66 RIO NEGRO chap. 



The country near the mouth of the river is wretched in the 

 extreme : on the south side a long line of perpendicular cliffs 

 commences, which exposes a section of the geological nature of 

 the country. The strata are of sandstone, and one layer was 

 remarkable from being composed of a firmly-cemented con- 

 glomerate of pumice pebbles, which must have travelled more 

 than four hundred miles, from the Andes. The surface is every- 

 where covered up by a thick bed of gravel, which extends far 

 and wide over the open plain. Water is extremely scarce, and, 

 where found, is almost invariably brackish. The vegetation is 

 scanty ; and although there are bushes of many kinds, all are 

 armed with formidable thorns, which seem to warn the stranger 

 not to enter on these inhospitable regions. 



The settlement is situated eighteen miles up the river. 

 The road follows the foot of the sloping cliff, which forms the 

 northern boundary of the great valley in which the Rio Negro 

 flows. On the way we passed the ruins of some fine " estancias," 

 which a few years since had been destroyed by the Indians. 

 They withstood several attacks. A man present at one gave 

 me a very lively description of what took place. The inhabit- 

 ants had sufficient notice to drive all the cattle and horses into 

 the " corral " ^ which surrounded the house, and likewise to 

 mount some small cannon. 



The Indians were Araucanians from the south of Chile ; 

 several hundreds in number, and highly disciplined. They 

 first appeared in two bodies on a neighbouring hill ; having 

 there dismounted, and taken off their fur mantles, they 

 advanced naked to the charge. The only weapon of an 

 Indian is a very long bamboo or chuzo, ornamented with 

 ostrich feathers, and pointed by a sharp spear-head. My 

 informer seemed to remember with the greatest horror the 

 quivering of these chuzos as they approached near. When 

 close, the cacique Pincheira hailed the besieged to give up their 

 arms, or he would cut all their throats. As this would prob- 

 ably have been the result of their entrance under any circum- 

 stances, the answer was given by a volley of musketry. The 

 Indians, with great steadiness, came to the very fence of the 

 corral : but to their surprise they found the posts fastened 



1 The corral is an enclosure made of tall and strong stakes. Every estancia, or 

 farming estate, has one attached to it. 



