Owing to their many points of similarity in productions and climate and their geographical position, the five republics of Central America, the English colony of British Honduras, as well as the Republic of Panama, may be considered together.

Nicaragua and Costa Rica were discovered by Columbus on his last voyage to the New World in 1502, and a small settlement was made by him in Costa Rica, which the Indians afterwards destroyed, being incensed by the treatment received at the hands of the invaders. In 1540 a further attempt to establish a trading-post was successful and finally in 1565 a Spanish governor was appointed, these colonies having proved to be valuable acquisitions to the crown.

In the meantime, Cortez, having completely subjugated the Aztecs in Mexico, dispatched his officers in all directions to explore the countries to the south. Pedro Alvaredo, after a series of battles, finally established Spanish rule over San Salvador in 1525, and Guatemala in 1527 when he founded the City of Guatemala. Spanish Honduras was acquired in 1526 by means of conquest.

British Honduras was originally a part of Guatemala, the Spanish troops stationed there having conquered it, and it was ceded by Spain to England in 1760.

Panama was a part of Colombia and was discovered by Columbus in 1502 who minutely explored its shore in search of an expected passage to the Pacific. In 1903 it revolted against Colombia and became an independent republic.

In 1821 the five Central American Spanish Colonies, after many unsuccessful attempts at independence formed a Federation, known as the Central American Federation. This independence, however, was short-lived, for Augustin Iturbide, who had proclaimed himself Emperor of Mexico, annexed them to his territory in 1822 despite their protests. After the downfall of Iturbide’s government and the execution of its head, these states again formed a new union in 1824. Continual friction and lack of harmony among the various countries, caused its dissolution and one state after the other withdrew and ultimately established and proclaimed its independence. Several abortive attempts since the rupture of 1839 have been made to reorganize this union, and the chances are that these states will always maintain their separate individualities.

Each one, including Panama, is organized as a republic, with a constitution based on that of the United States, an executive in the personage of a President, and a legislative body composed of two houses—a Senate and a House of Representatives or Chamber of Deputies.

British Honduras is ruled by a governor sent from England.

Guatemala has a total area of 48,290 square miles, with a population of 2,000,000, the greater portion of whom are Indians, mixed breeds, some negroes, chiefly from the West Indies, and perhaps 50,000 whites, mostly Europeans and Americans. It is bounded on the north by Mexico, on the east by British Honduras, and Salvador, while the Pacific forms its southern and western boundary.

Salvador with an area of 7,225 square miles is the smallest of the Central American Republics. It has a population of 1,700,000 and its people are of a progressive type. There is a large percentage of Indian and mixed blood among the inhabitants with a fair number of whites. The Pacific Ocean forms its southern boundary, Guatemala its western and Spanish Honduras its northern and eastern limits.

Honduras extends over 46,250 square miles, with a population of 600,000, chiefly Indians, 100,000 of whom are uncivilized. There are few whites and many mixed breeds. Its northern boundary is the Gulf of Honduras, an arm of the Caribbean Sea. Guatemala is on its western frontier, Salvador, with a bay of the Pacific Ocean on its south and Nicaragua on the east.

Nicaragua has 49,200 square miles of territory with 700,000 inhabitants, mostly Indians, and mixed breeds, with a gradual increasing of the white race. Honduras runs diagonally across from northeast to southwest, the Pacific Ocean is on its west coast, Costa Rica on the southern frontier, and the Caribbean Sea washes its eastern boundary.

Costa Rica covers 23,000 square miles and has 399,424 citizens, about 7000 being Europeans, Americans or from the West Indies. There are about 5000 Indians and the remainder whites, blacks and mulattoes. Its northern neighbor is Nicaragua, the Caribbean Sea washes its eastern shore, Panama is its southern boundary, while the Pacific Ocean laves its entire western coast.

Panama, 33,800 square miles in extent, with about 400,000 inhabitants, and varying in width from 37 to 110 miles, needs little description. It is bounded on the north by Costa Rica, on the east by the Caribbean Sea, the south by Colombia, and the west by the Pacific Ocean.

Through its center is a strip of land stretching five miles on either side of the Panama Canal for a distance of 45 miles and known as the Canal Zone. By the Isthmian Canal Convention of November 18, 1903, the United States acquired a perpetual right of occupation, use and control over the Zone, paying the Republic of Panama the sum of $10,000,000, and, beginning February 26, 1913, the sum of $250,000 annually so long as such occupancy continues. The Canal Zone is governed by the President of the United States. The population of this strip during the building of the canal was as high as 70,000, but it is doubtful if it has 30,000 inhabitants to-day. With the completion of the Canal, the force of workmen necessary to maintain it in running order, together with civilian employes and the United States garrison, will make a permanent population of perhaps 25,000.

British Honduras, with an area of 7562 square miles and a population of 40,000, is the only European colony in Central America. Its inhabitants are Indians and negroes, with a few mixed breeds, and less than a thousand whites. It has no railways, although some effort has been made to get capital interested, so far unsuccessfully. The British Government seems to have completely neglected this possession. Its rivers, navigable for some distance, serve all its transportation requirements.

The topography and climate of all these countries is much the same. Mountain ranges cross and recross them, having peaks of considerable altitude, many of which are still active volcanoes. As is obvious, these mountain systems influence the climate to a marked degree, making it always pleasant and spring-like in the plateaus extended between them, as well as in the intermediary table-lands. The higher elevations are always cool, while the low-lying coast-lands are extremely warm and, as a rule, unhealthy. The watershed which they form deflects the streams arising in them toward either the Pacific or the Atlantic. If harnessed these streams could be used to great advantage for light and power. Near the coast they are navigable for small steamers of light draft and canoes and are also useful in getting out lumber, affording a cheap method of transporting it to the coast.

Due to the smallness of the countries, and the complications in the way of engineering problems, especially in the mountains, there are comparatively few railways.

Costa Rica has 490 miles of railroad, by means of which the capital is kept in touch with ports on the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans.

Salvador has about 174 miles of railroad in operation with about fifty more in progress of construction. Transportation in the interior is made convenient and comfortable by the 2000 miles of really good roadway built in accordance with the most modern methods.

Guatemala contains 450 miles of railroads which afford an ocean to ocean communication.

Honduras possesses slightly over 100 miles of road, in a bad state of repair, with obsolete rolling-stock. Engineers are making preliminary surveys which will mean a material addition to the railway mileage here.

Nicaragua maintains about 225 miles of railway which touch her leading cities. In addition to this, Lake Nicaragua, 92 miles long, and Lake Managua, 32 miles long, are used largely for transportation purposes and have a fair-sized fleet of steamers operating in connection with the railways.

Panama has no railways of its own at present, although $3,000,000 has been borrowed from New York bankers for the purpose of building lines throughout the Republic.

The Panama Railway, owned by the United States Government, passing through the Canal Zone, and about 50 miles in length, may be considered as a portion of the railway system of the Republic of Panama for its citizens have the use of it for every purpose.

Substantially all the railways of Central America are equipped with American rolling-stock and operated with but few exceptions under American control. It is extremely doubtful if the demands of these republics will warrant a very great expansion of railways for years to come.

These countries have no manufactories, and were designed by nature to be agricultural. In time, with the development of steamship service they may become truck gardens for the United States, as their soil is admirably adapted for vegetables, early fruits, melons and berries. In some districts, especially in Nicaragua and in Honduras, cattle could be raised much more extensively. There are mines, but not of sufficient wealth to attract much capital.

Owing to the diversity of zones, there are opportunities for many varieties of fruits, vegetables, and cereals. For centuries these countries have been covered with the most luxuriant tropical growths, so that the subsoil is overlaid with a thick mould estimated at over ten feet deep, capable of excessive productive possibilities. Tobacco, sugar, indigo, rice, corn, coffee, cocoa, cocoanuts, and bananas, are the principal products.

Virgin forests are numerous; in fact they exist throughout Central America. There is an abundance of pine, oak, many natural hardwoods, such as ironwood, and mahogany, plenty of cedar, and a host of ideally grained cabinet woods, susceptible of high polish. Logwood, dividivi, quebracha, and other trees furnish dye woods. Throughout these countries grows the Peruvian balsam from which the well known balsam of commerce comes. There are rubber trees. Much of the chicle from which chewing-gum is made comes from these lands, as well as other gums of a medicinal nature.

Banana growing has done much to bring prosperity to Costa Rica, Guatemala, Nicaragua, Honduras and Panama and the chances are that this industry will become the chief one of all these countries, along their lowlands, which are so well adapted to the propagation of this fruit now so much in demand.

As an evidence of the growth of this business and what it means to these localities, let me state that in 1913 Costa Rica exported $5,200,000 worth of bananas; Panama, $1,150,000; Nicaragua, $425,000; Guatemala, $825,000; Honduras, $1,400,000, and British Honduras, $200,000. And this trade is yet in its infancy. The markets of Europe, notably Germany and England, are also supplied from these countries and within twenty-five years the demand will undoubtedly double, due to the opening of the Canal, which permits the dispatch of the fruits along the west coast of South America in modern vessels.

Coffee is also an important export. In 1913 Costa Rica exported $3,600,000 worth of coffee; Nicaragua $1,780,000; Guatemala $12,250,000; and Salvador $7,900,000.

Gold and silver amounting to $6000 was exported from Panama last year; $875,000 from Costa Rica; $900,000 from Nicaragua; $900,000 from Honduras, and $1,600,000 from Salvador.

These with hides and skins, cocoanuts, ivory nuts, cabinet and other woods, rubber, balsam, chicle, tortoise-shell, pearl shells, sugar and tobacco form the principal items of export.

The exports and imports during 1913 were as follows:

The bulk of the export and import trade of all of these countries is in the hands of the United States, due to our geographical position, and the fact that we have many citizens living within their boundaries, engaged in various enterprises. England, Germany and France are our closest competitors. Perhaps Germany has more real money invested here, and there is a great preponderance of German mercantile establishments throughout these nations. The following table gives the details for 1913:

Each one of these countries requires cotton and woolens, iron and steel supplies, corrugated iron, tools, machinery, food-products, flour, wines, liquors, mineral waters, wooden ware and manufactures, agricultural implements, soaps, perfumes, pharmaceuticals, surgical instruments, boots and shoes, hats, hardware, oil, candles, electric supplies, glassware, coffee sacks, socks, stockings, rubber goods, musical instruments and paints. In fact they are dependent upon the outside world for all the manufactured necessities of life.

American money is accepted in preference to any other throughout this part of the world, although each country has its individual monetary system.

In the Canal Zone American and Panamanian money is interchangeable, that is either United States or Panama currency is equally well received. The Republic of Costa Rica as well as the English Colony of British Honduras, are on a gold basis, while Spanish Honduras and Salvador are on a silver basis, the national money in common circulation in Guatemala being inconvertible paper, subject to daily fluctuations, dependent upon market conditions and the law of supply and demand. Nicaragua and Panama are on a gold exchange standard basis.

The following table gives the necessary data as to the monetary units and the respective value in United States gold:—

In all these countries the subject of commercial travelers’ fees may be dismissed briefly, by stating that British Honduras, Costa Rica, Panama and Salvador require the payment of fees and the others do not. By the exhibition of tact it is often possible to evade these charges, especially if proper arrangements are made with some local agent or merchant.

The following cities should be visited:

With the single exception of Salvador, all these countries are most easily reached from the eastern coast, there being many passenger and freight vessels with regular sailings from New York, Baltimore, Mobile and New Orleans. The United Fruit Company maintain an excellent bi-weekly service between the chief ports of Central America and New York and New Orleans.

Steamship service along the west coast is miserable, passenger and freight rates being excessive. The passenger ships from San Francisco are old, poorly equipped, slow and the food inferior. Travelers are recommended to enter these countries from the east, taking the railway across to the west coast, and a local coasting steamer thence to their destination. The Kosmos Line maintains an irregular service from San Francisco. Salvador has a national line of steamships, making calls at ports in Nicaragua, Honduras, and Guatemala and going as far north as Salinas Cruz in Mexico, the western terminus of the Tehuantepec Railway, from which goods coming from the eastern part of the United States, after crossing Mexico, are reshipped for Central American west coast ports.