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are called the malady of the coast. The poor 

 fishermen, who dwell on this shore, assert, that 

 it is not the inundations of the sea, and the 

 retreat of the salt-water, which render the lands 

 covered with mangroves so unheal thful * ; but 

 that the insalubrity of the air is owing to the 

 fresh water, to the overflowings of the Guay- 

 guaza and Estevan, the swell of which is so 

 great and sudden in the months of October and 

 November. The banks of the Rio Estevan have 

 been less dangerous to inhabit, since little plan- 

 tations of maize and plantains have been estab- 

 lished ; and, by raising and hardening the ground, 

 the river has been contained within narrower 

 limits. A plan is formed of giving another issue 

 to the Rio San Estevan, and thus to render the 

 environs of Porto -Cabello more wholesome. A 

 canal is to lead the waters toward that part 

 of the coast, which is opposite the island of 

 Guaiguaza. 



The salt-works of Porto-Cabello somewhat 

 resemble those of the peninsula of Araya, near 

 Cumana. The earth, however, which they lixi- 

 viate by collecting the pluvial waters into small 



* In the West India islands, all the dreadful maladies, 

 which prevail during the wintery season, have been for a long 

 time attributed to the South winds. These winds convey the 

 emanations of the mouths of the Oroonoko, and of the small 

 rivers of Terra Firma, tow ard the high latitudes. 



