Personal Narrative Of Travels To The Equinoctial Regions Of America During The Years 1799-1804 - Volume 1 - By Alexander Von Humboldt And Aime Bonpland.
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Volume 2 Pages 519, 616 And 866.) But The Salt Was Extremely
Impure, Grey, Mixed With Earthy Particles, And Surcharged With
Muriate And Sulphate Of Magnesia.
Since the province of Cumana has
become dependent on the intendancia of Caracas, the sale of salt is
under
The control of the excise; and the fanega, which the
Guayquerias sold at half a piastre, costs a piastre and a half.* (*
The fanega of salt is sold to those Indians and fishermen who do
not pay the duties (derechos reales), at Punta Araya for six, at
Cumana for eight reals. The prices to the other tribes are, at
Araya ten, at Cumana twelve reals.) This augmentation of price is
slightly compensated by greater purity of the salt, and by the
facility with which the fishermen and farmers can procure it in
abundance during the whole year. The salt-works of Araya yielded to
the treasury, in 1799, a clear income of eight thousand piastres.
Considered as a branch of industry the salt produced here is not of
any great importance, but the nature of the soil which contains the
salt-marshes is well worthy of attention. In order to obtain a
clear idea of the geological connection existing between this
muriatiferous soil and the rocks of more ancient formation, we
shall take a general view of the neighbouring mountains of Cumana,
and those of the peninsula of Araya, and the island of Margareta.
Three great parallel chains extend from east to west. The two most
northerly chains are primitive, and contain the mica-slates of
Macanao, and the San Juan Valley, of Maniquarez, and of
Chuparipari.
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