46 



advantageous situation ; its inhabitants claim hkn 

 as their founder, and the most distinguished of them 

 boast themselves as his descendants. 



After a contest of nine years, and almost incredi- 

 ble fatigues, Valdivia, believing himself w.ell estab- 

 lished in that part of Chili w^hich was under the do- 

 minion of the Peruvians, distributed the land among 

 his soldiers, assigning to each, under the title of 

 commandery, a considerable portion, with the in- 

 habitants living thereon, according to the baneful 

 feudal system of Europe. By this means, having 

 quieted the restless ambition of his companions, he 

 set out anew on his march for the southern provinces, 

 with a respectable army of Spanish and Promaucian 

 troops. 



After a journey of 240 miles, he arrived, without 

 encountering many obstacles, at the bay of Penco, 

 which had been already explored by Pastene, where, 

 on the 5th of October, 1550, he founded a third city 

 called Conception.* 



The situation of this place was very advantageous 

 for commerce from the excellence of its harbour, 

 but, from the lowness of the ground, exposed in 

 ^earthquakes to inundations of the sea. The bay, 



* This city was destroyed by the earthquakes and inundations 

 e)f the sea, that occurred on the 8th of July, 173Í), and the 24th of 

 May, 1751. For this reason the inhabitants established themselves, 

 on the 24th of November, 1764, in the valley of Mocha, three 

 leagues south of Penco, between the rivers Andalien and Bio-bio, 

 where they founded New Conception. The harbour is situated iu 

 the middle of the bay called Talgacuano, a little more than two 

 leagues west of Mocha ; a fort is all the building that is now left 

 at Pence. 



