CUBA 209 



flows in a westerly direction for a distance of 150 miles, drain- 

 ing the wide and fertile valley to which its name is applied. This 

 stream is navigable for small boats for a considerable distance 

 (80 to 100 miles), but its mouth has been obstructed by bars. 



FLORA 



The surface of the island is clad in a voluptuous floral mantle, 

 which, from its abundance and beauty, first caused Cuba to be 

 designated the Pearl of the Antilles. In addition to those intro- 

 duced from abroad, over 3,350 native plants have been catalogued. 

 Humboldt said, " We might believe the entire island was origi- 

 nally a forest of palms, wild limes, and orange trees." The flora 

 includes nearly all the characteristic forms of the other West 

 Indies, the southern part of Florida, and the Central American 

 seaboard. Nearly all the large trees of the Mexican Tierra Ca- 

 liente, so remarkable for their size, foliage, and fragrance, reap- 

 pear in western Cuba. Over 30 species of palm, including the 

 famous royal palm (Oreodoxa regia), occur, while the pine tree, 

 elsewhere characteristic of the temperate zone and the high alti- 

 tudes of the tropics, is found associated with palms and mahog- 

 anies in the province of Pinar del Rio and the Isle of Pines, 

 both of which take their names from this tree. 



Among other woods are the lignum vitse, granadilla, the cocoa 

 wood, out of which reed instruments are made, mahogany, and 

 Cedrela odorata, which is used for cigar boxes and linings of 

 cabinet work. 



Although 300 years of cultivation have exterminated the for- 

 ests from the sugar lands of the center and west, it is estimated 

 that in the hills of those districts and the mountains of the east 

 nearly 13,000,000 acres of uncleared forest remain. 



Rich and nutritious grasses are found throughout the island, 

 affording excellent forage for stock. The pineapples, manioc, 

 sweet potato, and Indian corn are indigenous to the island. 

 When the flora of Cuba is studied geographically, it will doubt- 

 less be divided into several subdivisions. 



CLIMATE 



Climatologic records are not available, except for Habana, and 

 these are not applicable to the whole island, where it is but nat- 

 ural to suppose that the altitudes and position of the high moun- 

 tains produce great variations in precipitation and humidity, 



