204 IN THE WILDS OF SOUTH AMERICA 



Gran Chaco, a wild, uninviting region inhabited by savage 

 Indian tribes, and of the interior of which practically noth- 

 ing is known. We proceeded up the river but a comparar 

 tively short distance to the little settlement of Porto Galli- 

 leo, the headquarters of a concern engaged in extracting 

 tannin from quebracho-logs. A comfortable home had 

 been erected for the management, and their attention and 

 courtesy were most touching. They were a polyglot com- 

 munity, consisting of a Frenchman, a Brazilian, a Swede, 

 an Argentinian, a Paraguayan, and a German. However, 

 they Uved on the friendliest possible terms, and all co-op- 

 erated for the general good of the company. We came un- 

 expectedly, so no preparations had been made for our ac- 

 commodation; but each man had a private store of treasured 

 articles from home hidden away somewhere, and before long 

 one brought sheets, another blankets, a third monogrammed 

 towels, etc., until we were as comfortably provided for as 

 any one could wish. The men were very fond of a pet 

 jaguar which they had taken when a cub, but as the animal 

 grew older its temper became uncertain, so it was necessary 

 to confine it in a barred cage. Its wild brethren came from 

 the forest at night to pay it a short visit occasionally, as 

 attested by the footprints left in the soft ground near the 

 cage. 



The factory at Porto GaUileo for the manufacture of tanr 

 nin was of considerable size. Upon arrival from the forest 

 the trees were stripped of bark, ground, and boiled in huge 

 vats. The extract was boiled down to a concentrate and 

 pressed into small cakes; it is very valuable in tanning hides, 

 and its use shortens the time usually required for the proc- 

 ess. A number of valuable by-products are also obtained, 

 including dyestuffs. 



A narrow-gauge railway line was being built farther and 

 farther into the interior as the land was cleared; this had 

 been completed a distance of fifteen kilometers, and the 

 road-bed was in course of construction for forty additional 

 kilometres. The morning after our arrival at Porto GalU- 



