So A VOYAGE TO Book L 



by the public Tales made there. Thefe Tales, though 

 not acronrnjanied with the formalities obferved at 

 Porto Bello fair, are very confiderabie. The traders 

 , of the inland provinees of Santa Fe, Popayan, and 

 Quito, lay out not only their own fíocks, hut alfo the 

 monies intrufled to them by commiffions, for feveral 

 forts of goods, and thofe fpecies of provifions which 

 are moft wanted in t eir rcfpe^live countries. The 

 two provinces of Santa Fe and Popayan have no other 

 way of fupplying themfelves with the latter, than from 

 Carlhagena. Their traders bring gold and íílver in 

 fpecie, ingots, and duil, and alfo emeralds ; as, be- 

 lides the filver mines worked at Santa Fe, and which 

 daily increafe by frefh difcoveries, there are others 

 which yield the fineil emeralds. But the value of 

 thefe gems being now fallen in Europe, and particu- 

 larly in Spain, the trade of them, formerly fo confi- 

 derabie, is now greatly leifened, and confequently the 

 reward for finding them. All thefe mines produce 

 great quantities of gold, which is carried to Choco, 

 and there pays one fifth to the king, at an office 

 ereitcd for that purpofe. 



This commerce was for fome years prohibited, at 

 the folicitation of the merchants of Lima, who com- 

 plained of the great damages they fufiained by the 

 iranfportalion of European merchandiles fr(»m Quito 

 to Peru ; which being thus furnillicd, while the traders 

 of Lima were employtd at the fairs of Panama and 

 Porto Bello, at their return, they found, to their 

 great lots, the price of goods vf-ry much lowered. But 

 it being afterwards ronfider^^d, that reftraining the 

 mercliants of Quito and other places ^om purrhafing 

 goods at Carthagena, on the arrival of the galleons, 

 was of great detriincnl to i lofe provinces; it was 

 ordered, in regard to both parties, that, on notice 

 being given in thofe provinces, of the arrival of the 

 galleons at Carthagena, all commerce, with regard to 

 European commodities^ ihould ceafe between Quitp 



and 



