Leaving the capital of New Spain our travellers descended to the port of Vera Cruz, which is situated among sand-hills, in a burning and unhealthy climate. They happily escaped the yellow-fever,—which prevails there and attacks persons who have arrived from the elevated districts as readily as Europeans who have come by sea,—and embarked in a Spanish frigate for Havannah, where they had left part of their specimens. They remained there two months; after which they set sail for the United States, on their passage to which they encountered a violent storm that lasted seven days. Arriving at Philadelphia, and afterwards visiting Washington, they spent eight weeks in that interesting country, for the purpose of studying its political constitution and commercial relations. In August 1804 they returned to Europe, carrying with them the extensive collections which they had made during their perilous and fatiguing journeys.

The results of this expedition, conducted with so much courage and zeal, have been of the highest importance to science. With respect to natural history, it may be stated generally, that the mass of information already laid before the public, as obtained from the observation of six years, exceeds any thing that had been presented by the most successful cultivators of the same field during a whole lifetime. Much light has been thrown on the migrations and relations of the indigenous tribes of America, their origin, languages, and manners.