215 



how vague and uncertain are the judgments we 

 form of the metallic wealth of a country from 

 the mere appearance of the rocks, and of the 

 veins in their beds. The utility of such labours 

 can be determined only by well directed at- 

 tempts by means of shafts or galleries. All that 

 has been done in researches of this kind, under 

 the dominion of the mother country, has left the 

 question wholly undecided, and the most ex- 

 aggerated ideas have been recently spread 

 through Europe, with very culpable levity, con- 

 cerning the riches of the mines of Caraccas. 

 The common denomination of Columbia given 

 to Venezuela and New Grenada, has, no doubt, 

 contributed to facilitate those illusions. It can- 

 not be doubted that the gold-washings of New 

 Grenada furnished, in the last years of public 

 tranquility, more than 18,000 marks of gold ; 

 that Choco and Barbacoas furnish platina in 

 abundance; the valley of Santa Rosa, in the 

 province of Antioquia, the Andes of Quindiu and 

 Gauzum, near Cuenca, sulphurated mercury ; 

 the table-land of Bogota (near Zipaquira and 

 Canoas), fossile-salt and pit coals ; but even in 

 New Grenada, real subterranean labors, on the 

 silver and gold veins, have hitherto been very 

 rare % I am far, however, from wishing to dis- 

 courage the miners of those countries ; I merely 

 conceive that it is not necessary, in order to 



* Political Essaij on New Spain, Vol iii, p. 299 and 379, 



