284 THE .MINE OF VALEX< I ANA. 



Juan del Rio, till ho came to the city of Qucrctaro. He 

 remained there a few days to make an astronomical ob- 

 servation, and started for Guanaxuato, stopping on his 

 way at the mines of Sotolar, Juchitlan, Las Aguas, Mu- 

 coid, El Doctor, and San Christobal. 



The mine of Valenciana, the most celebrated of all 

 the mines of Guanaxuato, and the richest in Mexico, 

 although it had been worked by the Indians, and the early 

 Spanish settlers, was not much wrought until towards 

 the end of the eighteenth century. In 1760 a Spaniard, 

 named Obregon, began to work a vein on a part of the 

 old mine, which was till then believed to be destitute of 

 metals. He was without fortune, but as he had the repu- 

 tation of being a worthy man, he found friends, who 

 from time to time advanced him small sums to carry on 

 his operations. In 1766 the works were 'over two hun- 

 dred and fifty feet deep, yet the expenses greatly sur- 

 passed the metallic produce. The next year he entered 

 into partnership with a petty merchant of Rajas, named 

 Otero, and in a short time the silver began to be more 

 plentiful ; as the pit grew deeper it grew richer. In 

 1771 they drew enormous masses of sulphuretted silver, 

 mixed with native and red silver. From that time it 

 yielded over $1,000,000 annually. 



When Obregon, or as he was afterwards called, the 

 Count of Valenciana, began to work the vein above the 

 ravine of San Xavier, goats were feeding on the hill 

 tops. Ten years after there was a town there containing 

 seven or eight thousand inhabitants. At the time of 

 Humboldt's visit the population of Guanaxuato was 

 seventy thousand six hundred ; twentj-nine thousand 

 six hundred of the number were miners. He remained 



