Estanislao Zeballos

Estanislao Severo Zeballos moved between law, journalism, science, and national politics. Born in 1854, he became a provincial deputy and then a member of the national Congress. He helped found the Sociedad Científica Argentina, presided over the Sociedad Rural, and eventually became dean of the University of Buenos Aires law faculty. These activities were closely connected to his vision of national expansion. His books on Indigenous peoples advocated conquering their lands and converting them into agricultural colonies supported by European immigration. ^{1, 2}

As Argentina's representative in Washington, Zeballos presented the documentary and cartographic case in the boundary arbitration with Brazil. He submitted printed statements, translations, treaties, and historical records concerning the disputed Misiones territory. President Grover Cleveland's decision of 6 February 1895 favored Brazil. ³

Commercial relations were another part of his work. In 1894 the American minister in Buenos Aires reported that Zeballos favored Argentine tariff concessions in response to the proposed removal of American wool duties. The minister warned that Argentine dependence on customs revenue would make sweeping concessions difficult. ⁴

Zeballos served three times as foreign minister. His final period in that office was marked by rivalry with Brazil and support for naval armament. He resigned in 1908, later returned to Congress, and continued to influence public debate through La Prensa and the Revista de Derecho, Historia y Letras, which he founded and directed. He died in 1923. ¹