76 TUCUMAN AND MENDOZA 



divided into two separate compartments, with very 

 little exchange between them. The first comprises 

 the zone that depends on the Central Argentine and 

 the State Railway'; the second is the zone of the 

 Central Cordoba and the old local line bought by the 

 Central Cordoba. 



Certain parts, such as Cruz Alta and the district 

 round the town, have too many works in proportion 

 to their production of cane, and they are centres of 

 import. The price of the cane is always higher here 

 than in the agricultural districts. Each works has its 

 customers. At the stations it instals weighing machines 

 for receiving and weighing the cane. It is only the 

 more important caneros who have the privilege of 

 selling by the truck-load, or selling to distant works. 

 The small growers are compelled to deal with the local 

 refinery. They sell it their canes direct, or, sometimes, 

 through agents and dealers. In the days when the 

 works were competing for cane it became the custom 

 to sign the purchase-contracts as early as possible ; 

 sometimes at the beginning of October, as soon as the 

 harvest of the year is over. In order to make sure 

 of the loyalty of the canero the manufacturers advance 

 money to him, in proportion to their difficulty in getting 

 cane. 



Caneros and mill-owners have had to work together 

 to settle the problem of labour. There was not enough 

 at hand, and it had to be recruited elsewhere. Agents 

 were sent all round to Catamarca and Santiago del 

 Estero, and even to the province of Cordoba to collect 

 and bring gangs of workers. They were a mixed, 

 unsteady, undisciplined lot. The owners of the works 

 advanced them money in order to keep them, and 

 then, fearing to lose the money advanced, would not 

 dismiss them for laziness and irregularities. These 

 troubles are not felt as much now as they were at the 

 time when the industry was expanding. The popula- 

 tion of immigrant workers has settled down and taken 



