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Baron
Humboldt, in his “Essai politique surle Royaume de la Nouvelle Espagne,” has des-cribed nine points of communication betweenthe Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. It has notbeen yet generally known that a communica-tion by water has actually existed. Of thesethe 7th is peculiarly interesting:--
“In the interior of the province of Choto,the small Ravin de la Raspadura unites theneighboring sources of the Rio de Noanama,called, also, Rio San Juan, and the little riverQuito. This river, united with the Rio Anda-geda and the Rio Zatara, forms the Riod’Atrato, which flows into the Sea of the An-tilles, (Caribbean Sea) and the Rio San Juanfalls into the South Sea. An enterprizingmonk, (the curate of the village of Novita),with the aid of his flock, (ses paroissiens,) duga small canal in the Ravin de la Raspadura.By this canal, which is navigable during theperiod of abundant rains, boats, laden withCacao, have passed from one sea to the other—Here then is a communication, which has ex-isted since 1788 and of which the Europeansknow nothing. This canal of Raspadura u-nites, on the coasts of the two oceans, twopoints which are seventy five leagues apart.”
Essai Politique, liv 1 ch 2
This canal, effected by the enterprizingmonk, is nearly in the latitude of Cape Cori-entes, or about six degrees forty five minutes
north, and about three degrees east of the
Capitol—National Intelligencer.