The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1853-06-30

earth and which are not worked for want of in
dustry; salt we have in great abundance, piled In
enormous hills on the banks of the Huallaga; salt
petre, dragons blood, setua or hMinbd "a kind of
very fine cott0n,) exquisite tobacco tamarnds topa
"a cotton produced from tree called cetca or balsa
vanilla of first quality sarsaparilla OF two classes,
and aromatic plants
All these productions, which are 80 many articles
OF commerce. lie in those plains serving merely
beautiful adornment to the works Of creation with
out man having approached to take part Of that
his avarice.
These regions, beyond all doubt offer to the geoo-
gist and naturalist vast field DEMONSTRATION in the
immense treasures that those two branches of science
embrace, recommending amply the work of future ex-
plorers of these beautiful countries the greater
extent of whose territories the foot of no civilized
person has left print before mine and where nature
is constantly rpening her richest gifts which after
wards fall and are lostn the course of seasons with
out being Of any use to man. In the meantime, |
have seen with sorrow the continuance of this evil;
but am kept up by the sweet hope that the day
will come when the Peruvian may know all these
treasures, and appropriate them to the uses and ne
cessities of his race not leaving to time to crcum
Stances that another may come and take from us
what we possess.
Amongst the articles Of export which / have not
mentioned as useful to the SPECTATOR ought not to
be passed unnotced the woods for fine cabinet work
and for naval construction of which we have an in
terminsble supply in the widespread forests IF this
precious Eden, without the hand OF man having had
The most valuable woods for the construction of
vessels are-the aguano, tree Of strong light wood
of pale yellow color and of long duration; mohena,
yellow, strong and OF delicate grain, the quality of
which facilitates its working upthis tree produces
kind Of plum which serves as food for several kinds
OF birds; cedar Of bright rose color very odererous,
solid and light; cedar of whitsh color, called the
bad smelling, from its diagreeabe odor. of light
weight and great duration and of closer grain than
the former there is another kind of cedar which
ries in color, as alsoa spotted one, which would
serve for the onamented work of ship, it is known
by the name of cedron. mashan, which means to say
sinlilar to CEDAR; robes of three kinds and coors
one of yellowish white, very hard and fine grained
believe that is known in England under the of
English oak; the cocobolo, one coffee color and the
other bright red wood of importance, and so strong
that the wood ressts the &C ton Of the Ratchet The
mode of getting it is by burning the roots, after
which, when dry, it can be worked up without diff
Guilty. White pine, fbrous and very light this tree
produces ptch-in the mountainous districts immense
forests of pine alone are to be found canafstula
strong tree Of compact grain not very heavy; it
would be very good for the sides lower decks of
we have also wood called the caprona, of SO singu-
lar nature that when it is buried in damp place
IT petriies LITERALLY turns to fiint)
Those which might be appropriated to polished
work are-the alfara, white wood with rose
colored spot, heavy, strong and fine grained the
muera-pinima, which signifies painted wood, of a
mother of pearl color, with black in such equal pro-
portions that it appears to have been most carefully
brilliant and CLASSY in appearance; it is like the tor
tose shell tanmbrca, ofchocoate color, with black
spot, and also yellow with black spot shiny CLASSY
heavy and solid Palo de sangre (bloodwood) of
red color, brilliant and CLASSY 1t is thus called be-
cause when boiled in water it has the property of
stopping violent hermorage: ebony of superior quail
ty; mahogany of very good kind; palo de colorado
Cred woody more red than palo de sangre, fine grain
ed and CLASSY. palo de Cruz of the qualities
the former, Of a yellow color with black spot. Of
this precious wood as also Of the muera-pinima and
the palo de sangre broad panks cannot be obtained
because the trees give at the most only three quar-
tiers of in diameter Many other lofty trees, of
great height and size, are to be met with of which
the aborigines make no use, on account Of the diff
Guilty Of telling them, and the greater in working
them. do not enumerate these because an igno-
rant of their names. What can affirm is, that in
these wide spread forests, the supreme government
could have many hands employed, Of those natives
who live given up to idleness and sunken in misery,
if it should be considered prudent and economical to
employ one or two engineers, some carpenters or
cakers in the construction of merchant vessels or
men of war, to increase marine, instead Of pur
chasing them from foreigners at greater price than
they would there cost us; and on coming from the
Amazon to the Pacific, they might bring the vatua-
bic productions Of the mountains for consumption on
our coast.