filver (a), an- inconfiderable Turn for fo great an undertaking,
attended with fnch an extraordinary expence.
This is the a&ual ftate o f the tefebrated- filver mine of
Guadalcanal; how far their future operations will fee
crowned with fuccefs, time only will drfcover (¿).
V vj.* \C - . .
(a) 485s ounces o l filver, a r th e ta te o f five k illin g s per ounce, would only b e t s i j f c
iterling,.
.,(b), There is no,doubt but that t h e , difcovery oEmines, and tbeirbeing brought to^perfec.
tion, is entirely due to the fpirit o f entetprize amongft individuals, and that1 the public is frequently
Benefited b y their labours, though private petfons may be prejudiced' b y in judicious
and extraordinary, expences. Whatever may h a^ ien to the.F-reneh in this p u r .
fuit, the inhabitants o£ Eftremadura however have nothing to fear on this fco re j, nor
has the fpirit o f mining made any great imprelfion amongft'them. Dim Antonio Ponz
relates, w ife much .humour,, the nations o f the country people in thofe.- parts about
mines, when, b e in g ,in the Sierra de Gat, and fpeaking to his landlord on the fubjeft, he
anfwered him, “ W h a t, Sir, are y ou alfo one o f thofe ftrollers who lately came here inr
Zqueft o f mines in thefe dofert'countries: A h , Sir..' the onlymines-here are hard,labour, and
fpare diet. I faid as much to thofe people at the time, though they, affined me that they
had'difeovcred an iron ¿tine, and that we Ihould all foon be rich ! But alas! they wore obt
dtheindbaths, fpoiled the fine filk flocltings they brought with them, found out their m ift^ e ,.
and marched off,.while Iremamed quiet at home as before.” V iag cd sE fp an a. Madrid, 17 78 .,
L E T T E R V I I I .
Remarkable objefts in the courji of a tour from Guadalcanal to the city:
of Seville.
IN travelling to the eaftward from Guadalcanal1 you'
come in two hours to the town o f Alanis, which gives
its name to a lead mine about half a league diftant from1
it to the fouth eaft, which at prefcnt is entirely abandoned.
The vein is perceived in the middle o f a field, being
about two feet broad, and riling thatheight above ground.
Its direction is from fouth to north, cutting the hard flate
that oppofes it, as well as the calcareous ftone with which;
that country abounds. It is of a dark colour, and fo*
tough as to’require thirty hours in calcining. The ancients
followed this vein with a gallery from fouth to north,,
but the moderns have only worked one branch o f it which
fhoots off towards the weft. Thefe veins may have flattering
appearances, but are generally deceitful, though
at firft the quartz may contain pyrites, but lower down
they generally terminate in lead.
Going forward from this place brings you to Cazal'Ia,,
where there is a mine about half a league from- the town,
at