The capital of the province of Nicaragua is LEON, or _Leon de Nicaragua_, situated on a lake of fresh water, abounding with fish, which is called by the same name, and communicates with the great lake; this town has a mountain near it with a volcano, which has sometimes caused it to suffer by earthquakes. The town is not very large, containing about 1200 houses, with many convents, and four churches. It is the see of a bishop. Its port is Realexo, which is situated near it, and is a fortified town with a good harbour, which has the same name, and is on the Rio Realejo. The river Realejo is so deep and commodious as to be capable of containing 200 sail of vessels. The town has good fortifications and fine docks for building and repairing ships. It has three churches and an hospital. Realexo is in north latitude 12° 45ʹ, 87° 30ʹ west longitude, eighteen miles north-west of Leon. It suffered much from the Buccaneers, as they found it a commodious harbour; the Pacific is shut out by an island which lies across the mouth of the bay, and forms two channels; but the one on the north-west side is the safest and best. The town of Realexo is unhealthy owing to the marshes and creeks in its neighbourhood; its chief trade consists in cordage, pitch and tar, and in the little commerce it carries on for Leon, of which it is the embarcadero or port. NICARAGUA, or _Granada_, is another town near the great lake at its south-eastern extremity, in 86° 15ʹ west longitude, 11° 15ʹ north latitude. In the year 1680, this town as well as the capital was sacked by the Buccaneers, it has now a considerable trade in cochineal, hides and sugar, with the neighbouring provinces. St. JUAN is a sea-port thirty miles south-east of Leon, in 12° 10ʹ north latitude, 87° 38ʹ west longitude, and there are some others of little note.