CATTLE-RAISING.

Cattle-raising on the savannas-extensive plains of grass, affording pasturage in the rainy season, and with few shrubs growing on them-of the central and northern provinces is one of the great sources of wealth, the production of horned cattle being large enough to supply all the necessities of home consumption, and to allow a considerable exportation, principally to San Salvador, where cattle are scarce. Large haciendas, owned by the richest and most influential people of the country, are entirely devoted to this industry. Dairy farms have been established in the neighbourhood of the principal cities and towns and are doing well.

FAUNA.

The fauna is like that of the other Central American states. The jaguar, puma, and ocelot still infest the more wooded districts, alligators are found in the lakes and swarm in the San Juan and other rivers, while the vulture, buzzard, toucans, humming-birds, and howling monkeys are common. The species of reptiles cover a

wide range.

COMMERCE.

The imports amount to about 500,000, being the value of manufactured goods brought from the European and American markets. The principal articles exported

S

are coffee, rubber, woods, hides, gums, indigo, sugar, cocoa, and bananas, to the value of £470,000.

The rates by the steamer route on the river San Juan are high, though less than via the Pacific, but this is more than counterbalanced by the uncertainty and delay on this line. The lines from Europe and the United States are good, and the rates generally low.' The canal will bring about a great change, and when that work is completed, Granada, and other towns close by, will be virtually seaports, and ocean steamers will be able to load and discharge their cargoes at their wharves. The lake will be the centre and point of distribution of trade for the whole country.

TO BLUFFIELDS. From New Orleans, Southern Pacific Company's steamers, from December to March every twenty days, remainder of the year ever ten days.

To CAPE GRACIAS A DIOS. From New York, Honduras and Central American Steamship Company, every three weeks.

TO CORINTO. From San Francisco and from Panama, Pacific Mail Steamship Company, thrice per month.

TO GREYTOWN. From Southampton, Royal Mail Steam Packet Company to Colon, thence by Royal Mail or other local cargo

steamers.

From Nao York, Honduras and Central American Steamship Company, every three weeks; Pacific Mail Steamship Company to Colon, thence by Royal Mail. (Steamers leave Greytown for Granada, on Lake Nicaragua, every four days.)

(Managua, the capital, is reached by steamer to Greytown or to Corinto, thence by rail and lake steamers )

CHAPTER XII.

THE DEMAND OF THE AGE: SHIP

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CANALS.

SERIES of great works, in the form of ship canals, providing rapid and inexpensive transportation, marks the latter part of the nineteenth century, and every maritime power is concerned with schemes of ocean transit. The mechanical and financial means for undertaking and executing great enterprises have greatly improved, while the volume of commerce has vastly increased, and works impossible thirty or forty years ago are quite feasible to-day. Money is cheaper by a half than it was twenty years ago, while engineering appliances have so improved, that the cost, not only in labour but in time, has been lessened in a like proportion.

Commerce has advanced with colossal strides. The business done by the world's shipping and railways is immense, and increases at a rate greatly exceeding the growth either of population or of industries. More than half the shipping of the whole world is owned by Great Britain, while one-half the railways have either been built directly, or with money supplied, by this

Nandalmu, whose product is sold in Nicaragua, it being too expensive to serve for the manufacture of common chocolates.

The catar tree, producing two crops a year, seldom exceeds to feet in height the leaves being large, oblong, and pointed, and the nuts contained in long, oval-pointed pods. The trees are planted about 15 feet apart. When young, the plants are delicate, requiring to be sheltered from the the sun in the manner commin in c. fee plantations, and plantains or bananas are first used for that purpose, But quidkygmeaing trees such as that called by the natives are planted with them; and, as they

nts on the plantains are cut down, leaving the trees as a permanent shade. The cacao begins to bar in about seittyears, and continues to produce for try to fity years. Large capital is therefore necessary

apartat on but when ence established and in (1 baring Title cutlay is recessary, and, so far, the ue has been large, sure, and stealy. Great com

: will occur before long however, as cultivation is

bo`ng undertaken in other parts of the world.

gar-care grows with extraordinary luxuriance. A great deal of the sogar manufactured is of a coarse brown quality, the juice being merely boiled until it crysta” zes, without being cleaned of the molasses, and it's erode state is poured into moulds forming small cakes which are sold to the poorer classes. A very large quantity of the cane is used in the manufacture of a species of rum called agaande (known also as *cusera " and "banco"), a most terrible compound, but

perhaps no worse than the villainous Hamburg spirits found everywhere.' The sale of spirits being a government monopoly, distillation can only be carried on by licence, and is principally confined to the larger producers. The bulk of the sugar produced comes from the district

of Jinotepe, where very primitive and imperfect methods are employed, and water is scarce. In the neighbourhood of Granada, San Rafael, and Pital, there are several

1

Andagoya says: "They make wine from a kind of cherry, which is as strong as the wine of Spain, although the strength soon passes away. In all the countries I have mentioned the whole happiness of the people consists in drinking the wine they make from maize, which is like beer, and on this they get as drunk as if it was the wine of Spain, and all the festivals they hold are for the purpose of drinking."