WHOLE VOL. THE WEST INDIES VAZQUEZ DE ESPINOSA 529 



with them. There are eight businessmen deahng in Spanish and 

 native merchandise, who Hve there on the plaza, not to mention others 

 who come up frequently for business transactions. 



1443. The city lies in ii°47' S. The town and quicksilver mines 

 of Huancavelica bear N. 13 leagues ; 9 leagues WNW. lies the 

 Province of Los Huachos which is annexed to the Corregimiento 

 de Los Chocorvos and attached to this State. Twenty-two leagues 

 SW. is the port of Pisco in the plains country on the seacoast ; and 

 the town of lea is 24 leagues S. To the SE. is the village of Santiago, 

 capital of the Province and Corregimiento of Los Chocorvos ; and 

 the city of Guamanga is 24 leagues ESE. 



Chapter LXII [63] (64) 



Continuing the Description of the City of Castrovirreina and Its 

 District. 



1444. The silver mines are N. of the city, which has a jurisdiction 

 of 20 leagues round about ; its boundaries are as indicated above. 

 It is all rough, cold country ; all it has is a kind of grass called icho, 

 like esparto grass ; but 4 leagues away there are some woods where 

 there are plenty of trees growing among the rocks which are called 

 quinua, characteristic of the puna ; they bear no fruit and are only 

 good for firewood and charcoal. Since the city lies high up and is 

 windy, its climate is very cold, most severe from June to September ; 

 it is very healthy. 



Two streams run near the city, enclosing it between them ; they 

 rise 2 leagues away and originate in the snow and the pools formed 

 when it rains, which is the period between December and March. 

 They are utilized by the mills for the grinding and washing of the 

 ore ; and even when they are in flood they do no harm to the city 

 or the mills. These rivers finally empty into the Pacific by the port 

 of Pisco. 



1445. There are six lakes in this neighborhood. One is at the 

 highest point of the La Trinidad range, 3 leagues from the city. 

 This discharges at two opposite points, S. and N. ; to the N. it runs 

 into two other lakes in succession, one after the other; these two 

 lakes are more than a league in circuit ; they are fresh water, but 

 contain no fish, being quite frigid. They are fed by watercourses 

 coming from the snow as it melts ; they all flow toward the river 

 passing by the city, where the mills are built. These waters run W. 

 to the Pacific. Others in these same mine ranges, and lake waters 

 also, flow to the Atlantic, and there are two silver mills built on 

 them, those of Ayala and of Francisco Conterino. 



35 



