The Dry And Barren Tract Of This Western Coast Of
America Begins At Cape Blanco In The North, And Reaches To Coquimbo In
30 Deg.
S. in all of which vast extent of coast I never saw or heard of any
rain falling, nor of any thing growing whatever either in the mountains
or vallies, except in such places as are constantly watered, in
consequence of being on the banks of rivers and streams.
The inhabitants of Colon are much given to fishing, for which purpose
they venture out to sea in bark-logs.[162] These are constructed of
several round logs of wood, forming a raft, but different according to
the uses they are intended for, or the customs of those that make them.
Those meant for fishing consist only of three or five logs of wood about
eight feet long, the middle one longer than the rest, especially
forewards, and the others gradually shorter, forming a kind of stem or
prow to cut the waves. The logs are joined to each other's sides by
wooden pegs and withes, or twisted branches of trees. Such as are
intended for carrying merchandise are made in the same manner and shape,
but the raft consists of twenty or thirty great trunks of trees, thirty
or forty feet long, joined together as before. On these another row of
shorter trees are laid across, and fastened down by wooden pegs. From,
this double raft or bottom they raise a raft of ten feet high, by means
of upright posts, which support two layers of thick trees laid across
each other, like our piles of wood, but not so close as in the bottom of
the float; these being formed only at the ends and sides, the inner part
being left hollow.
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