TO PARRAS. AG3 
miles through a defile, we emerged into a broad plain, 
bounded on the east by a high range of mountains. 
This plain was about ten miles across; after it we passed 
a second range, and beyond this another plain of six 
or eight miles more, which brought us to La Noria de 
Pedrecena, a well with a wheel, distant twenty-seven 
miles from our starting place. Here is a church, ap- 
parently modern, with several furnaces for smelting 
silver ore. The town is surrounded by an adobe wall 
twelve feet high, outside of which are many houses in 
a state of decay. It has evidently been more populous 
than it is at present} for not half the houses seem to 
be occupied. All the water used by the inhabitants is 
taken from the well. | 
November 20th. While the teamsters were hitching 
up the mules, | rode to the town, and made a call on 
Don Tomas Pedrecefia, the proprietor of the place. I 
found him an intelligent and gentlemanly man; and at 
my request he furnished us a series of specimens of 
the ore from his silver mines in the vicinity. The 
place was originally founded by his grandfather, and 
had descended to the gentleman we now saw, who, on 
coming into possession, had leased the estate. The 
lessees had for several years abandoned the working 
of the mines, and devoted themselves to working over 
the scoria and cinders which lay in the hillocks near 
the town, and from which they were able by some 
improved process to extract a considerable amount of 
the precious metal. Sefior Pedrecefa took possession 
himself about six months before our visit, finding the 
place was fast running down. With this revival it has 
quite an air of business. Don Tomas took us into the 
