Page:A New Survey of the West Indies or The English American his Travel by Sea and Land.djvu/68

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52 r J Ney» Survey Chap. VIÍD

from the Eaft~lniL*s> from Sp*in y hom Caí¿t & t9 Domingo, Jucatan y Poetolello, and by Pmohtio from Peru, from Car- tagena, snd all rhe Iflands lying upon the North Sea, and by che River Alvar ado going up to Zapotecos, Sc. lldefonfo, and towards Gnaxaca, ?nd by the River Grijaval, running up toTalafco, Los Z(c¡<4es and Chíapa de Indios, makcth this lítele Town very rich, and to abound with all the Commo- dities of the Continent Land* and of all the Eafl and Wtjfc Indias Tieaffurev The unheahhinefs of the place is the rea- fon of the paucity of Inhabitants, and the. paucity of them, together with the rich Trading and Commerce, the Reafons that the Merchants therein are extraordinary rich ; who yec might have been far richer, had not the Town been fo often fired, and they in the fire had great IciTes. All the ftrength of this Town is* fit ft the hard and dangerous entrance into the Haven j-and fecondly, a Rock which lieth before the Town, lefs than a Musket thot off ; upon which is built 2 Csftle, and in the Cstftie a flight Garifonof Souldiers. In the Town there is neither Fort nor Caftle, nor fcarce any people of Warlike minds. The Rock and Caftle are as a Wall, Defence and Inclofure to the Haven, which otherwife Kerb wide open to the Ocean, and to the Northern Win¿5 a No Ship dares caft Anchor within the Haven, but only under the Rock and Caftle* and yet not fureenough fo with An. chors, except with Cables aifo they be bound and faftned to R ngsof Iron, for that purpofe f to the. fide of the Reck; from whence fometimes it hsth hapned, that Ships floating with the Stream too much on one fide the Rock, have been driven off and caft upon the other Rocks, or out to the Ocean, the Cables or their Anchor?, and thofe wherewith they have been faftned to the Caftle, being broken with the force of the Winds. > This hapned to one of our Ships the firft night af- ter we landed; who were happy that we were not then at Sea: For there arofe fuch a ftorm and tempeft from thi Norch, that it quite broke the Cables of one Ship, and drovt )t out tothe main Sea, and we thought it would have blowr and droven us out of our beds after it ; for the flight boarded Houies did fo totter and fhake, that we expeilcd every houi

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