174 BOGOTA'. 



Vice-President, and requested him to name 

 a day when he would honour me with his 

 company ; which being fixed, I invited a 

 party of about seventy to meet him ; and as 

 the draining of the far-famed Lagoon of Gua- 

 tavita at this time much engrossed public 

 attention, I fitted up a large syphon, which 

 was to discharge the water from a vessel, 

 intended to represent the Lagoon of Gua- 

 tavita, into another vessel, placed below 

 the level of the former, and at a tolerable 

 distance : I had it fitted in the court- yard, in 

 order to amuse the company previously to 

 breakfast, and to shew them that if the pre- 

 sent means for draining the Lagoon should 

 fail, yet that a syphon would effect it. This 

 instrument, though so well known in Eu- 

 rope, has not yet reached the interior of 

 Colombia, and its properties were conse- 

 quently known but to few. On the day ap- 

 pointed I proceeded to the palace, and con- 

 ducted the Vice-President to the house of 



