Doc. No. 75. 



195 



m is deposited in large pools on the depressions of the rock by the rains,) 

 is the same solid breccia, worn into basins and fantastic pot-holes" by 

 the water. Within one mile of the lake of Managua is the falls of Tipi- 

 tapa, opposite the little village of that name. It is a ledge of the same 

 rock above described, and is from twelve to fifteen feet in height. The 

 former bed of the stream is here not less than 400 feet in width. At this 

 point is a bridge, and, as far as I know, the only one in actual use in 

 Nicaragua. Just below it is a copious boiling spring, from which flows 

 R considerable stream, so hot as to scald the hand at the distance of sixty 

 paces from its source. It has formed a thick deposite upon the rocks and 

 stones, the apparent constituents of which are carbonate of lime, sulphur, 

 and sulphate of copper. There are numerous other hot springs in the 

 ancient bed of the stream, as also along the shores of the lake ; they are 

 readily observed in the cool of the morning, from the condensation of the 

 steam as it rises from them. From the falls to the lake the ancient bed is 

 wide but shallow, and is now covered with grass and bushes, resembling 

 a neglected pasture. At the time of my visit (September, 1849,) at the 

 height of the so-called rainy season, no water flowed through it, and, so 

 far as I could learn, none had flowed there tor years. I can, however, 

 readily believe that in an extremely wet season a small quantity may find 

 its way through this channel, and over the falls. It is, nevertheless, very 

 evident that no considerable body oi water ever passed here. There is an 

 arm of the lake which projects down the old bed for three or four hundred 

 yards, but the water is only tw® or three feet deep, with an equal depth 

 of soft gray mud, the dwelling-place of numerous alligators, with reedy 

 shores thronged with every variety of water-birds. The water of Lake 

 Managua, near the so called outlet, is not deep, and the channel, in order 

 to admit of the passage of large vessels, would probably require to be well 

 dredged, if not protected by parallel piers. At the distance of about three - 

 fourths of a mile from the shore I found, by actual measurement, that the 

 water did not exceed two fathoms in depth. No great obstruction to 

 building the proposed canal exists in the section between the two lakes. 

 The rock is so soft and friable that a channel can easily be opened from 

 Lake Managua to the falls. Beyond this the banks are high for four 

 miles, forming a natural canal, which only needs to be properly dammed 

 at its lower extremity to furnish a body of water adequate to every pur- 

 pose of navigation. Locks would then be required to reach the estuary 

 from lake of Nicaragua at Pasquiei. From this point to the lake I con- 

 ceive nmy prove the most difficult part of this section, although apparently 

 the easiest. Where the bottom is earth or mud, the desirable depth of 

 water may be secured by dredging ; but where it is rock, as it certainly 

 is near its upper extremity, some difficult excavation will be required. 

 The banks dov/nward are so low as to prohibit assistance from dams, ex- 

 cept by diking the shores. 



The Tipitapa is bordered by low and slightly undulating, but very rich 

 and beautiful lands, interspersed with glades, and chiefly occupied for 

 cattle estates. Abundance of Brazil wood grows here, and large quanti- 

 ties are annually shipped in bungos from Pasquiei for the port of San 

 Juan, passing thence to all parts of the world, but chiefly to the United 

 States, 



Lake Managua may thus be said virtually to have no outlet. The 

 streams which come in from the Pacific side are insignificant; and though, 



