The Worthington advance. [volume] (Worthington, Minn.) 1874-1908, 1897-08-19
GERMANS IN sou:Tr1 AMERICA
some English Colnslents ON Teutonic
tsl0ua III IN In an. ., #s}s5 $s

!. Some English COmxhents ON Teutonic
ssPushfulness.0 . s5ss8 RI s
The ubiqui tousness 81 the Teutonic
trader in Central and South American
republics is becoming keenly manifest
to many British merchants who for
merly considered several Of these states
as their business preserves, and, to tell
the truth, in many cases grew lax and
nterprising in consequence. Colon
bia is one Of the latest South American
states to receive official attention from
the German government and early in.
the year its enterprising foreign Office
sent g specialist to explore that some
what warm" corner Of the continent.
It appears that the richest man in the
capital Santa Fe de Bogota, city Of
some 100000 abitants is German
halter, whilst fellow Teuton, brew
ser, runs him very close in point Of
wealth. Evidently the Bogotans go in
for good hats and good beer; for. both
halter and brewer, though SO wealthy,
went out from the fatherland. as arti-
sans. Both, it seems, have been smart
enough to secure lucrative monopolies
one makes all the hats, the other all
the beer required in the hirst-creating
republic. The capital, though standing
5000 feet up in the Cordilleras, is very
unhealthy, the cold at night being as
intense as the heat by day. and so
fevers of a virulent kind are not to be
wondered at. The Bogotans are de-
scribed as insufferably proud, lazy, de-
vout after their fashion, and-wholly
devoid of morality! The stop hat and
frock coat are de rigueur for all re-
spectacle Bogotans!: It seems, too, that
the German commissioner is by no
means smitten with the republic, de-
spite the success Of the halter and the
brewer. The explorer had to walk
through trackless country from Bogota
to Bolivar, distance of 400 miles.
For nearly a month he had to live on
black bread and jerked beef-beef cut
into strings and dried in the sun.
Jerked beef, as rule, can only be di-
gested by healthy boa constructor.
Originally poor, being taken from the
more than half wild OK, it is made still
more leathery and sapless by the dry
ing process. According to the German
commissioner-who is apparently I'M
accustomed to great hardships, and is
now on his way home-a square meal''
of jerked beef would be the last Eu-
ropean would require. AS compli-
ment, and great treat, he says he &C.
casionally was given during his tramp
a plantain by the ''inhospitable natives
Tin the tropics it is difficult to prevent
plantains growing.) He adds that, ow-
ing to the corruption prevalent in Co.
lombia, proposal to construct a rail-
way from the capital to the Orinoco, 80
miles in length (and SO reduce the time
occupied in the transport of goods to
and from Europe by over one-half), has
been abandoned. Well, there seems
little to choose between the more CEN
trail, at any rate, of the South American
republics; and while the Bogotans re-
main content to let the journey for
goods from Europe occupy 48 days,
when it estimated the construction of a
short railway and the introduction of
shallow-draught steamers would re-
duce it to % days, we should imagine
that even the Germans won't extend
their trade very much in Colombia.
Perhaps they will be wise in sticking
to Mexico, Argentina, Chill, Brazil and
one OF two other of the more settled
states, in which they have already a
very strong hold on the trade.-Pall
Mall Gazette.