or Equator, one of the three republics of South America which formerly constituted Colombia. Its territory chiefly comprehends the ancient Spanish vice-royalty of Quito, extending from 2° of north to 6° of south latitude, and from 76° 30' to 80° 40' of west longitude. Its limits, however, in the direction of Brazil have not been definitely fixed, so that it may extend to the east considerably beyond 76° 30'. On the south it borders upon Peru and Brazil; the latter country forms its eastern boundary; on the north its limits are New Granada; and the whole of its territory on the west is washed by the Pacific Ocean. Quito is intersected by both chains of the Andes, and consequently presents great diversity of surface and of climate. These parallel mountain ranges, by uniting at Loza, at Asuncion, at Chinchinche, and at Los Pastos, constitute what have been called mountain knots; and again opening up, they form the table-lands of Cuenca, Hambato, and Quito. The circles of snow-covered mountains by which they are surrounded have a few passes opening to the west coast, or to the low plains on the east; but they are so rugged and wild as to be scarcely practicable. These elevated valleys, although immediately under the equator, yet, on account of their great height, enjoy a climate in the highest degree mild, and a temperature which seldom varies. They are extremely fruitful, and would be the most charming places in the world, were it not for the destructive earthquakes and volcanic eruptions which are not unfrequently experienced. There are in Quito sixteen volcanoes, which, although they discharge no lava, often throw up immense quantities of ashes, water, sludge, and fragments of rocks, along with columns of smoke and flame; and these eruptions are always accompanied by undulations of the earth. From the line to 1° 41' of south latitude, stretching from north to south in the eastern portion of the valley of Quito, are Cotacachi, 15,402 feet; Cayambe Urcu, 18,330 feet; Antisana, 17,958 feet; Sinchulama, 15,420 feet; and Cotopaxi, 17,712 feet above the level of the sea. In the west of the same valley are situated Pinchincha, 15,036 feet; Corazon, 14,820 feet; and Yliniza, 16,302 feet in height. In the second group, under 1° of south latitude, lying in a direction from north to south, are the volcanoes of Carguirozo, 14,700 feet; and Chimborazo, 20,148 feet, above the level of the Pacific. The latter mountain is usually covered with snow and ice, 4,800 feet below the summit. In the vicinity of these, and about 16,000 feet in height, are the volcanoes of Tunguragua, Capac Urcu, and Sangini. But the most formidable of them all is Cotopaxi, the rocks thrown up by which would of themselves form a mountain chain of no inconsiderable size. Its eruptions have been numerous and destructive. In the year 1738 it projected upwards a column of fire nearly three thousand feet in height. In 1744 the subterranean sounds which it gave forth were heard at a distance of six hundred miles. One of the most frightful earthquakes which ever took place in this region, unhappily too celebrated for such visitations, was that of 1797, in which a tract of country one hundred and thirty miles in length by one hundred miles in breadth moved in undulatory billows like a stormy sea; many towns and villages were overthrown, and forty thousand human beings perished in a moment.

The mountain chain of the Andes throws out a number of lateral ridges to the east, the country gradually subsiding into a vast plain extending along both sides of the Maranon, covered with majestic forests, and watered by innumerable streams. A number of rivers descend the western declivities of the Andes, and flow into the Pacific Ocean; others join the large streams of Cauca and Magdalena on the north; and the most important class consists of those that are tributaries of the Rio Negro and Maranon, which last river forms the boundary of the republic on the south. A portion of the territory of Quito on the east and northeast is watered by the Orinoco. Into this river fall the Atabapo and Guaviare, which at the same time form the line of separation between Cundinamarca and this republic. The Putumayo, Napo, Tigre, Pastaza, Marona, and Rio St Jago, which are large streams, besides many others of inferior note,

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In the year 1831, the republic then called Colombia separated into three independent states, the names of which are New Granada, Venezuela, and the Equator or Quito. The limits of each state have not been accurately settled, but an arrangement as to the amount of the national debt which was to fall to the share of each was completed at Bogota on the 23rd of December 1834. all of which flow from the north-west to the south-east, fall into the Amazonas, and irrigate the flat eastern territory of Quito. The Andes of Quito also contain lakes of no inconsiderable dimensions, amongst which may be mentioned those of San Pablo and Culeocha. In the level land on the east, many of the streams form lagoons during part of their course.

Many of the ravines, quebradas, and valleys of Quito have a very warm atmosphere; indeed, in some parts the heat is so oppressive as to render them uninhabitable. Other valleys which are more elevated are remarkably healthy, extremely productive, and delightful as places of residence. The valley of Quito is allowed to be the finest table-land in all America. It is enclosed, as we have said, between the two parallel ranges of the loftiest Andes, having an average breadth of thirty miles, but extending longitudinally much farther. In soil and climate it possesses every advantage. The climate is remarkably equable and agreeable; the indication of winter being the fall of rain, and the absence of rain marking the summer. The temperature is so benign that vegetation never ceases, the country all around the city of Quito exhibiting the beauty of perpetual spring. Hence it has been called siempre verde Quito, and also eterna primavera, both which epithets it may be said to deserve; for its native trees are all evergreen, and the fields on the slopes of the mountains never lose their verdure. The European sees with astonishment the plough and the sickle at once in equal activity; the green blade of grain and the yellow ear waving in the same breeze; one flower drooping, and its companion just beginning to "dedicate its beauty to the sun." In short, here the seasons of spring, summer, and autumn all go on at once, and the tints and varied beauties peculiar to each blend together in the same landscape. Mr Stevenson draws a glowing picture of these delightful valleys. They are, he says, "principally under cultivation, and bless the husbandman with a continued succession of crops; for the uninterrupted sameness of the climate in any spot is such as to preclude the plant as well as the fruit from being damaged by sudden changes in the temperature of the atmosphere, changes which are in other countries so detrimental to the health of the vegetable world. The fertility of some of these valleys exceeds all credibility, and the veracity of the description would be doubted, did not the knowledge of their localities, and the universal descriptions of the equability and benignity of these climates, insure the probability. One of these, called Pomasqui, is about five leagues from Quito, where sugar-cane arrives at a state of maturity in three years, and where many of the intertropical fruits attain the greatest perfection. This luxury is enhanced by the proximity of other situations possessing all the variety of climates known in the world. In the course of three hours a person may experience the rigidity of the poles, the oppressive heat of the equator, and all the intermediate temperatures."

An enumeration of all the different vegetable productions of this remarkable region is rendered unnecessary by the general view here given. It is sufficient to state, that grain, pulse, fruits, esculents, and horticultural vegetables are produced in the greatest abundance, and of an excellent quality, as well as all kinds of butcher-meat and poultry. The breeding of cattle and sheep, especially the latter, is extensively carried on in the high valleys. Excellent timber, fitted for ship or house building, and for every purpose of the cabinet-maker, abounds in many districts of the country. The soil is for the most part so productive of everything which usually occupies the attention of the husbandman and farmer, that butter, cheese, wax, mules, oxen, Peruvian bark, cacao, cotton, tobacco, grain, and other staples, form important exports. Sugar, wine, coffee, molasses, rum, and other spirits, are also amongst the products.

Gold and silver are comprised in the metallic riches of the mountain territory. Some manufactures are carried on in different places.

According to the new constitution, this republic consists of the following provinces, viz., Quito, Chimborazo, Imbabura, Guayaquil, Morahí, Cuenca, Loja del Archipelago, and Galapagos or Tartle Island.

capital of the republic, is one of the finest and largest cities in the New World. It was founded in the year 1534, by Sebastian Benalcasar, with the dedicatory title of San Francisco, and in 1541 was created a city by Charles V. It stands in a ravine, at an elevation of more than 9000 feet above the level of the sea, in longitude 78° 45' 17" west from Greenwich, and in latitude 0° 13' 17" south. The mountain of Pinchincha lies on its west side, and on the east there is a range of hills called Chimbacalle. To the south is the plain of Turipampa or Turubamba, and to the north the plain of Anquito, generally called Egidio. The streets, which run north and south, stand on a pretty level plain, and are broad, handsome, and well paved; but those which cross them and climb the skirts of Pinchincha, descending on the east side of the city towards the small river of Macangara, are crooked and irregular. Quito has two universities, and it has always enjoyed celebrity for the great number of students by whom they are attended. There are a number of other seminaries of education in this city; indeed it is considered as comparatively a sort of American Athens. It is the seat of the congress, the president, and the highest offices of state, and enjoys a very extensive trade in cotton, silk, leather, gold, and silver. The commerce of Quito may be conveniently divided into two kinds, that of home and that of foreign manufactures. The former consists of cotton and woollen cloths, baizes, sugars, flannels, pouches, and other minor articles. The stock of foreign goods is composed of all kinds of European manufactures, including those of iron, steel, and some other raw materials. The articles most in demand are English broad cloths, kerseymeres, coloured broad flannels, calicocks, &c.; all kinds of hardware and cutlery, and foreign silk velvets, satins, as well as English ribbons and silks. The population amounts to about seventy-five thousand souls, and has been divided into three classes of nearly equal numbers; the whites, mestizos, and Indians. Here there are very few negroes, or descendants of that race, the Indians being generally engaged in domestic service.

Some remarkable monuments of the former sway of the Incas are found scattered at intervals in these delightful valleys. The ruins near Cayambe may be pronounced superb. Those of the palace of Callo present one of the most perfect examples of the ancient architecture of the Peruvians, which throughout the vast extent of the empire are marked by the most striking similarity. It forms a square, each side of which is one hundred feet in length. Four gates and eight interior apartments may be distinctly traced. The gates resemble those of the Egyptian temples; and the niches, of which there are eighteen in each division, are distributed in a very symmetrical manner. The remains of spacious porphyry palaces are found also at Atun, Cañar, and some other places. The ruins of fortified places, called pucunas, still exist, and some of them are of considerable extent.

The province of Chimborazo, so called from the majestic mountain which overlooks its valleys, is distinguished for its breed of mules. Barley, potatoes, and maize are cultivated by the Indians in various parts, and some sugar-cane in the bottoms of the ravines. Riobamba, the capital of the province, was completely destroyed by the earthquake of 1797; and, with very few exceptions, the whole population, amounting to about twenty thousand, were buried under the ruins, or engulfed in the earth. Some idea of the terrible nature of the convulsion in this quarter may be gathered from the fact, that part of the ruins situated on the acclivities on each side of the valley where the new town now stands are pointed out as having once formed portions of one edifice, although now separated from each other a league and a half. The new town is built upon a sandy plain, much below the level of the surrounding elevated plains called paramos. Its climate is very agreeable, and adapted for producing all kinds of European fruits. Sheep-farming is extensively carried on, about four thousand quintals of sheep's wool being produced annually, and manufactured into different kinds of cloth. At Tescan, in the neighbourhood, there is a large sulphur-work; and here are seen part of those remains of hewn stones which run along the mountains almost to Cuzco, at a height of 13,800 feet above the level of the sea. This is called the road of the Incas, and, no doubt, was the means of communication between the two capitals in the regal days of the "Children of the Sun." Riobamba contains a population of 15,000; Ambato or Hambato, situated between Cotopaxi and Carguirazo, in a very fine region, contains 3000 inhabitants, who trade extensively in cochineal. This place also suffered severely in 1797. The other places in this province are, Alansí, situated in an elevated valley of the same name; Guano, which has a considerable trade with Popayan; Guarando, a depot for the trade between Quito and Guayaquil; and Pallactanga, where there are rich gold and silver mines.

The province of Imbabura contains many fine and fruitful valleys, in which there are extensive plantations of sugar-cane, from which the best sugar in the republic is manufactured. The wheat grown in this district is likewise of the finest quality. The capital, called Ibarra, is situated eighteen leagues to the northward of Quito. It is exceedingly well built, having fine streets and a spacious market-place; and it contains 12,000 inhabitants, who are employed to some extent in the weaving of cotton and woolens, and the manufacture of stockings and ponchos. To the south-west of Ibarra is the town of Otavalo, containing 20,000 inhabitants. Large quantities of cattle are bred in the neighbourhood, and cotton and woollens are manufactured here in the same manner as at Ibarra. Esmeraldas is situated near the mouth of a river of the same name, and is one of the few ports of the republic. The surrounding country is extremely fruitful; the sugar-cane grows to above ten feet in height, and the yam root sometimes weighs twenty pounds. Tacames is likewise a haven on the Pacific Ocean. But the great port of Quito is Guayaquil.

The remaining provinces may be briefly described. Loxa affords the finest cinchona, and was long supposed to be the only spot which produced in perfection that precious medicament. The town of Loxa is well built, and contains some fine churches, several well-organized seminaries of education, and a population of 10,000. The capital of Cuenca, called St Anna de Cuenca, is the seat of a bishop, and possesses a university, several schools and fine churches, with 20,000 inhabitants. The other towns in this quarter worthy of being mentioned are Azogues, where there are quicksilver mines; Zaruma, celebrated for its gold, silver, and lead mines; Beza, once populous, but now decayed to a mere village; and some other places, once of note, but now Quit-rent deserted wastes. The Galapagos or Turtle Islands, stretching from 3° south to 2° north latitude, are celebrated for an uncommon species of land-turtle which they produce, weighing from fifty to three hundred pounds. The largest island is called Albemarle, and may be about sixty miles in length. It contains a good harbour. The whole group is said to be of volcanic origin.

The value of the trade of this republic will be seen from the following statement. In the year 1835 there entered inwards at the port of Guayaquil 123 vessels, of 21,430 tons burden in all, and with cargoes valued at £221,680. The same number cleared outwards, and the value of their cargoes was £210,429. The imports consist chiefly of British manufactures, flour, wine, and other necessaries; the exports, of cocoas, timber, and the other products of the country. The number of inhabitants is estimated at 550,000, including 300,000 Indians who dwell in the mountains; but some American accounts fix the population at only 481,966. With regard to the income and expenditure, little correct information is to be obtained. The former has been reckoned at 800,000 piastres, and the latter at about as much; but by the most recent intelligence the minister of finance estimates the outlay as low as 171,086 piastres. By the treaty regarding the national debt, already mentioned, the share which fell to Quito was 21½ per cent., or £1,464,795 sterling.

On the first of May 1835, the congress of the nation, consisting of forty-five members, agreed to draw up a plan of a constitution for the country; but it does not appear that they have yet (1839) agreed about the details. (n. s. e.)