Page:Narrative of an Official Visit to Guatemala.djvu/438

418 tables of my hostess were manufactured in England, whilst the wood from which they were cut had travelled upwards of 15,000 miles before they reached the spot of their ultimate destination, that being the same shore on which they had grown. One of the largest of the logs ever imported into England, was bought at Liverpool for £378, and was supposed to have returned to the manufacturer at least £l,000. If cut into veneers, £550 of this sum would be paid in wages to British mechanics.

To the north of the town lie the barracks, behind which, and all round, within the circumference of three or four miles, the country is closed in with woods and marshes, rendering it perfectly inaccessible either to friend or foe. As it is liable therefore to attack only from the sea-board, and as the fort has room enough in it to be made capable of holding artillery sufficient to repel a formidable fleet, Belize ought to be considered a very important key to this part of the continent.