The Columbia herald. [volume] (Columbia, Tenn.) 1850-1873, 1871-06-30

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the Cabinet and all the principal fam
ilies Of Santiago. The crowd was so
great that the supper tables were
spread In the stable, an immense and
gorgeous establishment, which was
superior to anybody else's house. The
idea of the President Of Chilli taking
supper In Meigg's stable occasioned a
rood deal of merriment at the time;
but everybody, the President included,
took the thing good-naturedly, and
the ball passed of, with great ectdt.
The next night Meiggs, true to his de-
mocratic instincts, gave ball to the
poor people, and purveyed for them as
generously a. he had done for the rich
and great.
During the entire period of the late
rebellion Meiggs was an
ARDENT UNIoNIsT,
and the Chilenos sympathized with
him to such an extent that our v;cto-
ries were celebrated In Santiago with
az much enthusiasm as though they
had been achieved by the Chilian
arms. 1t Is said that during this peri
&C MesSc. cNered ~ take the eonfract
OF the Chilian Government to subdue
the AraucaniaIs, who have for over
two hundred years rendered southern
portions Of Chilli uninhabitable except
BY their own wild hordes, and whom
it was impossible for the Spaniard.
and has als0 ever been impossible for
the Chil;ans to conquer. 1t is alleged
that Meiggs proposed to organize a
force Of Americans, imported from the
Pacific coast, and wipe out the free
b0oting Araucanians altogether; but
that the Gillian Government, not be-
ing able to see their way clear to get
ting rid Of the proposed exterminators
Of the Araucanians, and fearing that
they might take notion to hold the
country they should conquer, prefer
ed to bear the evils they already had,
rather than fly to others that they
knew not of. ...4.....-s 81 ......-.
PERU CALLS POR MEIGGS. .
In the mean time Peru, then under
the rule Of Prado the Dictator, impress
ed with the progress which Chilli was
making In railroads, made hattering
overtures to Meiggs to come and do for
Peru what he had done for her sister
republic. After mature deliberation
be went to Peru in the latter part Of
1857. Before he went he raffied off his
quinta and furniture for $3.50, 900. The
rattle was exclusively under the con-
troll of Government officials. He put
the tickets at a dollar apiece, certain
one to draw the quinta, and others to
draw different articles of furniture.
He gave three hundred thousand of
the tickets to the various churches
snd charitable institutions of Santiago,
sold two hundred and fifty thousand,
and had two hundred Thousand left.
The prizes were arranged on q perfect>
II fair scale before any Of the tickets
were disposed of, and then purchasers,
IS well as the beneficiaries to whom
tickets were presented, selected their
numbers at their pleasure. Every
thing being in readiness, the drawing
began, and Meiggs, with characters
tic good fortune, won back the quinta
and every article In II, with the ex-
ception Of q few which were severally
worth less than 800 apiece. He then
,old the house to prominent citizen
Tor $64, 600, disposed of nearly all his
furniture at auction at high figures,
and went to Peru. He travelled back
aud forth between the two countries
several times without getting salts
factory contract, but finally concluded
one with the Government Of Peru to
build road from A1ica, on the coast,
to Arequipa, ninety miles inland in
The mountains, for 81, 100000.
GREAT EXCITEMENT CHILLI.
AS soon as 1t became known in Chi
i that Meiggs had begun work ON a
'ailroad in Peru, great excitement
arose among his old Gillian laborers.
Hundreds Of then at once started for
Peru, and thousands Of the poor Chill
los began to prepare to go. Finally |
he Government issued decree inter- |
licting the emigration, which threat
med to be 50 great as seriously to EN- |
,arrass the labor and defence Of the |
country. Meiggs was allowed to take |
! number of the most skilful of the |
ChilenOs with him to act as chiefs of |
Jections, and they instructed the Peru |
rian peasants in the use of the pick,
'hovel, crowbar, and other mysteries |
,f railroad making.
ASTOUNDING LAvIsHNEss.
The Arequipa road was completed
about the first day of January, 1771.
The great earthquake which shook
Peru aud other portions of South Ane-
'ica SO pr0digiously q few. years
lgO, overthrew a vast deal of good
work which had been done on it, and
Meiggs' plans exceedingly.
But he Immediately rallied, and not
his own losses, headed a
for the sufferers with |
IlO0, 600, and then went ahead with |
MS work, which he pushed forward
With unresisting viger to its compile
ion. To commemorate that event,
Meiggs had $}3O, 900 worth Of gold me-
ials and &25O,000 worth of silver ones
truck of, making s5oO,OO0 worth in |
ill, which he distributed among his !
friends. One side of the medals ex-
libits q scene ON the road, and the |
,ther contains All Inscription and the |
names of the President and Cabinet of |
Peru. r
rwO HUNDRED THOUSAND DOLLAR
% 3Fs-1tis.i DINNER. 7 .
zMeiggs also gave a magnificent en-
at AFRICA and a grand fete
1t Arequipa in honor of the compile
ion Of the road. He invited 800 guests
rom Lima, the capital of Peru. inolu-
ling Gen. Balta, the President of that
and the elite OF Peruvian So
ciety. To bring his 600 guests from
Caliao, the seaport of Lima, he char
tered the Panama, one of the British
south Pacific mail Steamship Compa-
py's steamers. President Balta was
accompanied by a regiment of regular
troops, one Thousand strong. Ii took
three Peruvian war steamers, the
Pachitea, Chalaca, and Independence
o carry the Government party, the
President and his cabinet going in
,ne, and the soldiers in the other two.
At africa the Archbishop of Arequipa
publicly blessed the twelve locomo-
ives which were to draw the excur-
ionists 1O1 miles, up an incline of s.
90 feet. The engineering on this road
8 surprisingly skilful and audacious,
md it bad to be such in order to enable.I
locomotive to thread the passes of
he Andes. The running gear and
Olling stock of the road were made in
he United States. The locomotives
xcited wonder and admiration, and
.fter they had been blessed by the
they were looked upon
y the peasantry as newly-invented
aURDIAN DEMONS
4 Peru. The fete at Arequipa was
beyond description, and
was filled with delight and
The whole thing cost
feiggs 100000 in gold. He could
veil afford the outlay, however, as he
currently reported to have made
within triie Of p, 600, 900 on his con.
ract. @