PATAGONIA, the most southern region of South America, extending from lat. 38° southward to the strait of Magellan, and occupying the extremity of the continent. The name Patagonia is sometimes confined to the territory e. of the Cordilleras; the district to the westward forming now a province of Chili. The possession of the country e.. of the Andes is disputed by the Chilians and the Argentine republic. Length upwards of 1000 in., greatest breadth about 480 m.; area about 350,000 sq.m.; pop. estimated by a recent traveler, Mr. Musters, at not more than 3,000. The coast of the Atlantic has extensive bays and inlets, none of which, however, are of much importance or advantage, in a commercial point of view. Along the western coast, and stretching from 42°s. to the strait of Magellan, are numerous islands, with precipitous shores, belonging apparently to the system of the Cordilleras. The principal islands are Chiloe, the Chonos archipel ago (q.v.), Wellington island, the archipelago of Madre de Dios, Queen Adelaide's archi pelago, and Desolation island. These islands—which, together with several peninsulas, form a coast almost as rugged as that of Norway—are mountainous; bttt in none of them, except in Desolation island, do the mountains rise to the snow-line.
Surface, Soil, etc.—The country of Patagonia divides itself into two reg,iOns, very unequal in size and very different in character. These are eastern and western Pata gonia, which are divided by the great mountain range of the Andes. Western Patagonia, comprising this range, the coast districts, and the islands, is rugged and mountainous. Opposite the island of Chiloe are two active volcanoes, one of which, Minchinmavida, is 8,000 ft. high. The slope of the country from the Andes to the Pacific is so steep, and the strip of shore so narrow, that the largest river of this district has its origin only about 13 in. from its embouchure on the coast. In the island of Chiloe, in the n. of western Patagonia, the mean temperature of winter is about 40°, that of summer rather above 50°; while at port Famine, in the extreme s. of this region, and 800 m. nearer antarctic latitudes than Chiloe, the mean temperature is not- much lower, being in whiter about 33°, and in summer about 50°. This unusually small difference in the mean tempera ture of the extremes of western Patagonia, which extends over about 14° of Lat., is due to the great dampness of the atmosphere all along the coast. The prevailing winds of this region blow from the w. ; and heavily surcharged with the moisture they have drawn from the immense wastes of the Pacific ocean, whey strike against the Andes, are thoroughly condensed by the cold high mountains, and sfall in rains that are almost per petual from Chiloe to the strait of Magellan. South of 47° s. lat., hardly a day passes without a fall of rain, snow, or sleet. this continual dampness has produced forests of almost tropical luxuriance. A kind of deer wanders on the e. side of the mountains; guanacos, pumas, and water-fowl abound in the region between the Andes and the Atlantic; and along the coast, seals, otters, sea-elephants, fish, and shell-fish are found.
Eastern Patagonia comprises by far the larger portion of Patagonia, and extends east ward from the Ades to the Atlantic. Its surface has not yet been but the recent wanderings of Mr. Musters have at last furnished us with some authentic information. It mainly consists of high undulating plains or plateaug, frequently inter
sected by valleys and ravines, or rising into successive or isolated hills, which generally occupy the crest of the country. These plateaus are occasionally covered with coarse grass, but more frequently the surface is sterile, with a sparse vegetation of stunted bushes and round thistle clumps; and even these are sometimes wanting, absolutely nothing clothing the bare patches of clay or gravel; elsewhere it is strewn with huge round bowlders, and again rugged with confused heaps or ridges of bare, sharp-edged rocks, many of them of volcanic origin: this more particularly applying to the northern part of the country. Piercing blasts sweep almost incessantly from various points, but chiefly from the w.; and snow, sleet, and rain seem to prevail during the greater part of the year. The descent from these plains or pampas to the valleys or more sheltered and fertile ground bordering the banks of the stream's and rivers, is commonly termed "barranca," or bank, from the scarped slopes, varying in depth from 50 to 2 or 3 ft., and in angle from an easy to an almost perpendicular descent. The soil in many places is strongly impregnated with saltpeter, and salt-lakeS and lagoons are numerous. North of the Rio Chico, and towards the sea-coast, there is a wild, weird, desolate region called by the Indians "The Devil's Country ;" it is said to be almost impassable. Several inhospitable wastes of this kind fringe the Atlantic, and have probably induced the belief that Patagonia is a barren and waterless desert; but the interior. though not fer tile, really abounds in lagoons, springs, and streams, and the banks of the Rio Negro and even the Santa Cruz are capable of cultivation. Along the eastern base of the Andes, also, there is a great tract of territory which is astonishingly picturesque and fertile. Here great forests abound, to which the Indians retire for shelter from the freezing winds of winter. There are also deep valleys furrowed by mountain torrents; and numerous lakes, the haunts of wild-duck and other water-fowl. The largest of these lakes are Nahnel Ibmpi in the n., Colugnape in the middle, and Viedina in the south. Except pasture, eastern Patagonia has no productions. Ilowever fertile the soil in some places may be, it is nowhere cultivated. The Indians live upon the produce of the chase alone, and seem to desire no better sustenance. The principal rivers we the Rio Negro (q.v.); the Chupat, which flows through a good soil, producing excellent pasture and good firewood; the Rio Desire, probably rising in lake and the Rio Chico, which flows out of lake Viedma, through a valley sometimes opening out into wide grass•covered plains dotted with incense bushes, and sometimes rising in huge, bare ridge and burrow-like undulations. All these rivers rise in the Andes, aad flow e. or s.c. Herds of horses arc reared, dogs abound, and, in the more favored regions, cat tle are bred; pumas and foxes are met with, as well as condors, hawks, partridges, and water-fowl. But by far the most important animals are the guanaco or huanaca (q.v.); the then darwinii, called by the' Patagonians weiciaush, and by the Spaniards arcstalts or ostrich; and the gama, a kind of deer.