﻿Vol. 
  XLI, 
  No. 
  1 
  

  

  WASHINGTON 
  

  

  January, 
  1922 
  

  

  THE 
  

  

  NATDONAL 
  

   GEOGMAPfflG 
  

  

  COPYRIGHT. 
  1 
  922. 
  BY 
  NATIONAL 
  GEOGRAPHIC 
  SOCIETY. 
  WASHINGTON. 
  D. 
  C. 
  

  

  THE 
  ISLANDS 
  OF 
  BERMUDA 
  

  

  A 
  British 
  Colony 
  with 
  a 
  Unique 
  Record 
  in 
  Popular 
  

  

  Government 
  

  

  By 
  William 
  Howard 
  Taft 
  

  

  Author 
  of 
  "Great 
  Britain's 
  Bread 
  Upon 
  the 
  Waters: 
  Canada 
  and 
  Her 
  Other 
  Daughters,*' 
  "The 
  Health 
  

  

  and 
  Morale 
  of 
  America's 
  Citizen 
  Army," 
  "The 
  Progressive 
  World 
  Struggle 
  of 
  the 
  Jews 
  

  

  for' 
  Civil 
  Equality," 
  "Washington: 
  Its 
  Beginning, 
  Its 
  Growth, 
  and 
  Its 
  

  

  Future," 
  etc., 
  in 
  the 
  National 
  Geographic 
  Magazine 
  

  

  I 
  AIM 
  HERE 
  for 
  my 
  annual 
  visit 
  to 
  

   this 
  Society.* 
  In 
  previous 
  years, 
  

   which 
  began 
  the 
  year 
  after 
  I 
  left 
  

   office, 
  I 
  have 
  taken 
  subjects 
  the 
  geograph- 
  

   ical 
  character 
  of 
  which 
  it 
  was 
  difficult 
  

   clearly 
  to 
  establish, 
  but 
  this 
  year 
  I 
  shall 
  

   conform 
  to 
  the 
  proprieties 
  of 
  the 
  occa- 
  

   sion. 
  By 
  good 
  luck, 
  Mrs. 
  Taft 
  and 
  I 
  

   were 
  able 
  to 
  spend 
  four 
  weeks 
  of 
  January 
  

   last 
  in 
  the 
  Islands 
  of 
  Bermuda, 
  and 
  so 
  

   delightful 
  was 
  our 
  visit 
  and 
  so 
  interest- 
  

   ing 
  was 
  the 
  local 
  suggestion, 
  that 
  I 
  con- 
  

   cluded 
  to 
  make 
  the 
  Islands 
  the 
  theme 
  of 
  

   this 
  year's 
  talk. 
  

  

  The 
  Bermuda 
  Islands 
  are 
  only 
  twenty 
  

   square 
  miles, 
  about 
  one- 
  fourth 
  the 
  size 
  

   of 
  Staten 
  Island, 
  but 
  I 
  venture 
  to 
  think 
  

   that 
  there 
  is 
  no 
  group 
  in 
  any 
  ocean 
  so 
  

   small 
  which 
  has 
  played 
  so 
  conspicuous 
  a 
  

   part 
  on 
  the 
  world's 
  stage 
  as 
  the 
  Ber- 
  

   mudas. 
  They 
  form 
  a 
  microcosm, 
  the 
  

   catastrophes, 
  the 
  vicissitudes, 
  the 
  political, 
  

   economic, 
  and 
  religious 
  controversies, 
  and 
  

   the 
  development 
  of 
  whose 
  people, 
  as 
  a 
  

   solitary 
  unit, 
  far 
  out 
  to 
  sea, 
  reflect 
  much 
  

   of 
  the 
  world 
  history 
  of 
  the 
  English- 
  

   speaking 
  peoples. 
  

  

  And, 
  first, 
  what 
  are 
  they? 
  and 
  where 
  

  

  *An 
  address 
  delivered 
  before 
  the 
  National 
  

   Geographic 
  Society 
  in 
  Washington 
  in 
  Febru- 
  

   ary. 
  1 
  92 
  1. 
  

  

  are 
  they? 
  The 
  answers 
  to 
  these 
  geo- 
  

   graphical 
  questions 
  will 
  explain 
  much 
  of 
  

   their 
  history 
  and 
  present 
  condition. 
  

  

  The 
  Bermudas 
  are 
  a 
  group 
  of 
  what 
  are 
  

   said 
  to 
  be 
  365 
  islands 
  (one 
  for 
  every 
  day 
  

   in 
  the 
  year) 
  in 
  north 
  latitude 
  32 
  degrees 
  

   and 
  west 
  longitude 
  64 
  degrees. 
  There 
  are 
  

   only 
  five 
  important 
  islands, 
  and 
  the 
  whole 
  

   group 
  are 
  so 
  close 
  together 
  that 
  those 
  

   capable 
  of 
  use 
  are 
  united 
  by 
  bridges 
  and 
  

   causeways, 
  so 
  as 
  to 
  give 
  to 
  the 
  sojourner 
  

   in 
  his 
  drives 
  the 
  impression 
  that 
  they 
  are 
  

   but 
  one 
  island, 
  with 
  large 
  indenting 
  bays 
  

   and 
  inlets. 
  

  

  Strung 
  together, 
  they 
  have 
  the 
  form 
  of 
  

   a 
  fishhook 
  with 
  the 
  stem 
  pointed 
  to 
  the 
  

   northeast 
  and 
  the 
  curve 
  of 
  the 
  hook 
  to 
  

   the 
  southwest. 
  From 
  the 
  northeast 
  end 
  

   to 
  the 
  point 
  of 
  the 
  hook, 
  you 
  can 
  piece 
  

   out 
  a 
  curving 
  drive 
  22 
  or 
  23 
  miles 
  long, 
  

   and 
  the 
  width 
  of 
  land 
  from 
  sea 
  to 
  sea 
  

   through 
  which 
  you 
  drive 
  will 
  hardly 
  aver- 
  

   age 
  a 
  mile. 
  The 
  superficial 
  area 
  of 
  the 
  

   whole 
  group 
  is 
  19J/J 
  miles. 
  

  

  The 
  islands 
  are 
  nearlv 
  600 
  miles 
  from 
  

   Cape 
  Hatteras. 
  the 
  nearest 
  mainland 
  ; 
  

   they 
  are 
  700 
  miles 
  from 
  Charleston, 
  South 
  

   Carolina, 
  opposite 
  which 
  they 
  lie 
  in 
  the 
  

   Atlantic 
  ; 
  they 
  are 
  nearly 
  700 
  miles 
  from 
  

   New 
  York 
  and 
  about 
  50 
  miles 
  farther 
  

   from 
  Halifax 
  (see 
  map, 
  page 
  2). 
  

  

  