Page:Encyclopædia Britannica, Ninth Edition, v. 12.djvu/142

130 130 HONDURAS Mountains. The general aspect of the country is mountainous ; it is traversed by ranges of mountains and hills radiaKng from the common base of the Cordilleras. That chain does not, in this republic, approach within 50 or 60 miles of the Pacific ; nor does it throughout maintain its general character of an unbroken range, but sometimes turns back on itself, forming interior basins or valleys, within which are collected the headwaters of the streams that traverse the country in the direction of the Atlantic Ocean. Nevertheless, viewed from the Pacific, it presents the appearance of a great natural wall, with a lower range of mountains, bristling with volcanic peaks, intervening between it and the western sea. It would almost seem that at one time the Pacific broke at the foot of the great mountain barrier, and that the subordinate coast range was subsequently thrust up by volcanic forces. The northern and eastern coasts of the republic present several bold groups of mountains, which are the ends of the ranges radiating .north and east from the Cordilleras, and which, striking the coast diagonally, and overlapping each other, seem to form an unbroken range, and are sometimes repre sented as such on the maps. The Cordilleras proper traverse the state in the general direction of nortli-west and south-east, but it is throughout serpentine, and at one point is interrupted by a great transverse valley or plain, known as the plain of Comayagua, having an extreme length of about 40 miles, with a width of from 5 to 15 miles, from which, extending due north to the Atlantic, is the valley of the river Humuya, and due south, to the Pacific, the valley of the river Goascoran, collectively constituting a great transverse valley reaching from sea to sea, which was pointed out soon after the conquest as an appropriate course for inter-oceanic communication. Topographically the country has great diversity of surface and elevation ; broad alluvions, fertile valleys, wide and elevated plains, and mountains terraced to their summits, collectively afford ing almost every variety of climate, soil, and production, from oranges and pine apples in the valleys to peaches and pears on the table-lands. Hydrography. The rivers of Honduras are numerous, and some of them of large size and navigable. The largest is the Ulua, which drains a wide expanse of territory, com prehending nearly one-third of the entire state, and pro bably discharges a greater amount of water into the sea than any other river of Central America, the Wanks or Segovia, perhaps, excepted. It may be navigated by steamers of light draught for the greater part of its course. The soil on its banks is of extreme fertility. The Rio Aguan or Roman is a large stream falling into the sea near Truxillo, with a total length of about 120 miles. Its largest tributary is the Rio Mangualil, celebrated for its gold washings, and it may be ascended by boats of light draft for 80 miles. Rio Tinto, Negro, or Black River, called also Poyer or Poyas, is a considerable stream, said to have a length of 120 miles ; it is navigable by small vessels for from 40 to 60 miles. Some English settlements were made on its banks during the last century. The Poyas Indians have a number of establishments on its upper tributaries. The Rio Wanks or Segovia is the longest, if not the largest, river in Central America, rising within 50 miles of the Bay of Fonseca, and flowing into the Carib bean Sea at Cape Gracias A Dios, constituting for the greater part of its length the boundary between Honduras and Nicaragua, and having a length of 350 miles. For 251 miles above its mouth it flows through an almost unhvoken wilderness, among high mountains and over a very broken and rocky bed. It is nevertheless occasionally navigated by canoes to within a few leagues of the town of Ocotal or Nueva Segovia in Nicaragua. Three consider able rivers flow into the Pacific, the Goascoran, Nacaome, and Choluteca, the last-named having a length of about 150 miles. The Goascoran, which almost interlocks with the Humuya, in the plain of Comayagua, has a length of about 80 miles. The Lake of Yojoa or Taulebe is the only lake of note in Honduras, and is about 25 miles in length, by from 6 to 8 in breadth. Its surface is 2050 feet above the sea. It has two outlets on the south, the rivers Jaitique and Sacapa, which unite about 15 miles from the lake ; and it is drained on the north by the Rio Blanco, a narrow, deep stream falling into the Ulua. It has also a feeder on the north, in the form of a subterranean stream of beautiful clear water, which here comes to the surface. Harbours and Islands. The Bay of Fonseca or Conchagua, some times called Amapala, is one of the finest ports, or &quot;constellation of ports,&quot; on the entire Pacific, and on it Honduras has a larger frontage than Nicaragua or San Salvador. It is upwards of 50 miles in greatest length by about 30 miles in average width, with an entrance from the sea about 18 miles wide, between the great volcanoes of Conchagua, 3800 feet high, and Coseguina, 3000 feet high, the lofty islands of Conchaguita and Mianguiri lying between them, with a collection of rocks called &quot;Los Farellones,&quot; dividing the entrance into four distinct channels, each of sufficient depth for the largest vessels. A channel called &quot;El Estero Real&quot; extends from the extreme southern point of the bay into Nicaragua for about 50 miles, reaching within 20 or 25 miles of Lake Managua. The principal islands in the bay are Sacate Grande, Tigre, Gueguensi, and Esposescion belonging to Honduras, and Martin Perez, Punta Sacate, Conchaguita, and Mianguiri belonging to San Salvador. Of these Sacate Grande is the largest, being about 7 miles -long by 4 broad. The island of Tigre from its position is the most important in the bay, being about 20 miles in circumference, and rising in the form of a cone to the height of 2500 feet. The slope from the water for some distance inland is gentle, admitting of cultivation. Upon the southern and eastern shores the lava forms black rocky barriers to the waves, varying in height from 10 to 80 feet ; but on the northward and eastward are a number of playas or coves, with smooth, sandy beaches. Facing one of the most considerable of these is the port of Amapala, with deep water in front, where ships of ordinary size may lie within a cable s length of the shore. This island was a favourite resort of the pirates, and it was here that Drake had his depot during his operations in the South Sea. It exports hides, indigo, tobacco, bullion, silver and copper ores, and Brazil wood. The bay abounds in fish, oysters, crabs, and cray fish, and water-fowl swarm along its shores. The whole region around it is eminently productive, and adapted to the production of every tropical commodity. The savannas back from the shores are fitted for grazing, while wheat, potatoes, and other products of the temperate zone may be cultivated on the plateaus and slopes of the mountains in the interior, where oaks and pines are abundant. The silver and gold mining districts of Tabanco, Aramacina, San Martyn, and Corpus all lie within from 10 to 40 miles of this bay. Limestone is also found near by, with a fine rose-coloured sandstone. Extensive beds of coal exist in the valley of the river Lempa. Puerto Caballos, on the northern coast, in 15 49 N. lat. nnd 87 57 &quot;W. long., was selected by Cortes during his expedition into Honduras for the settlement which he founded, with the purpose of making it the entrepSt of New Spain ; he called it Natividad. For more than two centuries it was the principal establishment on the coast ; but, during the time of the buccaneers, the settlement was removed to Omoa, a few miles to the east, because of the large size of the bay, which could only be adequately defended by the construction of several forts, while a single work, still extant and formidable, was sufficient for Omoa. The port or rather bay is about 9 miles in circumference, with a depth throughout the greater part of its area of from 4 to 12 fathoms, with secure holding ground. Towards the northern shore the depth of water is greatest ; there sxritable docks have been constructed, and the largest ocean steamers may enter and tie up, the rise and fall of the tide being scarcely perceptible. The prevailing winds are from the north-east, north, and north by west, from all which points the port is perfectly protected. The port of Omoa, in 15 47 N. lat. and 88 3 W. long. , is small but secure, and is defended by a strong work, &quot;El Castillo de San Fernando. The anchorage is good, in from 2 to 6 fathoms. The population in 1876 was about 600, most of the inhabitants having removed to San Pedro, 37 miles inland, where the business of the port is transacted. The exports of these ports consist of bullion, tobacco, indigo, sarsaparilla, hides, &c. A large number of cattle are shipped annually to supply the markets of Cuba and the mahogany establishments of Belize. There is an abundant supply of fish, turtle, and wild fowl from the quays and waters in its vicinity. Puerto Sal is a small harbour a few miles to the eastward of Puerto Caballos. Truxillo is an ancient port, in 15 55 N. lat. and 86 W. long., situated on the western shore of a noble bay, formed by the projecting land of Punta Castilla. Its