Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1909-06-12
ARGENTINA CATTLE RAISING
Great Opportunities for Enter.
prising Americans Who Have
Sufficient Capital.
BY HERBERT w. MUMFoRD,
University of Illinois.

Generally speaking but few citizens
OF the United States appreciate the I'M
portance of Argentine as a cattle-rais-
ing country. 1t is not to be wondered
at that North Americans. with vast
areas of fertile soil only partially oc-
cupied and developed, have failed to
study conditions in the southern repub-
lie. and consequently have almost uni
Versally lost sight of the great oppor-.
tunities which have been presented
there for beef production.
The ranches, or "estancias," as they
are called, are extensive. Some idea
can be gathered from the fact that in
the province of Santa Fe 81 per cent
of the area is owned in tracts of 1880
acres or more.
| Twenty to forty thousand acres
owned by one man Is by no means I'M
usual. This, of course, means that cat
tie production is carried on on an ex-
tensive SCALE
All parts of Argentina are, of course.
not equally well adapted to cattle rails
ing, both on account of temperature
and products of the land. 1t may be
4 said, however, that there is no grain
feeding of cattle in Argentina, even
among ranchmen who produce we'll
bred cattle intended for the export
trade. The native grasses. together
with alfalfa, are the nainstay of the
beef producer.
The best cattle country is located on
the best arabic land in the part OF
Argentina located in the temperate
zone. This includes the province OF
i Buenos Aires. the southern half OF
Z Santa Fe and Cordoba and all of the
provinces of Corrientes and Entire Rios.
Il The southern part of the republic,
!, more frequently spoken of as Pata-
gonna, is for the most part a dry, cold
country, in many parts of which the
soil is far from fertile, while the north
ern end of Argentina lies in the tropics
and the climate Is too hot for the sue
. cessful rearing of well-bred cattle.
;, Toward the west the country Is
mountainous and areas suitable for
either agriculture or cattle raising are
! not large.
: The number of beef cattle in Ar
:, gentina at the present time is variously
y estimated at twenty five to thirty mill
- lion, while the sheep population is from
:. seventy to hundred million.
y The entire area of the Argentine Re-
., public Is about one-third of the area
!. of the United States, exclusive Of
20 Alaska. The cattle live out of doors
80 to barns or even open sheds.
% 1t would be a surprise to many cattle
!. men in the United States to see large
~ numbers of grass fat bullocks going t.
!" market which are as well bred as an,
to be found in the United States.
"a The ranchmen, or "estancieros," who
~ for the most part, are very wealthy
"a have bought the best breeding cattl,
:. which Great Britain has produced II
=. sufficiently large numbers during tn,
=. past few years to have materially raiset
- the standard of the general stock o
the country. Naturally In some o
- the newer and more frontier Locations
the old "criollo" stock ftill predomi
mates.
There are in Argentina approximate
! ly 240,OO00 900 acres Of arabic land
or three-fourths of which is vast plair
OF very large part of which Is yer
OF fertile. There are ten or eleven millio
IN acres in the Argentine Republic whic
no are capable of irrigation. Some yer
extensive irrigation plants are alread
: in operation.
"a The small population of Argentine
= being only five and one-half millions
3 and the very large production of bee
and mutton, make 1t necessary to civ
considerable attention to the expol
trade The mutton is all exported In
j frozen state, while the beef goes q
either chilled or frozen beef.