OROPUCHE. 321 



county and the Gulf; S., by the sea ; E., by a line running from 

 the Guataro, down and along the river Moruga, to the mouth of 

 the latter ; W., by the Gulf. This county has been divided into 

 six wards, viz., Oropuche, La Brea arid Guapo, Irois, Cedros, 

 Erin, and Moruga. 



The ward of Oropuche, which comprises the quarter of 

 Oropuche and the Mission of Siparia, is bounded on the N. by the 

 Gulf; on the S. by Crown lands; on the W. by La Brea, from 

 which it is separated by the river Roussillac ; and on the E. by 

 the Lagoon and Crown lands. 



The surface of this ward is extremely undulating, rapidly 

 elevating towards the east In no part of the colony, perhaps, is 

 the quality of the land more variable ; veins of the fyuier soil 

 are met with in tracts of a coarse clay, or of a poor sandy soil. 

 It is, on the whole, more retentive than that of JSfaparirna and 

 Savannah Grande. Towards Siparia, it is a rich light loam, very 

 permeable, and of the best description, being well adapted to the 

 growth of the cane, cacao, plantains, and all sorts of ground pro- 

 visions ; as also of tobacco, which, at the Great Exhibition, was 

 considered equal to the best Havanna. The principal productions 

 are, in Oropuche, sugar and provisions ; in Siparia, a little cacao 

 and tobacco, with provisions. The cane cultivation extends towards 

 the sea-shore, from Godineau's river to the Aripero, and not farther 

 than two miles inland. There were formerly ten sugar estates in 

 Oropuche : there exist at present only six, of which but one is 

 furnished with steam-power the Otaheiti which has also a tram- 

 road leading from the works to the shipping-place. Besides Godi- 

 neau's river, the ward of Oropuche is drained by the Tarouba, the 

 Aripero, or Silver-stream, and the Roussillac, which receives the 

 waters of a considerable hollow or depression, known as the Rous- 

 sillac swamp, between Oropuche and La Brea. The Aripero is a 

 tidal stream, and admits of the entrance of flats to unload estates' 

 supplies and take off produce. Between the Godineau and Roussillac 

 rivers lies a shallow bank, formed by the washings of the various 

 water-courses above-mentioned. At the fall of the spring-tide, 

 this bank extends upwards of a mile out to sea, impeding the 

 approach of the smallest boat. The Rio Negro and the Perro dis- 

 charge their waters into the lagoon ; as also the San Francisco, 

 which establishes a communication between the Great lagoon and a 

 smaller one called Bertrand's lagoon: they flow from S.S.E. 



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