CHAPTER XXXVI 



THE ISLAND OF CHILOE, CHILE 



IN THE history of the potato there are occa- 

 sional references to Chiloe. The senior au- 

 thor and Luther Burbank are planning to go 

 there soon to study conditions. 



The following information has been secured 

 through the kindness of Secretary James Wilson of 

 the United States Department of Agriculture, and 

 Alfred A. Winslow, American Consul, Valparaiso, 

 Chile. 



"It is generally understood here that the Island 

 of Chiloe, Chile, is the home of the potato and that 

 it was found there by Pedro Valdivia's expedition 

 in the first half of the fifteenth century, where 

 they were known by the natives as Poni. At that 

 time potatoes served as the principal food of the 

 Indians, who cultivated them to some extent, and 

 where they are still cultivated in a very crude way. 



"The Chiloe Archipelago is situated off the west 

 coast of Chile between 42 and 46 degrees south 

 latitude, and is composed of many islands of which 

 the largest, Chiloe, is about 100 miles long by 38 

 miles wide and covers about 2,450 square miles, 

 with a population of about 40,500 persons, mostly 

 Indians or half-breeds. 



" The farms vary from 50 to 500 or 600 acres, but 

 the island is covered with a dense forest, save 

 where small patches have been cleared for cul- 



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