F

OUR centuries ago, following its discovery by Christopher Columbus, that small portion of this hemisphere now called the Dominican Republic was the first land settled by Europeans, and its capital, Santo Domingo, became the gateway of civilization on the American continent.

Treasured with jealous pride in this historic city are the most precious relics of that most fruitful of all human enterprises the discovery of America. Here, in the remote beginnings of American civilization, bold conquerors made their haven, and here the missionaries, pioneers in sowing the seeds of progress in every clime, demonstrated their faith, self-denial, and enlightenment.

In the patios and corridors of the palaces at Santo Domingo, built by the first hidalgos who crossed the Atlantic, rest the mortal remains of many a bold adventurer and devoted prelate. Here, guarded with veneration, lie the remains of the immortal Genoese sailor. Here crumble the walls of the University, which once gave to Santo Domingo the name of "Athens of America." Here tarried Cortés, Diego de Valazquez, Alvarado, Vasco Nuñez de Balboa, Ponce de Leon, Alonso de Ojeda, Francisco Pizarro, Rodrigo de Bastidas, Valdivia, Oviedo, Las Casas, and a galaxy of others who carried the sword and the cross and the vices and virtues of European civilization to the New World. From Santo Domingo Vasco Nuñez de Balboa sailed on the memorable voyage which immortalized

his name and paved the way for de Lesseps and Goethals at the Isthmus of Panama.

When, four centuries later, the dream that began with Balboa's discovery was realized in the completion of the Panama Canal, the Dominican Republic, through a magnificent haven of protected sea known as Samaná Bay, was made the sea's gateway to the canal, giving to the historic republic a renewed influence on the development of trade and commerce.

Samaná Bay is a strip of water thirty miles long and from seven to ten miles wide, protected from wind and sea by the islets which guard its entrance. Mountains surround the bay, and with these heights and the narrow entrance, the port is a natural haven, practically impregnable to storms or hostile attack.

The bay runs from east to west, with its mouth lying towards the island of Porto Rico, at the entrance of La Mona passage. This passage affords the shortest route between the manufacturing centers of Europe and the Panama Canal for the traffic from the Atlantic ocean to the Caribbean Sea.

Samaná Bay can offer to shipping the advantages of a free port, exempt from all duties and taxes, and equipped with warehouses for the storage of merchandise for the supply of ships in transit to or from the canal, and for the needs of neighboring or even distant markets. It can be used for the repairs made necessary to ships during long voyages, and as a base for coal and oil supplies. The bay affords ample

dians, commanded by Mayabanex, offered the first armed resistance met by the Spaniards in their voyage of discovery in the New World. As the result of this encounter, Columbus named the bay the "Gulf of Arrows."

A few miles to the northwest of the bay are the ruins of Isabela, the first city built by the white man in America. At Isabela occurred the first insurrections among Christians in America. It is notable in the light of later history that the first uprisings in the New World were plotted by fullblooded Europeans.

ing defeat on the strong English expedition led by Admiral Penn and General Venables in Great Britain's effort to wrest the island from the Spanish crown. Here the same courageous militiamen drove off the victors of Marengo, and shattered the plan of the great Napoleon to secure a foothold on the island. On all the island may be found a thousand traces left by the early European discoverers and adventurers who sailed into the New World, bent on missions of peace or on bloody incursions against its inhabi

tants.

bent upon the equipment of Samaná Bay in keeping with the requirements of modern times. The plan of establishing a coaling station on Samaná Bay is not new. North American capitalists and statesmen have had it in mind, and several times have sought to secure leases on the bay. The Dominican public, however, has been opposed to any plan which would involve alienation or curtailment of its sovereignty, and the republic awaits the realization of the work through the national government or through private auspices under which the interests of the government will be fully protected.

When the French undertook the digging of the Panama Canal, the Dominican government granted a concession on Samaná Bay under which the French would have a free port, with docks, warehouses, and other facilities. The project died with the failure of the French enterprise at Panama, but its revival with the completion of the new waterway across the Isthmus is expected as a natural evolution of the progress of commercial traffic by sea.

To make Samaná the exclusive port for the foreign trade which the growing production in the Dominican Republic insistently demands, it would be but

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necessary to connect it with the capital and the agricultural portions of the island by a short and inexpensive railroad. At the present time there are two lines of railway and an extensive highway, which afford intercommunication between the principal cities and agricultural centers of the northern part of the republic, and leading to Samaná Bay.

Ships touching at Samaná would then find the following articles for their cargoes:

Cocoa, produced in great quantities in five of the Dominican provinces, and which, under the name of Sanchez cocoa, is exported to Europe and the United States-the Dominican Republic, in spite of its small population, holding the sixth place in the world's output of cocoa; the famous Dominican mahogany, in greatest demand because of its peerless quality; pine, lignum-vitæ and espinillo, and great quantities of other precious woods growing in virgin forests; Barahona coffee, classed among the best in America; cane sugar from plantations whose rich and fertile soil makes resowing unnecessary; tobacco, cotton and honey; meats from the Dominican ranches; and iron and oil from mineral resources as yet untouched

NOW

OW that the secular work of dividing the Isthmus of Panama to unite the two great oceans and the whole American Continent has been so admirably and successfully carried through, it seems a proper time to give a glance to the countries to the south and see how they will profit and to what extent they will contribute to the international trade development.

Bolivia is one of the countries of the Western coast of South America offering great possibilities for very profitable and extensive enterprises. Situated in the center of the continent, embracing a territory of over 1,400,000 kilometers, rich in all kinds of minerals, and extending from the high plateaus to the tropical forests of the Amazon vales, it offers every opportunity for profitable mining, agriculture, cattle raising, and the exploitation of tropical products, such as rubber, coffee, cocoa, Peruvian bark, etc.

The central plateau of Bolivia has an area of about 170,000 square kilometers. It is formed by the two great branches of the Andes mountains, which run through the country from north to south and offer a grand panorama of lofty snow-clad peaks, forming as it were, the frame of the great mineral deposits of gold, silver, copper, tin, wolfram, bismuth, and zinc. During the Spanish domination and the first part of the last century, the silver mines of Potosí, Colquichaca, Lipez, and Oruro increased by thousands of millions of dollars the wealth of the world, and if they are not worked now it is on account of the low

price of silver compared with the cost of its production.

But tin is at present the most important mineral; its production has grown enormously, and represents almost one-third of the world's output. In 1913 it reached over 40,000 tons; and although the United States uses about fifty per cent. of the world's tin, but eight tons of Bolivian tin came here, the rest going to England, Germany, and France.

The high cost of freight is mainly responsible for such an anomaly, and the Panama Canal will no doubt secure to the United States its due share in this and other Bolivian products.

The mean temperature of the Bolivian high plateau is rather cold, about fifty degrees. The sun, even in winter, feels hot on account of the cloudless sky, but in the shade one is apt to feel chilly. The mean altitude of this section is from 12,000 to 13,000 feet above sea level. The intermediate valleys, where the altitude does not exceed 8,000 feet above sea level, offer a very moderate and enjoyable climate, suitable for corn, wheat, barley and all kinds of fruits of the temperate zone. The great plains and forests on the other side of the eastern cordillera embrace an area of about 800,000 square kilometers, and are watered by a river system navigable by small boats for more than 9,000 kilometers.

Before reaching the great tropical forests there are large grazing fields, where wild cattle roam at will. These will be one of the important centers of the cattle industry. The eastern forests of Bolivia are abundant

in rubber trees, principally the hebea, considered the best for quality and productiveness. Amongst the tropical products and fruits, the coffee and cocoa of that section are considered as very superior. Cedar, mahogany, and a large variety of other fine woods add to the value and importance of the forests. Bolivia is one of the best organized of the Southern republics, and it is a most remarkable fact that the great development that has lately taken place in the various branches of industry, and the peaceful political advance of the country, is owing principally to the efforts and good sense of the native population. On account of its very central and interior position Bolivia lacks immigration and the necessary capital to develop properly the various branches of industry that its extensive and rich territory offers to the immigrants and the capitalists.

In spite of all the drawbacks that hinder its progress, Bolivia has grown very materially in the last few years. Its foreign trade shows the remarkable development of the country. In 1902 it amounted to a little over 42,000,000 bolivianos (the boliviano is about thirty-nine cents gold) and in 1912 reached to over 100,041,000 bolivianos. Germany, England, and the United States furnish most of the imports, but the exports of Bolivia go principally to England, and some to Germany and France. The United States, out of the total exports of more than $35,000,000, received only $29,000 in 1909 and $152,967 in 1912. All this must be changed with the opening of the canal.

Railway construction has been lately very active. Bolivia has now three different railways to the Pacific; one from La Paz to Mollendo in Peru, 857 kilometers; the La Paz-Arica road, 498 kilometers; and the Antofagasta road, that crosses a very important section of the Bolivian high plateau, is 924 kilometers, running from Antofagasta in Chile to La Paz.

Several other interior railroads are being constructed and studied, in order not only to connect the principal cities but to

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establish an easy communication with the navigable rivers, and thus consolidate the national interests and foster domestic trade.

Bolivia's political organization is based on the principle of the sovereignty of the people, represented in Congress by sixteen senators and seventy-two representatives, elected by direct vote, and a president, first and second vice-president, also elected by direct vote, for four years, without reelection. The judiciary is composed of the Supreme Court, and inferior tribunals appointed for a fixed period.

Public instruction is very much encouraged, and lately many new schools, especially for the Indians, have been opened, and the number of scholars has considerably increased.

The press is represented by over eighty different newspapers and periodicals, published in the principal cities. Public worship is free for all religions, and the foreigners enjoy in Bolivia the same rights as the natives as regards land ownership, mining, and other pursuits. Notwithstanding the fact that Bolivia has no seacoast, having lost it after the war with Chile in 1879, the country has enjoyed a very marked advance, and if it has not grown more rapidly it is owing to the want of capital and population-two main elements of rapid progress.

The total population of Bolivia is not much above two and a half million, of which the majority are Indians; but with all these drawbacks no country in South America has a more stable government, or offers better opportunities.

The Bolivians are sober, hospitable, and industrious; they are a peaceful people, but at the same time there is a pronounced military spirit that makes the Bolivian army one of the best in South America.

With a settled political organization, immense natural resources, a vast and varied territory, a peaceful and industrious people, Bolivia certainly ought to attract the attention of capitalists and immigrants looking for profitable investments, happy homes, and an assured future.