. The Spanish-American republics . line down to Lagunas, where there is onelot of 8000 acres of nitrate in many places 8 feet thick, and in theimmediate neighborhood other equally rich deposits. It will be no-ticed that another line is marked on the map between Lagunas andthe port of Patillos, proposed line begun but construction this line should be built it would naturally divert the traffic fromIquique, and the two shipping ports for nitrate would become Patillosand Pisagua. It remains to be seen whether the Government will al-low this sword of Damocles to fall and annihilate at o
. The Spanish-American republics . line down to Lagunas, where there is onelot of 8000 acres of nitrate in many places 8 feet thick, and in theimmediate neighborhood other equally rich deposits. It will be no-ticed that another line is marked on the map between Lagunas andthe port of Patillos, proposed line begun but construction this line should be built it would naturally divert the traffic fromIquique, and the two shipping ports for nitrate would become Patillosand Pisagua. It remains to be seen whether the Government will al-low this sword of Damocles to fall and annihilate at one blow the youth-ful and thriving town of Iquique, whose municipality, I am told, hasjust ordered from those terribly dexterous Italian sculptors four whitemarble fountains for the further adornment of its Plaza Arturo , it is curious to note the fact that the existence of Iquique isprecarious. The final question always is, Will it last? it meaningnot only Iquique, but the nitrate industry and all connected THE NITRATE DESERT OF TARAPACA. 161 From the Central Station we continue along the northern line,and at Montevideo, 360- miles from Iquique, we reach the highestpoint of the railway, namely, 3810 feet, and thence descend to PozoAlmonte, 3371 feet, where we find the solution of a problem that hasbeen exercising our inquisitive minds:. In this brown and rainlessdesert where is water obtained for the locomotives ? At Pozo arewells from which the water is pumped up to Montevideo, whence itruns down by its own weight to the Central Station, and from there itis carried in tank-cars as far as Santa Rosa. This well-water, beingcharged with lime and other substances, requires to be purified beforeit can be used in the boilers, and with this object it is heated and aquantity of carbonate of soda dissolved in it. The lime and othersalts are thus precipitated. So far as the southern pampa is con-cerned, the water-pipes from Pica will, of course, modify in the ne
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