i^G A VOYAGE TO Book VIT. 



all the appearances of melted filver, as any perfon, a 

 Itranger to the manner of finding them, would imme- 

 diately conciude. In them the fiiver forms a mafs, 

 and the furface is covered over with terrene particles, 

 few or none of which are mixed with the filver con- 

 fcnnable to what is feen in metals melted, and fuffered 

 to cooJ without feparating the drofs. The terrene 

 particles adhering to the filver are black, and exhibit 

 ail the marks of calcination, except that in fome it is 

 itronger than in others •, and as this muft happen if 

 the lumps are formed by the fufion of the metal, it 

 feems natural to conclude that they were really form- 

 ed in this manner. 



The fize - and figure of thefe lumps are very 

 ci&rent i fome weighing about two marks, and 

 others m.uch more for among feveral which I faw at 

 Lima were two, one weighing 60, and the other above 

 15,0 m^^rks, being a Paris foot in length,--, thefe in- 

 deed were the largetl ever feen here. Thefe lumps of 

 filver are found in different parts of the fame , ground, 

 though not often near one another. The metal in its 

 courie takes various dire6lions, introducing itfelf into 

 thofe places where it finds the leaft refi (lance ; and aS 

 thefe parts are more or lefs capacious, the magnitude^ 

 of the papa is greater or fmaller. 



XI II. About ninety leagues north, of the city of 

 Plata, but only forty from Paz, lies the province of 

 Ciaciea. Its capital, which has the fame name, and 

 alt the places fituated to the fouthward of it, belong to 

 the archbifcopric of Plata ; but many of thofe to the 

 northwards of it are in the diocefs of Paz. The coun- 

 tries in this jurifdidion extend in fome parts above a 

 hundred leagues, and confeqt^ently, the temperature 

 is various. Some fpots are very hot, and produce an 

 exuberance of coca, which fhrub alone is the fource 

 ct a very confiderable commerce, fupplying all the 

 mine towns from Charcas to Potofu The leaves of 

 tliis plant are packed in frails, each of which muft, 



according 



