^yS ULLOA's voyage to south AMERICA. 



The decorations of private houfes are elegant, but not coflly ; and though there arc 

 here no perfons of fuch monflrous fortunes as in fome cities of America, it is not defti- 

 tute of- wealthy inhabitants, and all have a fufficiency ; fo that, if it cannot be clafled 

 among opulent cities, it is certainly above poverty. 



The harbour of this city is formed in its road, by the fhelter of feveral iflands, parti- 

 cularly Ifla de Naos, de Perico, and Flamencos : the anchoring-place is before the 

 fecond, and thence called Perico. The fhips here lie very fafe j and their diflance from 

 the city is about two and a half, or three leagues. 



The tides are regular ; and, according to an obfervation we made on the day of the 

 conjundlon, it was high-water at three in the evening. The water rlfes and falls con- 

 fiderably ; fo that the fhore, lying on a gentle Hope, is, at low water, left dry to a great 

 diftance. And here we may obferve the great difference of the tides in the *North and 

 South Seas, being diredly opppfite : what in the ports on the North Sea is accounted irre- 

 gular, is regular in the South ; and when in the former it ceafes to increafe or decreafe^ 

 in the latter it both rifes and falls, extending over the flats, and widening the channels, 

 as the proper effed of the flux and reflux. This particular is fo general, as to be 

 obferved in all the ports of the South Sea ; for even at Manta, which is almofl: under 

 the equinodial, the fea regularly ebbs and flows nearly fix hours ; and the effeds of 

 thefe two motions are fufficiently viflble along the fliores. The fame happens in the 

 river of Guayaquil, where the quantity of its waters does not interrupt the regular fuc- 

 cefllon of the tides. The like phenomena are feen at Paita, Guanchaco, Callao, and 

 the other harbours ; with this difference, that the water rifes and foils more in fome 

 places than in others ; fo that we cannot here verify the well-grounded opinion enter- 

 tained by failors, namely, that between the tropics the tides are irregular, both in the 

 difproportion of the time of flood to that of the ebb, and alfo in the quantity of water 

 rifmg or falling by each of thefe motions ;. the contrary happening here. This pheno- 

 menon is not eafily accounted for ; all that can be faid is, that the iflihmus, or narrow 

 neck of land, feparating the two feas, confines their waters, whereby each is fubject to 

 different laws. 



The variation of the magnetic needle, in this road, is 7° 39' eaflierly. Both the road 

 and whole coafl: abound in a great variety of excellent fifli, among which are two kinds 

 of oyfl:ers, one fmaller than the other ; but the fmallefl; are much the befl:. 



At the bottom of the fea are a great number of pearls ; and the oyfl:ers, in which they 

 are found, are remarkably delicious. This fifliery is of great advantage to the inhabit- 

 ants of all the iflands in this bay. 



The harbour of Perico is the rendezvous of the Peru fleet, during the time of the fair ; 

 and is never without barks loaded with provifions from the ports of Peru, and a great 

 number of coafl;ing veflels going from thence to Choco, and parts on the wefl:ern coaft 

 of that kingdom. 



The winds are the fame as along the whole coaft ; the tides or currents are ftronger 

 near the iflands than at a diftance from them ; but no general rule can be given as to 

 their courfe, that depending on the place where the fliip is, with regard to the channels 

 which they form. They alfo vary in the fame place according to the winds. Let it 

 therefore fuffice that we have fliewn there are tides on this coaft, that, on any occafion, 

 this notice may be applied to ufe. 



CHAP. 



