250

MINES IN

CHAP. XXV.

Within the period we are considering no sta-tistical returns have been procured except of thesilver for the first eleven years, which are asfollows :

Year.

Dollars.

1810

4,433,581

1811

3,963,566

1812

3,659,282

1813

3,409,594

1814

2,776,760

1815

2,494,422

1816

2,924,627

1817

2,653,042

1818

2,755,592

.1819

2,942,244

1820

3,573,907

35,586,617

The only authentic information respecting thestate of the mines comes down no lower than theyear 1826. At that time high expectations wereindulged of a great extension of mining operationswhich was to arise from the application of English capital. The account of the calamitous crisis withwhich England was visited at the end of the year1825 had not reached Peru when the descriptionsof the state of the mines here referred to were col-lected, and they must be considered as dictatedin some measure by the high state of excitementwhich was then in action in Peru .

“ Owing to the revolution which broke out atLima in 1820, no documents or even intelligence