three hundred and forty pounds eighteen fhillings and fivepence. But thefe, like most of the other islands, are on the decline, With the following tables, which we conceive will afford a comprehenfive view of the Weft-India trade, we fhall clofe our account of the British islands, An ACCOUNT of the Number of Veffels, &c. that have cleared outwards from the Islands of St. CHRISTO. PHER's and ANTIGUA, between the 5th of January 1787, and the 5th of January, 1788; together with an Account of their Cargoes, and the Value thereof. No. Tons. Men. Cwt. qrs. Ibs. Gallons Gallon lbs. lbs. £. s. d.j £. s. d. £. s. d. An ACCOUNT of the Number of Vessels, &c. that have cleared outwards from the Inlands of MONTSERRAT, NEVIS, and the VIRGIN ISLANDS, between the 5th of January, 1787, and the 5th of Janu ary, 1788; together with an Account of their Cargoes, and the Value thereof. Cotal from Mont. & Ne. 122 10,787 904110,284 0 211289,076 1,313 VIRGIN ISLANDS. 1401 92,4721 352 7 6 1363 3 5214,141 16 8 SPANISH WEST-INDIES. ཁ་ས་ས་ཞ CUBA. CUBA is a large and very valuable island, and by far the most important of all the Spanish Weft-Indies. On the caft fide it begins at 20° 21′ north latitude, touches the tropic of Cancer on the north, and extends from 74% to 85% 15' weft longitude. It lies fixty miles to the weft of Hifpaniols, twenty-five leagues north of Jamaica, one hundred miles to the caft of Jucatan, and as many to the fouth of cape Florida, and commands the entrance of the gulphs both of Mexico and Florida, as alfo the windward paffages. By this fituation it may be called the key of the Weft-Indies. It was difcovered by Columbus in 1492, who gave it the name of Ferdinando, in honour of king Ferdinand of Spain, but it quickly after recovered its ancient name of Cuba. The natives did not regard Columbus with a very favourable eye at his landing, and the weather proving very tempeftuous, he foon left this ifland, and failed to Hayta, now called Hifpaniola, where he was better received. The Spaniards, however, foon became maflers of it. By the year 1511, it was totally conquered, and in that time they had deftroyed, according to their own accounts, feveral millions of people. But the poffeffion of Cuba was far from anfwering the expectations of the Spanish adventurers, whole avarice could be fatiated with nothing but gold. Thefe monfters finding that there was gold upon the island, concluded that it must come from mines, and therefore tortured the few inhabitants they had left, in or der to extort from them a discovery of the places where thefe mines lay. The miferies endured by thefe poor crea tures were fuch, that they almoft unanimously refolved to put an end to their own lives, but were prevented by one of the Spanish tyrants called Valco Porcellos. This wretch threatened to hang himself along with them, that he might have the pleasure, as he faid, of tormenting them in the next world worse than he had done in this; and fo much were they afraid of the Spaniards, that this threat diverted these poor favages from their desperate refolution. In 1511, the town of Havannah was built, now the principal place on the island. The houses were at first built only of wood, and the town itself was for a long time fo inconfiderable, that in 1536 it was taken by a French pirate, who obliged the inhabitants to pay feven hundred ducats to fave it from being burnt. The very day after the pirate's departure, three Spanifh fhips arrived from Mexico, and having unloaded their cargoes, failed in purfuit of the pirate fhip. But fuch was the cowardice of the officers, that the pirate took all the three fhips, and returning to the Havannah, obliged the inhabitants to pay feven hundred ducats more. To prevent misfortunes of this kind, the inhabitants built their houfes of ftone, and the place has fince been ftrongly fortified. According to Abbé Raynal, the Spanish fettlement at Cuba is very important, on three accounts: 1. The produce of the country, which is confiderable. 2. As being the ftaple of a great trade; and, 3. As being the key to the West-Indies. The principal produce of this ifland is cotton; the commodity, however, through neglect, is now become fo fcarce, that fometimes feveral years pals without any of it being brought into Europe. In the place of cotton, coffee has been cultivated, but by a fimi lar negligence, that is produced in no great quantity; the whole produced not exceeding thirty or thirty-five thoufand weight, one-third of which is exported to Vera Cruz, and the rest to Madrid. The cultivation of coffee naturally leads to that of fu gar; and this, which is the most valuable production of Ame tica, would of itself be fufficient to give Cuba that state of profperity for which it seems defigned by nature. Although the furface of the inland is in general uneven and mountainous, yet it has plains fufficiently extenfive, and well enough watered, to fupply the confumption of the greatest part of Europe with fugar. The incredible fertility of its new lands, if properly managed, would enable it to surpass every other nation, however they may have now got the start of it; yet fuch is the indolence of the Spaniards, that to this day they have but few plantations, where with the finest canes, they make but Q q |