After a tolerably prosperous voyage he landed at La Guayra, on the north coast of Venezuela, on the 23rd July, from thence proceeding to Caraccas, the capital of the district, about 15 miles inland. There he remained for two months, unable to proceed in consequence of the wretched state of the roads in the interior. He contrived, however, to make occasional excursions in the neighbourhood, with an eye to the mining business on which he had come. About the beginning of October he set out for Bogota, the capital of Columbia or New Granada. The distance was about 1200 miles, through a very difficult region, and it was performed entirely upon mule-back after the fashion of the country. In the course of the journey Robert visited many of the districts reported to be rich in minerals, but he met with few traces except of copper, iron, and coal, with occasional indications of gold and silver. He found the people ready to furnish information, which, however, when tested, usually proved worthless. A guide whom he employed for weeks, kept him buoyed up with the hope of richer mining quarters than he had yet seen; but when he professed to be able to show him mines of “brass, steel, alcohol, and pinchbeck,” Stephenson discovered him to be an incorrigible rogue, and immediately dismissed him. At length our traveller reached Bogota, and after an interview with Mr. Illingworth, the commercial manager of the mining Company, he proceeded to Honda, crossed the Magdalena, and shortly after reached the site of his intended operations on the eastern slopes of the Andes.