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NICARAGPA. 



NICE. 



»rs 



there is here the good haibonr of San Juan del Sur, but the hills xipon 

 it rise to between 400 and 500 feet, presenting a formidable banier to 

 the con.^truction of a canal, while the diffirence of levi-l between the 

 lake anil the sea is 129 feet, and therefore locks would be necessary. 

 The hills might perhaps be in a measure avoided, but the canal would 

 of course be longer. Whether such a canal will ever be formed it 

 would be hard to predicate; especially since the completion of the 

 railway across the Isthmus of Panama hns provided so much mora 

 rapid a route. But even in the absence of the canal this route has 

 been largely adopted. As uoiiceii under MosQDlTO Kingdom the 

 govi-rnments of England and the United States concluded a treaty in 

 1850 by which they agreed to co-operate in the establishment of a 

 secure and neutral line of coHimuuication between the two seas by 

 way of the Sun Juan River and Lake Nicaragua, to be open on equal 

 terms to >dl nations, vrith a free port at e.-ich end of thi) line. A 

 company as there mentioned was formed for constructing a canal, 

 improving the navigation uf the San Juan, ami working the communi- 

 cation by st'-am-boats. The Kicaia'^ua Transit Company have been 

 unable even to attecnpt to carry out the first and most arduous part 

 of their task, but they have e^tabli-hed steam-boats of light draught 

 to navigate the riv< r, and organi«e<l a line of carriages to convey the 

 passengers and goods from Nicaragua to San Juan del Sur on the 

 Pacific. During 1854 a very large number of pas8en:,'eni to and from 

 California adopted this route, and we find it iiHserted in some of the 

 advertisements of the line published in New York, that not only ia 

 " the Nicaragua Transit route the shortest, safest, and by far the 

 most comfortable and healthful," but thnt passengers by it " have to 

 travel but 12 miles of land carriage over a good macadamised road." 

 Long before the establishment of this route communication bad been 

 maintained between the Atlantic and the towns of Qranada and 

 Nicaragaa, by the river Sjiu Juan sud Lake Nicaragua, by means of 

 flat-bottomed vessels called piraguiis. of from 5 to 1 tons burden. The 

 passage from Granada to San Juan, or Greytowo, is usually made by the 

 piraguas in about 8 days, whilnt the return passa^-e being agaioat the 

 stream, occupies from 12 to 15 days. It has been proposed by some 

 as more advantageous to unite the Lake of Managua by a canal with 

 the harbour of Realejo. Tlie country between them is nearly level, 

 and of a firm soil, without being rocky. Besides this, the canal would 

 terminate in the port of Kealejo, one of the best harbours on the west 

 coast of America, while that near Nicaragua would end in the smaller 

 harbour of San Juan del Sur. But this canal would be more than 

 twice as long as the other ; in ad'lition to which, the Tepitapa, which 

 unites the Lake of Nicaragua with that of Managua, must be rendered 

 navigable. The Lake of Managua is 85 miles long, and 15 miles 

 broad in its widest part. It is deep enough for vessela of considerable 

 size ; but the Kio Tepitapa, which brings down the water from the 

 Lake of Nicaragua, and is about 25 miles luni;, has falls which, in the 

 dry season, are from 6 to 8 feet high, and also several shoals. These 

 obstacles could only be avoided by a canal cut through the level 

 ground on the northern side of the Rio Tepitap.'v 



The climate of the Plain of Nicaragua, as sUited above, is hot and 

 moist, and so unhealthy as to have caused it to be left to the undis- 

 turbed occupation of the native races. The thickly-wooded banks of 

 the Sao Juan River are no exception to this observation. The shores 

 of the Pacific, where the population is den'est, are also very hot and 

 somewhat humid, but do not appear to be particuUrly imhealtby, 

 except iu the vicinity of the Bay of Conchagua, where however there 

 are comparatively few inhabitants. The hUly districts between the 

 coast and the western banks of the lakes are much milder and more 

 salubrious, as ia also the mountainous country of the north. There are 

 regular dry and rainy seasons, as in other parts of Central America 

 [Costa-Rica, &c.], the only diSerence being that the rains last some- 

 what longer, and fall in larger quantities. In the hilly countiy west 

 of the l:ikes occasional showera also occur out of the regular rainy 

 seawD. 



The soil throughout the occupied districts appears to be very fertile, 

 but agriculture is in a rude state ; the roads are almost everywhere 

 iosuffii;ivnt, ill made, and ill kejit, and oxen are almost the only 

 animals of draught. Although therefore Nicaragua might with a 

 peaceful and industrious people furnish vast quantities of agricul- 

 tural produce for other countries as well as for the supply of n greatly 

 increased population, it really affords little more than suffices for 

 domestic consumption. Maize and frixoles ore raised in considerable 

 abundance, and form the staple food of the people. Soma wheat is 

 grown in the north, chiefly for use in the cities. Sugar, indigo, cotton, 

 coffee, cocoa, and tobacco are all grown, but, except indigo, not to any 

 great extent. A great variety of fruits, including several native kinds, 

 with oranges, lemons, &c., ripen well ; and garden vegetables flourish, 

 but little attention is paid to them except by the Indians, who culti- 

 vate them for sale in the cities. Indigo, Nicaragua, and Brazil wood, 

 and some other timber and dye-woods and hides, are at prt-sent the 

 chief articles exported. Cattle are among the principal sources of 

 wealth, very large numbers of them being kept on the plains along the 

 eastern sides of the Ukes. Fish are plentiful in the lakts, in which 

 also crocodiles are common. Along the cotist pearls used to be found. 

 The mineral resources of Nicaragua have not been very diligently 

 •zplore<l. Gold and silver bavo been found and worked, but not 

 •ztsnsively ; copper has alio been found. 



0X00. DiT. vol.. Ill, 



The manufactures are nearly confined to the coarser goods required 

 for home consumption. The chief articles made are coarse cotton and 

 woollen cloths ; the cotton being dyed of a purple colour, obtained 

 from a shell-fish caught in the vicinity of Sau Ju.iu del Sur, is in great 

 request among the Indians, who prefer it to any European dyed goods 

 on account of the freater durability of the colour. 



Nicaragua is divided into five departments, which are named after 

 their respective capitals : — Segovia compiises the north-eastera part of 

 the territory ; Leon the north and uoi-th-western ; Managua the district 

 south of Leon ; Granada that south of Managua ; and Nicaragua the 

 most southern part bordering on Costa-Rica. Leon is the political 

 capital The following are the principal towns ; the populations are 

 merely a loose approximation : — ■ 



Leon, the capital of Nicaragua, contained not many years ago a 

 population of 32.000 inhabitants, but the civil contentions within the 

 tow!i have reduced it to half that number, an<l destroyed a large pro- 

 portion of its best buildings. It is situated on the road which lends 

 from the best cultivated districts of the state to the harbour of Realejo, 

 iu 12° 26' N. lat., 86° 52' W. long. The city occupies a considerable 

 area, and contains a cathedral, several churches, a university, 

 Tridentine college, &o., but all in a very neglected condition. 



Oranada, on the north-western bank of the Lake of Nicaragua, 

 population about 12,000, carries on some trade with J.imaica by means 

 of the river and harbonr of San Juan ; contain^! several churches and 

 convents; but hits no features requiring further notice. 



ifanaffua, on the south bank of Lake Managua, is a considerable 

 place, containing 10,000 inhabitants. Sfasaga, s'inie little dist nice S. 

 of Managua, has a population nearly equal to it, but almost all Indians, 

 who are engaged in commerce with the adjaci'nt populous country, 

 and in the manufacture of the various articles of domestic require- 

 ment in which they display much skill. 



Nicaragua, about 2 milfs from the west bank of Lake Nicaragua, 

 contains, with the suburb of San George, some 15,000 inhabitants, 

 and is surrounded by a district noted for its fertility, especially in 

 cacao and grapes. 



.Son Juan ad .S'«r. on the Pacific, S.W. of the town of Nicaragtia, 

 contained but few inhabitants previous to its selection as the Pacific 

 port for the Nicarngiia line of communication betwcn the two oceans. 

 The harbour, as already mentioned, is small but convenient, and 

 possesses good anchorave. 



Segtiria, <pn the Rio de Segovia, is a small place, whose only claim 

 to notice is that of bein; the capital of the department uf Segovia, 

 the least populous section of the republic. The country around is 

 fertile and healthy, and its mineral wealth is believed to be 

 considerable. 



Nicaragua is nominally a republic with a senate and a chamber of 

 deputies, but the (fovernmcnt is really vested iu a dictator with the 

 title of Supreme Director. After the declaration of independence, and 

 the formation in 1842 of the republic of Central America [Guatemala ; 

 HoifDDBAS], Nicaragua funned one of the federal states until the 

 di'solution of the union, when, like the other states, it became an 

 independent republic ; and, like them, all hopes of its progress have 

 been since arrested by constant internal discord. 



NICASTRO. [Calabria.] 



NICE, or NIZZA, an administrative division of the Sardinian 

 States, bounded W. by France, from which it is separated by the Var, 

 S. by the Mediterranean, E. by the division of Genoa, and N. by the 

 main ridge of the Maritime Alps, which divide it from Piedmont, and 

 send out numerous branches southward, that cover about two-thirds 

 of the whole territory. The Col-di-TenHa, a high pass over these 

 mountains, rises about 5900 feet above the sea, and \a traversed by 

 the main road from Nizza to Turin. The mountain slopes and high 

 valleys afford good pasture, and the loftiest uplands ore covered with 

 forests. The soil in the mountains is ill-adapted fur cultivation ; but 

 in the valleys and lower slopes of the south the soil is good and the 

 vegetation luxuriant. Maize, barley, and a little wheat are the prin- 

 cipal grain crops. Olives, figs, grapes, oranges, lemons, almonds, 

 citron.i, some dates, and various other fruits are abundantly produced. 

 The palm, the aloe, rose-laurel, myrtle, and other odoriferous and 

 tropical plants flourish throughout the year; and it is not uncommon 

 at the end of December to see some trees in blossom and others 

 covered with fruit. The forests afford good timber. The mulberry 

 is extensively cultivated. Cattle are numerous, and bees are care- 

 fully tended. The fisheries along the coast are very productive. 

 There is an argentiferous lead-mine near the town of Tenda. Spun 

 silk, coarse woollens, soap, paper, and pei fumes are the chief industrial 

 products. These articles, together with oil, raw silk, wine, honey, 

 timber, and the fruits before-named, are the jirincipal exports. The 

 chief rivera are the Var (which receives the Vesubia and the Tinea), 

 the Pai^'liou, the Roja, the Taggia, and the Imporo. Sheltered by the 

 Alps from the north winds, the division has a delicious but rather a 

 dry climate ; the sea breezes moderate the heat of summer ; iu spring 

 and autumn however the sirocco and the mistral are sometimes felt. 

 A good road, affording a series of the most ilcli^htful aud magnificent 

 views, runs along the coast from Nizza to Genoa. 



The administrative division of Nizza lies between 43' 40' and 

 44° 20' N. lat, 8° 40' and 8° 8' E. long. lu length from north-east 

 to 80Uth-WMt ia about 75 miles ; the mean breadth is about 23 miles. 



SB 



