292 CHILOE CHAP. 



a distance the view somewhat resembles that of Tierra del 

 Fuego ; but the woods, when seen nearer, are incomparably 

 more beautiful. Many kinds of fine evergreen trees, and plants 

 with a tropical character, here take the place of the gloomy 

 beech of the southern shores. In winter the climate is detest- 

 able, and in summer it is only a little better. I should think 

 there are few parts of the world, within the temperate regions, 

 where so much rain falls. The winds are very boisterous, and 

 the sky almost always clouded : to have a week of fine weather 

 is something wonderful. It is even difficult to get a single 

 glimpse of the Cordillera : during our first visit, once only the 

 volcano of Osorno stood out in bold relief, and that was before 

 sunrise ; it was curious to watch, as the sun rose, the outline 

 gradually fading away in the glare of the eastern sky. 



The inhabitants, from their complexion and low stature, 

 appear to have three -fourths of Indian blood in their veins. 

 They are an humble, quiet, industrious set of men. Although 

 the fertile soil, resulting from the decomposition of the volcanic 

 rocks, supports a rank vegetation, yet the climate is not 

 favourable to any production which requires much sunshine 

 to ripen it. There is very little pasture for the larger quadru- 

 peds ; and in consequence, the staple articles of food are pigs, 

 potatoes, and fish. The people all dress in strong woollen 

 garments, which each family makes for itself, and dyes with 

 indigo of a dark blue colour. The arts, however, are in the 

 rudest state ; — as may be seen in their strange fashion of 

 ploughing, their method of spinning, grinding corn, and in the 

 construction of their boats. The forests are so impenetrable 

 that the land is nowhere cultivated except near the coast and 

 on the adjoining islets. Even where paths exist, they are 

 scarcely passable from the soft and swampy state of the soil. 

 The inhabitants, like those of Tierra del Fuego, move about 

 chiefly on the beach or in boats. Although with plenty to 

 eat, the people are very poor : there is no demand for labour, 

 and consequently the lower orders cannot scrape together 

 money sufficient to purchase even the smallest luxuries. There 

 is also a great deficiency of a circulating medium. I have 

 seen a man bringing on his back a bag of charcoal, with which 

 to buy some trifle, and another carrying a plank to exchange 

 for a bottle of wine. Hence every tradesman must also be 



