Ch. i. south AMERICA. ' 143 



mixed with fand : Cape St. Lorenzo bearing W.S. W. 

 and Monte ChriTio S. S. E. 6° eaflerly. 



Two reafons induced us (o anchor here : the fíríl: 

 was, that as part of the intention of our original voyage 

 was to iTieafure fome degrees of the equator, beiides 

 ibofe of the meridian ; and having been informed, at 

 Panama, of the fituation of this coafr, we were deñrous 

 of viewing it, in order to know whether, by forming 

 our ñrñ bafe on its plains, the feries of triangles could 

 ])e continued to the mountains contiguous to Quito : 

 the fecond, the want of water and proviiions ; for the 

 feafon being .pretty far advanced, wc had flattered our- 

 felves, v/hile at Panama, with falling in with the 

 brifas, and by that means of foon reaching Guayaquil ; 

 and had therefore taken in proviiions only for fuch a 

 lliort voyage. 



.Tn order to fatisfy ourfelves with regard to our firft 

 and principal view, we all went on fhore on the loth 

 in the evening to the village of Monte Chriilo, about 

 two leagues and a half from the coaft. But we foon 

 found any geometrical operations to be impracti- 

 cabje there, the country being every where extremely 

 mountainous, and almoli covered v^/ith prodigious 

 trees, an infurmountable obftrue^ion to any fuch de- 

 iign. This being farther confirmed to us by the 

 Indian inhabiíanís, we determined to purfuc our 

 voyage to Guayaquil, and tlience to Quito. Ac- 

 cordingly on the iith we returned to the coaft of 

 Manta, where, whilit the fhip was taking in water 

 and proviiion, we employed ouricWes-in making ob- 

 fervations ; by which we found the latitude oí this 

 place to be 0° 56' 5^'' fouth. But Meilrs. Bouguer 

 and de la Condamine, refjecling that our flay at 

 Guayacjuil would be coniiderable before the feafon 

 would permit the mules to come from Guaranda to 

 carry us to the mountains, and deiirous of making 

 the beft ufe of their time, determined to ftay here, 

 in order to make further obfervations on the longi- 

 tude 



