A General History And Collection Of Voyages And Travels - Volume X - By Robert Kerr


















































































































 -  There are also here
some wild mammee-trees, which grow very tall and straight, and are fit
for masts, but - Page 211
A General History And Collection Of Voyages And Travels - Volume X - By Robert Kerr - Page 211 of 431 - First - Home

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There Are Also Here Some Wild Mammee-Trees, Which Grow Very Tall And Straight, And Are Fit For Masts, But The Fruit Is Not Esteemed.

The tree producing the star-apples resembles our quince-tree, but is much larger, and has abundance of broad oval leaves.

The fruit is as big as a large apple, and is reckoned very good, but I never tasted it.

The river Chepo, or Cheapo, rises in the mountains near the north side of the isthmus, being inclosed between a northern and southern range, between which it makes its way to the S.W. after which it describes nearly a semicircle, and runs gently into the sea about seven leagues E. from Panama, in lat. 9 deg. 3' N. long. 79 deg. 51' W. Its mouth is very deep, and a quarter of a mile broad, but is so obstructed at the entrance by sands as only to be navigable by barks. About six leagues from the sea stands the city of Cheapo, on the left bunk of the river.[175] This place stands in a champaign country, affording a very pleasant prospect, as it has various hills in the neighbourhood covered with wood, though most of the adjacent lands are pasture-grounds to the north of the river, but the country south from the river is covered with wood for many miles.

[Footnote 175: In modern maps the town of Chepo is placed on the right bank of the river, as descending the stream, and only about five miles up the river. - E.]

Our men returned from Cheapo on the 24th, having taken that town without opposition, but found nothing there worth mention. The 25th we were joined by Captain Harris, and arrived at Taboga on the 28th, when, finding ourselves nearly a thousand strong, we meditated an attack on Panama; but, being informed by our prisoners that the Spaniards there had received considerable reinforcements from Porto Bello, that design was laid aside. The 25th May we had intelligence from some prisoners that the Lima fleet was daily expected, whereupon we anchored in a narrow channel, a mile long and not above seven paces wide, formed by two or three small islands on the south side of the island of Pacheque. Our fleet now consisted of ten sail, only two of which were ships of war, that commanded by Captain Davis having 36 guns and 156, while Captain Swan's carried 16 guns and 140 men. The rest were only provided with small arms, and our whole force amounted to 960 men. We had also a fire-ship.

Hitherto we had the wind at N.N.E. with fair weather, but on the 28th of May the rainy season began. On that day, about 11 a.m. it began to clear up, and we discovered the Spanish fleet three leagues W.N.W. from the island of Pacheque, standing to the east, we being then at anchor a league S.E. from that isle, between it and the continent.

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