296 



GEOGPwAPHICAL EXPLORATIONS AND DISCOVERIES IN 1869. 



of the Patagonians and Fuegans. ^ The former, 

 though of good height, averaging for both 

 sexes 5 feet 10 inches to G feet, were not such 

 giants as they had been represented. The 

 tallest man he had measured was 6 feet 10 

 inches, but his case was exceptional. The 

 Fuegans were small, badly shaped, and ill- 

 featured ; but were temperate in their habits, 

 except in their excessive use of tobacco, while 

 the Patagonians were terrible drunkards. He 

 confirms the statement made by other travel- 

 lers, that the Patagonians kill their old people, 

 to avoid having to provide for them. 



Don Guillermo Cox, a Chilian naturalist, 

 has made several visits to Patagonia, and stud- 

 ied very thoroughly the country and its people. 

 lie made reports of his explorations, in the 

 " Annals of the University of Chili," where he 

 was a professor, the last being dated in 1863. 

 lie states that Patagonia and the islands south 

 of it are occupied by five distinct Indian tribes. 

 1. The Pehuenches, subdivided into northern 

 and southern Pehuenches, whose district is for 

 the most part north of the Limay, an affluent 

 of the Rio Negro. 2. The Pampas, or Tehuel- 

 ches of the north, from the Limay to the 

 Cheoput. 3. The Tehuelches of the south, who 

 occupy the southern portion of the peninsula, 

 and differ very little from those of the north. 

 (These two are the Patagonians most generally 

 known, of large stature and intemperate habits.) 

 4. The Iluaicurus, a mixed race, partTehuelche, 

 and part Fuegan, occupying the northern shores 

 of the Straits of Magellan, and 5. The Fuegans 

 or inhabitants of the island of Terra del Fuego. 

 Of these tribes, the Pehuenches are the only ones 

 who have fixed habitations, the others being 

 nomadic and those on the coast plundering 

 shipwrecked vessels. Don G. Cox confirms 

 the statements of Captain Mayne in regard to 

 the stature of the Tehuelches, who are, he says, 

 the largest of the Patagonian tribes. All these 

 tribes live exclusively upon flesh and fat, re- 

 jecting all vegetable food. They use the ~bolas, 

 or lasso with two or three balls attached, to 

 capture animals in hunting. They are polyg- 

 amists, but adultery is very rare. Owing to 

 their wretched life, abortion is very common, 

 and their numbers are not increasing. The 

 Tehuelches do not exceed 6,000. 



Considerable interest has attached for some 

 years past to two lakes in Southern Chili, ly- 

 ing in a pass of the Andes, through which it is 

 believed with slight labor an available route 

 for small steamboats might be found across 

 the narrow prolongation of the continent. Dr. 

 Edward Geisse, a Chilian geographer, has 

 within the past year explored more fully the 

 region in \yhich these lakes (Llanquihue and 

 Puyehue) lie. Finding their waters warmer 

 than the atmosphere or the other streams near, 

 he traced the streams which supply them up to 

 their sources, and found that they flowed from 

 very extensive hot springs about 240 feet 

 higher in the mountains. The source of Puye- 

 hue, where it leaves the spring, has a tempera- 



ture of about 149 Fahr., and that of Llanqui- 

 hue varies from 100 to 122 Fahr. ^ 



Proceeding northward, we find little to no- 

 tice in Paraguay except the continuance of the 

 struggle which, though marked by great per- 

 sistence on the part of the allies, and the most 

 heroic endurance and bravery on the part of 

 the Paraguayans, can only result in the almost 

 complete depopulation of this naturally rich 

 and beautiful country. The contest still con- 

 tinues, though it has recently taken a guerrilla 

 character. The indomitable Lopez and his fol- 

 lowers have betaken themselves to the moun- 

 tains, and, though pursued, do not seem to be 

 conquered or captured. 



In Bolivia a new gold-field with very rich 

 placers was discovered a few years since, but 

 was not very fully developed until 1868-'69. It 

 is situated in the Quelrada or district of Santa 

 Rosa, lying between latitude 15 and 16 S., 

 and between longitude 64 and 65 W. from 

 Paris. In 1867 only about 50 Ibs. of gold 

 (about $11,000) were taken out, but in Octo- 

 ber, 1868, about TOO men were employed, and 

 the yield had reached $5,500 per day. Since 

 that time it has still further increased ; and, as 

 the earth for a depth of about 15 feet seems to 

 be heavily charged with gold, there is a proba- 

 bility of still greater results even with the rude 

 and imperfect processes adopted. 



From Peru we have accounts more full than 

 heretofore of the exploration of the Ucayali, 

 the Jurua, and the Napo, the latter explored 

 through most of its course by our countryman 

 Prof. Orton and his company. It is about 800 

 miles in length, and navigable from Napo for 

 boats for 580 miles, and for steamers from 

 Santa Eosa (about 500 miles). Mr. Chandless, 

 whose explorations of the Jurua was mentioned 

 in the AMERICAN ANNUAL CYCLOPAEDIA for 1868, 

 returned to England, in January, 1870, having, 

 it would seem, again attempted the ascent of 

 the Jurua, but was checked by the wars be- 

 tween the savage tribes which were still in 

 progress. The highest point reached was 

 above the mouth of the river Mu, in latitude 

 7 11' 45" S., and longitude 72 1' 30" W., 982 

 miles above the entrance of the Jurua into the 

 Marafion. 



Careful observations made by Nicholas Whit- 

 ley, 0. E., and Admiral Irminger, of the Dan- 

 ish navy, as well as by officers of the Cunard 

 steamships sailing between Liverpool and New 

 York, prosecuted for .a series of years, give 

 some interesting facts respecting the existence 

 and course of warm currents in the northern 

 portion of the ATLANTIC OCEAN. It., seems 

 from these observations that a cold current of 

 water flows over the banks of Newfoundland, 

 having a mean temperature of 39 2' Fahr., 

 and during the three winter months falling to 

 32, 31, 30, rising in September to 52, its 

 maximum. On or near the meridian of 40 

 W. from Greenwich in the steamship route, the 

 mean temperature of the year is 57 2' Fahr., 

 the lowest 54 in February and March, and the 



