Letters on South America Comprising Travels on the Banks of the Parana and the Rio De LA Plata: Comprising Travels on the Banks of the Parana and Rio De LA Plata [Hardcover]

John P. Robertson (Author), William Parish Robertson (Author)

Product Details

• Hardcover
• Publisher: Ams Pr Inc (December 1970)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0404053807
• ISBN-13: 978-0404053802
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #9,451,054 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Witnesses to history, December 18, 2002

By 

Fano Marco (Rome Italy) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Letters on South America Comprising Travels on the Banks of the Parana and the Rio De LA Plata: Comprising Travels on the Banks of the Parana and Rio De LA Plata (Hardcover)

The two Robertson brothers, from Scotland, managed to witness the main events of southern South America, from the British invasions (1807) to the economical crisis of 1830. And somehow they were always in the right place when things happened. They are invaluable first hand sources. They wrote six books on their experience, three "letters from South America" (from present day Argentina, really, but few people would have recognized the name at the time), two "letters from Paraguay", and one more on Paraguay's dictator, Gaspar Francia. They promised more, but unluckily didn't keep up. They were into commerce, to make money. And they made bundles, daring to go were nobody else had the courage to, in dangerous times. Enough money to advance in the twenties a share of a national loan to the government of Rivadavia. And then they lost almost everything in the downturn that ensued the war with Brazil over present day Uruguay. The reader must be advised that the Robertsons were businessmen, uncritically on the side of free unrestricted trade, with no simpathy for the "lower classes" or for political movements with a social content, such as those of Artigas or Francia. But bias apart, their books are a unique glimpse into fascinating but little known times and places.