The dresses of all these tribes are formed of skins; but all except the serranos or mountaineers, weave mantles or ponchos of woollen yarn, beautifully died of various colours, which when wrapped round the body reach from the neck to the calf of the legs. A similar mantle is tied round the waist and reaches to the ankles. Besides these they have a three-cornered piece of dressed hide, of which two of the corners are tied round the waist, and the third, being passed between the legs is fastened behind. The hair is tied up from behind with the points upwards, by means of a woollen band bound many times round the head; but they are fond of wearing hats when they can get them from the Spaniards. They paint their faces red or black, and wear necklaces and bracelets of sky-blue beads. When on horseback they wear a particular kind of cloaks, having a slit in the middle through which they put their heads, and the skirts hang down to the knees or even sometimes to the feet. Their stockings or boots consist of the skin of a horses thigh and leg, flayed off whole, dried and softened with grease, and rendered supple by wringing. The women wear straw hats in shape like those used by the Chinese. Their defensive armour consists of a helmet of double bulls hide shaped like a broad-brimmed hat; a tunic or bodice of hardened skin three or four fold, which is very heavy, but effectually resists the arrow and spear, and is even said to be musquet proof. When on foot, they have likewise a large unwieldy shield of bulls hide. The Tehuelhets and Huilliches sometimes poison their arrows. Their spears are of cane, four or five yards long, and are pointed with iron; and they use swords when they can procure them from the Spaniards. They use the laqui both in war and hunting; but that used in war has a ball, or weight fastened to one or both ends of the leathern thong instead of a noose. The ball weighs about a pound. When used single, or with only one ball, it is aimed at the head of the enemy, to knock out his brains. With the double laqui, having a ball at each end, they can fasten a man to his horse, and effectually entangle both man and beast.

END OF THE HISTORY OF CHILI.

In the preceding Chapters of this Second Book, we have given an extended account of the Discovery of AMERICA by COLUMBUS, and of the establishment of the principal Spanish Colonies in the New World, from authentic Original authors, a large portion of which never appeared before in any Collection of Voyages and Travels, and some important parts are now given for the first time in the English language. It is not the object of this work to attempt giving a regular series of the History of America, by inserting the establishments of all the European colonies which have been settled in that quarter of the world, which would occupy more room than can be conveniently allowed in our Collection, and for which we do not possess original documents of sufficient interest. In the present chapter it is only meant to give a relation of the Discovery of Florida by Juan Ponce de Leon in 1512; of the disastrous attempt of Panfilo de Narvaez to conquer that country in 1528; and of the romantic exploratory expedition of Ferdinand de Soto in the years 1539-1543: All of which is taken from the General History of America by Herrera, which may be considered as an original and almost contemporary authority.

Antonio de Herrera, who was historiographer to the king of Spain, appears to have composed his work only a short time after the middle of the sixteenth century, as he continues the series of events no farther than 1554; though he incidentally alludes to one transaction which happened in 1572. The authenticity of his work is unquestionable, as the author assures us that it was composed by royal command, from all the best and most authentic sources of information which the crown could furnish, both in print and manuscript; and that he had carefully consulted and followed the original papers preserved in the royal archives, and the books, registers, relations, and other papers of the supreme council of the Indies, together with all the best authors on the subject then extant. As a literary curiosity of its kind, we subjoin his list of what were then considered the best writers on the affairs of the New World-Those in Italics have been already inserted into this work.

Peter Martyr of Angleria.-Diego de la Tobilla.-Motolinea.-Don Hernando Colon.-Olonsa de Ojeda.-Alonso de Mata.-Enciso.-Gonzalo Hernandez de Oviedo.-Francisco Lopez de Gomara.-Andres de San Martino.-Pedro de Zieza.-Alvar Nunnez Cabeza de Vaca.-Bernal Diaz del Castillo.-The Bishop of Chiapa, Las Casas.-The Dean Cervantes.-Francisco de Xeres.-Gonzalo Ximenes de Quesada.-Garibay. -Pedro Pizarro.-The relations of Cortes.-Nunno de Guzman.-Diego Fernandez de Palentia.-Augustino de Zarate.-The Pontifical History. -Don Alonzo de Ercilla.-Geronimo Benzon.-Theodore de Brye.-Jusepe de Acosta.-Father Augustino Davila.-Garcilasso Inga.-Gabriel Lasso de la Vega.-Don Antonio de Saavedra.

In the Catalogue of Spanish Books and Manuscripts consulted by our illustrious Historian of America, WILLIAM ROBERTSON, an edition of Herrera is quoted as printed at Madrid in 1601, in 4 vols. folio. We have used on the present occasion the Translation of Herrera into English by Captain John Stevens, in 6 vols. 8vo. printed at London in 1725. Though assuredly authentic and to be depended upon so far as it goes, the plan of this General History of the vast Continent and Islands of America, is exceedingly ill devised, and very troublesome for being consulted; as the author endeavours continually to preserve the chronological series of events throughout the numerous discoveries, colonizations and conquests of the Spaniards, in all the islands and continental provinces of Spanish America, by which he is forced into perpetual and abrupt transitions from subject to subject; instead of using a double arrangement, geographical as well as chronological, in which the narrative belonging to each territorial division might have been distinctly and separately arranged in chronological order. Thus in regard to Florida, which constitutes the subject of our present chapter, we have had to travel through every one of the six volumes of Herrera, on purpose to reduce all the scattered notices respecting the early discovery of that country under one unbroken narrative.

Owing to the utter impossibility of ascertaining the various parts which were visited by the Spaniards, in these early peregrinations in Florida as related in this chapter, we have not given any map of the country on this occasion, which will be supplied in a future division of this work, when we come to particular and more recent travels in that province of North America. Indeed the country originally named Florida by the Spaniards was vastly more extensive than the modern application of that name, and appears to have included all Louisiana, with Georgia the Carolinas and Virginia, and the entire countries on the Mississippi and Ohio rivers. In fact it was meant as a generic term, including all of the eastern parts of north America, not previously comprised under New Spain and its dependencies; just as Virginia was applied in the reign of Queen Elizabeth to all that part of North America claimed by the English, which was afterwards partitioned into many provinces, from Nova Scotia to Georgia both inclusive. Besides, a map to serve the purposes of the present chapter is of almost impossible construction, as all the appellations of towns and territories, especially in the extensive peregrinations of Ferdinand de Soto, are merely the fugacious names of the caciques or sachems who happened at the time to rule over the various tribes of savages which were visited by Soto in his singularly erratic expedition. One point only in the whole course of his wanderings can be ascertained with certainty, the Bay of Espirita Santo on the western coast of Florida, in about lat. 28° N. and long. 83° W. Mavila. may possibly be what has since been called Mobile, and the Rio Grande or great river was most probably the Mississippi. All the other points are involved in impenetrable obscurity, or would require an extended discussion inadmissible on the present occasion. In the course of the chapter some conjectures will be attempted respecting the geography of the wanderings of Soto, and his adventurous followers, whose sole object appears to have been to search for mines of the precious metals, in which they were altogether unsuccessful.