The morning call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1878-1895, 1890-07-20

out in chunks and cord up, but it is so
thick that for many miles it will not mix
with the ocean, but covers it like coat,
which passing steamer rolls back reveal
Ing the torquoise-blue of the Southern
Ocean.
There are no mountains in this country
except the Andes, on the extreme western
margin OF the continent, yet the Spanish
explorers found the Indians of the pampas
decked with silver ornaments in extrava-
CANT profusIon. When they discovered
this mighty river they expected that it
would lead them to the mountains and the
silver mines, and they called it the Rio de
la Plata. The romance is gone. The La
Plata is broad, muddy, matter-of-fact
channel of commerce,
Coming from the north by American
steamers, as all good Americans do, after
the lowlands about Para and the mouth of
the Amazon. the coast daily grows more
and more hlly until Rio Janeiro is reached.
where the eye rests upon nothing but
mountains capped with swiftly moving
clouds, their height being exaggerated by
the dead level of the sea. Leaving Rio the
ship passes far out from land. until on the
fourth day the passenger wakes and finds
himself anchored in the Rio de la Plata,
four miles from Montevideo, the capital of
the republic Of Uruguay. Ii he is West
ern man he will stand ready to make aft
davit that he is looking off into the semi
improved rolling praires, dotted with herds
of grazing cattle. that surround the new
towns of Northern Iowa, of Nebraska or
OF Kansas; and If his eyes are sharp he
will be able to define half-plowed fields,
with the unfinished land" laid off in good
United States fashion.
To the American this sight is exhilarat-
ing after month of pOst-mortem eXamina-
ton of defunct civilization, presented from
the West Iudies to Rio and he feels a re-
assuring sense of home instead of the
settled disgust that hitherto had increased
the farther he went The next feeling is
one of astoniShment that the modern city
of more than 100000 people is almost en-
tirely surrounded with uncultivated graz
ing lands. However, the traveller decides
to enjoy the view of the beautiful hill from
which the city takes its name and which
rises four or five hundred feet in gently
eurvng lines, capped by an old fort and
lighthouse. This is the only elevation that
breaks the monotony OF this fiat Plate
River country for hundreds of miles. 1t is
a magnificent TOWNSHIP, and the passenger
finds himself wondering what induced the
Orientals to plant their city a mile away
across the bay. But the town is creeping
around toward the hill, and the Orientals
had better look sharp or they will awake
some fine morning to find an American land
boomer with the whole height staked off in
city lots.
The people of Uruguay are known down
here as Orientals. with the accent ON the
.,
pubics the Banda Oriental. Before pro-
ceeding up the river 100 miles to Buenos
Ayres European steamers usually stop here
to discharge cargo for the Mount" and if
the traveller is impatient he can take one of
the fine river steamers and save from ten to
twenty-four hours delay. The vessel does
not approach very near the shores, for the
river grows very shallow landward, and
rarely, even as far up as Buenos Ayres, is
it possible to catch a glimpse of the shores
of the Banda Oriental.
By 9 o'clock the steamer enters the
roads" and drops anchor five miles from
the Argentine shore, out of sight of the
Banda Oriental, and twelve miles from the
City of Good Airs-BuenoS Ayres. The
traveller sees the city resting in a four-mtle
curve of the shore, and gistening white in
the brilliant sunshine, for it is city of
stucco and whitewash. The air is filled
with the tiny migratory spiders that so de-
lighted Darwin more than forty years ago.
From sixty to eighty ocean vessels are at
anchor in the roadstead, with multitude
of smaller river steamers, tenders, tugs.
lighters and sailboats fitting about, for,
like all the other cities Of South America,
Buen0s Ayes has no docks. All cargo
must be unl0aded into lighters in deep wa
ter. after the most Anticipated style. These
lighters usually are only hulls, without
sails or other means of propulsion, and
are towed about In squadrons by a putting
tug. comically out of proportion to its load.
However, Buenos Ayres is in fair way
to remedy this deficiency by system of
six immense connecting docks and sea-
wall, or break-water, now in process of
construction at a cost of $40 OO0.O 900. The
first Of these docks has already been COM
pleted, but the Wanted energy of the Ar
gentine Government is not aqual to the
task of keeping the twelve-mile channel of
approach dredged out for ocean steamers.
The consequence is that nineteen out of
twenty prefer anchorng in the roadstead
ten or fifteen miles fron the city.
That nation which for years has had
foreign commerce Of more than 500, 00o, 900
annual value, which from this single port
loads from 600 to 500 ocean steamers and
many more sailing vessels yearly, should so
long swim and float its products out ten or
twenty miles to load them might be called
stupid in North America. Ii you wish to
ship anything from trunk TO fat OK you
must first dump it into water cart, out Of
the cart into r0wboat, from the rowboat