22 STATES OF THE RIVER PLATE. 



am convinced that the ' actual ' position of sheep-farming 

 in the Kio de la Plata offers a brilliant opportunity to the 

 pioneers of an improved system of management and 

 breeding, with the object of producing a more robust 

 animal, one of larger carcase, yielding much more grease, 

 a fleece double the weight, and wool as long again in 

 staple ; at the same time more sound and elastic than the 

 average of the present stock — the means to attain which 

 end wiU be suggested in another part of this work. 



Sheep estancias are of various extents from half a 

 square league to four and five or more square leagues. 

 There are combined cattle and sheep ' estancias' of very 

 much greater extent ; many proprietors count from 20,000 

 to 100,000, and in some instances a still greater num- 

 ber, of sheep in their possessions. 



An establishment of this class consists of an estancia 

 house of more or less pretensions in size, round about 

 which there generally are plantations of paraiso, acacia, 

 poplar, willow, mulberry, and some few sturdy ' ombu ' 

 trees ; also in some cases peach plantations, out-offices, 

 sheds or ' galpones,' horse ' corrales ' or pens, and sheep 

 ' corrales.' These ' poblaciones,' habitations, with their 

 foliaged surroundings, stand out clear in the plain, and are 

 seen for considerable distances. Travelhng farther and 

 farther out into the plain they become fewer and further 

 apart. On different parts of an estancia there are erected 

 the huts of the shepherds, with their ' corrales,' called 

 ' puestos ' or stations, which, with a certain extent of 

 ground, are allotted to the different shepherds or 'pues- 

 teros ' for the run of the flock under his care. For the 



