how long I was better satisfied in this particular, when such a treasure might be amassing together in the next day, talking to our new landlord this country? he told me that was according to about the mountains, and the wealth of them, I the pains they might take in the search; that he asked him if he could show me any of the gold || had been twelve years here, and had done little which was usually washed out of the hills by the or nothing; but had he had twenty negroes to rain, in the natural figure in which it was found? have set on work, as he might have had, he He smiled, and told me yes, he would show us a might have had more than this in one year. I little; and with that, carried us up into a kind asked him how much gold in weight he thought of a closet, where he had a great variety of odd there might be in all this he had shown me? he things gathered up about the mountains and told me he could not tell; that they never trourivers, such as fine shells, strange stones in the bled themselves to weigh, but when the silverform of stars, heavy pieces of ore, but such as smith at St Jago came to bring home any neither he nor any of us could tell what they vessel, or when the merchants from Lima came were, and the like; and after this, he pulled out to Baldivia with European goods, then they a great leather bag, which had, I believe, near bought what they wanted of them; that they fifty pounds weight in it, here, seignior, says he, were sensible they gave excessive dear for every here is some of the dirt of the earth, and turning thing, even ten or twenty for one. But as gold, it out upon the table, it was easy to see that it he said, was the growth of that country, and the was all gold, though the pieces were of different other things, such as cloth, linen, fine silks, &c. forms, and some scarce looking like gold at all, were the gold of Europe, they did not think being so mixed with the spar, or with earth, much to give what they asked for those things. that it did not appear so plain; but in every bit In short, I found that the people in this country, there was something of the clear gold to be though they kept large plantations in their hands, seen, and the smaller the lumps the purer the had great numbers of cattle, ingenios, as they gold appeared. call them, for making sugar, and land, under management, for the maintenance of themselves and families; yet did not wholly neglect the Igetting gold out of the mountains, where it was in such plenty; and therefore it seems the town adjacent is called Villa Rica, or the Rich Town, being seated as it were at the foot of the mountains, and in the richest part of them. I was surprised at the quantity more than at the thing itself, having, as I have said, seen the gold which the Indians found in the countries have described, which seemed to have little or no mixture; but then I was to have considered that what those Indians gathered was farther from the hills which it came from, and that those rough irregular pieces would not drive so far in the water, but would lodge themselves in the earth and sand of the rivers nearer home; and also that the Indians, not knowing how to separate the gold by fire from the dross and mixture above, did not think those rough pieces worth their taking up, whereas the Spaniards here understood much better what they were about. But to return to the closet. When he had shown us this leather pouch full, he sweeps it by to one side of the table, which had ledges round it to keep it from running off, and takes up another bag full of large pieces of stone, great lumps of earth, and pieces of various shapes, all of which had some gold in them, but not to be gotten out but by fire. These, he told us, their servants bring them home as they find them in the mountains, lying loose here and there, when|| they run after their cattle. But still I asked him if they found no pieces of pure gold? upon this, he turned to a great After I had sufficiently admired the vast quantity of gold he had, he made signs to the doctor that I should take any piece or any quantity that I pleased; but thought I might take it as an affront to have him offer me any particular small parcel. The doctor hinted it to me, and I bade him return him thanks; but to let him know that I would by no means have any of that, but that I would be glad to take up a piece or two, such as chance should present to me in the mountains; that I might show in my own country, and tell them that I took it up with my own hands. He answered he would go with me himself; and doubted not but to carry me where I should fully satisfy my curiosity, if I would be content to clamber a little among the rocks. I now began to see plainly that I had no manner of need to have taken his sons for hostages for my safety; and would fain have sent for them back again; but he would by no means give me leave; so I was obliged to give that over. A day or two after I desired of him that he would give || me leave to send for one more person from the ships, who had a great mind should see the country with me, and to send for some few things that I should want, and, withal, to satisfy my men that I was safe and well. This he consented to; so I sent away one of the two midshipmen, who I called my servants, and with him two servants of the Spaniard, my landlord, as I called him, with four mules and two horses. I gave my midshipman my orders and directions under my hand to my supercargo what to do, for I was resolved to be even with my Spaniard for all his good usage of me; the midshipman was gone ten days, for they came back pretty well laden, as you shall hear, and the men were obliged to come all on foot. All the while they were gone, my landlord and I spent in surveying the country and viewing his plantation. As for the city of Villa Rica, it was not the most proper to go there in public; and the doctor knew that as well as the Spaniard; and therefore, though we went several times incognito, yet it was of no consequence to me, neither did I desire it. it. One night I had a very strange fright here, and behaved myself very much like a fool about The case was this; I waked in the middle of the night, and chancing to open my eyes, I saw a great light of fire, which to me seemed as if the house or some part of it had been on fire; I, as if I had been at Wapping or Rotherhithe, where people are always terrified with such things, jumped out of bed and called my friend Captain Merlotte, and cried out fire, fire! The first thing I should have thought of, on this occasion, should have been that the Spaniard did not understand what the words fire, fire! meant ; and, that if I expected they should understand me, I should have cried fuego, fuego! However, Captain Merlotte got up and my Madagascar captain, for we all lay near one another, and with the noise they waked the whole house, and my landlord, as he afterwards confessed, began to suspect some mischief; his steward having come to his chamber door and told him that the strangers were up in arms, in which mistake we might all have had our throats cut, and the poor Spaniard not to blame neither. But our doctor coming hastily in to me, unriddled the whole matter, which was this, that a volcano, or burning vent among the hills, being pretty near the Spanish side of the country, as there are many of them in the Andes, had flamed out that night, and gave such a terrible light in the air, as made us think the fire had at least been in the out-houses, or in part of the house, and accordingly had put me in such a fright. one part of the hills or another; and that in my passing the mountains I should see several of them. I asked him if they were not alarmed with them, and if they were not attended with earthquakes. He said he believed that among the hills themselves they might have some shakings of the earth, because sometimes they should find pieces of the rocks break off and fall down, and that it was among those little fractures that sometimes pieces of stone were found which had gold interspersed in them, as if they had been melted and run together, of which he had shown me some; but that, as for earthquakes in the country, he had never heard of any since he came thither, which had been upwards of fifteen years, including three years that he dwelt at St Jago. One day, being out on horseback with my landlord, we rode up close to the mountains, and he showed me at a distance an entrance, as he called it, into them, frightful enough indeed, as you shall hear in its place. Then he told me that was the way he intended to carry me when he should go to show me the highest hills in the world; but he turned short, and, smiling, said it should not be yet, for though he had promised me a safe return, and left hostages for it, yet he had not capitulated for time. I told him he need not capitulate with me for time, for if I had not two ships to stay my coming, and between three and four hundred men eating me up all the while, I did not know whether I would ever go away again or no, if he would give me house-room. He told me, as to that, he had sent my men some victuals, so that they would not starve if I did not come back for some days. This surprised me a little, and I discovered it in my countenance. “Nay, seignior," says he, "I have only sent them some victuals to maintain my two hostages, for, you know, they must not want." It was not good manners in me to ask what he had sent; but I understood, as soon as my midshipman returned, that he had sent down sixteen cows, or runts, I know not what to call them but black cattle; thirty hogs, thirteen large Peruvian sheep, as big as great calves; and three casks of Chilian wine, with an assurance that they should have more provisions when that was spent. I was amazed at all this munificence of the Spaniard, and very glad I was that I had sent my midshipman for the things I intended to present him again, for I was as well able to requite him for a large present as he was to make it, and had resolved it before I knew he had sent anything to the ship; so that this exchanging of presents was but a kind of generous barter or commerce; for, as to gold, we had either of us so much that it was not at all equal in value to what we had to give on both sides, as we were at present situated. Upon this, having told me what it was, he ran away to the Spanish servants, and told them what the meaning of it all was, and bade them go and satisfy their master, which they did, and all was well again; but as for me, I sat almost all the night staring out at the window at the eruption of fire upon the hills, and the like bonfire II had never seen before, I assure you. I sincerely begged my landlord's pardon for disturbing his house; and asked him if those eruptions were frequent. He said no, they were not frequent, for they were constant, either in In short, my midshipman returned with the horses and servants; and when we had brought what I had sent for into a place which I desired the Spaniard to allow me to open my things in, sent my doctor to desire the Spaniard to let me speak with him. I told him, first, that he must give me his parole of honour not to take amiss what I had to say to him; that it was the custom in our country, at any time, to make presents to the ladies, Dutch holland, worth in London about seven shillings an ell, and thirty-six clls in length, and worth in Chili, to be sure, fifteen pieces of eight per ell, at least; or it was rather likely that all the kingdom of Chili had not such another. with the knowledge and consent of their husbands or parents, without any evil design, or without giving any offence, but that I knew it was not so among the Spaniards; that I had not had the honour yet either to see his lady or his daughter, but that I had heard he had a lady Then I gave her two pieces of China damask, and a daughter also; however, that if he pleased and two pieces of China silks, called atlasses, to be the messenger of a trifle I had caused my flowered with gold; two pieces of fine muslin, man to bring, and would present it for me, and one flowered, the other plain, and a piece of very not take it as an offence, he should see before-fine chintz, or printed calico; also a large parcel hand what it was, and I should content myself of spices, made up in blue papers, being about with his accepting it in their behalf. six pounds of nutmegs, and about twice as many cloves. He told me, smiling, he did not bring me thither to take any presents of me; I had already done enough, in that I had given him his liberty, which was the most valuable gift in the world; and as to his wife, I had already made her the best present I was able, having given her back her husband; that it is true it was not the custom of the Spaniards to let their wives appear in any public entertainment of friends, but that he had resolved to break through that custom, and that he had told his wife what a friend I had been to her family, and that she should thank me for it in public; and that then, what present I had designed for her, since I would be a maker of presents, she should do herself the honour to take it with her own hands, and he would be very far from mistaking them, or taking it ill from his wife. As this was the highest compliment he was able to make me, the more he was obliging in the manner, for he returned in about two hours, leading his wife into the room by the hand, and his daughter following. I must confess I was surprised, for I did not expect to have seen such a sight in America. The lady's dress, indeed, I cannot describe, but she was really a charming woman in her person, of about forty years of age, and covered over with emeralds and diamonds, I mean as to her head. She was veiled till she came into the room, but gave her veil to her woman when her husband took her by the hand. Her daughter I took to be about twelve years old, which the Spaniards count marriageable; she was pretty, but not so handsome as her mother. After the compliments on both sides, my landlord, as I now called him, told her very handsomely what a benefactor I had been to her family, by redeeming him from the hands of villains; and she, turning to me, thanked me in the most obliging manner, and with a modest, graceful way of speech, such as I cannot represent, and which, indeed, I did not think the Spaniards, who are said to be so haughty, had been acquainted with. I then desired the doctor to tell the Spaniard her husband that I desired his lady to accept a small present which my midshipman had brought for her from the ship, and which, with his words, I took in my hand, and the Spaniard led his wife on to take it; and I must needs say it was not a mean present, besides, its being of ten times the value in that place as it would have been at London, and I was now very glad that, as I mentioned above, I always reserved a small quantity of all sorts of goods unsold, that I might have them to dispose of as occasion should offer. First, I presented her with a very fine piece of || And, lastly, to the young lady I gave one piece of damask, two pieces of China taflity, and a piece of fine striped muslin. After all this was delivered, and the ladies had received them, and given them their women to hold, I pulled out a little box, in which I had two couple of large pearls, of that pearl which I mentioned we found at the Pearl Islands, very well matched for ear-rings, and gave the lady one pair and the daughter the other; and now, I think, I had made a present fit for an ambassador to carry to a prince. The ladies made all possible acknowledgment, and we had the honour that day to dine with them in public. My landlord the Spaniard told me I had given them such a present as the Viceroy of Mexico's lady would have gone fifty leagues to have received. But I had not done with my host, for, after dianer, I took him into the same room, and told him I hoped he did not think I had made all my presents to the ladies, and had nothing left to show my respect to him; and, therefore, first I presented him with three negro men, which I had bought at Callao for my own use, but knew I could supply myself again in my way home, at a moderate price; in the next place I gave him three pieces of black Colchester bays, which, though they are coarse ordinary things in England, that a footman would scarce wear, are a habit for a prince in that country. I then gave him a piece of very fine scarlet English serge, which was really very valuable in England, but much more there; and another piece of crimson broad-cloth, and six pieces of fine silk druggets for his two sons, and thus I finished my presents. The Spaniard stood still, and looked on all the while I was laying out my presents to him, as one in a transport, and said not one word till all was over; but then he told me very gravely that it was now time for him to turn me out of his house; "For, seignior," says he, "no man ought to suffer himself to be obliged beyond his power of return, and I have no possible way of making any return to you equal to such things as these." It is true the present I had made him, if it was to be rated by the value of things in the country where it then was, would have been valued at six or seven hundred pounds sterling, but to reckon them as they might cost me, did not altogether amount to above one hundred pounds, except the three negroes, which, indeed, cost me at Lima one thousand two hundred pieces of eight. He was as sensible of the price of those negroes as I was of the occasion he had of them, and of the work he had to do for them; and he came to me about an hour after, and told me he a particular fertility, which hot climates are not had looked over all the particulars of the noble blessed with, especially as to corn, the most necespresents which I had made them; and, though || sary of all productions, such as wheat, I mean Euthe value was too great for him to accept, or for ropean wheat, or English wheat, which grew any man to offer him, yet, since I had been at so here as well and as kindly as in England; which much trouble to send for the things, and that I in Peru, and the Isthmus of America, will by no thought him worthy such a bounty, he was come means thrive for want of moisture and cold. back to tell me that he accepted, thankfully, all my presents, both to himself and to his wife and daughter, except only the three negroes, and as they were bought in the country, and were the particular traffic of the place, he could not take them as a present, but would be equally obliged, and take it for as much a favour, if I would allow him to pay for them. I smiled, and told him he and I would agree upon that; for he did not yet know what favours I had to ask of him, and what expense I should put him to; that I had a great design in my view, which I was to crave his assistance in, and which I had not yet communicated to him, in which he might perhaps find that he would pay dear enough for all the little presents I had made him; and, in the mean time, to make him easy as to the three negro men, I gave him my word that he should pay for them; only not yet. He could have nothing to object against an offer of this kind, because he could not guess what I meant, but gave me all the assurances of service and assistance that lay in his power, in anything that I might have to do in that country. Here were, also, an excellent middling breed of black cattle, which they fed under the shade of the mountains, and on the banks of the rivers, till they came to be very fat. In a word, here were, or might be produced, all the plants, fruits and grain, of a temperate climate; at the same time, the orange, lemon, citron, pomegranate, and figs, with a moderate care, would come to a very tolerable perfection in their gardens, and even sugar-canes, in some places, though these last but rarely, and not without great art in the cultivation, and chiefly in gardens. They assured me, that further southward beyond Baldivia, and to the latitude of forty-seven to forty-nine, the lands were esteemed richer than where we now were; the grass more strengthening and nourishing for the cattle, and that, consequently, the black cattle, horses, and hogs, were all of a larger breed; but that as the Spaniards had no settlement beyond Baldivia to the south, so they did not find the natives so tractable as where we then were; where, though the Spaniards were but few, and the strength they had, was but small, yet, as upon any occasion they had always been assisted with forces sufficient from St Jago, and if need were, even from Peru, so the natives had always been subdued, and had found themselves obliged to submit, and that now they were entirely reduced, and were, and had been, for several years, very easy and quiet. Besides the plentiful harvest which they made of gold from the mountains, (which appeared to be the great allurement of the Spaniards), had drawn them rather to settle The sequel of the story will also make it suf- here, than further southward, being naturally ficiently appear, that I did not make such pre-addicted, as my new landlord confessed to me, to sents as these in mere ostentation, or only upon the compliment of a visit to a Spanish gentleman, any more than I would leave my ship, and a cargo of such value, in the manner I had done, to make a tour into the country, if, had not views sufficient to justify such beginnings, and the consequence of these things will be the best apology for me, to those who shall have patience to put them all together. But here, by the way, you are to understand, that all this was carried on with a supposition, that we acted under a commission from the king of France; and though he knew many of us were English, and that I was an Englishman, in particular, yet, as we had such a commission and produced it, we were Frenchmen, in that sense, to him, nor did he entertain us upon any other footing. We had now spent a fortnight, and something more, in ceremony and civilities, and in now and then taking a little tour about the fields, and towards the mountains. However, even in this way of living, I was not so idle as I seemed to be for I had not only made due observations of all the country which I saw, but informed myself sufficiently of the parts which I did not see. I found the country not only fruitful in the soil, but wonderfully temperate and agreeable in its climate. The air, though hot, according to its proper latitude, yet that heat so moderated by the cool breezes from the mountains, that it was rather equal to the plain countries in other parts of the world, in the latitude of fifty, than to a climate in thirty-eight to forty degrees. This gave the inhabitants the advantages, not only of pleasant and agreeable living, but also of reap the harvest which had the least labour and hazard attending it, and the most profit. Not but that at the same time he confessed, that he believed, and had heard, that there was as much gold to be found further to the south, as far as the mountains continued; but that, as I have said, the natives were more troublesome, and more dangerous, than where they now lived, and that the king of Spain did not allow troops sufficient to civilize and reduce them. I asked him concerning the natives in the country where we were :-he told me they were the most quiet and inoffensive people, since the Spaniards had reduced them by force, that could be desired,—that they were not, indeed, numerous or warlike, the warlike and obstinate part of them having fled farther off to the south, as they were overpowered by the Spaniards;that for those that were left, they lived secure, under the protection of the Spanish governor ;that they fed cattle and planted the country, and sold the product of their lands very much to the Spaniards, but that they did not covet to be rich only to obtain clothes, arms, powder and shot, which however, they let them have but sparingly and with good assurance of their adelity. I asked him if they were not treacherous and per fidious, and if it was not dangerous trusting them- || take time to see every thing which I might think selves among them in the mountains, and among worth seeing, and not be in so much haste, as if the retired places where they dwelt ;-he told I was sent express. I told him, he was very me that it was quite the contrary, that they were much in the right; that I did not desire to make so honest, and so harmless, that he would at any a thing, which I expected so much pleasure in, time venture to send his two sons into the moun- be a toil to me more than needs must; and above tains a hunting, with each of them a Chilian for all, that, as I supposed, I should not return into his guide, and let them stay with the said natives these parts very soon, I would not take a cursory two or three nights and days at a time, and be view of a place, which I expected would be so in no uneasiness about them; and that none of well worth seeing, and let it be known to all, I them were ever known to do any foul or treach- should speak of it to, that I wanted to see it erous thing by the Spaniards, since he had been again, before I could give a full account of it. in that country. "Well, seignior," says he, "we will not be in Having thus fully informed myself of things, haste, or view it by halves; for if wild and unI began now to think it was high time to see the couth places will be a diversion to you, I promise main sight which I came to enquire after, (viz.)|| myself your curiosity shall be fully gratified; but the passages of the mountains, and the wonders as to extraordinary things, rarities in nature, and that were to be discovered on the other side; || surprising incidents which foreigners expect, I and accordingly I took my patron the Spaniard cannot say much to that. However, what think by himself, and told him, that as I was a traveller, you, seignior, says he, if we should take a tour and was now in such a remote part of the world, a little way into the entrance of the hills, which he could not but think I should be glad to see I showed you the other day, and look upon the everything extraordinary, that was to be seen; gate of this gulph? perhaps your curiosity may that I might be able to give some account of the be satisfied with the first day's prospect, which I world when I came into Europe, better, and dif- assure you, will be none of the most pleasant, and fering from what others had done, who had been you may find yourself sick of the enterprize." there before me; and that I had a great mind, if he would give me his assistance, to enter into the passages and valleys which he had told me so much of in the mountains, and, if it was possible, which, indeed, I had always thought it was not, to take a prospect of the world on the other side. I told him, no; I was so resolved upon the attempt, since he, who, I was satisfied, would not deceive me, had represented it as so feasible, and especially since he had offered to conduct me through it, that I would not, for all the gold that was in the mountains, lay it aside. He shook his head at that expression, and smiling at the He told me, it was not a light piece of work, doctor, says he, "this gentleman little thinks that and, perhaps, the discoveries might not answer there is more gold in these mountains, nay, even my trouble, there being little to be seen but in this part where we are, than there is now above steep precipices, inhospitable rocks, and unpas- ground in the whole world: partly understanding sable mountains, immuring us on every side, what he said, I answered, my meaning was, to innumerable rills and brooks of water falling let him see, that nothing could divert me from from the clifts, making a barbarous and unplea- the purpose of viewing the place, unless he himsant sound; and that sound echoed and reverbe-self forbid me, which, I hoped he would not; and rated from innumerable cavities and hollows among the rocks, and these all pouring down into one middle stream, which we should always find on one side or other of us as we went, and that sometimes, we should be obliged to pass those middle streams, as well as the rills and brooks on the sides, without a bridge, and at the expence of pulling off our clothes. He told us, that we should meet, indeed, with provisions enough, and with an innocent, harmless people, who, according to their ability, would entertain us very willingly; but that I who was a stranger, would be sorely put to it for lodging, especially for so many of us. However, he said, as he had, perhaps, at first, raised this curiosity in me, by giving me a favourable account of the place, he would be very far from discouraging me now; and that if I resolved to go, he would not only endeavour to make every thing as pleasant to me as he could, but that he and his major domo would go along with me, and see us safe through, and safe home again; but desired me, not to be in too much haste, for that he must make some little preparation for the journey, which, as he told us, might,|| perhaps, take us up fourteen or sixteen days forward, and as much back again; not, he said, that it was necessary that we should be so long going and coming, as that he supposed I would that as for looking a little way into the passage, to try if the horror of the place would put a check to my curiosity, I would not give him that trouble, seeing the more terrible and frightful, the more difficult and impractible it was, provided it could be mastered at last, the more it would please me to attempt and overcome it. Nay, nay, seignior," said he pleasantly, "there is nothing difficult or impracticable in it, nor is it any thing but what the country people, and even some of our nation, perform every day; and that, not only by themselves, either for sport in pursuit of game, but even with droves of cattle, which they go with from place to place, as to a market, or a fair; and, therefore, if the horror of the clefts and precipices, the noises of the volcanos, the fire, and such things as you may see and hear above you, will not put a stop to your curiosity, I assure you, you shall not meet with any thing unpassable or impracticable below, nor any thing but what, with the assistance of God, and the blessed virgin (and then he crossed himself, and so we did all) we shall go cheerfully over." Finding, therefore, that I was thus resolutely bent upon the enterprize, but not in the least guessing at my design, he gave order to have servants and mules provided, for mules are much fitter to travel among the hills than horses; and in four days he promised to be ready for a march. |