456 



MEXICO, CENTRAL AMERICA , WEST INDIES. 



island of Dominica. The British possessions, more numerous and collectivelj'' 

 more extensive than the French, form two main groups in the northern and 

 southern sections of the chain, besides the just-mentioned Dominica, whose 

 central position between Guadeloupe and Martinique makes it the most vital 



Fig. 218.— St. Kitts. 

 Scale 1 : 430,000. 



OtolO 

 Fathoms. 



T)ppths. 



10 1-, 50 

 Fathoms. 



50 Fathoms 

 and upwards. 



6 Miles. 



strategic point of this insular world. A small group in the north'West over 

 against the Virgin archipelago belongs to Holland, but all the rest are British. 



Physical Features. 



The system of the Lesser Antilles does not form a single line, but two per- 

 fectly distinct chains. Of these the more important is that which extends from 

 Saba and St. Eustatius to Grenada, developing a curve of about 370 miles. 



