Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1892-02-21
A LEADING REPUBLIC.
The Highest Civilization of South
America Is in Uruguay.
FAMED FOR PHYSICAL BEAUTY.
Deformities Practically Unknown and a
Beggar is Rarity.
GREAT RESOURCES OF THE ooUNTRl
rconnnsposDnsor OF THE p1spAroH.

1
MoNTEvIDEo, URUGUAY, Jan. ia
traveller, fresh from the western side o
South America, views the Atlantic coas
with disappointment, for to him its bound
less plains and majestic rivers appear tam'
and unattractive by contrast with Andear
scenery. He is also struck by a marked
difference in the general look of the towns
for while people under the shadow of tn.
great Cordillera live in constant fear of earth
quakes, and therefore build none but low
thick walls those on the eastern side hav
ing no such dread, rear houses as high al
their means will allow.
But there are compensations, even fol
lack of picturesqueness The arch@ologist
the naturalist, the lover of nature, may fine
solace in the thought that, though the an
tiquities of Peru, the solemn grandeur Of
Bolivian scenery and the diversified beau
ties of Chile are wanting, industrial devel-
opment has made much more rapid progress
on the eastern shores. Numerous railway
lines traverse the great plains. and ships Of
all nations ply the rivers; SO that now he
may accomplish in few weeks time and at
trifing cost expeditions which formerly
required years of laborious travel and the
expenditure of a fortune.
They Live on the Roofs.
One misses the rambling old casas OF
Lima, Santiago, GuayaquiL and Arequipa,
with their Moorish patios or inner court
yards, their blank walls turned streetward,
hiding fountains and flowers and loveliness
within. The more ambitious houses of
Montevideo and Buenos Ayres have fat
roofs commanding wide sea view, and are
the favorite resort of. the inmates in fine
weather. Most of them have sort of a
watchtower, called mirador, rooted and
windowed on all sides, wherein-however
rains may beat and winds may blow-idle
people may still take note of their neigh
bors' affairs and enjoy the prospect of busy
streets and boundless ocean,.
Closer acquaintance with this remote re-
public continually develops new cause for
wonder and admiration. Though compare
lively unknown to the world, Uruguay is
not only the most favored section of South
America as regards climate, soil and geo
graphical position, and therefore the most
desirable as q place of residence for for
eigners, but it is already the most prosper
Gus, and destined, by reason of its natural
advantages, to become the most important
in point of commerce. Let us first get an
idea of its physical character and imme-
diate surroundings.
Uruguay's Natural Advantages.
Consulting map. you will find the little
cone-shaped piece named Uruguay cut out,
apparently from the big Argentine Repub-
lie, the dividing line being the La Plata
and Parana rivers, while Brazil bounds it
on the northeast and the Atlantic ocean
washes its southwest. Though containing
only about 63, 600 geographical miles, it has
sea and river coast OF 626 miles, with many
natural harbors.
No section of the globe is more abund-
antly watered, there being 30 navigable riv-
ers, which receive as many as 800 tributa-
ries, forming q network Of streams in all
lakes and creeks that occasionally swell to
considerable size. Yet there is not a
swampy spot in all Uruguay, nor an acre of
soil where agriculture is retarded by excess
i've moisture. The southwestern corner
contains Montevideo and about one-half of
the entire population. It is grassy and un-
dulating, extremely fertile and diversified
by hills. 1t is occupied entirely by rich
estancias, or ranches, most Of them devoted
to the raising of sheep and cattle. The
northern portion is the mineral region, with
wide valleys, fertile and wellwooded. 1t
has gold, silver, copper, lead, magnesia,
amethyst agate, alabaster and marble.
Mineral Wealth Of the Republic.
A corporation, called the. Gold Mining
Company of Uruguay, holds government
concession in the district of Cunaperu, and
the ''Corrales Gold Mining Company" has
a concession of $500 hectares in the dis
trict of Corrales. During the last half year,
with less than ahundred laborers, the latter
has extracted 1000 tons of mineral. Two
oonnar paor the foot IF po, 1a
Azucar (Sugar Loaf mountain are now in
active operation; but all the rest remain
unworked. There is a good deal of argen-
tiferous lead, which the early Spaniards
mistook for silver. At the Paris exhibit
tion so different varieties of "Uruguay
marbles" were shown.
In Montevideo every house with any pre-
tentions to elegance has its marble entrance,
hall flooring, dadoes and grand stairway of
the same beautiful material; and a great
deal of it appears on the facades of both
public and private buildings. Yet, strange
to say, it is nearly all imported, though
vast quantities of the finest marble lie
within few miles of the city The great
also unworked, and most of that used in
Uruguay is imported from Cardiff at an
average cost when delivered of SIS the ton.
The climate is by no means tropical, the
Thermometer seldom marking as high as 900,
and in mid-winter (June and july, frosts
are frequent, thoug never severe enough to
iniure vegetation. The air is pure and dry,
even in Montevideo, situated directly on
the sea-and the country is regarded as a
sanitarium by ague-troubled Argentines and
Brazilians Since Uruguay
lies within the temperate zone, its fruits are
much like those of the United States
apples, cherries, peaches, etc. Strawberries
grow to surprising size, and are sold by the
dozen, never by measure. "Green CAGES"
too, are enormously large, and, being priced
by good housewives for putting up in
brandy, they come high in market-15 cents
the dozen. Water pears" maturing in
February, retail At 80 cents the dozen, and
often average pound apiece in weight.
Lemons, oranges, grapes and other semi
tropical fruits abound. Nowhere do yege-
tables come to such perfection with SO little
trouble, and therefore they are cheap; but
potatoes are scarce and dear, though
climate and soil are admirably adapted to
their growth, because the natives have not
learned to include them in the daily menu,
and therefore do not raise many of them.
Drinking River Water for the Blood,
Grasses remain green and succulent the
year round, furnishing the best of pastur-
age. In Uruguay, as we'll as in Argentina,
the pastoral wealth is due to the fertilizing
constituents of "pampa mud," geologically
associated with gigantic antediluvian ami
mails. whose remains abound in these re-
giona There are few forests except along
the river banks, and the Sierras have no
trees worth mentioning. But every hill
side is covered with shrubs-myrtle, acacia
md he ihn unit So
let blooms; while the valleys are fragrant
xu;+l hax and laural md