INDIA-RUBBER, AND OTHER PRODLXTS. IO9 



the resin, and when they have a certain quantity they carry 

 it in boats to San Juan del Norte, or Greytown, where it is 

 easily disposed of. The annual exportation at the present 

 time is worth about ^,40,000. All the forests bordering the 

 banks of San Juan and San Carlos rivers are those where the 

 india-rubber trees are abundant. One of their enemies is the 

 well-known beetle, vulgarly called Harlequin, (Acrocinus 

 longunamis,) a very large insect belonging to the family of 

 Longicorns, or Cerambycidse. It is about three to four inches 

 long and one inch wide, with antennae and legs five inches 

 long. Its name, Harlequin, has been given to it in conse- 

 quence of the colour of its elytrae, streaked with various 

 colours, gray, black, and red being prominent. It feeds on 

 the sap of the Siphonia, and deposits its eggs in the incisions 

 made, to extract the gum. Later on, the larves ]3orc for them- 

 selves great holes right through the stem. These larvae 

 boiled are considered as delicacies by the Indians. 



So we see that Nicaragua produces three very important 

 articles of commerce — plantains, cacao, and india-rubber, but 

 this is not all. Very good coffee is also cultivated in that 

 country. Vanilla is also found, and many are the cereals,, 

 fruits and vegetables grown. The principal are maize, beans^ 

 rice, capsicum, among cereals ; orange, lemon, mango^ 

 sapote, guavas, among fruit-trees; and many sorts of vege- 

 tables, capsicum, tomato, radish, cabbage, potato, &c., &c. 



To give an idea of the commerce done in that country in. 

 1852, I submit the list of several goods exported from Realeja 

 in that vear. 



Cedar, 20,000 square yards; Mahogany, 21,000 square 

 yards; Boards, 71,764; Brazil Wood, 22,845 hundredweight; 

 Hides, 12,870; Cotton, 1,000 hundredweight ; Maize, 16,155 

 bags; Rice, 7,627 hundredweight; Sugar, 1,664 quintals; 

 Cigars, 120,000; Coyol Oil, 615 gallons; Honey, 11,000 

 gallons; Bea^is, 100 quintals; Lemons, 50,000; Eggs, 600 

 dozen ; and a quantity of mules, pigs, indigo, fruits, ham-mocks, 

 shoes, and other manufactured articles, &c., &c. Besides 

 cattle, horses and mules are reared in the plains, and 

 many haciendas possess several thousand heads of them, 

 which produce a good yearly income to their owners. They 

 are exported to the neighbouring Republics, where they fetch a 

 good price. 



There are also rich mines of gold and silver. The prin- 

 cipal are those of Chontales, on the Atlantic Coast. The late Mr. 

 Thomas Belt, who published in 1874, a very interesting book 



