132 



COMMERCE. 



ounces of the above-mentioned earth, yield an' ounce -and a 

 half only of silver," It is not, however, possible to reconcile 

 so small a gain with the annual produce of four millions two 

 hundred and fifty thousand forty-three piastres, resulting 

 from an average estimate of the first ninety-three years during 

 which the mines of Potosi were wrought. This was the 

 amount of the coinage ; but the extra6tion of silver was still 

 greater, it having been annually carried to five thousand 

 quintals. 



This fecundity was calculated to draw the public attention 

 exclusively to the above mineral territory, and to throw a dis- 

 credit on all the other mines of Peru, which were not capable 

 of yielding collectively more than a thousand quintals of sil- 

 ver. Of this produce, Oruro supplied seven hundred quin- 

 tals ; Castro Virreyna, two hundred ; and the remainder be- 

 longed to the excavated mountains. At Potosi, however, 

 the encouragement was equal to the abundance of the ac- 

 quired riches. Thirteen thousand Indians were placed on a 

 permanent establishment, and constantly engaged in the dif- 

 ferent tasks assigned to them ; at the same time that five thou- 

 sand quintals of mercury were annually consumed, in sepa- 

 rating the metal from the ores. This extraordinary consump- 

 tion was owing to the ignorant method of assigning to each 

 quintal of silver, an equal quantity of that necessary in- 

 gredient. 



It would appear that the epoch is not very distant, when 

 the clouds which have hitherto obscured the Peruvian horizon, 

 in this docimastk part, as well as in all the other branches of 

 mineralogy, will be dispersed. The expedition which has, 

 with this view, been confided by His Catholic Majesty to the 



direction 



