The capital is _Veragua_, or _St. Jago de Veragua_, a handsome town, situated in a moist and warm climate, and surrounded by a small district which produces Indian corn, a root called yucca, of which they make bread, and plantains; cattle and hogs are here also very numerous. The Indians in the vicinity dye their cottons, manufactured by themselves, with the juice of shell-fish found at the bay of Salinas in Costa Rica, and on the coast of Veragua, affording a rich and delicate purple; with this juice, and with gold, which they find in the hills, they carry on a trade with Panama and Guatimala. This city is the residence of a governor, and has fourteen villages under the jurisdiction of its magistrates; there is also a fine hospital founded by the friars; and its inhabitants are partly Spaniards, partly mulattoes. The next city is _Nuestra Senora de Los Remedios_, or _Puebla Nueva_, inhabited by Spaniards and their descendants. _Santiago el Angel_, or _Alangi_, is the third city of Veragua, and was founded by Benito Hurtado, governor of Panama. There are also several large villages, inhabited principally by the native Indians. _Veragua_ is famed as having been the country where the first European colony was attempted to be planted by Columbus, on the continent of America. This happened on the 24th of February, 1503; but after building a fort and constructing some houses, they found themselves unable to resist the attacks of the Indians; and from this, and other circumstances, Columbus resolved to embark the colony; which he accordingly did. _WEST INDIA ISLANDS_ BELONGING TO THE CROWN OF SPAIN. The West India Islands, colonized by Spain, are not numerous. Puerto Rico and Cuba, in the northern group, Margarita and some others on the coast of Caraccas, unimportant in their nature, being mostly mere rocks, compose the whole of the islands in the West Indian seas which are possessed by Spain; of these Puerto Rico and Cuba are the most important; Cuba being the largest as well as one of the most fertile islands belonging to any European power in the American seas. POLITICAL DIVISIONS. These islands are divided into three governments; Puerto Rico is a capitaneria generale, as is the island of Cuba, including the adjacent continent of the Floridas; under the title of Captain-General of the Havannah, an officer of high rank governs this island and Florida; his situation being the most important of any of the capitanias generales of Spanish America. The captain-general of Caraccas governs the island of Margarita and the others on the coast of his province; we shall therefore describe these islands under the head of Caraccas, proceeding at present to the description of Puerto Rico. _PUERTO RICO._