commercial asset of the republic. The large revenues derived from these sources undoubtedly became a cause of weakness and demoralization and eventually resulted in bankruptcy and the loss of Tarapaca. The deposits have been partially exhausted by the large shipments of over a half-century, but the export in 1905 was 73,369 tons, valued at £285,729.
Mining.—Mining was the chief industry of Peru under Spanish rule. The Inca tribes were an agricultural and pastoral people, but the abundance of gold and silver in their possession at the time of the conquest shows that mining must have received considerable attention. They used these precious metals in decorations and as ornaments, but apparently attached no great value to them. The use of bronze also shows that they must have worked, perhaps superficially, some of the great copper deposits. Immediately following the Spanish invasion the Andean region was thoroughly explored, and with the assistance of Indian slaves thousands of mines were opened, many of them failures, some of them becoming famous There was a decline in mining enterprise after the revolt of the colonists against Spanish rule, owing to the unsettled state of the country, and this decline continued in some measure to the end of the century. The mining laws of the colonial regime and political disorder together raised a barrier to the employment of the large amount of capital needed, while the frequent outbreaks of civil war made it impossible to work any large enterprise because of its interference with labour and the free use of ports and roads. The Peruvians were impoverished, and under such conditions foreign capital could not be secured. In 1876 new mining laws were enacted which gave better titles to mining properties and better regulations for their operation, but the outbreak of the war with Chile at the end of the decade and the succeeding years of disorganization and partisan strife defeated their purpose. Another new mining code was adopted in 1901, and this, with an improvement in political and economic conditions, has led to a renewal of mining enterprise
Practically the whole Andean region of Peru is mineral-bearing—a region 1500 m. long by 200 to 300 m. wide. Within these limits are to be found most of the minerals known—gold, silver, quicksilver, copper, lead, zinc, iron, manganese, wolfram, bismuth, thorium, vanadium, mica, coal, &c. On or near the coast are coal, salt, sulphur, borax, nitrates and petroleum Gold is found in lodes and alluvial deposit; the former on the Pacific slope at Salpo, Otuzco, Huaylas, Yungay, Ocros, Chorrillos, Canete, Ica, Nasca, Andaray and Arequipa, and on the table-lands and Amazon slope at Pataz, Huanuco, Chuquitambo, Huancavelica, Cuzco, Cotabambas, Aymares, Paucartambo, Santo Domingo and Sandia; the latter wholly on the Amazon slope, in the country about the Pongo de Manseriche and at Chuquibamba, both on the upper Maranon, in the districts of Pataz, Huanuco, Aymares and Antabamba (Apurimac), Paucartambo and Quippicauchi (Cuzco), and Sandia and Carabaya (Puno). The last two are most important and, it is believed, were the sources from which the Incas derived the greater part of their store. The alluvial deposits are found both in the beds of the small streams and in the soil of the small plains or pampas. The Aporoma deposit, in the district of Sandia, is the best known. Long ditches with stone-paved sluices for washing this mineral-bearing material have long been used by the Indians, who also construct stone bars across the beds of the streams to make riffles and hold the deposited grains of gold. Modern methods of hydraulic mining have been introduced to work the auriferous banks of Poto; elsewhere antiquated methods only are employed The upper valley of the Maranon has undeveloped gold-bearing lodes. The number of mines worked is small and there is not much foreign capital invested in them. The gold ores of Peru are usually found in ferruginous quartz. The production in 1906 was valued at £170,355.
Peru has been known chiefly for its silver mines, some of which have been marvellously productive. The Cerro de Pasco district, with its 342 mines, is credited with a production, in value, of £40,000,000 between 1784 and 1889, and is still productive, the output for 1906 being valued at £972,958. The principal silver-producing districts, the greater part on the high table-lands and slopes of the Andes, are those of Salpo, Hualgayoc, Huari, Huallanca, Huaylas, Huaraz, Recuay, Cajatambo, Yauli, Cerro de Pasco, Morococha, Huarochiri, Huancavelica, Quespisisa, Castrovirreyna, Lucanas, Lampa, Caylloma and Puno, but there are hundreds of others outside their limits. Silver is generally found as red oxides (locally called rosicler), sulphides and argentiferous galena. Modern machinery is little used and many mines are practically unworkable for want of pumps. In the vicinity of some of the deposits of argentiferous galena are large coal beds, but timber is scarce on the table-lands. The dried dung of the llama (taquia) is generally used as fuel, as in pre-Spanish times, for roasting ores, as also a species of grass called ichu (Stipa incana), and a singular woody fungus, called yareta (Azorella umbellifera), found growing on the rocks at elevations exceeding 12,000 ft. The methods formerly employed in reducing ores were lixiviation and amalgamation with quicksilver, but modern methods are gradually coming into use. Quicksilver is found at Huancavelica, Chonta (Ancachs), and in the department of Puno. The mine first named has been worked since 1566 and its total production is estimated at 60,000 tons, the annual product being about 670 tons for a long period. The metal generally occurs as sulphide of mercury (cinnabar), but the ores vary greatly in richness—from 2% to 20% The annual production has fallen to a small fraction of the former output, its value in 1905 being only £340, and in 1906 £495.
The copper deposits of Peru long remained undeveloped through want of cheap transport and failure to appreciate their true value. The principal copper-bearing districts are Chimbote, Cajamarca, Huancayo, Huaraz, Huallanca, Junin, Huancavelica, Ica, Arequipa, Andahuaylas and Cuzco—chiefly situated in the high, bleak regions of the Andes. The Junin district is the best known and includes the Cerro de Pasco, Yauli, Morococha and Huallay groups of mines, all finding an outlet to the coast over the Oroya railway. These mines are of recent development, the Cerro de Pasco mines having been purchased by American capitalists. A smelting plant was erected in the vicinity of Cerro de Pasco designed to treat 1000 tons of ore daily, a railway was built to Oroya to connect with the state line terminating at that point, and a branch line 62 m. long was built to the coal-mines of Goillarisquisga. The Cerro de Pasco mines are supposed by some authorities to be the largest copper deposit in the world. In addition to the smelting works at Cerro de Pasco there are other large works at Casapalca, between Oroya and Lima, which belong to a British company, and smaller plants at Huallanca and Huinac. The production of copper is steadily increasing, the returns for 1903 being 9497 tons and for 1906 13,474 tons, valued respectively at £476,824 and £996,055. Of other metals, lead is widely distributed, its chief source being a high grade galena accompanied by silver. Iron ores are found in Piura, the Huaylas valley, Aÿa, and some other places, but the deposits have not been worked through lack of fuel Sulphur deposits exist in the Sechura desert region, on the coast, and extensive borax deposits have been developed in the department of Arequipa. Coal has been found in extensive beds near Piura, Salaverry, Chimbote, Huarmey and Pisco on the coast, and at Goillarisquisga, Huarochiri and other places in the interior. Both anthracite and bituminous deposits have been found. Most of the deposits are isolated and have not been developed for want of transport. Petroleum has been found at several points on the coast in the department of Piura, and near Lake Titicaca in the department of Puno. The most productive of the Piura wells are at Talara and Zorritos, where refineries have been established. The crude oil is used on some of the Peruvian railways.
The number of mining claims (pertenencias) registered in 1907 was 12,858, according to official returns, each subject to a tax of 30 soles, or £3, per annum, the payment of which secures complete ownership of the property. The claims measure 100×200 metres (about 5 acres) in the case of mineral veins or lodes, and 200×200 metres (about 10 acres) for coal, alluvial gold and other deposits. The labourers are commonly obtained from the Cholos, or Indian inhabitants of the sierras, who are accustomed to high altitudes, and are generally efficient and trustworthy.
Manufactures.—The manufacturing industries of Peru are confined chiefly to the treatment of agricultural and mineral products the manufacture of sugar and rum from sugar cane, textiles from cotton and wool, wine and spirits from grapes, cigars and cigarettes from tobacco, chocolate from cacao, kerosene and benzine from crude petroleum, cocaine from coca, and refined metals from their ores. Many of the manufacturing industries are carried on with difficulty and maintained only by protective duties on competing goods. The Incas had made much progress in weaving, and specimens of their fabrics, both plain and coloured, are to be found in many museums. The Spanish introduced their own methods, and their primitive looms are still to be found among the Indians of the interior who weave the coarse material from which their own garments are made. Modern looms for the manufacture of woollens were introduced in 1861 and of cotton goods in 1874. There are large woollen factories at Cuzco and Lima, the Santa Catalina factory at the latter place turning out cloth and cashmere for the army, blankets, counterpanes and underclothing. There are cotton factories about Lima, at Ica and at Arequipa. Besides the wine industry, an irregular though important industry is the manufacture of artificial or counterfeit spirits and liqueurs in Callao and Lima. There are breweries in Arequipa, Callao, Cuzco and Lima, and the consumption of beer is increasing. There are large cigarette factories in Lima, and others in Arequipa, Callao, Piura and Trujillo. The plaiting of Panama hats from the specially prepared fibre of the “toquilla” palm is a domestic industry among the Indians at Catacoas (Piura) and Eten (Lambayeque). Coarser straw hats are made at other places, as well as hammocks, baskets, &c.
Government.—Peru is a centralized republic, whose supreme law is the constitution of 1860. Like the other states of South America its constitution provides for popular control of legislation and the execution of the laws through free elections and comparatively short terms of office, but in practice these safeguards are often set aside and dictatorial methods supersede all others. Nominally the people are free and exercise
