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Ayres, and from thence proceeded to Santiago. He 

 immediately sent his brother Don Louis, whom he 

 appointed to the new office of colonel of the king- 

 dom, to succour the cities of Villarica and Valdivia, 

 which were besieged by the Araucanians. That of- 

 ficer raised the sieges of those places after having 

 twice defeated Paynenancu, who attempted to oppose 

 his march. Notwithistanding these reverses the en- 

 terprising Toqui turned his arms against Tiburcio 

 Heredia, and afterwards against Antonio Galleguil- 

 los, who were ravaging the country with a large 

 body of cavalry ; by these he was likewise defeated, 

 but the victors paid dearly for their victory. 



In the mean time the governor, having driven off 

 the Pehuenches who infested the new settlement of 

 Chilian, entered the Araucanian territory with seven 

 hundred Spaniards and a great number of auxilia- 

 ries, resolved to pursue the rigorous system of mak- 

 ing war which had been adopted by Don Garcia, in 

 preference to the mild and humane policy of his im- 

 mediate predecessors. The province of Encol was 

 the first that experienced the effects of his severity. 

 He laid it entirely waste wi^^h fire and sword. Those 

 who \\ere taken prisoners were either hung or sent 

 away with their hands cutoff, in order to intimidate 

 their countrymen. The provinces of Puren, Ilicura 

 and Tucapel would ha^c shared the same fate, if the 

 inhabitants had not secured themselves by flight be- 

 fore the arrival of the enemy, after setting on fire their 

 houses and their crops. In the last province they 

 took only three of the inhabitants prisoners, who 

 were impaled. Notwithstanding their severities a 



