The Wilmington daily Republican. (Wilmington, Del.) 1890-1902, 1892-09-15
IL rs NEAR CAPE HORN
AN INTERESTING COSMOPOLITAN
CITY IN SOUTH AMERICA

AZ Punta Arenas Spring Begins In Sep.
TENDER and Winter Com menoes In June.
Tho Inhabitants Are Made Up Of nInny
Nationalities-The Patagonians.
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. 50. 10, on the New Brunswick
peninsula, in the territory OF Magellanes
Chill. Its name Is derived from its 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 GOV.
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. OPP
posite the point and just across the Straits
| of Magellan is the island Of Terra del
Fuego or "the land a fire." Magellan, its
discoverer, 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 il
became coaling and supplying station.
taking the place of the Falkland islands.
500 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 1900 miles, Punta Arenas soon
became quite an important station of call
and supply, and, necessarily following. all
important town in both commercial and
manufacturing aspects.
The sending of convicts WINS stopped
after the steamships adopted it rs coal,
ing and supplying station, and in their
stead were sent 800 immigrants with a
governor to take possession Of the terri
tory. The military guard was also with
drawn during the war with Peru, ticket
OF leave being granted to the convicts WHO
consented to serve in the CHILEAN army.
After these undesirable occupants left the
population steadily increased, until in 1883
it reached the sum Of 1000 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 arc by no means as startling MS al
Hamnerfeat. Think OF Spring commenc
ing in September, summer in December,
autumn in March and winter In June:
think of speaking of the heats of Deee1,i.
Der and the cold, bdisterous winds Of June;
f.f 81,
aud almost seven feet high.
The climate is of course the first subject
for our consideration, Though il is often
cold and chilly and very nearly alwa s
wet, yet it is very healthful, in fact the
wet provinces are the most salubrious,
and what i'll health there is is general,
owing to some fault Of the people. One Of
the most fatal diseases is dysentcry, 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 !. /
ing the heats of December and January,
when the death rate reaches 90
Punta Arenas is distinctively a cosmo-
politan town Every race, every nation,
every class hus 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 eN convicts fuEitives, castaway sailor
deserters, and last, but by no means the
least, the legitimate merchant, with Il
legitimate business and legitimate pur.
pose. But the real natives are the Pata-
gonians and the Spaniards, bearing re
i spectively the same relationship to their
country and to each other as the Indians
[ Ito toward Americans aud the United
States. The I'atagonians, numbrrin..
about 10000 in all inhalit the TERRITORY
of Magel0nes and the island Of Terra del
ltuego, and in stature are the giants of the
world. In fifty ordinary men the average
height was 9 feet AZ inches, tho tallpst
Ibeing 9 feet 81 inches, and the shortest
being 0 feet ( of Mi inch. There il moth.
ing odd about their religion. They wor.
ship deity called Coche, and also believe
lin the Immortality Of the soul. But nj
though their religion does not forbid It.
/ they do not practice polygnmy-quite an
| unusual thing among the South Americas
] Indian tribes
4 The Spaniards arc the same Spaniards
we know in sunny Spain, except that theil
linstinets and language are slightly modi
! fed by admixtllre with foreign nations
The rules of society life are practically thu
same AS in France or Catholic Germany
They dress about the same; they live aboni
the same; they are amused about tile same
land their inclinations also run in aboul
the same direction. Sunday is spent as
Aoliday, at which time tile people indul.5
II balls, receptions, dinners tleaters am
tperas, but the Sunday Int stands on
beyond all others, the great fete day of til
year, is the one on which occurs the bni
light, the sport par excellence Of all til
Spanish nations. Athletic sports are IN
known, but good horsemanship is con
mon. The Americans with their usual x
ahead spirit, have introduced and con
structed railways, teegraphs, flour mills
letc.
One of the most interesting but Mt til
: same time most dangerous physical feH
lures is the earthquake. All Chill is sub
ject to frequent light earth shocks tina
rause grent alarm lest they should be 70
lowed by the cart hfNaken itself III
lhocks cause little if ans danger and nj
rarely followed by the earthquake, the lal
. ter, according to popular belief, occurriu
about once every fifty years. The peopl
have guarded as best they can agains
: earthquakes by constructing low, one star
buildings, that look strange indeed in COZ
II rast TO the sky seraping edifices of Ne
York; but practeubility is the ruin
Z spirit, excerpt with the anglomaniac.-