124 



COLOMBIA. 



voting on this measure. Peru and the Dominican 

 republic voted against it, while the other coun- 

 tries voted in its favor. 



A second measure adopted by the conference 

 was a recommendation to the coffee-producing 

 countries that the exportation of refuse as coffee 

 and to the consuming countries the importa- 

 tion of such refuse and the use of falsifications 

 or substitutes for coffee be prohibited by the 

 most efficacious means possible. It was also 

 proposed to recommend to the consuming coun- 

 tries the abolition, or at least a reasonable re- 

 duction, of the import duties in those countries 

 where the consumption of coffee is materially 

 affected by them. 



A third measure was a proposition to organize 

 a permanent international union to watch the 

 interests of the coffee industry, and especially to 

 maintain a propaganda for the purpose of in- 

 creasing the consumption of coffee throughout 

 the world. 



The surprise and consternation of some of the 

 other delegates to the conference were evident 

 at the attitude of the Porto-Rican delegate when 

 he came out openly for protection for his island 

 product by the United States. When it was pro- 

 posed as one of the most practical measures for 

 increasing the consumption of coffee that the 

 producing countries should endeavor to secure 

 suppression of the duties imposed upon coffee by 

 European countries, he said that to accept this 

 proposition in an absolute manner would be 

 against the wishes of the Porto-Rican people, 

 who, if not citizens of the United States at pres- 

 ent, expected to be in the near future, and conse- 

 quently expected protection in the United States 

 for their coffee. But he favored a reduction of 

 the exorbitant duties in some of the European 

 countries. The conference adjourned on Oct. 31, 

 with the adoption of a final resolution that the 

 Government of Brazil be invited to convene a 

 second conference as soon as possible, to meet in 

 Sao Paulo, the center of the coffee-producing 

 district of Brazil, the delegates to have full power 

 to carry into effect by treaty such recommenda- 

 tions as may be made by that conference. 



COLOMBIA, a republic in South America. 

 The Congress consists of a Senate of 27 members, 

 3 from each department, and a House of Repre- 

 sentatives containing 66 members, each depart- 

 ment sending as many as its population num- 

 bers multiples of 50,000 persons. The members 

 are elected for four years by universal male 

 suffrage. The President is elected for six years 

 by an electoral college. M. A. Sanclemente was 

 elected for the term beginning Aug. 7, 1898, but 

 since July 31, 1900, J. M. Marroquin has acted 

 as President. Congress meets biennially. The 

 Cabinet in the beginning of 1902 was composed 

 as follows: Minister of State and Minister of the 

 Interior, Gen. S. Quintero Calderon; Minister 

 of Foreign Affairs, Dr. A. J. Uribe; Minister 

 of Commerce and Communications, Dr. Abadia 

 Mendez; Minister of War, Gen. J. V. Concha. 



Area and Population. The estimated area 

 of Colombia is 513,938 square miles, and the pop- 

 ulation is estimated at 4,000,000. Bogota, the 

 capital, has about 120,000 inhabitants; Medellin, 

 40,000; Barranquilla, 40,000; Panama, 30,000; 

 Cartagena, 20,000; Bucaramanga, 20.000. 



Finances. For the two years 1897 and 1898 

 the revenue was 37,461,000 pesos, and the ex- 

 penditure 41,429,180 pesos. The preliminary 

 estimate of revenue was 34,361,000 pesos, and of 

 expenditure 35,771,013 pesos. The official esti- 

 mate of revenue for 1899 and 1900 was 29,918,640 

 pesos, and expenditure was estimated at the same 



figure. For 1901 and 1902 a revenue of 28,983,640 

 pesos was expected, while the estimate of ex- 

 penditure was 40,427,575 pesos. Of the revenue 

 21,453,640 pesos are from customs. Heavy duties 

 are imposed on exports of coffee, hides, rubber, 

 gold, silver, and cattle as well as on imports. 

 The expenditure for war in 1901-'02 was esti- 

 mated at 13,317,088 pesos; for justice, 4,571,892 

 pesos; for finance, 4,336,238 pesos; for debt, 

 3,773,500 pesos. The departments obtain rev- 

 enues mainly from monopolies of tobacco, salt, 

 opium, and ice, and the privilege of keeping 

 gambling-houses, which are farmed out to the 

 highest bidders. The net revenues of the de- 

 partments for 1899 and 1900 were estimated at 

 16,986,756 pesos and the expenditures at 17,340,-. 

 040 pesos. The external debt, mostly held in 

 England, amounted, with arrears of interest, to 

 3,514,442, when an arrangement was made with 

 the bondholders, in the beginning of 1897, for its 

 reduction and exchange for 2,700,000 of new 

 bonds on which the interest should be 1 per 

 cent, for three years, 2 per cent, for the next 

 three years, 2J per cent, for a third period of 

 three years, and after that 3 per cent. The in- 

 surrection interrupted the payments in 1899, and 

 in July, 1901, the arrears of interest amounted 

 to 101,250. The currency consists of depre- 

 ciated paper, of which there were 350,000,000 

 pesos in circulation in 1901, worth only 4 per 

 cent, of its face value. At Panama the paper 

 does not circulate and the Peruvian sol is legal 

 tender. 



The Army. Congress, at each session, fixes 

 the strength of the standing army, which was 

 1,000 men for the biennial period 1898-'99. In 

 the event of war the President has authority 

 to raise the strength as he deems necessary and 

 can impress every able-bodied citizen into the 

 service. 



Commerce and Production. The average 

 production of gold and silver is $4,000,000 a year. 

 Gold is washed in every department, and quartz- 

 mines are worked in Antioquia, Cauca, Bolivar, 

 Panama, and other departments. Copper, plat- 

 inum, mercury, cinnabar, manganese, and lead 

 are also mined. The Government emerald-mines 

 at Muzo and Coscuez were leased in 1901 to a 

 French corporation. The total number of mines 

 of all kinds on which license fees were paid in 

 1891 was 4,961, mostly gold-mines. Iron is 

 smelted near Bogota. The Government derives 

 a considerable revenue from its salt-mines at 

 Zipaquira, and has reopened the coal-mines at 

 San Jorge. The pearl fisheries have been worked 

 with success by natives, but the Government pro- 

 poses to lease them out. Coffee of fine quality is 

 produced, and the cultivation is extending. The 

 country is generally very fertile, but with primi- 

 tive means of transportation agriculture can 

 only be carried on for local wants. Cacao and 

 tobacco are grown for export and rubber is gath- 

 ered in the forests, as also is copaiba. Tolu 

 balsam is a cultivated product. The number of 

 cattle is estimated at 3.465,000. and many are 

 exported. Vegetable ivory and dyewoods are 

 minor exports. The chief imports are cotton 

 goods, woolens, flour, rice, petroleum, wine, 

 brandy, and salt. The value of the coffee ex- 

 ported in 1900 was 270,876; of gold in bars 

 and dust, 99,266; of silver ore and bars, 49,- 

 149; of hides, 59.451; of cattle, 84,092; of 

 tobacco, 58,204; of rubber, 14,063; of precious 

 stones, 7,835; of tolu, 4,030; of divi-divi, 2,- 

 271. The share of the Unites States in the ex- 

 port trade is about 27 per cent., while Great 

 Britain takes 25 per cent., France 17 per cent., 



