It is only the better sort of people that eat bread made of wheat, as they grow but very little here, and they have no mills to grind it; but then they have great plenty of the finest potatoes in the world: These are always roasted in the ashes, then scraped, and served up at meals instead of bread. They breed abundance of swine, as they supply both Chili and Peru with hams. They are in no want of sheep, but are not overstocked with cows, owing, in a great measure, to their own indolence in not clearing away the woods, which if they would be at the pains to do, they might have sufficient pasture. Their trade consists in hams, hogs-lard, which is used throughout all South America instead of butter; cedar-plank, which the Indians are continually employed in cutting quite to the foot of the Cordilleras, little carved boxes, which the Spanish ladies use to put their work in, carpets, quilts, and punchos neatly embroidered all round; for these, both in Chili and Peru, are used by the people of the first fashion, as well as the inferior sort, by way of riding-dress, and are esteemed to be much more convenient for a horseman than any kind of coat whatever.
They have what they call an annual ship from Lima, as they never expect more than one in the year; though sometimes it happens that two have come, and at other times they have been two or three years without any. When this happens, they are greatly distressed, as this ship brings them baize, cloth, linens, hats, ribbons, tobacco, sugar, brandy, and wine, but this latter article is chiefly for the use of the churches: Matte, an herb from Paraguay, used over all South America instead of tea, is also a necessary article. This ship's cargo is chiefly consigned to the Jesuits, who have more Indians employed for them than all the rest of the inhabitants together, and of course engross almost the whole trade. There is no money current in this island. If any person wants a few yards of linen, a little sugar, tobacco, or any other thing brought from Peru, he gives so many cedar-planks, hams, or punchos, in exchange. Some time after we had been here, a snow arrived in the harbour from Lima, which occasioned great joy amongst the inhabitants, as they had no ship the year before, from the alarm Lord Anson had given upon the coast.
This was not the annual vessel, but one of those that I mentioned before which come unexpectedly. The captain of her was an old man, well known upon the island, who had traded here once in two or three years for more than thirty years past. He had a remarkably large head, and therefore was commonly known by a nick-name they had given him of Cabuco de Toro, or Bull's-head. He had not been here a week, before he came to the governor, and told him, with a most melancholy countenance, that he had not slept a wink since he came into the harbour, as the governor was pleased to allow three English prisoners liberty to walk about instead of confining them, and that he expected every moment they would board his vessel and carry her away: This he said when he had above thirty hands aboard. The governor assured him he would be answerable for us, and that he might sleep in quiet; though at the same time he could not help laughing at the man, as all the people in the town did. These assurances did not satisfy the captain; he used the utmost dispatch in disposing of his cargo, and put to sea again, not thinking himself safe till he had lost sight of the island. It was about three months after this that Mr Hamilton was brought in by a party that the governor had sent to the southward on purpose to fetch him. He was in a wretched condition upon his first arrival, but soon recovered with the good living he found here.
It is usual for the governor to make a tour every year through the several districts belonging to his government: On this occasion he took us with him. The first place he visited was Carelmapo, on the main, and from thence to Castro. At these places he holds a kind of court, all the chief caciques meeting him, and informing him of what has passed since his last visit, and receiving fresh orders for the year to come. At Castro we had the same liberty we enjoyed at Chaco, and visited every body. It seemed they had forgot all the ceremony used upon our first landing here, which was with an intent to make us believe it was strongly fortified; for now they let us see plainly that they had neither fort nor gun. At Chaco they had a little earthen fort, with a small ditch palisadoed round it, and a few old honeycombed guns without carriages, and which do not defend the harbour in the least. Whilst we were at Castro, the old lady (at whose house we lay the first night upon leaving the Jesuits college) sent to the governor, and begged I might be allowed to come to her for a few weeks; this was granted, and accordingly I went and passed about three weeks with her very happily, as she seemed to be as fond of me as if I had been her own son. She was very unwilling to part with me again, but as the governor was soon to return to Chaca, he sent for me, and I left my benefactress with regret.
[CHAPTER VIII.]
Adventure with the Niece of an old Priest at Castro.--Superstition of the People.--The Lima Ship arrives, in which we depart for Valparaiso, January 1743.--Arrival at and Treatment there.--Journey to Chili.--Arrival at St Jago.--Generous Conduct of a Scotch Physician.--Description of the City and of the People.
Amongst the houses we visited at Castro, there was one belonging to an old priest, who was esteemed one of the richest persons upon the island. He had a niece, of whom he was extremely fond, and who was to inherit all he possessed. He had taken a great deal of pains with her education, and she was reckoned one of the most accomplished young ladies of Chiloe. Her person was good, though she could not be called a regular beauty. This young lady did me the honour to take more notice of me than I deserved, and proposed to her uncle to convert me, and afterwards begged his consent to marry me. As the old man doated upon her, he readily agreed to it; and accordingly, on the next visit I made him, acquainted me with the young lady's proposal, and his approbation of it, taking me at the same time into a room where there were several chests and boxes, which he unlocked, first shewing me what a number of fine clothes his niece had, and then his own wardrobe, which he said should be mine at his death. Amongst other things, he produced a piece of linen, which he said should immediately be made up into shirts for me. I own this last article was a great temptation to me; however, I had the resolution to withstand it, and made the best excuses I could for not accepting of the honour they intended me; for by this time I could speak Spanish well enough to make myself understood.
Amongst other Indians who had come to meet the governor here, there were some caciques of those Indians who had treated us so kindly at our first landing upon Chiloe. One of these, a young man, had been guilty of some offence, and was put in irons, and threatened to be more severely punished. We could not learn his crime, or whether the governor did not do it in a great measure to shew us his power over these Indian chiefs; however, we were under great concern for this young man, who had been extremely kind to us, and begged Captain Cheap to intercede with the governor for him. This he did, and the cacique was released; the governor acquainted him at the same time, with great warmth, that it was to us only he owed it, or otherwise he would have made a severe example of him. The young man seemed to have been in no dread of farther punishment, as I believe he felt all a man could do from the indignity of being put in irons in the public square, before all his brother caciques and many hundreds of other Indians. I thought this was not a very politic step of the governor, as the cacique came after to Captain Cheap to thank him for his goodness, and in all probability would remember the English for some time after; and not only he, but all the other caciques who had been witnesses of it, and who seemed to feel, if possible, even more than the young man himself did.
We now returned to Chaco, and the governor told us, when the annual ship came, which they expected in December, we should be sent in her to Chili. We felt several earthquakes while we were here. One day, as I happened to be upon a visit at a house where I was very well acquainted, an Indian came in, who lived at many leagues distance from this town, and who had made this journey in order to purchase some little trifles he wanted; amongst other things, he had bought some prints of saints. Very proud of these, he produced them, and put them into the hands of the women, who very devoutly first crossed themselves with them, and afterwards kissed them; then gave them to me, saying at the same time, they supposed such a heretic as I was would refuse to kiss them. They were right in their conjectures; I returned them to the Indian without going through that ceremony. At that very instant there happened a violent shock of an earthquake, which they imputed entirely to the anger of the saints; and all quitted the house as fast as they could, lest it should fall upon their heads. For my part, I made the best of my way home for fear of being knocked on the head when out of the house by the rabble, who looked on me as the cause of all this mischief, and did not return to that house again till I thought this affair was forgotten.
Here is a very good harbour; but the entrance is very dangerous for those who are unacquainted with it, as the tides are so extremely rapid, and there are sunken rocks in the midchannel. The island is above seventy leagues round, and the body of it lies in about 40 deg. 20 min. south, and is the most southern settlement the Spaniards have in these seas. Their summer is of no long duration, and most of the year round they have hard gales of wind and much rain. Opposite the island, upon the Cordilleras, there is a volcano, which at times burns with great fury, and is subject to violent eruptions. One of these alarmed the whole island whilst we were there; it sounded in the night like great guns. In the morning, the governor mounted his horse, and rode backwards and forwards from his house to the earthen fort, saying it was the English coming in, but that he would give them a warm reception; meaning, I suppose, that he would have left them a good fire in his house, for I am certain he would soon have been in the woods if he had seen any thing like an English ship coming in.