Ch. I. SOUTH AMERICA. 195 



BOOK V. 



yourney from G u a y a qjj i l to the City 



of Qviro. 



C H A P. 1. 



Pajfage from Guayaquil to the Town (^/'Caracol, 

 and from thence to Quito. 



ON receiving advice that the mules, provided by 

 the corregidor of Guaranda, were on the road 

 to Caracol, we immediately embarked at 

 Guayaquil, on the 3d of May 1736, on board a 

 large chata : but the ufual impediment of the cur- 

 rent, and feveral unfortunate accidents, rendered the 

 paflage fo very long, that we did not land at Ca- 

 racol before the nth. The tortures we received on 

 the river from the mofchitos were beyond imagina- 

 tion. We had provided ourfelves with guetres, and 

 mufchito cloths ; but to very little purpofe. The 

 whole day we were in continual motion to keep them 

 off ; but at night our torments were exceffive. Our 

 gloves were indeed fome defence to our hands, but 

 our faces were entirely expofed, nor Vv^ere our clothes 

 a fufficient defence for the reft of our bodies; for 

 their ftings, penetrating through the cloth, caufed a 

 very painful and fiery itching. The moft difmal 

 night we fpent in this pafTage was, when we came to 

 an anchor near a large and handfome houfe, but un- 

 inhabited; for we had no fooner feated ourfelves in 



O 2 it. 



