In 1890, during the administration of President Balmaceda, rail and wagon roads were built through the Araucanian country, and many towns, populated by Chilenos and foreigners sprung up along these routes of communication. Special European immigration was solicited and encouraged by government aid, for the settlement of portions of the territory. Foreign association and influence, changed conditions and environments affected radical changes in the character, customs, habits and beliefs of the Indians. They were brought face to face with the on-marching hosts of civilization, and confronted with the problem of accepting and adapting themselves to the new order of things, or extinction. The ultimate result will be the latter.
With the indigenous races of Chile, and the same is true of other countries, vices tread fast upon the heels of civilization. With the influx of peaceful neighbors, the martial valor of these warlike Indians seems to have disappeared. They have acquired a passion for the cheap brands of liquor introduced by foreigners, and in the indulgence of their appetites for strong drink they have become indolent, and are neglecting their farms and ranches. Many of them have turned their lands over to the colonists, to work on shares, and are thus enabled to lead lives of indolence and excessive indulgence. The raw liquor which they drink is called “Blanco Toro” (white bull); the vile tobacco they smoke is “peclen,” and their pipes are called “guitas.” They still consume large quantities of the ancient Indian drink, “chicha mascada,” which is made from corn that is first chewed by old women, and then put through a process of fermentation. A drink is made from flaxseed by the same process. They are determined and inveterate gamblers, their favorite game being cards, “cayo.” The game they play is peculiar to the tribe, and is called “achaco.” Among the traditional customs to which they cling tenaciously are their Indian dances, “loncomeos,” which are indulged in to the music of an instrument called “cuntum.” This instrument is odd in design and peculiar in tone, being a sort of combination banjo and tambourine.
The Araucanians are as improvident as they are dishonest, and as proud as they are lazy. Yet there is little extreme poverty and there are no beggars among them. Until recent years they were strict vegetarians, and still abstain from eating the flesh of cattle, but they have become so far civilized as to develop a fondness for horse meat. An Indian will willingly exchange a cow or bullock, regardless of value, for a horse, if the equine is sufficiently fat to make it desirable for food. Although many of them are skilled in the use of firearms, which have been generally introduced in recent years, they still manifest a fondness and preference for their bamboo lances, the weapon of war used by their ancestors. They frequently indulge in personal encounters, but always without weapons. These fights are questions of force and endurance, science being left out of the contest, and the belligerent methods employed are not sufficiently violent to result in death. The combatants clutch each other by the hair of the head and indulge in a game of pull-and-haul, the performance being accompanied usually with a volley of wrathful words uttered in a high shrill voice. Unlike the North American Indians they seldom resort to the use of a knife as a weapon of offense or defense.
The system of counting is strictly decimal—from one to ten. Twenty is two tens, fifty, five tens, and one hundred is ten tens; two hundred is two tens of ten, etc.
In case of sickness the “machi” (doctor) is called. That functionary passes his mouth over the entire body of the patient, pinching the flesh with his lips to ascertain the location of the affliction. When that portion is reached where the disease is supposed to be located, an incision is made, from which the “machi” sucks the blood with his mouth. Very few medicines are employed, the chief medicinal remedy used being the leaf of the canelo (wild cinnamon) tree, which is considered a cure for almost every ill.
The treatment of the body after death, previous to burial, is one of the queer and barbarous customs prevalent among the Araucanians. The body is hung up in a building, usually the house in which the person dies, and a slow wood fire built under the corpse. This process of smoking is kept up for several weeks. When the antiseptic principle of the creosote has completely cured the flesh, the body is taken down, and is considered ready for burial. A rope is then attached to the corpse, and a yoke of oxen employed to drag the body to the place of burial. This grewsome procession is preceded by a number of men armed with lances, who march in advance in order to drive away any enemies or evil spirits, that they may not be buried with the dead to disturb their future.
CHILOTES AND CHONOS.
The Chilote Indians inhabit the Island of Chiloe, and a portion of the coast country in the province of Llanquihue, in which territory they constitute the working population. They are a light copper color, and differ materially in physical appearance from the Araucanians. They are short in stature, heavy-set, broad, square shoulders, thick necks, large heads, hands and feet. They have no chiefs or tribal government, being peculiarly unrestrained in their personal lives by traditional laws or government. They are peaceful and industrious. Each person pursues such occupation as he may find or desire, that will afford a living, without regard to the wishes or requirements of others. The chief occupation of this small tribe in recent years is the manufacture of a rough grade of lumber and timbers from a species of red pine, called alerce. This wood has a beautiful straight grain, and the boards are made by riving, instead of sawing. This rough lumber is transported long distances upon the heads of the Indians, to the coast and interior towns, where the product is exchanged for articles of food and clothing.
The Chono Indians, inhabiting the archipelagoes of Guitecas and Chonos, are few in numbers and live in a barbarous state. They live in caves and small brush huts, and subsist entirely upon fish, which they procure along the island coast. The Chonos are small in stature, repulsive in appearance, and in intelligence, and their manner of living ranks little above animals.