282 



ternal commerce is carried on with Perú and Spain. 

 In the first twenty-three or twenty-four ships of five 

 or six hundred tons each are employed, which aré 

 partly (Chilian and partly Peruvian. These usually 

 make three voyages in a year ; they carry from Chili 

 wheat, wine, pulse, almonds, nuts, cocoa-nuts, con- 

 serves, dried meat, tallow, lard, cheese, sole leather, 

 timber for building, copper, and a variety of other 

 articles, and bring back in return silver, sugar, rice 

 and cotton. The Spanish ships receive in exchange 

 for European merchandise gold, silver, copper, vi- 

 cugna wool and hides. A trade with the East Indies 

 would be more profitable to the Chilians than any 

 other, as their most valuable articles have either be- 

 come scarce, or are not produced in that wealthy 

 part of Asia, and the passage, in consequence of the 

 prevalence of the south winds in the Pacific, would 

 be easy and expeditious. No money is coined or 

 has currency in Chili except gold and silver, a cir- 

 cumstance very embarrassing to the internal traffic. 

 Their smallest silver coin is one sixteenth of a dol- 

 lar, and their weights and measures are the same that 

 are used in Madrid. 



END OF THE HISTORY, 



