PARAGUAY is the next province to Corrientes, with the Parana intervening. Here again, the courses of the rivers give compactness and a defined natural outline to a political section. The Parana, after having been swelled by innumerable streams from the mountains of Brazil, crosses the southern tropic, and flows southward with a very slight inclination to the west, to below S. lat. 27°, when abruptly turning to west, one hundred and fifty miles, unites with the Paraguay, and encloses the province of the latter name on two sides; which province is again washed on the west by the great river from which its name is derived. On the north Paraguay bounds on the Brazilian province of Matto Grosso. The whole forming an oblong 280 by 200 miles; area 56,000. Such is Paraguay on our maps, but the follow ing extract shows how imperfectly the physical or poli tical features of this remote region is known even at Buenos Ayres.
" It is undoubtedly one of the provinces which has always been held in most estimation, on account of the abundance, variety, and value of its productions. For the last 15 years, however, (from 1825) which goes back to the time when, with Buenos Ayres, it separated itself from the Spanish domination, it occupies an obscure place in the politics of that country, and maintains no social or mercantile relation with any other part of the world ; for which state of seclusion it is favoured by its detached local situation. Without knowing whether this circumstance ought to be attributed to the rustic character of the only person who has governed Paraguay, during the greatest part of that time, or to the constitu tional apathy and ignorance of the persons governed, the fact is, that notwithstanding it followed the sentiment of the whole territory, as regards its separation from Spain, that province has not only taken no part in the war of independence, but also, since that moment, has cut off all communication with the contiguous and united provinces, and thus continued to the present time to prevent the exportation of its interesting productions, and to prohibit the return of all foreigners or natives, with very few exceptions, who came for the purpose of introducing ultramarine merchandise into Paraguay.
Bence, nothing is known of that province which is not of an old date ; and that information, of course, is liable to all the inaccuracies with which such communications were constantly divulged in those times."* The author of the preceding goes on to state what important facts are known of Paraguay. It abounds in mountain forests of the finest ship timber, and though so far inland, the construction of vessels has always been one of its principal branches of commerce. Most of the small vessels employed in the trade of all the internal rivers, have been constructed there. In Paraguay some ships have been built, which have been navigated to Buenos Ayres, a distance of 1200 miles. In the year 1824, one of those ships sailed to Lima, after having made several voyages to Europe.
This province seems to produce in highest perfection that remarkable herb, (yerba mate, or the chenopodium ambrosioides of Linneus) the tea of South America. It has been noted for the excellence of its tobacco, cot ton, and many other vegetables. It has also gained a shameful notoriety by the forcible detention of M. Born pland, who was so long and usefully the companion of Baron Humboldt, and who was sent as a naturalist by the government of Buenos Ayres, to explore those re cesses situated between the Missiones of Corrientes and Paraguay.
The three provinces we have surveyed constitute the territory of the republic of the United Provinces of la Plata to the east, or along the right bank of Parana; extending through upwards of ten degrees of latitude, and compris ing an aggregate of 13,5,000 square miles, most advanta geously situated for every pursuit necessary to human prosperity,happiness, and improvement. In general cha racter, the face of the country to the east and west of the Parana and Paraguay differs essentially. The dense forests of Entre Rios, Corrientes, and Paraguay, are followed, ad vancing towards the Andes, by the Llanos de i\lanso, and other interminable grassy plains, which occupy the far greater part of the regions from the Parana and Pa raguay to the mountains of Chile.