LatAm Digital Edition and Gazetteer

C U I

C U L

553

It is of a mild temperulurcj but rather inclined to cold than heat. It contains 264 families of Indians, and a convent of the religious order of St. Domingo, and in its district are various estates, in which, and in the 10 settlements of which its district consists, are collected scarlet dje, seeds, fruits, coal, woods, and timber. It is two leagues s. e. of the capital.

CUILOTO, a river of the Nuevo Reyno de Granada, It rises in the mountains of Bogota, runs e. through the llanos or plains of Casanare and Meta, and afterwards enters the river Meta. Some barbarian Indians, the liraras and Chinalos, live about its borders, dispersed amongst the woods.

CUIQUE, a settlement of the province and government of Venezuela ; situate on the shore of the lake Tacarigua, towards the s.

CUIQUILA, Santa Maria de, a settlement and head settlement of the alcaldia mayor of Tepozcolula in Nueva Espana. It is of a cold temperature, contains 76 families of Indians, whose only employment is that of making stone flags ; and these in sufficient quantity to supply the whole province. Is nine leagues s.w. of its capital.

CUISILLO, San Francisco de, a settlement and head settlement of the alcaldia mayor of the town of Leon, in the province and bishopric of Mechoacan, contains S3 families of Indians, who employ themselves in the cultivation of maize and many fruits. It is very close to its capital.

CUITES, a settlement of the missions which were held by the regulars of the company of Jesuits, in the province and govetument of Cinaloa of Nueva Espaila.

CUITI, a river of the province and government of Darien, of the kingdom of Tierra Firme. It rises in the mountains towards the n. and enters the sea between the islands Palmas and Pinos.

CUITINA, a settlement of the province and corregimiento of Tunja in the Nuevo Reyno de Granada ; situate in the llanura of Sogamoso, between the settlement of this name and that of Tota. It is of a cold temperature, produces wheat, maize, papas, and the other fruits of a cold climate. It contains 60 housekeepers, and as many Indians ; lies eight leagues to the n. of Tunja.

CUIXTLAHUACA, San Juan de,, a settlement of the alcaldia mayor of Yanguitlan in Nueva Espaila. It contains 604 families of Indians, with those of the wards of its district. It is of a hot temperature, and lies 16 leagues s. w. of its capital. It produces some scarlet dye and seeds,

CUIXTLAHUACA, San Juan de, another settlement, of the alcaldia mayor of Tlapa in the same kingdom. It contains 15 families of Indian’s,

VOE. 1.

CUJENA, Cano de, an arm of the river Negro, in the country of Las Amazonas. It runs nearly due s. and joins the Parime.

CUJILLOS, a settlement of province and government of Jaen de Bracamoros in the kingdom of Quito ; situate on the shore of the river Marailon.

[CUJO. See Cuva.]

CUL DE Sac, a settlement and parish of the French, in the part possessed by them in the island of St. Domingo. It is in the head of the w. and upon the w. coast, on the shore of a river between port Principe and the river of Naranjos or Oranges.

Cul de Sac, another settlement and parish in the island of Guadalupe. It lies on the shore of the bay of its name, between the rivers Vondipiques and Testu. There is also another settlement in the same bay, between the rivers Lezard and Sarcelles.

CUL DE SAC, a large bay and convenient port of the same island (Guadalupe), which is the principal of the whole island, and in which are many smaller islands. There is also another close to it, distinguished by the title of Cul de Sac Petit ; and these are divided by an isthmus of land, which allows a communication to the same lakes by a narrow channel.

CULATAS, a small settlement of the district and jurisdiction of the town of San Gil, in the corregimiento of Tunja in the Nuevo Reyno de Granada ; annexed to the curacy of Oiba, It lies between the settlements of Socorro and Charala,

CULAUI, a river of the island of La Laxa, in the kingdom of Chile. It runs w. forming a bend between those of Huaque and Duqueco, and enters the Biobio.

CULCHE, a settlement of Indians, of the district of Guadalabquen, and kingdom of Chile; situate at the source of the river Valdivia.

CULEBRAS, Rio de, a river on (he coast of the province and government of Costarica, of tlie kingdom of Guatemala. It runs into tlie N. sea, between the river Bocaes and the bay of Almirante.

CuLEBRAs, Rio de, another river in the province and kingdom of Tierra Firme. It rises in the mountains of the n. coast, and point of San Bias, and runs into the sea to the w.

CULEBRAS, Rio de, another, of the island of Santo Domingo, in the e. head ; runs into the sea in the great bay of Samana, between the rivers Magua and Yaina.

CULEBRAS, Rio de, a lake of the province and government of Venezuela, between the river of Sa4 B

B64

CUR AGO A.

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[tion for privateers, and in the war of 1780 the cruisers from Cura^oa greatly annoyed the English W. India trade ; so that tliere was a balance accounted for by the treasury of 190,000 francs, (about 17,275/.), arising from the duties on the prize-cargoes. This had been invested on mortgage for the benefit of the company. The governor should be a milhary man ; the mixed nature of the inhabitants renders a strict and more arbitrary form of government necessary here than in the otlier colonies. Excepting a tew merchants, there are scarcely any white inhabitants at the chief town, Williamstad, or on the opposite side of the harbour; such as have any lands live upon them, and the public officers and servants of the company reside in or near the fort. The town’s people are a mixture of Jews, Spaniards, sailors, free Mulattoes, free Negroes, Musquito and other Indians. I'he licentiousness of the Negro slaves is very great here, and attributable to various causes ; they are nevertheless worse off than in other colonies, as, in case of a scarcity of provisions, the distress falls chiefly on them. The manumission of slaves, as practised here, is very preposterous ; for it is generally when they are too old to work, that their proprietors pay a small fine to government to emancipate them, and then they must either acquire a precarious subsistence by begging, or are exposed to perish by want, as there is no provission for such objects. There are still at Bonaire a few remaining of the original inhabitants, and three or four aged people at Cura50 a ; with these exceptious the natives have becomeextinct. There are hardly half a dozen families of whites who have not intermarried with Indians or Negroes on the intermediate coasts. At Williamstad there is a Dutch reformed church, a Lutheran church, a Roman Catholic chapel, and ^ Jewish synagogue ; houses are built so near the walls of the fort, that a ladder from the upper stories would be sufficient to get within the] walls. A remarkable blunder of the engineer is noticed, who, in building a stone battery, turned the embrasures inwards instead of outwards. In the front of that battery of the fort which is intended to command the entrance of the harbour, a range of warehouses has been built, which are not only themselves exposed to the fire of an enemy, but impede the use of the guns of the fort, which would first have to level those warehouses to a certain height before their shot could reach a hostile force. The powder magazine was placed at a distance from the fort, and in such a situation as to expose the road or access to it, to the fire of any ship coming round on that side. The

town, harbour, and fort, are however capable of being made impregnable by any force attacking them from the sea-side ; yet they would be greatly exposed on the land-side, and there are several places on the shores of the island where an enterprising enemy might find means to effect a landing with small craft ; these spots ought, therefore, likewise to be fortified, and a garrison ought to be maintained, numerous enough to dispute the ground foot by foot, which, in such a rocky island, abounding with difficult passages and defiles through the broken rocks, could easily be done; and an enemy, however strong at their landing, if they should effect it, would be exhausted by a well contested retreat, before they could reach the chief settlement. Cura 9 oa is in lat. 12 ° 6 '. Long. 69° 2'.]

CURAÇOA. This beautiful city is well situated ; its buildings are large, convenient, and magnificent ; is full of store-houses and shops well provided with every species of merchandise, and of all kinds of manufactories ; so that you may see at one glance a vessel building, the sails and rigging, and all its other necessary equipments preparing, and even the articles being macufactured with which it is to be laden. It has a good port, in which vessels from all parts are continually lying ; its entrance is defended by a castle, but dangerous and difficult to be made, and to effect it, it is necessary to make fast a cable to the same castle, although a vessel, when once in, will lie very safe. It has a synagogue for the convenience of the many Jews who inhabit the city, and who are the principal merchants. The French, commanded by M. Caissar, bombarded it in 1714: ; but the commanding ship of his squadron was wrecked upon the coast.

CURAGUATE, a river of the island and government of Trinidad. It runs to the w. extremity, and enters the sea in the n. coast, near the capital, San Joseph de Oruna.

CURAGUATA, a point of the n. coast of the same island (Trinidad), close to the port Maracas.

CURAGUE, a small river of the island of La Laxa in the kingdom of Chile. It runs n. n. w. and enters the Huaque, opposite the mouth of the Raninco. On its shores the Spaniards have built ^ fort, called De los Angeles, to restrain the incursions of the Araucanos Indians.

CURAHUARA de Carangas, a settlement of this province and corregimiento (Chile), and of the archbishopric of Charcas in Peru.

CURAHUARA DE Carangas, another settlement, with the additional title of Pacajes, to distinguish it from the former; belonging to the above province and corregimiento (Chile).