middle of the day is from 88° to 90°. The number of insects is considerable; some of the men were horribly disfigured by the bites they had received. The shore is bold and steep, but the high surf which here rolls itself majestically in a long heavy wave towards the land, frequently dashes over its boundaries, and lightly inundates the neighbouring soil; near the bar of the Michatoyat it is however lessened, and large sailing boats might come up the river generally without danger.
This spot is celebrated as being the place where Pedro Alvarado equipped his armaments in the years 1534 and l539. Of the advantages which it possesses over Sonzonate as the port of Guatimala, notice has been taken at length in the chapter on the trade and commerce of the republic. In its present state three or four hundred adventurers landing on its banks, might in three days enter the capital without encountering an enemy; and if determined, would be more than sufficient to subdue the troops appointed for the defence of the city. It has been said this bar is formed by the river Guacalate, but this an error; the Guacalate flows near the Michatoyat, but does not join it. Attempts have been made to cut a canal that should unite the two rivers, by which it was supposed the body of water would be sufficiently increased to remove the bar; this
