The Pulaski citizen. [volume] (Pulaski, Tenn.) 1866-current, 1874-01-29
A VISIT no CRUsOR,s ISLAND.

DIV n lrleQQ OF our Ct-DldlH. 70 06bGI-7
mined TO sail for some little time in
company, and to put in at the Island OF
Juan Fernandez, to supply our larder
with a good stock of fish, for which its
shores are celebrated. We steered
westward, the weather was fine, and
after pleasant voyage of several days,
we heard one night the wished-for cry,
Land ahead" Before US on the hOri-
zon hung dark mass, looking like a
cloud bank in the uncertain light, but
every hour standing out higher and
clearer. There the Scot"hman, Alexan-
der Selkirk, had lived, the hero of the
popular story. He was a sailor on
board the ship Cirque Ports, and in
consequence of quarrel was landed by
his captain, Stradling, on this island in
September, 1704, where he lived in soil
tude TIL February, 1909, in which year
| Capt Wood Rogers discovered him and
brought him back to England. The re-
| cital Of Alexander Selkirk's adventures
formed the ground work of Defoe's
celebrated romance of Robinson CrusOe.
Juan Fernandez, also called by the
| Chilians Masatierra, lies IN the Pacific
ocean, some three hundred and fifty
miles from the mainland. It is about
| four miles broad and two long. The
| lAldufl Is udult0 d4LGL It's 0lbDONoI6Es Il
| Spaniard, who first landed here in 1868.
/ He found it uninhabited, but, attracted
by its beauty, he settled on it. He it
was who introduced the go It's which are
now so numerous on the island.
William Dampier, an Englishman, and
the boldest navigator of the seventeenth
century, who himself lived long time
among the buccaneers, relates that a
man of his ship, a Mosquito Indian,
was lett in 1868 on Juan Fernandez, and
remained there till 1854, in which year
| Dampier himself fetched him away.
! This Indian was thus the first Robinson
| Crusoe who lived on the island, and
! who, like Selkirk, sustained his life by
the wild goats. AS these had increased
very much, anil furnished meat to the
buccaneers every time they landed, the
| Spaniards thought that they would best
| injure their bold and formidable enc
mics by destroying all these goats.
For this purpose they sent over some
immense bloodhounds, which they let
loose upon the island. But the plan
failed, for when another celebrated
navigator, Lord George Arson, the
| British admiral, landed in the year 1741,
he found several dogs, but also a great
many goats. During his voyage round
/
in a violent storm, and Arson found
himself afterward with only three ships
in a very bad condition. The crew was
suffering from scurvy and other dis
eases, and the admiral was compelled
to remain with them some time on the
beautiful island, where they quickly
recovered. Naturally, in their letters
to England, the sailors described the
island in glowing colors. The Span.
iards, who heard of this, and fearing
the English would take possession oil
Juan Fernandez, fastened to form O
settlement there in 1851. But it was
soon after visited by an earthquake,
which led them to abandon it. The
island remained uninhabited till 1919,
when Chill established penal colony
there, which existed till 1885, when the
island was again deserted.
Two years after CHILEAN from Valpa
raise settled there; several men an6
women soon followed him, and thesG
and their posterity were living on the
island at the time of our visit in 1866
| The little colony numbered about fifteeI
persons, several of the younger men be
ing absent OF, the whale fishery. ~
Juan fernandez consists OF single
mountain ridge, which in the centre
rises to a lofty peak three thousan
| feet high; to the west other mountain
surround it. all of which from the base
to the summit are covered with vegeta
ton between them are dark ravines
which form little shady valleys which
open out to the sea.
To the east of the central peak
" the anvil, as it is called from its pc
| culiar shape-extends a wide plain
which slopes down toward the cliff:
against which the sea beats. 1t is Gov
cred with grass and shrubs. On it,
with the help of our telescope, we dis
covered the wild goats, which moved
upon it as thick as ants. This plain is
their favorite resort. They climbed NJ
and down the green hills or darted
across the slopes in herds, while some
solitary ones stood at the extreme edge
/ of the precipice and looked over. We
now sailed past the huge cliffs, and
| gazed up to them with establishment.
Below them the waves of the ocean
foamed and roared, then broke with a
sound like thunder.
Sailing round the northern point OF
the rocky coast, we came in sight OF
! Cumberland bay. The change from the
| grand and solemn to the pleasing and
cheerful was surprising. Before us lay
a little rounded cove with fiat shore,
while n lovely valley, branching out
| into several smaller side valleys, opened
| mp inland. This is the largest in the
| island, and here, not far from the sea,
| is the little settlement.
While our ship cruised about near the
| shore, and several of our boats we're
sent out fishing, we sailed into tho bay.
| The fiat shore allowed our light boat to
be drawn up on the dry land, at which
work we were assisted by some of the
islanders who had fastened up. Their
! appearance showed that they seldom
| came in contact with the blessings oil
| civilization. Women and children had
a very unwashed appearance. Great
was their admiration of the beautiful
| lady, our captains wife, who had ac-
eompanied us, and who, with her rosy
/ lace and white dress, must have APP
peared to the younger generation likv
| some good fairy--at all events the chill
dren closely followed her footsteps.
The buildings of the settlers looked
very old and dillapidatei. There we're
hands enough to repair them, but no.
| body appeared to think it necessary to
| do so, although the least storm might
make walls and roof really dangerous.
! Their boats are better cared for, as a
sort of harbor had been found for them.
Not far from this stood a few poplar
trees aud a thick grove of myrtles.
Beautiful cherry and peach trees grew
near it. Very little land had been cul-
tivated on il, however, potatoes, cab
bages, carrots, maize, and melons grew
in great luxuriAnce. The attempt at q
flower garden proved that even these
people felt the need of the beautiful to
cheer their lives near their homes. The
| fields we're carefully fenced in, proba.
| blysto protect them from the pigs,
which seemed TO be on friendly terms
with the children. A few dogs and hens
were close by, and we were greeted by
several goats. / saw no oxen, aud for.
got 70 iRqnire whether there was any on
the island. On the slopes Lalf-wild
horses and asses were grazing. Wild
goats might be seen here and there on
the heights. High in the blue sky above
them several birds Of prey we're circling
in the air, wildpigeons swarmed around,
as well as sea-birds Of variOns kinds and
sizes.
On hill behind the settlement we
discovered the remains of a fortihcation
whose battery must have completely
| Commanded thA haw Several old ruEtV