358 SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. I02 



W. of this city, one comes to the city of San Juan de Pasto, at a 

 distance of 38 leagues ; 8 leagues before reaching the city, there is 

 a prairie valley named Sinbundoy, where three rivers originate, the 

 Rios de San Pedro, Santiago, and San Francisco, all of which are 

 likewise components of the great river Orinoco ; at the end of the 

 valley within a distance of 2 leagues all three unite and burst through 

 the Cordillera, and running E. receive the name of Purumayu. Six 

 leagues from this valley and two leagues before Pasto, there is a 

 paramo on whose summit lies a very deep lake which will be ten 

 leagues around. This gives rise to another river which is likewise 

 a component of the Orinoco. It runs straight E., and at 14 leagues 

 from its source it passes near the city called Nuestra Senora del 

 Valle de ficija in the Province of the Sucumbios in the State of 

 Popayan. This is mountainous country ; the province contains 500 

 Indians, under bondage to 18 Spanish encomenderos. 



Chapter V 



Continuing the Description of This Country and the Rio Orinoco. 



1085, Twenty leagues below this city to the E., this Rio de La 

 Laguna unites with the Rio de Purumayu to form a mighty stream 

 with a gentle current, for it flows through level country. From ficija 

 it runs along the slope of the Cordillera to the S., and at 10 leagues 

 distance it unites with two other rivers, the Rio Azuela and the Rio 

 Rodela ; they form a mighty stream which the Spaniards call the 

 Rio San Miguel ; this runs E., and flows into the Rio Purumayu 

 45 leagues below the city of ficija, forming a great, broad, deep 

 stream, sometimes over a league wide from bank to bank, with large 

 numbers of islands. Fifteen leagues S. one conies to another junction 

 of two rivers, named Zimba and Aguarico, of the Province of Puzi, 

 and Cofanes. The union of these two large rivers forms a mighty 

 stream which the Spaniards call the Rio del Oro, for there is much 

 gold in this province ; it runs E. This is the end of the Diocese of 

 Quito. Traveling 3 leagues S. from this river, one comes to the 

 city of San Pedro de Alcala del Rio Dorado in the State of Los 

 Quixos, a region with few Indians ; there will be 300 in this province, 

 in bondage to 10 encomenderos. This country is all mountainous and 

 heavily wooded. 



1086. From this city to Baeza, capital of the State of Los Quixos, 

 it will be 30 leagues to the S. ; from Baeza to Quito, which is to 

 the W., 20 leagues. Within its boundaries is a paramo named Anti- 

 sana whose slopes give rise to two rivers ; one, on the N., is called 



