MATEEIAL CONDITION OF AEGENTLNA. 465 



regions the mule is almost exclusively employed for all purposes, being- more 

 sure-footed and hardier than the horse. But hitherto little attention has been 

 paid to the improvement of the breed. The mules which are now exported through 

 Buenos Ay res to the Mascarenhas, to India, and in the oppobite direction to the 

 Andean provinces, are all raised on the coast-lands. 



Sheep constitute v/ith the horse and ox the chief animal wealth of Argentine, 

 and even tend to take the foremost position. Under the colonial administration 

 they had increased enormously, although at that time possessing but little market 

 value. In the interior a few Calchaqui women used the wool to weave some 

 coarse textiles : but the flesh was not even eaten, but left to the dogs and vultures, 

 while the bones were used for making lime. 



Spain had interdicted the importation of the merino breed, which was not 

 introduced till long after the declaration of independence. But since I80O a 

 large nimiber of English and other breeders have improved the native varieties, 

 and by crossings with various European breeds have obtained new types of sheep 

 as well as of horses and cattle. The best wools are yielded by those that graze 

 on the short grasses of the north-western provinces, and especially of the puna 

 region in Jujuy. Here the sheep is associated with the llama, an animal not met 

 in any other part ot Argentina. 



All the other European domestic animals have been introduced, and thrive 

 well even without any special care. Dogs and cats, which have reverted in 

 thousands to the wild state ; pigs, goats, rabbits, and poultry of all kinds are 

 met everywhere. Both the South American and the African ostrich have 

 succeeded in some farms ; but the industry has not acquired the same import- 

 ance that ostrich farming has in the Cape. Larks and other singing-birds have 

 been let loose on the pampas, and the Eui'opean bee thrives in Entre -Rios. But it 

 may be asked whether it would not be wiser to utilise the native species. Vat-ious 

 honey-yielding insects swarm in Gran Chaco and in the province of Santiago del 

 Estero, where they still give rise to a considerable industry. The Indian meleros, 

 or honey gatherers, make long journeys of days, or even weeks together, in quest 

 of the combs deposited by the bees or other melliferous insects in holes or on the 

 branches of trees. At times they fell entire woods in the search. Hence it is to 

 be feared that the valuable honey-makers may disappear altogether before suffi- 

 cient knowledge has been gained to regulate their work and prepare suitable 

 hives for their reception. Meantime apiculture, in the strict sense of the word, 

 has made but little progress. There are a few hives here and there, but in certain 

 provinces the introduction of the domestic bee appeirs to have been foi bidden as 

 injurious to the fruit-trees. 



Although in recent years tillage has encroached on pasturage, just as sheep- 

 farming has been developed at the expense of cattle-breeding, the Argentine 

 provinces of Entre-Rios and Buenos Ayres, together with the conterminous 

 Republic of Uruguay, still possess more cattle and horses in proportion to the 

 population than any other region of the globe. In respect of sheep they rival, 

 and, in some districts, greatly outstrip Australia itself. 



