y the Indians, are armed with lances, swords and daggers,
but whether these are of iron or not, the person who discovered the
existence of these cities had not been able to learn. They also use the
_laque_ or thong and ball with great dexterity, on which account they
are much dreaded by their neighbours. They have also cannon, but no
musquets. They retain the dress, complexion and beard of their Spanish
ancestors. They used formerly to purchase salt from the Pehuenches, and
even from the Indians who live under the Spanish government, which they
paid for in silver, which occasioned so great a demand for that article
in the Spanish settlements, that a loaf of salt used to sell at the
price of an ox. Of late this demand has ceased, as they have found salt
in abundance in their own country."

"A year only before this account was written, or in 1773, a man from
Chiloe got to the city gates one morning before the drawbridge was
lifted, and knocked for admittance. The soldier who was on guard told
him to hasten back as fast as possible, as their king was a cruel
tyrant, and would certainly put him to death if taken; and even seemed
astonished that the Indians had permitted him to arrive at the gate.
This man was killed on his way back; but the news of his adventure
reached Valdivia, where it was fully believed. It is said that the
people of these two cities live under a grievous tyranny, and are
therefore desirous of making their situation known to the Spaniards; but
that their chiefs use every possible precaution to prevent this, and the
Indians of the intervening country are equally solicitous to prevent any
intelligence respecting this state being conveyed to the Spaniards, lest
it might induce them to make new attempts to penetrate into the
interior."

"This account is said to have been written in 1774, by Don Ignacio
Pinuer, captain of infantry and interpreter general at Valdivia, in a
letter addressed to the president of Chili. The writer states that his
thorough knowledge of the language of the natives, and his great
intimacy with them, had enabled him to collect this information, by
means of the artful and persevering inquiries of twenty-eight
years[95]."

[Footnote 95: This absurd story evidently belongs to the same class with
the _Seven cities_ formerly mentioned, and the _El Dorado_ and _Welsh_
colony, which will both occur in the sequel of this work. Though not
exactly connected in point of time with this fabled