B U E N O S A Y R E S. 



Among these, the silver mim- of Potosi is by far 

 Ayrci. (),,. n ,,,^t productive, and indeed the only one parti- 

 "v^ cularly deserving of attention. The mountain, from 

 which the metal is extracted, is of a conical form, 

 about six leagues in circumference, and -1 1 Xii ert above 

 Silver mine the neighbouring plaint). The discovery of its trea- 

 1'utosi. 8Ure was owing entirely to : a IVi iivian, 



named Diego Hualpa, while chasing some chamoys 

 among the rocks, in his ascent laid hold of a small 

 shrub, whose roots giving way disclosed'to his view 

 an immense vein of silver, which has been since dis- 

 tinguished by the name of La Rica, or the Rich. 

 The Indian concealed the circumstance from all his 

 frit nds, and only had recourse to this treasure to 

 supply his occasional wants; but the obvious change 

 in his fortune had excited the suspicions of one of 

 his companions, who, by urgent entreaties, drew from 

 him the secret, but who, upon some slight quarrel, 

 soon after revealed it to his master, a Spaniard. The 

 information was no sooner received than the mine 

 was opened ; and it was formally registered OH the 

 21st of April 1515. Since that time, it has been 

 constantly wrought, and the silver, which has paid 

 the royal duties from this mine, has been valued at 

 5750 millions of livres tournois, equal to 234,693,840 

 sterling. The mountain is now almost completely 

 excavated, and is perforated with above 300 pits, 

 few of which, however, are more than 70 yards deep. 

 It is now opened at the base, and vaults dug horizon- 

 tally, penetrate into its bowels, and meet the veins of 

 silver. In these vaults, which are called by the 

 miners sacabmtas, and are about six feet high and 

 eight feet broad, the air is cold and unwholesome, 

 and there the Indians work alternately night and day, 

 deprived of the light and heat of the sun, and en- 

 tirely naked to prevent them from embezzling any 

 of the ore. 



On the first discovery of the mine of Potosi, the 

 metal was much purer than it is at present, being 

 now greatly reduced, and even inferior to many of the 

 other mines. It is the abundance of the ore alone, 

 which renders it worth working. According to 

 Acosta, the average contents of silver in the crude 

 ore were, in 1574, from 8 to 9 marks per quintal ; 

 and the minerals, which yielded 50 marks per quin- 

 tal, were considered as extremely rich. Since the 

 beginning of the 18th century, however, they reckon 

 only from 3 to 4 marks per caxon,* or from ^5. to 

 ^5*3 per quintal. From this it appears, that the mean 

 riches of the minerals have diminished in the propor- 

 tion of 170 t 1 ; but what is surprising, the quan- 

 tity of silver extracted from the mines of Potosi has 

 only diminished in the proportion of 4- to 1, as will 

 be seen in the following calculations, which are giver 

 by Humboldt in a more extended form. 



1. From the opening of the mines of Potosi in 

 1545 to the year 1556, when the royal duties were 



first recorded with accuracy ; Ulloa, upon the autho- 

 rity of Don Scbastiani Sandoval y Guzman, who 

 published an account of these mines in 1634, entitled 

 I'iftcnsionct del /' < i, ke* the total produce 

 which paid duty to be 613 millions of piastres, ma- 

 king v average of 55,726,000 piastres or 

 6,556,000 marks of sflver. This immense sum, how- 

 ever, M. Humboldt, upon no less unquestionable data, 

 has reduced to 127,500,000 piastres, or 15,000,000 

 of marks, making an annual produce of nearly 

 1,363,6;J6* marks. 



2. The royal duties + paid on the silver extracted 

 from the mines of Potosi, between the 1st ot January 

 1556, and the 31st of December 1578, during which 

 the fifth only was paid, amounted to 9,801,906 pias- 

 tres, making a total produce of 49,009,530 piastres ; 

 or 5,765,827 marks of silver, which, for 23 years, 

 makes the average annual produce of 250,688 marks. 



3. The duties paid from the 1st of January 1579 

 to the 19th of July 1736, during which one and a half 

 per cent, de covos}; was first paid, and then the 

 fifth of the remaining 9ti\ piastres, amounted to 

 129,417,273 piastres, making a total produce of 

 nearly 610,458,835 piastres, or 71,818,686$ marks of 

 silver, which, for 1574 years, is at an annual average 

 produce of nearly 455,9914: marks. 



4. Between the 20th of July 1736, and the 31st 

 of December 1789, during which the one and a half 

 per cent, de covos and the half of the fifth only were 

 paid, the royal duties amounted to 14,54-2,684 pias- 

 tres, making a total produce of 128,129,3714 piastres, 

 or 15,074,044 marks of silver, which, for 534 years, 

 makes an annual produce of nearly 281,758 marks. 



5. From 1789 to 1803, we have no account of the 

 royal duties; but during that period the total pro- 

 duce of Potosi, according to the records of the mint, 

 were 46,000,000 of piastres, or 5,411,764 marks, 

 making an yearly average of 386,5544 marks. 



From these calculations, it appears that the an- 

 nual produce of the last period is little more than a 

 fourth of that of the first ; but in giving the ave- 

 rage produce for periods of such a length, the gra- 

 dual diminution or increase of the quantity of silver 

 extracted from these mines could not be distinctly 

 marked. We may therefore observe, that during the 

 second period, when the royal duties were first cor- 

 rectly registered, the king's fifth varied from 500,000 

 to 300,000 piastres; and that during the first 50 years 

 of the third period, the duties varied from 1,000,000 

 to l,500,000oi piastres; and then gradually diminish- 

 ed until 1735, when they only amounted to 271,6'Jl 

 piastres, 6 reals. From 1737 to 1789, the increase 

 was equally gradual from 183,704 to 335,4-68 pi- 

 astres. We may also remark, that in these calcula- 

 tions, we have uniformly valued the piastre at only 

 8 reals de plata, while we are assured, that until near 

 the close of the 16th century, the Spaniards reckon- 

 ed by piastres of 4SO maravedis, or nearly 134 reals 



A caxon contains about fifty hundred weight. 



f These duties are extracted from a book of accounts in the royal treasury of Potosi. This book, however, contains no 

 information relative to the years anterior to 1556, although two miners of Porco, Juan de Villaroel and Diego Centeno began 

 to work thia vein in 1545. 



The covos is on ancient duty, given by the Emperor Charles V. to DOB Francisco de los Cover, but which was after- 

 wards assumed by the crown. 



