DIVISIONS: With the exception of the three European colonies in Guiana, South America is divided between 11 Republics-4 in the East, 5 in the West, and 2 in the interior. The Eastern Republics are Venezuela, Brasti, Uruguay, and the Argentine The Western Republics are Chile, Peru, Ecuador, Colombia, and Panama. VENEZUELA. THE REPUBLIC OF VENEZUELA1 embraces part of the northern division of South America, and is bounded on the north by the Caribbean Sea, on the east by the Atlantic Ocean and British Guiana, on the south by Brazil, and on the west by Colombia. The area of the Republic is about 364 square miles. The official estimate is larger, as Venezuela is still involved in boundary disputes with some of ter neighbours. The boundary question between Venezuela and British Guiana was the subject of intermittent disputes from 1841 to 1895, when the Venezuelans requested the intervention of the United States, with whom British relations became so strained that war between the two countries seemed probable The question, however, was referred to arbitration, and the present boundary was fixed by the award of 1899. consequer.ce Venezuela includes the greater part of the basin of the Orinoco, with its extensive savannahs or llanos. These vast grassy plains are succeeded, at intervals, by forestcovered tracts of surprising richness. The mountains of Venezuela are a prolongation of the Eastern Cordillera of the Colombian Andes, and culminate in the Nevada de Merida, which rises to a height of 15,000 feet, and although only 8° from the Equator, its summit is covered with snow for months every year. On the boundary between Venezuela and British Guiana, and within a few miles of the Brazilian frontier, is the famous Mount Roraima, a "huge mass of light-red sandstone rock, 18 miles in length, with perpendicular sides and a perfectly level summit, rising 8,500 feet above the level of the sea. Its flanks form bare vertical walls, in no place less than 1,500 feet in sheer precipice, and the level summit contains the sources of several streams which leap from the edge of the plateau in magnificent cascades, and flow in different ways to feed the Essequibo, the Orinoco, and the Amazon." The river Orinoco is first in importance among the natural features of Venezuela. It rises in the Parime Mountains on the southern borders of the republic, and is joined by a great number of tributary streams, several among which rival the larger rivers of most other lands. Above its outlet, the Orinoco forms a delta of vast extent, intersected by numberless channels. 2 The climate of Venezuela, though hot, is not unhealthy, except along the coast and in some of the low grounds that border on the rivers. The tierras templadas, or temperate lands, with an average temperature of about 65° F., and an elevation of from 2,500 to 6,500 feet, have a delightful and salubrious climate. The cold zone, above 6,500 feet, includes the lofty sierra of Merida, in which one snow-capped nevada rises over 15,000 feet height, and the Sierra Parime on the south-eastern border of the Republic. The hot lands include not only the narrow coast belt, but also the vast llanos or great plains in the interior. 1. Venezuela, de, little Venice. So called by the 2. We have already referred to the remarkable found at the entrance of Lake Maracaibo. present Republic of Venezuela was formed in 1830. Spaniards from the Indian pile-houses which they bifurcation of the Upper Orinoco, but recent ex The plorations show that the Orinoco and the Rio Negro are connected by a great number of other chan es besides the Casiquiare. "The surface of Venezuela is naturally divided into three distinct zones-the agricultural, the pastoral, and the forest zone. In the first are grown sugar-cane, coffee, cocoa, cereals, &c. ; the second affords runs for cattle; and in the third, tropical products such as caoutchouc, tonca beans, copaiba, vanilla, growing wild, are worked by the inhabitants." The Venezuelans possess millions of cattle, sheep, and horses, and their country is rich in metals and minerals. The Venezuelan goldfields are extremely rich, and there are extensive deposits of copper. The salt-mines yield a large revenue to the Government. Venezuela had, in 1905, a population of over 21⁄2 millions, among whom the Mestizoes, or half-castes of mixed Spanish and Indian blood, are by much the most numerous.' The chief commercial products are coffee, sugar, cocoa, tobacco, and cotton, with hides and cattle, gold and copper ore. Most of the foreign trade, which has largely increased within recent years, is carried on with Great Britain, the United States, France, and Germany. The chief ports are LA GUAYRA, MARACAIBO, CUIDAD BOLIVAR, and PUERTO CABALLO. The exports are valued at about 3 millions sterling, and the imports at 2 millions. The trade with the United Kingdom amounts to about £700,000-the imports of British goods more than double the value of the exports of Venezuelan produce to Great Britain. The Republic of Venezuela2 is composed of 13 States, 5 Territories, and I District. The various States are practically selfgoverning, the great object of their union being that of common defence. The Territories and Districts are directly controlled by the Central Government. The Government is modelled on that of the United States, but the provincial and local Governments are more independent. The executive power is vested in the President, who exercises it through his ministers and a Federal Council. Legislation for the whole Republic is vested in a Congress of two Houses— the Senate and the House of Representatives. The public Revenue and Expenditure are each a little over 2 millions sterling. The public Debt is about 9 millions sterling. There is a small standing army, but 250,000 men are liable to be called out for military service in case of necessity. The capital of Venezuela is the city of CARACAS (77), delightfully situated in a fertile mountain valley, 3,000 feet above the sea, and 12 miles distant from the shores of the Caribbean Sea. La Guayra (14), on the coast, forms its port, and has a large amount of foreign trade. Cumana and Barcelona, both to the eastward of Caracas, are also of some commercial importance. Cumana has a magnificent natural harbour, and was the home of the liberator Bolivar. The island of Margarita, to the north of Cumana, belongs to this State. The only other towns of any note are Valencia (39) and Maracaibo (34). Valencia is south-west of Caracas, and, like that city, lies a few miles inland; Puerto Caballo is its port. Maracaibo is on the west side of the channel which connects the lake of that name with the sea. Bolivar or Angostura is the chief place in the valley of the Orinoco. 1. In 1888, the native Indian population numbered 326.000, of whom 240.000 were civilized, 66,000 independent, and 20,000 submitted. There are about 40,000 foreigners, mostly Spaniards, English, Italians and Dutch. The State Religion is the Roman Catholic, and education is free and compulsory. Large sums are spent on both elementary and higher education 2. Etados Unidos de Venezuela, the United States of Venezuela. 3. Caracas was founded in 1567. The city, which has a charming climate, with a maximum temperature of 78 8, and a minimum of 53-6°, was almost entirely destroyed by an earthquake in 1812. GUIANA. GUIANA,1 an extensive region in the north-eastern part of South America, is bounded on the north and north-east by the Atlantic Ocean, on the south by Brazil, and on the west by Brazil and Venezuela. It is divided into three parts, the most westerly of which belongs to Great Britain, the central to Holland, and the eastern to France, which are hence called British, Dutch, and French Guiana, All the three divisions of Guiana are washed by the Atlantic Ocean, along the coasts of which extends a low plain of great natural fertility. The country rises thence towards the interior, and stretches south as far as the Sierra Acaray. range of the The numerous rivers of Guiana are the most important among its natural features. The uniform direction of their main streams is from south to north, and they all discharge into the Atlantic. British Guiana includes the rivers Mazaruni, Essequibo, Demerara, and Berbice; the Corentyn divides it from Dutch Guiana. Dutch Guiana includes the River Surinam, and has the rivers Corentyn and Maroni on its western and eastern frontiers respectively. French Guiana is bounded by the River Maroni on the west and by the Oyapok on the east. All Guiana has a tropical climate. It is situated, indeed, within the heart of the Torrid Zone. But the climate, although undoubtedly trying to Europeans, is much less unhealthy than that of most other regions within the Tropics. The deadly fevers that prevail on the African coasts are unknown in South America. The soil is exuberantly fertile, the natural wealth of its forests is unbounded, and gold and other minerals have been discovered. 4 BRITISH GUIANA. BRITISH GUIANA, the only British territory on the mainland of South America, extends along the north-eastern coast, from the mouth of the Orinoco to that of the Corentyn, and stretches inland for more than 400 miles to an as yet undetermined boundary. The colony has an area of 90,280 square mile; and a population of 300,000, of whom about 20,000 are whites.5 With a total area equal to the British Isles, only 83,000 acres are as yet under cultivation in this the most favoured of the three Guianas. Settlement is, in fact, almost confined to the narrow but exceedingly productive coast region; the mountain country in the interior is almost unknown, and is occupied only by a few scattered tribes of simple and inoffensive Indians. Numerous rivers cut their way through the hills by gorge and cataract, and the accumulated debris, 1. Guiana is so called from an Indian tribe, the Guayanoes. 2. Strictly speaking, the geographical division a 3. The magnificent Kaieteur Fall, on the Potaro, tributary of the Essequibo, is 822 feet high 4. Guiana was discovered by Columbus in 1408 the three European colonies. The Guiana "island" British portion of the country was finally ceded to known as Guiana extends far beyond the limits of and was first settled by the Dutch in 1580. The in fact includes the whole of the vast territory England in 1814. bounded by the Amazon and the Rio Negro on the 5. Although a British colony, most of the white south, and by the Orinoco on the west and north. are Portuguese from Madeira and the Cape Verde Much the larger portion of this region of tropical | Islands. forest and savannah is thus within the limits of Venezuela and Brazil. swept down in the course of ages, has formed the rich alluvial coastlands, still in many parts so low as to necessitate the construction of vast dykes and dams along the river banks and the sea shore. Georgetown itself, at the mouth of the Demerara, needs the protection of its "sea wall," which does the double duty of resisting the sea and as a health-giving promenade. " The predominant industry is the cultivation of the sugar-cane, and sugar forms more than half of the export trade of the colony. The growing of the much-prized Berbice coffee and cotton, once largely exported, might be made remunerative were the necessary capital forthcoming. In British Guiana, as in other colonies, there is boundless land clamouring for population" and capital. Nature has been more than generous-the climate, though hot, is not unhealthy, and, when the mountainous interior is opened up, there will be, as in Jamaica, an ample choice of climates, and both forest and field-along the banks of the Berbice, the Essequibo, and the Mazaruni-will yield their increase to prosperous and contented settlers. Several rich deposits of gold have been found, and are now being worked, over 6 millions' worth of gold having been obtained since mining was started in 1886. The output in 1906 was valued at £334,000. The government of the Colony consists of a Governor, appointed by the Crown, and two "Courts," composed of official and elected members. GEORGETOWN (50), on the Demerara, a short distance above its mouth, is the capita'. The only other considerable town is NEW AMSTERDAM (8), on the Berbrice. DUTCH GUIANA. DUTCH GUIANA or Surinam includes the middle portion of Guiana, and is divided from British Guiana on the west by the River Corentyn, and from French Guiana on the east by the River Maroni. The area is about 46,000 square miles, and the population about 60,000, mostly Negroes. The commercial products are sugar, cacao, coffee, cotton, rice, fruits, rum, and molasses. Gold-mining is actively prosecuted-about 450 concessions have been granted, and nearly a million pounds' worth of gold has been obtained since the beginning of the industry in 1876. The government is in the hands of a Governor, assisted by a Council and a Representative Assembly. The capital is PARAMARIBO (20), "a luminous Amsterdam," on the River Surinam. FRENCH GUIANA. FRENCH GUIANA or Cayenne has an area of 30,500 square miles and a population of about 33,000, one-fifth of whom are convicts. Much of the colony is covered with dense forests, but there are large areas of good land, which, however, is poorly cultivated. Coffee and manioc are the chief products, but arrowroot, bananas, yams, and other tropical produce could be grown in abundance, if France only made some little effort to develop the resources of the colony, which is regarded as a mere penal settlement. The capital is CAYENNE (8), a miserable place on a small island which adjoins the coast. 1. The imp rts are over 15 millions terling, and the exports (produce and manuf ctures of the colony only) over 2 millions stering. The exparts to the United Kingdom, chiefly sugar, rum, and mol s es are valued at 1 milions, and the imports of British manufactures under million. 2. Taken by the English in 1650, but ceded to 4. According to an English writer, but a charm. the Dutch in 1669. Again taken by the English ining Creole town, according to a French geo. 1799 an 1804 bit finally restored in 1814. Igrapher. 3. Settled by the French in 1604. Held by the British from 1809 to 1814. France claims from Brazil the territory to the east of the Oyapok and extending thence to the sea; and a convention was signed in 1897 submitting this question to arbitration. THE UNITED STATES OF BRAZIL. BRAZIL' is the largest country of South America. It embraces a vast portion of the castern shores of that continent, and stretches over nearly half its entire extent. Brazil is bounded on the north by Venezuela and Guiana; on the north-east and east by the Atlantic Ocean; on the south and south-west by Uruguay, the Argentine Republic, and Paraguay; on the west by Bolivia, Peru, Ecuador, and Colombia.2 The area of this immense country is estimated at nearly 3 million square miles, thus comprising nearly half of the South American continent, and not much less than Europe. The greatest length, from Cape Orange on the north to San Pedro on the south, is 2,500 miles. The greatest breadth, from Cape San Roque on the east to the Peruvian borders on the west, is 2,600 miles. The coasts of Brazil are generally regular and unbroken. Total length, 3,700 miles. The principal capes are Orange, St. Roque, and Frio. The chief inlets are the estuaries of the Amazon, the Pará, and the Maranhão, and the Bays of Bahia and Rio Janeiro. RELIEF: The great features in the relief of Brazil are the vast forest-covered plains or selvas watered by some of the largest rivers in the world. Brazil embraces two distinct physical regions-the tropical lowlands of the north and the temperate uplands of the centre and south. The Tropical or Amazonian Brazil is the most luxuriant region on the globe, but it is utterly unsuitable for European settlement. The southern and central regions, which form the temperate division of the country, though with less exuberant vegetation, are better suited for Europeans. The mountains which traverse Temperate Brazil rarely exceed 3,000 feet in height, and the greater part of the region over which they stretch forms a moderately elevated plateau, seldom exceeding 1,000 feet above the sea, and traversed by hills of gentle ascent. The range known as the Serra do Mar, which stretches along part of the coast, exhibits a steeper acclivity. The other chief ranges are the Serra Espinhaço, and the Serra dos Vertentes. The culminating point of Brazil is Itatiaya, 8,900 feet above the sea. 4 RIVERS: Brazil includes the vastly greater portion of the immense basin of the Amazon, and a small part of the basins of the Parana and the Paraguay. The entire basins of the San Francisco and numerous other smaller rivers are within its limits. The Amazon is the chief river of Brazil. It is throughout navigable by vesthe sea, has a breadth of several miles, which increases to 50 miles and upwards sels of considerable tonnage, and its stream, at between 400 and 500 miles above immediately above its mouth. The Amazon has numerous tributaries, among which the Negro, on its left or northern bank, the Madeira, Tapajos, Xingu, 3. 56 times that of England and Wales. 1. Brazil was first discovered by Cabral in 1500, and was named by him Tierra de Santa Cruzthe "Land of the Holy Cross," The name Brazil is colum, 5.750 feet. derived from the red Erazil wood, which the Por 5. The fall of the Amazon is peculiarly sight, tuguese compared to red-hot coals (Portuguese, only 510 feet from the foot of the mountains to the braza). 2. Brazil thus borders on every country in South America except Chile, sea, a distance of 2,500 miles. The Upper Amazon within Peru, but from Tabatinga to the sea it is a Brazilian stream. is |