of grapes, he says, were enormously large; and he mentions one that filled a basket, and served as a meal for a numerous convent of friars. The branches of the vine he describes as very large, and the trunks of the trees as thick as a man's body.

is most in esteem,

Although the Chilian vines have been very productive; yet, from some cause or other, they do not rank very high. The vino de penco made near Conception, on the banks of the Itali, and in taste and flavour it resembles Malaga more than any other. When Captain Beechey, in 1825, touched at this place, he found the wines greatly deteriorated, and the only palatable wine which he could procure was that made from the grapes on the estate of General Friere.*

From the borders of Peru to the river Maule, the mode of cultivating vines is by raising the sets to the height of three or four feet by means of props or forked stakes. Beyond that river, they are planted on the declivities of hills and reclined on the ground. The vintage usually occurs in the months of April and May.

The lower orders of the Chilians have little inclination for wine, their drink being chiefly water and Chica made from the grapes, (which abound in the woods where the birds deposit their seed,) by pressing out the juice and boiling it, without reference to fermentation. From the variety and luxuriance of the fruits such as quinces as large as a man's head, peaches weighing upwards of a pound, with apples, pears, oranges, lemons, and citrons of the finest description, valuable domestic wines might be procured. Even from the fruit of the myrtus luma, a species of myrtle which frequently grows to the height of 40 feet, a pleasant wine is made, which is a good stomachic, is held in high estimation, and by strangers is often preferred to Muscadel. From the fruit called quelu, which is very sweet, small, and of a colour between red and yellow, a very palatable drink is drawn: from Molle, another fruit of the shape and colour of pepper, is made a drink termed Huigan by the natives and Molle by the Spaniards. This liquor is very agreeable, and in great request by people of respectability. Of Molle there are two kinds, the common (schinus mollis) is usually found in the marshes, and the other is termed schinus huigan. From the berries of these, a kind of red wine of an agreeable flavour, but very heating, is prepared. The Indians manufacture a beverage from those berries as strong and as pleasant as wine. Antonio de Herrera describes a beverage of a bright golden colour made from the fruit of the Murtilla-tree, which strongly resembles the grape. This liquor is

Beechey's Voyage to the Pacific, 4to. vol. i. p. 29.

warm, very agreeable to the taste, and highly salutary, as it increases the appetite, and never produces any painful consequences to the head, though it bears a greater proportion to water than wine does. From the grain of quinua (a species of chenopoduim from three to four feet high,) a very pleasant stomachic beverage is made. From the berries of the maqui (cornus Chilensis) a species of wild grapes which are very pleasant for eating, the Indians prepare a liquor, termed theca, which is held in considerable estimation and is common in Peru.

The aboriginal Chilians, long before the landing of the Spaniards, employed leaven in making bread, and they were, besides, acquainted with the process of fermentation, by which they obtained from their grain and fruits, several kinds of inebriating liquors which they kept in jars after the manner of the Greeks and Romans. From the clay of the country they made every species of vessel suited to domestic purposes, well glazed, and polished by a mineral varnish called colo. Wooden vessels were also common, and even vases of marble of excellent workmanship. According to Don Ulloa, the guaqueros, or drinking vessels of the inhabitants of Quito, were of a very fine black earth, and the place at which they were originally formed is unknown. In shape they were round, having a handle in the middle with the mouth on one side, and a representation of an Indian's head on the other, whose features were so naturally expressed, that few workmen of the present day could surpass it. Besides these, he adds, that various sized vessels made of red and white earth were found among the cemeteries of the aborigines, for the purpose of making and preserving the chica. Lane, in his account of the modern Egyptians, says that he saw in the tombs at Thebes, many similar jars containing the dregs of Bousa.* Some of the native Chilian earths have such peculiar quality that the vessels made of them are said to communicate an agreeable flavour and smell to the liquors they contain. Some of these vessels are handsomely ornamented with plants and animals, and bring a great price in Peru and Spain.

At the interment of the dead, great quantities of chica are consumed, first in the entertainment of friends, and afterwards when they arrive at the grave-yard. Here both provisions, and vessels filled with chica and wine, are placed beside the corpse with a view of sustaining it during its passage to the other world. Besides these, the mound raised over the dead body is moistened with a quantity of chica, as a libation to the memory of the departed. The attachment of the people to fermented liquors is such, that they consider every

Lane's Account of the Modern Egyptians, &c. 2 vols. 8vo. vol. ii. p. 34.

entertainment a mockery unless they have abundance to drink; yet, generally speaking, their habits are temperate.

The aborigines use beer and cider as their common beverages, which they make from Indian corn and apples; yet they are extremely fond of wine, which they procure from the Spaniards. At their banquets, at which it is common for 300 persons to be present, more meat, grain, and liquor are consumed than would be sufficient to support a whole family for two years. These feasts are called Cahuin, or circles, from the company seating themselves in a circle around a cinnamon tree.* No entertainment, however, of any sort is considered worthy of the name of a feast, unless there is drink in abundance.

In

At Potosi, wine is seldom used except at great dinners. Claret rates at 12s. the bottle; Champagne from 12s. to 16s.; English cider from 6s. to 8s. At Cinti, about 40 or 50 leagues from Potosi, a good wine is made which is sold from about 2s. to 2s. 6d. the bottle, and which is said to resemble Burgundy. Rum and brandy sell from 8s. to 10s. the bottle. The cultivation of the vine and wine-making might be a speculation useful in many parts of South America. the province of Tarija, good wine is produced little inferior to Burgundy. In the vicinity of San Lucas, fine wine and brandy are made, even to the extent of exportation, and after leaving this village and entering the valley of Cinti, it is a continued vineyard for nearly twenty leagues. This place is celebrated for its wines and brandies which are in great demand and sent to all the upper parts of Peru: wine is sold at 1s. 3d. per bottle.

The genial warmth of the climate and soil in the valleys and plains under the Andes, are particularly favourable to the growth of the vine. Some of the vineyards, especially those in the vicinity of Mendoza, are said to contain 60,000 plants. The grapes are large, black, and highly flavoured, resembling the Hambro species more than any other. A duty of one dollar is imposed on every cask of brandy, and four reals on every cask of wine. The wines and brandies of Mendoza, San Juan, and Rioja, make their way to the Rio de la Plata to the extent of 12,000 barrels annually, where they are bartered for English merchandise, besides which, large quantities are sent to Potosi, Santa Fe, and other places. In transporting these over the immense plains of the Pampas, oxen and mules are employed ;† the former, to the number of six in a wagon, travelling about eight leagues in a day; and the latter laden with skins in packMolina's History of Chili.

† Vide Account of the United Provinces of Rio de la Plata, from the Spanish, 8vo. 1825.

saddles, travel in troops together at the rate of ten or twelve leagues a day. At night their saddles are carefully placed in a circle in which the muleteers make a fire and repose themselves after the fatigues of their journey.* While treating of the Pampas, the method of preserving the grain, as resorted to by the inhabitants, is so curious as to be worth relating. The entire skin of an ox is taken, the legs are sewed up, and the whole is filled with corn. It is then suspended between four stakes, the legs hanging downwards, so that it has the appearance of a living animal. In this state, it is covered with hides to prevent rats, birds, or vermine getting at it, as well as to preserve it from any external injury.

The province of Paraguay consists chiefly of extensive prolific plains. Among their vegetable productions, may be mentioned maize, wheat, palms, figs, peaches, pomegranates, lemons, with innumerable others, together with the vine, many of which are found even in a wild state. Real wine is made of a good quality, and pulque from the maguey, while in Buenos Ayres, liquors of every sort may be obtained. The Indians cultivate maize from which they make their favourite drink, and from a root resembling a chestnut in taste, they make an intoxicating liquor of an agreeable flavour. Schemdel calls this root mandioch pobiore, and the liquor drawn from it mandebocre. Mead is a favourite beverage, honey being abundant, and the only process observed in its formation is the mere boiling of the honey. From a vegetable termed Arrachaca, cultivated in Paraguay, but more particularly about Santa Fe, is obtained an inebriating liquor. The arrachaca when reduced to a pulp, and combined with other materials, furnishes a drink of a most agreeable and refreshing description. This plant is said to be one of the most valuable in South America, as its properties are such as to compete with, if not excel, those of the potato. It is used in the same manner, is grateful to the taste, and the most delicate appetite may use it without the dread of unpleasant consequences, being nutritive and easy of digestion. Superior starch is made of it, and it forms the basis of a variety of confectionary. Spain always shewing herself unfriendly to agricultural extension, issued at Mexico, in 1803, an order to root up all the vines in the Northern provinces, merely because the merchants at Cadiz complained of a diminution in the sale of their wines. Fortunately this order was never executed, under the impression that it might drive the natives into hostility with the government, as the culture of the vine formed no inconsiderable portion of their agricultural pursuits.

Colclough's Travels in South America, 2 vols. 8vo. vol. i. p. 165.

The greatest enemies to the vine in this country are the ants, which give the planters the greatest trouble to subdue them. Owing to the same jealous principle of the Spaniards, just alluded to, at Buenos Ayres, grapes could not be cultivated but by special appointment, and that only for the supply of the table. Grape-brandy was, until lately, chiefly furnished from Europe, but at present it is principally distilled in the country. The lower orders in Buenos Ayres are much prone to irregularities, many of whom, when inflamed by spirits, are hurried into the committal of very brutal acts. To repress extravagancies of this nature, the government have put heavy licenses on the pulperias or spirit-shops, from which a considerable revenue is obtained, while 25 per cent. duty is levied on all vines and liquors imported. Travellers say that the effects of drinking are more perceptible here than in England. In many it produces derangement, and others it incites to the committal of suicide. In some of the South American districts, the natives, in their drunken moments, carry gambling to such a height, that even their wives are staked on the result of a game, and the forfeit given up in case of loss. To the ease with which drink is procured, the heat of the climate, and the consequent lassitude, may be attributed those fatal consequences. To the native tribes bordering on Paraguay and Brazil, the mandioc affords a drink both cooling and renovating. The roots of this plant are sliced and boiled till they become soft, they are then allowed to cool, the young women chew them, and they are afterwards put into the same vessel which is filled with water and again boiled, during which they are kept stirring all the time. The unstrained juice is put into large jars which are buried in the floor of the house for about half their depth. They are then closely stopped and allowed to ferment for two or three days. A notion is prevalent that if the liquor be made by men it is good for nothing; hence the labour falls to the lot of the females. On a day set apart for drinking this beverage, the women kindle fires round the jars, out of which they serve the men in half gourds with the hot liquor, which they receive singing and dancing, and always empty at one draught. Here it may be remarked, that no man when single is suffered to partake of the drinking feast. During this drinking bout, they smoke an herb called petun either in pipes of clay, the shells of fruit, or in leaves rolled together in the form of a tube, forcing the smoke through their nostrils, mouths, and artificial holes in their cheeks. All this time the young married men dance with rattles on their legs, but never eat anything during the interval, nor leave the house until every drop is exhausted. In this manner they remove from house to house, till all in the place or village is finished. These