PARAGUAY: A NEW FRONTIER

[Music] e [Music] Paraguay a country larger than California but smaller than Texas is one of the least developed of the South American republics its isolation from the ocean except for the long river route Southward to the port of Buenos Iris in Argentina has been a major reason for its slow development aunion founded in 1537 is the capital and the only large city of Paraguay it is today a colorful blend of the past and the present some of the oldest street cars in South America share the crowded downtown streets with modern automobiles many of the people of Paraguay are descendants of immigrants from Europe another important part of the population is of guani Indian stock the original inhabitants of this part of South America life is Pleasant in this old city that was founded about 50 years after Columbus discovered America the Rio Paraguay is the country's link with the outside world and at The River's Edge small vessels are mored beside Steamers from buenos Iris business and Commerce in aunion centers of about the busy Waterfront oil Machinery food and clothing are shipped in and out over the Broad River Highway connecting Paraguay with the Atlantic Ocean bales of cotton from distant Farms are loaded for shipment down the river the export of hides from Paraguay's ranches brings a large LGE income to the Cattlemen of the Cho the country is divided into two parts by A Great River the Rio Paraguay our story is about the Western Zone known as El chako a region in which live a few pioneers and some scattered tribes of Indians across the river from the city of aunion Lies this vast flat land called The Cho The Cho is a strange country little known even to paraguayans an immense Wilderness of scrub stretching hundreds of miles from the Rio Paraguay to the foothills of the Bolivian Andes it is a land of few people a land without roads where the traveler must depend upon the ox cart or the horse after passing through great stretches of Dusty plain the ox carts and Horsemen enter a vast region of Swampy ground and shallow lagoons in the far North near the river large areas are covered with kachu trees the cabu tree is a principal source of tannin a vegetable acid used in the tanning of leather the logs are hauled from the forest on huge Ox carts oxen are used in loading the logs onto flat cars a Narrow Gauge Railroad hauls the logs to the mill located near the Rio [Music] Paraguay at the Mill the logs will be crushed and treated for extraction of the tannin the finished product will be sent Downstream to aunion for export in the very heart of the Cho there is a small settlement called the Philadelphia colony in 1930 a handful of people of the menonite sect came here from Germany and the Russian Ukraine to begin a new life given free Land by the Paraguay government the menites have built a Pioneer community in one of the Earth's least developed areas the menites Built Homes much like those they left behind in the old towns and cold climate of northern Europe their way of life follows the pattern of their Homeland where women do a large part of the work there are no laundries in Philadelphia washing with this machine made by The Village Carpenter is part of a woman's household duties life for these school girls is a rigid routine of classroom church and housework the cobbler works in the shade behind his Cottage making and repairing shoes for the colonists wagon makers repair the wheels of heavy Ox carts large Parcels of land have been cleared for the planting of peanuts which grow well in sandy soil and are the principal crop the menites must make most of the Machinery they use they have built their own panut hullers from Timber cut in the nearby Forest sacks of shelled peanuts are taken to a small Factory where the oil is extracted The Sawmill is very important to the Colony making all the lumber needed for the building of houses wagons and Furniture the colonists have established an experimental Farm they want to find out what crops grow best and are the most profitable vegetables like cabbage are important in this land where canned foods are scarce date palms imported from California grow well in this dry region an important crop is the castor bean which produces a valuable oil in great demand throughout the world but now anas papayas and grapes are other important food crops which the menites have brought to this region these courageous men and women through hard work and great sacrifice are doing their part to develop this new land another modern pioneer who flies his own plane from his home in aunion to his distant Ranch is Bob Eaton an American who came to the choco more than 30 years ago he is greeted by his Ranch Foreman Martin Floris a veteran Cattleman who lives at the Estonia headquarters located 200 miles from the Rio Paraguay in the wild interior of the Cho Bob visits his Ranch frequently to talk with Martin problems are discussed while they enjoy a refreshing drink of ter and herbal tea which is the usual drink in this part of South America these five Jaguar skins were taken from animals shot by Bob's Hunter within a few miles of The Ranch House Jaguars are great cats that kill thousands of steers each year this is one of the problems of cattle raising in the choco Bob and Martin ride out to inspect work on the Estonia guns are worn because in a addition to the Jaguar there are still cattle rustlers in the chco it takes many days to Brand the Cavs based on long experience in the choco Bob prefers the Herford and short horn breeds he has more than 15,000 head scattered over the 165,000 Acres of his Estonia marketing his stock is important to the Rancher every 2 or 3 months herds of several hundred cattle are driven across the choco to far away aunion Bob Eaton and his foremen give careful instructions to the vakos before leaving on their Drive ranching in the central chal would be impossible without the help of the friendly Indian tribes the langa Indians are Bob's Cowboys and live in their own village on the Estonia after meeting with the Cowboys Bob talks over his portable two-way radio to his agent at theonion Stockyards the generator for the radio is hand operated meanwhile the varos saddle up their horses the men carry their own blankets and Provisions for the difficult 3 weeks Drive when all are ready the men ride out to the Corral the stairs are counted as they run through the gates to the Open Country beyond the cattle stream out at a fast pace for they are active and fresh after a few days on the trail the herd moves more slowly sometimes after the rains they must cross flooded areas this is a welcome change for the weary cattle horses and Men forting these lagoons brings relief from the otherwise Dusty and sun-scorched Earth of the charcoal at midday the herd must be grazed and rested every effort is made to bring the tired cattle to the river without too much loss of weight the Vos eat their lunch in the saddle as they stand watch over the herd they drink their ter from a stairs horn these Indian Cowboys must endure many hardships during the long Tre from the home Ranch to the r Paraguay Camp is made before dark while some of the men guard the cattle others build a fire and prepare the evening meal which consists of a slab of dried beef softened and heated over the ashes and a horn full of ter after their meal the men rest using their Saddles as pillows glad that another day of their long journey is passed the cattle graze and rest during the night but at Daybreak the herd is on the trail once more driving the half wild cattle through swamps is difficult often the animals bog down in the soft mud and become frightened as the drive nears its end the steers are weary and nervous and the Vos must constantly be [Music] alert when the drive reaches the Rio Paraguay the cattle are driven into a Corral to await their turn at loading onto a river barge the special barge towed by a powerful launch will take them Downstream to a landing place above the Stockyards the herd is now in the hands of a new crew of men who are responsible for bringing the cattle safely to aunion crowded into pens on the barge the steers ride several miles down the Rio Paraguay to the unloading point near the Stockyards the barge is brought as close to shore as possible below a steep bank here the pens are opened and the cattle leap into the water to swim or wait ashore [Music] once on dry land the steers head away from the river at the Stockyards the cattle will be butchered for the local market or processed for shipment to other parts of the [Music] world their work completed the leros return over the long trail to their home Ranch like the colonists of Philadelphia these self-reliant Pioneers are helping to bring civilization to the wild Cho one of the world's last [Music] Frontiers