Ch. I. SOUTH AMERICA. 3 



expe6tedly received a letter from the marquis de Villa 

 Garcia, vice-roy of Pern, defiring m to come, with 

 all fpeed to his capital : any delay on our part might 

 have been improper ; and we were folicitous not to 

 merit an accufation of the leafl remifTnefs in his ma- 

 jefty's fervice. Thus we were under a neceffity of 

 fufpending our obfervations for fome time * ; though 

 all that remained was the fecond aftronomical obfer- 

 vation, northward, where the feries of our triangles 

 terminated. 



The occafion of this delay, arofe from an ac- 

 count, received by the vice-roy, that war being 

 declared between Spain and England, the latter was 

 fending a confiderable fleet on fome fecret defigns 

 into thofe feas. Several precautions had been taken 

 to defeat any attempt ; and the vice-roy, being 

 pleafed to conceive that we might be of fome ufe to 

 him in acquiting himfelf with honour on this occafion, 

 committed to us the execution of fome of his mea- 

 fures ; giving us to underftand, that the choice he 

 made of us, was the moft convincing proof of the 

 high opinion he entertained of our abilities 5 and in- 

 deed our obligations were the greater, as the diftance 

 of four hundred leagues had not obliterated us from 

 his remembrance, of which, he now gave us fo 

 honourable a proof. 



On the 24th of September, 1740, the yice-roy's 

 letter was delivered to us, and we immediately re- 

 paired to Quito, in order to furnifli ourfelves with 

 necefTaries for the journey. 



EvERv thing being performed, we fet out from 

 that city on the 30th of Odober, and determined to 

 go by Guaranda and Guayaquil for tho' there is a 

 road by land thro' Cuen^a and Loja, yet the other 

 feemed to us the moft expeditious, as the ways are 

 neither fo bad, nor mules and other beafts of carriage 

 fo difficult to be met with. The long ftays in villages 



B 2 were 



* Vol. I. Book V. Chap. II. 



