Nature has been prodigal in the bestowal of her varied gifts upon
Chile. Its geographical formation represents a huge serpent with its
sinewy form stretched along the west coast of the continent, its head
resting in the arid desert of Atacama, and its tail coiled about the
wood-crowned hills and ice-bound islands of Tierra del Fuego. Upon
one side loom the Andes Mountains, their snow-capped heads in the
clouds and their feet in the ocean; upon the other stretches the
vast expanse of the Pacific. Bordered as it is by the ocean on one
side, and including within its limits a range of mountains reaching
in some places an altitude of 24,000 feet, Chile presents a variety
of geological, geographical and climatic conditions possessed by few
countries in the world. Being isolated by great natural barriers it
faces away from all the centers of population and ancient homes of
civilization, and of all the countries of South America it occupies the
most unfavorable position geographically, and is the most inaccessible
from Europe, North America and the Ear East. But with all its
isolation, its long struggle to gain a place among civilized nations,
its history of cruel and uncivilized warfare, Chile possesses natural
resources and attractions which intervening years have made known, and
which in the short period of her national life have won for this long
neglected daughter of the Spanish colonial family, a reputation for
wealth and beauty that has given to it a fame as wide as the world.
NAME.
The name of Chile is of doubtful origin. During the Inca epoch it was
called Tilli, that being the name of a powerful and popular Araucanian
chief. It was pronounced “tele,” which translated means enemy. From
changes in the pronunciation, the word was finally converted into
Chile. Some authorities say that the name is derived from the Indian
word “Tchile,” or “Techile,” which signifies cold, having direct
reference to the snows of the Cordilleras, or the glaciers of the far
south.
DIVISION OF TERRITORY.
Chile is divided into four zones,--“Mineral,” “Mineral and
Agricultural,” “Agricultural” and “Wooded and Fishing.”
In the region of the “Mineral” or north zone, extending from the
province of Coquimbo on the south to the extreme north of the Republic,
rain is unknown; there is very little moisture and scarcely any
water in the streams. As a result of the arid condition of this
territory there is little spontaneous or cultivated vegetation, and
no agricultural interests worthy of mention. But the five provinces
comprising the zone abound in minerals, and form conjointly with the
agricultural resources of other sections the productive wealth of
Chile. Among the products of this section are nitrate of soda and
guano in quantities sufficient to enrich the lands of the world; there
are also deposits of gold, silver, copper, lead, quicksilver, zinc,
bismuth, iron, manganese and borax.
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