armour.

ment of 2 12-ton guns in a single turret protected by 8- and 9-inch The torpedo school ship Maipú is a paddle-wheel steamer, and carries a large outfit of the appliances needed for torpedo warfare. The first-class torpedo-boats were built by Messrs. Yarrow, and attained remarkably high speeds. None of the other vessels in the fleet call for any special notice. The navy is manned by 1,500 officers and men, of whom 320 are officers and 370 marines.

Area and Population.

At the census of 1869 the population of the provinces amounted to 1,736,922, exclusive of the national territories.

The following table contains a list of the fourteen provinces and nine territories actually composing the Argentine Republic, their estimated area, and the number of inhabitants, according to an official estimate for 1887 :

By a treaty concluded between the Argentine Republic and Chili in 1881 the latter recognises the right of the former to all the country east of the crest of the eastern ridge of the Andes, including all Patagonia and the eastern part of Tierra del Fuego.

The capital of the Republic, Buenos Ayres, had a population of 177,790 in 1869, 295,000 in 1882, and 466,267, including suburbs, in 1888, of whom over 100,000 are foreigners. Other towns with populations for 1887 are Cordova, 60,600, Rosario, 50,000, Tucuman, 40,000, Mendoza, 20,000, Paranà, 20,000, Salta, 20,000, Corrientes, 15,500 inhabitants. La Plata, the new capital of the province of Buenos Ayres (founded 1884), 40,000. It is about 40 miles S.E. of the city of Buenos Ayres.

The increase of population has been due greatly to immigration. The arrivals in the last six years have been as follows:-1882, 51,503; 1883, 63,243; 1884, 77,805; 1885, 108,722; 1886, 93,116; 1887, 136,842; 1888, 177,267, or nearly 700,000 immigrants in that period. Most immigrants are from the south of Europe. In 1880-87 the Italians formed 70 per cent. of the total, Spaniards 10.25 per cent., French 7.75 per cent., and all others but 12 per cent. The emigration during this period has varied between 9,000 and 14,000 annually; in 1886 it was 13,907. The excess of immigration over emigration in the years 1871-86 was 634,266.

In 1887 the number of foreigners in the republic was 600,000, including 280,000 Italians, 150,000 French, 100,000 Spaniards, 40,000 English, and 20,000 Germans.

Trade and Industry.

The following table shows the official values of the imports and exports for each of the five years 1883-87, including re-exports:

The following are the principal articles of import and export,

with their value for 1887 :

The foreign trade of the Argentine Republic in 1887 was mainly with the following countries to the following values :

The transit trade in 1887 was valued at 9,096,578 dollars, of which 6,622,246 dollars' worth was with Bolivia.

The commercial intercourse between the Argentine Republic and the United Kingdom is shown in the subjoined tabular statement, according to the Board of Trade returns :—

The staple Argentine exports to the United Kingdom are as follows:-Tallow and stearine, 64,8397. in 1886, 27,882!. in 1887; mutton, 10,000l. in 1883, 289,6257. in 1885, and 442,5977. in 1887; skins, mainly sheep, 103,9387.; bones, 45,665l.; hides, 73,7631.; wool, 213,8077. in 1886, 32,4377. in 1887; and grain, 886,454. in 1887. The imports of British produce consist chiefly of cottons, 1,688,4271.; woollens, 867,8817.; iron, 1,063,4817.; and machinery, 459,4957. in 1887.

In 1887 there entered at the ports of the country 12,301 vessels of 4,471,601 tons (6,608 being steamers), and cleared 9,524 of 3,723,969 tons (5,584 steamers). Of these vessels 30 per cent. of the tonnage was British, and the same proportion national, 16 French, and 7 Italian. The home or river navigation in 1887 comprised 24,825 vessels of 2,235,012 tons entered, and 26,823 of 2,459,693 tons cleared.

An increasing area of the country is being devoted to agriculture (4,700,000 acres, 1888), wheat, Indian corn, and flax being the leading products, the value of the corn, wheat, and flax exported in 1887 being officially returned at 20,811,930 dollars. In Santa Fé, Entre Rios, and Buenos Ayres are numerous 'agricultural colonies,' mostly of foreign nationalities. The total area under culture in 1887 was 51 million acres. Of this about 2 million acres are under wheat. The total value of the agricultural products of 1887 was estimated at 70 million dollars gold (14 millions sterling), and of products of pastoral industry 120 million dollars (24 millions sterling). The wheat crop of 1887 was estimated to amount to 20 million bushels. Cattle and sheep-breeding is an important industry in the Argentine. At the end of 1885 it was estimated that the Confederation possessed 18,000,000 horned cattle, 80,000,000 sheep, 5,000,000 horses. Their chief products, wool, hides, tallow, horns, and bones, represent 55 per cent. of the total exports. There were 46,312 square miles of new land surveyed for settlement in 1886.

The length of railway open for traffic in 1888 was 4,700 miles, which connect the principal cities of the republic with the capital. There were in addition 1,000 miles in construction. The total cost of construction of the lines open for traffic at the end of 1885 was 20,000,000l., being an average cost of 6,6667. per mile. The receipts for 1887 amounted to 23,805,722 dollars, and expenses 13,177,772 dollars.

In 1888 there were 14,700 miles of telegraph lines in operation, 7,300 miles belonging to the State, and the rest to private companies. The total length of telegraph wires in 1888 was 28,550 miles. The number of telegraphic despatches was 736,329 in the year 1886; number of offices in 1887, 668.

The post-office in the year 1886 carried 23,174,481 letters, and 16,000,000 newspapers, &c.

Diplomatic Representatives.

1. OF THE Argentine REPUBLIC IN GREAT BRITAIN.

Envoy and Minister.-Luis L. Dominguez.
Secretary.-Florencio L. Dominguez.
Consul-General.-Alejandro Paz.

2. OF GREAT BRITAIN IN THE ARGENTINE REPUBLIC. Envoy and Minister.-Hon. Francis J. Pakenham. Appointed February

1885.

Secretaries.-George B. Jenner; G. D. B. Bland.
Consul.-Ronald Bridgett.

Money, Weights, and Measures.

The money, weights, and measures of the Argentine Republic, and the British equivalents, are as follows:

MONEY.

The Silver Peso fuerte, or Silver Dollar, of 100 centesimos.-Average rate of exchange, 48. The forced paper currency since the beginning of 1885 has caused a great depreciation; £1 gold is worth (Nov. 1886) 61 paper dollars.

Since January 1, 1887, the use of the French metric system is compulsory.

Statistical and other Books of Reference concerning the Argentine Republic.

1. OFFICIAL PUBLICATIONS.

Censo Escolar Nacional, 1884-85. Buenos Aires, 1885. 4 vols.

Datos trimestrales del comercio exterior de la República Argentina. Año 7o. Buenos Ayres, 1888.

Estadística General del comercio exterior de la República Argentina. 1887. Fol. vol. 18. Buenos Aires, 1888.

Informe presentado á la Oficina de Estadística de Buenos Aires. 8. Buenos Aires, 1888.

Informe sobre el Estado de la Educacion Comun, durante el Año de 1886. By Dr. Benjamin Zorrilla. Buenos Ayres, 1887.

Ley de Educacion. Buenos Aires. 8 de Julio de 1884.

Ley de inmigracion y colonizacion de la República Argentina sancionada por el Congreso nacional de 1876. Buenos Aires, 1882.

Los presupuestos, los recursos y las leyes de impuestos de la nacion, las 14 provincias y las principales municipalidades. Año de 1887. Buenos Aires,

1888.