Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1885-10-27
A Glimpse Of Juan Fernandez.

lthlllan letter In New York sum-
Across the harbor Of Valparaiso is
an island which possesses an interest
for every one who has been boy. De-
casionaliy IN excursion goes over there
from this city, and the EngIishmen,
who constitute a large fraction Of the
population, with what few Americans
there are, go over 10 spend day or
two and renew their youth. II
is the island Of Juan Fernan-
dez, where Robinson Crusoe and
his man Friday, "who kept things
tidy," had the experience that has
given the world Of boys as much en-
Joyment as any that was ever written
in book. There was q Robinson Cru
soe--there isn't a doubt Of it; and
there was a man Friday, too: and the
island stands to-day exactly as it is de-
scribed in the book but the surprising
adventures of Mr.. Crusoe as therein re-
lated do not correspond exactly with
the local traditions of the story. AS
the yarn goes here, man by the name
of Alexander Selcraig, who alterward
called himself Selkirk, was put ashore
by the commander of the Spanish ship
Cirque Ports as punishment for mu-
tiny.
This island was . favorite stopping
place for vessels in the South seas, as
1t has good ship-timber. plenty of ex-
cellent water, abounds in fruits. goats.
rabbits. and other flesh for food, and
the rocks on the coast are covered with
HOLSTERS, shrimps, and crayfish. 1t
was popular resort for buccaneers
also, who ran into well-protected har-
Dor to repair damages and get provi-
sions. Juan Fernandez. famous Span
ish navigator. discovered IT in 1868. and
the King Of Spain gave him patent to
the island but as he never occupied u
his title lapsed. ln 1909 the Scotch
man, Selkirk or Selcraic, became mu-
tinous on board the Cirque Ports. and
had to choose between being hung az
the yard-arm or put ashore at Juan
Fernandez alone. He took the latter
alternative, and was left on the rocks
with his sailors kit and q small supply
Of provisions. To his surprise,
after be had been on the island
few days, he found COM
panion in 81 Indian from the Mosquito
coast Of Central America, who some
years before had come down on the
ship of the pirate Dsmphier, and, going
ashore on hunting expedition, had be-
come lost, and was abandoned by his
comrades. This was the man Friday.
Some years after Selkirk and the In
dian were rescued by Captain Rogers,
Of an English merchant ship. and taken
to Southampton. where the Scotchman
told his story to Daniel Defoe, and II
got into print, with some romantic ex-
aggeration.
The island is accurately described ;
and. the visitor who is familiar with
Robinson Crusoe can find the cave, the
mountain paths, and other haunts Of the
hero without difficulty; but DefOe has
located it in tie wrong geographical
position, having placed Il on the other
side Of the continent and mixed up Mon
teyideo with Valparaiso. Ii is about
- miles long and ten miles
wide in the broadcast part, and
is covered with beautiful hills
and lovely valleys, the highest
peak reaching an elevation Of nearly
5000 feet. A hundred years ago the
Spaniards introduced bloodhounds to
kill of the goats and rabbits and to
keep the pirates away, but the scheme
didn't work. After her independence,
in 1921, Chill made Juan Fernandez O
penal colony, but thirty years after the
prisoners mutinied, slaughtered the
guards, and escaped. Then it was leased
10 cattle company, which has now
10000 head Of horned cattle and as
many sheep grazing upon the hills.
There are fifty or sixty inhabitants,
mostly ranchmen and their families,
who tend the herds and raise vegetables
for the Valparaiso market.
Great care has been taken 70 pre-
serve the relics Of Alexander Selkirk S
stay upon the island, and his cave and
huts remain just as he left them. In
1865 the officers Of the British man-of-
war Topaz erected a marble tablet to
mark the famous lookout from which
Mr.. Crusoe, like the ancient mariner,
used TO watch for 4 sail, land yet no