March 31, 1893.] 



SCIENCE. 



175 



mouth of the Sacoos Creek and continue with short intervals be- 

 tween the two series, for about 75 miles. These series of cas- 

 cades, the Ke-y-on, Saccos, and Naga-was, impede the naviga- 

 tion of the Wanque River; passing up or down over them being 

 quite dangerous even on rafts or in the light oval-botlom canoes, 

 the only bind of transportation at present on this river; conse- 

 quently the area drained by about 250 miles of this Wanque 

 River (including, also, the hydrographio area of the Rio Bokay, 

 from the mouth of Rio Qua to the muuth of Rio Wash- pools) is a 

 " terra-iucognito," about which neither the citizens nor the Gov- 

 ernment of Nicaragua have any reliable infovmalion; however, 

 rafts of logs of cedar, mahogany, walnut, nispero etc.. can be 

 safely floated over the cascades and down the Wanque River to 

 Cape Gracias a Dios. 



The soils in the area drained by the Wanque River and its 

 tril)utaries,extendingabout one hundred miles from the Caribbean 

 Sea coast are fertile, alluvial, delta lands, suitable tor the produc- 

 tion of plantains, bananas, breal-fruit. rice, ginger, sugar-cane, 

 grasses (Teocinte, Guinea, and Para are indigenous), and along 

 the sandy rim of the sea-coast cocoanuts grow to large size and 

 are numerous on each tree. Fro.-n thence up the hvdrographic 

 area of the river the lands are composed, usually, of a deep and 

 fertile soil constituted generally of a large percentum of partly 

 decomposed organic matter, mixed or inter-laminated, to depths 

 of five to fifty feet, with deposits, in situ, of disintegrated and 

 partly decomposed lime — alkali — or ferriferous rocks. These 

 lands support dense forests of trees an^l jungles of vines and 

 plants of semi-tropical and warm temperate vegetation, and are 

 suitable for the annual or semiannual yield of full crops of rice, 

 corn, ginger, bananas, plantains, also annual jield of cacS, man- 

 goes, coffee (the Liberian species), vegetables, bread-fruit, 

 oranges, lemons, limes, etc., and lands on the sides of mountains 

 and their elevated planes, above 1,500 feet altitude above the 

 Caribbean Sea or Gulf of Mexico, are suitable for tobacco, al- 

 monds, grapes, coffee (the Arabic species), corn, oranges, lemons, 

 limes, vegetables, etc. (ill the lands in Nicaragua are below 

 the frost-line.) From the Rio Jicore, up westwardly on the area 

 drained by the Segovia or Wanque River and its tributaries, the 

 lands are generally sand, gravel, and clay; in this region the 

 rocks have not disintegrated so rapidly nor to -such depths by 

 meteorological influences as they have down the "Wanque River 

 below the Rio Jicore, or the vegetable matter, alkalies, and alka- 

 line earths have been removed by rain water. In some parts of 

 the western headwater localities, especially just northeast ot the 

 town Ocotal, the surface lands are largely drift from moraines, 

 and not desirable for agricultural purposes. 



The climate has a wet and a dry season each year; the former 

 continuing over the area from the sea-coast up the Wanque, to 

 about the mouth of the Opoteka, for fully seven months. How- 

 ever, in a part of that time, the rain showers, although two or 

 more times a day, are only of a few minutes' duration ; for about 

 five months in each year there are no, or but a few, showers of 

 rain; enough, however, to counteract in part the effects of rapid 

 evaporation. 



The temperature is semi-tropical from Cape Gracias up the 

 Wanque River to the mouth of Rio Opoteka, especially in the 

 lower valley lands, but cooler on the mountains' sides and on the 

 elevated planes, where the temperature varies in the year from 

 22° C. to 32° C. From Opoteka up to the western sources of the 

 Wanque River, the temperature is— between low land and 

 mountain planes — from 12° C. (sometimes) at night to 30° C. at 

 noon, the average daily temperature being about 27° C ' 



Several large mineral springs are found at the heads of the 

 western tributaries to this river, some of them containing salts 

 of the alkalies or alkaline earths, others salts of iron. No sul- 

 phur springs were discovered. Some of these are cool water, 

 others tepid, others boiling waters. The principal localities ob- 

 served, where springs of mineral waters were found, are: — 



A large spring of tepid water containing sulphate of magnesia 



as its principal salt (and other sulphates) located one league west 



1 My reliable thermometera were broken early in each expedition to north- 

 eastern Nicaragua, i.e., in 1S90, when exploring the mountain system of Mata- 

 galpa, and this year, 1892, when examining and exploring the hydrographic 

 area of the Rio Wanque, Segovia, or Coco. 



from the town of Ocotal, near to the margin of the Segovia or 

 Wanque River. Several large springs of boiling water were 

 found near the foot of an arenaceous limestone ridge, about four 

 leagues northwest from Ocotal (rose quartz is found in the creek 

 of hot waters, in pieces of various size, some containing a cubic 

 foot). This creek has a temperature of about 50° C, two miles 

 distant from the springs, where it enters Rio Maculiso. 



Several large springs of boiling waters are found near the 

 Pueblo Jalapa (on Jalapa Creek, a confluent to Rio Jicore) one of 

 them containing lithia salts in quantities to be easily recognized.^ 



Among the most valuable and useful in the industrial arts, 

 medicines, etc., of the flora observed in the area drained by this 

 river and its tributai'ies, the principal ones, found in such large 

 numbers and in such large size that the collecting and exporting 

 of them could be made a profitable industry, were noted more 

 particularly at the following named localities; these areas, how- 

 ever, represent only a few of the many similar groves and forests 

 that were not entered and examined 



From the western sources of the Wanque or Segovia River, 

 down its area to the Rio Phantasma are, in order as observed 

 from the west, oak (quercus), pine (pinussilvestrus), sarsaparilla, 

 ipecacuana, liquid amber, balsam (Peru and Copaiva), nispero, 

 tamarind, mora, walnut (a variety of Ingulaus cathartica), 

 copal-chi, and other species of cinchona, ironwood, ebony, ma- 

 hogany, cedar (a variety of junipuris), guana (a cellular, endoge- 

 nous tree of specific gravity near cork and compressible like cork), 

 ginger, fibrous plants (in great variety and luxuriance), ciT-eil 

 (Theobroma, indigenous), grasses, bananas, plantains, oranges, 

 lemons, also a great variety of beautiful orchids and flowering 

 plants. 



From the Rio Phantasma to Laccos Creek, including the area 

 drained by the Rio Bokay and its tributaries are mahogany, 

 cedar, walnut, ironwood, ebony, nispero, mora, guana caste, 

 guana, cinchonas, rosewood, guttapercha, tamarind, also nu- 

 merous large groves of India rubber trees (usually Syphonias) of 

 small size (the larger ones having been felled by collectors of 

 India- rubber), grasses (Teocinte, Para, and Guinea are indi- 

 genous), caca (Theobroma), bamboo (attaining fourteen inches 

 in diameter), ginger, bananas, plantains, etc. 



From Laccos Creek to the Caribbean Sea are principally tam- 

 arinds, palms (" pebepias"), bread-fruits, and cocoanuts. 



The types of man living or existing in the hydrographic area 

 of the Wanque River of about 15,000 square miles are, — 



From the western headwaters of the Wanque to Rio Phan- 

 tasma, Latin-Americans and partly-civilized Indians, interspersed 

 by a few Europeans and North Americans. (Negroes in one 

 Pueblo, Cindad Viejo.) Their ancestors came in the 18th cen- 

 tury from Belize or the island of Jamaica to fell cedar and ma- 

 hogany trees for some company of Englishmen; the chief occu- 

 pation of a majority of the people in that region being agriculture 

 or mining on small scale and by primitive processes (i.e., sharp- 

 ened sticks and machetes; no plows, no hoes). 



This area embraces about 4,000 square miles and contains 

 about 16,000 population. 



From the Rio Phantasma along the banks of the Wanque River 

 — east of north — to the Caribbean Sea are Sambos.' They live 



" Aba'yses of some of these springs are reported lo have been made, but 

 the name of the chemist Is not given. The author of this paper has not yet 

 had opportuniiy to analyze or have analyzed anyof these waters. 



3 The Sambos are a mixture o^ Caribs. Negroes, and Europeans, the Negro 

 prednmlnating, although they have straight hair and nose, and exhibiting dis- 

 tinctly the rapid retrogressive ii]fluence towards Primates, caused by this 

 mixture of the types above named; a small profile or sideview of the faces of 

 a majority of this people would be mistaken easily at first glance for that of 

 an antttropodia monkey. A part of this people, however— a mixture of Negro, 

 Sumo, Indian, aud European (usually Spanish) — are less rapid in their 

 degenerating tendency. The Sambos have a language largely of modifica- 

 tions from the Sumo Indians, the English, and the Spanish. They claioo alle- 

 giance to the King if the Moskoes (Musqulto-s) iiidiaus, bjt have no laws, no 

 government, no officials, no schools, no agriculture, no churches, no religious 

 faith, no conception of a future existence after death on earth (although 

 sometimes they bury food, clothing, and coohing utent-ils with th*-lrdead); 

 without an idea of moral rt-sponsibiiity, they have become experts in deceptive 

 practices; they are excellent canoe-men, navigating the river up aud down 

 through the cascades without injury to thembcives or their canoes (made oval 

 bottom in one piece from a cedar or mahogany log). 1 hey live on roots, fruits, 

 flsn, and wild animals ^oue variety of monkeys included). The women Invari- 

 ably do the greater part of the work, such as collecting wood, fruits, and roots, 

 cooking, carrying water, etc., and " dress " in a short-sleeve jacket extending 

 to their waists; then down to their ankles is covered by a wrapper of one piece 

 of cloth tied by withes of Dark or by pieces of vines around their waist. All are 

 lazy, idle, and brutish. 



