28 



HARDWOOD RECORD 



''EL CHACO/'—The Argentine Timber "Belt 



Each of us retains from our childhood 

 lessons in geography a certain association 

 of ideas for the- individual countries studied. 

 Thus the mention of the Republica Argen- 

 tina usually calls to mind the "Pampas" or 

 great plains stretching westward from Bue- 

 nos Aires toward the Andes, and southward 

 into Patagonia — where the important agri- 

 cultural, cattle, horse and sheep-raising in- 

 dustries are pursued. 



But there is another large tract stretch- 

 ing northward to the frontiers of Brazil, 

 Paraguay and Bolivia, which has long been 

 a household word in South America, and 

 which is destined to become known in other 



the e-xhibition, and awakened a lively in- 

 dustrial and commercial interest in many 

 who saw it. 



As the ' ' Chaco ' ' or chief zone of the 

 forest riches of the Republica Argentina is 

 in the subtropical region, nature has not 

 favored it with numerous and abundant spe- 

 cies which yield soft, light-colored woods; 

 on the contrary, she has been prodigal with 

 those which have a compact, tough fibre and 

 are very hard; the majority are dark brown 

 or red in color. It is remarkable to what 

 advantage these magnificent tropical woods 

 are used in local construction work, in 

 places where foreigners employ only steel 



portant export item of the country will be 

 shown in a special illustrated article con- 

 cerning them and other Argentine woods, 

 which will appear in an early issue of the 

 Eecord. 



The Argentine Chaco is a port of a much 

 larger territory stretching over some 200,000 

 square miles, and including a portion of the 

 republics of Bolivia, Paraguay and Brazil, as 

 well as Argentina. It is an immense plain 

 at a height of about 375 feet above sea 

 level. 



The Chaco has always been a mysterious, 

 treacherous region, and since it is the source 

 of the large timber supply of the Argentine, 



SLEEPERS OF QUEBRACHO TIMBER 



VIROIN FOHEST AND .lU.NGLE IN CHACO 



parts of the world, once its resources are 

 thoroughly opened up. It is the Argentine 

 "Chaco" — the site of the immense trackless 

 forests, rich in valuable hardwoods, a few 

 of which are already beginning to take a 

 prominent place in foreign markets. 



It was during the French Exposition of 

 1889 that the floral wealth of the Republica 

 Argentina was first brought prominently 

 ,before the world. At that exhibition was 

 shown a collection of wood products which 

 not only proved a source of surprise to for- 

 eigners, but even to natives of the country. 

 The assortment of timbers, of dyeing and 

 tanning products, textile raw material, and 

 medicinal plants was considered the first in 



or iron; their lasting qualities when exposed 

 to the elements, and particularly when sub- 

 merged in water, are remarkable. 



The varieties best known both locally 

 and in European markets are the qite- 

 hmchos, of which there are two leading 

 varieties — red and light. They fill the place 

 of the American oaks in general work of all 

 kinds, and so large has been the drain upon 

 supplies, particularly by the tanning indus- 

 try, that the leading newspapers of Buenos 

 Aires are already instituting a campaign 

 recommending greater economy and care in 

 their destruction, and government reserva- 

 tion and superintendency in various sections. 

 That these varieties are becoming an im- 



about which more than one promoter has 

 indulged in "pipe dreams" which never 

 came true — a little about its physics and 

 history may not come amiss in these days 

 when American interest in our southern 

 neighbors is rapidly awakening. 



When the Spaniards first conquered South 

 .\merica they of course cast about for some 

 easy means of communication between their 

 eastern territory — of which Asuncion, the 

 capital of Paraguay, was the center — ^and 

 their possessions in the West, which had 

 Lima, Peru, as their metropolis. To cross 

 the great plain, or Chaco, seemed an easy 

 route, since overland travel appeared quite 

 possible, and in addition two large rivers 



