URUGUAY.

Press, Volume LIV, Issue 9817, 28 August 1897, Page 7

URUGUAY.

We are iudebted to the courtesy of Mr Heber H. Cholmondeley, of Port Levy, for the following interesting extract from a letter recently received from a friend who has a large " estancia " in Uruguay, some 200 miles east of Monte Video. The letter was dated May 16th : —" Dear A revolution broke out here some months ago, and is still going on, and no ono knowe how long it may ; but as your lines have been cast in pleasant places, you cannot know about these things. Well, both pai'ties take your horses, as many as they like, eat as many cattle and sheep as they like, and gi»e you a receipt which is not worth much ; cut your fences wherever they like and so on. I have not suffered much yet; lost about half the horses, about 100 sheep, and six cows, but they may have a haul on mc any day. On the other side of the country, where several armies have been and still are, I hear the horses are finished, and nearly all the cattle. An army hero does not require a commissariat, as they catch horses on the march, and when they are in oamp, kill off the first cattle they come across, and live entirely on meat. My men nearly all cleared to Buenos Ayres, so as not to be taken up, and I am managing with old men and boys. A cattle plague has made its appearance in many parts of the country, and is doing great havoc. I hope to be able to isolate our stock. I was told the other day of a place north from this that lost 3000 head. Our young sheep are doing badly, and over half of last year's lambs are dead. Otherwise sheep and cattle are in good order and there is any amount of grass. The locusts did a lot of damage to the crops, but, I think, did ns good, as they topped the long grass, and immediately after they left we had copious rains, which washed the gross and started afresh growth. Mr —— haa rented a place adjoining hero. He bought with the place 13,000 sheep.2ooo head of cattle, besides horses, mares and plant. Export of stock is largely on the increase in Buenos Ayres. I sold 200 head o£ cattle, half have been shipped, and the remainder go to-morrow. The lob shipped averaged 15601b live weight on an empty atomaoh.'