186 SANTIAGO. 



fever. When dried and powdered, the leaves are also applied to wounds. Its deep-yellow 

 colored flowers open in October, and the fruit matures in December. The Coigui, or Coiguil, 

 grows on a ligneous vine, found among the trees in the ravines, at considerable elevations above 

 the plain. It climbs from tree to tree, adding grace to the scene by its purple flowers and con- 

 tracted leaves. The fruit is a leguminous pod, containing an unctuous saccharine substance 

 quite agreeable to the palate. In size and form, the Peumo is similar to the kernel of the 

 acorn, and covered with a reddish, or rather with a rose-colored, pellicle. Though its taste resem- 

 bles that of brown soap more than anything else immediately recollected, when boiled, the envel- 

 oping skin is very much liked by the natives. The Araucanian pine is not indigenous north of the 

 province of Concepcion ; and its pyramidal-shaped nut is brought, in considerable quantities, 

 from the Cordilleras in the Indian territory, where it is most luxuriant. The nuts an inch 

 long, one third that diameter at their larger extremity, and covered with a yellowish-red skin 

 are contained in oval cones, from six to seven inches long. Though somewhat drier, when 

 boiled, they have much of the sweetness and mealy character of the boiled chestnut, and, conse- 

 quently, are greatly sought after by the ladies. The Indians make use of them as bread, for 

 which they are an excellent substitute. The Chupon is not known north of the river Maule. Dr. 

 Darwin found it growing extensively on the island of Chiloe, and it was brought to me from 

 the ravines near Constitucion ; but no one in Santiago had knowledge of it. The fruit, resem- 

 bling, in size, form, and appearance, an artichoke, is packed with the seed-vessels, containing a 

 sweet, aromatic, and pleasant pulp. It ripens in March and April, on the Maule. The plant 

 has been called by M. Gay, Bromelia sphacelata; its vulgar name evidently comes from chupar, 

 to suck. Except in gardens, I have never seen the coco-palm within the Central cordilleras. 

 In the glens about Valparaiso, plants are numerous ; and on the coast west of Kaucagua an 

 estate has been named from the millions of these trees growing upon it. Some few may be 

 found in the province of Maule, in native locations ; but there are none in the northern pro- 

 vinces, unless transplanted. It is said that the tree does not bear until it is a hundred years 

 old ; then each one produces annually from two to four immense sheaths, or pods, which burst 

 as the fruit begins to ripen, exposing clusters comprising near a bushel of miniature cocoa-nuts. 

 In every respect does this nut the size of a small walnut resemble its tropical prototype. It 

 is ripe in February, and finds a market in Peru, as well as at home. A sirup, or molasses, 

 much esteemed, is obtained by boiling the sap of the tree, multitudes of which are annually 

 destroyed for the purpose. The Avellano, a genus of the family Amentacece, is called by Molina 

 "Gevuina avellano." It is a native of moist localities, and, like others of its kind in the north- 

 ern hemisphere, spreads itself into a shrubby bush. The nut has the flavor of the filbert, 

 and is somewhat larger ; but its shell is shaped more like that of the hickory-nut. The 

 Copigue, like the chupon, is confined to the southern provinces, where it climbs among the 

 trees, in moist ground. Its flowers are of every shade from white to dark coral-color, by their 

 hues and velvety forms contrasting most exquisitely with the leaves. Its fruit ripens in May. 

 Only one could be obtained during a visit to Talca in April, 1851 ; it was an oblong, of a 

 yellow color, more than half an inch in diameter, and filled with a pleasant, sweet pulp. The 

 plant seems to thrive best about Concepcion, from which locality numbers are brought to the 

 northern provinces, to be cultivated for the beauty of their flowers; but they are delicate, and 

 badly bear transplanting, so that scarcely one in twenty thrives after its removal. The Arau- 

 canian pine, the cocoa-palm, the avellano, and copigue, with many other interesting specimens, 

 have been successfully introduced into the United States by the Astronomical Expedition, and 

 will undoubtedly grow in our southern States. 



Arising in part, probably, from irrigation, during seasons when they receive no water in 

 native localities, most of the indigenous flowers are difficult of cultivation in gardens, as are the 

 copigues; and, though many of the bulbous tribe found on the cordilleras possess rich colors, 

 are showy, and some of them fragrant, few persons are willing to transplant them a second 

 time. As I have too often found when trying to remove them with a bit of stick, their roots 



