8 INTRODUCTION 



I have been restricted to the resources of the Paris 

 and London hbraries, which are very scanty ; and 

 less has been sent from Argentina since the war. I 

 have not the complete statistics up to date. 



I trust, however, that this picture of Argentina has 

 much more than a retrospective character ; that it is 

 not out of date before it is published. I may add 

 that no statistics would enable one to solve the problem 

 which Argentina in 1920 presents to an observer. 

 Has the European War merely retarded the economic 

 evolution of the country, or has it given that evolution 

 a new direction ? Will or will not the relations 

 which Argentina is now resuming with the rest of 

 the world be of the same character as the pre-war 

 relations ? 



The effects of the war upon the life of the country 

 must not all be put on the same footing. That some 

 of the exporters to Argentina have gained by the war 

 and others lost — that the share of the United States, 

 and even of Japan, has greatly increased — is a fact 

 that may be regarded from the Argentinian point of 

 view as of secondary importance. The war has, more- 

 over, had the effect of disorganizing marine transport 

 and bringing about a sort of relative isolation which 

 is not yet quite over. The reduction in the imports 

 of English coal has made the petroleum wells of Riva- 

 davia of greater value to the country. It has compelled 

 the Argentinians to make a hurried inventory of their 

 natural resources in the way of fuel. Local industries 

 have tried to meet the needs of the Argentinian market, 

 where they had no longer to bear the competition of 

 European goods. The grave disturbance of prices has 

 enabled them to export certain products which had 

 hitherto been confined to home markets. The war 

 has, moreover, not interfered with the existing streams 

 of export on a large scale from Argentina. The Repub- 

 lic continues to send its cereals, meat, hides and wool 

 to Europe ; and there is no reason to suppose that 



