122 THE WORLD'S MEAT FUTURE 



secured to four separate stakes, and almost before they are 

 aware of it the novel footgear is firmly fixed for the week's 

 journey. Every peon who works in the cattle trade in this 

 district is a rough farrier, and carries in his roll the tools of 

 the trade. 



" When we reach latitude 26 deg., abreast of the province 

 of Tucuman, the Andean chain grows yet bolder. On the 

 Pacific slope it preserves a fair parallel to the ocean, but it 

 encroaches steadily on the Argentine side, throwing out fresh 

 spurs constantly, till it reaches its maximum in the Bolivian 

 ' massif,' which rounds off the N.W. boundary of the Republic. 



" Earthquakes are felt more on the Chilian than on the 

 Argentine side. The tops of these mountain ranges have 

 from the date of their volcanic birth been abandoned to the 

 mercy of fierce air currents and torrential rains. Denudation 

 under these conditions has gathered at their base, and in the 

 cloven valleys there are pockets of soil of great fertility, 

 covered for the most part with dense forest, and suitable for 

 the growth of sub-tropical and tropical produce. The province 

 of Tucuman, called the ' Garden of the Republic,' is such a 

 pocket, situated at the foot of the Aconquija spur. 



" It would be unfair to conclude our review of the Republic 

 without a glance at Misiones, the smallest of the national 

 territories, which lies huddled between the upper reaches of 

 the Uruguay and Parana, at the point where their waters most 

 nearly approach each other. Connecting the Mesopotamia 

 with the Brazilian highlands, there is no portion of the Re- 

 public which has been more written about, and less visited. 

 Three hundred years ago the Jesuits recognised the value of 

 this unique position at the navigable limit of the two great 

 rivers. In 1732, previous to the decree that broke their power, 

 the pioneer monks had brought under their control upwards 

 of 200,000 Indians, collected in the thirty settlements from 

 which Misiones takes its name to-day. The ridge, which runs 

 through the centre of the territory to the coast plateau of 

 Brazil, is covered with extensive pine forests (Araucaria 

 Brazilensis), and amongst them are scattered clumps of ' yerba 

 mate,' the universal brew that takes the place of tea to the 

 working man in the Plate. The lower part of the land, which 



