PRELIMINARY ESSAY. 



21 



This bar of foreign territory over-lying these im- 

 portant lines of transit, extends from Cape Catoche, 

 in Yucatan, which is the eastern point of Mexico^ to 

 the island of Porto Rico, a distance of fourteen hun- 

 dred miles ; and, under the geographical necessities 

 of trade and travel, may be said, without any distor- 

 tion of language, to lie immediately between the 

 Atlantic and the Pacific States. Through this bar 

 of foreign territory there are but three passages 

 open to commerce, all of which are in possession, or 

 under the immediate control of, European powers. 

 The most western of these is the narrow passage be- 

 tween Cape Catoche and the western end of Cuba, 

 forming the southern outlet to the Gulf of Mexico, 

 and which can be approached from the Atlantic 

 ports, only by first passing through the channel be- 

 tween the north coast of Cuba and the reefs of 

 Florida. This passage lies about one hundred and 

 fifty miles leeward from Havana. 



The passage next eastward is the channel between 

 the eastern end of Cuba and the western extremity 

 of St. Domingo. It is about forty miles wide at the 

 narrowest part, having the harbors of St. Jago and 

 Guantanamo, in Cuba, on one side, Gonave and Port 

 au Prince, in Hayti, on the other, and J amaica lying 

 directly across its southern outlet. These two are 

 those most frequented in our intercourse between the 



