in the argentine railway world buenos aires occupies the position of ancient rome, for all roads lead to it. a glance at the map is sufficient evidence of that fact. it has become the centre of the greatest network of railroads in south america. like the colossal web of a spider it sends out its strands of steel north to the border of paraguay and bolivia, east to the trackless atlantic, south into patagonia and west across the andes with a terminus at valparaiso. there are at present about sixteen thousand miles of main track in operation in that republic. this is nearly as much as all the rest of the continent combined and shows the progressiveness of the country. all of the railroads, with the exception of the national lines and the provincia de santa fé, which is a french line, were built by british capital and are under british management. nearly all of the materials and equipment have been brought[261] from that country, and everything has a distinctly john bull stamp. only one exception has been made, and that is that the compartments have been abolished in the day coaches. the sleepers, called dormitorios, are made into compartments and are called “pullmans,” but they lack the luxurious qualities of the cars after which they were named. the stations are generally very creditable and show a spirit of enterprise. two-thirds of the mileage is of the broad gauge, nine and one-half inches broader than our own, which makes the seats and aisles extremely comfortable. the same english regard for safety is evident and every safeguard is applied toward that end. in fact they are english railroads transplanted to the pampas, with just a few concessions demanded by the nature of the country served.

the government of argentina has been extremely liberal in its railroad policy. it has recognized the fact that there is no better way to develop its resources than by spreading the parallel bands of steel all over the republic. perhaps nowhere in the world were there fewer difficulties or fewer perplexing engineering problems than here, for there was no grading and it was only necessary to take off the surface[262] soil and dig ditches to carry off the water. a number of the concessions originally contained a government guarantee of six or seven per cent. on the investment, but most of these have since been altered as the receipts generally paid ample returns, and in consideration of release from the contractual obligation the government granted some other privileges. many of the charters also granted an exclusive territory of about twenty miles on each side of the right of way.

the principle of consolidation has been going on in argentina the same as in the united states. the large lines have been taking up the smaller ones until now three companies own one-half of the total mileage, and these three companies are very evenly matched. the original charters of the many lines differed greatly in their terms. they are now all being rapidly brought under a law passed in 1907, which is exceedingly liberal. under this law the companies pay no import duties on construction materials and articles used in operating the lines, and are exempt from all taxes until 1947. during that period, however, they contribute three per cent. of their net receipts towards the construction and maintenance of the bridges[263] and roads of the departments traversed by their tracks, particularly those roads leading to the stations. furthermore they must convey free of charge the mails and men in charge of them. government materials and articles for the construction of public works, war materials and stores, troops, government employees on public service, immigrants sent up country by the central immigration office, and employees of the provincial police shall be conveyed at one-half of the regular rates.

there is one american whose name stands high on the roll of honour in the development of south america, and in particular of chile and argentina. his name is william wheelwright. this captain of industry was born in newburyport, massachusetts, march 16th, 1798. he came from that sturdy puritan stock which has contributed so largely toward making the united states one of the most enlightened nations in the world. not a few of his ancestors rendered conspicuous service in the french and indian wars, and one of them served under washington in the war of the revolution. he began life as a sailing master in charge of a vessel trading with south america. being stranded in the la plata he finally concluded[264] that his destiny lay in that part of the world. one enthusiastic argentinian biographer calls him “a new hernando cortez, who remained in the land of his shipwreck to conquer its soil, not by arms, but by steam; not for spain, but for civilization.” he first began his work at valparaiso, chile, where he transformed that city by constructing docks and sanitation. he was constantly engaged in voyages of exploration for the purpose of discovering natural resources and means for their development. the lack of transportation greatly impressed him, and through his efforts the pacific steam navigation company was organized, and he secured concessions for that company from a number of republics. united states capitalists turning down this proposition it was finally financed in england. the two vessels first placed on this route opened a new era on the west coast of south america, for they were the first transatlantic steamers to establish regular communication on that coast. at last he turned his attention to the wild and sparsely populated pampas of argentina, at that time an undeveloped but fertile wilderness. although his greater project for a transcontinental line failed, he succeeded in building the first important[265] line in argentina from rosario to cordoba, a distance of two hundred and forty-six miles. this was done after seventeen years of reverses due to civil strife and the paraguayan war. the road was finally inaugurated on the 16th of may, 1870; and was opened with imposing military, religious and civil ceremonies. his last public work was the construction of a railway from buenos aires to ense?ada, the port for la plata, which was opened just a half-century from the time of his own shipwreck in that same bay. he had further plans in mind but his health failed, and he sailed for london to secure medical attention. his great age was against his recovery and he died in that city on the 28th of september, 1873, and his remains were taken back to his old home in new england. a monument to his memory has been erected in buenos aires, and several streets have been named after him in argentina, one in rosario.

just a half century after wheelwright suggested to english capitalists the feasibility of a railroad across the andes to connect the atlantic with the pacific, the road was opened to traffic, although not by the route contemplated by him. on the 27th of november, 1909, the[266] last thin line of rock, which remained to complete the tunnel between chile and argentina, was demolished by the explosion of a dynamite charge. through the opening thus made the workmen who had been employed on the two ends mingled, and a line of communication which has been the dream of two generations, was completed, that may change the political relations of south america, and which will have a marked effect on commercial relations throughout the world. on the 25th of may, of last year, this route was formally inaugurated, and an all-rail route was thus opened up between buenos aires, argentina, and valparaiso, chile, thus establishing the first transcontinental railroad on the continent of south america. that date is a hallowed one in both republics, for it is the first centenary of the revolution which gave independence to both nations; and it is fitting that so auspicious an event should celebrate that occasion. to the south americans it is as great an accomplishment as was the opening up of the first through line across the united states. at the present time the trip is made from one terminus to the other, a distance of eight hundred and eighty-eight miles, in thirty-eight hours, and the officials[267] hope to reduce the running time to twenty-nine hours.

bridge of the incas

this through line is made up of three different systems, and there are as many different gauges of track. the longest section is that through argentina, which is seven hundred and seventy-eight miles in length, or seven-eighths of the entire distance. all of this is now owned and operated by the buenos aires and pacific railway, although it was built in several different sections and by different companies.

from buenos aires to mendoza, a distance of six hundred and fifty-five miles, this road is built on the broad gauge plan. at mendoza a change is made to the narrow gauge railway, known as the trasandino argentino, with tracks of one meter (3.28 feet) width. the scenery on this line is very beautiful as it winds around bends, passes through tunnels and continues to climb up the passes of the andes. in several sections on this side, as well as on the chilean side, where the grade is over 2? per cent., the abt system of cogs and racks is used to assist the engine on the steep climbs. on the way the famous natural bridge, known as the bridge of the incas, is passed, and a[268] hotel has now been built there by the railroad company. the trasandino argentino ends at las cuevas, which is the beginning of the tunnel on that side of the “cumbre.” las cuevas is 10,468 feet above sea level. the tunnel, which passes almost directly underneath the “christ of the andes,” is 10,385 feet in length, of which a little more than half is on the argentina side, which is just a few feet less than the altitude above the sea.

the chilean terminus of the tunnel is at caracoles, which is nothing more than a camp for labourers, and is a few hundred feet higher than las cuevas. from here another railroad of meter gauge, called the trasandino chileno, carries the traveller to the station of los andes, a distance of forty-five miles. it has been found necessary to construct snow sheds in many places in order to protect the track from snow slides, which are likely to occur in august and september. from los andes to valparaiso the route is over the state railroad of chile, which is of standard gauge (4 feet 8? inches), and passes through some rich and fertile valleys on its way towards the pacific.

this project, which has now reached completion, has had many vicissitudes. its real history[269] may be said to date from 1873, when the first practical step was taken by two brothers named clark. it was while engaged in connecting chile and argentina by telegraph in 1869 that these brothers conceived the idea that this route was the most feasible for a transandine railway. the clarks obtained a concession for a railroad between buenos aires and the chilean boundary from the argentine government, and were soon afterwards climbing over rock and ridge in the work of surveying these desolate mountains. several routes were considered, but the most practical one seemed to be the old inca trail across the andes, and this was the shortest as well. along this trail innumerable hordes of the primitive races have passed for unknown centuries. the spaniard named it camino de los andes, the andean trail. for almost four centuries since the white men found this route, they have followed it on foot or on mule between the two countries. the first section was built from mendoza to villa mercedes, a distance of two hundred and twenty-two miles, and completed in 1880. three years later this line was continued to buenos aires. in 1887 work was begun from mendoza toward the chilean frontier and[270] new sections were opened up every few years, but progress was very slow.

on the chilean side the work progressed even more slowly because of financial difficulties. several times construction was begun, and then stopped because money was not forthcoming from the government, as it was too costly an undertaking for private capital. in 1901, however, the financial arrangements were completed through the american firm of w. r. grace & co., and the final work was undertaken in an energetic manner. argentina also took up her part again as soon as ultimate success was assured, and from that time until now the progress has been steady, but the difficult character of the work necessarily made it slow. work on the tunnel was prosecuted from both ends, and it was a difficult undertaking because of the high altitude. several lives were lost during its construction. it was found necessary to line the entire tunnel with a two-foot facing of cement because of the crumbling nature of the rock when exposed to the air. it is eighteen feet high and wide enough for a double track of the broadest gauge. the chilean government guaranteed five per cent. on the capital invested in the trasandino chileno,[271] almost seven million dollars, and the argentine government practically constructed the trasandino argentino railway. thus, after thirty-seven years of work and planning, vicissitudes and discouragements, this railroad, which promises so much not only for the two governments but also for the whole of south america, has become an accomplished fact.

heretofore it has been necessary to go around through the straits of magellan, a voyage of ten days, in order to reach the west coast of chile from buenos aires, the metropolis of the southern hemisphere. this has been reduced to a little over a day. it brings chile nearer to london by nine days. it is almost in the same latitude as cape town and melbourne, and may eventually provide a shorter route to australia from england, if steamers on one coast should run in conjunction with those on the other. with the present steamship connection, via the west coast and panama, it will be possible to go from new york to buenos aires, or vice versa, in twenty days, and this will probably be reduced to at least eighteen days before a great while. at present the best time made is twenty-four days by the east coast route, and it generally requires more,[272] as the boats stop for two or three days oftentimes at rio de janeiro and santos on their way down and back. when the panama canal is completed, there will no doubt be a direct line of good steamers that will run from new york direct to valparaiso. this route will be then still more desirable and the trip will be made to valparaiso in not more than two weeks.

north of mendoza the buenos aires and pacific railway has pushed a line to san juan, capital of the province of the same name. this region is rather sparsely settled, but it has a good irrigation system and will no doubt attract settlers because of the profits in fruit culture. south of mendoza a branch has been built to san rafael and another is being constructed to san carlos. although most of the country traversed by these branches presents the appearance of a hopeless, flat and unproductive desert, it possesses some of the finest soil in the republic when once irrigation is introduced. two and even three crops of cereals can be produced, so it is said, and it is especially well adapted for grapes and alfalfa. with these and many other branches, and the extension of its lines to bahia blanca, the[273] pacific road now has the greatest mileage of any of the argentine railroads.

the buenos aires and pacific railway may be said to bisect the country into two parts. north of this line by far the most important railroad is the central argentine. this company controls two thousand five hundred and thirty miles of track, and is the third system in number of miles in the republic. by the absorption of a number of smaller lines it now has a network of main lines and branches which serve that section of argentina. the last absorption was of the buenos aires and rosario railway, which added more than a thousand miles to its lines and gave it a monopoly of railway service from the metropolis to the northwestern provinces. it now operates two main lines between buenos aires and rosario. it also has under construction extensions and branches which will add nearly six hundred miles of track to its mileage.

the original section of the central argentine railway was from rosario to cordoba, a distance of two hundred and forty-six miles, for which a concession was granted to wheelwright and his associates. from rosario it began to construct extensions northwards,[274] southwards and westwards. it purchased the tracks of the western, old northern and lastly the buenos aires and rosario railway, until it reached its present commanding place on the railway map of argentina. its southern branches touch the buenos aires and pacific in several places, and its western feeders reach out through the provinces of cordoba and santa fé in a number of places. northward it reaches the city of santa fé.

this railroad is now building a magnificent new station in buenos aires which will cost several millions of dollars, and which will be jointly used by it and the pacific line. it is also making great improvements in its suburban service and dock frontage by filling in the shallow muddy shore of the river. furthermore, it has made application to the national congress for a franchise, or concession, to construct an underground electric railway to connect its station with those of the southern railway at casa amarillo and plaza constitucion. it is also elevating its tracks in rosario so as to avoid all level crossings, and is building a large new station at cordoba.

railway station, santa fé

the purchase of the buenos aires and rosario line gave the central argentine an entrance[275] into the rich province of tucuman over a track of the same gauge as its own. after leaving rosario this line passes through a rich agricultural section as far as rafaela, and is intersected by several branch lines of the santa fé system. shortly after leaving that place, which itself is only three hundred and fifteen feet above sea level, the country gradually becomes lower and swampy, being about at its lowest on the frontier between the provinces of santa fé and santiago del estero. after a considerable distance of this low, swampy land the level rises until it is over six hundred feet in elevation, where a branch four miles in length connects the main line with the city of santiago del estero, capital of the province of the same name. this city of fifteen thousand has nothing to distinguish it beyond the fact that it is the capital of a province. the line continues to reach higher elevation by easy grades. after crossing the frontier of the province of tucuman it reaches a most fertile section and at last enters the pretty little city of the same name about which the argentinian writers grow eloquent.

at tucuman connection is made with the central northern railway, a national railway[276] of more than twelve hundred miles in length. it starts at santa fé and almost parallels the central argentine to tucuman, at no point being distant more than fifty miles. it is a narrow gauge track. leaving tucuman it runs in a general northerly direction, but with many twists and turns in order to avoid the more mountainous sections of the districts through which it passes. at tala the frontier of salta is crossed at an elevation of two thousand six hundred and seventy feet, and a short distance further the elevation has increased to over three thousand feet. it then descends to the little town of rosario de la frontera noted for its thermal springs. at guenas, one hundred and eighty miles from tucuman, a branch runs to salta, the capital of the province. this is a neat, well-paved city of about thirty thousand people with the usual public buildings and churches of a provincial capital. san francisco church has a tower over two hundred feet in height which is pointed to with pride by the inhabitants. this city is very old, having been founded as early as 1582 under the name of new seville. pampa blanca (the white pampa), is the first station in the province of jujuy. near here another branch is headed[277] for the rather important town of oran, but the main line soon reaches the capital. jujuy for a long time was the northerly terminus of the argentine railway system. this is the highest town in the republic, and, although near the tropics, the altitude gives this little city a fine and healthful climate. it has a population of ten thousand and is distant from buenos aires one thousand miles. the town has nothing to distinguish it, but the surrounding scenery is very beautiful. hill and valley, wood and plain all contribute to make up a most enchanting landscape. the rio grande river runs through the town. it is the general bathing place as well as furnishing the power for the electric light and some mills located there. there are many thermal springs in the vicinity which are said to have splendid medicinal properties. the most noted are those of los reyes, the kings. there are four springs, one above another, the water being at a temperature of one hundred and twenty-five degrees fahrenheit.

the central northern has recently been extended to la quiaca, on the bolivian frontier, where it will meet the railways of that republic when they are extended. at present the bolivian[278] lines reach tupiza, and it is about a three days’ journey by coach or mule between the two points. the distance still to be covered is not very great and completion is promised in about one year from this writing. there will then be a continuous railway connection between la paz, the capital of bolivia, and buenos aires. peru is promising a road from cuzco to lima, and there will then be continuous connection with the peruvian capital, except on lake titicaca over which there is regular steamship service.

the national government also owns a line of railway running from cordoba northwest through the mountainous provinces of rioja and catamarca, more than five hundred miles in length. these lines are known as the argentino del norte (northern), and there is another which is being pushed up into the gran chaco. the government has pursued the beneficent policy of running its lines through the districts where private enterprise was afraid to venture because of the uncertainty of the investment. they are contributing greatly to the development of those regions.

the central cordoba railway is quite an important system. one line runs to san francisco,[279] where it connects with the cordoba and rosario railway which runs to rosario. its principal track, however, is a narrow gauge line which runs from cordoba in a northerly direction to tucuman, and, with its several branches, serves an extensive territory. a goodly part of the territory traversed is forest land, but a part of it is a salty waste. an independent entrance to buenos aires is now being constructed. the lines known as the provincia de santa fé start at rosario and run north, following the basin of the paraná river as far as resistencia, a town opposite to corrientes, touching at santa fé and nearly all the important places in that district. they were built by french capital and now have more than a thousand miles of track. the company is gradually extending its railhead up into the gran chaco, and will probably eventually reach asuncion. they are now only a neck behind the lines on the opposite side of the river and are far ahead from a financial point of view. they have always paid handsome dividends from the quebracho wood, which they bring down from the chaco. it would not be surprising if this line would eventually be pushed clear up into the state of matto-grosso,[280] brazil, for development is looking up that way.

the district between the paraná and uruguay rivers is served by two railway systems, the entre rios and northeastern systems. these two systems were formerly isolated and had a stormy career for many years. at the present time they work under a traffic exchange agreement and their financial standing is now good. these are the only railroads in the republic, with one exception, of standard gauge, 4 feet 8? inches width between the rails. the first mentioned road serves the province of the same name. it was originally a line that ran from nowhere to nowhere. the road was built through loans contributed by the government of the province of entre rios in 1885, and was completed three years later. the money was squandered so recklessly that it cost twice as much as was necessary, and was built of such poor material that it had to be rebuilt within a few years. the government soon found itself unable to meet its obligations and the road was turned over to the bondholders. it was not placed on a profitable basis until the branches were completed which connected it with important points in the two provinces through[281] which it now runs. the main line of the entre rios railway cuts across this province from paraná to uruguay. one branch runs down to a point near buenos aires, and freight cars are now ferried across to that city. this is the only car ferry in operation in south america, and it is quite a novelty in that part of the world. another branch runs to concordia where connection is made with the northeastern system. this road has one fork which leads up to and another which follows the uruguay river. it was built there to carry the traffic around the rapids of that river where navigation was impossible. it will, however, soon be a much more important line, for it is gradually approaching posadas, the commercial capital of the upper paraná, and the most important town on the river north of rosario. the paraguay central is also approaching villa encarnacion, on the opposite side of the paraná, and within a short time there will be continuous communication by rail between asuncion and buenos aires, with the exception of ferrying across two rivers.

south of the transcontinental line there are only two railway companies now operating.[282] the western railway, or, as it is officially called, the ferro carril de oeste, serves the southwestern part of the province of buenos aires and la pampa. it reaches one of the richest agricultural districts of the republic and a section that is rapidly developing. the various extensions are being pushed out a few miles each year, and this company now owns fourteen hundred miles of track. the western railway has had a checkered career. in point of age it is the oldest line in the country, as about fifteen miles of track were built a half century ago. when this little railroad was inaugurated a great celebration was held, and the president delivered an address full of optimism and prophetic of future development. fortune, however, refused to smile on the project, and money was scarce, so that the national government was obliged to take over the road. it was not a success until an english company took it over in 1890, and began pushing out the extensions over the pampas that are now bringing in the revenue-producing freight, which has placed the western railway on the road to prosperity.

the ferro carril del sud, or great southern railway, is the second largest railroad system[283] in argentina,[1] and one of the best freight producers. it has a monopoly of the greater part of the rich province of buenos aires, and its main station at plaza constitucion in the city of buenos aires is a busy place, with trains continually running in and out loaded with passengers for the suburbs or more distant points. it was due to the enterprise of this company that the busy port of bahia blanca was opened, and the seaside resort of mar del plata made popular. the section traversed by the great southern is threaded here and there by the many branches and feeders of this system, and more are being built each year. passenger and freight traffic have increased so rapidly that the earnings per mile have almost doubled in[284] the last ten years. it has built a strategic line several hundred miles long to neuquen, almost directly west of bahia blanca, which will eventually become a transcontinental line. engineers are now at work selecting the most feasible route across the andes to connect with the chilean state railways. this plan has already been approved by the directors and work will no doubt be begun before long.

the southern has in construction a line south to the port of san antonio, to open up the rich lands on the borders of patagonia. it will connect with a government road which is now building from san antonio, which is a new port on the gulf of san matias, westward to nahuel huapi, and which will be about three hundred miles long. the government is to be commended for its far-sightedness in planning this enterprise. already a large part of the road-bed is graded and track has been laid for fifty miles or more, but service has not yet been begun. work has also been begun on a railroad from puerto deseado, still farther south than san antonio, which will run inland to nahuel huapi and open up an extensive country. this is but the beginning of extensive railroad development in this large southern section[285] of argentina, and plans have already been formulated to extend other lines into the very heart of patagonia, and over to lake buenos aires. in all the government now owns and operates a little more than two thousand miles of main track, which will be increased to fully three thousand by the new extensions of the old ones now being built.

the amount of traffic carried on these railroads is enormous and reaches big figures. i have before me the report of one of the greatest systems of argentina for the year 1910. this states that the amount of grain carried by this line for that year, in tons of two thousand two hundred and five pounds, was as follows: linseed four hundred and two thousand one hundred and ninety-three, wheat nine hundred and ninety-one thousand one hundred and eighty-eight, corn one million one hundred and forty-two thousand four hundred. other freight carried, not including its own supplies, amounted to five million nine hundred and eighty-three thousand one hundred and forty-three tons. three hundred and forty-one thousand five hundred and seventy-seven head of live stock were transported. the number of passengers carried numbered almost fourteen[286] millions. the gross receipts were twenty-five million dollars. its capital stock is one hundred and seventy-five million dollars. it has paid for many years a regular dividend of six per cent., besides devoting large sums each year to betterments and extensions. all of these roads have been conducted along conservative lines, and their stocks are nearly all quoted on the london stock exchange considerably above par.