GEOGRAPHY. 43 



ward into Rio Camu and Rio Yaque del Norte. The principal drainage 

 lines north of the divide follow the longitudinal valleys, some streams 

 flowing eastward into Escocesa Bay, others flowing northwestward into the 

 Atlantic, but some streams cut across the obstructing ridges and find their 

 way to the sea by shorter courses. The principal streams are Rio Boba and 

 Rio Isabel, flowing east and west, respectively, and Rio Yasica, which cuts 

 across the "grain" of the country. Many other smaller streams flow 

 northward into the ocean. 



MINOR WATERSHEDS. 



Samana Peninsula is too small to support any large streams. A number 

 of rivulets, most of them having their sources in springs at the foot of the 

 front range, find their way into Samana Bay. So far as known, no streams 

 break through the front range from the higher land farther north. The 

 limestone plateau at the east end of the peninsula is drained by subterranean 

 channels, some of which terminate as springs along the shore. The streams 

 on the north side are on the whole longer and larger than those on the south, 

 for more than half the peninsula is drained to the north. 



Because of the low rainfall in the southwestern part of the Republic no 

 large streams have their source in the Sierra de Neiba. The headwaters of 

 Rio Macasia, one of the tributaries of the Artibonite, come from the north 

 slope of the Sierra de Neiba, and a few small tributaries of Rio San Juan 

 head farther east in the same range. Some large springs that are tributary 

 to Lake Enriquillo issue at the foot of the mountains south of the lake. A 

 few ephemeral rivulets trickle down the southeast end of the range only to 

 lose themselves in the thirsty soil of Enriquillo Basin. 



The Sierra de Bahoruco probably receives more rain than the Sierra 

 de Neiba, but no large streams have their source in it. Rio de las Damas 

 flows northward into Lake Enriquillo, as do also several smaller brooks. 

 Little is known of the drainage of the south side of the range and of the 

 southern peninsula, but neither probably contains any large streams. 



TRANSPORTATION. 



RAILROADS. 



There are two public railroads in the Dominican Republic, both narrow- 

 gauge, and both serving only part of the Cibao Valley — the area north of 

 the Cordillera Central. The Ferrocarril Central Dominicano is a govern- 

 ment-owned line extending from Puerto Plata across the Cordillera Sep- 

 tentrional to Santiago and thence by way of Pefia to Moca, where it con- 

 nects with the Ferrocarril de Santiago y Samana. The Ferrocarril Central 

 Dominicano crosses the mountains on grades so steep that it can only with 

 great difficulty maintain traffic, which is at times wholly interrupted be- 

 cause of slippery rails. It crosses the divide in a tunnel near Altamira 

 at an altitude of about 490 meters. The main line of the Ferrocarril de 



