BOOK grains of Europe; the durasmo, à fruit much esteemed in LXXXIX. the country, is a variety of the peach. Unoccupi The yagouar is large but not common; the tapir, the caiman, and the monkey, are never seen in these latitudes. The cat of the Pampas, the cavia of Tucuman, the hare of the deserts, and the Patagonian ostrich, are found in Buenos Ayres. The dogs, as well as the horses and oxen brought originally from Europe, have become wild; they appear in great numbers on the plains, and their inroads are dreaded by the inhabitants of the country. The extensive districts, to the south of Valdivia and ed regions. Buenos Ayres, are thinly peopled by independent tribes. The right by which Spain claims these possessions, is founded on some doubtful maxims of public law, and on the authority of several treaties. The Spaniards, after the discovery of South America, included in the kingdom of Chili, the western coasts as far as the straits of Magellan, and the eastern formed part of the viceroyalty of La Plata. Many English writers maintain that these countries do not belong to Spain, because they have never been subdued; and, until that event take place, it is reasonable that every nation should have the privilege of planting colonies in those places that are unoccupied. We have already given a short account of Chonos and the Archipelago of Chiloe. The great peninsula of Three Mountains, and the gulf of Pennas are situated Different farther to the south. The natives of that coast are descended from the Araucanians, a people that inhabit the rich and fertile districts between the rivers Biobio and Valdivia. The fruitfulness of the soil, abundant springs, and a temperate climate, render that country even more Arauca delightful than Chili. Arauca, the smallest province in their territory, has given its name to the whole nation. The Spaniards have called it Araucanian Flanders, or the invincible state; and some of them had the magnanimity to celebrate in verse, the exploits of a people who tribes. nians. shed so much Spanish blood in maintaining their inde- BOOK pendence. The settlements of the Cunchi extend from LXXXIX. the Valdivia to the Gulf of Guayateca. The Huilches, or natives of the Chiloe islands, are a wandering people; they have not only possessions on the Gulf of Pennas, but even on the Straits of Magellan. These tribes have been faithful allies of the Araucanians. The men are muscular, well proportioned and of a martial appearance; but it is remarkable that the inhabitants of the interior and mountainous districts are stronger than the natives on the coast. Travellers have supposed that they destroy every child of a weak or sickly constitution; their customs tend to preserve the beauty of the human form, for nature is not obstructed in her operations by improper means. The Araucanians never build towns; they reside in scattered villages or in hamlets on the banks of rivers. Such is their attachment to their birth-place that children rarely quit the lands of their fathers. Love of liberty and want of refinement made them consider walled cities as the residence of slaves. The maritime part of their country comprehends Arauco, Tucapel, Illicura, Boroa, and Nagtolten; the districts of the plain are Encol, Paren, and Mariguina. Marren, Chacaico, and Guanagua, are some of the provinces on the Andes. Little can be said of the institutions of a society in so rude and simple a state. We may observe, however, that impunity may be purchased for every crime except witchcraft. The unfortunate person accused of sorcery was tortured before a slow fire that he might more readily acknowledge his associates. The military establishment of the Arau- Warfare. canians was not only better than their civil government, but was in every respect superior to the ordinary methods of warfare among barbarous states. A commander in chief was appointed by a military council; as the Toquis enjoyed the highest privileges in the community, they had the first claim to that office. But if no one in their order was found worthy of so important a trust, he that best deserved to command, was chosen general. BOOK Vilumella, a man of low origin, who was raised to the LXXXIX. head of the Araucanian army, distinguished himself by his warlike achievements. The first measure of a national council after a declaration of war, was to send messengers to the confederate tribes and the Indians residing in the Spanish settlements. The credentials of these envoys were a few arrows bound together with a red string, the emblem of blood. The persons intrusted with a mission were said to run the arrow, and they performed their duty with so much secrecy and expedition, that the object of their journey was seldom discovered by an enemy. That warlike people saw the great advantage which the Europeans had acquired from the use of gunpowder, and tried in vain to learn its composition. They observed negroes among the Spaniards, and because their colour was supposed to resemble that of gunpowder, they imagined that they had discovered the long wished for secret. A poor negro was taken prisoner a short time after this theory had gained followers, and the unfortunate man was burnt alive by the natives, in the belief that gunpowder might be obtained from his ashes. Molina, who tells this story, remarks that the experiment showed the inaccuracy of their chemical notions Each soldier in the Araucanian armies was obliged to furnish himself not only with arms, but with provisions, in the same manner as the forces of ancient Rome. Every man was liable to military service, and had to contribute his share to the support of the troops. Their provisions consisted of dried meal, which, when diluted in water, afforded them sufficient subsistence until they plundered the enemy's country. The soldiers by this means were not encumbered with baggage, and possessed decided advantage over the Spaniards, both in making an attack and securing a retreat. Several great commanders of modern times wished to restore the ancient method of provisioning armies, but it presupposes a degree of simplicity incompatible with European refinement. The Araucanians were the only people in South America that maintained their indepen Customs. dence by force of arms; but the prudence and ability of a BOOK single individual have done more in reducing that warlike LXXXIX. people than all the armies of Spain. By the judicious policy of Higgins de Vallenar, president of Chili, the two nations have never been at variance for a period of thirty years, and the fierce natives have experienced the blessings of peace.* Indian magistrates superintend the trade carried on by their countrymen with the Spaniards. The colonists and natives associate with each other, and Araucanian workmen are frequently met with in the Spanish settlements. The bonds of union have been strengthened by intermarriages; and the missions so successfully conducted by the Jesuits have not been altogether abandoned. The religious notions of the people were borrowed from their Religion. civil institutions; the universal government of the supreme essence was a figure of the Araucanian polity. The one had its chiefs or toquis, and the other was ruled by the great toqui of the invisible world. Apo Ulmenes, or ministers of state, ruled the heavens as well as the earth. The Meulen, or friend of the human race, and the Guecubu or origin of evil held the first rank among the minor gods. To reconcile the apparent contradictions in the natural and moral government of the world, savage nations had recourse to the agency of two adverse principles. The Guecubu was perhaps the most active of these existences. If a horse was fatigued, the demon must have rode it, for such an event was rarely attributed to natural causes; if the earth trembled, he was walking at no great distance. In short, the life of man had been completely wretched, were it not for the counteracting influence of more beneficent beings. But the force of the evil spirit was by no means despicable, for the ulmenes of the heavenly hierarchy were sometimes unable to hold the balance of power. Spiritual nymphs performed for men the offices of household gods. Every young Araucanian had at least one of * Vancouver, tome V. page 402. BOOK them in his service. I have still my nymph was a common LXXXIX. expression, when a person had overcome any difficulty. The Seasons. doctrine of the immortality of the soul was firmly believed by this rude people. Man, according to them, was composed of two elements essentially different, the auca or body was mortal and corruptible, the soul incorporeal and eternal. That distinction appeared to them so obvious that the word auca was used metaphorically to denote a half or some determinate portion of any substance. But, although they admitted an existence purely spiritual, yet they entertained very absurd ideas of it. When they buried the dead, a woman followed the bier at a distance, and strewed the ground with ashes, to prevent the soul from returning to its late abode. Arms were placed in the graves of the men, female apparel and domestic utensils in those of the women. Provisions were left to maintain the deceased during their journey, and a horse was sometimes sacrificed that they might ride to the country of the men beyond the mountains. Their opinions on different subjects were the same as those of the most savage tribes. Every storm on the Andes or the ocean, was the effect of a battle between their countrymen and the Spaniards. If the tempest took its course in the direction of the Spanish frontiers, the Araucanians were very joyful, and exclaimed loudly, Pursue them, friends, pursue them, kill them! There is some reason to believe that sages, who despised the common superstition of their country, existed among them; but if they ventured to inculcate new opinions or to convince men of their errors, they might have fallen victims to popular rage.* The Araucanians divided time into years, seasons, months, days, and hours; but their divisions were not the same as ours. The year began on the 22d of December, immediately after the southern solstice. These essential points were ascertained with some accuracy by means of the solstitial shadows. To preserve uniformity in diffe Molina, History of Chili, volume II. |