5^4 



NATURE 



[October 13, 1892 



the temperature at Merceditas was 78'' F. ; this was the 

 hottest time of the day, and it was a warmer day than 

 usual, and at 8 p.m. the temperature was 62° F. Next 

 morning, the i6th, I got up at two o'clock to see the 

 comet then visible, and found the temperature was 58° ; 

 at 5 a.m. it was 56°. 



Everywhere on the coast of Chile, north of Coquimbo, 

 the sun, in the morning, is almost always obscured by a 

 thick haze which makes the sky of a dull lead colour. 

 This haze is sometimes driven away by the sun during 

 the forenoon, but just as often it remains all day, especially 

 during the months of March, April, and May. 



This hazy morning atmosphere extends inland for a 

 distance of about 40 miles and up to an elevation above 

 the sea of about 2500 feet ; beyond this distance and 

 lieight the sky is almost always clear and the air dry. 

 Standing, in the early morning, on a mountain of 3000 to 

 4000 feet, or higher, you look down on a great white sea 

 of mist covered with whiter ridges like motionless waves, 

 and studded here and there with islands, which are the 

 mountain tops piercing through. This haze is usually 

 gone by nine o'clock, except within about five miles of 

 the sea. 



Accommodation on the Hills.— Tents can be quickly 

 and cheaply made with " esteros de totora," that is mats 

 made of reeds. All the more temporary houses of miners 

 and prospectors and of railway track repairers are made 

 of these mats, which are seven feet square, and may be 

 rolled up and carried from place to place. They form an 

 article of commerce, and cost eighteen-pence each, or 

 from eighty to ninety cents, of Chile paper currency. 

 During all the month of April and part of May it is quite 

 safe to trust to this kind of tent, but not later than the 

 middle of May, for rain or snow sometimes falls in the 

 end of that month. 



There are no venomous reptiles in Chile, nor are there 

 mosquitoes on these hills, and fleas cannot live at an 

 altitude of 4000 feet — no slight advantage. 



Rain.— On the Chilian side of the Andes, in the pro- 

 vince of Atacama,a-ain generally falls twice in the year : 

 the first rain is expected in June, the next in July, each 

 rain usually lasting two days, and always accompanied 

 with wind from the north. As soon as the wind changes 

 to it§ prevailing quarter, the south, there is beautifully 

 clear but cold weather. From two to three inches of rain 

 fall in the year, but sometimes less than one inch. On 

 Cerro Blanco it usually freezes every night from July till 

 the end of August, and some snow lies on the mountain 

 till September. On the hillsides there are plenty of 

 bushes and small trees for firewood, and excellent water 

 is found in all the higher valleys. 



I have heard one objection to this district for observing 

 the eclipse, which is, that as the eclipse takes place in the 

 morning, and the sun is not high in the sky, it would be 

 better to go farther east. This objection has no weight, 

 on account of the extreme dryness of the atmosphere. 

 At the mines on Cerro Blanco and the other hills every- 

 thing gets dried up ; Huasco raisins grow hard and rattle 

 on one's plate like nuts ; agricultural produce, such as 

 wheat, beans, and barley, brought from Southern Chile as 

 food for. man and beast at the mines, loses two per cent, 

 of its weight every month for several months, office ink 

 bottles have to be kept tightly corked or the ink very 

 soon dries up, chairs and tables fall to pieces, veneer 

 peels off, and a piano soon loses its tone. The sky is 

 dark blue, and the sun rises white and dazzling without a 

 trace of any other colour. The hills, the rocks, and the 

 bushes cast dark shadows, and even every pebble the 

 size of a hazel nut casts its shadow, so that in the early 

 morning the gravelly ground seems half wetted with a 

 shower ; one side of every pebble is in bright light, the 

 opposite in deep shadow. 



Although the eclipse would be the object of greatest 



NO. I 198, VOL. 46] 



interest to visitors, a few weeks might be profitably spent, 

 among the copper mines, and if any one wished to become 

 a mine owner, plenty of mines are to be had for the ask- 

 ing. AUl the mines belong to the State. You have only 

 to take up a mine, pay a nominal licence to the Govern- 

 ment annually, and the mine is yours as long as you 

 pay the licence. There are no royalties,no surface rents, 

 and no export duties. The next thing to do is to make 

 the mine pay, and this is sometimes done. 



There is no sport in April, but after snow falls on the 

 Cordillera, huanacos and immense flights of turtle-doves 

 come down to feed on the lower slopes. Life, however, 

 is never wanting. The region from Cerro Blanco south- 

 ward as far as Coquimbo is the home of the fur chin- 

 chilla. It feeds on the nut of the carbon tree, Cordia 

 decandra (Hook.et Am.), and on the pea of the algarrobillo, 

 Balsamocarpon brevifolium (Clos.). This bush, which 

 produces the tannin pod of commerce, thrives best far 

 inland, on sunny, almost rainless slopes, but it must have 

 one shower in June or July, otherwise it bears no fruit. 

 If there be no rain for three or four years — as sometimes 

 happens — the bushes do not die— they just wait. The 

 same thing happens with all the other bushes ; sometimes, 

 for several successive years, they are without leaves, and 

 though the soil seems as dry as dust, whenever rain comes 

 they show themselves full of life. 



British astronomers— professional and amateur — ought 

 not to lose the opportunity of observing under such 

 favourable circumstances this great eclipse. I doubt if 

 better conditions were ever offered before. The distance 

 to come is long, but the expense is not very great, and 

 can be exactly counted beforehand. An expedition might 

 leave Liverpool in February, by Straits of Magellan 

 steamer, and be home again in June. Or, after the 

 eclipse, go by steamer to San Francisco or Vancouver, 

 and thence by rail to the W^orld's Fair at Chicago, and 

 instead of encountering hardship and danger in some un- 

 healthy climate, have a pleasant trip all the way. 



Though horses and mules can be got here, every one 

 should bring a saddle and bridle. 



In conclusion I would impress on the members of every 

 expedition that may come out, the importance of select- 

 ing, as observing stations, places at a distance of at least 

 60 or 70 miles from the sea. On the other hand, the 

 advantages of going farther inland are doubtful, and 

 as the railways go no farther, travelling would be more 

 difficult. 



John King, 



British Vice-Consul, Carrizal Bajo, and Engineer 

 of the Carrizal and Cerro Blanco Railway. 

 Carrizal Bajo, Province of Atacama, Chile, 

 May 1892. 



(Copy of Mr. M.\rtin's Letter.) 



Mina Bronces, Jarilla, May 2, 1892. 

 DEA.R Sir, — I have now the pleasure of enclosing the form 

 which you sent to be filled up. As I did not receive your letter 

 till April 9, I could not of course fill in the first nine 

 days, but as you will see by the o'iservations that as the last 

 twenty days have been almost invariably clear, I think the 

 astronomers could safely decide to come here as far as clearnebs 

 of sky is concerned. 



An observatory could very easily be placed on one of the 

 spurs of the Cerro del Cobre, to the south of the latter. It is 

 easily accessible to mules with 250 pounds and affords an unin- 

 terrupted view of the sunrise. 



Hoping that the filling up of the form will be found to fulfil 

 all requirements. I remain, dear sir, 



Yours sincerely, 

 (Signed) William M. Martin, 



John King, Esq., Carrizal Baio. 



