COSTA RICA 



By SkN()I{ IvICAlUXt \'lI,I,AK|{ANCA, 

 ConSHl-Ge))eral of tltf Rrpuhlir of Could Nlat itl San Josr, Gudlemtdit 



It is impossil)le to give within the space allotted to me a com- 

 ]ilete idea of Costa Rica, or to describe explicitly its varied re- 

 sources and industries. I can hut dwell l)rierty on the more 

 important features of the land, the characteristics ol"the people, 

 and the natural resources of the country. 



The peculiarly favoral)le situation of t'osta Rica n)i<rht well he 

 the envy of all nations, for it lies between the continents of the 

 new world and lietween the earth's greatest seas ; it enjoys a tem- 

 perate climate, with the advantages of a tropical sun ; it is one 

 of the smallest of small nations — the true gem of American repub- 

 lics ; its people are peaceful and law-abiding; its republican 

 form of government, cojjied from the United States, is very popu- 

 lar; its climate is moderate, Avithout extremes of heat or cold, 

 and is remarkably healthful. The dreaded fevers are found only 

 along the swamp}^ coastal fringe and other low-lying land, of 

 which there is little in Costa Rica. Against visionary dangers 

 we have a land of prolonged spring and autumnal splendor— a 

 soil upon which the flowers smile with perennial bloom. 



Costa Rica is feeble for want of suHicient population, but she 

 possesses a rich store of undeveloped resources in her widely 

 disseminated minerals and the endless productions of her fertile 

 soil. Her forests are an incalculable natural wealth. Through- 

 out the country the land is thickly covered with gigantic trees, 

 among the finest in the world, and all are of a rare quality, such 

 as mahogany, cedar, rosewood, ligmun-vita', and a number of 

 dye-woods, such as anatto and indigo. Little attention has 

 been given to the forest wealth. Along the seashore, where 

 transi)ortation is easy, some woods have 1>een marketed, but in 

 the interior the trees stand as they did a hundred years ago. 



In the Matina valley the Matina lianana Company is working 

 an extensive plantation and paying large dividends. The ex- 

 tent of this indu.stry cannot be appreciated excei)t at the ship- 

 ping stations. Hundreds of cars are loaded every day, and the 

 number of boats loaded with bananas far surpasses those carry- 



143 



