Narrative of the surveying voyages of his majesty's ships Adventure and Beagle (vol.2): between the years 1826 and 1836 : describing their examination of the southern shores of South America, and the Beagles's circumnavigation of the globe

CHICO SLAVK TRADE. 171 Yet Mr. Low did not think that the little capitan belonged to any of the families residing near Gregory Bay, but to some part of the same tribe who live far inland. Maria's son, Chico, was subsequently cacique, or acting as cacique of the Gregory Bay party. Had this western tribe been under the dominion of the Gregory Bay party, would the successor to Chico have been taken from a tribe who live far inland .-' The apparent mixture of horse and canoe Indians appears to me to have been an accidental consequence of the fire made as a signal, which called to the spot horsemen from the north and canoes from the south. The novelty of a vessel anchoring in a place never before disturbed by such a visitor, might well suspend hostilities between neighbouring tribes, even had they been at war ; but there is every reason to conclude that the canoe men of the south side of those waters have frequent and even amicable intercourse with the horsemen of Patagonia. A part though of that amicable intercourse consists in selling their children to the Patagonians for slaves. The following incident led to the discovery of this slave-trade : Mr. Low heard Maria talking of ' zapallos,''* and asked her if she could get some for him — and how many ? He thought she meant pumpkins (for which zapallos is Spanish) ; Maria replied, " two boat loads," and to show of what, pointed to a young slave, lately purchased from the Fuegians. When there are more zapallos among them than are wanted for slaves, or than suits their convenience, what becomes of them ? While young, they may be more useful than when they grow old ; and a wandering people, subsisting by hunting, would not in all probability take the trouble of providing for useless slaves, who might maintain themselves. The Patagonians are not so bar- barous as to kill them ; then what becomes of those zapallos ? If they are not sent to the borders of the Skyring and Otway Waters, there to shift for themselves, with perhaps a few old horses, and even some young men who help them to hunt, the employment of their later years is unexplained. • ' Zapallos,' or some word of similar sound.