THE FIRST TRANSANDINE RAILROAD 



407 



THE COWBOYS OF THE PAMPA 



garment, but the heart of Argentina Hes 

 beyond the merry throngs, far beyond 

 the fashionable suburbs of Belgrano and 

 Florista, out on the boundless pampa, 

 through which we will journey by rail. 

 "The International Express" leaves 

 Buenos Aires in the morning, so we have 

 a day's view of the country stretching 

 southward from the railway before the 

 foothills are reached. The longest 

 straight stretch of track in the world 

 (175 miles) lies between Vedia and 

 Mackenna, on this line. 



ARGENTINA EXPORTS MORE FOODSTUFFS 

 THAN THE UNITED STATES 



The development of Argentina has 

 been nothing short of marvelous. The 

 Republic is one of the few countries in 

 the world today with advancing trade 

 values. In 1909 there was a yearly gain 

 of $61,000,000 in foreign commerce, and 

 the exports exceeded the imports by 

 more than $94,000,000. The wool and 

 frozen-meat industries have developed 

 rapidly, and when it comes to grains the 

 figures are simply amazing. Two and 

 one-half million tons of wheat and over 

 two million tons of corn went out of the 



country last year to feed the hungry peo- 

 ple of the world. The United States of 

 North America now plays second fiddle 

 to a southern sister in the exportation of 

 foodstuffs. Argentina leads the world in 

 the exportation of grains. 



Many of the ranches, or "estancias." in 

 "The Camp" are owned by Britishers. 

 The men who do the work, however, the 

 cowboys of the Pampa, are the Gaiiclws, 

 who are, as a rule, native born. Inferior 

 physically to our cowboys of the West, 

 these men are far more picturesque in 

 costume. They are especially fond of 

 ornamentation — fringed leather and sil- 

 ver trappings, tight boots with silver 

 stirrups, and their saddles are bedecked 

 in a similar fashion. With the encroach- 

 ment of the railroads and modern civili- 

 zation, the Gaiicho is losing much of the 

 old-time charm so long associated with 

 his name, but, with his wild life and his 

 combats, his songs and his dances, he 

 still plays the star role in "The Camp." 



On our journey across the country we 

 see manv of these unique ranchmen at 

 the railway stations. At Rufino. half 

 way to Villa Mercedes, the low-lying 

 land is covered with water, and myriads 

 of ducks, gulls, and other water fowl 



