The Sun.
London, England, 1865-09-19 00:00:00

SOUTH AMERICA.

BUENOS AYRES, Sept. 11.
The Buenos Ayres Standard publishes the follow
ing summary of events :

" Since the sailing of the packet we have but
little to record respecting the war. President Mitre,
with the allied forces, is still at Concordia. General
Flores has been detached with a strong force to
impede the further progress of the Paraguayans on
the Correntina banks of the Uruguay. It is gene-
rally supposed that he will succeed in cutting them
off. General Paunero, who also commands a re-
spectable division of the Argentine army, has fallen
back from his position on the Parana, in the direc-
tion of the Uruguay.

" The Brazilian squadron is still in the same po-
sition. General Canaverro commands a wing of the
Brazilian army on the left bank of the Uruguay,
near Uruguayana, where a powerful Paraguayan
force is advancing. General Osorio, who commands
the main Brazilian force, is still encamped at Con-
cordia ; and, in fact, the only change in the atti-
tude of the belligerents ifs on the part of the Para-
guayans, who have recently resumed active opera-
tions, and are now masters of nearly all the unfor-
tunate province of Corrientes. They have taken the
towns of Bella-Vista, Saladas, and San Roque, and
perpetrated the most unheard-of pillage; all the
goods in the stores have been swept away, in capa-
cious bullock carts, by th", ruthless.invaders ; and in
the city of Corrientes we egret to say that even the
women have not escaped. It is really awful- to con-
template the frightful consequence of this war
should it last for any length of time ; and yet peace
seems to be utterly out of the question. Lopez,
who is fighting for
_his very existence, professes to
be waging war against President Mitre and his
party and General Flores and his Ministers, and
not against the Argentine Republic or the
Banda Oriental ; whilst, on the other hand,
General Mitre, who has been forced into the
struggle, avows that he fights Lopez, and not Par-
aguay. The strength of Paraguay was hitherto un-
known in Buenos Ayres ; it consists in immense
masses of infantry, who all blindly follow their
leader, and fight with the tenacity of Russians.
" Lopez's army is destitute of everything save
arms, and thus it is that in every town which bears
the footprints of the invaders a general sack and in-
discriminate pillage sets hi, which seems to be so
congenial to the Paraguayan soldier, that we learn
from two respectable Paraguayan youths who have
recently escaped from the enemy's camp that the
war is most popular among the common Paraguayan
soldiers. Precisely the reverse is it with President
Mitre, who has to contend with the insubordination
of men impatient of every restraint, and who abhor
the strict military discipline of such a general ; still
the resources of the allies are so immense, and those
of the enemy so limited, that the ultimate result of
the war cannot be doubted.

"Notwithstanding the war Buenos Ayres is ra-
pidly improving. The sheep farmers are all doing
well; the winter season is now nearly over, it having
been one of the mildest experienced for years. The
increase in the flocks in some districts is unprece-
dented,-and if sheep go on augmenting as they have
for the last few years, the export of wool from La
Plata will ere long rival that of Australia. Business
in Buenos Ayres is at ,present dull, money remark-
ably easy, and the paper currency improving. The
extreme ease in our money market has given a very
firm tone to Argentine National Bonds, which have
become a favourite investment for surplus capital.
These bonds are now quoted at 42, and in demand.
The quarterly interest and amortisation on the Bus-
chental Loan have just been paid. These securities
cannot be bought in this market, as they are held by
large capitalists, who, in consequence of the enor-
mous amortisation at par ordered by law, refuse to
sell them. An offer of 65 percent. was made last week
for $500,000, and declined. We all look anxiously for-
--warel-4or, newrikleper,Lontlwresporting Signor-Ries-
tra's mission; it is supposed that he will negotiate the
new loan on the most favourable terms, as this
country as yet owes, we may say, nothing. Since
the last packet the banks have all reduced their
rates of interest, raid money has become very abun-
dant. The Maua Bank in Montevideo has on hand
nearly $2,500m0 in gold.
" The most important event of the day is the
opening of the Buenos Ayres Great Southern Rail-
way. On Monday, the 14th inst., the contractor,
consulting the public convenience, and with a view
to accommodate the estancieros of the south, will
open the road to public traffic to a station within
about 3f leagues of Chascomus. The masterly
manner in which the work is done is the constant
theme of all who have been over the road. It is
surmised that within a few months the road will be
completely finished to Chascomus. Had the public
inauguration of this road been in happier times we
might have hoped to see it continued to Dolores ;
but, in the present critical state of affairs, and, in
fact, until the Paraguayan war be terminated, we
fear such an extension is but an illusion of the
imagination.
" Specie opened very weak this morning, and fell
immediately 10 centessimos. Later on in the day
buyers for cash were more numerous.
Exchange on England has an upward tendency,
owing to the belief that the loan about to be nego-
tiated will be drawn for, and not remitted in specie.
About £120,000 is the total amount drawn for the
packet, of which 1,000,000 fr. have been drawn by
the River Plate Bank.

" There has been very little done in wool during
the fortnight, and at least 70,000 arrobas are at
present in deposit.

" In national bonds we notice increased firmness
to-day. None sold, although there were buyers at 42.
Money is so abundant that discounters find great
difficulty in obtainingbills at 1 per cent. per month.
Gold, however, is much more abundant than paper."