Page:The Present State of Peru.djvu/83

Rh, the only mines which had been discovered at that time were of silver. They were nineteen in number, and were all of them successfully wrought.

In the intendency of Arequipa, with its dependency of Caylloma, one mine of gold, and seventy-one of silver were wrought. Of the former metal four mines had been abandoned; and of the latter, twenty-eight.

In the intendency of Guantajaya, with its dependency of Tacna, one mine of gold, and twenty of silver, were wrought; at the same time that no less a number than nineteen of the former metal had been abandoned. Thirty mines of silver were in the latter state.

In the intendency of Huancavelica, with its dependencies of Castrovirreyna and Lircay, one mine of gold, eighty of silver, two of quicksilver, and ten of lead, were worked. Two of gold, and two hundred and fifteen of silver, were in an abandoned state. The multiplicity of unserviceable silver mines may be accounted for by the abundance of water, in the distridts in which they are situated, having gained on them from time to time, so as at length to have choked them completely.

From the above statement it results, that in the eight intendencies into which the viceroyalty of Peru is divided, there were, in the year 1791, sixty-nine serviceable mines of gold, seven hundred and eighty-four of silver, four of quicksilver, four of copper, and twelve of lead; at the same time that twenty-nine gold, and five hundred and eighty-eight silver mines had, by various accidents and casualties, been rendered unserviceable. In this statement the mines contained in the kingdom of Quito, and in the viceroyalty of Ayres,