Aires) prevented the opening of a sufficiently deep channel to facilitate shipping. Law 280, passed by the Argentine Congress in 1868, ordered technical studies to determine the most appropriate place for the construction of a modern port. Proximity to the city was deemed essential to maintain the central government's fiscal control of its operations, mainly exerted through the collection of duties. The distribution of these latter monies, the leading source of public revenue throughout the 19th century and as late as 1940, was the chief point of contention between Buenos Aires leaders and those from the hinterland. The San Nicolás Agreement of 1852, whereby all customs duties were nationalized, was rejected by Buenos Aires leader Bartolomé Mitre, and led to a compromise in the form of the 1862 creation of the National Customs Administration. The Executive Branch negotiated the transfer of public lands necessary for the project with Buenos Aires authorities, as these belonged to the provincial government. The agreement signed at the end of 1871 provided that the federal government would be responsible for the supervision of works, but jurisdictional disputes continued. Only the 1880 Federalization of Buenos Aires, and the lands' subsequent federal control, resolved these disputes. German Argentine businessman Francisco Seeber had anticipated these developments by establishing the Catalinas Warehouse and Pier Company, Ltd., in 1872. The task of mooring ships was significantly eased with a new harbor, the first in Argentina to result from land reclamation, and of an extensive pier. The pier stretched several hundred meters into the river to facilitate the arrival of smaller vessels, and served both shipping and passenger traffic for two decades; honor of the Parish of Santa Catalina de Sienna, the harbor was christened Catalinas Norte. Two proposals President Julio Roca then commissioned studies for a new, much larger port in 1881. The Director of Riachuelo River Works, Luis Huergo, presented plans of his own design for a port of staggered docks. This plan, and a British design purchased by local businessman Eduardo Madero, were presented to Congress in June 1882. Obtaining financing from Baring Brothers, as well as the support of President Roca, Madero's plan received the endorsement of Senator Carlos Pellegrini (one of the Senate's most powerful figures), and it was approved by both houses in October 1882. Drawing from an initiative first raised by Act No. 1257 October 1822, Madero contracted British engineer Sir John Hawkshaw to