OF ATACAMA AND COQUIMBO. 275 



of Chile, by M. Gay, that, becoming more and more convinced by experience that he must have 



additional in. ii and arms to curry on his conquest, Valdivia, as a precautionary measure to 

 ihcir safe arrival, undi-rtook to keep the road open between the colony at Santiago ami lYru. 

 To this mil < .i|.t 1'. "linn was despatched witli ton men to found a village in the valley of 

 ('i|uiml>o, where evil-intent imir<l Indians were always in waiting to attack travellers; and as 

 Valdivia had been born in a town of that name, in compliment to him the little settlement 

 rnviv.-d the name of "La Serena." But it was not destined to be long-lived: four years after- 

 wards the Indians massacred the Spaniards, and burnt it. Under the command of Don Francisco 

 de Aguinv ;i new party, numbering from thirty to eighty men, according to different versions, 

 was sent to the valley in July of 1549 ; and the present site much nearer to the sea was 

 selected in preference to that of the old village. The new town was called "San Bartoloing de 

 la Serena," its birth dating from the 26th of August of that year. 



Exclusive of houses along the inland road, and which extend to a length of several squares 

 beyond the limits proper, the circumference of the city may be two miles. Its population is 

 not far from 9,000 souls. There is no difference in its plan from other Hispano- American 

 towns: a plaza near the centre; narrow, right-angled streets, 150 yards apart; rudely con- 

 structed churches, with bells enough to make up in noise what is wanting in melody or archi- 

 tectural taste ; and streams of water through each square, such are the salient characteristics. 

 One side of its plaza is partially occupied by a new cathedral in progress of erection, and whose 

 architect, like that of the sister edifice at Copiapo, seems to have forgotten the rules so long 

 followed, and will soon complete for the Coquimbanos a temple which will be commodious, and 

 at the same time pleasing to the eye. The material used in its construction is a compact con- 

 glomerate of shells, cut in blocks of any desirable size, from one of the terraces a few miles 

 distant. Drip-stones for filtering water, and the sidewalks of the streets, are also made of 

 this material. The other sides of the square are occupied by public offices, a prison, a garrison 

 for troops, and residences of the Intendente and others : none of them are buildings of especial 

 note. No trees have been planted about the plaza, as at Copiapo, to render it a place of 

 recreation ; though in this respect the capital of Atacama is an exception. Such is the prejudice 

 against shrubbery about the plazas, that it is rarely permitted to thrive ; and rows planted by a 

 benevolent citizen at Melipilla were in one night torn up by the vandals among its inhabitants. 

 Yet no people more scrupulously provide public walks with trees than descendants of Spain ; 

 and it must be an insignificant settlement which has not its "alameda," with seats on either 

 side. That of La Serena extends along the inland road to the port. 



On the inner table-land, back of the town, is the cemetery. It covers from fifteen to twenty 

 acres, enclosed by high whitewashed walls ; and is divided into sections, purchasable with privi- 

 leges according to the wealth of families. The portion occupied by the remains of the wealthy is 

 ornamented with fancy and costly ornaments, trees, and flowers, and is well worthy of a visit. 

 Without the enclosure there is a charming panoramic view. Off to the west is the ocean, 

 robbed of its undulations even by this short distance, and apparently but a counterpart to the 

 dark vault above. A little closer is the tranquil bay, with its shipping and high bounding 

 promontory ; against whose wall is projected, sharply clear, the little village and the tall chim- 

 neys of the furnaces, with pencils of steamy smoke streaming straight towards heaven. Below 

 is the bright, clean little town, with multitudes of gardens interspersed among its houses; and 

 to our right a winding valley, threaded by a stream whose waters are soon lost in the sea. The 

 valley may be a mile wide between the higher shelves that were formerly its river banks, and 

 which are bounded by ranges of lofty and undulating hills that stretch away to the E.S.E. 

 until the Cordilleras arrest the vision. After the desolation of Atacama, its cultivated fields 

 and trees, its omnipresent vegetation, its herds of cattle, and numbers of ploughmen with their 

 teams of oxen, were all most grateful. to the eye; and it was impossible to resist the inclination 

 *o return on a subsequent day for re-enjoyment of the prospect. Across the valley, and in th 

 (buster u skirts of a considerable village, also forming part of our picture, there is an establish- 



