71 



cers of his staff, who in their turn nominate their 

 subaltern officers. By this method, harmony 

 and subordination are maintained between the 

 respective commanders. The Vice Toqui is al- 

 most always selected from among the Puelches, 

 in order to satisfy that valiant tribe, who, as I 

 have already observed, amount to the fourth 

 part of the population of the state. Nor have 

 the Araucanians ever had cause to repent of this 

 selection. During the la^t war, one of these 

 mountaineers, Leviantu, lieutenant-general of 

 Curignancu, harassed the Sp&niards greatly, 

 and gave their troops constant employment.* 

 . The army is at present composed of infantry \ 

 and of horse. It originally consisted entirely J 

 of the former, but in their first battles with the / 

 Spaniards, perceiving the great advantage which j 

 their enemies derived from their cavalry, they 

 soon began to discipline themselves in the same \ 

 manner. Their first care was to procure a good 

 breed of horses, which in a short time became so 

 numerous, that in the year 1568, seventeen years 

 after their first opposing the Spanish arms, they 

 ^ere able to furnish several squadrons, and in 

 the year 1585, the cavalry was first regularly 

 organized by the Toqui Cadeguala, 



The infantry, which they call iiamuntulinco, 

 is divided into regiments and companies ; each 

 regiment consists of one thousand men, and con- 

 tains ten companies of one hundred. The ca- 



F 4 



