30 chapters
8 hour read
Selected Chapters
30 chapters
FOREWORD
FOREWORD
T HE artist or the writer who visits South America to-day finds it as a diamond of a hundred facets, and his main difficulty is to select those points upon which to concentrate his gaze. So vast is the subject, so full of romance, glamour, pulsating life, and world possibilities that not one book but many must be written upon it before the reader can form the barest idea of the well-nigh illimitable nature of the theme. Hence an author who offers any contribution to so vast a study has no need t
3 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter
CHAPTER I Early Adventurers and Discoveries
CHAPTER I Early Adventurers and Discoveries
T HE history of the Isthmus of Panama, which was the point of departure for the whole of those notable conquests which placed nearly all South America under the heel of Spain, began with its discovery by Alonzo de Ojeda in 1499. The great name of Columbus figures prominently in this period, for in the course of his fourth voyage he spent much time in sailing backwards and forwards from east to west along the coast of Terra Firma in a vain search for a passage through which his ships might pass t
12 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter
CHAPTER II The Sighting of the Pacific
CHAPTER II The Sighting of the Pacific
W ITH his wild crew Balboa sailed from Santa Maria up the coast to Coyba, where he left half his men to guard the brigantine and canoes, and started out, after offering up fervent prayers to God to grant him success in his mission. Through a country which might have caused dismay to the boldest of adventurers, struggling through pathless bush which seemed almost impenetrable, over steep rocks with the sun blazing down upon them, encumbered with their heavy armour, and with supplies for only two
11 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter
CHAPTER III The Buccaneers
CHAPTER III The Buccaneers
T HE short-sighted policy of the Spaniards in exterminating the natives of the countries which they conquered, necessitated the importation of the negro from Africa, and led to the development of a huge traffic in slaves, in which England, France, and Portugal played an important part. The men engaged in this trade were naturally a ruffianly set who soon became familiar with the operations in the newly acquired Spanish territories, and were quick to take advantage of the knowledge which they thu
19 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter
CHAPTER IV On the Way to the Southern Continent
CHAPTER IV On the Way to the Southern Continent
A FTER leaving Kingston, Jamaica, one has an opportunity of observing some of the many types who journey to the isthmus of Panama. The steamer is crowded and its comfort impaired by the numerous obstacles such as luggage and deck chairs, which prevent promenading and the taking of the usual form of exercise on board ship. On the fore deck, huddled together in endless confusion, are labourers from the island just left; behind their “household gods”—parrots, monkeys, poultry, and dogs—enjoying in
17 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter
CHAPTER V Of the Labourers on the Isthmus
CHAPTER V Of the Labourers on the Isthmus
T HE most difficult problem that has to be faced by undertakers of transit and construction schemes in South America is that of labour. The natives of the tropical latitudes have little inclination or incentive to give their time and strength to the furthering of projects that are introduced into their countries, and it has always been necessary to any enterprise on the isthmus requiring a large labour force to import men from other places. The first experiment was made many years ago by the ear
17 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter
CHAPTER VI Canal Projects: Old and New
CHAPTER VI Canal Projects: Old and New
T HE transcendent egotist who declared that had he planned the universe he would have made health and not disease infectious, would also surely have included in his schemes the omission of the narrow neck of land which joins the two American continents. For ever since its discovery, the isthmus of Darien has been but an obstacle that men have wished to overcome by cutting through it a waterway to connect the two oceans which it divides. Whether Cortez ever penetrated so far south as Darien or no
38 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter
CHAPTER VII Panama
CHAPTER VII Panama
W HEN the present city of Panama was founded in 1673, its architects and builders in laying out the new town fixed its location up the rocky peninsula which juts out into the sea at the foot of Ancon hill. They had a vivid recollection of the fate that had overtaken the old city, and were determined that the new one should offer a more formidable front to any invading foe, and so strongly fortified was the new city that with the exception of Cartagena it was the most impregnable fortress in the
8 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter
CHAPTER VIII The Panamanians
CHAPTER VIII The Panamanians
T HE difficulties that beset the early travellers across the Isthmus of Panama over two hundred years ago still remain, and confront the explorer in these regions at every turn. Very little has been done to cultivate the rich lands which are capable of rapidly yielding in great abundance every kind of tropical fruit. Few roads exist, and until some attempts are made thus to open up the country, little or no change will ever take place in the condition of the interior. The activity on the isthmus
18 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter
CHAPTER IX Colombia and Cartagena
CHAPTER IX Colombia and Cartagena
I F in the matter of details the history of Colombia—the republic in the extreme north-west corner of the South American continent—has been more lurid than some of its neighbours, in general outline that history has followed the course with which students of Spanish-American affairs are so familiar. There was, first, the discovery of the territory away back in the fifteenth century by Spanish mariners, and its subsequent settlement by colonists from the mother country. Spain always started this
12 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter
CHAPTER X Ecuador
CHAPTER X Ecuador
F ROM Panama the steamers of the Pacific mail start on their voyage down the long Pacific coast. That they should carry a curious medley of passengers is only natural, seeing that they stop at the ports of four republics. So numerous are these ports that some of the steamers have to miss many of them, and smaller coastal vessels serve the needs of the few voyagers who visit the smaller and more insignificant places; but still there are enough stoppages to enable the voyager to see something of t
5 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter
CHAPTER XI “The City of the Kings”
CHAPTER XI “The City of the Kings”
A BOUT 1500 miles down the coast from Panama lies Callao, the principal port of Peru, a large and busy town, by far the most imposing upon the seaboard of that country. The first town, which stood about a mile from the present one, was destroyed by an unusually violent earthquake shock in 1746. The port of to-day is fast adopting modern improvements, and most of the old mud and wickerwork houses have been replaced by substantial modern dwellings, and the docks and shipping facilities have grown
7 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter
CHAPTER XII Peru—“The Country of Marvels”
CHAPTER XII Peru—“The Country of Marvels”
F ROM Tumbez to Callao, the country presents a most arid and uninviting appearance. The high, steep hills near to the shore extend in an almost unbroken line of dull greyish brown, as the sun-baked clay, with here and there patches of dirty white indicating guano deposits. I must confess to a feeling of disappointment on first gazing upon the inhospitable shores of Peru. For my mind treasured recollections of all the glamour and romance that gather round the land and the history of the wonderful
14 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter
CHAPTER XIII “The Gateway to an Imprisoned Land”
CHAPTER XIII “The Gateway to an Imprisoned Land”
M OLLENDO, the port for Arequipa, Cuzco, La Paz, is anything but an inviting place. It is a dismal town like Iquique, Arica, Paita, and many others on the rainless coast that stretches for hundreds of weary miles down the Pacific. The port is unsheltered and strong south-westerly winds prevail, making the landing in small boats a matter of no little difficulty. The landing-stage or mole belonging to the Peruvian Corporation is the most important feature of the dusty town, for from it all the ric
9 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter
CHAPTER XIV “The Land of Nitrates”
CHAPTER XIV “The Land of Nitrates”
V ALPARAISO is the principal seaport of the most remarkably shaped country in the world. A narrow strip of land, lying between the Andes and the Pacific, having a length of two thousand eight hundred miles, and a width varying from forty to one hundred and sixty miles, it has not inaptly been compared to a serpent couched on the south-western verge of the continent. When you have voyaged down the coast from Panama, and have experienced the changes from the tropical verdure of the Ecuadorian coas
11 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter
CHAPTER XV Argentina
CHAPTER XV Argentina
T O countless people South America is little or nothing more than a geographical expression, and to such the Argentine Republic is the representative State, typical of all the rest. There could be no greater error, for the natives of the great southern continent are sharply differentiated, alike in many traits of character, the vocations which they pursue, and the physiography of the territory which they inhabit. There are, it is true, certain ties between them all; they all boast a common ances
17 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter
CHAPTER XVI The Camp
CHAPTER XVI The Camp
T O a European the farms of South America offer such contrasts to those he is familiar with in his own country that he finds it difficult to become accustomed to the immense areas of treeless plains that constitute the estancias of the New World. Everything is on a large scale there. A vast territory, now gently rolling like a heaving sea, now flat as an unruffled lake, with few objects to break the eternal straightness of the distant horizon. The atmosphere and the many illusions it creates off
22 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter
CHAPTER XVII A Live Industry
CHAPTER XVII A Live Industry
T HE rapid strides of progress made by the Argentine Republic have been accelerated by the increasing consumption in the United States of the products of her own Western cattle lands. Every year, as the population of the world increases, the heavy demands made upon cattle-producing countries bring newer fields into use. From the middle of the nineteenth until the beginning of the present century, the vast prairies of the Western States produced more than enough meat to supply their own needs and
16 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter
CHAPTER XVIII On the Road to Paraguay
CHAPTER XVIII On the Road to Paraguay
ON THE PARANA. P ARAGUAY is most easily reached by river. The long overland journeys from either Brazil or Bolivia are both of a nature to deter tourists, and the voyage up either the Uruguay or the Parana rivers is preferable to the long dusty train journey from Buenos Ayres to Corrientes. The steamship service of the Mihanovich line which plies upon the River Plate, as well as along the Argentine coast, is one of the best in South America. The vessels are large and adequately fitted for the tr
22 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter
CHAPTER XIX Asuncion
CHAPTER XIX Asuncion
T HE sun was just beginning to dispel the white morning mists when we came alongside the Aduana or custom-house of Asuncion. Our fellow-passengers were all anxious to learn the latest developments of the revolution in progress, and to discover if it was wise for them to trust themselves on shore, for it is proverbial that Paraguay is like a mouse-trap, easy enough of entrance, but difficult of exit. Alongside of the wharf or quay of the Aduana lay a small steam trawler, which, upon closer inspec
18 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter
CHAPTER XX A South American Dictator
CHAPTER XX A South American Dictator
T HE early history of Paraguay is almost identical with that of other South American States. Spain, its conqueror and coloniser, chose a psychological moment for the work—that enchanted period in the history of mankind when the world was opening grand visions to poets and inspiring warlike adventurers on mighty quests through uncharted seas and in lands unmarked by the footsteps of civilisation. It would have been well for the honour and glory of Spain had these adventurous mariners and soldiers
6 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter
CHAPTER XXI More Modern Times in Paraguay
CHAPTER XXI More Modern Times in Paraguay
T HE close of Francia’s career opened a fresh chapter in the history of Paraguay. The position occupied for three decades by an outstanding personality was not easily filled, and for a time two men, Carlos Lopez and Mariano Alonzo, ruled as joint Consuls, until the stronger of the two, Lopez, took the reins of government into his own hands, and secured for himself the position of President. His rule was as absolute as that of his great predecessor; but although he made no drastic changes in the
7 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter
CHAPTER XXII A Glance at Brazilian History
CHAPTER XXII A Glance at Brazilian History
I F geographical extent, length of seaboard, variety of resources, number of cities, constitute the importance of a country, then Brazil may fairly claim to be the most important State in South America. It is 2600 miles from north to south, and 2500 miles from east to west, and has a seaboard extending for 3700 miles. In square mileage it is exceeded only by the British Empire, Russia, China, and the United States. It occupies 33 per cent of the whole continent of South America, for it contains
17 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter
CHAPTER XXIII “A City of Paradise”
CHAPTER XXIII “A City of Paradise”
R IO has one of the most enviable positions in the world. The only other site occupied by a city of any magnitude that can compare to it is that of Sydney, in New South Wales. But Rio harbour has perhaps superior claims to loveliness than that of Sydney by reason of the endless mountain peaks that encompass its vast waters. The innumerable islands that rise up out of the rippled surface are richly clad with all the varieties of a tropical vegetation. The views are endless, each seeming to challe
19 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter
CHAPTER XXIV Vianna
CHAPTER XXIV Vianna
A MONGST the hundreds of islands in the Bay of Rio, there are two which have special claims upon the attention of visitors to Rio, as well as on the gratitude of all good Brazilians. Vianna and Santa Cruz are two islands lying in the north-west corner of the bay, about an hour’s run from the Caes Pharoux, the picturesque landing-stage and promenade of Rio. The journey across the bay is full of interest; indeed there is not a nook, corner, or islet of the great harbour that does not call forth so
8 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter
CHAPTER XXV Some Excursions from Rio
CHAPTER XXV Some Excursions from Rio
T HE vast territories which amalgamated to form the United States of Brazil suffer more than anything else from the lack of that railway communication which has opened up the beauties and resources of the country immediately surrounding the Federal capital. The first railway in Brazil was due to the enterprise of the Viscount de Maua, and the line was originally named after him, as was the town at the northern end of the Bay of Rio from which it started. Originally this line extended only from M
12 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter
CHAPTER XXVI São Paulo
CHAPTER XXVI São Paulo
U NLIKE most of the State capitals of Brazil, São Paulo lies some distance inland, but in close touch with its port Santos, some thirty-five miles distant. Many passengers travelling by the Royal Mail steamers bound for the Argentine, disembark at Rio and take the train from the Central Railway Station across country to São Paulo, rejoining their steamer at Santos. This variation is not only a pleasant break in the voyage, but affords the opportunity for viewing the most thriving and prosperous
24 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter
CHAPTER XXVII A Source of Light and Power
CHAPTER XXVII A Source of Light and Power
S ÃO PAULO is rich in the possession of an abnormal number of waterfalls and rapids—in fact for its size it is in this respect the richest state in the world. Much of the power that flows over these rapids has already been utilised and does an enormous amount of work, and more is destined in the future to be harnessed to supply the increasing demands of industry. Rivers and streams rise in the great Serro do Mar, and flow over a hilly country, encountering so many changes of level that innumerab
11 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter
CHAPTER XXVIII Coffee
CHAPTER XXVIII Coffee
F ROM an obscure origin the habit of coffee-drinking has grown to be almost universal. That the natural home of the plant itself is Abyssinia or East Africa is generally known, but how its fruit came to be used in the making of a beverage is the subject of many legends. One ancient Mohammedan tradition tells how the superior of a monastery, observing that goats eating the coffee berries became very wakeful and lively at night, prepared a decoction of the berries, in order to keep his dervishes a
14 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter
CHAPTER XXIX The Forest
CHAPTER XXIX The Forest
A N excursion through the unexplored bush in South America is no light undertaking, and after a few hours employed in making his way through primeval forest the traveller obtains a fair idea of some of the terrible ordeals which had to be passed through by the early Spanish invaders and buccaneering marauders. Besides being hampered by heavy armour and accoutrements, they were dependent for food on the wild animals they killed or the roots and fruits they discovered, unless by chance they encoun
23 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter