ACCOUNT OF BOOKS. 



1003 



question, the production of an un- 

 tutored native," enabled the editor 

 to illustrate many of his subjects 

 •with appropriate engravings, in 

 ■which the design of the artist has 

 been strictly adhered to; but it must 

 be remembered, that as he Mas 

 placed on an eminence, his picture 

 presents wl'.atist''rmf<!, by painters, 

 abiid'seye Yiew, whicli will account 

 for th^ species of ptrspective pre- 

 served in them. 



We certainly agree with the edi- 

 tor, that such a society as we have 

 described, establishing itself under 

 the peculiar circumstances of the'' 

 country, in the capital of Peru, the 

 members of which, in treating the 

 diversified subjects of literature, 

 philosophy, hist ry, and ethics, and 

 displaying a profound knowledge 

 of ancient and modern learning, is a 

 novelty as welcome ai it was unex- 

 pected. Whether it still exist at 

 Lima, is not accurately known, but 

 the Peruvian ^lercury, as may well 

 be supposed, after having met with 

 a variety of restraints, was discon- 

 tinued about five or six years after 

 its commencement. 



We shall now proceed to give our 

 readers such extracts from this sin- 

 gular volume, as appear to us best 

 calculated for their amusement and 

 instruction. 



The following general idea of 

 Peru, not determined to any parti- 

 cular e'ther of its history or litera- 

 ture, is well worthy notice, and may 

 be considered a fair specimen of the 

 merit of the work itself. 

 " This great empire, the foundation 



of which by tne Incns remains en- 

 veloped in the obscurity of a series 

 of fables, and of an niHortain tradi- 

 tion, has lost much of its local gran- 

 deur since the time when it wa« 

 stripped, on the north side, of the 

 provinces wiiich form the kiiigdoni 

 of Quito,* and afterwards of those 

 wiiich, towards the east, constitute 

 the \iceroyalty of Buenos ;'\yres. f 

 Its present exteiit+ in length runs, 

 north and south, over a space of 

 from four hundred and twenty to 

 four hundred and fifty leagues, 

 from two degrees to nearly twenty- 

 three degrees of south latittjde ; and 

 its greatest breadth is from one hun- 

 dred to one hundred and twenty 

 leagues, east and west, from two 

 hundred and ninetj'-seven to three 

 hundred and ten degrees of west 

 longitude, the first meridian being 

 taken at the Peak of Teneriffe. The 

 river of Guayaquil divides it from 

 the new kingdom of Granada on the 

 north side. The depopulated ter- 

 ritory of Atacama separates it f-oni 

 the kingdom of Chile towards the 

 south. Another horrible desart, of 

 more than fire hundred leagues ex- 

 tent, separates it towards the east 

 from the provinces of Paraguay and 

 Buenos Ayres ; and lastly, the Pa- 

 cific Sea washes its western shores. 



" A chain of barren and rugged 

 mountains ; several sandy plains, 

 which in a manner reach from one 

 extremity of the co.xst to the other ; 

 and several lakes of many leagues 

 in extent, some of which are situated 

 on the summits of tlic above chain 

 of mountains, occui)y agrcat part of 



* In 1718. t In 177.".. 



t The geographical map of Santa Cruz, and the hyrlrou,r-.iphical chart of Don 

 Ultoa, inserted in itic third volume of his voya|;e to South An>erica, huvc been use- 

 ful to us in fixing the longitudes and latitudes, rcsjicciin;; which IJuschiui^, Lacroix, 

 and various other geographers, ilifTcr most essentially. 



the 



