The provinces of Tarapaca and Antofagasta comprise the great nitrate or saltpeter fields of South America, the richest and most extensive in the world. The province of Tarapaca was acquired from Peru, in the war with that country in 1879-81, and Antofagasta was Bolivian territory previous to the same war. Until recent years this arid region, designated as the pampa or “desierto de Atacama,” was considered nonproductive and practically worthless. Now the products of nitrate of soda alone amount to over 100,000,000 Chilean pesos annually, and comprise two-thirds of the export business of the Republic. This mineral zone covers an area of 235,000 square miles and has a population of 355,000. The great mineral wealth of the country is not limited to this particular section, however, as gold and other minerals are found in a majority of the provinces in Chile, and mines are worked from Tarapaca to Tierra del Fuego. It is within the limit of this zone that the once famous mines of Chanarcillo and Copiapo are located, from which has been taken millions of dollars worth of ore. But these and other silver mines, once productive, have practically ceased to yield, from the lack of application of modern mining methods, and the silver mining industry has greatly depreciated in Chile in the last decade. Gold mining is also less extensive than in former years, except in Tierra del Fuego, and the product has greatly decreased in the northern zone. With the decrease in gold and silver mining in the Mineral zone has come increased interest in the production of copper, which now forms eighty per cent. of the metal exports from Chile. The Mineral and Agricultural zone may be defined as a section of semi-mountainous, sparsely watered country, extending north from Santiago, to the mineral zone. There are within the territory a number of small streams extending from the mountains to the sea, in the valleys of which are small farms, called “fundos.” There are few towns of any consequence in that part of the country, no railways, few improved roads, and communication between the coast and interior is slow and difficult. Mule and burro trains are the common method of transportation, while more rapid communication is made on horseback.