202 CHILOE. [CHAP, xiiu 



entirely built "of plank, and has a picturesque and venerable appearance. 

 The poverty of the place may be conceived from the fact, that although 

 containing some hundreds of inhabitants, one of our party was unable 

 anywhere to purchase either a pound of sugar or an ordinary knife. 

 No individual possessed either a watch or a clock ; and an old man, 

 who was supposed to have a good idea of time, was employed to strike 

 the church bell by guess. The arrival of our boats was a rare event in 

 this quiet retired corner of the world ; and nearly all the inhabitants 

 came down to the beach to see us pitch our tents. They were very 

 civil, and offered us a house ; and one man even sent us a cask of cider 

 as a present In the afternoon we paid our respects to the governor 

 a quiet old man, who, in his appearance and manner of life, was 

 scarcely superior to an English cottager. At night heavy rain set in, 

 which was hardly sufficient to drive away from our tents the large 

 circle of lookers-on. An Indian family, who had come to trade in a 

 canoe from Caylen, bivouacked near us. They had no shelter during 

 the rain. In Jthe morning I asked a young Indian, who was wet to the 

 skin, how he had passed the night. He seemed perfectly content, and 

 answered, " Muy bien, senor." 



December \st. We steered for the island of Lemuy. I was anxious 

 to examine a reported coal-mine, which turned out to be lignite of little 

 value, in the sandstone (probably of an ancient tertiary epoch) of which 

 these islands are composed. When we reached Lemuy we had much 

 difficulty in finding any place to pitch our tents, for it was spring-tide, 

 and the land was wooded down to the water's edge. In a short time 

 we were surrounded by a large group of the nearly pure Indian in- 

 habitants. They were much surprised at our arrival, and said one to 

 the other, " This is the reason we have seen so many parrots lately ; 

 the cheucau (an odd red-breasted little bird, which inhabits the thick 

 forest, and utters very peculiar noises) has not cried 'beware' for 

 nothing." They were soon anxious for barter. Money was scarcely 

 worth anything, but their eagerness for tobacco was something quite 

 extraordinary. After tobacco, indigo came next in value ; then capsi- 

 cum, old clothes, and gunpowder. The latter article was required for 

 a very innocent purpose : each parish has a public musket, and the 



mpowder was wanted for making a noise on their saint or feast 



The people here live chiefly on shell-fish and potatoes. At certain 

 seasons they catch also, in " corrales," or hedges under water, many 

 fish which are left on the mud-banks as the tide falls. They occasion- 

 ally possess fowls, sheep, goats, pigs, horses, and cattle ; the order in 

 which they are here mentioned, expressing their respective numbers. 

 I never saw anything more obliging and humble than the manners of 

 these people. They generally began with stating, that they were poor 

 natives of the place, and not Spaniards, and that they were in sad want 

 of tobacco and other comforts. At Caylen, the most southern island, 

 the sailors bought with a stick of tobacco, of the value of three-halfpence, 

 two fowls, one of which, the Indian stated, had skin between its toes, 

 and turned out to be a fine duck ; and with some cotton handkerchiefs, 



