The Dutch American Steam
Navigation Company
and the sailing to Buenos Aires 1888 -
1890
From: "Magazine
of Maritime History",
October 1992.
By P.W. van Zeijl
Quite a few Dutchmen
immigrated to Argentina in the years 1888-1890.
This emigration was caused by a
national crisis in agriculture, mostly felt by the provinces
Friesland,
Groningen and Zeeland. The circumstances, under which especially the
farmers
lived, were undesirable. Unemployment and poverty were a motive for
many
to leave the Netherlands. Besides, the unfavorable circumstances in
their
own country coincided with favorable ones in other countries.
Development of employment in Argentina looked good at that time. Craftsmen could find work easily. One had to work hard, but in general the circumstances were healthier and safer than in most European and American cities. Besides, the pay was higher than in Europe. Up to 1890 there was lots of work for uneducated people and farmers, however often under worse living and work conditions than Europe. The Argentinean government stimulated in many ways the emigration of especially Northern Europeans to the sparsely populated agriculture areas of the country. That’s why the so called "Oficinas de Informacio y Propaganda" was established in a few European cities. The goal of these offices was to promote knowledge about Argentina, so immigration would spontaneously rise. To make the voyage possible for the future immigrants, "pasajes subsidiarios" were issued by these offices. These were subsidized passages for the voyage to Argentina. In this contribution I will emphasize the role the Dutch American Steam Navigation company (NASM) played, what the conditions were on board the ships that sailed to Buenos Aires and what happened to the Dutch immigrants in Argentina. The "pasajes subsidiarios" On November 12, 1887, the Argentinean government started
issuing
the subsidized passages. Normally the price of a third class passage
ticket
on a ship of the NASM was 84 guilders for adults. Instead the emigrants
received a passage ticket through the Foreign Office or through the
"Oficinas
de Informacion y Propaganda". A "half-ticket" was issued to three to
twelve
year olds, a "quarter-ticket" to one to three year olds and the voyage
was free to children under one year of age. The "pasajes subsidiarios"
were not issued to people over sixty years of age, neither to the sick
or handicapped.
3.742 Dutch people entered Argentina with the free passages in the years 1888, 1889 and 1890 and in total 4.470 Dutch people arrived during those years. The majority used the free provision of the Argentinean government. The largest group existed of the poor, child-rich families from the Northern provinces and Zeeland. Contracts were signed with Steam Navigation Companies to
transport
the emigrants. The NASM signed a contract with the "Commisiario General
de Immigracion" on October 24, 1888 for the transport of emigrants with
subsidized sailings, mainly from the Netherlands. That same year they
started
scheduled services to South-America. The company was paid a set amount
per passenger by the Argentinean government. The amount was pegged to
the
Argentinean price of gold. Moreover, the Argentinean Immigrants
Commission
had agreed to supply the transportation of 10.000 immigrants to the new
line.
The sea voyage The Dutch American Steam Navigation Company, named the
Holland-America
Line from 1896 on, was established on April 18, 1873 with its head
office
in Rotterdam. In the beginning sailing ships still crossed the oceans.
The transition to the steamships in the second half of the nineteenth
century,
made sure emigration became easier, especially to North America.
As said, the NASM started a new line from the Netherlands to Brazil and Rio de la Plata in 1888. In December of that year the first ship departed to the South in a once every four weeks service from Rotterdam/Amsterdam to Montevideo-Buenos Aires-Rosario. The Paris World Exhibition in 1889 promoted passenger transportation, especially in first class. This led to the decision to also go to Boulogne-sur-Mer. Their own depot was established there in 1890. In the Netherlands interest in Argentina grew enormously. This is supported by the fact of the visits of the Dutch Navy to the port of Buenos Aires on several occasions. The following ships of the NASM sailed, from the latter
part of 1888
to 1891, to Buenos Aires with Dutch immigrants on board:
Of these ships the "Schiedam" and the "Zaandam" sailed the most crossings to Buenos Aires, respectively seven and six. In spite of the request of the Dutch Consul in Buenos Aires to increase the frequency of the sailings to once every two weeks, it stayed at a basically monthly service. Under mentioned table shows the departure and arrival data of the NASM ships in the Netherlands and Buenos Aires:
It obviously was a lucrative business to acquire emigrants,
because
the recruiters of colonization companies as well as ships agents tried
to attract emigrants. They received a bonus for every emigrant they
recruited.
The recruiters enticed people with all kinds of beautiful stories.
Nothing
could stop this legally, just as nothing could be done to recruiting
through
propaganda. A law existed since 1861: "Definitions and Stipulations
concerning
passage and the transportation of emigrants". This law was changed and
complemented in 1869 (the concept "emigrants" was defined in 1936). The
emphasis with this law was more on the transportation of
"transmigrants"
than the Dutch emigrants.
Not all the recruiting agents were targeting and recruiting passengers no matter what. The agents connected to the NASM were known to be better. They were supervised by district inspectors, who were established in 1888 in Groningen and Oisterwijk. What followed the increase of emigration was a stricter supervision of the ships by the government. Regulations were issued whereby for example the minimum space given to the emigrants were established. Also the care of his well-being on board was more regulated. The inspectors checked and verified this at the time of departure. A new law was passed in 1883, adding an extra appendix to the regulations for emigrants with higher requirements of the transportation of them. Some trouble started at first between the NASM and the inspectors, because of the new requirements. But a ship could not depart before the inspector signed a declaration for the NASM, for the voyage in question. The lay- out of the ships The sleeping accommodations of single men were usually in the front, separated by the engine room from couples and their children. Behind those, the accommodation for single women was found. During the seventies and eighties cabins were build for families of two, four or six persons that could be dismantled. They could be dismantled to make room for cargo for the return crossing. Again later, permanent third class cabins were built on the higher decks, because third class transportation developed more slowly. At first the NASM was not interested in "cabin transportation". Around 1886 they decided to apply themselves more to the transportation of the paying passengers. The cabins were divided in first and second class. It seems, according to "the Service Instructions for
Steamships of
the Dutch American Steam Navigation Company of 1874", that there was
quite
a bit of difference between various classes. The third class
regulations
mention (in contrast to the second and first class), that firearms and
damage to woodwork was prohibited. Also third class passengers were
obliged
to take turns in cleaning their surrounding areas.
Disembarkation in Buenos Aires At arrival in the port of Buenos Aires the "Departemento
General
de Immigracion" inspected the ships for living space, food, comfort,
hygiene
and safety. The Immigration Act of 1876 described exactly the demands
the
ships had to satisfy and how many passengers per tonnage were allowed
to
be transported.
The port of Buenos Aires was hard to reach for large ships
because
of the amount of mud at the mouth of the Rio de la Plata. Before the
construction
of the new harbor in 1898, the big ships had to anchor a few miles off
the coast. From there passengers and luggage were ferried in stages to
land, first in smaller boats, than in high wooden carts, pulled by
horses
and at last the two hundred meter long passenger pier. This kind of
disembarkation
caused a lot of delay. For transportation of the passengers to the
emigrant
hotel, agreements were made with some tram companies. The luggage was
transported
by carts.
The Dutch in Argentina The Dutch arriving in Buenos Aires were offered a job sometimes through the "Officina de Trabajo". This was an office that helped the newly arrived emigrant find work, especially in agriculture. Through this office people were transported for free to the place or colony where one wanted to set up home and work. Significant Dutch colonies arose in Tres Arroyos, Rosario and Buenos Aires. The colony in Tres Arroyos became a success in comparison with the others, it still exists and in 1989 they celebrated the one hundredth anniversary. It was not easy for most of the Dutch to establish
themselves as
farmers. Many did not speak the language and after days of waiting in
the
immigrant hotel had to make long journeys by train and carts into the
pampa.
There the housing was poor, little protection against the weather and
no
tools available. Some got sick, started drinking and quarreling, others
roamed around or departed for the big cities.
A letter by A. van Dijk, dated March 1893, was addressed to van Riet personally. In the letter he mentioned the fact that "I, van Dijk, too sick to do my work for almost four months and little to eat. I have seen you so many times for help, but can’t get it from you and you don’t know why yourself, but wait a few more days". He thought the Society should be obliged to help the Dutch in need and threatened to write a letter to the Minister of Foreign Affairs, the newspaper and with a visit to the society. According to him (van Dijk) it was disgraceful "that I received 23 pesos only from you in the four years that I have been in Argentina, you must think me to be a fool, but we will see about that". Apparently there had been some comments about his spelling, because he finished with the words "If this letter is bad again, you can stuff it, because you always say that I write such bad letters". Of the approximate 4500 Dutch who arrived from 1888 till 1890, about one thousand returned home. They departed the Netherlands with high expectations, did not bring savings with them and could not support their large families. In 1890 an economic crisis arose in Argentina. Economically wrong politics in regard to money and credit was used. Inflation and an increase of domestic and foreign debts were the result. In an attempt to lower these debts, one of the most important railways was sold to England. To no avail. Unemployment grew, wages fell and the cost of living was sky high. A revolt broke out in July 1890. President Juarez Cekman was forced to resign and Carlos Pellegrini took over power. The change in politics meant the end of the "pasajes subsidiarios". New officials were appointed by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and at the "Departemento de Immigracion" they were very negative about the gained experiences with the free passage tickets. Therefore they were abolished. This had an immediate influence on the occupancy rate of the NASM ships. The line that had started with such big expectations, showed more and more losses. In September 1890 they even cancelled one crossing. A few months later, in January 1891, they stopped the sailings to South America completely. The Management of the NASM gave three reasons for this: - the unfavorable economical developments in the
Argentinean Republic
and the political commotion involving the Banks. Fear of doing business
arose because of that. Export Conclusion The Dutch emigration to Argentina at the end of the 19th
century
seemed at first a great success. The crisis in the Netherlands brought
unemployment and poverty, especially among the farmers. At the same
time
the Argentinean government tried to stimulate the immigration of
especially
the North Europeans.
The NASM transported about 4500 Dutch people in two years
to the
South and both parties were very satisfied with business. However,
through
lack of craftsmanship and financial means, the colonists could not
maintain
themselves on the Argentinean pampas. The economical crisis of 1890 did
not improve the situation. The unemployment and the cost of living rose
and the Dutch colonization became a big failure. Many moved to the
cities
or returned back home to the fatherland.
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