the climate temperate, with the exception of the southern extrem¬ 
ity, as in Valdivia for instance, where the maximum temperature 
is 77° Fahrenheit, and the lowest 28° Fahrenheit. 
Extent of Cultivation* 
The superficial area devoted to cultivation is shown in the 
following table: 
Wheat.... 
Barley. 
. 180,000 
Corn and Beans. 
. 150,000 
Potatoes. 
. 50,000 
Lentils. 
. 3,000 
Spanish Beans. 
. 2,000 
Peas.. 
. 20,000 
Vineyards. 
. 100,000 
Total. 
...1,505,000 
To this million and a half we must add about 600,000 hectares 
of land prepared for wheat from one year to the next, and 
500,000 hectares of meadow lands. 
On summing up these figures we obtain an aggregate of 
2,600,000 hectares, which, when compared with the 10,000,000 
hectares of tillable lands available in Chile, show that only one- 
fourth of her total area is utilized in agriculture, hence the 
splendid future which is reserved for this industry in Chile. 
The Future of Agriculture in Chile* 
The following are the principal drawbacks in agriculture: 
Lack or scarcity of transportation facilities on land, insuffi¬ 
ciency of the railroads, especially those running west and east, 
which ought to terminate at good shipping ports; lack of steam¬ 
ship lines to facilitate exportation of produce ; consequent high 
freight rates (the increase of the National Merchant Marine is 
in project to obviate this important difficulty) ; lack of sufficient 
population, and finally, the scarcity of capital, which tends to 
create high rates of interest on money invested in farming. 
