262 To the River Plate and Back 



soil, had been regularly planted, and looked flourishing. 

 There were square leagues devoted to alfalfa. Finer 

 fields of this useful plant are not to be seen anywhere. 

 Now and then we caught sight of ranch-houses, their 

 white walls peeping out from among the dark green of 

 the eucalyptus-groves, by which they were surrounded. 

 The whole landscape was dotted with herds of short- 

 horns, and great flocks of sheep. As we came nearer to 

 Rosario wheat-fields became more numerous. On the 

 right, as we went along, we occasionally saw towering 

 above the fringe of willows the masts of ships or the 

 funnels of steamers going or coming on the way to 

 Rosario. Now and then tall chimneys and high roofs 

 indicated the location on the banks of the stream of 

 some great packing-house, or frigorifico, where meat is 

 frozen for export to the European markets. 



Our first stop was made at Campana, where the 

 locomotive-driver replenished his water-tank. The 

 system of taking water while the train is in flight, long 

 in use upon some of the North American railways, does 

 not appear as yet to have been introduced into Argen- 

 tina. At all events I did not observe that it is employed 

 on any of the roads upon which I traveled. 



In the ditches which we crossed as the train dashed 

 forward I caught glimpses now and then of cormorants 

 fishing in the shallow pools. Here and there a heron 

 sailed away into the skies. I was interested in observ- 

 ing that the Scissor-tailed Fly-catcher (Mifaulus 

 tyrannus) was quite common in the region. This bird, 

 which is related to our common King-bird, differs from 

 the latter in having a long forked tail, the two outer 

 feathers of which trail behind like ribbons as it flies. 

 Just as it alights upon the top of the thistles or the 

 fence-posts it appears to have the habit of spreading its 



