CHILI. 



193 



Statistiei. lands belonging to inhabitants of that city. The capital, 

 ' Coulcmu, or Nombri- de Jesus, is situated on the Rio Je- 

 sus, in south lat. 35 58', west long. 72 38'. Chilian, 

 an inland province, near the Andes, 12 leagues from 

 north to south, and 25 from east to west. Its plains 

 being considerably elevated, afford excellent pasture for 

 sheep, whose wool is reckoned of a superior quality. 

 The capital is Chilian, or San Bartholomew, in south lat. 

 S5 54', west long. 71 SO 7 . Puchacuy, on the sea-coast, 

 12 leagues from north to south, and 25 from east to 

 west. The soil of this province is fertile, and the cli- 

 mate always temperate. It produces the largest straw- 

 berries in Chili, and abounds in gold. Conception, in 

 outh lat. 36^ 49' 10", west long. 73 5', is the principal 

 city, though the corregidor resides in Gualqui. Huil- 

 quilemu, more generally named Estanzia del Rey, lies 

 near the Andes, and is 12 leagues from north to south, 

 and 25 from east to west. This province has mines of 

 gold, and produces excellent wine, resembling Muscadel. 

 The capital is Huilquilemu. Valdivia, now used only 

 as a military station, is completely separate from the 

 other Spanish provinces, and encompassed by the terri- 

 tories of the Araucanians. The capital, Valdivia, is si- 

 tuated at the bottom of a secure bay, whose entrance is 

 commanded by the island Man/era. 



All the above provinces, excepting Valdivia, were an- 

 ciently possessed by the Copiapins, Coquimbanes, Quil- 

 lotaiies, Mapochinians, Promaucians, Cures, Cauques, and 

 Pencons. But most of these once flourishing tribes are 

 now extinct, and the few that survive have been wasted 

 to a miserable remnant, by the oppressive tyranny of the 

 Spaniards. 



The inde- That portion of Chili which still maintains its inde- 

 pendent pendence, lies between the 36th and 41st degrees of 

 province!, gouth latitude, extending from the Biobio to the Archi- 

 pelago of Chiloe. It is at present occupied by three 

 independent nations, the Araucanians, the Cunches, and 

 the Huilliches. Arancania, extending from the Biobio 

 to the river Callacallas, contains the finest plains of Chili. 

 It is in length 186 geographical miles. Its original 

 breadth was 300, but in the 17th century it was aug- 

 mented to 420, by the junction of the Puelches, who in- 

 habit the western side of the Andes. The united terri- 

 tory is computed at 78,120 square miles. It is divided 

 into four parallel principalities, termed Utltalmapu, which 

 are distinguished by thefollowingdescriptiveappellations: 

 Lauquenmapu, or the maritime country ; Lelbunmapu, 

 or the plain country ; Inapiremapu, or the country at 

 the foot of the Andes ; and Piremapu, or the country 

 on the Andes. These are each of them divided into five 

 provinces, which are again subdivided into nine districts.* 

 Between the river Callacallas, and the Archipelago of 

 Chiloe, is comprehended the territories of the Cunches 

 and Huilliches, who are both allies of the Araucaniana. 

 The Cunches occupy the part extending along the 

 coast ; the Huilliches inhabit all the plains to the east- 

 ward, between the Clinches and the main ridge of the 

 Andes. 



Monntaiiu. The highest of the Chilian Andes are, the Manflos, 

 in south lat. 28 45' ; the Tupungato, in 33 IV ; the 

 Descabtzado, in 35 ; the Bianquillo, in "5 4' ; the 

 Longnvi in 35 30" ; the Chilian, in 36 ; and the Cor- 

 cobitdo, in 43, all of which are said to be more than 

 20,000 feet above the level of the sea. The most re- 

 markable of these is the Descabczadu, whose summit pre- 

 tents a plain of more than six miles square, having in the 



middle a very deep lake. This lake is supposed to have Statistic!. 

 been at one time the crater of a volcano. In height, it * v-*' 

 is probably not inferior to the celebrated Chimborazo of 

 Quito. Between the 24th and 33d degrees of south la- 

 titude, the Andes are wholly desert. From this to the 

 45th, they are occupied by Chilian colonies, under the 

 general name of Patagonians, but whose different tribes 

 are likewise known by the separate appellations of Chi- 

 quillans, Pehuenches, Puelches, and Huilliches. 



Chili is watered by a vast number of rivers, which Rivers, 

 proceeding westward from the Andes, discharge them- 

 selves, by fifty-two mouths, into the Pacific Ocean. The 

 principal of these are, the Maule, the Biobio which is 

 two miles in breadth, the Cauten, the Token, the Val- 

 divia or Callacallas, the Chaivin, the Riobueno, and the 

 Sinfondo, which, with some others, are navigable for a 

 considerable extent to ships of the line. Their course is 

 very rapid till they reach the maritime Mountains, where 

 it is retarded by the nature of the ground. They swell 

 to their greatest height about the end of September, 

 when it has been remarked that some of them rise most 

 in the morning, others at mid-day, and others towards 

 evening. At no time, however, do they so much 

 overflow their banks as to lay the adjacent plains under 

 water. 



The lakes of Chili are of two kinds, the salt and L<iVei. 

 fresh water lakes. Of the former are the lakes of Bu- 

 calemu, Caguil, and Bojeruca, situated in the marshes of 

 the Spanish provinces. Those of fresh water belong to 

 the inland provinces ; they are the Redaguel, the Acu- 

 leu, and the Taguatagua ; also the Lauquen and Nalm- 

 elguapi, in Araucania, the first of which has a beautiful 

 cone-shaped hill rising from its centre, and is the source 

 of the river Talton. The Nahuelguapi is 80 miles in 

 circumference, has a pleasant island, and gives rise to a 

 river of the same name, which falls into the Patagonian 

 sea. 



The towns of Chili are built in the finest parts of xowni, 

 the country, but not always placed so advantageously as 

 they might have been, for the purposes of commerce. 

 The streets are about 40 feet wide, intersecting each 

 other at right angles, and forming so many squares. 

 The houses in general are built of mud or clay hardened 

 in the sun, having but one storey, with a garden at- 

 tached to each of them ; many, however, of more recent 

 construction, are composed of brick or stone, and fur- 

 nished with upper stories. In our sketch of the pro- 

 vinces, we have already mentioned the principal cities ; 

 but we shall here notice more particularly some of the 

 most remarkable. Si Jago, the capital of the Spanish 

 provinces, was founded in 1541, by Pedro de Valdivia, 

 and is finely situated on the left bank of the river Ma- 

 pocho, in a beautiful plain 24 leagues in extent ; it stands 

 90 leagues from the sea, and 20 from the main ridge of 

 the Andes ; the river is employed in watering its nu- 

 merous gardens, and is conveyed through the streets 

 by means of conduits. The principal suburbs lie on the 

 opposite bank of the river, and a fine bridge connects 

 them with the city. The houses of St Jago, though 

 very low, and in general but of one story, are both 

 handsome and convenient. The grand Piazza, near the 

 middle of the city, is 150 feet square, having an elegant 

 bronze fountain in its centre. The inhabitants, in 1770, 

 V.H re computed at 46,000. Conception, or Penco, was 

 founded by Valdivia, in 1550; but being twice overwhelm- 

 ed by an earthquake, accompanied by an inundation of 



VOL. VI. PART 1. 



* The names of these provinces and districts are given in the article AJUL-CANU. 



2 



