738 



PARAGUAY. 



PATENTS. 



of pins or a box of matches. From one es- 

 tablishment in the city of New York these 

 boxes are sent to Europe in large quantities, 

 and in the same establishment are made paper 

 pie-plates at a cost wholesale of about one half 

 a cent each, and deeper dishes for the use of 

 retail dealers in butter and other similar trades 

 at a price that enables them to be given away 

 by the seller and thrown away by the buyer. 

 Such dishes, with many other useful articles, 

 are made upon molds under a pressure of about 

 300 tons. 



PARAGUAY, a republic in South America. 

 (For details relating to area, population, etc., 

 see "Annual Cyclopaedia" for 1885.) 



Government. The President is Gen. Escobar 

 (elected in November, 1886). Pending the 

 formation of his Cabinet, the members of the 

 Cabinet of his predecessor retained their port- 

 folios ; they were : Secretary of State and of 

 the Interior, Col. Mesa; Foreign Affairs, Se- 

 fior J. S. Decoud ; Finance, Senor A. Cafiete; 

 Justice and Public Worship, Sefior Gonzalez ; 

 War, Col. Duarte. The United States Consul 

 and charge d'affaires at Asuncion is Samuel 

 A. Walton. The Paraguayan Consul-General 

 at New York is K. R. Barthold. 



Anglo-Paraguayan Treaty. A treaty of com- 

 merce and navigation between Great Britain 

 and Paraguay was signed during the summer 

 of 1886. The treaty accords most-favored-na- 

 tion treatment to British goods and vessels. 

 It applies to all British colonies except those 

 of India, Canada, Newfoundland, Australia, 

 Tasmania, New Zealand, the Cape, and Na- 

 tal, but may be extended to any of these on 

 notice being given by the British representa- 

 tive in Paraguay within two years from May 

 10, 1886. 



Finances. The home indebtedness of the 

 republic through the sale of Government lands 

 and the operations of a sinking-fund created 

 by adding 10 per cent, to the import duties, 

 has been reduced to the trifling sum of $331,- 

 730. The foreign debt was reduced to $4,250,- 

 000 by the convention with foreign bondhold- 

 ers, signed at London on Dec. 4, 1885. The 

 interest due on this consolidated debt will be 



2 per cent, annually during the first five years ; 



3 per cent, the next five years, and 4 per cent, 

 per annum thereafter. A sinking-fund at the 

 rate of half of 1 per cent, yearly has been pro- 

 vided, to become operative at the expiration of 

 the tenth year. 



The chief sources of revenue are the cus- 

 tom-houses, which produced $673,008 in 1884, 

 against $525,000 in 1883. The total income 

 of the Government during 1884 reached $839,- 

 970, while the expenditure did not exceed 

 $803,285. The budget for 1885 estimated the 

 income at $1,437,900 ; the outlay, $1,317,024. 



Tobacco. Foreigners residing in Paraguay ex- 

 patiate on the remarkably fine tobacco grown 

 in the country, which in fragrance and ap- 

 pearance, as well as suitableness for the manu- 

 facture of cigars, is ranked with Manila ; but, 



in spite of its intrinsically good qualities, it 

 does not bring abroad the price it would if 

 better cured and properly prepared for mar- 

 ket. Paraguayan tobacco-growers are said to 

 be strangely inexperienced and negligent. 



Commerce. There were imported into Para- 

 guay, in 1884, $1,448,000 worth of merchan- 

 dise, compared with $953,000 the previous 

 year; while the export of Paraguayan prod- 

 ucts was $1,572,000 in 1884, against $1,766,- 

 000 in 1883. In 1885 the chief exports con- 

 sisted of tobacco, which was represented by 

 $861,798; yerba mate (Paraguay tea), $790,- 

 400; hides, $249,584; and cabinet and dye 

 woods to the amount of $234,087 ; these four 

 articles alone constituting a total exportation 

 of $2,135,869. There were exported, besides, 

 some oranges and other minor products. 



PATENTS. A comparison of the year 1886 

 with 1885 discloses a slight falling off in pat- 

 ents issued, and a slight increase in the number 

 of applications for patents. 



Among the States, Connecticut leads in in- 

 ventiveness for 1885, with 1 patent for every 

 615 inhabitants, for 1886 with one for every 

 729. Massachusetts and the District of Colum- 

 bia follow next for both years, in the order 

 named. Mississippi, with 1 patent for every 

 21,761, is most backward in 1866. For 1885, 

 North Carolina, with 1 for 17,280, is the last. 

 In 1886, England took 548; Canada, 275; 

 Germany, 272 ; and France, 144 patents ; and 

 ten countries but 1 patent each. In 1885, 

 England took 549 ; Canada, 284 ; Germany, 

 298 ; and France, 138 patents. For this year, 

 also, ten countries took 1 patent each. 



Annual Reports. The Commissioner of Pat- 

 ents issued his annual report for 1885, dated 

 Jan. 30, 1886, in the " Official Gazette " of Feb. 

 16, 1886. The annual report for 1886, dated 

 Jan. 31, 1887, appeared in the "Official Ga- 

 zette" of Feb. 8, 1887. The burden of the 

 recommendations in both reports is the same, 

 more room, a laboratory, and readjustment of 



