452 A VOYAGE TO Book VL 



a private Indian, whose guaca was raised only by lils 

 family and a tew acquaintance : with them also were 

 buried their furniture, and many of their instruments 

 both of gold, copper, stone, and earth : and these 

 now are the objects- of the curiosity or avarice of 

 the Spaniards inhabiting the country ; that many of 

 them make it a great part of their business to break 

 up those guacas, in expectation of finding something 

 valuable: and, misled by fiuding some pieces of 

 gold here and there, they so devote themselves 

 to this search, as to spend in it both their sub- 

 stance and time : though it must be owned, that 

 many, after a long perseverance under disappoint- 

 ments, have at length met with rich returns for all 

 their labour and expence. Two instances of this 

 kind happened while we were in the country ; the 

 first guaca had been opened near the village of 

 Cayambe, in the plain of Pesillo, a little before 

 our arrival at Quito ; and out of it were taken a 

 considerable quantity of gold utensils; some of which 

 "we saw in the revenue- ofiice, having been brought 

 there as equivalents for the fifths. The second was 

 more recently discovered in the jurisdiction of Pastos, 

 by a Dominican friar, who, from a turn of genius 

 for antiquities, had laid out very large sums in this 

 amusement; and at last met with a guaca in which 

 he is said to have found great riches. This is cer- 

 tain, that he sent some valuable pieces to the pro- 

 vincial of his order, and other persons at Quito. 

 The contents of most of them consist only of the 

 skeleton of the person interred ; the earthen vessels in 

 which he used to drink chica, now called guaqueros ; 

 some copper axes, looking-glasses of the ynca-stone, 

 and things of that kind, being of little or no value, 

 except for their great antiquity, and their being the 

 works of a rude illiterate people. 



The 



