C6RDOBA, or CORDOVA, Argentine Republic, a province next in size to that of Buenos Aires, bounded on the north by San tiago del Estero, on the east by Santa Fe, on the south by Buenos Aires and the territorial government of Pampa Central, and on the west by the provinces of San Luis, La Rioja and Catamarca. Area 54,000 square miles. Its northwestern portion is mountainous, and rich in minerals. C,opper, silver, gold, lime, marble, graphite and salt are found. The central and eastern regions lie in a great plain watered by the rivers Cuarto, Segundo, Primero, Dulce, etc., with the lake called Mar Chiquita; and here agricultural and grazing industries are car ried on. Cattle, horses and mules are bred in the south; wheat and fruits are raised along the river courses; there are large flocks of sheep and goats in the centre and north. Be 'sides wheat and fruits, the principal crops are maize, lucern, barley, sweet potatoes and white potatoes. Of the total productions, about one half, in value, are pastoral, one-third agricul tural. The mining industry is as yet compara tively undeveloped. Manufactures are flour, lime and cement, bricks, hides and leather, beer, wine and alcohol, boots and shoes, cut wood, vermicelli, gold embroideries, butter and cheese, cut stone, belts, candles and soap, arti ficial ice, etc. Principal railway centres are the capital city, Cordoba (q.v.), Villa Maria and Villa Nueva. Under the constitution of the republic dated 25 Sept 1860 the province has its own constitution, (framed upon the basis of a republican representative system of govern ment, and in harmony with the principles, declarations, and guaranties of the national con stitution° • said provincial constitution relating to °the administration of justice, the administra tion of the local government, and primary instruction. Upon these conditions the federal government guarantees to each province the practice and enjoyment of its own constitu tions." The provinces have their own local institutions and laws; "they elect their govern ors, legislators, and provincial functionaries of all classes, without the intervention of the fed eral.government? The province is represented in the national legislature by two senators, elected by the provincial legislature, and by deputies elected directly by the people. Each province is for this purpose considered as an electoral district, and the election is by a plurality of votes in the proportion of one deputy to each 20,000 inhabitants, or fraction of that number not less than 10,000. Popula tion of the province approximately 625,000.
CaRDOBA, Argentine Republic, the cap ital of the province of the same name, situated on the right bank of the Rio Primer°, 432 miles from Buenos Aires, at the junction of five railways. It is one of the progressive inland cities, having adopted many of the mod ern improvements, such as electric light, running water, street railways, sewers and excellent pavements. Its university, founded in 1813; astronomical observatory, established 1871; Na tional Academy of Science; National Meteoro logical Institute ; national college, normal schools and elementary schools, have made it well known as an educational centre. Railway communica
tion with Buenos Aires was established in 1869. The first national fair was held here in 1871. A score of newspapers and reviews are pub lished in the city. In size it is the third city of the republic. There are fine public buildings and private residences, and attractive parks. It was founded in 1583, and its university is in point of age second only to that at Lima among the South American =versifies. Pop. 100,000.
CoRDOBA, Mexico, a town on the Mexi can Railway, 66 miles west of Vera Cruz, in a fruitful valley 3,045 feet above the sea. It has manufactories of woolen and cotton goods and is surrounded by rich coffee plantations. Pop. 9,000.
CoRDOBA, Spain, a town and capital of the province of C6rdoba, situated on the Guadal quivir, in Lower Andalusia. It is built on a gentle declivity of a chain of mountains, forms an oblong quadrangle and is surrounded with walls and lofty towers. A part of the town is of Roman, a part of Moorish origin; many of the buildings are in ruins, and a number of gardens occupy a great part of the inhabited space. The streets are narrow, crooked and dirty; the plaza mayor, the principal market place, however, is distinguished for its size, its regularity and the beauty of the colonnade by which it is •surrounded. The remains of the residence of the Moorish Icings now form a part of the archbishop's palace. The cathedral is a splendid building, originally a mosque, erected in the 8th century by King Abd-er-Ralunan I. The mosque of Cordoba is, in the words of Gautier, “a monument unique in the workl, and novel even for travellers who have had the fortune to admire the wonders of Moorish architecture at Granada or Seville? It is 370 feet in length, 425 in breadth and has a bell tower 300 teet high. It was at one time the second largest sacred building of Islam, and is the most magnificent Mohammedan temple in Europe. It is surrounded by a wall supported by strong buttresses. Other points of interest are the Campo Santo, the site of Christiap martyrdoms, and the chapel of the Hospital del Cardinal, once part of a mosque. From the 9th to the 12th centuries Cordoba was a great centre of trade; the leather exclusively manu factured there (cordovan) was exported in all directions. At what period the Romans laid the foundation of the town (Colonia Patricia, after ward Corduba) is not laiown. In 572 it was conquered by the Goths. During the reign.cif the dynasty of the Ommiades it was the capital of Arabian Spain; and afterward it became the residence of the powerful caliphs of the West, the sacred city of the Moors and the centre of Mohammedin worship and of Arabian splendor and science. At that time the city is said to have been about 15 miles in circuit and to have possessed a population of 1,000,000. In 1236 it fell an easy prey to Ferdinand III of Castile. In 1808 it was pillaged by the French, who cap tured it again under Soult in 1810. Pop. 65,200. The province of COrdoba includes the fertile and beautiful valley of the Guadalquivir and the snow-capped mountains of Sierra Morena. The area of the province is 5,298 square miles and the population about 460,000.