ARGENTINE REPUBLIC. 



15 



ured tobacco ($120,339) ; clocks and watches 

 ($30,347, against $24,006 from France, and $14,- 

 926 from Great Britain). Of American musical 

 instruments of all kinds, but $5,939 worth were 

 sent to the republic in 1882. American ma- 

 chinery is fast gaining favor, no fewer than 

 sixty-two locomotives having been ordered ot 

 a single Philadelphia firm in 1882, while the 

 total number imported from the United States 

 in the year previous was but seven ; and exten- 

 sive orders for rolling-stock, particularly draw- 

 ing-room cars, were also given in 1883. Indeed, 

 there is a growing appreciation of things Ameri- 

 can in the Argentine Republic. 



The imports of specie in 1882 were $2,683,- 

 327. and the exports, $2,225,082 ; against $4,- 

 157,648 and $2,991,305 respectively in 1881. 



Chief among the Argentine export staples is 

 wool; the quantity shipped in 1882 was 111,- 

 009,796 kilogrammes, of the value of $29,033.- 

 000, against 89,259,122 in 1876. Next in im- 

 portance after wool are hides, of which but 

 1,945,427, of the value of $8,286,000, were ex- 

 ported in 1882, against 2,325,866 in 1876 ; then 

 follow sheep-skins (22,353,021, of the value 

 of $4,095,000 in 1882, against 27,597,973 for 

 1876); jerked beef, 26,996,613 kilogrammes, 

 $3,756,000; tallow, $2,699,000: maize, 107,- 

 327,155 kilogrammes, $2,141,000; live cattle, 

 94,649, $1,478,000; linseed, 23,351,794 kilo- 

 grammes, $1,650,000; bones, ores, etc. 



Agriculture, etc. Until within a few years an 

 importer, the Argentine Republic is now an ex- 

 porter of wheat in constantly increasing quan- 

 tities: 1,705,292 kilogrammes in 1882. Sugar- 

 culture is rapidly developing in Tucuman, Sal- 

 ta, Jujuy, Santiago, Corrientes, and in parts of 

 the Gran Chaco and Misiones. The total su- 

 gar-crop for 1882 was estimated at 11,615,000 

 kilogrammes. Tucuman nowgrowsl7,500 acres 

 of cane, giving work to thirty-four mills. The 

 vine is extensively cultivated ; Catamarca, in 

 1881, produced 1,200,000 gallons of wine, val- 

 ued at $108,000 ; and, in 1882, San Juan pro- 

 duced 5,236,186 gallons, valued at $1,107,275. 

 But the main sources of the country's wealth 

 are cattle rearing and sheep-farming. There 

 were in the republic, at the beginning of 1883, 

 93,000,000 head of sheep, while Australia's 

 flocks numbered but 72,000,000, and those of 

 the United States, 41, 000,000; of horned cattle 

 there were 16,000,000 in the republic; and of 

 horses, about 5,000,000. The statistics of these 

 industries, for the single province of Buenos 

 Ayres, were given in the census returns of Oct. 

 9, 1881, as follow : Sheep, 57,838,073 ; horned 

 cattle, 4,754.810 ; horses, 2,396,469; hogs, 

 155,134; goats, 7,612. 



Shipping Movements. The shipping movements 

 at the various ports of the republic were as be- 

 low, in 1882 : 



Entered: FOREIGN TRADE. 



Steamers, 8.040, with an aggregate of 1,104.927 tons. 



Bailing-vessels, 8,031, " " 423,121 " 



Cleared : 



Steamers, 2,742, " u 1,080,214 " 



Sailing-vessels, 2,023, " " 867,925 " 



The distribution of the foreign carrying- 

 trade by flags was as follows : British, 31 per 

 cent.; French, 16; Argentine, 13; Italian, 9; 

 Uruguayan, 9 ; German, 6 ; Brazilian, 4 ; Nor- 

 wegian, 4; Spanish, 3; American, 2; Belgian, 

 1 ; others, 2. 



COASTING AND FLUVIAL TRADE. 

 Entered : 



Steamers, 6,002, with an aggregate of 1,351,468 tons. 



Sailing-vessels, 15,725, " " 478,465 " 

 Cleared : 



Steamers, 6,012, " " 



Sailing-vessels, 16,195, " " 



The distribution of this trade by flags was : 

 Argentine, 57 per cent. ; British, 24 ; French, 

 9 ; Uraguayan, 3 ; Paraguayan, 2 ; others, 5. 



"We have no merchant navy," writes a na- 

 tive statistician, " unless that name be given to 

 a few hundred barges, lighters, and schooners, 

 which, with Italian and Austrian crews, ply 

 on our rivers and carry the Argentine fiag just 

 as they might carry the Turkish." 



Railways. The railways in operation, and in 

 process of building, at the end of 1883, were as 

 follow : 



Central Argentine (Rosario to Cordoba) . . 

 Northern Central (Cordoba to Tucuman). 



Northern Central (Tucuman to Jujuy) 



Northern Central (branch from Frias to 



Santiago) 



Northern Central (branch from. Eecreo to 



Chumbicha)* ... 



Andine (Villa Maria to La Paz) 



Andine (La Faz to San Juan via Mendcza} 

 Western (Buenos Ayres to Bragado, and 



branches to Pergamino and Lobos). . . 



Western (extensions) 



Southern (Buenos Ayres to Altamirano, 



and branches to Olavarria and Tandil) 

 Southern (Olavarria to Eahia Blanca). . . 

 Northern (Buenos Ayres to El Tigre). . 

 Ensenada (Buenos Ayres to Ensenada). 

 Campana (Buenos Ayres to Campana). . 



Eastern (Concordia to Ceibo) . 



Puerto Euiz and Gualeguay 



Eosario to Candelaria 



Transandinef (Mercedes in Buenos Ayres 



to Mercedes in San Luis) 



Santa Fe Colonial 



Kilometres Kilometres 



Totals 2,950 2,567 



In 



operation. 



546 



470 



515 



679 



'85 



58 



81 



ICO 



10 



840 



.255 



386 



578 

 100 



Tramways. At the end of 1882 there were 

 in the capital five tramway or horse-car lines, 

 which, covering an aggregate of 95 miles, and 

 with 1,001 employes, carried an average of 51,- 

 740 passengers daily. There were also lines in 

 some of the smaller towns of the province of 

 Buenos Ayres; C6rdoba city had two lines, 

 and Rosario one. 



Telegraphy. The total length of the Argen- 

 tine telegraph lines at the end of 1882 was 13,- 

 543 kilometres, of which 10,772 belonged to 

 the Government; there were 202 offices, and 

 the number of dispatches transmitted through- 

 out the year was 509,928, of which 71,838 



* From Chumbicha the line is to be extended southwest to 

 La Kiqja, and northeast to Catamarca. 



t This line will open direct communication between Buenos 

 Ayres and Santiago, the capital of Chili, and so .between the 

 Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. 



