Manw¥£ galkon, laden 'with the wealth of America, purfued .hea. courfe to I
t v f ie s a n d . .XVlanilla* ,Other arrangements are now followed; and fmaller veflels
C o m m e r c e . ^ ^ The .galleons were laid afidfe in- 1748; and • the. late
Spaniih monarch inftituted commercial regulations, on a more liberal
plan, * In 1764 monthly packets were eftablilhed between Corugna and
Havanna, whence fmaller veffels pafs- to Vera Cruz, and to Porto-
hello in South- America; and an interchange o f productions by thefe |
velfels is alfo permitted., In the following year the trade to Cuba was
laid open,to «all Spain; and thg-privilege was afterwards extended t®
Louifiana, and the provinces of? Yucatan and • Campechyv, In, 1-774
- frfce intercourse was permitted between the three viceijoyalties-ofsNlexico,
Peru,' and New Granada. The courts rtf juftice - were, aiCq^fiormed,
and a fourth -wceroyalty was eftablilhed, ,1776, de la Plata,
By a Angular policy a free trade is permitted between New Spain a ad
the Philippines, which adds, confiderably to the wealth; of theS^nner
country. The Englilh trade in the - bay of-Honduras, may Ja'ew be
conlidered as terminated^ the: logwood; on the oppofite fide of
being found to be of fuperior quality.
CH A P T E R IV.
N a t u r a e G e o g r a p h y .
Climate and Seafons.— F a c e of., th e Country*— Rivers*—Lakes*—Mountains.—
Forefis. «Botany. — Zoology. — Mineralogy. Mineral■ fflccters.
1 Curio/ities.
SeXns.and IN Florida, chiefly confifting of low ground’s, the 'climate is i'nfalu-
1 brious in the fummer, when there is a kind' of m a l a r ia as in Italy;
but the winters are mild and healthy. The climate of Lourfiana is I
cold in the northern parts. In California epid'emical di'ft'empers feern £0
$.. i
be frequent; but the country has not been fufficifently examined by Cmm.%te
feientific obfervers. . Moifture feems to predominate in the Ifthmus; AND>S“ “
but not to fuch a degree as~in the South American province of Darien,
where'xlfunay- be -faird^tb rain* foe mine months ear. -‘The rdins,
however, temper v the extreme heat, which would other wife predominate
in this climate. .Violent ftorms are hot unfrequent,, and fbmetimes
the lightening feems to rife'from the gtioundfe!f> ;ffhe'maritime diftridls
of Mexico are,, however, hot. and unhealthy, ioijfejto .oqcafipn’much
peTfpjration ftvejtyifa japuary^^'Jhetifilapd -piounteins,» Af&tto ^ottrary
P ^ mt ,w^lft^ft|^nd,ice 'in t% dpg-A^yk.j j In -other
inlandIprovinces the^limatq islmil’^fand; benigp,- wit^fgme, momentary
fnoW 'in winter; ’,but 'no, arti f icial/.^armthi ‘found meeelfaryp.and
animals, fleep all the year undem the [open .Iky.-' T t§ r |^ r e <plentiful
rails,generally after mid-day, from April till SfepfeUiber; -and- hail*
%4fn.si;are notAunknown. -Thunder is frequent;nand,the earthquakes
and volcanoes are additional cireii rnft ances; oft err or. *
Thetface of the Country is rather-mountainous than -plain; '.exiep't < Face of the.
towards the Stores; but'rthe .mountains-are flnterfperled;‘with delightful -
vafes;! and .“ the- foil is.- generally fertile. In the noTthern-pWinc^ of
Louifiana-and Florida, the foibcorrefponds with thaf of Georgifa, and-
th^weftern fettlempts. of,the United States. -Concerning' NPwlMexico'
anf »California there-is little; minute and, authentic, information'; huts the
tcftirnpny of La Peroufe is greatly in favour pfthefettek
The ftreams fin the Ifthmus are o£a fhort courie,iatftk little remark-» ,Rivers.
able ip any refpeft. \ The,pri,ncipal river pf ■ Sj^anifiti 'North America is,
beyond.'allieompanfoft;1 the Rio Bravo," calledsialfo del.'Norte,' ’4i-of ■ the • R io Brav
northern ftar. > The cotfrfo of this impdftahtMvbr, foTar’asfils- fdufdlb
can -yet? be eon]e<SturCd, may bef’abdut Pc^0B.''%iileS,;^lti'#4ftslWfi!6lb
circuit probably exeeeds that of*the Danubfc. *‘Themature of tfreffidfes,1
1 B ’Autcrocjie. * Clavigerb, X 1 r. He was liimfelf a native of Vera Cruz. -
* The climate of California is mild |B p^gy, and the fcifl^natKably'.£r^;f:'.'^ ^ { ^ io fe ,'
,1* s°3.’ ■ ■ Even northern- California! as far as Moaterey, is by Ma accaiiinit' fingiiiafliy produflive
of maize, barley, and peafe.,-, Careri, vi 35. Fr. tr, fays.'.tbefc ase three harvefts in Mexico, in
Jute'; 0 Sober,- and the aventurera, or accidental-one; upon tKe mountains.
IIS SHI and