WEST UAMPNETT. 



WI'ST INDIES. 



1 - distant M mile* S.\V. from Chelmaford. and 5 mile N.K. from 

 boe.ion. Tb population of UM perieh of Wr.t Ham in 1851 wiw 

 1M1T. The living is vicarage, '" *> archdeaconry ud diocese of 

 London. Weet Hum Poor Law Union conUins aeven parishes and 

 townships, with u ana of 19,477 aerm, and a populatiou in 1851 of 

 31.3M. Wot Ham had at on* time a market The villages of 

 Pkbtow and Stratford, which an in the parish, are noticed under 

 R-.T The works of the Eastern Counties railway at Stratford have 

 ltd to a great iucreaen of population in that part of West Ham pariah. 

 The church of Wet Ham is an ancient and commodious structure, 



MMhlini of nave and chancel, with aisle*. The Independents and 

 Btptkts have places of worship. There are National, British, Free, 

 anil Infant school*. On the rirer Lea are corn-mills, distilleries, a 



cutt.-1-iM-rvha manufactory, brick -works, and market-gardens. 



NVI.ST HAMPXKTT, Sussex, an agricultural Tillage, an.l the scat 

 of a IVor-Law Union, U situate in 60' 60' N. lat, 0* 46' W. long., 

 distant one mile and a half X.\V. from Chiebester, and 60 miles S.S.W. 

 from Loadon. The population of the pariah in 1>J1 was 637, of 

 whoa 2ii were in the Union workhouse. The living is a vicarage, 

 in the archdeaconry and diocese of Ckichester. West Hampnott 

 Union contains 37 parishes and townships, with au area of 72,409 

 acM. and a population in 1S51 of 14,649. 



I' IX I >l KS, a term applied to the archipelago which feparatea 

 the Atlantic from the Caribbean Sea and the Gulf of Mexico. The 

 name perpetuate* the notion of Columbus that by sailing veil he 

 should reach India, or Hindustan ; it was for some time synonymous 

 with America, Geographers sometimes call these islands the Columbian 

 A rtkiftlago, because nearly all the islands were discovered by Columbus. 

 OB the continent of Kurope the name AMILLKS has been generally 

 retained. Various names are given by seamen of different nations to 

 different portions of the archipelago. Tbe Spaniards iutroduced the 

 distinction of Windward and Leeward Isles (Barlovento and Sotto- 

 vento). By \Vindvanl hies English navigators mean the group that 

 lies south of, and includes, Martinique; while the Leeward Itlca com- 

 prise the islands between Martinique and Puerto Kieo : these two 

 groups, together with a series of islets along the north coast of Vene- 

 zuela, constitute the Letter Antilles. Tbe most northerly of the Lee- 

 ward Ii-les form the group of the VIRGIN ISLANDS. The larger islands 

 Puerto Hico, San Domingo, Jamaica, and Cuba which bound the 

 Caribbean Sea on the north, are called the Greater Antilles; and 

 outside these towards the Atlantic, on the north-east, are the great 

 banks on which rett the Lttcayat, or BAHAMAS. 



The archipelago of the West Indies extends from 10 to 27 30' 

 X. lat, 69 30' to 85 W. long., and the islands are divided into three 

 Croups : the Bahamas, lying between 27 30' and 20 N. lat., 70 and 

 80 W. long. ; the Greater Antilles, between 23 30' and 18' N. lat., 

 65* and 85" W. long. ; and the Lesser Antilles, extending from 19 to 

 10* N. lat, 59 30' to CG W. long. The most northern portion of 

 this arcliiprLigo, or that part which is north of 20 N. lat., is noticed 

 under BAHAMAS; the Greater Antilles are described under CUBA, 

 HISPANIOLA, JAMAICA, and I'UEIITO Rico; the British West India 

 I land* are severally noticed under their proper heads, as are also the 

 more important of the islands belonging to France, Denmark, and 

 Holland. Lists of the islands belonging to these different states are 

 given under AMILLES. The gross area of the West Indies is estimated 

 at 86,023 square uiiles, that of the British possessions at 13,272 square 

 miles. It remains in thin article to take a brief glance at the formation, 

 climate, and products of the archipelago. 



The inlands dispersed over the Bahama banks are low, with the 

 exception of the inlands of Hcnengua, or Inagua, and Mayagan^n, or 

 Marignana, both situated in a wido opening to the north of the Wind- 

 ward Passage which separates Cuba from Hispaniolo. They hardly 

 rue more than six feet above high-water mark, and their shores are 

 formed by madrepores or coral. They are all long, and very narrow. 

 Towards the centre of the islands the soil is composed of sand aud 

 calcareous rockn, with an intermixture of shells. It is generally hard, 

 and partially covered with shrubs or with low trees, some of which 

 produce dye-wood.-. The banks themselves rise nearly perpendicularly 

 from an unfathomable depth. Where their edges aro not formed by 

 islands there is a depth of three to ten fathoms of water on them, but 

 this depth decreases gradually towards the interior of the banks, where 

 it is frequently only a few feet. There are also large tracts which are 

 dry at low-water, and in other places there are single rocks or cliffs. 

 The surface of the banks U composed of calcareous sand intermixed 

 with shells. 



Tbe extensive banks which surround the greater port of the island 

 of Cuba prove that this island rests on a bank similar to the Great 

 Bebanu Bank. These banks surround the inland so as to leave only a 

 few pUcee of comparatively small extent, where large vessels have 

 access. [CUBA.] The eastern portion of Cuba however is free from 

 bank", and in these districts alone the mountains rise to a considerable 

 elevation, whilst those parU which are surrounded by bonks contain 

 only bills. 



The mountainous portion of Cuba evidently belongs to another 

 region, which extends far to the east, comprehending the three other 

 Lancer Antilles and the Virgin Islands, so as to terminate near 64 

 W. long. In the most western parts the mountains rise to a great 

 elevation. The Moutafios del Cobro in Cuba rUo to 7200 feet ; the 



Blue Mountains in Jamaica to 7 ISO feet; aud those of Cibao in His- 

 puniola to about 8000 feet. Farther to the east the mountains decrea-e 

 in height. lu Puerto Kico they do not attain 4000 feet, and in the 

 Virgin Islands probably not 2000 feet Those of Virgin Gorda perhaps 

 do not much exceed 500 feet These uiouutains exhibit the mixed 

 formation of most mountains of Kurope, but primitive rocks are 

 prevalent in the highest rouges. Between them there are valleys of 

 considerable width, aud on their sides smaller ones, all of which are 

 very fertile. There are considerable plains, as iu Jamaica aud Hi-- 

 pauiola, which however are destitute of trees and less fertile. The 

 mountains, their declivities, and the valleys are thickly wooded iu 

 their natural state. 



Tbe strait which lies between Virgin Gorda aud Anguilla, and is 

 traversed by the meridian of 61 W. long., separates this region from 

 the islands of volcanic origin, which extend from 1S 20' to 12 M. lat, 

 and between 60 50' and 63 10' W. long., iu a curved line. These 

 islands consist either entirely or for the greater part of mou 

 and rocks of volcanic origin. Anguilla however, which lies at the 

 most northern extremity, and Barbuda and Barbadoes, which lie 

 farther to the east, are not much elevated, anil they exhibit in. 

 of volcanic action, but consist mostly of limestone rocks. The greater 

 number of the others are entirely composed of lava or other rocks of 

 volcanic origin ; but iu St. Martin, St. Bartholomew, Guadeloupe, 

 Martinique, aud (iranada are tracts consisting of limestone or s-ind- 

 stone. Two of these islands, Guadaloupe aud Si Vincent, have active 

 volcanoes ; the others contain extinct craters, or solfataraa, iu di. 

 degrees of activity. The surface of these islands, like that of all 

 countries consisting of volcanic rockf, presents great and sudden irre- 

 gularities. The mountains rise from 2500 to more than 5000 feet above 

 the se:i. The highest are the Morne Diablotin in Dominica (531 

 and the Souffricre iu Guadaloupe (5113 feet), both of which lie nearly 

 in the centre of the chain. Proceeding south and north they become 

 lower, but Mount Misery in St. Christopher is still 4451 feet, and 

 Morne Kouge in Grenada 3840 feet high. On the eosteru shores of 

 the islands, which are exposed to the strong currents from the Atlantic, 

 the rocks rise with a very steep ascent, and the indentations between 

 them are generally too short and too much exposed to the trodu-wiwi 

 to constitute harbours. On the western shores the mountains are less 

 elevated and their declivities gradual ; and bore the inlets are of greater 

 extent, and form good harbours. 



The islands of Tobago and Trinidad chiefly consist of primitive 

 rocks, and resemble in their formation the uurth eastern coast of 

 Venezuela. There are no traces of volcanic action on them, except 

 some mud-volcanoes on Trinidad. 



All the islands of the Columbian Archipelago, with the exception of 

 the most northern Bahamas, are within the tropic ; and their cliiu:it, 

 as in other countries thus situated, is regulated by the progress of the 

 sun, and the trade-winds, which depend on that progress. The year 

 is divided into two seasons, the dry and wet. AU the Ulauds which are 

 south of 18 N. lat. have two dry and two wet seasons, and this is also 

 the case with the southern shores of the islands of Puerto Uico, llis- 

 pauiola, aud Jamaica. The long dry season sets in when the sun 

 approaches the southern tropic, about the end of November or the 

 beginning of December. Iu this season the weather is generally very 

 constant Showers of rain indeed occur, but uot frequently ; and the 

 sky is cloudless for several weeks aud even mouths in sue 

 This weather lasts till the suu approaches the equator. Towards the 

 end of Maroh a change in the atmosphere takes place iu the most 

 southern islands, hut it occurs about a month later iu those near 

 18 N. lat. The short rainy season begins, which in the southern 

 islands lasts about six weeks, but in the northern only 15 or 20 days. 

 Showers are then frequent, and sometimes several occur iu one day, 

 but they hardly ever continue for an hour. Wheu the sun passes over 

 the zenith of the islands, the short dry season begins, and it lasts till 

 the sun has reached the northern tropic. In July the long rainy season 

 sets in, and continues to the month of November. These rams, which 

 are ushered in by violent gusts of wind, and accompanied by terrific 

 thunder-storms, are generally not heavy in July ; but they become so 

 in August in the southern, and in September iu the northern island*. 

 They then descend iu torrents, and sometimes continue for 24 hours 

 without interruption ; but they usually fall in showers, several of which 

 occur in one day, and sometimes as many as twenty. In the southern 

 islands they begin to diminish iu September, and iu the northern in 

 October, lu November the showers are moderate and less frequent. 



On the island of Cuba and on the northern coasts of thowthcr Greater 

 Antilles and in the Bahamas, the seasons are not so distinctly mark. >l. 

 Though fine weather prevails during the long dry season, it is fre- 

 quently interrupted by rain. It must however be observed that the 

 heaviest rains fall iu those months when the rainy season is at its 

 height in the islands lying farther south. Tha quantity of raiu which 

 annually falls in the Greater Antilles is less than in those islands where 

 the seasons are more regular. In the former it amounts to between 

 48 and 60 inches, and in the latter to 60 or 70 inches. 



The mean annual temperature differs very little in places situated 

 between the tropics. In the West Indies it is about 78. The greatest 

 heat experienced at Puerto d'Espana does not exceed 93, or 15 degrees 

 above the mean annual temperature. At the Havana the thermometer 

 sometimes rises to 92; but it sometimes descouds as low as 45, and 



