laS OVALLE*S HISTORICAL RELATION OF CHILE. 



are their bows and arrows, with which they provide them with flefti, with which 

 they drink water ; only fometimes they make their drink, called Chica, of fruits of 

 the trees, as they do in Chile. Their clothes are fome leaves for decency, and a fkin, 

 which is like a cloak to cover them in other parts. They make holes in their lips, 

 and put fome glafs or brafs pendants in them, and fometimes filver ones. The men 

 let their hair grow to their fhoulders, and the women as long as it will. There feems 

 to be one thing wanting to this nation, which all other Indian nations have^ which is 

 the bread they make of maize, or wheat, or fome of rice : but yet they do not want 

 a fupply of this kind ; for becaufe they have not thefe grains, they make bread of the 

 cods of a tree, which we in Spain call Algaroba, ; and becaufe that does not laft long, 

 they have invented a ftrange fort of bread made of locufts, (nay, I have heard of 

 Mofquitos ;) but the locufts ufed to be in fuch vaft quantities in thofe great plains 

 called the Pampas, that as I travelled over them, I often faw the fun intercepted, and 

 the air darkened with flights of them. 



The Indians obferve where they light to reft ; and thofe plains being here and there 

 full of thickets, they reft in them, and chufe-^the higheft for ilielter. This the Indians 

 know ; and approaching foftly in the night, they fet fire to the thicket, which, with 

 the high winds that reign in thofe plains, is foon reduced to afties, and the locufts with 

 them. Of thefe they make great heaps ; and as they are ready roafted, they have 

 nothing more to do, but to grind them to powder ; of the flour of which they make 

 a fort of bread, which maintains them. To the fame end they ufe an herb called 

 Cibil, which, either by pad with the devil, or by natural virtue, afl:brds them a 

 fuftenance for feveral days, only by keeping it in their mouths, where it makes a 

 white foam, which appears upon their lips: it is a very difagreeable fight, and made 

 me very fick to fee it. 



Though thefe people are not fo warlike as the Chile Indians, yet they are coura- 

 geous, and have fliewed it upon feveral occafions. They are very dexterous at their 

 bows and arrows, with which they make incredible fliots. But befides thefe, they 

 have a very extraordinary fort of a weapon of a new kind, which is made of two 

 balls, the one bigger, and is a ftone perfeftly well rounded, about the bignefs of an 

 ordinary orange ; the other is of a bladder or hard leather, which they fill with fome 

 matter of lefs weight than the ftone : thefe two balls are tied ftrongly to each end of 

 a ftrong whipcord, which they twift off a bull's pizzle : the Indian ftanding on a 

 high ground, takes the leffer ball in his hand, and lets the other fly, holding it like 

 a fling over his head to take aim, and hit his adverfary with the heavy ball, which 

 they dired to the head, or legs of their enemy ; and thus they entangle him fo, as 

 to bring him to the ground, and then the Indian leaps from the height where he was, 

 and without giving him time to difembarrafs himfelf, they kill him ; and this inftru- 

 ment is fo powerful in their hands, that it not only brings a man to the ground, but 

 a horfe or a wild bull, which are very frequent in thofe parts, fince the coming of the 

 Spaniards among them. 



At this time they have no wars with any j for though they do not own a fubjedion, 

 yet they carry themfelves to the Spaniards very friendly ; and the reafon is, becaufe 

 they fee their towns fo populous and ftrong, that it would be in vain for them to ftir, 

 or make any attempt againft them : they have the liberty of going in or out as they 

 pleafe ; and when they have taken a kindnefs for a Spaniard, there will come a troop 

 of them in harveft time to help him to get it in, and when it is over, they return to 

 their own way of living: but there are others who come in troops to the highway, 

 and if the Spaniards are not well armed, attack them in their waggons 5 for 



which 



