COMANDANTE Carlos A. 

 Puente, Governor of the 

 Galapagos, Archipelago 

 de Colon, Republic of 

 Ecuador, 1938. 



THE VILLAGE OF CHATHAM on Wreck Bay, Chatham Island, is the seat of 

 government in the far-flung Galapagos Archipelago. Ashore is the only light- 

 house in the islands and the only radio station in this area of the eastern Pacific 

 Ocean. The islands have belonged to the Republic of Ecuador since 1832. 



Between Wreck Bay and Guayaquil, the sturdy old schooner San Cristobal 

 plies its v/ay on an irregular schedule of four to six vireeks. The vessel serves 

 the people of the Galapagos, bearing supplies to the settlers and carrying their 

 produce to the mainland. Most of the island products come from the Rancho El 

 Progreso, high on the slopes of Chatham Island. The rancho probably Viras the 

 earliest settlement in the islands and once was the site of a prison camp. 



Everyone in the islands knew or has heard of a hardy old pioneer named 

 Cobos who developed the Rancho El Progreso as a private enterprise. He once 

 owned the schooner, too. It is a picturesque old craft, and the decks usually 

 are crowded with passengers who find a certain excitement in vacation voy- 

 ages from the mainland to the enchanted islands. Accommodations aboard 

 have changed but little in sixty years and the atmosphere is one of pioneering 

 and adventure. 



Now in the service of the government, the San Cristobal is used chiefly to 

 supply military outposts on Chatham and Indefatigable Islands. To North 

 Americans it is rather unusual that the outposts are made up of cavalrymen. 

 Ecuadorians are great horsemen. But ashore or afloat their spotless white uni- 

 forms, black cavalry boots and jaunty blue caps contrast sharply with the 

 rough garb of settlers and the rugged terrain of the islands. Instead of the hur- 

 ricane deck of a horse, to which he is accustomed, the Governor of the Gala- 

 pagos now sits stiffly athwart a chugging dory bounding over the waves of 

 Wreck Bay when going out to greet visitors. 



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