Page:Statesman's Year-Book 1921.djvu/825

 DEFENCE — PRODUCTION 773

year 1919-20, makes a total of 22,000,000 pesos. To meet these liabilities the estimated resources are revenue, 14,000,000 pesos, bonds to be issued 1,700,000 pesos, loans from banks aud individuals, 2,300,000 pesos, and Treasury certificates, 14,000,000 pesos.

The external debt on January 1, 1921, amounted to 3,887,109*., made up as follows: — Consolidated external debt of 1896, 1,564,700/.; five per ceut. Government bonds of 1906, specially secured on the BogoU-Sabana Railway, six per cent, external gold loan of 1911, six per cent, external debt of 1913, Puerto Wilches Railway Bonds and Perier loan of 1913, . »09Z.

The consolidated internal debt on March 1, 1920, was 2,848,260 gold pesos, and the floating debt 10,840,654 pesos.

Defence.

Military service is compulsory, from 1 to 1$ years. The permanent army sof3 divisions of 2 brigades of 2 regiments of infantry; total 12 infantry regimenis ; 1 cavalry regiment of 4 squadrons ; 1 artillery section ; 1 engineer battalion ; 1 transjiort battalion of 3 companies. The peace effective is about 6,000. In war time every fit Colombian is compelled to serve, and the war effective is about 50,000. The infantry are armed with rifles of the improved Remington pattern, with the French Gras rifla, and with the 88 pattern Mauser.

Colombia has no navy.

Production.

Only a small section of the country is under cultivation. Much of the soil is fertile, but of no present value, from want of means of communication and transport. Coffee is the staple product. Tobacco is also grown ; cotton is produced in Magdalen*, Bolivar. Antioquia and Sanumder, and is be- ginning to be cultivated in Boyaca, Tolima, and Cundinamarca. Cotton area in 1918, 24,000 acres; production 2,750,000 lbs. Cocoa, sugar, vegetable ivory, tagua (or vegetable ivory nut), and dyewoods are produced, besides wheat, maize, plantains, ic. Banana cultivation is extending, and near Santa Marta a large amount of capital is invested in this industry. The rubber tree grows wild, and its cultivation has begun. Tolu balsam is cultivated, and copaiba trees are tapped but are not cultivated. Dye and cedar woods are abundant on the Magdalena river, but little or no wood of any sort is exported. The Panama hat industry is making great strides; some 86 per cent, of the hats manu- factured are sent to the United States. The total number of factories in Colombia in 1915 was 121, in which 12,406,000 dollars were invested. The principal manufacturing centres are Bogota, Medellin, Barranqnilla, and Cartagena.

The country may be divided into five sections — (1) The Caribbean coast country is tropical, little agriculture is engaged in (except the raising of bananas in Santa Marta) but some cotton, sugar, and tobacco is grown. The region is good cattle country. (2) The Department of Antioquia is mountainous, the climate tropical and temperate, according to altitude. This is an important coffee and cattle country, and the centre of the gold- mining industry. (S) The central plateau (Bogota) has a temperate climate, the altitude being 8,000 feet. Agriculture and cattle raising are well suited to this region, and the coffee production is very large. (4) The Pacific coast section is mountainous, tropical and temperate according to altitude. It includes the Cauca River valley, especially adapted to agriculture and cattle raising. Among the products of the region arc cacao, cattle, coffee, gold, and