ItO A VOYAGE TO Book VIÍ. 



CHAP. XV. 



Account of Paramvmj and Buenos Ayrcs ; the tzco 

 last Governments of the Audience of Charcas. 



■ IV. Bishoprick of the Audience of Charcas. 



Paraguay. 



THE government of Paraguay lies S. of Santa 

 Cruz de la Siena, and E. of Tucuman. South- 

 ward it joins to ihat of Bucuos Ajres ; and is termi- 

 nated eastward by the captainship of St. Viceute in 

 Erazi], whose capital is the citv of St. Pablo. These 

 countries were first discovered by Sebastian Gaboro, 

 who, com.ing to the river of Plata in the year 152G, 

 sailed up the river Palana in some small barks, and 

 thence evriered that of Paraguay. He was succeeded 

 in 15.3Í) by Juan de Ayolos, to whom Don Pedro 

 de Mendoza;, the first governor of Buenos Ayres, 

 had given a commission, together with a body of 

 troops, military stores and other necessaries ; and 

 afterwards, by his orders, Juan de Salinas founded 

 the city of Nuestra Señora de la Assumption, the 

 capital of the province ;" but the discovery of the 

 whole, and consequently the conquest of people who 

 inhabited it, being still imperfect, it was prosecuted 

 by Alvar Nunez, surnamed Cabeza de Baca, or Cow- 

 head, whose eminent services, on the death of Don 

 Pedro de Mendoza, procured him the government 

 of Buenos Ayres. 



The only settlements in the whole extent of this 

 governuient, are the city oí' Assumption, Villa Rica, 

 and some other towns, whose inhabitants are a mix- 

 ture of Spaniards, Mestizos, and some Indians, but the 



greatest 

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