156 



THREE YEARS IN THE PACIFIC. 



Just before turning off from the beach, we came to the re- 

 cent carcass of a mule, upon which, seven large, black winged, 

 ruffle throated condors, and a crowd of buzzards, were feasting. 

 They allowed us to approach so near, that had we been pro- 

 vided with arms, we might have shot them, as they arose slow- 

 ly on the wing. These mammoths of the air frequently destroy 

 small animals. They sometimes form a circle around a sheep 

 or goat, and spreading out their wings, approach till they strike 

 their prey. The first stroke of the beak is aimed at the eyes; 

 if the animal cry, they seize the tongue with their talons, and 

 then falling upon him, devour the body, even to the bones. In 

 the country they are caught in the following manner. A pen 

 is formed of high palisadoes driven into the ground, and a 

 fresh carcass put into the centre. It is left alone. In a short 

 time the condors, who scent their food for miles, descend into 

 it, and while feasting, the peones, armed with clubs, and the 

 body and limbs well protected with hide, enter the enclosure, 

 and commence the work of destruction. This bird cannot rise 

 without running thirty or forty yards, which the limits of the 

 pen will not allow, and they are clubbed to death, not however 

 without making resistance, and occasionally inflicting very se- 

 vere wounds upon their pursuers. 



The entrance to Coquimbo, or La Serena, as it is known 

 and spoken of in all public documents, is through an "adobe" 

 gate, which indicates that it was once surrounded by a wall. 

 The appearance is unpromising. The streets, which intersect 

 each other at right angles, are of moderate width, and far from 

 being clean. On one corner of the plaza is the government 

 house, occupied by the Intendente of the province. There is a 

 public hospital lately established, and six or seven churches, 

 all with cupolas or belfries. The dwellings are in the same 

 style as those of Santiago, presenting a white front wall, with 

 a large gate studded with brass or copper bolt heads. Very 

 few houses are of two stories ; some of them have observatories 

 on the top. A small flower garden is attached to each, and 

 from this cause the city occupies more ground than many 

 places of three times its population, which does not exceed ten 

 thousand. 



