116 AMERICAN MINES. CHAP. XXI. 



nificant that an error cannot exist to an extent 

 which would make a difference in the whole cal- 

 culation of two per cent. 



Peru. Although there was much fluctuation in the 



produce of the American mines during the seven- 

 teenth century, yet upon the whole there was an 

 increase, though not a large one. The mines in 

 the district of Potosi in Peru had declined to a 

 great extent. In the first fifteen years of the cen- 

 tury they had yielded one million six hundred and 

 seventy thousand three hundred and forty-four 

 piastres, or about three hundred and fifty thousand 

 pounds ; and in the last fifteen years, from 1685 to 

 l699> both years inclusive, the average amounts 

 to no more than five hundred and fifty-nine thou- 

 sand nine hundred and forty-three piastres, or 

 about one hundred and sixteen thousand six hun- 

 dred and sixty pounds. At the first discovery of 

 that mass of mineral wealth, the Spanish con- 

 querors exercised the most unlimited power over 

 the natives. They were driven to the severe labour 

 of the mines in a cold and inhospitable climate, 

 where subsistence was difficult to be obtained ; and 

 the change from the deep and warm and fruitful 

 valleys where they had passed their time in tran- 

 quillity and abundance swept them away in great 

 numbers. The interference of the government of 

 Spain, which sent commissioners and strict orders 

 to mitigate the lot of the natives, was ineffectual : 

 the rude adventurers who had conquered the 



