Maryland independent. [volume] (Port Tobacco, Md.) 1874-current, 1891-02-27
PUNTA ARENAS.
The Most Southern Town Of the
American Continent.
A Great Centre for the Sheep
and Fur Industries.

We reached Punta Arenas in the
night, anchored and slept happily until
daybreak, when we blew .he steam
whistle to warn the inhabitants of our
presence, writes Theodore Child in
IIarper's. At length the cap.ain of
the port came on board, and we were
at liberty to 90 ashore but the land
ing was difficult and dangerous: owing
to the roughnes' Of the water an the
primiliveness of the moles, we had to
/ be hoistcd out of the ships boat with
ropes. The town does not otlcr much
TO interest tha visitor In the bav are
two coal hulks, an American schooner
at anchor, several small coa.ting
schooners used for sca!-iishing and
local service, and a Gillian survey
steamer. To the north of the town Is
government dcpo', with half a
dozen buoys lying on the sandy shore,
and looking from distance like gigan-
tic spinning tops. Still furher to the
north is an old lighthouse tower,
painted rcd and white, which was
used by the German Astronomical mis-
sion at the time OF the last passage of
Venus. Beyond the Lighthouse the
land becomes flat, and stretches out
into the water forming 4 long sandy
spit, with conical bcncon on the ex-
treme point. Hence the name of the
settlcment-Sanl Poin'. The WIN is
of very recent origin, but il has grown
rapidly, aud now has a population
of 922 souls, the whole Territori1 de
Nngcl'ancs having a population of
20S5, of whom about 500 are foreign
ers of various natonalities, the chief
capitalists and business people
being German or English. The houses
are solidly built of wood, th3 best of
them having corrugated iron roofs.
Most Of the bull ings arc painted
white; some have walls aud roofs of the
same deep rcd color; the roofs arc, of
course, sharply pointed to throw of the
rain. The. general a.pcct of things
thcres is sew s = prospQr9as. The
principal business houses a~c German
Pun;a Arenas is a free po t, and the
great centre for supp wing the sheep
farms and various settlements Oh the
opp p1site islands of tn, Ticr,a del Fue-
go group, southern Patagonia. and
the Falkland Islands. In these rainy
and apparently inhospitablc regions
the gre t indus ry is s,ncp farming.
There i>als) muc'l gol dls' il the riv-
ers and torrents, and silver anl coal
mines in the neighb1rh Jod, bat hiih r
to they have not been worked
with success.
II is curious 10 note that the shcp-
herds who come to Pun'a Arenas TO
buy goods and provisions often pay in
! gold-duat, Which they gather in The
Streams near where their 1locks are
feeding. Skins and furs form a sec
! Ond important indus ry: seal and sea-
otters abound in the various channels
between the various islands OF 'ricrra
del Fuego and of the Strait of Magel-
Ian, and three times a year Il lc Pata-
gonian Indians ride into Punta w.,
mas 10 sell the produce of their hunt
ing excursions, namely, puma, o.
trich, guanaco and sivcr-f x skins.
The expectation of furs is an i'm
rortant business here, and the port,
standing as it does in the regular
steamer track, is destined TO greater
and greater prosperity. When we
returned on board we found two
Danish fur dealers displaying thcil
stock of merchandise, and endeayor-
ing to do business with the passengers.
The skins were spread out over the
matches OF the aft deck-oslrich
guanaco, seal, otter, puma, foX-look-
ing soft and warm, AMI in,crspcrsed
with few Indian curiostities, such a
bows, arrows, spears, lassos, she'll
work, spurs, models of bark canoes
and the terrible bolas, which the Pala.
gonlans and their pupils, the Argen
tine gauchos, use 10 hunt the ostrich
The Osiris landed our mail bag and ;
dozen sacks of potatoes, and took OF
board a quantity of ostrich feathers tC
be delivered in Havre, and then pro.
cccdcd on her way.