40 A VOYAGE TO Boor VIL 



are of wood, finely carved, but so nearly imitating 

 the colour and apjiearance of stone, as only to be 

 discovered by the touch This ingenious imitation 

 does not proceed from parsimony, but necessitv ; in 

 order to avoid as much as possible the dreadful devas- 

 tations of earthquakes, which will not admit of struc- 

 tures built with ponderous materials. 



The chiirches are decorated with- small cupolas of 

 a very pr^^tty appearance : and though they are all of 

 wood, the sight cannot distinguish them from stone. 

 The towers are of stone from the foundation the 

 height of a toise and a half, or two toises, and from 

 thence to the roof of the church of brick, but the 

 remainder of wood painted of a free-stone colour, 

 terminating in a statue, or image alluding to the 

 name of the church. The height of these ^n^ay be 

 nearly known from that of St. Dominic, which by a 

 geometrical mensnu'ation we found to be between 50 

 and 60 yards; a height which though small in propor- 

 tion to the largeness of the structure, isa necessary- 

 caution both witli regard to the shocks of earth- 

 quakes, and the weight of the bells, which in size and 

 number exceed those of Spain, and on a general 

 ringing produce a very agreeable harmony. 



All the convents are furnished with water from 

 the city, though not from that of the rivulets, which 

 as we before observed, run through the streets in 

 covered channels; but brought from a spring by 

 means of pipes. While on tjie other hand, both 

 the monasteries and nunneries are each obliged to 

 maintain a fountain in the street, for the public iise 

 of poor people, who have not the conveniency of 

 water in their houses. 



The viceroys, whose power extends over all Peru^ 

 usually reside at Lima : but the province and audi- 

 f;nce of Quito has been lately detached iVom it ; as 

 yve liave observed ju our account of that province, 

 friiis government is tricnnialj though at the expiration 

 3 of 



