nt is very inconsiderable. The
government exacts from it the import duty, three per cent., on European
books, making an average annual sum of 400 dollars. In addition to this
the salaries of the librarians amount annually to 2794 dollars. The
library is open to the public every day (Friday and Sunday excepted)
from eight in the morning till one in the afternoon, and from four in
the afternoon till six in the evening.

In the left wing of the same building is the museum, containing a
collection of objects of natural history, antiquities, and other
curiosities. This collection was first formed in the year 1826, in some
of the spare rooms of the palace of the Inquisition, and was afterwards
removed from one place to another, until at length the government
allotted to the purpose the two fine apartments in the building above
mentioned. As yet the establishment is quite in its infancy. It contains
nothing of scientific value, and but for the series of historical
portraits already described, it would differ but little from the
collections of curiosities frequently formed by amateurs, in which all
sorts of heterogeneous objects are jumbled together. The museum of Lima
bids fair to remain for some time to come on the footing on which it was
when I saw it, for the establishment has no funds, save a monthly
allowance of thirty-two dollars, and out of that scanty pittance the
expense of fitting up the rooms, the glass cases, &c., has yet to be
defrayed. The museum is open to the public four days in the week.

Two other apartments in the same building are set aside for the Academy
of Design (_Academia de Debujo_). On three evenings every week pupils
are admitted to this academy to receive gratuitous instruction in
drawing. The number of the pupils amounts to between 80 and 100; but
there is convenient room for 200. The collection of models and drawing
copies for the use of the students is but indifferent.

The mint is situated in the vicinity of the Plazuela de la
Independencia. It was founded in Lima in the year 1565; in 1572
transferred to Potosi, and in 1683 removed back to Lima. For the space
of seventy years this establishment was in the hands of private
individuals; but in the year 1753 the Spanish government took the
management of it, and erected the building in which it is still
located. It is a large and handsome structure, but very defective in
its internal arrangement. Until the year 1817 the machinery for
casting was