TERRA DEL FITE'RO (Land of Fire), an archipelago situated at the extreme s. of South America, from the main land of which it is separated by Magellan's strait, consists of 11 large islands, of which the chief is King Charles's South Laud, and about 20 islets; lat. 52° to 56° s., long. 65° to 75' west. The area of King Charles's South Land, which forms more than three-fourths of the entire area, is about 21,260 sq.miles. This island, like the other islands of the archipelago and the coast of the main-land, is much broken on the west side by gulfs and inlets. The eastern coasts are, as a rule, level and wooded; while the western coasts are generally rocky and mountainous. The general aspect of the group is wild and desolate in the extreme. Some localities, however, are of quite a different character. The coast-scenery of Picton island resembles that of the S.W. coast of England. The s. part of the island is chiefly in moor and down; the n. part is cov ered with thick forests. The scenery is fine, and there are fine fresh-water lakes, fre quented by abundance of water-fowl. Many of the mountains are volcanic—from which circumstance this region has derived its name—and lava and volcanic productions are seen everywhere. The highest mountains rise to from 6,000 to 7,000 feet, and are covered with snow. The climate is raw and cold, violent rains and snow-storms occur ring in every season of the year. In this region the waters of the Atlantic and Pacific meet and struggle together, and terrific tempests are frequent. The flora of the region comprises some plants found in Great Britain. Wild celery and spoouwort are the only edible plants; but by far the most important articles of food are shell-fish, which abound on the coasts, and a globular fungus, which grows in clusters round the trunk of the antarctic beech—an elegant evergreen, and the prevailing tree in the archipelago. The
inhabitants, the number of whom is estimated at 2,000. are generally described as a short, ugly, beardless race, with long black hair, of a rusty iron color, and occupying the low est rank in the scale of civilization. Capt. W. Parker Snow, who visited Terra del Fuego in 1855, reports somewhat differently of the inhabitants. According to him the natives are robust-looking, powerful, and of the middle height, being on an average over 5 ft. 3 in. in height. The only quadruped among them is the dog. When driven to extremi ties they first eat their dogs, and then kill and eat the old women of their tribe. More than one attempt has been made to convert these savages to Christianity, but hitherto such attempts have proved abortive. In 1850 a mission-party of seven men, under capt. Allen Gardiner, the projector of the expedition, arrived at Terra del Fuego. The mission aries were not well received by the natives, and the narrative of their residence on these coasts is simply a record of miserable disasters. Owing to the grossest mismanagement on the part of the home authorities, the wants of the mission-party were neglected, and they found themselves in a short time destitute of provisions. The relief that had been promised never came; and in the autumn of 1851 the whole party, after undergoing horrible sufferings, died of starvation. In the autumn of 1854 another missionary ex pedition set sail from Bristol for Terra del Fuego, under command of capt. W. Parker Snow; but after many endeavors the attempt to form a mission-station on Terra del Fuego I was abandoned.