222 HISTORICAL SKKTCH. 



gotten, also, that there are in the interior 

 numerous tribes of Indians who have never 

 been conquered, or in any manner sub- 

 dued, either by force or by persuasion, and 

 who thus still exist in a state of independ- 

 ence. It must also be remembered that 

 of a not inconsiderable portion of South 

 America, for instance, Patagonia and Tierra 

 del Fuego, little or nothing is known be- 

 yond the mere outline of the coast. 



The Indian population, therefore, must of 

 necessity form a very important feature in 

 any political view in which South America 

 can be regarded. The complete independ- 

 ence of a great number of the Indians, the 

 incipient civilization of many, and the ab- 

 sorption of some into the political systems 

 existing in the Peninsula, — all give different 

 bearings of the same question, which is 

 not the less important, though it may be- 

 come more complicated and more involved 



