Ch.III. south AMERIC a. 151 



ing the fituation of Guayaquil, with regard to its la- 

 titude and longitude. The defire of fucceeding ren- 

 dered us very attentive to obferve an imnnerfion of the 

 fatellites of Jupiter, to make amends for our cliiap- 

 pointment of the eclipfe of the Moon ; but v^e were 

 in this equally unfortunate ; the denfity of the vapours 

 which filled the atrr/ofphere rendered our Ciedgn 

 abortive but, the days being more favourable than 

 the nights for aftronomical obfervations, v;e took 

 feveral meridian altitudes of the Sun, and never neg- 

 iedled any opportunities that offered, during the 

 nights, of doing the fame with regard to feme par- 

 ticular ftars. 



On our arrival at Guayaquil, the corregidor of 

 that city, whofe great civility, together with that of 

 all the king's officers and other perfons of diflindlion, 

 deferves our acknowledg;ments, fent notice of it to 

 the correp-idor of Guaranda, that he might order car- 

 riages to the port of Caracol, for conveying us to the 

 mountains. The pafTage thither was then indeed 

 impradicable ; it being in this country the end of 

 winter, at which time the roads are extremely bad, 

 and the rivers fv;elled fo as not to be forded with- 

 out the greated riil<:, and too wide for the bridges of 

 this country. 



The corregidor of Guaranda was then at Quito, 

 on fome bufmefs of his office ; but the prefident and 

 governor of that province, Don Dionyfio de Al- 

 cedoy Herrera, ordered him to return to his jurif- 

 di6lion without delay, for providing every thing ne- 

 celTary for our journey \ fending, at the fame tim.e, 

 circular orders to all the other corrcgidors, thro\.igh 

 whofe jurifdi^lions we were to pals to Quito, enjoin- 

 ing them not to be wanting in any kind of good 

 office in their power. Every thing being thus hap- 

 pily difpoied, and advice arriving that the mules were 

 on their v/ay to Caracol, where they arrived the 6th of 

 May, we were no lefs expeditious to embark on the 



L 4 , river, 



