"The bishop of Sonora, the poorest of them all, does not draw tithes. He is paid, like the bishop of Panama, immediately by the king (de Caxas reales). His income amounts only to the 20th part of that of the bishops of Valladolid and Mechoacan; and, what is truly distressing in the diocese of an archbishop whose revenue amounts to the sum of 650,000 francs, there are clergymen of Indian villages whose yearly income does not exceed five or six hundred francs. The bishop and chapter of Valladolid sent, at different times, to the king as a voluntary contribution, particularly during the last war against France, the sum of 810,000 francs. The lands of the Mexican clergy (bienes raices) do not exceed the value of 12 or 15 millions of francs; c but the clergy possess immense capitals hypothecated on the property of individuals. The whole of these capitals (capitales de Capellanias y obras pias, fondos lotales de Communidades religiosas), of which we shall give a detail in the sequel, amounts to the sum of 44 millions and a half of double piastres, or 233,625,000 francs. Cortez, from the very commencement of the con

quest, dreaded the great opulence of the clergy in a country where ecclesiastical discipline is difficult to maintain. He says very frankly in a letter to Charles the Fifth, "that he beseeches his majesty to "send out to the Indies religieux "and not canons, because the lat"ter display an extravagant luxury, "leave great wealth to their natu"ral children, and give great scan"dal to the newly converted In"dians." This advice, dictated by the frankness of an old soldier, was not followed at Madrid. We have transcribed this curious passage from a work published several years ago, by a cardinal. It is not for us to accuse the conqueror of New Spain of predilection for the regular clergy, or antipathy towards the canons.

"The rumour spread up and down Europe of the immensity of the Mexican wealth has given rise to very exaggerated ideas relative to the abundance of gold and silver employed in New Spain in plate, furniture, kitchen utensils, and harness. A traveller, whose imagination has been heated by stories of keys, locks, and hinges of massy silver, will be very much surprised

2 27,0851. sterling. Trans. b 33,7521. sterling. Trans.

on his arrival at Mexico at seeing no more of the precious metals employed for domestic uses there than in Spain, Portugal, and the rest of the south of Europe; and he will be as much astonished at seeing in Mexico, Peru, or at Santa Fe, people of the lowest order barefooted with enormous silver spurs on, or at finding silver cups and plates a little more common there than in France and England. The surprise of the traveller will cease when he reflects that porcelain is very rare in these newly civilized regions, that the nature of the roads in the mountains renders the carriage of it extremely difficult; and that in a country of little commercial activity, it is equally indifferent whether a few hundred piastres be possessed in specie or in plate. Notwithstand ing, however, the enormous difference of wealth between Peru and Mexico, considering merely the fortunes of the great proprietors, I am inclined to believe that there is more true comfort at Lima than at Mexico. The inequality of fortunes is much less in the former; and if it is very rare, as we have already observed, to find individuals there who possess a revenue of 50 or 60,000 francs, we meet, however, with a great number of mulatto artisans and free negros, who, by their industry alone, procure much more than the necessaries of life. Capitals of 10 and 15000 piastres are very common among this class, while the streets of Mexico swarm with from twenty to thirty thousand wretches (Siragates, Guachinangos), of whom the greatest number pass the night sub dio, and stretch themselves out to the sun during the day with nothing but a

h

flannel covering. These dregs of the people bear much analogy to the Lazaroni of Naples. Lazy, careless,

and sober like them, the Guachinangos have nothing, however, ferocious in their character, and they never ask alms; for if they work one or two days in the week, they earn as much as will purchase their pulque, or some of the ducks with which the Mexican lakes are covered, which are roasted in their own fat. The fortune of the Saragates seldom exceeds two or three reals, while the lower people of Lima, more addicted to luxury and pleasure, and perhaps also more industrious, frequently spend two or three piastres in one day. One would say that the mixture of the European and the negro every where produces a race of men more active and more assiduously industrious than the mixture of the whites with the Mexican Indian.

"The kingdom of New Spain is, of all the European colonies under the torrid zone, that in which there are the fewest negros. We may almost say that there are no slaves We may go through the whole city of Mexico without seeing a black countenance, The service of no house is carried on with slaves. In this point of view especially, Mexico presents a singular contrast to the Havanah, Lima, and Caraccas. From exact information procured by those employed in the enumeration of 1793, it appears that in all New Spain there are not six thousand negros, and not more than nine or ten thousand slaves, of whom the greatest number belong to the ports of Acapulco and Vera Cruz, or the warm regions of the coasts (tierras calientes). The slaves

are four times more numerous in the capitania general of Caraccas, which does not contain the sixth part of the population of Mexico. The negros of Jamaica are to those of New Spain in the proportion of 250 to 1! In the West India islands, Peru, and even Caraccas, the progress of agriculture and industry in general depends on the augmentation of negros. In the island of Cuba, for example, where the annual exportation of sugar has risen in twelve years from 400,000 to 1,000,000 quintals.between 1792 and 1803 nearly 55,000 slaves have been introduced. But in Mexico the increase of colonial

prosperity is nowise occasioned by a more active slave trade. It is not above twenty years since Mexican sugar was known in Europe; Vera Cruz, at present, exports more than 120,000 quintals: and yet the progress of sugar cultivation which has taken place in New Spain since the revolution of St. Domingo has not perceptibly increased the number of slaves. Of the 74,000 negros annually furnished by Africa to the equinoxial regions of America and Asia, and which are worth in the colonies the sum of 111,000,000 francs, not above 100 land on the coast of Mexico."

"HA

APPENING to meet some of the Missionaries, and finding that they had some work to perform at their habitation, I offered iny assistance, and went to Ardeo; where I helped to plaister their house with a composition of lime, made of burnt coral, mixed up with the fibres of the cocoa-nut, instead of hair. It looked very neat, when finished. Its situation also was yery pleasant. It was inclosed with a beautiful garden, which in some parts was planted with rows of pines, that now flourished luxuriantly; in others with cotton seeds, from which young trees had shot up, and promised to be very productive: some already began to

bear: I saw one quite laden with cotton. The three missionaries residing here had made a great progress in the language. Bowel, whose abilities were superior to those of Harper or Gaulton, was arranging it in the form of a grammar, and composing a journal, with the intention of sending them to Europe; but this, the sudden war, and their untimely end, prevented.

They appeared very happy and united, settled in safety, under the protection of Vahargee, a chief who lived near thein.

They faithfully remonstrated with me respecting my conduct; but whatever impression I felt at the

Trans.

time, passed off when I left them. By this time I had arrived at considerable power and dignity in the island; and with the assistance of my workmen, built a small canoe, which would carry eight or ten

men.

"My acquaintance with the chiefs much increased; and as I had received every kind of attention from them, I prepared to return their kindnesses; and laid in provisions to entertain them. I bought a stock of pigs, and took great care to increase them; that there might always be in readiness a sufficient number to kill for the use of my friends, as occasion might require. I grew also some kava-root.

"I wished to have my little abbee as complete as possible, and therefore gave my workmen all the encouragement in my power; joined them in their labours, and fared the same as they did.

"In the course of nine or ten months we began to gather the fruits of our labours. We had plentiful crops of plantains and tarros. The tarro is a root resembling a carrot, which puts forth many shoots, that strike downwards for six or eight inches, by which the root is distended like the turnip, till it measures twelve inches in circumference: the top of it, like that of the pine, will grow again, when set. The roots soon spread over a large space, and when scraped and baked, are very pleasant and nutritious. Having a good supply of vegetable food, I was desirous of varying and improving it with fish; and therefore set upon contriving some expeditious mode of catching them, and at length improved upon the method of fishing at Tonga, by pursuing it upon a larger scale.

"For this purpose, with the assistance of a number of men, I strip

ped off the inner bark of trees, and, splitting it into fibres, twisted them into a large moya, or rope, which, when drawn out, extended a full mile. Procuring then a large quantity of the branches of the cocoa-nut tree, and stripping off the peel, together with the leaves, we wrapped it round the rope, in such a manner, that the leaves formed a fringe round it: this they called ooloa, or a fishing rope.

"We then put parts of the coloa into several canoes, and rowing together to a considerable distance from shore, two divisions of canoes were formed, and each division took opposite ends of a piece of rope, and separating, rowed off in different directions, lengthening the ooloa as we receded from each other, with other parts of the rope in the canoes, till we came to the full extent of it; when both divisions turned round, and rowed towards the shore, in an inclining direction, till they met, when the ooloa encircled a large space of water. Upon approaching the reef, a number of men got out of the canoes, and pulled the rope together towards the shore, and gra. dually drew it up, in order to lessen the circle. The fish did not offer to jump over or dive under, but swam round the circle, as to avoid the rope, which, tufted with leaves, as before mentioned, swept the water with a rustling noise. As they approached the shore, and the circle became more contracted, the men ran the nets round the oolca, or rope, and at length, the circle was so diminished, that the fish were forced into the bags of the surrounding nets, where they were secured, till the tide went down. The fibres of the cocoa-nut are so strong, as to be capable of sustaining an immense weight: the nets, therefore, were unbroken when the tide went down,

although

although they had inclosed a number of large fishes, sufficiently great to fill, by this one draft, a canoe that would contain eighty men. But this large quantity of fishes was of no private emolument to me; for at Tonga, though there is not a community of goods, yet it is the custom, where a person has much, for numbers to flock to him; and it would be looked upon as contrary to nature to refuse them. If I was sitting at my door, or at the entrance of my abbee with my attendants, and eating, and a stranger passed, he would come and sit himself down by me, without ceremony, and expect a meal with me. In a scarce season, numbers resorted to me for my yams; and it would, have been a transgression of the laws of hospitality to have refused them, as long as they lasted. We had an abundance of customers for our fish, there fore, in a short time; yet I had sufficient left to send large presents to different chiefs, and to take an ample quantity home.

"I continued my fishing, in this manner, as long as my fringed rope and nets of cocoa-fibres lasted; but the weather, after a time, rotted them; and as my abbee now produced me an abundant variety of good and pleasant food, I never made another ooloa.

"My intimacy and credit with the chiefs daily increased, and I generally made one of their party, both on business and recreation.

"The chief, near whom I lived, had a brother at Arbai, a cluster of islands at no great distance, composed of Anamooka and other islands; and as his son was going thither on a festive occasion, he invited me to accompany him. I was pleased with the prospect of an excursion, and fitted out the canoe, which I had

built, with the assistance of my workmen, for the voyage.

"I was much entertained in the tour, and joined the natives in all their amusements. The chief, whom we visited, mentioned to me a young person, whom he wished I would do him the honour to marry, that he might be related to me. She was a fair pretty girl, only fourteen years of age. I did not take her as my wife, but espoused her by a matrimonial ceremony, which often takes place, like the Jewish espousal, years before the consummation of the nuptials.

"The matrimonial ceremonies were performed at this time in a grand marriage between Dugonagaboola, and the daughter of a chief of Arbai. To honour his nuptials by our attendance, was the cause of our excursion thither. Upon our arrival, we found Dugonagaboola had been there a fortnight, to provide for the festivities of his approaching wedding. By this time a large store of provisions was accumulated, consisting of pigs, yams, plantains, cocoa-nuts, &c. all which, on the bridal morn, were brought in regular order before the chief, whose daughter was to be married, and presented to him.

"The bride, a fine woman of twenty-three years of age, came soon after, at the head of three hun dred women, who followed her in procession. Her dress was modest and elegant: a thin vest, neatly crimped, of a dark colour, which shewed her complexion to advantage, was fastened under her arms, and hung down to her waist, where it was bound close, by a skirt, enriched with flowery ornaments of matting.

"She walked at the distance of two or three paces before them; her carriage