CHAMBERS'S INFORMATION FOR THE PEOPLE. 



are imported cotton and woollen manufactures, 

 iron, hardware, cutlery, &c. ; and which receives 

 in return, copper (to the amount of ,2,000,000 in 

 some years), wheat, silver ore, raw cotton, and wool. 

 The total imports amount to ^1,000,000 annually, 

 and the exports to a little less. The territory of 

 the Araucanians, lying on the southern frontier, 

 with an area of 120,000 square miles, and a war- 

 like population of 70,000 aborigines, was annexed 

 to Chili in 1862. In this territory, which extends 

 from 37 51' to 39 40', is situated Valdivia, an 

 important German settlement ; and on the Bay 

 of Arauco there are coal-mines at full work, 

 yielding 200,000 tons annually. This state also 

 laid claim to the whole of Patagonia and Tierra 

 del Fuego ; but the claim was ultimately settled 

 mainly in favour of the Argentine Confederation 

 some years ago. 



ARGENTINE CONFEDERATION. 



Area, 5 1 5, 700 square miles; population, 1,736,922 

 white. 



This republic comprises fourteen provinces, and 

 stretches from the Chilian Andes to the Atlantic ; 

 and from the Bolivian frontier to the Rio Negro, 

 which separates it from Patagonia. It thus ex- 

 tends from 22 to 41 south lat. and from 54 to 

 92 west long. After the declaration of independ- 

 ence in 1816, the provinces which had composed 

 the viceroyalty of Buenos Ayres continued long 

 in a state of anarchy ; but in 1831, they coalesced 

 into the Argentine Confederation. In 1853, 

 Buenos Ayres separated from the other provinces, 

 and became an independent state. It has again 

 been re-united with them ; and the city of Buenos 

 Ayres has since 1862 been the capital of the Con^- 

 federation. The country, with the exception of 

 the western border occupied by the Andes and 

 their offshoots, consists mostly of vast treeless 

 plains called pampas. These present interminable 

 expanses of coarse tall grass, alternating with 

 tracts entirely covered with gigantic thistles, and 

 with salt lakes. Many parts, however, are entirely 

 desert ; and one immense plain, west of the river 

 Salado, is named the Great Salina, from its being 

 covered with a thick incrustation of salt The 

 pampas afford pasture to immense herds of cattle , 

 and horses. The principal river is the Parana, 

 with its western tributaries, the Paraguay, Pil- 

 comayo, Vermejo, and Salado. A number of 

 rivers in the interior are lost in salt lakes and 

 swamps. South of the estuary of La Plata are 

 the Salado of Buenos Ayres, the Rio Colorado, 

 and the Rio Negro. The soil is capable of a great 

 variety of productions. In the north, Indian corn, 

 rice, cotton, tobacco, wine, &c. ; in the south, 

 wheat, Indian corn, barley, &c. are cultivated. 

 But the great wealth of the country consists in 

 its countless herds of cattle, and flocks of sheep. 

 The public revenue is about .8,000,000 per annum ; 

 and the expenditure is a little less ; while the debt 

 amounts to more than ,25,000,000. The imports 

 consist of cotton and woollen goods, machinery, 

 coal, and iron ; and the exports, of wool and 

 tallow (these two articles forming more than 

 one-half of the total), hides, sheep-skins, jerked 

 beef, horse-hair, and ostrich feathers. Until 

 recently, there 1 were only two roads, or rather 

 routes, of communication through the territory : 

 one from Buenos Ayres west to Mendoza, and 



326 



over a pass of the Andes to Santiago ; the other, 

 to the northern provinces, and thence to Bolivia 

 and Peru. During the last few years, however, 

 a complete network of railways, at the expense of 

 the state, has been in course of construction ; and 

 several lines are open for traffic. There has been 

 of late years a large immigration from Europe 

 into this republic, chiefly from Italy, Spain, and 

 France. The capital is Buenos Ayres (pop. 

 177,787), situated on the southern margin of the 

 estuary of the Plata ; the other chief towns are 

 Cordova (pop. 28,523), Tucuman (pop. 17,438), 

 Salta (pop. 11,716), Corrientes (pop. 11,218), and 

 Santa Fe (pop. 10,670). Buenos Ayres, founded 

 by the Spaniards in 1535, is a fortified town, with 

 a university, a cathedral, and many churches, 

 Protestant as well as Catholic, and is the chief 

 seat of commerce in the republic. The boundaries 

 of this republic, except on the side of Brazil, have 

 never been formally settled ; and, in addition to 

 its home territory, it disputes with Chili the right 

 to the possession of the whole of Patagonia. 



PARAGUAY. 



Area, 57,303 square miles ; population, 1,200,000 

 in 1871. 



The republic of Paraguay is situated between 

 the rivers Parana and Paraguay, and extends 

 from 22 to 27 S. lat. and from 57 to 60 W. 

 long. It is one of the most fertile countries in 

 South America. The hills towards Brazil are 

 clothed with forests, which, besides timber, yield 

 dye-woods, gums, &c. ; and the low grounds, 

 which occupy the centre of the country, abound in 

 rich pastures and cultivated farms ; but towards 

 the south-east, the country is swampy. The 

 climate is warm, but on the whole salubrious. A 

 large portion of the soil is planted with yerba 

 ma//, or Paraguayan tea, which is extensively 

 used in South America, and forms one of the 

 chief articles of commerce. Other tropical pro- 

 ductions, such as sugar, tobacco, cotton, &c. are 

 also raised in great abundance. 



Paraguay was first colonised by the Spaniards 

 in 1535. The first mission of the Jesuits was 

 established in 1608 ; and this society soon after 

 became the rulers of the country, and continued to 

 govern it till 1768, when they were expelled by 

 the Spanish government. On the subversion of 

 the Spanish dominion in 1814, Dr Francia made 

 himself dictator, and ruled the country in the spirit 

 of the Jesuits, prohibiting all intercourse with 

 foreigners, and keeping up a system of terror till 

 his death in 1840. In 1844, the country adopted 

 a republican constitution, and was opened to 

 commercial intercourse. In 1865, a dispute with 

 the Brazilian government led to the invasion of 

 Paraguay by the united forces of Brazil, the 

 Argentine Confederation, and Uruguay ; and, 

 after five years' warfare, to the defeat and death 

 of President Lopez in the battle of Aquidaban in 

 1870. By this war, Paraguay lost both in terri- 

 tory and population. Her boundaries were pre- 

 viously ill defined ; but her area, which was 

 formerly reckoned at 103,145 square miles, has 

 been reduced to 57,303, and her population, which, 

 in 1857, was 1,337,439, amounted, in 1885, only to 

 500,000. About one-third of the population 

 resides in the central province, which contains the 

 capital ; the rest is spread thinly over the country. 



