1799] 
For the Monthly Magazine. 
ACCOUNT OF TRAVELS THROUGH 
PERU, FROM BUENQS-AYRES ON 
THE GREAT RIVER LA PLATA, BY 
PoTosi, TO LIMA, THE CAPITAL OF 
THE KINGDOM OF PERU. 
By ANTHONY ZACHARIAS HELMS. 
[Continued from page 785}. 
yF the remarks which Helms noted 
down in his Journal in his paflage 
over the higheft ridge of the Cordilleras 
from Potofi to Lima, we fhall extract fome 
of the moft important and interelting. 
Argillaceous flite is here likewife the 
chief conrponent part of the mountains, 
with at firit a ftratum of fand-ftone upon 
it; through which, not far from Potofi, 
a mafs of granite, two miles in length, 
rifes in htige weather-beaten rocks that 
threaten every moment to roll adown the 
precipices. The traveller foon after enters 
a charming valley, which, with little va- 
riation, extends above 200 miles to Cufco; 
in fome places covered with a cruft of falt 
or falt-petres in others, thick fown, as it 
were, and befpangled with quartzofe cry- 
ftals and topazes. In the bofom of. this 
valley is fituate the lake Titicaca, which 
is faid to be 80 miles long, and in fome 
parts almoft equally broad; and on whofe 
weftern fhore rife the higheft Cordillera 
of the kingdom of La Plata. Ouro, a 
town in this valley, was formerly the refi- 
dence of wealthy capitalifts, who derived 
their riches from the mines in the adjacent 
ridge of mountains. But in the dreadful 
infurreGion of the Chriftian Indians of La 
Plata and Peru, in the year 1779, here, 
as in moft cther towns of thefe extenfive 
kingdoms, the greateft and richelt part of 
the Spaniards were murdered, the town 
plundered, and almoft totally deftroyed. 
Thofe who efcaped, and had concealed 
their money and valuable effe&is in the 
monafteries, moftly emigrated to Europe: 
and hence here too the mines are ina ftate 
ot decay and negleét from the total want 
of pecuniary refources. Mr. Helms fays 
nothing farther concerning this infurrec- 
tion, of which a cireumftantial account 
would have been highly interefting.—The 
rich town of La Paz, in the fame valley, 
iikewife fuffered confiderably through the 
revolt of the Indians; but ftill is {aid to 
contain 4000 hearths, and 20,000 imhabit- 
ants ; whofe chief fource of opulence is the 
coca, ot tea of Paraguay, as it is called— 
a greenifh, tart herb, which the Indians 
chew mixed with calcined Jime. This 
delicacy is as indifpenfiblé to them, as to- 
bacco is to our mariners; and the town of 
MonrTuiry Mac, No, Li. 
Travels in South America. 
853 
La Paz carries on a lucrative trade with 
it to the extent of 200,900 piaftres annu- 
aily. The mountain, at whofe foot La 
Paz is built, is the higheft Cordillera in 
this part of the country, and covered with 
everlafting {now. ‘This ‘mountain, and 
the whole ridge as far as Sicafica, abounds 
in rich gold-ore; and when, 80 years ago, 
a projecting part of it tumbled down, they 
fevered from the ftone lumps of pure gold, 
weighing from 2 to 50 pounds. Even 
now, in the layers of fand, &c. wathed 
from the mountain by the rain-water, 
pieces of pure gold are found, fome of 
which weigh an ounce, From the igno- 
rance, however, of the inhabitants this 
treafure lies totally neglected. The pro- 
vince of Tiapani, which is 40 Spanifh 
milés diftant from La Paz, is faid to 
abound more with gold than even the lat- 
ter. From Tiapani, Helms proceeded 
along the fouth-weft fide of the great Jake, 
through Santa Rofa (the laft town of La 
Plata on this border, and fituated in the 
province of Puno), along the chain of the 
higheft Cordilleras, to Culco, the capital 
of the ancient kingdom of- Peru, and the 
refidence of the Incas; and even at prefent 
a very coniiderable city, which is builr ia 
the Gothic ftyle. Though the circumja- 
cent mountains abound with rich filver~ 
ore, only one mine is worked in the neigh- 
bourhood of Cufco. 
Farther on, the bafe of argillaceous flate 
is covered with anaffluvious (uper-{tratum, 
which confifts of marle, gypfum, lime- 
{tone, “and, a large quantity of rock-falt, 
and of fragments of porphyry, &c. in 
which pure filver, and rich filver-ores, 
occur in abundance. There are few in- 
ftances in Europe of fuclf mountains being 
fo generally abounding in the nobler me- 
tals or their ores, as in this quarter of the 
globe. ‘The whole range of mountains is 
full of affluvious veins of heavy filver-ores, 
in which pieces of pure filver, folid copper, 
and Jead-ore, occur, intermixed with a 
great guantity of white filver-ore, and ca- 
pillary virginfilver. Twelve miles before 
we reach Guancavelica, behind Parcos, lie 
mountains of weather-beaten argillaceous 
flate, mixed with fand. The feétions of 
thefe mountains confift entirely of fepa- 
rate, more or lefs fharp-pointed, pyramids 
of a flefh coloured fand ftone. Behind 
Guancayelica the mountains gradually be- 
come compofed of lefs various materials, 
and at Jatt confit of only fimple fand-ffone, 
with layers of marte, lime-ftone, and 
{path ;. or of fimple lime-ftone: they con 
tinue, however, equally rich in gold, filver, 
quickfilver, rock-falt, &c,—The ridoe 
sR ot 
