CHICO SLAVE TRADE. 171 



Yet Mr. Low did not think that the little capitan belonged 

 to any of the families residing near Gregory Bay, but to 

 some part of the same tribe who live far inland. Maria's son, 

 Chico, was subsequently cacique, or acting as cacique of the 

 Gregory Bay party. Had this western tribe been under the 

 dominion of the Gregory Bay party, would the successor to 

 Chico have been taken from a tribe who live far inland ? 



The apparent mixture of horse and canoe Indians appears 

 to me to have been an accidental consequence of the fire made 

 as a signal, which called to the spot horsemen from the north 

 and canoes from the south. The novelty of a vessel anchoring 

 in a place never before disturbed by such a visitor, might well 

 suspend hostilities between neighbouring tribes, even had they 

 been at war ; but there is every reason to conclude that the 

 canoe men of the south side of those waters have frequent and 

 even amicable intercourse with the horsemen of Patagonia. 

 A part though of that amicable intercourse consists in selling 

 their children to the Patagonians for slaves. The following- 

 incident led to the discovery of this slave-trade : Mr. Low 

 heard Maria talking of ' zapallos,^* and asked her if she could 

 get some for him — and how many ? He thought she meant 

 pumpkins (for which zapallos is Spanish) ; Maria replied, 

 "two boat loads," and to show of what, pointed to a young 

 slave, lately purchased from the Fuegians. When there are 

 more zapallos among them than are wanted for slaves, or than 

 suits their convenience, what becomes of them ? While young, 

 they may be more useful than when they grow old ; and a 

 wandering people, subsisting by hunting, would not in all 

 probability take the trouble of providing for useless slaves, who 

 might maintain themselves. The Patagonians are not so bar- 

 barous as to kill them ; then what becomes of those zapallos ? 

 If they are not sent to the borders of the Skyring and Otway 

 Waters, there to shift for themselves, with perhaps a few old 

 horses, and even some young men who help them to hunt, the 

 employment of their later years is unexplained. 



* ' Zapallos,' or some word of similar sound. 



