POPULAR SCIENCE REVIEW. 

NOTES ON THE ARGENTINE REPUBLIC. 
By CHARLES OXLAND. 
[Plate I.] 
T HE immense territory possessed by tbe Argentine Republic, 
about 1,152,000 square miles, with a population of only 
1,200,000 inhabitants, forcibly recalls a remarkable feature in 
ancient Spanish colonization. The Spaniards in their expeditions 
were usually not contented with safely establishing one point 
only on the sea- coast, but they pressed forward to the interior, 
making new conquests, and often leaving behind them small 
garrisons which the Indians required but little provocation to 
attack. This system frequently led to serious disasters, as is 
instanced by their chief seaport settlement of Buenos Ayres, 
which, on account of persistent Indian attacks, was twice aban- 
doned, previous to its final settlement in 1580. The courage 
of the Spanish settlers was sorely tried, and the history of the 
country shows that the wide extent over which the Indians have 
ranged, from the ‘ Gran Chaco/ or Indian territory of the 
north, to Patagonia in the south, has been one of the principal 
causes of the slow development of the interior provinces along 
the eastern slope of the Andes. 
Between Buenos Ayres and Rosario a short distance is now 
travelled by rail, whence steamers take passengers up the 
Parana. The variety of scenery and the richness of vegetation 
on this river make this journey a great treat to the lover of 
nature ; the beautiful bits of tree, shrub, and bank, that open 
up full of colour and graceful form at each successive bend are 
almost bewildering, and make one long to have time to absorb 
the whole scene. In many places the banks of the river are 
flanked by higher ground, which shows signs of having, at 
some time, bounded a stream compared to which the present 
one would be a pigmy in size. The Parana, as it now is, 
allows steamers of 1500 to 2000 tons to go up to Rosario, a 
distance of nearly two hundred miles ; and navigation for small 
NEW SERIES, VOL. IV. NO. XIII. B 
