276 Mr. Mornay's account oj the discovery 
according to the statement of La Mota Botelho, that was 
done when the block was removed. 
I found no termination to the bed in the directions of the 
trenches, and at the spot where the mass had laid, it was 
about one foot thick, or hardly so much ; but at one end of the 
longer trench, not above three inches. I did not break through 
it any where else. Nearly the same loose gravel appears 
underneath the bed, as over it. I brought away specimens 
of the bed, which I considered extremely curious, supposing 
them to contain nickel. On my return to England I told you, 
therefore, that I hoped I had found iron ore containing nickel, 
for I thought that the bed, on which had rested the mass, 
was one of those of which there are so many all over the 
province. But as I gave you some specimens, I will not 
describe it. 
The surface of the soil, or rather coarse gravel, at the spot, is 
about 10 or 15 feet above the main granite rock of the country. 
I can only give you an approximation of the latitude and 
longitude of the place. Th sun was much too high at noon 
to take its altitude with a sextant and mercurial horizon; and 
the artificial horizon, which I had been compelled to construct 
myself, occasioned such a loss of light, as to make it impossible 
to observe the southern stars for determining the latitude. Dif- 
ferent altitudes of the sun at a distance from the meridian, did 
not give me satisfactory results. I had with me an excellent 
watch, and having computed the latitude to be about iq°2o'S. 
I concluded the longitude to be 33' 15" W. of Bahia, after 
making every allowance, and comparing this result with those 
obtained before and afterwards, at the house of Major 
Dantas, called Camuciata, near Itapicuru. 
