﻿764 
  SOUTH 
  AMERICAN 
  INDIANS 
  [B. 
  A. 
  E. 
  Bull. 
  143 
  

  

  peoples 
  who 
  were 
  eastern 
  neighbors 
  of 
  the 
  Araucanians. 
  In 
  1658, 
  

   they 
  were 
  still 
  masters 
  of 
  their 
  own 
  destiny, 
  for 
  various 
  persons 
  who 
  

   made 
  statements 
  in 
  the 
  aforementioned 
  criminal 
  proceedings 
  knew 
  

   only 
  their 
  own 
  language, 
  whereas 
  100 
  years 
  later 
  they 
  all 
  spoke 
  

   Araucanian, 
  and 
  only 
  the 
  old 
  people 
  still 
  remembered 
  their 
  ancient 
  

   tongue. 
  This 
  is 
  what 
  we 
  are 
  told 
  by 
  Father 
  Havestadt, 
  a 
  Jesuit 
  

   missionary 
  who, 
  in 
  1750, 
  visited 
  Malargtie, 
  the 
  principal 
  center 
  of 
  

   these 
  ancient 
  people. 
  After 
  that 
  date, 
  the 
  Puelche 
  de 
  Cuyo 
  disap- 
  

   peared 
  as 
  an 
  ethnic 
  entity, 
  to 
  be 
  transformed 
  into 
  a 
  mere 
  subdivision 
  

   of 
  the 
  Araucanized 
  Pehuenche. 
  

  

  The 
  second 
  expansion 
  was 
  to 
  the 
  east. 
  Documents 
  point 
  to 
  its 
  

   presence 
  north 
  of 
  the 
  Pampean 
  region 
  in 
  1708. 
  In 
  this 
  same 
  year, 
  at 
  

   a 
  meeting 
  of 
  Indians 
  of 
  different 
  origins 
  held 
  at 
  Las 
  Pulgas 
  near 
  what 
  

   is 
  called 
  today 
  Villa 
  Mercedes, 
  on 
  the 
  Rio 
  Quinto, 
  some 
  Indian 
  chiefs 
  

   who 
  were 
  not 
  yet 
  Araucanized 
  had 
  brought 
  to 
  the 
  council 
  "Aucaes 
  

   Indians 
  or 
  Indians 
  of 
  the 
  War 
  of 
  Chile." 
  At 
  that 
  period, 
  the 
  Arau- 
  

   canians 
  on 
  the 
  eastern 
  side 
  of 
  the 
  Andes 
  were 
  known 
  as 
  Aucd 
  

   (Araucanian 
  for 
  enemy, 
  traitor, 
  or 
  contrary), 
  or 
  "uprisen.' 
  ■ 
  

  

  A 
  year 
  later, 
  in 
  1709, 
  they 
  were 
  also 
  found 
  in 
  the 
  region 
  east 
  of 
  the 
  

   Pampa. 
  It 
  is 
  stated 
  in 
  an 
  official 
  document 
  that 
  one 
  of 
  the 
  expedi- 
  

   tions 
  that 
  went 
  south 
  from 
  Buenos 
  Aires 
  every 
  year 
  in 
  search 
  of 
  salt 
  

   had 
  met 
  with 
  a 
  great 
  number 
  of 
  Aucd 
  who 
  were 
  taking 
  large 
  herds 
  of 
  

   cattle 
  and 
  horses 
  toward 
  Chile. 
  Some 
  weeks 
  later, 
  at 
  the 
  meeting 
  of 
  

   the 
  "Cabildo" 
  de 
  Buenos 
  Aires, 
  held 
  on 
  February 
  10, 
  1710, 
  it 
  was 
  

   stated 
  that 
  a 
  great 
  number 
  of 
  the 
  Aucd 
  Indians 
  from 
  the 
  Chilean 
  Cor- 
  

   dillera 
  went 
  to 
  the 
  plains 
  to 
  steal 
  cattle. 
  

  

  At 
  first, 
  these 
  visitors 
  limited 
  themselves 
  to 
  exercising 
  their 
  influence 
  

   upon 
  the 
  pre-Araucanian 
  Pampa 
  of 
  the 
  plains 
  and 
  to 
  carrying 
  off 
  the 
  

   wild 
  cattle. 
  But 
  soon 
  they 
  attacked 
  the 
  Spanish 
  settlements 
  and 
  

   committed 
  all 
  kinds 
  of 
  depredations 
  against 
  stock 
  farmers 
  in 
  the 
  vici- 
  

   nity 
  of 
  Buenos 
  Aires. 
  In 
  1715, 
  the 
  presence 
  of 
  Serrano 
  is 
  noted. 
  

   Serrano 
  was 
  the 
  common 
  term 
  for 
  the 
  Indians 
  of 
  the 
  Cordillera, 
  that 
  

   is, 
  the 
  Araucanized 
  Pehuenche. 
  Ten 
  years 
  later, 
  it 
  was 
  suggested 
  that 
  

   an 
  expedition 
  be 
  sent 
  from 
  Buenos 
  Aires 
  "in 
  order 
  that 
  the 
  Aucaes 
  and 
  

   Serranos 
  who 
  inhabited 
  the 
  vicinity 
  of 
  the 
  city 
  be 
  driven 
  out." 
  Thus, 
  

   we 
  can 
  establish 
  1725 
  as 
  the 
  approximate 
  date 
  in 
  which 
  the 
  Araucan- 
  

   ians 
  were 
  definitely 
  established 
  in 
  the 
  great 
  plains. 
  

  

  Once 
  these 
  Araucanians 
  were 
  established 
  among 
  the 
  primitive 
  

   Pampa 
  they 
  were 
  the 
  most 
  dynamic 
  element, 
  and 
  rapidly 
  became 
  

   the 
  dominant 
  one. 
  That 
  is 
  why 
  the 
  Englishman, 
  Father 
  Thomas 
  

   Falkner, 
  could 
  state 
  in 
  his 
  well-known 
  "Description 
  of 
  Patagonia" 
  

   (1774) 
  that 
  his 
  experience 
  as 
  missionary 
  in 
  the 
  Jesuit 
  settlements 
  south 
  

   of 
  Buenos 
  Aires 
  showed 
  that 
  the 
  Araucanian 
  language 
  "was 
  the 
  most 
  

   generally 
  understood" 
  among 
  the 
  Indian 
  populations 
  of 
  the 
  plains. 
  

  

  