PATAGONIA, or Land of Magalhaens, a very large tract of country, occupying the whole southern portion of South America beyond the united provinces of the Rio de la Plata, with the exception of portions of its western and eastern coasts, which form parts of Chili and of Buenos Ayres respectively. Its limits on the north have repeatedly been altered. In the year 1740 an imaginary line was drawn across the continent, in about 35° of south latitude, and which separated the possessions of the Spaniards from the territory of the Indians. But this boundary was never respected by either party, inroads having been repeatedly made by both into the neighbouring country. In 1822 the government of Buenos Ayres built fortresses on a frontier which extended to nearly the 38th degree of south latitude, with the intention of repelling the roving tribes from all the country which lies to the north of that parallel. The Indians, however, never recognised this line of demarcation, and made frequent irruptions into the possessions of Buenos Ayres, plundering the country, and committing dreadful havoc. From this debateable land Patagonia extends to the 56th degree of south latitude; a parallel including Cape Horn, which is in fact a small island, and the most southerly of those lying immediately contiguous to Tierra del Fuego. In longitude it extends from the [7:17:115]63d to the 75th meridians west from Greenwich. Its length, including Cape Horn, is above one thousand miles; but its breadth at the widest is not much more than one third of that space, and it gradually narrows to a point at the southern extremity, where the land bends in a curve to the south-east. The interior of this vast country is but little known, only the sea-coast territory and the numerous islands having been as yet explored to any extent. Indeed, until very lately, our knowledge of any part of it, with the exception of the eastern coast, was confined to isolated and often widely-separated portions of the country; but a survey of the coasts, taken between the years 1826 and 1836, by orders of the British government, and also some recent voyages, undertaken in vessels belonging to Great Britain, the United States, and other countries, have gone far to supply this blank in geography.^[1. The surveying voyages to which allusion has been made, arc those of the Adventure and Beagle. In drawing up our account of Patagonia, we have been much indebted to two notices of these expeditions which appeared in the Journal of the Geographical Society ∙ the first, by Captain King, commander of the expedition, being contained in vol. i., and the other, by Sir John Barrow, in vol. vi’ part ιι. ] We shall here + describe the country under three heads, viz. Western Patagonia; Southern Patagonia, including Tierra del Fuego, and all the other islands; and Eastern Patagonia.

Western Patagonia. The great eordillera of the Andes, which is known to traverse the continent almost from end to end without a break, gradually deereases in elevation as it reaches the higher southern latitudes. In the neighbourhood of the equator it rises in several places more than 20,000 feet above the level of the sea; at Santiago of Chili, in latitude 34° south nearly, the highest land is 14,000 feet; farther south it continues to decline; and from the island of Chiloe to the Strait of Magalhaens,^[2. With regard to the orthography of this great navigator’s name, Captain King says in a note, “There has existed much difference of opinion as to the correct mode of spelling this name. The French and English usually write it Magellan, and the Spaniards Magallanes; but by the Portuguese, and he was a native of Portugal, it is universally written Magalhāes......I have convinced myself of the propriety of following the Portuguese orthography for a name which to this day is very common both in Portugal and Brazil.” ] Captain King estimates the average height at 3000 feet. He adds, however, that “there are some mountains which may be between five and six thousand feet high.” About the parallel of 40° the coast begins to assume, and retains to its furthest extremity, a very different appearance from that which it exhibits to the northward. On the coast of Chili, and indeed along the whole of the western shore of the continent, to its northern extremity, a belt of comparatively low land interposes between the occan and the cordillera of the Andes, and which affords but very few places of shelter for vessels. But southward of the parallel specified, the base of the mountain chain is washed by the Pacific, the waters of which, flowing as it were into the deep ravines 'that wind through its ramifications, form numerous channels, sounds, and gulfs, and in many instances insulate considerable portions of land. Indeed the whole western coast of Patagonia is girdled by a chain of large islands and extensive archipelagos, barren to seaward, but impenetrably wooded towards the mainland. Of these the most conspicuous are the Archipelago of Chonos, Wellington Island,' the Archipelago of Madre de Dios, Hanover Island, and Queen Adelaide’s Archipelago. The land of Très Montes is however an exception, being a peninsula, and the only part of the continent, within the above limits, that is exposed to the swell of the occan. It forms the northern part of the Gulf of Penas, and is connected with the mainland by a narrow isthmus called Ofqui, over which the Indians, in travelling along the coast, carry their canoes, to avoid the risk of passing round the peninsula, an undertaking of extreme danger. It was here that the celebrated Byron, ancestor of the great poet, and his shipwrecked companions, crossed over with their Indian guides; but the route is not much frequented, for this part of the coast, like all the rest, is very thinly peopled, and the task of pulling their èanoes to pieces and reconstructing them, which is absolutely ne cessary, is too great to be performed, except upon occasions of extraordinary emergency.

The largest river of the coast to the south of the Archipelago of Chiloe is called San Tadeo. It is, however, of inconsiderable size, and falls into the Gulf of St Estevan, over a shallow bar, upon which there is but very little depth of water. At the head of this gulf is St Quentin’s Sound, of easy access, and affording excellent anchorage. The Guaianceo Islands form the southern head of the Gulf of Penas. These are succeeded by Wellington Island, separated from the continent by the Mesier Channel, the extent of which is about 160 miles, and of course the island which it insulates is nearly of the same length; but its breadth at the greatest does not eχeeed sixty or seventy miles. The Mesier Channel joins the Strait of Coneepeion behind the Madre de Dios Archipelago, at the Brazo Aneho of Sarmiento. About thirty miles within the Mesier Channel, Captain King says, the west side appears to be formed by a succession of large islands; and on both sides of the channel the coast is hilly, but not very elevated, there being in many places much low and generally thickly-wooded land. The same character distinguishes the Mesier from all the other channels. In this locality the trees are nearly of the same description as those which are found in all parts between Cape Très Montes and the Strait of Magalhaens. Of these the most common are an evergreen beech, .a birch-like beech, the winter’s bark, a tree resembling a cypress, of which the Indians make their spears, and a very hard and heavy wood, of a red colour, which is used as fuel. A great quantity of timber grows in the vicinity of Mesier Channel, but it attains no height, and, from the humidity of the climate, is found to be decayed at the heart, and of very little use. About half way through, the Mesier Channel changes its character entirely, becoming very narrow, tortuous, and strewed with islands, whilst the land on either side rises abruptly from the water in mountainous and precipitous ridges. This character it preserves to its junction with the Wide Channel, in which the breadth increases to two miles and a half, and then running thirty-four miles with a direct and unimpeded course, falls into the Strait of Coneepcion. This strait separates the archipelago of Madre de Dios from the mainland, which in this part is much intersected by deep sounds. The principal of these is called the Canal of St Andrew, and it extends to the base of the snowy range of the eordillera, which is described to be “suddenly and boldly closed by tremendous and astonishing glaciers.” Sarmiento’s Puerto Buono, as its name indicates, is a safe and commodious harbour, the depth of water being only nine fathoms all over, an advantage which few ports in this quarter afford. Behind Hanover Island, which is separated from the mainland by Coneepeion Strait, the continent is very much intersected by extensive sounds trending deeply into the land, like the St Andrew Channel, to the base of the Andes. South of Hanover Island is Queen Adelaide’s Arehipelago, through which there are several channels that communicate with the Strait of Magalhaens. The principal of these, called Smyth’s Channel, falls into the strait at Cape Tamar.

The general character of Western Patagonia, given by its recent explorers, is very unfavourable. Wood and water are indeed abundant everywhere; fish are easily caught; and the steamer or race-horse duck, geese, wild-ducks, and other smaller birds, are everywhere numerous; but of [7:17:116]any other useful productions the country is quite destitute. “If,” says Lieutenant Skyring, “we force a passage through the woods, it is over fallen trees and moss; if we walk over open, flat ground, we find the place a swamp; and if we climb the hills, we travel over a continuous rock, generally covered by a spongy moss, and entirely destitute of soil of any description.” The forests are so dense as to be impervious to the sun’s rays, so that the rain, which falls here incessantly, is never carried away by evaporation. The consequence is, that every foot of earth, and every tree and shrub, on these inhospitable shores, is always thoroughly wet. Of course the country is uninhabitable, except by savages. Clouds, wind, and rain, only cease their annoyance during the very few days on which the wind is easterly, or perhaps southerly. Probably there are not ten days in twelve months on which rain or snow does not fall, and not thirty on which it does not blow strongly. But it is mild, and the temperature is surprisingly uniform throughout the year.

The most striking feature of Southern Patagonia is the long and comparatively narrow channel called the Strait of Magalhaens, which separates Tierra del Fuego, and a great number of other· islands, from the mainland. The manner in which the land, continental as well as insular, is penetrated in all directions by large and small arms of the sea, is such as to defy verbal description. The indentations frequently assume the character of immense inland seas, one of which, called Otway Water, nearly insulates a large portion of the continent, to which the name of Brunswick Peninsula has been given. A natural canal connects Otway Water with Skyring Water, which, stretching from east to west, along with another arm of the sea called Obstruction Sound, trending in a semicircle from north to south, nearly cuts off another large portion of the continent, which has been called King William IV.’s Land. The south-eastern shore of the Otway Water is high, rocky, and generally precipitous; but the northern coast is formed by low, undulating, grassy plains, wholly destitute of timber. The shores of Skyring Water have the same general character. In some parts the country is wooded, and possesses a dry and light but tolerably good soil. Captain King thus speaks of the survey which had been made of this part of Patagonia. “In this examination, the southern part of the cordillera was ascertained. The eastern shores of the interior channels were found to be low plains, with no hills nor mountains visible in the distance; and such being the feature also of the northern shores of the Otway and Skyring Waters, it is probable that all the country to the east of the sounds is a continued pampa or plain.” Traces of Indians were observed, but they do not appear to inhabit the shores of these interior-sounds, at least permanently. No guanacoes were discovered, but several large herds of deer were observed feeding on the shores. Sea-otters and black-necked swans in great numbers were the only other living things observed in these dreary solitudes.

“The Strait of Magalhaens,” says Captain King, “being a transverse section of the continent, exhibits a very good view of its geological structure. The strait may be divided into three portions, the western, central, and eastern. The western end and centre are of primitive character, rugged, and very mountainous; whilst the eastern portion is of a recent formation, and low. The western part is composed of a succession of stratified rocks, a difference at once distinguishable by the form and nature of the ranges, and the direction of the shores; the hills are irregularly heaped together; the sounds are intricate and tortuous in their course; and the shores are formed by deep sinuosities and prominently projecting headlands. The channels also are studded with innumerable islands and rocks, which are extremely dangerous for navigation. Near the centre of the strait, the rock being clay-slate, the mountains are higher, and more precipitous and rugged in their outline, and consequently not easily to be ascended. They are in general three thousand, but some are found to be four thousand feet in height; and one, Mount Sarmiento, is upwards of six thousand feet high, and is covered throughout the year with snow. The line of perpetual snow in the strait seems to be about three thousand five hundred or four thousand feet above the sea. The strait here is quite free from islands; and it is a remarkable fact, that where the greenstone formation terminates, there the islands cease to appear.” The slate formation continues as far as Fresh-Water Bay, situated about the middle of the eastern shore of Brunswick Peninsula, Cape Negro forming its northern extremity, and projecting from the narrow isthmus which unites the peninsula with the mainland. At Cape Negro the clay formation commences, and in that portion of the strait to the eastward of it the hills are remarkable for the regularity and parallelism of their direction, and their general resemblance to each other. Captain King thus concludes his geological observations: “The irregularity of the topographic features of the more western portion of the strait, combined with its confused assemblage and immense number of islands and rocks, the regularity of the strata, the coinciding parallelism of all the bays, channels, and sounds, and the total absence of islands in the central portion or slate formation, together with the remarkable similarity of the direction of the hills and coast line, and the stratification of the north-eastern tract, which is very different from that of the centre, are very striking facts, and, geologically considered, are of great interest.”

The character of the vegetation is also very interesting, not so much from the variety of plants, as from their stunted growth to the westward, their luxuriance in the centre, and the total absence of trees to the eastward. This remarkable dissimilarity, of course, arises from the soil differing very much in these several localities. Light and thin in the west and east, it is unfit for plants which take a deep root; but in the centre, where there are large valleys irrigated by numerous streams, which swell in the winter months, and deposit a great quantity of alluvium, a good superficial soil is formed, and here accordingly the shrubs and plants become particularly luxuriant and productive, whilst trees of several feet in diameter are numerous. The trees are similar to those already mentioned as belonging to Western Patagonia, and they are not of much value. It is remarkable that, in this rigorous climate, the veronica, and even the fuchsia, were found in full flower within a short distance of the base of a mountain, covered about two thirds down with snow, and with a temperature of 36°. During summer, Captain King found it at night as low as 29°, yet the most delicate plants received no injury from the cold. This is singular enough; but the following facts relative to climate are still more remarkable. “I have occasionally,” says this navigator, “during the summer, been up the greater part of the night at my observatory, with the internal as well as the external thermometers as low as freezing point, without being particularly warmly clad, and yet not feeling the least cold; and in the winter the thermometer, on similar occasions, has been at 24° and 26°, without my suffering the slightest inconvenience. This I attributed at the time to the peculiar stillness of the air, although within a short distance in the offing, and overhead, the wind was high.” The water of the ocean near the surface is here so much warmer than the air, that in the middle of winter, which is June, a difference of no less than thirty degress has been observed, on which occasions the sea was covered with a cloud of vapour, the result of a well-known law. Parrots and humming-birds, generally the inhabitants of warm regions, are very numerous in the southern and western parts of the strait; a fact which proves that [7:17:117]the climate is mild although the temperature be comparatively low.

Tierra del Fuego is divided into three islands by two channels or sounds. The most westerly of these is high and rugged; and although in the valleys, ravines, and sheltered nooks, there is no want of vegetation, yet, in comparison with the eastern part of the strait, it has a very dismal and uninviting aspect. It bears the appropriate name of South Desolation. To the east of it lies Clarence Island, which is only fifty-two miles in length by twenty-three in breadth. It is equally rocky with the former, but has a much more verdant and agreeable appearance. These two islands are of course surrounded by others without either number or name; and the southern and western part of Tierra del Fuego may be briefly described by stating, that deep but narrow arms of the sea intersect high mountainous islands, the summits of which are covered with snow, whilst their steep and rocky shores are more than partially covered with evergreen woods. Throughout the year cloudy weather prevails, much rain falls, and fine days are very rare. The natives, too, unlike those in other parts of the country, are an ill-conditioned race, low in stature, badly formed in body, and of a colour as dark as old mahogany. The eastern island, which is by far the largest of the three, is known on our charts by the name of King Charles’s South Land. The northern part partakes of the geological character of the eastern portion of the strait; the centre is a continuation of the slate formation; and the south shore, or seaward coast line, is chiefly composed of greenstone. The eastern portion of Tierra del Fuego is a better country than any south of the forty-fifth parallel. The eastern shore towards the south part is lofty, but near the northern part it is very low. The interior is also low, with extensive plains abounding with guanacoes. The natives are a much better race of men than those in the western part of Tierra del Fuego, and the climate is also more favourable. At Port Famine, in the Strait of Magalhaens, situated in latitude 53. 38½. south, and longitude 70. 54. west from Greenwich, Captain King took careful observations of the climate from the beginning of January till the middle of August From his tables it appears that the mean temperature for the autumnal period, the months of February, March, and April, was 47° 2'; the maximum and minimum being respectively 68° and 28°. For the three following months, or the winter period, the mean temperature was 34° 5', and the maximum and minimum 49° 5' and 12° 6′ respectively. The natives of this territory are like those of Eastern Patagonia, but they have no horses. Balls, and bows and arrows, are their arms and hunting weapons. They depend for subsistence chiefly on seals, guanacoes, and birds. As a native of Tierra del Fuego is seldom out of sight of his canoe, or a wigwam, the only constructions on which he exercises his skill, some idea of these must be given. The canoe is made of several large pieces of bark sewed together. Its shape is nearly that which would be assumed by the strong bark of a tree from twelve to twenty feet in length, and about eighteen inches or two feet in diameter, when separated from the solid wood in one piece, and joined at the ends, but kept open towards the middle by means of sticks. It is ballasted by clay, and always carries a small fire. There are two kinds of wigwams, one of which is made of small straight trees, the upper ends of which are united, whilst the lower form a circle. The other is formed by branches stuck in the ground, then bent together at the top, and slightly covered with skins, bark, grass, or leafy twigs. A small aperture is left for the smoke to escape by, but here the rain as readily finds entrance.

To the south of Tierra del Fuego are a vast number of islands, the largest of which are called Hoste and Navarin Islands. The south shores of these consist of hornblende, which is the principal rock of which the islands in the neigh bourhood, as well as of that of Cape Horn itself, are composed. The south summit of this small but celebrated island is situated in 55.58. 4L of south latitude, and 67. 21. 14. of longitude west from Greenwich. With the most boisterous and humid climate on the globe, and with a low but eminently uniform temperature, vegetation flourishes here with surprising beauty and luxuriance. Some causes hitherto unexplained considerably modify the assigned law of diminution of temperature in proportion to elevation, for here it does not appear to hold true. Captain Foster, an accurate observer, says, that the character of vegetation on the mountains of Staten Island and Cape Horn did not vary in the least from that of the lowland plains. The hills about Cape Horn are very rarely covered with snow, yet, from the temperature at the level of the sea, and the known altitude of the hills, this ought to be the case.

It may be observed, that there are several other islands which lie still farther south than Cape Horn; but although clothed with vegetation, they are small, and do not appear to contain inhabitants. The vegetation of Horn Island is similar to that of Staten Island, which has been very fully described by several intelligent navigators. It is rendered remarkable by its position off the south-eastern extremity of the South American continent, by the peculiarity of its shape, it being so deeply indented by bays as to form nearly four different islands, and by the circumstance of its offering a good departure for ships bound to different parts of the Pacific, as well as a landfall for those returning from the islands situated in that quarter. It is about thirty-four miles in length from east to west, and its extreme breadth is about nine miles. Staten Island is separated from Tierra del Fuego by the Straits of Le Maire, in which there generally runs a very dangerous tide-rip. It is composed of an accumulation of lofty hills of clay-slate, separated by narrow ravines, little or no level ground being seen. The scenery of the island is wild and romantic in the extreme; and although rugged and uncultivated, it is grand and pleasing. It is clothed all over with luxuriant vegetation, consisting chiefly of beautiful evergreen trees, the most common being the antarctic beech, and a multitude of minor plants and shrubs, many of which bear excellent fruits. The seal, the otter, the rat, and the mouse, are the only quadrupeds on Staten Island; but birds are more numerous. It has long been the resort of vessels in search of seals, and they have in consequence become considerably less numerous than formerly. The climate of this island, like that of Tierra del Fuego, is extremely humid and boisterous, the sky being constantly charged with vapour. There are several harbours in Staten Island, but they are all, with one exception, confined to its northern side.

The eastern coast of Patagonia, from the entrance of the Strait of Magalhaens to the river Plata, is comparatively low. From Cape Virgins, at the mouth of the straits, to Port St Julian, in latitude 49. 15. 20. south, where porphyritic clay-stone commences, the coast is formed of clay cliffs horizontally stratified, and the country is undulating, with extensive pampas covered with grass and destitute of trees, like those of Buenos Ayres, which they otherwise resemble. “At Port St Julian,” says Captain King, “the country becomes hilly, and continues so as far to the northward as latitude 44°, the rock being porphyritic. The clay formation to the southward has been likened to the appearance of the coast of Kent, and at a short distance it bears certainly a very great resemblance to it; but the cliffs, instead of being chalk, are composed of a soft marly clay, without any gravel or impressions of organic remains, excepting at Port St Julian, where fossil shells, both bivalves and univalves, are found imbedded in clay cliffs; and on the sur- .-face are lying strewed about large oyster-shells.” In the clay formation there are three rivers, namely, the Gallegos, in latitude 51.38.; Port Santa Cruz, in latitude 50. 7.; and [7:17:118]Port St Julian. The first does not extend farther into the interior than forty miles, and Port St Julian is of still smaller size. The Gallegos can only be entered at high water, and here the tide rises about forty-six feet, the stream being very strong. Port Santa Cruz appears to be a very considerable river. In the sketch of the surveying voyages communicated to the Geographical Society by Sir John Barrow, it is thus spoken of :—“In a twenty days’ excursion up the river Santa Cruz, we passed through a similar country, without variety, until extensive beds of lava were found overlying the whole country. We reached nearly to the eastern flank of the Andes; but, for want of provisions, could go no farther. The river was then, at two hundred miles from its. mouth, almost as large, and quite as rapid, as at twenty miles from the sea. Perhaps it runs for a great distance along the base of the Andes, and so collects a great body of water; or it may run from a lake into which streams pour. Its water is not muddy. The current runs six knots an hour; none of our boats could pull against it anywhere. Its average width is two hundred yards, and its mean depth ten feet, perhaps more.” The same writer thus speaks of the country in general: “One naturally asks why Eastern Patagonia should be condemned to perpetual sterility, while the western side of the same country, in the same parallel of latitude, is injured by too much rain? The prevailing westerly winds and the Andes are the causes. The winds bring much moisture from the Pacific, but they leave it all, condensed, on the west side of the mountains. After passing the cordillera, those same winds are very dry. Easterly winds are very rare upon the east coast; they are the only ones which carry rain to the almost deserts of Patagonia. Westward of the Andes, an east wind is dry, and free from clouds. All this country is exposed to severe cold weather in winter, and to excessive heat in summer. Great and sudden changes of temperature take place, when, after very hot weather, cold winds rush northwards with the fury of a hurricane. Even the wandering Indians avoid this region, and only cross it to get salt, or visit their burying places.” We are informed by Falconer, the Jesuit missionary, that after the dead have been interred twelve months, the graves are visited by the tribe, for the purpose of collecting the bones, and conveying them to their family sepulchres, where they are set up, and adorned with all the beads and ornaments which the friends and family of the deceased are able to collect for the occasion. The ceremony is performed by certain women of the tribe, whose peculiar office it is to attend to these rites. ∣In corroboration of the Jesuit’s testimony, Captain King informs us, that near Port Desire he had seen the graves of the Indians upon the summits of hills, but without the bodies, which he supposes to have in all probability been removed by the Indians. The Port Desire here mentioned is situated in lat. 47. 45. south, having a narrow entrance with strong tides, but affording in the offing very good anchorage, as well as shelter from the prevailing winds. Not many years before Spanish domination ceased in America, that government formed an establishment here; but, from the dry and parched nature of the land, it completely failed. Thirty miles to the northward is Cape Blanco, between which place and the Rio Negro, more than four hundred miles to the north, navigation is considered as dangerous, there being many extensive shoals, and strong tides. For an account of the Rio Negro, the most important river of Patagonia, see the article Negro, Rio. The Colorado, which rises near Mendoza, in La Plata, is also a very large stream, falling into the Atlantic in latitude 40.0. nearly. It brings down a great quantity of water throughout the year, but as it does not run into any of the numerous ports near its opening, it is of no use to vessels as a place of shelter or anchorage.

The aboriginal natives of Patagonia are a tall and extreme ly robust race of men. Their bodies are bulky, and their heads and features large, but their hands and feet are small. Their limbs are neither so muscular nor so large boned as their height and apparent bulk would lead one to suppose; they are rounder and smoother than those of white men. Their colour is a rich reddish brown, rather darker than the hue of copper. Their heads are furnished with a profusion of rough, lank, and coarse black hair, which is tied above the temples by a fillet of plaited or twisted sinews; and they wear no other covering upon this part of their body. “A large mantle,” says one of the recent voyagers, “made of skins sewed together, loosely gathered about them, hanging from the shoulders to their ankles, adds so much to the bulkiness of their appearance, that one ought not to wonder at their having been called gigantic. I am not aware that any Patagonian has appeared during late years whose height exceeded six feet and some inches; but I see no reason to disbelieve the Jesuit Falkner’s account of the Casique Cau-gapol, whose height, he says, was seven feet and some inches Among two hundred or three hundred natives of

Patagonia, scarcely half a dozen men are seen whose height is under five feet nine or ten inches; the women are proportionally tall. I have nowhere seen an assemblage of men and women whose average height and apparent bulk equalled that of the Patagonians. Tall and athletic as are many of the South Sea islanders, there are also many among their number who are slight and of lower stature. The Patagonians seem to be high shouldered, owing perhaps to their habit of folding their arms across the chest, in their mantles, and thus increasing their apparent height and bulk, because the mantles hang loosely, and almost touch the ground. Until actually measured, it is difficult to believe that they are not much taller than is the case.” This description is so precise, and, from measurements having been made, so satisfactory, that the question as to the actual size of the Patagonians may be regarded as completely set at rest. Is it more improbable that there should be races of men above the European standard, than it is that there should be races whose height is below it? Yet we know beyond a doubt that the Esquimaux are so.

With the exception of the head, little hair grows upon their bodies; and from the face it is carefully removed by shells or pincers. They do not disfigure their naturally coarse features by piercing either nose or lip, but they bedaub their body with white, black, or red paint, forming grotesque figures, such as circles around their eyes, or great marks across their faces. This ornamental bodypainting is practised by all the different races of Patagonians, from Cape Hom to Buenos Ayres. On their feet and legs they wear boots made of the skins of horses’ hind legs; spurs made of wood, but of iron if they can get it, balls (bolas ∖ such as are used by the inhabitants of the pampas; whilst a long tapering lance, and a knife if it can be procured, complete their equipment. “Mounted upon horses of a middle size,” says the writer already quoted, “under fifteen hands high, and rather well bred, the Patagonians seem to be carried no better than dragoons who ride eighteen stone upon horses able to carry ten; yet they go at full speed, in chase of ostriches or guanacoes. When hunting or making long journeys, they often change horses. The women are dressed and booted like the men, with the addition of a half petticot. They clean their hair, and plait it into two tails. Ornaments of brass, beads, bits of coloured glass, or such trifles, are prized by them. The huts of these wanderers are somewhat like gipsy tents. Poles are stuck in the ground, to which others are fixed. Over them are thrown the skins of animals, an irregular tilt-like hut being thus formed.” It is to be observed, that the inhabitants of Tierra del Fuego, and of the islands to the south and south-vest, where the climate is so singularly mild, wear little or no clothing. The Patagonians [7:17:119]appear to possess nothing like towns, but lead a wandering and unsettled life, somewhat resembling that of the Tartars.

The Falkland or Malouine Islands, being situated off the coast of Patagonia, may, in a geographical point of view, be considered as belonging to it. This group consists of two large islands and a number of small ones, some of which are mere rocks, the whole being situated between 50. 0. and 51. 20. of south latitude, nearly opposite the southern extremity of Patagonia, which is the nearest land. The two large islands, which are separated from each other by a broad channel, are called Eastern and Western Falkland; the names of the others it is unnecessary to specify. East Falkland Island is favourably situated, both for colonization and for the refreshment of vessels bound round Cape Horn. It has other advantages, such as excellent harbours, abundance of wild cattle, and antiscorbutic herbs, which point it out as a desirable resort for ships. The climate is upon the whole mild, the general range of the thermometer being in winter from 30° to 50°, and in summer from 50° to 75°. The weather is rather unsettled; but neither rain, snow, nor hail falls here in such abundance as in Southern and Western Patagonia, whilst it is free from the parching dryness of the eastern coast. The soil is good, producing spontaneously different kinds of vegetables; and wheat, flax, potatoes, turnips, and the like, have here been very successfully cultivated; but the island is destitute of trees. For fuel, peat and turf, which are abundant, are used, and also two or three species of shrubs, which are found growing all over the island. Herds of homed cattle, hogs, and horses, all wild, are plentiful; whilst rabbits, foxes, and game, especially wild geese and ducks, are extremely numerous. Fish abounds in all the bays and inlets, and those most common, when salted, are thought superior to cod. Seals are found on the island, or on the neighbouring rocks; and hair-seals, lions and elephants as they are called, abound along the shores. Many black whales have also been caught in its neighbourhood, in consequence of which the island has of late years been much resorted to by fishing-vessels belonging to various nations. The Falkland Islands were uninhabited when first discovered, and, with the exception of occasional and transient residents, have still remained so; yet their position will always render them important in the estimation of commercial nations. In the year 1766 the English formed a settlement on one of them; but it was destroyed in 1770 by a Spanish expedition from Buenos Ayres. Of late years measures have been taken by the Argentine Republic for forming an establishment here; that government laying claim to sovereignty and jurisdiction, not only over the Falkland Islands, but likewise over Tierra del Fuego, Cape Hom, and the islands adjacent in the Atlantic Ocean, as having succeeded to the sovereign rights of Spain. This claim has been resisted; but it is unnecessary to enter into the merits of what seems based on so singular an assumption. Besides, it does not appear to be very material to whom they belong; the point of importance is their colonization, which would be highly advantageous to vessels navigating these seas.

It seems highly probable that Magalhaens was the original discoverer of the southern coast of Patagonia and the northern coast of Tierra del Fuego, as well as of the strait which bears his name. Sir Francis Drake passed the strait in the year 1578; and being driven by storms to the south, discovered the western and south-western coast of Tierra del Fuego, and also Cape Horn; although the honour of the discovery of the latter has generally been ascribed to Jacob Le Maire, a Dutchman in the service of the states of Holland. In the year 1616, this navigator was the first who doubled that terminus of South America, and called it Cape Hom, after a village in Holland. Proceeding in a north-easterly direction, he crossed the strait which bears his name, and discovered Staten Island, which he so designated after the states of Holland. It is supposed that Davies, one of the companions of Cavendish, in his voyage to the South Seas in 1592, was the first person who saw the Falkland Islands; but they were not, properly speaking, discovered till the year 1594, when Sir Richard Hawkins examined them, and called them in honour of his queen and himself, Hawkins’ Maiden Land. The name, however, was subsequently changed to Falkland Islands by Strong, another English navigator. During the early part of the eighteenth century, they were re-discovered by some French navigators; and hence the origin of the French name, Malouine Islands. To Captain Cook we are indebted for the first accurate account of the south-eastern coast of Tierra del Fuego, which he explored in 1774; and so little was known concerning it before this period, that when actually in sight of Cape Horn, he was unable to decide whether it was a detached island or a part of Tierra del Fuego. Amongst the other distinguished names connected with the discovery or investigation of this part of the South American continent, are those of Sarmiento (whose account of a voyage down the western coast, and through the Strait of Magalhaens, has never been surpassed), Sir John Narborough, Cordova, Byron, Willis, Carteret, Bougainville, and Weddel. To these may now be added the names of the commanders of the recent expedition, Captains King, Stokes, and Fitzroy. It only remains to be noticed, that although repeated attempts have been made to form permanent settlements in Patagonia, or upon the neighbouring islands, particularly by die Spaniards, none of these has ever succeeded. With regard to population, it must be quite obvious that no accurate idea can be formed. It has, however, been estimated at 200,000, though from what data we know not. By far the greatest part of the country, that which stretches along the eastern side of the Andes, from their base to the Atlantic Ocean, is altogether unknown, with the exception of a very few places upon the coast. It is quite possible, therefore, that the inhabitants may be far more numerous in this region than is supposed; but the general sterility of the country holds out little prospect of any great commercial advantages to be gained by intercourse with them, except in the precious metals, which are doubtless to be found in the Patagonian Andes. (r. r. r.)