151 



CHAP m. 



The Spaniards abandon Puren, Angola and Vil- 

 larica ; Cawpolican lays siege to Imperial and 

 Valdivia ; Lautaro defeats the Spanish army 

 in Mariguenu, and destroys Conception. 



When the rejoicings were over, Caupolican;, 

 taking the young Lautaro by the hand, presented 

 him to the national assembly^ which had met to 

 concert measures for the further prosecution of 

 the war, and after having spoken highly in hLs 

 praise, attributing to him the whole success of 

 the preceding day, he appointed him his lieu- 

 tenant-general extraordinary, with the privilege of 

 commanding in chief another army, which he 

 intended to raise to protect the frontiers from the 

 invasion of the Spaniards. This appointment 

 was approved and applauded by all present, as 

 Lautaro, besides the inappreciable service he had 

 rendered his country, and the nobleness of his 

 origin, being one of the order of Ulmenes, was 

 endowed with singular beauty and affability, and 

 possessed talents far surpassing his years. Their 

 sentiments upon the operations of the next cam- 

 paign were various. Colocolo, with a great part 

 of the Ulmenes, was of. opinion that io the first 



l4 



