JOURNEY TO GUATEMALA. 



153 



which is remarkable only for its antiquity, and for its 

 charming and romantic site. It was erected there long 

 before the capital was transferred to its present situation, 

 and at a time when the space occupied by the city of 

 Guatemala Was a verdant waste. This chapel is in the 

 suburbs, on a little hill, the sides and foot of which are 

 covered with shrubs and wild flowers. It commands a 

 wide and charming view of the city and country, and is a 

 favourite place of resort in the afternoons. 



There is a university in Guatemala, but the students 

 are very few. It contains a library, which I visited. 

 The books are principally old Spanish chronicles ; Herre- 

 ra's general history of America, and that of Torquemada, 

 some of the ancient classics, among which was an Italian 

 version of Yirgil by Antonio Ambrogi — a fine edition, — 

 some of the Spanish classics, two or three encyclopedias, 

 and some dictionaries and vocabularies of Indian lan- 

 guages. There is also a mint ; but the machinery necessa- 

 ry for coining being incomplete, it is not now in operation. 

 The printing offices, I think, are only two. The newspa- 

 pers are also two. There is no theatre, no reading-room, 

 nor any hotel or coffee-house in the place. 



Guatemala was originally built near the sea, twenty- 

 five miles to the south of its present situation. The old 

 city, called Antigua, is still populous, and contains ten or 

 twelve thousand inhabitants. It is situated on the de- 

 clivity of a mountain, the summit of which is crowned 

 by the grand volcano. It was overwhelmed by an earth- 

 quake in 1751, but was rebuilt a few years after. In 

 1773 it was again destroyed by another earthquake, and 

 several shocks were experienced, at intervals, from that 

 period to 1775, when it was determined by the Govern- 

 ment to remove the city to a more eligible site. The 

 situation selected was that where new Guatemala now 

 stands. The capital was, accordingly, transferred, and 



orders were issued for the removal of the population. 

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