In what ways does the basin of the Great Lakes facilitate the commerce of the United States?How has the topography of the Mississippi Valley affected the evolution of farming-machinery?Why are shippers willing in many cases to pay an all-rail rate on wheat sent to the Atlantic seaboard, nearly three times as great as the lake and canal rates?The acre-product of wheat in the United States is about twelve bushels; in western Europe it varies from twenty-five to more than forty bushels; to what is the difference due?What is meant by sea-island cotton?—for what reasons is cotton imported from Egypt and Peru into the United States?In what manner is cotton used in the manufacture of pneumatic tires, and why is it thus used?What are refrigerator-cars?—refrigerator-steamships? Name some of the regulations required in shipping cattle.Why have American meats been debarred at times from European markets?Find the value of cotton and meat exported to the following-named countries: Great Britain, France, Germany, Italy, China.
In what ways does the basin of the Great Lakes facilitate the commerce of the United States?
How has the topography of the Mississippi Valley affected the evolution of farming-machinery?
Why are shippers willing in many cases to pay an all-rail rate on wheat sent to the Atlantic seaboard, nearly three times as great as the lake and canal rates?
The acre-product of wheat in the United States is about twelve bushels; in western Europe it varies from twenty-five to more than forty bushels; to what is the difference due?
What is meant by sea-island cotton?—for what reasons is cotton imported from Egypt and Peru into the United States?
In what manner is cotton used in the manufacture of pneumatic tires, and why is it thus used?
What are refrigerator-cars?—refrigerator-steamships? Name some of the regulations required in shipping cattle.
Why have American meats been debarred at times from European markets?
Find the value of cotton and meat exported to the following-named countries: Great Britain, France, Germany, Italy, China.
FOR COLLATERAL READING AND REFERENCE
The Wheat Problem—pp. 191et seq.Statistical Abstract.
The Wheat Problem—pp. 191et seq.
Statistical Abstract.
DIFFICULT RAILROADING—LAS ANIMAS CAÑONDIFFICULT RAILROADING—LAS ANIMAS CAÑON
The western part of the United States consists of a succession of high mountain-ranges extending nearly north and south. The two highest ranges, each about two miles high, enclose a basin-shaped plateau about one mile high. This basin is commonly called the "plateau region." The rim ranges are broken in a few places by passes that the transcontinental railways thread. West of the Sierra Nevada ranges are the fertile Pacific coast lowlands.
The Plateau Region.—This region is generally arid, but on the higher plateaus there is sufficient rainfall to produce a considerable forestry and grazing. The general conditions of rainfall and topography forbid any great development of agriculture. Farming is confined to the river-flood-plains, the parks, and the old lake beds and margins.
A considerable area, estimated at more than two million acres, may be made productive by irrigation, and the United States Government is undertaking the construction of an elaborate and extensive system of reservoirs for the impounding of stream and storm waters now running to waste. The irrigated lands of this region, when their products are accessible to markets, are very valuable. The river-bottom lands of New Mexico, and the old margins of Great Salt Lake in Utah are examples. They produce abundantly, and a single acre often yields as much as four or five acres in regions of plentiful rainfall.
Not much of the crop of this region, the fruit and wool excepted, leaves the vicinity in which it is grown, on account of the expense of transportation. In the matter of the transportation of their commodities, the dwellers of the western highland are doubly handicapped. The building of railways is enormously expensive, and in a region of sparse population there is comparatively little local freight to be hauled. The difficulties of developing such a region from a commercial stand-point, therefore, are very great.
Mining is the chief industry of this section, and silver, gold, and copper are its most important products. Since the discovery of precious metals in the United States, this region has produced gold and silver bullion to the value of about four billion dollars. This sum is about one-half the value of the railways of the country,[55]and from 1865 to 1880 a large part of the capital invested in railway building represents the gold and silver of these mines. In the last twenty years of the past century they produced an average of about one hundred and twenty-five million dollars per year, and this average is constantly increasing.
Coal-measures extend along the eastern escarpment of the Rocky Mountains, and these are destined at no remote day to create a centre of steel and other manufactures. Several of the railways operate coal-mines in Colorado and Wyoming for the fuel required. A limited supply of steel is also made, the industry being protected by the great distance from the Eastern smelteries.
GOLD MINING—CRIPPLE CREEK, COLORADOGOLD MINING—CRIPPLE CREEK, COLORADO
Denveris the chief active centre of finance of the mining industry in the western highlands, although many of the great enterprises derive the capital necessary to develop them fromNew YorkandSan Francisco.Leadville,Cripple Creek,Butte,Helena, andDeadwoodare regions of gold and silver production.Virginia Cityis the operating centre of the famous Comstock mines. AtAnacondais the chief copper-mine of this region.Salt Lake CityandOgdenare the centre of the Mormon agricultural enterprises.Santa Fé,Las Vegas, andAlbuquerqueare centres of agricultural interests and stock-growing.
SpokaneandWalla Wallaare commercial centres of the plains of the Columbia River. The former is the focal point of a network of local roads that collect the wheat and other farm products of this region; the latter is the collecting point for much of the freight sent by steamboats down the Columbia River fromWallula. Railway transportation has largely superseded river-navigation for all except local freights, however.Boise Cityis the financial centre of considerable mining interests.
The Pacific Coast Lowlands.—Climatically this region differs from the rest of the United States in having a rainy and a dry season—that is, the rainfall is wholly seasonal. In the northern part the rainfall is sixty inches or more, and rain may be expected daily from the middle of October to May. In central California the precipitation is about half as much, the rainy season beginning later and ending earlier. In southern California there are occasional showers during the winter months, aggregating ten or twenty inches.
The level valley-lands have no superior for wheat-farming, and in but one or two places is the rainfall insufficient to insure a good crop. In the San Joaquin and southern valleys of California the harvest begins in May, in the Sacramento Valley in June, and in the Willamette and Sound Valleys of Oregon and Washington in July. The wheat goes mainly to Great Britain by way of Cape Horn. It cannot be safely shipped in bulk, and the manufacture of jute grain-sacks has become an important industry inconsequence. The yearly wheat product of this region is not far from eighty million bushels.
Fruit is a valuable product of the foot-hills of the Sierras, and in southern California oranges, lemons, and grapes are now the staple crop. In some cases the average yield per acre has reached a value of five hundred dollars. Some of the largest vineyards in the world are in this region. The Zinfandel claret wine and the raisins find a market as far east as London, and considerable quantities are sold in China and Japan. The navel orange, although not native to California, reaches its finest development in that State. A large part of the fruit-crop of California is handled at Minneapolis, Chicago, St. Louis, and New York. It is transported in special cars attached to fast trains.
Wool is an important crop. In the northern part the sheep thrive best in the foot-hills. The valley of Umpqua River, Ore., produces nearly seventeen million pounds of wool yearly, the staple being an ordinary variety. California produces nearly as much of the finest merino staple. A considerable part is manufactured in the mills of the Pacific coast. The Mission Mills blankets made in San Francisco are without an equal elsewhere.
The discovery of gold by John Marshall in 1848 resulted in a tremendous inflow of people to the gold-fields of California. It also was a factor in the acquisition of the territory composing the Pacific coast States. The first mining consisted merely in separating the metal deposited in the bed-rock of streams by washing away the lighter material. In time the quartz ledges which had produced the placer gold became the chief factor in gold mining. California is still one of the leading States in the production of gold. Quicksilver mining is an important feature of the mining interests of the Pacific coast, and the mines of the coast ranges produce about half the world's output.
Lumber manufacture is an important industry. Douglas spruce, commonly known as "Oregon pine," grows profusely on the western slopes of the high ranges, the belt extending nearly to the Mexican border. It makes a most excellent building-lumber, especially for bridge-timber and framework. Masts and spars of this material are used in almost every maritime country. Sugar-pine is less common, but is abundant. It is largely used for interior work. Several species of redwood occur in central California, confined to a limited area. The wood is fine-grained and makes a most beautiful interior finish.
San Franciscois the metropolis of the Pacific coast of the United States. It is the terminus of the Santa Fé and Union Pacific railways, and the centre of a network of local roads. Steamship lines connect the city with Panama, the Hawaiian Islands, Japan, and Australian ports; coast steamships reach to the various ports of Alaska, Oregon, and California. It is also the financial as well as the commercial centre of the Pacific coast.Los Angelesis the centre of the fruit-growing region; its port isSan Pedro.Stockton,Port Costa, andSacramento, all on navigable waters, are wheat-markets.Portland(Ore.) is the metropolis of the basin of the Columbia and Willamette Rivers. Navigation of the former is interrupted by falls or rapids atDallesandCascades, but boats ascend as far asWallula. The lower Willamette is also made navigable by means of a canal and locks at Oregon Falls.
Puget Sound is a "drowned valley," with an abundance of deep water. The score or more of harbors are among the best in the world.SeattleandTacoma, the leading ports, are terminals of great transcontinental railways, and also of the most important trade-route across the continent. Lines of steamships connect Seattle with Japan and China, and the commerce passing through thisgateway is drawn from a territory that extends more than half-way around the world. These ports are destined to become the chief American ports in the Asian trade.
Alaska.—The most productive industry of the insular part of the territory is the fisheries. For many years the Pribilof Islands produced practically all the seal-pelts used in the manufacture of seal-fur garments. So many seals were killed, however, that the species seemed likely to become extinct, and seal-catching has been forbidden for a term of years.
PUGET SOUNDPUGET SOUND
The discovery of gold along the Klondike River and in the beach-sands of Cape Nome was followed by the development of surface mines that produced a large amount of gold. For the better transportation of products, a railway has been completed fromSkagwayacross White Pass toWhite Horse, the head of navigation of the Yukon. About twenty steamboats are engaged in the commerce of the river.SkagwayandDyeaare collecting points for the commerce of the Klondike mines.Juneauhas probably the largest quartz-mill in the world.
Porto Rico.—Porto Rico, formerly a Spanish colony, is now a possession of the United States. The island is about the size of Connecticut and has a populationsomewhat greater. The industries are almost wholly agricultural, and nearly the whole surface is under cultivation. Sugar, coffee, and tobacco are grown for export, and these constitute the chief source of income. The coffee-crop, about sixty million pounds yearly, is the most valuable product and commands a high price on account of its superior quality. It is sold very largely to European coffee-merchants, and is marketed as a "Mocha." Exports of fruit to the United States are increasing. In 1900 the exports to United States markets, mainly sugar and cattle products, were about six million dollars. The imports from the United States were chiefly of cotton-prints and rice, to the amount of nearly nine million dollars. The total export and import trade that year was about twenty million dollars.
The facilities for the transportation of products are not good. The railway lines have a total mileage of about one hundred and fifty miles. An excellent wagon-road, built by the Spanish Government from San Juan to Ponce, has been supplemented by several hundred miles of roads built under the direction of the military authorities.San JuanandPonceare the leading seaports and centres of trade.
Hawaiian Islands.—These islands were discovered by a Spanish sailor, Gaetano, in 1549, and again visited by Captain Cook in 1778. Up to 1893 they formed a native kingdom. In 1893 foreign influence was sufficient to overthrow the native government, and in 1898 they were formally annexed to the United States and about the same time organized as a territory. From an early date the geographic position of the islands has made them a convenient mid-ocean post-station, and they have therefore become a most important commercial centre.
HYDRAULIC GOLD MINING—CALIFORNIAHYDRAULIC GOLD MINING—CALIFORNIA
Of the various islands composing the group, Hawaii, Maui, Oahu, Kaui, Molokai, Lanai, and Niihau are inhabited. About one-fifth of the population consists of native Hawaiians; a little more than one-fifth is white; the remainder is composed of Japanese, Chinese, and Porto Ricans. The native population is decreasing. About ninety-five per cent. of the property is owned by the white people—Americans, English, and Germans.
The volcanic soils are the very best sugar-lands, and a large amount of capital is invested in this industry. The sugar-plantations employ more than forty thousand laborers, all Japanese, Chinese, and Porto Ricans. The value of the sugar export is nearly twenty-five million dollars yearly; that of fruit, rice, and hides is about two hundred and fifty thousand dollars. Coffee is rapidly becoming a leading product. The bulk of the imports comes from the United States, and consists of clothing, cotton textiles, lumber, and machinery.
Honolulu, on the island of Oahu, is the capital and commercial centre, and foreign steamships and sailing-craft are scarcely ever absent from its harbor. Regular steamship service connects this port with San Francisco, Seattle, Vancouver, B.C., and the principal ports of China and Japan. It is connected with the other islands by a system of wireless telegraphy. The city has the best of schools, business organizations, hotels, and streets.
Pearl Harborcontains a large area of water, most of which is deep enough for the largest vessels afloat. It is intended to deepen the entrance and establish a United States naval station at this place. The village ofHilois the chief port of the island of Hawaii.
The Philippine Islandsare an archipelago of about two thousand islands, the two largest of which, Luzon and Mindanao, are each nearly the size of New York State. Luzon is by far the most important.
After their cession to the United States (December 10, 1898), they were held under military control, but this hasgiven place to local self-government as rapidly as the circumstances permitted. A general school system has been established and is extended wherever practicable. In a considerable number of the islands civil organization is still impossible.
The following are the principal islands and their mineral resources:
NameChief Cities and PortsMineral ResourcesLuzonManila, Lipa, BatangasCoal, gold, copperMindanaoZamboangaCoal, gold, copperSamarCatbaloganCoal, goldNegrosBacolorCoalPanayIloiloCoal, gold, petroleumLeyteTaclobanCoal, petroleumMindoroCalapanCoal, goldCebuCebuCoal, petroleum, gold
The native population is mainly of the Malay race, but there are also many Negritos. Of the native element the Tagals are the most advanced, and are the dominant people. The foreign population includes nearly one hundred thousand Chinese, who are the chief commercial factors of the islands, and the leading industries are controlled by them. There is a considerable population of Chinese and Tagal mixed blood, commonly known as "Chinese mestizos"; they inherit, in the main, the Chinese characteristics. The European and American population consists mainly of officials, troops, and merchant-agents for Philippine products.
The principal products for export are "Manila" hemp, sugar, and tobacco. The hemp is used in the manufacture of cordage and paper. On account of the great strength of the fibre it has no equal among cordage fibres. Theimports from the United States consist mainly of machinery and cotton textiles. The total trade of the islands amounted in 1901 to about fifty million dollars, most of which was shared by Great Britain and the United States.
Coal is mined in the island of Cebu and is abundant in most of the islands. Iron ore, copper, and sulphur occur, but they have not been made commercially available to any extent. Gold is mined in the island of Luzon. A stable government only is needed to make these great resources productive. An abundance of timber is found in most of the islands. Cedar, ebony, and sapan-wood are available for ornamental purposes; there is also a great variety of economic woods.
Manilais the commercial centre. Manila Bay is one of the finest harbors in the Pacific Ocean, but much work is necessary to give the water-front a navigable depth for large steamships. With an improved harbor the city is bound to be a great emporium of Oriental trade. Steamship lines connect the city with Hongkong, Australia, Japan, Singapore, and Liverpool. There is also a military transport service to Seattle. A railway to Dagupan extends through the most important agricultural region. The wagon-roads throughout the island are very poor.
Lipa,Batanzas,Bauan, andCavitéare cities of about forty thousand population, all more or less connected with the industries of Manila.Iloilois the second port of importance of the islands, and is the centre of a considerable export trade in tobacco, hemp, sugar, and sapan-wood.Cebuis also a port having a considerable trade.
Tutuila, one of the Samoan Islands, was acquired by treaty for use as a coal-depot and naval station.Pago Pagois a port of call for steamships between San Francisco and Australia.Guam, one of the Ladrone Islands, is a naval station. These possessions are strategicand are designed to secure the interests of the United States in the Pacific. An ocean telegraphic cable connects the Pacific Ocean possessions with the United States and Asia.
QUESTIONS FOR DISCUSSION
Why are mountain-regions apt to be sparsely peopled?Why are arid regions sparsely peopled, as a rule?Why are not gold-mining settlements so apt to be permanent as agricultural settlements?From the Abstract of Statistics find the production of gold and silver of this region for each ten years ending the last half of the century.What causes the difference between the wool clip of southern California and that of the Eastern States?Follow the route of a grain-carrying ship from San Francisco to Liverpool.What are the advantages to the United States of the accession of the Hawaiian Islands?—of the Philippine Islands?—of Alaska? What are the disadvantages?
Why are mountain-regions apt to be sparsely peopled?
Why are arid regions sparsely peopled, as a rule?
Why are not gold-mining settlements so apt to be permanent as agricultural settlements?
From the Abstract of Statistics find the production of gold and silver of this region for each ten years ending the last half of the century.
What causes the difference between the wool clip of southern California and that of the Eastern States?
Follow the route of a grain-carrying ship from San Francisco to Liverpool.
What are the advantages to the United States of the accession of the Hawaiian Islands?—of the Philippine Islands?—of Alaska? What are the disadvantages?
FOR COLLATERAL READING AND REFERENCE
Mineral Resources of the United States.Abstract of Statistics.U.S. Coast Survey Chart of Alaska.Map of Hawaiian Islands.Map of Philippine Islands.
Mineral Resources of the United States.
Abstract of Statistics.
U.S. Coast Survey Chart of Alaska.
Map of Hawaiian Islands.
Map of Philippine Islands.
NIAGARA POWER-HOUSE (EXTERIOR)NIAGARA POWER-HOUSE (EXTERIOR)
NIAGARA POWER-HOUSE (INTERIOR)NIAGARA POWER-HOUSE (INTERIOR)
A very large part of Canada is so far north that the ordinary food-stuffs cannot be grown there; the river-valleys of British Columbia and the basin of the Saskatchewan excepted, there are but few marks of human industry beyond the fiftieth parallel. The general conditions of topography resemble those of the United States—a central plain between the high Rocky Mountain ranges in the west and the lower Laurentian ranges in the east.
Canada is an agricultural country, and because of the great skill with which its resources have been made commercially available, it is the most important colony of Great Britain. The basin of the Great Lakes and the St. Lawrence River is the most populous part of the country. This region is highly cultivated and produces dairy products, beef, and the ordinary farm-crops.
From Lake Winnipeg westward, nearly to the Rocky Mountains, the land is a succession of prairies admirably suited to wheat-growing.[56]The wheat is a hard, spring variety, and the average yield per acre is about one-fourth greater than the average yield in the United States.
The area of forestry includes the larger remaining part of the great pine belt, together with a very heavy reserveof merchantable oak-timber. The part of the forest area in Canada aggregates one and one-quarter million square miles, and yields an annual product of about eighty million dollars; about one-third of the lumber is exported.
The northerly region of Canada produces furs and pelts. As long ago as 1670, Charles II. granted to Prince Rupert and a stock company the lands comprising a very large part of Canada around Hudson Bay, and secured to them the sole right to trap the fur-bearing animals of the region. In time the company, known as the Hudson Bay Company, transferred all its lands to Canada, and out of the domain thus annexed various provinces and unorganized districts have been created.
The company now exists as a corporation for the merchandise of furs. For the greater part, Indians are employed as hunters and trappers, and the pelts are collected at the various trading-posts, known as "houses" and "factories," to be sent to the head-quarters of the company near Winnipeg. Nearly every Arctic animal furnishes a merchantable pelt. The cheaper skins are made into garments in Canada and the United States; those commonly classed as furs are sold in London. Several other fur companies are also operating in Canada.
The fisheries of the coast-waters and the Great Lakes are among the most productive in the world. Everything within the three-mile limit of the shore is reserved for Canadian fishermen. The smaller bays and coves are reserved also within the three-mile limit. Beyond this limit the waters are open to all, and a fleet of swift gun-boats is necessary to prevent illicit fishing. Salmon, cod, lobsters, and herring form most of the catch, amounting in value to upward of twenty million dollars yearly.
The output of minerals varies from year to year; since 1900 it has averaged about sixty million dollars ayear. The gold product constitutes nearly one-half and the coal about one-sixth of the total amount. Nickel, petroleum, silver, and lead form the rest of the output. Iron ore is abundant, but it is not at present available for production on account of the distance from transportation.
Commerce is facilitated by about eighteen thousand miles of railway and nearly three thousand miles of canal and improved river-navigation. One ocean-to-ocean railway, the Canadian Pacific, is in operation; another, an extension of the Grand Trunk, is under way. The rapids and shoals of the St. Lawrence and Richelieu Rivers are surmounted by canals and locks. Welland Canal connects Lake Erie and Lake Ontario, and the Canadian lock at St. Mary's Falls joins Lake Superior to Lake Huron. By means of the lakes and canals vessels drawing fourteen feet may load at Canadian ports and discharge at Liverpool.
The harbors of the Atlantic coast have two great drawbacks—ice and high tides. Some of the steamship lines make Portland, Me., their winter terminus. The Pacific coast harbors are not obstructed by ice. An attempt has been made in the direction of using Hudson Bay and Strait as a grain-route, but the difficulties of navigation are very great and the route is open only two months of the year.
Practically all the foreign trade is carried on with Great Britain and the United States. The trade with each aggregates about one hundred and fifty million dollars yearly. The exports are lumber and wood-pulp, cheese and dairy products, wheat and flour, beef-cattle, hog products, fish, and gold-quartz. The chief imports are steel, wool, sugar, and cotton manufactures.
Politically, Canada consists of a number of provinces, each with the usual corps of elective officers. A governor-general appointed by the Crown of Great Britain is the chief executive officer.
Nova Scotia.—This province is prominent on account of its coal and iron, and also because of its geographic position. The iron and coal are utilized in steel smelteries and rolling-mills, glass-factories, sugar-refineries, and textile-mills. It is one of the few localities in the eastern part of the continent yielding gold.Halifax, the capital, has one of the best harbors of the Atlantic coast of North America; it is not often obstructed by ice, and is the chief winter port. Halifax is the principal British naval station of North America, and this fact adds much to its commercial activity.
Prince Edward Island.—The industries of this province are mainly connected with the coast-fisheries. During the summer the island is visited by thousands of fishing-vessels for the purpose of preparing the catch for market. Fertilizer manufactured from the refuse is an incidental product.Charlottetownis the capital.
New Brunswick.—Fisheries and forest products are both resources of this province. Coal is mined atGrand Lake, and an excellent lime for export to the United States is made atSt. John. Lumber, wood-pulp, wooden sailing-vessels, cotton textiles, and structural steel for ship-building are manufactured. A ship railway, seventeen miles long, across the isthmus that connects this province to Nova Scotia, is under construction.St. John, the capital, is the chief seat of trade.
Quebec.—This province was once a possession of France, and in the greater part of it French customs are yet about as prevalent as they were a century ago; moreover, the French population is increasing rapidly. The English-speaking population lives mainly along the Vermont border. As a rule the English are the manufacturers and traders; the French people are the farmers.
Montrealis the head of navigation of the St. Lawrence for ocean steamships. It is also the chief centre ofmanufactures. These are mainly sugar, rubber goods, textiles, light steel wares, and leather. The last-named goes almost wholly to Great Britain; the rest are consumed in Canada and the border American States.Quebecis the most strongly fortified city of the Dominion.
Ontario.—This province is a peninsula bordered by Lakes Huron, Erie, and Ontario. Farming is the chief employment, and barley is an important product. Most of it is used in the manufacture of malt, and "Canada malt" is regarded as the best. Several of the trunk railways whose terminals are in the United States traverse this peninsula.Toronto, the capital and commercial centre, is one of the most rapidly growing cities of North America.Hamiltonowes its existence to its harbor and position at the head of Lake Ontario.Ottawais the capital of the Dominion. AtSudburyare the nickel-mines that are among the most productive in the world.
Manitoba,Saskatchewan, andAlberta.—These provinces include the level prairie lands of the Saskatchewan and the Red River of the North. They comprise the great grain-field of Canada. A considerable part of the wheat-growing lands are yet unproductive owing to the lack of railways. Much of the product is carried to market by the Canadian Pacific and its feeders, but a considerable part finds its way to the Northern Pacific and Great Northern roads. The coal of Manitoba and Alberta is an important fuel supply not only to the provinces and states surrounding, but to the railways above named. A good quality of anthracite coal is also mined in Alberta.Winnipeg, the metropolis of the region, is one of the great railway centres of Canada.
British Columbia.—British Columbia, the Pacific coast province, has several resources of great value. The gold mines led to its settlement and commercial opening. Thesalmon-fisheries are surpassed by those of the United States only. The beds of lignite coal have produced a very large part of the coal used in the Pacific coast States. The forests produce lumber for shipment both to the Atlantic coast of America and the Pacific coast of Asia.
Vancouver, the terminus of the Canadian Pacific Railway, is connected with various Asian ports by fast steamships.Nanaimo,Wellington, andCommoxare the centres of the coal-mining industry. The copper-mines atRosslandproduce most of the copper mined in Canada.
Newfoundland.—Although a Crown possession, Newfoundland is not a member of the Dominion of Canada. The extensive fisheries are its chief resource. The Labrador coast, which is used as a resort for curing and preserving the catch, is attached to Newfoundland for the purpose of government.St. Johnsis the capital.
The islands of Miquelon and St. Pierre, south of Newfoundland, are a French possession. Fishing is the ostensible industry, but a great deal of smuggling is carried on.
QUESTIONS FOR DISCUSSION
What, if any, climatic or topographic boundaries separate Canada and the United States?Which of the two countries is the more fortunately situated for the production of food-stuffs?Which will support the larger population?—why?The harbors of the Labrador coast and of Cape Breton Island are superior to those of the British Islands, situated in about the same latitude; why do the latter have a commerce far greater than that of the former?Compare the industries of the eastern, middle, and western regions of Canada with the corresponding regions of the United States.
What, if any, climatic or topographic boundaries separate Canada and the United States?
Which of the two countries is the more fortunately situated for the production of food-stuffs?
Which will support the larger population?—why?
The harbors of the Labrador coast and of Cape Breton Island are superior to those of the British Islands, situated in about the same latitude; why do the latter have a commerce far greater than that of the former?
Compare the industries of the eastern, middle, and western regions of Canada with the corresponding regions of the United States.
FOR COLLATERAL REFERENCE
Statesman's Year-Book.Statistical Year-Book of Canada (official government publication, Ottawa).
Statesman's Year-Book.
Statistical Year-Book of Canada (official government publication, Ottawa).
Mexico and the Central American states occupy the narrow, southerly part of North America. Structurally they consist of a plateau about a mile high, bordered on each side by a low coast-plain. The table-land, ortierra templada, has about the same climate as southern California; the low coast-plains, ortierra caliente, are tropical.
Mexico.—The United States of Mexico is the most important part of this group. The people are of mixed Spanish and Indian blood, but there are many families of pure Castilian descent. The latter, in general, are the landed proprietors; the former constitute the tradesmen, herders, and peons. There is also a large unproductive class, mainly of Indians, who are living in a savage state. In general the manners and customs are those of Spain.
The agricultural pursuits are in a backward condition, partly for the want of good system and an educated people, but mainly for lack of the capital and engineering skill to construct the irrigating canals that are needed to make the land productive. Maize, rice, sugar (cane and panocha), and wheat are grown for home consumption.
The agricultural products which connect Mexico with the rest of the world are sisal-hemp (henequin), coffee, logwood, and fruit. Sisal-hemp is grown in the state of Yucatan, and has become one of its chief financial resources. Oaxaca coffee is usually sold as a "Mocha" berry. The logwood goes mainly to British textile makers;and the fruit, chiefly oranges and bananas, finds a market in the large cities of the United States, to which large consignments of vanilla and tropical woods are also sent. Cattle are grown on more than twenty thousand ranches, and the greater part are sent alive to the markets of the United States. The native long-horn stock is giving place to improved breeds.
MEXICOMEXICO
Gold and silver are the products that have made Mexico famous, and the mines have produced a total of more than three billion dollars' worth of precious metal. The native methods of mining have always been primitive, and low-grade ores have been neglected. In recent years American and European capital has been invested in low-grade mines, and the bullion production has been about doubled in value; it is now about one hundred million dollars yearly. Iron ore is abundant, and good coal exists.
The manufactures, at present of little importance, are growing rapidly. The cotton-mills consume the home product and fill their deficiency from the Texas crop. All the finer textiles, however, are imported. Most of the commodities are supplied by the United States, Great Britain, and Germany, the first-named having about half the trade. Most of the hardware and machinery is purchased in the United States.
Railway systems, with American terminal points at El Paso, San Antonio, and New Orleans, extend from the most productive parts of the country. One of the most important railways crosses the Isthmus of Tehuantepec, and, in order to encourage commerce, the harbors at Coatzacoalcos and Salina Cruz have been deepened and improved. This interoceanic route is destined to become a very important factor in commerce. It shortens the route between European ports and San Francisco by six thousand miles, and between New York and San Francisco by twelve hundred miles.[57]
Mexico, the capital, is the financial and commercial centre.Vera CruzandTampicoare connected with the capital by railway, but both have very poor port facilities. Steamship lines connect the former with New York, New Orleans, Havana, and French ports. It is the chief port of the country.Matamoroson the American frontier has a considerable cattle-trade. The crop of sisal-hemp is shipped mainly fromProgressoandMerida.Acapulco,Manzanillo, andMazatlanfor want of railway connections have but little trade. The first-named is one of the best harbors in the world.Guadalajarahas important textile and pottery manufactures.
The Central American States.—The physical features and climate of these states resemble those of Mexico. The Spanish-speaking people live in the table-lands, where the climate is healthful. The coast-plain of the Atlantic is forest-covered and practically uninhabited save by Indians. Guatemala is the most important state. A railway fromPuerto Barrios, its Atlantic port, through its capital,Guatemala, to its Pacific port,San José, is nearly completed. British Honduras is a British territory acquired mainly for the mahogany product, which is shipped fromBelize. Honduras has great resources in mines, cultivable lands, and forests, but these are undeveloped. Salvador is the smallest but most progressive state.
ROUTE OF PROPOSED NICARAGUA CANALROUTE OF PROPOSED NICARAGUA CANAL
Nicaragua is politically of importance on account of the possibilities of an interoceanic canal. A treaty for this canal, involving both Nicaragua and Great Britain, has already been signed by the powers interested. Many engineers regard the Nicaragua as preferable to that of the Panama canal. The shorter distance between New York and the Pacific ports of the United States, a saving ofabout four hundred miles, is in its favor. The longer distance of transit and the dangers of navigating Lake Nicaragua are against it. Costa Rica is favorably situated for commerce, but its resources are not developed. A railway fromPuerto Limonis nearly completed toPuenta Arenas, an excellent harbor on the Pacific side.
Coffee, hides, mahogany, and fruit are the only products of importance that connect these states with the rest of the world. About half the trade goes to the United States. The Germans and English supply a considerable part of the textiles and manufactured articles. The coffee of Costa Rica is a very superior product. Much of the mahogany and forest products goes to Great Britain. Fruit-steamers call at the Atlantic ports for bananas, which are sold in New Orleans and the Atlantic cities.
The West Indies.—The climate and productions of these islands are tropical in character. Sugar, fruit, coffee, tobacco, and cacao are the leading products. From the stand-point of the planter, the sugar industry has been a history of misfortunes. The abolition of slavery ruined the industry in many of the islands belonging to Great Britain. The competition of the beet-sugar made in Europe drove the Cubans into insurrection on account of the excessive taxes levied by the Spaniards, and ended in the Spanish-American War.
The fruit-crop—mainly pineapples, oranges, and grapefruit—is shipped to the United States. New York, Philadelphia, and the Gulf ports are the destination of the greater part of it.
Cuba, the largest island, is one of the most productive regions of the world. The famous "Havana" tobacco grows mainly in the western part, although practically all Cuban tobacco is classed under this name. According to popular opinion it is pre-eminently the best in flavor, andthe price is not affected by that of other tobaccos.[58]About two-thirds of the raw leaf and cigars are purchased by the tobacco manufacturers of the United States.Havana,Santiago, andCienfuegosare the shipping-ports; most of the export is landed at New York, Key West, and Tampa.
From 1900 to 1903 the small fraction of the sugar industry that survived the war and the insurrection was crippled by the high tariff on sugar imported into the United States. The latter, which was designed to protect the home sugar industry, was so high that the Cubans could not afford to make sugar at the ruling prices in New York. Hides, honey, and Spanish cedar for cigar-boxes are also important exports.
The United States is the chief customer of Cuba, and in turn supplies the Cubans with flour, textile goods, hardware, and coal-oil. Smoked meat from Latin America and preserved fish from Canada and Newfoundland are the remaining imports. There are no manufactures of importance. The railways are mainly for the purpose of handling the sugar-crop.
Havana, the capital and financial centre, is connected with New York, New Orleans, and Key West by steamship lines.Santiago,Matanzas, andCienfuegosare ports having a considerable trade.
The British possessions in the West Indies are commercially the most important of the European possessions. The Bahamas are low-lying coral islands, producing but little except sponges, fruit, and sisal-hemp.Nassau, the only town of importance, is a winter resort. Fruit, sugar, rum, coffee, and ginger are exported fromKingston, the port of Jamaica.St. Luciahas probably the strongest fortress in the Caribbean Sea.
Barbados produces more sugar than any other British possession in the West Indies. The raw sugar, muscovado, is shipped to the United States. Bermuda, an outlying island, furnishes the Atlantic states with onions, Easter lilies, and early potatoes. From Trinidad is obtained the asphaltum, or natural tar, that is used for street paving. Brea Lake, the source of the mineral, is leased to a New York company. Sugar and cacao are also exported from Port of Spain. The products of St. Vincent and Dominica are similar to those of the other islands.
The French own Martinique (Fort de France) and Guadeloupe (Basse Terre). St. Thomas (Charlotte Amalie), St. Croix, and St. John are Danish possessions. Various attempts to transfer the Danish islands to the United States have failed. They are admirably adapted for naval stations. The island of Haiti consists of two negro republics, Haiti and San Domingo. The only important product is coffee. Most of the product is shipped to the United States, which supplies coal oil and textiles in return.
QUESTIONS FOR DISCUSSION