Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1892-01-17
UGLIEST ON EARTH.
Fannie B. Ward Makes the Acquaint-
anee of Some FireiSlanders.
LIVES SPENT IN RUDE CANVAS.
The Remarkable Thing About Them Is
They Will Not Drink Rum.
TOBACCO GOES ALL RIGHT, THOUGH
CORRESPONDENCE OF THE prspArcH.l

living in Santiago, card was brought tc
me inscribed, mons. Jose Fagnano, Super
ior de Ia Mission Patagonia Meridinaly
TERRA del Fuego," which 1 recognized a:
that OF well-known Italian Jesuit, belong.
ing to the order of Hermanos de Carload,
whose missionary work in this far South.
land has been more successful than that Of
any Of his predecessors, Protestant or Cath.
olic
Descending to the drawing room 1 found
aportly, dark-eyed, middle-aged gentleman,
in black gown, black broadcloth cloak Of
circular cut, like our old-time "water.
proofs, =" and shining shovel hat tied up on
both sides with cords and tasselS The good
father could not speak word of En- nglish,
and his knowledge Of the Spanish language
was almost as circunscribed as mine of the
italian; vet in true journalistic fashion we
managed the interview somehow, with the
result that became SO interested in the un-
known people of this remote archipelago as
to promise an early visit to the Jesuit mis-
sion. And, therefore, hare We are, in the
very center of King Charles Southland,
where the feet of white women never came
before.
The Natives Never Toll.
The heights are all volcanic, and every
where scoriai and lava appears The fora
OF the island includes many strange plants,
but only two of the indigenous ones are ed
ible, viz, spoonwort and wild celery. Yet
the 1000 OF more native inhabitants never
lack for food, though they do not cultivate
the soil, and the only domestic animals seen
among them are their lean and fox-like
dogs, which appear to receive great deal
more consideration than is bestowed upon
the women and children. The Fuegoans re-
Semble Solomon's lilies in just one particu-
lar, that they toll not, neither do they spin.
They subsist almost exclusively upon the
shellfsh that abound along the coast (eaten
raw, supplemented BY gobular fungus
that breaks out like warts upon the trunks
Of sntartie beeches, and by the hardsack
and sea biscuits they are forever begging
from vessels passing through the straits
Mons. Fagnano tells Us that before he
came here the people bad never lived in
houses, but constructed the rudest kind OF
weather breaks of poles and brushwood-
always FIVE huts in a group, if huts they
could be called, with one fire built in the
center. Cold as the weather is, Ieeting aud
showing nearly every Gay in the year, they
wore no clothes whatever, except OCCASION
ally an uncured otter skin, whose stencil
would be uncomfortable TO anybody but
Fuegosn.
Beads Preferred to Clothing.
To this day, says the Padre, despite the
efforts of ali the missionaries, every one of
them will sell his or her last rag for q plug
Of tobacco or few glass beads, ard stalk
home happy, though entirely naked. There
are now about 200 Indians in the mission,
who are being taught to read and write Gin
Spsnish) and to do various kinds of manual
labor. The brothers of Charity" have
erected comfortable homes for all who will
come into the station and abide by the
rules, and furnish clothes, blankets and food
until they are able to provide for them
selves But, says Father Fagnsro, it is i'm
possible to prevail upon the most civilized
Of them, however bitterly the winds may
blow aud SHOWS may drift, to live in house
which has any sort of door in it. In every
cese the door must be taken off its hinges
and put away out of sight before any Indian
will enter the much needed shelter.
1t is also extremely difficult to persuade
the women 20 take any care of their chill
dren, and the nearest approach to sewing
with their owe ishbone needles, strung up
with eddie strings of guano quits to ni1ch
together teW otter skins to partially cover
their naksdness
The Fathers Well Provided For.
As may be imagined, life is not particu-
larly pleasant here for these pious city-bred
Hermanos de Caridad, who are gentlemen
Of culture and refnemept-so isolated from
their kind in these wild South Seas; but
whoeTer heard Of good Catholic shirking
SS duty for mere personal comfort? All
their food is sent to them rom afar, mostly
from the Brotherhood in Santiago de Chile;
and there is Tot the remotest probability of
their being allowed to starve to death for
isck Of fresh supplies, as did the first Prot
estants who were sent out here from Eng
land through the gross neglect and misman-
agement Of the mission at home.
Monsieur Fagnano believes that the women
Of Firelald are mech more intelligent than
the men. This main island is inhabited
chiefly by the Onas, who, though by no means
timid IN the ordinary sense OF the word, are
very shy OF showing themselves to strangers
who land in their domain, unless for mis-
chieTous purposes. Those outside the mis-
sion still live in a bal barous condition,
having 10 chiefs nor other form Of govern
ment and always actively hostile to the
nelghboriHg tribes, who eacn speak differ
ent dialect
Indians Who Live on the Water.
The most warlike and dangerous Indians
are those OF the extreme southern islands
known as Yaghans; while from Cape For
ward northwsrd, and up all the western
channels to the Gulf of Penas, the natives
appear 10 be of the same families on both
sides OF the Straits of Magellan, or at least
10 maintain friendly relations with one an
other These are the celebrated 'Canoe
Indians s'-about the lowest type of savages
on the face of the earth, lower even than
than the dirt eating "Diggers" of the Cali
Iornian peninsula Though there are thou
sands Of them, and they spend all the hours of
daylight or the water-each rude canoe con-
tanning whole family, one or two men with
their mother and several wives and as many
children as can be crowded in, returning to
shore only when darkness falls, where they
build tire upon the rocks and cuddle
around 1t in the most affectionate manner
to keep themselves from freezing.
1t Is surprising now lew of them are ever
seen by the numerous vessels that pass
regularly through the straits But still
more astonishing 1t is to note how rapidly
they will collect from all quarters-per-
haps hundred or more boat loads of them
In few minutes time, all ready for robbery
or murcer-whenever a strange vessel comes
along, particularly if it be a small one, or
In any way disabled. How the rendezvous
became known to so many Indians at once
when not wretched canoe was in sight, is |
a mystery. Signal fires suddenly blaze Up |
all along the coasts for miles and from be- |
hind every sheltering rock and out of every |
tiny creek canoes came shooting quickly to- |
ward the rallying point
No Poetry ip Their Canoes.