Page:Encyclopædia Britannica, Ninth Edition, v. 11.djvu/264

Rh GUIANA [BRITISH. rivers in 7 to 8 N. lat. A sandstone formation can be traced from the northern Pacaraima mountains on the west to the Corantyn on the east. Interbedded with it are three great layers of greenstone. The surface of a very large portion of the colony is composed of gneiss, which is seen in large rounded bosses in the river beds. Schist of different kinds is associated with gneiss in many localities. Quartz-porphyry and felstone occupy extensive areas over tlie surface of the granite and underlying the gneiss. A large proportion of the surface rock in the interior is granite. The white sand at the sandhills on the Demerara and elsewhere is very pure and well-adapted for glass -making. Gold has been found about 40 miles up the Cuyuni river, Attempts to work it have met with small success, and have been complicated with questions of boundary. Rivers. The colony is traversed by numerous large rivers, the principal being the Essequibo, Corantyn, Mazaruni, Cayuui, Berbice, and Demerara. The Corantyn forms the boundary between British and Dutch Guiana. It rises in 2 N. lat., 100 miles eastward of the Essequibo, flows generally northward, and falls into the Atlantic by a broad estuary in 6 N. lat., 57 W. long. It is navigable for small vessels for 150 miles from its mouth, and is remarkable for its magnificent cataracts. The Cuyuni, coming from Venezuela, runs a course of 120 miles through territory claimed as British. The Essequibo rises in the Sierra Acarai. 40 N. lat., and after a course of at least GOO miles discharges itself into the ocean by an estuary 15 miles in width, in 7 N. lafc., 58 40 W. long. In this estuary are a group of islands where sugar is grown, several being from 12 to 15 miles long and 3 miles broad. The principal are Hog Island, Wakenaam, and Leguan ; a smaller one is named Tiger Island. The entrance of the Essequibo is difficult owing to deposits of mud and sand. Its course lies through forests of gigantic vegetation. About 43 miles from its mouth it is joined by the Mazaruni, which is itself joined by the Cuyuni at 8 miles from its mouth. The cataracts, of which one of the greatest is the King William s Cataract of Schomburgk, in 3 14 35&quot; N. lat., put a stop to the navigation of the Essequibo by large vessels about 50 miles up. In 3 57 30&quot; N. lat. and 58 3 W. long, it receives the Rupununi, which has a course of 220 miles. Another large tributary is the Potaro, upon which is the celebrated Kaieteur (Old Man s) Fall, so named from an Indian legend, and discovered on April 24, 1370, by Mr C. B. Brown of the Geological Survey, who, owing to cataracts, took a fortnight to reach the fall from the coast up the Essequibo and Potaro. This fall, in 5 8 N. lat. and 59 19 W. long., is produced by the river flowing over a sandstone and conglomerate table-land 822 feet into a deep valley below. For the first 741 feet the water falls perpendicularly, as one great continuous whitish column, circled by rainbows, into a basin below, con tinuing thence over a sloping cataract 88 feet in height, and through the interstices of great blocks of rock, to the river bed below. The head of the fall is 1 130 feet above the sea. The river 200 yards above the fall is 400 feet wide, and the width of the fall itself varies, according to the season, from 240 to 370 feet. The Demerara or Dernerary rises probably noar 5 N. lat., and after a northward course nearly parallel with the Essequibo for more than 200 miles, enters the Atlantic near 6 50 N. lat. and 58 20 W. long. It is navigable for 85 miles, and at its mouth at Georgetown is 1^ miles across. A bar, or deposit of mud and sand, prevents the entrance of large vessels at low tide. Farther east is the Berbice, whose source is probably about 3 40 N. lat. It is 2 miles wide at its mouth in 6 21 N. lat., 57 12 W. long., and is navigable for 175 miles by vessels drawing 7 feet of water. The Canje creek falls into the Berbice near its mouth. Several large streams called creeks fall directly into the Atlantic between the Berbice and the Demerara. The Boerasiri creek divides the counties of Demerara and Essequibo, and between the Essequibo and the Barima are the rivers or creeks Pomeroon, Morucca, and Waini. Climate. The climate, especially in the interior, is healthy. The even temperature is considered suitable for pulmonary complaints ; and tubercular consumption is un known. There are no hurricanes, and gales are not frequent. Occasionally there is a long drought, but the following order of seasons is generally maintained. From the middle of April to June there is a long season of heavy rains, which decrease in July; the long dry season lasts from August to November; December and January comprise the short rainy season, and February and March the short dry season. The winds during the rains are generally westerly. In the dry seasons they blow from the ocean and modify the heat. The thermometer seldom rises above 90 or falls below 75 Fahr. At Georgetown the mean annual tempera ture is 81 2. The rainfall in 1878 was 69 - 94 inches, the average having been 74 inches for 1873-77. Population. The census of 1871 was as follows : 113,570 born in British Guiana (including 70,000 to 80,000 negroes, 10,000 born of Indian and Chinese parents, and the &quot;coloured&quot; population), 42,081 immigrants from India, G295 Chinese, 7925 from Madeira and Azores, 13,385 negroes from West-Indian Islands, and 9035 Europeans and others ; total 193,491, exclusive of aborigines, estimated at 7000. The estimated total population on 31st December 1876 was 225,365. and further explorations have increased the esti mated number of aboriginal Indians. The aborigines are remnants of Indian tribes, such as the Arawaks, Warraus, Caribs, and many others, scattered in the interior of the country. They maintain themselves by fishing and limit ing. Traces of &quot; Indian picture-writing,&quot; or sculptured figures, have been found in some granite blocks up the Essequibo. On December 31, 1877, 22,500 East Indian immigrants were working under a five years indenture on the estates, and 26,000 not under indenture. Since 1857, 10,315 East Indian coolies (including women and children), with savings amounting to ,260,479, have availed themselves of their right to return passage. A number re-emigrate to the colony. The Indian Government supervises the emigration. In the colony an immigration department regulates labour, wages, and general treatment. About 5000 are now annually introduced. Chinese have also been introduced with and without indenture. Vegetation. The vegetation is most luxuriant. The interior affords an exhaustless supply of valuable timber, such as the mora and greenheart, largely used for shipbuilding. The climate insures a continuous succession of tropical flowers and fruits. Many of the trees yield gums, febrifuges, oils, and juices of more or less value, among which may be mentioned caoutchouc, and a gum called &quot;balata,&quot; with properties intermediate between those of caoutchouc and gutta percha. The bark of the crab tree is used for tanning. The silk-cotton tree, which grows 100 feet high and 12 feet round, yields a light-grey silky cotton used for stuffing pillows. Among the palm- trees are the picturesque mountain cabbage palm, growing to the height of 100 feet ; the cocoa-nut palm ; the sago palm ; the eta palm, much esteemed for its beauty and fruit ; and the cockarite palm, which produces the most delicate cabbage of all the palm species. The mangrove tree, 15 to 20 feet high, skirts the sea-coast. The tobacco plant grows wild, and indigenous cottons are numerous. A little rice is grown. The fruit of the plantain and banana is largely iised for food, and the stems furnish fibre for paper-making. Orange, lime, guava, cashew, and pine-apple are among the fruits. Indigo used to be cultivated. Arnotto, from which the well-known dye is obtained, is indigenous ; and logwood and vanilla are also found. Maize, cassava, yams, papaw tree fruit, sweet potatoes, peppers, and other productions are valuable for food or medicine. The largest of the water lilies, the Victoria rcgia, was first dis covered in Guiana. Animals. Among the wild .animals are the tapir or bush cow, the manatee (the flesh of which is sometimes eaten), the jaguar or &quot;tiger,&quot; three kinds of ant-bear, the sloth, opossum, armadillo,