7. Rancagua, is bounded on the north by the river Maypo and by the Chachapoal on the south, by the Andes on the east, and the Pacific on the west. Besides the former rivers, it is watered by the Codegua and Chocalan, and some others of less importance; and contains the lakes of Aculen and Buccalemu, of no great importance. This province is fertile in grain, and its chief town, Santa Croce di Trianna, otherwise called Rancagua, is in lat. 34° 18' S. long. 70° 16' W. Near Alque, a town recently founded about 24 miles nearer the sea, there is a very rich gold mine.

8. Calchagua, between the rivers Chachapoal and Teno, extends from the Andes to the sea, its breadth from north to south near the Andes being about 75 miles, while on the coast of the Pacific it does not exceed 40. Besides the rivers which form its boundaries, its territory is watered by the Rio Clarillo, Tinguiririca, and Chimbarongo; and in this province there are two considerable lakes, named Taguatagua and Caguil, the former being interspersed with beautiful islands, and the latter abounding with large clamps[50], which, are much esteemed. This province, which is fertile in grain, wine, and fruits, and abounds in gold, is part of the territories of the native tribe of the Promaucians, whose name is said to signify the people of delight, so called from the beauty and fertility of their country. The chief town San Fernando, built only in 1742, is in lat. 34° 36' S. long. 70° 34' W.

[Footnote 50: Thus expressed by the translator of Molina, and probably some fresh water shell-fish.--E.]

9. Maule, the next province to the south, is bounded on the east by the Andes, on the south-east by Chillan, on the south-west by Itata, and on the west by the Pacific. It is about 176 miles from east to west, and about 120 from north to south where broadest; and is watered by the Lantue, Rio Claro, Pangue, Lircai, Huenchullami, Maule, Putagan, Achiguema, Longavi, Loncamilla, Purapel, and other inferior rivers. It abounds in grain, wine, fruits, gold, salt, cattle, and fish; which last are found in great quantities both in the sea and rivers. Its native inhabitants are brave, robust, and warlike, and are principally descended from the ancient Promaucians. Talca, or St Augustin, built in 1742 among hills near the Rio-claro, at a considerable distance from the sea, is in lat. 35° 18' S. long. 70° 48' W. Its population is considerable, owing to the proximity of rich gold mines, and the abundance and cheapness of provisions supplied by its territory. From this last circumstance, several noble families from the cities of St Jago and Conception, whose finances had become diminished, have retired to this place, which has in consequence been called the bankrupt colony. There are several other towns in this province, and many villages of the native Chilese; among these Laro, near the mouth of the river Mataquito, contains a numerous population of the Promaucian nation, and is governed by an Ulmen or native chief.

10. Itata, situated on the sea-coast, has Maule on the north, Chillan on the east, Puchacay on the south, and the Pacific on the west. It measures 60 miles from east to west, and about 33 from north to south, and is intersected by the river Itata, from which it derives its name. The best wine of Chili is made in this province, and being produced on lands belonging to citizens of the city of Conception, is usually known by the name of Conception wine. Its chief town named Coulemu, or Nombre de Jesus, stands on the Rio Jesus, in lat. 35° 58' S. long. 72° 38' W. and was founded in 1743..

11. Chillan, bounded on the north, by Maule, by the Andes on the east, on the south by Huilquilemu, and by Itata on the west, is entirety an inland province, about the same size with Itata. Its rivers are the Nuble, Cato, Chillan, Diguillin, and Dannicalquin. Its territory consists mostly of an elevated plain, particularly favourable for rearing sheep, which produce wool of a very fine quality. Its capital, Chillan or San Bartholomeo, in lat. 35° 54' S. long. 71° 30´ W. was founded in 1580. It has been several times destroyed by the Araucanians, and was overthrown by an earthquake and inundation in 1751; since which it has been rebuilt in a more convenient situation, out of danger from the river.

12. Puchacay, is bounded on the north by Itata, on the east by Huilquilemu, on the south by the river Biobio, and on the west by the Pacific. It measures 24 miles from north to south, and 60 from east to west. This province affords a great quantity of gold, and its strawberries, both wild and cultivated, are the largest in all Chili. Gualqui, or San Juan, founded in 1754 on the northern shore of the Biobio, is the residence of the corregidor; but Conception, named Ponco in the native language, is the principal city of the province, and the second in the kingdom of Chili. It was founded by Pedro de Valdivia in a pleasant vale, formed by some beautiful hills, near the coast, in lat. 36° 42' S. long. 73° 4´ W. After suffering severely in the long wars with the Araucanians, this city was destroyed in 1730 by an earthquake and inundation of the sea, and again by a similar calamity in 1751; and was rebuilt in 1764 in a beautiful situation a league from the sea. Owing to so many calamities, its inhabitants scarcely exceed 13,000, who are attracted to this place on the frontiers of the warlike Araucanians, by the great abundance of gold that is procured in its neighbourhood. The climate is always temperate, the soil is fertile, and the sea abounds in fish of all kinds. The Bay of Conception is spacious and safe, extending above ten miles from north to south, and nearly as much from east to west. Its mouth is protected by a beautiful and fertile island, called Quiriquina, forming two mouths or entrances to the bay; that on the north-east called the bocca grande being two miles wide, and that on the south-west, or bocca chica, little more than a mile. The whole bay affords safe anchorage, and a port at its south-east extremity called Talcaguano is chiefly frequented by shipping, as being not far from the new city of Conception.

13. Huilquilemu, commonly called Estanzia del Rei, or the royal possession, has Chillan on the north, the Andes on the east, the river Biobio on the south, and Puchacay on the west. This district is rich in gold, and produces an excellent wine resembling muscadel. To protect this province against the warlike and independent Araucanians, there are four forts on the north side of the Biobio, named Jumbel, Tucapel, Santa Barbara, and Puren; and as the boundary line is to the south of that river, the Spaniards have likewise the forts of Aranco, Colcura, San Pedro, Santa Joanna, Nascimento, and Angeles beyond that river.

14. Valdivia. This province, or military station rather, is entirely separated from the other possessions of the Spaniards in Chili, being entirely surrounded by the territories of the Araucanians. It lies on the sea-coast, on both sides of the river Valdivia or Callacallas, being reckoned 36 miles from east to west, and 18 miles from north to south. It abounds in valuable timber, and affords the purest gold of any that is found in Chili, and produced great quantities of that precious metal to Valdivia the original conqueror. But owing to many calamities in the wars with the Araucanians, it is now of little importance except as a military station. Valdivia, the capital, in lat. 39° 48´ S. long. 73° 24´ W. is situated at the bottom of a beautiful and safe bay, the entrance to which is protected by the island of Manzera. As this is a naval station of much importance for protecting the western coast of South America, it is strongly fortified, and is always commanded by a military officer of reputation sent directly from Spain, though under the direction of the president of Chili. He has always a considerable body of troops, which are officered by the five commanders of the five castles which protect the city, with a sergeant-major, commissary, inspector, and several captains.

From the foregoing short abstract of the geographical circumstances of Chili Proper, or that part of the kingdom which is possessed by the Spaniards, it appears to extend from the lat. 24° to 37° both south, or about 900 English miles in length by about 180 miles in medium breadth, containing about 162,000 square miles of territory or nearly 104 millions of statute acres, mostly of fertile soil, in a temperate and salubrious climate, abounding in all the necessaries of life, and richly productive in gold and other metals. Hence this country is calculated to support a most extensive population, in all the comforts and enjoyments of civilized society, and if once settled under a regular government, will probably become at no great distance of time an exceedingly populous and commercial nation. The islands belonging to Chili consist principally of the Archipelago of Chiloé, with that of the Chones, which is dependent upon the former. The largest of these islands, named likewise Chiloé, is about 120 miles in extent from north to south, and about 60 miles from east to west. Between it and the main-land is a vast gulf or bay, which extends from lat. 41° 32´ to 44° 50´ both S. and lies between the longitudes of 72° 44´ and 74° 20´ both W. This is called the gulf of Chiloé, Guaiteca, or Elancud; and besides the great island of Chiloé, contains eighty-two smaller islands, thinly inhabited by Indians and a few Spaniards. The land in Chiloé, as in all the smaller islands, is mountainous, and covered by almost impenetrable thickets. The rains are here excessive and almost continual, so that the inhabitants seldom have more than fifteen or twenty days of fair weather in autumn, and hardly do eight days pass at any other season without rain. The atmosphere is consequently extremely moist, yet salubrious, and the climate is exceedingly mild and temperate. Owing to the great humidity, grain and fruits are by no means productive, yet the inhabitants raise sufficient grain, mostly barley and beans, for their support, and grow abundance of excellent flax. The town of Castro, on the eastern shore, in lat. 42° 44´ S. is the capital of the island, and was founded in 1565, by Don Martino Ruiz de Gamboa, and is built entirely of wood, containing only about a hundred and fifty inhabitants, yet has a parish church, a church formerly belonging to the Jesuits, and two convents. The port of Chaco, near the middle of the northern extremity of the island, in lat. 41° 53´ S. and about the same, longitude with Castro, has good anchorage, and enjoys the whole trade with Peru and Chili, which is not subjected to the duties which are paid in other ports of Spanish America.

Besides the southern Archipelago of Chiloé, there are a few islands of no great importance on the coast of Chili, not worth notice. The two islands likewise of Juan Fernandez are considered as dependencies on Chili. The larger of these, called Isola de Tierra, is at present inhabited by a few Spaniards, who have a small fort at La Baya or Cumberland harbour. The smaller island, or Masafuera, otherwise called De Cabras or Conejos, is uninhabited.

S2. The Province of Cujo.

Although the province of Cujo, on the east side of the Andes, be not strictly within the limits of Chili, yet as dependent on the presidency of that kingdom, it is proper to take notice of it in this place. Cujo is bounded on the north by the province of Tucuman, on the east by the Pampas or desert plains of Buenos Ayres, on the south by Patagonia, and on the west by the southern chain of the Andes. Being comprehended between the latitudes of 29° and 35° south, it is about 400 miles in extent from north to south, but its limits towards the east are uncertain. In temperature and productions, this province differs materially from Chili. The winter, which is the dry season, is extremely cold; and the summer is excessively hot both day and night, with frequent storms of thunder and hail, more especially in its western parts near the Andes. These storms commonly rise and disperse in the course of half an hour; after which the sun dries up the moisture in a few minutes. Owing to this excessive exsiccation, the soil is extremely arid, and will neither bear trees nor plants of any kind; unless when irrigated by means of canals, when it produces almost every vegetable in astonishing abundance. By these artificial means of cultivation, the fruits and grains of Europe thrive with extraordinary perfection, and come a month earlier to maturity than in Chili; and the wines produced in Cujo are very rich and full-bodied.

This province is intersected by three rivers which have their sources in the Andes, the San Juan, the Mendoza, and the Tunujan. The two former are named from the cities which are built on their banks. After a course of from 75 to 90 miles, these rivers form the great lakes of Guanasache, which extend above 300 miles from north to south, and their waters are afterwards discharged by the river Tunujan into the south-eastern desert Pampas. These lakes abound with excellent fish of several kinds, and they produce a sufficient quantity of salt to supply the whole province of Cujo. The eastern part of this province, called La Punta, is watered by the rivers Contaro and Quinto, and several smaller streams, and is quite different in its climate and temperature from the western part near the Andes. The plains of La Punta are covered with beautiful trees of large size, and the natural herbage grows to such a height in many places as to conceal the horses and other cattle which roam at large in these extensive plains. Thunder storms are exceedingly violent and frequent, continuing often for many hours, accompanied by incessant and immoderate rain.

Among the vegetable productions of Cujo, one of the most remarkable is a species of palm, which never exceeds eighteen feet high, putting forth all its branches so near the ground as to conceal the trunk. The leaves are extraordinarily hard, and terminate in a point as sharp as a sword. The fruit resembles the cocoa-nut, yet only contains a few hard round seeds, with no edible kernel. The trunk of this tree is very large, and is covered by a coarse outer bark of a blackish colour which is easily detached. Below this, there are five or six successive layers of a fibrous bark resembling linen cloth. The first is of a yellowish colour, and of the consistence and appearance of sail-cloth. The others gradually decrease in thickness, and become whiter and finer; so that the innermost is white and fine like cambric, but of a looser texture. The fibres of this natural cloth are strong and flexible, but harsher to the feel than those made from flax. This province produces great abundance of the opuntia, a species of the cactus, which nourishes the cochineal insect; but the natives are in use to string these insects on a thread by means of a needle, by which they acquire a blackish tint. The fruit of this plant is woolly, about the size of a peach, its internal substance being glutinous and full of small seeds. It is sweet and well-flavoured, and is easily preserved by cutting into slices which are dried in the sun. There are four different trees producing a species of beans; two of which are good eating, the third is employed as provender for horses, and ink is made from the fourth. The most singular vegetable production in this country is called the flower of the air, from having no root, and never growing on the ground. Its native situation is on the surface of an arid rock, or twining round the dry stem of a tree. This plant consists of a single shoot, like the stem of a gilly-flower, but its leaves are larger and thicker, and are as hard as wood. Each stalk produces two or three white transparent flowers, in size and shape resembling a lily, and equally odoriferous with that flower. They may be preserved fresh on their stalks for more than two months, and for several days when plucked off. This plant may be transported to almost any distance; and will produce flowers annually, if merely hung up on a nail.

In the northern parts of Cujo there are mines of gold and copper, but they are not worked owing to the indolence of the inhabitants. It has also rich mines of lead, sulphur, vitriol, salt, gypsum, and talc or asbestos. The mountains near the city of Juan are entirely composed of white marble, in stratified slabs of five or six feet long by six or seven inches thick, all regularly cut and polished by nature. From this the inhabitants prepare an excellent lime, which they use in building bridges over the streams and canals of irrigation. Between the city of Mendoza and La Punta, on a low range of hills, there is a large stone pillar, 150 feet high and 12 feet diameter, called the giant, on which there are certain marks or inscriptions resembling Chinese characters. Near the Diamond river there is another stone, having marks which appear to be characters, and the impression of human feet, with the figures of several animals. The Spaniards call it the stone of St Thomas; from a tradition handed down from the first settlers, said to have been received from the native Indians, that a white man with a long beard, formerly preached a new religion from that stone to their ancestors, and left the impression of his feet, and the figures of the animals that came to hear him, as a memorial of his sanctity.

The aboriginal natives of the province of Cujo are called Guarpes, of whom there are now very few remaining. They are of a lofty stature, very thin, and of a brown colour, and speak a quite different language from that of the Chilese. This people was anciently conquered by the Peruvians, after having taken possession of the northern part of Chili; and on the road across the Andes from Cujo to Chili, there still are some small stone buildings, or tambos, which had been erected for the accommodation of the Peruvian officers and messengers. The first Spaniards who attempted to reduce this country were sent by Valdivia, under the command of Francisco de Aguirre, who returned to Chili after the death of Valdivia. In 1560, Don Garcia de Mendoza sent a force under Pedro del Castillo, who subdued the Guarpes, and founded the cities of San Juan and Mendoza. The latter, which is the capital, is situated on a plain at the foot of the Andes, in lat 33° 54' S. long. 68° 34' W. This is supposed to contain about 6000 inhabitants, and is continually increasing in population, owing to its vicinity to the celebrated silver mine of Uspallatta, which is worked by the inhabitants to great profit. This city carries on a considerable commerce in wine and fruits with Buenos Ayres. The city of San Juan near the Andes, in lat. 31° 40' S. and long. 68° 34' W. is equally populous with Mendoza, from which it is about 160 miles due north, and trades with Buenos Ayres in brandy, fruits, and Vicunna skins. Its pomegranates are greatly esteemed in Chili, to which they are sent across the Andes. This city is governed by a deputy from the corregidor of Mendoza, assisted by a cabildo. In 1596, the small city of La Punta, or San Luis de Loyola, was founded in the eastern part of Cujo, in lat. 33° 47' S. long. 65° 33' W. Although the thoroughfare for all the trade from Chili and Cujo to Buenos Ayres, it is a miserable place with scarcely two hundred inhabitants; but its jurisdiction is extensive and populous, and is administered both in civil and military affairs by a deputy of the corregidor of Mendoza. Besides these three cities, the province of Cujo contains the towns of Jachal, Vallofertil, Mogna, Corocorto, Leonsito, Caliogarta, and Pismanta[51], which do not merit particular attention.

[Footnote 51: Besides these, modern maps insert the following, beginning in the north. Betlen, Rioja la Nueva, Mutinan, San Juan de Jaeban, Guanachoca, all to the north of Mendoza.--E.]

The Patagonians who border upon Cujo towards the south, and of whose gigantic stature so much has been said, do not differ materially in this respect from other men. The Pojas, one of their tribes, are governed by several petty independent princes. A singular species of polygamy prevails among this people, as the women are permitted to have several husbands. As to the Cesari, of whom such wonderful stories have been reported, and who are supposed to be neighbours of the Chilese, they have no existence except in the fancies of those who take pleasure in marvellous stories.

* * * * *

S3. The Indian Country, or Araucania.

That part of Chili which remains unconquered reaches from the river Biobio in the north to the Archipelago of Chiloe in the south, or between the latitudes of 37° and 42' S. This country is inhabited by three independent nations, the Araucanians, the Cunches, and the Huìllìches. The territory of the Araucanians, contains the finest plains in Chili, and is situated between the rivers Biobio and Callacallas, stretching along the sea-coast for about 186 miles, and is generally allowed to be the most pleasant and fertile district in the kingdom of Chili. Its extent from the sea to the foot of the Andes, was formerly reckoned at 300 miles; but as the Puelches, a nation inhabiting the western side of the mountains, joined the confederacy of the Araucanians in the seventeenth century, its present breadth cannot be less than 420 miles, and the whole territory is estimated at 78,120 square miles or nearly 50 millions of acres.

The Araucanians derive their name from the province of Arauco, the smallest in their territory, but which has given name to the whole nation, as having been the first to propose the union which has so long subsisted among the tribes, or from having at some remote period reduced them under its dominion. Enthusiastically attached to their independence, they pride themselves on the name of auca, signifying freemen[52]; and by the Spaniards who were sent from the army in Flanders to serve in Chili, this country has been called Araucanian Flanders, or the invincible state. Though the Araucanians do not exceed the ordinary height of mankind, they are in general muscular, robust, well proportioned, and of a martial appearance. Their complexion is of a reddish brown, but clearer than the other natives of America, except the tribe named Boroanes, who are fair and ruddy. They have round faces, small eyes full of animated expression, a rather flat nose, a handsome mouth, even white teeth, muscular and well shaped legs, and small flat feet. Like the Tartars, they have hardly any beard, and they carefully pluck out any little that appears, calling the Europeans longbeards, by way of reproach. The hair on their heads is thick, black, and coarse, is allowed to grow very long, and is worn in tresses wound around their heads. The women are delicately formed, and many of them are very handsome, especially the Boroanes. They are generally long lived, and are not subject to the infirmities of age till a late period of life, seldom even beginning to grow grey till sixty or severity, or to be wrinkled till fourscore. They are intrepid, animated, ardent, patient of fatigue, enthusiastically attached to liberty, and ever ready to sacrifice their lives for their country, jealous of their honour, courteous, hospitable, faithful to their engagements, grateful for services, and generous and humane to their vanquished enemies. Yet these noble qualities are obscured by the vices which are inseparable from their half savage state, unrefined by literature or cultivation: Being presumptuous, entertaining a haughty contempt for other nations, and much addicted to drunkenness and debauchery.

[Footnote 52: According to Falkner the missionary, auca is a name of reproach given them by the Spaniards, signifying rebels or wild men; aucani is to rebel or make a riot, and auca-cahual signifies a wild horse.--This may be the case in the language of the subjected Peruvians and northern Chilese, while in that of the independent Araucanians it may signify free; just as republican is an honourable term in the United States, while it is a name of reproach under a monarchical government.--E.]

Their dress is manufactured from the wool of the vicunna, and consists of a shirt, vest, short close breeches, and a cloak or poncho, having an opening in the middle to admit the head, which descends all round as low as the knees. This cloak, which leaves the arms at liberty, and can be thrown back at pleasure, is so convenient for riding, and so excellent a protection from wind and rain, that it is now commonly adopted by the Spanish inhabitants of Chili, Peru, and Paraguay. The shirt, vest, and breeches, are always of a greenish blue, or turquois colour, which is the uniform of the nation. Among persons of ordinary rank, the poncho, or native cloak, is also of the same national colour; but those of the higher classes have it of different colours, as white, red, or blue, with stripes a span broad, on which figures of flowers and animals are wrought in different colours with much ingenuity, and the borders are ornamented with handsome fringes. Some of these ponchos are of so fine a texture and richly ornamented as to sell for 100 or even 150 dollars. Their only head-dress is a fillet or bandage of embroidered wool, which they ornament in time of war with a number of beautiful feathers. Round the waist they wear a long sash or girdle of woollen, handsomely wrought; and persons of rank have leather sandals, and woollen boots, but the common people are always bare-footed.

The dress of the women is entirely of wool, and the national greenish blue colour, consisting of a tunic or gown without sleeves reaching to the feet, fastened at the shoulder by silver buckles, and girt round the waist by a girdle; over which gown they wear a short cloak, which is fastened before by a silver buckle. They wear their hair in several long braided tresses, flowing negligently over their shoulders, and decorate their heads with false emeralds and a variety of trinkets. They wear square ear-rings of silver, and have necklaces and bracelets of glass-beads, and silver rings on all their fingers.

Like all the other tribes in Chili, before the arrival of the Spaniards, the Araucanians still continue to construct their houses or huts rather of a square form, of wood plaistered with clay, and covered with rushes, though some use a species of bricks; and as they are all polygamists, the size of their houses is proportioned to the number of women they are able to maintain. The interior of their houses is very simple, and the furniture calculated only to serve the most necessary purposes, without any view to luxury or splendour. They never form towns, but live in scattered villages along the banks of rivers, or in plains that can be easily irrigated.

The whole country of the Araucanian confederacy is divided into four principalities, called Uthal-mapu in their language, which run parallel to each other from north to south. These are respectively named Lauquen-mapu, or the maritime country; Lelbun-mapu, or the plain country; Inapire-mapu, or country at the foot of the Andes; and Pire-mapu, or the country on the Andes. Each principality or Uthal-mapu is divided into five provinces, called Ailla-regue; and each province into nine districts, termed regue. Hence the whole country contains 4 Uthal-mapus, 20 Ailla-regues, and 180 Regues. Besides these, the country of the Cunches, who are in alliance with the Araucanians, extends along the coast between Valdivia and the archipelago of Chiloe; and the Huilliches, likewise allies of the Araucanians, occupy all the plains to the eastward, between the Cunches and the main ridge of the Andes.

The civil government is a kind of aristocratic republic, under three orders of hereditary nobility, each subordinate to the other. Each of the four Uthal-mapus is governed by a Toqui. The Ailla-regues, are each under the command of an Apo-ulmen; and every one of the Regues is ruled by an Ulmen. The four toquis are independent of each other, but are confederated for the public welfare. The Apo-ulmens govern the provinces under the controul or superintendence of the respective toquis; and the ulmens of the regues are dependent on the Apo-ulmens, or arch-ulmens. This dependence is however almost entirely confined to military affairs. The distinguishing badge of the toqui is a kind of battle-axe, made of marble or porpyhry. The Apo-ulmens and Ulmens carry staves with silver heads; the former being distinguished by the addition of a silver ring round the middle of their staves. The toqui has only the shadow of sovereign authority, as every question of importance is decided by an assembly of the great body of nobles, which is called Buta-coyog or Auca-coyog the great council, or the Araucanian council. This assembly is usually held in some large plain, on the summons of the toquis; and on such occasions, like the ancient Germans as described by Tacitus, they unite the pleasures of revelling and even drunkenness with their deliberations. By their traditionary laws, called Ad-mapu or customs of the country, two or more principalities, provinces, or districts cannot be held by the same chief. Whenever the male line of the ruling family becomes extinct, the vassals have the right to elect their own chief; and all the districts are directed entirely in civil matters by their respective Ulmens. The people are subject to no contributions or personal services whatever, except in time of war; so that all the chiefs of every rank or degree have to subsist on the produce of their own possessions.

The military government is established upon a system of wonderful regularity. When the great council determines on going to war, they proceed immediately to elect a commander-in-chief, who is in some measure the dictator of the country during his continuance in office. The toquis have in course the first claim to this high dignity, as being the hereditary generals and stadtholders of the republic; yet, disregarding all respect for superior rank, the council often entrusts this supreme power to the most deserving of the Ulmens, or even to an officer of an inferior class, considering only on this occasion the talents that are deemed necessary for command. Thus in the war of 1722, the supreme command was confided to Vilumilla, a man of low origin, and in that which terminated in 1773, to Curignanca, the younger son of an Ulmen in the province of Encol. On his elevation to office, the generalissimo of the republic assumes the title of toqui, and the stone hatchet in token of supreme command; on which the four hereditary toquis lay aside theirs, as it is not permitted them to carry this ensign of authority during the continuance of the dictator in office, to whom all the toquis apo-ulmens and ulmens take the oath of obedience. Even the people, who during peace are exceedingly repugnant to subordination, are now entirely submissive to the commands of the military dictator. Yet he has not the power of putting any one to death, without the consent of his principal officers; but as all these are of his appointment, his orders are next to absolute.

It has always happened since the arrival of the Spaniards in Chili, that the supreme toquis have been elected from among the natives of the provinces of Arauco, Tucapel, Encol, or Puren; but I know not whether this may be owing to some ancient law or agreement, or to some superstitious notion. The supreme toqui appoints his vice-toqui or lieutenant-general, and the other officers of his staff; who in their turn nominate the inferior officers. The vice-toqui is almost always elected from among the Puelches, to gratify the ambition of that valiant tribe, which forms about a fourth part of the population of the confederacy. At present the army of the Araucanians is composed both of cavalry and infantry. Originally it consisted entirely of foot; but in their first battles with the Spaniards, perceiving the vast advantage derived by their enemies from the employment of cavalry, they soon applied themselves to procure a good breed of horses; insomuch that in 1568, only seventeen years after their first encountering the Spaniards, they had several squadrons of cavalry; and by the year 1585, the Araucanian cavalry was regularly organized by the toqui Cadeguala. The infantry is divided into regiments of a thousand men, and these into ten companies of an hundred men each. The cavalry is divided in a similar manner; but the numbers in the regiments and troops are not always the same. Each body of horse and foot has its particular standard; but all bear a star, which is the national device. The soldiers are not clothed in uniforms, but all have cuirasses of hardened leather below their ordinary dresses, with shields and helmets of the same material. The cavalry are armed with swords and lances; and the infantry with pikes or clubs pointed with iron. In battle, the cavalry is distributed on the two wings of the army, while the infantry forms the centre or main body, divided into its several battalions or regiments, the ranks being composed alternately of pikemen and soldiers armed with clubs or maces. The right wing is confided to the vice-toqui, and the left to an experienced officer next in rank; while the toqui is present wherever occasion requires, and exhorts his soldiers to fight valiantly for the liberties of the nation. They formerly employed bows and slings in war; but taught by experience to avoid the destructive effects of musquetry in distant fight, they are now eager to close with their enemies. Impressed with the opinion that to die in battle for their country is the greatest honour that can be acquired, whenever the signal for battle is given, they advance with the utmost rapidity, despising the slaughter produced by the cannon and musquetry, yet preserving the strictest order and discipline, and often succeed in bearing down the firmest array of the Spaniards.

One of the first measures of the national council, when war is resolved upon, is to dispatch messengers to the confederate tribes, and even to the Indians who live under the Spanish government, to summon them to make common cause with their countrymen. The credentials of these messengers are some small arrows tied together by a red string, the symbol of blood. But if hostilities have been already commenced, the finger of a slain enemy accompanies the arrows. This embassy is called pulchitum, which signifies to run the arrow, and the messengers are called guerquenis. The toqui or military dictator directs what number of soldiers is to be furnished by each Uthal-mapu or principality. The particular toquis regulate the contingencies of the Apo-ulmens; and these last apportion these among the several Ulmens of their provinces. The army of the state usually consists of five or six thousand men; besides which, a body of reserve is always in readiness for particular occasions, or to replace those who may be killed in battle. Before taking the field, the general assigns three days for consultation with his principal officers, during which the plan of the campaign is maturely deliberated upon, and every one has liberty to offer his opinion: But the general finally settles the plan of warfare in secret consultation, with his principal officers. After all is agreed upon, the army commences its march to the sound of drums, and is always preceded by several advanced parties, to guard against surprise. During the march, the infantry as well as the cavalry are on horseback; but on coming to action, the infantry dismounts and is regularly marshalled in companies and battalions. All the soldiers have to provide their own horses arms and provisions; and as all are liable to military service, no one has to contribute towards the supply of the army. Their provisions consist chiefly in a small sack of parched meal, which each soldier carries on his horse; and which, diluted with water, serves them as food till they can live at free quarters in the enemys country. Being thus unencumbered with baggage, they are able to move with astonishing celerity, either to attack or to retreat as may be necessary. They are extremely vigilant when in presence of the enemy, encamping always in secure and advantageous situations, strengthening their posts with entrenchments, and placing sentinels on all sides, every soldier being obliged during the night to keep a fire burning in front of his tent. When necessary they protect their posts and encampments with deep trenches, guarded by abatis or hedges of spinous or thorny trees, and strew calthrops at all the avenues to repress attacks from the cavalry of the enemy. In short there are few military stratagems with which they are unacquainted, and are wonderfully expert in tactics [53].

[Footnote 53: From the singular excellence of the military institutions of the Araucanians, by which they have been enabled to preserve their liberties against the superior arms of the Spaniards, down even to the present day, we have been induced to extend these observations much beyond our usual limits on such occasions. Such as are inclined to inquire more minutely into the civil institutions of this wonderful people, will find them detailed in the work of the Abbé Molina, together with a minute account of the natural productions of Chili.--E.]

SECTION II.

Of the Origin, Manners, and Language of the Chilese.

The origin of the primitive inhabitants of Chili, like that of all the nations and tribes of the aboriginal Americans, is involved in impenetrable obscurity. Many of the natives consider themselves as indigenous, while others derive their origin from a foreign stock, supposing their ancestors to have come from the north or from the west; but as they were utterly unacquainted with the art of writing, they have no records or monuments from which to elucidate this inquiry, and their traditionary accounts are too crude and imperfect to afford any degree of rational information on the subject. The Chilese call their first progenitors Pegni Epatum, signifying the brothers named Epatum. They call them likewise glyce, or primitive men; and in their assemblies invoke their ancestors and deities in a loud voice, crying Pom, pam, pum, mari, mari, Epunamen, Amimalguen, Pegni Epatum. The meaning of these words is uncertain, unless we may suppose it to have some connexion with the word pum, used by the Chinese to signify the first created man, or the one who was saved from the deluge. The lamas or priests of Thibet are likewise said to repeat to their rosaries, the syllables om, am, um, or hom, ham, hum; which corresponds in some measure with the customary exclamation of the Chilese.

It appears probable that the whole of Chili had been originally peopled by one nation, as all the native tribes, however independent of each other, speak the same language, and have a similar appearance. The inhabitants of the plains are of good stature, but those who dwell in the valleys of the Andes, usually surpass the ordinary height of man. The features of both are regular, and none of them have ever attempted to improve nature by disfiguring their faces, to render themselves more beautiful or more formidable. Their complexion, like the other American natives, is reddish brown or copper-coloured, but of a clearer hue than the other Americans; and readily changes to white. A tribe which dwells in the district of Baroa, is of a clear white and red like Europeans, without any tinge of copper colour. As this tribe differs in no other respect from the rest of the Chilese, this difference in complexion may be owing to some peculiar influence of the climate which they inhabit, or to their greater civilization. Some persons have been disposed to attribute this difference in colour to an intermixture with a number of Spanish prisoners taken during the unfortunate war of the sixteenth century: But the Spanish prisoners were equally distributed among the other tribes, none of whom are white; and besides, the first Spaniards who came to Chili were all from the southern provinces of Spain, where ruddy complexions are extremely rare.

From the harmony, richness, and regularity of the Chilese language, we are led to conclude that the natives must in former times have possessed a much greater degree of civilization than now, or that they are the remains of a great and illustrious nation, which has been ruined by some of these physical or moral revolutions which have occasioned such astonishing changes in the world. The Chilese language is so exceedingly copious, both in radical words, and in the use of compounds, that a complete dictionary of it would fill a large volume. Every verb, either derivatively or conjunctively, becomes the root of numerous other verbs and nouns, both adjectives and substantives, which in their turn produce others of a secondary, nature which may be modified in a hundred different manners. From every word in the language, a verb may be formed by adding a final n. Even from the most simple particles, verbs may be thus formed, by which at the same time great precision and great strength are given to conversation. Yet the language contains no irregular verb or noun, every thing being regulated by the most wonderful precision and simplicity, so that the theory of the language is remarkably easy, and may be learnt in a very short time. It abounds also in harmonious and sonorous syllables, which give it much sweetness and variety; yet is injured by the frequent recurrence of the sound of u. The Chilese language differs essentially from every other American language, both in words and construction, with the exception of eighteen or twenty words of Peruvian origin, which is not to be wondered at, considering the contiguity of the two countries. The most singular circumstance in this language is, that it contains a considerable number of words apparently of Greek and Latin derivation, and having similar significations in both languages; yet I am inclined to believe that this circumstance is merely accidental[54].

[Footnote 54: Perhaps these words may have been adopted into the Chilese language from the Spaniards, who speak a kind of dialect of Latin. The remainder of this section is an abridgement of an Essay on the Chilese language, appended to the second volume of Molina.--E.]

The original language of Chili, generally called the Araucanian, is denominated by the natives Chili-dugu, or the Chili speech or language. The alphabet is the same as the Latin, except the want of x, which indeed is only a compound letter. The s likewise only occurs in about twenty of their words, and never at the termination; and the z is still more rare. Besides the ordinary letters, the Chilese has the mute e, and a peculiar u like the Greek and French; the former being designated by the acute, and the latter by the grave accent, to distinguish them from the ordinary e and u. This latter u is often changed to i. It has likewise a nasal g and a th; which latter is often changed to ch, as chegua for thegua, a dog. There are no gutturals or aspirates. All the words end either in one of the six vowels, or in b,d,f,g,l,m,n,r, or v; so that there are fifteen distinct terminations. The accent is usually on the penult vowel, sometimes on the last, but never on the antipenult. The radical words, mostly monosyllables or dissyllables, are estimated at 1973. As far as we have been able to discover, these radicals have no analogy with any other known idiom, though the language contains a number of Greek and Latin words very little varied, as in the following table. It is proper to mention, that the orthography of the Chilese words is given according to the Italian pronunciation.

CHILESE. GREEK. SIGNIFICATION Aldun Aldein to increase. Ale Ele splendour. Amun Mouen to go. Cai Kai and. Ga Ga in truth. Lampaicon Lampein to shine. Mulan Mullen to pulverise. Pele Pelos mud. Reuma Reuma a stream. Tupan Tupein to whip.

CHILESE. LATIN. Aren Ardere to burn. Cupa. Cupere to desire. Dapein Dapinare to feast. Ejun Ejulare to weep. Lev Levis active, swift. Lumalmen Lumen light. Lui Lux brightness. Man Manus the right. Putun Potare to drink. Valin Valere to be worth. Valen Valere to be able. Une Unus one.

The nouns have only one declension, or rather are indeclinable, the numbers and cases being marked by various particles; but each, in this way, has the singular, dual, and plural, like the Greek. Thus Cara the city, has Cara-egu the two cities, and Pu-cara the cities, as in the following example.

[Footnote 55: The translator seems here to have misunderstood the author, as these ordinal numbers ought surely to signify first and second.--E.]