, was on the point of being taken prisoner, when he was rescued
by the almost incredible efforts of three of his soldiers, and remounted
on his horse. The remaining Spaniards urged on their almost exhausted
horses to regain the narrow defile where the engagement had commenced,
and were closely pursued by the Araucanians; but on arriving at the
pass, they found it blocked up with trees, which had been felled across
by orders of Lautaro. The engagement was renewed at this place with the
utmost fury, and not a man of the broken army would have escaped, had
not Villagran opened the pass at the utmost hazard of his life. Though
the Araucanians had lost above seven hundred men in the course of this
eventful battle, they continued the pursuit a long way; but at length,
unable to keep up with the horses, and exhausted with excessive fatigue,
they gave up the pursuit, and Lautaro encamped for the night to refresh
his men, determined upon passing the Biobio next day to follow up the
consequences of his glorious and decisive victory.

On the arrival of the few Spaniards at Conception who had been able to
escape from the slaughter at Mariguenu, the city of Conception was
filled with indescribable grief and dismay, not a family but had to
deplore the loss of some near relation; and the alarm was greatly
increased by learning that Lautaro was fast approaching with his
victorious army. As Villagran considered it to be impossible to defend
the city under the present dismay of his small remaining force, he
hastily embarked all the old men, women, and children on board two ships
that happened to be then in the harbour, one of which he ordered to
proceed to Imperial, and the other to Valparaiso, while he proceeded by
land for St Jago with all the rest of the inhabitants who were able to
carry arms. Lautaro entered the city next day without opposition, which
he found entirely deserted of its inhabitants, but filled with much
valuable booty, as by its mines and commerce it had already attained
considerable opulence, and the inhabitants were in such haste to escape
with their lives, that they only took what provisions they could procure
along with them, and abandoned their riches. After removing every thing
that was valuable, Lautaro burnt all the houses, and razed the citadel
and other fortifications; after which he returned with his army to
Arauco, to celebrate his triumph after the manner usual in his country.

While Lautaro thus bravely