New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1890-03-20
FOREIGN CAPITAL.
fYRoM A STAFF CORRESPONDENT or THE TRIBUyF.l
Ruonnc Axroe l.. y


When ono goes to the Boca and the shipping
damned and wedged into the Riachuclo, he is re-
minded of the Chicago River. When he returns
by train along the waters edge and goes out to
Bclgrano passing two riverside parks he recalls
again the metropolis of the West with its rail-
ways, plcasure-grounds and paatal residences
along the lake shore. The sun rises over river
SO broad that it is like Lake Michigan. From
that river base the city has shot out north, south
and west over a broad and level plain, doubling
its population within decade, and developing
an immense volume of business. 1t is the most
important railway centre Of South America. 1t
is the outlet for the agricultural produce OF con-
tincntal reaches of wheat belt. 1t is the chiei
saladcro, slaughtcrhouse. for the stock-ralsing
pampas 1t commands q fluvial system exceed
ing in volume the watershed of the Mississippi
It's commerce has expanded into enormous compass.
The city is fairly pulSatng with vitality. enter
prise and ambition. II has absolute faith in its
manifest destiny as one of the chief commercial
centres of the world. Not to put too fine point
on il. Buenos Ayrcs is not particularly modest. In
all these respects as well as i'll intensity of local
bride il strongly resembles the Chicago of the
North
No contrast could be more striking than that
between the sOmnolent, letharsic coast towns of
Brazil and this widc-awake, busting city There
is a stirring sense of activity in the streets be-
tokening an enormous mass of business. There is
no dawdling on the sidewalk Men walk brislly.
think quickly and have no time to waste Twenty
times a day ] imagine that / am in New-l orH
and look about for glimpse of the Tribune
tower The roadways are closely packed with
carriages in the business quarter, and there are
constant blocks in the middle of the day. An
American, who was anxious to have me the
81. .+o1 lrfH- with In a
Boca. The carriage became hopelessly entanglcd
in an old-fashoncd Broadway block. Finding
after an hours delay, that we could not make
Roadway. We got out and took street car That.
too. became involved in another block, and finally
ran OF the track. Ny friend profusc in his
apologies but thanked him for furnishing an
other proof that BucnoS Ayres was like Chicago
or Ncw-York, since il made me feel at home and
less lonesome. So inadequate are the street cars
for the requirements of the city that system
Of rapid transit has been introduced
by the steam railways which cncircle the town
1t is slow rapid transit, like that in Ncw-Nork.
The progress Of tie city has been so rapid that
much of the public work has been badly done,
and processes of reconstruction are in progress
everywhere Montcvidco has the aspect of a com
plcicd city Eucnos Ayrcs is rebuilding, and
looks unfinished Thousands of workmen are en-
and grading the acres reclaimed from the river
Pavcncnis are in process of repair in all sections
of the city. Water mains are going down and
sidewalks are coming up for a change Of grade
Wood pavcmcnts are replacing stone where car
mage drivcways are needed. and stone is subSti-
tucd for wood where tclming Is heaviest. The
streets torn up like those Of an AMERICAN city
at the mercy OF iobbins contractors. As the
drainage system has not been generally introduced
this transition stage viii he prolonged indefinitely
The cutters in many OF the streets are the ioulcst
/ have seen in South America. There are open
ings at the side by which the drainage Of the
houses is carried into tie gutter and left 10 cvapo
rate there in the sun. Early in the morning each
of these streets has its characteristic stencil, and
can almost ne identified by tic smell. The at
mosphcrc Of the town is contaminated nj those
hours with surface sewage. This evil is to DE
ahated when the drainage system is completed
The stcnclcs Will not bloom Away.
The houses and business blocks are undergoing
similar processes Of reconstruction. TIE finest
buildings are Of stone and marble, but ordinarily
brick walls have been covered with plaster. The
wear and tear Of active business here is too
great for these plaster fronts. The bases
are bruised and torn. and sometimes the
whole front has a ragged look, the brick showing
through tie crumbling plaster. \ great number
OF these false fronts being removed and mar
bic or stone slabs substituted for them. Many
more Of these hastily built structures have been
demolished and more substantial blocks ale grad
ualy taking their places The streets are Uttered
with brick, mortar and rubbish, and building
operations carried on in almost every long
block. The architectural Effects woud be
greatly improved if stone or marble fronts were
more general in the business quarter The pro-
Tor.
present stage to impart unfinished aspect to tie
town.
The progress of Buenos Ayres is without pre-
ccdcnt parallel in the history of South America
The population was $500 IN 1871; I17.sOO in
1860; 295 900 in 1ss2, and it is at least 49, 900
to-day. Rio de JanerO b3S Dccn dstanccd in the
race for supremacy, ana at the end of another ten
or twenty years BucnOs AyIcS may Dc close be
hind Philadelphia and Chicago. The develop
nent OF the commerce of the city has been
markablc as the growth Of population. In 1880
the import ana export trade OF the country, which
mainly centres IN this port, amounted 10 ST.
10000: in 1876 the aggregate was - 100000 !;
and it is now S22- ,j2f0l3. The house valua-
tons increased from S57,G000OD in 1857 10
S246,0O0,O0O in 1es4: and in wealth and re-
sources the city has rapidly risen from an inferior
position TO the foremost pl zee III south America.
his phenomenal progress has naturally had the
effect of stimulating the Imagination of the town.
Ii has the largest possible ideas OF It's own i'm
portancc and It's manifest destiny. The traveller
is abruptly informed that BucnOs Ayrcs is the
biggest, handsomest and most prosperous city
the southern Hemisphere, Melbourne. Sydney,
Rio de Janeiro Montcvideo and Valparaiso having
been Outrivalled. As there is no city in North
America that receives pTOpOriondtcly as many
immigrants he is warned that the position Of New
York the largest centre Of population on the
American Continent IS insecure. Tine admission
is reluctantly made that Melbourne sydney and
even despised Rio have each greater volume of
commerce than Iiucnos Ayrcs but that fact is ex-
planned the theory that the Argentine Rcpub-
tic is a country of Undcyelolcd resources. and
that twenty years Of additional progress and i'm
migration will make the city the lrst IN export
and import trade, as it is already the ist popu-
lation Of the Southern Hemisphere.
There are ingenious statisticians who iattcr the
vanity OF the town by every manner of COMPARE
son with the great cities Of the world. Figures
are produced demonstrating that the real density