enterprises in Buenos Aires, many of them practically going out of business.
Other improvements in the decade 1910-20 were the erection of a number of thoroughly modern hotels and of a greatly improved immigration station; the opening of 80 new parks and plazas; the construction of several new school buildings; the extension and enlargement of the medical faculty of the university of Buenos Aires ; and the erection of the large building which houses its faculty of commerce. Improvements in sanitation and sewerage have also been effected and a new subway was installed in 1912 by a German firm. Several large modern office buildings have been put up since 1916, chiefly with English capital, and new department stores, almost wholly operated with English capital. (C. L. C.)
BUFFALO (see 4.754). The population in 1920 was
506,775, an increase of 83,060 or 19.6% for the decade, as compared with 71,328 and 20.2% for the preceding decade.
The death-rate of Buffalo in 1920 was 12.08, the average from
1900 to 1920, 15.18. In 1914 a new commission charter was
adopted which did away with the bicameral city council and
mayor formerly in existence. The first commission government
took office Jan. i 1916.
The citizens choose by direct non-partisan nomination and election a mayor and four councilmen. These constitute the sole legislative body and are also the chief executive heads. The mayor is ex officio the head of the departments of fire, police and health, which comprise the Department of Public Safety. The four other depart- ments are Finance and Accounts, Public Works, Parks and Public Buildings, and Public Affairs. A councilman is appointed as head of each of these departments. The principal subordinate officials are nominated by the mayor and appointed by the council. The mayor has a vote in the council, but no veto power. All ordinances and appropriations for purposes outside ordinary city expenses may be referred to vote of the people on petition of 5 % of the citizens who voted at the last regular election for mayor.
The schools are under a board of education appointed by the mayor and council, but subject mainly to state laws. The city court, consisting of a chief judge and seven associate judges, is also under state law. A technical and four other high schools were built between 1902 and 1920. The sum of $8,000,000 was appro- priated for new grammar schools in 1919. The university of Buffalo was given an endowment fund of $5,200,000, raised by popular subscription, in 1920. In 1909 it acquired a site of 106 ac. in the northern part of the city, to which 44 ac. were added in 1919. Cani- sius College (Jesuit) also, in 1920, raised by popular subscription an endowment fund of $1,000,000. D'Youville College for women (Roman Catholic) was opened in 1908. Among important new structures may be mentioned: Marine Trust Co., Erie County Savings Bank, New York Telephone, Electric, Iroquois and Y.M.C.A. buildings. The new city hospital was under process of development in 1921. The city also maintained the J. N. Adam memorial hospital for tuberculous patients at Perrysburg, N.Y.
The new Erie canal, rebuilt by the state as a barge canal at a cost of $150,000,000, was opened for traffic in 1919. It provides water transportation to the seaboard for barges up to 2,000 tons' capacity and drawing not more than 12 ft. of water, adding greatly to the city's commercial facilities. The city completed in 1915 a new pump- ing station and tunnel 6,500 ft. long, by which water is brought from Lake Erie. The capacity of the plant is 150,000,000 gal. each 24 hours.
The city's greatest growth in recent years has been in manu- factures. It has very diversified industries, producing 58 % of all the different lines of goods recognized by the United States Census Bureau. Among the chief manufactures are: iron and steel prod- ucts, meat products, soap, cars, flour, lumber, linseed oil, clothing, automobiles, etc.
The grain elevators in Buffalo harbour had in 1920 a capacity of 28,500,000 bushels. The receipts of grain by lake boat in 1920 were 108,825,000 bushels. Receipts of flour approximate 5,000,000 bar. yearly. More than 20,000 carloads of live stock are handled yearly in the stock-yards at East Buffalo. Other important articles of commerce are: iron ore, in which Buffalo stands second in receipts among the lake ports; coal, flax-seed, manufactured iron and steel and lumber.
Buffalo furnished over 10,000 volunteers and selected service men to the U.S. army in the World War. The greater number of these served in the 77th and 78th divisions and had an active part in the Argonne and other battles. In addition, the 74th Infantry, N.G.S.N.Y., became the io8th Infantry in the United States service; the Third Field Artillery, N.G.S.N.Y., became the io6th Field Artillery; Troop I, N.G.S.N.Y., became the i02nd Trench Mortar Battery, and Base Hospital No. 23 was recruited in Buffalo. The io8th regiment, forming a part of the 27th division, participated in the breaking of the Hin- denburg line near Le Cateau, France, Sept. 29-Oct. i 1918.
The 106th Field Artillery and io2nd Trench Mortar Battery were in the battle of the Argonne. Nearly 4,000 Buffalo men served in the navy and about 1,000 in the U.S. marine corps. There were also over 600 Buffalo men who volunteered for the Polish army. The Buffalo men who died in the war num- bered 966.
Recent important books on the history of the city are History of Buffalo (1911) by J. N. Larned, and An Old Frontier of France (1917) by F. H. Severance. (M. M. W.)
BULGARIA (5664.772). Political History 1908-12. The
condition of Macedonia and Thrace, which since the Treaty
of Berlin in 1878 had been a constant source of anxiety and difficulties for Bulgaria, became even worse under the regime
of the Young Turks. The Serbs, whose hopes of reunion with
their own kin and of an outlet on the Adriatic had been de-
stroyed by the annexation of Bosnia and the Herzegovina by
Austria-Hungary in 1908, began to seek expansion in Mace-
donia towards the Aegean. Rival bands of Serbs, Greeks,
Bulgars, Wallachs, Albanians and Turks now carried on the
propaganda of their respective nationalities in Macedonia by
force of arms, and the life of the peasant became unbearable.
The perpetual menace of war with Turkey and, latterly, the
strained relations with Greece and Serbia, entailed on Bulgaria
a military expenditure which in 1909 was proportionately higher
than that of any other European state. Bulgaria was obliged,
moreover, to support thousands of destitute refugees who had
escaped over her frontier from Turkish territory; current con-
sular reports stated that the Bulgarian population of Mace-
donia had diminished to a quarter of what it had been 15 yeare
earlier. There was again a fear that the Young Turks meant to
exterminate the Bulgars of Thrace and Macedonia altogether,
and the Macedonians living in Sofia, many of whom were men
of ability and influence, were continually urging the Govern-
ment to take energetic steps with regard to Macedonia.
The Balkan Alliance. In March 1911, the Malinov Cabinet fell and Gueshov, head of the Nationalist party, became president of the council. Balkan statesmen were slow to realize that it was to their common interest to put an end to the troubles in Macedonia, and that this could be done only by joint action. In the winter of 19101, negotiations in this direction were begun at Athens between Bulgaria and Greece, the first negotiations taking the form of private conversations between J. D. Bourchier, principal Times correspondent in the Balkans, and Venizelos. Eventually, Venizelos entrusted Bourchier with the transmission to King Ferdinand of a definite proposal which was known only to King George, Venizelos and Bourchier; the greatest secrecy was observed throughout, even after the matter had been put on a diplomatic footing. In June
1911, the Grand Sobranye empowered the Government to make secret treaties without submitting them to the Sobranye. In May
1912, a treaty of defensive alliance between Bulgaria and Greece was signed, but this treaty was kept entirely secret for the next two months. Meanwhile, negotiations had also taken place between Bulgaria and Serbia, and in Oct. 1911, the Serbian premier, Milovanovitch, and Gueshov came to a general agreement as to terms of an alliance. The negotiations with Serbia proved difficult throughout. The Bulgars were in favour of autonomy for Macedonia ; the Serbs, in favour of dividing the country into three zones, an uncontested Serbian zone, an uncontested Bulgarian zone and a contested zone, the fate of which should be left to the arbitration of the Tsar of Russia. After much discussion in which both sides showed an uncompromising spirit, a treaty of friendship and alliance, with a secret annex, was signed in Sofia on March 13 1912. By this treaty Serbia recognized " the right of Bulgaria to the terri- tory E. of the Rhodope Mountains and the river Struma " ; while Bulgaria recognized " a similar right of Serbia to the territory N. and W. of the Shar Mountains "; if autonomy for the rest of Mace- donia was found to be impossible, the two states bound themselves to accept an agreed line running southwestwards from Golem Mountain to Ochrida Lake, should the Tsar of Russia pronounce in favour of this line. Russia was kept informed of the negotiations; the Tsar's Government, while it welcomed the rapprochement be- tween the three Orthodox states, discouraged active measures, but events in Turkey tended to force the hands of the allies. In June 1912, the Young Turk Government fell; a serious Albanian rising led to the concession of a measure of autonomy to the Albanians; there was a bomb outrage at Kochen, followed by a massacre of Bulgars by Turks; Bulgaria considered herself menaced by proposed Turkish military manoeuvres near Adrianople. The Great POWITS, which had by the autumn become aware of the Balkan alliance, made efforts to prevent the outbreak of war, which culminated in a proposal from Austria-Hungary that the Powers should guarantee
