New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1917-12-05
The Negro in Chile
History Is Offered in Reply to Mn
De Saulles
10 The Editor Of The Trihune

To the Editor Of The Tribune
Sir: Mrs. De Saulles, who has been r.es,.
l. acquitted Of the charge Of murder. WI.
being examined few days ago and asked =
,he had attended the Carman trial and W..
she had observed there. replied that 81. -,
and had heard "a black thing testify Adj,
what she meant BY "black thing" she revli.s.
"A Niger Asked II that was the way a.
PEOPLE Of her country referred 70 colon,
reoplc, she replied: ave don't have them !,
my country
For the information Of Mrs. De saull.,
who is probably not very familiar with a.
history Of her country, owing % her I,,,
residence outside Of it, it may interest n,
to know that Vasco Nunez Balboa esrr.I
negroes from Panama into Chile as early a
1915, and that the Austin Friars had ,s,.
vent at Santiago, where they took car. =,
Spaniards and their black and Indian Gar.
wants who peoped all the banks Of this rvs,
ind are numerous, living on separate fam,
I'll along the country. That the blacks n
that period mingled their blood. or had y
mingled for them By the people among vhoa
they lived, is attested by the fact that ts.r
was q brotherhood Of mulattoes who e.-,
from 81. Austin, az 50. Jago wide Pipk,,.
toms Voyages and Travels" Vol IL; Alet,.
de Orvalle's Historical Relations Of u,
Kingdom Of Chile, Of 50. Jago Of Chile, ma
Procurator at Rome for That Place, 1892:
printed az Rome by Francisco Cayallo).
In the journal Of Researches by Chars
Darwin, at page %, he says: his
posta was commanded b. negro lieu<nsr,
born in Africa; 20 his credit be il said the,
was not rancho between the Colorado ana
Buenos Ayrcs in nearly such neat order As
his. lie had little room for strangers ana
small corral for the horses, all made .,
sticks and reeds; he had also dug dit.h
round his house. as a defence in case q,
icing attacked. This would, however, hss.
been Of little avail il the Indians had cone;
but his chief comfort seemed TO rest In as
thought Of selling his life dearly. A shsr
time before a body Of Indians had travelled
past in the night; if they had been aware q
the posta our own black friend and his -four
soldiers would assuredy have been slsggi.
tered did not anywhere meet more EVIL
end obliging man than this negro; IL vr
therefore the more painful 70 see that h
would not sit down and eat with US"
And at page $50, this: "In this part Of Glib
there are two passes across the Andes 10
Mendoza; the one most commonly used
namely, that Of Anconcaqua, or Uspollats-
is situated some way 70 the north; the cthu,
CT lied the Portillo, is 70 the south and nss,.
er, but more lofty and dangerous. :.
The custom officers were very civil, vkiet
was perhaps partly owing to the passport
which the President of the republic had giyea
me, but I must express my admiration Of
the natural politeness Of almost every CHI
emo. In this instance the contrast with tts
same class Of men in most other countrie,
was strongly marked. may mention a.
anecdote with which was at the time much
pleased. We met near Mendoza little snd
very fat negress, riding astride on a mue
She had a goitre so enormous that u vas
scarcely possible to avoid gazing at her for
moment, but my two companions almost H.
stantly, by way Of apology, made the con-
mon salute Of the country by taking of their
hats. Where would one OF the lower OF
higher classes in Europe have shown such
feeling politeness 70 poor and miserable OBJ
ject of a degraded race? ?"
These citations refute Mrs. De ssulles's
statement that eve done have them IN ny
country" meaning negroes, and also show
that in Chile, as in the United States and Eu'
rome. there are many people Of culture and
good breeding. JOHN Z. bkuCh,
President Negro Society for Historical Re
search.
New York, Dec. 3, 1917.