ARGENTINE REPUBLIC. 



27 



following projected railroads : Extension of 

 the Northern Central via Jujuy, between the 

 Cabeza del Buey, Santa Rosa, and the southern 

 extremity of the Lerma valley, through Salta ; 

 from Chumbiclia to Tinogasta, Fuerte de An- 

 dalgala, via Punta del Negro or Quebrada de 

 Sebilla ; from Mendoza to San Rafael, via San 

 Vicente, lujan, Tupungato, and San Carlos; 

 from San Juan to Jachal, and from Albardon 

 to Cancete ; from Cajainarca to the Northern 

 Central Junction via the Totoral ; and finally, 

 from Rioja to Santa Rosa or Cholo. Concession 

 has been applied for for the construction of a 

 railroad from the Parana river at a point op- 

 posite the city of Corrientes to Tartagal on the 

 Bolivian frontier via Oran, the Government to 

 guarantee 5 per cent, interest and make the 

 company a land-grant of 360 square leagues in 

 alternating lots, with a two-league frontage on 

 both sides of the line. 



In April the railroad company that is build- 

 ing the Villa Maria-Rofino (Pacific) Railway ap- 

 plied to the Government for authority to ex- 

 tend it to Bahia Blanca, the southern port of 

 great promise. Another important project is 

 the one that is to connect by rail Buenos Ayres 

 and Montevideo. From Buenos Ayres, Las 

 Conchas would be reached over the Northern 

 Central Railroad. The total cost of this line 

 is estimated at $12,500,000 in gold. One third 

 would be on Argentine territory, and the re- 

 mainder on Uruguayan. 



New Steamer Lines. Under the auspices of 

 the Argentine Government two new lines of 

 fast steamships for European traffic are to be 

 established, and the projects were submitted 

 to Congress in July. One is to ply between 

 Buenos Ayres and Bordeaux, carving the mails 

 gratis, the Government guaranteeing the 5 per 

 cent, interest for a term of twenty years, and 

 whenever the annual net profit of the company 

 exceeds 12 per cent., such surplus to accrue 

 to the Government till it shall have recouped 

 the 5 per cent, interest disbursements. Another 

 line proposed is to be called " La Argentina," 

 and to consist of eight first-class steamships 

 of 3,500 tons, carrying the Argentine flag. 

 These steamers are to be furnished with re- 

 frigerating chambers for the conveyance of 

 fresh meat, and to carry immigrants from Ligu- 

 ria, Piedmont, Lombardy, the Romagna, Tyrol, 

 and Switzerland. The Government to have 

 the privilege for a suitable compensation to 

 use these boats as transports in time of war. 

 The company to receive a suitable bonus for 

 all immigrants it brings into the country be- 

 low the age of forty. 



Telegraphs. The lines in Operation in 1886 

 were owned and operated as follows : 



There were in course of construction 800 kilo- 

 metres of state lines. At the close of the year 

 1886 a consolidation of telephone companies 

 took place at Buenos Ayres, and the new 

 company immediately raised its rates so much 

 that a good many subscribers withdrew, and a 

 movement was set on foot to establish a co- 

 operative telephone company in opposition. 



Commerce. The foreign trade of the Argen- 

 tine Republic for five years has been : 



The Argentine foreign trade was distributed 

 in 1885 as follows (in thousands of dollars) : 



The goods shipped were: Wool, tons, 128,393; 

 hides, number, 2,742,771 ; sheep-skins, tons, 

 31,337; horse-hides, number, 373,365; other 

 skins, value, $1,986,000; tallow, tons, 23,260; 

 horse-hair, tons, 2,009 ; jerked beef, tons, 32,- 

 056; cattle, head, 159,664; minerals, value, 

 $1,682,000; bones, tons, 35,424; linseed, tons, 

 69,426 ; wheat, tons, 78,493 ; Indian corn, tons, 

 197,860; horns, tons, 1,261; ostrich- feathers, 

 kilograms, 34,710. During the wool-clip of 

 1886-'87 the export from Buenos Ayres from 

 Oct. 1, 1886, to July 31, 1887, was 226,614 

 hales, against. 262,116 the previous season. 

 During the first quarter of 1887 the import 

 into the Argentine Republic amounted to $30,- 

 322,467, including $2,765,716 specie, against, 

 respectively, $30,642,681 and $6,455,495 during 

 the corresponding period of 1886. The export 

 reached $27,580,500, inclusive of $1,000,327 

 specie, as compared with, respectively, $36,- 

 124,753, and $5,133,371 the previous year. 

 The American trade with the Argentine Re- 

 public is shown m tLe following table : 



Education. In 1886 there were 2.415 school^ 

 1,804 of them being primary public schools, 

 find 611 private; 180,768 pupils were attend- 

 ing them, and the number of teachers was 



