Buenos Aires (Capital of Argentina)

Collier's New Encyclopedia (1921)

the capital of Argentina and the largest city of the southern hemisphere. It has a population of 1,637,155 (1918). It is situated on the right bank of the La Plata river, twelve miles from its mouth. It extends eleven and a half miles from N. to S. and fifteen and a half miles from E. to W. The plan of the city is quadrangular. It is well paved and abounds with beautiful structures. The commerce of Buenos Aires vastly exceeds that of any city in South America. There are ten trans-atlantic lines of steamships which connect it with Europe, and railroad connections with Patagonia, Chile, and Bolivia. It has a harbor, largely artificial, that cost $35,000,000 and covers an area of 165 acres, and twenty-four warehouses with the capacity of 24,000- 000 tons of merchandise. Although Argentina is essentially a grazing and agricultural country, there are 10,350 industrial establishments in the capitol, employing about 119,000 workmen. The principal manufactures are chemical products, construction materials, hide products, furniture, carpets, and preserved foods. There are twenty-one banks in Buenos Aires with a combined capital of $100,000,000. There are a number of branches of American and European banks. The annual clearings amount to $3,000,000,000. There are 250 public schools with 3,000 teachers and an enrolment of 300,000 pupils. The university has about 4,700 students. There are several technical schools, normal schools, and business colleges. The public libraries hold 50,000 volumes. The city is governed on a commission plan, and the amount of annual expenditure is about $100,000,000.