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SCIENCE. 



[Vol. XXI. No. 530 



SCIENCE: 



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HYDROGRA.PHIC AREA OF THE RIO WANQUE OR COCO 

 IN NICARAGUA. 



BY J. CRAWFORD, CAPE GRACIAS AL DIOS. NICARAGUA. 



About four miles west from the town Ocotal, capital of the 

 Department of Nueve Segovia, in Nicaragua, at about Long. 86° 

 40' west (from Greenwich) and Lat. 13° 30' north, the waters in 

 the large creeks Somote-grande and Maculiso, unite and form 

 the commencement of a river, known to all persons living on its 

 banks, for fully three-fourths of its length, from its mouth up 

 as Rio Wanque,' for the remaining fourth as Rio Coco or Rio 

 Segovia. 



The general course of this river, for the first ninety miles from 

 its commencement down to the mouth of a confluent, the Rio 

 Phantasma, is eastwardly and from thence to its disembogue 

 into the Caribbean Sea at Cape Gracias a Dios, is about 32° east 

 "from north, but it is very sinuous, changing its course every 

 three-fourths of a mile to every two miles of its length as it flows 

 rapidly near to or along the southern side of " The mountain 

 system of New Segovia." '^ 



The important creeks and rivers are herein named in the order 

 they enter the Wanque River, commencing at the most west- 

 erly. = 



Rio Somote-grande, rising on the south side of Dullsupo Moun- 

 tain ridge,* and flowing southeasterly to where it unites with the 

 Rio Maculiso, and forms the Wanque River. 



Rio Maculiso, draining the southern side of the mountain 

 range, Ococan (to the N. E of the Dullsupo Mountains), com- 

 posed in part of the mountain ridges, Maculiso, Santa Maiia, 

 and Ococan (about Long. 86° 50' W., and Lat. 13° 20' N.) and 

 flowing southeastward ly until uniting with the Rio Somote- 

 grande, and forming the Segovia or Wanque River. 



RioDepilto, receiving its waters principally from the south- 

 erly sides of the mountain ridges Ococan, Depilto, and Jalapa, 

 and flowing southwardly, between moraine ridges for a part of 

 its route until confluent with the Segovia or Wanque on the 

 southeast side of Ocotal. 



' Rio "Coco," "Segovia," " Wanx," or " Wanque.'' Coco, abbreviated from 

 Cookra, the name of the aborigines once living on its banks, has precedence 

 because of antiquity, Segovia, the next oldest name, was given to it by the 

 Spaniards, and It is now known as Rio Segovia by the Latin and North Ameri- 

 cans and Europeans living near it and near its headwaters in the department 

 of Nueve Segovia, and is the official name used by the Government of Nicar- 

 agua for that part of this river. At its mouth, however, it is ofhcially referred 

 to as Rio Coco or Wanx. Wanque is the name invariably used by the Sambos 

 ta mixed seml-civillzed people) living along two-thirds of its length from Cape 

 Gracias up the river. Also, the Sumo Indians, living along one of its largest 

 tributaries, the Rio Bokay, always name it Rio Wanque. 



2 So named by Elle de Beaumont. For its direction, locality, etc., see Pro- 

 fessor Joseph Prestwich's Geology, London, 1886. 



= Recorded in this paper because convenient, at present, for reference to 

 locate lodes and deposits of valuable minerals and metals, and groves of 

 valuable trees discovered near to these rivers and creeks. 



■■ The locality is known as "rin on del burro" (i.e., resembling dimly a 

 mule) and Is a landmark guide in that part of Nicaragua, where no roads have 

 been made and the paths are often dim. 



Rio Palacaquiaa, percolating from old volcanic ridges on the 

 southwest, it flows northeastwardly until its waters enter the 

 Wduque or Segovia at the Indian village of Telpanaca. 



Rio Jicore has as its principal hydrographie area the southern 

 sides of the mountain ridges of Jalapa, Jicore, Encmo, and 

 Murar, in the Encino Range of mountains, and also the Quilali 

 and San Juan del Panaca Mountains in the Quilali Range, and 

 flows soutbeastwardly until entering the Wanque River at 

 Pueblo Quilali. 



Rio Phantasma flows from the south, draining ridges that 

 form the Phantasma Range in the mountain system of Mata- 

 galpa.' 



Rio Qua, from the southwest, rising in the Qua Range in the 

 Matagalpa Sjstem of mountains ^ 



Wa-wa-lee Creek, from the northeast; it drains a part of the 

 short ridge Ventura, in the mountain system of Nueve Segovia. 



Kilambe Creek, from the south, rising from a long mountain 

 ridge of that name. 



Rio Opoteka enters the Wanque River from the northward and 

 drains the southern side of the Opoteka Range in the mountain 

 system of Nueve Segovia. 



Rio Wanblau, from the southeast, joins the Wanque River 

 near the head of the long series of cascades in the Wanque 

 known as Ke-y-on ; it drains the northeastern termination of the 

 ridges Wan-blau, Keyon, and Pene Blanca (about 7,000 feel alti- 

 tude above the Caribbean Sea, the highest mountain in Nicaragua) 

 in the mountain system of Matagalpa. 



Ya-male Creek flows from the west into the Wanque near the 

 foot of the cascades Keyon. 



Peas Creek, from the southeast, gathers its waters from a low 

 ridge that is within four leagues of the Rio Bokay, to the south. 



Bolemaca Creek, flowing from cerros of that name (that are 

 composed of cryptocrystaline limestone intersected by numerous 

 interusculating veins now filled with crystallized calcite), east- 

 wardly into the Wanque River; the mountain Bolemaca is in the 

 system of Matagalpa. 



Oulawas Creek, flowing from the east from a cerro named 

 Kay-an that is composed of marble and compact limestones. 



Rio Bokay, from the southeast and east, about one-half of the 

 size of the Wanque River, drains the hydrographie area on the 

 east side of the mountain ridges Pene Blanca and Barbar, and 

 the north side of the Wanblau Mountains; its general course is 

 northeastwardly, near to and parallel with the Wanque River in 

 that part of the country. 



Wylawas, Attawas, and Saccos Creeks come from the east- 

 ward, draining, through placer gold mines at their heads, a part 

 of the vpestern side of a long lateral moraine of glacial epoch, 

 unstratifled deposits of clays, gravels, boulders, and sands. 



Six creeks, flowing eastwardly from the mountain system of 

 Nueve Segovia, examined and names not recorded, but reported 

 by the Sambos to have along near their banks Bumerous groves 

 of large-sized mahogany, cedar, walnut, and rosewood trees. 



Naga-was Creek, from the northwestern end of the long lateral 

 moraine above mentioned, flowing northwardly through placer 

 gold mines to the Wanque River. 



Rio Wash-pook, draining the northeastern end of the lateral 

 moraine above mentioned, and entering the Wanque from the 

 southeast; several of its tributaries drain placer gold mines, 

 also lodes containing gold. 



From the mouth of the Rio Wash-pook, east of north and 

 north to the Caribbean Sea, is the delta of the Wanque River, em- 

 bracing several lagoons and lakes and intersected by several 

 inter-connecting natural canals. There are three long series of 

 cascades and low falls in the Wanque River. The most west- 

 wardly commences a few miles below (N. E. of) the mouth of the 

 Rio Opoteka, at the locality named Ke-y-on, where the river has. 

 eroded about 3,000 feet in depth from the present altitude at the 

 south end of the mountain ridge Opoteka, and about 2,700 feet 

 depth from the altitude at the northern terniinatoin of the KeySn 

 Mountains. The other two long series of cascades are below the 



s This mountain system was so named In 1SS9 by the author of this paper 

 and examined by him on its southern ridges up to the water-dividing ridge in 



