The Miller press. [volume] (Miller, S.D.) 190?-current, 1922-06-22

Prepared by the National Geographic
Society. Washington, ID. Co -
Chile, whose diplomats are in o n
ference in Washington with those Of
Peru in an effort to solve the Tacna-
africa problem, might be called the
South American California" 1t is
long and narrow. and it's region Of
greatest development and population
is a great, rich valley with low noun
tains separating it from the coast, and
with a steep, snow-capped range tOw-
ering above it to the east.
Chile is the longest and narrowest
of all the countries of the world. 1t
stretches 300 miles, from Oape Horn
to the deserts of Tarapaca and Tacna.
within the tropics. It's width is rare
ly more than 125 miles from the ocean
to the Andean crest. If we were to
place it upon a similar stretch of coast
in North America, it would cover Low
er California, California, Oregon,
Washington. and British Columbia to
the st. Elias district Of Alaska.
Chile is divided into three sections
ny Tic huIul al lculuItH VI IlIc i uNIllC
slope of the Andes. The northern is
hat of the semi-arid and desert re
gion, which reaches from Peru south
ward to Valparaiso. 1t is an utter des-
ert in the north and becomes less in
hospitable toward the south. 1t is
trayersed from the Andes to the coast
by short, deep valleys, separated by
high spurs of the mountains, and com
municatioB from north TO south has
always been exceedingly difficult. New
ertheless, the Chilean engineers found
a route by which to extend the state
a latitude comparable to that of New
York, with Pisagua in the territories
conquered from Peru, which has a lat
itude comparable to that of Mexico
City.
Heart Of the Country.
The central section of Chile extends
through nine degrees of latitude for a
distance of about 600 miles from Val.
paraiso to the island of Chloe, south
of Puerto Montt. This is the heart
of Chile. the only portion Of the coun-
try which can support a sufficient pop
ulation to constitute a nation. The
area is not large, about 100000 square
miles, and much Of 1t is. occupied by
mountain ranges of great height and
r~uggedness.
But between the Andes and the coast
range there extends in this section a
valley similar to that of California,
which is the seat Of the Chilean peo-
pie. Many rivers rising In the Andes
descend to it and meander more or
less directly westward through the
coast range of the Pacific; but the in
tervening divides are nowhere of such
altitude as to interrupt the continuity
of the great valley that extends from
north to south. Santiago is situated
at it's northern end, and %iourishing
cities are located at each favorable
point on the railway that the
capital with Puerto Montt.
The climate as we go from north to
south becomes eve more humid, and
we pass from the irrigated lands about
Santiago to the dense forest swamps
of the southern portion of the district.
While much of the land has been
cleared or Is In the process of clearing,
In a state which reminds one Of our
own Pacific coast 30 years ago, other
areas remain impenetrable forests.
still UNEMPLOYED after nearly 400 years
of occupation of the country.
The third section Of Chile, extending
southwark from Puerto Montt through
a degrees of latitude to Cape Born.
Is like our southern Alaskan c~oast--a
stretch Of islands and ~peninsulas brok-
en- by intricate channels and profound
fiords that penetrate far into the land.
Tumultuous rivers descend from the
Andes and debouch into the fiords in
swampy deltas which are covered with
dense forests.
The large island of Chloe. which
was conquered by valdivla before the
middle Of the Sixteenth century, Is
well populated and occupies a position
with reference to the more frequented
northern coast similar to that which
Vancouver island holds ia San Fran
cisco. Farther south the population
becomes very scaniy, glaciers de-
scend from the Andean heights, and
the savage bur majestic scenery Of
Smythe channel and the Straits OF
Magellan suggests that OF the Inland