26th——Thedayrosesplendidlyclear。ThevolcanoofOrsonowasspoutingoutvolumesofsmoke。Thismostbeautifulmountain，formedlikeaperfectcone，andwhitewithsnow，standsoutinfrontoftheCordillera。Anothergreatvolcano，withasaddle-shapedsummit，alsoemittedfromitsimmensecraterlittlejetsofsteam。Subsequentlywesawthelofty-peakedCorcovado——welldeservingthenameof“elfamosoCorcovado。”Thuswebeheld，fromonepointofview，threegreatactivevolcanoes，eachaboutseventhousandfeethigh。Inadditiontothis，fartothesouth，therewereotherloftyconescoveredwithsnow，which，althoughnotknowntobeactive，mustbeintheiroriginvolcanic。ThelineoftheAndesisnot，inthisneighbourhood，nearlysoelevatedasinChile；neitherdoesitappeartoformsoperfectabarrierbetweentheregionsoftheearth。Thisgreatrange，althoughrunninginastraightnorthandsouthline，owingtoanopticaldeception，alwaysappearedmoreorlesscurved；forthelinesdrawnfromeachpeaktothebeholder’seye，necessarilyconvergedliketheradiiofasemicircle，andasitwasnotpossibleowingtotheclearnessoftheatmosphereandtheabsenceofallintermediateobjectstojudgehowfardistantthefarthestpeakswereoff，theyappearedtostandinaflattishsemicircle。
Landingatmidday，wesawafamilyofpureIndianextraction。ThefatherwassingularlylikeYorkMinster；andsomeoftheyoungerboys，withtheirruddycomplexions，mighthavebeenmistakenforPampasIndians。EverythingIhaveseen，convincesmeofthecloseconnexionofthedifferentAmericantribes，whoneverthelessspeakdistinctlanguages。ThispartycouldmusterbutlittleSpanish，andtalkedtoeachotherintheirowntongue。Itisapleasantthingtoseetheaboriginesadvancedtothesamedegreeofcivilization，howeverlowthatmaybe，whichtheirwhiteconquerorshaveattained。MoretothesouthwesawmanypureIndians：indeed，alltheinhabitantsofsomeoftheisletsretaintheirIndiansurnames。Inthecensusof1832，therewereinChiloeanditsdependenciesforty-twothousandsouls；thegreaternumberoftheseappeartobeofmixedblood。EleventhousandretaintheirIndiansurnames，butitisprobablethatnotnearlyalloftheseareofapurebreed。Theirmanneroflifeisthesamewiththatoftheotherpoorinhabitants，andtheyareallChristians；butitissaidthattheyyetretainsomestrangesuperstitiousceremonies，andthattheypretendtoholdcommunicationwiththedevilincertaincaves。Formerly，everyoneconvictedofthisoffencewassenttotheInquisitionatLima。ManyoftheinhabitantswhoarenotincludedintheeleventhousandwithIndiansurnames，cannotbedistinguishedbytheirappearancefromIndians。Gomez，thegovernorofLemuy，isdescendedfromnoblemenofSpainonbothsides；
butbyconstantintermarriageswiththenativesthepresentmanisanIndian。
OntheotherhandthegovernorofQuinchaoboastsmuchofhispurelykeptSpanishblood。
Wereachedatnightabeautifullittlecove，northoftheislandofCaucahue。Thepeopleherecomplainedofwantofland。Thisispartlyowingtotheirownnegligenceinnotclearingthewoods，andpartlytorestrictionsbythegovernment，whichmakesitnecessary，beforebuyingeversosmallapiece，topaytwoshillingstothesurveyorformeasuringeachquadra150yardssquare，togetherwithwhateverpricehefixesforthevalueoftheland。Afterhisvaluationthelandmustbeputupthreetimestoauction，andifnoonebidsmore，thepurchasercanhaveitatthatrate。