The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1891-12-13

lying white puraceous substance chiefly
composed of marine infusoria In surpris-
ing contrast TO western Patagonia, the
eastern side is
MOSTLY DRY AND HOT,
for the prevailing west winds. having been
drained by the Andes, bring no moisture
Travellers who have seen both count tries,
declare that portions of this bear a strik-
ing similarity 20 the deserts of southern
Africa, the resemblance being height
ened by the presence of ostriches,
two species of which may always be seen
scucding over the Patagonian plains like
ships under sail Others compare this to
"Badlands" of the Colorado, and the Bar
rem Grounds" of the Hudson's Bay Co;
and others generally those who have
not been here, to the Peruvian desert of
Atacama, and even to Sahara, Gobi, Kala-
halr, and the steppes Of Kaurezm. NJ
Gufnnard, the noted French scientist who
explored this country thoroughly few
years ago, declares that Patagonia has not
nearly so much sterile soil as has been be-
heved, that nearly all of it is susceptible of
cultivation and at least three-fourths of it
is extraordinarily fertile. However that
may be, it has never been cultivated at all
except in the Immediate neighborhood of
Punta Arenas; but there are a few estan-
clas, (ranches), especially near the Rio Ne
gro, where horses and cattle are bred.
There are deep valleys too, which the
dreaded pamperos cannot penetrate. fur
rowed by mountain torrents and dotted
with picturesque lakes blackened by wild
duck that are tame as barn-yard fowls,
having never learned the fear of man. The
plague of eastern Patagonia is the pampe-
ros, or prairie winds, cold and cutting, that
occasionally
SWEEP THE COUNTRY
with the fury of hurricanes, demolishing
everything in their path. But pamperes,
like other climatic ills, have their season.
and before the time Of their annual recur-
renee the Indians retire with their fiocks
and herds to Los Serranos, the dense for
ests that line the eastern base of the
Andes
The principal Industry of Patagonia
If such term can be applied to the SLOW
emily habits OF Indians-is hunting guanacos
and ostrlches, for the skins of the former
and the feathers of the latter are valued
articles of commerce, and the flesh of both
serves as food. For US time never hangs
heavy in Punta Arenas, Notwithstanding
the dearth OF what Is generally considered
good society" and however closely we
may be confined indoors by bowling gales
and storms of sleet-for there are ostrich
hunters to be interviewed, people who have
Deen brought up. as 1t were, among those un-
calmly birds and have spent the best years
of their lives in pursuing them Our in
terest in the subject never flags, and even
ing after evening we sit at the feet, (fgu-
ratively speaking), of a grizzled American,
who hailed originally from Maine, l be-
lieve, but has lived in these parts more
than thirty years and has come to be con-
sidered authority, par excellence, on os-
trich lore. l wish l could reproduce for
you his funny drawl and way -down-east
expressions; but space will not permit
more than a condensed statement of the
main facts have CLEANED concerning Amer
lean ostriches.
In the first place it should be understood
that two distinct
SPECIES OF osTRIoHEs
stalk over these plains, and that each
species has its range, confined within GER
tain limits. Thus the great strutltero rhea,
which more nearly resembles the African
ostrich, roams the northern pampas but
never comes below the Chuput river; and
the smaller str,tthero Dar,cinti, indigenous