Our Railroad Age. 57 



it traverses what has above been designated as a wilder- 

 ness — prodigious primeval forests that are pra6lically a 

 terra incognita to civilisation. Still, the general igno- 

 rance of its very existence indicates how very little is 

 really known of the possibilities of this Continent, even 

 by those who reside in their very midst, 



The time is now approaching, however, when this 

 ignorance of and indifference to the neighbouring States 

 will be greatly modified; and when, indeed, it may be 

 found of vital importance to the commercial and indus- 

 trial interests of the Guianese to open up communication 

 by railroad with their Latin neighbours — either to the 

 West or South ; as the case may be. And as that time 

 is within measurable distance, a description of the vast 

 South American railroad system now being proje6led 

 may not be found out of place in the pages of this 

 journal. As will probably be known to many readers of 

 this article, several lines of railroad have already been 

 constru6led in Brazil, the Argentine, Chile and Peru, 

 whilst a great many more are in process of constru6lioH. 

 Already the line from Buenos Ayres to Valparaiso is 

 nearly through, the last, the trans-Andean se6lion, being 

 within two years of completion. Throughout the Argen- 

 tine and Peru there is a perfe6l network of lines in 

 course of constru6tion, and which, in the case of the 

 latter country, owing to the fortunate settlement of the 

 foreign debt and the concessions given the bondholders, 

 will be continued on to the Purus and Amazon rivers, 

 Lake Titicaca and La Paz, and other Bolivian cities. 

 Meanwhile, the northern branch of the Argentine road 

 is being steadily pushed forward to the Bolivian frontier, 

 whilst in Bolivia arrangements are being made to con- 



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