two or three at least gathered from the moral darkness of these immortal spirits. If so, " not unto me, not unto me, but unto thy name, O Lord, be the praise."

LIMA.

LETTER XVII.

SKETCH OF CALLAO, AND RIDE TO LIMA.

Lima, June 23d, 1829.

AFTER having dined with the gentlemen of the Vincennes, I landed at Callao at 4 o'clock this afternoon, to take a coach for Lima. It was the first time I had been on shore; and much as I had heard of the wretchedness of the port, I was disgusted with the poverty, filth, and whole aspect of the place.

The shipping, between the anchorage of our squadron, and the landing, had entirely screened the town from view, except the beautiful castle and fortress by which it is defended; and the strength and good keeping of these greatly deceived me as to the size and importance of the place. The population amounts to about two thousand, crowded along a single street of half a mile following the curvature of the bay, intersected by two or three others a few rods only in length, except that formed by the road to Lima.

The extent of ground covered is not equal to that at Honolulu; while scarce a habitation in the town has an appearance, externally, of greater civilization and comfort than that of Marini the Spaniard there: and

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every street presents all the offence to the senses found in the metropolis of the Sandwich Islands.

The houses, generally, are of one story only, on account of the frequency of earthquakes; and as it scarce ever rains, all the roofs are perfectly flat. The walls, terminating abruptly and irregularly above them, without the ornament of a cornice or balustrade, give to the whole the appearance of so many ruins, from which the tops and chimneys have been shaken or blown: an impression not diminished by the shattered and peeled surface of the plaster with which they are covered.

The building of a new house near the coach-office, gave an opportunity of observing the process in putting up a habitation of the common kind. It consists in first planting in the ground upright posts, a foot or more in circumference, and sixteen or eighteen feet high, at a distance of two or three yards from each other, along lines, marking the dimensions of the building. To these, when firmly set, long sticks of bamboo, an inch or more in diameter, are lashed horizontally with thongs of undressed hide, commencing at the ground, with three bamboos close together, then a space of two or three feet, then three bamboos again, and so on to the top. Through these horizontal layers, sticks of the same, but more slender, are wattled perpendicularly, as closely as possible; forming a basis or lathing for the mud or mortar, with which the walls are finished.

The roofs are of cane, wattled in a similar manner, with the addition, in some cases, of a ceiling of boards or plank. A pavement of large brick constitutes the floor; and the windows, in place of glass, are filled

usually with bars or grates of wood or iron, with an outside shutter to be closed at night.

Two or three lines of coaches run twice a day between Callao and Lima. After the peep I had taken of the town, I did not anticipate much from the carriages it might supply; and was agreeably disappointed in the equipages as they drove, at the appointed hour, to the doors of different public houses in the principal street. One was a handsome English chariot, formerly the property of a British consul; and another, that in which I rode, a low and neatly finished barouche, drawn by four fine and well harnessed horses. I mounted my favorite seat on the box, beside the cochero, a large and talkative Frenchman, and we rolled away under a flourish and crack of whip that would not have been thought unbecoming a departure from a principal hotel in London or Paris.

The towers and domes of Lima, eight or nine miles inland, are distinctly seen from the bay, stretching, for a mile or more, along the upper line of a heath-like and desolate looking country, with the Cordilleras in gigantic majesty behind. From the gradual rise of the land, the elevation of the city seems scarce above the site of Callao; but from accurate measurement by Humboldt and others, it is known to be seven hundred feet higher than the level of the sea..

The road, which is wide and straight, strikes from the port across a marshy plain, and for a mile is covered with large pebbles from the beach; but, after that distance, consists of the natural soil only, and is in some places quite heavy with sand. Without a fence or hedge, and only a small enbankment of earth and sod on either side to mark its course, while scarce a

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bush or shrub is in sight, it is, for the first three or four miles excessively dreary.

A want of interest in the natural scenery was made up in a degree, however, by the variety and novel appearance of many of the persons and groups passing, in one direction or the other. Soon after leaving Callao, we overtook two Cabelleros in ponchos and high crowned grass hats, the costume of the country, mounted en spirited animals, with English saddles, but using in place of a whip the long platted and knotted ends of the reins, the universal practice along the coast. They looked grave as deacons, and probably owed their sedateness to a large mixture of Spanish blood.

The poncho is an original Indian garment, about two yards in length and one and a half in breadth, with a hole cut in the centre, through which the head is passed, while the ends and sides hang in loose dra-pery around the figure. It is made of every variety of material, and of course varies in expensiveness; being formed sometimes of common white or striped cotton only, with a coarse fringe or binding around the neck and edges, but often of the finest cloth, ornamented with rich embroidery.

Shortly afterwards, we passed a group still more novel and characteristic; and having a strong dash of the Indian in the whole. It was a riding party of two males and two females, in the seeming relation of parents and children. The elder male was in a round jacket and pantaloons of brown cloth, and a high conical hat of Guayaquil grass. The caparison of his horse was entirely in the Peruvian fashion. A clumsy saddle, rising high in the pommel in front and beVOL. I.

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