4S GEOGRAI'IIIC FEATURES OF SOVTHERX PATAGONIA 



Pacitic, many facts may be observed not only bearing directly upon 

 the structural and historical geology of the Andes, but also throwing 

 much light on the agencies which have contributed to the peculiar 

 topograj)hy and determined the unique position of the continental 

 watershed at present existing in. southern South America. 



I say unique, for I believe it lias no 'parallel elsewhere. That its 

 true position was quite unknown and entirely unsuspected, even at 

 the beginning of the last decade, is clearly demonstrated by the un- 

 fortunate l)oundary dispute at ))resent existing between Argentina and 

 Chile. Tills dispute, which even within the last year seriousl}' threat- 

 ened the peaceful relations of these two South American republics, but 

 is now liappil}' ap))roaching a peaceful seltlenient through friendh' 

 arbitration, arose from an attempt by joint commissions appointed 

 by the two governments to establish and properly mark an interna- 

 tional boundarv line extending northward from the o2d parallel of 

 south latitude. In their work of delimitation these joint commis- 

 sions were to be guided l)y the text of a treaty entered into by the 

 two governments in IS^l, which stipuhited that a line connecting the 

 highest peaks of the .\ndes and dividing the waters of the Atlantic 

 from the waters of the Pacific should constitute the international 

 boundarv line. 



An attempt ,at a ))ractical application of the conditions of this 

 treaty soon demonstrated its impossil)ility and developed the fact, 

 previouslv unsuspected, that the continental watershed throughout 

 the entire extent of Patagonia, excepting only a small area al)out the 

 source of the Santa Cruz River, was not formed by the main range of 

 the Cordilleras but la}- far to the eastward and in many instances 

 extended even beyond the lowermost foothills of the mountains. It 

 was clearl}' impossible, however good the intentions of the respective 

 commissions might be, to comply with the conditions imposed upon 

 them b}' a treaty based upon sujiposed geographical conditions which 

 in reality do not exist, for no line can be drawn complying with the 

 evident intentions and literal conditions of the treaty. But while the 

 joint commissions did little toward tracing the boundary line between 

 their respective domains, yet the}^ have done much to increase our 

 knowledge of the geograph v of the interior region of central Pata- 

 gonia, which until the last two 3''ears remained almost entirely un- 

 known. 



The least frequented, and therefore least known, ])ortion of Pata- 

 gonia lies between the Santa Cruz River on the south and the 46th 



