425 



18 jo of latitude, N. 5° E. ; from Arica to Pisco, be- 

 tween 18J° and 14° latitude, at first N. 42° W., 

 afterwards N. 65° W. ; and from Pisco to Trux- 

 illo, between 14° and 8° of latitude, N. 27° W. 

 The parallelism between the coast and the Cor- 

 dillera of the Andes is a phenomenon so much 

 more worthy of attention, that it is repeated in 

 several parts of the globe where the mountains 

 do not in the same manner form the shore. 

 To this consideration is joined another which 

 relates to the general outline of continents. I 

 fix on the geographical position of the point 

 (14° 28' south latitude) where, on the parallel 

 of Arica, the inflexion of the coast, and the 

 variation d? allure of the Andes of Upper Peru, 

 begin. The resemblance of configuration which 

 the triangular masses of South America and 

 Africa display, is manifest in many details of 

 their outline. The gulphs of Arica, and of Ilo 

 correspond to the gulph of Guinea. The in- 

 flexion of the western coast of Africa begins 3° 

 north of the equator ; and if we consider the 

 Archipelago of India geologically, as the re- 

 mains of a destroyed continent, as the link be- 

 tween eastern Asia and New Holland, we see 

 the gulph of Guinea, that which forms Java, 

 Bali, and Sumbava, with the Land de Witt, 

 and the Peruvian gulph of Arica, following 

 from north-west to south-south-east (lat. 3° N. 

 lat. 10° S., lat. 141° S.), almost in the same di- 



