Cíi. XY. SOUTH AMERICA. 185 



iníin ; on tlie N. it terminotes on Paras:üay, and is 

 bounded towards the S. by Ibc land of j\íaíivllai]. 

 Its coinitiies are ^vate^ed by tbc groat ri\er de ia 

 Plata, the discovery oí' which was owing* to Juuu Dias 

 de Solis, who, in 1515, Jiaviug- sailed üoni Spain with 

 two ", cssels to maUe discoveries, arrived at the month 

 of this river, and took possession of it in the name of 

 ihe king' of Spain. But bejn^^ unhappily deluded by 

 ihe signs of joy and friendship made by the Indian>, 

 }ie landed, and was immediately killed, together with 

 his few attendants. The same voyage was. repeated 

 in 1525 under Sebastian Caboi^ who entering the 

 river, disco\cred an island, which he called St. Ga- 

 briel ; and advancing fr.rther, ca0ie to another river, 

 which emptied itself into that of La Plata; to this 

 li^gave the name of tít Salvador, causing his ileet 

 to enter the river, and there discinbiirk their troops. 

 Here he built a tori, and leavirg in it a ])art of his 

 inen, he sailed above two hu¿'Jred leagues up the 

 river Parana, discovering alio that of PaLtiguay, 

 Cabot, having purchased some ingots of silver from 

 ihc Indians he met with, and partieidarly from the 

 Ouaranies, who brijught the metal from the oihrr 

 parts of Pern, iuiagined i]iattlK\y had found it in the 

 neighbourhood of the vi\'er, and tlicncci called the 

 liver Rio de la Plaía, or Silver lliver, which has su-r 

 persedcd that of Solis, as it was before called from 

 its first discoverer, whose memory is still preserved by 

 the little river Sous, about seven or eight leagues \'V . 

 of Maldon.ad.o-bav. 



The cai/iial of this government is called Nuestra 

 Señora de B'ucnos Ayres. it v.'as founded in the'year 

 153J by Don Pedro de Mendoza, pursuant to his 

 orders, whTch also appointed him governor. He 

 chose for it a place called Qipe Blanco, on the 

 3. side of Rio de la Plata, close by a small river. Its 

 latitude, according to fathci" Feviikí,, is 34", 31' 

 3S", S. He gave it the name of Buenos Ajres, 

 en account of the extreme salutiriiy of the air. The 

 7 city 



