Capitol, San Luis
None of the streets of the city are paved. On the main one, San Martin, there are several good buildings, the Bank of the Argentine Nation being the best. It is the newest. The post office, the Federal Court, and the custom house are also possible, although they are but one story high. Nobody should overlook the Casa de Gobierno or Capitol, which is in a class by itself. Its Renaissance façade, which faces the Plaza San Martin, and its side which faces one of the main streets contain sockets for nine thousand electric light bulbs. When the building is lighted up in all its external brilliancy, the electric meter which controls the other lights of the city has to be shut off because the electrical plant has not power enough to keep them both going at the same time. So much money was expended on the lavish decorations of the Capitol that there was not enough left to furnish the building.
The two large plazas, Pringles and San Martin, each contain an equestrian statue in bronze erected to the memory of the heroes of their nomenclature. General Pringles, the popular local hero, was born here. The square that bears his name is the handsomest in the city. It is bordered by giant pepper trees whose fragrance perfumes the air. Facing it is the huge unfinished brick basilica, the Matriz, the white dome of which is a landmark for quite a distance, and is visible from all parts of the city. By the side of the Matriz on the Calle Pringles stands a small algorroba tree scarcely twenty feet high. It is enclosed by an iron railing and is held in much reverence by the inhabitants of San Luis, because to this tree, the Guerrero, General José de San Martin, tied his horse in 1816 on his westward march to Chile, where he overthrew the Spanish dominion at the battles of Chacabuco and Maipu.
There is an interesting old church in San Luis, that of Santo Domingo. It is of Mission style of architecture, and in many respects is similar to San Gabriel Mission near Pasadena, California. Taken as a whole, San Luis differs much from most Argentine cities. Its buildings are of a decided Spanish colonial type of architecture. The city has an antique appearance and is nearly gravelike as to tranquillity.
Matriz Church, San Luis