Los Angeles herald., 1891-12-09
CONCERNING CHILL.
Information About tho Little Republic
of South America.

Information About tho Little Republic
of South America.
Especial Correspondence.1
NEW YORK, Nov. 16.--Just at this time
there is some popular interest in Chill,
the little republic which lies on the
Pacific ocean, south Of the equator, and
where spring begins in September, summer
in December. autumn in March and win
ter in June.
CARLYLE and Buckle and other philosoph-
ical historians insist with much reason
that every nation has as good government
as it deserves. Since the adoption, in 1888,
of the present constitution, which in the
main is reproduction of that Of the
United States, Chill up to the time of the
recent Balmaceda revolution has enjoyed
the most stable and respectable govern
ment of any country in South America.
This being so, the people of Chilli must be
superior in many regards to the idea which
usually prevails as to the people of any
country founded by Spain and long held
as a dependency of that once strong power.
The people of Chill, ever since they threw
off the Spanish yoke. have proved them
of the mother country.
They are a warlike people, proud of their
history and the victories which they have
won over Spain and more recently over
Peru. But there are not a great many OF
them. In 1875 there were 1880, 900 people
in Chill, of whom one-third were urban
and two-thirds rural. The annual rate of
increase at that time was computed to be
one in fifty-seven. If this has been main
tanned during the sixteen years which have
elapsed, and notwithstanding the war with
Peru and the Balmaceda revolution. there
are now in Chilli nearly 5000, 900 inhabit-
ants. OF these about 100000 can read and
about 375, 900 can both read and write. 1t
Is a Roman Catholic country, and the eccle-
siastics participate to certain extent in
the government, but there is entire reli-
gious freedom and the people are privileged
to worship as they choose.
In Santiago, the capital, there is hand
some Protestant church; in Valparaiso
there are three, and there is a chapel in
Talca In Santiago there is also large
university, which usually has some 700
students and about forty professors There
is also there an institute" a kind Of pre-
paratory school for the university, and this
usually has about 1000 pupils. In the
schools of the republic there is one pupil
to every twenty-four inhabitants, and this
is by no means poor average, consider
ing the large percentage of illiteracy
among the adults. There is little ques-
ton, however, that Chili's illiteracy is less
than that of Spain or any Spanish-Ameri-
can country The books used in the
schools are usually French translated into
Spanish. Indeed, as is also the case in all
of the South American countries, the Liter
ature is decidedly French, as great deal
more that is read comes from that country
than from Spain, Germany, England and
the United States together.
The Chilians are very fond of foreign
travel. The long stretch of seaboard and
the frequent sight of foreign ships induce
a very great many of the inhabitants to
visit foreign lands. In 1875 one authority
estimated that $4,000 Chilians on an aver
age went abroad every year. If this COM
putation could be depended on, the Chilians
must be considered the greatest travellers
in the world. have no faith in its ac-
curacy, but they are uDquestionably great
travellers. If more of them came to the
United States the danger of a conflict now
would be even more remote.
Some ten years ago Chilli reluctantly
WeuU luUO d WdI WILL WulCn WhS buO
richest country in the southern hemi-
sphere. Chill came out victorious and hum
bled the proud neighbor, which she had
assisted in throwing off the yoke of Spain,
to the very dust. AS part of the indem-
nifty for the cost of the war the victorious
Chilians took from Peru those rich nj
trate deposits which had become the chief
source of revenue to that government.
The riches from these nitrates was so cas-
lily available that the other Industries in
Peru-mining and agriculture-weren neg
lected, and the people deteriorated in pro-
portion as their necessity to labor de-
creased. Until Chill took these nitrate
beds there had been no serious internal
dissensions in that country for more than
half century.
Balmaceda's desire to make himself the
absolute ruler was probably not entirely
uninfuenced by wish to control these
great sources of wealth. At the present
time they are controlled by an English
syndicate, at the head of whichis York
shireman, Colonel North, who is some
times spoken of as the Nitrate King"
This circumstance has led some Americans,
and very probably many Chilians, to be-
lieve that in case of war England would
take sides with Chill. 1t may not be, in
deed, that the possession of these nitrate
beds is an unmixed blessing to Chill. They
ruined Peru, and if their ownership en-
courages Chilli in going into an unequal
war, that little republic will have cause to
regret ever having taken them away from
the Peruvians.
In speaking of a possibility of war be-
tween the two countries, Ex-Governor Os-
borne, of Kansas, who was the United States
minister at Santiago during President
Hayes administration, has said that owing
to the temperament Of the Chilian people,
that in case of conflict it would take q
hundred years after its termination to re-
store amicable relations between the two
countries. illustrating this idea he said
that the Chihan authorities had always re-
fused to have taken from the walls of the
custom house at Valparaiso the cannon
balls imbedded there by Spanish feet
more than twenty-five years ago. Instead
of removing these scars, they are suffered
to remain as a constant reminder to the
people that the hatred for Spain should
never decrease.
There is large foreign element in Chill.
The Germans are the most numerous, but
the English have always been the most in
f1uential, and there is at this time not
small admixture of English blood in native
Chilians. English and Irish names are
frequently met and are borne by persons
traveller would never suspect to be
other than Castilian. And to all intents
and purposes so they are. Such persons