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governments comprise the whole of Patagonia), and the territorial government of Tierra del Fuego.

JUJUY.

A brief description of the different provinces will commence with Jujuy, situated in the extreme northwest of the Republic, Although the mountainous west is unfit for agricultural pursuits. there are many fertile valleys in the eastern part of Jujuy in which, among other products, wheat, tobacco, sugar cane, and rice are abundantly cultivated. This region is also noted for its immense forests and great abundance of water. The area of the province is 27,000 square miles and its population about 100,000 inhabitants. Jujuy is very rich in all classes of minerals, especially gold. In an official report, made in the year 1886, the following is to be found regarding the condition of the mining industry of the Province:*

It can be said that the mining industry is practically abandoned, notwithstanding the richness and extension of the mineral deposits. With the very deficient and primitive washing system in use, it is calculated that the annual production of gold extracted is over 200 pounds in weight. There is now a proposition awaiting the action of the legislature asking for the privilege to extract monthly 2,000 tons of the auriferous sands, to cover nearly one-third of the territory of the Province. The Government would get $6 Premium for every ton extracted. In the auriferous sands, not only gold is found but also fine metals and even precious stones, that help to pay the great expense of transporting the sand to Europe, where it is washed.

At the close of the year 1890, one hundred and ten mines were known to exist in Jujuy, of which seventy were of gold, thirty of silver, five of copper, one of mercury, and four of silver and copper mixed. Salt, asphalt, and petroleum are also to be found in great quantities.

Jujuy, being already connected with Buenos Aires by railroad, is only awaiting the beneficial action of capital and immigration to develop into one of the most prosperous provinces of the Republic. The capital of the Province is Jujuy, a city of about 10,000

* See Appendix E, Mines and Mining Laws, p. 433.

inhabitants. It has one national college, one normal school for girls, seven public schools, two banks, a custom-house, etc., and is in railroad communication with Buenos Aires.

SALTA.

The Province of Salta is situated to the south of Jujuy, and has an area of 45,000 square miles and 200,000 inhabitants. In its organic configuration, it is similar to the Province of Jujuy, being mountainous in some parts and having also some very fertile regions in which the pastoral and agricultural industries flourish. Great, too, are the mineral resources of this Province. Gold, silver, and copper are found in different parts of Salta; also salt, sulphate of lime, kaolin, coal, asphalt, and petroleum. But, as in Jujuy, the mining industry is practically abandoned, the people devoting themselves from preference to raising cattle and sheep and cultivating the products of the soil, such as wheat, maize, rice, tobacco, sugar cane, etc.

The city of Salta, the capital of the Province, has over 20,000 inhabitants. It has one national college, one normal school for girls, ten public schools, a hospital, a custom-house, two banks, etc., and it is in railroad communication with Buenos Aires.

TUCUMAN.

South of Salta, is to be found the most picturesque Province of the Argentine Republic, the most densely populated, and one of the richest. It is the small Province of Tucuman, with an area of only 13,000 square miles and 150,000 inhabitants. It is called the "Garden of the Republic," on account of its beautiful scenery. The principal industry, is the cultivation of the sugar cane, of which there were at the end of 1891, 56,833 acres under cultivation, while the previous year, there were only 36,536 acres. The 56,833 acres produced 110,000,000 pounds of sugar and 2,500,000 gallons of alcohol. With better machinery, it is calculated that

the production would have been 202,400,000 pounds of sugar, instead of 110,000,000.

Wheat yields about 17 bushels per acre; maize, 28 bushels per acre; rice, 48 bushels per acre, and tobacco, 760 pounds per acre. Besides these Products, Tucuman exports to the other Provinces great quantities of timber, leather, cheese, oranges, lemons, etc.

Although the Province is also rich in mineral resources, these have not yet received much attention. The breeding of sheep and cattle is also a secondary industry, there not being in the province over 100,000 sheep and 300,000 head of cattle.

The city of Tucuman is the seat of provincial authority, and has over 40,000 inhabitants. It has one national college, a normal school for young men, and thirty elementary schools, two banks, two hospitals, a theater, several public libraries, several hotels, etc. It is, like the capitals of all the other Provinces, in railroad communication with Buenos Aires. The city of Tucuman is, in one respect, the Philadelphia of the Argentine Republic, the declaration of independence having been made in that city on the 9th of July, 1816. The house in which the Congress convened is kept in perfect order, no alterations having been made to the hall in which the declaration was signed.

SANTIAGO DEL ESTERO.

The Province of Santiago del Estero is situated to the south of Salta, to the east of Tucuman and Catamarca, to the north of Cordoba and Santa Fé and the territory of El Chaco. It is more than double the size of Tucuman, its area being 31,500 square miles, but its population is only 250,000. With the exception of Guacayan Hill, which is about 1,000 feet in height, the whole Province constitutes a vast plain, slightly inclined from west to

east.

In 1890, there were in Santiago del Estero 700,000 head of cattle, 125,000 horses, 30,000 mules, 500,000 sheep, 600,000 goats,

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and 15,000 hogs. The cultivated area was distributed as follows: Wheat, 37,000 acres; maize, 74,000; lucerne, 14,826; sugar cane, 2,471; grapes, 741; miscellaneous, 37,000. One of the principal industries of Santiago del Estero is the sawing of its magnificent woods. There are over two hundred steam sawing mills. Over 80 per cent of the area of the province is covered with rich forests.

The capital of the Province, named also Santiago del Estero, is a pretty city, with very good public and private buildings, lighted by electricity. Its population is about 15,000. It has one national college, one normal school for girls, ten public schools, several libraries, a theater, etc.

CATAMARCA.

The Province of Catamarca is situated to the south of Salta and Tucuman, to the west of Salta, Tucuman, Santiago del Estero, and Cordoba, to the north of the Province of La Rioja, and to the east of Chile. Its area is 31,500 square miles, and its population 150,000. The Province is mostly mountainous, being level only in the southeast. In the valleys, maize, wheat, potatoes, barley, several fruits (especially oranges and figs), lucerne, and grapes, are successfully cultivated. The breeding of cattle and the dairy industry also occupy the people. A great many cattle are fattened in Catamarca and exported to Chile. In 1890, there were in Catamarca, 200,000 cattle, 120,000 sheep, 150,000 horses, 50,000 mules, 170,000 goats, and 5,000 hogs.

Among the other resources of Catamarca, the gold, silver, and copper mines deserve special mention. The mine of Piliciao, for example, is very important. Salt, coal, malachite, kaolin, sulphate of lime, alum, etc., are also found in Catamarca.

The city of Catamarca, the capital of the Province, is situated on the banks of the del Valle River, and its population is about 10,000 inhabitants. It has some notable public buildings, one

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