During the war of independence some of these natives fought on the side of Spain, and others were found on the side of the revolutionists. As soon as independence was secured, however, the authorities began to use the same methods towards these people that the Spaniards had, and thus alienated whatever good will might have been felt by them. Several more or less severe combats followed which really made it a local civil war. It was not until Colonel Saavedra adapted a more conciliatory policy that bloodshed ceased. The heroic age of the Araucanians had probably passed away, and the later wars were not so fierce as those of former years, for the vices of the Spaniards, especially a liking for brandy, had fastened themselves upon many of them. Since 1884, the date of the final agreement with the Araucanians, they have become more widely scattered, but those who live in the southern provinces still follow the old habits and customs of the early centuries. The people north of the Bio-Bio River also had much Indian blood in their veins by this time, and it is unquestionably true that the Chilean soldiers of to-day, who are considered brave, owe very much of this valour to the Araucanians with whom they have become intermixed.
OX CARTS.
Many Araucanians may be seen in Temuco, Osorno, Puerto Montt and other southern towns. They come there to trade. Some are on horseback, both men and women riding astride, others come in clumsy ox-carts with their wheat, corn or other produce. The women wear bright-coloured blankets, which are so fastened at the shoulders that the arms are left bare. The skirts are belted at the waist and fall about half way between the knee and ankle, and they are generally barefooted as well as bareheaded. Those who can afford it wear immense silver earrings and breast plates, and fasten their garments with silver buckles. The men also wear blankets and a poncho, which is a blanket with a hole in the centre through which the head is thrust. Few wear hats, but a red handkerchief or a band around the head answers for a head covering. Both sexes are fond of bright colours.
This race bears a very strong resemblance to the North American Indians. They are somewhat lighter in colour, but they have the same high cheek-bones and straight black hair, with little or no beard. Polygamy is common among them, and it is no rare thing to find two or even three women in the home of an Araucanian. They seem to get along fairly well together, and each woman looks after her own brood of children. Between them they look after the master of the house and assist him with his crops. The houses are generally very simple structures, with low thatched roofs, and one big door which can be closed up with skins. The floor is usually the earth beaten down hard and covered with sheep skins. The cooking and other household utensils are of the very crudest and simplest design. Some of the Araucanians are very good farmers, and have even progressed to the point where they have adopted American ploughs and reapers. Many work on the haciendas of the rich Chileans, and they are said to make very good hands. The government allotted lands to these people with a condition that it can not be sold, which was a very wise provision. When an Araucanian acquires a liking for alcohol he would trade his land, silver jewelry, his wife or anything else of value in order to indulge his appetite for drink. When sober they are very clever traders, and usually manage to secure full value for their goods.
The Araucanians have never adopted the religion of the Spaniards as did the Aztecs and Incas. It is true that there are some churches among them, but the impress has not been very great. They still believe in their old superstitions. The men purchase their wives and then go through the farce of stealing them. The “medicine man,” who is oftentimes a woman, is supposed to be able to ward off evil spirits and troubles of all kinds. With these people the evil spirits are believed to be at the bottom of sickness, bad crops and all other woes. They believe in a great father who watches over them, and in a happy hunting ground somewhere in the beyond to which all those departed go.
One of the interesting characters met with along the Pacific coast of South America is the calaguayas, or the Indian doctor. One will find him everywhere, from Panama to the Araucanian country, carrying with him a pack filled with dried herbs, cheap jewelry, handkerchiefs, ribbons, mirrors and other notions, which he sells to the people. He may be met with on the trains, the coast steamers or any other place, and generally carries with him nothing but the suit he wears and a bright-coloured poncho, which is thrown over his shoulders for additional warmth. He may be seen sunning himself in the plaza of a town or tramping over mountain trails. This man is both a trader and tinker, and his sources of livelihood are many indeed. He can mend a clock, a tin pan, or a broken piece of crockery. He can tell fortunes, interpret signs and omens, or prepare love philters. He is a magician, and can do all sorts of sleight-of-hand tricks. He is a conjurer; he helps people who have been bewitched, and altogether has a reputation for superior wisdom, which he applies on all possible occasions.
The chief business, however, of this unique character is that of healing the sick, whether man or beast, for he is equally successful as a veterinary surgeon, or as a physician for the human race; and it is really remarkable, as many white people testify, the knowledge he has of certain climatic ills to which the people there are subject, and of herbs which will relieve them. They claim to have herbs that will cure everything to which humanity is subject. It is a fact that there is no section of the globe to-day where so many modern drugs come from as the northern half of South America, and it is quite probable that these primitive doctors first discovered the medicinal value of many plants that are now common pharmaceutical terms. Many stories are told among miners and others, who have been obliged to live in the interior, where regular physicians were not obtainable, of climatic fevers and other illnesses which have been cured by these doctors.