9 



near the mountains or upon the coast. Their extent 

 is also very various, some of them being six or 

 seven times larger than others. These provinces 

 were formerly inhabited by the Copiapins, Coquim- 

 branes, Quillotanes, Mapochinins, Promaucques, 

 Cures, Cauques, and Penquons. At present there 

 exist but few remains of any of these nations. 



The Indian country is situated betv»reen the river 

 Bio-bio and the Archipelago of Chiloe, or the 36th 

 and 41st degrees of latitude. It is inhabited by 

 three different nations : the Araucanians, the C un- 

 dies and the Huilichies. The Araucanians do not, 

 as M. de Pauw pretends, inhabit the barren rocks of 

 Chili, but, on the contrary, the finest plains in the 

 whole country, situated between the rivers Bio-bio 

 and Valdivia. Araucania lies upon the sea coast, 

 and is calculated to be 186 miles in length ; it is 

 generally considered as the most pleasant and fertile 

 part of Chili ; its breadth, from the sea to the foot 

 of the Andes, was formerly estimated at 300 miles, 

 but the Puelches, a nation inhabiting the western 

 part of the mountains, having joined the Arauca- 

 nians in the last century, it cannot at present be less 

 than 420 miles in breadth, and the whole of their 

 territory is calculated to contain 78,120 square 

 miles. 



Huilquilemu— — near the Andes ; 12 leagues long and 25 

 broad. Its capital— Huilquilemu, in 36 deg. 42 rain. Rivers— 

 Itata, Claro and Laxa. 



The Spaniards likewise possess the port and town of Valdivia 

 with its territory, situated upon the south shore of the river oí the 

 same name, in 39 deg. 55 min. south latitude. 



Vol. L D 



