CHILI

CHILI. Some account of this country will be found in the Encyclopaedia, to which the reader is referred for various particulars relative to its early history and its trade.

Chili is situated on the western shore of South America, between the 24th and 45th degrees of south latitude. It is estimated to stretch along the shore 1260 miles; but its breadth varies as the great chain of the Cordilleras, which forms its eastern boundary, approaches the sea, or recedes from it. Between the 24th and 32d degrees of south latitude, the space between the mountains and the Pacific Ocean, which forms the breadth of Chili, is about 210 miles. From the 32d to the 37th it is only 120; and near the archipelago of Chiloe, at the broadest part of Chili, it extends to 300 miles in breadth. On these data, the superficial extent of Chili may be estimated at 378,000 square miles.

Chili is separated from Peru on the north, from the viceroyalty of Buenos Ayres on the east, and from the land of Magellan on the south, by the Cordilleras, which form an almost insurmountable barrier between it and the neighbouring countries. The roads which lead across these lofty ridges are impassable except in summer, and the path is frequently so narrow, that a horseman can with difficulty effect a passage through it.

Molina, in his valuable account of this country, describes it under three great natural divisions. The first comprehends the islands; the second, Chili properly so called; and the third includes the Andes, or that part of Chili which is occupied by these mountains.

1. The islands belonging to Chili are, the three Coquimbanes, Mugillon, Totoral, and Pajaró, which last is about six or eight miles in circumference, and wholly desert; the two islands of Juan Fernandez, known under the name of Isola di Terra, and Massafuera, the former 42 miles in circumference, and inhabited by the Spaniards, the latter, though described as bearing the most inviting aspect, still

uninhabited; and the island of Mocha, about 60 miles in circumference, and at present uninhabited, besides several other islands of inferior size and importance. The archipelago of Chiloe comprehends 82 islands inhabited by the Spaniards. Chiloe, which is the largest of these, and gives name to the archipelago, is 150 miles in length, and its capital is Castro. All these islands are adjacent to the coast, with the exception of those of Juan Fernandez, which are distant the one 330, and the other 420 miles from the shore.

2. That part of Chili which lies between the Andes and the sea, is divided into two equal parts, namely, the maritime country, and the midland country. The former of these is intersected by three chains of mountains running parallel to the Andes, with numerous intervening valleys, watered by delightful streams. The midland country is flat, being diversified only by a few occasional eminences, which render its appearance extremely picturesque and pleasing.

3. The Chilian Andes consist of a number of mountains, which appear to be chained to each other.

They are of prodigious height, and are covered with perpetual snow. At the foot of this vast ridge, gentle eminences and pleasant valleys, surrounded with high hills, are dispersed; but the principal ridge rises in general, abrupt and steep, with frequent and frightful precipices. In these lofty mountains are formed many brooks and rivers, which, when they are swollen by the melted snows, quickly accumulate into formidable torrents, and roar and foam amid glens and precipices, until they break out and extend over the plains. The lower ranges of mountains are covered with forests, and the vales beneath abound in corn and fruit. That portion of the Chilian Cordilleras which lies between the 24th and 33d degree of latitude is wholly desert; but further to the south, as far as the 45th degree, the mountains are inhabited by a variety of Chilian tribes.

Chili is partly occupied by the Spaniards, and partly by the Indians. The Spanish part of it is situated between the 24th and 37th degrees of south latitude, and is divided into the following thirteen provinces:

The territory belonging to the Indians is situated between the 36th and 41st degrees of S. Lat. and is inhabited by three different nations, namely, the Araucanians, the Cunches, and the Huilliches. Of the remarkable people called Araucanians, we have given a full account under that Article.

Chili is blessed with a fertile soil, and with a mild and temperate climate; the air is remarkably salubrious, and the inhabitants are liable to few contagious diseases. They are, on account of these favourable circumstances, extremely attached to their native country, and always reluctant to quit it. Although the climate is not liable to either extreme of heat or cold, the different seasons regularly succeed each other, and are sufficiently marked. The spring commences, as in all countries in the southern hemisphere, in September, the summer in December, the autumn in March, and the winter in June. From the beginning of spring until autumn the south and south-east winds generally prevail, and they always bring with them a clear sky, while the north and north-west winds as regularly occasion rain. On the eastern and western sides of that great mountainous barrier which bounds Chili on the east, the dry and rainy seasons occur at precisely opposite periods. In Chili, the winter is the

rainy season, while on the eastern side of the mountains, in the provinces of Tucuman and Cuyo, the atmosphere is then always clear, and the inhabitants enjoy the finest season. The north and northerly winds crossing the torrid zone before they arrive in Chili, come loaded with vapours, and they are invariably followed with heat and rain. In Chili the heat of these winds is moderated in their passage over the Andes; but in the countries to the east, they are remarkable for their sultry and unhealthy properties, and are, according to the account of Molina, more suffocating than the sirocco which blows from Africa, and is occasionally felt on the shores of the Mediterranean and in Italy. The southerly winds coming, on the contrary, from the polar regions, are cold and dry. They blow constantly towards the equator; and as they disperse the vapours and drive them to the Andes, it seldom rains in Chili while they continue to blow. But these clouds, thus driven by the south winds towards the Andes, uniting with those which come from the north, occasion very heavy rains in all the provinces to the east of the mountains. It seldom rains in the northern provinces of Chili; but in the southern provinces rain is more frequent; and near the sea dreadful storms occasionally arise. In the islands, also, the rains are very frequent even in summer.

Chili. Thunder is scarcely ever heard even in summer in those parts of the country which are at a distance from the Andes. In the maritime provinces, snow is never seen. In those nearer the Andes, it falls once perhaps in the course of five years; but it seldom remains on the ground for a single day. In the month of August, also, a white frost is sometimes seen, accompanied by a slight degree of cold. But this coldness does not continue above two or three hours after sunrise; from which time the temperature of the atmosphere is like that of a fine day in spring. In the Andes, on the contrary, snow storms are frequent, and snow falls in such quantities from April to November, that the ground is covered with it during all that time to a great depth, so that the mountains are quite impassable for the greatest part of the year. Abundant dews fall throughout most parts of Chili, which in a great measure supply the want of rains; and fogs are common on the coast, although they are generally dissipated as the day advances.

Rivers. Chili is watered by about 123 rivers, which have their sources in the Andes, and 52 of which communicate with the sea. Of these the principal are the Maule, in the province of the same name; the Biobio, two miles in breadth; the Cauten; the Totten; the Valdivia, in the country of Arauco; the Chaivin; the Rio-bueno, and the Sinfondo, which discharges itself into the archipelago of Chiloe. The two most remarkable lakes are the Laquen, which the Spaniards call Villa-rica, which is 72 miles in circumference, and the Nahuelgapi, which is 80 miles in circumference.

Volcanoes and Earth-shakes. Owing to the great quantity of sulphureous, nitrous, and bituminous substances contained in its soil, Chili is subject to volcanic eruptions and earthquakes. Among the Chilian Andes there are fourteen volcanoes in a constant state of eruption, and a still greater number from which smoke is occasionally discharged. These, however, being in general situated nearly in the middle of that range of mountains, their destructive effects are confined within certain limits, and seldom extend to the plains. There are only two volcanoes in the whole of the country not included in the district of the Andes, the principal of which is the great volcano of Villa-rica, near the lake of the same name. This volcano, the summit of which rises into the region of perpetual snow, is in a constant state of eruption, and may be seen at the distance of 150 miles. Earthquakes are common in Chili. The inhabitants calculate upon three or four annually. They are, however, in general, very slight, and little attention is paid to them. Within a period of 244 years, from the arrival of the Spaniards to the year 1782, only five violent shocks have been experienced; the first in the year 1520; the second in the year 1647; the third in 1657; the fourth in 1730, when the sea was impelled against the city of Concepcion, and overthrew its walls; and the fifth in 1751, during which that city was completely overwhelmed by the ocean. At present the shocks are less violent than formerly, and are generally confined to horizontal or oscillatory motions. The inhabitants are also forewarned of these convulsions by the hollow noise which precedes them, and they have built

both their houses and their cities upon such a plan as to afford them an easy and safe retreat from the effects of this calamity. In the cities, the streets are so broad that the inhabitants are always safe in the middle of them, in whatever direction the houses may happen to fall; and all those which belong to the richer classes have spacious courts and gardens attached to them, which serve as a place of retreat in case of danger. These precautions are quite sufficient to prevent any useless alarms, more especially as the earthquakes which happen in this country have never been attended with any considerable sinking of the earth, or with the falling of buildings. It is supposed that the volcanoes in the Andes are so many outlets, which, by affording vents to the subterraneous fluid, render its action less violent, and its effects consequently less destructive.

The soil of Chili is remarkably productive, and the country, in its uncultivated parts, every where presents the most profuse and vigorous vegetation. The plains, the valleys, and the mountains, are covered with a variety of beautiful trees, many of which preserve their verdure throughout the whole year, and each season produces its peculiar succession of vegetables in the greatest perfection. Different travellers have given the most extraordinary accounts as to the fertility of the soil. In Frazier's Voyage it is mentioned, that it yields from sixty to eighty, and even a hundred fold. Others mention, that the crop is considered poor if it does not exceed the proportion of one hundred to one, while there are some who state the increase at three hundred to one. Molina mentions, that he has himself witnessed instances of lands producing one hundred and twenty, and even one hundred and sixty for one. These, however, he states to be extraordinary instances. The maritime districts are less fertile than the middle districts, and these again yield in point of fertility to the rich valleys of the Andes.

The common produce in the middle districts is stated by Molina to be from sixty to seventy for one, and in the maritime districts to be from forty to fifty. The soil of Chili is extremely favourable to the production of maize, wheat, barley, and rye. Hemp and flax also grow extremely well; but as the exportation of this produce was rigorously prohibited under the regime of the mother country, the inhabitants were accustomed to raise no more of these articles than what was sufficient for their own domestic consumption. In the northern provinces many of the tropical productions grow to great perfection. The principal of these are the sugar-cane, the cotton plant, the banana, the pine apple, the sweet potatoe, jalap, mechoacan, and others of less importance. Many of the plants and fruits which are found in the country are common both to Chili and to Europe, and others that are carefully cultivated in Europe, grow naturally in this more favoured country. Chili has a variety of plants peculiar to it, of which about 3000 different species were collected by Molina. Among these were numerous flowers remarkable for their beauty and fragrance, and which, when they are in bloom, give the fields the appearance of so many parterres. Medicinal, dyeing, and aromatic plants, are also produced in great abundance. The different fruit trees, garden herbs, and flowers, which

have been imported by the Spaniards from Europe, grow many of them even to greater perfection in Chili than in the countries to which they are indigenous. The vine produces in great abundance, and the soil appears to be peculiarly well adapted to it, as the thickets are filled with wild vines, from which the inhabitants contrive to obtain wine of a very good quality. But the cultivated vines are in the highest degree excellent, and the wine obtained from them is the best in Chili. It is in general red, and, in point of flavour, is not inferior to any European wine. The Muscadel wine, according to Ulloa, is of as good a quality as that which is made in Spain. The European fruit trees thrive equally well. In the southern provinces are forests of apple and quince trees from three to four leagues in extent, which produce fruit of excellent quality. The peaches amount to fourteen species, some of which weigh more than sixteen ounces, and the tree bears fruit twice in the year. Pears and cherries also produce two crops annually, but the latter growth rarely comes to great maturity. Oranges, lemons, and citrons, grow every where in the open fields, and besides the common lemon, a small species is produced, the fruit of which is about the size of a walnut, and very juicy. The olive, the first plant of which was carried from Andalusia to Peru in 1560, grows to great perfection; and Molina relates, that in the vicinity of St Iago he has seen olive trees three feet in diameter, and of a proportional height.

Chili is rich in metallic wealth. It produces all the known kinds of the semimetals. These, however, are all neglected, with the exception of quicksilver, which it is necessary to procure for the refining of the precious metals. The two richest mines of this substance are in the provinces of Coquimbo and Copiapó, which might be rendered very productive if they were permitted to be worked. But the selling of quicksilver being a royal monopoly, the digging of it was rigorously prohibited, while Chili remained a colonial dependency of Spain. But if the present struggle for independence in which Chili, along with the other provinces of South America, is engaged in opposition to the mother country, shall terminate successfully, those arbitrary and absurd restrictions will naturally be superseded by a wiser and more equitable system.

Metals abound in all parts of the country. Lead is found of a good quality; and it is obtained in all the silver mines. All the lead mines also contain silver and gold; but in too small a quantity to excite the attention of the miners. The provinces of Coquimbo, Copiapó, Aconcagua, and Huilquilemu, contain very rich mines of iron; and the sand on different parts of the sea-shore, and on the borders of brooks and rivers, is replete with particles of this metal. In the true spirit of that tyrannical dominion which the Spanish government has always exercised over its colonies, those mines were prohibited from being worked, in order to favour the trade of the mother country, from which all the iron used in the colonies was imported, and thus the industry and resources of the immense regions of the new world were condemned to lie neglected and unproductive, under the pernicious thralldom of this absurd monopoly. In the course, however, of the last war between

the mother country and Great Britain, this metal rose to such an exorbitant price, that the native iron was secretly wrought; and it proved to be of an excellent quality. There are also abundant mines of tin, which is usually found in sandy mountains, under the appearance of black stones, very brittle and heavy. These mines are equally neglected with those of iron and lead.

From the conquest of the country to the present time, the mines of gold, silver, and copper, have occupied almost the undivided attention of the Spaniards. The copper mines are not confined to any particular district; but are found in all parts of the country. The richest mines are situated between the twenty-fourth and thirty-sixth degrees of latitude. The ore obtained from them is of every various quality, and it usually contains a proportion of gold which varies from one-tenth to one-third. Some of the ores which are rich in metal, are considered of no value from the expence of refining them; those generally wrought are the grey, or bell-metal ore, and the malleable copper. The grey ore, or bell-metal, is usually mineralized with arsenic and sulphur, and contains a small mixture of tin. From this mixture, and its grey colour, which it retains even after it is melted and refined, Molina considers it as a species of native bronze, which metal it also resembles in its brittleness. Its specific gravity, when artificially combined, is however greater than that of any one of the metals of which it is composed. The malleable copper, which abounds in different provinces, possesses all the usual properties of that metal, and is found mineralized with a small portion of sulphur, which the simple process of roasting is sufficient to expel, and to render the metal fit for use. The miners, however, refine it in the usual manner, from a notion that it improves the metal in brightness. The malleable copper is always found combined with gold, and veins of pure gold are frequently found in the deepest copper mines. Between the cities of Coquimbo and Copiapó, the number of copper mines which are worked amount to one thousand; many more have been opened. But those only are worked, of which the ore is so rich as to yield half its weight in refined copper. The most celebrated copper mine in Chili was that of Payen, the working of which was relinquished in consequence of the hostility of the native tribes who inhabited the district. Pieces of pure copper, from 50 to 100 weight, were frequently found in this mine. Another equally rich mine has since been discovered at Curico. The ore consists of gold and copper in equal proportions, and has an uncommonly brilliant appearance from the particles of this precious metal with which it is filled. The quantity of copper annually extracted from the mines of Chili, cannot be ascertained with any exactness. It is conjectured by Molina, that about 100,000 quintals (of 1600 ounces each) are annually imported to Spain. Great quantities are also sent to Buenos Ayres, and about 30,000 quintals are annually sent to Peru, besides what is used for domestic purposes.

The silver mines of Chili are found in the highest and coldest parts of the Andes; and various mines, though rich in ore, have, on this account, been abandoned from the difficulty and expence of work-

Chili. ing them. The richest are those of St Iago, Aconcagua, Coquimbo, and Copiapó. In these the silver is frequently found pure; it is also found in various sorts of ores mineralized with sulphur and arsenic. The mine of Uspallata, situated in the 33d degree of south latitude, and so named from the plain of that name, is the most productive. There are three species of ores yielded by this mine which have been found, from assays made at Lima, to yield 200, 50, and 14 marks per caxon, which is equal to about 1 in 38, 1 in 154, and 1 in 548.

Gold is, of all the metals, most abundant in Chili, and, in some parts of the country, there is scarcely a mountain which does not contain it in a greater or less degree. It is found also in the sands of the plains, and is washed down from the mountains by the brooks and rivers. In the southern provinces, between the river Biobío and the archipelago of Chiloe, several productive mines were formerly discovered. But since the expulsion of the Spaniards from this quarter by the Araucanians, the warlike inhabitants of the country, these mines have been in their possession, and they have prohibited them from being opened. The most important mines which are at present wrought, are those of Copiapó, Guase, Coquimbo, Petorca, Ligua, Tiltí, Putaendo, Caen, Alhue, Chibato, and Huilli-patagua. All these, with the exception of the three last, have been wrought ever since the conquest of the country by the Spaniards, and have been found very productive. The substances in which gold is found are very variable, and there is no kind of stone or earth which may not be said occasionally to serve as a matrix for this precious metal. It is most frequently found in a very brittle red clay stone, and is to be seen in small grains or brilliant spangles under singular forms, or in irregular masses that may be cut with a chisel. The mines are worked either with the pick-axe or by explosion, according to circumstances. The rock in which the ore is found being then reduced to powder by a mill of a simple construction, the gold is extracted by the common process of amalgamation with mercury. Gold is also procured by the washing of the auriferous sands. But this method is only practised by the poorer classes, who cannot afford the expences of regular mining. The quantity of the gold annually found in Chili, which pays the royal duty of one-fifth, is estimated by Molina to amount in value to four millions of dollars. A million and a half is coined at the mint of St Iago; the remainder is exported in bullion, or is used in the country for plate and jewellery. There is besides a considerable quantity smuggled.

Chili. animals. Chili is not so abundant in animals as some of the other countries of America. The indigenous quadrupeds hitherto discovered amount to 36 species; but it is the opinion of Molina, that, in the unexplored and desert regions of the Andes, many others exist which are hitherto undiscovered, or imperfectly known. Of the species peculiar to Chili, the most remarkable is the vicuña, or the guanaco, sometimes called the American camel, from its resemblance to that animal in shape; although it differs from it in another essential quality, namely, that, while the camel is fitted by its constitution to live in the most

parched and sultry deserts, the vicuña is most vigorous and thriving in the inclement regions of the higher Andes, amid ice and everlasting snow. The lama, or Peruvian sheep, is also found in the Andes of Chili. The other animals are the wild goat, the dog, the fox, and the paji, or lion, which animal it resembles in its size and roaring, though it is destitute of mane. All the European animals have been carried to Chili, where they have multiplied exceedingly, and some of them have even increased in size. The birds are very numerous, amounting, those that belong to the land, to 135 species, while it is impossible to enumerate all the different species of sea-birds. There are but few reptiles, and the insects are less numerous than in some of the southern countries of Europe. The coasts of Chili abound with various kinds of excellent fish, of which the different species are calculated to amount to 76, most of which differ from those found in the northern hemisphere, and appear to be peculiar to that sea. The bays, harbours, and in a particular manner the mouths of the large rivers, swarm with them, and in many places they are caught with very little trouble. The fresh waters also abound in fish, especially those which are beyond the 34th degree of south latitude.

The population of Chili is composed of Europeans, Creoles, Indians, Negroes, and Mestizoes. Of these the Creoles form the most numerous class. There exist no data for a general enumeration of the population; but it is certain that the country is very thinly stocked with inhabitants, in proportion to its fertility.

The domestic tranquillity of Chili has been seldom disturbed since its original conquest, except by the wars continually waged between the Spaniards and the tribes of Indian natives, many of whom still continue to enjoy their barbarous independence, and to defy the utmost efforts of the Spanish arms. But about the year 1810, when the French had nearly effected the conquest of the mother country, the Chilean, along with the other provinces of Spanish America, began to take measures for establishing their independence. At first affairs seemed to wear the appearance of unanimity and peace. The authority of the mother country was quietly superseded by the aristocracy of the colony, and the government passed into the hands of the great Creole families. Since this period, Chili appears to have been subjected by the royal armies; but lately it has been restored to independence by a detachment from the army of Buenos Ayres, under San Martín, who, having defeated the royal troops in several engagements, has made himself master of all the most important places of the country. The accounts hitherto received in Europe of these events are too partial and contradictory to enable us to enter at present into any detailed or connected narrative of them. But an opportunity will occur in the general article of SOUTH AMERICA, for a full account of the great revolution which has taken place in this continent.

See History of Chili, by Don Ignatius Molina, 1809.—Travels from Buenos Ayres by Potosí to Lima, by A. T. Helms, 1807.—Edinburgh Review, Vol. XIX. (o.)