Staunton vindicator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1860-1896, 1892-09-23
IT rs NEARCAPE HORN
AN INTERESTING COSMOPOLITAN
CITY IN SOUTH AMERICA.

CITY IN SOUTH AMERICA.
AT Punta Arenas Spring Begins in Sep.
TENDER and Winter Commences in j une
The Inhabitants Are Made Up of MANY
Nationalities-The Pataponians.
Away down near the tip end of the South
American horn we find one of the end
towns of the world-Punta Arenas It is
located in lat. 53 10, on the New Brunswick
peninsula, in the territory of Magellanes,
Chilli. Its name is derived from it's situa-
ton, as Punta Arenas is the Spanish for
Sandy point.
Just back of the town large fields that
were formerly covered with timber, but
that had been burned away, are now COW
cred by thick growth of moss, except
where the frugal and Industrious settler
has cleared the ground either for grazing
or for agricultural purposes and still back
of these fields snow capped mountains rise
to an altitude of 1000 feet or more. Or
poslte the point and just across the Straits
OF Magellan is the island of Terra del
Fuego or ''the land Cd fire. Magellan, its
dlscoverer, so named it because on the
night of his discovery there was an almost
continuous string Of fires dotted along its
entire shore. These fires were no doubt the
signals the natives used to warn one an
other OF the approach of strangers.
Punta Arenas was founded in 1913 as a
convict settlement, and continued as such
until the European steamship lines adopt
ed the route through the straits; then it
became a coaling and supplying station,
taxing the place of the Falkland islands.
5oo miles distant. AS it is practically the
only town in southern South America, the
distance from the nearest town on the
Pacific coast to the nearest on the Atlantic
being about 1000 miles, Punta Arenas soon
became quite an important station of call
ana supply, and, necessarily following. an
important town in both commercial and
manufacturing aspects
The sending of convicts was stopped
after the steamships adopted it as coal
ing and supplying station, and in their
stead were sent 300 immigrants with a
governor to take possession of the terri
tory. The military guard was also with
drawn Curing the war with Peru, a ticket
OF leave being granted to the convicts who
consented to serve in the Gillian army.
After these undesirable occupants left the
population steadily increased, until in 1888
1t reached the sum Of 1900 in ALL
here also the daily formula of affairs
with which we are accustomed to in steady
going New York is turned upside down
and backside foremost, although the
changes are by no means as startling as at
Hammerfest. Think of spring commence
ing IN September, summer in December.
autumn in March and winter in June:
think OF speaking of the heats of Deem
Der and the cold, boisterous winds of June;
think OF country that produces men six
and almost seven feet high.
The climate is of course the first subject
Tor our consideration Though it is often
cold and chilly and very nearly always
wet, yet it is very healthful, in fact the
wet provinces are the most salubrious,
ana what Ill health there is is generally
owing to some fault of the people. One of
the most fatal diseases is dysentery. aris
ing from too free consumption of the
watermelon, and next in rank, owing to,
the bad system of sewerage. are gastric
typhoid and typhus fevers. The sewers
generally consist of partly opened channels
passing through the houses, sometimes
with running water and at other times
nearly dry. The most healthful period is
just before the rain sets in during the
month OF April, when the death rate is ~
per thousand; the most unhealthful isdur-
ing the heats of December and January
when the death rate reaches 90
Punta Arenas is distinctively a cosmo-
polltan town. Every race, every nation.
every class has its representative the
Chinese, the negro, the Irishman, the Pole.
the Englishman, the italian, the German
the Russian, the Portuguese, the Hebrew
the Spaniard. All these are represented
by ex -convicts, fugitives, castaway sailor
deserters, and last, but by no means the
least, the legitimate merchant, with a
legitimate business and a legitimate pur-
pose. But the real natives are the Pata
gonlans and the Spaniards, bearing re-
speotlveiy the same relationship to their
country and to each other as the Indians
90 toward Americans and the United
states. The Patagonians, numbering
about 10000 in all, inhabit the territorv
OF Magelanes and the island of Terra del
Fuego, and in stature are the giants of the
world. In fifty ordinary men the average
height was feet ~ inches. the tallest
being feet 81 inches, and the shortest
being feet q of an inch. There is moth
ing odd about their religion They wor-
ship deity called Coche, and also believe
IN the Immortality Of the soul. But al
though their religion does not forbid IL.
they do not practice polygamy-auite an
unusual thing among the South American
Indian tribes.
Inc Spanlards are the same Spaniarfls
we know In sunny Spain, except that their
instincts and language are slightly modi
ned by admlxture with foreign nations
The rules of society life are practically the
same as in France or Catholic Germany
They dress about the same; they live about
the same; they are amused about the same
and their 1nclinations also run in about
the same direction. Sunday is spent as a
holiday, at which time the people indulge
In balls, receptions, dinners, theaters and
operas but the Sunday that stands out
beyond all others, the great fete day of the
year, IS the one on which occurs the bull
nght, the sport par excellence of all the
spanish nations. Athletic sports are un-
known, but good horsemanship is COM
mon The Americans, with their usra1 eo
ahead spirit, have introduced and CON
structed railways, telegraphs, -four mills.
etc.
One OF the most interesting but at the
same time most dangerous physical fea.
lures IS the earthquake. All Chill is SUBJ
7ect to frequent light earth shocks that
cause great alarm lest they should be fol-
lowed BY the earthquake" itself. The
Knocks cause little if any danger and are
rarely followed by the earthquake, the lat
ter according to popular belief, occurring
about once every fifty years. The people
have guarded as best they can against
earthquakes by constructing low, one story
buildings, that look strange indeed in con-
trast to the sky scraping edifices of New
OK; but practicability is the ruling
spirit, except with the anglomaniac-
Geographical Magazine.
Bidding Son Goodhy.
Lord Charles, being ordered with his
regiment abroad, felt much concern at
bidding farewell to his aged father, whom
he might never see again. On his making
the announcement, the duke, who had
been reading, damped his emotion by say
ing shortly. "Goodby, Charlie, goodbye
ard taking last look bofo.e 1oo.r;,,e. IL