“The religion of the republic of Chile is the Roman Apostolic Catholic to the exclusion of any other.” These are the words of the Constitution of Chile, which thus gives to the Roman Catholic Church the protection and support of the government. Nevertheless religious freedom prevails for, by an act of July 27, 1865, it was established that those who do not profess the Roman Catholic religion are allowed to worship within the enclosure of private buildings, and are permitted to establish and maintain schools in the doctrine of their respective faiths. From a religious standpoint the republic is divided into one archbishopric, three bishoprics and two vicarages. The cathedral at Santiago is the church of the archbishop, and a magnificent residence for his use stands alongside of the church. The bishoprics are known as Serena, Concepción and Ancud. Two ecclesiastical vicarages have been established at Antofagasta and Tarapacá. The Catholic Church in Chile, however, is as different from the same church in the United States as it is possible for two branches of the same general head to be. There is no spirit of liberality, and no general purpose to recognize religious freedom except as it is compelled by law. The influx of foreigners has naturally modified things to some extent, because many of those coming in have been members of Protestant denominations, but the old condition of affairs has not yet been entirely eradicated. It is the women who support the Church, and they are intense devotees of its worship. The men are generally absolutely indifferent to religion in any form. As a prominent Chilean gentleman told me, “we leave the women attend to the religious duties.” This statement seemed to be borne out by the facts, as a number of visits to different churches at the hour of mass showed that not one out of perhaps fifteen or twenty present were men. The others were entirely women, girls and small children. The power of the priesthood over the women is very strong, and it is in this way that they exert whatever influence they have, as the women will blindly do anything that the priests advise them to do.