CORNELL 
 
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 EX L I B R I S 
 
 ADVE^NTURER 
 
 WILLIAM EDMUND AUGHINBAUGH 
 
 M.D., LL.B., LL.M. 
 
 1871, October 12, Washington, D. C. • New York, N. Y., December 17, 1940 
 
 President of The Adventurers' Club 
 
 1919-1925 
 
 "/ Swear by Apollo" 
 
DATE DUE 
 
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 FRAGILE PAPER 
 Please handle this book 
 with care, as the paper 
 is brittle. 
 
 Cornell University Library 
 F 2668.K77 1917 
 
 Paraguay 
 
 3 1924 021 079 094 
 
F 
 
 Kir 
 
THE SOUTH AMERICAN SERIES 
 
Cornell University 
 Library 
 
 The original of tiiis book is in 
 the Cornell University Library. 
 
 There are no known copyright restrictions in 
 the United States on the use of the text. 
 
 http://www.archive.org/cletails/cu31924021079094 
 
PARAGUAY 
 
T^HE'' CX'I'HEOfiAL :"" 'A'StJiiJCtON. 
 
 Frontispiece, 
 
PARAGUAY 
 
 W. H KOEBEL 
 
 AUTHOK OF "URUGUAY," "MODERN ARGENTINA," "THE SOUTH AMERICANS," 
 "MODERN CHILE," ETC, 
 
 WITH 32 ILLUSTRATIONS AND A MAP 
 
 CHARLES "icMBNEk'Sr SONS 
 
 697-699° ilfvii AVENUE 
 
 4-0 5" \ 
 
8 CONT^IJ^TS 
 
 • ■-•CHAHTEli if,-'. 
 
 . ' • .••••'.." ..• . _ PAGE 
 
 THE ENTRY OF THE SPANIARDS . '''.-,-. • • 4° 
 
 Juan Diaz de SolLsr-'Kie first mariner to sail the 'ftiq de la Plata 
 —His fate— Rettfrn" of the expedition— Magellad— Sebastian 
 Cabot— He esiplores the.'ftttana'Riir^J a|n| founds the settlement 
 of Sancti Spiritns— Oirigin ef-'the. p'ajifct 5Uo.de la Plata— Cabot 
 sails up the Paraguay River — Unexpected meeting with Diego 
 Garcia— The latter. relinquishes the field to C^ot4-After pro- 
 longed waiting' Cabot '?ails to Spain in ordectds^el* assistance 
 — Fate of the gartrisoia he left behind .hftn— The tragedy of 
 Lucia Miranda and the , rac{9««— Tht'- fe^'.survivors of the 
 garrison eventually reach me islalid of*iSanta"Catharina — Don 
 Pedro de Mendoza's expe'dHion— The fp'unding of the township 
 of Nuestra Sehora de los Buenos Aires — Outbreak of hostilities 
 with Guarani Indians — ^The settlement of Buena Esperanza is 
 founded on the site of Sancti Spiritus — Pedro de Mendoza, 
 leaving Ayolas in charge of the province, dies on^the homeward 
 voyage — Ayolas' voyage up the river — ^The chronicles of Ulrico 
 Schmidel and the commentaries of Alvar Nunez Cabeza de Vaca 
 — ^A comparison between the river systems of the Amazon and 
 the Rio de la Plata — Animals and tribes seen on the voyage — 
 Relations with the Indians — Landing near the site of Asuncion — 
 Defeat of the local Guarani Indians — Foundation of the city of 
 Asuncion — ^Advantages possessed by the spot — Results of its 
 remoteness from the ocean — Situation of the pioneers — Their 
 isolation 
 
 CHAPTER III 
 
 THE FOUNDING OF THE COLONY .... 
 
 Relations between the Spaniards and Guaranis at Asuncion — 
 The friendly and hostile tribes of Indians — Principal object of 
 the Spanish conquistadores — The fame of the Peruvian mines — 
 Various routes to the mineral districts— Real significance of the 
 ascent of the Paraguay River— Ayolas proceeds farther up the 
 stream — He undertakes an overland expedition to Pern — Mas- 
 sacre of the party by the Indians— Domingo Martinez de Irala— 
 Arrival of Juan de Salazar de Espinosa— Permanent dwellings 
 constructed at Asuncion— Episode between Ruiz Galan and Irala 
 —Details received of the end of Ayolas and his men— Some elo- 
 quent coins— Abandonment of the lower river settlements 
 
 Asuncion as the sole centre of Spanish civilization — Irala 
 becomes Adelantado of the colony — His popularity— Adminis- 
 trative gifts displayed by him— Some circumstances of Guarani 
 servitude— CharacterisUcs of the natives— The estabUshment of 
 Encomiendas—Yanaconas and »n»<ayos— Regulations applying to 
 
 52 
 
CONTENTS 9 
 
 PAGE 
 
 slave ownership — Development of Asuncion — Defences of the 
 town and election of officials — The urban arms — Circumstances 
 of the colonists — The birth of the modern Paraguayan nation 
 
 CHAPTER IV 
 
 THE GOVERNORSHIP OF ALVAR NUNEZ CABEZA DE VACA . 64 
 
 Some methods of Spanish colonial government — Difficulties in 
 legislation from a distance — Alvar Nuiiez Cabeza de Vaca is 
 made Adelantado of Paraguay — Having landed at Santa Catalina, 
 he receives news of the abandonment of Buenos Aires — Effect 
 of this on Alvar Nuiiez' plans — He determines to make his way 
 overland from the coast to Asuncion — Discovery made by the 
 crews of his ships on the site of Buenos Aires — Alvar Nuiiez' 
 march to the west — His methods with the Indians — Incidents of 
 the journey — The party arrives in Asuncion — Attitude of the 
 colonists — ^Varying versions of events — First signs of a split in 
 the ranks — Colonizing methods adopted by Alvar Nunez — ^Alvar 
 Nunez sets out with a considerable force for Peru — Dealings with 
 Indians — How the Payaguas deceived the Adelantado — Small 
 results of the expedition — Return to Asuncion — A condition of 
 discontent culminates in a rising of the Spaniards — Alvar 
 Nuiiez is imprisoned and placed in irons — Hostilities in the 
 town — Harsh treatment of Alvar Nuiiez — His character and 
 circumstances — Influences at work — Irala is again elected Ade- 
 lantado — How Alvar Nunez was put on board the ship which 
 was to take him to Spain — A contemporary account — Incidents 
 of a dramatic departure 
 
 CHAPTER V 
 
 THE ACHIEVEMENTS OF DOMINGO MARTINEZ DE IRALA . 8l 
 
 Political unrest in Asuncion — The Indians take advantage 
 of the situation to rise in insurrection — Irala defeats a 
 combined force of Guaranis and Agaces — A period of 
 peace follows the subduing of the natives— Asuncion is 
 made the seat of a bishopric — Solitary situation of the 
 province of Paraguay — The rumours of Peruvian gold — 
 Irala contemplates a journey to Peru— His followers receive 
 the proposal with enthusiasm — Irala sets out with a chosen 
 party— Encounter with the Indian tribe that had massacred 
 Ayolas and his people — Difficulties and hardships of the 
 journey— Arrived at the borders of Peru, the expedition receives 
 a communication from Lima forbidding a further advance— Irala 
 sends an embassy to Lima, begging official confirmation of his 
 
10 CONTENTS 
 
 PAOB 
 
 governorship — Negotiations with Peru— Irala's strategic pre- 
 cautions — The party reluctantly retraces its steps — Happenings 
 in Asuncion during the absence of the Adelantado — Francisco 
 de Mendoza's attempts to obtain the governorship lead to his 
 execution — Diego de Abreu is elected as temporary Adelantado 
 by the people — Abreu refuses to resign his post on Irala's arrival 
 — The majority of the townspeople join Irala — Abreu and his 
 remnant of followers flee to the woods — Arrival of Nuflo de 
 Chaves with men and livestock from Lima — Irala quells an 
 insurrection fomented by the intrigues of La Gasca — Death of 
 Abreu and the dispersal of his followers— Some failures and 
 successes in colonization — Official appointments made by the 
 Court of Spain — Salazar arrives in Paraguay, bringing with him 
 seven cows and a bull — Irala is officially nominated Adelantado 
 — Colonizing achievements of Nuflo de Chaves — Death of Irala 
 
 CHAPTER VI 
 
 SOME EARLY GOVERNORS AND COLONIAL DEVELOP- 
 MENTS ....... lOI 
 
 Irala's qualities as a Governor — A Sbuth American writer on the 
 Spanish conquistador — Gonzalo de Mendoza becomes Adelantado 
 — Death of Gonzalo de Mendoza — He is succeeded by Francisco 
 Ortiz de Vergara — Indian trouble — The ambitions of Nuflo de 
 Chaves — He determines to found a new province — His meeting 
 with a rival conquistador, Andres Manso — The decision of the 
 Peruvian authorities secures the advantage to Nuflo de Chaves 
 — The latter founds the town of Santa Cruz de la Sierra — The 
 first permanent link between Paraguay and Peru — Vergara sets 
 out for Peru — ^After having been detained by Nuflo de Chaves, 
 he arrives in Lima — Vergara's post is given by the Peruvian 
 authorities to Juan Ortiz de Zarate — Zarate appoints Felipe de 
 Caceres as his deputy — Unpopularity of Caceres in Asuncion — 
 He' is opposed by Bishop Latorre — Caceres is imprisoned and 
 deprived of his office — Martin Suarez de Toledo becomes 
 temporary Governor — Colonizing feats of Juan de Garay — 
 Zarate, on arriving at the mouth of the River Plate after a 
 calamitous voyage, is attacked by the Charrua Indians — His 
 force is rescued by Juan de Garay — Zarate arrives in Asuncion 
 and takes charge of the Government — His death — Zarate's 
 daughter as heiress of the province — Mendieta appointed 
 temporary Governor — Mendieta, having failed in his office, is 
 sent back to Spain by the colonists — His death on the voyage 
 — Claimants of the hand of DoSa Juana — Events which led up 
 to Juan de Garay's governorship of Paraguay-r-His arrival in 
 Asuncion 
 
CONTENTS 11 
 
 CHAPTER VII 
 
 PAGE 
 
 EVENTS PRECEDING THE SEPARATION OF PARAGUAY 
 
 FROM RIO DE LA PLATA . . . . Il6 
 
 Situation of Paraguay when Juan de Garay became Governor — 
 Nature and inSuence of the various settlements — Relations with 
 the Guaranis — Melgarejo assists Garay in the development of 
 the country — Attempts in the Chaco — Early mission work 
 among the Indians — ^The founding of Buenos Aires — Sig- 
 nificance of that centre — Death of Juan de Garay — He is 
 succeeded by Aloiiso de Vera y Aragon — Arrival in Paraguay 
 of Juan Torres de Vera y Aragon — Hernando Arias de Saavedra, 
 a Paraguayan by birth, becomes Adelantado — An able ad- 
 ministrator and notable warrior — Fernando de Zarate arrives 
 from Spain to take up the governorship — A succession [of 
 Adelantadoi — Hernandarias is at length officially appointed to 
 the post — His colonizing enterprise — ^Warlike feats — ^A shrewd 
 move in Uruguay — Hernandarias, after his government has 
 been interrupted by the appointment of Diego Martinez Negron, 
 resumes the post of Adelantado — Difficulties in the adininistra- 
 tion of the great territory — ^The province of Paraguay is divided 
 into two — Death of Hernandarias — Geography of the provinces 
 of Paraguay and Rio de la Plata — Respective physical and 
 industrial characteristics — Amenities of Paraguay — Distinctions 
 between the inhabitants of the northern and southern stretches 
 of the great river system — Docility of the Guarant — The 
 Encomiendas 
 
 CHAPTER VIII 
 
 THE JESUIT MISSION ESTABLISHMENTS . . . I30 
 
 A subject of much controversy — Events which led up to the 
 founding of the Jesuit Government — Early Franciscan mis- 
 sionaries — Arrival of the first Jesuits — Hardships experienced 
 by the pioneers — Constitution of the State — Rigid seclusion of 
 the community — Situation of the mission country — Features of 
 its thirty towns — Uniformity of their pattern — General plan 
 of each — Description of the main buildings — ^The Tacuru stone 
 — Method of fortification— Administration of the Jesuit towns— 
 Guarani officials — Their titles and duties — Matters of costume — 
 The doctrine of equality — Questions of labour — Health of the 
 Guaranis— Administrative ability of the missionaries — Yerba 
 mate gathering and cattle-breeding — Numbers of the livestock 
 on the Jesuit farms — ^Agricultural pursuits — How labour was 
 made attractive — ^Various industries — Guarani craftsmen and 
 artists-^Astonishing scope of their occupations — Actual status 
 of the Jesuits as Governors — The division of property — 
 
12 CONTENTS 
 
 PAGB 
 
 Economic success of the missionary establishments — How the 
 Guarani's day was mapped out — Description of some religious 
 ceremonies — ^The procession of Corpus — Allegations against the 
 Jesuits — Practical results achieved by their missions — ^Their 
 justification — The industrial side of the enterprise — Importance 
 of the. mission produce — The Jesuits as a commercial force — ^The 
 Mamelucos and the mission settlements — Successful resistance 
 of the Indian militia — Relations of the Jesuits with their neigh- 
 bours — Bxpulsion^of the Jesuits — Fruitless attempts to continue 
 their settlements by others — End of the State 
 
 CHAPTER IX 
 THE LATER COLONIAL PERIOD .... I48 
 
 Manuel Frias becomes Governor of Paraguay — His domestic 
 affairs lead to a dispute with Bishop Torres — Conflict between 
 Church and State — The Peruvian authorities decide in favour of 
 Frias — Death of the Governor on his way back to Paraguay — 
 Luis de Cespedes Jena contrives to obtain the post — Having 
 been in league with the Mamelucos, he is imprisoned — Subse- 
 quent Governors — Gregono de Hinestrosa's conflict with Bishop 
 Bernardino de Cardenas — Character of the Bishop — Mr. 
 Cunninghame Graham's account of how he came into his 
 bishopric — A dramatic priest — ^The latter's quarrel with the 
 Jesuits — Some mutual expulsions — Diego Escobar de Osorio 
 succeeds Hinestrosa — Cardenas excommunicates the Jesuits — 
 Death of Escobar de Osorio^Cardenas is appointed to the 
 governorship — His measures against the Jesuits — Sebastian 
 de Leon y Zarate is made Governor — Revolt and defeat of 
 Cardenas — Further Governors — How Diego de los Reyes 
 Balmaseda became Governor — ^The revolt of Jose de Antequera 
 y Castro — Circumstances which led up to his execution — 
 Motives of the rebellion — Scenes at the scaffold — Antequera's 
 personality — Feuds in Asuncion — Bruno de Zavala restores 
 order — Carlos Morphi — Events in South America which pre- 
 ceded the War of Liberation — Paraguay's answer to the 
 message of Buenos Aires — Collision between the troops of 
 the two States — Victory of the Paraguayans — Belgrano's 
 propaganda — Stirred by this, Paraguay proclaims her inde- 
 pendence — She begins her career as a Sovereign State 
 
 CHAPTER X 
 THE DICTATOR FRANCIA ..... 164 
 
 Confusion attending the formation of the new States — Some 
 types of legislators — Paraguay's first dictator — Character of 
 
CONTENTS 13 
 
 Jose Caspar Rodriguez de Francia— Circumstances of his youth 
 — His success as a lawyer — He takes part in the government of 
 independent Paraguay — Woric of the yunia — Robertson on 
 Francia— The latter's dealings with the Paraguayian Congress 
 —Various types of national representatives— Costumes — Uni- 
 forms of the Alcaldes — Quaint processions — Ceremonies of the 
 Indian officials — Francia is elected First Consul — The basis of 
 Francia's character — An anecdote concerning this — How 
 Francia caused an enemy to receive fair play — His measures 
 as First Consul — Condition of Paraguay— 'Despotism and tran- 
 quillity — Francia's first appointment as Dictator — His services to 
 agriculture and public order — He is elected Dictator for life — 
 How he asserted his authority — His dealings with the Church — 
 Destruction of the ecclesiastical power — ^The Dictator remedies 
 the ravages of the locusts — Circumstances which led up to a 
 conspiracy against Francia — Its repression by means of execu- 
 tion and torture — ^The Reign of Terror — Imprisonment of the 
 old Spaniards — ^The Supremo brings about the isolation of 
 Paraguay — Intercourse with foreigners prohibited — Fate of a 
 Frenchman — Francia rebuffs the neighbouring States — The 
 French naturalist Bonpland — His kidnapping at the hands of 
 Francia— The death of Francia 
 
 CHAPTER XI 
 
 CARLOS ANTONIO LOPEZ AND FRANCISCO SOLANO LOPEZ . l8o 
 
 Condition of affairs at the death of Francia — ^The establishment 
 of a provisional Government — After various experiments Consuls 
 are appointed — ^The rise of Carlos Antonio Lopez — Liberal 
 measures adopted — Carlos Antonio Lopez becomes Consti- 
 tutional President of Paraguay — Rosas closes the river against 
 Paraguayan commerce — Carlos Antonio Lopez forms an alliance 
 with Brazil — Desultory warfare with Argentina — Further inter- 
 national complications — Intervention of England and France — 
 Action of the allied fleets — On the death of Rosas Paraguay 
 resumes her intercourse with the outer world — Arrival of foreign 
 Ministers — Treaties — Increasing power of Carlos Antonio Lopez 
 — Prosperity of the State — Death of Carlos Antonio Lopez— He 
 is succeeded by his son, Francisco Solano Lopez — ^Youth and 
 temperament of the latter — Madame Eloisa Lynch— An un- 
 official queen — Francisco Solano's attainments — He proves 
 himself a second Francia — Autocracy under a modem cloak — 
 Bizarre methods — His ambition— A description by Sir Richard 
 Burton — George MaSterman on the Dictator— A fateful per- 
 sonality — Contemporary population and power of Paraguay 
 
14 CONTENTS 
 
 CHAPTER Xn 
 
 PAOK 
 THE PARAGUAYAN WAR . . . . .191 
 
 Origin of the struggle — Brazil and the States of the Rio de la 
 Plata — The intervention of Francisco Solano Lopez — Outbreak 
 of the war — Seizure of the Brazilian steamer Marquez de Olinda 
 — Paraguay invades the province of Matto Grosso — Curious 
 analogy between the Paraguayan War and the present European 
 struggle — ^Lopez as the prey of a wild ambition — His Heaven- 
 sent triumph— A parallel to the Belgian invasion— The capture 
 of Corrientes — The five campaigns of the Paraguayan War- 
 Chief events of the struggle— Bravery of the Paraguayan troops 
 — ^The river battles — Improvised war-steamers— Some gallant 
 actions — The motto of the Paraguayans — Francisco Solano 
 Lopez as generalissimo — How his men were squandered — 
 Defeat as a crime — Its penalties — ^The toll of human life — 
 Disappearance of the flower of Paraguay's manhood — Final 
 stages of the struggle — Fairness in terrorism — The fate of the 
 women workers — ^The death of Francisco Solano Lopez and the 
 conclusion of the war — Condition of Paraguay — Recovery of 
 the Republic 
 
 CHAPTER XIII 
 
 SOME SALIENT FEATURES OF THE REPUBUC . . 202 
 
 Strategical situation of the Republic— Paraguay as a natural 
 centre of inland communications and commerce — ^Asuncion as 
 the mart of the interior — Future of the capital — ^Area of the 
 Republic — Frontier complications — ^The Pilcomayo as a bound- 
 ary river — DiiHculties offered by the exploration of this stream 
 — Its international importance — The Paraguay-Bolivia frontier 
 — Bolivian claims — Constitution of the Paraguayan Republic — 
 Legislative bodies — Scantiness of the members — Method by 
 which elections are conducted — The Ministry — Population of 
 the Republic — Difficulties in the way of a census — Some esti- 
 mate of the inhabitants — The dwellers in Paraguay proper and 
 in the Chaco— Results of the Paraguayan War — Recent political 
 events — Disastrous effect on the population — Paraguay a bi- 
 lingual State — ^Ttie Spanish and Guarani tongues — Government 
 of the Chaco — Departments of Paraguay proper — A comparison 
 between Asuncion and Montevideo — Paraguayan cities — Dis- 
 tribution of the population — The Army — Uniform and training 
 — Prussian officers in Paraguay — ^The River Navy of the 
 RepubUc — Past and present strength of the Paraguayan 
 flotilla 
 
CONTENTS 15 
 
 CHAPTER XIV 
 
 FAOB 
 
 THE PARAGUAYAN OF TO-DAY .... 212 
 
 Respective proportions of the upper and lower classes of the 
 Republic — Some conservative indications — Taste in tea — The 
 triumph of yerba mate — The Paraguayan lady — Matters Con- 
 cerning ease and comfort in costume — Mr. C. B. Mansfield on 
 Paraguay of the mid-nineteenth century — Patriarchal simplicity 
 of the contemporary society — Asuncion market as it used to be 
 — A picturesque spectacle — Visiting — Dress of the ladies — Hos- 
 pitality of the inhabitants of Asuncion — Some compliments in 
 Guarani — A comparison between the Paraguayan and the 
 Argentine gaucho — Influence of the Jesuits on the general 
 population — The Paraguayan as an agriculturist — His occasional 
 exuberance— Labour conditions of the Republic — Introduction 
 of the strike — Educational problems — Proportion of illiterates 
 to the population — Difficulties in the rural districts — Asuncion 
 as ithe centre of journalism — ^Work of the South American 
 Missionary Society in the Chaco — The feat of Mr. W. Barbrooke 
 Grubb— Success of the enterprise — The currency of Paraguay 
 — Gold and paper dollars — Fluctuation of the paper dollar — The 
 effect of insignificant values upon the cleanliness of the paper 
 
 CHAPTER XV 
 
 PHYSICAL FEATURES ..... 221 
 
 Paraguayan mountains and forests — Rivers — Situation of the 
 Iguazu Falls — Principal natural characteristics — The Paraguay 
 River — Its source — The Lake of Xarayes — Quality of imagina- 
 tion as displayed in the ancient maps — The imagined and the 
 real importance of this sheet of water — Some features of the 
 Paraguay River — Navigable limit of the streatn — Circumstances 
 which favour shipping — Differences between the Paraguay and 
 the Parana— 'Tributaries — Similar purposes served by the Afra 
 and the Pilcomayo — Importance of some of the affluents — The 
 Tebicuary — Characteristics of the western tributaries — The 
 Pilcomayo River, — An ill-defined stream — A curious phe- 
 nomenon — The Alto Parana River — The Gnayra Falls — 
 Tributaries of the Alto Parana — Paraguayan mountains — 
 Isolated hills in the Chaco — The chains of Amambay and 
 Mbaracayu — Characteristics of the hill country — Paraguayan 
 lakes — ^The Chaco inundations — Lakes Ypoa and Camba — Lake 
 Ipacarai — ^A beauty spot of Paraguay — ^The Estero Neembucu 
 — Climate of the Republic—A Paraguayan claim — ^Temperatures 
 , — The annual monthly rainfall — Favourable distribution of rain 
 for agriculture — Minerals 
 
16 CONTENTS 
 
 CHAPTER XVI 
 
 PAGB 
 
 TRAFFIC AND DEVELOPMENT . . . . 23I 
 
 The establishment of the steam ferry across the Alto Parana— A 
 momentous link — The shadow of contemporary events — Results 
 of the Great War — Economic situation — ^A postponement of bene- 
 fits — Country traversed by the line — The garden of South 
 America — The journey by rail from Buenos Aires to Asuncion — 
 The ferry from Zarate to Ibicuy — From the Parana to the 
 Uruguay — Ramifications of the system — An enchanting land- 
 scape — ^Peculiarities of the Misiones earth — The passage of the 
 Alto Parana — Paraguay — Sub-tropical exuberance of the land- 
 scape — Effects of the international crisis on the time-table — 
 Influence of the railway — Political considerations — Industrial 
 impetus — Forthcoming railroad connection with Brazil — Exten- 
 sive international ramifications — ^A new southern line — Para- 
 guay's future as a tourist resort — ^The attractions of Asuncion 
 and San Bernardino — Other points of interest — Some waterfalls 
 and ruins — Local travelling — Difficulties of the by-ways — 
 Bullock carts — Inconveniences of the soil— Chaco inundations 
 
 CHAPTER XVII 
 
 BY RIVER TO PARAGUAY ..... 243 
 
 Up-stream journeys of a former age — The river schooners — 
 Some records of the mid-nineteenth century — ^A description by 
 Mansfield — Intricate navigation — Traffic of the present day — 
 Seiior Nicolas Mihanovich — The Argentine Navigation Com- 
 pany — Charm of the journey from Buenos Aires to Asuncion — 
 The passage from the industrial to the picturesque — Aspects of 
 the landscape — Influence of the sub-tropics — The vegetation of 
 the banks — ^The Chaco shore — Insect pests — Superabundance 
 of mosquitos and bichos — Winged life of the river reaches — The 
 parting of the river ways — The Paraguay stream — Some ques- 
 tions of fluvial nomenclature — ^Beauties of the Paraguay River — 
 Characteristics of the Bermejo — ^Alligators — The first Para- 
 guayan port — Some features of Humaita — ^The ruined church — 
 Temperament of the Paraguayan — Recuperative force of the 
 nation — Evidence of Chaco industry — Quebracho logs — How 
 the timber is floated down the river — The mouth of the Pilco- 
 mayo — ^Asuncion — Nationalities concerned in the river trafiic — 
 Steamship companies — Foreign warships — Motor craft — Chatas 
 and " dug-outs " 
 
CONTENTS 17 
 
 CHAPTER XVIII 
 
 PAGE 
 
 THE CHIEF CITIES OF THE REPUBLIC . . . 254 
 
 Asuncion— Some attributes of the capital — Its atmosphere — 
 First impressions — Aspects of the town — Principal buildings — 
 Changing aspects of the Asuncion streets — The architecture of 
 to-day — The inhabitants of the capital — Amenities of the spot — 
 The "Belvedere" — Scenes in the garden — Tastes of the better- 
 class inhabitants — Influence of the modern spirit — Regattas and 
 sports — The progress of football — San Bernardino— Paraguay's 
 principal pleasure resort — ^Attractions of the spot — Villa Rica — 
 The second city of the Republic — Benefits accorded by the new 
 line — Villa Rica as the centre of an agricultural district — Origin 
 of the majority of its inhabitants — Encarnacion — An important 
 spot on the railway^ — History of the development brought about 
 by the railway — The Paraguayan situation compared with the 
 Argentine — Reasons for the absence of a " boom" in the former 
 country — Influence of the internal political situation and the 
 abnormal condition of Europe — Villa Concepcion — The 
 navigable limit of the Paraguay River — ^An important northern 
 centre — Some characteristics of the lesser cities 
 
 CHAPTER XIX 
 
 IMMIGRATION AND COLONIES .... 263 
 
 Terms offered to settlers by the Paraguayan Government- 
 Transport facilities — Some hints concerning these — Advice con- 
 cerning contracts of employment — Paraguay as the country of 
 the small agriculturist — Foreign immigrants — Some statistics — 
 Various nationalities concerned — Estimated foreign population of 
 Paraguay in 1913 — British immigrants and trade— The colony 
 of " New Australia " — The great Australian strike— Its origin- 
 William Lane — "Where SociaUsm Failed" — Ideas of the 
 founder— The appeal to the workers— Paraguay as the home 
 of experiment in socialism — A comparison with the Jesuit 
 system— Land offered by the Paraguayan Government — Gene- 
 rosity of the authorities — The first colonists sail in the Royal To* 
 —An admirable type of immigrant — The arrival in Paraguay- 
 Early symptoms of the breakdown of the system— Disillusioned 
 colonists — Grievances of those who left — The work of honest 
 visionaries^-Lane seeks a remedy in autocracy — Definite split 
 among the colonists — Foundations of the settlement of 
 Cosme — Failure of the theories when put into practice — A 
 wrecked casket of lost visions — The scheme is abandoned 
 and the colony worked on a practical basis — Success brough 
 about by the change 
 
 2 
 
18 CONTENTS 
 
 CHAPTER XX 
 
 PAGE 
 
 PARAGUAYAN CATTLE . . . . • 275 
 
 Effects of the Paraguayan War on the livestock of the country — 
 Figures showing the subsequent increase of cattle — Questions 
 of census and estimate — Cattle values — Favourable position of 
 the cattle-breeding industry — Prospects for the future — How 
 the demand for beef has affected the Paraguayan herds — ^The 
 Argentine market — The danger of over-selling — Export duty as 
 a preventive measure — Present methods of the Paraguayan 
 Estanciero — Pedigree stock — ^A comparison with Argentina — 
 Prices of land — Estates in Paraguay proper and in the Chaco-^ 
 Advantages and drawbacks of the latter district — Questions of 
 capital — Financial necessities incidental to cattle-breeding and 
 agriculture — CrioUo cattle — Measures taken to improve the 
 breed — The introduction of Cebu cattle — European strains — 
 The Durham — Origin of the name Tarquino — Acclimatization 
 of pedigree! stock in Paraguay — Tristeza — A serious disease — 
 Land companies — The chief markets for Paraguayan cattle — 
 Influence of the railway — Some statistics — Ejjportation of hides 
 — Financial advantages and drawbacks of the present situation 
 — Horse-breeding — Mai de Cadera — Remaining domestic 
 animals 
 
 CHAPTER XXI 
 YERBA MATE AND TOBACCO . . 284 
 
 Part played by yerba mate in the early colonial history — Wide 
 popularity of the beverage — Seventeenth-century markets of the 
 Paraguayan tea — Area of its growth — Preparation of the yerba 
 mate — Method of drinking — Some expectations and actualities 
 of the industry — Export figures — Questions of Appreciation — 
 Eastern teas and rivals — ^The fate of yerba mate as a national 
 beverage — Its merits as a stimulant — Its importance in the 
 Argentine campo — Future of the industry — Collection of the 
 leaf — Yerba plantation — DiS&culties in propagation — New 
 method of planting out the seedlings — ^Yerba mate and the 
 possibilities of its "booming" — The tobacco industry — The 
 Paraguayans as smokers — The ubiquitous cigar — Gathering of 
 the crop — Shipments to Europe — A loss of individuality — 
 Amount of the average annual crop — Popularity of Paraguayan 
 tobacco in Argentina and Uruguay — Questions concerning 
 the development of the industry — The Paraguayan cigar in 
 Eiu-ope 
 
CONTENTS 19 
 
 CHAPTER XXn 
 
 PAGE 
 
 TIMBER, FRUITS, AND CEREALS .... 294 
 
 The forests of Paraguay— Various types of timber — Demand 
 for this in the treeless south — Hard woods — Cabinet woods — 
 Medicinal growths and textile plants — Dye-plants — A curious 
 circumstance connected with rubber — The lumber industry — 
 Difficulties presented by the Paraguayan forests — Shortage of 
 local carpentry — The quebracho industry — Districts in which 
 the tree is found — Nature of the wood — Various uses to which 
 it is put — Its tannin properties — Advantages of these — A 
 comparison with oak-bark — The chief quebracho factories — 
 Important concerns — The light railways of the Chaco — The 
 Paraguayan fruit industry — The orange — Excellence of the 
 Paraguayan specimens — Orange-growing as an old-standing 
 industry — Theory concerning an indigenous variety — Proof by 
 nomenclature — Export of the fruit — Inadequate financial return 
 yielded by the industry — Some surprising figures — Banana- 
 growing — Increasing importance of the plantations — Pineapples 
 and lemons — Cereals, agricultural products, and vegetables — 
 Maize -^ Sugar-cane — Present limitations of the industry — 
 Probabilities of the future — Mandioca — Other growths 
 
 CHAPTER XXIII 
 THE TRADE OF PARAGUAY ..... 3O5 
 
 Circumstances which have influenced imports and exports — 
 Consequences of political unrest — Elasticity of the Paraguayan 
 Trade — Figures in proof of this — A table of imports and exports 
 — Paraguay's most important customers — British share of the 
 total imports — Proportion of British merchants in Paraguay — 
 A tribute to the quality of British goods — Questions concerning 
 commercial travellers — German competition — The German plan 
 of campaign — Great Britain's opportunity — Length of credit 
 extended by the British and Germans respectively — Tempta- 
 tions of the system — Necessity for first-class salesmen — The 
 importance of the Spanish language — How this reacts on com- 
 mercial travellers and catalogues — Questions of local weights, 
 measures, and currency — Unnecessary disadvantages under 
 which the sale of British goods has suffered in the past — 
 Sympathies of the Paraguayan 
 
 APPENDIX ....... 313 
 
 Tables showing the recent progress of the chief Paraguayan 
 industries — Countries concerned in the imports — The principal 
 articles imported into Paraguay and their respective values — 
 
20 CONTENTS 
 
 Consular hints concerning competition in trade — Paraguayan 
 State estimates for the year 1914 — Statistics of the Paraguay 
 Central Railway— The State Colonies of Paraguay— Depart- 
 ments of Paraguay with their districts — List of the Spanish 
 Governors of Paraguay from the time of the first settlement of 
 the country to the end of the Spanish dominion — Eighteenth- 
 century European ignorance concerning Paraguay — ^William 
 Hadfield on Carlos Antonio Lopez — Sufferings of the soldiers in 
 the Paraguayan War — ^The Paraguayan Press 
 
 INDEX ..... .343 
 
ILLtrST^KATIONS 
 
 THE CATHEDRAL, ASUNCION 
 
 MAP OF PARAGUAY . 
 
 PLAZA INDEPENDENCIA, ASUNCION 
 
 THE CHACO LUMBER INDUSTRY 
 
 JESUIT ALTAR, SAN IGNACIO 
 
 CARLOS ANTONIO LOPEZ . 
 
 JESUIT DECORATION, SAN IGNACIO 
 
 RUINS OF HUMAITA CHURCH : FRONT VIEW 
 
 RUINS OF HUMAITA CHURCH : BACK VIEW 
 
 AN ASUNCION TRAMWAY FUNERAL 
 
 STEAM TRAMWAY, ASUNCION 
 
 GUAYRA FALLS 
 
 SCENE ON THE LINE TO PARAGUAY 
 
 A MILD CHACO FLOODING . 
 
 A TRIBUTARY STREAM 
 
 RIVER TRANSPORT . 
 
 CUSTOM HOUSE, ASUNCION 
 
 WEAVING NANDUTI. 
 
 GOVERNMENT HOUSE, ASUNCION . 
 
 31 
 
 Frontispiece 
 
 FACING PAGE 
 23 
 
 29 
 
 39 
 132 
 
 183 
 19s 
 19s 
 197 
 
 21S 
 223 
 227 
 
 233 
 241 
 249 
 249 
 2S3 
 257 
 361 
 
22 
 
 - ILWSTIlATiofe'. 
 
 ASUNCION . . ...• ; 
 
 " •. .* •': •*• 
 
 HOUSE OF CONO'RESS, ASCNQjpitf . *. 
 
 . ; . • • • 
 
 A CORRAL . ■ . • . 
 
 BRINGING HOME Y?!^,.'.^ 
 
 PACKING YERBA • . ' . *• • 
 
 A QUEBRACHO FACTORY . ' • . 
 
 A QUEBRACHO FACTORY 
 
 TIMBER FELLING IN THE CHACO . 
 
 THE TIMBER INDUSTRY 
 
 A PIONEER FACTORY 
 
 THE TRACK OF ENTERPRISE 
 
 BRICK KILN, CHACO 
 
 A RIVER SCENE 
 
 PIONEER INDUSTRIAL DWELLINGS 
 
 *■ • • 
 
 • 
 
 ■ » » > * 
 
 * 
 
 FACING PAGE 
 . 26l 
 
 . 26s 
 
 • 
 
 • 
 
 • 
 
 ■ 279 
 . 287 
 . 287 
 
 • 29s 
 
 • 29s 
 
 • 297 
 . 301 
 . 301 
 
 • 307 
 
 • 307 
 
 • 3" 
 
 • 3" 
 
 A number of the illustrations are reproduced by 
 kind permission of Alfred James, Esq., Paraguayan 
 Consul-General in London. 
 
MAP OF FARAeilAT 
 
 MaS>*tryB iJcus 
 
 Scale -!■ 5.000,000 
 Znglisli Miles 
 O 20 40 GO 80 lOO 
 
 Juhn'Boj'fluJnmew ft Co.,F.a±n!' 
 
PAIIA^0AY 
 
 INiTRODUCTION; 
 
 Paraguay as the most romantic State in South America — A comparison 
 with Bolivia-T-A fortunate Republic — Some political conditions — ^The 
 original centre of the south-eastern civilization of the continent 
 — Types of men who founded the State — Paraguay as an early 
 political storm-centre — ^Various natures of the conflicts — ^The rise of 
 despotism — ^The "Inland Japan" — Paraguay as a hermit State — 
 Some extraordinary decrees — Reason for the lack of historical detail 
 — ^The Paraguayan War and the end of the age of tyranny— A cycle 
 of revolution — The intervention of modern enterprise — Railways as 
 extinguishers of political unrest — Incentives to revolution in the past 
 — Some pleasant features of the Republic — Natural boons — The choice 
 of the conquistadores — The first up-stream journey — ^The site of 
 Asuncion — Robert Southey and Paraguay — ^Variety of products — 
 Some recent departures — ^The Paraguayan and modem ethics — 
 Promise of development — Influence of the climate. 
 
 From the point of view of both history, and nature 
 Paraguay is in many respects the most romantic 
 State in South America. In commion with Bolivia 
 it shares the rather unenviable distinction of being 
 one of the two inland republics of that continent. 
 The disadvantage of this situation has been felt by 
 both. Nevertheless the lot of Paraguay is more 
 fortunate than that of its nei^bour to the west. 
 
 Paraguay, having never possessed a sea coast, has 
 accommodated her inclinations and: industries in con- 
 formity with that lack, for which she has always 
 enjoyed ample compensation in the magnificent 
 system of rivers that wash her territories and that 
 afford such wide and sefviceable high'ways to the 
 ocean. 
 
 23 
 
24 /..PARAGUAY • } / 
 
 Bolivia, on ttfe'ofihief ti^n^^ is, s^ far" as" the ocfean 
 is concerned, in thte'-^c^jtyin pf".'*; btefeaved nation. 
 She mourns the losSj fiol only of a 'seaBoard that was 
 oncfe hers, but of 'a*. -wide frontagte ontjie'. Paraguay 
 River, which in 'an.>ihhappiy, moment -'sfe exchanged 
 for other territory. /wiiitffi hgs sioc«e*.*BiroA»ed itself of 
 far less value than she^ lakd aAfioi^t^d.* 
 
 So much for Bolivia.' .But -2 'Bolivia can lay 
 claim to symipathy as one of the imlucky nations of 
 this world, Paraguay has no right to any pretension 
 of the Mnd. In ail other respiects but that of her 
 politics Paraguay is essentially a fortunate land — a 
 lotus-land if you will, btit none the less fortunate 
 for that. It is possible enough that the countries 
 provided with the most boimtiful wealth of Nature 
 are responsible for the fewest huinan feats. It would 
 in any case seem more or less of an axiom' that ,the 
 hot sunlight streaming' through palm-leav^ and 
 brilliant tropical flowers produces just the same degree 
 of languor as the frosty air of the chilly latitudes 
 does of energy — this latter, moreover, not merely 
 for energy's salde, but rather as the result of the 
 search for warmth. 
 
 There may be some who fail to see that Paraguay 
 is to be congratulated on its lot. Doubtless there 
 are many loyal and ambitious Paraguayans who 
 would hotly, deny their ciountry's faintest claim to 
 the title of fortunate land. Hemmed in by neig'h- 
 bours now more powerful than herself, all but ex- 
 terminated just after the middle of the nineteenth 
 century by the combined forces of Argentina, Brazil, 
 and Uruguay — these, after all, are only a couple of 
 the woeful circumstances which have fallen to the 
 lot of the Paraguayan race. From the first settle- 
 ment of the land by thte Europeans the inland State 
 became, and remained, the sport of despotism', civil 
 war, and revolutions. 
 
 None of the great names which are associated 
 
INTRODUCTION 25 
 
 with' the founding of the cloilony, — Pedro die Mendoza, 
 Alvar Nunez Cabeza de Vaca, Irala, and the rest 
 of the t^onqtiistadores-^ate. to be dissociated with 
 deeds of violence, whether worked by themselv^ 
 upon others or by others upon thtem.'. At the dawn 
 of the New .World history was necessarily made in 
 a rough-and-ready fashion, and the history which 
 was made in Paraguay could only bte compared 
 in importance with that hammiered out at white 
 heat in Peru and Bolivia by Pizarro and Aknagro. 
 
 Upon the early history of Paraguay hung that of 
 the entire south-eastern portion of the continent. 
 From thfe force of circumstances which are prob- 
 ably unique in the tale of the world Asuncion, 
 the young capital of Paraguay, situated on the banks 
 of its great river at a distance of no less than a 
 thousand miles from the coast, becarrie the first head- 
 quarters of Spanish civilization, and from this point 
 the colonizing force radiated outwards in all 
 directions. 
 
 As a result of all this, Asuncion became as per- 
 turbed as any other vortex. So great was its distance 
 from the mother country that the dreaded might of 
 Spain, by the time that it had filtered across the 
 ocean, along the coast, and up the great river system 
 far inland, had lost much of its terror. The com- 
 munity which comprised the early white population 
 of Paraguay was essentially of a daredevil order, 
 otherwise it had never penetrated to that remote 
 spot. It comprised men sufficiently reckless to flout 
 an Imperial Governor or a Bishop of Rome, both of 
 which acts, undertaken at that period, were eloquent 
 of extrem^e daring. 
 
 Starting from this basis, it is perhaps a matter of 
 little wonder that the early history of the inland 
 State should have been unusually turbulent, and that 
 it should have been marred by a degree of internal 
 conflict against which many of the great and wise 
 
26 PARAGUAY 
 
 men that the country has produced have struggled 
 in vain. In Paraguay, moreover, the storm-centres of 
 the various contests have tended to shift in a 
 most giddy fashion. Hbe direction of the various 
 antagonisms would seem to have altered almtost as 
 rapidly as the level of the great rivers in flood- 
 time or drought. Almost every donceivable (kind 
 of strugigle occurred between Church and State, 
 governors and bishops, rival clerical orders, and 
 between conflicting civil powers. 
 
 So deeply did' thtese elements of discord permeate 
 the social life of Paraguay that even one of the 
 greatest feats of civilization in the history of the 
 world — the organization of the GuaranI Indians in 
 the settlements prepared for them by the Jesuits — 
 was not carried out without considerable opposition, 
 not only on the part of those laymen who were 
 incensed at the withdrawal from their power of so 
 many potential human chattels, but from dignitaries 
 of the Church itself, who relentlessly busied them- 
 selves in attempting to destroy an essentially humane 
 work. 
 
 In this respect Paraguayan history has been 
 curiously consistent. Even when, at the beginning 
 of the nineteenth century, the victorious war of libera- 
 tion had flung wide open to the outer world the 
 frontiers of the other South American States, the 
 rise of a new despotism in Paraguay shut off her 
 inhabitants completely from her neighbburs. At this 
 period for year after year all those foreigners who 
 attempted to pass her forbidden boundaries were 
 excluded with a rigour which gained for the country 
 the name of the " Inland Japan " — a title which is 
 meaningless now but which was sufficiently eloquent 
 then. 
 
 For the gireater part of the first half of the nine- 
 teenth century, Paraguay was a hermit State. For 
 some decades after the decay of the Spanish rule 
 
INTRODUCTION 27 
 
 so intense was the despotism; that oppressed the 
 country that its inhabitants only dared breathe out 
 the name of the first tyrant, Caspar Rodriguez 
 Francia, in the muttered wihisper of utter dread. 
 
 In the Middle Agles themselves what would have 
 been thought and written of a monarch who decreed 
 that all his male subjects, even the most imjioverished, 
 should wear a hat — if the headgiear were to consist 
 of nothing but a twisted wisp of straw — solely in 
 order that the man mig'ht sweep it off with a suffi- 
 ciently obsequious flourish if the dreaded chief of 
 the State should happen to pass him by in the 
 street ! Yet this — and much that was not in the least 
 humorous and utterly grim — occurred in Paraguay of 
 the early nineteenth century. 
 
 The more intimate records of this period of 
 Paraguayan history are lamentably meagre. But the 
 reasons for this lack are sufficiently, explicit. The 
 Paraguayans themselves — haunted by a continual fear 
 of le&e majeste — dared not compile any notes or 
 formulate any opinions concerning thb events of the 
 day : the foreigners — save for a few favoured excep- 
 tions whose im^pressions are dealt with later on — 
 could not, for the simple reason that the Paraguayan 
 guards along the river banfe kept unceasing watch 
 and ward in order to prevent the treading of the 
 hermit soil by an unauthorized and unwelcome foot I 
 
 It was not until 1870, at the end of the coni- 
 pletely exhausting war with her neighbours, that 
 Paraguay, faint, bleeding at every pore, and in- 
 credibly diminished in population, was delivered from 
 the iron rule of the last of her three tyrants. Even 
 then the political troubles of the country were not 
 at an end ; it was scarcely to be expected that 
 after so giddy a career a firm balance could be 
 obtained without a number of preliminary stagger- 
 ings. A cycle of revolutions followed, a series of 
 internal uphieavals that were separated the one from 
 
28 PARAGUAY 
 
 thte otJier by intervals of a pieace sufficiently pro- 
 ductive to demonstrate with astonishing clearness the 
 agricultural and industrial possibilities of the country. 
 
 It does not necessarily savour of any undue 
 optimism to assert that this period of intermittent 
 revolution may be loolced upon as hteralding the 
 settled pTOSperity of thfe country. It is possible 
 enough that it has served a somewhat drastic 
 purpose in penmitting the effervescence which was 
 only natural after so lengthy a condition of un- 
 healthy repression. As it is, moreover, industrial 
 circumstances have now stepped in to play a part 
 which had been denied them before. The railway 
 has been at work, not only to link up Paraguay with 
 its neighbours but to open up communication between 
 many of the interior districts which had before been 
 widely separated by the difficulties of travel. The 
 hnes, moreover, are about to extend themselves still 
 farther. 
 
 Now, throughout the history of South America it 
 has been proved that the chief enemies of revolu- 
 tion are railwa.ys in the first place and prosperity in 
 the second, the second usually being the corollary of 
 the first. From the mere strategic point of view it 
 is beyond question that the intercommunication re- 
 sulting from the spread of the railway lines tends to 
 render less and less possible the existence of those 
 isolated hotbeds of disaflfection which have worked 
 so much mischief — and occasional good I — in the past . 
 A factor which has so greatly favoured many South 
 American revolutions is precisely this want of rapid 
 communications, which, combined with a sparse 
 population, has enabled insurgents to seize a province, 
 hold it, and to establish a new Government within 
 it almost before the central authorities of the State 
 had an inkling that anything out of the usual was 
 happening. With the prosperity, moreover, which 
 has invariably been found to follow in the track of 
 
INTRODUCTION 29 
 
 tHe railway lines the mlor'e sordid incentive towards 
 political disorder disappear. 
 
 These circumstances have held good in the case 
 of all Paraguay's neighbours, and it will be strange 
 if the proof be not forthcoming once again in 
 Paraguay itself. 
 
 So far we have been looking on merely the dark 
 side of Paraguayan affairs. Indeed, thtere is no 
 disguising the fact that from the political point of 
 view the bright side of life undoubtedly lies in the 
 future. Neverthteless, affairs of state, although 
 they carry far, are not all-embracing. The inland 
 Republic is not lacking in consolations. From the 
 domestic and everyday point of view thfe present 
 amply suffices for its inhabitants. It is in these 
 most important respects that Paraguay shows herself 
 as a most fortunate land. 
 
 The average Paraguayan, as a matter of fact, is 
 accustomed to live amid surroundings such as the 
 inhabitants of very few other cbuntries could afford 
 not to envy. His land is one of exquisite natural 
 beautyy of abundant fruits and flowers, and of soft 
 airs. It has a soil that gives with a generosity so 
 lavish as to tend to disdourage too violent a human 
 effort or too ambitious an enterprise ! The bt>ons 
 of too kind a Nature are inevitably accompanied 
 by a certain process of enervation. 
 
 So it is that, in a sense, Paraguay represents the 
 Midi, the Riviera of the country of the great southern 
 streams . It is a land where thte guitar-strings still 
 thrum, and where the blue cigar smoke floats up 
 dreamily against a far bluer sky from the placid 
 Hps of young and old, male and female. 
 
 If Paraguay were an important tourist resort — as 
 at some future time it cannot well fail to btecomte — 
 an advertising agient of enterprise could glean one 
 of its finest testimonials f romi the very earliest Spanish 
 history of the land. For the conquisiadores of the 
 
30 PARAGUAY 
 
 Rio de la Plata, after vainly; end^vouring to make 
 head against the famine and hostile Indiaiis that 
 haunted the mouth of the great river, toiled for a 
 thousand miles up-streamy doubtless pausing in per- 
 plexity a hundred times amid the maze of islands and 
 the complexities of the waters, until they came abreast 
 of the spot where Asuncion, the capital, now stands. 
 During the whole course of their inland voyage the 
 banks had been growing more varied in beauty, richer 
 in woodland, and more brilliant in flowers, birds, 
 and butterflies. The promise of the landscape had 
 called upon the adventurers many times to halt. But 
 they had gone on, hesitating at times, until they 
 came abreast of the site of Asuncion. There they 
 doubted no longer. They hauled their brigantines 
 and caravels to the pleasant bank, landed, and — 
 after an everyday and commonplace victory over 
 the very mild-tempered Indians of the district — they 
 prepared to establish themselves at the beautiful spot 
 they had chosen. 
 
 From that day to this Paraguay has never entirely 
 shed its soft glamour. Robert Southey himself must 
 have been keenly, appreciative of this. For, though 
 he chose Brazil as a subject for the best history that 
 has ever been written on that country, he selected Para- 
 guay as the most appropriate setting for a romance 1 
 
 So far the clatter of the Asuncion electric trams 
 and the rumble of the occasional trains which pass 
 through the country, have shaken up very few particles 
 of the sunny and slumberous Paraguayan air, though 
 they will undoubtedly cause an incalculable disturb- 
 ance before they have done. There can be little 
 doubt, indeed^ that Paraguay has already begun to 
 be alive to the value of the industrial and com- 
 mercial assets which have for so long lain to a 
 large extent latent within her frontiers. For the 
 country is fortunate in that its products already show 
 a considerable variety, which cannot fail to be 
 
INTRODUCTION 31 
 
 increased considerably, furthleir whai the full force 
 of modern invention and machinery is brought to bear. 
 
 Thus it is that, in addition to its important pastoral 
 and agricultural industries — in both of which notable 
 strides have recently been made — a number of 
 factories have of late years arisen, broug'ht into being, 
 not at the casual command of one of the nation's 
 despots, which in the old days was practically the 
 only species of beginning which an industry was 
 permitted, but by an enterprise brought about by 
 an awakening to the exigencies of supply and 
 demand. There seems no dbubt that the trend of 
 this beginning wiU, apart from its own success, be 
 accelerated by the enormously increased importance 
 of the r61e which South America is now assuredly 
 destined to fill in the affairs of thte clontinents. 
 
 It is certain that amiidst the hills, valleys, and 
 rivers of her beautiful landscape Paraguay has a 
 sufficiency of material assets to ensure her material 
 wealth. To what extent its light-hearted and 
 temperamentally easy-going populace will themselves 
 enter into the up-to-date, and not invariably pleasant, 
 process of money-maMng remains to be seen. Clearly 
 such a revolution would entail the shattering of so 
 many comfortable principles that have had their birth 
 and existence under the blue cigar smoke and bluer sky 
 which are themselves part and parcel of Paraguay ! 
 All things considered, two circumBtances would seem 
 to promise comparative certainties in the inland 
 Republic : in the first place that its resources will 
 be amazingly developed within the next ten years ; 
 in the second that this development will be con- 
 ducted, not necessarily on the hard-and-fast Northern 
 principles, but rather in conformity with the ways 
 of a land that has much history and many traditions 
 behind it, and that has for its everyday use a soft 
 and languorous climate, the influence of which will 
 never consent to be set entirely aside. 
 
CHAPTER I 
 
 THE ORIGINAL INHABITANTS OF PARAGUAY 
 
 An Indian tradition — The story of Tupi and Guaranl — ^The Guarani race — 
 Some characteristics — Various tribes — General Guarani methods of 
 Government — Evidences of a strong sense of democracy — Diffuseness 
 of the race — Disadvantages of this circumstance in warfare — The 
 Guarani as a warrior — Intellectual status of the race — Lack of arts 
 and crafts — Matters of religion and medicine — Some results of a want 
 of imagination — Painful ceremonies — Limited advantages enjoyed by 
 the cacique — Relation in which he stood towards the tribes — Duties 
 of the primitive Parliaments — Absence of an aristocracy — Physical 
 characteristics — A stoical people — The tribes of the Chaco — Dividing 
 force of the River Paraguay — Distinction between the inhabitants of 
 the Chaco and the Guaranis — Some relics of Inca rule in the Chaco 
 — A lapse into barbarism — Some grim events — A curious spectacle 
 of isolation. 
 
 Very little is known of the history of the Guarani 
 Indians who inhabited Paraguay at the period when 
 the Spaniards first arrived in that country. There is a 
 vague tradition to the effect that the forefathers of two 
 of the great native races of the east of the continent 
 were two brothers who in some mysterious fashion 
 arrived in Brazil from overseas. Taking to them- 
 selves wives in the country, their oflfspring multiplied 
 rapidly. 
 
 At length a dispute occurred between the wives 
 of thte two brothers who at the time happened to 
 be fhe leaders of the yoimg race. In consequence 
 of this they resolved to separate. Tupi, the elder 
 brother, remained in Brazil, while Guarani, the 
 younger, led his people to the south-west, until they 
 came to Paraguay, where they settled, and increased^ 
 
 33 
 
THE ORIGINAL INHABITANTS 33 
 
 until from their descendants sprang' thie great nation 
 of the Guaranls. 
 
 If it possesses no other merits, this legend has at 
 all events that extreme simplicity which was to be 
 expected from so unsophisticated a folk. The ethics 
 of the Guaranf race, as a matter of fact, were crude 
 to a degree when the conquistadores first pene- 
 trated into their midst. The various nations of this 
 great race occupied not only Paraguay — exclusive 
 of the low-lying stretches of the Chaco country on 
 the right bank of the Paraguay River — but extended 
 through many portions of Brazil, practically as far 
 as the northern shores of the continent. 
 
 Occupying so large a tract of territory, it was 
 only natural that the various sections of the great 
 Guarani family should have developed rather widely 
 differing characteristics. Indeed, at the time of the 
 European advent into South America the main stock 
 of the race had become split up into a countless 
 confusion of lesser tribes, which varied, the one frona 
 the other, not only in customs and appearance but in 
 language itself. 
 
 Some of these tribes were nomadic. These lived 
 principally upon the abundance of fish with which 
 the rivers were stocked, and to a lesser degree upon 
 the game which their notched, wooden-tipped arrows 
 brought down for them. Other tribes were of the 
 stationary order, and these, occupying their moderate 
 energy with some primitive forms of agriculture, 
 found themselves able to support existence by a far 
 less strenuous fishing and hunting than was the case 
 with the nomadic branches of the race. 
 
 In matters of government the Guaranfs of 
 Paraguay resemibled all the other aboriginal races 
 of South America, with the exception of the imperial 
 Incas and of the more northern Chibchas. As a 
 people they were essentially diffuse. Not only did 
 they recognize no central authority, they yielded a 
 
 3 
 
34 PARAGUAY 
 
 mere conditional obedience to th'e chiefs set directly 
 above each tribe. They consented to be governed 
 by a chief only for so long as they were convinced 
 that he was fitted to fill the chieftain's post. An 
 inefficient leader was almost invariably replaced by 
 another. No violence occurred in this change of 
 authority, moreover. It took place by mutual con- 
 sent, and afforded only one more proof of that very 
 strong inborn sense of democracy which pervaded 
 all the South American races, with the exception of 
 the Incas. 
 
 The situation of the Guaranf race had served its 
 own purposes well enough in aboriginal South 
 America. But it was the very diffuseness of the great 
 family that constituted its greatest peril, when 
 menaced by a conquering force from without. This 
 loosely knit collection of tribes was completely un- 
 able to offer any effective resistance to the small 
 bands of well-armed and highly trained Spaniards 
 who invaded their lands, and who were able to deal 
 with the various tribes singly, or in twos or threes, 
 in a fashion that to a great extent neutralized the 
 overwhielming masses of the Guaranf population, 
 which in these instances served as a mere dead- 
 weight . 
 
 The average Guaranf, moreover— thoug'h many of 
 his number proved themselves possessed of admirable 
 courage — was not a natural-born warrior of the type 
 of the unusually fierce Indians of Uruguay, Argen- 
 tina, and Southern Chile. Had he proved himself 
 so, the influence of climate would have spent itself 
 in vain — a circumstance which does not seem ever 
 yet to have arisen in the history of nations and their 
 natural surroundings. 
 
 On the whole, the Guaranf was a primitive and 
 contented person who, being well satisfied with the 
 particular territory in which he happened to find 
 himself, scarcely ever troubled to invade his neigh- 
 
THE ORIGINAL INHABITANTS 36 
 
 hour's soil or to comtnit any acts of organized 
 and premeditated aggression. This being so, war 
 was rare among the various Guaranf tribes. But it 
 cannot be said that the benefits of comparative peace 
 had broug'ht about any notable advance in the arts 
 and crafts of civilization. On the contrary, the intel- 
 lectual development of thesie natives had remained at 
 a very low ebb. 
 
 Music, even of the most barbarous order, was 
 practica;lly unknown among them. Of such crude 
 picture-writings on rock as were discovered by 
 Wallace in the Amazon basin not a trace has, I 
 believe, been met with in Paraguay. Indeed, the 
 Guaranis appear to have been remiarkfably deficient 
 even in those superstitions Which would seem the 
 birthright of almost every savage raoe. It is true 
 that they were provided with priests of a kind. But 
 the duties of these were very little concerned with 
 worship in any shape or form, and ceremonial ritual 
 was practically unknown to them : they served rather 
 as medicine-men, and thieir most notable perfonni- 
 ances lay in the alleged curing of sufferers. Even 
 here their methods were as crude as in all else, one 
 of their most frequent forms of treatment being to 
 apply their lips to the part affected and to endeavour 
 to suck the pain away ! 
 
 Probably few races have been gifted with a lesser 
 degree of imagination than the original stock of the 
 Guarani. Among his good qualities, of course, were 
 those of his defects. He was tenacious and patient, 
 and was capable of bearing pain and suffering to 
 a point which very few other mortals could have 
 endured. The mutilations which the mfen were 
 accustomed to inflict on themselves on attaining to 
 maturity were alone of so severe an order as to be 
 borne only by those of the mbst resolute nature. 
 Yet these were the common lot, and had to be 
 undergone by every singile man before he could be 
 
36 PARAGUAY 
 
 permitted to enter the state of matrimlony or the 
 councils of his tribe. 
 
 These tribal cbuncils, as a matter of fact, repre- 
 sented very imiportant institutions. It has already 
 been explained that the power of the various Guarani 
 chiefs was limited in the extreme. In these naturally 
 democratic communities thte cacique possessed no 
 insignia. His attire — or his lack' of it — was exactly 
 similar to that of all the rest of the people. In 
 the majority of cases the sole advantag'e he enjoyed 
 over the common tribesman was the right to order 
 these to till and sow his fields, to gather in his 
 harvests, and to build his prknitive hut for him. 
 
 This chief's authority, moreover, was at all times 
 subservient to that of the tribal council — to which 
 he seems to have stood much in the same relation 
 as the modern manager of a limited clompany stands 
 towards his board of directors ! These tribal councils 
 were composed of the various male heads of the 
 families, who would gather together of an evening, 
 when the last rays of the brilliant sun were about 
 to die away, and the first fire-beetles were about 
 to appear, and would disctisis thte aff^^airs of their 
 primitive State. In the case of war it was this same 
 council which would appoint the commander of the 
 warriors — an office which the chosen leader would 
 hold only for as long as the war lasted, after which 
 he would revert to his status as an ordinary tribes- 
 man. It will be seen from all this that an aristocracy 
 of any kind was absolutely wanting in the aboriginal 
 people of Paraguay, a condition of affairs which 
 obtained throughout the continent, with the excep- 
 tion of the Inca and Chibcha races. Since it is the 
 descendants of this original Guarani race which form 
 so large a part of the present-day, Paraguayan nation, 
 they assume an importance which is practically lack- 
 ing in the almost extinct southern warrior tribes 
 of Argentina and Uruguay, and which justifies a 
 
THE ORIGINAL INHABITANTS 37 
 
 share of attention which these others — according to 
 the hard-and-fast tragedy of the extinct ! — have no 
 longer the right to claim. 
 
 In person the Guaranl of Paraguay was of a light 
 brown complexion, of average height, and was almost 
 invariably well built. Indeed, with their small eyes 
 and long, straight, black hlair, the aboriginals were 
 typical American natives, representatives of the " red- 
 skin " race which once flourished from Hudson's Bay 
 to Cape Horn. 
 
 In temperament they were equally true to type. 
 We have already seen that they were stoical in the 
 bearing of pain. Grief and joy they encountered in 
 this same frame of mind. They refused stubbornly 
 to groan at the first, or to laugh aloud at the second. 
 It was their grim pride to maintain an impassive 
 countenance in thfe face of every happening which 
 their world had in its power to offer them, and 
 among themselves they maintained their conversations 
 in low and monotonous voices. 
 
 It may be imagined that this people, blended with 
 that of the. fiery, chivalrous, and emotional Spaniard, 
 would be productive of a sufficiently virile race. Such 
 has proved to be the case, and> from the anthro- 
 pological point of view, none can find themselves 
 disposed to criticize the Paraguayan of to-day un- 
 favourably. But this topic has brought us far in 
 advance of the aboriginal period with which we are 
 at present concerned. 
 
 On the right bank of the Paraguay, River were 
 the Chaco tribes, nations which differed as much 
 from the Guaranis as does the landscape of one 
 bank from that of the other. As a dividing force 
 there can be few streams which rival the Paraguay. 
 As a barrier between nations, moreover, its influence 
 has remained almost unbroken from' the dawn of 
 history to the present day. 
 
 Save for a few raiding parties which would cross 
 
38 PARAGUAY 
 
 the stream froitt' tunfe to timfe the left bank' of the 
 Paraguay River was as unknown to the Chaoo tribes 
 as was the right bank to the Guaranis. But the 
 cause of such infrequent and desultory hostilities as 
 occurred must without a doubt be laid' at the door 
 of the Tobas, Matacos, Lenguas, and the rest of 
 the Chaco tribes. For these truculent Indians were 
 at all times only too ready to assume the offensive. 
 The Guaranf, when brought into contact with civiliza- 
 tion, showed himself willing to take advantage of 
 its benefits. The Chaco tribes, on the other hand, 
 steadily refused to enter into any intercourse with 
 the whites except that provided by ambushes and 
 flights of arrows. 
 
 There seems to be no doubt that in the north- 
 west of that strange Chaco district of wood, swamp, 
 and pasture which includes such important terri- 
 tories of Argentina, Paraguay, and Bolivia, many of 
 the Indian tribes are concerned witjh a tragic romance, 
 of which they themselves probably suspect nothing 
 at all. In the days of the Inca Empire great portions 
 of the Chaco were controlled by these Children of 
 the Sun, and evidence abounds to support the fact 
 that, on the extinction of the Inca rule by the 
 Spaniards, large numbers of these Ul-fated people 
 took refuge in the Chaoo. 
 
 It is this flight on a large scale which accounts 
 for the marked Qxiichda features of many of the 
 remoter Chaco tribesmen ; for the Incas of Peru 
 and Bolivia were of the Quichtia race. Other traces 
 are to be met with in the headgear of some of the 
 tribes, which is clearly patterned on that of the 
 ancient Incas. But in the present-day habits and 
 customs of these men nothing whatever of the old 
 Inca remains. They have lapsed entirely into the 
 barbarism of the Chaco, and have no idea that any 
 of their ancestors existed in anything more solid 
 than the woodland toldos, the huts of branches hastily 
 
'-^ a 
 
THE ORIGINAL INHABITANTS 39 
 
 flung up, or that they had ever lived any other life 
 but that of fishers and hunters in the Chaco plains. 
 
 However this may be, the Chaco Indians enter 
 very little into the history of Paraguay. Unlike 
 the Guaranfs, they have played no part in the build- 
 ing up of the modern Paraguayan race. The only 
 part contributed by them towards the early history 
 was the grim tale of the murders which they worked 
 upon those clerics, laymen, and soldiers whose ill- 
 fate had caused thfem to attempt to explore that 
 mysterious land which lay on the othfer side of the 
 great river. 
 
 It is only during the past few years that this 
 isolated condition of affairs has tended to alter. In 
 the beginning and middle of the nineteenth century 
 it was responsible for a complication in the strange 
 political situation of that period. For, whereas 
 Paraguay then shut herself off from the outer world, 
 and became what was known at the time as the 
 " Inland Japan," the Paraguayan Chaco, with its 
 hordes of fierce Indians, kept itself as remote as 
 ever from Paraguay proper on the other side. The 
 spectacle afforded in consequence was unique — that 
 of a hermit State within a hermit State I But at 
 the time these conditions prevailed there were very 
 few foreign spiectators on the spot to take disinterested 
 note of these remarkable circumstances. 
 
CHAPTER II 
 
 THE ENTRY OF THE SPANIARDS 
 
 Juan Diaz de Solis — ^The first mariner to sail the Rio de la Plata — His fate 
 — Return of the expedition — Magellan — Sebastian Cabot — ^He explores 
 the Parana River and founds the settlement of Sancti Spiritus — 
 Origin of the name Rio de la Plata — Cabot sails up the Paraguay 
 River — Unexpected meeting with Diego Garcia — The latter relin- 
 quishes the field to Cabot — After prolonged waiting Cabot sails to 
 Spain in order to seek assistance — Fate of the garrison he left behind 
 him — The tragedy of Lucia Miranda and the caciques — The few sur- 
 vivors of the garrison eventually reach the island of Santa Catalina — 
 Don Pedro de Mendoza's expedition — The founding of the township 
 of Nuestra Senora de los Buenos Aires — Outbreak of hostilities with 
 the Guarani Indians — The settlement of Buena Esperanza is founded 
 on the site of Sancti Spiritus — Pedro de Mendoza, leaving Ayolas 
 in charge of the province, dies on the homeward voyage — Ayolas' 
 voyage up the river — The chronicles of Ulrico Schmidel and the 
 commentaries of Alvar Nuiiez Cabeza de Vaca — A comparison 
 between the river systems of the Amazon and of the Rio de la 
 Plata — Animals and tribes seen on the voyage — Relations with the 
 Indians — Landing near the site of Asuncion — Defeat of the local 
 Guarani Indians — Foundation of the City of Asuncion — Advantages 
 possessed by the spot — Results of its remoteness from the ocean — 
 Situation of the pioneers — -Their isolation. 
 
 The earliest chronicles of Spanish Paraguay are 
 inextricabty bound up with the history of Argentina, 
 and of the territories of the Rio de la Plata in 
 general. It was only in the nature of things that 
 the mouth of the river should have been discovered 
 before the upper reaches I Why it was that a spot 
 a thousand miles from' the ocean should have been 
 definitely settled before the lands at the great river's 
 mouth invokes some far more complicated reasons. 
 Juan Diaz de Solis, Grand Pilot of Spain, was 
 
 40 
 
THE ENTRY OF THE SPANIARDS 41 
 
 the first mariner to sail the waters of the Rio de la 
 Plata. Setting sail from the port of Sanlucar on 
 the 8th of October, 1515, he went southwards with 
 three ships until he came to the wide and sandy 
 mouth of the Plata. It wlas his fate to proceed a 
 very short distance up the stream. On |one of the dtiw- 
 liying islands in the river, covered with willow, ceibo, 
 and rushes, were a number of fierce Charrtia Indians. 
 
 These, staring in amazement at the strange new 
 vessels that were sailing up their stream, made signals 
 for the sailors to come ashore. Solis and his men, 
 anxious to open communications with these inhabit- 
 ants of a; hitherto unsuspected world, rowed in a 
 small boat to the baink. But no sooner had the party 
 landed than it wa.s attacked and massacred by the 
 Charrdas. The dismayed European sailors, who had 
 witnessed the tragedy from their ships, pulled up 
 their anchors, and set sail forthwith for Spain to 
 carry back the melancholy tidings. 
 
 On his southward way to the Straits which bear his 
 name, the famous Magellan sailed into the mouth of 
 the Rio de la Plata: in 1520, but made no attempt to 
 explore the actual waters of the stream. The next 
 really important feat of this kind was reserved for 
 Sebastian Cabot. As a matter of fact this was 
 brought about in the first place by accidental causes. 
 Cabot, who had set out from Spain bound for the 
 Moluccas, was compelled by the loss of some of his 
 ships and by the scarcity of provisions to alter his 
 plans— a circumstance which was very common in 
 the experience of the early sea-captains I Finding 
 himself off the mouth of the stream' which' was then 
 known by the name of the River of Solis, he 
 determined to explore its waters. 
 
 In the first place he detached a vessel under Juan 
 Alvarez Ramon to sail up the Uruguay branch 
 of the great river system. Ramon's vessel having 
 run ashore, he was making his way back as best 
 
42 PARAGUAY 
 
 he could, Whien he was murdered by the Yaros 
 Indians. Enough, however, had been glteaned con- 
 cerning the Uruguay, River to show that, for purposes 
 of navigation, the stretch of waters it offered was 
 comparatively limited. 
 
 Cabot himself now determined to investigate the 
 other branch, a|nd, proceieding up the Parand River 
 as far as the mouth of its tributary stream, the 
 Carcaraiia, he established at the spot a settlement 
 and a fort, which he christened by the name of 
 Sancti Spiritus. It was just about this time, it may 
 be said, that the name of the great estuary of the 
 river system became changed. The reason of this 
 was that Calbot was brought into contact with a 
 certain numlber of natives on thte banks of the stream, 
 who were decorated with silver ornaments. Ca.bot 
 had yet to Ibam that these pieces of metal had been 
 brought across country, from the mountains hundreds 
 of Iteagues to thle west. A,t the time he rnade certain 
 that the silver had emanated from the country through 
 which the river passed. Rejoicing greatfy at this 
 supposed discoiveriy of his, he sent thte news back 
 to Spain, and theniceforward the Rio de Solis became 
 the Rio de h. Platal, or the River of Silver — a metal 
 of which its banks have always remained entirely 
 innocent . 
 
 We now arrive at the first cleaving of the waters 
 of the Paraguay by European vessels. It was at 
 the end of December, and consequently midsummer 
 belbw the equator, of 1527 that Cabot set out from 
 his new settlement of Sancti Spiritus, determined to 
 explore the upper waters. Having arrived at the 
 point where, proceeding up-stream, his path became 
 divided into the Paraguay and the Alto Par^nd, he 
 first of all chose the latter, and forced his way up it, 
 the current becoming swifter and the fairylike forests 
 drawing in on either hand, until the rocky bed and 
 the cataracts forbade further progress. 
 
THE ENTRY OF THE SPANIARDS 43 
 
 On this, Cabot turned the bows of his ships, and 
 sped down to the junctioin of the two rivers. Having 
 reached this, he swung his craft round up-stream, 
 and thus found himself sailing up the Waters of the 
 Paraguay River. Here he is said to have reached 
 the point where the red and muddy waters of the 
 Bermejo River flow into the main stream' to discolour 
 its tide, when Indian messengers brought him the news 
 that the vessels of a second European expedition had 
 made their appearaiKjei in the Parand. This news 
 was as disturbing as any couM well be to an explorer 
 in the first flush of his success, loath to share his 
 triumph with any new-comer. Cabot turned his bows 
 down-stream again, and about ninety miltes below the 
 junction of the Paraguay and Parand he met with 
 the ships of Diego Garcia, 
 
 Diego Garcia is said to have been an oM shipmate 
 of the unfortunate Jiiam Diaz de Solis. Convinced 
 apparently of the opportunities whidh lay farther 
 albng the river on the banks of which his leader 
 had perished, Garcia had persuaded some Spanish 
 merchants to finance an expedition. Hence his meet- 
 ing, many hundreds of mites from' the mouth, with 
 the man who had forestalled him, and who, in the 
 first instance, had found himself in those latitudes 
 by the merest chance. 
 
 The two captains saited down in company to Sancti 
 Spiritus . At that spot there undoubtedly ensued con- 
 siderabte argument. Cabot's personality was not one 
 to be lightly set aside. The mlatter was an unfortu- 
 nate one for Diego Garcia, who had planned what 
 the other had obtained by a stroke of fortune — but 
 it was Diego Garcia who had to go. Yielding 
 the point, he sailed out of sight down the stream 
 on his way to Spain, leaving Cabot in possession of 
 the field of his discoveries. 
 
 After this Cabot remained for somte time in the 
 neighbourhood of Sancti Spiritus awaiting the assist- 
 
44 PARAGUAY 
 
 ance for which he hid appealed to Spain, and which, 
 as was not altogether unusual in affairs handled by 
 the Castilian Government, was suffering a practically 
 indefinite delay. In 1530 Cabot, weary of waiting 
 for the ships that did not arrive, determined that 
 he himself would seek in Spain the assistance neces- 
 sary for the success of his colbnial plans. Leaving 
 Sancti Spiritus, he sailed down the river, across the 
 ocean, and arrived safety in Spain. Here circum- 
 stances intervened to prevent him returning to the 
 Rio de la Plata— a dislocation that was by no means 
 unusual in the affairs of the sixteenth-century 
 founders of States and colbnial governors I 
 
 Sebastian Cabot left behind him at Sancti 
 Spiritus a garrison of 120 men, under the com- 
 mand of one of his officers, Nuno de Lara. The 
 fate of the majority of this garrison was trag'ic in 
 the extreme. To all intents and purposes abandoned 
 by the authorities in Spain, they subsisted as best 
 they could, and succeeded in opening up a more 
 or Itess friendly intercourse with the truculent Indians 
 in the neighbourhood. 
 
 Unfortunately for the garrison, the handsome wife 
 of one of the Spanish officers, Sebastian Hurtado, 
 aroused the desire of the cacique Mangor^, and this 
 savage eventually led a treacherous attack on the 
 unsuspecting Europeans with the object of securing 
 the person of Lucia Miranda. Mangor6 himself was 
 slain in the fight, but his brother Siripo, as victor, 
 took the unfortunate lady prisoner. Beyond this ipoint 
 the accounts arei conflicting. Some have it that Lucia 
 Miranda was Mt in possession of Siripo, others 
 that she and her husband remained together to the 
 end, and died the death of martyrs. 
 
 However this may have been, whten a small party 
 of the garrison, who had been absent during the 
 Indian attack, returned to Sancti Spiritus, they were 
 horrified to find nothing beyond the corpses of their 
 
THE ENTRY OF THE SPANIARDS 45 
 
 companions littering the bloodstained soil. These 
 they buried, after which the remnant of the force 
 made its way to the neighbourhood of the small 
 Portuguese settlement of San Vicente on the Atlantic, 
 from which spot they passed in 1534 to the island 
 of Santa Catalina. 
 
 In that same year great preparations were com- 
 peted for an expedition wihich should be of sufficient 
 power to undertake in an adequate fashion the 
 colbnization of the ootmtries of the Rio de la: Plata, 
 the importance of which wlas now acknowledged. In 
 the late surmner an imposing fleet of fourteen vessels 
 sailed froni Spain. In supreme comtnand wias 
 Don Pedro de Mendoza, a sufficiently gallant and 
 adventurous soldier of fortune. Who hid bargained 
 with the King, and who, according to the usage 
 of the period, had demonstrated to his Majesty in 
 a pecimiairy as well as a practical fashion his ability 
 to act as Governor of this new district of the Southern 
 world which he had the royal permission to conquer. 
 
 Mendoza 's bargain, though it was indirectly of 
 considerable use to his successors in South America, 
 turned out to be far less profitable to himself than 
 he had imagined. The expedition was destined to 
 cause him the loss of his money, health, and, even- 
 tually, of his life. After a voyage filled with incident 
 he arrived at the mouth of the Rio die la Plata. A 
 tentative landing on the left bank of the estuary 
 determined him to attempt his settlement on the 
 opposite side. Having re-embarked his men and 
 sailed across, he founded' a township, Nuestra Senora 
 de los Buenos Aires, on the spot where the present 
 capital of Argentina is situated. Here he landed his 
 people and horses, and erected a stockade about the 
 dwellings. 
 
 From its very inception the circumstances of this 
 place were unfavourable. In a very short time 
 hostilities broke out between the Guarani Indians of 
 
46 PARAGUAY 
 
 the neighbourhood and the European settlers. As, 
 moreover, the Spaniards were largely dependent upon 
 these Indians for such meat and fish as they could 
 obtain, the outbreak of these quarrels meant the 
 beginning of a serious famine. 
 
 After a time it became evidtent from the straits to 
 which the garrison was reduced that a continuance of 
 the situation must end in complete disaster. Juan de 
 Ayolas, Mendoza's second in command, set sail up 
 the river, and fovmded a new settlement at the mouth 
 of the Carcarana on the site of the original stronghold 
 which had been destroyed' by the caciques "Mangore 
 and Siripo. 
 
 This was now christened Buena Esperanza ; but 
 the ray of hope that this new development brought 
 to Pedro de Mendoza was but fleeting. That un- 
 fortunate Governor — the AdeUmtado of all these new 
 and difficult lands— was now not only discouraged 
 but seriously ailing. After a stay of some time at 
 Buena Esperanza he depa:rted for Spain, leaving Juan 
 de Ayolas in charge of the enterprise, with Francisco 
 Ruiz Galan as his second in command. Mendoza 
 never reached the coast of Spain. He died on the 
 homeward voyage, doubtless after much bitter wonder 
 as to what he had gained by this arduous adventure, 
 for the privilege of which he had paid so heavily ! 
 
 We are now at the threshold of the history of 
 Paraguay proper. Juan de Ayolas, whose imagination 
 had been stirred by the tales of the prosperity and 
 abundance to be met with in the lands bordering the 
 upper reaches of the river, now pirepared to take an 
 important force up-stream, in order to search for a 
 more genial headquarters for the scheme of coloniza- 
 tion which it had now fallen to him to carry on. 
 
 The fullest account of this momentous voyage has 
 been given by a certain Ulrich Schmidt, known to 
 the Spaniards as Ulrico Schmidel, who accompanied 
 Mendoza as the representative of some merchants 
 
THE ENTRY OF THE SPANIARDS 47 
 
 who must have been of a decidedly enterprising turn 
 of mind. 
 
 Schmidel's chronicles, together with the Com- 
 mentaries of Alvar Nunez Cabeza de Vaca, have 
 been translated from the original Spanish into EngHsh 
 by that fine Argentine scholar the late Don Luis L. 
 Dominguez, formerly Argentine Minister Plenipoten- 
 tiary in Londbn. The value of these works is not to 
 be over-estimated, since they throw into strong relief a 
 branch of South American history which had failed 
 until then to receive anything like its proper share 
 of attention. 
 
 There is, unfortunately, no spacie available here 
 for the full details of this notable inland voyaJge. 
 As an experience, few events of the kind could have 
 been more thrilling, quite apart from' the addeid excite- 
 ment caused by the occasional Indian attacks. There 
 is no doubt that, from the explorer's point of view, 
 the River Plate system compared favourably with 
 that of the Amazon. In the first place the great 
 breadth of the latter gigantic stream suggests a turbid 
 sea rather than a river, and discourages any really 
 intimate acquaintance with the banks. Even in thie 
 narrower stretches, too, the nionotony of the land- 
 scape very soon tends to destroy all appreciation of 
 a nearer view. The Amazon landscape has been 
 justly described as of three unending colours, yellow, 
 green, and blue. The yellow paints the stream, the 
 green the interminable forest walls, and the blue, of 
 course, the sky. There is nothing to break the 
 monotony, save an occasional thunderstorm. 
 
 It is altogether different with the mounting of 
 the Rio de la Plata system, and with the passage from 
 the Parana River into the Paraguay. Here, ascend- 
 ing little by little from the temperate latitudes into 
 the sub-tropical, every score of miles adds just a 
 little to the richness and to the variety of the scene. 
 Surely there can be nothing more enchanting than 
 
48 PARAGUAY 
 
 entering into the full brilliancy and wealth o£ the 
 realms of the most abundant Nature in this deliberate 
 and leisurely fashion. 
 
 The Spaniards found much to wonder at on their 
 upward journey. They noticed, not only the growing 
 beauty of the blossoms and birds, but the increasing 
 variety of the curious creatures which abounded on the 
 shore and in the streani. After a time thtey became 
 accustomed to the innumerable small alligators that 
 dozed sluggishly on the exposed sand-banks, although 
 they never ceased to wonder at the far rarer sight 
 of a giant boa-constrictor coiling his brown and 
 yellow lengdi in the lassitude of repletion or in thb 
 alert expectancy that preceded a meal. 
 
 The names of the various tribes with which the 
 expedition came into contact on its voyage up-stream 
 need not be given here. As rendered by Schmidel, 
 who, with the best of intentions, could not be expected 
 to be accurate in the matter of nomenclature, very 
 few of these are in any way recogniziable, from the 
 point of view of modern knowledge. When he refers 
 to such people as the ' Guaycurus, Timbues, and other 
 known tribes of the kind, the affair becomes plain 
 sailing ; but more often the old chronicler's desig- 
 nations are more or less untraceable. 
 
 Putting all such details aside, it is quite certain 
 that Ayolas' ships, on going up the river, had the 
 various Guarani tribes on their right and the natives 
 of ihe Chaco on their left. The most important and 
 most highly organized' resistance with which the expe- 
 dition met was from the Mepenes, who are said to 
 have mustered no fewer than five hundred canoes in 
 order to oppose his progress up the river. Neverthe- 
 less, the disparity in arms and vessels very soon told 
 its tale. When the action was over a number of 
 capsized canoes and brown corpses went floating down 
 the stream, while the heavy craft of the Spaniards, 
 undamaged, continued their way slowly up the current. 
 
THE ENTRY OF THE SPANIARDS 49 
 
 The relations of Ayolas' mten with the Indians were 
 not invariably of a bellicose nature. Occasionally 
 the intercourse was friendly, enough. Sometimes, in- 
 deed, the Indians proved themselves willing, not only 
 to barter, but to make presents of fish, beans, and 
 liquors to these lighter-skinned strangers. As the 
 Spaniards proceedied. farther into the more bountiful 
 land, and as the bows of the vessels drove into the 
 clear waters above where the mliddy red torrent 
 of the Bermejo poured itself into the main river, the 
 docUity of the Indians on the right hand became 
 more marked. 
 
 At length on this side of the river appeared a 
 mountain, the first real mountain on which the adven- 
 turers had set their eyes since they had entered the 
 great river system I Red, verdure-covered cliffs now 
 border«i the stream^ to fall away, just beyond the 
 mountain, giving way to a delightful little bay. 
 
 Here it was determined to effect a landing. The 
 anchors splashed down with a new sense of finality 
 into the stream, and the small boats bore the pioneers 
 to the shore. Scarcely was the disembarkation at an 
 end when it was discovered that there were Indians 
 in the neighbourhood who had to be reckoned with. 
 At the sight of the strangers two local caciques, 
 Lambar^ and Nandud, had gathered together a 
 formidable Guarani army. An engagement ensued 
 between the Europeans and these, in which the latter 
 were signally worsted. The mauled Guarani host 
 fled in dismay to the wooded slopes of the mountain — 
 itself subsequently known as Lambar6 — ^where they 
 took refuge in a primitive stockaded fort. 
 
 The virile Ayolas, determined to force a decision 
 at all costs, followed on the heels of the Guaranis, 
 and closely besieged them in their stronghold. These 
 energetic measures produced just that result for which 
 the Spanish leader had hoped. Within three days 
 the Guaranis, dismayed at the organization and 
 
 i 
 
50 PARAGUAY 
 
 efficiency of the force opposed to thein! — qualities which 
 were in themselves a revelation to the untutoreid 
 Indians — surrendered within three days, and a com- 
 pact of peace was for the first time drawn up between 
 the two nations. After this Ayolas and his men 
 returned to the pleasant little bay, and on the shore 
 laid the first foundation of the cltyof Asuncion, the 
 capital of Paraguay. 
 
 Had the river been explored for years, instead of 
 having been ascended for the first tinie amid so 
 many distracting incidents, it is doubtful whether 
 a more favourable site could have been lit upon 
 for a centre from which the eddies of civilization 
 should flow outwards in Paraguay. In this respect 
 chance favoured this bold company of conquistadores 
 to an unusual degree. As it happened, Asuncion 
 lay at the end of that stretch of the river system which 
 was conveniently, navigable for the ocean-going sailing 
 craft of the sixteenth century. In addition to this, 
 and to numerous other strategic advantages which it 
 enjoyed, the climate of the place was distinctly, 
 healthy, being practically innocent of the malarial 
 fevers common to many of the more swampy dis- 
 tricts. Further, the advantages of the neighbourhood 
 itself were not confined to a remarkably pleasant 
 landscape. The soil was peculiarly fruitful, and, 
 beyond the native flora, it soon demonstrated its 
 wonderful fertility in the growth of many of the 
 Southern European fruits and vegetables introduced 
 into it. 
 
 So much for the advantages offered by Asimcion 
 in the first half of the sixteenth century. It must 
 be admitted that these were counterbalanced by 
 many circumstances of an adverse order. The snaall 
 and precarious establishments on the great rivers 
 of the south-east of the Continent of South America 
 were entirely dependent on ' Europe for their main- 
 tenance in all else 'but actual food^ — and' even this 
 
THE ENTRY OF THE SPANIARDS 51 
 
 latter commodity had to be includied in the case o'f 
 the settlements at the mouth of the river. The 
 remoteness of Asuncion's situation from Europe was 
 a matter of less consequence 'so long as these latter 
 ports continued. But when the force of circumstances 
 — the chief of w'hich were famine and continuous 
 Indian hostility — forced the abaiidonment of the 
 Settlements of Buenos Aires and Buena Esperanza; 
 and the transfer of their garrisons to Asuncion, the 
 position became changed very much for the worse, 
 and the remoteness of the 'daring Paraguayan town- 
 ship infinitely increased. 
 
 Indeed, few pioneers can ever have been so com- 
 pletely cut off from their countrymen as were those 
 of Asuncion at one period. Between them and the 
 sea ran a thousand miles of river, the current of which 
 was beset by a maze of islands, sandbanks, and 
 shifting shoals. Along this whole distance, more- 
 over, existed no single European upon the banks 
 who could give aid to a party in need of assistance. 
 On the other hand, every danger point along the 
 stream was infested by natives only too anxious to 
 render utterly complete any misfortune which the 
 intricate moods of the river might have in store for 
 the navigators. Finally, once arrived even at the 
 mouth of the great river, "Spain was still on the 
 wrong side of the equator, many thousands of miles 
 away I 
 
 Such was the almost overwhelming isolation with 
 which the first colonists of Paraguay had to contend. 
 
CHAPTER III 
 
 THE FOUNDING OF THE COLONY 
 
 Relations between the Spaniards and Guaranis at Asuncion — ^The friendly 
 and hostile tribes of Indians — Principal object of the Spanish con- 
 quistadores — The fame of the Peruvian mines — Various routes to the 
 mineral districts — Real significance of the ascent of the Paraguay 
 River — Ayolas proceeds farther up-stream — He undertakes an over- 
 land expedition to Peru — Massacre of the party by the Indians — 
 Domingo Martinez de Irala — ^Arrival of Juan de Salazar de Espinosa 
 — Permanent dwellings constructed at Asuncion — Episode between 
 Ruiz Galan and Irala — Details received of the end of Ayolas and his 
 men — Some eloquent coins — Abandonment of the lower river settle- 
 ments — Asuncion as the sole centre of Spanish civilization — Irala 
 becomes Adelantado of the colony — His popularity — Administrative 
 gifts displayed by him — Some circumstances of Guarani servitude — 
 Characteristics of the natives — The establishment of encomiendas — 
 Yanaconas and mitayos — Regulations applying to slave ownership — 
 Development of Asuncion — Defences of the town and election of 
 officials — The urban arms — Circumstances of the colonists — ^The birth 
 of the modern Paraguayan nation. 
 
 The energetic temperament of Juan de Ayollas did 
 not permit him' to rest for any Itength of time on his 
 laurels iat Asuncion. At this latter spot it soon 
 became evident thjat the prospects of a permanent 
 settlement were favouralble in the extreme. In the 
 first place, the relations of the Spaniards with' the 
 Indians were far more satisfactory than had been 
 their experience at any of the lower reaches of the 
 river. 
 
 This, of course, is reg-ardingi the matter from the 
 Spianish point of view. From thie purely native stand- 
 point the prospects were Itess brig'ht, since there was 
 no doubt that the docile character of these Indians 
 
THE FOUNDING OF THE COLONY 63 
 
 was already giving: the Spaniards an ascendanqr over 
 them which was rapidty preparing the way, for a 
 compltete European domination of the district. Start- 
 ing from the initial triumph of the conquistadores on 
 the. mountain slbpes of Lambard, the policy of the 
 new-comiers; as' it develtaped, involved the Indians more 
 and more in the state of inferior allies, whose business 
 it was, not onty to fetch and carryi for the Spaniard, 
 but to render him' military assistance in his cam- 
 paigns ag'ainst the less docile of their dusky brethren. 
 
 These latter were almost entirely met with on the 
 opposite bank of the river. The fierce inhabitants 
 of the Chaco took every opportunity of displaying 
 their resentment at the presence of the white man, 
 and the result was miany fierce brushes with the tjribes 
 of the Lenguas, Tobas and othters. Indeed, during 
 his brief stay iat Asuncion, Ayolas found leisure to 
 take a force down-stjream, and inflict a severe lesson 
 on the tribe of the Agazes that had attacked his 
 ships on their upward way. Another hostile tribe, 
 it may be said, was that of the Guaycunis, consider- 
 ably to the north of Asuncion. 
 
 At the end of six months Ayol'as prepgred him- 
 self for a further journey. His restlessness was not 
 without its object. In the mind of a sixteenth-century 
 conquistador townships such as Asuncion were mereliy 
 a means to an end. An Adelantado who sailed out 
 from Spain iat that period to conquer and administer 
 the great stretdh of territory allotted to him: was 
 very little concerned with such prosaic matters as 
 spadework and agricultural development — so little, 
 indeed, that the Imperial Council of the Indies found 
 it necessary after a time to bind him' by, covenant 
 to take out with him ^ specified number of agri- 
 cultural and pastorail assets in order to ensure the 
 solidity of hjis venture. 
 
 It was usually with some reluctance that an 
 Adelantado comphed with such conditions. That 
 
54 PARAGUAY 
 
 which was before his eyes when he saiJed from his 
 Spanish port for the fajr south was goM, and it was 
 this gold that continued as his sole eventual aim and 
 object all the time, until, occasionally fabulously rich, 
 but more often impoverished and disillusioned, he 
 returned to Europe, or Md his bones in some corner 
 or other of the gilded continent of mystery. 
 
 Thanks to Pizarro, AHmagro, and their douglbty 
 colleagues, the fame of the Peruvian mines had been 
 spread widely labtoad. To approach this dazzling 
 coimtry from the west and the north' was an impos- 
 sibility. Every route in that direction had been 
 secured by the grim and determined conqaistadores 
 who had first boldly. Challenged the force of the Inca 
 Empire. There remained the approach' from the 
 south-east, and, it was supposed, the discovery of 
 lands adjoining that of the Inca — lands as rich in 
 precious metals ias the other. 
 
 In the early sixteenth century all the South 
 American roads led to Peru and to its mountains of 
 metal I Hence the great importance of the ascent of 
 this Paraguay River, whose source, the Spaniards 
 of this expedition felt assured, rose in those very 
 highlands among some of which the conqaistadores 
 of the north-west were reaping rich yellow harvests. 
 
 With a mental picture such as this floating 
 entrancingly before him, it was out of the question 
 for a man of Ayolas' temperament to remain quietly 
 at Asuncion aind to superintend the steady growth 
 of the neiw setttement. Once again he assembled 
 his men and his ships, ajnd, after six months'' 
 stay at Asimcion he set out once more up-stream in 
 search of the route to Paraguay, and to all those 
 mountains that he pictured, each as rich as Potosi. 
 
 On this occasion the navigation was still more com- 
 plicated than before, and the comparatively shallow 
 waters of the upper reaches were a ceaseless source 
 of anxiety. Nevertheltess, on the 2nd of February, 
 
THE FOUNDING OF THE COLONY 55 
 
 1537, thle expedition arrived safely at a little natural 
 river port wtiichi Ayolas christened by the name of 
 La Candellaria. 
 
 The site of this place does not appear on any 
 modem map, nor on aiiy ancient one with which I 
 am acquainted.'. But it was certainly on the Chaco 
 bank of the stream, and its aspect must have promised 
 a favourable starting-off point for the mountains— 
 for it had now becom© cltear to the explorers that 
 the promis© of the river had been specious, land 
 that, after all, its upper waters were fringed by, no 
 metal-bearing hills. It was at this point, at all 
 events, that Ayolas decided that the river expedition 
 should end and the journey by land should begin. 
 
 He Iteft his ships in the care of that stout and 
 trusty Biscayan, Domingo Martinez de Irak, and, 
 accomplanied 'by 250 Spaniards and 100 Indians, 
 he struck out bbldly to the west through the 
 woodliands 'and swamps of the Chaco. Another 
 accoimt has it that before he plunged inland 
 Ayolas married the daughter of the local cacique — 
 more as &> precautionary measure in the way otf 
 securing an alliance than for any other reason — and 
 set out with 127 men, Iteaving 33 in chargle of Irala. 
 
 Neither Ayolas nor ajiy of his men were ever seen 
 by Europeans Sgain. .There is no doubt that this 
 resolute conquistador, ^er suffering intense priva- 
 tions in common withi his men, did actually succeed 
 in reaching the ejisteirn borders of the mountainous 
 land of Peru, and, having secured many specimens 
 of minerals, wais returning with such of his men 
 as had survived the intense hardships of the voya'ge, 
 when the party Wals treacherously, set upon by the 
 Indians, and a massacre ensued which left not a 
 singlte white man ahve. 
 
 Up to this point the history of these coltonizijig 
 ventures of the south-east has been simplte enough ; 
 but within half a year after Ayolas and his men had 
 
66 PARAGUAY 
 
 disappeared into the forest of the Chaco arose the 
 first of those complications of State and of those 
 jealousies between leaders from which Paraguay was 
 destined to suffer, not only for generations but for 
 centuries . 
 
 I r alia, having waited for several months at La 
 Candelaria, and having in vain maintained a vigilant 
 watch on the Chaco bank, found that he had practi- 
 cally come to an end of his provisions. In order 
 to revictuali his vessels he determined to sail down 
 to Asuncion, where the Indians were friendly and 
 where the fruits of thfe earth Tvere ptentiful. 
 
 His departure was delayed by the totally unex- 
 pected appearance of Juan de Salazar de Esponosa, 
 a royal official whio had sail^ up the river to render 
 what assistance he could to Ayolas. This meeting 
 occurred at a point a little to the north t)f La 
 Candelaria on the 23rd of June, and was naturally the 
 occasion of grelat rejoicing. After having remained 
 for a time in Irala's company, Juan de Salazar 
 dropped down in his vessels to Asuncion, where on 
 the I 5 th of August hfe began to build the fort and 
 the first permanent houses at this spot. 
 
 .When, in the continued absence of Ayolas, Irala in 
 his turn sailed down the stream to Asuncion, in order 
 to revictual his vessels, he was amazed to find a 
 far more numerous body of Spahiards than the 
 followers of Juan de Salazar established at that place. 
 
 Ruiz Galan, who had originally been appointed 
 by Pedro de Mendoza as second in command to 
 Ayolas, had now come up-stream to the spot with a 
 number of his followers. Galan, anxious to assert 
 his authority, diargied Irala with having deserted 
 his post — a Mdicrously unsound accusation — and 
 detained him for ai time at Asuncion on this charge. 
 
 Presently, however, Irala was free again to return to 
 his thankless station of expectancy at La Candelaria, 
 white Ruiz Galan went down-stream from Asuncion to 
 
THE FOUNDING OF THE COLONY 67 
 
 attend to the iaffairs of the few Spaniards whb 
 remained to the south of the Paraguayan settlement. 
 
 Irala waited in vain in thfe neighbourhood of La 
 Candelaria. The relations with the Indians in the 
 neig'hbourhood of thie river appear to have been 
 entirely broken off at this period. Such inter- 
 course as existed appears to have been alimost 
 entirely limited to the taunting cries of the na;tives, 
 who, from their places of conceailment in the dense 
 vegetation which fringed the river, yelled out cries 
 of defiance, and shouted the news of a triumph which, 
 they said, had been obtained over the white men who 
 had dared to enter the Chaco. 
 
 At length two Payagud Indians were captured, 
 and, in accordance with the callous procedure of 
 the age, they were put to the torture in order that 
 the truth of what had occurred might be wrung 
 from them — a p^rocess which as often as not resulted 
 in the extraction of a number of details invented by 
 the sufferer on the spur of the moment in the hope 
 of putting an end to his aglonies. In this case the 
 circumstances were clear enough. The end of Ayolas 
 and his men had come about just as, utterly spent, 
 they were wearily passing throug'h a thick forest 
 patch. All at once the leaves and lianas on either 
 side had become alive with dusky faces, and a 
 horde of savages had crashed throug'h the under- 
 growth and slaug'htered the surprised and helpless 
 Spaniards until not one was left alive. 
 
 In connection with this massacre it is worth while 
 to branch off for a few Unes into some circum- 
 stances which are only indirectly concerned with this 
 part of the history of Paraguay. They are, at all 
 events, eloquent of the strangle manner in which the 
 alimost forgotten fa:cts of one age are apt to be 
 hnked with those of another. As late as the end 
 of the nineteenth century those travellers who dared 
 — occasionally at the risk of their lives — to penetrate 
 
68 PARAGUAY 
 
 into parts of the Chacb have frequently met with 
 a strange collection of Spanish' coins used as orna- 
 ments by certain tribes of Indians, some of them 
 bearing dates which carry back very nearly to the 
 first ages of the Spanish colonization in South 
 America. It is not only possible, but probable, that 
 these coins were first spread abroad in the Chaco, 
 and, bloodstained, were taken from the bodies of 
 the Spania'rds on the occasions of massacres eudh 
 as that of Ayolas and his men. 
 
 When Irala, doubt no longer existing* concerning 
 the death of his chief, returned to Asuncion, it was 
 to find the place now definitely accepted as the 
 headquarters of the Spanish colonization in the south- 
 east of the continent, and shortly after his return 
 from that place the surviving Spaniards were brought 
 up to it from^ the harassed settlement of Buenos 
 Aires, thus leaving, as has been previously remarked, 
 no link of civilization in all the thousand miles that 
 intervened between Asuncion and the ocean. 
 
 In the meantime a struggle for supremacy among 
 the leaders had ensued in which Irala had proved 
 himself the victor. His rivals for the post of 
 Adelantado were Ruiz Galan, Alonso Cabrera, and 
 Juan de Salazar. The fact that he succeeded in 
 upholding his cause in the face of such candidates 
 as these is eloquent of the strength of Irala's 
 personaUty. For Salazar, as we have seen, was an 
 important imperial official ; Ruiz Galan had been 
 definitely picked out by, Pedro de Mendoza before 
 his departure from South America ; and Alonso 
 Cabrera;, who had come out from Spain with rein- 
 forcements, had actually in his possession a royal 
 document appointing him Adelantado of the new 
 colonies and licensing him to hold this post in any 
 eventuality save that of the return of Ayolas, supposed 
 dead, in which case Cabrera was to hand over his 
 offices and titles to Ayolas. 
 
THE FOUNDING OF THE COLONY 69 
 
 The rank and file of the Spaniards, however, were 
 almost to a man devoted to the cause of Irala, and 
 Asuncion was sufficiently remote from' the Court of 
 Spain for popular clamour of this kind to be a 
 thing of importance. Thus we see Irala established 
 by the vote of the people as the first Governor of 
 Paraguay — or at all events as the first Governor 
 who was in a position actually to administer pbis 
 province. 
 
 Irala lost little time in proving himBelf a bbm 
 administrator. It is true that his methods were those 
 of the age, and that the means he employed were 
 wont to be utterly relentless so long as the object 
 he had in view w|a!s achieved. But he possessed all 
 the qualities of a leader of men and a builder of 
 empire. 
 
 The forces which he had at his command at the 
 beginning of his governorship were far from impres- 
 sive. Out of the two thousand Spaniards which 
 Pedro de Mendoza had brought with him from 
 Europe no more than six hundred remained. 
 
 These, however, were now tried men, veterans in 
 colonial experience who had become inured to the 
 hardships of the pioneer, and who had become accus- 
 tomed to the cHmate and circumstances of the new 
 land. They were now to enjoy the reward of their 
 fortitude, actording to the simple views and easy 
 morahty of those days. Irala was determined that 
 there iShould be no doubt as to which race was the 
 dominating one on the banks of the Paraguay River. 
 To this end he instituted a species of servitude which 
 tended towards turning the docile Guaranis into little 
 beyond the chattels of the white men. 
 
 It is true that this servitude differed widely from 
 the species of slave trade which was carried on 
 elsewhere in the case of the African, who was bought 
 and sold and consigned from any one part of the 
 world to another in accordance with the circumstances 
 
60 PARAGUAY 
 
 connected with the labour markets and the price 
 of slaves. It is true that at one time there was a 
 tendency to ship Guaranis as slaves to Spain. But 
 this traffic never attained to any important propor- 
 tions. In Paraguay the basis of the Indian servitude 
 was that each native should take part in the develop- 
 ment of his country — incidentally, to the benefit of 
 the white man, at whose disposal the riches of the 
 country now lay. 
 
 It must be admitted that from the Spaniard's point 
 of view this solution of a formidable difficulty was 
 the simplest and most practical of all. Left to 
 his own devices, the labour of the Guarani Indian 
 would have been too trivial to affect the face of 
 the country in any noticeable fashion. The native 
 had no intention of straining his muscles in any un- 
 comfortable fashion, so long as the fruits of a 
 bountiful Nature fell into his mouth, so long' as the 
 rivers continued to give out fish, and so long as 
 his wife had strength to coofe! for him and to carry 
 out the simple menial offices which her lord and 
 master demanded of her. 
 
 But now came the Spaniard, dominant, and com- 
 pletely unsympathetic in his determination that the 
 land of Paraguay should be made productive — even 
 if for no other reason than for the sustenance of 
 the European at one of his raUying-points in his 
 quest after gold, although, so far as Paraguay was 
 concerned, the spot was rapidly developing a separate 
 importance of its own. 
 
 The steps taken by Irala in order to bring llie 
 native labour into force were simple enough. 
 Encomiendas, or settlements, were established, into 
 which numbers of the Guaranis were brought. Here 
 they were made amenable to discipline, and were 
 taught an industry which they accepted only with 
 the deepest reluctance. 
 
 It was natural that the first establishment of these 
 
THE FOUNDING OF THE COLONY 61 
 
 encomiendas should have been carried out in a tenta- 
 tive and somewhat rough-and-ready fashion. The 
 main result was that Irala's men, the majority suffi- 
 ciently humble soldiers of fortune, found themselves 
 in a position of employers of unpaid labour, such 
 as could not fail to appeal to the material side of 
 adventurers such as they. 
 
 As the rule of the European developed and his 
 hold grew stronger upon the land two distinct 'kind 
 of encomiendas were brought into being, ktiown re- 
 spectively as the yanaconas and the ndtayos. Con- 
 cerning these settlements, I may repeat here the 
 description I have given of them in a previous book 
 dealing with the Jesuit missions of a later age. 
 
 By the naJne of yanaconas were known those 
 collections of Indians whb had been subjugated by 
 private warlikte enterprise, a term which doubtless 
 euphemistically covered slave-raiding in neighbour- 
 ing countries. These were to all intents and purposes 
 slaves. According to the laws, their masters were 
 obliged to protect thtem and to teach' them Chris- 
 tianity. These owners were also forbidden by the 
 authorities to sell, maltreat, or abandon their Indians 
 on account of bad conduct, illness, or old age. It 
 must be admitted that these regulations were excel- 
 lent in themsielves. At the same tim'e, it is evident 
 enough that the mten to whom' they apipUed, and 
 who were undisputed lords of all they surveyed, were 
 in an ideal position to take their responsibilities 
 just as lightly as hap'pened to suit thieir convenience. 
 
 The ndtayos were made up of thbse tribes who 
 had submitted voluntarily or whp had been conquered 
 by the royal forces. Their lot, compared with that 
 of the yanaconas, was favourable, and they were 
 supposed to enjoy not a few privileges. For instance, 
 each native company of the kind was permitted to 
 choose the site it desired for its settlement. Its 
 members, moreover, were divided into various 
 
62 PARAGUAY 
 
 sections, each of which was governed by, a: chief 
 of its own selection. Every male here between the 
 ages of eighteen and fifty was obliged to labour 
 for two months of the year for the benefit of the 
 proprietor of the mitnyo, and to each settlement of 
 the kind a teacher of the Christian faith was 
 appointed. In the interests of the natives each 
 province was visited annually by an official wht^se 
 duty it was to hear complaints and to remedy abuses. 
 
 So much for a first glimpse into the Indian settle- 
 ments of Paraguay — settlements which are of great 
 historical importance, since on more than one occa- 
 sion they proved themselves bound up with the 
 destinies of the inland State itself. 
 
 One of the first taslcs of a chosen number of 
 these Guaranis was to assist in the building of 
 Asuncion, which was now beginning to take to itself 
 the character of a regular town. Irala watched 
 over this urban venture with all the energetic care 
 of which his temperament was capable, and he did 
 not rest until the spot was strongly fortified with 
 stockades and placed in an efficient condition of 
 defence against an impTobable rising of Guaranis, 
 or a surprise attack by hordes of Chaco Indians 
 who might cross the river in their canoes — a con- 
 tingency which was by far the more likely of 
 the two. 
 
 After this Irala himself named the Alcaldes and 
 the other officials of the very youthful city, which! 
 was soon to receive its coat-of-arms from Charles V, 
 a compliment which, if often entirely overlooked now, 
 was of the greatest importance then. The emblems 
 of these arms seem to have been the figures of 
 St. Blaise and the Assumption, as well as a castle 
 and a coconut-tree. This latter, by the way, appears 
 subsequently to have been changed for the figure 
 of a European lion, sitting in a natural and perfectly 
 unheraldic attitude in the shadte of an ordinary tree I 
 
THE FOUNDING OF THE COLONY 63 
 
 With this firm establishnatent of Asuncion began 
 the founding of a number of small townships in 
 various spots. Clergy now arrived from Spain, and 
 churches were established in these places as well as 
 in the capital. As for the majority of the Spaniards, 
 though it was octasionally necessary to take to arms 
 and to set out on the march to punish some truculent 
 and hostile tribe, their character as soldiers tended 
 slowly but surely to merge itself into that of the 
 colonist. 
 
 Almost to a man they toolc to themselves Guarani 
 wives, and the union was celebrated by, the rising 
 generation of tawny young sons of thte soil who 
 scampered under the brilliant forest blossoms that 
 the country had always 'known, and by the side of 
 the crops Which now were sprouting where before 
 none had been. It was this which' mar'ked the first 
 birth of the modern Paraguayan nation. 
 
CHAPTER IV 
 
 THE GOVERNORSHIP OF ALVAR NUNEZ CABEZA DE VACA 
 
 Some methods of Spanish colonial government — Difficulties in legis- 
 lation from a distance — ^Alvar Nunez Cabeza de Vaca is made 
 Adelantado of Paraguay — Having landed at Santa Catalina, he 
 receives news of the abandonment of Buenos Aires — Effect of this 
 on Alvar Nuiiez' plans — He determines to make his way overland 
 from the coast to Asuncion — Discovery made by the crews of his 
 ships on the site of Buenos Aires — Alvai" Nunez' mai'ch to the west — 
 His methods with the Indians — Incidents of the journey — The party 
 arrives in Asuncion — Attitude of the colonists — Varying versions of 
 events — First signs of a split in the ranks — Colonizing methods 
 adopted by Alvar Nunez — ^Alvar Nuiiez sets out with a considerable 
 force for Peru — Dealings with Indians — How the Payaguas deceived 
 ih& Adelantado — Small results of the expedition — Return to Asuncion — 
 A condition of discontent culminates in a rising of the Spaniards — 
 Alvar Nuiiez is imprisoned and placed in irons — Hostilities in the 
 town — Harsh treatment of Alvar Nuiiez — His character and circum- 
 stances — Influences at work — Iralais again elected Adelantado — How 
 Alvar Nuiiez was put on board the ship which was to take him to 
 Spain — A contemporary account — Incidents of a dramatic departure. 
 
 It was aJtogfether in accordance with the uneasy 
 destiny of Asuncion that oniy a few years after the 
 foundation of the city, the first of the many political 
 storm-clouds which were destined' to burst over the 
 city was already gathering. From the point of view 
 of Spain there was decidedly nothing in the acts 
 which initiated the later troubles in Paraguay which 
 could in any way have been considered' as ill-omened. 
 On the contrary, wihen in i 540 so giallant a nobleman 
 and so experienced a pioneer as Alvar Nuiiez Cabeza 
 de Vaca, who had already distinguished himself in 
 Florida, was entrusted with the governorship of the 
 
 64 
 
ALVAR NUNEZ CABEZA DE VAC A 66 
 
 great river country on the south-east of South 
 America, it was generally held in Madrid and in the 
 ports of Southern Spain that the prospects of the 
 aip'pointment were bright both for Alvar Nunez him- 
 self and for Paraguay. 
 
 Had Paraguay lain next door to Spain no doubt 
 all would have been as well as the most optimistic 
 member of the Court of the Indies predicted. It 
 was the thousands of miles which intervened between 
 Spain and her colonies that alone were at fault on 
 countless occasions in upsetting plans which at the 
 time of their making in Spain appeared essentially 
 wise and reasonable. The Royal Council had a 
 persistent and unfortunate hab'it of failing to take into 
 consideration the fact that by the time their leisurely 
 deliberations had been concluded, the situation in 
 distant South America to which they referred had 
 probably changed altogether I In this circumstance 
 undoubtedly lay one of the greatest disadvantages of 
 Spanish colonial government, and it was here that 
 lurked the greatest enemy of that jealous central 
 rule which insisted on letting no other authority but 
 itself control the executive decisions of a colony which 
 might have been supposed to be at a distance of 
 a few days' journey from Seville instead of that of a 
 voyage of many months I 
 
 Alvar Nuiiez left the port of Sanlucar in Spain in 
 1840, bearing the royal authority which appointed 
 him Adelantado of Paraguay. In this instrument 
 there occurred again the stipulation that, should 
 Ayolas prove to be still alive and should he return 
 to Paraguay, Alvar Nunez himself and all his men 
 and ships should be at the disposal of Ayolas. 
 
 Alvar Nunez proceeded to Santa Catalina in 
 Southern Brazil. Here he landed, and took posses- 
 sion of the spot in the name of his imperial master. 
 This he had been authorized to do, as at that time 
 the Spaniards maintained that the Santos River 
 
 5 
 
66 PARAGUAY 
 
 constituted the southern frontier of the Portuguese 
 possessions in the continent. 
 
 The new Adelantado then made preparations to 
 proceed southwards to Buenos Aires, when a boat 
 arrived at Santa Catalina. In it were nine Spaniards 
 who had deserted from the ill-provisioned settlement 
 of Buenos Aires just before its abandonment, and 
 who had since learned of the complete desertion 
 of the place by their comrades. 
 
 In the face of this news it was necessary, for Alvar 
 Nunez to revise his plans. He had expected to 
 find the frontiers of his province washed by the salt 
 waves ; now he learned for the first time in this 
 unceremonious fashion that they had been spirited 
 away many hundreds of miles inland I The altered 
 state of affairs on the banks of the great rivers 
 made him all the more anxious to reach the head- 
 quarters of the Spanish colonization with as little 
 delay as possible. To effect the journey from Santa 
 Catalina by way of the ocean and of the rivers 
 would be in the first place to cover two sides of a 
 triangle, since he would have to proceed southwards 
 to the abandoned settlement of Buenos Aires, whtence, 
 after a short westerly stretch, he would have to turn 
 his vessels' heads due north. Beyond these considera- 
 tions of actual distance, the thousand mUes of toil 
 against the great stream would swallow months of 
 effort before the buildings of Asuncion could be 
 expected to heave in sight. 
 
 At his halting-place of Santa Catalina Alvar Nufiez 
 found himself very little to the south of the latitude 
 of Asuncion. It was clear to him that if he struck 
 out to the west across the intervening and unknown 
 stretch of country which separated ^im. from Asuncion, 
 he would arrive at that remote spot in a far shorter 
 space of time than would be possible in the case 
 of a voyage by ocean and river — all this, of course, 
 provided that no unusually serious obstacle should 
 
ALVAR NUNEZ CABEZA DE VACA 67 
 
 crop up out of the unexplored to lie across his 
 path. 
 
 Alvar Nunez determined to talde the risk of this 
 latter possibility, and he prepared himself to under- 
 take the long land journey from Santa Catalina to 
 Asuncion, the second important expedition of the 
 kind ever attempted in Spanish South-Eastern 
 America, the first, of course, having been the 
 daring but disastrous march of Ayplas from La 
 Candelaria to the borders of Peru, in the course of 
 which every man of the force was slain. 
 
 The new Adelantado left 140 of his men at 
 Santa Catalina, under the commiand of Pedro 
 Estropiiian Cabeza de Vaca. These were given 
 charge of the ships, which they were ordered to 
 bring on to Asuncion. They set out in due course, 
 and arrived at the abandoned settlem,ent of Buenos 
 Aires, on the site of which they fotuid a ship's mast 
 sticking upright out of the deserted soil. Closer 
 inspection revealed the legtend carved in Spanish on 
 the wood, " Here is a letter." The promised letter, 
 hidden in a hole in the mast, explained the circum- 
 stances of the abandonment of Buenos Aires, and 
 told how the Spaniards had proceeded up-stream 
 to Asuncion — a fact with which, as it happened, 
 these crews of Alvar Nunez' ships were already 
 acquainted. These latter then began their long, 
 journey up the river, and eventually arrived at 
 Asuncion many months after the Adelantado had 
 reached the young city. 
 
 Having sent out an advance party, who explored 
 the most piromising and feasible routes to the west, 
 and returned with! fairly encouraging accoimts, Alvar 
 Nunez himself set out on his miomentous journey, 
 accompanied by all his men with the exception of 
 those who had been left at the sea coast in charge 
 of the ships. Authorities would seem to differ as 
 to whether the date of his departure from the cOiast 
 
68 PARAGUAY 
 
 was the i8th of October or the 2nd of Novranbter, 
 1 84 1. In any case it is a matter of small conse- 
 quence. A very full account of this journey has 
 been given by Pedro Hernandez, Alvar Nunez' secre- 
 tary, who conscientiously and minutely describes the 
 chief events of the expedition and the various 
 Guarani tribes through whose country the march to 
 the west took the Spanish force. 
 
 Decidedly the circumstances of the expedition 
 must have been such as to cause an amazement in 
 the breasts of the majority of the Spaniards as lively 
 as that which their appearance evolred in the electri- 
 fied collections of dusky folk who for the first time 
 set eyes on the White man, and that terrifying servant 
 of his — or part of himself, as it was frequently 
 supposed — thte horse! 
 
 Seeing that Hernandez was a devoted secretary, 
 it is but natural that Alvar Nunez' character, as 
 portrayed by his pen, should shine forth — occasionally 
 in a iway that suggests a heavenly temperament rather 
 than one attached to a mere human body I The 
 Adelantado, on the other hand, has by no means 
 been without his detractors, and, were it possible to 
 strike a mean between the verdicts of the two 
 opposing camps, no doubt a tolerably accurate 
 estimate of Alvar Nunez' character would result. 
 
 One thing would seem certain enoug'h : his methods 
 with the Indians were admirable. From the day 
 when he and his men climbed up throug'h thte dense 
 forest that covers the coast range to that other day, 
 more than half a year later, when he came in sig'ht 
 of the modest buildings of Asuncion by the side of 
 the bay just beyond where the red cliffs jutted out 
 into the stream, he appears to have undertaken no 
 aggressive measures whatever towards the Guaranis, 
 and, moreover, to have taken gtenidne pains to restrain 
 thte. mbre turb^ulent of his followers from unnecessary 
 violence. 
 
ALVAR NU5fEZ CABEZA DE VACA 69 
 
 As a result of this humane policy the greater plaCrt 
 of the Adelantad&s march pa,rtook of the nature 
 of a peaceful progress. Presents were exchanged' 
 between the Europeans and the Guar^is, ; crude and 
 rustic feastings were arranged ; endeavours were 
 made to explain the might of the Spanish Empire 
 and the benefits from it that its GuaranI subjects 
 might now expect, while' now and ^gain the shuddering 
 natives were persua<dled to approach the horses, in 
 order that their minds might be impressed by a sight 
 of these dreaded animlals. As a, mlatter of fact, a 
 peaceable journey of the kind was essential for the 
 success of an expedition such as that which Alvar 
 Nunez had undertaken. The natural difSculties of 
 the march were quite sufficient in themselves to de- 
 mand all the energies of the most resolute conquis- 
 tador, without the added difficulties entailed by the 
 presence of hostile tribes. The passage of untracked 
 mbuntains, forests, plains and rivers and swamps is by 
 no means a mere matter of history to this day in 
 many of the remote portions of South America. But 
 the modern pioneers in these remaining tracts, with 
 the inventions and instruments of modem science at 
 their disposal, have an easy task compared with that 
 which confronted' Alvar Nunez and his men, bearing 
 their crude paraphernalia and their cumbrous armour 
 and weapons. 
 
 As a set-off against these hardships might have 
 been placed the fact that the country through which 
 the expedition passed was one of the most beautiful 
 in the world. But very soon the Spaniards took to 
 regarding this with a comparatively jaded eye. It 
 was not for the sake of landscape that they had left 
 their native country and had voyaged over so many 
 watery miles ! There was sufficient of that in Castile 
 and Andalusia : it was in quest of more material 
 benefits that the pioneers were now tramping reso- 
 lutely inland. 
 
70 PARAGUAY 
 
 After rather more than a couple of months of tra;vel 
 the party reached the Ijanks of the Iguazd River, 
 which uhimately gives into the Alto Parand, and thus 
 leads the way to the river communication with 
 Paraguay. Alvar Nunez, of course, had no means 
 of knowing this, but, hoping for the best, he followed 
 the stream, until the amazed pioneers came upon the 
 vast and thundering cataract of the Iguazd. Having 
 carried their canoes round, and embarked on the 
 lower stream, his men were now wfeU upon the river 
 high-road to Paragu!a,y. 
 
 It was a curious circumstance, and doubtless not 
 without a certain significance of its own, that it was 
 only as the expedition began to draw within the 
 influence of the new Spanish settlements in Paraguay 
 that attacks on the part of the Indians occurred. 
 These, however, were repulsed with little difficulty, 
 and Alvar Nunez safely completed the remaining 
 stages of his journey, arriving at his capital of 
 Asuncion on the nth of March, 1542. 
 
 It was a very long time since the colonists of 
 Asuncion had received news of any kind from Spain. 
 Although their position as settlers had become firmly 
 established, this total break in the intercourse with 
 the mother country had had the effect, not only of 
 depriving them of many of the conveniences of civi- 
 lization, but also of creating a certain mtental depres- 
 sion such as cannot fail to be the lot of those who 
 imagine themselves abandoned, or at least neglected, 
 by the men of their 'own race. The advent of Alvar 
 Nunez and his men, therefore, was the signal for 
 great rejoicing. The m,en of Asuncion ransacked 
 the neighbourhood for the wherewithal to feast the 
 new-comers with all the modest splendour that they 
 could contrive, and as for the members 'of thei 
 '<Adelantado's party, they were openly thankful to have 
 arrived at their journey's end. 
 
 The ceremonies of welcome once at an end, it was 
 
ALVAR NU5IEZ CABEZA DE VAC A 71 
 
 riecessary to take in hiarid the State Wusiness pf 
 Asuncion. Here it became clear from the start that 
 the position of Alvar Nunez was an invidious one. 
 At the first meeting of the representatives of the old 
 and the new governorships Irala acknowledged the 
 Adelaniddo's authority, although it has been said 
 that he conceded this point only on the condition that 
 Alvar Nunez should produce the full proofs of his 
 appointment. In the first instance, indeed, no friction 
 whatever was perceptible between the pair. Never- 
 theless the colonists themselves, ardent admirers of 
 the sturdy and resolute Irala, that bom leader of 
 men whom their own insistent vote had raised to his 
 position of power, could not fail to see in Alvar 
 Nunez an interloppr whose arrival bade fair to intro- 
 duce numberless complications, to say nothing of 
 an unwelcome clashing with their own interests. This 
 attitude became more and more perceptible as time 
 went on, and it was this alone which was responsible 
 for the subsequent outburst of anarchy in Asuncion. 
 It is, indfeed', no easy master to obtain an unbiased 
 picture of the Paraguayan history of this period. 
 The contemporary cTironiclers have shown themselves 
 partisans either of Alvar Nunez or of his opponents 
 to an enthusiastic degree sufficient to render doubtful 
 the accuracy of their testimony. One or the other 
 of these opposing causes, however, would seem to 
 have been espoused even by later historians, with 
 the result that the confusion, instead of becoming 
 cleared, has tended to grow yet more involved. How 
 difficult it is to arrive at the truth in this matter may 
 be judged from one single example of the host of 
 conflicting statements. Irala's adherents protested 
 that the Adelantado had earned the hatred of the 
 Indians through the unnecessarily cruel measures he 
 employed towards them : Alva,r Nufiez' supporters 
 protested that their chief's unpopularity among inany 
 of the Spaniards was owing to the fact that he 
 
72 PARAGUAY 
 
 protected the natives against the harsh oppression of 
 the colonists I 
 
 The latter solution would seem by far the more 
 probable of the two ; but however this may have 
 been, Irala gave no open sign of discontent for a 
 considerable time after the arrival of Alvar Nunez. 
 The Adelantado first of all occupied himself in 
 endeavouring to cement the relations between the 
 Spaniards and some of the outlying tribes of the 
 Indians. Finding the Guaycuriis irreconcilable, he 
 undertook a campaign against these tribesmen, and, 
 his European troops supported by ntmierous com- 
 panies of friendly Guaranfs, he totally defeated the 
 fierce hostile warriors in a pitched battle, the victory 
 gaining him the allegiance of several tribes that had 
 been awaiting its result in order to decide which 
 cause to espouse. 
 
 Alvar Nunez now sent various parties of Spaniards 
 to explore the banks of fhe great rivers to the south 
 and north. Among these wa,s a company who set 
 out in three brigantines under the command of Irala. 
 It was the latter's mission to proceed as far as he 
 could up the Paraguay River, and to take notes of 
 all the tribes and natural features of the country he 
 should meet with. Here again the chief incentive of 
 the journey seems to have been the desire to find 
 the nearest road to Peru. 
 
 On the 20th of October, 1542, Irala set out, and 
 when he had arrived at a spot that he chlristened 
 Las Piedras, some 210 miles above Asuncion, he sent 
 an embassy accompanied by about eight hundred 
 Indians to ask information of Aracar^ a powerful 
 chief of the neighbourhood. But Aracar6 proved 
 himself hostile. Not only did he refuse his assist- 
 ance, but he endeavoured to stir up animosity against 
 the Spaniards by every means in his power, causing 
 fire to be set to the dry summer vegetation of the 
 country through which the pioneers had to pass. 
 
ALVAR NUREZ CABEZA DE VAC A 73 
 
 As a result of this the chief was executed by the 
 orders of Alvar Nunez, an act which subsequently 
 caused an uprising of this tribe, led by two mciqaes 
 named respectively Guarambar^ and Tabard. 
 
 Irala, however, succeeded in quelling this rising 
 in July 1543. Soon after this he returned to 
 Asuncion, having penetrated inland for a considerable 
 distance, and brought back much information con- 
 cerning the nature of the country to the west of the 
 Upper Paraguay River. 
 
 Alvar Nunez, encouraged hy this preliminary feat 
 of exploration, now determined to take up the great 
 quest himself. The force he organized for this 
 purpose was a sufficiently formidable one, including, 
 it is said, some four hundred arquebusiers and twelve 
 hundred bowmen. These latter, of course, comprised 
 the Guarani auxiliaries, many of whom were re- 
 splendent in their crudte and barbaric pomp of war, 
 brilliant in war-paint, and " adorned with plumes 
 and feathers, and wearing on their brows plates of 
 metal, so that when the sun shone they glittered 
 marvellously." 
 
 The expedition set out up-stream in September 
 1543. The rapidity with which the conquest had 
 been effected is proved clearly enough by this date 
 alone. Scarcely six years had elapsed since the 
 Spaniards had definitely founded the little settlement 
 of Asuncion — a pin-point of civilization in the midst 
 of a vast stretch of totally unknown country, in- 
 habited by many scores of tribes who at the time 
 were almost equally unknown. Now, after this short 
 space of time, here was the Adelantado starting on 
 a journey which would occupy many weeks before the 
 now comparatively familiar country would be passed 
 over — a Governor who left behind him Juan de Salazar 
 as deputy with a whole hierarchy of officials beneath 
 him, and who was about to be accompanied in his 
 travels by European and native forces such as might 
 
74 PARAGUAY 
 
 have furnished a suitable escort for a Viceroy ! For 
 it was not ships and river-craft alone which on this 
 occasion conveyed Alvar Nunez' small army. Armed 
 horsemen now forced their steeds along the difficult 
 country in the neighbourhood of the banks, and either 
 plunged on their way parallel with the fleet, or pricked 
 ahead of the craft that laboured against the current. 
 
 Arrived at La Candelaria, Alvar Nunez called a 
 halt. The reason for this would in modem days be 
 termed a strict matter of business. La Candelaria 
 had been Ayolas' headquarters on his last expedi- 
 tion. It was to La Candelaria that that ill-fated 
 conquistador was returning when he and his men 
 had been massacred. Report, moreover, had it very 
 confidently that Ayolas' party had been laden with 
 precious metals. It was clear^ then, that this treasure, 
 if it existed at all, must be in the hands of the 
 Payagui Indians in the neighbourhood of La Cande- 
 laria, who, it was now known, had been chiefly 
 responsible for the attack on the Europeans. 
 
 It was on this account that Alvar Nunez decided 
 to treat the Payaguds with all the courtesy due to 
 capitalists I There were undoubtedly times when this 
 conquistador was moved by lofty ideals — but this was 
 not one of them. He was fully prepared to waive 
 any justice towards the murderers of the dead Ayolas, 
 at the price of the dead Ayolas' gold ! This he 
 signified to the tribe, in as dignified a fashion as 
 could be managed, and to his delight it seemed that 
 the Payagui Indians were quite ready to come to 
 business on these terms. In their apparently artless 
 fashion they spoke of sixty-six loads of treasure, 
 which they professed' themselves prepared to hand 
 over in exchange for immunity from such unpleasant 
 things as European bullets and steel swords. Alvar 
 Nunez eagerly awaited the delivery of these valuable 
 loads, until he discovered, after lingtering for an un- 
 reasonable time, that he had been hoaxed, and that 
 
ALVAR NUSTEZ CABEZA DE VACA 75 
 
 the temp1:ing offer had been madie merely in order 
 to allow the trijbe to move quietly away from the 
 neighbourhood of La Candelaria without being 
 molested. 
 
 Disillusioned, the Adelantado cx)ntinued on his way, 
 after some vain attempts had been made to come 
 up with the disingenuous Payaigluds., The expedi- 
 tion then proceeded northwards 'as far as Los Reyes, 
 a spot which had already been explored by Irala. 
 From this point miany excursions were miade among 
 the surrounding tribes of Indians, whose sentiments 
 varied from thie friendly and the neutral to an actively 
 hostilte state of mind. 
 
 Towards the end of March 1544 the Adelantado 
 decided to return to Asuncion. The expedition had 
 been productive of very little that was good, and of 
 much that was unfavourable. Their wanderings 
 among so many of the northern swamps had seriously 
 impaired the hea;lth of a large number of the 
 Spaniards. The sufferings of fever had seriousty 
 added to the natural discontent engendered by a 
 series of journeys whidh had calised intense hardships 
 without any visible pToportionate gain . Alvar Nunez, 
 moreover, had intervened in the intercourse between 
 his men and the Indian women in a fashion which, 
 amply justified though it probably was, turned out 
 to be the cause of di deep irritation on the part of 
 his followers. 
 
 It was, indeed, a mortified and embittered com- 
 pany that glided down with the current between the 
 enchanting banks of the stream to Asuncion. Had 
 the voyage occupied the two months that the up- 
 stream navigation had demanded, an outburst would 
 probably- have occurred before the journey's end ; but 
 as, going with the tide, they were swept to their 
 destination in eig'ht days, the threatened explbsion 
 was postponed until the houses of Asuncion itself 
 could witness thei dis!turt)ance. 
 
76 PARAGUAY 
 
 As a matter of fact, no sooner had the 
 men of the expedition stepped ashore than the 
 atmosphere of plbt and counterplot enveloped 
 the capital of Paraguay — a town that was alto- 
 gether too young; to be placed ait the mercy of 
 such hardened intrigues ! So far we have dealt 
 almost entirely with the salient personalities of Irala 
 and Akar Nunez, but now a number of others inter- 
 vene, and take up a large share of the canvas. 
 
 The chief of these are Sallazar de Espinosa, who 
 has already been referred to ; Garcia Venegas, Royal 
 Treasurer, a native of C6rdoiba and an especially 
 violtent opponent of Alvar Nunez ; Felipe de Caceres, 
 an intriguing aiid treacherous official ; and Francisco 
 de Mendoza, who was apparently a natural son of 
 Pedro de Mendoza, the first Governor of the new 
 provinces. 
 
 The vigorous individualities of all these men, save 
 the first, were bitterly opposed to the rule of Alvar 
 Nunez, and as the latter lay ill in bed a coup de 
 main was arranged. A body of armied men burst 
 without warning into the house of the AdeUmtado, 
 dragged him from his couch, and proclaimed the 
 unfortunate official a prisoner of State. After this 
 AlVar Nunez w'as placed in irons, and a company 
 of revoMionists marched along the few streets of 
 the town, proclaiming the downfall of the Governor, 
 and terrorizing those who showed any inclination to 
 espouse his cause. 
 
 It was in this wajy that occurred the first revolu- 
 tion in Paraguay — the fierce herald of a tragically 
 long list jof isimilar events to come ! But the insurgents 
 were by no means destined to haVe matters all their 
 own way. When the confusion attending the first 
 rising diminished to the extent of permitting the 
 strength of the rival parties to be seen, it became 
 evident that the adherents of Alivar Nunez were 
 practically as numerous as the insurgents. But the 
 
ALVAR NUNEZ CABEZA DE VACA 77 
 
 strategic ladvantage of thte situation fey with the latter, 
 since thiey, had in their power the person of the 
 Governor, and hiad control of the greater part of 
 the availaible arms. 
 
 Some skirmishies occurred in the streets of Asun- 
 cion ; but the partisans of the imprisoned Governor 
 failted to rescue him from his confinement. The 
 unfortunate miaii was now detained in a small and 
 gloomy fort which had been especially, erected for 
 this purpose, and his daptors ampty diemonstrated 
 the lengths they were prepared to go by their harsh 
 treatment of the prisoner, aiid by their vows that 
 his body should never be rescued alive by his friends . 
 
 As has ^ready been said, the details of this period 
 of Para.guayan history, are so confused and contra- 
 dictory that it is unusually diflScult to come to any 
 definite concliusion concerning the rival claims of 
 the respective parties. Perhia:ps the best method 
 of obtaining iaiiy comprehension of the whirlpool of 
 events will be to analyse the situation itself and the 
 personalities of the chief iaictors. 
 
 There seems no dbubt that the temperainent of 
 AlVar Nunez Caheza de Vaca was too finely consti- 
 tuted for the task whidi! he had in hand — save at 
 such moments as when he was tempted by Ayofes' 
 goM 1 If his ideals were not too lofty for the aigle, 
 they would, at all events, seem to have been out of 
 place in the latitudes to which he had brought them' ! 
 Although his courag'e aiid energy were tindoubted, 
 he appears to have been a man of theories rather than 
 of those rough-and-ready and opportunist precepts 
 Which were dhar'acteristic of the tjrpical' conquistador. 
 It was against the nature of things that a per- 
 sonality of this sort could maintain its authority 
 in the circumstances in which AlVa'r Nufiez found 
 himself in ParaJguay. The reckless set of officials 
 with which he was surrounded fiercely resented these 
 views of the Adelantadd s , more especially on those 
 
78 PARAGUAY 
 
 occasions when his theories gave birth to regula- 
 tions which thteatened the liberty of action of those 
 ofEciak — who, ahnost to a man, had axes of their 
 own to grind. The rank and fite of the Spaniards, 
 even those who were Ibyally prepared to uphold the 
 Itegitimate Governor's cause, were vastly impressed by 
 the personalty of IrSla, whose gallant figure resolutely 
 dominated the horizon of Paiiaguay. As to Irala 
 himself, until the discontent flamed out into open 
 revolt he appears to have given no sign. Perhaps 
 he knew that none was necessary, and that the trend 
 of affairs was tumingj in his direction as inevitably 
 as the sturdy sunflower turns towards the sun. 
 
 If this were so, Irala's expectations had been 
 fulfilled. He was now again elected to the post 
 of Adelantado 'by the acclamation of the inhabit- 
 ants of Asuncion, and Al^var Nunez was confined in 
 his cell by the condemnation of a certain number of 
 these. In this noisome spot the unfortunate Adelan- 
 tado was kept for some twelve months before the 
 new authorities saw fit to put an end to his captivity. 
 Even then his retease wais only affected in the midst 
 of scenes of violtence, in the course of whidh! Alvar 
 Nunez was dra^gtgled in secret to the bank of the 
 river Itest his appearance among the people of 
 Asuncion should arouse an inconvenient sympathy. 
 
 I have akeady had occasion in another place to 
 quote Hernandez' account of the manner in which 
 the ex.- Adelantado was placed on board ship to be 
 conveyed to Spain in the dhairge of his implacable 
 enemy Garcia; Venegas, but thte matter is well 
 worthy of introduction here : — 
 
 " One night, towards midnight, Albnso Cabrera, 
 the supervisor, and Pedro Dorantes, his factor, 
 accompanied by a large number of arquebusiers, 
 presented thtemsel'ves before ithe Governor's prison ; 
 each arquebusier carried three lighted fuses in his 
 hand, so as to make their number appear greater 
 
ALVAR NU5rEZ CABEZA DE VACA 79 
 
 than it wSs in reality,. Then Alonso Cabirera and 
 Pedro Dorantes entered the roomi in wihichl he lay,.; 
 they seized him by the arm and lifted him' out of 
 the bed with the chains round his feet ; he was 
 very ill, almost imto death. They carried him in 
 this state tjo the gate leading into the street, and when 
 he saw the sky, which he had not seen till then, 
 he entreated them to let him render thanks to God. 
 When he rose from his knees, two soldiers placed 
 their arms undier his and carried him on board the 
 brigantine, for hie Was extremety weai and crippled. 
 iWhen he saw himself in the midst of these people, 
 he said to them: 'Sirs, be my witnesses that I 
 appoint, as my deputy, Juan de Salazar de Espinosa, 
 that he may govern this province in the name of 
 his Majesty instead of me, maintaining order and 
 justice till the King shall have been pleased to make 
 other dispositions.' Hardly, haid he finished speaking 
 when Garcia: Vanegas, deputy treasurer, rushed upon 
 him with dagger in hand, saying, ' I dio not recognize 
 what you say ; netraict, or I will tear your soul from 
 your body 1 ' But the Governor had been iadvised 
 not to speak ^s he did, because they were dletermined 
 to kill him, and these words might ha;ve occasioned 
 a great distur'bajice among; them, and the party of 
 the King might have snatched him from the hands 
 of the others, as; everybody wSs then in the street. 
 Garcia Vanegas withdrew a little, and the Governor 
 repeated the same words ; then Garcia sprang upon 
 him with great fury, and placed a dlagger to his 
 temple, saying as before : ' Withdraw What you say, 
 or I will tear your soul from your body I ' At the 
 same time he inflicted a! slight wound on his temple, 
 and pushed the people who were carrying the 
 Governor with so much violence that they fell with 
 him, and one of them dropped his cap. After this 
 they quickly, raised him again, and carried him 
 precipitately on hoard the brigantine. They closed 
 
80 PARAGUAY 
 
 the poop of the vessel with planks, and put chains 
 on the Governor, which prevented him from moving. 
 Then they unmoored and descended the river." 
 
 This description of the dramatic departure of poor 
 Alvar Nunez from the scene of what had once been 
 his governorship is, of course, from the pen of a 
 devoted adherent who was unlikely in the extreme 
 to make the Iteast of any wrongs suffered by the 
 Adelantado. Nevertheless it is probable that this 
 account, though a little coloured, is accurate enough 
 in the main. 
 
 It was in this fashion, then, that AlVar Nunez 
 set out on his voyage to Spain, where he arrived 
 after many sufferings, and where he was first 
 imprisoned and subsequently released, without, how- 
 ever, receiving any, compensation for his wrongs. 
 
CHAPTER V 
 
 THE ACHIEVEMENTS OF DOMINGO MARTINEZ DE IRALA 
 
 Political unrest in Asuncion — The Indians take advantage of the situation 
 to rise in insurrection — Irala defeats a combined force of Guaranis and 
 Agaces — A period of peace follows the subduing of the natives — 
 Asuncion is made the seat of a bishopric — Solitary situation of the 
 Province of Paraguay — The rumours of Peruvian gold — Irala con- 
 templates a journey to Peru — His followers receive the proposal with 
 enthusiasm — Irala sets out with a chosen party — Encounter with the 
 Indian tribe that had massacred Ayolas and his people — Difficulties 
 and hardships of the journey — Arrived at the borders of Peru, the 
 expedition receives a communication from Lima forbidding a farther 
 advance — Irala sends an embassy to Lima, begging ^official confirma- 
 tion of his governorship — Negotiations with Peru — Irala's strategic 
 precautions — ^The party reluctantly retraces its steps — Happenings in 
 Asuncion during the absence of the Adelantado — Francisco de 
 Mendoza's attempts to obtain the governorship lead to his execu- 
 tion — Diego de Abreu is elected as temporary Adelantado by the 
 people — ^Abreu refuses to resign his post on Irala's arrival — The 
 majority of the townspeople join Irala — Abreu and his remnant of 
 followers flee to the woods— Arrival of Nuflo de Chaves with men 
 and livestock from Lima — Irala quells an insurrection fomented by 
 the intrigues of La Gasca — Death of Abreu and the dispersal of his 
 followers — Some failures and successes in colonization — Official 
 appointments made by the Court of Spain — Salazar arrives in 
 Paraguay, bringing with him seven cows and a bull — Irala is 
 officially nominated Adelantado — Colonizing achievements of Nuflo 
 de Chaves — Death of Irala. 
 
 Irala was now again at the helm of this young 
 ship of State that had plungfed into tormented waters 
 so early in its voyage. As has already been seen, 
 he had a brusque way of dealing with rivals, and 
 was troubled with few sctuples concerning tjie order 
 of their going. So a couple of days after the de- 
 
 6 
 
82 PARAGUAY 
 
 parture of the ex-Governor two of the lattex's friends, 
 Juan de Salazar and Pedro de Estropiiian Cabeza 
 de Va<^, were seized in their turn, and were sent 
 in chains down the river to overtake the vessel which 
 was carrying Alvar Nunez. 
 
 But all Irala's resolution could not slay that spirit 
 of unrest which the arbitrary deposing of the late 
 Adelantado had called into being. Neither was the 
 spirit of opposition to the new state of affairs per- 
 ceptibly weakened by the further banishing pf Salazar 
 and Pedro de Estropinan Cabeza de Vaca. The 
 smiling surroundings of Asuncion now resounded to 
 the clashing of intermittent civil war, a condition 
 of affairs which endured for a couple of years. 
 Needless to say that during this time the new agri- 
 cultural ventures suffered from neglect, and that the 
 rapid growth of the subtropical vegetation swept 
 again in green triumph over many of the toilfully 
 cleared fields. 
 
 As to the Indians, they remained for a time in 
 passive amazement at the spectacle of these strange 
 white foreigners who, having swooped down upon 
 the land and taken possession of it, had suddenly 
 taken to fighting among themselves, and thus to 
 expending on the persons of their brethren that force 
 of theirs which had seemed so irresistible. The 
 sight of this fratricidal strugigle in which the m^otive 
 did not seem to be even the conquest of land but 
 was concerned rather with the efforts to attain the 
 chieftainship, was one which the aborigines did not 
 in the least understand. Their own democratic com- 
 munities would never have troubled themselves to 
 waste a single ounce of energly in a fight for one of 
 those posts of leadership, which to them conveyed 
 no more of honour, glory, or profit than they would 
 have sold to the first comer for a very modest 
 bowlful of their native spirit. 
 
 As a natural result their respect for the wisdom of 
 
DOMINGO MARTINEZ DE IRALA 83 
 
 the conquistador fell as rapidly as the mercury in 
 a barometer before a tropical tornado — and with very, 
 similar consequences. As preparation for a storm 
 of their own brewing they began to busy them- 
 selves with their war pigments and ornamentations, 
 and with their bows, arrows, slings, and spears. If 
 ever there was a time to rid themselves of these new- 
 comers, they argued not without reason, it vv:as surely 
 now, when every nerve of the one-half of these 
 amazing people was being strained to wort mischief 
 to the other. 
 
 Messengers, gallant in feathers and ambassadorial 
 decorations, passed between the tribes of the Guaranis 
 and the Agaces. A treaty of aggression followed, 
 and very soon a large army of hostile Indians had 
 gathered in the woods near Asuncion, and from their 
 point of vantage threatened the disturbed young 
 capital of Paraguay. But they had counted with- 
 out Irala's resolution and power of initiative. When 
 once the situation had become plain to him, that 
 able leader made haste to utilize the peril from' 
 without to destroy the dissensions which were eating 
 into the life of the settlement from within. 
 
 Throwing himself into the breach, Irala, having 
 persuaded the Spaniards to abandon their differences 
 for the time being, rapidly infused fresh 'discipline 
 and order into the demoralized force, and then led 
 his men out against the Indians. In the neighbour- 
 hood of the woodlands of Aregud he met the com- 
 bined armies of the Guaranfs and the Agaces. The 
 combat that ensued was very brief. The Indians 
 had only time to hurl a few spears and let fly la 
 few volleys of arrows before the mailed Europeans 
 were upon them, sword in hand. 
 
 The Indian forces were quite unable to withstand 
 the shock. In a few minutes those who had escaped 
 death or hampering wounds were fleeing for their 
 lives, their flimsy finery bedraggled and bloody, the 
 
84 PARAGUAY 
 
 heavily equipped Spaniards straining in pursuit after 
 them. 
 
 The pursuit was continued across league after 
 league of the fair Paraguayan country until the 
 survivors of the fugitives, at the end of their resources 
 and strength, found themselves in the remote territory 
 of the chief Tabard. This Tabar6 had been a friend 
 of Aracar^, the chief who had been slain some years 
 before by command of Alvar Nunez Cabeza de Vaca. 
 Having inherited his dead comrade's hostility towards 
 the Spaniards, Tabard welcomed the fugitives, and 
 withdrew with them and his own men into the shelter 
 of his most distant glades. 
 
 On this the Spaniards had no choice but to 
 abandon the pursuit. Irala's object had been com- 
 pletely served by now, as a matter of fact, and the 
 recent aggi-essive mood of the Indians had been 
 thoroughly chastened into the humility bom of terror. 
 So in the winter of 1546 he returned in triumph to 
 Asuncion at the head of his men, where he once 
 again took up the reins of government. 
 
 After this occurred one of those rare lulls which 
 it was the fate of Asuncion at this stage of its exist- 
 ence to enjoy only between tremendous intervals of 
 turmoil and strife. For two years an absence of 
 discord in the city itself and a practical truce with 
 the outljdng and hostile tribes of Indians gave the 
 young town the opportunity of thrusting its roots 
 more deeply into the soil. The number of houses 
 increased by the side of the broad river, and the 
 crops multiplied in the spreading agricultural land. 
 
 A number of priests had been residing at the 
 spot from the time of the governorship of Alvar 
 Nunez Cabeza de Vaca, and, indeed, the city of 
 Asuncion had been raised to the dignity of a 
 bishopric in 1539. But the first ecclesiastic nomi- 
 nated to the see, Juan Barrios, did not once put 
 in an appearance within the boundaries of his diocese, 
 
DOMINGO MARTINEZ DE IRALA 86 
 
 which quite possibly he may have considered as being 
 altogether too remote from' the world to expect the 
 actual presence of so exalted a dignitary as a bishop. 
 So he contented himself with sending an order that 
 the status of the Asuncion church should be raised 
 to that of a cathedral. This was done, and Juan 
 Barrios appears to have remained thoroughly content 
 with the result of his vicarious labours, continuing 
 to let the hearts of the inhabitants of Asuncion 
 grow fonder by an absence which continued un- 
 broken to the end I 
 
 During the two years of peace which ensued after 
 Irala's victory over the Guaranis and the Agaces, 
 not only did no bishop arrive, but neither priest 
 nor even layman of any kind came to the spot from 
 Spain. Not a single vessel from Europe was blown, 
 poled, or hauled up the Current of the great river. 
 It appeared very much as though the Paraguayan 
 province were destined to sink into an eternal 
 slumber, for which, as a matter of fact, its soft and 
 languorous climate fitted it most admirably. 
 
 But, whether forgotten by Spain or not, the 
 temperament of Irala was far too energetic to permit 
 him to let this condition of affairs continue indefi- 
 nitely. The call of the Peruvian mountains had 
 penetrated again to the beautiful valleys of Paraguay. 
 It is true that no news concerning' the conquistadores 
 of the north-west had come for a very long time 
 from Spain, the centre of the Empire. But accurate 
 intelligence, as well as chance rumour, has always 
 had a habit of travelling across aboriginal South 
 America at a pace which, even in these days, seems 
 Httle short of marvellous, considering the enormous 
 distances and the primitive methods and appliances 
 of the Indians. 
 
 Thus report came down from the rarefied atmb- 
 sphere of the lofty and bare Peruvian and Brazilian 
 mountains, and, travelling east with the headwaters 
 
86 PARAGUAY 
 
 of the great rivers below throug'h the forests, went 
 from tribe to tribe across the vast expanse of the 
 lowlands, and, emerging from the mysterious Chaoo 
 upon the river bank, swept across the stream and 
 thus into Paraguay. These told of the drama that 
 was being played on the sunburned and windswept 
 highlands, where lay the mines that had provided 
 the aboriginal inhabitants with the glittering armour 
 and ornaments that proved their ruin. They hinted, 
 too, of the tragedy of the Incas, and of the stream 
 of gold and silver that was being poured out from 
 that suffering empire with an abundance which even 
 the mind of the most credulous and optimistic con- 
 quistador knew could not continue for ever. 
 
 It was doubtless this state of anxious uncertainty 
 that urged Irala to link up his efforts with those of 
 the conquistadores of the north-west before the richest 
 sheaves of the golden harvest had been torn away 
 by the eager and avaricious hands of his distant 
 rivals. So, rising one morning and gazing with 
 gratuitous discontent on the broad river running 
 smoothly between its green bank's, on the palms of 
 the copses, and the glowing blossoms and butterflies 
 of the clearings, he decided to abandon this soft 
 and sluggish peace and to make a more determined 
 effort than ever before to gain the bleak, fortune- 
 bearing heights of Peru. But before definitely 
 embarking on this enterprise Irala thought it well 
 to test his men's opinions on the subject ; fbr among 
 the Adelantado' s numerous good points was his 
 custom of treating his followers as comrades and 
 friends rather than as mere subordinates told off 
 to come and go with the precision of soulless 
 automatons. So Irala summoned a gathering of his 
 people in the shade of the flowering trees, and fairly 
 and squarely put the question to them : Would they 
 prefer to start upon an expedition to Peru or to remain 
 in this Paraguay which had now become their home? 
 
DOMINGO MA11T1NE2 DE IRALA 87 
 
 The enthusiasm with which the men of Asuncion re- 
 ceived the first suggestion pilainly sh)owed their leader 
 that th6y mig'ht be relied on to stand Ipfy htm to the 
 last in his venture . How arduous and pierilous was the 
 nature of this had been amply proved by those who 
 had previously attempted it. But, toot in the least 
 discouraged by the prospect before them, a picked 
 party of men made preparations for the voyage, and 
 in August 1548 Irala set out at the head of these, 
 having left the governorship of Asuncion during his 
 absence in the hands of Don Francisco de Mendoza. 
 
 Irala made his way upi-stream' until he arrived at 
 a spot — which seems to appear in no modem maps — 
 known at the time as San Fernando. Here he left 
 the two ships which had carried his force, leaving 
 orders with their comm.anders to wait for him at 
 that spot for two years. From this circumstance 
 alone som:ething of the nature of these early journeys 
 across the Chaco may be gleaned. Although they 
 have made so small a stir in history, they are only 
 comparable with the nineteenth-century expeditions 
 through the heart of Africa or with polar explora- 
 tion of all ages. Sometimies* the men who made 
 them returned to civilization ; at other times they 
 failed — but in a journey such as that on which Irala 
 was setting out nothing short of two years would 
 leave a reasonable margin of safety. 
 
 In one point at least Irala's conduct of his expedi- 
 tion compares favourably with that of Alvar Nunez 
 when in the same neighbourhood i Irala seems to have 
 made no attempt to traffic with the slayers of Ayolas. 
 These latter, as a matter of fact, lay in ambush 
 for him ; but he defeated the tribesmen utterly in 
 their own forest haunts, thus avenging the death of 
 his old leader. As he proceeded on his westward 
 way he encountered other tribes, some hostile and 
 others with whom he succeeded in making friend's. 
 As Irala, however, drew farther from the neigh- 
 
88 PARAGUAY 
 
 bourhood of the great streams the natural difficulties 
 which beset his path tended to increase. The swamps 
 and rivulets died away, water became scarce, and 
 at one period it failed altogether, a number of men 
 perishing from' thirst as the result. 
 
 In the end, pushing his way resolutely forward, 
 Irala arrived at the frontiers of Peru. As was 
 invariably the case, the report of his coming, borne 
 from one Indian tribe to another, had long preceded 
 him. As he and his men were resting on the bank 
 of a river, a messenger canje to him from Lima, 
 bearing a letter from the Licentiate La Gasca. This 
 ordered him not to advance any farther into Peru, 
 but to remain where he was and to await further 
 orders . 
 
 A welcome so completely lacking in warmth might 
 well have dismayed a leader less resolute than Irala. 
 As a matter of fact, a man of his force of character 
 was the very last person whom the distracted authori- 
 ties of Peru wished to see in their dominion just 
 then, fearing much lest the advent of a personality 
 of that kind should stir up again the smouldering 
 embers of the rebellion from which the State had 
 suffered. It is even alleged by some that La Gasca 
 sent a heavy bribe to the conquistador from the 
 east, in order to induce him to remain absent from 
 the land of the Incas. 
 
 Whether this was the case or not, Irala's circum- 
 stances must have made him' sufficiently anxious not 
 to ofifend the powers at Lima, without the extra 
 incentive of a bribe being necessary. If the vision 
 of gold now seemed to recede a little, there was a 
 second, and very practical, object of his expedition 
 which might now well be established. The high 
 colonial authorities had tacitly agreed to his election 
 by the local Spanish inhabitants to the post of 
 Adelantado of Paraguay. But they had never con- 
 firmed this officially, and from the legal point of 
 
DOMINGO MARTINEZ DE IRALA 89 
 
 view Irala was left at the meroy of any adventurer 
 sent out by the Court of Spain with a proper licence 
 to take chargte of affairs in Paraguay. We may 
 emphasize the fact that this is regarding the matter 
 from the legal point of view, since in actual practice 
 the power of the colonists had shown itself clearly 
 enough in the case of the unfortunate Alvar Nuiiez ! 
 
 At the same time, Irala was well aware that his 
 position would be greatly strengthened by a regular 
 imperial licence. He now sent an embassy to Lima, 
 bearing this petition in his name. The mission con- 
 sisted of Nuflo de Chaves — of whlonl' more will be 
 heard later — Miguel de Rutia, Agustin de Ooampo, 
 and Ruy Garcia. The four Spaniards succeeded in 
 reaching Lim.a in safety. The wily La Gasca, how- 
 ever, showed himself little disposed to forward the 
 interests of a conquistador whose waxing power he 
 imagined he had reason to dread. In the light of 
 after events, moreover, it is extremely doubtful if 
 Irala's cause was supported with ardour by any of 
 his four messengers — one of whom', at all events, 
 subsequently proved himself hostile to the 
 Adelantado . 
 
 Owing to this, the official reply from Lima, sent 
 to Irala by other hands than those of his own 
 followers, was purposely framed in a non-conunittal 
 and vague s'tyle. Indeed, the only really definite 
 matter it contained was a still more urgent in- 
 junction that Irala should advance no farther 
 into Peru. 
 
 In those wild days of early adventure lie who 
 was incapable of pursuing a policy of reckless oppor- 
 tunism was lost. No one appreciated this more 
 than Irala, though he would seem to have been 
 originally fashioned by Nature in a sufficiently bluflf 
 and straightforward mould. As it happened, Irala 
 placed just that same amount of trust in La Gasca 
 as did La Gasca in him. Irala had anticipated 
 
90 PARAGUAY 
 
 this second epistle from La Gasca, and, after review- 
 ing the contents of the first, he felt himself scarcely 
 justified in speculating in an optimistic fashion 
 concerning its tenor. 
 
 So Irala had taken his precautions. He organized 
 a gang of supposedly hostile Indians, who lay in 
 wait for La Gasca's messengers. At a given moment 
 they sprang out upon these, seized the letter, and 
 it is highly improbable that any of these unfortunate 
 folk were left ahve. It was a simple but cuniling 
 stroke. Had La Gasca's letter contained ahy 
 peculiarly inconvenient ooinmands or the news of 
 any adverse decision, Irala could convincingly 
 demonstrate to the Peruvian authorities that, since 
 the messengers had been waylaid by hostile Indians, 
 he had never received it — a sufficiently weighty official 
 excuse for th'e steps Avliich he might subsequently feel 
 himself forced to take ! As the epistle was found to 
 contain no awkward mlatter of the kind, Irala's striking 
 precautionary measure proved superfluous. But it 
 affords a sufficiently eloquent instance of the methods 
 employed by these cynically adventurous conquista- 
 dor.es in their dealings among themselves. 
 
 As it was, Irala now recognized with some 
 reluctance that no purpose would be served by his 
 dallying any longer on the borders of Peru. It 
 became plain to him that all that would result to 
 his credit out of the long and very strenuous journey 
 was the important geographical knowledge and the 
 honour and glory of the feat. His men were even 
 less interested than he in such abstract gains, as 
 Irala discovered for himself when he permitted them 
 to obtain some insight into the situation, and pro- 
 posed that the party should now turn its steps towards 
 Paraguay again. 
 
 When they received this news an uproar arose 
 among the Adelanfado' s followers. It must be 
 admitted that, from their point of view, they had 
 
DOMINGO MARTINEZ DE IRALA 91 
 
 every reason to be incensed. For day after day, 
 week after week, and month after month they had 
 forced their way through the tearing spikes of the 
 tropical jungle and the cling'ing mud and stagnant 
 waters of the swamps and pools. They had forded 
 rivers, toiled across waterless deserts, fought with 
 fever and the sun's great heat — they had done all 
 this, and much beyond, only to be turned back when 
 once they, had gained the outskirts of the promised 
 land! 
 
 The resolute men from Paraguay were not in the 
 least inclined to submit tamely to this chilling rebuff 
 which came down across the bane mountains into 
 the land of forests and young stream.s, where they 
 lay reduperating after the wearing! toil of their 
 marches. They clamoured to go on in the face of 
 any ofiScial prohibition. They were strong enough 
 to play their part like men in Paraguay, they urged. 
 Let them go on, and, if necessary, assert by the 
 sword their right to take their share in the great 
 game of gain that was proceeding at such a pace 
 in Peru'l 
 
 Under any other leader but Irala these wild and 
 resolute spirits would undoubtedly have had their 
 way. It was one of the clearest proofs of the power- 
 ful influence over his people enjoyed by this con- 
 summate leader of men that he was able to reajncile 
 them to the disappointment of having this much- 
 desired cup snatched from their lips. Then he led 
 them back by the way they had come, and the 
 expedition arrived in sight of San Fernando, where 
 the vessels were awaiting it, at the end of 1549, 
 having been absent very nearly eighteen months. 
 
 "the men left in charge of the two ships had 
 some fragments of news to tell which might well 
 have destroyed the equanimity of a less seasoned 
 conquistMior than the one who had jiist led his 
 force to the borders of Peru and back. Lacking 
 
92 PARAGUAY 
 
 his firm control, the affairs in Asuncion had become 
 tangled into a confusion of violence and blood. It 
 appeared that, when twelve months had elapsed with- 
 out any news of Irala having penetrated to Asuncion, 
 Francisco de Mendoza, the deputy Governor, grew 
 restive. He may actually have believed in the prob- 
 ability of the news, which he gave out to the 
 inhabitants of Asuncion in the light of a certainty, 
 that Irala and his people had perished. In any case, 
 whether this was so or not, he judged the moment 
 a propitious one to obtain for himself the permanent 
 power of the governorship. 
 
 Before committing himiself to any definite action 
 he conferred with a number of his intimates, who 
 assured hurt, not oply of their own support but of that 
 of the general populace of the town in addition. 
 Thus convinced of the certain success of his plans, 
 Francisco de Mendoza called' a meeting of the towns- 
 people, repeated to them the assurances concerning 
 the death of Irala and his men, and announced that 
 the time had now arrived for the election of a new 
 Governor, which was to be the work' of the suffrage 
 of Paraguay's Spanish inhabitants. 
 
 Having prepared the way for his accession to the 
 post of Adelantado, he awaited with confidence the 
 result of the voting. This was by no means as he 
 had anticipated. It is doubtful to what extent his 
 own intimates had misled the ten^orary Governor 
 concerning their promised support ; but it is certain 
 enough that many of the lesser officials, resenting the 
 election in the absence of any satisfactory proof of 
 Irala's death, had made up their minds that, if a 
 ballot were forced upon them, Francisco de Mendt>za 
 should, at all events, not have the benefit of their votes. 
 
 It was owing largely to this adverse current of 
 sentiment that Francisco de Mendoza, the natural 
 son of the first Adelantado of the provinces of the 
 Rio de la Plata, found in due course, much to his 
 
DOMINGO MARTINEZ DE IRALA 93 
 
 surprise and dismay, that the unappreciative in- 
 habitants of Asuncion had not elected him as their 
 Governor after all. The votes of the Spaniards had 
 given that much-coveted honour to a sufficiently bold 
 and resourceful man, Diego de Abreu, or Abregt) 
 as it was sometimes rendered. 
 
 According to the methods of reckless opportunism 
 which were characteristic of the age, only one course 
 remained to Francisco de Mendbza — to declare the 
 election illegal, and, having thus ignored its verdict, 
 to hoist himself boldly into the Adetantado' s chair 
 by the force of arms. This he was preparing to do, 
 when he found for the second, and last, time that he 
 had misjudged the power of initiative of those 
 opposed to him. While Mendoza's plans were still 
 in the act of maturing, Diego de Abreu istrucki ! 
 A number of armed mfen poured into the house of 
 the official whom Irala had appointed his deputy. 
 Francisco de Mendoza was arrested, led away, and 
 executed without an instant's unnecessary delay — all 
 this at the instance of Diego de Abreu, the new 
 Adelaniado elected by the people. 
 
 In order that this act of poetic justice should 
 be followed by appropriate developments, there is 
 no doubt that Diego de Abreu, having played an 
 honest, if bloodthirsty, part up to this point, should 
 have governed in the spirit of Irala, and that he 
 should have handed over his authority with a loyal 
 alacrity when in due course the news of that notable 
 conquistador's safe return reached Asuncion. 
 
 Diego de Abreu, however, having tasted power, 
 was determined that he would not abandon its joys 
 without a struggle. When a letter, sent down-stream 
 to him b_y Irala, pointed out the illegality of his 
 election, and demanded that he should resign his post, 
 Abreu's only reply was to strengthen the fortifications 
 and paKsades of Asuncion. 
 
 As Abreu might well have foreseen, Irala was the 
 
94 PARAGUAY 
 
 last man to submit tamely to this attempif to shut 
 him out from his own dominion. Very soon he and 
 his force came down the river, ajid their landing 
 abreast of Asuncion was a very grim reminder that 
 Irala's letter had evoked no satisfactory reply. The 
 returned Adelantctdo had no intention of wasting his 
 force in a general attack on the town. He merely, 
 set up an encampment just outside its closed gates, 
 and waited. Doubtless he knew his people well, and 
 in any case this policy of waiting proved the simplest 
 and most efficacious means of success. 
 
 In little groups of twos and threes the townsmen 
 slipped out through the defences of the place, and 
 joined the popular conqui^ador. Every day, as 
 Abreu's garrison grew less, Irala's forces increased 
 steadily in proportion. Every day that passed, more- 
 over, without a blow being struck, assisted to con- 
 solidate the remarkable triumph of the man who had 
 brought his followers safely back from the borders 
 of Peru. 
 
 At length no more than some fifty men remained' 
 to Abreu within the walls of Asuncion. These were 
 stalwarts, bound to the cause of their dismayed leader 
 by blood or by closer ties of friendship than the 
 rest. Sallying out suddenly one day, they fled in a 
 body to the woods, where they prepared to maintain 
 a desultory warfare against the powerful Conquistador, 
 who now celebrated his delayed entrance into 
 Asuncion. 
 
 Although Irala had now fully recovered his power 
 so far as Asuncion itself was concerned, the situation 
 was less satisfactory in the surrounding country, where 
 Abreu and his men remained lurking in their forest 
 refuges, to spring out upon any small party that 
 might incautiously venture within their reach. Some 
 fresh developments, however, were destined to put 
 this state of affairs into the background for the time 
 being. . 
 
DOMINGO MARTINEZ DE IRALA 96 
 
 These developmfents were heralded by the arrival 
 of Nuflo de Chaves from Lima. This enterprising 
 official brought in his train some sheep and goats, 
 and thus provided the new country with the first 
 headb of domestic livestock that it h&.d ever known. 
 With Chaves' party, too, came forty soldiers, sent 
 from Lima by La Gasca ostensibly as an escort for 
 the travellers, and as an addition to the Asuncion 
 garrison, but in reality to undermine Irala's authority 
 and to stir up a rebellion against him. It is suffici- 
 ently obvious that a man who mig'ht object to the 
 opposing of such crafty and unscrupulous methods 
 as these by such casual delinquencies as the way- 
 laying of occasional messengers and other counter- 
 strokes of the kind would very speedily have gone 
 down beneath the ,grim wiles of the jealous and 
 intriguing La Gasca ! 
 
 The military party began its appointed and sinister 
 work within a 'few days of its arrival at Asuncion. 
 Secretly approaching those whom they suspected of 
 being least well disposed towards the Adetantado, 
 they broached their plan for a conspiracy which was 
 to include the murder of Irala. Accustomed as these 
 new-comers were to the endless cabals and bitter- 
 nesses of Lima, they had failed to reckon with the 
 genuine respect and affection with which the person- 
 ality of the chief of Paraguay had inspired his 
 followers. The plot had barely time to hatch itself 
 into a definite conspiracy, when word was brought 
 to Irala of what was occurring. 
 
 The Adelantado acted with the promptness and 
 resolution that had never failed him. Taken by 
 surprise, the heads of the movement found themselves 
 seized and imprisoned, while measures were taken to 
 render harmless their humbler followers. These 
 latter, indeed, were granted a free pardon ; for Irala 
 had no dfesire to stain the soil of his province with 
 the blood of those who had been dragged into the 
 
96 PARAGUAY 
 
 affair merely as the dupes of others. The only 
 two who suflfered death as a consequence of the 
 conspiracy were the ringleaders, a certain Captain 
 Camargo, and that Miguel Rutia who had' made 
 one of the four messengers originally sent by the 
 Adelantddo from the borders of Peru to Lima. Nuflo 
 de Chaves himself appears to have been innocent of 
 any complicity in the plot. Soon after the disturbance 
 attending this had died down he married the daughter 
 of Francisco de Mendoza. On this, the influence 
 of his new family ties caused him to petition Irala 
 that justice should be done to the murderers of his 
 father-in-law — ^that is to say, to Diego de Abreu and 
 the remnants of his followers who were still lurking 
 without in the forest. 
 
 From Irala's own point of view there can have 
 been little to choose between the past conduct of 
 Abreu and Mendoza. Nevertheless, probably from 
 the combined motives of obliging Nuflo de Chaves 
 and of stamping out the discordant elements in his 
 province, he sent out various armed forces into the 
 forest country, and pursued Abreu's band from point 
 to point, until the desperate leader himself was left 
 almost without followers. While this was occurring 
 Irala continued his policy of strict moderation. Not 
 only did he pardon the rank and file of the rebels ; 
 but he married his daughters to those leaders — one 
 account gives their number as two, another increases 
 it to four — ^who surrendered with a good grace, and 
 showed themselves really desirous of securing his 
 friendship. 
 
 While this was occurring Diego de Abreu, de- 
 fiant to the last, was slain by his pursuers in 
 one of his woodland retreats. Although one or two 
 of his followers endeavoured in vain for a short time 
 to keep the embers of strife at red heat, this to all 
 intents and purposes ended the revolt. 
 
 Irala now had leisure to attend to the practical 
 
DOMINGO MARTINEZ DE IRALA 97 
 
 development of his State. Realizing the great ad- 
 vantages which mixst accrue from the possession of 
 a port nearer the ocean, at the beginning of 1553 
 he founded the settlement of San Juan at a strategic 
 point admirably chosen in the neighbourhood of the 
 confluence of the Uruguay and Parand rivers. Here, 
 however, he met with the same difficulty that had 
 confronted the original Adelantado, ' Pedro de 
 Mendoza, when he had founded the township of 
 Buenos Aires nearly twenty years before. The fierce 
 and intractable Indians of the open plains near the 
 great estuary were very different folk to deal with 
 from the comparatively docile Guaranfs of the upper 
 reaches. These warriors, moreover, treated the 
 arrival of the Spaniards at San Juan with the same 
 implacable hostility that they had demonstrated 
 towards the ill-fated settlement of Buenos Aires, still 
 nearer the river's mouth. So incessant were their 
 attacks that in less than two years' time San Juan 
 had to be abandoned. After this Irala reluctantly 
 yielded to the necessity of postponing any enter- 
 prise of the kind, and, instead, employed his energies 
 in opening up some of the country in the Province 
 of La Guaira — through which Alvar Nunez Cabeza 
 de Vaca had passed on his famous journey from the 
 sea — and on the banks of the Alto Parand River he 
 founded the town of Ontiveros. 
 
 While all this was occurring the Court of Spain 
 had not suffered the affairs of the remote province 
 of Paraguay to slip entirely from its mind. Un- 
 doubtedly one of the salient faults of the Spanish 
 Empire was the too conscientious manner in which it 
 insisted on regulating the details of the government 
 of a number of its colonies, of the circumstances and 
 inclinations of which it was profoundly ignorant. This 
 was now exampled in the case of Paraguay. 
 
 As early as 1547, when that far-away State was 
 enjoying its first interlude of peace under the wise 
 
 7 
 
98 PARAGUAY 
 
 governorship of Irala, the authorities in Madrid and 
 Seville were already, occupying themselves with the 
 question of appointing another AdelantOdo. In the 
 first place their choice fell on Jaime ResqUin. This 
 official, indeed, had actually been nominated for the 
 post, when a more powerful rival appeareii on the 
 scene in the person of Juan de Sanabria. To under- 
 take the governorship of a colony in those days was 
 in a sense to enter into a partniership with His 
 Majesty the King. No salary entered into the 
 bargain ; the appointment depended largely on the 
 amount of hard cash ajid the nature of the promises 
 which the applicant was in a position to offer in 
 exchange for the right to exploit the new country. 
 Thus, of the two partners, the conquistador was 
 wont to have considerably, more at stajce than 
 •the King. 
 
 It was this system which induced' Juan de Sanabria 
 to come forward with offers which finally extinguished 
 Jaime Resquin's chances for the governorship of 
 Paraguay. On the 27th of July, 1547, the title of 
 Adelantado was conferred on him ; but, although he 
 received the distinction, he was unable to avail him- 
 self of its material benefits, for he died very shortly 
 after the appointment was made. His son, who 
 claimed the reversion of his father's post, was officially 
 granted this in 1549. It will be evident from this, 
 and from the sequel, that matters were not accustomed 
 to be hurried in Spain of the sixteenth century. 
 
 The younger Sanabria, as a matter of fact, appears 
 to have been far less attracted by the prospects of 
 a residfence in South America than had been his 
 father. After much deliberation he decided on send- 
 ing, in the light of an advance guard, no other than 
 that Juan de Salazar de Espinosa who had opposed 
 Irala in Asuncion in the course of the turmoil which 
 marked the unfortunate Alvar Nynez .Cajbeza de Vaca's 
 short tenri of governorship. It was his intention, the 
 
DOMINGO MARTINEZ DE IRALA 99 
 
 younger Sanabria lajinounced, to follow Juan de 
 Salazar in due course ; but this he never did. 
 
 The proceedings of Salazar himself appear to have 
 been fairly, leisurely. He set out from Sanlucar in 
 1552. Arriving at San Vicente, in the neighbourhood 
 of where the Brazilian town of Santos now stands, 
 he occupied himself with the settlement and coloniza- 
 tion of this place. It was not until the beginning 
 of 1555 that he set out with his men on the over- , 
 land journey to Paraguay, arriving safely in Asulwiotn, 
 where he was amicably received by Irala, whcr.^Q|tirealT& 
 to have been generously willing to bury 'tfii^. Ratchet, 
 and to reciprocate the friendship which ^Sl^lazar was 
 now anxious to extend to him. ,'\\ '\ 
 
 If Salazar brought friendship on this occasidtt, ihp 
 was at least accompaijiied in addition by som^tliihg- 
 more material. He had brought with him- from Spain 
 seven cows and la bull — or perhaps it wpul^-.be more 
 accurate to say, that seven cows and a* buU. .were 
 safely introduced into Paraguay as the survivjots'St 
 the body of cattle with which Salazar had emh&vkda 
 at Sanlucar. Few cattle can ever have undertaken 
 a more momentous journey than this. Indeed^j it is 
 not a little curious to remark the fashion in which 
 the various varieties of domestic livestock were intro- 
 duced into Paraguay. The first sheep and goats, 
 as we have seen, came from Peru in the west ; these 
 first cattle came from' the east by wiay of Brazil ;; 
 and the first horses were destined to come from the 
 south, making their way northwards from the 
 enormous stretches of pasture-lalnd which now com- 
 prise a part of Argentina. The north alone sent 
 Paraguay nothing, and this for the simple reason 
 that from that direction there la.y no road — ^an absence 
 that continues to this day — ^by which man or beiaist 
 could travel to or from the outside centres of 
 civilization. 
 
 This yiear, 1555, was a notable one in the early 
 
100 PARAGUAY 
 
 history of Paraguay. In that year arrived two vessels 
 from Spain, one of which bore Bishop Latorre, nomi- 
 nally the second Bishop of Paraguay, but in reality 
 the first to enter within the frontiers of the province. 
 These ships also bore the Royal decree appointing 
 Irala as AdeUtntado of Paraguay, thus at length en- 
 dowing him with the official sanction for the office 
 which he had actually held for so many years. 
 
 Among the other measures which Irala now took 
 was-'.fhat of sending Nuflo de Chaves, whom he 
 jcegaMe^ as one of his most capable lieutenants, on 
 an expejiilion to the La Guaira Province, where a 
 number ti* new townships were founded. After this 
 Nuflo de Chavgs was sent to the north-west, in order 
 tf>: gSfablish" in. the country which he had already, 
 Ltra\ȤIledJa settlement that should serve as a link 
 between Ifai^ia^ay and Peru. 
 
 To tho .south there still remained much to be done, 
 and, had" Trala lived, he would undoubtedly have 
 seel*. liO^'it .that fresh efforts were made in this direc- 
 tion f'.'Biit old age had crept on that conquistador, 
 though his energies remained unimpaired to the end, 
 and at the beginning of the ^yea^ 1557 he iiied at the 
 age of seventy. 
 
CHAPTER VI 
 
 SOME EARLY GOVERNORS AND COLONIAL DEVELOPMENTS 
 
 Irala's qualities as a Governor — A South American writer on the Spanish 
 conquistador — Gonzalo de Mendoza becomes Adelantado — Death of 
 Gonzalo de Mendoza — He is succeeded by Francisco Ortiz de Vergara 
 — Indian trouble — The ambitions of Nuflo de Chaves — He determines 
 to found a new province — His meeting with a rival conquistador, 
 Andres Manso — The decision of the Peruvian authorities secures the 
 advantage to Nuflo de Chaves — The latter founds the town of Santa 
 Cruz de la Sierra — The first permanent link between Paraguay and 
 Peru — Vergara sets out for Peru — After having been detained by 
 Nuflo de Chaves he arrives in Lima — ^Vergara's post is given by the 
 Peruvian authorities to Juan Ortiz de Zarate — Zarate appoints Felipe 
 de Caceres as his deputy — Unpopularity of Caceres in Asuncion — 
 He is opposed by Bishop Latorre — Caceres is imprisoned and deprived 
 of his office — Martin Suarez de Toledo becomes temporary Governor 
 — Colonizing feats of Juan de Garay — Zarate, on arriving at_ the 
 mouth of the River Plate after a calamitous voyage, is attacked by 
 the Charrua Indians — His force is rescued by Juan de Garay— Zarate 
 arrives in Asuncion and takes charge of the Government — His death 
 — Zarate's daughter as heiress of the province — Mendieta appointed 
 temporary Governor — Mendieta, having failed in his office, is sent 
 back to Spain by the colonists — His death on the voyage — Claimants 
 for the hand of Doiia Juana — Events which lead up to Juan de Garay's 
 governorship of Paraguay — His arrival in Asuncion. 
 
 In the minds of the majority of the Paraguayans 
 Irak stands as the first national hero of that country. 
 The majority of such Latin-American historians as 
 have dealt with his personality have ascribed his 
 faults to the age in which he lived, and have thus 
 caused him to emerge from the Paraguayan historical 
 dust of the sixteenth century as a. magnificent and 
 almost imlniaculate figure. 
 
 Although a certain amount of inevitable exaggera- 
 
 101 
 
102 PARAGUAY 
 
 tion has accompanied this process, there seems little 
 doubt that Irlala deserves in the main the praises 
 that have bteen showered on him. The gteat strides 
 which the youthful State of Paraguay made under 
 his governorship were due to his unaided vig'our and 
 foresight ; for during the greater plait of his term 
 of office the helip which he received from the Court 
 of Spain Was of the passive — and frequentty nega- 
 tive I — order. IralH, in shiort, worked as a freelance 
 for the benefit of Paraguay, and his powerful lead 
 was followed by the people of his own proyinae, 
 and in thfe end b^; the Spaiiish' Imperial authorities 
 themselves. 
 
 Many of his measures, of course, will not bear 
 the light of twentieth - century criticism. Here 
 again we are brought face to face with thte claim 
 of the Latin-American historians, who assert that 
 IraM's faults were merely those of his age. And 
 concerning this age, no one, I think, has written 
 with a more eloquent lucidity than Dr. Lugones, 
 who, a South Americ^jn himself, has had much to 
 say that is valiuable on this subject. Two, or three 
 of his paragraphs will suffice to demonstrate this. 
 Dr. Lugones has it tha;t — 
 
 " The sixteenth century was the century of the 
 conquistador. He it was who, when the modern 
 period began, continued in the spirit of the Middte 
 Ages. His oWigiation was merely, to be brave, since 
 he was the defender of society, which worked beneath 
 the protection of his arms. Exempt as he was from 
 all other effort or contribution save that of his blood, 
 for the spilling of which the labourers and artisans 
 were only too glad to pay, all things worked 
 together to render him a privilteg'ed being. . . .His 
 cult was that fierce bravery, on which his under- 
 takings were based and on which their success 
 depended, and this fierceness easily degenerated into 
 cruelty. ... ■ 
 
SOME EARLY GOVERNORS 103 
 
 " In order to opetn up the New WiorM conqaista- 
 dores were necessary— laldventurers, that is to say, who 
 would accomplish in a single year that which the phleg- 
 matic colonist would hiave taken a century to bring 
 about. And Sp^iin ^albne produced conquistadores. 
 The other countries, becoming industrial and com- 
 mercial, produced colonists, colonies and representa- 
 tive institutions being the natural! results of an 
 industrial age. It is thus explained how it came 
 about that, although it was Spain that opened up 
 the continent, it was the othter nations that attained 
 the actual fruits of its riches." 
 
 Judged by his surroundings of this reckltess age, 
 when almost any means were held to justify, the 
 end, and when the sword was the only weapon under- 
 stood by the strong and deceit the only defence oif 
 the weak, Irafe's character does, indeed, seem to 
 stand out fair aboive that of the average man of his 
 time. 
 
 The absence of hia strong hand from the helm 
 of State w'as felt almost at once. It is true that in 
 the first instance the man whom the conquistador's 
 testament had appointed as his successor, his son-in- 
 few Gonzalo de Mendoza, met with' the general 
 approval of the Spaniards in Paraguay. Gonzalo 
 de Mendoza dispfeyed considerable energy. He con- 
 ducted a successful campaign against the Agaces, 
 and, indeed, began in a most promising fashion a 
 career which was cut short by his death in July 
 1558, rather more thah a year after he had assumed 
 the post of Adelantftdo. 
 
 Francisco Ortiz de ;Vergaira, another son-in-law 
 of Irala's, was then elected by common consent to 
 the governorship. This Vergara, as a matter of fact, 
 had been one of the supporters of Ira;la's rival Diego 
 de Abreu, and his eventua,! submission had been 
 rewarded by the hand of one of Irala's daughters. 
 From the very beginning of his governorship Vergara 
 
104 PARAGUAY 
 
 found himself faced with Indian trouble. Risings 
 occurred among the Guaranfs both in Paraguay 
 proper and in the new province of La Guaird to 
 the east. 
 
 Vergara succeeded in suppressing these revolts, with- 
 out very much trouble ; but in the meantime affairs 
 in the west had been moving at a considerable pace. 
 The attitude of Nuflo de Chaves, for one, had com- 
 pletely changed since Irala's death. In the great 
 stretch of almost imtrodden country that lay between 
 Paraguay and Peru he had served Irak with a loyalty 
 which he did not feel himself in the least bound to 
 hand on to Irala's successors— least of all tO: Vergaira, 
 between whom and himself there existed sufficient 
 cause for a feud. For Nuflo de Chaves seems to 
 have played a leading part in the pursuit and death 
 of Abreu— a fact that he supposed would still be 
 actively resented by Vergara, notwithstanding the 
 circumstances which had since arisen to make the 
 latter the son-in-law of the great conquistador. 
 
 So Nuflo de Chaves, who considered, not without 
 reason, that his work as a pioneer had been second 
 only to that of Irala himself, determined to separate 
 himself from the control of Paragiiay and to found 
 a State of his own in these strategically important 
 territories between Peru and Paraguay. It was a 
 conception that in its daring was worthy of any 
 conquistador. Such ia man as Irala, having once 
 taken the pl^unge, would undoubtedly have swept all 
 before him. But, unfortunately for himself, Nuflo 
 de Chaves, though he yielded to none in audacity, 
 lacked that broad spark of magnetism which had 
 been so marked a feature in Irala's personality. No 
 doubt, when he announced his intention, the conduct 
 of his men proved a bitter disappointment to Nuflo 
 de Chaves. The great majority refused to see in 
 him an inspired leader: in their eyes he was merely 
 a rebel, to follow whom would be not only perilous 
 
SOME EARLY GOVERNORS 105 
 
 but distinctly unprofitable. So the greater part of 
 Chaves' men made their way, back to Asuncion, 
 Iteaving him with no more than seventy followers. 
 
 But in those days seventy; Spaniards counted for 
 something, even when apparently stranded in the 
 remote wilds of Central South America, surrounded on 
 all hands by hordes of Indians that only awaited the 
 first definite sign of weakness to fall upon them and 
 slay them to a man, just as they had slain Ayolas' men 
 rather more than twenty years before. As it hap- 
 pened, Nuflo de Chaves soon discovered that he was 
 not to be permitted to work undisturbed even in 
 this remote field which he had selected for his pion- 
 eering enterprise. To his surprise and disgust he 
 found himself presentlly face tp face with Andres 
 Manso, a conqaistador who had arrived from the 
 west with a full licence, granted by no less a person- 
 age than Hurtado de Mendoza, Viceroy of Peru, to 
 colonize these very territories. Whether Nuflo de 
 Chaves or Andres Manso were the more disconcerted 
 by this meeting is difficult to determine. Neither 
 would consent to give way to the other, and for a time 
 it looked as though an armed collision might ensue 
 between these two companies of pioneers who had 
 met in this strange fashion so far from: the borders of 
 civilization. As good fortune would have it, sober 
 councils prevailed. The leaders, leaving their men 
 on the spot, hastened to Lima to set their respective 
 claims before the Viceroy. 
 
 Once arrived at the Viceregal palace, Nuflo de 
 Chaves laid his case before the highest colonial 
 powers with so much ability that in the end— although 
 the result was only arrived at by slow and devious 
 methods — a compromise was arrived at which practi- 
 cally gave him the advantage over Andres Manso's 
 more regular claims . Then with the few men remain- 
 ing to him Nuflo de Chaves established himself on the 
 spot, and in 1560 founded the town of Santa Cruz 
 
106 PARAGUAY 
 
 de la Sierra— a city, Which, according to the geography 
 of the present day, now finds itseM in the centre of 
 BoMvia. 
 
 The founding of Santa Cruz de la Sierra:, although 
 it was effected in this casual and somewhat haphazard 
 fashion, in reiaility constituted the most important 
 event whidh 'had occurred in the south-eastern tide 
 of South American colbnizMion since the establish- 
 ment of the town of Asuncion. It was the first real 
 link that connected the work of the Spaniards who 
 had entered the continent by way of thle River Plate 
 with that of thtose others who had descended from 
 the north albng the Pacific coast. From' the point 
 of view of the practical traveller its existence meant 
 the possibility of passing for the first time across 
 the centre of South America without the suffering 
 of all the difficulties, dangers, and uncertainties 
 which had inevitably accompanied every previous 
 journey. 
 
 All this, of course, was taking it for granted that 
 the occupants of the new township of Santa Cruz 
 de la Sierra' were amicably disposed towards any 
 such travellers. If this were not so, the case of 
 these latter would undoubtedly be considerably worse 
 even than before. A probltem' connected with 
 questions of this kind now confronted Francisco: Ortiz 
 de Vergara. ReaMzingl the need of official support 
 for his post, he determined to make the journey to 
 Lima in person in order that he might obtain the 
 confirmation of his office from the .Viceroy. Leaving 
 Asuncion in charge of Juan Ortega and La Guaird 
 in that of Alonso Riquelme, Vergara set out on 
 his mission, accompanied by Bishop Latorre, and 
 Felipe de Caceres, a wily official of intriguing 
 propensities, 
 
 iVergara was at first accompanied by an important 
 force of his mien ; but he would seem' to have 
 approached Nuflo de Chaves' new headquarters with 
 
SOME EARLY GOVERNORS 107 
 
 nothing beycwid a smlall escort, for Chaves, doubtless 
 mjeditating some wild coup in his restless mind, caused 
 him to be detained. It was only, a sharp command 
 from Peru which set the Adelaniado of Paraguay 
 free, and on the roiaki to continue his journey. 
 
 Judging from the precedent set by Ayolas aCnd 
 Iralla, those who journeyed from Paraguay to Peru 
 in the middle of the sixteenth century were destined 
 to meet with ill-fortime. iVergafa's experience went 
 to confirm this. Arrived in Lima;, the welicome he 
 received there after his long and strenuous journey 
 was imsympathetic. His petition, moreover, concern- 
 ing his governorship was so coldly regarded that 
 he soon found out that there were other candidates 
 besides himself in the field for that office. After sL 
 certain delay this was, handed over to a wealthy 
 nobleman, Juan Ortiz de Zdrate, a connection of 
 the Viceroy's, and l3ie unfortunate Vergara found 
 that all that his journey had done for him was to 
 hasten his dismissal from his post, a proceeding that 
 would otherwise have cbme abbut in a far more 
 Msurely and roundabout fashioji. 
 
 After this Vergara figured no longer in the affairs 
 of Paraguay. Zdrate, who was destined to play a 
 considerable ipart in the jhistory of that country, imme- 
 diately departed for Spain in order that his nomina- 
 tion should be confirmed by the King himself. He 
 appointed as his deputy until he should arrive in 
 person the same Felipe de Caderes who, had accom- 
 panied Vergara on his Westward journey, and who 
 seems to have played a subterranean but not un- 
 important part in the intrigues which ended in the 
 discomfiture of Vergara. It was perhaps largely 
 as a result of this that he was now returning to 
 Asuncion, having greatly waxed in inlportance, while 
 his former chief was making his way in dejected 
 abandonment to Spain. Bishlop Latorre, who does 
 not seem to have taken an active share in these 
 
108 PARAGUAY 
 
 secular affairs, was again of the party, amongi whicK, 
 it should be said, was a nephew of Zirate's, whose 
 name was fated to become famUiar throughout all 
 the south-east of the continent, Juan de Garay, 
 
 There seems no doubt that the returning officials 
 and their escort would have had to do^with Nuflo 
 de Chaves on their homeward journey, for the 
 ambitions of this lonely conquistador were mount- 
 ing rapidly, and, as they grew, his methods became 
 morie (reckless. Fate intervened in the shape of 
 marauding Indians, and Nuflo de Chaves met his 
 death in the course of a punitive expedition. But 
 for this it is quite possible that Felipe de Caceres 
 might not have returned safely, to Asuncion, as he 
 did at the beginning of 1569, when he took over 
 the governorship of that place. 
 
 Even now Asuncion was not destined to enjoy the 
 peace that it might have expected. The under- 
 currents of intrigue which had been set in m.otion 
 were easier to start than to arrest. This triumphant 
 return of Felipe de Caceres was bitterly resented by 
 a large number of the settlers who had reason to 
 suspect the r61e of betrayer which that astute 
 functionary had played in Peru, and which was 
 responsible for his occupation of the banished 
 Vergara's post. Bishop Latorre now seems to have 
 entered the arena of material politics for the 
 first time. Being doubtless fully convinced of 
 Caceres' duplicity, he gave his support to the party 
 opposed to the deputy Governor, and Caceres thus 
 found himself opposed, not only by an important 
 number of the inhabitants of Asuncion, but by the 
 secular power of the Church as well, a force which 
 in the sixteenth century no ruler of any kind could 
 afford to overlook. 
 
 Asuncion, in fact, was once more entirely given 
 up to faction warfare. It would be wearisome to 
 attempt to follow the various vicissitudes of the 
 
SOME EARLY GOVERNORS 109 
 
 struggle, thte details of which so closely resembled 
 those of too many others of the kind from' w<hidi thie 
 youthful State of Paraguay suffered. Bishop Latorre 
 excommunicated Caceres ; Caceres retorted by seizing 
 the cathedral and closing its doors. But the current 
 of public opinion ran with ever-increasing strength 
 against Caceres, until at length his unpopularity 
 attained to such a pitch that he dared not trust 
 himself out of doors without a guard of fifty men. 
 
 Even this precaution did not avail him in the 
 end. One day in 1572 as he was on his way to 
 Mass in the midst of his escort 150 of the opiposing 
 party set upon his men, who, after a brisk! resist- 
 ance, were routed, leaving Caceres a prisoner in 
 the hands of his enemies. The deputy Adelantado 
 was hurried off to prison, where he was chained and 
 closely guarded. Thus was the drama of Alvar 
 Nunez Cabeza de Vaca repeated, with this differ- 
 ence, that, whereas the former was the victim o£ 
 circumstances which had arisen through' no fault 
 of his own, the latter found himself caught in one 
 of the meshes of that net which he had laid for 
 others. The treatment accorded to Caceres, as a 
 matter of fact, appears to have been lenient com- 
 pared with that whidh was meted out to the 
 unfortunate Alvar Nunez ; nevertheless, he was 
 forced to submit to taunts and jeers and a 
 sufficiency of harsh m.easures. 
 
 It will be seen from all this that the inhabitants 
 of Asuncion would seem to have been infected 
 already by the independence-loving atmosphere of 
 the Americas ; for this was the second time that 
 thiey had intervened in the affairs of Governors 
 appointed by the constituted authorities from with- 
 out. They demonstrated their views once again when 
 Martin Suarez de Toledo, who at the beginning of 
 the deputy Adelantadd" s rule had been appointed 
 by Caceres as second-in-command, came forward to 
 
110 PARAGUAY 
 
 take up his post. They then pointed out to him 
 that, although they accepted hkn as Governor of 
 Paraguay, it was only as a loCam tenens for Zdrate, 
 to whom, on his arrival from Spain, the office must 
 be immediately surrendered. 
 
 On this understanding Sudrez took charge of the 
 government of Paraguay, and one of his first acts 
 was to rid himself of the imprisoned Caceres, sending 
 that disappointed official back to Spain. 
 
 There was now leisure to. extend the ramifications 
 of colonization, and in this Zdrate's nephew, Juan de 
 Garay, rapidly proved himself an imusually able 
 pioneer. Thte trend was now towards the south 
 again, and in the middle of thte year 157/3 this con- 
 quistador founded the city of Santa F6 de la Vera 
 Cruz, which now finds itself in Argentina. By a 
 curious coincidence on thte very day that witnessed 
 the estabUshment of this town, another pioneer, 
 G6ronimo Luis Cabrera, was founding that of 
 C6rdoba del Tucumdn to thte wiest. 
 
 This latter pioneer, who represented the Spanish 
 stream of invasion from thte north-west, now came 
 boldly, down to the banks of the Parand itself, and 
 began to establish a new settlemient at Sancti Spiritus 
 on the ruins of the old fort which had been ton- 
 structed by thte conquistadores of the south-east, arid 
 had been maintained by them untU their abandon- 
 ment of the lower settlements and their retreat up- 
 stream to Paraguay. Juan de Garay, however, who 
 had likewise made his way to the south, pirotestdd 
 energetically against this move, claiming thit Sancti 
 Spiritus was in the province of Rio de la Plata, 
 and that therefore its occupation by any others than 
 those concerned in the colonization of the great river 
 lands was an act of aggression. Thte dispute was 
 referred to the royal audience in Peru, who eventually 
 decided in favour of Juan de Garay, as representing 
 the colonists of the Rio de la Pljata. 
 
SOME EARLY GOVERNORS 111 
 
 It was a fortunate circumstance for Juan Ortiz 
 de Zdrate that on his return from Spain to his 
 province his nephew, Juan de Garay, happened to 
 be within reasonable distance of the great estuary,. 
 Zdrate's mission to the Court of Spain had been 
 entirely successful. Not so his subsequent voyage 
 to South Am.erica. In the course of this so battered 
 and driven were his ships by, the sea that out of thte 
 six hundred men that the Adtfilantado was bring- 
 ing with him as reinforcements no fewer than three 
 hundred perished before the remnants of his fleet 
 caught sight of the low alluvial shores of the River 
 Plate. 
 
 There was no respite for the men even when, 
 worn out by the hardships and terrors of the voyage, 
 they, betook themselves on shore. Here they were 
 immediately beset by the implacable Charrda Indians, 
 and the numbers which the unfortunate expedition 
 lost in the course of these attaclds has been esti- 
 miatjed at between 80 and 120. Indeed, but for 
 the timely arrival of Juan de Garay with his force of 
 seasoned men, it is likely enough that Zdrate and 
 his followers would have left their bones on the 
 level pastures of the estuary, as many a Spaniard 
 had done before them. 
 
 As it was, the combined Spanish parties inflicted 
 a severe defeat on the hostile Indians, and', with 
 the assistance of Garay, Zdrate eventually arrived in 
 safety at his capital after a journey from Europe 
 which rivalled in hardship any of those undertaiken 
 by his predecessors in the days when the waters of 
 th|e Southern Atlantic and of the Rio de la Plata had 
 only been cloven by a few of the most daring Spanish 
 keels. 
 
 iWith the arrival in Asuncion of Zirate, thte royal 
 Adelantado himself, it might have been thought that 
 all would now be smooth sailing in connection with 
 the development of Paraguay. But this was far 
 
112 PARAGUAY 
 
 from proving the case. In many respects Zdrate 
 was sufficiently able. It was, for instance, un- 
 doubtedly a wise stroke of policy to send that most 
 efficient conquistador Juan de Garay to take full 
 charge of the region he had settled at Santa Fd. 
 But in some other respects he appears to have shown 
 less judgment, and a radical measure which he under- 
 took in 1575, cancelling all the decrees and arrange- 
 ments of Sudrez, appears to have rendered him un- 
 popular — so much so, indeed, in some quarters that 
 his death, which occurred in 1576, is said to have 
 been the result of poisoning. Decidedly, with the 
 notable exception of Irala, the rule of liie Adelan- 
 tados of Paraguay appeared destined to be short 1 
 
 So far as the affairs of its Government were 
 concerned, the outlook for Paraguay was more 
 gloomy than ever. When the terms of Zdrate's 
 will came to be spread abroad, they revealed a degree 
 of family affection in the late Governor which had 
 overcome any grain of political foresight that he 
 might have possessed. The governorship of 
 Paraguay was vested in his only daughter, Dona 
 Juana, who was at the time residing in Peru. A 
 clause in her father's will, that is to say, appointed 
 as Governor the man who should succeed in winning 
 her hand. 
 
 Dona Juana, on her mother's side, was a 
 descendant of the famous Inca, Atahualpa, and 
 Zdrate in his last testament had made it plain enough 
 that no suitor would be acceptable unless his lineage 
 were reasonably exalted. In the meantime Juan de 
 Garay and another of Zdrate's nephews, Diego Ortiz 
 de Zdrate y Mendieta, were appointed as the girl's 
 guardians. Until her marriage had appointed the 
 regular Adelantado, moreover, the governorship of 
 Paraguay was to be left in the hands of Mendieta, 
 who was to be assisted in his task by a certain 
 Martin Dur^. 
 
SOME EARLY GOVERNORS 113 
 
 No chtoice of a temporary Governor could IJaviei 
 been more unfortunate. The only reasonable action 
 committed by Mendieta during' his short but 
 eventful tenure of oifioe was the confirmation of 
 Garay's governorship of Santa F6. Wiith the excep- 
 tion of this, the conduct of this utterly vain, vicious, 
 and foolish person very soon aroused the active 
 resentment of the Spanish inhabitants of Paraguay. 
 Having dismissed Martin Durd from his advisory 
 post, his arrogance and misgiovemment provoked into 
 active rebellion a people who had never shown them- 
 selves bac'lcward in asserting their ovm views. The 
 result was short and sharp, sinCe Mendieta had so 
 alienated the sympathies of his people that prac- 
 tically no following whatever was left to him. 
 Mendieta, having been made prisoner, was sent back 
 to Spain to be judg'ed by the Court of the Indies 
 — the third Governor, it should be remarked, who 
 had already been thus sent away from the country 
 in the short history, of Paragtiay. 
 
 Mendieta's predecessors in misfortune, however, 
 had at least reached Spain in safety, if not in com- 
 fort. Such was not Mendieta's fate. The behaviour 
 of this unfortunate young man appears so to have 
 incensed the sailors of the ship which was bearing 
 him to Spain that they landed him on the Brazilian 
 coast — where he was discovered and slain by. the 
 Indians — and continued their voyage. I have no 
 record of what explanation the sailors gave, after 
 their arrival in Spain, concerning the absence of 
 their passenger. In those days of perilous travel 
 the matter would have been considerably easier than 
 now! 
 
 All this occurred in the absence of Juan de Garay, 
 who, as one of his cousin Dona Juana's guardians, 
 had proceeded to Peru in order to be at hand to 
 watch over her interests in the fateful position in 
 which she found herself. It was as well for the 
 
 8 
 
114 PARAGUAY 
 
 lady's sakb that so staunch a champion was on the 
 spot ; for numberless claimants were sprouting up 
 from all sides for the hand of a lady whose dowry 
 was a land which was known to be more or less 
 the size of half Europe I There was scarcely a 
 conquistfldor or official in iall Peru, of whatever 
 age or degree, who did not prink himself with 
 care and rack his brain w^ith toil to win the 
 admiration of an heiress such as this. The Viceroy 
 himself entered the lists, to throw in his overwhelm- 
 ing weight in favour of one of his intimate friends. 
 Having written a letter to Garay acquainting him 
 with his desires, which were in reality commands, 
 he awaited the maturing of his plans with a con- 
 fidence that was destined to be rudely shattered. 
 
 Indeed, when the Viceroy learned that, in flagrant 
 contempt of his wishes. Dona Juana had been quietly 
 married to the man of her choice, Juan Torres de 
 Vera y Arag6n, his anger knew no bounds. His 
 wrath, moreover, was not diminished when he heard 
 how Juan de Garay had graced the ceremony with 
 his approval and his presence, and how the grateful 
 Arag6n had voluntarily handed over to Juan de Garay 
 the governorship of Paraguay. 
 
 A genuine love match of this kind had not entered 
 in the least into the calculations of the highest 
 imperial official in South America. The marriage 
 had now taken place — an unalterable fact. But the 
 mortified Viceroy was determined to teach Juan de 
 Garay a lesson. So he sent a body of men to arrest 
 the official who had been bold enough to oppose the 
 Viceroy's will. Garay, however, was not to be caught 
 napping. He was already well on his way home when 
 the officials came up with him. The result was 
 that he arrested them — thus reversing the intended 
 process — and eventually sent them back to the still 
 more deeply mortified Viceroy. 
 
 As fate would have it, Juan de Garay arrived at 
 
SOME EARLY GOVERNORS 116 
 
 Santa F6 only a few days after the ill-fated Mendieta 
 had been sent down the river and out of the country. 
 On hearing this news he proceeded at once to 
 Asuncion, where the ovation with which the inhabit- 
 ants received him set the public seal of approval 
 on his nomination as Adelantado at the hands of 
 Juan Torres de Vera y Arag6n. 
 
CHAPTER VII 
 
 EVENTS PRECEDING THE SEPARATION OF PARAGUAY 
 FROM RIO DE LA PLATA 
 
 Situation of Paraguay when Juan de Garay became Governor — Nature 
 and influence of tlie various settlements — Relations with the Guaranis 
 — Melgarejo assists Garay in the development of the country — 
 — Attempts in the Chaco — Early mission work among the Indians — 
 The founding of Buenos Aires — Significance of that centre — Death of 
 Juan de Garay — He is succeeded by Alonso de Vera y Aragon — 
 Arrival in Paraguay of Juan Torres de Vera y Aragon — Hernando 
 Arias de Saavedra, a Paraguayan by birth, becomes Adelantado 
 — An able administrator and notable warrior— Fernando de Zarate 
 arrives from Spain to take up the governorship — A succession 
 of Adelantados — Hernandarias is at length officially appointed 
 to the post — His colonizing enterprise — ^Warlike feats — A shrewd 
 move in Uruguay — Hernandarias, after his government has been 
 interrupted by the appointment of Diego Martinez Negron, resumes 
 the post of Adelantado — Difficulties in the administration of the great 
 territory — The province of Paraguay is divided into two — Death of 
 Hernandarias — Geography of the provinces of Paraguay and Rio 
 de la Plata — Respective physical and industrial characteristics — 
 Amenities of Paraguay — Distinctions between the inhabitants of 
 the northern and southern stretches of the great river system — 
 Docility of the Guarani — The encomicndas. 
 
 With the advent to power of Juan de Garay the 
 Spanish colonization in the south-east of the con- 
 tinent received an extraordinary, impulse. No man, 
 indeed, could have been better fitted to carry on 
 the work which Irala had begun, and which had 
 been interrupted by the innumerable jealousies and 
 intrigues of those subordinates which less determined 
 hands had been unable to control. 
 
 Juan de Garay, indeed, possessed a resolution equal 
 to that of Irala, and a colonizing' gienius that was 
 
 116 
 
SEPARATION FROM LA PLATA 117 
 
 probably even greater. In one sense, moreover, he 
 had an easier field to work', as when he assumed the 
 governorship of Paraguay the map of great forests 
 and stretches of open country was no longer totally 
 unknown and a complete blank so far as Spanish 
 settlements were concerned. With the assistance of 
 his bold lieutenant, Nuflo de Chaves, Irala is said 
 to have founded no fewer than thirteen townships 
 both to the east and north-west of Asuncion in the 
 course of his governorship. 
 
 It may well be difficult to understand how all 
 this was effected when the ridiculously small number 
 of men at the disposal of Irala is taken into con- 
 sideration. There is no doubt that these sixteenth- 
 century Paraguayan centres of civilization would have 
 made small appeal in the way of urban importance 
 to critical twentieth-century eyes. The settlements 
 that sprang up in the natural clearings of the forest 
 seldom consisted of anything beyond a few primi- 
 tive huts, inhabited by some half-dozen Spaniards 
 with their Guarani wives and children. 
 
 Each of these settlements, however, represented an 
 influence that rapidly had ifs effect on the surround- 
 ing country. Whatever might be the sentiments of 
 the tribes to the west of the great river, the Guaranfs, 
 as a whole, were no longer hostile. The mere 
 flourishing of such remote and tiny Spanish centres 
 in their midst is sufficient proof of this. As time 
 went on, and the numbers of these small townships 
 increased, the Guaranis began to accept the presence 
 of the European as a matter of course, and to regard 
 him first of all in the light of a protector and sub- 
 sequently in thte duller glow of a somewhat severe 
 taskmaster. 
 
 It has already been seen that when Garay began 
 to govern the province some more important centres 
 had already come into being, such as that of Santa 
 Cruz de la Sierra, founded by Nuflo de Chaves, 
 
118 PARAGUAY 
 
 and Santa Fe, that he himself had established. Thus 
 sufificient had already been achieved to afford an 
 admirable basis of action for a man who was deter- 
 mined to attain to still greater thingls. 
 
 Juan de Garay lost no time in starting on the 
 work that lay before him. He found an able assistant 
 in MelgaTiCJo, a brother of that Vergara who had 
 once temporarily held the governorship of Paraguay. 
 Melgarejo was now to Juan de Garay what Nuflo 
 de Chaves had been to Irala, and what Garay him- 
 self had been to Zdrate. Setting out to the east 
 and crossing the mountain range of the Caiguazu, 
 Melgarejo founded in 1576 the town of Villa Rica 
 del Espiritu Santo, which is described as being two 
 leagues from the eastern bank of the Alto Parand 
 River, and was thus far removed from the site of 
 the modern Paraguayan town of Villa Rica. 
 
 At this period, too, some less successful attempts 
 at settlements were made in the Chaco, whose forests, 
 swamps, and hostile Indians resisted the approach 
 of the white man with characteristic obstinacy. Thus, 
 although the banks of the mysterious and elusive 
 River Pilcomayo were explored up to a certain point, 
 no material result was obtained from the expedition. 
 The failure of such attempts as these, however, did 
 not in the least affect the progress in Paraguay 
 proper — that is to say, on the left bank of the river, 
 where lived the various tribes of the less vindictive 
 Guaranf s . 
 
 It is at this period that we first hear of ppme 
 material results of the labours of the priests who, 
 with their headquarters at Asuncion, had begun a 
 certain amount of mission work among the Guaranf s. 
 It is said that in 1880, in the neighbourhood of 
 the Alto Parand River, two towns were constructed 
 in which were collected a large number of Indians 
 who had been induced to accept the Christian religion 
 by Fathers Alonso and Bolanos. In view of the 
 
SEPARATION FROM LA PLATA 119 
 
 later important events of this kind, the move was a 
 sufficiently important on^. But at the time it created 
 comparatively little notice, largely owing to an enter- 
 prise on a very much larger scale, which came to 
 a head at just about the same period. 
 
 It had long been clear to Garay's mind that for 
 the proper development of this great colony of his 
 a port on the shores of the estuary itself of the great 
 river system was essential. Irala in his day had 
 been equally convinced of this necessity, and had 
 bequeathed to his successors emphatic advice on the 
 subject. Juan de Gar ay, as a matter of fact, seeing 
 eye to eye with his great predeoessor, had no need 
 of any such stimulus. It was with the idea of estab- 
 lishing strategical ramifications on the lower reaches 
 of the stream that he was journeying in the south at 
 the time of his uncle Zdrate's arrival at the shores 
 of the Rio de la Plata — a circumstance that, as has 
 been explained, was fortunate for Zirate. 
 
 With this object in view, he had been extending 
 his influence little by little towards the south, until 
 he decided that the time had arrived for him to 
 strike out boldly. Then, sailing down-stream with 
 a powerful force of men to a point on the right 
 bank, below the confluence of the Parand and the 
 Uruguay, he founded the town of Buenos Aires in 
 1580. 
 
 The importance of this move was realized and 
 applauded at the time. Nevertheless there were very 
 few inhabitants of Asuncion in the sixteenth century 
 — or in the seventeenth either, for the matter of 
 that — who could foresee the enormous influence which 
 this port on the southern side of the estuary was to 
 wield over the entire river system. At the time of 
 its founding Buenos Aires was naturally regarded 
 by Asuncion as a most useful subsidiary town that 
 should supply that link between Paraguay, the oCean, 
 and Europe, the absence of which had been so acutely 
 
120 PARAGUAY 
 
 felt. None dreamed that by the remorseless and 
 unbreakable laws of development this small new 
 urban venture, plumped down in the midst of the 
 treeless pastures among the hostile Indians, would 
 one day swell to a size and importance that could 
 not fail to stand between Asuncion itself and the 
 light of the outer world, thus overshadowing the 
 first capital of the south-east of the continent. To 
 the Spaniards of the sixteenth century in these regions 
 Asuncion, their centre, meant all things. But, had 
 they hesitated from reasons of sixteenth-century senti- 
 ment, the stupendous growth on the banks of the 
 estuary, though it might have begun later, would 
 have been as certain and inevitable I 
 
 Having seen that Buenos Aires was firmly estab- 
 lished, Juan de Garay remained for a considerable 
 time in the south, busily occupied with the opening 
 up of the vast stretches of pasture on which were 
 found grazing many thousands of the descendants 
 of those few horses which Pedro de Mendoza had 
 brought with him on his original expedition and 
 which had been turned loose on the plain. Unfortu- 
 nately for the provinces of the Rio de la Plata, his 
 career was cut short. In 1584 he was surprised 
 by the Minuanes Indians, and, together with forty 
 of his men, was slain. 
 
 Had Juan de Garay lived for a score of years 
 longer there is little doubt that the early history of 
 Paraguay would have had to be written very 
 differently, and that many pages of disorder would 
 have been altered to a story of active progress. 
 As it was, his loss proved practically irreparable. 
 Once again in the course of its short but tormented 
 history Paraguay found itself faced with the problem 
 of who should govern it, and, incidentally, of how 
 it should be governed. 
 
 The matter was referred to Spain, where resided 
 Juan Torres de Vera y Aragon, who ail this time. 
 
SEPARATION FROM LA PLATA 121 
 
 although he had l^ded over the governorship to 
 Garays, had actually retained the title of Adelantado . 
 Appealed to to indicate a Successor, he appointed 
 his nephew, Alonso de Vera y Arag6n. The 
 governorship of this latter was signalled by some 
 attempts at forming settlements in the Chaco, 
 ventures which were undertaken at the instigation 
 of Juan Torres ,de Vera y Arag6n, but which proved 
 as fruitless as any of the previous enterprises in this 
 direction. In 1587, the Adelantado himself, Juan 
 Torres de Vera y Arag6n, came out from Spain, 
 apparently with considerable reluctance. His prin- 
 cipal achievement was the founding of the town of 
 San Juan de Vera de las Siete Corrientes at a point 
 just to the south of the confluence of the Paraguay 
 and the Alto Parand rivers. His foresight in this 
 is fully justified by the importance of the modern 
 Argentine city of Corrientes, now just to the south 
 of the Paraguayan frontier. 
 
 Four years, however, sufficed to prove to Juan 
 Torres de Vera y Arag6n that the cares and hard- 
 ships of the personal governorship of a, State as 
 new as that of Paraguay were little to his taste. 
 He would seem to have been an amiable personage 
 of sufficiently easy-going tendencies, so it was doubt- 
 less with some relief that in 1591 he bade farewell 
 to the ruddy soil, palms, and trackless forests of 
 Paraguay, to set sail for the ease and olives of the 
 older and statelier Spain. 
 
 It was left to the inhabitants of Paraguay to choose 
 their own Adelantado — z. procedure in which they 
 were probably sufficiently well versed by this time. 
 Their choice was a significant one, for the man 
 whom they elected to Tie their Governor was Hernando 
 Arias de Saavedra', who, the son of Sudrez de Toledo, 
 was a Paraguayan by, birth. This occufred in 1591, 
 arid it is a little curious to remark that, although the 
 centenary of the discovery of America was already 
 
12 PARAGUAY 
 
 at hjajid, this was ithe first occasion in the course 
 of all this time that one of the governorships 
 of the Spanish provinces throughout the two conti- 
 nents, from Mexico southwards, had been held by 
 an American-born man, one moreover, who knew 
 practically nothing of the Court of Spain, and was 
 thus debarred from its favours. 
 
 Nevertheless, the electors of Paraguay had chosen 
 wisely. Hernando Arias de Saavedra ranks as the 
 third great man to govern that province. His fortune 
 and circumstances resembled those of Irala rather 
 than those of Garay. As the chosen of the people, 
 Hernandarias, by which name the new Adelantado 
 was popularly known, enjoyed the support of the 
 Paraguayans throughout. On the other hand, possess- 
 ing no influence at Court, he was subject, just as Irala 
 in his time had been, to those apts of neglect anii 
 slights which were frequently enough the lot of one 
 not in favour with the grandees of Spain. 
 
 Hernandarias very soon proved himself to be not 
 only an able administrator but a most notable warrior. 
 His personal prowess in the field has been the subject 
 of innumerable stories, and of a wealth of legend, 
 of a kind which has frequently approached the 
 fantastic. It seems certain enough, however, that 
 during his first period of government he performed 
 some notable feats in subduing an uprising of the 
 Indians. Among these was a single combat with a 
 gigantic and far-famed' cacique, whom Hernandarias, 
 after a fierce duel, slew. 
 
 But Hernandarias' gifts were not only of a war- 
 like order. Before his governorship had been in 
 being for many months he had founded several town- 
 ships to the east of Asuncion, including Tarei and 
 Cadguazd. He paid keen attention, too, to the new 
 industry which had now sprung up in Paraguayan tea 
 — the yerlaia mat6 which grew in the virgin forests, 
 and of which more will be heard later. His firm 
 
SEPARATION FROM LA PLATA 123 
 
 hand, indeed, was steering a smooth course, and the 
 future once again began to grow rose-coloured. 
 
 Nevertheless, at the end of two years Hernandarias 
 had to stand aside, and watch another occupy his 
 place, and govern with far less wisdom than he. 
 Fernando de Zirate had arrived upon the scene, 
 bearing his royal nomination as Adelantado of Para- 
 guay. Zdrate died in 1595, and was succeeded by 
 his lieutenant, Bartolom^ Sandoval Ocampo. Very 
 shortly after his accession to the post this officer was 
 killed while leading an expedition against the Guay- 
 curds, and he in his turn was succeeded by Juan 
 Ramirez de Velasco. This latter 's uneventful period 
 of government came to an end in 1598, and, after 
 Hernandarias had been called to power to act as 
 stopgap, Diego Rodriguez Valdez de la Banda be- 
 came Adelantado in July 1599. 
 
 Even now this extraordinarily rapid' succession of 
 Governors was not at an end. Valdez de la Banda 
 had scarcely had time to do more than grasp thd 
 reins of his office — and, incidentally, to fall foul of 
 the ecclesiastical body, represented by' Bishop Vazquez 
 de Liano — ^when he died in the town of Santa Y€. 
 His second in command, Frances de Beaumont y 
 Navarfa, stepped into the breach, and had governed 
 for eighteen months or so, when word was brought 
 to Paraguay that the royal authorities in Spain had 
 at length confirmed the people's election of Hernan- 
 darias as Adelantado of Paraguay. 
 
 For the third time Hernandarias assumed this office, 
 and on this occasion he acted with even greater energy 
 than before. His judgment, indeed, would seem to 
 have yielded to his enthusiasm! ; for he daringly 
 sailed down with a force of men right through the 
 " roaring forties " to the Straits of Magellan. 
 
 Attacked by the Indians, every man of his expe- 
 dition who remained' alive fell a prisoner into the 
 hands of the southern savages. Hernandarias had 
 
124 PARAGUAY 
 
 been captured with the rest, but that resourceful leader 
 succeeded in making his escape and in bringing to 
 the spot a second force of Spaniards, who liberated 
 their comrades, and returned with them to the sunnier 
 regions of the Rio de la Plata. 
 
 It will be seen from all this that Hemandarias 
 was no ordinary man. Undismayed by the ill-success 
 of this southern venture, he next led his men into 
 the country of the Banda Oriental, or Uruguay, where 
 the fierce tribesmen of the Charriias had, until then, 
 resisted all intercourse with the white man. Here 
 Hemandar'ias met with foemen leven more worthy 
 of his metal. In the first fight with these formidable 
 savages he lost a great number of his followers, and 
 in the second he wfould appear to have been practi^ 
 cally the only survivor out of a company of five 
 hundred. This, although it did not lower Hernan- 
 darias' spirit by one jot, had' the effect of steadying 
 his policy. After much reflection he came to the 
 conclusion that the conquest of Uruguay by force of 
 arms would cost him far more men than he could 
 afford to lose, since it was clear now that the Charrdas 
 of Uruguay were among the bravest even of the 
 indomitable warrior tribes of the great estuary. 
 
 This fact once ax:knowledged, the measures under- 
 taken by the Adelfxntddo reveal the remarkable 
 elasticity of his mind. He determined that Uruguay 
 should be conquered^ in quite another fashion — by 
 fax surer, 'if slower, methtvds. With this aim he 
 introduced into the country two widely differing sets 
 of allies — m!issionaries and cattle 1 The missionaries 
 were to tame the minds of the fierce Charrtias, and 
 the cattle were to run free on the rich pastures of 
 the Banda Oriental and to multiply — just as horses 
 and cattle were multiplying in the neighbourhood 
 of Buenos Aires — in order that their herds might 
 be in readiness for the colonist when the time arrived 
 for him to enter the country. In the end both these 
 
SEPARATION FROM LA PLATA 125 
 
 measures proved eminently successful ; but of course 
 much water flowed down the Uruguay River before 
 their full development was brought about. In the 
 meantime Hemandarias was perfectly content to plant 
 the seed, even if the fruits were to be reaped only 
 by, his successors. 
 
 This great Adetantado, as a matter of fact^ was 
 destined to have one more successor during the term 
 of his own frequently interrupted governorship. In 
 1609 the Spanish authorities — ^who apparently had a 
 rooted prejudice against leaving well alone — ^appointed 
 Diego Martinez Negr6n to be Adelcmtado of Para- 
 guay. In the sturdy character of Hemandarias there 
 seems to have been no room for that selfish and 
 rebellious spirit which' was characteristic in the dis- 
 appointed of tha,t violent age. Again he stood back, 
 and with admirable fortitude took up his modest 
 position in the background while Negr6n ruled. 
 
 But Hemandarias' turn was to come again, and 
 with it some of the greatest opportunities of his 
 career. The shortness of life, or at all events of 
 the tenure of office, was somewhat remarkable in 
 those whose governmental interventions continually 
 interrupted Hemandarias' rule. At the beginning of 
 1 6 1 5 Negr6n died at Buenos Aires, and, although 
 he was succeeded for a few months by his lieutenant, 
 Francisco Gonzalez de Santa Cruz, the Court of Spain 
 appointed Hemandarias to be Adetantado in that 
 same year. 
 
 This time the appointment was definite and 
 permanent, and Hemandarias was at last permitted 
 to give his uninterrupted.' energies to the province of 
 which he was in charge. Under his wise guardianship 
 its development proceeded. Nevertheless, its rate of 
 progress, the Adetantado urged, was not so rapid as 
 it should be. Hemandarias represented strongly to 
 the Court of Spain that this progress was hampered 
 by the mere bulk of Paraguay. 
 
126 PARAGUAY 
 
 How much truth there was in this contention the 
 most cursory glance at a map will show. Parajg^iay, 
 of the early seventeenth century compurised the entire 
 south-eastern portion of South America. Explained 
 by the geographical divisions of the twentieth century, 
 this included aU Argentina, Uruguay, and nearly all 
 Paraguay, and in addition to this, parts of Bolivia 
 and Brazil. It is true that at the beginning of 
 the seventeenth century a very small part of this 
 vast region had been explored, and that, of course, 
 only a much smaller part had been settled. Towns 
 were few, and the distances which separated them 
 may be judged from the fact that Asuncion is a 
 thousand miles by river from Buenos Aires 1 And 
 the stretch of country that extends in Parajguay to 
 the north of Asuncion, and in Argentina to the south 
 of Buenos Aires, is more than three times as great 
 as the distance which separates the two towns 1 
 
 That all these thousands of leagues, sparsely popu- 
 lated as they were, should be politically lumped 
 together into a single province was clearly unreason- 
 able. Had Hernandarias been a less conscientious 
 Governor, he might have been expected to leave affairs 
 as they were, since it is reasonable to suppose that, 
 the larger the territory governed, the greater were 
 the opportunities of profit. But Hernandarias was 
 swayed by no considerations of that kind. So strongly 
 did he urge the cutting in twain of this gigantic and 
 unwieldy infant of empire that the authorities in 
 Spain were eventually induced to agree to this. 
 
 Thus in '1617 it was decreed that the Province 
 of Paraguay should be divided into two, and that 
 the southern half should be known as the Province 
 of the Rio de la Plata. Shortly after this had been 
 effected Hernandarias resigned his office, and went 
 to live in retirement at Santa F6, where he died in 
 1634, as a modtern Paraguayan historian has it, 
 " poor, but with much glory." Glory was a mode- 
 
SEPARATION FROM LA PLATA 127 
 
 rately common possession in those days ; but it was 
 a rare occurrence for one who had governed a Spanish 
 South American province for as long as Hemandarias 
 had ruled Paraguay to die poor I 
 
 The provinces of Rio de la Plata and Paraguay 
 were now entirely distinct the one from the other. 
 Nevertheless, the frontiers which divided the two 
 would seem to have been seldom understood by 
 English writers, even down to a period as late as 
 the beginning of the nineteenth century. i The result 
 was a confusing amoimt of very loose nomfenclature, 
 the term Rio de la Plata frequently being made to 
 serve for Southern Paraguay, and that of Paraguay 
 being held to cover the northern parts of the province 
 of Rio de la Plata, which latter, of course, is to-day 
 the Argentine Republic. Very roughly speaking, the 
 frontiers which divided' the province of the Rio de la 
 Plata from that of Paraguay, or Guaird, as it was 
 then also called, were the same as those which now 
 separate Argentina from Paraguay. 
 
 This readjustment of territory, as a matter of fact, 
 was one of the most important of the colonizing steps 
 of the south-east of the continent. The move, after 
 all, was only in conformity with the physical arid 
 climatic conditions of the two provinces. Regarded 
 from these important ppints of view, the two were 
 never intended to form a single country, although, 
 as neighbours, the one was adriiirably adapted to 
 supply that which the other lacked. 
 
 At the beginning of the seventeenth century the 
 province of the Rio de la Plata had already come 
 to be acknowledged as one of the finest pastoral 
 countries in the world. Countless herds of cattle, 
 companies of horses, and flocks of sheep wandered 
 across the face of its level green stretches, having 
 multiplied in the most amazing fashion from out 
 of the few head which had been originally turned 
 
 • See Appendix. 
 
128 PARAGUAY 
 
 loose on the plains. And as these continually in- 
 creased, the ralde of wild) riders, the virile gauchos,- 
 came into existence, to dominate this new: wealth of 
 livestock and to gallop across thte flat carrtpo, on 
 which they might ride for league after league with- 
 out seeing so much as a single tree. Sun-swept and 
 wind-swept, moreover, the climate of the Rio de la 
 Plata province was 'what might have been expected 
 from the nature of the gaucho. There the summer's 
 heat was wont to be tempered by, the winter's frost, 
 and a biting blast would invigorate the jaded plains- 
 man when autumn gave way to the short winter of 
 the Pampa'. 
 
 iVery different from this was the landscape of 
 Paraguay, where one half of the country was dense 
 forest, and where, in the other, alternate woodland 
 glades and open stretches marked a land that was 
 generally undula:ting;( land hfere and there mountainous . 
 The soft Paraguayan air and the rich Paraguayan 
 soil, moreover, readily gaive b^ck a most surprising 
 return for the seeds that ha'd been entrusted to the 
 land from abroad. Onoe introduoed, the oranges 
 and subtropical plants and fruits flourished in so 
 niarked la; fashion that very soon such towns as 
 Asuncion, Ciudad Real', .Villa Rica, and Jerez — the 
 four principal urban centres at thie begirming' of 
 the seventeenth century — became most delightfully 
 embowered in orchards, vineyards, fields of sugar- 
 cane and banana, and all thfe remainder of such 
 abxmdant growths. In the River Plata mankind had 
 to gallop for its living! ; in Paraguay a few seeds, 
 carelessly flung, raised a harvest of fruit that was 
 generously; ready to drop into the outstretched hand. 
 
 From the time of the first advent of the Spaniard 
 into the south-east of the continent, the great 
 difference between thie countries of Paraguay and 
 Rio de la Plata hiad bieen evidenced by the types of 
 aboriginal humanity by which they were respectively 
 
SEPARATION FROM LA PLATA 129 
 
 inhabited. Thus, iwtiiltei the fierce Indians of the south 
 seized the horses which the Spaniard? allo^ved to 
 roam over the plains, and made tljemselves among 
 the most expert horsemen in the world, chiefly in 
 order that they migfht attack the intruders with still 
 greater fury than before, the Guarani, after the first 
 struggle to preserve his land from the invader, con- 
 sented to dwell in peace side by side with the white 
 man, and even to assist him in his labours to open 
 up the country. 
 
 So tractabte, indeed, did the Guaranf prove in 
 this respect that it was not long before he began 
 to pay the price of the human imperfections and greed 
 of the new-comers. The system of the encomienda 
 introduced by Irala has already been referred to. 
 But this, although unpleasant enough, was in the 
 first instance by no means the most severe hardship 
 to be suffered by the unfortunate natives of Paraguay. 
 Even as far back as 1526 Diego Garcia, in his 
 expedition up the great rivers, is said to have 
 captured a number of Guaranls, whom he carried 
 away with him as slaves. This procedure, more- 
 over, had been repeated at intervals on a larger 
 scale, until the horrors of a regularly organized 
 slave-trade seemed to threaten the Guaranls. 
 
 All this, of course, was in addition to the inevitable 
 wrongs inflicted by the establishment of the encotni- 
 endas in Paraguay itself. It was in Hernand arias' 
 rule that an active intervention in these matters was 
 undertaken by the Jesuits, who sent out to Paraguay 
 a number of missionaries with the view of opening 
 up relations with the Guaranls in their own forests. 
 The ultimate consequences of this move were so 
 momentous, and had so much influence on the general 
 history of Paragiiay that a separate chapter must 
 be devoted to the Jesuit Missions. 
 
CHAPTER' VIII 
 
 THE JESUIT MISSION ESTABLISHMENTS 
 
 A subject of much controversy— Events which led up to the founding of 
 the Jesuit Government — Early Franciscan missionaries — Arrival of 
 the first Jesuits — Hardships experienced by the pioneers — Constitu- 
 tion of the State — Rigid seclusion of the community — Situation of the 
 mission country — Features of its thirty towns — Uniformity of their 
 pattern — General plan of each — Description of the main buildings — 
 The Tacurti stone — Method of fortification — Administration of the 
 Jesuit towns — Guarani officials — Their titles and duties — Matters of 
 costume — The doctrine of equality — Questions of labour — Health of 
 the Guaranis — Administrative ability of the missionaries — Verba 
 mate gathering and cattle-breeding — Numbers of the livestock on 
 the Jesuit farms— Agricultural pursuits — How labour was made 
 attractive — Various industries — Guarani craftsmen and artists — 
 Astonishing scope of their occupations — Actual status of the Jesuits 
 as Governors — The division of property — Economic success of the 
 missionary establishments — How the Guarani's day was mapped out — 
 Description of some religious ceremonies — The procession of Corpus 
 — Allegations against the Jesuits — Practical results achieved by their 
 missions — Their justification — The industrial side of the enterprise — 
 Importance of the mission produce — The Jesuits as a commercial 
 force — The Mamelucos and the mission settlements — Successful 
 resistance of the Indian militia — Relations of the Jesuits with their 
 neighbours — Expulsion of the Jesuits — Fruitless attempts to continue 
 their settlements by others — End of the State. 
 
 The Jesuit missionary settlements in Paraguay have 
 for some centuries now been the subject of discussion, 
 which has from time to time waxed sufficiently bitter. 
 Curiously enough, these arguments have been con- 
 cerned, not only with the ethics of colonization, and 
 with the rights and wrongs of the Jesuit Fatheirs, 
 the Indians, and the Spanish colonists. Many ques- 
 tions of actual fa<ct have been in dispute, and as noany 
 
 130 
 
JESUIT MISSION ESTABLISHMENTS 131 
 
 more ranain onty, dimly, solved to tMs d3y. Briefly 
 the contending, claims were these. The Jesuits 
 maintained that their work in Paraguay was for 
 the benefit of the Guaraiifs, whom they desired to 
 protect from the harsh oppression they suffered lat 
 the hands, of the Spaniards. The Spanish colbnists, 
 on the other hand, ialleged that this was^ merely a 
 pretext snatdied Ibyi the Jesuits in order that they 
 might arroglate to themsekes the labour of the 
 Guaranfs, and thus grow fat upon those services 
 which by right ought to have been at the disposal 
 of the conquistadoriss . v 
 
 Before attempting, however, to enter into sxvy, of 
 these controversial points it would be a.s well to 
 glance hur!riedly at the events which led up to the 
 establishment of the Jesuit Government and to the 
 founding of the ifamous thirty towns on which 
 the Guarani converts lived their rigidly ordered 
 lives . 
 
 The Jesuits, as a; matter of fact, were by no means 
 the first missionaries to enter the PaJraguayan field. 
 iVarious priests had come out in the train of the 
 earliest conquistador es, and from out of the groups 
 of the subsequent cfergy a certain number of daring 
 and devoted men hjaid ventured among the Indians, 
 laying here aiid thete foundations of a future civi- 
 lization. The first missionalries who went out into 
 the forests to preach among thte Guaranis are said 
 to have been the Franciscan Fathers Armenta and 
 Lebr6n (which latter niame is probably a Spanish 
 rendering of the French patron5Tiaic Lebrun), whom 
 AlVar Nunez Cabeza de ,Vaca seems to have found 
 alcready established in Santa Catalina in 1541. But 
 such efforts, noteworthy as they were, occurred on 
 a scale that was entirely diminutive compared with 
 the extraordinary, developments of the subsequent 
 missionary scheme of the Jesuits. 
 
 It w|as in 1588 that thfe first Jesuits arrived in 
 
132 PARAGUAY 
 
 Paraguay, where they, met with a warm weltoitie at 
 the hands of the colbnists, between whom and the 
 missionary Fathers a bitter feud was eventually des- 
 tined to spring up. These early workers made a 
 cosmopolitan company, counting among their number 
 Spaniards, Portuguese, Italians, and Scots, besides 
 other nationalities. Setting dauntlessly out into the 
 forests of Paraguay, they passed from tribe to tribe, 
 making converts of the Indiams in a fashion suffi- 
 ciently wholesale to receive some condemnation at 
 the hands of their detractors. However much or 
 however little the average Guaranf may have under- 
 stood of his actual reception into the Christian faith, 
 the perils and hardships of the early missionariips) 
 remained the same, and these were undoubted^ 
 sufficient to tax the resolution of any but the most 
 singlte-hearted pioneer. 
 
 Littlte by little, as more Jesuits arrived from abroad 
 to assist in the work, and as the numbers of the 
 Guarani converts grew, began the definite founda- 
 tions of that society of the Paraguayan missions 
 which was feared and hated by those Spaniards 
 outside its bt)rders who imagined, rig'htly or wrongly, 
 that its presence was the cause of much material 
 wrong to themselves. This country of the Jesuits 
 had every right to be known as a State. It 
 administered its own laws and authority, and was 
 subject to none of the local colonial officials, a 
 circumstance that undoubtedly gave rise to numerous 
 outbursts of jealbusy. It wias, moreover, rigidly shut 
 off from the outer world, and, a.lthough travellers 
 were permitted to pass, closely watched, from one 
 of its towns to another, none but the Jesuit adminis- 
 trators were in the lea:st conversant with the affairs 
 of the conmiunity, and with thfe events which were 
 happening in the State. It is this latter circumstance, 
 of course, which has been responsible for so many 
 of the disputes concerning actual facts— arguments 
 
JESUIT AL^A-R LsANJlGNjlCIO. » , 
 
 To face p. 132, 
 
JESUIT MISSION ESTABLISHMENTS 133 
 
 which have arisen both during the period of the 
 Jesuit dominion and after the expulsion of the 
 Fathers. But in any case no dispute has ever arisen 
 concerning thle fact that this land of the Jesuits 
 was a: self-governing State, whtether it be known by 
 any of the various names which have been applied 
 to it — a republic, an empire, or a socialistic com- 
 munity pure and simpte. 
 
 The mission country of the Jesuits was situated 
 amid those delightful tracts of land Where the m|odern 
 Republics of Paraguay, Brazil, and Uruguay now 
 meet. From north to south it lay, roughly, between 
 the parallels of 25° and 30°, and thus it comprised a 
 stretch of territory the open spaces of which may 
 rightfully be called " the Garden of South America." 
 iWe may now survey this spot in the height of its 
 prosperity, beginning with some aspects of its thirty] 
 towns, which, of course, incliude some of the most 
 saMent features of all. 
 
 The Jesuits of Paraguay were nothing if not con- 
 sistent, and their policy was eloquently shown in the 
 construction of their towns. None of their converts, 
 decreed the missionaries, should be permitted to 
 outdo his, or her, neighbour in the matter of dress and 
 outward appearance. The priests did their best to 
 ensure equality and the absence of heartburning by a 
 regulation that every Indian should bte garbed exactly 
 the same, bbth in material and cut, as were his 
 brethren and sisters. This saime theory was made to 
 appfy in the case of the dwelling-places of the 
 Guaranfs. It has been remarked that these resembled 
 each other as closely as one drop of water resembles 
 another. " The arrangement of these," says Alivear, 
 who wrote from' personal experience, " is so uniform 
 that when you have seen one you may say that you 
 have seen theiri all. Some tiny freak of architecture 
 or some little touch of private adonmient— that is 
 the only diflFerence that may be remarked. Essen- 
 
134 PARAGUAY 
 
 tially they are all thte same, and this has bteen brought 
 to such a pitch) that those who travel through 
 them are apit to begui to wonder if they are not 
 being accomp^ied by the same enchanted town, the 
 eyes of a lynx bieingi needed to tell the difference 
 between the inhabita|nts and clothes of one of these 
 places and those of another. The plan of them 
 all is rectaiigular, this streets stretching from north 
 to south and from ealst to west, and the Plaza, which 
 is always roomy and level, in the middle. The 
 church, collegei, and cemetery occupy that side of 
 the Plaza that faces north." ' 
 
 This description affords, at all events, a rough 
 and general outline of one of thb Jesuit towns. 
 It leaves, however, miany details of interest to be 
 filled in. The aspect of one of these places, it 
 may be said, was extremely pleasant, the Jesuits, 
 who vmderstood these matters very thbroughlly, having 
 introduced orange-groves and other such gtowths 
 with consummate sikill among the buildings. The 
 church would be a most soHdly built edifice, con- 
 taining three or five pjaves, as the case might be. 
 Its interior, moreover, was richly, decorated by the 
 Indian craftsmen and workers in metal, and here, one 
 imagines, some distinguishing; originality must have 
 occurred, although no doubt this was avoided as 
 much as possible. 
 
 Attached to thei college, which was usually a very, 
 large building, were the workshops and storehouses 
 of the town, which were thus under the immediate eye 
 of the Fathers. The blaildings in which the Indians 
 themselves were aecomimiodated were very extensive 
 but Ibw-roofed structures^ being some sixty yards 
 in length and ten in breadth. The majority of the 
 buildings were contrived of great blocks of the 
 Itocally found Tfiourd stone, which for the purpose 
 of cutting possesses the very unusual advantage of 
 being comparatively, soft when first taken from the 
 
JESUIT MISSION ESTABLISHMENTS 135 
 
 earth, hardening little "by little as it is exposed to 
 the air. The magnificent -woods of the neighbouring 
 forests were frequentfy employed in addition, and 
 the ubiquitous adobe was made to serve here and 
 there. All the buildings were very solidly tiled. 
 
 So much for the general description of one of 
 those Jesuit towns of which only; the ruins no,w 
 remain, all but swallowed up by the encroaching 
 verdure of the forest. In their neighbourhood was 
 nearly lalways a stone-lined spring, welling out 
 into a pool pilanted about with palms, and thus 
 presenting a most agfreeablte appearance. Near this 
 would be the chapels of the " Stations of the 
 Cross." 
 
 Finally, it must be said that m'any of these centres 
 which were most exposed to the raids of the hostile 
 Brazilian inhabitants of SSo Paulo were strongly 
 fortified, being surrounded by a deep, ditch and a 
 solid wall of hardened mud. 
 
 Each of these towns was in charge of two Jesuits, 
 not too large a number, it must be admitted, to have 
 control of a town thfe population of which was prob- 
 ably about four thousand. These, however, -were 
 assisted by numerous GuaranI officials, and their 
 management appears to have been conducted with 
 exemplary smoothness. 
 
 Having now obtained a glimpse of thte plan 
 and aspects of a Jesuit mission town, it is time to 
 consider some attributes that are at least as important 
 — its inhabitants. Proceeding downwardis along its 
 hierarchy from the two Jesuit Fathers in charge — 
 who were responsible only to,a superior of their own 
 order who travelled continually to and' fro between 
 the various towns-^we arrive at the higher GuaranI 
 officials. At the head of thtese was a cacique, who 
 in a sense acted as^ Governor of thfe place, although 
 his office, was under the closest supervision of the 
 two Jesuits in charge. There were also corregidores, 
 
136 PARAGUAY 
 
 regidores, alcaldes, and many othter officials, whose 
 posts corresponded more or less with those held by 
 Spaniards in the somewhat cumbrous municipal 
 scheme that obtained in the peninsula. 
 
 In order that the position of these dusky digni- 
 taries should be properly emphasized they were 
 raised above the law which decreed perfect equality 
 of dress for all, and on feast days their uniforms were 
 wont to be sufficiently gorgeous to distinguish them 
 from the rest. 
 
 The dress of the rank and file of the inhabitants 
 was simple to a degree. The material employed 
 for that of both men and women was white cotton. 
 The men wore a species of shirt above short breeches, 
 while the women were dressed in petticoats, above 
 which was an armless chemise known as the typoi. 
 The hair was plaited into one or two tails, and was 
 generally adorned with a crimson flower. To such 
 a degree had this doctrine of similarity of costume 
 become implanted into the minds of the Indians that, 
 after the expulsion of the Jesuits, those who suc- 
 ceeded the missionaries — and endeavoured in vain to 
 carry on the wort' — were astonished at the tenacity 
 with which they clung to it. Desirous of rooting 
 out entirely the influence of the Jesuits, they 
 assiduously pointed out to the Indians the advantages 
 of individuality in dress. But it was a very long 
 time before one of these could bring himself to 
 distinguish his person from the rest by means of 
 any of those added touches which are usually so 
 eagerly sought after by the dusky races. 
 
 The supposition that Satan finds work for idle 
 hands to do was acknowledged by the Jesuits with 
 an enthusiasm on which was founded the principal 
 tenets of their communities. In the mission townf 
 any risk of this kind was quite infinitesimal I Indeed 
 one of the charges levelled by the opponents of 
 the missionaries has been to the effect that they 
 
JESUIT MISSION ESTABLISHMENTS 137 
 
 harnessed the Guaranis from the a.gt of five years 
 upwards to an endless and grinding" routine of toil. 
 Indeed, in estimating the benefits dierived by the 
 company of the Jesuits from this fount of labour, 
 a very gifted modem Argentine writer estimates 
 the eighteenth-century GuaranI population of the 
 Paraguayan missions at some 150,000, adding 
 that, so healthy was the climate of their country 
 that almost the entire force of this community was 
 available, invalids being almost unlsfnown. In this 
 he unconsciously pays a notable tribute to the methods 
 employed in the " Reductions " — by which name these 
 mission towns were also known. For this remark- 
 able lack of invalids may well be compatible with 
 the circumstances attending ordinary hard work, but 
 they suggest nothing of that grinding toil such as 
 the conquistadores were only too frequently accus- 
 tomed to inflict on the aborigines — labour involving 
 broken health and premature death. 
 
 The admittedly healthy condition of the Jesuitical 
 Guaranis is in itself sufiScient to refute such a charge 
 as this. ' ■ • t ' ;'' 
 
 The various kinds of work carried on in the mission 
 towns were of an amazingly comprehensive nature. 
 Even their most hostile critics have never attempted 
 to dispute the administrative abilities of the mis- 
 sionaries. These found a full opportunity in the 
 fertile soil and varied products of the country. One 
 of the first industries they took up was that of 
 collecting the famous Paraguayan tea, the yerba 
 mat6, from the forests in which it grew. Un- 
 doubtedly this was one of the severest tasks which 
 the Guaranis had to undertake, since the yerbia- 
 tree, the Ildx Paraguayensis, favours the denser 
 forests that are the haunt of the jaguar, the venomous 
 snake, and countless noxious insects. Moreover, as 
 the yerba mat^-trees in the neighbourhood of the 
 settlements becamie used up, the journeys of the 
 
138 PARAGUAY 
 
 Indians grew longter and more difficult, and thfe return 
 marches, under the burden of the j^erba loads, still 
 more strenuous. 
 
 Another industry which' rapidly attained to great 
 importance was that of cattle-breeding. It is diffi- 
 cult to picture the Jesuit Fathers galloping with 
 flying robes after the scampering herds of cattle, 
 gathering them: into rodeos, and " piartingi " them 
 lafter the fashion of the gaucho— and this they un- 
 doubtedly did not do I At the same time, it is 
 certain that they must have closely supervised their 
 dusky herdsmen ; for the numbers of their cattle 
 rapidly increased to an extent which could only have 
 been possible under an efficient, and comparatively 
 scientific, management. This will be evident when 
 it is explained that more than thirty thousand head 
 of cattle grazed on one of their estates alone, and 
 that at the time of the expulsion of the company, 
 their pastures were found to contain nearly 
 800,000 cattle, nearly 100,000 horses and mules, 
 and over 200,000 sheep and goats. 
 
 Beyond this there were the fields of cotton, maize, 
 rice, sugar - cane, tobacco, and all those cereals 
 which went to make up the store of the mission 
 towns, as well as the spreading groves of orange- 
 trees, and all thfe fruits of the sub-tropics and of 
 Southern Europe which were cultivated with immense 
 success in the rich red soil of Paraguay. It is a 
 tribute to the energy of the Jesuits, moreover, that 
 sufficient wheat was grown within the missions to 
 render them self-supporting in this respect, when 
 the small amount of wheat is taken into considera- 
 tion that is at present produced within the Republic 
 of Paraguay. 
 
 It was in these pastoral and agricultural pursuits . 
 that the main supply of Guarani labour wias 
 employed. The Jesuits saw' to it that the , task's 
 of the Indians were made as attractive as possible. 
 
JESUIT MISSION ESTABLISHMENTS 139 
 
 Thus thtey would march to thfe fields singmg chants 
 and preceded by a smlall band of instruments, land 
 they would, return in the same impiressive fashion 
 when the labours of the day were done. In aH 
 such ways as this the wor^k' of the Indians was 
 lightened, and undoubtedly the policy possessed its 
 practical sidte in thkt far more satisfactory agricultur'aJ 
 results were obtained from these contented people 
 than would have been the case had they bteen dejected 
 and apathetic. 
 
 The scope of the mission worfc, however, was by 
 no means confined to the pastoral and agricultural 
 pursuits. The community was entirely self-support- 
 ing, and it was thus necessary to quarry the stone 
 of which the town buildings were constructed, to 
 build the small vessels in which much of the produce 
 was sent to be sold in the large cities tower down 
 the river, and even to found the cannons and to 
 produce the gunpowder which were necessary in order 
 to defend thfe settlements from the slave-raiding 
 attacks of those arch-enemies of the missions, the 
 Mamelucos, who came out with fire and sword from 
 the Brazilian town of Sao Paulo. 
 
 But, when the disposition and attainments of the 
 original Guarani tribe are taken into consideration, 
 some of the most remarkable achievements of the 
 missionaries were in connection with the finer arts 
 and crafts rather than with the cruder labours of 
 the main industries . It is true that at the head of 
 each of these branches was a Jesuit who was a 
 complete master of his particular art or craft. But 
 this alone does not suffice to explain the astonish- 
 ing progress made in these directions by a race 
 that a generation or two before had represented 
 one of the most primitive typies of Indian in the 
 worlds-naked savages without the faculty of hiero- 
 glyphics, unable to count beyond the few first 
 numbers, ignorant of the very rudiments of mUsio, 
 
140 PARAGUAY 
 
 and ladMng sufficient imagination to pTOvide them- 
 selves even with a reasonable supply of that 
 superstition which stands for the religion of the 
 savage. 
 
 Yet it was from these very folk that were pro- 
 duced craftsmen of a really able type. It was they 
 who, under the coaching of the missionaries, learned 
 to become carpenters, to carve stone with profes- 
 sional cunning, and who became expert locksmiths, 
 gunsmiths, and workers in metal. There were mkny 
 weavers and printers, and among them were a certain 
 number who had actually attained to the expert art 
 of watchmaking. Among the most astonishing walks 
 of life, however, to which the Guaranf was transported 
 was that of painter — in the artistic sense of the 
 vocation. Hand in hand with this art went that of 
 music. Indeed, one of the proofs of how thoroughly 
 these matters were undertaken lies in the fact of 
 the bringing over from Europe, with a view to teach- 
 ing the Guaranis music and singing, of Padre Juan 
 Basco, who had previously been at the head of an 
 archducal institution of music. 
 
 A school and a hospital were attached to each 
 Reduction, and each of these, in addition, was pro- 
 vided with an asylum for the aged and infirm. Even 
 here a certain amount of work was carried on, and 
 the inmates of this institution were given such light 
 tasks as they could perform. 
 
 These settlements of the Jesuits have frequently 
 been said to constitute a state of pure socialism — or 
 rather communism'. But this is true only up to a 
 certain point. A condition of equality existed among 
 the Indians, and the total absence of money in any 
 shape or form m9.de it possible to render this equality 
 more perfect than would have been possible in the 
 outer world. But in the ideal communistic country 
 no persons can exist who do not bow to the common 
 law. Admitting such dxeories, it was the Jesuits 
 
JESUIT MISSION ESTABLISHMENTS 141 
 
 themselves who had no ri^ht in such settlements, 
 for the laws which applied to the Indians did not 
 — and in the nature of things never could — apply 
 to them ! The Jesuits, then, were actually officers of 
 an autocracy which governed a people on commu- 
 nistic principles. 
 
 The constitution of the Jesuit missions demanded 
 that all property — that is to say, all the harvests and 
 the agricultural and pastoral products in general — 
 should be divided into three parts. Special lands 
 were set apart for each. The first of these was 
 known as the Tabambae. This was for the benefit 
 of the general community, and in order to produce 
 this all the Indians worked three days in the week. 
 The rest of the time was devoted to the Abambae, 
 a portion reserved for the heads of families, and to 
 the Tupambae, which share was known as the 
 property of God. The harvests were stored in the 
 various public granaries, and dealt with according 
 to the orders of the missionaries. 
 
 The economic success of these Paraguayan missions 
 was undoubted. At the time of their dominion many 
 unfounded rumours were spread concerning a vast 
 amount of wealth that was supposed to be derived 
 by these from local mines which, it is now clear 
 enough, never had any existence. As a matter of 
 fact, as regards mere wealth, any such procedure 
 would have been unnecessary — or, at all events, super- 
 fluous — considering the enormous riches which the 
 Jesuits held in their pastoral and agricultural 
 possessions . 
 
 The day of the Jesuit Guaranf was mapped out 
 for him with the same care with which a navigator 
 might prick out his chart before starting on a voyage . 
 Not only was every hour of his labours and restings 
 worked out to the minute with meticulous care, but 
 even the intervals of his recreation were planned 
 with the same exactitude. The Guaranf was told 
 
142 PARAGUAY 
 
 when and how to play just as hte was told when 
 and how to work. And this procedure, which could 
 not have failed to be resented by more sophistidatdd 
 folk, was undoubtedly the best adapted to awaken 
 the irresponsible mind of the Guaranf, notorious as 
 he was for his lack of the power of initiative. 
 
 Many of the feast days were kept in a truly 
 gorgeous fashion in the Paraguayan mission towns. 
 I have already describfed these fully elsewhere, and, 
 in order that the less favoura:b]e side of the picture 
 may be seen, I v/ill quote a couple of paragraphs 
 from Seiior Lugones, whose masterly work cannot 
 be said to err in leniency towards thte Jesuits : — 
 
 " All was, of course, religious. Thte embroidered 
 ornaments glittered in the sun ; perfumed waters 
 served in the ceremonies. There was a profusion 
 of incense and of chiming bells ; and, above all, 
 there was that supreme bond between primitive grati- 
 tude and rehgion that octasioned these feasts. The 
 feast day was the day of banqueting' and. of fine 
 clothes. Entire families strutted with pride in the 
 cloak and shoes of an acolyte. The people applauded 
 with enthusiasm the performanoes of children who 
 recited eulogies, or who danced, forming mystical 
 ciphers with their figures to the beat of resounding 
 orchestras. Bombs, rattles, trumpets, and hand-belb 
 sent out their sonorous volumte of sound to bring 
 the fanfare to the point of delirium'. Military 
 spectacles aroused the fighting atavism in blood that 
 was still wild ; tilting at the ringi acting in Guarani, 
 clumsy comedies, entered into the programme, which 
 was concluded by a banquet in thte open air under 
 the galleries which surrounded the plaza. 
 
 " The procession of Corpus was especially, 
 sumptuous. This procession would go winding 
 about the plaza, halting at many places, where birds 
 of thfe most brilliant colours fluttered in the midst 
 of the arranged foUagfe, and whteiie handsome fishes 
 
JESUIT MISSION ESTABLISHMENTS 143 
 
 floating in bowls served as an additional spectacle. 
 As the acolytes passed along thjey strewied the ground 
 ■ with grains of roasted maize, contrived so. as ito 
 imitate small white flowers, while the softness of 
 the air, perfumed by the neighbouring orange-groves, 
 set the seal of tender unction on the ceremlony." 
 
 These are the words of a brilliant modern writer 
 who holds, as do the majority of other dontemporary 
 South American authors, that the methods of the 
 Jesuit proselytism comprised a mere appeal to the 
 senses which had nothing in cominon with the true 
 ethics of religion. That it was necessary to attract 
 the Guaranf by an appeal of the kind is incontro- 
 vertible. No doubt, too, thtere was some slight 
 foundation for the charges made against the members 
 of the company in Paraguay to the effect that they 
 made a practice of bribing thte secular Governors of 
 the province ; that, when opposed, they made suffi- 
 ciently bitter enemies ; that there were times when 
 the industrial importance of the community tended 
 to swamp the spiritual side, and that, in fact, they, 
 preserved the Guaranls from the Conqaistadores 
 merely in order that they might exploit the un- 
 fortunate natives for their own purposes. 
 
 Even if all these charges — the majority of which 
 rest on very precarious foundations — were admitted, 
 the practical results achieved by the Jesuit missions 
 would have amply justified their existence. It has 
 been brought against them that, while they charged 
 the conqaistadores with treating the Guaranls as 
 beasts of burden, they themselves treated them as 
 children, thus arrogating to themselves unending 
 tutelary powers. I hold no brief for the Jesuits, 
 but this accusation alone seems to hold their com- 
 plete vindication. Under the merciless tyranny of 
 the early Spanish system the melancholy natives died 
 before their time in countless thousands. Under the 
 benevolent- despotism: of the Jesuits they passed 
 
144 PARAGUAY 
 
 through smiling lives to a satisfied old age. Is it 
 necessary to say more? 
 
 There is no doubt that, from the industrial and 
 political point of view of secular Paraguay, the 
 presence of the Jesuits was anything but an un- 
 mitigated blessing. The Spanish colonist — who, in 
 common with the majority of other folk' of that 
 period, was entirely devoid of sentiment so far as 
 Indians were concerned — had in the first place to 
 thank the interference of the missionaries for the 
 loss of a considerable portion of his profitable field 
 of free labour. But this was merely the foretaste' 
 of what was to come. When the vast Jesuit 
 organization began to assume its definite shape, it 
 became evident to the colonists that here was a 
 force with which they could not hope to compete. 
 
 This development, of course, did not occur all 
 at once. It was only at the beginning of the seven- 
 teenth century, when the mission settlements received 
 the permission of the Spanish Government to trade 
 in yerba mat^ outside the borders of their provinces, 
 that the full significance of the industrial side of 
 the great enterprise became apparent. In due course 
 the conmiercial ramifications were extended, a per- 
 fectly amazing genius being displayed in this. After 
 a time the river fleets of the Jesuits took to sailing 
 down-stream deeply laden with yerba, hides, linseed, 
 sugar-cane, wheat, tobacco, maize, and all the rest 
 of the produce of the missions. These found a 
 ready market in Buenos Aires, Santa F^ Brazil, 
 Chile, and even as far afield as Peru. After a 
 time the officials of the missions opened stores, not 
 only in Paraguay but in Buenos Aires as well, with 
 the result that the supremacy of their products became 
 even more marked than before, and that many of 
 those very laymen who were most bitterly opposed 
 to the presence of the missionaries went shamefacedly 
 as purchasers into their stores. 
 
JESUIT MISSION ESTABLISHMENTS 145 
 
 Thtefact that no body of laymen could be found! 
 with a sufficient power of organization to compete 
 with the Jesuits did not, needless to say, add to the 
 popularity of the latter. Nor did their prohibition 
 of the employment of any other tongue but Guaranf 
 — thoug'h in itself a sufficiently sound precaution — 
 fail to be hurtful to the Spanish pride. On thieir 
 eastern frontier they had no reason to expect good- 
 will. On the contrary, it was from that quarter that 
 threatened the deepest danger of all to the Jesuit 
 establishments ; for thje hardy Mantelacos of SSo 
 Paulo, having cleared all their own part of Brazili 
 of the Guaranfs whom they had enslaved, had taken 
 to slave-raiding farther afield, until they were brought 
 face to face with the Jesuit settlements, and then- 
 labours were thus rudely interrupted. 
 
 Finding that the missionaries were determined to 
 maintain their rights, the Mantelacos began a merci- 
 less series of onslaughts on the easternmost of the 
 mission settlements, driving away into captivity many 
 tens of thousands of the unfortunate converts. This 
 condition of affairs continued untU, having obtain'^ 
 special permission from the Court of Spain, the 
 Jesuits armed and drilled their native followers. By 
 this means a force was soon obtained which at 
 first succeeded in resisting the attack's of the 
 Mamelucos, and afterwards in inflicting upon them 
 defeats serious enough to cause them to abandon 
 their raids. The militia of the missions, it may be 
 said, ultimately became something' in the nature of 
 a permanent force, and was lent on several occasions 
 for service with' the Spanish authorities. 
 
 There is no space here to enter into the various 
 quarrels of the Jesuits with the lay and ecclesiastical 
 bodies of their own country. The main features of 
 these are closely bound up with the general history 
 of Paraguay, and such disputes as that between the 
 Comipany and Bishbp Cardenas — Which has been 
 
 10 
 
146 PARAGUAY 
 
 admirably described by Mr. R. B. Cunninghame 
 Graham in his " Vanished Arcadia "—must appear 
 in their proper chronological order. 
 
 Indeed, it is the important influence w^hich these 
 settlements of the Jesuits have had upon the general 
 history of Paraguay which alone justifies the length 
 of this description of their communities. For with- 
 out some idea of the ramifications of these truly 
 amazing Reductions it is impossible to understand 
 much of the history of Paraguay in the seventeenth 
 and early eighteenth centuries. 
 
 The expulsion of the Jesuits from Paraguay 
 occurred in 1768. The settlements in Paraguay 
 were the last to be broken up. In the previous 
 year the establishments in Corrientes, C6rdoba, Santa 
 F6, and Montevideo had been closed and the officials 
 of the Company deported. In Paraguay — where the 
 Governor, Don Carlos Morphi, was held to be favour- 
 ably disposed towards the Company — considerable 
 opposition had been expected, and the Governor of 
 Buenos Aires, Don Francisco de Paula Bucareli y 
 Ursua, to whom the uncongenial task of the expul- 
 sion had been entrusted, was accompanied on his 
 journey to the Reduction by a considerable military 
 force. 
 
 Save for a few isolated and spasmodic bursts of 
 resentment on the part of the Indians, the expul- 
 sion was effected almost without incident, the influ- 
 ence of the Jesuits, exerted in favour of peace, 
 overcoming the indignation of the Guaranis — a resent- 
 ment which, had it been allowed full play, would 
 undoubtedly have set aU those districts of South 
 America into a blaze. 
 
 On the departure of the Jesuits the Spanish 
 authorities strove to continue the work that the mis- 
 sionaries had carried on, and at the same time to 
 destroy every trace of their influence and of their 
 rule. It is almost needless to say that their attempts 
 
JESUIT MISSION ESTABLISHMENTS 147 
 
 were a 001111)1616 failure. Even with' the best will 
 in the world it was clearly impossible for men with 
 no experience of Guarani mission Indians and their 
 ways to take up the task of generations of wise 
 and skilled experts who had devoted the whole of 
 their lives to the study. 
 
 The failure of this attempt of the Spanish colonial 
 authorities became evident almost at once. In a 
 few years political causes had all but depopulated! 
 the mission towns. In 1785 the total population of 
 these had fallen to 70,000, and in 1797 the number 
 had been reduced to just over 50,000 Guaranis. 
 After this the end was rapid. The herds were carried 
 off, the fields became overgtown, and in the end 
 the tremendous vigour of the subtropical forests 
 smothered even the buildings of the Jesuit towns 
 themselves. As a result, very little more remains 
 than a few ruins dotted here and there about the 
 forests . 
 
CHAPTER IX I , 
 
 THE LATER COLONIAL PERIOD 
 
 Manuel Frias becomes Governor of Paraguay — His domestic affairs lead 
 to a dispute with Bishop Torres — Conflict between Church and State 
 — The Peruvian authorities decide in favour of Frias — Death of the 
 Governor on his way back to Paraguay — Luis de Cespedes Jeria con- 
 trives to obtain the post — Having been in league with the Mamelucos, 
 he is imprisoned — Subsequent Governors — Gregorio de Hinestrosa's 
 conflict with Bishop Bernadino de Cardenas — Character of the 
 Bishop — Mr. Cunninghame Graham's account of how he came into 
 his bishopric — A dramatic priest — The latter's quarrel with the 
 Jesuits — Some mutual expulsions — Diego Escobar de Osorio suc- 
 ceeds Hinestrosa — Cardenas excommunicates the Jesuits — Death of 
 Escobar de Osorio — Cardenas is appointed to the governorship — His 
 measures against the Jesuits — Sebastian de Leon y Zarate is made 
 Governor — Revolt and defeat of Cardenas — Further Governors — How 
 Diego de los Reyes Balmaseda became Governor — The revolt of Jose 
 de Antequera y Castro — Circumstances which led up to his execution 
 — Motives of the rebellion — Scenes at the scaffold — Antequera's per- 
 sonality — Feuds in Asuncion — Bruno de Zavala restores order — 
 Carlos Morphi — Events in South America which preceded the War 
 of Liberation — Paraguay's answer to the message of Buenos Aires — 
 Collision between the troops of the two States — Victory of the Para- 
 guayans — Belgrano's propaganda — Stirred by this, Paraguay proclaims 
 her independence — She begins her career as a sovereign State. 
 
 Having dealt with some of the more salient features 
 of the Jesuit missions, it is necessary to resume the 
 sketch of the general history of Paraguay, which' 
 was interrupted at the division of that province 
 into two. 
 
 The first Governor of the northern of these two 
 provinces — ^known then both by the nam.e of Paraguay 
 and Guairi — was Manuel Frias, who assumed charge 
 
 of his post very nearly three years after the new 
 
 us 
 
THE LATER COLONIAL PERIOD 149 
 
 provincies had been created. Accor'ding' to many 
 authorities, Manuel Frias g'ave promise of being a 
 most able Governor ; but the condition of his 
 domestic affairs appears to have wrecked his chief 
 opportunities of displaying statesmanship. 
 
 iWhfen he wias appointed to the governorship of 
 Paraguay, Frias had been separated from his wife 
 for some ten years. This state of affairs was re- 
 garded with considerable disfavour by Tomds de 
 Torres, then Bishop of Paraguay. In order that 
 an end should be put to what he regarded as a 
 public scandal, the Bishop determined that he him- 
 self would bring about a reconciliation between the 
 Governor and his wife. Frias proved himself so 
 obstinate in the matter that the Bishop was goaded 
 to more and more strenuous efforts. In the end 
 so enthusiastic did these become that the Bishop 
 quarrelled violently with the Governor in his efforts 
 to bring about peace between the latter and his 
 wife 1 
 
 Owing to this gratuitous interference in a domestic 
 matter, all Asuncion found itself once again obliged 
 to take sides with one party or the other in a bitter 
 dispute between the authorities. As had already 
 happened on several previous occasions in that 
 town, the affair soon resolved itself into a conflict 
 between Church and State. The great majority of 
 the people, as a matter of fact, were in sympathy 
 with the Governor. But Bishop Torres was an ardent 
 fighter, and, having flung about decrees of excom- 
 munication as freely as raindrops fall in a tropical 
 storm, he succeeded in drawing the serious attention 
 of the high authorities in Peru to the case. 
 
 As a result of this Frias was summoned to 
 Chuquisaca by the Royal Audience of Charcas. An 
 order of the 'kind was not to be disregarded. Manuel 
 Frias, leaving Diego de Rego y Mendoza in charge 
 of Paraguay, set out for the west, and in the foot- 
 
150 PARAGUAY 
 
 steps of his party there foUpwed sooa afterwards a 
 petition in favour of the Governor, numerously signed 
 by the inhabitants of Asuncion. Having heard all 
 this weighty case, and doubtless wondering not a 
 little at the private nature of the basis on which it 
 rested, the Royal Audience gave its decision in favour 
 of Frias. Whatever steps the Governor might have 
 taken to toark his triumph in Asuncion were frus- 
 trated by his death at Sajta on his return journey 
 in 1627. 
 
 Once again the government of Paraguay was left 
 in a state of suspense, which was somewhat violently 
 interrupted by Luis de C^spedes J6ria. This adven- 
 turous person entered the country in 1628 by way 
 of Brazil, and, although unsupported by any royal 
 authority, managed to obtain control of the State. 
 He is said to have been bribed by the Mamelucos 
 of Sao Paulo, in whose country be had been before 
 entering Paraguay, and it is certain enough that 
 he was in league with these slave- raiders . As a 
 result of this the incursions of the latter grew more 
 and more serious, and it is said that at this period no 
 fewer than sixty thousand unfortunate Guarani 
 Indians were captured by them in the eastern Jesuit 
 settlements and were led away to be sold in the 
 Brazilian slave markets. 
 
 It was not until 1631 that some beginnings of 
 order were evolved out of the chaos into which 
 Paraguay had fallen. In that year Cdspedes was 
 arrested and imprisoned, and in 1633 Martin d^a 
 Ledesma Valderrama was miade Governor by the 
 royal authority. This latter, after having carried 
 out some able colonizing work, was replaced in 
 1636 by Pedro Lugo de Navarra, who, having led 
 a Guaranf army against the Mamelucos, abandoned 
 thean in the early stages of the battle, notwith- 
 standing which the Indians succeeded in gaining an 
 unexpected victory. It was largely owing to this 
 
THE LATER COLONIAL PERIOD 151 
 
 conduct that he was recalled to Spain, but failleid 
 to reach the peninsula, dying on the voyage. 
 
 In 1 64 1 Gregorio de Hinestrosa took charge of 
 the governorship. During his term of office occurred 
 some of the most amazing episodes in the early 
 history of Paraguay. It was his lot, indeed, to be 
 one of the protagonists in a struggle between the 
 sacred and the secular power, which varied in 
 incident from the tragic to the. sheerly ludicrous. 
 Hinestrosa's gteat opponent was the Bishop Bema- 
 dino de Cardenas, one of the most extraordinary 
 characters of his time, and the product of a period 
 which encouraged adventurers among the ranks of 
 the clergy as well as among those of the laymen. 
 From his early days Cardenas had displayed great 
 dramatic power, and he had succeeded in obtaining 
 considerable influence among certain of the Indians 
 of Peru, an influence which he occasionally appears 
 to have turned to his own pecuniary advantage. Mr. 
 Cunninghame Graham has an admirable account of 
 the way in which he came into his bishopric : — 
 
 " Cardenas specially inculcated, in his memorial 
 to the Council of the Indies, that it was not expedient 
 to place the Indians under the regular clergy, a 
 theory of which he himself was destined to become 
 a great antagonist. Promotion^ as we know, cometh 
 neither from the east nor from the west ; so it fell 
 out that during his retreat, through the influence of 
 his friend Don Juan de Solorzano, a celebrated lawyer, 
 who had heard hinl preach when Governor of 
 Guancavelico, he found himself named Bishop of 
 Asuncion del Paraguay. This piece of luck opened 
 the doors of his ct)nvent to him, and he repaired at 
 once to Potosi to wait the arrival of the papal Bull 
 authorizing him to take possession of his bishopric. 
 There he appeared in the habit of his Order, a little 
 wooden cross upon his breast, and a green hat upon 
 his head, a costume which, if not quite fitting to 
 
152 PARAGUAY 
 
 his D)&w dignity, was at least suited to the Indian 
 taste. 
 
 " His biographer informs us that, without a word to 
 any one, he began to preach and hear confessions.. 
 Being absolutely without resources, he was reduced 
 to distribute indulgences and little objects of piety, 
 and at the end of every sermon to send his green 
 hat round the audience. His talent for preaching 
 stood him in good stead, and after every sermon 
 gifts were showere'd upon him, and a crowd' accom- 
 panied him home." 
 
 Arrived in Paraguay, the Bishop made the most 
 of his intensely dramatic gifts, and even went in 
 for a mild course of miracles admirably calculated 
 to fill the minds of his more ingenuous parishioners 
 with awe. It was not long before the Governor, 
 Gregorio de Hinestrosa, found out how dangerous an 
 antagonist a man such as this could be. Indeed, there 
 could be no doubt that neither Asimcion, nor any 
 othter capital in the world, was large enough to hold at 
 thte same time the Bishop Bemadino de Cardenas and 
 any secular Governor, whatever views the latter might 
 hold. Notwithstanding the curious fact that on one 
 occasion the pair simultaneously went down upon 
 their knees to beg each other's pardon, the quarrels 
 between the two mounted steadily in bitterness. 
 
 When he felt that his power had sufficiently in- 
 creased, Cardenas added a new element of discord to 
 the strife already existing by falling out with the 
 Jesuits. From: that moment he intrigued without 
 cease with a view to the expiellingi of the Order, but, 
 as it happened, the Governor being entirely, opposed 
 to hira, he himself was expelled in 1644. But 
 this was by no means the end of Bernadino de 
 Cardenas. 
 
 In 1647 Gregorio Hinestrosa was replaced in his 
 governorship by Diego Escobar de Osorio. Cardenas 
 immediately seized the opportunity of returning to 
 
THE LATER COLONIAL PERIOD 153 
 
 Asuncion. Contriving to ingratiate himself with the 
 new Governor, Cardenas launched a thunderbolt by 
 excommunicating the whole Company of the Jesuits in 
 Paraguay ! It is said that, after this, Escobar de 
 Osorio, realizing something of the hornet's nest that 
 he had suffered to be introduced into Paraguay, 
 was about to adopt strong measures against Cardenas. 
 Just then, however, he died. So suddenly did his 
 end oome about that it has been strongly suspected 
 that poison was employed to that end. 
 
 However this may have been, Cardenas himself 
 was now appointed to the vacant governorship by 
 popular vote. From this it wiU be seen how great a 
 hold he had obtained over the public imagination. 
 One of his first acts was to expel the Jesuits from 
 their college in Asuncion, and to command them to 
 evacuate all their mission settlements throughout 
 Paraguay. On this the Jesuits appealed to the Royal 
 Audience at Charcas, with the result that this Court 
 decreed the restitution of the rights of the Jesuits 
 and the dismissal of Cardenas from the governorship, 
 which was confided to Sebastian de Le6n y Zdrate. 
 Cardenas was in no mood to accept this decision 
 passively. He revealed the desperate nature of the 
 measures he was prepared to undertake by collecting 
 an army in order to oppose de Le6n when he arrived 
 in Paraguay. A battle was fought on the outskirts 
 of Asuncion, in which the followers of Cardenas — 
 who had been so confident of victory that they bore 
 into the battle ropes with which to bind the Guarari!s 
 of de Le6n's army after they, had been captured' I — 
 were totally defeated. 
 
 After this Cardenas disappears entirely from: Para- 
 guayan history. It is a niarvellous tribute to his 
 personality that, after many adventures and vicissi- 
 tudes, he succeeded in 'getting himself made Bishop 
 of Santa Cruz in 1665. 
 
 In 1650 And'rds 'de Le6n Gabarito arrived' in 
 
154 PARAGUAY 
 
 Paraguay as interim Governor. He was also chargeVi 
 with a commission to inquire into the circumstances 
 attending the repression of Cardenas' rebellion. 
 Whether he had been too thorough in his punitive 
 measures or not, it seems certain enough that the 
 unfortunate Zdrate had powerful enemies, for he spent 
 twenty years in prison as an atonement for what 
 may, or may not, have been faults. 
 
 A link with an important personage in the past 
 history of Paraguay occurred in 1653, when Cristobal 
 de Garay y Saavedra, a grandson of that Juan de 
 Garay who had founded Buenos Aires, was appointed 
 Governor of the province. He appears to have been 
 an able official ; but little of serious importance 
 seems to have occurred during his period of office, 
 nor in that of his successor, Juan Antonio Bldsquez. 
 
 The next Governor to be appointed to Paraguay 
 was Alonso Sarmiento de Sotomayor y Figueroa. 
 This official appears to have conducted himself bravely 
 in stemming an Indian rebellion. He nevertheless 
 suffered a term of two years' imprisonment before he 
 was acquitted of charges brought against him in 
 this respect. He subsequently obtained the post of 
 Corregidor in Lipes, and it is recorded, much to his 
 honour, that he died so poor that he did not leave 
 enough money to bury him 1 
 
 After this followed a succession of Governors, who 
 were occupied chiefly in coping with the warlike 
 tendencies of the fierce Guaycurds to the north, by 
 far the most implacable tribesmen in the province, 
 and in restraining the periodical aggressions of 
 the 'Mamelucos, to say nothing of playing their 
 share in the intrigues which were only too frequent 
 in Asuncion itself. 
 
 The next period of interest began with the year 
 17 17, when Antonio Victoria, who haJd been nomi- 
 nated as Governor of Paraguay, sold his office, with 
 the consent of the Court of Spain, to Diego die los 
 
THE LATER COLONIAL PERIOD 165 
 
 Reyes Balmaseda, who had until then occupied' the 
 comparatively modest post of Alcalde of Asuncion. 
 This sudden elevation to power appears to have 
 turned the head of the former Alcalde. In the 
 manner of upstarts he took to persecuting those who 
 failed to admire his genius of administration. It must 
 be admitted that all this is denied by Bahnaseda's 
 friends, who put the blame of ajU that occurred on 
 his enemies. These latter aissert that some of the 
 members of the leading families of Asuncion were 
 imprisoned and treated with considerkble harshness. 
 The inhabitants of Asuncion, from the days of the 
 very first establishment of that capital, had never 
 shown themselves inclined to submit to treatment of 
 this kind, and very soon complaints from that town 
 were ringing loudly in the ears of the high Peruvian 
 officials. The Royal Audience in order to investi- 
 gate the case sent to Asuncion Jose de Antequera y 
 Castro. In due course the RoyaJ. Audience relieved 
 Reyes Balmaseda from his post, to which succeeded 
 their own "judge-inquisitor, Jos6 de Antequera. 
 
 Concerning the period of confusion that followed 
 there is an amount of conflicting testimony that is 
 extraordinary even for the history of Paraguay. To 
 this day diametrically conflicting accounts are 
 published of the events which led up to the exe- 
 cution of Antequera. There are some who insist 
 that Antequera was regularly appointed to his post 
 by the Royal Audience, while others maintain that he 
 merely seized a favourable opportunity to arrogate 
 to himself the power. In any caise it is certain that 
 shortly after this occurred Baltasar Garcia Ros, acting 
 Governor of Buenos Aires, came up the river to 
 Asuncion with orders from the Peruvian authorities 
 either to replace Reyes Balmaseda in the governorship 
 of Paraguay or to assume this post himself. The 
 people of Asuncion, however, declared themselves in 
 favour of Antequera, and Garcia Ros was obliged 
 
166 PARAGUAY 
 
 to return to Buenos Aires without having 'iapcoml>lished 
 anything. 
 
 After this Asuncion found itself in a state of armed 
 resistance to practically all the might of Spain in 
 South America. Seeing that he was being opposed 
 by the Jesuits, Antequera ordered their expulsion 
 from Paraguay. It will already have been seen with 
 what monotonous persistency decrees of expulsion, 
 excommunication, and similar thunderings — occa- 
 sionally quite innocuous — splayed their part in the 
 Central State. As a matter of fact the Jesuits in the 
 College of Asuncion were actually expelled for a 
 time ; but as thfese seem to have had little to do 
 with the mission settlements the situation remained 
 practically unaltered. 
 
 In the meantime Antequera was making a resolute 
 stand against the edicts of the Royal Audience and 
 against the troops which the central Ck)vernment sent 
 against him. The personality of Antequera naturally 
 makes a strong appeal to the Paraguayan imagina- 
 tion. There was sufficient force in his rebellion to 
 give it an almost national touch, and there are many 
 who see in it some of the spiritual elements which 
 characterized the Sjpanish-American War of Inde- 
 pendence which broke out almost ninety years later. 
 
 If anything of this really entered into the motives 
 of Antequera 's rebellion, the uridertaJcing was alto- 
 gether too premature for any hope of success. The 
 spectacle of early eighteenth-century Paraguay in 
 arms against the world was a very gallant, but a 
 very fleeting, one. Nevertheless various Imperial 
 forces were defeated before the end came. Then 
 ' the Viceroy of Peru rose up in ponderous wrath, and 
 sent Bruno de Zavala at the head of an army of 
 six thousand mission Indians to end the matter. There 
 was no resisting a force such as this. Antequera] 
 fled first to C6rdbba, and then to Charcas, where he 
 was arrested. It is typical of the dilatory mfethiods 
 
THE LATER COLONIAL PERIOD 157 
 
 of the Spanish contemporary justice that it was not 
 until four years later that the order for his execution 
 arrived from Spain. 
 
 Antequera was executed in Charcas in 1731, and 
 on that occasion the uproar was considerable even 
 in that town, one of the chief centres of the vice- 
 royalty. On the fateful day the plaza — in the centre 
 of which, as usual, the scaffold had been prepared — 
 was filled' with ai hostile crowd'. On the appearance 
 of Antequera, in charge of his guards, the excitement 
 of the throng reached a feverish pitch. In order 
 to prevent a collision between the populace and the 
 troops the Viceroy himself made his appearance in 
 the square. But the time had passed for even his 
 exalted personality to quell the tumult. A volley of 
 stones sped at his mounted' figure, and the crowd 
 surged towards the scaffold to which Antequera had 
 by that time been brought. 
 
 An attempt at rescue seemed imminent. There was 
 no time for the executioner to perform his duty with 
 the grim and deliberate ceremony proper to such 
 an event. The Viceroy called to his guards to fire 
 at Antequera, and i^s the reports of the cumbrous 
 arquebuses died away Antequera fell, shot in four 
 places. According to some accounts, two priests who 
 accompanied him were wounded by the volley. 
 
 In this way fell Antequera, a man of striking 
 personality, and undoubtedly a sufficiently gallant 
 man. His figure is difficult to extricate from the 
 confusion of events that enveloped it. The circum- 
 stances would seem to point to the fact that it was 
 one of those historical cases in which every person 
 concerned, being a little bit in the right, made certain 
 that he was altogether justified, and completely 
 ignored the fact that he and all the rest were a jgreat 
 deal in the wrong at the same time I 
 
 When the news of Antequera's execution reached 
 the Paragiiayans their rage knew no bounds. Rightly 
 
168 PARAGUAY 
 
 or wrongly, they vented this on the Jesuits, whose 
 native troops had been so directly instrumental in the 
 downfall of Antequera. Once again, it was the 
 Fathers in the College of Asuncion who suflfered 
 chiefly from the vengeance which the people wreaked 
 for the fate of one whom they considered a martyr. 
 
 Asuncion was once again in a state of complete 
 anarchy. Apart from the bitterness which the 
 followers of Antequera felt towards the Jesuits on 
 account of the supposed wrongs they had suffered 
 at the hands of the Company, they now cherished 
 grievances against the regular supporters of the 
 Spanish Empire, and a feud raged btetween these 
 latter two parties, which from time to time broke 
 out into open hostilities, in the course of which was 
 killed Agustin de Ruiloba, who had been appointed 
 to govern the disturbed province. All the world 
 over it would be difficult to light upon a more peace- 
 ful and placid spot than the town of Asuncion and 
 its neighbouring gentle slopes and valleys. Yet this 
 pleasant red soil, w^th its smiling profusion of 
 blossoms, palms, and verdure, would seem to have 
 borne strangely restless men in those days — ^men who 
 were always ready to flash out the sword in defence 
 of their rights, whether real or imaginary, and of 
 the strongly democratic principles which the build- 
 ings of Asuncion would seem to have nourished from 
 their first foundation. 
 
 It was not until 1735, when Bruno de Zavala, now 
 Governor of Buenos Aires, arrived in Paraguay by 
 order of the Rsyal Audience, that an end was put to 
 this state o'f affairs. Zavala, an aged but energetic 
 official, first visited the Jesuit missions, and having 
 obtained from these a powerful army of traiaed 
 Guaranf soldiers, he marched on Asuncion for the 
 second time. Having routed a force of rebels that 
 attempted to oppose his progress, he entered the 
 capital in 1735, and at length restored order. As 
 
THE LATER COLONIAL PERIOD 159 
 
 a result of this particular revolt, Asuncion found 
 itself deprived' of a much prized privilege — ^that of 
 electing its own Governors. 
 
 After this ensued a considerable period of rest, 
 so far as internal affairs were concerned, although 
 two or three of the succeeding Governors found their 
 energy sufficiently occupied, not only in subduing the 
 bellicose tendencies of some of the northern warrior 
 tribes, but also in supporting the cause of the 
 domesticated Guaranfs against the aggression of the 
 Portuguese from the east. It may be remarked that 
 in 1766 an Irishman, whose name is locally rendered 
 as Carlos Morphi, was appointed as Governor of Para- 
 guay. This official had been educated in Spain, 
 where he had attained to the rank of Lieutenant- 
 Colonel. It was during his period of office that 
 the Jesuits were expelled from Paraguay, and Morphi 
 is alleged to have done his best to smooth matters 
 for the Company, of whom he seems to have been a 
 partisan. The governorship of Morphi — or Murphy 
 — lasted until 177 1, when he was recalled to Spain. 
 
 From this time until the end of the eighteenth 
 century the chief events in Paraguay were connected 
 with the settlem;ent of the outlying provinces, which 
 naturally became farther and farther afield from the 
 centre as the tide of colonization spread outwards. 
 The Guaycurds, however, and their neighbouring 
 tribesmen still showed themselves hostile whenever 
 the opportunity arose. Such attempts at colonization^ 
 moreover, as were undertaken in the Chaco were 
 productive of a practically unbroken series of failures 
 as a result, the Indians of this district remaining in 
 as savage and as crude a condition as their fore- 
 fathers had been when they set eyes on the first 
 Spaniards who sailed up the Parand and the Paraguay 
 rivers. 
 
 Having passed from the eighteenth to the nine- 
 teenth century, it is necessary to take a hasty survey 
 
16 PARAGUAY 
 
 of matters outside the frontiers of Paraguay in order 
 to obtain a clear insight into the haippenings within 
 the inland State. Even before the close of the 
 eighteenth century the desire for freedom from the 
 yoke of Spain had been largely inculcated into South 
 America. This had received an enormous impetus 
 from the circumstances of the British Expedition to 
 the River Plate, which occurred in 1806, and lasted 
 until well into the following year. 
 
 It was clleiar to the Spanish colonials that the 
 ultimate repulse of the invading forces was not in 
 the least due to the might of Spiain. This latter 
 had been represented by the Viceroy Sobremonte, 
 who fled pirecipitately on the a^dvance of thte British 
 troops, and who thus served ais an invofentary syiribol 
 of the weaikness which had repllaced the former power 
 of the Spanish South Americain Government. 
 
 [Very soon after this the efforts of Miranda, 
 BoKvar, and thiose other South American patriots 
 who (were first in the field of the struggle for 
 independence, had set ithe flames of blattlte alight 
 in the southern continent. On thte 25th of May, 
 1 8 10, the yiceroy Cisneros was deposed in Buenos 
 Aires, and his post was occupied by a Junta, or 
 conamitteie, of patriots., iVery shortly, after this, the 
 new Junta of Buenos Aires sent word to Pairaguay 
 of its institution, and invited the co-operation of the 
 inland province. Thte Spanish Governor of the latter 
 at thte timte was Don Bernardo de Velasco. On the 
 receipt of the conUnunication from the south' he 
 summoned a g^eneral meeting of the Paraguayan 
 notabilities, and placed the case before them. 
 
 It was evident from the op'inions expressed at this 
 meeting that the full significance of the events in 
 the outside world had not penetrated into Paraguay— 
 flor which situation the remote province had pnce 
 again to thank) thie thbusand miles that lay between 
 its capital and thie oceaji. Imbued with a sense 
 
THE LATER COLONIAL PERIOD 161 
 
 of Ibyalty that was admirable enough in itself, the 
 Paraguayans decided to support the cause of Spain, 
 and in accordance with this resolution Bernardo de 
 Velasco began to prepare the Paraguayan forces for 
 the p'art they were to play in the struggle, placing 
 the rivers and territories in the south of the country 
 in a state of defence. 
 
 In the autumn of 1810 the republican authorities 
 in the south sent up one of their most famous 
 leaders, Manuel Belgrano, in order to treat with 
 the Paraguayans, and, if they should remain firmly 
 attached to the royalist cause, to exercise sufficient 
 pressure to make them yield. Negotiations having 
 failed, it became evident that a hostile collision was 
 inevitable between the troops of Paraguay and Rio 
 de la Plata. This came about at Paraguarf on the 
 1 9th of January, 1 8 1 1 . In the early hours of 
 the morning of that day the Buenos Aires forces 
 advanced on the Paraguayan position, and surprised 
 it before the break of dawn. In the first confusion 
 of the battle the cause of the Paraguayan arms 
 appeared totally lost. Indeed, so convinced of this 
 was the Governor, Bernardo de Velasco, that he made 
 his way in haste from the field, stripping himself 
 of his uniform as he went. 
 
 Thus the first news of the engagement that arrived 
 at Asuncion announced a total defeat, with the result 
 that the inhabitants of that town were filled with 
 consternation. Later reports showed that the sub- 
 sequent phases of the action had reversed the results 
 of the first. The Paraguayan forces, true to their 
 traditions, had proved themselves soldiers as sturdy 
 as their opponents. Although their centre had been 
 driven in, their wings had rallied, and after four 
 hours or so of hard fighting, the patriot forces found 
 themselves obliged to retire, leaving the field in 
 possession of the Paraguayans. 
 
 Belgrano made his way with his diminished forces 
 
 n 
 
162 PARAGUAY 
 
 to Tacuari. Here a fresh battfe was fought on the 
 9th of March, and, the patriot troops again suffering 
 defeat, Belgrano had no choice but to remove the 
 remnants of his army to the south and to abandon 
 the enterprise. Before his departure, however, an 
 armistice had been arranged, and of this the ablte 
 Belgrano made the fullest use to further the propa- 
 ganda of the patriot cause. Not only did he make 
 use of all his persuasive power in his conversations 
 with the Paraguayans, but he actually caused his 
 policy to be proclaimed in the articles of the 
 armistice. He arranged for it to be inserted here 
 that " the object of his expedition had been to assist 
 the natives of Paraguay in order that, supported 
 by the forces of the Junta, they might recover their 
 rights, and that they might appoint a deputy who 
 should take part in the deliberations of the 
 General Congress on the common policy to be 
 adopted." 
 
 In another clause he proposed that there should 
 be from that day " peace, union, entire confidence, 
 and free and liberal commerce in all the products of 
 the province [Paraguay] including that of tobacco, 
 with the States of the Rio de la Plata, and particularly 
 that of Buenos Aires." 
 
 The famous Argentine historian. General Barto- 
 lom6 Mitre, has some interesting comments on this 
 proposal. He observes : " This was putting the 
 finger on the wound. Tobacco Was the monopoly 
 of the Government in Paraguay, and the planters 
 might not export or sell their crops until the needs 
 of the monopoly had been satisfied. Any one who 
 infringed this regulation was punished as a smuggler. 
 The factory established in Asimcion was accustomed 
 to pay two pesos for each arroba of tobacco sefected 
 by it, which it sold again for nine pesos two reales. 
 Moreover, it would buy at the lowest prices those 
 lots of tobacco which it had rejected in the first 
 
THE LATER COLONIAL PERIOD 163 
 
 instance— prices which the planter found himself under 
 the necessity of accepting." 
 
 Thus, in addition to a fresh political outlook, an 
 entirely new commercial vista was opened up. 
 This expedition of Belgrano's, as a matter of fact, 
 was curiously paradoxical in its results. Although 
 he had suffered a military repulse at the hands of 
 the Paraguayans, the Argentine General had never- 
 thetess largely attained the objects of his expedition. 
 Indeed, so fruitful was the soil in which he had 
 sown the seed, that on the 14th of May of 
 the same year Paraguay formally proclaimed her 
 independence 1 
 
 The Spanish Governor, Bernardo de Velasco,' had 
 to content himseM with making ai. weak resistance. 
 The Paraguayan parties, headed by Doctor Francia, 
 Pedro Juan Caballero, Juan Valeriano Zeballos, 
 Antonio TomAs Yegros, and Vicente Ignacio Iturbe, 
 swept all before them. A fruitless attempt at a 
 counter-revolution resulted merely in the imprison- 
 ment of the Spanish ringlteaders and in the 
 strengthening of the Paraguayan nationalist party. 
 
 Thus we have now arrived at the period of 
 Paraguay's independence, which was officially pro- 
 claimed on the 1 2th of October, 181 1, when she 
 entered upon her career as a sovereign State. 
 
 ' The list of Spanish Governors during the colonial period of Paraguay 
 will be found in the Appendix. 
 
CHAPTER X 
 
 THE DICTATOR FRANCIA 
 
 Confusion attending the formation of the new States — Some types of 
 legislators — Paraguay's first dictator — Character of Jose Caspar 
 Rodriguez de Francia — Circumstances of his youth — His success as 
 a lawyer — He takes part in the government of independent Paraguay 
 — Work of the Junta — Robertson on Francia — The latter's dealings 
 with the Paraguayan Congress — Various types of national representa- 
 tives — Costumes — Uniforms of the Alcaldes — Quaint processions — 
 Ceremonies of the Indian officials — Francia is elected First Consul — 
 The basis of Francia's character — ^An anecdote concerning this^ — How 
 Francia caused an enemy to receive fair play — His measures as 
 First Consul — Condition of Paraguay — Despotism and tranquillity — 
 Francia's first appointment as Dictator — His services to agriculture 
 and public order — He is elected Dictator for life — How he asserted 
 his authority — His dealings with the Chnrch-rDestruction of the 
 ecclesiastical power — The Dictator remedies the ravages of the 
 locusts — Circumstances which led Up to a conspiracy against Francia 
 — Its repression by means of execution and torture — ^The Reign of 
 Terror — Imprisonment of the old Spaniards — The " Supremo " brings 
 about the isolation of Paraguay — Intercourse with foreigners pro- 
 hibited — Fate of a Frenchman — Francia rebuffs the neighbouring 
 States — The French naturalist Bonpland — His kidnapping at the 
 hands of Francia — The death of Francia. 
 
 One of the most remarkabte circumstances in the 
 War of Liberation in Spanish America was the 
 tendency of that genuine and honourabl'e love of 
 independence which had given birth to the struggle 
 to resolve itself into a state of tyranny when the 
 objects of the war itself had been achieved. One 
 of the chief reasons of this was undoubtedty the 
 backward intellectual state of the South American 
 masses— a condition of affairs which had been arti- 
 ficially kept in being by the policy of the Spaniards, 
 
 164 
 
THE DICTATOR FRANCIA 166 
 
 who, dreading the results of intelleGtual progress 
 on the part of its colonists, had used every endeavour 
 to obstruct any attempts in this direction. 
 
 Thus many of the new States, when the time came 
 for them to govern themselves, found themselves in 
 possession of an intellectual nucleus of humanity that, 
 however brilliant may have been the members of its 
 group, was small — ^altogether out of proportion to 
 the masses of the general populace. Sometimes, in 
 the course of the inevitable confusion which occurred 
 in the formation of one of these new Staites, ithe 
 intellectual group would be swept kside, and some 
 rough-and-ready legislator would snatch the reins 
 of government in a heavy hand, and would drive 
 the young country on the curb, plying the whip 
 unsparingly at the faintest sign of a restlessness that 
 was inevitablte in the circumstances. No young State 
 had a more drastic experience of these autocratic 
 measures than Paraguay. In her case the cause 
 was not the seizure of power by crude hands. On 
 the contrary, the intellectual ahility, of her first 
 Dictator was undoubted ; but, since he had chosen 
 an autocratic path, his tyranny was none the Itess 
 thorough for that.; 
 
 The name of Jose Ga:spar Rodriguez de Francia 
 is one of the most notable in the annals of Paraguay, 
 as, indeed, it may well be, considering that it was 
 this very extraordinary and fateful personality that 
 was atone responsible for the launching of the young 
 State upon a career unique in the history of the 
 South American Republic. It wa.s undoubtedly sheer 
 force of charatcter which dispersed Francia's col- 
 leagues, and drove its possessor to what was virtually 
 the throne of Paraguay almost before the echoes of the 
 last decree of the Spanish Government had died away. 
 
 Doctor Francia: was no longer a young man when 
 the Spanish rule came to an end in Paraguay. He 
 is said to haVe been born in the year 1757, and 
 
166 PARAGUAY 
 
 would therefore have been in his fifty-fifth year when 
 the time came for the Paraguayans to take their 
 own government in hand. The details of his early 
 career are somewhat vague — a circumstance which 
 is not extraordinary when it is considered that in 
 the colonial days of his youth there was no reason 
 to suppose that iany particular importance would 
 attach to Francia's personality. In the period of 
 his dictatorship, moreover, Francia wais not inclined 
 to be communicative concerning his private affairs, 
 and there were none who dared risk his displeasure 
 by plying him with questions which the dreaded 
 Supremo might deem impertinent. 
 
 It is generally said that Francia was originally 
 intended for the Church', and that he studied for a 
 considerable time at the University of C6rdoba, after 
 'which he gave up the career of the Church for that of 
 the law, which he eventually practised with no little 
 success. Even in those days there was a spice of 
 romance in the lean, dark, and rather sinister figure 
 of the man who was beginning to be notable for 
 his justice and integrity, and at the same time for his 
 haughty albofness and for the austerity of his hfe. 
 
 Francia's qualities had not remained unrecognized 
 during the last period of the colonial era, and he 
 had received more than one Government appointment 
 before the wounded Spanish imperial eagle winged 
 its way from South America. He himself had taken 
 a prominent part in the events which ted up to 
 the independence of his country, and, this achieved, 
 he was among those chosen to control the destinies 
 of the new State. 
 
 The first two representatives of this Government 
 were chosen on the i sth of May, 1 8 1 1 . They 
 consisted of Dr. Francia and Don Juan iVateriano 
 Zeballos. Two months later was inaugurated the 
 first of the sessions of the Paraguayan Congress. 
 The members of this etected a Junta, or govern- 
 
THE DICTATOR FRANCIA 167 
 
 ing body, composed of four ofiScials. The president 
 of these was Don Fulgencio YegTos, and the others 
 •were. Francia, Dr. Francisco Javier Bogarln, and 
 Femajido de k Mora. One of the first decrees of 
 this body prohibited the holding of any public office 
 by a Spaniard. After this they opened up negotia-' 
 tions with the State of Buenos Aires, and, although no, 
 amalgamation of the new countries ensued, a modus 
 Vivendi was arrived at. 
 
 The existence of this Junta was not destined to 
 run smoothly — there were very few objects or institu- 
 tions in Spanish America; which were destined to 
 enjoy a smooth course just then 1 No doubt Francia's 
 master mind was already fixed on its goal. He 
 resigned from the Junta on the ist of August, only 
 two and a half months after the formation of that 
 body. The pretext that he employed for his retire- 
 ment was the spirit of military autocracy into which 
 he alleged that the Junta was in danger of falling. 
 
 Having reg'ard to Francia's career, it is probable 
 that the dread of autocracy atone obsessed him when 
 the power was in danger of falling into any other 
 hands but his own. Francia, therefore, despite his 
 resignation, did not remain idle, and he was soon 
 back in the Junta, enjoying increased influence. 
 This policy was continued by Francia until, on the 
 1 2th of October, he and Yegros were nominated as 
 joint Consuls of Paraguay. 
 
 For a sketch of the career of the future Dictator 
 at this period I will quote at length from Mr. 
 J. P. Robertson, who was personally acquainted with 
 him. In fairness to Francia, however, it m(Ust be 
 said that Robertson's opinion of one of the most 
 remarkable men that South America ever produced 
 did not err on the side of Iteniency. But Robertson 
 shall speak for himself: — 
 
 " Having now evidently determined to get rid of 
 all competitors for power, and the epoch approach- 
 
168 PARAGUAY 
 
 ing for the decision of the questions which the Buenos 
 Aires' envoy was to open, Francia made all affected 
 haste to call a Congress of Deputies, which, from 
 the different sections of Paraguay, should assemble 
 within three months at Assumption. 
 
 '.' In the meantime arrives Mr. Herrera, the Buenos 
 Ayres Ambassador. He is lodged in the old custom- 
 house, at once under the surveillance and steward- 
 ship of the collector of customs. He remains a 
 week there, dining by himself, before he has an 
 interview with a single member of the Government ; 
 suspicion and vigilance attend his every step ; he 
 hears vague rumours of danger to his person, and 
 sees indubitable indications of the folly of hoping 
 for any alliance with a country over which, even 
 now, Francia exercised so potent a sway. . . . 
 
 " The time intermediate between the issuing of 
 the writs for election of the deputies to Congress, 
 and of their meeting in the capital, Francia success- 
 fully employed in encouraging and increasing the 
 enmity of his countrymen to Buenos Ayres. He 
 gained over to his interest the officers in command 
 of the troops, and made himself personally and 
 fantiiliarly acquainted with the humblest deputy that 
 came into town. The wily doctor flattered the vanity 
 and stimulated the cupidity of them all. The Indian 
 alcalde, the small farmer, the cattle-grazier, the petty 
 shopkeeper, the more wealthy merchant, and the sub- 
 stantial hacendado all became his prey. By large 
 and undefined promises of protection and encourage- 
 ment to the order of men to which they respectively 
 belonged, by one delay after another, never appear- 
 ing to originate with Francia, he fostered the ambition 
 of aspirants to power, and protracted the meeting of 
 Congress for two months beyond the appointed time. 
 All this took place after each deputy had arrived 
 in Assumption. Francia had thus an opportunity, 
 not only of increasing adherents, fortifying converts. 
 
THE DICTATOR FRANCIA 169 
 
 and deciding waverers, but of entailing upon the 
 impoverished deputies such inconvenience and expense 
 as needed scarcely the aid of the Consul's suggestions 
 to determine them to come to a final settlement of 
 all their business on the first day of the meeting pf 
 the Congress. 
 
 " Such a motley group of national representatives 
 was never, perhaps, before assembled to deliberate, 
 or rather to decide without deliberation, on the fate 
 of a nation. 
 
 " Here was a ' tdpe ' Indian alcalde, with an anti- 
 quated three-cornered cocked hat, and an old red 
 or brown wig that had been worn under the said 
 hat from its earliest days. The latter, too, was 
 rather brown, but so well adorned Avith ribands, 
 red, blue, yellow, pink, that not much of the real 
 colour was discernible. Black velvet breeches, open 
 at the knees, with silver buttons in long and close 
 array, and a finely embroidered pair of drawers hang- 
 ing out under them, like the ruffles of a gentleman's 
 shirt from under his coat-sleeves, were supported 
 by a red sash tied round the waist. To correspond 
 with this the alcalde had garters of the same hue 
 tied in visible display round discoloured silk 
 stockings, and large silver shoe-buckles completed 
 this part of his attire. 
 
 " His horse was caparisoned in a fashion no less 
 unique. The ribands upon his tail, mane, ears, and 
 pendent from the peaks of an antiquated Court saddle, 
 covered with what had once been red or blue velvet, 
 streamed in variegated luxuriance from each and 
 every point. 
 
 " Mounted upon a charger thus adorned and 
 trained to dance, the Indian alcalde, with a brass, 
 and sometimes gold-headed, cane, emblematic of 
 his civic authority, would ever and anon set forth to 
 parade the streets, pending the obstacles and delay 
 which preceded the actual meeting of the Congress. 
 
170 PARAGUAY 
 
 His horse, attended by two pagjes, one on either 
 side of the now mounted deputy, and both as much 
 in want of the mere decencies of dress as their 
 master abounded in the superfluity of it, began a 
 Uttle prehminary dance ; while the musicians, no 
 better arrayed than the pages, essayed to play the 
 overture of a tune to which the procession was to 
 move on. The alcalde's friends and dependents kept 
 assembling on horseback during this overture ; and 
 with such remnants of Court finery as they could 
 borrow from the priest, or gather from the debris of 
 their chief's decorations — an odd bit of riband, parts 
 of the alcalde's Sunday suit, a red handkeirchief 
 bought expressly for the occasion, a small hat, and 
 a poncho — did a follower of the first rank fall into 
 the procession. The gradations of importance of 
 those who followed him were easily to be inferred 
 by persons skilled in Indian ct»stume, from the 
 gradual diminution as you descended the scale of 
 rank of some courtly badgie or ornamental device. 
 
 " Thus escorted, the deputy moved on, till he 
 came in front of the Government House, where Carat 
 Francia was. Increasing there the rigidity of his 
 upright posture on horseback, with his eyes im- 
 movably fixed on his horse's ears, he gave the Carai 
 a horse-dance, a calabash tune, and finally made his 
 reverential act of obeisance. All this he performed 
 on horseback, and then took his departure in the 
 same dancing, though slow and measured, solemtiity 
 of state in which he had arrived in front of the 
 Consul's window. Processions of this kind, some 
 of a better but none of a less gtotesque class, as 
 you advanced from the Indian deputy to the more 
 considerable landholder, crowded the streets during 
 the time that elapsed between the assembling of 
 the deputies and the actual meeting of the Congress. 
 
 " It may be conceived with what anxious desire 
 this meeting was expected by the menibers elect. 
 
THE DICTATOR FRANCIA 171 
 
 all more or less encumbered with attendants, away 
 from their families, and short of money, house room, 
 and provisions. When at last the day of meeting 
 was by Francia permitted to arrive, that which every 
 one had anticipated took place. In a few hours 
 after Congress met the day's deliberations were closed 
 by a rejection of all proposals for an amicable inter- 
 course with Buenos Ayres. Then one of Francia's 
 colleagues in the Government, Cavallero, was dis- 
 missed, and Francia was elected First Consul, with 
 Yegros (a mere cipher) as second, for one year. 
 This was in 1814 ; and the burlesque of national 
 representation being performed, the Buenos Ayres 
 deputy left Assumption in fear and trembling the 
 next day, the congregational body dissolved itself, 
 and curates, country gentlemen, yerba collectors, 
 wood-cutters, Indian alcaldes, shopkeepers, lawyers, 
 traders, all joyfully resigned their legislative 
 functions. Every man arose, and, saddling his 
 beast, took his way to his respective home. 
 
 " From this moment Francia became de facto the 
 absolute and undisputed despot. Yet did he not 
 institute his system of terror all at onCe. It was by 
 gradual process and slow degrees that his heart got 
 chilled, and that his measures, fitst characterized by 
 callousness, tecame at length stained with blood. 
 
 " The following anecdotes will tend to show what 
 was the basis of Francia's character ; and subse- 
 quent records will elucidate how easily stern integrity 
 may turn to sullen despotism, inflexible determina- 
 tion be warped to unrelenting barbarity. 
 
 " It has been already observed that Francia's 
 reputation, as a lawyer, was not only unsullied by 
 venality, but conspicuous for rectitude. 
 
 "He hiad a friend in Assumption of the name of 
 Domingo Rodriguez. This man had cast a covetous 
 eye upon a Naboth's vineyard, and this Naboth, of 
 whom Francia was the open enemy, was called 
 
172 PAEAGUAY 
 
 Estanislao Machain. Never doubting that the young 
 doctor, like other lawyers, would undertake his un- 
 righteous cause, Rodriguez opened up to him his 
 case, and requested, with a handsome retainer, his 
 advocacy of it. Francia saw at once that his friend's 
 pretensions were founded in fraud and injustice ; and 
 •he not only refused to act as his counsel, but plainly 
 told him that much as he hated his antagonist 
 Machain, yet if he (Rodriguez) persisted in his 
 iniquitous suit that antagonist should have his 
 (Francia's) most zealous support. But covetousness, 
 as Ahab's story shows us, is not so easily driven 
 from its pretensions ; and in spite of Francia's warn- 
 ing, Rodriguez persisted. As he was a potent man, 
 in point of fortune, all was going against Machain 
 and his devoted vineyard. 
 
 " At this stage of the question Francia wrapped 
 himself up one night in his cloak and walked to 
 the house of his inveterate enemy, Machain. The 
 slave who opened the door, knowing that his master 
 and the doctor, like the houses of Montagu and 
 Capulet, were smoke in each other's eyes, refused the 
 lawyer admittance, and ran to inform his master 
 of the strange and unexpected visit. Machain, no 
 less struck by the circumstance than his slave, for 
 some time hesitated, but at length determined to 
 admit Francia. In walked the silent doctor to 
 Machain's chamber. All the papers connected with 
 the law plea — voluminous enough, I have been 
 assured — were outspread upon the defendant's 
 escritoire. 
 
 " ' Machain,' said the lawyer, addressing him, ' you 
 know I am your enemy. But I know that my friend 
 Rodriguez meditates, and will certainly, unless I inter- 
 fere, carry against you an act of gross and lawless 
 aggression ; I have come to offier my services in 
 your defence.' 
 
 " The astonished Machain could scarcely credit 
 
THE DICTATOR FRANCIA 173 
 
 his senses, but poured forth the ebuUition of his 
 gratitude in terms of thankful acquiescence. . . . 
 
 " Alas ! that an action so magnanimous in itself 
 should be blighted by the record which historical 
 truth exacts — that no sooner had Francia vindicated 
 the law and justice of his enemy's case than old 
 antipathy revived ; and one of the many victims, at 
 a subsequent period, of the Dictator's displeasure 
 was the very Machain whom he had so nobly 
 served. . . . 
 
 " No sooner, by the tumultuous and unanimous 
 voice of Congress, was Francia seated in the First 
 Consul's chair than his air gradually gathered more 
 of austerity, his measures were more divested of 
 conciliation, his address became more abrupt, his 
 tone more imperative ; and it was evident to me, as 
 well as to many others, that he was already beginning 
 to lift the mask' which he had too long reluctantly 
 allowed to cover his ambitious projects and designs. 
 One ominous feature of despotism began to display 
 itself in Paraguay : every man feared to open his 
 lips to another on politics. Among the first of 
 Francia's legislative enactments was one of singular 
 degradation to the old Spaniards." 
 
 I have quoted Robertson at the foregoing con- 
 siderable length because the interest of this matter 
 of his seems to me to be twofold. In the first place 
 it throws an eloquent lig^ht on the life and customs 
 of a place and period which are among the most 
 interesting that the entire history of South America 
 has to show. Secondly, there is nothing inappropriate 
 in devoting all this space to Francia ; for, when 
 once he had secured his dictatorship, Francia was 
 Paraguay, and Paraguay was Francia. 
 
 The results of this extraordinary man's iron rule 
 were by no means all disadvantageous to the country. 
 While anarchy reigned in the neighbouring States a 
 perfect tranquillity obtained in Paraguay, where, after 
 
174 PARAGUAY 
 
 a time, the title by which Francia chose to be Iknown, 
 " El Supremo," was scarcely breathed above a 
 whisper by the awestruck populace. Whatever may 
 be thought of the methods by which they were 
 obtained, the advantages which thie State derived 
 from such benefits are not to be denied. 
 
 Francia, moreover, incarnate despot though he was, 
 was an upright despot with a strict code of morality 
 and honour of his own. Thus, when on the 3rd of 
 October, 18 14, he was named Dictator for the 
 period of five years, an annual remuneration of nine 
 thousand pesos was attached to the office. Francia, 
 considering that the resources of the country did 
 not warrant an expenditure such as this, refused to 
 accept more than a third of the sum^ an act of self- 
 abnegation which was quite consistent with his 
 character. 
 
 Having once obtained the power of Dictator, 
 Francia soon gave proof that he intended to be no 
 mere figurehead. In a very short time he had made 
 an efficient force of the new Paraguayan Aiuny. With 
 these troops he saw to it that the frontiers were 
 properly guarded, and by this means the incursions 
 from Corrientes in the south of marauding bands of 
 irregulars were soon put a stop to. According to 
 his own lights, he encouraged agriculture and mining, 
 adding duties and applying export restrictions where 
 he thought fit. 
 
 It became evident to the easy-going Paraguayans 
 that here, at alt events, was a ruler who knew his 
 own mind, and whose powerful personality was suffi- 
 cient to assure them that he would permit no civil 
 conflict so long as he remained head of the State. 
 As for the Dictator, he contented himself with feeling 
 the pulse of the populace until he became assured 
 that the last doubt as to their sentiments had 
 vanished. Then, on the 30th of May, 1816, when he 
 had been in office for little more than eighteen 
 
THE DICTATOR FRANCIA 175 
 
 months, he convened the Congress again, and 
 gathered in its membors from' the countryside to 
 Asuncion. All fell out in accordance with his plans. 
 Receiving with enthusiasm the idea which Francia 
 had been careful to disseminate, the Congress 
 unanimously elected him to the post of Dictator 
 for life. 
 
 After this the gathering dispiensed, and its members 
 went back to their homes, having endowed Francia 
 with an authority so limitless as to be comparable 
 only to that of a Nero or an African chief of a 
 bygone generation. Francia, in fact, had been invited 
 to be a despot, and when he accepted the invitation 
 he accepted it in the full and thoroughgoing fashion 
 that was to be expected from a person of his 
 temperament. 
 
 It very soon became clear throughout the length 
 and breadth of the land that it was intended to 
 brook not even a shadow of authority other than 
 that of Francia. At the time of his accession to 
 the perpetual dictatorship the only institution which 
 could possibly rival the influence of his own person 
 was the Church. Francia very soon put an end 
 to all chance of such danger in that direction. First 
 of all he shore it of all the ceremonial which went 
 so far towards impTessing the populace. Then he 
 took possession of the clerical wealth for the State, 
 declared any marriage illegal for which his per- 
 mission had not been obtained beforehand^ and, in 
 short, caused the few priests whom he suffered to 
 remain in Paraguay to become his passive creatures, 
 and thus became as much the governing power of 
 the Church as he was of the State. 
 
 Few rulers all thte world over have shown them- 
 selves possessed of more power of initiative than 
 Francia. In 1819 occurred a serious visitation of 
 locusts, which destroyed the crops. The only person 
 who remained undismayed in the face of the 
 
176 PARAGUAY 
 
 threatened famine was Francia. Calling' together 
 the agriculturists, he commanded them without the 
 slightest delay to resow their devastated lands with 
 crops similar to those that had been destroyed. The 
 landowners received the order with astonishment and 
 doubt ; but when Francia spoke, to hear was to 
 obey. The seeds were sown, the harvests sprang 
 up afresh, and the threatened catastrophe was averted. 
 It is actually said that it was owing to this piece of 
 legislation that the discovery was made for the first 
 time that the soil and climate of Paraguay were 
 capable of producing more than one' crop in the 
 course of the year. 
 
 In 1820 the Uruguayan chief Artigas — who had 
 played somewhat the same part in the Banda Oriental 
 that Francia had in Paraguay — sought refuge in the 
 inland State, and was hospitably received by Francia. 
 Ramirez, Artigas' successor in Uruguay, having tried 
 in vain to cultivate Francia's friendship, joined the 
 ranks of his enemies. As a result of this a plot 
 was hatched to invade Paraguay from the south. 
 This was discovered by Francia, and he immediately 
 adopted measures calculated through sheer terror to 
 banish the idea of any future attempt of the kind 
 from the minds of the Paraguayans. A period of 
 torture and execution followed. Francia's old col- 
 league, Fulgencio Yegros, was one of the first to 
 be executed, and on nine consecutive days the 
 Dictator executed each day eight of the leading con- 
 spirators — or, at all events, persons who were accused 
 of being the leading conspirators. 
 
 This was the beginning of the actual reign of 
 terror, and the dread of Francia's name now grew 
 more intense almost with every day that passed. The 
 executions did not end with the first seventy-two 
 victims, and under the continual tortures accusations, 
 whether true or false, were launched in all directions. 
 The Dictator's hatred of the old Spaniards, more- 
 
THE DICTATOR FRANCIA 177 
 
 over, now spurred him to acts of increasieid oppires- 
 sion. On the 9th of June, 1821, he flung no feiwer 
 than three hundred of these into prison, and only 
 released those who survived after an eighteen months' 
 confinement on the payment of a collective fine of 
 150,000 pesos. 
 
 It is impossible to say to what extent the 
 embittering of Francia's policy was due to this con- 
 spiracy. In any case, from this time onwards his 
 policy became still more definite. His keenest desire 
 was that Paraguay should become self-supporting 
 and independent of all other nations. To this end 
 he gradually did away with all trading and intercourse 
 between the inland State and its neighbours. The 
 law which set the seal on the isolation of Paraguay 
 was the one which not only forbade the entrance 
 of any foreigner into that country, but prevejnted 
 the departure of any foreigner who happened to 
 be domiciled in Paraguay at the time. Among the 
 latter was an unfortunate Frenchtoan of the name 
 of Escoffier, who twice endeavoured to evade this 
 law by attempting to escape by way of the Chaco, 
 the non-success of the second venture costing him 
 his life. 
 
 To do him justice, Francia was perfectly con- 
 sistent in the manner in which he carried out this 
 policy of isolation. If he would not allow his subjects 
 to trade outside his frontiers, neither did he allow 
 himself to hold any commtinication with the heads 
 of other States or their envoys. In 1824 Argentina 
 sent to him an Ambassador whom he flatly refused 
 to receive. The following year Bolivar himself con- 
 trived to get a letter sent across the Chaco to Asun- 
 cion, proposing to Francia that Paraguay should 
 emerge from its retirement to take its rightful place 
 among the other States. Francia, with an Arcadian 
 simplicity, replied that Paraguay was perfectly satis- 
 fied with its lot, and saw no reason to change it, 
 
 12 
 
178 PARAGUAY 
 
 As a matter of fact, Paraguay — and in all these 
 matters Paraguay meant Francia — had probably 
 greater political reason to remain on good terms with 
 the royal and united State of Brazil than with any 
 other of its neighbours ; for Brazil was powerful, 
 and the length of frontier between the two countries 
 was formidable. But when in 1824 the Brazilian 
 Government sent a Consul to Asimcion, Francia re- 
 fused to have anything to do with that official, until 
 the Brazilians had made good their aggressions in 
 territories and cattle. As a result of this the Consul 
 returned to Brazil to set in motion some fruitless 
 negotiations . 
 
 Three years before this Francia had given proofs 
 of the lengths to which he was preipared to carry 
 the policy inspired by a somewhat morbid dread of 
 interference from the outer world. The famous 
 French botanist Aime Bonpland had taken up his 
 abode on Argentine territory on the bank of the 
 Alto Parani River, having thus Paraguayan territory 
 facing him on the opposite shore of the stream. 
 In this haunt of exuberant Nature his enthusiasm 
 found full vent, and, among other things, he set 
 himself to make experiments in the propagation of 
 yerba mate. This soon came to the ears of Francia, 
 and the latter's dread lest an undue rivalry should 
 be set up to an industry that he regarded' as purely 
 Paraguayan led him to conunit an act that showed 
 his contempt for anybody and anything without the 
 borders of his own State. 
 
 On the 3rd of December, 1821, a party of four 
 hundred Paraguayan soldiers crossed the Alto Parand 
 suddenly and swiftly in canoes. Falling upon thte 
 unfortunate Bonpland's estabhshment, they bore him 
 a prisoner back to their own country. There the kid- 
 napped naturalist had to remain for ten years, not- 
 withstanding the European and South American 
 protests with which Paraguay became flooded. 
 
THE DICTATOR FRANCIA 179 
 
 Francia completely ignored these, and it must 
 be admitted that Bonpland hinxself soon became so 
 enamoured with the floral wealth of his new quarters 
 that he lost all desire to return to Europe, and, 
 indeed, when his liberation was actually effected, he 
 seems to have greeted his change of scene with 
 some regret. But it was certainly from no considera- 
 tions of this kind that Francia had kidnapped the 
 distinguished French scientist I 
 
 Beyond such salient epjgodes as these it may be 
 said that very little occurred during Francia's 
 dictatorship upon which any historian can lay his 
 hand as being of any special interest beyond the 
 rest. With his abandonment of foreign relations he 
 avoided all foreign complications ; for he had made 
 Paraguay strong enough to discourage all attempt 
 at aggression from outside. Indeed, until 1840 it 
 may be said that Francia ruled — by no means un- 
 wisely, after his own lights — and the people obeyed, 
 as people naturally would when they knew that the 
 penalty of disobedience was death. And if all this 
 ceased in 1840, it was for the sole reason that in 
 that year the unutterably dreaded Supremo died, at 
 the advanced age of seventy-four. 
 
CHAPTER XI 
 
 CARLOS ANTONIO LOPEZ AND FRANCISCO SOLANO LOPEZ 
 
 Condition of affairs at the death of Francia — ^The establishment of a pro- 
 visional Government — After various experiments Consuls are appointed 
 — The rise of Carlos Antonio Lopez — Liberal measures adopted — 
 Carlos Antonio Lopez becomes Constitutional President of Paraguay — 
 Rosas closes the river against Paraguayan commerce — Carlos Antonio 
 Lopez forms an alliance with Brazil — rDesultory warfare with Argentina 
 — Further international complications — Intervention of England and 
 P'rance — ^Action of the allied fleets — On the death of Rosas Paraguay 
 resumes her intercourse with the outer world — Arrival of foreign 
 Ministers — Treaties — Increasing power of Carlos Antonio Lopez — 
 Prosperity of the State — Death of Carlos Antonio Lopez — He is suc- 
 ceeded by his son Francisco Solano Lopez — Youth and temperament 
 of the latter — Madame Eloisa Lynch — An unofficial Queen— Francisco 
 Solano's attainments — He proves himself a second Francia — Autocracy 
 under a modern cloak — Bizarre methods — His ambition — A descrip- 
 tion by Sir Richard Burton — George Masterman on the dictator — 
 A fateful personality — Contemporary population and power of 
 Paraguay. 
 
 Francia's lengthy autocracy had had its inevitable 
 effect. So long had thte power of initiative and 
 command been his alone that his death left the 
 State, not only, without a leader but without any 
 political programme or definite national ideals. Had 
 a man of the deceased Dictator's temperament been 
 at hand, he could have stridden without the faintest 
 opposition to Francia's vacant throne. Indeed, his 
 seizing of the reins of power would undoubtedly have 
 been welcomed with a sigh of relief by the 
 Paraguayans as the shnplest solution of the legislative 
 difficulties which now faced them. 
 
 But no such man came forward'. If he existeid, 
 
 ISO 
 
THE LOPEZ' 181 
 
 it was in too humble a capacity to enable him to 
 take advantagie of thie situation. The Paraguayans 
 found themselves obliged to have recourse to a form 
 of government which in reality, represented something 
 of a compromise. A Junta was hurriedly formted, 
 and by the instrum:entality of this was estabhshed 
 a provisional Government, consisting of the alcalde 
 of Asuncion and of the four military commandants 
 of that city. 
 
 The provisional nature of the Government will 
 be suflSciently evident from its elements. The men 
 to whom the direction of Paraguay was confided 
 were those officials who had been trained to yield 
 implicit and unquestioning obedience to Francia. As 
 might have been expected, they displayed not only 
 a want of genius but a laclc of initiative which soon 
 roused an active isense of discontent among the p:eople. 
 This discontent was responsible for a rapidly mount- 
 ing political confusion and strife of a kind to which 
 Paraguay had long been a stranger. Officiak such 
 as senators and deputies, the very existence of whose 
 offices had been overlooked for many years, came 
 into being once again. 
 
 Various experiments resulted, in the beginning of 
 1 84 1, in the nomination of a Commandant- General, 
 Don Mariano Roque Alonso, who was to take tem- 
 porary charge of the State and who was to be 
 assisted by a secretary, Don Carlos Antonio Lopez. 
 This form of government had scarcely been in exist- 
 ence for a month when the titles of its officials were 
 changed, and their ordter of rank was reversed. 
 Consuls were now again the order of the day. 
 Carlos Antonio Lopez was named First Consul and 
 Mariano Roque Alonso was made Second Consul. 
 
 These officials showed a liberal spirit. They 
 introduced many progressive measures, opened up 
 political and commercial relations with the Argentine 
 Province of Corrientes, and released from gaol most 
 
182 PARAGUAY 
 
 of those victims of Francia's tyranny who had not 
 already been freed by the Junta. 
 
 In 1844 occurred another change in the form of 
 government. Carlos Antonio Lopez then became con- 
 stitutional President of Paraguay.' The beginning 
 of his term of office was complicated by disputes with 
 the Argentine province of Corrientes — disputes that 
 did not prove themselves the easier to settle owing 
 to the firm conviction on the part of the River 
 Plate authorities that Paraguay should in the natural 
 order of affairs form an integral portion of the 
 Argentine Confederation. 
 
 Rosas, the most despotic ruler that the southern 
 State had ever known, was now at the head of 
 affairs in Argentina, and when this Dictator, in the 
 arbitrary fashion that distinguished so many of his 
 acts, closed the river against Paraguayan commerce 
 it was clear that the strain of the situation had 
 arrived at breaking-point. It was one thing for 
 Francia to forbid the entrance of foreigners into 
 his State, but it was quite another affair for Rosas 
 to place a barrier across the river at a point below 
 the Paraguayan frontier, and thus to isolate the in- 
 land Republic again, whether she would or no. 
 
 Carlos Antonio Lopez had no intention of sub- 
 mitting to any procedure of this sort. He made his 
 peace with the province of Corrientes, and, entirely 
 reversing the theories of Francia, he formed an 
 alliance with Brazil. Then, in December 1845, he 
 declared war on the Argentine Confederation. After 
 some inconclusive fighting, however, hostilities were 
 suspended. The United States endeavoured to 
 mediate, but their intervention failed, and a desultory 
 species of warfare broke out again between Paraguay 
 and Argentina, while relations soon became strained 
 between the former State and the Empire of Brazil. 
 Disputed territory in this case was the cause of a 
 ' See Appendix. 
 
• '-('« «. 
 
 .'CA'gt'OS A^rglSM LOPEZ.^ 
 
THE LOPEZ' 183 
 
 situation which perilously approached open warfare ; 
 but energetic action by the Paraguayans resulted in 
 the cessation of what they considered a policy of 
 territorial aggrandizement on the part of the Imperial 
 Government. 
 
 All this time, owing to the hostility of the Argen- 
 tine Dictator Rosas, access to and from the Atlantic 
 along the great river had been closed to Paraguay. 
 England and France, appealed to by Brazil, had 
 come to the aid of Paraguay and of the proviiicie 
 of Corrientes, which was suffering the same isolation 
 as Paraguay. The combined British and French 
 fleets had invested Buenos Aires, and a squadron 
 of war steamers, escorting a number of heavily laden 
 merchantmen, had succeeded, after some heavy 
 engagements, in forcing their way up the stream. 
 The vessels, however, did not get beyond Corrientes, 
 and this province absorbed practically all the 
 merchandise carried by the fleet. Owing to this, 
 Paraguay was left in much the same situation as 
 before. Further assistance, moreover, was not forth- 
 coming from Europe ; for it was soon discovered 
 that, from the practical point of view, the very 
 closest blockade could make no difference to the 
 town of Buenos Aires with the vast pastoral and 
 agricultural wealth of the interior at its back. In 
 1848 Great Britain withdrew from the blockade, and 
 in 1849 France followed her example. 
 
 At the beginning of 1852 Rosas was deposed, and 
 with his flight to England disappeared the antagonism 
 that had barred the lower reaches of the great river 
 to the Paraguayans. Carlos Antonio Lopez now 
 signified his intention of resuming the intercourse 
 with the outer world, or, rather, of initiating this ; 
 for it is a remarkable fact that now for the first 
 time since Paraguay had been an independent State 
 was any general intercourse with' other nations 
 undertaken. 
 
184 PARAGUAY 
 
 On the 2 2n'd of December, 1852, the British war- 
 steamer Locust arrived at Asuncion, having on board 
 Sir C. Hotham, the British Minister-^and, inci- 
 dentally, the first European official of the kind who 
 had ever set foot in Paraguay — ^and the United States 
 Minister. A few days later the French Minister 
 arrived, and this latter was followed by the repre- 
 sentative of a Power of considerably less importance, 
 Sardinia. 
 
 Treaties were drawn up between Paraguay and 
 the various countries whose ministers now repre- 
 sented them in Asuncion, and by this act Paraguay 
 at length asserted her intention of occupying her 
 proper place in the world. The first definite com- 
 mercial relations had been established just before 
 the diplomatic steps had been taken ; for on 
 November the 23rd had arrived the first British 
 trading steamer. 
 
 The influx of all these foreigners — whether of an 
 official or commercial standing — ^was naturally an 
 event of the first importance so far as Paraguay was 
 concerned. The visit of the ministers of the foreign 
 Powers, moreover, was equivalent to an official recog- 
 nition on the part of Europe and the United States 
 of the independence of the State of Paraguay. The 
 official and social world of Asuncion was lit up by 
 a blaze of festivities, and the following year (1853) 
 Don Francisco Solano Lopez proceeded to Europe 
 as special Envoy to visit various of its Courts. 
 
 In the course of time the power of Don Carlos 
 Antonio Lopez increased. For Paraguay of that 
 period he had proved himself a sufficiently liberal 
 legislator ; yet a certain atmosphere of autocracy 
 seemed inseparable from the State in the mid-nine- 
 teenth century. Thus in 1857 he was named chief 
 of the State for a period of no less than ten years ; 
 he was given authority to nominatp his successor — 
 which, of course, had the practical effect of making 
 
THE LOPEZ' 186 
 
 his office hereditary — and the number of national 
 deputies was reduced to one hundred, the power of 
 this remnant being diminished to vanishing point. 
 
 Nevertheless, although the might of the President 
 had now increased to within measurable distance of 
 that formerly wielded by the Dictator Francia, Lopez 
 showed himself averse to employ it in the manner of 
 the deceased Supremo. His personality was regarded 
 with considerable awe by his Paraguayan entourage ; 
 but this was on account rather of the powers with 
 which he was vested than because of any deeds of 
 " f rightfulness." Carlos Antonio Lopez, moreover, 
 showed himself well disposed towards foreigners, 
 although he proved himself not entirely devoid of his 
 predecessor's arbitrary theories when it came to a 
 point of international dispute. This brought him 
 more than once into diplomatic conflict with the 
 United States, and on one occasion an actual collision 
 occurred between the U.S. war steamer Watenvitch 
 and a Paraguayan battery. 
 
 Paraguay, as a matter of fact, had to accustom 
 itself little by little to a free and liberal intercourse 
 with the outer world, and at this period numerous 
 international incidents took place in connection with 
 the grievances sufifered not only by subjects of 
 European States, but by the South Am:ericans of 
 the neighbouring countries. In each instance, how- 
 ever, the matter was settled without the outbreak 
 of war. Thus the population and strength of 
 Paraguay grew rapidly, until, from one of the 
 most negligible of republics, she had advanced 
 in military power to the position of one of the 
 strongest. 
 
 The commerce of the country, moreover, had 
 grown from practically nothing into a source of con- 
 siderable national wealth. This altered condition of 
 affairs was, of course, due almost entirely to the 
 efforts of Carlos Antonio Lopez. His death, in 1862, 
 
186 PARAGUAY 
 
 put an end to a period of government which had 
 lasted eighteen years, and which, as has been said, 
 was tending more and more to become of the absolute 
 order. 
 
 Carlos Antonio Lopez had named as his successor 
 his eldest son, Francisco Solano Lopez, and the affairs 
 of the nation duly passed into this latter's control. 
 The future of Paraguay now appeared promising in 
 the extreme. Francisco Solano Lopez had had the 
 advantages of a liberal education and of the invalu- 
 able experience with which his travels in Europe had 
 provided him. He had won golden opinions in 
 London and Paris, and it was confidently hoped that 
 to his father's prudent methods of legislation he 
 would add the enterprise and progressive spirit which 
 were to be expected from a man of his attainments. 
 To what extent Francisco Solano Lopez justified these 
 hopes will shortly be seen. 
 
 It is certain that from the very beginning of his 
 rule Francisco Solano Lopez was eaten up by that 
 most mischievous form of ambition that haunts the 
 love of power. In this he was undoubtedly en- 
 couraged by the woman who had elected to share his 
 life. This handsome and remarkable person was 
 Madame Eloisa Lynch, an Irish - Parisian whom 
 Francisco Solano had met in the French capital, 
 and whom he had apparently found small difficulty 
 in persuading to join him in Paraguay. 
 
 The ceremony of marriage was never undergone 
 by the pair. But Eloisa Lynch seems to have been 
 accepted as more or less a member of the family 
 by the relatives of Francisco Solano, and when the 
 latter became absolute King of Paraguay in all but 
 name, Eloisa Lynch reigned by his side as his queen, 
 and, moreover, succeeded in retaining his affection 
 to the last. 
 
 Francisco Solano Lopez was thirty-six years of 
 age when he became " fefe Supremo y General de 
 
THE LOPEZ' 187 
 
 los Exercitos de la Republica del Paraguay." As 
 has been said, so far as his education was concerned, 
 he was admirably equipped for his post. In addition 
 to his own national tongues of Spanish and Guarani, 
 he spoke fluent French, and was thus in a position 
 to converse without the cumbersome aid of an in- 
 terpreter with any distinguished travellers "who might 
 enter his country. He had, moreover, drunk at 
 the generous fountain of Paris, one of the mainsprings 
 of the Latin race, to which his own nation in part 
 belonged, and, for the rest, was attached. 
 
 The uses to which Francisco Solano Lopez put his 
 talents constitute one of the greatest tragedies of 
 South America. At the same time, responsible though 
 he was for so many outrages and for so deep a sea 
 of blood, it cannot be said that he was averse to 
 progress of the purely material order. He was one 
 of the first in South America to start railway enter- 
 prise ; he introduced some Parisian notions of archi- 
 tecture into the Asimcion streets and plazas, and 
 was responsible for a considerable amount of altera- 
 tion in the local manners and costume. His chief 
 attention, however, was directed towards the Army, 
 and the pains he took to make this already efficient 
 service still more formidable was sufficiently ominous 
 in itself. 
 
 Once firmly established in the Dictator's seat, 
 Francisco Solano Lopez wasted no time in asserting 
 his power. So far as autocracy was concerned it 
 very soon became evident to the Paraguayans that 
 here was a second Francia, prepared to go all the 
 lengths — and even farther — of the harsh ' measures 
 inaugurated by the original Supremo. It was not 
 long before his adherents found themselves inculcated 
 with a dread such as those of Francia had known 
 only too well. This condition of affairs, nevertheless, 
 was veiled under a modern cloak, for there were 
 how foreigners— and among them a number of 
 
188 PARAGUAY 
 
 English — in Paraguay, whose influence had already 
 become notable up to a certain point. 
 
 Lopez followed the example of Francia in refusing 
 to tolerate any authority whatever save his own 
 throughout the length and breadth of Paraguay. 
 Considering the Church as by far the most formid- 
 able of any potential rivals, he made a tool of the 
 Bishop, Palacio, who soon undertook the offices of 
 a personal attendant. Mr. Thomlpson, one of the 
 Englishmen who was residing in Paraguay at this 
 period, remarks of him that : " The Bishop used to 
 go and wait in Lopez' corridor with his hat in his 
 hand. When Lopez came out, the Bishop shuffled 
 up towards him with a deprecating look, and made 
 a deep bow, to which Lopez would return a nod, 
 without touching his cap." 
 
 As time went on Lopez' methods tended to grow 
 more bizarre. He designed magnificent uniforms for 
 himself, taking care at the same time that his suite 
 should be provided with garments of the most sober 
 tints. At meals, his wines and dishes were distinct 
 even from those of his own family and immediate 
 entourage. Lopez, in fact, was determined to neglect 
 no means which could emphasize the fact that Para- 
 guay's Dictator stood quite alone on the pedestal of 
 his own making. 
 
 Unfortunately for himself, for his country, and for 
 the southern half of South America jn general, 
 Francisco Solano Lopez was imbued with the idea 
 that he possessed' many of the qualities of the great 
 Napoleon. Obsessed by this theory, he endeavoured to 
 have as much as possible in common with the great 
 European conquistador. This is incidentally referred 
 to in a description of him by Sir Richard Burton : 
 "His appearance is not unfavourable, though of late 
 he has become very corpulent, after having been a 
 slim and active youth. He is about five feet seven 
 inches in height, of bilious, nervous temperament, 
 
THE LOPEZ' 189 
 
 and darker than Spaniards. . . . His hands and feet 
 are small, and his legs bandy with early riding. His 
 features are somewhat Indian, his hair is thick, and 
 his beard, worn in the form which was once called 
 ' Newgate frill,' is by no means so full and thick as 
 his portraits show. ... He still affects the white 
 charger and the Napoleonic grenadier boots and 
 spurs, the rest of his toilet being a kepi, a frock- 
 coat, and a scarlet poncho With gold' fringe and collar ; 
 in fact, he has a passion for finery. Dignified in 
 manner, he has a penetrating, impressive look, which 
 shows the overwhelming pride and self-confidence 
 that form the peculiar features of his personality." 
 
 The impression made by Lopez on George Master- 
 man, an apothecary attached to the Paraguayan forces 
 during the great war, was less favourable, as was, 
 perhaps, only to be expected, seeing that Masterman 
 had suffered severely at the hands of the autocrat. 
 He thus describes this remarkable man : — 
 
 " Personally he is not a man of very commanding 
 stature, being but five foot four in height, and ex- 
 tremely stout — latterly most unwieldily so. His face 
 is very flat, with but little nobUiity of feature, head 
 rather good, but narrow in front and greatly de- 
 veloped posteriorly. There is a very ominous 
 breadth and solidity in the lower part of his face, 
 a peculiarity derived from his Guaycurd ancestry, 
 and which gives the index to his character — a cruel, 
 sensual face, which the eyes, placed rather too close 
 together, do not improve. His manners, when he 
 was pleased, were remarkably gracious, but when 
 enraged — and I have twice seen him so — ^his expres- 
 sion was perfectly ferocious." 
 
 I have devoted this considerable space to the 
 personality of Francisco Solano Lopez for the reason 
 that this extraordinary man was at this period more 
 closely connected than any other with the destinies 
 of three republics and one empiire. Under his rule 
 
190 PARAGUAY 
 
 the military force of Paraguay attained to its zenith. 
 At that time the population of the country was far 
 greater in proportion to that of the neighbouring 
 States than it has ever been since. It is, indeed, 
 somewhat diflficult to realize now that at so recent a 
 date as the middle of the nineteenth century the 
 inhabitants of Paraguay outnumbered those of each 
 of the other River Plate republics. Yet so it was, 
 and Brazil and Argentina, knowing something of the 
 temperament of Francisco Solano Lopez, watched with 
 no little anxiety the further rapid increases in the 
 strength of the already formidable Paraguayan Army. 
 Less than two years after the advent to power of 
 Francisco Solano Lopez the Army of the inland State 
 had attained to a strength of no less than eighty 
 thousand men. These, moreover, had been trained to 
 a fwint of efficiency which rendered the force without 
 rival in the continent as a striking power. Such 
 an instrument in the hands of a man of such passions 
 as consumed Lopez was akin to a powder-magazine 
 in the too close neighbourhood of a lighted match. 
 In due course the explosion occurred. 
 
CHAPTER XII 
 
 THE PARAGUAYAN WAR 
 
 Origin of the struggle— rBrazil and the States of the Rio de la Plata — 
 The intervention of Francisco Solano Lopez — Outbreak of the war- 
 Seizure of the Brazilian steamer Marquez de OUnda — Paraguay 
 invades the province of Matte Grosso — Curious analogy between 
 the Paraguayan War and the present European struggle — Lopez as 
 the prey of a wild ambition — His Heaven-sent triumphs — ^A parallel 
 to the Belgian invasion — The capture of Corrientes — The five cam- 
 paigns of the Paraguayan War — Chief events of the struggle — 
 Bravery of the Paraguayan troops — The river battles — Improvised 
 war-steamers — Some gallant actions — The motto of the Paraguayans — 
 Francisco Solano Lopez as Generalissimo — How his men were 
 squandered — Defeat as a crime — Its penalties— The toll of human 
 life — Disappearance of the flower of Paraguay's manhood — Final 
 stages of the stnjggle — Fairness in terrorism — The fate of the women 
 workers — ^The death of Francisco Solano Lopez and the conclusion of 
 the war — Condition of Paraguay — Recovery of the Republic. 
 
 The actual origin of the struggle which is generally 
 known in South America as the Paraguayan War 
 Still remains food for considerable controversy. Those 
 Paraguayans who associate the interests of Francisco 
 Solano Lopez with those of the nation at large are 
 given to assert that the Dictator took up his post at 
 a critical moment, when the treaties of peace with 
 Brazil and Argentina were about to expire, and when 
 the various frontier questions had become too vexed 
 and too urgent to be settled by any other means than 
 a recourse to arms. 
 
 It is true that the political situation was by no 
 means without its difficulties. It would seem certain 
 enough, nevertheless, that, had not Francisco Solano 
 Lopez found hunself at the head of so fine an Army, 
 
 191 
 
192 PARAGUAY 
 
 this call to arm's would never have sounded. It is 
 certainly not to be conceded that Brazil, the first of 
 the neighbouring States to be concerned in the matter, 
 was entirely without blame. Neither as a colony, a 
 kingdom, or an empire had Brazil been able entirely 
 to withstand the temptations of territorial aggrandize- 
 ment offered by the chaotic political condition which 
 characterized the early days of the youthful republics 
 of Spanish extraction. 
 
 In this matter Argentina, Uruguay, and Paraguay 
 all nursed grievances of their own. Struggles — the 
 majority of which were more or less local — had 
 occurred from time :to time, and at others m^utual con- 
 cessions had tided over the threat of hostilities. On 
 the whole, however, it was not to be denied that the 
 advantage in territory rested with Brazil. 
 
 There was thus sufficient motive for war, for the 
 Dictator of a State po'ssessed of the finest Army in 
 South America. As is so frequently the case in 
 such matters, the actual outbreak of hostilities was 
 based on no such direct question. The germs of the 
 struggle had their being in Uruguay, where revolu- 
 tion prevailed, ajnd where Brazilian intrigues were 
 undoubtedly at wor'fc to benefit one of the Uruguay3,n 
 parties at the expense of the other. 
 
 It is prol>ablie that when Francisco Solano Lopez 
 intervened in the matter he was by no means without 
 justification. ^It very soon became evident, however, 
 that this intervention of his was being carried out 
 in a manner which couM only end in war. The 
 outbreak of this was not long delayed. On 
 the loth of November, 1864, the Brazilian steamer 
 Marquez de OUnda arrived at Asuncion on her way 
 from Rio de Janeiro to the upper reaches of the 
 Paraguay River, where she would again find herself 
 alongside Brazilian so:il. 
 
 This particular voyage of the Marquez de OUnda 
 happened to be somewhat unusually notable, for she 
 
THE PARAGUAYAN WAR 193 
 
 had on bofCrd the new Governor of the province 
 of Matto Grosso, who was travelling up-stream to 
 take up his post. The Marquez de Olinda had 
 actually left Asuncion, and was proceeding on her 
 northern way, when the Parag;uayan war steamer 
 Tacuari, smoke pouring from her funnel, appeared 
 in chase. The Brazilian vessel was overhauled, 
 captured, and brought back to Asuncion, where 
 she was detained, and her passengers and crew 
 made prisoners . 
 
 This, of course, was equivalent to a declaration 
 of war, and Brazil prepared itself for a collision. 
 Lopez allowed the Empire little time for this. Less 
 than three weeks after the seizure of the Marquez de 
 Olinda he sent his brother-in-law. Colonel Barrios, 
 in command of a flotilla, conveying troops in 
 order to attack the Brazilian possessions to the 
 north. 
 
 The first point assailed was the Brazilian fort 
 situated on the river bank at Coimbra. Menaced 
 by three thousand fine Paraguayan troops, the 
 Brazilian garrison escaped by river to the north, 
 leaving behind it a considerable store of munitions 
 of war. Proceeding farther up-stream, the Para- 
 guayan force then captured Albuquerque and 
 Corumhd, the Brazilians retreating before them 
 as they went, ialnd very soon an important stretch 
 of Brazilian territory had been occupied by the 
 invading army. 
 
 Viewed in the Ight of contemporary events, there 
 is a curious wealthi of analogy between the events 
 of the Paraguayan War and of the great European 
 strugglte of to-day. Francisco Solano Lopez stood 
 very much in the same relation to his people as 
 does WUliara of Prussia to-day. At the head of a 
 powerful and well-trained army which the nation had 
 been taught to revere lajs a superhuman force, Lapez 
 found himself the prey of a wild ambition, to which 
 
 13 
 
194 PARAGUAY 
 
 he sacrificed conscience, humanity, and the lives of 
 countless thousands of people. Thanks to their com- 
 plete preparedness, his armies swept outwards on 
 all sides, driving back the enemy before them, until 
 the growing numbers and stiffening resistance of the 
 opposing forces caused the tide to halt, and then 
 to turn. 
 
 But all was victory with Lopez. His proclamations 
 made it so, and to question one of the autocrat's 
 Heaven-sent triumphs was to earn the wages of sudden 
 death. A mere reference to the numbers of the 
 Paraguayan Ibsses sufficed to cause the execution 
 of a soldier. There was even a parallel to the 
 tragedy of Belgium in the South America of half a 
 century ago. Desirous of attacking Brazil in the 
 south as well a.s in the north, Lopez sent to the 
 Argentine Government a high-handed demand for 
 the passage of his troops across the Argentine 
 province of Corrientes. When the inevitable refusal 
 was returned, the autocrat of Paraguay fell upon the 
 province, and succeeded in capturing for a time 
 the important port of Corrientes. Thus, in a; sense, 
 the province of Corrientes may stand for Belgium. 
 There is, however, one immeasurably wide differ- 
 ence between the two invasions. To the honour of 
 the Paraguayans be it said that they left the soil 
 of Corrientes free from those atrocities by means of 
 which the Prussians so deeply stained the Belgian 
 earth and their own name. 
 
 This invasion of Corrientes naturally brought about 
 war with the Argentine Republic, which country, 
 owing to this threat from without, found its provinces 
 consolidating themselves into a. compact set of 
 national units.. But this was not the end of the 
 complications which the irresponsible rashness of 
 Lopez had brought upon himself. Seeing that the 
 party hostile to him was now in power in Uruguay, 
 he found himself at war with that little State, 
 
JESUIT DECORATION : SAN IGNACIO. 
 
 RUINS OF HUMAITA CHURCH : FRONT VIEW. 
 
THE PARAGUAYAN WAR 196 
 
 as well as with' the powerful Empire of Brazil and 
 the great Republic of Argentina;. 
 
 It is, of course, impossible in the space avail- 
 able here to go fully into the details of what was 
 in some respects one of the most remarkablte wars 
 that the world has ever witnessed. A Paraguayan 
 authority has divided the strug!glte into five cam- 
 paigns—those of Matto Grosso, Uruguay, Humaitd, 
 Pikycyry, and las Cordilleras. By a brief separate 
 reference to each! of these we may obtain a rough 
 insight into the general course of the war. 
 
 The first of these campiaigns comprised the invasion 
 of the Brazilian province of Matto Grosso, to which 
 reference has already been made. 
 
 The second campaign was that of Uruguay. This 
 was jalso fought on foreign soil, and was the blow 
 delivered to the south which corresponded with the 
 northern stroke which had Matto Grosso for its 
 aim. 
 
 The third campaign was that of Humaitd. Here 
 for the first time the Paraguayans found themselves 
 on the defensive, the object of the allies being to 
 dislbdge them from the strong post of Humaitd, 
 which commanded the reaches of the great river 
 in the neighbourfiood of the southern Paraguayan 
 frontier. 
 
 The fourth campaign, that of Pikycyry, represented 
 the second stage of the Pairaguayan defensive opera- 
 tions, when the tide had already definitely turned 
 against the arms of the inland State. 
 
 The fifth, and last, of the campaigns, was that 
 of the Cordilleras. This w'as fought out in the north 
 of the Republic, and in the course of this occurred 
 some of the most desperate fighting of all, the 
 remnants of the heroic Paraguayan army fighting 
 battle after battle to prevent themselves being 
 hemmed in by their continually advancing foes. 
 With the collapse of the last worn and attenuated 
 
196 PARAGUAY 
 
 companies aiid thie death of Francisco Sokno. Lopez 
 thie war ended. 
 
 This will suffice to give a: rough idea of the main 
 events of this remarkable campaign. A full and 
 detailed description of this is stiU lacking in the 
 English langtiagie, and the sooner this omission is 
 rectified the ibetter it will be for those students 
 interested in this particular phase of South American 
 history, for the warlike feats and political circum- 
 stances of this period are unusually notable, and 
 deserve a wider acquaintance outside South America 
 than they have so far obtained. 
 
 One of the most remarkablte features of the war 
 was the int^ise bravery which the Paraguayan troops 
 showed in the face of greaitty superior forces. This 
 was demonstrated, not only on land but on the river, 
 where some of the most important cojnbats took 
 place. On the water, as a matter of fact, the pre- 
 parations had not been nearly so complete as those 
 on shore. It is probable that Lopez had not fuUy 
 foreseen the vital part which the great inland water- 
 way was to play in the grim strug'gle ; for, while 
 his army was provided with the most up-to-date 
 warlke contrivances, his arsenals and munition 
 factories being provided with British supervisors, his 
 fresh-water fleet was of an improvised order. 
 
 The vessels composing this were, indeed, small 
 passenger or cargo steamers, ranging in size from 
 some six hundred tons downwards, which had been 
 armed with converted field-guns, or even with field- 
 guns that still retained their wheeled carriages. A 
 numlber of these vessel's were commanded by English- 
 men ; but, whether in charge of these or of 
 Paraguayan officers, the gallantry displayed was 
 identical, and these frail craft would go chartging 
 down the stream to encounter the heavily armed and 
 armoured Brazilian warships and monitors. A more 
 unequal combat can scarcely be imagined, but on 
 
RUINS OF HUMAITA CHURCH ; BACK VIEW. 
 
 To face page 197. 
 
THE PAKAGUAYAN WAR 197 
 
 mtore occasions thSn one the desperate Paraguayans 
 drove the enemy from' their decks down into the 
 protected bowels of their vessels, and caused the 
 opposing flotilla to retreat. 
 
 Notwithstanding this, it was, of course, a matter 
 of impossibility for the unarmoured sides of the 
 Paragtiayan vessel's to withstand for long the rain 
 of shot poured into them from the enemy, vessels, 
 and their number gradually diminished as, one by one, 
 they sank. To this day the iron remnants of somfe 
 of these may be seen, and on the banks of 
 the Tributary Yhagiiy there still rest the ruins of a 
 burned Paraguayan flotilla, vegetation sprouting from 
 the forsaken decks and stranded bbilters. 
 
 This river fighting was equalled in fury by the 
 battles on land. iWJben the Paraguayan forces had 
 spent their strength in thte attajck it was onty after 
 the most desperate resistance that they yielded ground 
 before the masses of the allies. The motto jof the 
 Paraguayans was Veneer o Morir — " Conquest or 
 Death." These words Ayere inscribed even on the 
 drums of the atmy, and they seem to have founidi 
 an echo in the heart of almost every soldier of the 
 inland State ; for the losses they sustained, and in 
 the face of which they continued to fight, were 
 phenomenal. 
 
 It was Eraincistfo Solano Lopez, ojf course, who 
 assumed supreme command of the Paraguayan army, 
 and who relied with confidence upon his strategy 
 to obtain the victory over the allied leaders. Marshal 
 Caxias, of Brazil, and General Bartolom^ Mitre, Who 
 commanded the Argientine troops. Francisco Soteno 
 Lopez' mfethbcb, as a: matter of fact, were sufficiently 
 crude. One of his chief military axioms seem to have 
 been that his men should never retire under any 
 circumstances, and in order to enforce this he would 
 frequentty place companies of men just to the rear 
 of the fighting' line, who had orders to shoot down 
 
198 PARAGUAY 
 
 any soldier who demonstrated the slightest inclination 
 to yield his place. 
 
 It is not surprising in these circumstances that 
 the slaughter of the Paraguayan troops should have 
 been terribte. The mere dash, moreover, of the 
 Paraguayans was in itself frequently fatal. On more 
 than one occasion a too headlbng pursuit of a 
 shattered wing of the hostile forces brought them 
 under a crushing fire from the main army that 
 changed victory into defeat. Lopez' generalship, 
 however, was of the kind which troubted itself very 
 Mttle about the losses suffered by his rank and file. 
 As long as he could obtain the vicarious glory of some 
 brilliant but unprofitable feat achieved by his troops, 
 he cared little how many thousands of men fell in 
 the- operation. 
 
 It was this enormous wastage of life, of course, 
 which contributed so largely to the final defeat of 
 Lopez. iWhen his affairs became desperate, more- 
 over, he assumed an attitude of mind which more 
 than fitted the wildest situation. Defeat at the hands 
 even of a completely overwhelming force of the 
 enemy became a crime which had to be expiated 
 by torture or death, frequently by bbth. A system 
 of espionage was established which added a new 
 source of dread to the sufferings of the soldiers, 
 and as the war drew towards its end the conditions 
 under which the Par3.guayans fought became more 
 and more terrible.' 
 
 As a matter of fact, the losses in human life 
 sustained by the Paraguayan nation in the course of 
 this war were laltogether phenomenal when the total 
 contemporary population of the Republic is taken 
 into consideration. Paraguayan authority has esti- 
 mated the population of the State at the beginning 
 of the war at some 900,000 souls. This same 
 authority has calculated that at the conclusion of the 
 
 ' See Appendix. 
 
THE P4l^}^<^.U4YAH WAR 199 
 
 war no less th^';45o,ooo persons h^d? died. 35,000 
 soldiers had. ^if^n on the field of batrt$S and 1 1 5,000 
 had perished frojn jdisoase/ancd; •hymger." Owing to 
 these latter caujjesi irAdreoVejrj'-.inpre than 300,000 
 old folk, women, and children had_ losf their lives. 
 
 Owing to thfe*,cQndition of want arfi. privation which 
 obtained at the' ejid of the §Ku]g.gig' the mischief 
 did not end here, ^4.-);hus in'<he-^qurse of five years 
 the imfortunate ' iCepublic'; had • Tost two -thirds of 
 the number of its entire jpOpulation . As a matter of 
 fact, this loss was far greater in reality than is 
 expressed by these mere figures. For the flower 
 of the Paraguayan manhood had completely dis- 
 appeared, to say nothing of those boys who in tens 
 of thousands had filled the places of the grown men 
 who had fallen in the strugigle . Thus Paraguay found 
 itself populated by old men and women, and by 
 children of both sexes, the handful of surviving adult 
 mates being, so meagre as to be quite negligible in 
 quantity. 
 
 But the contemiplation of this tfaigic spectacle 
 has led us onwards too rapidly, since we have not 
 yet referred to the manner in which the war was 
 concluded. As has lalready been said, the final stages 
 were marked iby a steadily mounting series of 
 tragiedies. As the defeats grew more numerous, so 
 did the nuinber of executions ordered by Lopez. Not 
 only did the officers themselves, whose gallantry had 
 been unable to prevail against superior numbers, 
 suffer in this respect. The verigeance of the Supremo 
 was frequently visited on their wives and womenfolk, 
 who paid the penalty of torture and death for supposed 
 faults which were not only not their own, but which 
 in reality had no existence at aU. It may, however, 
 be put to the credit of Lopez' sense of fairness in 
 terrorism that he spared his own family in this respect 
 no more than the rest I 
 
 It was only natural that after a yjear or two of this 
 
200 -FARAGII^^:^ 
 
 gtim strugglefj/.the battle-ridden sQip Of Paraguay 
 should have failed to yield its crops,, 'and that the 
 spectre of st'arvatioij rShooJic^^^havfc: lotomed' large over 
 the land. Even thien :l3ite . Staite was not! at an end 
 of its resources,,- Companies of wom^n were sent 
 out to till and, sow fresh fields. It.'w^s frequently 
 necessary for tJieflj to march fpr. several weeks on 
 end before the chosen" Sptot'jyas -reached, and in 
 the course of these "terribfe'.joMrtieys many, hundreds 
 of delicately nurtured ladies ' expired from' Want of 
 nourishment and fromi sheer exhaustion. 
 
 This state of affairs continued even after the allied 
 armies, advancing, from the south, had taken pos- 
 session of Asxmcion, the capital. For some time 
 the Argentine and Brazilian authorities had caused 
 to be officially, proclaimed that which! was the mere 
 plain truth — that they were not at war with the 
 Paraguayan nation, but with Francisco Sokno Lopez, 
 whom they, held to be as much the enemy of Pplra^guay 
 as of their own States. Nevertheltess Lopez, folIo,wed 
 now by the scanty; band that atone survived from 
 his once numerous army, contrived to keep up the 
 struggle among the northern woodlands, and, con- 
 tinually harassed, made a desperate running figjit 
 of it from point to point. 
 
 It was in the midst of the forest on thte b!aink of 
 the River Aquidaban tjhat the end came. By that 
 time the ragged remnant of the autocrat's troops 
 were almost naked and on thte verge of starvation. 
 The Brazilian ,piursuit had continually girown closer. 
 On the 1st of March, 1870, odourred the surporise 
 that shattered thte final stand, and that cost Francisco 
 Solano Lopez his life. As the autocrat fell, trans- 
 fixed by a Brazilian lance, the war ended, and the 
 arms of both Paraguay^ans and allies were simul- 
 taneously lowered. 
 
 The condition in which Paragtiay was lleft at the 
 conclusion of the great war almost beggars de- 
 
THE PARAGUAYAN WAR 301 
 
 scription. Nothing beyond the wreck of ia once 
 powerful State remained to its diminished inhabitants. 
 It was Iteft lahnost entirely to the old people, the 
 women, and the children to mlake good those material 
 benefits which had been lost by the death of the 
 nation's manhood. How this was achieved un- 
 doubtedty stands for one of thte chief gllories of the 
 history of Paraguay,. 
 
 The conclusion of the war, nioreoyer, left the 
 inland State in possession of a genuinely con- 
 stitutional Government. Although this has since 
 only too frequently been the cause of civil strife, 
 the ideals of a. liberal and democratic Government 
 have never been abandoned frolrt that time. 
 
CHAPTER XIII 
 
 SOME SALIENT FEATURES OF THE REPUBLIC 
 
 Strategical situation of the Republic — Paraguay as a natural centre of 
 inland communications and commerce — Asuncion as the mart of the 
 interior— Future of the capital — Area of the Republic— Frontier 
 complications — The Pilcomayo as a boundary river — DiiEficuIties 
 offered by the exploration of this stream — Its international importance 
 — The Paraguay-Bolivia frontier — Bolivian claims — Constitution of the 
 Paraguayan Republic — Legislative bodies — Scantiness of the members 
 — Method in which elections are conducted — ^The Ministry — Population 
 of the Republic — Difficulties in the way of a census — Some estimates 
 of the inhabitants — The dwellers in Paraguay proper and in the 
 Chaco — Results of the Paraguayan War^Recent political events 
 — Disastrous effect on the population — Paraguay a bilingual State 
 — The Spanish and Guarani tongues — Government of the Chaco — 
 Departments of Paraguay proper — A comparison between Asuncion 
 and Montevideo — Paraguayan cities — Distribution of the population — 
 The Army — Uniform and training — Prussian officers in Paraguay — 
 The River Navy of the Republic — Past and present strength of the 
 Paraguayan flotilla. 
 
 Paraguay may be said to represent the heart of 
 South America. If the metaphor be continued and 
 the continent be compared to the anatomy of a man, 
 it might even be said that the lowly position in latitude 
 of Paraguay would cause it to stand for the stomach 
 rather than the heart of South America. This, again, 
 is appropriate enough, for one of Paraguay's chief 
 occupations is in supplying foodstuffs to itself and to 
 its neighbours I 
 
 In any case from a strategical point of view the 
 geographical situation of Paraguay is not a little 
 remarkable. Bisected, roughly, by Capricorn, the 
 inland Republic stands at the gate of the tropics. 
 
 S02 
 
SOME SALIENT FEATURES 203 
 
 To the north and east lie the forests of Brazil-; to 
 the west stretches the Chaco of Bolivia and Argentina, 
 while to the south extend the great pastures and 
 agricultural lands of Argentina. 
 
 Aided by the wafers of those magnificent rivers 
 that wash her territories, the Paraguay, and the Alto 
 Parand, Paraguay represents one of the great natural 
 centres of the inland communications and commerce 
 of South America. Indeed, were a junction possible 
 between the head waters of the Paraguay and those 
 of the southern tributaries of the Amazon, separated 
 as these are by such a comparatively insignificant 
 extent of territory, Asuncion might well rank as the 
 most important future mart of the interior, where 
 the tropical products of the north might be exchanged 
 for the meat and com of the south, and where the 
 minerals of Bolivia and Peru might be bartered 
 against the sugar and coffee of Brazil. 
 
 It is possible that at some rather dim and distant 
 date science may bring about some such consumma- 
 tion as this. But, even without anticipating any 
 such grandiose development, the situation which Para- 
 guay must occupy when the industries of the interior 
 of the continent begin to assume their proper dimen- 
 sions cannot well fail to be favourable to a point 
 which must largely compensate for such disadvan- 
 tages as arise from that country's remoteness from the 
 ocean. 
 
 From the point of view of area Paraguay is among 
 the smallest of the South American Republics, 
 Uruguay and Ecuador alone out of the ten occupying 
 less area. Even so, the exact size of Paraguay is 
 not known, although it is estimated roughly at one 
 hundred thousand square miles. The reason for this 
 uncertainty is that in some districts the frontiers of 
 Paraguay pass through unexplored coimtry, while in 
 others the exact position of this frontier has still to 
 be established. , 
 
204 PARAGUAY 
 
 Probably somte of the most curious circumstances 
 which ever complicated the negotiations concerning 
 a frontier line occurred in connection with the River 
 Pilcomayo, which forms the boundary between Argen- 
 tina and Paraguay to the west of the Paraguay River. 
 In the ordinary course of events no boundary could 
 be more definite than a river. But this was not so 
 in the case of the Pilcomayo. Certain stretches of 
 this had long defied the efforts of all who endeavoured 
 to explore them. Thus when, in recent years, an 
 expedition under Messrs. Olaf Storm and F. Freund 
 were occupied in following the course 'of the river 
 from west to east, the party was brought to a halt 
 by the waters of a great swamp in which the river 
 lost itself, the shallowness of the lake forbidding 
 further navigation. 
 
 I have referred in a previous book to a laten 
 expedition which eventually was the cause of the 
 modifying of the Argentine Paraguayan frontier ; but 
 the matter demands inclusion again here. 
 
 This later expedition miade the important discovery 
 that a previously little known river, that was given 
 the name of the Confuse, branched off from the 
 Pilcomayo in the neighbourhood of longitude 60°, 
 and, running north of the other stream, was navigable 
 at intervals to the point where it joined the Paraguay 
 at Villa Hayes, midway, between Asuncion and Con- 
 cepcion. 
 
 This new river was held, in fact, to be the true 
 Pilcomayo, and its discovery, gave rise to a certain 
 amount of political confusion that went to jxistify 
 its name. Indeed, the bringing to light of the swampy 
 Confuso raked up an imlportant historical question. 
 At the conclusion of the Paraguayan War the United 
 States, accepting the office of arbitrator, had awarded 
 to Argentina the whole of the Chaco as far north 
 as the Pilcomayo River. On the discovery, there- 
 fore, of the actual course of the stream which 
 
SOME SALIENT FEATURES 205 
 
 until then had been known as the Confuso, Argen- 
 tina, alleging that river to be the Pilcomayo, 
 laid claim to the strip of territory between the two 
 rivers. As, however, the United States award had' 
 decreed the Argentine- Paraguayan frontier to lie 
 along the Pilcomiayo thai gave into the Paraguay 
 opposite Asuncion, the joint committee of the two 
 republics appointed' to dfeal with the miatter agreed 
 that the southern branch of the river must continue 
 to divide the two countries. Thus another of those 
 numerous but inevitable international questions was 
 settled in that essentially reasonable fashion which 
 has now become characteristic of the Latin continent. 
 
 Many difficulties in connection with the north- 
 western frontier which divides Paraguay from Bolivia 
 have still to be overcome. So far the numerous 
 negotiations which have taken place on the subject 
 have been comparatively barren of result. The posi- 
 tion, roughly, would seem to be that Bolivia— although 
 that country admits that by the Guijarro-Decoud 
 treaty of 1879 it resigned the Chaco Boreal to Para- 
 guay in return for the latter's renunciation of claims 
 north of the latitude of the Apa,— claims that the; 
 arrangement fell through. Bolivia asserts, moreover, 
 that the later draft agreements of 1887, 1894, and 
 1 907 were never ratified', and, in short, that a situation 
 which the general public for many years has taken 
 for granted never actually had any existence in fact I 
 Whatever its rights and wrongs may be, no doubt 
 the question will be settled with that same temperate 
 wisdom which characterized the arrangement of the 
 similar question in the south. 
 
 The Constitution of the Republic of Paraguay is 
 quite one of the latest evolved in South America, 
 having been drawn up in 1870, when the fall of the 
 younger Lopez freed the country from an autocratic 
 dominion. As in the great majority of republics, 
 the chief Paraguayan legislative bodies are divided 
 
206 PARAGUAY 
 
 into two houses, a chamber of senators ajnd a chamber 
 of deputies. It cannot be said' that these offices are 
 too numerously filled, as the senators are no more 
 than thirteen in number and the deputies are limited 
 to twenty. This somewhat scanty provision of legis- 
 lators is explained by the fact that the numbers were 
 originally arranged in order to represent a total 
 population of some 300,000 — ^which, in 1870, is said 
 to have been all that the Paraguayan War had left of 
 the heroic inhabitants of the inland State. Since that 
 time, of course, the population of the Republic has 
 steadily increased, but the number of senators and 
 deputies has remained imaltered. 
 
 The elections in Paraguay are conducted on a 
 model which is popular in South America, and which 
 has this in its favour, that the dislocation of the 
 political machinery is less acute than in the case of 
 general elections carried on in the British fashion. 
 An election is held every two years. But this election 
 concerns the seats of only one-half of the deputies 
 and one-third of the senators, the remainder retaining 
 their seats until their turn arrives to contest them. 
 
 The President is elected for a term of four years, 
 and the Vice-President holds office for the same 
 period. The ministers of state are limited to five, 
 their portfolios being those of the Interior, Agri- 
 culture, Justice, Instruction, and Army and Navy. 
 It will be evident from this that the Ministry is fully 
 as compact in its way as are the chambers of the 
 senators and deputies. 
 
 An estimate of the population of most of the South 
 American republics is apt to present a certain amount 
 of difficulty, more especially when, as in the case of 
 Paraguay, the native population is large. In the 
 Paraguayan Chaco, for instance, where many of the 
 tribes are still in a condition of savagery, it is clear 
 that in a census of their numbers guesswork must 
 play a very large part. Even in many parts of civi- 
 
SOME SALIENT FEATURES 207 
 
 lized Paraguay, to the east of the great river, it is 
 practically impossible to take count of the Guaranfs 
 in the remoter forest country. Hence the astonish- 
 ing differences in the figures given by the various 
 authorities. 
 
 The larger estimates of these are rendered by the 
 Paraguayans themselves, in which predilection they 
 only conform to a popular weakness throughout the 
 continent — where land is still sufficiently abundant 
 for the various States to watch with pride the increas- 
 ing number of inhabitants I Some of these estimates 
 undoubtedly overshoot the mark, and need not be 
 taken quite seriously here. Of the reasonable figures 
 put forward Don Arsenio Lopez Decoud suggests a 
 population of 1,000,000, which may be accepted as 
 moderately accurate, although the numbers given by 
 the more cautious fall rather below this. 
 
 Of this total 950,000 are held to reside in Paraguay 
 proper, and the r-emaining 50,000 in the Chaco, these 
 latter, of course, comprising the various tribes of 
 Indians, the great majority of which still remain 
 uncivilized. If the accuracy of this estimate be 
 granted — although it must be said that the census of 
 1909 was responsible for a total of no more than 
 633,000 — the population of Paraguay approaches that 
 of Uruguay, notwithstanding the fact that the latter 
 Republic possesses a town of the really imposing size 
 of Montevideo. It must be remembered^ though, that 
 Paraguay was originally one of the countries in South 
 America most thickly populated with Indians, and 
 that in 1865, just before the Paraguayan .War, the 
 population had already attained to nearly a million. 
 But for this desperate campaign, which left alive no 
 more than a third of the Paraguayans, there is no 
 doubt but that the nimibers of the inhabitants of the 
 harried State would have amounted to a really impor- 
 tant figure. I I 
 
 In considering this matter, moreover, it is impos- 
 
208 PARAGUAY 
 
 sible to leave out of the question the more recent 
 political events. Even in the twentieth century civil 
 strife has claimed an astonishing number of victims, 
 the most disastrous years in this respect having been 
 1904, 1908, 1909, 1910, 1911, and 1912. Indeed, 
 Don Arsenio Lopez Decoud states that it is probable 
 that the revolutions have cost the Republic 30 per 
 cent, of its population in the period alone between the 
 years 1904 and 191 2. These figures are sufficiently 
 startling I However, there can be no question here 
 of deaths alone ; for the loss to the State, calculated 
 in this way, must include those who have emigrated 
 from the land for political reasons. In any case no 
 argument beyond such figures as these is needed as 
 an incentive to the Paraguayans to conclude their 
 internal differences as rapidly as possible 1 
 
 Of these inhabitants of Paraguay the whites and 
 a considerable number of the Indians employ the 
 Spanish language. The Guarani tongue is neverthe- 
 less the popular speech of the masses, and the 
 educated classes are wont to employ it as a sub- 
 sidiary language to Castilian, Paraguay being thus 
 a bilingual State. 
 
 Among its other innumerable uses the all-impor- 
 tant Paragtiay River serves as a boundary between 
 the two political sections of ,the State. The western 
 section is that of the Chaco, the level Indian country 
 with its one centre of commercial importance, Villa 
 Hayes, on the bank of the great river. This great 
 district is parcelled out into military, commands, 
 although the influence of these dtoes not yet penetrate 
 into the interior, which is still largely unknown. 
 
 The eastern section constitutes Paraguay proper, 
 and is madle up of twelve departments, each con- 
 taining a certain number of districts. As the list 
 of these departments and districts makes somewhat 
 lengthy reading I will refer the reader to the 
 Appendix for their perusal. 
 
SOME SALIENT FEATURES 209 
 
 Unlike that of a number of other South American 
 republics, the population of Paraguay has not tended 
 to cluster together in any particularly large centres. 
 In this respect it is instructive to compare its capital 
 with the Uruguayan metropolis. V^Stiereas Monte- 
 video possesses mbre than a third of a million 
 inhabitants, it is probable that the population of 
 Asuncion does not exceed 80,000. The sole 
 remaining Paraguayan towns, moreover, which run 
 into five figures are those of Villa Rica and Conoep- 
 ci6n, the populations of which are respectively esti- 
 mated at 30,000 and 16,000. 
 
 A country such as Paraguay, however, is by no 
 means nedessarily the worse off for the lack of any 
 notably swollen tirban centres. Indeed, there is little 
 doubt but that many of the other republics would 
 find their economic conditions not a little improved 
 by a dispersal over th'e land of a oeprtain number 
 of the superfluous inhabitants who have flocked 
 together to some of the great cities. So far as 
 Paraguay is concerned, being so far little in- 
 terested in nianufactures on a large scale, the 
 present distribution of the population would seem 
 to be the most favourable for her staple in- 
 dustries. 
 
 To conclude the first general survey at the more 
 salient features of Paraguay, we may Jake a glimpse 
 at the army and navy, of the Republic. It will 
 have been seen from the foregoing historical pages 
 that the traditions of the Paraguayan army, have 
 continued high throughout its history. Never did 
 they stand higher than in the gireat Paraguayan War 
 which ended in the death of the younger Lopez. 
 Very long, however, before that strug'g'le was brought 
 to a conclusion the Paraguayan regular army had 
 ceased to be, and its ranks had been filled up by 
 the ordinary inhabitants of the country, who con- 
 tinued to step into the rapid breaches until scarcely 
 
 14 
 
210 PARAGUAY 
 
 any others but old men and young boys were left 
 in the ranks. 
 
 At thte present time the standing! artny of Paraguay 
 is not numerous, comprising as it does some two 
 thousand men of all arms. Owing' to the nature of 
 the occupations of a large portion of the Paraguayan 
 populace, however, it would be easy to add rapidly 
 to this number in time of war. In recent years 
 Paraguay has followed the examp'le of various other 
 South American republics in choosing Germany as 
 thfe naiodel upon which to build up her aTmy.^ As a 
 result of this the uniform of the Paraguayan troops 
 is to all intents and purposes German, and the in- 
 struction and organization of the men carried on 
 according to the precepts of Potsdam. In otdev 
 to attend to the organization of this a number of 
 Prussian office?rs h^ve been at work in Asuncion, while 
 at the same timte Paraguayan ofificiers have been 
 atatched to the German Army in Europe. A regular 
 military college, moreover, was founded in Asuncion 
 in 1905. 
 
 The question of the futiu^e 'status of these numerous 
 Prussian military officials in South' America after thie 
 European War is a sufficiently interesting one, though 
 it is, at the time of writing, too early to venture even 
 a supposition on this subject. It is certain that the 
 unpopularity of Germany at the present tim'e through- 
 out the continent is very mai'feed. What effect this 
 will eventually exert upon the South American armies 
 trained on the German model remains to be seen. 
 In the meantime it must be said that, in the eyes of 
 those not trained to admire it, the aspect of the 
 leather helmet and the Prussian friock-coat is com- 
 pletely out of place in the sunny latitudes of the 
 Southern continent. 
 
 Considering that Paraguay possesses no ocean 
 coastline, an imposing Paraguayan naVy is not to 
 be looked for. It may even be a matter of some 
 
SOME SALIENT FEATURES 211 
 
 surprise to a good! many pieopile to hiear that Paraguay 
 possesses a navy at all 1 It must be remembered, 
 however, that the waters of the great River Paraguay 
 constitute an international highway, and that from 
 the port of Asuncion the frontiers of Bolivia, Brazil, 
 Argentina, and Uruguay may be reached without 
 penetrating as far as the ocean. Indeed, the import- 
 ance of a river navy was fully dtemonstrateid in the 
 Paraguayan War, when a regular campaign was 
 fought on the waters of the Paraguay, and when 
 more than one pitched battle occurred between the 
 Paraguayan war vessels and those of the Brazilians 
 and the Argentines. But all this has been fully told 
 in a previous chapter. 
 
 At the present time the maritim'e power of 
 Paraguay is insignificant compared even with the 
 river fleet she possessed at the period of the great 
 war. She possesses, indeed, one or two gunboats, 
 which are in reality little more than converted tugs, 
 and, although these would doubtless put up a gallant 
 enough fight, they could not, in the nature of things, 
 offer any effective resistance to the modern armed 
 vessels with which some of the other republics patrol 
 the great rivers. Fortunately, there would seem very 
 little chance at the present day of any collision 
 of the kind occurring. It must be said, however, 
 that the career of these small vessels has by no 
 means been uneventful, as they have played a lead- 
 ing part in several of the revolutions, and on more 
 than one occasion have been instrumental in turning 
 the scale of power. 
 
CHAPTER XIV 
 
 THE PARAGUAYAN OF TO-DAY 
 
 Respective proportions of the upper and lower classes of the Republic — 
 Some conservative indications — Taste in tea — The triumph of yerba 
 mate — The Paraguayan lady — Matters concerning ease and comfort 
 in costume — Mr. C. B. Mansfield on Paraguay of the mid-nine- 
 teenth century — Patriarchal simplicity of the contemporary society — 
 Asuncion market as it used to be — ^A picturesque spectacle — Visiting — 
 — Dress of the ladies — Hospitality of the inhabitants of Asuncion 
 — Some compUments • in Guarani — A comparison between the Para- 
 guayan and the Argentine gaucho — Influence of the Jesuits on the 
 general population — The Paraguayan as an agriculturist — His 
 occasional exuberance — Labour conditions of the Republic — Intro- 
 duction of the strike — Educational problems — Proportion of 
 illiterates to the population — Difficulties in the rural districts — 
 Asuncion as the centre of journalism- — Work of the South American 
 Missionary Society in the Chaco — The feat of Mr. W. Barbrooke 
 Grubb — Success of the enterprise — The currency of Paraguay — Gold 
 and paper dollars — Fluctuations of the paper dollar — The effect of 
 insignificant values upon the cleanliness of the paper. 
 
 It would, of course, be unreasonable to expect that 
 the inhabitants of a land that, apart from all other 
 circumstances, has suffered from such long periods 
 of political isolation in the past, and the remoteness 
 of whose geographical situation is only, now in the 
 act of being overcome, should resemble in the matter 
 of social ethics the dwellers in the neighbouring 
 republics who have now for generations enjoyed the 
 closest contact with the other civihzed centres of 
 the world. This naturally does not apply to the 
 topmost layers of society, which in Paraguay, as 
 elsewhere throughout the globe, conform to the 
 
 1213 
 
THE PARAGUAYAN OF TO-DAY Q13 
 
 standards and Oonventions of London, Paris, New 
 York, and Buenos Aires. 
 
 But — again in Paraguay as elsewhtere — the actual 
 bulk of this particular stratum is sufficiently slender, 
 and from the point of view of mere numbers it is 
 quite insignificant compared with the mass of the 
 general population. In any case, sandwiched in 
 between the rapidly increasing evidences of the pro- 
 gressive spirit is much that is old-fashionedl — and 
 that dioes not necessarily lose in the least from that 
 condition. This is to be judged from matters which 
 may appear — and generally are — quite unimportant in 
 themselves. The teas, for instance, of India, Ceylon, 
 and China have not yet succeeded in making any 
 appreciable headway against the popular yerba mat6 
 — and it would be strange had they done so, con- 
 sidering that the chief source of Paraguayan tea is, 
 after all, Paraguay, which must be expected tp sup- 
 port its home industries. Paraguayan ladies of the 
 twentieth century will not disdain to be photographed 
 in an attitude which depicts them as leaning on so 
 out of date an instrument as a harp 1 This attitude, 
 as a matter of fact, suits many of the ^ handsome 
 Paraguayan ladies most admirably, and, as I 
 do not think that many of them actually take 
 the trouble to play these harps, it does not 
 follow that they are in reality so Early Victorian 
 as the romantic photographers would have them 
 appear! 
 
 Perhaps I can put such niatters as these in a 
 nutshell by explaining that the average Paraguayan 
 lady has not yet consented to affect the tailor-made 
 fashions. In this she is in alll probability wise, 
 since the flowing garments that she prefers are un- 
 doubtedly better adapted, not only to her own par- 
 ticular type of beauty but to the climate. There 
 is no doubt, indeed, that the suspicion of the lotus 
 which enters into the Paraguayan atmosphere permits 
 
214 PARAGUAY 
 
 a certain unconventionality of costume that is by 
 no means without its advantages. 
 
 This, as a matter of fact, is particularly evident 
 among the poorer classes, and even among some 
 of the less flourishing of the bourgeoisie. These, 
 having more regard for matters of ease and domfort 
 than for the straiter-laced ethics of costume, do not 
 disdain to walk the warm earth on their bare feet, 
 while their women will contentedly puff smoke 
 from at least as miany dg'ars duringi the day as 
 the men. 
 
 Even in the days when Paraguay languished under 
 the heel of her dictators, the Paraguayans would seem 
 to have made the most of thedr free-and-easy lives. 
 No one has borne more striking' testimony to this 
 than Mr. C. B. Mansfield, who visited the country 
 in the early 1850's, when its inhabitants had by 
 the decrees of their tyrants been so long shut off 
 from the outer world that their society had attained 
 to a state of patriarchal simplicity. Surely no modern 
 Paraguayan need think the worse of his ancestors 
 for ithe intellectual ignorance which was thus ptrangely 
 forced upon them for those gienerations . Similar 
 results must have occurred in whatever corner of 
 the world such measures might have been applied. 
 
 These remai'ks of Mansfield's concerning' the 
 general social atmosphere of Asuncion in the middle 
 of the nineteenth century are undoubtedly invalu- 
 able, and I will quote from thtem at some length. 
 
 " It is curious," he says, " to see some of the 
 countrymen of the better sort coming" into town on 
 horseback, with no shoes or stockings, the long fringiei 
 of their calzoncillos dang'ling about their bare teg's, 
 and their toes stuck in massive silver stirrups, 
 silver also decorating their bridles and headstalls 
 with a considerable weig'ht of metal. But the market 
 itself, as I said, is a very pretty sight, being crowded 
 all the week round, Sundays included, with women 
 

THE PARAGUAYAN OF TO-DAY 216 
 
 in wliite (as snow) cotton dresses, their petticoats 
 flounced with lace, coarse or fine according to the 
 wearer, about a foot deep, and above thte flounce a 
 broad band of embroidery in black wool like that 
 of the chemise, not to speak of the scarlet girdle ; 
 with here and there a man, equally in white, but 
 with a scarlet or blue poncho slung over one 
 shoulder." 
 
 Asuncion mar'ket, with its crowding buyers and 
 sellers, its fruits, cakes, sweetmeats, live animals, and 
 all other merchandise, is still a sufficiientily picturesque 
 spot ; but it can no longer, alas 1 present as glowing 
 a picture as this. 
 
 Mansfield was on friendly, terms with many 
 Paraguayans of the higher orders of that period, 
 and his description of the state of society just 
 then is more of less what would be expected 
 fixjm: its long period of artificial isolation. Mansfield 
 says : — 
 
 " The more I see of these simple people the more 
 I like them : there are three or four families whom, 
 though I have only known them a mionth, I should 
 be sorry to see for the last time, if I were going 
 away to-morrow. The artlessness of the young ladies 
 is particularly pleasing ; of course, they are utterly 
 devoid of education, beyond reading and writing. 
 An elderly lady of one of the best families asked 
 me confidentially the other day whether people went 
 by land or by sea from Buenos Aires to the United 
 States, displaying an amount of ignorance of the 
 state of the country in their own vicinity which 
 perhaps you will not at once appreciate. The 
 ladies are always visible from 8 a.m. to lo p.m., 
 except between twelve and three ; in the morning 
 one commonly has to jwait a little while till theiy 
 are dressed ; in the evening they generally sit in 
 state to receive visitors in the patios of their houses, 
 or on the causeway in the street, under the corridor : 
 
216 PARAGUAl^ 
 
 their morning dress is about thfe style of an English' 
 housemaid on a workday, and that for the evening 
 like ditto on Sunday ; their ball and holiday dostumes 
 about the same as that of an English lady of the 
 sensible sort. One or two families, who are a little 
 ahead of their neighbours in following the estito de 
 abajto (the ' style of below ' — down thfe rivet, which 
 includes Buenos Aires and all the rest of the world), 
 I suspect have even introduced sta,y3. 
 
 " A great deal of my timie is consumed in 
 visiting. The oftener you com.e to see any family 
 the better theiy are pleased, and no length of time 
 is too long for one to stay. . . . The Guaranf forms 
 a never-failing source Of talk' and fun ; for I maktei 
 them tell me words, and when they, have repeated 
 them a sufficient number of tim'eis for me to be 
 satisfied of the phoneticB I write them down. . . ." 
 
 Mansfield was justly proud of the knowledge of 
 the Guaranf tongue which he picked up in this 
 fashion, and of his power of rendering his thanks 
 in such Guaranf compliments as, " Nde pugw6ughpe 
 capiip^cha, ndep<5i>e rosapotricha " — " I am under 
 your feet like the grass, and in your hand like a 
 rose." No doubt so distinguished a scholar as Mans- 
 field took care that this rendering of Guaranf should 
 be accurate. There cannot fail to exist a certain 
 number of Englishmen whose opinion on this point 
 must be invaluable — but thte author cannot claim to 
 be one of thfese ! 
 
 Dealing with the populace of the country en masse 
 — a somewhat perilous procfedure — it may be said 
 that the Paraguayan chacr^ro is a milder and more 
 peaceaible man than was the Argentine gaucho: it 
 is necessary to use the past tense in referring to 
 the latter, for the simple reason that the genuine 
 wild son of the southern Campo is now to all intents 
 and purposes extinct. 
 
 The Paraguayan paisano, on the other hand. 
 
THE PARAGUAYAN OF TO-DAY 217 
 
 remains much w*hat he has been since the time when 
 the country becam.te definitely settled. A circum- 
 stance which perhaps influenced the general popula- 
 tion of Paraguay more than any other was the 
 dispersal of the Jesuit establishments that have 
 already been referred to, and the distribution through- 
 out the province of all those Guarani agriculturists 
 who had until then been retained in their communities 
 apart from thte main populacfe. 
 
 Thus the differencie between the Paraguayan 
 pcdsdno and the Argentine gaudho is lal-gely owing 
 to thte fact that the Indian strain of the former 
 springs from a much' mbre peaceable ancestry than 
 such native blood as the true gaucho possessed. 
 The temperament of the Paraguayan is rather that of 
 an agriculturist, while the gaucho has never 
 deigned to fill any, less advienturous r61e than that 
 of a stockrider. 
 
 It must not be imagined fronl this, however, that 
 the character of the Paraguay^Ji populace is neces- 
 sarily lamblike. Generally speaking, the Paraguayan 
 of the masses is amiable and easy-going ; but there 
 is a wild strain in him that is apt to reveal itself 
 with some exuberance at times. On such occasions 
 he is rather apt to bb handy with firearms, not 
 necessarily from malicious motives, or even with the 
 settled intention of damaging any, one, but rather 
 from a surfeit of animal spirits and cma, the native 
 rum. In these days, however, when it is the fashion 
 for almost every, p^eon to carry a revolver, there are 
 doubtless many employers of labbur who sigh for thei 
 comparatively good old days of the less comprehen- 
 sive knife ! 
 
 Of late years the Paraguayan has made strenuous 
 endeavours to bring his labour conditions up to the 
 level of those of the neighbouring republics. To this 
 end the strikb has been introduddd — a weapon of 
 labour which the old-timer would find it extremely 
 
218 PARAGUAY 
 
 difficult to associate with the atmosphere of the inland 
 State. Nevertheless, the strike has arrived — a more 
 significant sign of the times even than the recently 
 constructed houses of modem architecture in 
 Asuncion. 
 
 Notable progress has been made in the educational 
 problems of the RepubUc. The simplest forms of 
 education are apt to present som^e difficulties in a 
 country whose population is as sparse and scattered 
 as that of Paraguay. In 1908 it was estimated that 
 the nimiber of the inhabitants of Paraguay over the 
 age of six years was 411,131, out of which total 
 254,171 were illiterate. In Asuncion itself is a 
 university, as well as a number of sedondary schools. 
 It is in the remoter rural districts that the most 
 difficult educational problems present themselves ; 
 but in the natural <tourse of events these must auto- 
 matically disappear when the districts in question 
 are more fully opened up. 
 
 That which applies to education in Paraguay holds 
 good in the case of journalism. In common with 
 every other Latin-American centre, Asuncion is 
 generously supplied with newspapers and periodicals, 
 and the journaUst here enjoys the hig'h standing that 
 is the right of his profession. The journalistic enter- 
 prise, however, is almost entirely confined to the 
 capital.' 
 
 The religion of the country is, of course, Roman 
 Catholic ; but all creeds are tolerated in accord- 
 ance with the \i,berality of the age. In connection 
 with this, mention may be made of the Anglician 
 mission establishments in the Chaco. This move- 
 ment was begun in 1889, when the Church of 
 England South American Missionary Society sent a 
 pioneer, Mr. W. Barbrooke Grubb, into the then 
 completely unknown wilds of that part of the Chaco 
 inhabited by the Lengua Indians. 
 " See Appendix. 
 
THE PARAGUAYAN OF TO-DAY 219 
 
 Barbrooke Grubb's feats among thte Indians are 
 now becoming familiar to many whose interests are 
 not directly connected with South America. At the 
 same time, the fame of this '''Livingstone of South 
 America " is not yet as widespiread as it deserves 
 to be. The story of his first entry into the Chado, 
 of his self-introduction to the savage and menacing 
 natives, and of his almost miraculous escapes from 
 death at their hands, is to be excelled in none of 
 the missionary, annals throughout the world. Its 
 results are plain to see — ^to all those who care 
 to take the trouble to enter the Chaco I — in the 
 church, schools, and' in the centre of inteUeotual 
 and industrial progness that now flourishes as 
 a bright spot in the midst of thie strange Ch^co 
 country. 
 
 In order to end this dha'pter on a less exalted note, 
 we mlay turn to ai topic which has so far possessed 
 very little interest in the Chaco, the currency of 
 Paraguay. The dollar here is arranged, as in Argen- 
 tina, on a double basis. The gold dollar is the 
 equivalent of the gold dollar throughout South 
 America and of that of the United States. But the 
 paper dollar — the national doUar of the Republic — 
 fluctuates with the vicissitudes of the State. Of late 
 years it must be admitted that the tendency of this 
 paper money has been to deteriorate. Thus in 191 o 
 the average rate of exchange was just under 70 
 dollars to the pound sterling. In 191 2 the average 
 was nearly 76 dollars ; in 1913 it was just below 
 "JT, and during 191 4 the rate of exchange shot up 
 to 1 00 dollars to the pound ! 
 
 The effect of this is evident in small matters as 
 well as in large. As nickel coins appear to be 
 no longer in circulation, the wear .and tear to which 
 the paper money is now subjected will be evident 
 when it is explained that, at this last rate, a dollar 
 note is worth a fraction more than twopence, and 
 
220 PARAGUAY 
 
 a fifty-centavos note stands as the equivalent of a 
 a shade more than a penny, I Representing' such 
 insignificant values, they pass from hand to hand 
 as freely as do copiper coins in England, and the 
 lamentable result, so far as the surface and^-cleanii- 
 ness of the note is concerned, can easily be imagined I 
 
CHAPTER XV 
 
 PHYSICAL FEATURES 
 
 Paraguayan mountains and forests — Rivers — Situation of the Iguazii Falls 
 Principal natural characteristics — ^The Paraguay River — Its source — 
 The Lake of Xarayes — Quality of imagination as displayed in the 
 ancient maps — The imagined and the real importance of this sheet of 
 vi?ater — Some features of the Paraguay River — Navigable limit of the 
 stream — Circumstances which favour shipping — Differences between 
 the Paraguay and the Parana — Tributaries — Similar purposes served 
 by the Apa and the Pilcomayo — Importance of some of the affluents — 
 The Tebicuary — Characteristics of the western tributaries — The 
 Pilcomayo River — An ill-defined stream — A curious phenomenon — 
 The Alto Parana River — ^The Guayra Falls — Tributaries of the Alto 
 Parana — Paraguayan mountains — Isolated hills in the Chaco — The 
 chains of Amambay and Mbaracayii — Characteristics of the hill 
 country — Paraguayan lakes — The Chaco inundations — Lakes Ypoa 
 and Camba — Lake Ipacarai — A beauty spot of Paraguay — The 
 Estero Neembucu — Climate of the Republic — A Paraguayan claim 
 — Temperatures — ^The annual monthly rainfall — Favourable distribu- 
 bution of rain for agriculture — Minerals. 
 
 Speaking generally, it may be said that the physical 
 aspects of Paraguay are of an agreeable, rather than 
 of a grand, nature. The inland State, for instance, 
 lacks any mountains comparable with those of Brazil 
 to the east, or with those of Bolivia to the west, 
 very few Paraguayan ranges — ^even on the eastern 
 frontier, where they are boldest — exceeding fifteen 
 hundred feet in height. 
 
 Paraguay, moreover, possesses nothing gigantic in 
 the way of deserts, lakes, or plains, though it is 
 true that the wealth of forest which covers the rolling 
 country is sufficiently notable. In rivers alone can 
 the Republic pride itself on possessing something 
 
 S2t 
 
222 PARAGUAY 
 
 phenomenal, although even here it has, strictly 
 speaking, been deprived of one of the most notable 
 features in the world ; for the famous Falls of Iguazd, 
 whic'h occur where the three States of Paraguay, 
 Argentina, and Brazil meet, are actually bounded 
 on the one side by Argentina and on the other by 
 Brazil, the Paraguayan shore beingi just beyond the 
 reach of the troubled waters. 
 
 The principal natural characteristics of Paraguay, 
 then, are lightly rolling, forest-covered hills and 
 valleys, two magnifitent rivers fed by innumerable 
 streams, the curious plains of the Chaco, and a 
 few definite mountain ranges of quite inconsiderable 
 height. 
 
 Since in many respects its rivers constitute 
 Paraguay's most important natural features, we may 
 deal with these first. The more important of the 
 two main streams which water the Paraguayan soil 
 is, naturally, the Paraguay River. The source of 
 this stream is well to the north of the frontier of 
 the inland Republic. It rises, in fact, in the Matto 
 Grosso plateau, within a metaphorical stone's-throw 
 of the headwaters of some of the southern streams 
 of the Amazon system. Its actual source is a 
 Brazilian district known as Las Siete Lagunas, or 
 "The Seven Lakes," in latitude 14° 35' south. 
 
 The Paraguay River begins by running due 
 south, coursing with considerable velocity as far as 
 latitude 16° south. After this its slackening speed 
 is marked by a series of strongly defined curves, 
 which continue until the swampy Lake of Xarayes 
 is reached. This Lake of Xarayes, it should be 
 said, has played a much greater part in ancient 
 records than was its rig'ht. Up to a certain point 
 it has a good deal in comlnon with Raleigh's mythical 
 lake on the banks of whidh stood the golden city 
 of Manoa. It is true that, althoug-h this latter lake 
 has now been completely wiped off the earth by 
 
v" ' 
 
 w^ 
 
 ^ 
 
 
 
 ■\ \U 
 
 '\ 
 
 ^^N 
 
 '^ 
 
 •'1^^, 
 
PHYSICAL FEATURES 223 
 
 the modern map-makers, the waters of Xarayes still 
 make their appearance in the atlases of to-day. But 
 the process of shrinking which thtey have undergone 
 is of a sensational order ! 
 
 In the ancient maps — when the quality, of imagina- 
 tion was of a more practical value than it is to-day 
 — the Lake of Xarayes appears as a vast sheet of 
 water in the ctentre of the continent. In the eyes 
 of the seventeenth and early eig'hteenth century 
 geographer this amazing expanse of water dwarfed 
 Titicaca — just as, incidentally, the stream of the 
 Paraguay River was made to appear considerably 
 broader than that of the Amazon. There it lay-- 
 peu connu, as a less sanguine Frenchman admitted 
 in a legend beneath its iname — with its arms stretching 
 out towards some imaginary mountains, a thing that 
 could not fail to catch the eye at once, being pne of 
 the m.ost salient objects of the map. 
 
 To-day he who is unfamiliar with the situation 
 of Lake Xarayes will have some diffidulty in tracing 
 its modest outline. In any case it is through these 
 shallow waters of reduced fame that the Paraguay 
 River makes its way, and^ after Tiaving received 
 a number of tributaries on its left bank, flows into 
 the Paraguayan Republic a little to the south of 
 latitude 22°. 
 
 Before referring to the numerous tributaries which 
 enter the Paraguay River during its passage through 
 the inland Republic, it would bie as weU to observe 
 some of the features of the main stream. Although 
 to the north of Asuncion it is customary to employ 
 vessels of less draught than those which ply between 
 the Paraguayan capital and the Atlantic, neverthe- 
 less the stream is navigable for moderate-sized steam 
 vessels for considerable stretches beyond the northern 
 frontier. Indeed, it is claimed that the river is 
 navigable to a point as far to the north as latitude 1 6° 
 south. In any case the species of craft which can 
 
224 PARAGUAY 
 
 ascend so far as this compriseis nothingi bteypridi steam 
 launches. 
 
 So far as the Paragoiayian shore is concerned, 
 however, the stream that washles the entire length 
 of this territory, is navigable by important vessels. 
 .Thie rliver, inoreover, is entirely unbiroken by rapids, 
 and the current is inclined' to be less at the mercy 
 of shifting sandbankb than that of the lower reaches 
 constituting the Parand. One of the circumstances, 
 indeed, which chiefly, strike the traveller, ascending 
 the river system, is the absence in the Paraguay 
 of those innumerable lowly islands — many of which 
 come into being and die away in the course of a 
 few decades — that dot the waters of the Parand. 
 Seeing, moreover, that the current is moderate, the 
 Paraguayan is fortunate in having an almost ideal 
 river to navigate. 
 
 The majority, of the tributairies of the Paraguay 
 River flow in from' thie east by way, of its left bank. 
 From north to south, the first of these is the Apa. 
 This stream', though' diametrically opposed in its 
 direction, serves an almost exactly similar purpose 
 in the north to that which the PUcomayo does in the 
 south. The Pilcomayo comes apross from the west 
 to cut off Argentina, wlhich has encroached for some 
 hundreds of milbs on the western bank of the river, 
 facing Paraguayan soil on the east. The Apa runs 
 from the east to cut off! Braizil, which has encroached 
 for some hundreds of miles on the eastern bSink of 
 the river, facing Paraguayan soil in the west. 
 
 Leaving the subject of these two curiously con- 
 sistent rivers, we arrive at the , River Aquidaban, 
 and, farther to the south again, the Ipiane. Some 
 idea of the importance of the Paraguay, even in these 
 upper stretches may be glathered from the fact that 
 both these tributaries are of a tength approaching 
 two himdred miles. 
 
 In commercial importance, however, these two 
 
PHYSICAL FEATURES 226 
 
 streams are outdone by the next tributary to the 
 south, the Jejui, which is an important navigable 
 river. But it is the last tributary on this bank to be 
 noted which is the most important of all. This is 
 the Tebicuary, which joins the main river to the 
 south of Asuncion, between the ports of Villa Franca 
 and Villa del Pilar. The Tebicuary, which possesses 
 a nuniber of tributaries of its own, rises in 
 the Sierra de Cadpucd. Its dimensions will be evi- 
 dent when it is explained that it enters the main 
 stream by two mouths, the breadth of the first of 
 these being over half a mile, and that of the second 
 exceeding a third of a mite. 
 
 These constitute practically all the tributaries of 
 the great river that are Paraguayan on both banks. 
 Nothing of the kind is received from the opposite 
 bank of the main river, where the dead Itevel of the 
 Chaco with its toose. soil tends to encourage such 
 streams as exist to overflow their Ibw shores, and 
 to transform all the neighbouring country into a 
 vast lake. The effect of the countless trunks of 
 palm-trees as they emerge in their groves from the 
 waters is most curious. 
 
 This is the case, too, even in parts of the impor- 
 tant Pilcomayo River which divides Paraguay from 
 Argentina. The source of the Pilcomayo is in 
 Bolivia, in the neighbourhood of that of the Rio 
 Grande, and, considering its great length, the stream 
 is most curiously ill-defined in many of the districts 
 through which it passes. Even in those parts where 
 the depth is sufficient for small steamers the abun- 
 dance of snags which infest the current frequently 
 make navigation difficult in the extreme. 
 
 Needless to say, the cause of all this waterlog;ged 
 timber is the loose alluvial soil, which, when eaten 
 into by the waters, crumbles into the stream, bear- 
 ing with it the trees that had been rooted in it. 
 The author has himseM seen the effect of a storm 
 
 15 
 
226 PARAGUAY 
 
 which raised considerabte waves on one of these 
 streams. As the waves heat upon the low shore 
 one gTea-t length of the bank fell in after another, 
 and the effect of the lines of tropical trees toppling 
 forward into the water was not a little extraordinary. 
 
 A very different state of affairs is to be met with 
 in the Alto Parand, the second of Paragliay's main 
 streams. The Alto Parani, which rises in the State 
 of Goyaz in Brazil, is essentially a rocky stream, 
 although here and there it swells out into large 
 lake-hke expanses, one of the chief of which, 
 extending itself just above the Guayra Falls, is five 
 miles or so in width. These Guayra! Falls occur 
 at the point where the Parand River begins to wash 
 Paraguayan territory. They are said to be two 
 hundred feet or so short of the height of the Iguazd 
 Falls ; but the volume of water projected by the 
 Guayra Falls is considerably greater. The first pas- 
 sage of the Alto Parand along the Paraguayan shore 
 is extremely rapid, and the current, which has carved 
 a deep bed for itself, is much disturbed by rocks 
 and broken waters. 
 
 It is true that as the river approaches its junction 
 with the Paraguay it becomes navigable for light 
 draught stern-wheel steamers. Nevertheless the 
 stream may be said to be remarkable for its grand 
 and picturesque scenery rather than for any particular 
 navigable qualities, considering the size of the river. 
 As may be supposed, the Alto Parand possesses no 
 tributaries which may be compared with the principal 
 affluents of the Paraguay. The chief of those which 
 traverse Paraguayan soil are the Acaray, the Tacuarf, 
 and the Monday, the last stream being rather more 
 than a hundred miles in length. 
 
 It has already been remarked in this chapter that 
 Paraguay possesses no mountains of the kind which 
 would be considered of the slightest importance in 
 Bolivia or Brazil. The plains of the Chaco region are. 
 
PHYSICAL FEATURES 227 
 
 of course, broken by no elevation worthy of anything 
 approadhing the name of mountain, although one 
 or two isolated elevations are to, be met with here and 
 there, and althoug'h on the Bolivian border to the 
 north the well-defined range of the Cordilleras de 
 Chochis spring's up. But these mountains occur in 
 a district where the features of the Chaco proper 
 do not obtain. 
 
 Two of the principal mountain chains to the east 
 of the Paraguay River are those of Amambay and 
 Mbaracayd, both of which are prolongations of that 
 very extensive Brazilian range which runs parallel 
 with the coast. It is imnecessary to enter here into 
 the ramifications of these hills, or even into a dis- 
 quisition concemingt the various names by which their 
 subdivisions are known, for the nomenclature here is 
 apt to be a little confusing. 
 
 It may be taken that these elbvations lack that 
 significance which appertains to so many of the South 
 American chains. In themselves they constitute no 
 barrier to the opening up of the country. As a 
 rute they are easy to traverse, the gradient of the 
 sliopes being in most parts moderately gentle. That 
 which is apt to form' an obstacle to the traveller 
 is the thick vegetation which in many districts covers 
 these somewhat lowly mountains from their summits 
 to the banks of the little stream which so frequently 
 goes plashing along the valley. The timber of these 
 forests is dealt with elsewhere. 
 
 Paraguay is sparsely provided with lakes. There 
 are times when a new-comer to the Chaco, seeing 
 himseM surrounded by enormous stretches of inland 
 water, must receive with incredulity the information 
 that the Chaco does not contain a single lake. Yet 
 this is true enoug'h, and the great sheets of water 
 which abound there at different periods are merely 
 the result of inundations, and must not be regarded 
 as permanent. 
 
228 PARAGUAY 
 
 This, of course, is not the case in Paraguay 
 proper, where exist several lakes of comparatively 
 modest dimensions. One of the most curious of these 
 is Lake Ypoa in the neighbourhood of the Paraguay 
 River, a little to the north of the River Tebicuary. 
 This sheet of water is situated in an unusually flat 
 region, and is somewhat difficult to be adapted to 
 practical purposes, being surrounded by swamps 
 which are frequently so extensive as to make the 
 true shores of the lake difficult of approach. A 
 smaller lake, Camba, to the south of Ypoa, is situated 
 in similar country ; but the swamps here are by, 
 no means so extensive. 
 
 A far more beautiful sheet of water is Lake Ipa- 
 caraf, situated to the east of Asuncion. The shores 
 of this, as a matter of fact, constitute one of the 
 popular beauty spots of Paraguay, and are dotted 
 with pleasure resorts such as San Bernardino. 
 
 Beyond this there is a vast extent of swampy water 
 in the south-western corner of the Republic, the 
 Estero Neembucu, which is sometimes known by 
 courtesy as a kke, and a few true lakes in the 
 centre of the country such as those of Aguaracaty, 
 Mandivii, and Ypita.. 
 
 As regards the cMmlate of Paraguay, an enthu- 
 siastic Paraguayan makes the following claim: " Let 
 us begin with a categorical statement, dictated by 
 almost six lustra of meticulous observation, and by 
 an ample comparison with all the climates of the 
 earth: Within the limits of practical possibilities 
 the climate of Paraguay realizes the conditions of 
 an ideal climate." 
 
 This is a bold claim', but it is justified to a far 
 g'reater degree than is usually the case with such 
 assertions'. In the first place, it may be said that, 
 considering its situation, the summer heat of Paraguay 
 is by no means excessive. In the neighbourhood 
 of Asuncion, at all events, it is rare even m 
 
PHYSICAL FEATURES 229 
 
 December, January, and February for the thermo- 
 meter to register over ioo° Fahrenheit. In winter 
 the record will occasionally fall nearly as low as 
 40° Fahrenheit, but in the daytime it is nothing un- 
 usual for the reading to exceed 80° even in July 
 or August. 
 
 The rainy season, moreover, occurs in the summer, 
 a circumstance that, from the visitor's point of view — 
 since Paraguay is a winter rather than a summer 
 resort — is much to be commended. 
 
 The figures belbw give the average monthly 
 rainfall throughout the year, as calculated by a 
 Paraguayan authority. The quantities are worked 
 out in millimetres: — ' 
 
 mm. 
 
 January 196 
 
 February 151 
 
 March 137 
 
 April 181 
 
 May 142 
 
 June 106 
 
 It will be seen froimi this that, if the distribution 
 of the rainfall be convenient for the tourist, it is also 
 favourable for an infinitely more important object, 
 the agricultural growths of the country. For it is 
 a nlatter of the utmost interest to these industries 
 that the seasons should not be divided into alternate 
 periods of drought and downpour as is the case 
 in so many tropical countries . In Paraguay a certain 
 amoimt of moisture is aliways at hand from one year's 
 end to another, to compensate for the desiccating 
 effects of the brilliant sunshine. It is largely owing 
 to this, of course, that such an unusual luxuriance 
 is evident in the vegetation of the Republic. 
 
 Yery few of the more precious minerals, it may 
 be said, are met with in Paraguay. Iron abounds in 
 many parts, but has not yet been subjected to any 
 industrial tests of importance. Much copper is said 
 
 / 
 
 mm. 
 
 July 
 
 98 
 
 August 
 
 63 
 
 September 
 
 ... 125 
 
 October 
 
 196 
 
 November 
 
 ... 163 
 
 December 
 
 160 
 
230 PARAGUAY 
 
 to exist in Encarnaci6n and Cadpucfi. Manganese, 
 too, is said to be abundant in various parts, more 
 especi^ly in the Cordillerita, and marble is also 
 found. In 1779 important desposits of mercury were 
 supposed to hiave been discovered in some district or 
 other situated at a distance of 150 miles from Asun- 
 cion. Thfe record of the exact locality, however, would 
 seem to have been Ibst. It is, indeed, probable 
 enough that, since no measures were suggested from 
 Spain — to which country samples of the mineral were 
 sent in 1779— much 'was l^acking in either the quality 
 or the quantity, of the supposed deposit. 
 
CHAPTER XVI 
 
 TRAFFIC AND DEVELOPMENT 
 
 The establishment of the steam ferry across the Alto Parana — A momen- 
 tous link — The shadow of contemporary events— Results of the Great 
 War — Economic situation — ^A postponement of benefits — Country 
 traversed by the line — The garden of South America — The journey 
 by rail from Buenos Aires to Asuncion— The ferry from Zirate to 
 Ibicuy — From the Parana to the Uruguay — Ramifications of th« 
 system — ^An enchanting landscape — Peculiarities of the Misionea 
 earth — The passage of the Alto Parana — Paraguay — Sub-tropical 
 exuberance of the landscape — Effects of the international crisis on 
 the time-table — Influence of the railway — Political considerations — 
 Industrial impetus — Forthcoming railroad connection with Brazil — 
 Extensive international ramifications — ^A new southern line — Para- 
 guay's future as a tourist resort — The attractions of Asuncion and 
 San Bernardino — Other points of interest — Some waterfalls and 
 ruins — Local travelling— Difficulties of the by-ways— Bullock carts- 
 Inconveniences of the soil — Chaco inundations. 
 
 It was in 1913 that occurred one of the most impor- 
 tant events in the history of Paragtiay. It is true 
 that this was in no way connected with politics, 
 presidents, or constitutions. All that actually 
 occurred, in fact, was the establishment of the 
 steam ferry across the Alto Parand River, by means 
 of which communication was opened up between the 
 Paraguay Central Railway and the Argentine North 
 Eastern Railway. But the link was actually of the 
 most momentous order ; for it was the last in the 
 lengthy chain by which the inland State of Paraguay 
 for the first time in its history was given a direct 
 road to the sea independent of the watery highwiay 
 offered by its great river. 
 
232 PARAGUAY 
 
 By means of this steam ferry, which bodily trans- 
 ports the trains between Posadas on the Argentine 
 shore and Encamaci6n on the opposite Paraguayan 
 bank, Asuncion is now in direct railway communi- 
 cation not only with Buenos Aires, but with the 
 Uruguayan capital of Montevideo in addition. The 
 true importance of this achievement has been con- 
 siderably obscured by the shadow of contemporary 
 events. From the point of worldwide acknowledg- 
 ment it was certainly unfortunate that the fruit of 
 all the years of work and preparation should have 
 come to maturity just at a period when the countries 
 of the Rio de la Plata — suffering from the European 
 complications hatched in the Balkans — were under- 
 going a financial crisis. This in itself was sufficient 
 to depress the spirits of the most resolute share- 
 holders ; but when in the following year the great 
 European War broke out, scarcely a ray of light 
 seemed to be left on the horizon. 
 
 It was inevitable, of course, that this gigantic 
 catastrophe should lead to an unprecedented situa- 
 tion in Paraguay. Thus, instead of the "bumper" 
 freights and financial profit which in ordinary circum- 
 stances could scarcely have failed to attend the 
 enterprise, a far less satisfactory situation had to 
 be faced. This has been admirably explained in 
 the Paraguay Central Railway's report for the year 
 ending on the 30th of June, 1915 : — 
 
 " The situation of Paraguay has been entirely 
 abnormal : the economic life of the country passed 
 through a period of rapid changes. Much of the 
 business effected during the past year has been inci- 
 dental to this abnormal condition ; that is to say, is 
 perhaps due less to a healthy increase in the output 
 of produce, where increase has occurred, than to 
 efforts to adjust changing values to the new con- 
 ditions. 
 
 " For example, produce has in some cases been 
 
TRAFFIC AND DEVELOPMENT 233 
 
 exported in satisfaction of debts abroa:d', whereas in 
 normal times money payments would have been made. 
 In some cases the depreciation of the currency enabled 
 exporters to purchase native products at unusually 
 favourable prices, but the rise in freights, etc., and 
 the congestion of ocean traffic soon tended to make 
 these profits illusory. The depreciation of the currency, 
 enabled the timber companies to save on wages and 
 to sell in Argentina, where a stock of Paraguayan 
 timber has accumulated. On the other hand, the 
 same cause affected the internal cattle trade adversely, 
 and the depreciation of the paper money has, perhaps 
 more than anything else, contributed to the im- 
 poverishment of the people." 
 
 It is clear enough that a situation such as this could 
 not fail to result in a fall in traffic receipts. But, 
 although the vastly increased commerce that had been 
 anticipated with so much reason has not yet 
 materialized, there is no question whatever but that 
 its advent is merely postponed, and that when once 
 the normal situation has been re-established in South 
 America and throughout the world, the benefits of 
 this most important railway communication must be 
 experienced to the full. In the meantime some of the 
 results of the traffic workings of recent years will 
 be found in the Appendix. 
 
 ■ It has practically become an axiom now among 
 the railway experts of South America that a railway 
 line makes its own traffic. This has proved the 
 case even where the lines have been flung out into 
 a desert and unpopulated coimtry. As it happens, the 
 region through which this new line passes, both to 
 the north and south of the Alto Parand River, is 
 neither desert nor unpopulated. It is, in fact, that 
 very garden of South America in which the Jesuits 
 of old raised their varied and very abundant crops. 
 All that has been required to invest these districts 
 with their former smUing fertility has been the touch 
 
234 PARAGUAY 
 
 of a railway line, and' a few whiffs of sittoke from 
 an engine I But for this matter-of-fact magic the 
 neighbourhood has cried out in vain until now 
 — and even now, as has been explained, the magic 
 touch cannot become operative until the return of 
 normal conditions. 
 
 The journey by rail from the Atlantic coast to 
 Asuncion is a sufficiently remarkable one, and affords 
 a notable instance of the triumph of the engineer 
 over natural obstacles. Should the traveller start 
 from Buenos Aires he will soon discover that, in the 
 ramifications of the railway route, the stream of the 
 Alto Parand is not the only one which separates him 
 from Asuncion. Less than three hours' run, as a 
 matter of fact, brings him to the bank of the mighty 
 main river itself, the Parani proper. Here, at the 
 port of Zdrate waits the giant steam ferry-boat that 
 receives the long train in three divisions on its deck, 
 and that sets out on her voyage along the waters of 
 the river. To those who choose to remain within 
 the railway carriages the sensations of this completely 
 noiseless progress, void, moreover, of any vibration, 
 ie sufficiently strange. 
 
 A far more interesting plan, however, is to alight 
 from the railway carriage and to mount to the 
 spacious upper deck, whence the ramifications of the 
 various channels of the river can be observed. After 
 four hours or so of this passage of the still waters, 
 the square bow of the ferry fits itself into the groove 
 prepared for it at Ibicuy on the Entre-Rios shore. 
 After this the train rumbles off on to the land lines, 
 forms itself again into a single row of carriages, and 
 makes its way to the north through the Argentine 
 province of Entre-Rios. 
 
 At the important railway centre of Concordia the 
 waters of another great South American river, the 
 Uruguay, come in sight. At this point, by ferrying 
 acrosi the stream*-but on this occasion independently 
 
TRAFFIC AND DEVELOPMENT 236 
 
 of the raUway carriages— and entering th^ train at the 
 Uruguayan city of Salto on the opposite bank, direct 
 communication is available with Montevideo, the 
 Uruguayan capital that reposes on the northern bank 
 of the great estuary, just where the Atlantic Ocean 
 ends and the river begins. 
 
 From this point onwards the interest of the journey 
 waxes with an almost bewildering rapidity. By the 
 time that the junction of Monte Caseros has been 
 reached, the wealth of verdure and blossom that 
 comes pressing forward to the line at intervals has 
 notably increased. Here and there is caught a 
 glimpse of the upper waters of the Uruguay River 
 — clear and sparkling reaches, these, that differ 
 completely from the broad yeUow flood nearer ths 
 mouth. 
 
 As the train enters the northernmost Argentine 
 province of Misiones — the northernmiost, that is to say, 
 so far as these eastern territories are concerned — the 
 enchanting slopes, valleys, and patches of woodland 
 mlake it perfectly clear that the garden of South 
 America chosen of old by the Jesuits has been entered. 
 The soil has become a rich red — a tint that in its 
 way suggests the Devon earth. This ruddy shade is 
 characteristic of these regions that still largely await 
 development, of the coffee lands of BrazU, and of 
 a great part of Paraguay itself. 
 
 It is undoubtedly fertile to a degree, this warm, 
 bright earth of these favoured neighbourhoods. It 
 possesses, moreover, various peculiarities of its own. 
 In periods of drought its dust clouds are formidable, 
 and in times of heavy rain the mud into which it 
 resolves itself is not only unusually deep, but at the 
 same time most extraordinarily tenacious. He who 
 takes an involuntary roll in the mud of Paraguay 
 and of these neighbouring districts must make up 
 his mind to bear the ruddy stains on his clothes for 
 a very long time to come ; for it is no more to be 
 
236 PARAGUAY 
 
 banished by a casual application of the ordinary, 
 brush than is a host of swamp mosquitoes to be 
 discouraged by such inefficient opponents as a pair 
 of human hands. But, so far as the Paraguayan soil 
 is concerned, it is easy to put up with such minor 
 inconveniences in view of its most generous services 
 as a producing agent. 
 
 Advancing steadily northwards over the new line, 
 once again the waters of a great stream come in sight. 
 Embowered in a more luxuriant screen of verdure 
 than those other waters to the south, the beautiful 
 Alto Parand River endeavours to bar with its stream 
 the way into Paraguay. It now entirely lacks that 
 success it enjoyed in the past. The railway companies 
 have seen to that, and the steam ferry which awaits 
 the train lies against the bank in massive proof of 
 their triumph. 
 
 The great vessel which takes the train upon its 
 deck at this port of Posadas is modelled on exactly 
 the same lines as the one which plied between the 
 southern ports of Zdrate and Ibicuy, and sets out 
 upon the waters with a similar conviction of tre- 
 mendous power, which, for some reason or other, 
 seems far more apparent here than it does in the 
 ordinary steam vessel. In one respect, however, this 
 second passage is more momentous than was the 
 first. It is an international one, and its conclusion 
 lands the traveller in the Paraguayan port of Villa 
 Encarnaci6n. 
 
 From this point ten hours or so of railway travel 
 take the passenger to the end of his journey. But 
 there will be much to see before he arrives at the 
 town of Asuncion. It is true that, on the whole, the 
 landscape closely resembles the smiling country of 
 Misiones ; but with every northward mile the sub- 
 tropical exuberance becomes more manifest. The 
 lapacho-trees grow taller, and the spreading clusters 
 of their pink blossom still more abundant. The 
 
TRAFFIC AND DEVELOPMENT 237 
 
 forest patches that ahernate with the rolling opven 
 country become denser, while the clearings in the 
 woodland are more closely populated with a dancing 
 flight of gorgeous butterflies, and carpeted with an 
 added profusion of brilliant flowers. 
 
 The speech of the populace is now Guarani — a 
 proof that we have really and truly left the cosmo- 
 politan ethics of the south far behind. We are, 
 in fact, among the landscape, people, and fruits 
 of Paraguay. Since these are described in other 
 places, we may leave them for the present, and 
 turn to some of the practical considerations of 
 the railway. 
 
 The disadvaritageous circumstances which prevailed 
 when the junction with the Argentine railways was 
 effected have already been referred to. These have 
 naturally affected the time-tables of the international 
 trains. In the first place it had been intended to 
 run three international trains each way in the week ; 
 but the present crisis has caused the number of 
 these to be reduced to one each week. 
 
 As I have already endeavoured to point out, it 
 would be absurd to estimate the prospects of the 
 railway from this. The mere possibility of reach- 
 ing Asuncion in fifty hours from Buenos Aires must 
 in normal times offer an ou,tlook sufficiently tempting 
 to be resisted by very few who have the means to 
 afford the trip, whether they be commercial folk or 
 tourists. But before dealing with these latter the 
 larger political and industrial situation, as influenced 
 by the railway, mUst be considered. 
 
 The tendency of lines such as this to reduce dis- 
 turbed populations to a condition of ordered and 
 occupied tranquillity has already been referred to. 
 That this influence will be exerted in Paraguay before 
 long is, humanly speaking, as inevitable as that the 
 country through which the line passes must receive 
 an industrial impetus such as it has never before 
 
238 PARAGUAY 
 
 experienced. As it is, both the cattle and the orange 
 trafl&c from Paraguay are showing signs of consider- 
 able development. But the future of the railway is 
 bound up with the future of the Republic — it is a 
 platitude, this — and no rapid progress can be looked 
 for until a normal situation has come about again in 
 the world. 
 
 The next important feature of the railway de- 
 velopment in Paraguay will be the connection 
 by rail of thte inland Republic with Brazil : this 
 line will run from Asuncion to the east, tending very 
 slightly to the north. The railway wiU enter Brazil 
 in the close neighbourhood of the fambus Falls of 
 Iguazd, where it wiU be linked up with the Brazilian 
 systems connecting, with Rio dte Janeiro, Sao Paulo, 
 Santos, ajnd all the principal ports and cities of the 
 centre and south. By this means, indeed, an alternate 
 railway connection with the Uruguayan capital of 
 Montevideo will be offered. 
 
 The first sections of the line, starting from 
 Asuncion, have already been completed. The topo- 
 graphical difficulties of the further sections, where 
 the line enters the mountainous country, are naturally 
 very much greater than those of the first, and the 
 progress here cannot be expected to proceed with 
 the same rapidity. When this work, however, has 
 been completed the strategical situation of the inland 
 Republic, instead of being disadvantageous, will have 
 much to commend it. Asimcion, in fact, will form' 
 one point of a great railroad triangle, the other 
 two points being respectively Buenos Aires and 
 Rio de Janeiro. This will mark the completion 
 of the main railway ramifications of the inter- 
 national system of Argentina, Paraguay, Uruguay, 
 and Brazil. 
 
 Another railroad which in course of time must 
 prove of great interest has been begun, running south- 
 ward from Paraguarf station on the Central Paraguay 
 
TRAFFIC AND DEVELOPMENT 239 
 
 railway. It is possible that this may be eventually 
 carried to the south as far as the Parand River. 
 
 It is difficult to see, when political circumstances 
 have once permanently adjusted themselves in Para- 
 guay, what conditions can arise to interfere with the 
 prosperity of the country. Speaking from the in- 
 dustrial point of view, the great variety of tte 
 Paraguayan products in itself constitutes a safeguard 
 against a comprehensive financial depression. More- 
 over, the r61es which Paraguay is destined to play 
 in the future must necessarily increase as the true 
 importance of the neighbouring countries begfins to 
 assert itself. 
 
 Thus, apart from all question of pastoral and 
 agricultural products, there is no doubt that Paraguay 
 has a considerable future before it as a pleasure 
 resort. Twenty years ago a prediction such as this 
 would have been received with complete increduUty ; 
 but things move quickly in the south-east of the 
 continent. The ease with which, in normal times, 
 riches are accumulated in Argentina has already pro- 
 duced a very well-defined demand for pleasure resorts 
 in the convenient neighbourhood of that great 
 RepubHc. 
 
 In response to this have sprung into being such 
 bathing-places as Mar del Plata in Arg'entina itself, 
 Pogitos in the neighbourhood of the Uruguayan 
 capital, and half a dozen similar pleasure towns 
 where the salt breezes of the Atlantic tend to counter- 
 act the summer heat of the interior. All such resorts, 
 however, are designed for the warm months only, and 
 there are many who are by no means loath to slip 
 away during a few weeks of the short, but fairly 
 sharp, mid- Argentine winter. 
 
 The new Brazilian resort of Guarujd, in thfe neigh- 
 bourhood of Santos, has begun to cater for a demand 
 such as this. But it must be admitted that, 
 although the relatipns between the Argentines and 
 
240 PARAGUAY 
 
 the Brazilians are now most satisfactory, the Argen- 
 tine as a general rule prefers to take his pleasure 
 in a spot where his own speech prevails. That 
 Paraguay is admirably adapted for this purpose has 
 already been proved by the incfeasing numbers of 
 Argentines who have taken to visiting its bahny 
 lands in the winter. 
 
 Up to the present the two chief resorts of this 
 land have been Asuncion and San Bernardino, a 
 very pleasant spot on a picturesque lake to the east 
 of Asuncion, situated at two or three hours' journey 
 from the capital. But in that future which the march 
 of the great southern continent should — with a very 
 moderate degree of optimism — be expected to bring 
 about, these two pleasant spots could only rank as 
 the headquarters of a wide field of places of notable 
 interest. The magnificent Falls of the Iguazd are 
 in themselves sufficient to draw all the way from 
 Europe and North America visitors who would see 
 a cascade of water the volume of which is exceeded 
 by no other, and the natural beauties of which are 
 probably unique in the world. 
 
 It requires very little imagination, moreover, to 
 picture the power of attraction which the Jesuit ruins 
 must exercise when once their situation becomes 
 generally known. In actual size they are, of course, 
 small affairs when compared with the gigantic piles 
 of Inca remains that obtain in Peru and Bolivia. 
 But their intrinsic interest is at least as great, and 
 the haunting charm of their situation is of a kind 
 which it would be difficult to match elsewhere. 
 Perhaps it is part of the tragedy of their existence 
 that such objects as these should constitute an asset 
 of these modem days when regarded from the point 
 of view of tourist traffic 1 
 
 It must be admitted that, once away from the 
 track of the railway or the main water highways, 
 the travelling facilities in Paraguay a,re of a prjmi- 
 
TRAFFIC AND DEVELOPMENT 241 
 
 tive order. The ubiquitous Horse is, of course, always 
 at the disposal of the waj^arer ; but this necessitates 
 travelling '' light," and where much baggage is con- 
 cerned the complications of the way, are not to be 
 under-estimated in many districts. 
 
 The homely bullock-cart, as a matter of fact, is 
 the chief stand-by of the heavily laden traveller in 
 the rural districts, and on journeys of any length he 
 must accommodate the pace of his horse to that 
 of the slow and ponderous oxen. These carts are 
 provided with extraordinarily high wheels, which 
 prove an efficient preventative against the disaster of 
 being bogged, although, even with this precaution, 
 such a fate as this is by no means unknown. 
 
 As may be imagined, the country roads in 
 Paraguay leave not a little to be desired in the way 
 of surface. Although the soil in many districts is 
 far more favourable for the purposes of road-niaking 
 than that of the southern alluvial provinces of Argen- 
 tina, the depth of mud whichi is apt to be churned 
 up in the rainy seasons and the volume of the dust- 
 clouds which the wheels call into being during the 
 dry periods are on a sufficiently wholesale scale to 
 astonish the new-comer to the land. 
 
 In the Chaco, moreover, such drawbacks as these 
 are accentuated by the very peculiar nature of the 
 lower strata of the earth. The top soil here con- 
 sents to drink in the periodical inundations ; but 
 when this has once been thoroug'hly permeated, the 
 waters find themselves barred from a further descent 
 by, a curiously hard substratum. This is one of 
 the principal reasons why for long periods great 
 stretches of country resemble a vast but extra- 
 ordinarily shallow lake, being entirely covered with 
 water .to the depth, perhaps, of two or three feet. 
 It is necessary for the traveller to make his way 
 through this, just as though he were proceeding along 
 a, dry road, and, in consequence, horses and oxen 
 
 16 
 
242 PARAGUAY 
 
 have to splash their way across an apparently inter- 
 minable stretch of water. Something of this sort 
 is to be met with in two or three regions pf Paraguay 
 proper ; but the conditions are much more those of 
 true marsh land than those which prevail in the 
 Chaco. 
 
CHAPTER XVII 
 
 BY RIVER TO PARAGUAY 
 
 Up-stream journeys of a former age — The river schooners — Some records 
 of the mid-nineteenth century— A description by Mansfield — Intricate 
 navigation — Traffic of the present day — Sefior Nicolas Mihanovich — 
 The Argentine Navigation Company — Charm of the journey from 
 Buenos Aires to Asuncion — The passage from the industrial to the 
 picturesque — Aspects of the landscape — Influence of the sub-tropics 
 —The vegetation of the banks— The Chaco shore — Insect pests- 
 Superabundance of mosquitoes and bichos — Winged life of the river 
 reaches — The parting of the river ways — The Paraguay stream — 
 Some questions of fluvial nomenclature — 'Beauties of the Paraguay 
 River— Characteristics of the Bermejo— Alligators — The first Para- 
 guayan port — Some features of Humaita — The ruined church — Tem- 
 perament of the Paraguayan— Recuperative force of the nation — 
 Evidence of Chaco industry — Quebracho logs — How the timber is 
 floated down the river — The mouth of the Pilcomayo— Asuncion — 
 Nationalities concerned in the river traffic— Steamship companies — 
 Foreign warships— Motor craft — Chatas and " dug-outs." 
 
 The most leisurely, and in some respects the most 
 picturesque, method of reaching Paraguay is by way 
 of the great river system. This, moreover, is the 
 time-honoured way, although in the age of sailing- 
 vessels the journey was wont to occupy almost as 
 many months as the modern steamer employs days. 
 Indeed, the accounts of many of these up-stream 
 journeys — dating backwards from the mid-nineteenth 
 century — in small river schooners afford fascinating 
 reading to all who are interested in this species of 
 travel. In those days the vessels did not plough 
 their way up the waters with the comparative regu- 
 larity of the twentieth-oentury steamer, that only 
 runs foul of a sandbank on rare occasions in the 
 
 S4S 
 
244 PARAGUAY 
 
 seasons of low water, and that, when completely 
 held up in this fashion, is wont to back and to 
 charge her way across the obstacle much in the 
 way that a horse takes a stiff fence. 
 
 The topsail river schooners made a more varied 
 trip of it than this. In their day the Robertsons, 
 Hinchliffe, Mansfield, and a dozen others have left 
 some interesting records of this. Having already 
 introduced horse metaphor into these aquatic matters, 
 it may be said that when the coveys of small craft 
 went sailing up to Paraguay their course resembled 
 that of a steeplechase I Certainly the accidents of 
 the way — mostly connected with ''' bumping the mud " 
 — were sufi&ciently numerous to render precarious the 
 situation of every boat in the flotilla. 
 
 Here are some paragraphs from Mansfield, written 
 after nearly a month on board, when the vessel 
 on which he was a passenger was approaching 
 Corrientes : — 
 
 " This whole voyage has been a race between us 
 and the Neptuno (she is close to us now) and several 
 others — a regatta of a thousand miles ! The Adelaide 
 was left behind at Parand, distanced ; she lost the 
 best south gale by some passengers having gone 
 ashore for whom she had to wait ; of the other 
 vessels we have left behind all but one, which has 
 regularly sailed away from us to-day. No doubt 
 we shall leave the Neptuno behind to-night, if the 
 wind keep up, as our captain is much the most 
 plucky. . . . The channel we were now sailing up 
 is a fine wide reach, apparently, one would suppose, 
 the main trunk of the river ; the reason that we 
 did not take it this morning was that there is very 
 rarely water enough over the bank at its mouth, at 
 the place where the other small channel forks from 
 it, to allow any vessel to pass ; while ordinarily all 
 the ships pass up the little narrow channel in which 
 we had stuck. By accident, however, the usual 
 
BY RIVER TO PARAGUAY 245 
 
 channel had got silted up shallow, and stopped us, 
 so that instead of being ahead of all the others we 
 were now last ; but by . accident the other channel 
 was opener than usual, and we found it out, though 
 not till after the other ships had gone by us up 
 the small channel ; so we alone got the benefit of 
 the discovery. The consequence of this is, that if 
 this breeze continues we shall make a good run 
 of eight or nine leagues before we come to another 
 turn in the river, through which it will not carry 
 us, while the rest of the squadron (except two little 
 vessels who preceded us this way in the morning) will 
 have been obliged to anchor again a mile or two 
 above, where they gave us the go-by, on account 
 of the turning of the channel slightly towards the 
 wind in one place. Such is river navigation in 
 sailing-boats : running aground is a great bore, but 
 it must be remembered that in all our voyage we 
 have only been really stuck three times." 
 
 This will give some idea of the intricacies with 
 which ithe sailing-vessels of those days had to con- 
 tend. As a matter of fact, their course is no less 
 complicated at the present time ; but, as they are 
 now wont to be innocent of passengers, these troubles 
 of the trips very rarely meet the public eye. 
 
 The steamers which ply to-day between Paraguay 
 and the mouth of the Rio de la Plata belong to a 
 company which is now in the third stage of its 
 development. Originally a British company, it was 
 taken over by Senor Nicolds Mihanovich, who became 
 famous as a king of the navigation of the great river 
 system. Within recent years, however, the enter- 
 prise has again become British, and is now known 
 as tte Argentine Navigation Company. 
 
 He who can afford time for an up-river journey 
 from Buenos Aires to Asuncion will find the experi- 
 ence as instructive as anything else of the kind 
 throughout South America. It is true that the flat 
 
246 PARAGUAY 
 
 pastures which go to make up the earlier stretches of 
 the landscape lack a good deal from the picturesque 
 point of view. But it is this very, distribution of 
 the scenery which adds to the charm' of the trip, for, 
 as the sub-tropical regions begin to exert their influ- 
 ence, and as the banks approach each other more 
 nearly, the chann of the surroundings increases 
 steadily. 
 
 After a certain point has been reached there are 
 very few hours or dozens of miles which are not 
 productive of some new feature or other to captivate 
 the eye of the traveller. But not until that famous 
 wheat centre, the Argentine town of Rosario, has 
 been reached does this phase of the journey begin. 
 There for the first time the flat, reed-covered banks 
 of the river fall away, to give place to definite 
 barrancas, or cliffs, that boldly mark the edge of 
 the great stream. When the grain-shoots and line 
 of moored steamers that mark this thriving town 
 have been passed, the sandstone cliff continues at 
 intervals on alternate banlks ; the vivid scarlet of 
 the ceibo-tree becomes more frequent, and thte clumps 
 of camelota, the floating water hyacinth, tend to 
 increase in size. The districts, moreover, are obey- 
 ing one of the primal laws of the world in that, as 
 the blossoms, birds, and butterflies increase in 
 brilliancy, so does the human complexion tend to 
 grow dus'kier. But here this applies only to the 
 humbler people on the banks and to the fisherfolk and 
 watermen who sit in their 'crude dugout canoes. The 
 more important persons continue white -skinned, the 
 sole distinction between them and their brethren of 
 the lower reaches of the river being that they now 
 begin to form the aristocracy of the land instead 
 of standing as the mere representatives of the 
 wealthier classes. 
 
 When the roofs and parks and gardens of Parand 
 have been passed and the buildings of Colastind, 
 
BY RIVER TO PARAGUAY 247 
 
 the river port of Santa F^ have been left behind, 
 the wanner airs already give a foretaste of what is 
 to come farther to the north. All this time the 
 vegetation has been increasing on the banks. The 
 wide stretches of open, treeless pastures have long 
 ago fallen away. The cbuntry where the cattle graze 
 is now pleasantly interspersed with' clumps of indi- 
 genous trees, and the line of the banks is obscured 
 in parts by dense clusters of verdure, in which the 
 palms begin to occupy a more and more important 
 space. 
 
 Presently on the rig'ht bank of the river, and 
 thus to the left of the steamer's bow, appears that 
 curious low-lying country of the Chaco, the alternate 
 forests, swamps, and pastures that extend from here 
 northwards through the entire length of Paraguay 
 and well into Bolivia on the other side. There are 
 orchids hanging up aloft ambng the foliage now, and 
 doubtless a monkey or two among the denser clumps 
 of woodland. But these pioneer creatures of the 
 tropics to the north are rare enough here, and in any 
 case are invisible. Their presence thus is generally 
 unsuspected by the new-comer, which is not the case 
 with the mosquitoes and those clouds of other bichos, 
 whose numbers increase in the most amazing fashion 
 with almost every hour that goes by. 
 
 Indeed, did one judge of the winged pests of these 
 neighbourhoods by the myriads which abound above 
 the fervid waters, the outlook would be sufficiently 
 unpromising even to the most mosquito-hardened of 
 men. The song of this plague is continuous 
 of an evening now, and when the daylight has 
 vanished in the abrupt fashion in which it is wont 
 to fade away in these latitudes, the electric globes 
 of the steamer are all but oblscUred by the insects 
 that dance about them so thickly as to resemble 
 dense clouds of smoke that roll in confused masses 
 about a half-seen fl^me I Fortunately, these river 
 
248 PARAGUAY 
 
 reaches— most beloved of all the haunts of the 
 winged creatures — do not afiford a fair and moderate 
 sample of the insect life of these latitudes, quite, 
 considerable enough though the usual run of this is 
 wont to be. 
 
 Arrived at the Argentine town of Corrientes, one 
 of the most important strateg'ic spots in the whole 
 river system has been reached. To one bound up- 
 stream this is the parting of the river ways. A 
 few miles to the north of the town the choice is 
 open to the traveller whether he will turn to the 
 right and ascend the waters of the Alto Parand, 
 with Argentina on his right hand and Paraguay on 
 his left, or whether he will keep straight on to the 
 north and reverse this territorial situation, having 
 Argentina pn his left and Paraguay on his right. 
 
 The main line of the waters, with Asuncion as 
 its object, lies straight! to the north, and almost 
 immediately after leaving Corrientes the steamer has 
 entered the Paraguay River. It is at this point 
 that the somewhat curious nomenclature of the 
 various streams becomes most evident. It is the 
 remarkable fate of the Paraguayan wh^n bound from 
 his home to the Atlantic Ocean to have to descend 
 three different rivers, or, if you prefer it, various 
 stretches of the same river known by three different 
 names. From the point of view of fluvial equity, 
 there is no doubt that considerable wrong has been 
 done to the River Paraguay in the way of nomen- 
 clature. .Why this splendid navigable stream, at 
 its junction with the cascade-broken and far shorter 
 Alto Parand, should yield its name to that of the 
 lesser current, and should continue to flow south- 
 wards as the Parand, is a sufficiently incomprehen- 
 sible .matter to most geographers. And then, when 
 it has all but run its course, the river performs &. 
 second wedding, with the Uruguay this time, and 
 again changes its name. But on this occasion neither 
 
BY RIVER TO PARAGUAY 249 
 
 stream obtains the advantage over the other, for 
 both roll their few remaining males to the sea under 
 the entirely fresh name of La Plata. Neverthe- 
 lessi there does not seem to be a doubt that, from 
 the point of view of importance, the name of the 
 great stream which rises to the north of the inland 
 Republic should be the Paraguay for its entire course 
 as far as the ocean. 
 
 This digression, however, has led us away from 
 the up-stream journey to Asuncion. Once in the 
 Paraguay River, the beauties of the scene would 
 seem to have become more marked. The banks 
 have drawn sufficiently near to each other for their 
 increasing charms to become plain. No longer does 
 the steamer steer a tortuous course through a maze 
 of low and reedy islands that never permit the 
 stranger to be certain whether he is gazing on 
 the mainland or whether further channels at the 
 back lie bet^yeen him and the actual shore. 
 
 Now the banks of the stream, with their flower- 
 starred vegetation, are plainly defined. Once to the 
 north of the mouth' of the Bermejo tributary, more- 
 over, which pours its amazingly red and muddy waters 
 into the main stream, the river has become com- 
 paratively limpid. Alligators had already made their 
 appearance in the Parand ; but such banks of 
 sand, and mud as emerge here and there from 
 the w;aters of the Paraguay are far more thickly 
 covered with the sluggish bodies of the small 
 saurians, that in these latitudes seldom exceed six 
 or seven feet. 
 
 Presently, as the steamer drops her anchor before 
 a port to her right, there is a significant touch of 
 colour about the small official boat which puts out 
 to her from the shore. Hitherto the light blue and 
 white of Argentina has flown at the stern of these 
 craft. But from this one for the first time floats 
 the red, white, and blue of Paraguay. The steamer 
 
250 PARAGUAY 
 
 has arrived at Humaitd, the first port of the inland 
 Republic. 
 
 This alone would suffice to render the port a 
 sufficiently significant spot. But Humaitd has more 
 to show than this. On the bank are the massive 
 ruins of a church pricking up gauntly against the 
 deep-blue sky. The battle record of Humaitd has 
 been told in a previous chapter ; btit here is a visible 
 reminder of that extraordinarily fierce war, when 
 Paraguay took the field against the combined forces 
 of Argentina, Brazil, and Uruguay. Ruined though 
 it is, the great dull-red structure, battered and holed, 
 is very much the largest in the place — a fitting 
 monument for so great a tragedy, as was the 
 Paraguayan .War. 
 
 But if the ruined church of Humaitd affords a 
 somewhat grim welcbmfe to Paraguay, the matter is 
 more than atoned for by the tranquil bteauty of the 
 surroundings and by the placid and smiling air of 
 the Paraguayans themselves. They, at all events, 
 are not in the least obsessed by the past shadow of 
 that great war which wrecked the lives of so many 
 thousands of their parents and grandparents. The 
 pessimist might argue, of course, that the number 
 of internal struggles which have occurred in the 
 interval between 1870 and the present day have been 
 sufficient to drive the memories of a dozen great 
 wars from the minds of people possessed of even 
 the most brooding temperament I 
 
 The average Paraguayan is ctertainly of no brood- 
 ing temperament, as the sight of their tranquil facfes 
 will assure the new-comer. If he has escaped the 
 obsession of the great war, it is certainly not on 
 account of the later troubles which have visited his 
 country ; for these he would seem to have taken 
 as lightly as he did the first. The atmosphere of 
 Paraguay may not be of the kind which stimulates 
 a remarkable degree of energy ; on th^ other hand, 
 
BY RIVER TO PARAGUAY 251 
 
 it is clear that it contains no element of depression. 
 The recuperative force of the Paraguayan is suffi- 
 ciently eloquent on this head. The manner in which 
 the country recovered from the blows from without 
 which all but annihilated its inhabitants was the 
 amazement pf all whio witnessed it. People sudii 
 as this may be trusted to throw off as rapidly |the 
 aftermath of their internal political troubles when 
 the time ctomes for these to be regajded definitely, 
 as fragments of history left well behind. 
 
 .With such comforting reflections we may continue 
 to make our way up-stream towards Asuncion. On 
 the right hand the plantations grow more varied 
 as the fields of tobacco, sugar-cane, anci banana- 
 trees come to take their place among the maize and 
 the other g^rowths that from time to time have adortied 
 the banks from the start of the voyage. Here the 
 reed huts grow more frequent, and the groups 
 of swarthy labourers — or loungers — btecome more 
 numerous . 
 
 On the Chaco shore the scene remains much the 
 same throughout. The casual traveller would find 
 it difficult to hazard a guess as to what was g'oing 
 on behind the dense fringe of vegetation that covers 
 the low and mysterious shore. Here and there, how- 
 ever, a spacious clearing, and the sight of a small 
 engine that goes puffing along its light rails, effec- 
 tually prove that there are already important tracts 
 of the Chaco which are no longer given over to the 
 savage Indian, the tapir, and the innumerable other 
 beasts, birds, and insects of that strange region. 
 
 It is possible that you may even see a raft putting 
 out from this shore, a double-decked arrangement 
 with light timbers beneath and the valuable quebracho 
 logs on top. So weighty, are these latter that, un- 
 aided, they absolutely refuse to float in water. In 
 order that they may make their river journey, there- 
 fore, it is essential to support them on a substructure 
 
252 PARAGUAY 
 
 of timber of lighter gravity, and, thus carried, they 
 float down to the factories that are waiting to extract 
 the much-prized tannin which they contain. 
 
 In this particular region, although its attributes 
 remain much the same throughout, the Chaco happens 
 to be Argentine territory. Not until the mouth of 
 the Pilcomayo River appears on the port bow of 
 the steamer is the point reached at which the 
 northernmost stretch of Argentina falls away, and 
 Paraguayan territory extends on either hand. This 
 important spot, as a matter of fact, is by no means 
 easy to distinguish from the rest, for the main river 
 is broad here, and the banks of the Pilcomayo are 
 so low as to render its mouth difficult to make 
 out. 
 
 To one who is familiar with maps of the country 
 a much clearer indication of the geography of the 
 place is afforded by the roofs and spires of Asun- 
 cion pricking upwards from the imposing mass of 
 buildings that spreads itself widely over the roUing 
 ground in the midst of the pleasant verdure that 
 abounds at the spot. 
 
 To turn to the commercial aspects of the stream, 
 river traffic on the Paraguay, it may be said, is 
 carried on almost entirely by Paraguayan, Argentine, 
 Brazilian, and Uruguayan vessels, some variety being 
 occasionally afforded by a few small Bolivian and 
 Italian ships. For a considerable number of years 
 there is no record, I believe, of vessels of any other 
 nationality having penetrated as far as Asuncion, the 
 navigable limit for ocean-going' vessels being Colas- 
 tin6, on the Parani, the port of the Argentine city 
 of Santa Fe. The two chief shipping companies 
 connected ,with the Paragroay River are the Mi- 
 hanovich Steamship Company, now known as the 
 Argentine Navigation Company, and the Lloyd 
 Brasileiro. The latter company runs its steamers 
 direct as far as Corumbd, in the Brazilian province 
 
/ 
 
 
 ^l! 
 
 _„-a»^.j : " k ' lis - 
 
 ^^ 
 
BY RIVER TO PARAGUAY 253 
 
 of Matto Grosso, and the Argentine Navigation Com- 
 pany now follows suit, performing two direct journeys 
 each month from Buenos Aires to Corumbi. 
 
 Towards the middle of the nineteenth century, 
 when sm,all paddle-steamers were in vogue as gun- 
 boats, several warships of British, French, and United 
 States nationality steamed up-stream to visit Asun- 
 cion, one of these cruises— that of thfe U.S. war 
 steamer Watermtck — being especially notable on 
 account of the valuable description of the country 
 given by the American Lieutenant Thomas Page. 
 The pra,ctice on the part of foreign Governments of 
 proceeding so far up-stream as Asuncion has been 
 abandoned from sheer necessity, no vessels of suffi- 
 ciently light draught being available among the 
 modern vessels of the kind. The visits of Argentine 
 and Brazilian gunboats, hbwever, are frequent enough, 
 and it is no uncommon sight to see these craft, 
 specially adapted for th^e river, anchored off 
 Asuncion. 
 
 This latter port, by the way, is most liberally 
 provided with motor-launches, and this type of vessel 
 is now tending to grow common throughout the entire 
 length of the river. There is no doubt that in course 
 of time these great streams mtet provide one of 
 the chief markets in the world for this type of 
 craft, many of the ordinary boats used for carrying 
 fruit, firewood, and other such goods to market being 
 already provided with an auxiliary motor-engine. The 
 humbler craft which ply the waters of the Paraguay, 
 dodging in and out of the large and small tributaries, 
 are the rafts, or ckaias, laden with cargoes of all 
 kinds, and the dugout canoes, these latter used prin- 
 cipally by the Indians. 
 
CHAPTER XVIII 
 
 THE CHIEF CITIES OF THE REPUBLIC 
 
 Asuncion — Some attributes of the capital — Its atmosphere— First impres- 
 sions—Aspects of the town — Principal buildings — Changing aspects 
 of the Asuncion streets — The architecture of to-day — ^The inhabitants 
 of the capital — ^Amenities of the spot — The " Belvedere " — Scenes in 
 the garden — Tastes of the better-class inhabitants — Influence of the 
 modern spirit — Regattas and sports — ^The progress of football — San 
 Bernardino — Paraguay's principal pleasure resort — Attractions of the 
 spot— Villa Rica — The second city of the Republic — Benefits accorded 
 by the new line — Villa Rica as the centre of an agricultural district- 
 Origin of the majority of its inhabitants — Encarnacion — An important 
 spot on the railway — History of the development brought about by 
 the railway — The Paraguayan situation compared with the Argentine 
 — Reasons for the absence of a " boom " in the former country — 
 Influence of the internal political situation and the abnormal con- 
 dition of Europe— Villa Concepcion — The navigable limit of the Para- 
 guay River — An important northern centre— Some characteristics of 
 the. lesser cities. 
 
 Paraguay possesses few towns which can lay claim 
 to much importance in the way of population. It 
 is probajble, indeed, that there are only seven in the 
 Republic— Asuncion, Villa Rica, Concepci6n, Cara- 
 pegua. Villa del Pilar, Paraguarl, and San Pedror— the 
 number of whose inhabitants run well into five figures. 
 The first of the three is infinitely the most important. 
 Asuncion, in fact, which holds a population of some 
 eighty thousand, is the only city in Paraguay which 
 can be called large from the modem South American 
 point of view. 
 
 The next town in point of size is Villa Rica, to 
 the south-east of the capital, on the Central Paraguay 
 
 3S4 
 
CHIEF CITIES OF THE REPUBLIC 255 
 
 Railway, which probably numbers thirty thousand 
 inhabitants or so. The Port of Concepici6n, away 
 to the north on the Paraguay River, contains little 
 more than half this population, and the remaining 
 towns fall below this again in point of numbers. 
 It will be evident from these figures that the urban 
 population of the inland Republic is by no means 
 overwhelming, a circumstance which is not neces- 
 sarily in the least detrimental to the interests of the 
 country. 
 
 Astmcion, the capital of the Republic, would be 
 a notable spot in a far more populous country than 
 Paraguay. Apart from its industrial and commercial 
 significance, it is an unusually pleasant town situated 
 among charming surroundings. Those who expect to 
 find in the capital of Paraguay the bustle and anima- 
 tion that characterizes such cities as Buenos Aires, 
 Montevideo, and Rosario will very soon find them- 
 selves mistaken. 
 
 Notwithstanding the fact that it is now provided 
 with an electric service of tramways, and that the 
 traveller mlay now enter his compartment at the rail- 
 way station and remiain undisturbed imtil he alights 
 in Buenos Aires, the atrntosphere of Asuncion is still 
 deliberate and mildly antagonistic to anything in the 
 nature of real hurry. 
 
 As is the case with the miajority of ports, the 
 entrance to Asuncion is effected in a miore imposing 
 fashion by water than by land. The Customs House, 
 alongside which the steamer draws up^ is a stately 
 enough edifice, and the broad stone stairway which 
 leads upwards to the arched entrance produces a 
 curiously classical effect, notwithstanding the modem 
 architecture of the building. 
 
 The houses of Asuncion rise with the bold upward 
 siweep of the shore. They are dominated in the fore- 
 ground by the great edifice, constructed by. the 
 dictator Francisco Solano Lopez for his palace, which 
 
256 PARAGUAY 
 
 now contains the various ministerial and public offices 
 of the State. Other buildings of note are the House 
 of Congress, the Cathedral, the Oratory, and the 
 extensive lowly building which in colonial days was 
 the residence of the Spanish Governors. The Museum 
 of Fine Arts, founded by a distinguished Paraguayan, 
 Don Juan Silvano Godoi, is of more modest dimen- 
 sions, but among its treasures is a genuine Murillo — 
 a Virgin and Child. The National Library, too, can 
 boast a large collection of pariceless historical docu- 
 ments. The theatre is a lowl|y and somewhat unim- 
 pressive building, recalling the days when the archi- 
 tectural efforts of the South Americans ran to length 
 and breadth rather than height. 
 
 Notwithstanding the existence of such old-fashioned! 
 buildings as these, there is no doubt that the aspects 
 of the Asuncion streets have begun to undergo a 
 revolution which can only end in the complete meta- 
 morphosis of the city — for the atmosphere of both the 
 Americas would seem loath to tolerate half -measures 
 between the ruins of a completely past age and the 
 very latest inventions of the most modern town- 
 planner ! In the Asuncion streets have already 
 sprung up many of those rather florid erections with 
 which the inhabitants of Buenos Aires and Monte- 
 video have by this time become familiar. 
 
 It is true that these houses of the new Asuncibn 
 have not yet attained to anything approaching the 
 height of those of the southern capitals. Never- 
 theless, doAvn to their stone and stucco ornaments, 
 they are in all other respeqts practically identical. 
 It is these erections that are sounding the doom of 
 the lowly and simple buildings, of the patios with 
 their cool shade and flowering shrubs, and perhaps 
 eventually of the evening love-songs and even of the 
 guitar itself 1 
 
 But, although things are apt to move quickly in 
 the South America of to-day, it is difficult to conceive 
 
WEAVING NANDUTI. 
 
CHIEF CITIES OP THE REPUBLIC 267 
 
 any such poetical catastrophe as occurring to the 
 inhabitants of Asuncion who have sprung from the 
 old stock. Indeed, nothing short of an overwhelming 
 influx of foreigners is likely to achieve such an end ; 
 but, since such incursions have taken place else- 
 where, there is no reason why something of the kind 
 should not occur sooner or later in Asuncion. 
 
 In the meantime — at all events during those periods 
 when the city is free from political convulsion^the 
 rank and file of the inhabitants of Asuncion stroU 
 about in supreme content. Bare-footed men chat 
 at the street corners ; bare-footed women go by, 
 by no means lacking in loquacity, and many with 
 baskets poised upon their hea,ds. Here and there 
 you may see sellers of the Nandutf, that famous 
 Paraguayan lace of a texture so elaborate and filmy 
 as to require an infinite patience in its making. Many 
 of these honest and happy-go-lucky folk are to be 
 met with in the public gardens such as the Plaza 
 Constituci6n and the Plaza Independencia. Spots 
 such as these are easily made beautiful in a climate 
 such as that of Paraguay, and the effects of the 
 wealth of blossoms and flowering shrubs may be 
 imagined'. 
 
 Some time ago — whether the situation remains the 
 same since those tremendous events which have 
 happened outside Paraguay I cannot say — one of 
 the chief meeting -places for the Asuncion society 
 was the " Belvedere," an open-air ca.i6 on the out- 
 skirts of the capital, which was reached by means 
 of the tramcar that went rumbling along the tree- 
 shaded street. In the pleasant garden of the " Belve- 
 dere '• Paraguayan ladies, ministers, officers, and 
 civilians in general would gather in the cool of the 
 late afternoon to sip their refreshment, and to chat 
 concerning the events of the day. In its own way 
 it was a sufficiently notable spot, and there is, after 
 all, no reason to suppose that the recent catastrophes 
 
 17 
 
268 PARAGUAY 
 
 have altered the circumstances of the " Belvedere " 
 to any appreciable extent. 
 
 The tastes of the better-class inhiabltants of 
 Asuncion have remained simple enough up to the 
 present time. Perhaps some of the most salient 
 evidence of the new spirit with which the country 
 has become imbued is that afforded by the attention 
 which is now paid to sports and games. At the 
 present moment this is chiefly devoted to regattas 
 on the magnificent stretches of river available, and 
 to football of the Association variety, Various clubs 
 being in existence in Asuncion. This game, as a 
 matter of fact, has made astonishing progress, con- 
 sidering that the first club to be formed in the 
 country was only founded some sixteen years ago. 
 Now there exist two football leagues in Asuncion 
 which are said to comprise twenty clubis, with a total 
 membership of almost a thousand. There is a certain 
 amount of horseracingi ; but this, as might be ex- 
 pected, is run in a very modest fashion compared 
 with the manner in which the sport is conducted in 
 the great centres in the south of the continent. When 
 the inhabitant of Asuncion desires a change of scene 
 he takes the train to Patino, which he reaches in a 
 little over an hour. From this point launches bear 
 him across the charming waters of Lake Ipacaral 
 to San Bernardino, the chief pleasure resort in 
 Paraguay. 
 
 San Bernardino, as a matter of fact, is no parvenu 
 in the way of pleasure resorts. It has enjoyed its 
 own quiet and modest fame for many decades now, 
 and there were many Paraguayans who, even before 
 that, proved themselves by no means insensible to 
 its beauties. But the future of San Bernardino can- 
 not well fail to eclipse its past. It is now provided 
 with a large hotel built in the modtem style, and it 
 is probable enough that, when the conditions of the 
 world have returned to something approaching a 
 
CHIEF CITIES OF THE REPUBLIC 259 
 
 normal state, this hotel will not be long without 
 rivals of its own kind. 
 
 San Bernardino, of course, has to thank the link- 
 ing up of the Paraguayan and Argentine railways 
 for the opportunity of exchanging its local repute for 
 a cosmopolitan fame. Until the mutual extension 
 was effected the only route by which the foreigner 
 could attain to San Bernardino was that involving the 
 up-river trip to Asuncion, whence the excursion could 
 be made. Now, San Bernardino lies on the main 
 railway route from either Buenos Aires or Montevideo 
 to Asuncion, and it is needless to dilate here upon 
 the difference which this must make as regards its 
 popularity before long. 
 
 That which applies to the pleasure resort of San 
 Bernardino holds good in a wider sense all along the 
 new line. The industrial and commercial advantages 
 which this new means of communication must bring 
 to the districts through which it passes are sufficiently 
 obvious. One of the Paraguayan centres which bids 
 fair to reap its full share of the benefits of this is 
 Villa Rica, the second city of the Republic. Before 
 the completion of the line the best part of a week 
 might have been allowed for the journey from Buenos 
 Aires to Villa Rica. Now, barely forty hours separate 
 the two towns ! 
 
 No town is more worthy of these advantages than 
 Villa Rica. The centre of one of the most fertile 
 agricultural districts in South America, the stimulus 
 to the surrounding industries which has now come 
 into bteing will very soon react on thte town itselfj : 
 it needs no special inspiration to prophesy that much. 
 A rapid increase of population here may be antici- 
 pated with some certainty. Its inhabitants, it may 
 be said, are supposed to consist very largely of the 
 descendants of the Guaranis of the Jesuit mission 
 settlements ; and this is probable enough, as Villa" 
 Rica came within the boundaries of the Jesuit rule. 
 
260 PARAGUAY 
 
 'Another town that must benefit from this new 
 order of affairs is Encaniaci6n, on the northern bank 
 of the Alto Parand River. It is true that EncaJ- 
 naci6n has always been a port ; but, so far as river 
 traffic was concerned, it was unlikely ever to have 
 attained to any position of special importance, seeing 
 that the Alto Parand can only take rank as a second- 
 rate river from the point of view of navigation. Now 
 that it represents the junction btetwieen thte steam'- 
 ferry and the land lines, it has become a spot of no 
 little present significance, which gives out great 
 promise for the future. 
 
 The history, of this railw^ay development, as a 
 matter of fact, presents one of the most extraordinary 
 features out of even that collection of unusual events 
 that goes to make up the chequered history of Para- 
 guay. The opening up of railway lines in the neigh- 
 bouring countries, more especially in Argentina, met 
 with an almost instantaneous response. Not only 
 did the industries concerned give an immediate 
 promise of a prosperity on a scale which had been 
 unimagined until them ; but, as a natural conse- 
 quence, the values of the lands affected' began to rise 
 by leaps and bounds. Indeed, the pace of this 
 advance produced the effect of staggering many of 
 the old stagers, who found it difficult to believe that 
 a legitimate and inevitable advance to the higher 
 values of the new era was not largely the result of a 
 temporary, " boom," which would one day shatter 
 the hopes and finances of those who had confided 
 in it. 
 
 It is not too much to say that in the south-east of 
 Paraguay every attribute is at hand which con- 
 tributed to the former immense rise in land values to 
 the south. If nothing approaching this has occurred 
 to the north of the Alto Parand, the fault does not 
 lie with the Paraguayan soil, crops, or cattle. As 
 has been ppinted out elsewhere, the reason for such 
 
CHIEF CITIES OF THE REPUBLIC 261 
 
 comparative stagnation as has followed the railway 
 extension is purely artificial. Every industrial con- 
 sideration has been governed by the internal political 
 situation of the Republic, and by the abnormal con- 
 dition of Europe. But if the full progressive force 
 of this railway has been so far curbed, it can be 
 permanently restrained no more than could the 
 Guayra Falls be dammed' 1 But this is a fact with 
 which the majority of financiers are already, familiar 
 enough. 
 
 Villa Concepci6n, the third city of Paraguay, 
 occupies an important strategic position on the banks 
 of the great river, seeing that it is situated at the 
 point which marks the end of the navigation by 
 steamers proper. Putting aside launches and such 
 minor craft, therefore, it may be said that Conc©pci6n 
 is the navigable limit of the River Paraguay. The 
 spot is served both by the steamers of the Argentine 
 Navigation Company and those of the Lloyd 
 Brasileiro. 
 
 The architectural pretensions of Concepci6n are 
 very moderate ; but at the same time the comtnercial 
 importance of the town as a dfep6t for the produce 
 of northern Paraguay is considerable. Situated just 
 to the . north of the tropic of Capricorn, it is the 
 northernmost Spanish town of importance on the 
 south-eastem river system. Its only, rival to the 
 north, as a matter of faict, is the Brazilian town of 
 Cuyabi, situated on the CuyabA affluent of the Para- 
 guay as far away as the neighbourhood of latitude 
 15° S., and thus not very remote from the spot 
 where the headwaters of the Amazon and of the 
 Paraguay begin to move on their respective north- 
 ward and southward courses. Such a tremendous 
 gap as tMs btetween thfe; notable comWercia:! centres 
 on the river bank will serve to diemlonstrate the im- 
 portance of Concepci6n. 
 
 The lesser cities of Paraguay have much to recom- 
 
262 PARAGUAY 
 
 mend them, but as a rule their merits incline rather 
 towards the picturesque than towards any striking 
 features of architecture or of urban design. Descend- 
 ing again to the hamlets, many of these consist of 
 little more than a collection of reed hiuts, the principal 
 building of the majority of whidhi is a long, low 
 church with its slanting roof and line of outside 
 cloisters. The belfry of many of these churches, 
 erects at thfe side of the main edifice, usually stands 
 apart as an independent, lightly erected' tower of 
 wood. 
 
CHAPTER XIX 
 
 IMMIGRATION AND COLONIES 
 
 Terms offered to settlers by the Paraguayan Government — Transport 
 facilities — Some hints concerning these — Advice concerning contracts 
 of employment — Paraguay as the country of the small agriculturist 
 — Foreign immigrants — Some statistics — Various nationalities con- 
 cerned — Estimated foreign population of Paraguay in 1913 — British 
 immigrants and trade — The colony of "New Australia" — The great 
 Australian strike — Its origin — William Lane — "Where Socialism 
 Failed" — Ideas of the founder — The appeal to the workers — Paraguay 
 as the home of experiment in socialism — A comparison with the 
 Jesuit system — Land offered by the Paraguayan Government — Gene- 
 rosity of the authorities — The first colonists sail in the Royal Tar — 
 An admirable type of immigrant — The arrival in Paraguay — Early 
 symptoms of the breakdown of the system — Disillusioned colonists — 
 Grievances of those who left — The work of honest visionaries — Lane 
 seeks a remedy in autocracy — Definite split among the colonists — 
 Foundations of the settlement of Cosme — Failure of the theories 
 when put into practice — A wrecked casket of lost visions — The 
 scheme is abandoned and the colony worked on a practical basis — 
 Success brought by the change. 
 
 Immigration into Paraguay has naturally occurred 
 on a far smaller scale than has been the case in 
 the countries nearer the mouth of the great river. 
 The Paraguayan Government has, from 1870 
 onwards, shown itself keenl,y alive to the value 
 of competent foreign settlers, and thte terms which 
 it offers are liberal, every new arrival who elects 
 to go on the land being" entitled to an allotment of 
 nearly forty acres, if a mlarried man, and of about 
 twenty acres if a bachelor. These lands are granted 
 in various settlements, or colonies, established by 
 
 263 
 
264 PARAGUAY 
 
 the Paraguayan Government, of wMch' a full list 
 will be found in the Appendix. 
 
 The Paraguayan Government, however, goes 
 beyond this in its encouragement of immigrants. 
 It provides a free second-class passage on the river 
 steamers from the port of Montevideo to Asuncion. 
 Arrived in Asuncion, they are maintained for a week 
 at the expense of the Republic, and, provided that 
 there is room available for them, they have the right 
 to choose the colony which they prefer. Moreover, 
 they are conveyed by rail or boat at the public 
 expense to the nearest possible point to this. 
 
 These terms, of course, are sufficiently generous, 
 but it is necessa:ry^or any British emigrant who might 
 have the intention of ptoceeding to Paraguay to 
 realize that the meaning of words in this part of 
 the world does not always coincide with th'eir signifi- 
 cance in the homeland. Thus second class on 
 the river steamer really means steeriaigie, aiid, splendid 
 as is the ordinary acconraiodation on these fine 
 vessels, the quarters and company of their steerage 
 are decidedly not of the kind which would suit an 
 average family of British artisans or agriculturists. 
 But the solution of such matters as these is generally 
 merely a matter of arrangfement, and it is certainly 
 a wise hint that is given in one of those admirable 
 recent consular reports on Paraguay to the effect 
 that any intending British settlers in that country 
 should apply to the Emigrants' Information Office, 
 34, Broadway, London, S.iW). Another valuable piece 
 of advice given in this report is that persons seeking 
 employment in Paraguay should have a clear under- 
 standing as to the exchange, and that it is desirable 
 that the contract should be miadte in gold, or in 
 paper at the ruUng commercial rate of exchange. 
 
 The advantages offered have not, however, so 
 far had the effect of overcoming that reluctance 
 on the part of the average foreiginer to make his 
 
a 
 a 
 z 
 
 o 
 
IMMIGRATION AND COLONIES 265 
 
 way to a: cbuntry which' is only now< being exalted 
 out of its state of isolation. ,With' the important 
 opening up of thte railways which is now taking 
 plajde, it is certain enough' thJat this condition of 
 affairs will undergo a rapid alteration in thte future. 
 
 There is probably no country in the world which, 
 from thte point of view of soil and climate, is better 
 adapted to the agriculturist of small capital than 
 Paraguay. Indeed^ whten the pubHc of the over- 
 populous countries shall have been convinced that 
 the benefits of stable goverrmient are likely to prove 
 permanent, the influx of settlers from abroad dannot 
 well fail to exceed very many tiMes ovjer the modest 
 numbers whJo now annually, enter Paraguay. 
 
 The number of foreign immigrants who entered 
 Paraguay in 1908 was 1,024. ^^ 1909 it bad fallen 
 to 830, and in 1910 to S7j8. In 191 1 no more 
 than 430 arrived. For 191 2 no fi'gures seem to 
 be available, but in 191 3 th^e total of immigrants 
 had mounted to 1,448. 
 
 It must be admitted that these are suffici- 
 ently insignificant figures. As has bfeen the case 
 in the neighblouring Spanish - speaking republics^ 
 the Italians have led the way in immigration from 
 the point of view of numbers. The Paraguayan 
 statistics, however, reveal a someiwhat unusiial circum- 
 stance in the number of Argentines who have estab- 
 lished thtemselves in the northern Republic. The 
 proportion of German imlnigration, too, has been 
 unusually large. The following fi'gures are in- 
 structive :— 
 
 In 1908 the immigrants into Paraguay comprised 
 ■304 Spaniards, 27^9 Italians, 146 Germans, 106 
 Argentines, '40 Hungarians, 533 Uruguayans, 31. 
 French, 23 Russians, 10 Brazilians, and 52 membters 
 of other nationalities. The figures given for thte 
 reduced number which arrived in 1 9 1 1 would seem 
 to sht>w a rather less heterogeneous gathering. They 
 
266 PAUAGUAY 
 
 were : Italy 97, Spain 96, Argtentine 94, Germany 
 61, United Kingdom 9, other countries 73. 
 
 The following figures will show the estimated 
 foreign populations of Paraguayan 191 3. It must 
 be understood, of course, that the reliability of these 
 can only be comiparative, no census having been 
 taken for twelve years : — 
 
 Population. 
 
 Italian ... ... ... ... 20,000 
 
 Argentine ... ... ... 10,000 
 
 German ... ... ... ... 3,000 
 
 Brazilian ... ... ... 1,300 
 
 Spanish ... ... ... ... 1,000 
 
 French ... ... ... ... 1,000 
 
 Uruguayan ... ... ... 600 
 
 British ... ... ... ... 500 
 
 Other Nationalities ... ... 2,500 
 
 It will be seen that the numerical part played by 
 the British here is very modest. But it seems to 
 me that there need be no ground for uneasiness on 
 this head. The mere predominance of her agri- 
 culturists in a foreign country surely does not of 
 necessity improve the strategic position of the country 
 that sent them. out. In this particular instance, too, 
 notwithstanding that the German residents in 
 Paraguay exceed the British sixfold, thfe trade 
 of the latter country would seem: to be holding its 
 own in quite a satisfactory fashion. 
 
 From thte British point of view, the most notable 
 colony ever established in Paraguay was that known 
 as " New Australia "—to Which' wlas subsequently 
 added the one known as " CosMe." Thie history 
 of this affords one of the most remarkable examples 
 of the various experiments carried out in socialistic 
 theories. 
 
 The colony of New Australia in Paraguay had 
 its birth in the uproar and confusion of the great 
 Australian general strike, that for the time being 
 
IMMIGRATION AND COLONIES 267 
 
 shattered thte forces of capital and labour and of 
 the Commonwealth itself. At the end of the long- 
 drawn-out industrial battle, when the labourers, lick- 
 ing their financial wounds and surveying the empty 
 coffers of their unions, were beginning to question 
 the efficacy of the strik'e as a final remedy, a pro- 
 posal was put to them by a large-hearted joumahst, 
 William Lane, who was wholly and honestly devoting 
 his lifework to the clause of labour and to the better- 
 ment of the lot of the labourers. 
 
 The m^ost able wor*k deahng with .Wiilliam Lane 
 and his momentous experimtent is undoubtedly Mr. 
 Stewart Grahame's " Where Socialism Failed," and 
 for a sketch of the striking piersonality of this leader 
 of men I will draw upon his remarks. Lane became 
 one of the most successful free-lances on the 
 Australian Press, and, says Mr. Grahame, '' Wherever 
 there was an over-crowded slum or a case of sweated 
 labour William Lane would ferret it out and hold 
 up to pubUC scorn those who were responsible for 
 such evil conditions. There probably never lived a 
 more single-minded m!an, and his honesty of purpose 
 was so clearly recognized that he won the confidence 
 of the working classes oomipfetely. 
 
 " It was Lane's fervent desire ' to idbalize labour, 
 to conquer want, and hate, and greed, and vice, 
 and establish peaice on earth and good-will towards 
 men.' 
 
 ''' Thousands of other thinkers have desired to see 
 the same beautiful prog'ranim'e realized, though most 
 have despaired of its possibility on this planet. Wiith 
 his optimistic temperamient, however, Wiilham Lane 
 was convinced that there really did exist, ready to 
 hand, a simple remedy for all the ilk that m'ar 
 the civilized world. It was his fi'Ttn conviction that, 
 if capitalism' and the wages systenn! were utterly, 
 aboUshted, and a state ^ratablished in accordance with 
 socialistic theories, envy, hatred, malice, and all un- 
 
268 PARAGUAY 
 
 charitableness would utterly disappear from! the 
 earth ; crime would be no more, human nature would 
 be automatically purged of all its unlovely features, 
 heaven on earth would be a fact for every man, 
 woman, and child." 
 
 It was this man who, suffering intensely in spirit 
 from the weigfht of the combined wrongs and hard- 
 shipB of the Australian workers, determined that their 
 salvation could be brought about only by some daring 
 feat of initiative and originality. He made up his 
 mind to lead them into some new country, innocent 
 of the capitalist, where an ideal conHriunity. might 
 be established, that should be subservient to no other 
 law but that of its brotherly instincts, and that sh'ouM 
 suffer from no interference froni withiout. Again I 
 must quote from Mr. Grahame : — 
 
 '■' To tempt them: to join his scheme he recognized 
 that the appeal must be a personal one, and that 
 the missionary of his movement must possess the 
 enthusiasm and personal magnetism of an inspired 
 prophet. 
 
 " ' Is not thfe only hope in thte rising of a better 
 Napoleon? ' he demanded. ' In the elevation of a 
 leader with the brain of a Jay Gould and the heart 
 of a Christ? ' 
 
 " After careful consideration William Lane decided 
 to undertake the work himiself. 
 
 " Turning over the editorship of the Worker to 
 other hands, he set forth upon his whirlwind mission, 
 sustained by a perfect faith in the righteousness of 
 his cause — ^fbr Lane believed every word of what 
 he preadied." 
 
 It is a remiaikiable thing that Paraguay should 
 have been chosen as the home of this experim.ent in 
 socialism. For it has already been shown in this 
 book that the history of probably no other country, 
 of its size can produce such' curious and whole- 
 hearted examples both of co-operation in labour and 
 
IMMIGRATION AND COLONIES 269 
 
 of State isolation. Neither of these, however, whether 
 brought into being by the Jesuits or by Francia, 
 resembled in reality a condition of affairs such as 
 William Lane wished to inaugurate. The Jesuits 
 were at the head of a community that divided its 
 goods in specified shares am.ong the various divisions 
 of the State and of the populace. But the Guaranis 
 who supplied the m,anual labour did not for one 
 instant dream of asserting their equality with the 
 Fathers who taught and led them. As for Francia, 
 the reason why he erected barriers round Paraguay 
 to shut it off from the outer world was decidedly 
 not in order that an equal division of property, 
 rights, and liberty should ensue. The process which 
 actually, occurred was quite the contrary. 
 
 It is of small consequence, however, whether 
 William Lane was moved to select Paraguay for his 
 venture by, motives of sentiment or of expediency. 
 As it happened, the choice could scarcely have been 
 bettered from the practical point of view. The 
 Paraguayan Government, whfen approached, showed 
 itself cordially alive to the benefits which were to 
 be expected from an influx of such settlers as those 
 whom Lane had it in mind to bring. It promised 
 every, assistance in its power, including a free gift 
 of land. How fully it redeemed its word may be 
 gathered by a subsequent report issued from the 
 British Legation in Buenos Aires :-" 
 
 " The settlement is situated on somte rising gToimd, 
 and lookis over a long stretch of pasture land 
 bounded by forest and dotted by clumps of trees. 
 There is something very English in the landscape, 
 and this is true of other parts of Paraguay. It 
 appeared to my companion and myself that the 
 Government had treated the association very well, 
 not only as regards the quantity but as regards 
 the quahty of the land conceded. The association 
 has secured ipo leagues (they have already received 
 
270 PARAGUAY 
 
 the titles for 6^^ leagues) of what I believe to !be 
 the best land' in Paraguay,. It is well watered 
 and well wooded, and in Paraguay whierever there 
 is forest the soil is very fertile, and will grow alttiost 
 anything. The pasture land is also excellent, and 
 I was informed, on good authority, that the district 
 now occupied by the association was requisitioned 
 by the Dictator Lopez during the Paraguayan ,War 
 for 50,000 head of cattle — and met the demand." 
 
 The dedds of the Paraguayan Government proved 
 even better than their words, for they spent a large 
 siun of money in buying out some local people who 
 had settled in one or two comers of this vast tract 
 of land, thus securing to the new-comers that abso- 
 lute freedom from outside interference of which they 
 were in search. The site of the settlement, it may 
 be said, was rather more than a hundred miles 
 distant from Asuncion. It was, as a matter 
 of fact, in the neighbourhood of Villa Rica, and 
 its frontiers were within fifteen miles of the rail- 
 way line. 
 
 It was to this spot that came .Williani Lane's 
 pilgtinas, the first party of which crossed the ocean 
 in the specially, chartered 600-ton sailing-vessel the 
 Royal Tar. Even to the minds of the most critical 
 the prospects of the venfture seemed sufficiently rosy. 
 The colonists were most eminently respectable folk, 
 none of them fearful of hard work, and all of them 
 skilled in the working of the land or in their own 
 special trades. Their womenfolk, equally experienced 
 in their particular walks of life, were prepared to 
 back them up through thick and thin, and their 
 children were as self-reliant as the average child 
 of the colonies is wont to be. Each member of 
 the community, moreover, set out from Australia 
 imbued with the honest determination to do his duty 
 by his neighbour— the maxim on which rested the 
 entire foundations of the association. 
 
IMMIGRATION AND COLONIES 271 
 
 Nevertheless, the colony of New Australia met 
 with difiSculties from the very start. The reason 
 of this, it became clear after a while, lay neither 
 with the people nor the land on which they worked. 
 It was the system which, when applied to practical 
 persons and to solid land, was found to leak almost 
 at every pore. Granted that some reasonable form 
 of socialism may well enough — and, indeed, surely 
 must — form the ideal State of the future, this crude 
 attempt at the equal division of labour and its fruits 
 was rapidly seen to be productive of nothing beyond 
 dissension and heartburning. 
 
 Very nearly 250 persons had tafeen passage in 
 the Royal Tar, and it was estimated that with the 
 arrival in Paraguay of the later parties the numbers 
 of the community would soon become imposing. As 
 it happened, the stream of the returning and dis- 
 illusioned colonists began almost before thte second 
 batch of Australian enthusiasts had made its appear- 
 ance in Paraguay. As a matter of fact, the seceders 
 were deserving of quite as much commiseration as 
 any of the rest. One of the primary rules of the 
 association had been that a man, on joining the 
 community, must hold nothing back. He had to 
 throw into the common stock every bit of property 
 and every penny of money he possessed', thus wedding 
 himself — as it was thought, finally — to the fortunes 
 of his brethren. .When, bitterly disappointed or 
 antagonized, he left, or was cast out, as the case 
 might be, he found himself in a foreign country, 
 thousands of miles from his home, with two or three 
 pounds in his pocket that had been flung to him 
 with something of the harshness of a grudging 
 charity. 
 
 As an object-lesson the enterprise was certainly 
 well worthy of every ray of light that has been 
 cast on it — most especially in view of the fact that 
 it was the work of honest visionaries who were acting 
 
272 PARAGUAY 
 
 in complete good faith. But scarcely had the com- 
 munity been established when it was found that 
 nothing short of autocracy hiad to be applied to 
 those whose only acknowledged law was that they 
 should serve each other. In hbw many ways this 
 apparently, simple doctrine could be applied to real 
 life was only discovered by actual experience, when 
 William Lane, who had rebelled against the sordid 
 laws of prosaic humanity, found hunSelf under the 
 dire and "bitter necessity of making^ his own — and 
 a fairly rigorous set, moreover — which should control 
 the idiosyncrasies of his respectable, but obstinate 
 and argumentative, colonists. 
 
 The outward stream of humanity, continued from 
 New Australia. William Lane himlself, saddened and 
 broken, finally left the place. A split occurred among 
 the remaining colonists, and the settlement of Cosme 
 was founded some miles from New Australia in oppo- 
 sition to the senior colony. But all this was to no 
 purpose. The most vigorous theories, the most 
 arduous dissensions, planted no seeds, nor cleared 
 an acre of forest. Perhaps it is a tragic testimonial 
 to human nature to find that both in New Australia 
 and in Cosme a quite negligible ambunt of work 
 was done by, those very folk who in the circumstances 
 of their everyday life had been notable for their 
 industry. Nevertheless, so it was! It seems to be 
 B fact that so fraU was the incentive of working for 
 the benefit of the community at large that its co- 
 operative results in a fertile land failed to support the 
 commtinity. 
 
 Only one end, of course, was possible to thK ; 
 for not only had the theory failed to work out, it 
 had sown dislikes and feuds amiong the various 
 members, bound together by artificial rules, such 
 as could only be softened by the snapping of the 
 ties. It was necessary to throw up the sponge, and 
 to abandon the wrecked casket of lost visions. For 
 
IMMIGRATION AND COLONIES 373 
 
 the ending' of this curious drama I will once again 
 quote Mr. Stewart Grahame, whose experience of 
 the affair was a first-hand one, and therefore 
 especially, valuable : — 
 
 "As soon as the resolution, abolishing socialism, 
 was carried, Frederick Kidd, under whose sane and 
 practical administration the change was brought 
 about, set off to Asuncion to interview the Govern- 
 ment, whom: he found sympathtetic'ally disposed and 
 prepared to db all in their power to assist the 
 colonists. .Withdrawing the original grant of terri- 
 tory, the President confirmed them! in possession of 
 the twenty-five square miles on which they were 
 actually, settled, and approved a scheme whereby 
 every man was entitled to select for him'self an allot- 
 ment of sixty squares of agricultural ground, for 
 which hie would be given title-deed^s when he had 
 built a house and complied with thje usual conditions. 
 The right of grazing over thfe grass lands was 
 reserved in common for all, so that it was ppssible 
 for every individual dolionist to bfecome a big cattle 
 farmer if he could find the necessary capital. This 
 fact created fresh ambition in the heart of every 
 family, and there was a general exodus of able- 
 bodied mien to the railway worlds at Sapucay, to 
 Asuncion, or 'Bu,enos Aires— anywhere where good 
 wages could be earned by a man willing to work 
 his fingers to the bone. 
 
 " One cblonist, who now owns many hundred hfead 
 of dattle, worked as a butcher in an Argentine mieat 
 works, where wagtes are higlh, living on the odd 
 halfpence of his pay and remitting the balance to 
 his .wife, to be carefully invested in lean cattle, 
 for which a ready market could be found when 
 fattened. Thie adkninistrator himself looked for work 
 as a bootmakier's assistant in Asuncion (he had once 
 had a prosperous business of his own), but, to his 
 delight, a leathfer merchant set him up with a stock 
 
 18 
 
274 PARAGUAY 
 
 of leather, and even became responsible to a third 
 party for the value of the necessary tools. Being 
 a good wofldman, he soon mlade headway, and became 
 a cattle owner also, though it was principally on his 
 trade that he relied for a living. The story of 
 other colonists was similar." 
 
CHAPTER XX 
 
 PARAGUAYAN CATTLE 
 
 Effects of the Paraguayan War on the livestock of the country — Figures 
 showing the subsequent increase of cattle — Questions of census and 
 estimates — Cattle values — Favourable position of the cattle-breeding 
 industry — Prospects for the future — How the demand for beef has 
 affected the Paraguayan herds — The Argentine market — The danger 
 of over-selling — Export duty as a preventitive measure — Present 
 methods of the Paraguayan estanciero — Pedigree stock — A comparison 
 with Argentina — Pricps of land — Estates in Paraguay proper and in 
 the Chaco— Advantages and drawbacks of the latter district — Ques- 
 tions of capital — Financial necessities incidental to cattle-breeding 
 and agriculture — Criollo cattle — Measures taken to improve the breed 
 — The introduction of Cebu cattle — European strains — The Durham 
 — Origin of the name Tarquino — Acclimatization of pedigree stock in 
 Paraguay — Trisiesa — A serious disease — Land companies — The chief 
 markets for Paraguayan cattle — Influence of the railway — Some 
 statistics — Exportation of hides — Financial advances and drawbacks 
 of the present situation — Horse-breedmg — Mai de CaUera — Remain- 
 ing domestic animals. 
 
 The Paraguayan War played much the same havoc 
 with the cattle of the inland Republic as it did with 
 the human population of the country. At the end 
 of that very strenuous struggle the few herds of 
 horned survivors found themselves roaming over 
 destroyed pastures and the overgrown surface of what 
 had once been arable land. 
 
 The war once at an end, however, the numbers of 
 the cattle rapidly increased again, as the following 
 figures, taken from a Paraguayan source, will 
 show : — 
 
 Year. Number of Cattle. 
 
 1870 ... ... ... ... 15,000 
 
 1877 . ... ... ... 200,000 
 
 276 
 
276 
 
 PARAGUAY 
 
 Year. 
 
 Number of CatUe 
 
 1886 
 
 729.836 
 
 1899 
 
 2,625,496 
 
 1900 
 
 2,830,000 
 
 igoi 
 
 2,950,000 
 
 1902 
 
 3,104,453 
 
 1903 
 
 3,425,343 
 
 1904 
 
 3,800,000 
 
 190S 
 
 4,400,000 
 
 1906 
 
 4,900,000 
 
 1907 
 
 5.400,000 
 
 1908 
 
 5,900,000 
 
 1909 
 
 ... 6,500,000 
 
 1910 
 
 ... 7,200,000 
 
 The later figures, it must bfe said, are not official, 
 and their compilation is based to a certain extent 
 on estimates. Of recent years it must be admitted 
 that the internal unrest in Paraguay has made almost 
 impossible anything in the nature of a reliable cattle 
 census. These estimates would seem to have been 
 calculated on a gross increase of 20 per cent, 
 annually, from which the normal proportion of losses 
 has to be deducted — a calculation which would seem 
 sound enough. 
 
 According to the same authority, the value of the 
 Paraguayan cattle in 1906 was estimated at some 
 $46,000,000 (gold), the equivalent of £9,200,000. 
 Five years later, however, the increase both in the 
 numbers of the herds and the price of the cattle 
 caused this estimate to be advanced to some 
 £14,000,000. 
 
 It will be evident from this that the cattle industry 
 in Paraguay is an important and increasing one. 
 Surveying it first of all from an international point 
 of view, there has probably never been a period 
 when its future appeared more assured, or when 
 the demand for beef and hides on thfe part of other 
 countries was so keen. At the present moment the 
 cattle-owner in Paraguay, as is the case too in the 
 neighbouring countries, is in the fortunate posi- 
 
PARAGUAYAN CATTLE 377 
 
 tion of possessing that for which the demand 
 is greater than the output. In the past the 
 greatest fortunes in southern South America have 
 been made out of cattle, and there is no reason 
 to suppose that history will not repeat itself in 
 this matter 
 
 It is, indeed, this great demland which! has been 
 instrumental of quite recent years in reducing the 
 nuiribers of the Paraguayan herds. In 191 2 the 
 Argentine Republic, which had been a closed field 
 to Paraguayan livestock, threw open its markets 
 to the cattle from the north, with the result that 
 the rapid rise in price began to show a tendency 
 to strip the country of an undue proportion of its 
 cattle. This phase, as a matter of fact, is one 
 which has been undergone by all the cattle countries 
 of South America. The temptation to dispose of 
 enormous quantities of livestock at a vastly favour- 
 able price is, of course, difficult to be withstood 
 by the breeder. The process, nevertheless, cannot 
 fail to be detrimental to the industry in the long 
 run, and in the majority, of cases it has been checked 
 by legislation. 
 
 In Paraguay the effect of this movement, 
 accentuated by the losses sustained in the course 
 of a visitation of foot-and-mouth disease, has been 
 considerable, and there are some who maintain that 
 the present numbers of cattle in the Republic do 
 not much exceed the half of the 7,200,000 esti- 
 mated (perhaps somewhat generously) as the numbers 
 of the animals in 1910. In order to prevent a 
 further undue depletion of its herds the Paraguayan 
 has now placed an export duty on each beast sent 
 over the frontier. By this means it is hoped 
 eventually to bring the cattle population of the 
 Republic up to a reasonable numerical basis, and 
 to give the recently established local saladeros that 
 full scope of working which the very marked 
 
278 PARAGUAY 
 
 shortage of cattle had hitherto denied these estab- 
 lishments . 
 
 Of recent years great strides have bieen mlade :in 
 Paraguayan cattle-breeding. But he who travels 
 north from the mouth of the great river to inspect 
 the cattle farms of Paraguay mlist not expect to 
 find there a condition of affairs such as now prevails 
 in Argentina and, to a lesser extent, in Uruguay. 
 In Paraguay there has so far been no attempt to 
 compete with those great cabanas of the south, where 
 almost priceless Durham bulls, and aristocratic 
 brethren of other strains, live in the pampered luxury 
 that is due to their importance and cost, waited 
 on by assiduous experts, and provided with every 
 convenience for health that modern hygienic science 
 can devise. 
 
 In Paraguay it is possible to launch out into the 
 breeding of cattle on a much' smlaller capital than 
 is now required in the southern republics. In the 
 first place the cost of the land is very much cheaper ; 
 and in the second place, although an increasing 
 amount of cross-breeding with foreign stock is now 
 being carried on, such valuable importations of 
 pedigree cattle as are the rule in the Argentine 
 and Uruguayan Republics are not yet known in 
 Paraguay. 
 
 To pay two or three thousand pounds for a league 
 of land in the latter country would mean the acquiring 
 of some of the finest pastures in the whole Republic, 
 while some of the less promising estates are to be 
 obtained at rates descending to a cost of about a 
 quarter of this. This applies to Paraguay proper, 
 of course ; for in the Chaco it is possible to obtain 
 land far more cheaply. But in many of the districts 
 here the disadvantages of periodical inundations have 
 to be reckoned with. On the other hand, the Chaco 
 offers rather special opportunities in that many of 
 the districts which are suitable for cattle are in 
 
PARAGUAYAN CATTLE 279 
 
 parts covered with markietaMe timlber, including' the 
 valuable quebracho, and thus offer at the same tim'e a 
 double field of importance. 
 
 It must be said, however, that the rriajority of 
 lands such as these have already been snapped up 
 by large companies, that have themselves erected 
 factories on their estates for the extraction of the 
 tannin from the quebracho. In fact, any attempt 
 at the combined industries is not to be dreamted of 
 without capital. The pastoral occupation itself, 
 indeed, should on no account bie entered into, even 
 in a small way, without a Capital approaching a 
 thousand pounds or so. In ag'riculture, of course, 
 the circumstances are very different, and here the 
 new-comer, if he be prepared to rough it for a 
 considerable time, and if he be reasonably proficient 
 at his calling, may cheerfully settle himteelf upon a 
 small holding if he possess two or three hundred 
 pounds at his disposal. 
 
 Cattle-breeding in Paraguay, as a matter of fact, 
 is fairly simple wofk, and, com'paratively few of 
 the more complicated methods having been introduced 
 as yet, the cattle roam mOre or less at their own 
 will over the pastures. Thus a periodical round- 
 up, or rodeo, is made to sufficfe for the needs of 
 supervision in the majority of estates. The prin- 
 cipal basis of all the Paraguayan herds is formed 
 by the criollo cattle, the descendants of the 
 original stock brought over by the Spaniards. These, 
 under the influence of the climate, have naturally 
 degenerated to a considerable extent from the stamp 
 of beast represented by their forefathers when fresh 
 from Europe. Rather bony and lean, and with a 
 surprisingly large spiread of horn, they fell for the 
 most part considerably beneath the standard now 
 demlanded 1>y the meat -chilling companies. When 
 the increasing demand for meat demonstrated the 
 necessity of bringing the type of cattle up to modern 
 
280 PARAGUAY 
 
 requirements a certain amount of livestock was 
 introducted from Europe, and another course was 
 adopted, moreover, which was in a sense a com- 
 promise and a concession to the climate. 
 
 This, occurring almost entirely, to the north of 
 Asuncion, took the form of the introduction of the 
 Cebu cattle from Brazil. This Cebu, or Zebu, stock 
 was in turn originally, introduced into Brazil by the 
 Portuguese from India. Although lacking the bulk 
 and the admirable butcher qualities of the European 
 cattle, the importation of the Cebu strain has had 
 the effect of levelUng up the criolto to a certain 
 extent in the northern half of Paraguay. In the 
 southern half of the Republic the European breeds 
 have made thfeir appearance, and the most important 
 of these is almost certainly the Durham^ often locally 
 known as the Tarquino or Talquino — a somewhat 
 curious feat of nomenclature arising from the 
 generally forgotten fact that the first pure-bred 
 Durham bull to be introduced into the provinces of 
 the Rio de la Plata, about the middle of the nine- 
 teenth century, was named " Tarquin," a name that 
 became a generic term and that still obtains among 
 the gauchos and others in the remoter spots. 
 
 Unfortunately, the accHmatization of pedigree stock 
 is not such a simple matter in Paraguay as it is 
 farther to the south. In the case of this imported 
 stock a disease prevails in the inland Republic which 
 is also the cause of considerable concern in the 
 northernmost districts of Argentina. This is a fever 
 known as tristeza, the illness being brought about 
 by the garrapmia, or tick. The disease is a very 
 serious one, and the imported aninlal generally dies 
 of it. Tristeza is said frequently to attack its victim 
 in thrtee different seizures. If the animal survive the 
 first, he appears to have a fair chance of pulling 
 through altogether, for each attack is less violent 
 than the last. 
 
PARAGUAYAN CATTLE 281 
 
 Notwithstanding such' disadvantagies as these, the 
 type of Paraguayan cattle tendis steadily, if slowly, 
 to im'prove. It is, of course, imlpossible to speak 
 with any certainty of the situation at the present 
 moment, but it may be said that thei general tendency 
 in the inland Republic is for the pastoral lands to 
 pass into stronger financial hands than those w'hich 
 were accustomed to own them! in the past. Several 
 important com^janies have now interested themselves 
 in this particular branch of industry, and some North 
 Attieridan cattle-breeders, mioreover, have taken a 
 hand in the enterprise. 
 
 Turning to the commercial side of the indiistry, 
 a study of the markets at the present time is by 
 no means without interest. Briefly, there are three 
 main outlets for Paraguayan cattle. The first is 
 the exportation of the live animials to Argentina, ; 
 the second is their sale to the Paraguayan packing 
 companies, and the third is their disposal to the local 
 jerked-beef factories, which dieal with the meat in 
 the old-fashioned and obfeoliesoent way. 
 
 As regards the first method', the exportation of 
 the Uve animals to Argentina, the new railway, line 
 has now been called into requisition, and there is 
 no doubt that this particular form, of traffic must 
 increase very much in the future. The following 
 figures are sufficiently, instructive on this point. It 
 is impossible to ascertain the destination of all the 
 animals carried.; but it may be taken for granted 
 that they were all good animals in killing condition 
 destined for a saladero, or important m'arket, other- 
 wise their carcases would not have been worth the 
 freig'ht. In 191 3, 5,554 heads were carried j in 
 1 914, 10,048 head; and in 191 5, 15,919 head. 
 In a period such as the present, when all things 
 militate against the development of the general run 
 of industries, these figures, though modtest, are by 
 no means unsatisfactory. 
 
282 
 
 PAHAGUAY 
 
 A Paraguayan authority gives the undermentioned 
 figures as those representing the numbers of hides 
 exported from the RepubUc in the course of the 
 first ten years of the nineteenth century : — 
 
 
 Salted Hides. 
 
 Dried Hides 
 
 I90I 
 
 128,501 
 
 104,831 
 
 1902 
 
 147,901 
 
 90,941 
 
 1903 
 
 177,990 
 
 65,931 
 
 1904 
 
 184,580 
 
 64,103 
 
 I90S 
 
 200,685 
 
 81,678 
 
 1906 
 
 193,712 
 
 60,172 
 
 1907 
 
 185,589 
 
 58,691 
 
 1908 
 
 177,872 
 
 79,921 
 
 1909 
 
 213,060 
 
 90,014 
 
 I9I0 
 
 211,83s 
 
 77.005 
 
 The present dislocation of the world's commerce 
 provides a peculiarly unfavourable moment to discuss 
 the future of any ordinary industry. Yet that of 
 cattle-breeding differs from the mlajority in that it 
 is not necessarily affected adversely by war or any 
 other social upheaval. Neither is it one of those 
 other industries which, having btenefited by inter- 
 national strugigles, finds itself in a depressed con- 
 dition when the period of normal hving is resumed. 
 To the Paraguayan cattle-breeders the European War 
 has been productive of a certain amount of financial 
 advantages, which have been counteracted to a large 
 extent by a corresponding set of drawbackis. 
 
 Thus against the benefits brought about by the 
 increased demand and the rise in price must be set 
 the dislocation of the ordinary markets, the difficul- 
 ties which for the time being attend the new method 
 of transport to the coast, and the temporary shortage 
 in the available ocfean tonnage. Regarded^, however, 
 apart from all such artificial influences, the future 
 of the Paraguayan cattle industry ma,y be regardted 
 with all that Confidence which is due to a favour- 
 able field that has not yet been fully developed. 
 
PARAGUAYAN CATTLE 283 
 
 Cattle-breeding, as a matter of fact, is the only 
 Paraguayan livestock industry of importance. Suffi- 
 cient horses, of course, are bred for the local needs ; 
 but the numbers of these are by no means imposmg, 
 and occasionally considerable loss is experienced from 
 the disease Idnown as Med de Cadera. Few attempts 
 have as yet bieen made to introdtice sires of a really 
 aristocratic stamp ; and, indeed, the conditions w'hich 
 prevail makle any such enterprise improbable, save 
 in the southermnost districts of the Republic. Mules, 
 it may be said, are to be met with in small numbers. 
 
 The remaining domlestic animals which are bred 
 in Paraguay are sheep, goats, and pigs . The inumbers 
 of none of these are in the least important. This 
 is readily understood in the case of sheep, which 
 never consent to thrive to any appreciable extent 
 in the latitudes approaching the heat of the sub- 
 tropics. But this is by no means the case with 
 goats and pigs, and the breeding of these will no 
 doubt increase very largely in tkne to come. 
 
CHAPTER XXI 
 
 VERBA MATE AND TOBACCO 
 
 Part played by yerba mate in the early colonial history — Wide popularity 
 of the beverage — Seventeenth-century markets of the Paraguayan 
 tea — ^Area of its growth — Preparation of the yerba mate — Method of 
 drinking — Some expectations and actualities of the industry — Export 
 figures — Questions of appreciation — Eastern teas as rivals — The 
 fate of yerba mate as a national beverage — Its merits as a stimulant — 
 Its importance in the Argentine " camps " — Future of the industry — 
 Collection of the leaf — ^Yerba plantation — DifiBculties in propagation 
 — New method of planting out the seedlings — Yerba mate and the 
 possibilities of its "booming" — The tobacco industry — The Para- 
 guayans as smokers — The ubiquitous cigar — Gathering of the crop — 
 Shipments to Europe — A loss of individuality — ^Amount of the average 
 annual crop — Popularity of Paraguayan tobacco in Argentina and 
 Uruguay — Questions concerning the development of the industry — 
 The Paraguayan cigar in Europe. 
 
 The industry, in yerba mat^ is thfe one of oldest 
 standing in Paraguay. Very shortly after the Spanish 
 conquistadores had first made their way by river 
 to the inland province there are records of the 
 gathering and marketing' of y^rba mat^, more com- 
 monly known in England as Paraguayan tea. 
 
 Verba mat6, as a matter of fact, played a very 
 important part in the early colonial history of the 
 south-east of the continent. So rapidly did the 
 dried, fennented, and pounded leaves of the Ilex 
 Paraguayensis attain to popularity that even in the 
 early part of the seventeenth century the beverage 
 had penetrated to provinces of South America quite 
 remote from the forests where the tree flourished, 
 and in consequence the value of this national product 
 
YERBA MATfi AND TOBACCO 285 
 
 bedamte greatlyi enhanced. As has been seen, too, 
 the collection of yierba matd formed one of the chief 
 industries of the Jesuit mission settlenients, and' many, 
 a barge or raft which went floating down from Asun- 
 cion to the mar^ket of Buenos Aires was deeply ladfen 
 with Paraguayan tea that had been picked and 
 prepared by the Indians. 
 
 According to the geography of miodlern times, 
 Paraguay is by no means the only Country in which 
 the Ilex Paraguayensls flourishes. In extensive 
 portions of Brazil it is equally abundant, while in 
 the north of Uruguay and in the north-eastern corner 
 of Argentina are lesser areas Where the yerb'a matd 
 obtains. 
 
 Of rectent decades the felhng! of considerable 
 stretches of forest has tenddd to alter the yerba 
 rriat^ area somewhat ; btit the districts in which it 
 has always flourished may, very roug'hly speaking, 
 be said to be bounded on the north by a line running 
 from the neighbourhood of the estuary, of the Rio 
 Grande River, in southern BrazU, to a point not 
 far. from the town of Villa Rica, in southern 
 Paraguay. To the south the corresponding line 
 would pass through the north of the RepubUc of 
 Uruguay and the dentre of the Argentine province of 
 Corrientes. To the west the tree would not seem 
 to flourish to any extent in its natural state when 
 the banks of the rivers Parand or Pai'aguay are 
 approached, and^ once across the stream, in the 
 Chaco, the Ilex Paraguayensls does not seem to have 
 been mfet with at all. On the other hand, the soil 
 of the country as far west as the Argentine province 
 of Salta has proved itself eminently suitable for the 
 growth of the tree, and it is likely, enough that 
 further experiments will reveal a considerably wider 
 field adapted to its plantation. Before going further 
 into such matters as these, it m^y be as well to 
 consider the actual nature of this Paraguayan tea and 
 
286 PARAGUAY 
 
 the manner in which it is drunk!. Thie leaves of the 
 yerba, when ground and prepared, are placed in 
 the mat^, or gourd, boiling water is poured upon 
 them, and the infusion is then drawn up through the 
 bombilla, a silver tube. 
 
 Many of these gourds, it may be said, being heavily 
 ornamented with silver, present a very, handsome 
 appearance, and a collection of matd bowls, such 
 as the author has seen in more than one household, 
 can be made to aflford an object-lesson in the art 
 which can be introduced into these vessels. Exten- 
 sive collections such as these, as a matter of fact, 
 are wont to be gathered together as a hobby rather 
 than for practical use. For the ethics of matd drink- 
 ing are of the simplest. If the ceremony be con- 
 ducted in the accepted and time-honoured fashion, 
 thie same mat6 and the same bombilla will be made 
 to serve for two drinkers or for a dozen. Like 
 the pipe of peace of the departed redskin warriors, 
 it is passed from hand to hand, and each sips his 
 fill, while the bowl is replenished as often as may 
 be necessary. In the more populous centres of these 
 miodem days it may occur that two or three 
 matd enthusiasts, drinking together, may each be 
 provided with a separate bowl and bombilla. But 
 this, from the hardened xaaXi toper's point of view, 
 is the rankest degeneracy. It is most em'phatically 
 against all the ethicte of matd sociability — as deep a 
 crime as it would be for a guest at a Livery 
 Corrtpany's dinner of the City of London to attempt 
 to introduce a new method of imbibing the loving- 
 cup ! But perhaps it is needless to explain that in 
 many of the out-of-the-way comers of the southern 
 half of South America the convivial groups are of 
 a rather more heterogeneous order than those which 
 sit about a white tablecloth somewhere to the east 
 of Temple Bar. 
 
 From the commercial point of view, yerba mat^ 
 
BRINGING HOME VERBA. 
 
 PACKING VERBA. 
 
 To face p. 287. 
 
YERBA MAT^ AND TOBACCO 267 
 
 has not been without its disappiointmfents . From 
 the beginning of the nineteenth oantury it has always 
 been supposed that, when once the merits of the 
 Paraguayan tea became widely kbown outside the 
 bbundaries of South America, the increase in the trade 
 of yerba mat^ would increase by leaps and 
 bounds. That the industry has grown to a certain 
 extent will be evident from a glanoe at the figures 
 representing the annual quantities exported in certain 
 years from Paraguay. 
 
 In the 1820's the average export of yerba ma.t6 
 from Paraguay was estimlated by the famous French 
 naturalist Akn.6 Bonpland at about 2,500 tons. Bon- 
 pland, as a matter of fact, was in a situation which 
 enabled him to judge of this with unusual accuracy, 
 for, owing to a wMm of the Dictator Francia's, he was 
 held a pnisoner within the yerba maX6 districts for 
 ten years. 
 
 kWJe may. pass fromi this period to the year 1886, 
 when the Paraguayan exports of the tea amounted 
 to 5,500 tons. In i887j they had risen to 7,000 
 tons ; but ten years later they had fallen to 4,000 
 tons, and in 1 9 1 1 ,the total hald droplped to ,3,000 tons, 
 although it rose again in 191 3 to 4,000 tons. 
 
 It must be admitted that this advance in the course 
 of nearly a century is a very modest one, in view 
 of the confident predictions that have been so 
 frequently made to the effect that the future of the 
 Paraguayan tea industry could not fail to be of 
 world-wide importance. The two principal reasons 
 for its comparative want of progress are concerned 
 purely with demand. So far it mlist bte admitted 
 that yerba mat6 has not met with tlmt appreciation 
 outside of South America that was anticipated for 
 it. Secondly, the disagreeable fact has to be faced 
 by the yerba mat^ exporters that in some of the 
 large southern centres of South Amierica itself the; 
 habit of mat^ drinking has yielded largely to 
 
388 PARAGUAY 
 
 the imbibing of ordinary tea in the Europiean fashion, 
 a circumstance which has gone far to neutralize the 
 benefits which the large increase in these popula- 
 tions must otherwise have assured to the ind'ustry. 
 In capitals such as Buenos Aires, for instance, where 
 the hotel and domestic life now begins to challenge 
 comparison with London, Paris, arid New York, yerba 
 miat6 as a national beverage has practically ceased 
 to exist ; although many good Argentines, not- 
 withstanding their cosmopolitan surrounding, refuse 
 to surrender their taste for a beverage which ia a 
 few years' time promises to beconie a rarity in a 
 town where it once reigried supreme. 
 
 A situation such! as this, it should be said^ is not 
 in the least cbmmtensurate with the real merits of 
 yerba mat6. It is true that the beverage is seldom, 
 if ever, appreciated' at its first drinking, and that it 
 falls within the c&.tegory of those things that claim 
 an acquired taste. Neverthjetes, it is by, no means 
 only South Americans who are addicted to the drink. 
 There are very few British estancieros throughout 
 the entire south-eastern extent of the continent who 
 have not grown to regard it as their staunchest 
 liquid friend, and who do not greet with affection 
 that faint bitterness of taste wMdhI is generally, 
 resented by those who try it fori the first two or 
 three times. There are probably no other men, 
 as a matter of fact, who give such enthusiastic testi- 
 mony to the power of yerba mlatd as a recuiperative 
 agent as Ifhese estancieros, whose lot it frequently 
 is to gallop for dozens of leagiues in the broiling 
 summer's heat. 
 
 Curiously enough, it is to the south of its own 
 proper home that the benefits of yerba mat6 have 
 been chiefly felt. In the glades of Paraguay itself 
 vegetables and fruit have never been lac'king to any 
 appreciable extent, and, indeed, have generally been 
 remarkable for their abundance. In the treeless 
 
YERBA MAT]^ AND TOBACCO 289 
 
 pastoral plains of Argentina it has been other^vise. 
 Thtei^e, wliere the real gaucho— whb is now to all 
 intents and purposes extinct— would no more have 
 troubled to pliant a vegetable thlan he would have 
 bothered to pare the hoofs of idespised, foot-rotted 
 sheep, the continuous and unbroken diet of meat, 
 and nothing but meat, could scarcely fail to have 
 been followed by lamentable donsequences to the 
 health of the cattlemen, had it not been for the 
 frequent sippings at the mat6, which proved itself a 
 most admirable corrective and health preserver. 
 
 The stimulating properties of yerba ma.t6, more- 
 over, would seem to serve their purpose without being 
 follbwed by that reaction which) inevitably acconi- 
 panies the indulgence in so many beverages of the 
 kind. There may be cases where an over-indulgence 
 in the yerba has been followed by disastrous con- 
 sequences — the Jesuits of old appear to have issued 
 a number of warnings to this effect — but, if so, these 
 must be very rare. Indeed', their proportion must 
 be less than that of those coffee-drinkers w'ho partake 
 of that sufficiently harmless bean with detrimental 
 enthusiasm. 
 
 Considering the teal esteem in which' this yerba 
 ina.t6 is held by all nationalities in South Amterica, 
 it is indeed difficult to understand the reason why the 
 taste for it should still be confined to the southern 
 continent. I have no doubt that, sooner or later, 
 the day will arrive when all those predictions of thte 
 past — as well as the rathfer less confident assertions 
 of the present — wUl bte justified, and that the period 
 will a;rrive when yerba mat^ will be shipped from 
 Paraguay in tens of thousands, instead of simple 
 thousands, of tons. 
 
 An expansion of this kind could be contemplated 
 by PaCraguayans with a greater equanimity now than 
 ever btefore. For the history of yerba mat^ re- 
 sembles that of many other forest growths of the 
 
 19 
 
290 PARAGUAY 
 
 kind. Attacked in the first place with that waste- 
 ful energy which its very abundance provoked, the 
 plant soon grew rare in the neighbourhood of the 
 settled centres, and it became necessary for the Indian 
 collectors to proceed to its groves, the yerbales, 
 farther and farther afield. In the end these distances 
 became so great that the missionaries determined 
 to attempt the plantation of the Ilex Paraguayensis 
 in order thiat the commodity might again be at 
 hand in the neighbourhood of their towns. They 
 succeeded in this, and ultimately, the yerba derived 
 from these plantations turned out to be the finest 
 that grew, realizing in price double that obtained 
 for the ordinary forest leaves. 
 
 But this propagation of the yerba miate was always 
 a difficult matter, and during the disturibed period 
 through which the country passed this naturally 
 suffered from a good deal of neglect. The chief 
 difficulties experienced occur during the first eighteen 
 months or two years of the plant's Kfe. Modem 
 science has now, however, been broug'ht to bear on 
 this subject, and the employment of pasteboard pots 
 has greatly reduced the dangers attending* the plant- 
 ing out of the seedlings, for it enables this to |be 
 effected without any disturbance of the roots. 
 
 Thus, whenever the long-expected '''boom" in 
 yerba mat^ comes about, the countries of its origin 
 will be prepared for it. In the meantime, from the 
 point of view, of the gigantic advertisers, here is a 
 beverage lying falfow that would afford an almost 
 unique opportunity to one accustomed to deal in 
 such matters on a world-wide scale. It is no 
 exaggeration whatever to say that yerba mat6 con- 
 tains all the qualifications and essentials for this. 
 The only thing that it lacks is a place on the 
 hoardings and in the pages of the Press ! 
 
 The tobacco industry is as essentially a part and 
 parcel of Paraguay as is that of yerba mate. 
 
YERBA MATfi ANt) TOBACCO 291 
 
 Paraguay without tobacco iVould resemble the 
 Burgundy district without grapes, or Kent shorn 
 of its hops I As a matter of fact, the goddess of 
 nicotine is worshipped by, almost every Paraguayan, 
 irrespective of sex and age. A picturesquely clothed 
 young girl of the inland Republic, whether she be 
 riding across the countryside or plodding, barefooted, 
 along the Asuncion streets on her way to the market, 
 will almost certainly be puffing smokle from a lengthy 
 dark cigar stuck jauntily between her lips. Babes 
 in their mothers' arms will begin life enveloped in 
 this same blue smokle, and having thus been cured 
 of any tendency to cough at it in their tenderest 
 years— or monthsi !— they will begin to take a cigar 
 within their own lips at an incredibly early age. In 
 this respect I suppose that the race most akin to 
 the Paraguayans are the Burmese ; and, indeed, in 
 some respects the Paraguayan cigars are not unlike 
 the cheroots of the East. 
 
 The Paraguayan tobacto crop is gathered in the 
 months of February and March — which are, of course, 
 equivalent to the northern periods of August and 
 September — and the seven different classes of leaves, 
 having been dried and fermented, are then made 
 up into the various types of cigars, or retained in their 
 crude form to be sent to the largier factories pr to 
 be shipped abroad. 
 
 It is not generally known that rather more than 
 half of the entire Paraguayan tobacco crop has been 
 wont to be shipped to Europe, Germany in the past 
 having been the principal recipient of this article. 
 Once arrived on the soil of this latter country, it 
 seems to have lost its individuality— so far as nomen- 
 clature is concerned. Paraguayian cigars, in the 
 minds of the general public, are, I believe, an un- 
 known luxury in Europe, where the leaf from the 
 South American inland State doubtless masquerades 
 under many, a supposed, or actual, Cuban name. 
 
292 PARAGUAY 
 
 Perhaps there is more justification for this than 
 appears on the surface ; for Havana seed was intro- 
 duced into Paraguay in 1900, and has bteen brought 
 more and mbre into use ever since. 
 
 That the amount of this Paraguayan leaf is suffi- 
 ciently important may be gleaned from the fact that 
 the average Paraguayan crop of tobacco is estimated 
 at some 7,000 tons, of which about 4,000 tons 
 find their way to Europe. In Argentina and' Uruguay, 
 on the other hand, Paraguayan cigars and cigarettes 
 are permitted to sail under their rightful colours, 
 and in these countries they enjoy a wide and deserved 
 popularity. 
 
 Given internal peace and a miodem system' of 
 organization, there would seem no doubt but that 
 a most flourishing future mtist await this tobacco 
 industry of Paraguay. At the present momtent, as 
 we have seen, this streani of nicotine, on entering 
 Europe, disappears as completely as do the waters 
 of a river on entering the sea. At this rate it is, 
 of course, clearly out of the question that Paraguayan 
 tobacco should ever attain th!at fame on this side 
 of the Atlantic which it enjoys in Argentina and 
 Uruguay, to say nothing of its own country. 
 
 There would, as a matter of fact, seem! no reason 
 why Paraguayan tobacco should not eventually takJe 
 its place among the noted growths of the world. 
 As regards this, however, it will undoubtedly ibe 
 necessary first of all to overcome certain disa.dvan- 
 tages which have been put in the way of the growth 
 by the bountiful climate itself of thte coimtry. For one 
 of thte numerous paj-adoxes applying to Paraguay lies 
 in the fact that the niore liberal the gifts of Nature, 
 the less strenuous are wont to be the efforts of 
 man. It is undeniable that a greater amount of 
 attention paid to the seeding and cultivation of the 
 tobacco plants here would result in an improvement 
 in quality such as might well result in the com!- 
 
VERBA MATE AND TOBACCO 293 
 
 pelling of a hitherto unconscious world to acknow- 
 ledge the merits of the nicotine weed of the inland 
 State. 
 
 But until some enterprising beings cOme forward 
 to found a regular Paraguayan brand of cigars it 
 is only the unreasonably optimistic! who would looK 
 forward to any such development as this. Here 
 again, as in the case of yer'ba mat6, is an oppor- 
 tunity to assist a deserving article, which undoubtedly 
 has a right to a greater amount of publicity than 
 it obtains. Nothing is more profitable thlan ai 
 sufficiently studied chlarity of the kind ' 
 
CHAPTER XXII 
 
 TIMBER, FRUITS, AND CEREALS 
 
 The forests of Paraguay — ^Various types of timber — Demand for this in 
 the treeless south — Hard woods — Cabinet woods — Medicinal growths 
 and textile plants — Dye-plants — A curious circumstance connected 
 with rubber — The lumber industry — DiiiBculties presented by the 
 Paraguayan forests — Shortage of local carpentry — The quebracho 
 industry — Districts in which the tree is found — Nature of the wood 
 — ^Various uses to which it is put — Its tannin properties — Advantages 
 of these — A comparison with oak bark — The chief quebracho fac- 
 tories — Important concerns — The light railways of the Chaco— The 
 Paraguayan fruit industry — The orange — Excellence of the Para- 
 guayan specimens — Orange-growing as an old-standing industry — 
 Theory concerning an indigenous variety — Proof by nomenclature — 
 Export of the fruit — Inadequate financial return yielded by the 
 industry — Some surprising figures — Banana-growing — Increasing 
 importance of the plantations — Pineapples and lemons — Cereals, 
 agricultural products, and vegetables — Maize — Sugar-cane — Present 
 limitations of the industry — Probabilities of the future — Mandioca — 
 Other growths. 
 
 The forests of Paraguay are undoubtedly one of 
 the chief assets with which a bountiful Nature has 
 supplied the inland Republic. Paraguay, moreover, 
 is fortunate in her forest possessions in more senses 
 than one. There are many countries, both in South 
 America and in other continents, where the great 
 wealth of timber is to a large extent wasted owing 
 to the lack of facilities for transporting the lumber 
 to centres where it can be dealt with from a com- 
 mercial point of view. 
 
 Paraguay — with half its total area forest- covered 
 — not only possesses an abounding wealth of mag- 
 nificent cabinet woods and useful coarser timber, but 
 
TIMBER, FRUITS, AND CEREALS 296 
 
 she ^ has the mfeans of transporting them! niost con- 
 veniently at hand'. No finer highway for this purpose 
 could be met with than the Paraguay, assisted by 
 its numerous affluents, to say nothing of the Alto 
 Parand and its lesser tributaries. It is true that mlany 
 of the hardiest and most valuable of these woods are 
 of a specific gravity which does not allow them to 
 float on the surface of the water. But here again 
 the variety of her products comes to the aid of the 
 State. For Paragua,y produces great quantities of 
 lighter timber such as the cedar, and it is this which 
 serves as the foundation of those rafts which go 
 floating down the Paraguay and the other streams. 
 On this buoyant surface are placed those marvellously 
 hard and heavy logs, which have been so eagerly, 
 imported by the central pastoral plains of Argen- 
 tina, that at one time were for all practical purposes 
 treeless, and that even now refuse to grow any 
 timber of a .. harder texture than the eucalyptus, 
 poplar, paraiso, and similar light woods. Of late 
 years, however, owing to the increasing use of rein- 
 forced concrete for building and of iron sleepers for 
 railroad permanent ways, the demand for the coarser 
 timbers has somewhat slackened in the south, although 
 that for the finer kinds reniains as keen as ever. 
 
 Among the principal hardwoods of Paraguay are 
 the quebracho, palo santo, lapacho, caranday, iiandu- 
 bay, curupay, guayacan, peteriby, urunday, ibira- 
 pyta, and palo bianco. Some of the chief of the 
 cabinet woods are various species of laurel, the palo 
 de rosa, a black laurel which closely resembles ebony, 
 the yacaranda, and the tatayba. 
 
 There are in addition many medicinal trees and 
 plants such as the castor oil, papaw, coca, jaborandi, 
 ipecacuanha, sarsaparilla, and many others. The 
 textile plants are very important, including as they 
 do various kinds of cotton, the mia,jority of a very, 
 fine quality, ramie, caraguatd— a species of pine- 
 
296 PARAGUAY 
 
 apple, tHe leaves of which), it may be slaid, hold rain- 
 water within them! for very long periods, and' thus: 
 in some of the more arid' districts are apit to proviei 
 of thte greatest benefit to travellers ; the ibyra— a 
 plant closely resembling the caraguatd — the siDc- 
 cotton tree, and mlany beyond' these. 
 
 Paraguay, mt)reover, is very, rich in dye-pjants, 
 of which some thirty different species would seem 
 to exist. The rubber-tree is found to ai. certain 
 extent, more especially in the northern parts of the 
 Republic. A rather curious circimistance in connec- 
 tion with this piroduct is that, although the tree is 
 indigenous to Paraguay, the manufactured rubber 
 would seem to degenerate and rot with quite an 
 unusual rapidity in various districts. Of this fact, 
 at all events, I have been assured by various residents 
 of Asuncion who had had considerable personal 
 experience of the miatter. 
 
 As regards the general lumber trade of Paraguay, 
 it may be s^id that this — ^apart from the quebracho 
 indtistry, to which reference is made later — is only, 
 now beginning to arrive at its first stage of infancy. 
 iThere is no doubt whatever that in the near future 
 much progress will be niade in this. There are, 
 nevertheless, some features in the more luxuriant of 
 the Paraguayian forests which present certain diffi- 
 culties to those who desire to exploit them'. From 
 the lumberman's point of view the enormous variety 
 of the trees here constitutes a disadvantage. A 
 lumberman, for instance, who happens to be in search 
 of a thousand or so nandubay trees h!as naturally 
 no interest at the moment in any other timber but 
 nandlibay. But in the densest forests of the Republic 
 a. single nandubay-tree may be separated from its 
 nearest brother by two, twenty, or any number of 
 growths of other species. This circumstance would 
 offer fewer difficulties were the tanber trade here 
 conducted on a scale which will undoubtedly occur 
 
'■*.•'•• 'fffw 
 
 TIMBER FELLING IN THE CHACO. 
 
 To face p. 297. 
 
TIMBER, FRUITS, AND CEREALS 297 
 
 in the future ; but in the mfeantime its effect on ai 
 budding industry is somewhat discouraging. At the 
 same time, it must be said that this condition of 
 affairs is not universal throughout the forests 
 of Paraguay, and does not apply to the quebracho 
 lands . 
 
 Notwilthstanding this abundance of magnificent 
 timber, Paraguay has been accustomed' to import 
 practically the entirety of its manufactured' wooden 
 goods from Europe or North America. It is need- 
 less to explain that the cause of this has been the 
 local shortage both of skilled labour and!of ma,chinery. 
 A start has now been mlade, however, in the business 
 of joining, turning, and carpentry in general. This 
 has so far been largely confined to the cars and 
 fittings of ^he tramway and railway, companies, but 
 no doubt lan opportunity for the manufacture of 
 general furniture will occur before long. Decidedly 
 for this purpose no timber could be better suited than 
 some of the extraordinarily handsome cabinet woods 
 of these sub-tropical forests. 
 
 The quebracho industry differs entirely from that 
 of any other kind' of Paraguayan timber, in that it 
 has already undergone ai very miarked development, 
 and already gives work to a number of important 
 factories and to many thousands of hands. 
 Quebracho timber abounds only in the Chaco, on 
 the western sidte of the great river. The area of its 
 growth here is, however, very great, since it is to be 
 met with in Argentine territory, and it abounds as 
 far south even as the province of Santa ¥€. 
 
 The nature of quebracho wood may be gathered' 
 from its name, which signifies " break-axe." It is, 
 indeed, one of the toughest even of the numerous hard 
 Paraguayan woods, and was formerly in great demand 
 in Argentina for auch purposes as fence posts, 
 corrates, and other agricultural uses. But its mlost 
 popular employment was for railway sleepers, owing 
 
298 PARAGUAY 
 
 to thte extraot'dinary length! of timte which' this timber 
 can remain in the earth without rotting. 
 
 In such guises as this quebracho timber has long] 
 been familiar to the estancieros and' railway officials 
 of the Argentine Campp. Towards the end of the 
 last century, however, the extent of the very, valuable 
 tannin properties of this wood began to be realized!, 
 and after 1890 the quantities which were avaUablei 
 for agricidtural and' railway uses rapidly diminished. 
 The demand for this, in consequence, has exceeded 
 the supply since then, although as many logs as could 
 be spared for the purpose have been shipped not 
 only to the southern republics of South America, but 
 to Europe and the United States as well. 
 
 The latest developmfent of the quebracho industry 
 is, however, the most important of all. This is the 
 manufacture from the timber of an extract which 
 contains those tanning subistances for which! the timber 
 is now so famous. It is claimed for this quebrachoi 
 tannin that it is unique in quality, and that its power 
 is far greater than that of oak bark. The quebracho 
 experts maintain on its behalf that a single tree, 
 weighing a ton, will yield 600 lbs. of extract, and 
 that this extract will tan as much leather as ahnost 
 double its quantity of oak bark — ^for the growing of 
 which latter, by the way, about half an acre of land 
 is reuqired. In fact, to quote from a pamphlet issued 
 by one of the chief companies concerned with this 
 industry : " the high quality and enormous quantity 
 of tanning substances contained in the wood of the 
 quebracho -tree make it at once both the best and 
 cheapest tanning material in the world, giving to the 
 leather a fine colour which cannot be secured from 
 any other known ingredient." 
 
 The process of extracting tannin from' the 
 quebracho Contrasts rather curiously with the method 
 employed for extracting the similar substance from 
 the oak. In the case of the oak the bark is relied 
 
TIMBER, FRUITS, AND CEREALS 299 
 
 on for the purpose ; the bark of the quebracho, on 
 the other hand, is not used at all in this process.] 
 Here the wood itself is reduced' to sawdust, and the. 
 tannin is extracted from: this. It is then made up 
 into solid cakes, in which shape its comtaercial form 
 is complete, and delivered to the tanneries, where it 
 is rendered liquid in preparation for actual use. 
 
 Some of the chief of these quebracho factories are 
 situated at Puertos Galileo, Casado, Sastre, and Max 
 and Maria. Some years ago these facto?i^,S' were 
 said to employ a capital of some three millio_n'-p6,uiidS;,, 
 and to be responsible for a monthly out^t'-of three 
 thousand tons of extract. It will b&.'ey'rdent from, 
 this that the industry is now worked. on a large scale. 
 The factories, as a matter of fact, are important 
 concerns containing an imposing bulk o^jaiaidiisiery,', 
 and each is supplied with a certain- iplileage of light 
 railway for the transport of the timber; '.either to the 
 factories for the purpose of tannin extraction, or to 
 one of the small river ports to be shippfed-'a^lroad.. ' 
 
 These light railways, it should be said; .ire iioiv 
 playing a leading part in the developmient of 'the 
 Chaco, and have already demlonstrated to what an 
 extent they are able to counteract the difficulties of 
 transport for which the peculiar soil of this district 
 is responsible. It has been said, and no doubt 
 correctly, that these light railways will in course of 
 time prove more useful in the alluvial soil of Argen- 
 tina than the ordinary highways of a country entirely 
 innocent of stone. That this same remedy applies to 
 the Chaco there is no doubt, as, indeed^ has already 
 been proved by the number of light railways that 
 are already in use there. 
 
 From the popular point of view one of the most 
 fascinating national assets of Paraguay is represented 
 by its fruit industry. Although the soil of the inland 
 Republic has proved itself so admirably adapted to 
 so many other purposes, it is nevertheless for the 
 
SOO PARAGUAY 
 
 growing of its numerous arid luscious frtuits that the 
 red' earth and the bahny airs would seem most of aU 
 suitable. 
 
 iThe most notable fruit of Paragua.y is imdoubtedly, 
 the orange. Those who are interested in the industry 
 claim that the orange yields finer results both in 
 quantity and quality, in Paraguay than in any. other 
 part of the world. This is perhaps rather a bold 
 statement, since, as regards quantity there are some 
 .districts, in the north of the continent where ithe 
 Jwealtti .6f ' the fruit is perhaps even more phenomenal, 
 and 'iii'.-il^Ef,. matter of quzdity some of the central 
 Brazilian -^jJ^cimens of these golden globtes are alto- 
 gether rercLarfcable and quite unsurpassed. 
 • .Biit.it niay" safely be said that Paraguay is second 
 ■ .fo]ift>'.'fijtheif country in the world in orange production., 
 The Republic^ indeed, is peculiarly fortunate in that 
 its fruit pQ'ssesses that somewhat rare combination 
 of both . (^u'ajitity and quality. Orange-growing, as 
 a raattcr.'^f .. fact, is one of the oldest occupations of 
 die' k'ilad. in Paraguay. It is generally supposed 
 •that 'the Jesuits brought with them from Europe the 
 ancestors of those countless orange groves which 
 to-day flourish in Paraguay. Dr. E. "de Bourgade 
 La Dardye, however, who paid much attention to this 
 subject during his stay in Paraguay, stoutly main- 
 tains that one species, a very pleasant one, is indi- 
 genous to Paraguay. He remarks concerning this : — 
 
 " 1 have met with it in the most remote places, 
 in the unexplored valleys of the Ygatimi, and on the 
 margin of the Upper Parand, where it could certainly 
 never have been introduced by human agency. So 
 abundantly does it grow on the Parand above the 
 Salto de Guayra, that during a flood I have seen 
 numbers of them drifting down the stream. 
 
 " The Guaranis call it apepu, which is a very 
 ancient word in their language, and in my opinion 
 carries with it an argument for the tree being of 
 
TIMBER, FRUITS, AND CEREALS 301 
 
 American origin, for all other varieties of the orange, 
 without exception, are distinguished! by, Spanish 
 names. It may, I think, be taken as almost an 
 invariable rule, that whatever has been imported into 
 the country by the invaders has retained its Spanish 
 name, the aborigines not having been at the pains 
 to assign it any name of their own. At most, the 
 final syllable has undergone a. slight change to suit 
 local phonetic laws." 
 
 AVhether it be accurate or not, this is, at all events, 
 a very interesting theoiy on the part of a writer well 
 qualified to speak on the subject. 
 
 The orange has from the earliest days of Paraguay 
 formed part and parcel of the European settlements 
 in the country, and the dark-green foliage of the 
 trees helped to beautify both the lay centres and the 
 Jesuit townships. The site of many of these latter, 
 ruined and' demolished, is marked to this day by, 
 these spreading groves that still continue to yield 
 their fruit. 
 
 In the comiriercial Appendix! will bte found a table 
 showing the export of oranges. From this it will 
 be seen that the average annual export of this fruit 
 from Paraguay during the past few years has been 
 in the neighbourhood of twelve millions of dozens. 
 This is a sufficiently striking total ,• but at the same 
 time it must be explained that it only represents a 
 fraction of the produce of the country, as those 
 enormous quantities grown at an inconvenient dis- 
 tance from rail or steamer are not exported. Were 
 these available to be sent across the frontier the 
 revelation cbnoeming the numbers of Paraguayan 
 oranges would undoubtedly astonish the world. 
 
 It is fortunate for the industry that orange-growing 
 in the inland Republic can be carried on at the 
 expense of so little timie and trouble, for the financial 
 return of the fruit is at the present moment altogether 
 inadequate to its quality. It was recorded, for 
 
302 PARAGUAY 
 
 instance, that in 19 13 the growers at Villa! Rica; o!b- 
 tained an average price of the equivalent of 13s. 4d. 
 for a cartload of five thousand oranges I It is true 
 that the price for the same quantity of selected fruit 
 at the port of San Antonio on the River Paraguay 
 was £1 17s. 6d. On the other hand there were many 
 less favoured points where the fruit fetched' a lower 
 price even than the one first quoted. In 1 9 1 4 matters 
 were much the same, and at the port of VUleta on 
 the Paraguay River the price per cartload of five 
 thousand oranges varied between £1 los. and £1 i ss. 
 
 Figures such as these are not likely to induce many 
 agriculturists to leave Europe in order to take up 
 orange-farming in Paraguay. One of the main 
 reasons why such astonishingly low prices prevail 
 is that the growers, widely scattered and for the 
 most part individually of minor financial importance^ 
 have not yet been able to organize their industry so 
 as to make a stand against a fruit trust, which at 
 the present time appears to be able to buy practically 
 at its own figure. It is probable, of course, that 
 the increasing facilities will eventually come to the 
 aid of the growers — if they themselves have failed to 
 solve the problem in the meantime — ^and will place 
 the industry on that proper economical basis which 
 its importance deserves. 
 
 From the point of view of export the fruit which 
 comes next to the orange in order of importance is 
 the banana. But the gap between the bulk of the 
 two is very great — so marked^ indeed, that no official 
 account is kept of the consignments of ^bananas to 
 the south by raU or river. Nevertheless Paraguay, 
 is admirably suited for the culture of the banana, 
 and some of the plantations are now of considerable 
 importance. It is probable, as a matter of fact, 
 that some millions of bunches are now exported from 
 the Republic, and, since the fruit ripens aU the year 
 round, the trade should be a remunerative one. The 
 
TIMBER, FRUITS, AND CEREALS 303 
 
 species of banana, it may be said, which thrives best 
 of all in Paraguay is known as the " Banana de 
 Oro." 
 
 The only other Paraguayan fruits which are ex- 
 ported are the pineapple and the lemon. 
 
 Among the main cereals and agricultural products 
 of Paraguay are maize, sugar-cane, m^ndioca, cotton, 
 rice, coffee, beahs, pea-nuts, millet, and a consider- 
 able number of European vegetables. The alfalfa, 
 it should be said, which is such a feature of the agri- 
 cultural lands of the south of the continent refuses to 
 thrive in Paraguay, and the lack of this magnificent 
 fodder is not a little regrettable so far as the cattle 
 industry is concerned. 
 
 Two varieties of maize are cultivated' in the 
 Republic, where this cereal is made to do the duty 
 as much as possible of wheat. The climate and 
 soil would seem to suit the growth very well, and 
 it is regarded as a staple food. 
 
 It is a somewhat remarkable circumstance that, 
 although the sugar-cane flourishes so freely in 
 Paraguay, it is not cultivated on a sufficiently large 
 scale to meet the local demand. The total area of 
 land under sugar-cane is estimated at less than ten 
 thousand acres. By no means the entirety, of this, 
 moreover, is used for the manufacture of sugar, as 
 the majority of the smaller growers turn their produce 
 into caha, or rum'. Thus it comes about that Para- 
 guay, an ideal sugar-producing country, imports sugar 
 occasionally to the annual tune of over four million 
 tons from Germany, Austria-Hungary, Spain, and 
 France. It is needless to point out that, as soon as 
 the population of the inland Republic increases to any 
 reasonable extent, this anomalous situation must alter. 
 
 Mandioca is a staple product of Paraguay. This 
 root has proved itself invaluable both' as a vegetable 
 and for the by-products derived from! it. Care, of 
 epurse, has to be taken to distinguish the poisonous 
 
304 PARAGUAY 
 
 varieties of this growth from the edible, a; feat which 
 is not invariably easy. 
 
 Cotton, rice, and coffee are not yet produced in any 
 notable quantities, and, from: the commercial point of 
 view, these products are still in their experimental 
 stage. It is unlikely, indeed, that any really impor- 
 tant advances will be madia in these growths until 
 the increase in population and conmiunications warrant 
 them. 
 
 The cultivation of beans, pea-nuts, millet, and other 
 minor growths is at present carried' on on a small 
 scale. 
 
CHAPTER XXIII 
 
 THE TRADE OF PARAGUAY 
 
 Circutustances which have influenced imports and exports— Consequences 
 of political unrest— Elasticity of the Paraguayan trade — Figures in 
 proof of this — A table of imports and exports — Paraguay's most 
 important customers — British share of the total imports — Proportion 
 of British merchants in Paraguay— A tribute to the quality of British 
 goods — Questions concerning commercial travellers — German com- 
 petition — ^The German plan of campaign — Great Britain's oppor- 
 tunity—Length of credit extended by the British and Germans 
 respectively — Temptations of the system — Necessity for first-class 
 salesmen — The importance of the Spanish language — How this 
 reacts on commercial travellers and, catalogues — Questions of local 
 weights, measures, and currency — ^Unnecessary disadvantages under 
 which the sale of British goods has suffered in the past— Sympathies 
 of the Paraguayan. 
 
 In reviewing the trade of Paraguay it is necessary, 
 to take into account many circumstances the exist- 
 ence of which is not revealed in the mere tables 
 of statistics. In Paraguay it is not matters of 
 commerce alone which have affected the various tables 
 of imports and exports. The most patriotic inhabi- 
 tant of the inland Republic will not attempt to dis- 
 guise the fact that the political unrest which from! 
 time to time has made its appearance in that fertile 
 and rich land has been responsible for an infinitely 
 greater amount of commercial depression than any 
 drought, flood, disease, or any other catastrophe of 
 nature from which it has ever suffered. 
 
 It is these circumstances of revolution and civil 
 war which have so often upset the calculations of 
 Paraguayian and foreigner alike, and which have more 
 
 20 »» 
 
306 PARAGUAY 
 
 than once prodliced.' such strange and! disccmeerting 
 results, at a time, perhaps, when all other circum- 
 stances promised an industrial harvest of the first 
 water. The sum totals of only too many years of 
 Paraguayan trade show signs of " in and out run- 
 ning," when these under steadier circumstajnces could 
 not well have failed to maintain a steady increase. 
 For all that, it cannot be said that the condition 
 of Paraguayan tradfe is in the least unhealthy. The 
 following figures, if they show little else, will at least 
 demonstrate its elasticity and recuperative power. 
 They represent the combined value of the imports 
 and exports, and thus gi!ve the grand totals of Para- 
 guayan foreign trade. / 
 
 Value of Foreign Trade. 
 £ 
 
 1907 2,149.722 
 
 1908 ... ... ... 1,588,010 
 
 1909 i>784,9i8 
 
 1910 ... ... ... 2,267,258 
 
 11911 ... ... ... 2,261,481 
 
 1912 ... ... ... i,9i7i26S 
 
 1913 2,750,185 
 
 Even to one totally unacquainted with' the affairs 
 of the country these figures will explain themselves 
 to a certain extent, while to one familiar with Para- 
 guayan circumstances such fluctuations can come as 
 no surprise. It is essential to note, nevertheless, that 
 the general tendency is an upward one. 
 
 Dissected into imports and exports, these totals 
 stand as follows : — 
 
 1907 
 1908 
 1909 
 1910 
 1911 
 1912 
 1913 
 
 Imports. 
 
 Exports. 
 
 £ 
 
 £ 
 
 1,502,500 
 
 647,222 
 
 814,591 
 
 773,419 
 
 757.590 
 
 1,027,328 
 
 1,283,877 
 
 983,381 
 
 1,295,699 
 
 965,782 
 
 1,070,120 
 
 847,145 
 
 1,623,999 
 
 1,126,186 
 
THE TRADE OF PARAGUAY 307 
 
 So far as exports are concerned', it may be said 
 that Paraguay's most important customers in the recent 
 past have been Argentina, Germany, and Uruguay. 
 The proportions for which these were respectively 
 responsible in 19 12 were: — 
 
 £ 
 
 Argentina ... ... ... 703,283 
 
 Germany ... ... ... 247,151 
 
 Uruguay ... ... ... 13^,924 
 
 These figures, it should be explained, do not show 
 the complete process in connection with Paraguay's 
 exports, for a very large proporltion of the goods 
 sent to Argentina as well as to Uruguay are reshipped 
 to their ultimiate destination, whether this be Great 
 Britain, the United States, or any of the European 
 countries. 
 
 The above figures are quoted from' the report of 
 Mr. F. Oliver, the British Consul in Paraguay, 
 published in 191 4. The detailed figures of the total 
 imports for the years 191 1, 191 2, and 191 3, tak^i 
 from the same source, are : — 
 
 Country. 
 
 Z911. 
 
 1912. 
 
 19«3. 
 
 United Kingdom 
 
 £ 
 370,040 
 
 268,341 
 
 464,806 
 
 Germany 
 
 363,533 
 
 3",079 
 
 448,785 
 
 Argentina 
 
 154,992 
 
 140,622 
 
 218,031 
 
 France 
 
 86,300 
 
 75,622 
 
 107,419 
 
 Italy 
 
 70,371 
 
 63.546 
 
 98,959 
 
 United States 
 
 77,905 
 
 63,189 
 
 97,665 
 
 Spain 
 
 82,725 
 
 66,571 
 
 86,005 
 
 Belgium 
 
 22,086 
 
 26,588 
 
 37,986 
 
 Uniguay 
 
 10,227 
 
 7,328 
 
 12,033 
 
 Braail 
 
 11,674 
 
 8,699 
 
 9,244 
 
 Austria-Hungary 
 
 21,863 
 
 25,793 
 
 17,549 
 
 Other countries 
 
 23,983 
 
 12,742 
 
 25,537 
 
 Total 
 
 1,295,699 
 
 1,070,120 
 
 1.623,999 
 
 Thus it will be seen that out of these totals the 
 British share was 28 per cent, in i9;ii, 25 per cent. 
 
308 PARAGUAY 
 
 in 1912, and 28*6 per cent, in 1913. In 1908 it 
 may be remarked that the British sha.re was only, 
 21 per cent., while that of Germany amounted to 
 29 per cent. These figures afford considerably more 
 satisfactory reading Than those concerning many 
 other parts of South America, where the tendency 
 of the respective shares of Great Britain and Germany 
 has tended only too frequently, to develop in the oppo- 
 site direction. 
 
 It is, indeed, a mlatter for considerable wonder, not 
 that the British trade with Paraguay be not greater 
 than it is, but rather that its volume should have 
 attained to its present dimensions. It is said — I be- 
 lieve with perfect accuracy — ^that out of nearly seven 
 hundred commercial firms — ^nearly all owned by, 
 Germans, Italians, Spaniards, and French— only two 
 firms are British 1 
 
 To emphasize this point I will quote from a recent 
 report of Mr. Consul Oliver's a paragraph which 
 seems to me conspicuous for its soundness: — 
 
 " That British trade is not (so far as can be 
 gathered from the available figures) on the increase 
 is, however, not surprising ; it is, on the contrary, 
 somewhat remarkable that it maintains its present 
 level, because in the whole Republic there are only 
 two British importing firms. It may be regarded 
 as a tribute to the quality of the British goods that 
 they are largely imported by foreign houses and 
 foreign agents, but at the same time the conclusion 
 is irresistible that the British share in the total import 
 trade might be still larger if a larger number of 
 British houses were established in this country. Many 
 more travellers and representatives are said to have 
 been sent during the last year or two to Paraguay, 
 from other European countries such as Germany, 
 France, Italy, etc., than from the United Kingdom, 
 and British firms are also said not to give such easy 
 terms of credit as the foreign ones. In cases where 
 
THE TRADE OF PARAGUAY 309 
 
 goods are bought fronil samples, some Continental 
 firms are said to send out larger assortments of 
 samples (which, other than those of textiles, are bought 
 by the importers, subject to a large discount) than 
 is customary with British firms, thereby facilitating 
 a selection and affording a more precise indication 
 to the exporter of the class of articles desired in 
 this market. These small points are mentioned be- 
 cause Continental compsetition appears to bte likely 
 to grow stQl keener than at present. The German 
 community is said to be continually increasing its 
 numbers. They are occupied in trade and in many 
 other ways, having apparently satisfied themteelves 
 that Paragtiay offers a good field for their enterprise 
 and activity. . . . The United Kingdom: imports 
 practically no products of Paraguay, presumably 
 because there are no British firms in the country 
 exporting hides, tobacco, etc., like the German and 
 Spanish firms." 
 
 Undoubtedly the case has been acturately and 
 fairly put here. The reason why British trade with 
 Paraguay has not groiwn as it should is owing rather 
 to a shortage of British merchants , in the inland 
 Republic than to the want of enterprise on the part 
 of those already engaged in this branch of commerce. 
 British interests, however, cannot permit the situation' 
 to remain as it is when the real dlevelopment of 
 Paraguay occurs, an operation that must come about 
 with a surprising rapidity on the resumJ>tion of a. 
 normlal general comlmertial situation. 
 
 There is no doubt that this dtevelopment hkd been 
 very shrewdly anticipated' by our rivals the Germ!ans, 
 and that they had taken very comprehensive measures 
 to obtain control of that great increase in Paraguayan 
 conunerce which they foresaw. The outbreak of 
 hostilities in Europe has, of course, delayed' this de- 
 velopment of the inland Republic. Beyond this, the 
 new situation cannot well fail to disconcert the pre- 
 
310 PARAGUAY 
 
 arranged Gertakn commercial plan, and shouM there- 
 fore allow sufficient breathing space for Great Britain 
 to organize her cominercial resources on an impanoved 
 basis, and thus make up the groimd she has lost in 
 this direction. ' 
 
 To enter into a traidte technicality, aimbng the 
 matters in which our chief rivals have shown lan 
 elasticity that much exc'eeds our own hlas been that 
 of the granting of credit. Of recent years the length 
 of the credit offered by, the British to their Para- 
 guayan customers has frequently, been extended to 
 six months. The Germans, on the other hand, would 
 seem to be prepared to extend this credit to a term 
 of eighteen months. This is a subject which dfepends, 
 of course, entirely on the finances of each individual 
 merchant or company, and on the standing and needs 
 of their customers. No doubt a too lengthy system 
 of credit may bring about an unhealthy situation — in 
 such matters it is clearly impossible to generalize. 
 At the same time the tempting influence on the 
 purchaser of so long a credit as this must carry an 
 enormous weight in the competition between British 
 and Germans, and the matter is one to which manu- 
 facturers and merchants at home should give a far 
 closer attention than they have in the past. 
 
 Another matter to which it seems to me that the 
 British manufacturers and merchants should devote 
 them;selves with an enthusiasm which has been notori- 
 ously lacking in the piast is the mJanner in which 
 their goodte are offered to their customers in Para- 
 guay. The subject is one to which I have referred 
 before now, btit its importance is such as to warrant 
 not one but a thousand repetitions if any, good would 
 arise from the prociess. 
 
 In the first plaice, thten, really first-class salesmen 
 are now essential to cope with the cominercial situa- 
 tion in South America,. Moreover, not only must 
 these salesmen possess a sound knowledge of their] 
 
THE TRADE OF PARAGUAY 311 
 
 business and' a certain social standing, but they, must 
 be conversant with the Spanish language if any really, 
 notable success is to be obtainedl in these days of 
 increasing competition. Too much stress cannot be 
 laid on the handicap suffered! by even the most 
 efficient salesman who is ignorant of Spanish. Toi 
 be at the mercy of an interpreter in the course pf 
 important business conversations is equivalent to 
 physical fighting with an arm tied' behind one's bak:k, 
 and the advantaige in securing an ordler tmder these 
 conditions must inevitably lie with a rival who is 
 proficient in Spanish, even if his actual commercial 
 backing were a trifle less sound. 
 
 It is a mlatter of only slightly less importance th^t 
 the catalogues of, the various British 'goods sent out 
 to South America' should be printed in Spanish, and 
 that the quotations should be made out in the weights, 
 measures, and currency of the country to the inhabi- 
 tants of which it is dtesired to sell. I have noticed 
 of late with no little satisfaction that these maxims 
 have been laid down with emphasis by the British 
 consular body not only in Paraguay, but in many 
 other States of South America. In maintaining trade 
 against competitors who are completely free from 
 any sdruple so long as their end be attained, 
 it is surely the worst policy willingly to leave 
 gaps of this Idnd in the comlm^rcialj angojour of the 
 nation I 
 
 It is now, however, probably becoming clear to 
 British merchants and manufacturers to what an 
 extent their tradte has suflfered in the past froml 
 circumstances of this kind' — disadvantages under 
 which the sale of their goods has laboured quitei 
 unnecessarily. It is clearly essential that they should 
 be removed before the conmiiercial campaign in 
 Paraguay is fully resxmied on the basis which must 
 now prevail. Notwithstanding its considerable 
 German commercial population, the sympathies of 
 
312 PARAGUAY 
 
 Paraguay in general run as strongly, as elsewhere 
 in the continent in favour of the Allies. Great 
 Britain has never known a more favourable moment 
 to consolidate her business relations with the inland 
 Republic. It is to be hoped' that she will see to 
 it that the opportunity be not lost. 
 
APPENDIX 
 
 Tables showing the recent progress of the chief Paraguayan industries- 
 Countries concerned in the imports-^The principal articles imported 
 into Paraguay and their respective values — Consular hints concern- 
 ing competition in trade — Paraguayan State estimates for the year 
 1914 — Statistics of the Paraguay Central Railway — The State 
 Colonies of Paraguay — Departments of Paraguay with their districts 
 — List of the Spanish Governors of Paraguay from the time of the first 
 settlement of the country to the end of the Spanish dominion — 
 Eighteenth-century European ignorance concerning Paraguay- 
 William Hadfield on Carlos Antonio Lopez — Sufferings of the 
 soldiers in the Paraguayan War — The Paraguayan Press. 
 
 m 
 
314 APPENDIX 
 
 COMMERCIAL STATISTICS 
 
 The following tables will show the recent progress of the chief 
 Paraguayan industries. The cause of many of the fluctuations has 
 been explained in the earlier part of the book, and it is merely necessary 
 to repeat here that it is in most instances political rather than industrial. 
 Many of the higher totals is these tables are therefore striking, in that 
 they demonstrate the capabilities of the Paraguayan industries in 
 circumstances which are in themselves discouraging, and which, in 
 fairness to the State, cannot reasonably be regarded as permanent. 
 
 EXPORTS OF DRIED BEEF 
 
 1907 
 
 20.340 
 
 1908 ' 
 
 ? 19,040 
 
 1909 
 
 ... 12,100 
 
 I9I0 
 
 17,481 
 
 191 1 
 
 34,269 
 
 1912 
 
 37,547 
 
 I9I3 
 
 ... 20,102 
 
 
 EXPORTS OF BEEF EXTRACT 
 
 
 Lb. 
 
 I9I0 
 
 8,960 
 
 191 1 
 
 ... 10,616 
 
 I9I2 
 
 3,863 
 
 I9I3 
 
 31,629 
 
 EXPORTS OF QaEBRACHO EXTRACT 
 
 Metric Tons. 
 1907 ... ... ... ... ... 9,209 
 
 1908 13,136 
 
 1909 ... ... ... ... ... 10,680 
 
 1910 11,538 
 
 19" 8,121 
 
 1912 7,298 
 
 1913 — — ... ... ... 11,721 
 
 
 EXPORT OF HIDES 
 
 
 
 Dried. 
 
 Salted. 
 
 
 Pieces. 
 
 Pieces. 
 
 1907 ... 
 
 58,691 
 
 185,589 
 
 1908 ... 
 
 79,921 
 
 177,872 
 
 1909 ... 
 
 90,014 
 
 213,060 
 
 I9I0 ... 
 
 77,005 
 
 223,877' 
 
 I9II ... 
 
 66,572 
 
 194,132 
 
 1912 ... 
 
 114,570 
 
 183,308 
 
 1913 - 
 
 93,554 
 
 218,978 
 
 ' It will be noticed that this figure, which, taken from Consular sources, we may assume 
 to be correct, difiers elightly from that giren in the table in the chapter on cattle. 
 
APPENDIX 
 
 315 
 
 EXPORTS OF ORANGES 
 
 
 Dozens. 
 
 1907 
 
 ■■ 4.307,550 
 
 1908 ... 
 
 .. 10,682,466 
 
 1909 
 
 •• 14,139,441 
 
 I9I0 
 
 •• 10,895,379 
 
 1911 
 
 .. 12,137,347 
 
 I9I3 ... 
 
 ■■ 10,529,575 
 
 I9I3 
 
 .. 13,689,716 
 
 
 TANGERINES 
 
 Dozens. 
 
 1909 ... 
 
 
 289,654 
 
 19IO ... 
 
 
 442,340 
 
 I9II 
 
 
 •• 2,259,333 
 
 I912 ... 
 
 
 505,687 
 
 I913 ... 
 
 
 314,012 
 
 EXPORTS OF TOBACCO 
 
 
 Pari. 
 
 Pito. 
 
 Negro. 
 
 All kinds. 
 
 
 Cwts. 
 
 Cwts. 
 
 Cwts. 
 
 Cwts. 
 
 1907 
 
 — 
 
 — 
 
 — 
 
 30,500 
 
 1908 
 
 — 
 
 — 
 
 — 
 
 100,280 
 
 1909 
 
 20,500 
 
 73,980 
 
 1,660 
 
 — 
 
 I9I0 
 
 22,942 
 
 77,587 
 
 109 
 
 — 
 
 191 1 
 
 23,380 
 
 103,659 
 
 746 
 
 — 
 
 I9I2 
 
 13,333 
 
 62,253 
 
 135 
 
 — 
 
 I9I3 
 
 18,681 
 
 87,545 
 
 287 
 
 — 
 
 EXPORTS OF VERBA MATE 
 
 
 Ground. 
 
 Unground. 
 
 
 Lb. 
 
 Lb. 
 
 1907 
 
 ... 504,000 
 
 8,713,600 
 
 1908 ... 
 
 ... 508,480 
 
 8,749,440 
 
 1909 
 
 ... 336,000 
 
 6,569,920 
 
 1910 ... 
 
 ... 237,263 
 
 6,106,159 
 
 19II ... 
 
 ... 294,044 
 
 6,594,478 
 
 I9I2 ... 
 
 ... 192,143 
 
 2,592,167 
 
 I9I3 
 
 ... 184,172 
 
 9,053,932 
 
316 
 
 APPENDIX 
 
 EXPORTS OF TIMBER 
 
 
 Logs 
 (Rough). 
 
 Logs 
 (Trimmed). 
 
 Posts. 
 
 stakes. 
 
 Sleepers. 
 
 Boards. 
 
 General. 
 
 1907 
 
 Mttric 
 Tons. 
 
 ^ 
 Pieces. 
 
 Pieces. 
 
 Pieces. 
 
 Pieces. 
 
 Pieces. 
 
 'Square 
 Metres. 
 
 3.51S.637 
 
 1908 
 
 — 
 
 — 
 
 — 
 
 — 
 
 — 
 
 — 
 
 2,799.666 
 
 1909 
 
 22,213 
 
 — 
 
 51-398 
 
 — 
 
 169,582 
 
 735.310 
 
 — 
 
 I9I0 
 191 1 
 
 94.431 
 6,712 
 
 87,446 
 
 58,543 
 51,158 
 
 718,007 
 618,484 
 
 133.488 
 10,188 
 
 Metric 
 Tons. 
 4,958 
 
 «— 
 
 I9I2 
 
 10,633 
 
 61.336 
 
 68,962 
 
 536,706 
 
 31.550 
 
 2,637 
 
 — 
 
 I9I3 
 
 8,074 
 
 70,088 
 
 93.821 
 
 685,734 
 
 23.995 
 
 4.685 
 
 — 
 
 EXPORTS OF QUEBRACHO TIMBER 
 
 
 Metric Tons. 
 
 1907 ... 
 
 9,000 
 
 1908 ... 
 
 ... 18,106 
 
 1910 ... 
 
 14.888 
 
 I9II ... 
 
 i7,i8S 
 
 I9I2 ... 
 
 3.689 
 
 1913 ... 
 
 12.970 
 
 EXPORTS OF PETIT GRAIN OIL 
 
 
 
 Lb. 
 
 1907 ... 
 
 ^ 
 
 24,640 
 
 1908 ... 
 
 
 64,960 
 
 1909 ... 
 
 
 — 
 
 I9I0 ... 
 
 
 — 
 
 I9II ... 
 
 
 41.143 
 
 I9I2 ... 
 
 
 50.394 
 
 J9I? ... 
 
 • f »«f 
 
 72.286 
 
APPENDIX 317 
 
 COUNTRIES CONCERNED IN THE IMPORTS 
 
 Articles and Countriesl 
 
 
 
 
 
 from which Imported. 
 
 1911. 
 
 I1911. 
 
 1913. 
 
 Remarks. 
 
 Food-Stuffs 
 
 £ 
 
 £ 
 
 £ 
 
 Flour, grains, potatoes, 
 
 United Kingdom 
 
 s",8o6 
 
 7^200 
 
 10,323 
 
 sugar, petroleum, pre- 
 
 Germany 
 
 SS.167 
 
 42,667 
 
 72,954 
 
 served fruits, vege- 
 
 Argentina 
 
 98,819 
 
 92.974 
 
 127,429 
 
 tables and fish, butter, 
 
 Prance 
 
 8,89s 
 
 8,419 
 
 11,073 
 
 cheese, hams, tea, 
 
 Italy 
 
 20,530 
 
 13.456 
 
 20,997 
 
 coffee, cocoa, maca- 
 
 United States ... 
 
 16,340 
 
 16,952 
 
 18,871 
 
 roni, biscuits, sweets. 
 
 Spain 
 
 28,475 
 
 21,915 
 
 23,745 
 
 candles, soap (toilet), 
 
 Belgium 
 
 — — ' 
 
 1,457 
 
 3,325 
 
 oil, olives, condunents, 
 
 Uruguay 
 
 3,019 
 
 2,386 
 
 4,750 
 
 etc. 
 
 Brazil 
 
 10,663 
 
 8,000 
 
 8,207 
 
 
 Austria-Hungary 
 
 21,188 
 
 22,071 
 
 IS.905 
 
 
 Portugal 
 
 1,647 
 
 t 
 
 1,979 
 
 
 Netherlands ... 
 
 — » 
 
 1,044 
 
 2,597 
 
 
 Other countries 
 
 9>97S 
 
 4,273 
 
 7,276 
 
 
 Textiles 
 
 
 
 
 Prints, greys, whites, 
 
 United Kingdom 
 
 199,833 
 
 X73.i9S 
 
 268,920 
 
 blankets, woollen and 
 
 Germany 
 
 90,829 
 
 82,158 
 
 99,i6S 
 
 cotton cashmeres. 
 
 Argentina 
 
 1 
 
 2,oS6 
 
 2,578 
 
 cloths, sheetings, flan- 
 
 France 
 
 14,286, 
 
 13,355 
 
 23,967 
 
 nels, silks, fancy dress 
 
 Italy 
 
 18,293 
 
 17,227 
 
 32,077 
 
 stuffs, linen goods, etc. 
 
 Spain 
 
 8,327 
 
 7,511 
 
 15,793 
 
 
 United States ... 
 
 i>4SS 
 
 
 1,665 
 
 
 Belgium 
 
 4,211 
 
 5,041 
 
 5,192 
 
 
 Other countries 
 
 5,299 
 
 2,508 
 
 3,226 
 
 
 Hardware 
 
 
 
 
 Tools, wire, ships' 
 
 United Kingdom 
 
 28,927 
 
 55,728 
 
 129,011 
 
 fittings, corrugated tin, 
 
 Germany 
 
 36,737 
 
 76,329 
 
 99,473 
 
 household and kitchen 
 
 Argentina 
 
 2,848 
 
 6,847 
 
 9,974 
 
 utensils, etc. 
 
 France 
 
 4,564 
 
 5,272 
 
 4,704 
 
 
 Italy 
 
 I 
 
 2,157 
 
 1,417 
 
 
 United States ... 
 
 i8,S97 
 
 21,444 
 
 43,122 
 
 
 Belgium 
 
 6,514 
 
 16,910 
 
 20,022 
 
 
 Spain 
 
 5,101 
 
 I 
 
 1,107 
 
 
 Other countries 
 
 3,117 
 
 3,925 
 
 2,192 
 
 
 Wines, etc — 
 
 
 
 
 
 United Kingdom 
 
 1,767 
 
 2,318 
 
 3,159 
 
 
 Germany 
 
 3,674 
 
 2,379 
 
 3.103 
 
 
 France 
 
 11,887 
 
 12,567 
 
 14,272 
 
 
 Italy 
 
 13,266 
 
 12,685 
 
 15,588 
 
 
 Spain 
 
 26,667 
 
 25,631 
 
 37-954 
 
 
 Portugal 
 
 _^I 
 
 1,339 
 
 1,887 
 
 
 Other countries 
 
 2,093 
 
 1.452 
 
 2,72s 
 
 
 ' Included under" other couotriei." 
 
318 APPENDIX 
 
 COUNTRIES CONCERNED IN THE IMPORTS— Co««»M«d 
 
 Articles and Countries 
 
 
 
 
 
 from wliich Imported. 
 
 igii. 
 
 1912. 
 
 1913. 
 
 Remarks. 
 
 Fancy goods ... 
 
 ;£ 
 
 £ 
 
 £ 
 
 Haberdashery, station- 
 
 United Kingdom 
 
 i6,5Si 
 
 12,616 
 
 22,824 
 
 ery, perfumery, dolls, 
 
 Germany 
 
 31,528 
 
 35,605 
 
 52,772 
 
 ornaments, plated 
 
 France 
 
 24,145 
 
 17,432 
 
 21,317 
 
 goods, buttons, arti- 
 
 Italy 
 
 4,399 
 
 3,376 
 
 5,621 
 
 ficial flowers, etc. 
 
 Spain 
 
 1,425 
 
 3,867 
 
 2,626 
 
 
 Argentina 
 
 1,726 
 
 4,"7 
 
 5,372 
 
 
 United States ... 
 
 1,328 
 
 I 
 
 1,079 
 
 
 Other countries 
 
 313 
 
 1,851 
 
 3,431 
 
 
 Drugs and chemi- 
 
 
 
 
 
 cals 
 
 ... 
 
 ,,, 
 
 • •• 
 
 Medicines, chemicals, 
 
 United Kingdom 
 
 4,795 
 
 9,161 
 
 10,725 
 
 oils and colours, sur- 
 
 Germany 
 
 XS>567 
 
 10,142 
 
 14,811 
 
 gical instruments, etc. 
 
 Argentina 
 
 2,468 
 
 2,941 
 
 3,605 
 
 
 France 
 
 7,410 
 
 6,856 
 
 12,726 
 
 
 Italy 
 
 2,203 
 
 1,176 
 
 2,038 
 
 
 United States ... 
 
 4,973 
 
 8,753 
 
 14,543 
 
 
 Other countries 
 
 2,908 
 
 5,556 
 
 3,293 
 
 
 Hats 
 
 
 
 
 European styles of 
 
 United Kingdom 
 
 2,676 
 
 1,676 
 
 1,110 
 
 hard and soft felts, 
 
 Germany 
 
 1,387 
 
 1,705 
 
 2,472 
 
 straws, Panamas, 
 
 France 
 
 1,82s 
 
 I 
 
 2,318 
 
 tropical hats and 
 
 Italy 
 
 7,237 
 
 7,589 
 
 17,432 
 
 helmets 
 
 Uruguay 
 
 3,113 
 
 1,818 
 
 1,797 
 
 
 Other countries 
 
 717 
 
 2,236 
 
 442 
 
 
 Fire-arms 
 
 
 
 
 Revolvers, shot guns, 
 
 United Kingdom 
 
 2,'495 
 
 "5 
 
 2,751 
 
 accessories and ammu- 
 
 Germany 
 
 3,489 
 
 4,574 
 
 4,186 
 
 nition 
 
 France 
 
 I 
 
 2,165 
 
 — _' 
 
 
 United States ... 
 
 5,901 
 
 6,276 
 
 3,992 
 
 
 Spain 
 
 2,343 
 
 1,463 
 
 975 
 
 
 Belgium 
 
 
 
 1,206 
 
 
 Other countries 
 
 1,127 
 
 104 
 
 443 
 
 
 Clothing 
 
 
 
 
 Chiefly underwear (the 
 
 United Kingdom 
 
 2,278 
 
 2,760 
 
 4,036 
 
 import duty on ready- 
 
 Germany 
 
 5,345 
 
 7,559 
 
 10,446 
 
 made clothes is high) 
 
 Argentina 
 
 10,194 
 
 4,208 
 
 12,988 
 
 
 France 
 
 2,104 
 
 2,526 
 
 5,318 
 
 
 Italy 
 
 2,016 
 
 1,008 
 
 1,375 
 
 
 Spain 
 
 5,744 
 
 1,661 
 
 1,291 
 
 
 Other countries 
 
 104 
 
 134 
 
 890 
 
 
 > Included under " Other countries." 
 
appe:ndix 
 
 319 
 
 COUNTRIES CONCERNED IN THE IMPORTS— CoMfe»««d 
 
 Articles and Countries 
 
 
 
 
 
 from whicli Imported. 
 
 igii. 
 
 19x2. 
 
 1913. 
 
 Remarks. 
 
 
 £ 
 
 & 
 
 £ 
 
 
 China and glass- 
 
 
 
 
 
 ware — 
 
 
 
 
 
 United Kingdom 
 
 1,183 
 
 1,441 
 
 1,327 
 
 
 Germany 
 
 10,620 
 
 13.431 
 
 15,820 
 
 
 France 
 
 __ X 
 
 1,538 
 
 992 
 
 
 Argentina 
 
 z 
 
 X 
 
 1,582 
 
 
 Other countries 
 
 2.S46 
 
 1,46s 
 
 1,355 
 
 
 Boats and shoes — 
 
 
 
 
 
 United Kingdom 
 
 — • 
 
 * 
 
 1,303 
 
 
 Germany 
 
 — ' 
 
 g 
 
 2,211 
 
 
 Argentina 
 
 — " 
 
 ^_2 
 
 3,475 
 
 
 United States ... 
 
 — " 
 
 9 
 
 4,"7 
 
 
 Other countries 
 
 — " 
 
 a 
 
 2,822 
 
 
 CatUe— 
 
 
 
 
 
 Argentina 
 
 a 
 
 - 
 
 26,757 
 
 
 Uruguay 
 
 3 
 
 9 
 
 128 
 
 
 Free of duty 
 
 273,933 
 
 9 
 
 — 3 
 
 Railway materials, agri- 
 cultural machinery and 
 implements, machin- 
 ery for industrial 
 purposes and ships, 
 telegraph wire, wire 
 fencing (barbed and 
 plain), windmills, 
 ' stock cattle, naphtha, 
 calcium carbide. 
 
 Other articles 
 
 27,141 
 
 59,872 
 
 59,622 
 
 Tobacco, leather, 
 saddlery, furniture, 
 jewellery, electrical 
 fittings, musical in- 
 struments, etc. 
 
 Unclassified 
 
 9,626 
 
 24,767 
 
 79,413 
 
 Entered free by order 
 of the Government 
 
 Total 
 
 1,295,699 
 
 1,070,120 
 
 1,623,999 
 
 
 ' Included under " Other countries." 
 
 a Included under " Other articles." 
 
 J Included under the several classes of article! to which they belong respectively. 
 
320 
 
 APPENDIX 
 
 The principal articles imported into Paragoay, and their respective 
 values, are summarized in the following table :— 
 
 Articles. 
 
 191 1. 
 
 1912. 
 
 1913. 
 
 Food-stuffs 
 
 Textiles 
 
 Hardware 
 
 Wines, spirits, etc.i 
 Fancy goods 
 Drugs and chemicals 
 
 Hats 
 
 Fire-arms 
 
 Clothing 
 
 China and glassware 
 Boots and shoes ... 
 
 Cattle 
 
 Free of duty 
 Other articles 
 Unclassified 
 
 Total 
 
 280,524 
 
 342.533 
 106,405 
 
 59.354 
 81,415 
 
 40.324 
 16.955 
 15.355 
 27,785 
 H.349 
 
 273.933 
 
 27,141 
 
 9,626 
 
 1.295.6991 
 
 243,814 
 303.081 
 188,612 
 
 58,371 
 78,864 
 
 44.585 
 15.024 
 16,369 
 19.856 
 17.905 
 
 59.872 
 24,767 
 
 1,070,120 
 
 £ 
 
 329.431 
 
 4S2,.'!83 
 311,022 
 77.788 
 115,042 
 61,741 
 25.571 
 13,553 
 36,344 
 21,076 
 13.928 
 26,885 
 
 — ■ 
 
 59.622 
 79,413 
 
 1.623,999 
 
 s Included under "Other articles." 
 
 > The principal articles imported free of duty in 1913 are stated to have been : Hard- 
 ware, fancy goods, drugs, clothing, glass and china, cattle, laddlery, and electrical goods, 
 to the value of ;£2SI,5S0. 
 
APPENDIX 321 
 
 The following extract from a Consular Report on Paraguay published in 
 1913 should be of special interest to British traders who are anxious to 
 extend their connection with Paraguay : — 
 
 British Trade. — The total imports from the United Kingdom declined 
 from ;£37o,o40 in 1911 to £268,341 in igi2, but the relative proportion of 
 the import trade from British sources fell only from 28 to 2$ per cent. 
 British textiles showed no further decline, but did not recover the ground 
 lost in 1911. The apparent increase in the imports from the United 
 Kingdom of hardware is due principally to the inclusion in the table of 
 the hardware imported free of duty. There was some decline in fancy 
 goods, and an increase in drugs and chemicals. 
 
 As regards the chief competitors with British goods, Germany competes 
 most strongly in food-stuffs, textiles, hardware, fancy goods, drugs and 
 chemicals, fire-arms, underclothing and garments, china and glassware 
 (nearly 75 per cent, of the total of the latter). Italy is still the chief 
 purveyor of hats, the United Kingdom supplying only hats of the better 
 class. The import of fire-arms (£16,369 in 1912) appears to be increasing, 
 but the British article seems to have almost disappeared from this market. 
 The competition of other countries in textiles is not formidable. In 
 hardware, however, both the United States and Belgium are gaining 
 ground. The consumption of British spirits, which is still only trifling, is 
 on the increase. France competes strongly in fancy goods and in drugs, 
 and in the latter branch as well as in fire-arms the United States is also 
 obtaining a firmer hold. 
 
 The import trade is handled mainly by European houses, among whom 
 the German, French, Spanish, and Italian predominate, while the British 
 are the least numerous. A larger number of British travellers and repre- 
 sentatives visited Paraguay in 1912 than of late years, but the confidence 
 maintained by some British firms in catalogues (in English) appears to be 
 still fairly general. In the meantime their competitors, who reside in the 
 country and have personal knowledge of the financial standing of their 
 clients, and consequently know when to give or to withhold credit, 
 are taking measures to place their goods for sale at all the best stores 
 throughout the country districts and establish branches at the more 
 important centres. In this way they lay the foundation of a trade the 
 development of which is liable to be realized when the progress of 
 the country is more advanced. In the course of long residence in 
 the country they become intimately acquainted with the tastes and 
 habits of the population, and are in a position to understand the class 
 of goods for which there is a demand. 
 
 21 
 
322 
 
 APPENDIX 
 
 ESTIMATES FOR THE YEAR 1914. 
 Revenue. 
 
 Import duties 
 
 Export duties 
 
 Transit dues, etc. . 
 
 Taxes 
 
 Post and telegraph., 
 
 Sundries ... 
 
 Total 
 
 ... 523,200 
 ... 167,400 
 ... 14,460 
 ... 223,260 
 19,900 
 ... 136,851 
 
 ... 1,085,071 
 
 Expenditure. 
 
 Legislature 
 Interior — 
 
 Presidency 
 
 Ministry... 
 
 Post and telegraph 
 
 Public Health Department 
 
 Police of capital ... 
 „ provinces 
 
 Sundries... 
 
 3.400 
 16,735 
 50,601 
 
 4,363 
 76,932 
 44.125 
 25.049 
 
 Foreign Affairs — 
 
 
 
 Ministry, etc. 
 
 ... 
 
 20,200 
 
 Diplomatic and Consular services ... 
 
 ... 
 
 37,290 
 
 Annual contributions and reserves ... 
 
 
 
 2.319 
 
 Finance — 
 
 
 
 Ministry... 
 
 ... 
 
 4.893 
 
 National Accountancy Department and Treasury 
 
 8,171 
 
 Inland Revenue Department 
 
 ... 
 
 68,545 
 
 Fomento 
 
 ... 
 
 32,960 
 
 Claims Commission 
 
 ... 
 
 2,666 
 
 Reserve ... 
 
 ... 
 
 2,000 
 
 Justice, Worship, and Public Instruction — 
 
 
 Ministry... 
 
 ... 
 
 6,543 
 
 Administration of Justice ... 
 
 ... 
 
 38,164 
 
 Registrar-General 
 
 ... ... 
 
 2.277 
 
 Worship... 
 
 ... 
 
 7.830 
 
 Secondary and Higher Education ... 
 
 ... ... 
 
 22.991 
 
 Library, Museum, and National Archives 
 
 ... ... 
 
 4,266 
 
 Primary Education 
 
 ... 
 
 65,172 
 
 Buildings 
 
 ... 
 
 10,133 
 
 Natural History Museum, Botanic and 
 
 Zoological 
 
 
 Gardens 
 
 ... ..• 
 
 2,000 
 
 Reserve ... 
 
 
 
 2,000 
 
 £ 
 24,112 
 
 221,205 
 
 59,809 
 
 119,23s 
 
 161,376 
 
APPENDIX 
 
 323 
 
 War- 
 Ministry... 
 Army 
 Navy 
 
 Clothing and Provisioning Department 
 Reserve... 
 
 Service of public debt — 
 External — 
 London loan, 1871-72 ... 
 Banco Nacional Argentino 
 French River Plate Bank 
 Loan authorized by law of November 28, 1912 
 Internal — 
 
 Post and Telegraph Office, final instalment 
 Loan from Banco de la Republica for 500,000 dol. 
 gold, January, 1912, at 9 per cent., balance with 
 interest 
 Proportion of Government profits in Banco de la 
 Republica carried to conversion fund ... 
 
 Total 
 
 ... 
 
 ... 67,952 
 
 ... 
 
 ... 74,871 
 
 
 - 29,63s 
 
 ... 
 
 ... 105,925 
 
 ... 
 
 ■■• 2,053 
 
 
 - 35,617 
 
 ... 
 
 ... 2,400 
 
 ... 
 
 ... 44,183 
 
 I9I2 
 
 ... 75,600 
 
 280,436 
 
 6,666 
 
 60,000 
 8,400 
 
 232,866 
 1,099,039 
 
 PUBLIC DEBT, DECEMBER 31, 1913. 
 External. 
 
 London loan, 1871-72 ... 
 
 Loan from Banco Nacional Argentino ... 
 
 Loan from French River Plate Bank 
 
 Internal. 
 Debt of the revolution of 1904 ... 
 Floating debt of administration, 1905-09... 
 Ditto 1910 to March 1912 
 Loan from the Banco de la Republica for 500,000 dol. 
 
 gold, January 1912, at 9 per cent., in current 
 
 account 
 Paper and nickel money in circulation, viz., 
 
 65,000,000 dol. 
 Treasury notes (ordenes de pago) in respect of 
 
 administration 
 Ditto in respect of judicial decisions 
 Treasury bills... 
 
 overdraft 
 
 Accounts in 
 
 Gold. 
 
 £ 
 
 729,057 
 
 13,646 
 
 Accounts in 
 Paper. 
 
 40,000 
 
 
 
 5,984 
 48,378 
 63,135 
 
 30,882 
 69,248 
 68,255 
 
 55,000 
 
 722,222 
 
 10,500 
 
 713 
 11,028 
 
 6,429 
 , 4,239 
 
 92,194 
 
 34,304 
 
 Total 
 Grand Total 
 
 ... 1,069,635 
 
 935.579 
 2,005,214 
 
324 
 
 APPENDIX 
 
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APPENDIX 
 
 326 
 
 IMI + MII +IIIII1IIMI + II 
 
 1 
 
 
 ■pop S> 
 
 + 1 1 
 
 + 
 
 H 
 1 1 
 
 to 
 
 1 
 
 i^«, g;« j.>o « ££, ^ ,g ojj. o; 3,-5.0 jjovwJ5:g ^f; 
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 1 +11 
 
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 + 1 11 
 
 
 
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 IMI + MIII + II + 11 
 
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 S" a s 
 * 00 $ 
 
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 + 1 1 
 
 
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 I?" 
 
 H 
 
 Total Goods and Livestock 
 
 Total Revenue Tonnage 
 
 Company's Materials 
 
 Grahd Total 
 
 ......................... . 
 
 Verba 
 
 Tobacco 
 
 Maize 
 
 Coffee 
 
 Sugar-cane 
 
 Sugar 
 
 Spirits 
 
 Wine 
 
 Rice 
 
 Mandloca 
 
 Starch 
 
 Pea-nut 
 
 Coco 
 
 Castor Oil Seed 
 
 Oil 
 
 Hay 
 
 Flour 
 
 Bran 
 
 Sundry Products 
 
 General Goods, ist Class 
 
 ,. 2nd 
 
 " 3rd „ 
 
 „ „ ith , 
 
 „ „ Sundries 
 
 Extension Material 
 
 Total Goods 
 
 
 LIVESTOCK— 
 
 Cattle 
 
 Horses, Mules and Donkeys 
 
 Sheep ... " 
 
 Pigs, etc 
 
 Total Livestock 
 
 d 
 la 
 
 
 1 
 
 R&SS8 as ss"'a'i5 aa-a^as'Rsi-iili' 
 
 
 
 €0 
 
 en 
 
 
 U 
 S 
 
 
 
 
 
 M 
 
 f if 
 
 10 m 
 
 
 
326 
 
 APPENDIX 
 
 ANALYSIS OF RESULTS 
 
 TRAFFICS. 
 
 
 i 
 
 
 s 
 1 
 
 Passengeks. 
 
 Goods in Tons. , 
 
 Year ended 
 
 E 
 
 "d. 
 1 
 
 
 iS 
 
 t 
 
 1 
 1 
 
 i 
 
 ill 
 
 III 
 
 
 April 30, 1906 
 
 155 
 
 g73.477 
 
 £ 
 23,529 
 
 2,906 
 
 739 
 
 2,727 
 
 2,530 
 
 6,042 
 
 46,904 
 
 12,552 
 
 June 30, 1907 
 
 15s 
 
 I,0O2,6go 
 
 30.554 
 
 2,146 
 
 784 
 
 2,598 
 
 2,921 
 
 6,323 
 
 60,147 
 
 13,207 
 
 June 30, 1908 
 
 153 
 
 962,230 
 
 37.038 
 
 2,393 
 
 836 
 
 4,891 
 
 2,608 
 
 7,222 
 
 40,476 
 
 14,106 
 
 June 30, igog 
 
 15s 
 
 603,231 
 
 29,927 
 
 2,483 
 
 715 
 
 4,322 
 
 1,501 
 
 7,167 
 
 34,342 
 
 .11,677 
 
 June 30, igio 
 
 IS5-66* 
 
 518,709 
 
 32,990 
 
 3,182 
 
 934 
 
 5,124 
 
 2,698 
 
 6,916 
 
 54,424 
 
 7,032 
 
 June 30, igii 
 
 168* 
 
 470.686 
 
 42,585 
 
 2,649 
 
 960 
 
 3,404 
 
 2,398 
 
 6,916 
 
 62,830 
 
 10,217 
 
 June 30, 1912 
 
 332 
 
 394.660 
 
 37,037 
 
 1,875 
 
 742 
 
 5.222 
 
 2,471 
 
 6,362 
 
 43.118 
 
 4,766 
 
 June 30, 1913 
 
 232 
 
 532,807 
 
 59,936 
 
 2,8ig 
 
 1,086 
 
 5,048 
 
 2,112 
 
 7.II9 
 
 71.210 
 
 12,580 
 
 June 30, lgi4 
 
 240-4* 
 
 623,368 
 
 62,157 
 
 3,295 
 
 1,890 
 
 5,987 
 
 5,187 
 
 7.067 
 
 59,120 
 
 17,002 
 
 Tune 30, 1915 
 
 253 
 
 564,941 
 
 35,884 
 
 2,189 
 
 1,016 
 
 6,475 
 
 6,091 
 
 7,072 
 
 43,795 
 
 18,600 
 
 * Average. 
 STATISTICAL. 
 
 Year ended April 30th. 
 
 Average 
 
 Rate of 
 
 Excliange. 
 
 Total Traffic Receipts. 
 
 Working 
 Expenses. 
 
 Proat. 
 
 Currency. 
 
 Sterling. 
 
 lgo6 
 
 1,083 
 
 3,003,720 
 
 55,208 
 
 32,639 
 
 £ 
 22.569 
 
 1907 
 
 * 2 months ) 
 May and June, 1907 J '" 
 
 Year ended — 
 June 30, 1908 
 
 1,118 
 1,288 
 
 3,994,388 
 738,893 
 
 3,368,130 
 
 71,433 
 12,226 
 
 86,208 
 
 46,851 
 9,889 
 
 50,627 
 
 24,602 
 2,337 
 
 33,381 
 
 June 30, 1909 
 
 1,622 
 
 6,305,212 
 
 77.446 
 
 43,029 
 
 32,417 
 
 June 30, 1910 
 
 1,496 
 
 7.308,365 
 
 97,126 
 
 48,789 
 
 48,337 
 
 June 30, igii 
 
 1,286 
 
 7,744,708 
 
 120,023 
 
 68,602 
 
 51,421 
 
 June 30, 1912 
 
 1,342 
 
 7,217,080 
 
 111,983 
 
 67,474 
 
 44,509 
 
 June 30, 1913 
 
 1,498 
 
 11,057,962 
 
 146,511 
 
 80,574 
 
 65,937 
 
 June 30, 1914 
 
 1,719 
 
 13,420,42s 
 
 156,204 
 
 90,074 
 
 66,166 
 
 June 30, 1915 
 
 3.072 
 
 14,307,200 
 
 100,774 
 
 61,087 
 
 39,687 
 
 * Added to the financial year 1907. New financial year commencing 1st July. 
 
OF WORKING 
 
 APPENDIX 
 
 TRAFFICS. 
 
 327 
 
 
 
 
 Goods k 
 
 TONS 
 
 
 
 
 Livestock. 
 
 
 a^. 
 
 
 
 Is 
 
 if 
 §» 
 
 n % 
 
 .iTS 
 na 
 
 33-0 
 
 ■3 b 
 
 1 
 
 •a 
 
 u 
 
 f 
 
 CO 
 
 1 
 
 1 
 
 1 
 
 Number. 
 
 
 II 
 
 i 
 
 
 t 
 
 a 
 
 1 
 
 487 
 
 — 
 
 2,452 
 
 8,058 
 
 633 
 
 2.903 
 
 19.511 
 
 108,464 
 
 £ 
 28,199+ 
 
 — 
 
 — 
 
 278 
 
 £ 
 
 801 
 
 - 
 
 3.014 
 
 5.972 
 
 663 
 
 1,709 
 
 23.343 
 
 125.628 
 
 36,896+ 
 
 65 
 
 284 
 
 349 
 
 - 
 
 727 
 
 2.399 
 
 2,906 
 
 6,821 
 
 587 
 
 3,125 
 
 16,189 
 
 105,286 
 
 40,754 
 
 1,103 
 
 1.097 
 
 2,200 
 
 2S7 
 
 648 
 
 1,456 
 
 1,735 
 
 7,20s 
 
 681 
 
 3,254 
 
 26,08s 
 
 103.471 
 
 41,292 
 
 1,870 
 
 1,420 
 
 3.290 
 
 262 
 
 656 
 
 1.490 
 
 2,036 
 
 7,984 
 
 644 
 
 2,231 
 
 39.598 
 
 134,969 
 
 54,627 
 
 1.994 
 
 1,560 
 
 3.554 
 
 352 
 
 437 
 
 2,053 
 
 1,872 
 
 7,606 
 
 558 
 
 2,678 
 
 33,657 
 
 140,235 
 
 64.873 
 
 764 
 
 1,529 
 
 3.293 
 
 347 
 
 720 
 
 I,Gl2 
 
 1,720 
 
 6,239 
 
 462 
 
 1,948 
 
 17,964 
 
 97,221 
 
 53.494 
 
 282 
 
 2,017 
 
 2,299 
 
 322 
 
 994 
 
 2,719 
 
 1,980 
 
 7.275 
 
 768 
 
 3,440 
 
 3S,82I 
 
 154.971 
 
 75.116 
 
 5.554 
 
 5.065 
 
 10,619 
 
 1,639 
 
 1,125 
 
 3.186 
 
 2,328 
 
 6,235 
 
 720 
 
 4.046 
 
 38,723 
 
 155,9" 
 
 71.566 
 
 10,048 
 
 4.049 
 
 14.097 
 
 3,113 
 
 833 
 
 1,573 
 
 ?,4i3 
 
 5,277 
 
 453 
 
 3.012 
 
 35.683 
 
 135,482 
 
 43,351 
 
 15.919 
 
 1,138 
 
 17.057 
 
 4.517 
 
 f Includes Receipts from Livestock. 
 STATISTICAL. 
 
 Working 
 
 Train 
 MUeage. 
 
 Per Train Mile. 
 
 Average Receipts. 
 
 Percentage. 
 
 Receipts. 
 
 Expenses. 
 
 Profit. 
 
 Per 
 Passenger. 
 
 Per Ton 
 of Goods. 
 
 59-17 
 
 159.393 
 
 s. d. 
 6 Hi 
 
 s. d. 
 4 li 
 
 s. d. 
 2 10 
 
 s. d. 
 Si 
 
 s. d. 
 5 2 
 
 05-57 
 
 176,415 
 
 8 li 
 
 5 31 
 
 2 94 
 
 7i 
 
 6 3 
 
 58-73 
 
 168,234 
 
 10 3 
 
 6 oi 
 
 4 2| 
 
 ^ 
 
 7 9 
 
 58-14 
 
 165,037 
 
 9 41 
 
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 3iii 
 
 I 
 
 7 11 
 
 50-23 
 
 179,91s 
 
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 5716 
 
 185,601 
 
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 7 4i 
 
 5 6i 
 
 1 9i 
 
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 60-25 
 
 186,218 
 
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 4 9i 
 
 lloi 
 
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 55-00 
 
 207,177 
 
 14 li 
 
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 6 4i 
 
 2 3 
 
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 57-65 
 
 227.825 
 
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 7 11 
 
 5 9i 
 
 2 
 
 9 Hi 
 
 fio-62 
 
 219,654 
 
 9 2 
 
 5 6i 
 
 3 7i 
 
 I 3i 
 
 6 iii 
 
328 
 
 APPENDIX 
 
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APPENDIX 
 
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330 APPENDIX 
 
 THE STATE COLONIES OF PARAGUAY 
 
 The settlements are not only intended to attract workers to the country, 
 but are also expected to create agricultural centres in which work can be 
 organized on more or less European lines. These settlements, known 
 locally as colonies, are consequently for the most part composed not only 
 of foreigners, but of foreigners and natives combined. In order to obtain 
 the advantages offered by the Government, foreigners should apply to the 
 nearest Paraguayan Consul and satisfy him that they are under fifty years 
 of age, capable of manual labour, of good conduct, and in possession 
 of the sum of at least ;£ lo. 
 
 Some of the principal of these colonies are ; — 
 
 Cosme. — Situated in the Department of Caazapa. This colony has 
 already been fully described in the chapter on Immigration and Colonies. 
 
 Gaboto. — In the Department of Villa Franca. The colony is populated 
 by both Paraguayans and foreigners. The principal industry here is 
 timber. 
 
 Hobenan. — In the Department of Jesus y Trinidad, distant rather more 
 than twenty miles from Villa Encarnacion. The colony, largely populated 
 by Germans, is devoted to general agricultural pursuits. 
 
 Ellsa, — A small and apparently semi-private colony in the neighbour- 
 hood of Asuncion. 
 
 Naclonal or Tegros. — One of the most important of the Paraguayan 
 colonies. Situated in the Department of Caazapa, on the Asuncion line 
 of railway. 
 
 New Australia. — Situated in the Department of Azos. This colony has 
 already been described in the chapter on Immigration and Colonies. 
 
 Nueva Germania. — The principal industry here is fruit-growing. 
 
 Nueva Italia. — Situated on the < River Paraguay, between Lambare and 
 Angostura. 
 
 San Bernardino. — Situated on the bank of Lake Ypacarai. This was 
 one of the earliest of these settlements to be established in the Republic. 
 
 Villa Hayes. — Situated on the right bank of the Paraguay River in the 
 district of the Chaco. This settlement is principally populated by French, 
 Swiss, Belgians, Italians, Germans, and Austrians. 
 
 Trlnacria. — In the Department of Villa del Rosario. It is populated 
 principally by Paraguayans, but there are also a few Italians, Austrians, 
 and North Americans. 
 
 Veintecinco de Noviembre. — One of the most notable of these colonies. 
 Situated in the Department of Azos, eight leagues from the city of 
 Villarica. The settlement is populated principally by Paraguayans. The 
 following statistics will show its possessions and ramifications as they 
 were a few years ago. Its population, it may be said, is six thousand. 
 
APPENDIX 
 
 331 
 
 ASSETS OF THE VEINTECINCO DE NOVIEMBRE COLONY 
 
 
 
 Livestock. 
 
 
 Cattle 
 
 
 ... 3.800 
 
 Horses 
 
 
 300 
 
 Mares 
 
 
 ... 170 
 
 Mules 
 
 
 120 
 
 Sheep 
 
 
 120 
 
 Goats 
 
 
 ... ISO 
 
 Pigs 
 
 Agriculture. 
 
 ... 300 
 
 Hectares 
 
 Tobacco 
 
 . 
 
 26s 
 
 Sugar-cane 
 
 .. 
 
 
 52 
 
 Mandioca . 
 
 .. 
 
 ... 
 
 338 
 
 Maize 
 
 . 
 
 ... 
 
 452 
 
 Beans 
 
 • 
 
 
 193 
 
 Rice 
 
 . 
 
 ... 
 
 83 
 
 Mam 
 
 . 
 
 ... 
 
 54 
 
 Onions 
 
 . 
 
 ... 
 
 12 
 
 Potatoes 
 
 . 
 
 ... 
 
 66 
 
 Cotton 
 
 . 
 
 ... 
 
 •• 35 
 
 Coffee 
 
 . 
 
 ... 
 
 ... 210 
 
 Numbers of Fruit Trees. 
 
 Orange ... 
 
 ... 21,248 
 
 Banana ... 
 
 23,920 
 
 Pineapple 
 
 6,566 
 
 Peach ... 
 
 738 
 
 Lemon... 
 
 396 
 
 Other fruits 
 
 1460 
 
 ' In addition to this the Veintecinco de Noviembre colony possesses 
 seven petit grain factories, four sawmills, two tanneries, and one 
 brickyard. 
 
332 APPENDIX 
 
 DEPARTMENTS OF PARAGUAY WITH THEIR 
 DISTRICTS 
 
 1. Department of Concepcion. Capital : Ciudad de Concepcion. Dis- 
 tricts : Concepcion, Horqueta, Belen, Pedro Juan Caballero, Loreto, 
 Bella Vista. 
 
 2. Department of San Pedro. Capital : San Pedro. Districts : San 
 Pedro, Villa de Rosario, San Estanislao, Union, Lima, Tacuati, Igatimi, 
 Curuguaty, Itucurubi. 
 
 3. Department of Caraguatay. Capital : Caraguatay. Districts : 
 Caraguatay, Barrero Grande, Caacupe, Arroyos y Esteros, Emboscadai 
 Altos, Atyra, Tobati, San Bernardino, Pirebebuy, San Jose de los Arroyos, 
 Valenzuela, Itacurubi de la Cordillera. 
 
 4. Guaira. Capital : Ciudad de Villarica. Districts : Villarica, 
 Mbocayaty, Yatayty, Hiaty, Ibjrtimi, Itape. 
 
 5. Department of Yhii. Capital : Yhii. Districts : Yhii, Azos, Carayao, 
 San Joaquin, Caaguazu. 
 
 6. Department of Caazapa. Capital : Ciudad de Caazapa. Districts ; 
 Caazapa, Ihacanguazu, San Juan Nepomuceno, Yegros, Iturbe, Yuty. 
 
 7. Department of Encarnadon. Capital : Ciudad de Encamacion. 
 Districts : Encamacion, Jesus y Trinidad, Carmen del Parana, San 
 Cosme, San Pedro de Parana, Bobi. 
 
 8. Department of San Ignacio. Capital : San Ignacio. Districts : San 
 Ignacio, Santa Rosa, Santa Maria, Villa Florida, San Miguel, San Juan 
 Bautista, Santiago, Ayolas. 
 
 9. Department of Guiindy. Capital : Guiindy. Districts : Guiindy, 
 Ibyqui, Caapucii, Mbuyapey, Quyquyo, Acahay. 
 
 10. Department of Paraguari. Capital : Paraguari. Districts : Para- 
 guari, Carapegua, Tabapay, Caballero, Escobar, Yaguaron, Pirayii, 
 Ypacarai, Itaugua. 
 
 11. Department of Villeta. Capital : Villeta. Districts : Villeta, 
 Aregua, Ita, Guarambare, Capiata, Ypane, Villa Oliva, Villa Franca. 
 
 12. Department of Pilar. Capital : Ciudad de Pilar. Districts : Pilar, 
 Humaita, Laureles, Paso de la Patria, Desmochados, Guazucua, Pedro 
 Gonzalez, San Juan Bautista de Neembucu, Tacuaras, Isla Umbu 
 Yabebyry. 
 
APPENDIX 
 
 333 
 
 LIST OF THE GOVERNORS OF PARAGUAY FROM THE 
 TIME OF THE FIRST SETTLEMENT OF THE COUNTRY 
 TO THE END OF THE SPANISH DOMINION 
 
 
 
 Year in which OiBce 
 
 
 
 was assumed. 
 
 I. 
 
 Pedro de Mendoza 
 
 1536 
 
 2. 
 
 Domingo Martinez de Irala 
 
 1538 
 
 3- 
 
 Alonso Nunez Cabeza de Vaca 
 
 1541 
 
 4- 
 
 Domingo Martinez de Irala 
 
 IS44 
 
 S- 
 
 Diego de Abreu 
 
 1348 
 
 6. 
 
 Domingo Martinez de Irala 
 
 1549 
 
 7- 
 
 Gonzalo de Mendoza ... 
 
 1557 
 
 8. 
 
 Francisco Ortiz de Vergara 
 
 1558 
 
 9- 
 
 Juan Ortiz de Zarate ... 
 
 1574 
 
 10. 
 
 Juan de Torres 
 
 1581 
 
 II. 
 
 Alonso de Vera y Aragon 
 
 1586 
 
 12. 
 
 Fernando de Zarate ... 
 
 1592 
 
 13. 
 
 Juan Ramirez de Velasco 
 
 1597 
 
 14- 
 
 Hernando Arias de Saavedra 
 
 1598 
 
 15- 
 
 Diego Rodriguez Valdez 
 
 1599 
 
 16. 
 
 Garcia Mendoza 
 
 ... 1602 
 
 17- 
 
 Hernando Arias Saavedra 
 
 160S 
 
 18. 
 
 Francisco Alfaro 
 
 1606 
 
 19- 
 
 Diego Martinez Negron 
 
 ... 1611 
 
 20. 
 
 Manuel de Frias 
 
 ... 1619 
 
 21. 
 
 Pedro de Lugo y Negron 
 
 ... 1629 
 
 22. 
 
 Luis de Cespedes 
 
 1634 
 
 23. 
 
 Martin de Ledesma Valderram 
 
 a ... 1636 
 
 24. 
 
 Gregorio de Hinestrosa 
 
 ... 1641 
 
 25- 
 
 Diego Escobar Osorio 
 
 1647 
 
 26. 
 
 Fray Bernardino de Cardenas 
 
 1648 
 
 27. 
 
 Sebastian de Leon y Zarate 
 
 1649 
 
 28. 
 
 Andres Garabito de Leon 
 
 1650 
 
 29. 
 
 Cristobal Garay y Saavedra 
 
 1653 
 
 30. 
 
 Juan Blasquez de Valverde 
 
 1656 
 
 31- 
 
 Alonso Sarmiento de Figueroa 
 
 1659 
 
 32. 
 
 Juan Diez de Andino ... 
 
 1663 
 
 33- 
 
 Francisco Rege Corvalan 
 
 ... 1671 
 
 34- 
 
 Diego Ibanez de Irala... 
 
 1673 
 
 35- 
 
 Juan Diez de Andino ... 
 
 1681 
 
 36. 
 
 Antonio de Vera Miigica 
 
 ... 1684 
 
 37- 
 
 Francisco Monforte ... 
 
 1685 
 
 38. 
 
 Sebastian Felix de Mendisla 
 
 ... 1692 
 
334 APPENDIX 
 
 
 Year in which Office 
 
 
 was assumed. 
 
 39. Juan Rodriguez Cota ... 
 
 ... 1696 
 
 40. Antonio Escobar Gutierrez 
 
 ... 1703 
 
 41. Sebastian Felix de Mendiola ... 
 
 ... 1705 
 
 42. Baltarar Garcia Ros ... 
 
 ... 1706 
 
 43. Manuel de Robles 
 
 ... 1707 
 
 44. Gregorio Bazan de Pedraza 
 
 ... 1713 
 
 45. Diego de los Reyes Balmaseda 
 
 ... 1717 
 
 46. Jose de Antequera y Castro 
 
 ... 1722 
 
 47. Bruno Mauricio de Zavala 
 
 ... 1725 
 
 48. Martin de Barua 
 
 ... 1725 
 
 49. Ignacio Soroeta 
 
 ... 173I 
 
 50. Manuel Agustin de Calderon ... 
 
 ... 1733 
 
 51. Bruno Mauricio de Zavala 
 
 ... 1735 
 
 52. Martin Echauri 
 
 ... 1736 
 
 53. Rafael de la Moneda ... 
 
 ... 1740 
 
 54. Marcos Jose Larrazabal 
 
 ... 1747 
 
 53. Jaime Sanjust 
 
 ... 1749 
 
 56. Jose Martinez Pontes ... 
 
 ... 1761 
 
 57. Fulgencio Yegros 
 
 ... 176S 
 
 58. Carlos Morphi 
 
 ... 1766 
 
 59. Agustin Fernando de Pinedo ... 
 
 ... 1772 
 
 60. Pedro Melo de Portugal 
 
 ... 1778 
 
 61. Joaquin Alos y Bru ... 
 
 ... 1787 
 
 62. Lazaro de Ribera y Espinosa ... 
 
 ... 1796 
 
 63. Bernardo de Velasco ... 
 
 ... 1806 
 
 64. Manuel Gutierrez 
 
 ... 1807 
 
 65. Eustaquio Giannini ... 
 
 ... 1809 
 
 66. Bernardo de Velasco ... 
 
 ... 1809 
 
APPENDIX 335 
 
 EIGHTEENTH-CENTURY EUROPEAN IGNORANCE 
 CONCERNING PARAGUAY 
 
 The following extracts from a standard work, " The Present State of 
 all Nations," published in 1739, will show the ignorance which prevailed 
 in Europe concerning Paraguay even in the eighteenth century : — 
 
 "La Plata may be thrown into two grand divisions almost equal in 
 extent, viz. (i) the provinces on the east side of the river Paragua ; and 
 (2) those that lie west of the said river. The provinces on the east side of 
 the Paragua are those of (i) Paragua Prober, (2) Guayra, (3) Parana, 
 (4)1 Uragua. Those on the west side of the Paragua are (5) Tucuman, 
 and (6) La Plata Prober. 
 
 " I. Paragua Proper is bounded by the country of the Amazons on the 
 north, by Brazil on the east, by Guayra on the south, and by the river 
 Paragua, which separates it from Tuciiman and Peru, on the west ; at 
 least these are the boundaries assign'd by geographers. But it must 
 be acknowledged that Paragua Proper is a perfect Terra Incognita. I 
 meet with no author or traveller that pretends to give any description 
 of it, or to know the extent of it : and our map-makers are so ingenious 
 as not to incumber their maps with the name of one town in all the 
 country. 
 
 " 2. Guayra is bounded by Paragua Proper on the north, by Brazil on 
 the east, by Parana on the south, and by the river Paragua on the west. 
 The chief towns whereof are — 
 
 " 1st, Guayra, situate on the river Parana, in 24 degrees south latitude. 
 
 " 2ndly, St. Xavier, situate on the confines of Brazil, about an hundred 
 leagues to the eastward of Guayra. 
 
 " 3rdly, Conception, situate on a river about an hundred leagues to the 
 eastward of Guayra." 
 
 It will be seen from this that such information as was available was of 
 the vaguest order. 
 
336 APPENDIX 
 
 WILLIAM HADFIELD ON CARLOS ANTONIO 
 LOPEZ 
 
 Mr. William Hadfield has an interesting contemporary account of 
 Carlos Antonio Lopez. 
 
 "The first Consul, Don Carlos Antonio Lopez, is a rich landed 
 proprietor. He received in his youth, at the College of Assumption, 
 such education as during the first years of this century could be met with 
 in the American colleges. When his studies were concluded, he gave 
 lessons in theology at the same college, and was installed in a chair of, 
 what at that time was termed, philosophy. He afterwards devoted 
 himself particularly to the study of jurisprudence, and to the profession of 
 an advocate, and exercised it, according to general report, with zeal, 
 impartiality, and disinterestedness, which acquired him credit, friends, 
 and a select number of clients. When it became dangerous, under the 
 tyranny of the Dictator, to exercise a profession so independent as that 
 of advocate, M. Lopez retired to his estate, forty leagues from Assumption, 
 and gave himself up entirely to agriculture, and to the perusal of the few 
 books which he had been able to procure. He very rarely went to the 
 capital, and then only for a few days. His retired life, the description of 
 seclusion to which he had condemned himself, providentially saved him 
 from the distrust and terrors of the Dictator, and from imprisonment or 
 death, which were their usual consequences. M. Lopez has never quitted 
 his country, and previously he had not taken the smallest share in public 
 affairs. He was unable to make acquaintance with the excellent works 
 published on numerous branches of public administration and political 
 economy, or to obtain the least intelligence of the events which had 
 occurred in Europe and America during the preceding twenty years, for 
 the Dictator persecuted, with more rigour than the Inquisition itself, 
 men of learning and their books, and neither one nor the other had been 
 able to penetrate Paraguay. Nevertheless, the acts and writings of 
 M. Lopez have shown that he was no stranger to .sound doctrines of 
 administration, and that he had meditated in his retreat on the situation 
 of his country, its necessities, the evils it suffered and their causes, as well 
 as on the remedies which it would be possible to apply to them. Such 
 qualities would naturally acquire for him an ascendancy and preponder- 
 ance in the management of affairs ; and, thus acquired, he has exercised 
 them discreetly and vigorously. 
 
 " The second consul, Don Mariano Roque Alonzo, was a soldier who 
 reckoned many years' service in barracks and garrisons. He commanded 
 a corps or battalion of the troops which occupied the capital when his 
 companions in arms appointed him Commandant-General in the interval 
 between the death of the Dictator and the assembly of Congress. During 
 this short period he maintained public order, and protected the tranquillity 
 of the citizens with zeal and moderation. Like a man of good sense and 
 honour, and of docile character, he at once acknowledged the superiority 
 
APPENDIX 337 
 
 of his colleague, TOhich of itself is a merit, and always deferred to it, in 
 which he rendered a great service to his country. , . . 
 
 " What the Consular Government did sufficed to create legal order and 
 to put an end to the reign of force and arbitrary sway, which the Dictator 
 had substituted for the rule of justice ; but in criminal trials an innovation 
 was introduced, which, although imperfect, will be perfected in time, 
 when education has made greater advance, and which will incontestably 
 serve as a basis for the institution of the jury, the source of so many 
 benefits. It was ordained that, in order to pronounce criminal sentences 
 the judge should associate with himself two individuals, drawn by lot out 
 of a list previously made. The confiscation under the Dictator, the 
 enormous fines which he imposed, and which were equivalent to confisca- 
 tion, had reduced a great number of families to misery ; the Consular 
 Government restored such property as yet existed, and adjudged some 
 indemnities for those which had been disposed of ; the rural estates which 
 had been applied to the public service, and which it would not have been 
 convenient to withdraw, were purchased from the former and legitimate 
 possessors. This striking act of equity alone completed a revolution 
 in the social and administrative order of Paraguay. 
 
 " The Government which succeeded Francia's despotism, and of which 
 M. Lopez was the head, did not allow the least sign of blame or dis- 
 approbation of the Dictator's conduct to transpire. It would indeed have 
 been useless, and have set a bad example, to abuse his memory, and 
 awaken a remembrance of irreparable evils. 
 
 " From the death of the Dictator to the installation of the Consulate, all 
 persecutions, as well as the sanguinary executions and fusillades, so 
 common during Francia's tyrannical sway, had ceased. But the politica 
 prisoners, to the number of more than six hundred, had not been released 
 with four or five exceptions, and suffered the same evils in the dungeons 
 and casemates. When the consuls, however, were elected, they released 
 all these political prisoners and sent them to their families. It was a 
 significant act. It showed to all that the reign of cruelty and terror had 
 given place in the counsels of the government to principles of mildness 
 and sound policy." 
 
 22 
 
338 APPENDIX 
 
 SUFFERINGS OF THE SOLDIERS IN THE 
 PARAGUAYAN WAR 
 
 The following paragraphs from a former work of the Author's will give 
 some idea of the harsh measures adopted by Lopez towards the end of 
 the great struggle : — 
 
 " When marched to battle, the Paraguayan soldiery understood that it was 
 to victory or death. Every soldier was responsible for the good conduct 
 of five others. Each, as he advanced to the attack, was aware that if he 
 lagged or faltered, or attempted to desert, his two comrades next him 
 must shoot him on the instant, or in turn be shot themselves. The 
 non-commissioned officer of the section was responsible for all, and, should 
 one of them escape, he would be either flogged or shot immediately the 
 battle was over. Then the captain, or lieutenant, was in turn responsible 
 for his larger company, and the higher officer in command had to answer 
 for every man under him. Desertion, therefore, was scarcely possible ; 
 and as surrender to overpowering odds was considered desertion, the 
 men fought with utter desperation, knowing that their only chance to 
 live was in victory. 
 
 "The greatest danger was always in the rear. The distrust was so 
 universal, that though the members of a squad might all individually be 
 anxious to desert or be captured, and might also be completely cut off 
 from the main army, no one would dare to suggest surrender. They 
 must all fight until they were killed, for if some were captured and others 
 were not the latter were almost certain to be inhumanly flogged and 
 then executed. In the early part of the war the punishment for those who 
 fought bravely themselves but yet could not, or did not, prevent defection 
 among those near them was generally limited to flogging. Afterwards 
 shooting was the rule for all delinquents of this kind, except when a 
 repulse was general. Then the officers were all shot and the men 
 decimated ! 
 
 " Lopez was in constant dread of assassination ; a triple guard 
 surrounded his house at night, which in the daytime was transferred 
 to a kind of shed outside : here it was that visitors were obliged to await 
 an audience with the President. Thompson says that once, while waiting 
 his turn, he entered into conversation with the sergeant, who asked him 
 questions about England. The latter was arrested, and Thompson was 
 required to write down every word that passed between them, which 
 was very difficult to do, as the conversation had been most trivial. Early 
 the next day the sergeant was shot, and all his soldiers punished — ^the 
 reason given was that the unhappy man was a conspirator ! Although, 
 adds Thompson, he had not the look of one." 
 
APPENDIX 339 
 
 THE PARAGUAYAN PRESS 
 
 Some idea of the very important role played by the press of Paraguay 
 — the same applies to that of the remaining South American Republics — 
 may be gathered from the following remarks of a Paraguayan writer, 
 Don Enrique Solano Lopez. That his comments reveal an enthusiastic 
 Paraguayan does not, of course, lessen the interest of his views : — 
 
 The history of the Paraguayan press may be divided into four periods. 
 The first from 1845 to 1852. 
 The second from 1852 to 1865. 
 The third from 1865 to 1870, and 
 The fourth from 1870 to the present day. 
 
 First Period. Independence or Death 1 
 
 The national spirit owes its being largely to the first organ of the 
 Paraguayan press, El Paraguayo Independiente. In its columns are 
 reflected the deep tribulations of Paraguayan sentiment in the face of the 
 obstinate and persistent refusal to recognize our independence. When 
 the danger threatening the very existence of our country was at its height, 
 when Don Juan Manuel Rosas, in one of his messages to the legislature 
 of the Province of Buenos Aires, referred to the Republic of Paraguay as 
 an Argentine Province, the Varaguayo Independiente replied with virile 
 courage, adding to its title the words " Independence or Death," which 
 thirty years later were fulfilled almost to the letter by the Paraguayan 
 people in their resistance to the invasion of the Triple Alliance. 
 
 The Paraguayo Independiente was edited by the President of the 
 Republic himself, Don Carlos Antonio Lopez. 
 
 The first number made its appearance on Saturday, the 26th of April, 
 184S, and the one hundred and eighteenth, and last, number on Saturday, 
 the l8th of September, 1832. It was a weekly publication, although from 
 time to time more than a week elapsed between the issue of the numbers. 
 In addition to the regular editions appeared supplements, containing 
 manifestos and proclamations of historical interest. 
 
 Second Period. 
 
 The Semanario took the place of the Paraguayo Independiente, which 
 had fulfilled its mission with the treaty of the iSth of July, 1852, in 
 which the Argentine Confederation acknowledged the national indepen- 
 dence of Paraguay. 
 
 In sise and appearance, during the first four years, the Semanario was 
 identical with its predecessor. 
 
 The mission with which it was charged was clearly expressed in the 
 following paragraphs, taken from the message of Don Carlos Antonio 
 Lopez to the Congress in 1854 : 
 
340 APPENDIX 
 
 "The Government has caused to be made known, with that noble 
 frankness and loyalty which it professes in all its acts, the social and 
 political situation . . . and the necessity that arose of abandoning all 
 other affairs in favour of the defence of our beloved country, threatened 
 with invasion and conquest, and of postponing until normal and peaceful 
 times all efforts concerned with political and social improvement. 
 
 " The peace which the nation enjoys as the result of the treaty of the 
 iSth of July, and the relations which we have established with the leading 
 powers of the civilized world, have brought about this normal and 
 tranquil period which the Government was awaiting in order to find 
 itself in a position to think of our own affairs, and to found and establish 
 that which circumstances have, not hitherto permitted. The nation is not 
 yet independent in the full sense of the word. In order to attain to this 
 lofty and glorious position it is necessary that the nation should suffice for 
 itself ; it is necessary that it should shelter within its bosom all the 
 elements of knowledge, power, and responsibility, and that it should 
 be able to display all that intellectual and moral force to be expected from 
 the excellent qualities which form the basis of the Paraguayan character. 
 To achieve this we should first of all regenerate the people in order to 
 place it and guide it on the road it should go in order to arrive, without 
 strayings and falls, at the point where the dominating ideals of the 
 century and the force of example must lead it onwards." 
 
 At its beginning the Semanario, like its predecessor, was edited by 
 the President of the Republic ; but when the latter's official labours 
 became too onerous to permit this. Dr. Andres Gelly assumed the editor- 
 ship. When Don Ildefonso Bermejo arrived in the country he assisted 
 in the task. Dr. Gelly became ill, and the publication ceased, being 
 replaced by the Eco del Paraguay, under the editorship of Bermejo. 
 This continued from 1853 to 1857, its numbers counting one hundred 
 and eight. 
 
 In that year the Semanario again saw the light, its editor-in-chief being 
 Seiior Bermejo. 
 
 The principal topics to which both publications especially • devoted 
 themselves were those of public instruction and of agriculture, which 
 they viewed from the standpoint of the Government. 
 
 In number 132 of the Semanario are to be found the constitution of the 
 first ministry and the regulations affecting the powers of the ministries 
 in general. In number 17 of the Eco del Paraguay is the decree referring 
 to the liberty of the press. 
 
 At this period the students of the Literary Academy published a review 
 entitled the Aurora. In this review are t6 be met with the first literary 
 flights of Natalicio Talavera, Mariano Aguiar, Mateo Collar, Enrique 
 Lopez, and Germesindo Benitez. 
 
 Third Period. " Conquest or Death ! " 
 
 When Paraguay was forced to defend its territorial integrity, the 
 
 Semanario abandoned its agricultural and educational themes, and 
 
 changed its peaceful legend for that of Conquest or Death. If the 
 
 Paraguayans could not conquer, they knew how to die, as was demon- 
 
APPENDIX 341 
 
 strated by the bones which whitened the land from Paso de Patria to 
 Cerro Cora. The war correspondence, edited by Natalicio Talavera, 
 will always stand as a source of information for the historians of the 
 great war. 
 
 The Semanano continued to appear until the national capital was 
 transferred for the second time from Luque to Piribebuy in 1868. Its 
 last number was 753. 
 
 The Cabichui, a satirical publication written in Spanish and Guarani, 
 was issued from the encampment of Paso Pucu, and even appeared in 
 San Fernando. It was edited by Natalicio Talavera, the priests Espinosa, 
 Bogado, and Maiz, Colonel Centurion, and others, its principal illustrator 
 being Saturio Rios. This publication was printed by the army press. 
 
 The Cacique Lambard and the Centinela ably seconded the Cabichui. 
 The former, published in Guarani, constituted in common with the 
 Cabichui the joy of the troops in their long hours of duty. The Centinela 
 was edited by Dr. Tristan Roca, and was provided with illustrations. 
 
 Thirteen numbers appeared of the Lambard, and the Centinela existed 
 for rather more than a year : from the 25th of April, 1867, to the 23rd of 
 January, 1868, closing with its fortieth number. 
 
 On the 1st of March, 1869, was published in Piribebuy La Estrella, its 
 principal editor being the priest Geronimo Becchi. The Estrella con- 
 tinued to be published until the storming of this third capital of the 
 RepubUc. It ended with its thirty-seventh number on the 30th of June. 
 
 During the occupation of Corrientes by the Paraguayan forces was 
 published the Independiente, the official organ of the Triumvirate 
 established in that Argentine province. 
 
 In Buenos Aires the Paraguayan residents published two periodicals : 
 El Clamor de los libres (" The Cry of the Free ") and El Grito Paraguayo, 
 
 Fourth Period. The Modern Press. 
 
 The modern press was initiated by the Regeneracion, edited by Juan 
 Jose and Jose Segundo Decoud, Juan Silvano Godoi, Jaime Sosa Escalada, 
 and others. It was followed by the Voz del Pueblo and the Pueblo, which 
 defended the interests of the two parties into which public opinion was 
 then divided. 
 
 From that day to this numerous daily papers have made their appear- 
 ance, and the energy displayed by the various editors has been great. 
 Political passions have at times caused these to resort to an extreme 
 violence in language, but, save on two or three occasions, we must 
 admit that the authorities have demonstrated a cultured respect for 
 free thought. 
 
INDEX 
 
 Abren, Diego de, 93, 94, 96 
 Acaray River, 226 
 Agaze Indians, 53, 82, 83 
 Aguaracaty, Lake, 228 
 Alfalfa, 303 
 Almagro, 25 
 Alonso, Father, 118 
 Alonso, Mariano Roque, 181 
 Alto Parana River, 226, 236 
 Amambay Mountains, 227 
 Antequera, Jose de, 155, 156, 157, 
 
 158 
 Apa River, 224 
 Apepa, the, 300 
 Aquidaban River, 224 
 Aracare, 72, 84 
 
 Aragon, Alonso de Vera y, 121 
 Aragon, Juan Torres de Vera y, 
 
 114, IIS, 120, 121 
 Architecture, 256 
 Area, 203 
 Argentina, 24 
 Argentine Navigation Co., 245, 252, 
 
 253 
 Argentine North-Eastern Railway, 
 
 231, 232, 233, 234 
 Army, 209, 210 
 Artigas, 176 
 Assets of the Veintecinco de 
 
 Noviembre Colony, 331 
 Asuncion, 50, 51, 209, 255-8 
 Ayolas, Juan de, 46, 48, 49, 50, 52, 
 
 53> 54, 55, 56, 57 
 
 Balmaseda, Diego de los Reyes, 
 
 155 
 Banana, 302 
 Banana de Oro, 303 
 Banda, Diego Rodriguez Valdez 
 
 de la, 123 
 Barrios, Juan (Bishop), 84, 85 
 Barrios, Colonel, 193 
 Beans, 303 
 
 Belgrano, Manuel, 161, 162, 163 
 " Belvedere," the, 257, 258 
 Bermejo River, 43, 249 
 Bogarin, Dr. Francisco Javier, 167 
 Bolanos, Father, 118 
 Bolivia, 24 
 Bombilla, the, 286 
 Bonpland, Aime, 178, 179, 287 
 Brazil, 24 
 British Trade with Paraguay, 308- 
 
 12, 321 
 Bueno Esperanza, 46, 51 
 Buenos Aires, Nuestra Senora de 
 
 los, 45, 51 
 Bullock carts, 241 
 Burton, Sir Richard, 188 
 
 Caballero, Pedro Juan, 163 
 Cabot, Seliastian, 41, 42, 43, 44 
 Cabrera, Alonso, 58 
 Cabrera, Jeronimo Luis, no 
 Caceres, Felipe de, 76, 108, 109, 
 
 no 
 Camargo, Captain, 96 
 
344 
 
 INDEX 
 
 Camba, Lake, 228 
 
 Campaigns of the Paraguayan 
 
 War, 19s 
 Caraguata, 295 
 Caranday, 295 
 Carcarana River, 42 
 Cardenas, Bishop Bernardino de, 
 
 151, 152. 153 
 Castor oil, 295 
 Cattle, 275-82 
 Caxias, Marshal, 197 
 Cebu cattle, 280 
 Chaco, 38, 39 
 
 Chaco Indians, 37, 38, 39, 53 
 Charrua Indians, 41, iii, 124 
 Chaves, Nuflo de, 89, 95, 96, 104-8 
 Chibchas, 33, 36 
 Chochis, Cordilleras de, 227 
 Churches, 262 
 Cigars, 291, 292, 293 
 Civil strife, cost of, 208 
 Climate, 228, 229 
 Coca, 295 
 Coffee, 303 
 
 Commercial statistics, 314-20 
 Commercial travellers, 310, 311 
 Communications, 28 
 Concepcion, 209, 261 
 Concordia, 234 
 Confuso River, 204, 205 
 Conquistadores, 102, 103 
 Constitution, 205, 206 
 Copper, 229, 230 
 Corrientes, 248 
 Corrientes, invasion of, 194 
 Corumba, 252, 253 
 Cosme, Colony, 272 
 Costume, 214, 215 
 Cotton, 29s, 303 
 Criollo cattle, 279-80 
 Cunninghame Graham, R. B., 146, 
 
 151 
 Currency, 219 
 Curupay, 295 
 Cuyaba, 261 
 
 Decoud, Arsenic Lopez, 207, 208 
 
 De la Mora, Fernando, 167 
 
 Departments of Paraguay with 
 their districts, 332 
 
 Division of the Province of Para- 
 guay, 126, 127 
 
 Dominguez, Don Luis L., 47 
 
 Dorantes, Pedro, 78, 79 
 
 Dure, Martin, 112, 113 
 
 Durham cattle, 280 
 
 Dye-plants, 296 
 
 Early Guarani Missions, 118, 119 
 Education, 218 
 Eighteenth-century European 
 
 ignorance, 335 
 Elections, 206 
 Encarnacion, 232, 260 
 Encomiendas, 60, 61 
 Espinosa, Juan de Salazar de, 56, 
 
 76, 98, 99 
 Exchange, rate of, 219 
 
 Figueroa, Alonso Sarmiento de 
 
 Sotomayor y, 154 
 Football, 258 
 Foreign population, 266 
 Francia, Gaspar Rodriguez de, 27, 
 
 163, 164-79 
 Franciscan missionaries, 131 
 Freund, F., 204 
 Frias, Manuel, 148, 149, 150 
 Frontiers, 204 
 Fruit, 299-304 
 
 Gabarito, Andres de Leon, 153 
 
 Galan, Ruiz, 56, 58 
 
 Garay, Juan de, no, in, 112, 113, 
 
 114, 115, 116, 117, 118, 119, 120 
 Garcia, Diego, 43 
 Garcia, Ruy, 89 
 Garden of South America, the, 
 
 333 
 Garrapata, 280 
 Geographical situation, 202, 203 
 
INDEX 
 
 346 
 
 German commercial competition, 
 
 309> 310, 311 
 German military officials, 210 
 Goats, 283 
 
 Godoy, Juan Silvano, 256 
 Governors of Paraguay, 333 
 Graham, Stewart, 267, 268, 273 
 Grubb, W. Barbrooke, 218, 219 
 Guarambare, 73 
 Guarani Indians, 32-9, 45 
 Guarani language, 208, 216 
 Guijarro-Decoud treaty, 205 
 Guayacan, 295 
 GuaycuriS Indians, 53, 72 
 Guayra Falls, 226 
 
 Hadfield on Carlos Antonio Lopez, 
 
 336 
 Hernandarias, 121, 122, 123, 124, 
 
 125, 126, 129 
 Hernandez, Pedro, 68 
 Hides, 282 
 Hinestrosa, Gregorio de, 151, 
 
 152 
 Horses, 283 
 Hotham, Sir C, 184 
 Humaita, 250 
 Hurtado, Sebastian, 44 
 
 Ibirapyta, 295 
 
 Ibyra, 296 
 
 Iguazii Falls, 70, 240 
 
 Immigration, 263-6 
 
 Imports and exports, 306, 367 
 
 Incas, 33, 36 
 
 Independence proclaimed, 163 
 
 " Inland Japan," the, 26, 39 
 
 Ipacarai, Lake, 228 
 
 Ipane River, 224 
 
 Ipecacuanha, 295 
 
 Irala, Domingo Martinez de, 25, 55, 
 
 56, 57» 58, 59. 60, 61, 62, 71, 72. 
 
 73, 78, 81-100 
 Iron, 229 
 Iturbe, Vicente Ignacio, 163 
 
 Jaborandi, 295 
 Jeria, Luis de Cespedes, 150 
 Jesuit missions, 130-47 
 Jesuit missions, ruins, 240 
 Jesuits, expulsion of, 159 
 Journalism, 218 
 
 Kidd, Frederick, 273 
 
 La Candelaria, 55, 74 
 
 La Dardye, Dr. E. de Bourgade, 
 
 300 
 La Gasca, the Licentiate, 88, 89, 90, 
 
 9S 
 Lakes, 227, 228 
 
 Lambare, 49 
 
 Lambare, mountain, 49 
 
 Lane, William, 267, 268, 269, 270, 
 
 272 
 Lapacho, 295 
 Lara, Nuno de, 44 
 Las Piedras, 72 
 Las Siete Lagunas, 222 
 Latorre, Bishop, 100, 106, 107, 108, 
 
 109 
 Lemon, the, 303 
 Lengua Indians, 38, 53 
 Liano, Bishop Vasquez de, 123 
 Light railways, 299 
 Livestock, 275-83 
 Lloyd Brasileiro, 252, 253 
 Locust, British war vessel, 184 
 Lopez, Carlos Antonio, 181-6 
 Lopez, Francisco Solano, 184, 186- 
 
 200 
 Los Reyes, 75 
 Losses in the Paraguayan War, 
 
 198, 199 
 Lucia Miranda, 44 
 Lugones, Dr., 103, 142 
 Lynch, Madame Eloisa, 186 
 
 Machain, Estanislao, 172, 173 
 Magellan, 41 
 Maize, 303 
 
346 
 
 INDEX 
 
 Mai de Cadera, 283 
 
 Mamelucos, 145 
 
 Mandioca, 303 
 
 Mandivii, Lake, 228 
 
 Manganese, 230 
 
 Mangore, 44 
 
 Mansfield, C. B., 214, 216, 244 
 
 Manso, Andres, 105 
 
 Market at Asuncion, 214, 215 
 
 Markets for cattle, 281 
 
 Marquez de Olinda, 192, 193 
 
 Masterman, George, 189 
 
 Mataco Indians, 38 
 
 Mbaracayd Mountains, 227 
 
 Melgarejo, 118 
 
 Mendieta, Diego Ortiz de Zdrate y, 
 
 112, 113 
 Mendoza, Francisco de, 76, 87, 92 
 Mendoza, Gonzalo de, 103 
 Mendoza, Pedro de, 25, 45, 46 
 Mepene Indians, 48 
 Mercury, 230 
 Mihanovich, Nicolas, 245 
 Millet, 303 
 Minerals, 229, 230 
 Ministers of State, 206 
 Minuanes Indians, 120 
 Misiones, 236 
 Mitayos, 61, 62 
 Mitre, General Bartolome, 162, 
 
 197 
 Monday River, 226 
 Montevideo, 209 
 Monte Caseros, 234 
 Morphi, Carlos, 146, 159 
 Motor boats, 253 
 Mules, 283 
 
 Nandua, 49 
 Nandubay, 295 
 Nanduti, 257 
 
 Nationality of immigrants, 265 
 Natural characteristics, 222 
 Navarra, Frances de Beaumont y, 
 123 
 
 Navigation, River, 223, 224, 225, 
 
 226 
 Navy, 210, 211 
 Neembucu, Estero, 228 
 Negron, Diego Martinez, 125 
 " New Australia," 266-74 
 
 Ocampo, Agustin de, 89 
 Ocampo, Bartolome Sandoval de, 
 
 123 
 Orange, the, 300, 301, 302 
 Ortega, Juan, 106 
 Osorio, Diego Escobar de, 152 
 
 Palacios, Bishop, 188 
 
 Palo bianco, 295 
 
 Palo de rosa, 295 
 
 Papaw, 295 
 
 Paraguari, battle of, 161 
 
 Payagua Indians, 74 
 
 Paraguay Central Railway, 231, 
 232, 233, 234, 23s, 236, 237 
 
 Paraguay, Analysis of Freight, 
 etc., 324-9 
 
 Paraguay River, 222, 223, 224, 
 225 
 
 Paraguayan Governmental esti- 
 mates, 322, 323 
 
 Peanuts, 303 
 
 Peruvian mines, 54 
 
 Peteriby, 295 
 
 Pigs, 283 
 
 Pilcomayo River, 204, 205, 224, 
 225, 226 
 
 Pineapple, the, 303 
 
 Pizarro, 25 
 
 Plaza Constitucion, 257 
 
 Plaza Independencia, 257 
 
 Pleasure resorts, 239, 240 
 
 Population, 206, 207, 208 
 
 Posadas, 232 
 
 Presidency, 206 
 
 Press, the, 339, 340, 341 
 
 Price of oranges, 302 
 
 Public buildings, Asuncion, 256 
 
INDEX 
 
 347 
 
 Puerto Casado, 299 
 Puerto Galileo, 299 
 Puerto Max and Maria, 299 
 Puerto Sastre, 299 
 
 Quebracho, timber, 295, 297 
 Quebracho, extract, 298, 299 
 
 Railways, 28, 238, 239 
 Railway ferry, 231, 234, 236 
 Railway connection with Brazil, 
 
 238 
 Railway connection with Uruguay, 
 
 238 
 Rainfall, 229 
 Ramie, 295 
 
 Ramon, Juan Alvarez, 41, 42 
 Regattas, 258 
 Resquin, Jaime, 98 
 Rice, 303 
 
 Riquelme, Alonso, 106 
 River traffic, 243-53 
 Roads, 240, 241, 242 
 Robertson, J. P., 167 
 Rodriguez, Domingo, 171 
 Rosas, the Dictator, 182, 183 
 Royal Tar, the, 270, 271 
 Rubber, 296 
 Rutia, Miguel de, 89, 97 
 
 Salazar, Juan de, 82 
 Sanabria, Juan de, 98 
 Sancti Spiritus, 42, 43, 43 
 San Fernando, 87, 91 
 Santa Catalina, 65, 66, 67 
 Santa Cruz de la Sierra, founding 
 of, 106 . • 
 
 Schmidt (or Schmidel), Ulrrcf^ 7^, 
 
 47,48 .'.•'.'•'.'-:'•• 
 
 Siripo, 44 
 
 Saavedra, Cristobal* de G^ray y, 
 * • *• ' 
 IS4 . •. • 
 
 San Bernardino, 228, '258, 259, 
 
 Sarsaparilla, 295 • • 
 
 Sheep, 283 
 
 Slavery, Guarani, 60 
 
 Society, 213-16 
 
 Soil, 241, 242 
 
 Solis, Juan Diaz de, 40, 41 
 
 Solis, river of, 41 
 
 South American Missionary So- 
 ciety, 218, 219 
 
 Southey, Robert, 30 
 
 State Colonies of Paraguay, 330 
 
 Storm, Olaf, 204 
 
 Sufferings of the soldiers in the 
 Paraguayan War, 338 
 
 Sugar-cane, 303 
 
 Tabare, 73, 84 
 
 Tacuari River, 226 
 
 Tacuari, battle of, 162 
 
 Tacuari, steamer, 193 
 
 Tacurii stone, 134 
 
 Tarquino cattle, 280 
 
 Tebicuary River, 225 
 
 Thompson, Mr., 188 
 
 Timber, 294-9 
 
 Toba Indians, 38, 53 
 
 Tobacco, 290-3 
 
 Toledo, Martin Suarez de, 109 
 
 no 
 Torres, Tomds de, 149 
 Trade, 305-12 
 Transport of cattle, 282 
 Tristeza, 280 
 Tupi, 32 
 
 Ursua, Francisco de Paula 
 
 Bucareli y, 146 
 Uruguay, 24 
 
 Urunday, 295 
 
 * • 
 
 • • 
 
 •VsfCji, Alvai;' Nunez Cabeza de, 25, 
 
 64-89 •^.•' •_ 
 Vaca, PefdBo''Estropiiian Cabeza 
 
 de, 67, 8^ ;;.'.-. • 
 Velasco, Beri^do, 160, 161 
 
 yelasfcb, Jpan Ramirez de, 123 
 
348 
 
 INDEX 
 
 Venegas, Garcia, 76, 78, 79 
 Vergara, Francisco Ortiz de, 103, 
 
 104, 106, 107 
 Villa Hayes, 208 
 Villa Rica, 209, 259 
 
 Waterwitch, U.S. steamer, 253 
 
 Xarayes, Lake, 222, 223 
 
 Yanaconas, 61 
 Yaros Indians, 42 
 Yegros, Antonio Tomas, 163 
 Yegros, Fulgencio, 167, 176 
 
 Yerba Mate, 213, 284-90 
 Ypita, Lake, 228 
 Ypoa, Lake, 228 
 
 Zarate, Fernando, 123 
 
 Zarate, Juan Ortiz, 107, iii, 112 
 
 Zarate, Dotia Juana, 112, 113, 114, 
 
 "S 
 Zarate, Port, 234 
 Zarate, Sebastian de Leon y, 153, 
 
 Zavala, Bruno de, 156, 158 
 Zeballos, Juan Valeriano, 163, 
 166 
 
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