How different were the battles of the south! The Spaniards who found
themselves face to face with the Araucanian Indians, and with those of
the Pampa on the other side of the Andes, had a far more strenuous tale
to tell. The armour which had resisted with such contempt the more
delicate weapons of the Peruvians and of the northern warriors in
general was crushed in and dented beneath the tremendous blows dealt by
the clubs of the muscular and warlike Araucanians, who charged into the
battle with a wild joy that left them as drunk with triumph at the end
of the combat as they had been with their native spirit at the
beginning.
These Araucanians were, indeed, born fighters. In common with the
general run of mankind, it was their lot to be defeated from time to
time. Nevertheless, they repaid the defeats frequently with very tragic
interest; in any case, subdued by force of arms they certainly never
were. Much the same may be said of the Indians of the Argentine and
Uruguayan plains. The aggressive tactics here were by no means confined
to the Spaniards. On the first landing of the _conquistadores_, these
found themselves, after having given provocation in the first instance,
cooped up within the flimsy walls of their new settlements, surrounded
by fierce and vindictive enemies, who charged on them from time to time
with bewildering fury, choosing as often as not for the purpose the hour
just before dawn, which they would make horrid with their warlike cries
and shrill yells.
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