Many of these agricultural societies possess extensive grounds of their own in the near neighbourhood of the provincial capital. In these places permanent buildings are frequently to be met with that are employed for the annual shows. These usually owe their construction to private enterprise, assisted by the Government. In Montevideo, too, there is a ground specially set apart for this purpose. Here the Rural Association of Uruguay holds the great annual championship meeting, and the Government has just allotted the sum of a hundred thousand dollars for the purpose of improving the spot, and for the introduction of the very latest innovations. These agricultural shows have proved highly successful in facilitating the actual commercial transactions having reference to live stock of all descriptions. Thus during the past few years the principal meetings alone have been responsible for an annual sale of over half a million dollars' worth of animals. Although, as has been explained, numerous products of the pastoral industry are exported in their natural state, there are others which require special treatment and preparation in their country of origin ere shipment, and which are daily gaining in importance. The most important institutions that deal with these are the meat-curing factories, the freezing works, and the establishments for preserving meat and for extracting its essence. These chief industries we will deal with at some length later, enumerating first of all some of the side products of lesser importance, such as the manufacture of tallow and of hams, and that of tanning. Another industry that bids fair to be of supreme importance in the future is that of dairy-farming. At the present time this is worked on a comparatively modest scale, since the great majority of farms are content with the breeding and selling of the cattle. Nevertheless, there are several important establishments that produce milk, butter, and cheese for the purposes of both home consumption and of export. The chief amongst these establishments is that of La Carolina, belonging to Don Francisco Fontana, which occupies an area of eight thousand hectares in the department of Rocha. No less than five thousand milch cows graze on this property, which is provided with steam-driven machinery of the most modern type. In the department of Colonia, too, exists the colony of Swiss, who devote themselves especially to this particular branch of industry. The principal factory here is that of Breuss and Frey, which deals with thirty thousand litres of milk daily, and can turn out twenty-four thousand kilos of butter in a month. This factory likewise contains the most up-to-date machinery, and is provided with freezing and sterilising apparatus. This concern exports cheese as well as butter.