Of all the generalizations about Chile, those dealing with geography are the most accurate. Geographical facts have given shape and character to Chilean life and Chilean problems. Nature gave the heart of Chile patches of excellent soil and a climate kind to man. But this central valley is isolated, bounded on the north by desert, the east by towering mountains, the west by a cold and tempestuous ocean, and the south by the end of the world. Ownership of the land has been the keystone of Chilean history, and the fertile land is in the core region of the nation. There, in Mediterranean Chile, live three-quarters of the nation's population, there resides the political power in a unitary republic in which the president appoints provincial governors and there are no provincial assemblies, there are owned and managed the enterprises of north and south.