The Republican journal., 1904-03-31

excellent soldiers. The women and
children were sent to the Argentine
cities, where they have since been held
in state of semi-slavery by the fami-
lies of influential men. The dead were
never counted, but were covered up in
the ditch that caused their destruction
And so the Patagonians were wiped
out of existence, and the great Indian
nation which the early explorers
romanced SO much about was almost
exterminated.
Both history and tradition have
falsely reported them as race of
giants and attributed to them traits of
fierceness and courage which they
never possessed. Probably that arch
romancer. Pigusette, who accompanied
Magelhaens (anglicized Magellan), the
great navigator who discovered the
passage or Strait" that bears his
name, was responsible for most of
these absurd tales. The two were the
first white men to interview these In
dians, in 1920, as well as the first to
enter the Pacific ocean. Pigusetta
told marvellous warns for the world S
edifcation, which had about as much
foundation in fact as those of the
warrior women that gave their name
to the Amazon. and other sixteenth
century fables For example, he
gravely asserted that the Patagonians
were of that bigness that our MEME
of meane stature could reach up to
their waists and they had big voices SO
that their talk seemed like unto the
roar of beast" Later navigators
felt in duty bound to see and describe
as amazing things as their predecessors
had witnessed, and even went farther
in their laudable efforts to keep up
European interest in the New World,
and SO the fables crept into history,
and many of them still find credence
Therefore, though we speak of ex-
ploring Patagonia and Tierre del Fuego
when going into those regions of ro-
nance, in reality we shall remain
within the new boundaries of Chill
for some weeks to come 1t would be
hard to find more dangerous voyaging
in any part of the world than off the
southwestern coast of South America,
where two boundless oceans come
together in their sweep around the
hemisphere. and the vessel is exception
ally lucky that can enter the Strait, or
round the Horn, without being caught
in gale.
Looking on a map you will observe
that the Andes break suddenly near
the tip end of the continent, leaving
the deep and narrow ravine that Ma
galhaens discovered. and that innumer-
able small islands are scattered all
along the coast, separated from the
mainland and from one another by
slender threads of ocean. NJ ost of these
islands are mountains, some rising
out of the sea to height of several
thousand feet, and all are of pictur-
eSque outlines. The winding ford be-
tween them, known as Smyth'S Chan
mel, was scooped out, SO biologists say,
by the action of ice during the glacial
period, and is SO narrow in places that
two steamers could not possibly pass
one another between the rocks and
cliffs that crowd to the waters edge.
Being thus protected from all the winds
that rage outside upon the open ocean,
the passage is perfectly smooth: yet II
is avoided by navigators because of the
powerful current and the frequency OF
binding snow storms that prevail here
at all times of the year. The few yes
sells that take this course are compelled
to anchor every night, and also to ''tie
up" whenever snow is falling, because
of the great danger of collision with
icebergs in some of the circuituous
turns. Sailors prefer to take theil
chances on the open sea, where there is
plenty of room and they can keep going
by night as well as by day, rather than
linger in a region where the sun sets at
three o'clock in the afternoon. Winter
is eternal so far south of the equator
and though not usually excessively
cold, water freezes every night in the
year and the line of perpetual snow he
gins at an elevation of only 1000 feet.
OF course no other than the channe
route would satisfy us, especially after
reading Vincent's description. HI
writes: eve had in continual view {
range of magnificent snow-coverec
mountains belonging to the same great
chain of Andes that extends almos
unbroken from the Isthmus of Pana
ma to Cape Horn. The CHILEAN noun
tains are of the most fantastic descrlp
ton Their contour is infinite. The.
are peaked, jagged, dome and pyramid
shaped, and the amount of snow tina
adheres to their almost perpendicular
sides is astonishing. There are score!
of glaciers, too, as splendid as any IL
Switzerland. How can l give you al
idea of the varying colors, the weird
ness and the utter Savageness OF TIL: