Fig. XVI.— El Mii.agrosa, the celebrated Temple .at Buga. 
The following day I visited the estate La Paila, the 
property of Sefiores Echfeverri Hermanos, which adjoins 
ElGuavito. This hacienda comprises an extensive cacao 
plantation, as well as a coffee plantation and grazing 
lands. The cacao plantation contains about 30,000 trees, 
and produces a cacao of excellent quality. A sample of the 
beans submitted by myself to a London broker some time 
ago, from this estate, was pronounced to be of the finest 
grade and suitable for the manufacture of the best con- 
fectionery. The shade tree in use is principally the 
Caracoli {Auncanlium rhinocarpiis), which, in my opinion, 
gives excessive shade. The Caracoli grows to an immense 
size ; it is one of the biggest trees of Colombia ; it provides 
profuse shade and is moreover very exhaustive to the soil. 
It is further not o.Lep,uminoiisi\-te^ which is a disadvantage, 
as Le^’imiiiiotis trees are preferable for the beneficial action 
they exercise on the soil. 
The same evening we rode on to Zarzal, where we 
arrived very late. This is a small town of some 4,221 in- 
habitants, who are principally engaged in the cattle 
industry ; the town is situated in a very narrow part of 
the valley. 
The next day’s journey brought us back to Cartago, the 
starting point of our tour through El Valle. The in- 
spection made of this Department was but a cursory one, 
having received at Buenaventura instructions to terminate 
the mission and return to Bogota. I was not therefore 
able to give the time and attention to this important 
Department as I would much liked to have done. Having 
at Cartago reached the northern limit of El Valle, it may 
be fitting here to give a resume of the impressions formed 
of the valley, before proceeding to recount the return 
journey to the Magdalena valley. 
GENERAL IMPRESSIONS OF EL VALLE. 
Population. 
The population of the Department numbers 272,551 
souls, or 128,510 less than the population of Caldas. The 
distribution of the population will be seen from the table 
which forms Appendix 2 ; Cali, Palmira, Cartago, Tulua 
and Buga are the most populous centres. 
The area of the Department El Valle is roughly cal- 
culated at 28,000 square kilometres, or double that of 
Caldas : its population per square kilometre works out at 
a fraction less than 10 persons as compared with 29 per 
square kilometre in Caldas. 
From cursory observation in journeying through these 
two Departments, it is apparent that in Caldas, although 
there are many large properties, land is more broken up 
into smaller holdings ; whereas in El Valle the gi'cater 
part of the land remains in large estates, and there are 
comparatively few small holdings. The manner in which 
land is held in El Valle accounts to a large extent for 
lesser agricultural activity and a sparser population ; but 
the divisory line between El Valle and Caldas is also the 
divisory line between the races Caucano and Anlioqneno, 
the latter being recognised as more reproductive than its 
neighbour. 
Fertility of El Valle. 
The fertility of the Cauca valley is a much advertised 
and assumed point. By the Cauca valley, I refer in this 
case to the valley which lies between the two Cordilleras, 
and has its northern limit at Cartago, and in the south the 
limits of the Department. While I would not endorse all 
1 have read and heard in this respect, since the northern 
and southern extremes of the valley possess lands of very 
ordinary character, there is no gainsaying the fact that 
the greater jiart of the valley, especia'lly the alluvial lauds 
ill the region of the Cauca river and its tributaries, are of 
excellent quality. They are suitalile for the production 
of a great variety of crops, as well as first-class pastures 
for cattle raising and fattening. Taking into consideration 
the altitude, which ai'erages rather under 1,000 metres 
above sea-level, and the excellent climate, the average 
temperature being about 25° C., together with the pro- 
ductivity of the soil, it may be dilficult to find a region in 
other parts of Colombia superior for general tropical 
agriculture and cattle raising. 
This area is admirably adapted to modern methods of 
mechanical cultivation. This is a great advantage in the 
production of crops on a commercial scale, and it is an 
important point that agricultural implements can be 
brought from the port of Buenaventura and distributed 
in the valley by rail and water. Little has, however, been 
yet done in this way ; it is surprising to note how' little 
use is made even ot animal-drawn ploughs, especially 
when horses and oxen for draft purposes are abundant. 
A commencement lias, however, been made, and one 
enterprising person has introduced steam tractors and 
other power agricultural imjilements for hire. Adequate 
preparation of the land is a necessary preliminary to the 
successful cultivation of crops, and is one of the elementary 
principles of agriculture which should be accepted and 
followed. I have often been told, with boastfulness, that 
the land had not been ploughed or broken up for this or 
that crop, and that it gave good returns ; it is seldom 
considered that had the land been suitably prepared, it 
would have produced much better returns. 
Crops suitable for El Valle. 
The valley embraces lands suitable for the successful 
cultivation on a commercial scale of cacao, sugar-cane, 
tobacco, cotton, rice, maize, coconuts, beans, &c., &c. 
Cacao, sugar-cane, and maize are cultivated to a moderate 
extent, but the greater part of the ATalley is devoted to 
pastures for cattle raising. Coffee is grown in the Cor- 
dilleras to some extent. 
Cacao. 
Cacao was cultivated at one time to a much greater 
extent in the valley than it is to-day, but insect pests and 
19 
