and the calicoes of India, white and painted. Hither the Dutch Weft-India, which is also their African company, annually bring three or four cargoes of flaves; and to this mart the Spaniards themselves come in fmall veffels, and carry off not only the best of the negroes, at a very high price, but great quantities of all the above forts of goods; and the feller has this advantage, that the refufe of warehoufes and mercers' fhops, and every thing that is grown unfashionable and unfaleable in Europe, go off here extremely well every thing being fufficiently recommended by its being European. The Spaniards pay in gold and filver, coined or in bars, cacoa, vanilla, jefuits bark, cochineal, and other valuable commodities.

The trade of Curaffou, even in times of peace, is faid to be annually worth to the Dutch no less than five hundred thoufand pounds; but in time of war the profit is ftill greater, for then it becomes the common emporium of the West-Indies; it af fords a retreat to ships of all nations, and at the fame time refufes none of them arms and ammunition to destroy one another. The intercourse with Spain being then interrupted, the Spanish colonies have scarce any other market from whence they can be well fupplied either with flaves or goods. The French come hither to buy the beef, pork, corn, flour, and lumber, which are brought from the continent of North America, or exported from Ireland; fo that whether in peace or in war, the trade of this ifland flourishes extremely.

The trade of all the Dutch American fettlements was originally carried on by the Weft-India company alone; at prefent, fuch fhips as go upon that trade, pay two and a half per cent. for their licenses; the company, however, referve to themselves the whole of what is carried on between Africa and the American iflands.

The other islands, Bonaire and Aruba, are inconfiderable in themselves, and fhould be regarded as appendages to Curaffou, for which they are chiefly employed in raising cattle and other provifions.

The island of Saba, fituated at no great distance from St. Euftatius, is fmall, and hardly deferves to be mentioned.

DANISH WEST-INDIES.

ST. THOMAS.

AN inconfiderable member of the Caribbees, fituated in fix

ty-four degrees west longitude, and eighteen degrees north latitude, about fifteen miles in circumference, and has a safe and commodious harbour.

ST. CROIX, OR SANTA CRUZ.

Another small and unhealthy island, lying about five leagues eat of St. Thomas, ten or twelve leagues in length, and three or four where it is broadeft. These iflands, fo long as they remained in the hands of the Danish Weft-India Company, were ill managed, and of little confequence to the Danes; but that wife and benevolent prince, the late king of Denmark, bought up the company's stock, and laid the trade open; and since that time the island of St. Thomas, as well as this, has been so greatly improved, that it is faid to produce upwards of three thousand hogfheads of fugar, of one thousand weight each, and other of the Weft-India commodities in tolerable plenty. In time of war, privateers bring in their prizes here for fale; and a great many veffels trade from hence along the Spanish main, and return with money in fpecie or bars, and valuable merchandise. As for Santa Cruz, from a perfect defert a few years fince, it is beginning to fettle faft; feveral perfons from the English islands, fome of them of great wealth, have gone to fettle there, and have received very great encouragement to do so.

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The Dutch and the Danes hardly deferve to be mentioned among the proprietors of America; their poffeffions there are comparatively nothing. But notwithstanding they appear extremely worthy of the attention of these powers, as the fhare of the Dutch only is worth to them at leaft fix hundred thou fand pounds a year.

HISTORY OF

AMERICAN QUADRUPEDS.

IN a former part of this work *

we have had occafion to offer fome obfervations on the animals of America; by that account, for which we are indebted to the Abbé Clavigero, M. Buffon, and the ingenious Mr. Jefferfon, it appears, that the continent of America contains nearly one-half of the known fpecies of quadrupeds, fome of them common to North-America, and to the European and Afiatic parts of the caflern continent, and others peculiar to America: of these the greater part have not been accurately examined: it however appears, that thofe common to both continents are such as may be supposed to have migrated from one to the other. Comparing individuals of the fame fpecies inhabiting the diffefent continents, fome are found perfectly fimilar; between others there is often found fome trivial difference in fize, colour, or other circumftances; in fome inftances the European animal is larger than the American, in others the reverse is true. A fimilar variety is often found among the fame fpecies in different parts of the fame continent; this evidently arifes from the temperature of the climate, quantity of food furnished in the parts they inhabit, and the degree of safety and quiet poffeffed; the latter effect is evident on thole animals hunted for their flefh or fur, fuch as the moofe deer, beaver, &c. which have gradually diminished in their fize wherever they have thus been disturbed; but as we have neither a complete defcription nor complete catalogue extant, we are not warranted in making many oblervations. It is very probable, that many of the American quadrupeds are ftill utterly unknown, and others known only by common report from hunters and others, and the information, therefore, to be received with caution; from this latter caufe has fprung that multiplication and milapplication of names, which has produced numberless contradictions in the different writers on this

*Page 124, &c. of vol. 1.

.

fubje&t. Our account will be little more than a catalogue, with a few remarks on thofe in particular which conftitute that important branch of commerce, the fur trade, or are in other reípects peculiarly useful or curious.

The Lama. The lama is the camel of Peru and Chili; and, before the conqueft of thofe countries by the Spaniards, was the only beast of burden known to the Indians; its difpofition is mild, gentle, and tractable.

Before the introduction of mules, these animals were used by the natives to plough the land, and now ferve to carry burdens. They march flowly, and feldom accomplish journies of more than four or five leagues a day; but what they want in speed is made up by perfeveranse and industry. They travel long journies in countries impaffable to moft other animals, are very fure-footed, and are much employed in tranfporting the rich ores, dug out of the mines of Potofi, over the rugged hills and narrow paths of the Andes. They lie down to be loaded, and, when weary, no blows can excite them to quicken their pace. They neither defend themselves with their feet nor their teeth; when angry, they have no other method of reveng ing injuries but by spitting; they can throw out their faliva to the distance of ten paces; and if it fall on the fkin, it raises an itching, accompanied with a flight inflammation. Their flesh is eaten, and is faid to be as good as mutton; and of the hair of the wild fort the Indians make cloth.

Like the camel, they have the faculty of abftaining long from water, and like that animal, their food is coarse and trifling; they are neither allowed corn nor hay, green herbage, of which they eat very moderately, being fufficient for their

nourishment.

The wild lamas, called guanacos, are stronger and more active than the domeftic kind; they live in herds, and inhabit the highest regions of the Cordelieres, and they run with great fwiftnefs in places of difficult accefs, where dogs cannot eafily follow them.

The lama refembles the camel in the form of its body, but is without the dorsal hunch; its head is small and well shaped, its neck long, and very protuberant near its junction with the body; in its domeftic ftate its hair is fhort and smooth, when wild it is coarfe and long, of a yellowish colour; a black line runs along the top of the back, from the head to the tail. The tame ones vary in colour; fome of them are white, others black, others of a mixed colour-white, grey and ruffet, dilperled in fpots: its tail is fhort, its ears are four inches long,