IN THE PACIFIC. 33 



excellent harbour twenty miles to the north- 

 ward. Stores of all kinds can be procured at 

 Valparaiso, but the water is bad, and ships do 

 well not to water from the shore. 



Santiago, the capital of Chili, is distant about 

 100 miles by rail from Valparaiso : it is supposed 

 to be a very beautiful city, but to my mind the 

 low, flat-roofed houses and dusty streets are 

 very uninviting. 



On the 30th of December, 1871, having com- 

 pleted our coaling, refitting, &c., and repaired 

 our damaged bows as well as we could, we sailed 

 for Arica, where we arrived a few days after- 

 wards. 



Arica is the principal seaport in the south of 

 Peru. It was once a pretty little town, with 

 an esplanade, shaded by an avenue of trees; 

 now it is a mass of ruins, with one solitary palm- 

 tree standing. This devastation was caused by 

 the terrible earthquake some years ago. There 

 were only two houses in existence at the time 

 of our visit, the Custom House, and that be- 

 longing to Mr. Nugent, the English Consul. 



D 



