Alden's Handy Atlas of the World Including One Hundred and Thirty-eight Colored Maps, Diagrams, Tables, Etc.

Part 15

Chapter 153,607 wordsPublic domain

The products are mahogany, fruit, cotton, cattle, coffee, tobacco, indigo, India rubber and rosewood. Exports from Truxillo, 1883, $804,550; 26,000 head of cattle; mahogany valued at $88,000; hides and deer skins, $40,000. Total exports, 1883, $2,193,149; imports, $1,749,146.

Railway, 29 miles. Telegraph, 1,800 miles; offices, 23; messages, 107,730. Universities, 2; several colleges; 573 schools, with attendance of 20,518.

BRITISH HONDURAS. Hon-doo´ras.

A British Colony in Central America. Area, 7,562 square miles. Population, 27,452. Coast low and swampy; land gradually rises; on the inland boundary are hills of from 800 to 1,000 feet high; mountains 4,000 feet high. Sixteen rivers descend from elevated lands. Climate hot and damp; temperature, 1878-79, 75°; rainfall 105.49 inches, unusually heavy.

Government in the hands of Lieutenant Governor, an executive and a Legislative Council. Capital, Belize; pop., 5,767. Soil fertile. Sugar cane is grown; fruits flourish; the staple products, however, are the natural woods of the colony. Annual export of mahogany, 3,000,000 feet; logwood, 15,000 tons; estimated value of fruit exports, $100,000. Total imports, 1883, $1,344,865; exports, $1,514,345. Large trade with neighboring republics. {178}

JAMAICA. Ja-m[=a]´ka.

An island of the West Indies; formally ceded to Great Britain, in 1670, by the treaty of Madrid; most valuable possession of the British Crown in the West Indies. Area, including the Turks and Caicos Islands, annexed in 1873, 4,362 square miles. Population, 585,536. Surface mountainous. There is a great variety of climate. Temperature in lowlands, 95° at night, 85° in the day; in highlands, 40° to 50°. Produces most of the tropical staples; the rosewood, mahogany and ebony of the island are well known.

Latest reports give 121,457 acres under crops; 120,264 in guinea grass, and 318,549 in pasture. Principal exports: coffee, 9,572,714 lbs.; ginger, 908,603 lbs.; pimento, 6,195,109 lbs.; 29,000 hhds. of sugar; 18,115 puncheons of rum, and 35,157 tons of logwood. Value of fruit exported in same year, $197,255. Total value of imports, 1889, $6,609,810; exports, $7,745,290.

Governor is assisted by a Privy Council and Legislative Council. Kingston, the chief city and port, is the capital; pop., 38,566.

Miles of railway, 25; 60 miles in process of construction. Telegraph stations and post offices in every town and village.

SAN DOMINGO. San Do-meeng´go.

A republic occupying the eastern and larger portion of the island of Hayti. Area, 18,045 square miles. Country first settled by Spaniards under Columbus in 1492. Republic founded 1844. President elected for a term of 4 years; legislative power in the hands of a National Congress. Capital, San Domingo, founded 1494; population, 10000

The country is very fertile. Principal products, sugar, molasses, tobacco, cotton, coffee, cacao, fruits, mahogany and live stock. The production of sugar and molasses is largely on the increase. Latest reports give $5,000,000 capital invested in sugar factories; amount of product, 10,000 tons.

Value of imports, 1883, $3,142,100; exports, $2,129,265. At the two most important ports, San Domingo and Puerto Plata, there entered, in 1883, 297 vessels, of 192,042 tons.

HAYTI. H[=a]´tee.

A republic, occupying the west part of the Island of Hayti. Area, 10,204 square miles. Population, 572,000. Capital, Port au Prince; pop., 35,000. Nine-tenths of total population are negroes. Essentially mountainous. In plains, temperature rises to 96° and 100°; on high lands, ranges between 60° and 76°. Constitution was adopted 1867. President is elected for 4 years; National Assembly consists of Senate and House of Commons. Mountains cultivable almost to their summits; covered with valuable timber. Agriculture is backward, though the soil is probably the most fertile in the West Indies. Business of the country transacted by foreigners.

Finances badly deranged; foreign debt, $6,409,970; no interest paid on debt for years. Revenue, $4,500,000; expenditures, $7,000,000. Three-fourths of revenue derived from duties on imports and exports. Imports, 1881, $7,283,620; exports, $6,240,460. In same year, 792 vessels entered, and 768 vessels cleared, the ports of Hayti.

By a law of 1878, army consists of 6,828 men; the Guard of the Government, 650 men.

Language of the country, French; religion, Roman Catholic. {179}

CUBA. K[=u]´ba.

A Spanish colony in the West Indies. Area, 43,220 square miles. Population, 1,521,684; 50 per cent. of the inhabitants are blacks and enfranchised slaves. The greatest length of the island is 760 miles; width varies from 20 to 135 miles; coast line about 2,000 miles. Surface is broken by a mountain chain running through its centre from east to west; average altitude of summit is between 5,000 and 6,000 feet. Pico de Turquino, 7,670 feet, is the highest peak. There are over 260 rivers, all valueless for navigation purposes, except the Canto. Mineral springs abound.

But little attention has been paid to the development of the mineral wealth. Gold was obtained by the early colonists, but for two centuries comparatively none has been found. There are extensive copper mines, and coal is abundant. Copperas and alum have also been obtained.

Rainfall at Havana: in the wet season, 27.8 inches; dry season, 12.7 inches. Average temperature: at Havana, 77°; at Santiago de Cuba, 80°. Yellow fever and earthquakes are frequent.

Thirteen million acres of Cuban territory are uncleared forests; 7,000,000 wild and uncultivated. Principal woods grown and exported are mahogany, rosewood, Cuban ebony, and cedar.

Tobacco and sugar raising principal occupation of the people. Many sugar plantations comprise 10,000 acres each.

Two crops of Indian corn grown per year; rice, cotton, cacao and indigo also produced; most tropical fruits are abundant. Sugar product averages 520,000 tons per year; molasses, 79,365 hogsheads. Total value of agricultural products over $90,000,000. United States receives 80 per cent. of Cuban sugar. No manufactures deserving mention.

Latest reports give exports of cigars 225,000,000 per annum; leaf tobacco, 13,500,000 pounds. There are about 900 miles of railway. Marine cable connects Cuba with Florida.

Roman Catholicism is the only religion tolerated. Education compulsory; school attendance, 34,813.

Havana is the capital; Pop., 25,000. Government administered by a Captain General, appointed by the Spanish Crown. The island is now represented in the Spanish Cortes, Madrid.

PORTO RICO. P[=o]r´to Ree´ko.

The smallest of the Greater Antilles. Area, including dependencies, 3,550 square miles. Population, 754,313. Rectangular in shape; length, 100 miles; breadth, 40 miles. A range of mountains extends across the island from east to west; highest peak, 3,678 feet.

The island is very fertile; its principal products are sugar cane, coffee, tobacco, cotton, rice and Indian corn. In proportion to its area, it produces more sugar than any other West India island.

Government is administered under a constitution granted by the Spanish Cortes, 1869. Slavery was abolished in 1873. Capital, San Juan; pop. about 27,000. Climate warm; more healthful than that of the other Antilles. Destructive hurricanes are frequent. The natural productions are very numerous; medicinal plants and many valuable woods, as mahogany, ebony, logwood, and cedar, abound in the forests. Business in the hands of foreigners. Imports, 1871, $17,500,000; exports $15,500,000. Export of sugar, 111,084 tons; molasses, 7,590,915 gallons.

Telegraphic cable connects Porto Rico with other West Indies; telegraph lines connect the principal towns; there are no railroads. {180}

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SOUTH AMERICA.

A vast, compact, triangular peninsula, forming southern portion of Western Continent. Area, 6,827,230 square miles; extreme length, 4,550 miles; extreme breadth, about 3,300 miles. Number political divisions, 11.

+-----------+-----------+---------------+----------- Divisions. | Area, |Population.| Capitals. | Pop. | Sq. Miles.| | | -------------------+-----------+-----------+---------------+----------- Argentine Republic | 1,125,086 | 3,026,000 | Buenos Ayres | 295,000 Bolivia | 842,729 | 2,300,000 | La Paz | 76,372 Brazil | 3,288,963 | 9,883,622 | Rio de Janeiro| 274,972 Chili | 256,399 | 2,271,949 | Santiago | 200,000 Colombia | 504,773 | 4,000,000 | Bogota | 100,000 Ecuador | 248,370 | 946,033 | Quito | 80,000 Guiana, British | 76,000 | 248,110 | Georgetown | 36,562 Guiana, French | 48,000 | 36,760 | Cayenne | 10,000 Guiana, Dutch | 46,060 | 68,255 | Paramaribo | 27,416 Paraguay | 91,970 | 346,048 | Asuncion | 16,000 Peru | 503,718 | 2,699,945 | Lima | 101,488 Uruguay | 73,538 | 438,245 | Montevideo | 115,500 Venezuela | 632,695 | 2,121,988 | Caracas | 55,638 -------------------+-----------+-----------+---------------+-----------

PRINCIPAL LAKES.

Maracaybo, area 4,900 sq. miles. | Titicaca, area 4,000 sq. miles.

LENGTHS OF RIVERS.

LATEST REPORTED VALUE EXPORTS.

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UNITED STATES OF COLOMBIA.

A federal republic in the northwestern part of South America, composed of 9 States. Area, 504,773 square miles. The country is traversed by three ranges of the Andes Mountains. There are numerous large, navigable rivers, tributaries of the Orinoco and Amazon.

The constitution was adopted in 1863. Government in the hands of a President, elected for 2 years, a ministry of 7 members, and a Congress composed of a Senate and House of Representatives. Capital, Bogota; population, 100,000. Strength of the Federal Army determined by Congress. Peace footing for 1882-83, 4,000 men.

The climate varies according to the elevation: the coast lands are usually hot and sickly: but the high table lands, as a rule, possess a genial climate; that of Bogota is unusually fine.

The mineral wealth of Colombia is very great; one-sixth of the exports consist of precious metals. Agriculture and stock raising are the leading pursuits. Value of imports, 1883, $11,504,028; exports, $14,857,170. Two-thirds of the exports consist of cinchona and coffee. The transit trade through the ports of Panama and Aspinwall is of far greater importance than the direct commerce; its value is estimated as not less than $85,000,000 per annum.

There are many native products, among which are fine woods, cacao, India rubber, ipecac, calisaya bark, cochineal, sarsaparilla and logwood. These, and tobacco, cinchona, coffee, sugar, indigo, rice, cotton, hides, ores and Panama hats, form the chief exports.

In 1883, 1,513 vessels, of 709,175 tons, entered the ports of Colombia. Number of miles of railway in the republic, 140. It is expected that the ship canal across the Isthmus of Panama will be opened in 1888. The company have a subscribed capital of $125,000,000.

VENEZUELA. V[)e]n´ez-wee´la.

A republic of South America, formed in 1830. The republic was, in 1881, subdivided into 8 States, 1 Federal District, 8 Territories and 2 national settlements. Area, according to an official statement of 1884, 632,695 square miles; population, 2,121,988. The Andes Mountains cross the northern part from west to east; the Orinoco and other important rivers pass through the southern part.

Executive power is in the hands of a President, who exercises his authority through a ministry of 6 and a Federal Council of 16 members; legislative, in a Congress of two Houses, the Senate and House of Representatives. Vice-President chosen by the Council. Capital, Carácas; population, 55,638. Chief towns, Valencia (population, 36,145) and Barquisimeto (population, 28,918). Army: peace footing, 2,545 officers and men; war footing, 350,000.

Mineral resources very great. Venezuela gold fields among the richest in the world; iron and copper abundant. Value of mineral products, 1884, §4,452,050; gold, $3,243,380. Latest reports give value of imports as $17,253,130; exports, $19,720,225.

Agriculture the most important industry. Number engaged in it, 1884, 375,820; number of acres cultivated, 852,500. Coffee the most important product; total value of product, 1884, $11,255,000; value, of sugar product, $7,686,000; corn, $6,000,000; cocoa, $2,998,000. Latest reports give number of cattle as 2,926,733; goats and sheep, 3,490,563; horses, 291,603; mules, 906,467; swine, 976,600.

State religion, Roman Catholic; all others tolerated. In 1883 the government spent $500,000 in public instruction. Number universities, 2; colleges, 33; normal schools, 5; other schools, 1,794. Number of miles of railway, 1884, 102; telegraphs, 1,145 miles. {184}

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BRITISH GUIANA. Ghe-a´na.

A territory in northeast part of South America. First settled by the Dutch, 1580. Acquired by the British in 1803; formally ceded in 1814. Estimated area, 76,000 square miles. Population, 248,110. Crossed by two great mountain systems. Contains many rivers; largest, Essequibo, 600 miles long, noted for magnificent cataracts. Thermometer rises to 90° in warm weather; falls to 75° in winter season; mean annual average at Georgetown, 81°. Rainfall per year, about 72 inches.

Vegetation is luxuriant. Large sections are covered with valuable forests, which furnish exhaustless supplies of timber, largely used for shipbuilding. Number sugar plantations, 120; coffee estates, 12. Sugar forms 92 per cent. of exports; latest reports give 111,156 hhds. Rum exported, 32,531 puncheons; rum issued for home consumption, 330,392 gals. Export of molasses, 17,084 casks; timber export, 464,436 cubic feet. Total imports, 1882, $10,498,160; exports, $16,043,155.

Government administered by a Governor appointed by British Crown, and a Court of Policy.

Georgetown the capital; pop., 36,562. Number of schools sanctioned by Board of Education, 177; Church of England, 81.

DUTCH GUIANA. Ghe-a´na.

Lies east of British Guiana, often called Surinam from the river of that name. Coast line, 220 miles. Dutch first visited the country about 1580; but the first settlement in Surinam was made by an Englishman, in 1630. Area, 46,060 square miles. Population, 68,255; 54,602 negroes.

Local government consists of a Governor and Colonial Assembly. Capital, Paramaribo; population, 27,416.

Mean annual temperature, 80.4°; coldest month mercury falls to 78°; warmest, mercury rises to 99°. Rainfall, 99 inches; at Paramaribo the average of eight years was 101 inches.

Large tracts of territory covered with primeval forests. Great staple of Guiana is sugar; average yearly export, about 10,645 tons. First cocoa sent to Amsterdam, 1733; the average yearly production is now more than 13,000 tons. Cotton and coffee rank next. Gold-mining is a growing industry. Latest reported value of exports, $1,151,070; imports, $1,316,355.

FRENCH GUIANA. Ghe-a´na.

East of Dutch Guiana. Area, 48,000 square miles. Population, 36,760. Coast line low and swampy. Large portion of the territory is covered with dense forests. Rainy season from November to June. Rainfall at Cayenne, 10 feet per year; heavier in the interior. Temperature: in summer, 86°; winter, mean, 79°, and seldom sinks so low as 70°. In this century there have been three earthquakes.

Administration in the hands of Governor and Military Commandant.

Capital, Cayenne; pop., 10,000.

Coffee, introduced in 1716, is extensively grown. Guiana cocoa, bread-fruit, arrow-root, bananas, yams, oil, and date palm are among the products; but the principal source of food is manioc. Contains valuable gold deposits. French criminal penitentiaries located in this country. {186}

BRAZIL. Bra-zil´.

This is the largest of the South American countries, and the only empire in the New World. Contains many rivers. Amazon, the longest, drains 800,000 square miles of Brazilian territory. Temperature in the valley of the Amazon ranges from 68° to 85°, while at Rio Janeiro the average is 75°. Area, 3,288,963. Population, 9,883,622. Capital, Rio de Janeiro; pop., 274,972.

Executive power is vested in the Emperor, ministers and Secretaries of State; legislative authority rests with the Senate and and Chamber of Deputies. The empire is divided into 20 Provinces.

Country rich in minerals and precious stones. Total value of diamond washings for the first 100 years was about $20,000,000. Diamond mines are now owned by private individuals. Manufactures in late years improved by the introduction of American machinery.

During the last 16 years the increase in exports has been 20 per cent.; in imports, 22 per cent. The value of coffee exported in 1882-83 was $52,720,000; sugar, $16,250,000; raw cotton, $4,063,650; tobacco, $5,344,500; India rubber, $5,965,000. Total imports, 1882-83, $111,434,300; exports, $134,945,100. In 1883, 2,989 vessels, of 2,367,296 tons, entered, and 2,522, of 2,095,237 tons, cleared, Brazilian ports.

Number miles railway, January, 1884, 3,500; 1,500 in process of construction. Telegraph system under the control of the government; miles of wire in 1883, 4,900. Army, on peace footing, 13,500 strong; in time of war, 32,000. Naval force consists of 35 steam vessels, with 123 guns and 5,704 seamen.

Established religion, Roman Catholic. Clergy are supported by the state. Compulsory education exists in several Provinces; 84 per cent. of population is illiterate. Total number of schools, 5,685.

BOLIVIA. Bo-liv´e-a.

A republic of South America, named in honor of Simon Bolivar; formed, in 1825, from provinces of Upper Peru; ceded all coast territory to Chili in 1880. Area, 842,729 square miles. Population, 2,300,000. Surface broken by two mountain ranges. Highest peak, Sahama, 22,350 feet; many volcanoes. Lake Titicaca is the largest inland body of water in South America; area, 4,000 square miles; Madeira river, with tributaries, navigable for 3,000 miles in Bolivia; La Paz chief city; pop., 76,372. Capital, Sucre or Chuquisaca.

President elected for 4 years. Legislative power rests with a Congress of 2 chambers,--Senate and House of Representatives. Universal suffrage prevails; Vice-President is appointed by President.

The climate embraces all degrees of heat and cold. The products of two zones are found in Bolivia. Ebony, rosewood, mahogany, cinchona, and other valuable trees abound. Manufactures limited to coarse cotton cloth, hats, cordage, leather and alpaca. Tin, copper, gold, and vast quantities of India rubber of the finest quality abound. Silver mines almost inexhaustible; annual yield of the Cerro de Potosi mines, $2,250,000. Two-thirds of exports are silver. Imports average $6,150,000; exports, $9,000,000.

Standing army, 2,421 men; generals and other officers, 1,021; two-thirds of revenue goes to support the army.

Roman Catholic the prevailing religion; other creeds tolerated; 4 universities. In 1884 but 12,000 pupils and students at schools and colleges. Three railroads open for traffic. {187}

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ECUADOR. Ek-wa-d[=o]r´.

A republic of South America, constituted 1830; situated on the equator, from which it takes its name. Extremely mountainous; traversed from north to south by three ranges of the Andes. Most lofty peaks: Cotopaxi, 18,880 feet; Chimborazo, 21,424; Cayambe, 19,831. Climate, on the coast, hot; on the high table lands, cold and bleak; valleys are free from extremes of temperature. Area, 248,370 square miles. Population, 946,033. Quito, the capital, has 80,000 inhabitants; Guayaquil, the principal seaport, 26,000. Quito is the highest inhabited city, being 9,500 feet above sea-level.

Ecuador was formed from the American Free State, founded by Simon Bolivar. Executive power rests with a President, elected for 4 years; legislative, with a Congress of two houses. President and Vice-President are nominated by 900 chosen electors. Vice-president is President of the Council of State. Hereditary rights or privileges prohibited by law. Belief in the Roman Catholic church, qualification for suffrage.

The soil of Ecuador will grow the products of every zone. There is a copious growth of the cinchona tree, sarsaparilla, vanilla, copaiba, balsam of Tolu, etc. Many fibrous plants, suitable for the manufacture of paper and cordage, are found in profusion. The immense mineral wealth is untouched; agriculture is neglected; manufactures are insignificant. The roads afford no facilities for commerce, being mostly mule tracks. Miles of railway number but 75.

Export of cocoa, 1883 valued at $3,372,200; India rubber, $428,800. Total value of exports, $4,923,300; imports, about $6,000,000. In 1883, 151 vessels, of 155,283 tons, entered, and 160 vessels, of 158,970 tons, cleared the port of Guayaquil.

Only 7.5 per cent. of population can read or write. In 1884, standing army fixed at 1,600 men.

PERU. Pe-roo´.

A republic of South America. Area, previous to the war with Chili, 503,718 square miles. Population, 2,699,945. Since the war about 70,000 square miles of Peruvian territory are occupied by Chili. Traversed by two systems of the Andes Mountains; highest point is the volcano of Misti, 20,300 feet above sea-level. Temperature at Callao about 60°; Lima about 70°.

Independence declared in 1821. The government is administered by the President, Senate and House of Representatives. The Peruvian constitution is planned after that of the United States. Lima, the capital, has a population of about 100,000.