wn food in the woods.
Few sheep are kept, yet there are sufficient to furnish wool to give
employment to the women. From this they manufacture _ponchos_, two of
which, give sufficient work to a woman for a whole year, as they work
without a loom. The warp is stretched between a set of pegs, and they
weave in the woof with their fingers, yet make the work remarkably fine,
strong, and beautiful. They make also a smaller kind, called
_bordillos_, which are the ordinary dress of the negroes at Lima.
Besides these, they manufacture blankets and rugs, or coverlets for
beds, and linen cloth; which last is woven in looms.

In summer, when the vessels arrive from Callao, San Carlos is like a
fair, as this is the only opportunity enjoyed by the Chilotans to get
supplied with any thing which is not the produce of their own country,
or to dispose of any portion of their surplus produce. As they have no
money or circulating medium of commerce, the whole trade is carried on
by means of barter, which would leave the islanders at the mercy of the
merchants from Lima, but for the interference of the government. On the
arrival of the first ship of the season, the cabildo or municipal
magistracy of San Carlos, fixes a money price at which every thing is to
be rated on both sides; which means of regulating the market seems
absolutely necessary, as otherwise the Chilotans in buying would be
obliged to give any price demanded by the seller, and in selling would
have to take any price offered. Still it would be much for their
advantage to export their own commodities; but the whole archipelago
does not contain a single vessel large enough to make a voyage to Peru
or even to Chili. Formerly the soldiers who were in garrison in this
province used to receive their pay in clothes and other articles of
which they might be in want; but they were ordered by a late regulation
to be paid in specie; and if this be continued it must occasion an
important change in the commercial situation of Chiloe, by introducing a
circulating medium. In San Carlos there is a garrison of regular troops,
consisting of 33 artillerymen, 58 dragoons, and 53 infantry. The militia
of the archipelago consists of 1569 men, including officers; which have
to do garrison duty, but receive no pay or rations, having to serve
entirely at their own expence.

The inhabitants of Chiloe consists only of two classes of people,
Spaniards and Indians, there being no negroes and no mixed b