686 



The valley of Caura, however, may become one 

 day or other highly interesting from the value of 

 it's productions, and the communications which 

 it furnishes with the Rio Ventuari, the Carony, 

 and the Cuyuni. I have shown above the im- 

 portance of the four tributary streams, which the 

 Oroonoko receives from the mountains of Parima. 

 Near the mouth of the Caura, between the vil- 

 lages of San Pedro de Alcantara and San Fran- 

 cisco de Aripao, a small lake of four hundred 

 toises in diameter was formed in 1790, by the 

 sinking in of the ground, in consequence of an 

 earthquake *. It was a portion of the forest of 

 Aripao, which sunk to the depth of eighty or a 

 hundred feet below the level of the neighbouring 

 land. The trees remained green for several 

 months ; and some of them, it was believed, 

 continued to push forth leaves beneath the water. 

 This phenomenon is the more worthy of atten- 

 tion, as the soil of these countries is probably 

 granitic. I doubt the secondary formations of 

 the Llanos being continued toward the south as 

 far as the valley of Caura. 



The 11th of June we landed on the right bank 

 of the Oroonoko at Puerto de los Frailes t, at the 



* On Saint Mathew's day, in 1790, at three o'clock in the 

 morning. 



f Opposite the granitic rock called Piedra de Don Ignacio, 

 after the name of a famous smuggler, who roamed the country 

 between the Essequebo and the Llanos of Caraccas. 



