THE
EDITOR'S PREFACE.
Relative to the progressive advances of civilization and society, in the Spanish colonies of South America, little has been hitherto known; and this imperfect knowledge has been, for the greater part, derived from polluted sources. The Spaniards by whom these colonies have been visited, and who have, on their return to the parent kingdom, drawn up the result of their observations, have been led by various motives, either personal, or founded in policy and the terrors of the inquisition, to have recourse to reticences and misrepresentations, in whatever has regarded the social condition of the inhabitants, and their philosophical and scientific attainments. On another hand, the native writers have had uncommon impediments to encounter, in the illustrations at which they have aimed: but a few years have elapsed since they have had the advantage of a press, by which to disseminate their ideas; and this facility they enjoy at certain intervals only, under the
