CARACCAS. 



421 



t'aracca*. Antilles, where earthquakes are frequent, and Peru, 

 ^^"Y^" / where they are still more so, Caraccas enjoys inter- 

 vals of repose, which we might be disposed to con- 

 sider as almost miraculous, did we not know, th:it its 

 air being less rarefied, gives less action to electricity, 

 and that its soil contains in its bosom a smaller por- 

 tion of the principles of fermentation and combustion. 

 On the 1st May 1802, at eleven o'clock in the even- 

 ing, there was a pretty strong shock felt at Caraccas, 

 with an oscillation from west to east. On the 2()th of 

 the same month, at five minutes past four o'clock in 

 the afternoon, there was another of a vertical direc- 

 tion, which lasted one minute, nor did the earth re- 

 sume its horizontal position for two minutes after- 

 wards. Two strong shocks were experienced on the 

 4th July following, at 48 minutes past two o'clock 

 in the morning ; and nearly two hours after, there 

 was another not so strong. A dreadful earthquake 

 has lately (March 26th 1812) desolated La Guayra 

 and Caraccas; by which many public and private build- 

 ings have been thrown down, and an incredible number 

 of the inhabitants are said to have perished. The local 

 origin of these earthquakes appears to be in the pro- 

 vince of Cumana, for they are there more violent than 

 in any other part of the district of Caraccas. 



The natural history of a country, which, since its 

 first discovery, has been occupied by Spaniards, in- 

 dolent, void of curiosity, and extremely jealous of the 

 visits of foreigners, is, of course, very imperfectly 

 known. The avidity of its first conquerors was ex- 

 clusively directed to the discovery of gold and silver 

 mines. Four gold mines were found, after a long 

 and anxious search, and were wrought under the 

 name of the royal mine of St Philippe de Buria. 

 They were abandoned, however, in the year 1554-, 

 in consequence of a revolt of the negroes who 

 wrought in them, and of the natives, who now fore- 

 saw, in the establishment of the Spaniards, their cer- 

 tain subjection to tyrannical masters. To renew 

 these works, became the favourite enterprize of seve- 

 ral successive governors. With this view, Governor 

 Villacinda built a city, which he called Palmes, the 

 first year after the revolt ; but it was scarcely finish- 

 ed, before it was destroyed by the Indians. A simi- 

 lar attempt was made, six months after, by Paradas, 

 which was equally unsuccessful : he built the city 

 of Nirgua, which he was soon compelled to eva- 

 cuate. Gutierres de la Pegna built another city, 

 with the same design, on the banks of the Nirgua, 

 in 1557 ; for some years it withstood the attacks of 

 the Indians, who at length, however, in 1/5G8, sue- 

 ceeded in reducing it. Another mine was discover- 

 ed in the environs of the city of St Sebastian de los 

 Reyes ; but, when Governor Collado began to at- 

 tend to the erection of its works, an insurrection of 

 the Indians caused it to be abandoned. A deceitful 

 peace, which was concluded with the Caciqut Guay- 

 caypuro, seemed to afford a favourable opportunity 

 for the renewal of thtse works ; but they had not 

 proceeded far, when a multitude of Indians, falling 

 upon them unexpectedly, massacred all the work- 

 men, and demolished the works ; nor has any future 

 attempt been made for their establishment. At Apa 

 and Carapa, not far from the banks of the Tuy, Se- 

 bastian Dias discovered, in 15S4, two mines, where 

 the gold was very abundant, and at twenty-three 



carats. The country wa* so extremely unhealthy, 

 however, that it became indispensably oecmary to 

 abandon treasures, which could not be procured with- 

 out a much larger sacrifice of men than the colony 

 could then afford. The reputed richness of these 

 mines again tempted the avidity of Sancho Alquisa, 

 in IfiOG ; but the works had been so completely de- 

 stroyed by the Indians, that, after the most anxious 

 search, not a vestige of them could be traced. In 

 1698, Governor D. Francisco Berrocaran made si- 

 milar eiforts, and with similar success. Yet the Spa- 

 niards of Caraccas, thus unfortunate in their attempts 

 to work the gold and silver mines, possess, in the ju- 

 risdiction of St Philippe, mines of copper of a very 

 superior quality, which, besides supplying the plant- 

 ers with the best materials for their boilers, cylinders 

 of mills, and other implements, had furnished 171 quin- 

 tals for exportation in 1801- ; and the quantity would 

 have been much more considerable, but for the war. 



Had the Spaniards been attentive or scientific 

 observers, their search after mines would have made 

 them acquainted with many important facts relating 

 to the strata and mineralogy of the Caraccas. But 

 such facts, however they might gratify the curiosi- 

 ty of geologists, could excite no interest in men 

 whose curiosity sprung entirely from avarice, and 

 who never thought of penetrating beneath the sur- 

 face of the earth, except for the discovery of the 

 precious metals. We knew scarcely any thing, there- 

 fore, of the mineralogy of this district of Terra Fir- 

 ma, until it was lately explored by Baron Humboldt. 

 According to his observations, it is composed of 

 nearly the same strata as the ancient continent. On 

 the Saddle Mountain of Caraccas, 360 toises above 

 the level of the sea, he found folicular granite. He 

 found it also at Cape Codera, at the height of 14-1 

 toises ; and of this granite, he assures us, the whole 

 coast is composed, from the Unara river to Santa 

 Martha. The mountain of Capaya he found to be 

 composed of a granite which changes into slated talc, 

 vitriolated feldspar, slated chlorite, limestone grain- 

 ed with mica, rock crystal, primitive green rock^ sil- 

 vered galena, quartz, magnetic sand, red oxide of 

 crystallized titan, quartz mixed with black lead. 

 Porcelain earth, argillaceous earth, &c. are found 

 scattered in the provinces in the same manner, and 

 in the same proportions, as in Europe. Argilla- 

 ceous earth is found in the greatest quantity. The 

 whole coast north of the province of Venezuela 

 furnishes salt of a beautiful whiteness ; and that in the 

 salt pit of Araya, in particular, may vie with any in 

 America, not even excepting Turk's Island. This 

 salt pit consists of a mixture of fossil and marine 

 salt. But the Spaniards, with their characteristic 

 indolence, almost entirely neglect the working of it j 

 so that they do not derive from it the one-hundredth 

 part of what it might produce. The provinces of 

 Caraccas abound likewise in mineral waters, both 

 hot and cold. They are of various qualities, such as 

 the ammoniacal, the ferruginous, the r.itrous, and 

 even the acidulous. The heat of some of these wa- 

 ters approaches to that of boiling water. Between 

 Porto Bello and Valencia there are springs which 

 rise to the seventy-second degree, and there is an- 

 other still holier in the vallies of Aragua. 



On the first discovery of this country, the Spa- 



Minera- 

 log}-. 



