An Account of a Journey from Tolima to the Pacific Coast, through 
the Departments of Caldas and El Valle (^Republic of Colo?nbia) 
By M. T. DAWE, F.L.S 
THE AGRICULTURAL CONDITIONS AND POSSIBILITIES. 
I'lie following is an account of a journe}’, undertaken 
by the writer in his capacity as Agricultural Adviser to 
the Ministry of Agriculture and Commerce, on behalf of 
the Government of Colombia in the interests of agriculture 
and commerce. 
Route. 
The route followed was from San Lorenzo, in the 
Magdalena valley, over the Central Cordillera, by way of 
the snow-covered mountains of Ruiz to Manizales ; thence 
to the northern part of Caldas as far as Aguadas, returning 
through the western part of the Department by way of 
Marmato, Riosucio and Belacazar to La Virginia, a port 
on the Cauca river ; thence to the Quindio by way of 
Pereira, Salento and Armenia over the Cordillera as far 
as Perales in the municipality of San Miguel, returning 
via Armenia and Montenegro to Cartago. From Cartago 
by way of the Cauca river to Cali, thence by the Pacilic 
railway to the Coast of Buenaventura, returning to Cali ; 
thence overland through the important valley of the 
Cauca by way of Palmira, Buga and Bugalagrande to 
Cartago. I'rom Cartago, returning via Filadellia and 
Santa Rosa de Cabal to Manizales ; thence crossing the 
Central Cordillera, for the third time, by way of Solidad, 
returning to the Magdalena valley at Mariquita on the 
La Dorada railway. 
Ascending the Cordillera Central. 
We set out from San Lorenzo on October 19th, 1918, 
our lirst object being to journey to the paramos'^ and 
snow-covered mountains of Ruiz, at route to Manizales, 
the capital of Caldas. I was accompanied by Sehor 
Pablo E. Aza, as Secretary, and we took an arrearo ^ and 
cook, and in addition to our riding animals, live pack 
animals to convey our tent, equipment and collecting 
material. 
Leaving the sympathetic and progressive little town 
of San Lorenzo beliind, we commenced the ascent of 
the Magdalena slope of the Central Cordillera. The 
lower part, or foot hills of the range, is of a somewhat 
sterile and stony character, as is the case with the Cor- 
dilleras in many other parts of Colombia. The vegetation 
is scanty, the arboreal vegetation limited to small trees, 
there being few large trees except in the watered valleys 
and ravines or quebradas. After, however, climbing slowly 
for four hours, we found ourselves in better lands, and at 
dusk we reached the posnda ^ known as Estrella, wliere we 
passed the night. This is the commencement of the coffee 
zone, and the poor stony lands of the foothills of the 
Cordillera here are replaced by lands of excellent fertility, 
as is amply demonstrated by the luxuriance of the vegeta- 
tion and the robust and healthy growth of the cultivated 
crops. 
Coffee growing in this locality is in the hands of small 
planters, and signs are not wanting that this will develop 
into a very important coffee producing region in the near 
future. 
^ Rest-house. 
The next day we left Estrella at 10 a.m., for Libano, 
our departure having been delayed by torrential rains, 
which made our climb up the mountain side very tedious 
and slow, but we reached Libano shortly after noon. The 
road from Estrella lirst crosses a deep valley, and the path 
winds down the precipitous slopes and then takes a 
winding course up the no less steep ascent on the opposite 
side. This is a most picturesque region, and one fed on 
beautiful scenes of sub-tropical vegetation of which the 
tall, graceful and slender palms, are not the least con- 
spicuous, reminding one of similar scenery of the hill 
country in the interior of the island of Ceylon. The 
whole of this morning’s journey was through the coffee 
zone ; coffee-growing being the principal cultivation of 
the region, forming the backbone of the trade and com- 
merce of Libano. 
Libano and its Agricultural Importance. 
The town of Libano is a busy and growing centre, and 
has a delightful temjierate climate. The principal crops 
of the municipality are : coffee, maize, beans, wheat, 
potatoes and cacao ; though rice, tobacco, plantains, 
barley, sugar-cane, onions and peas are also grown to a 
considerable extent. Maize leads the way in jiroduction 
of quantity, the annual crop being about 100,000 sacks ; 
coffee leads the way in the value of the annual crop, it 
amounts to about 50,000 sacks ; the annual production of 
beans amounts to about 50,000 ; potatoes, 40,000 ; wheat, 
3,000 ; and cacao, 350 sacks. 
Industries. 
Coal and copper are found in the region, but the 
deposits are not exploited. There are several coffee-mills 
for the hulling and cleaning of the bean ; flour mills ; one 
.sack-making establishment for the utilization of fiqiie' libre; 
four distilleries for the manufacture of the national 
beverage, “aguardiente” ; four factories for the manufac- 
ture of aerated waters, kola and beer ; and two tanneries. 
The Timber Resources of the Central Zone of the 
Cordillera. 
From Libano we proceeded to Murillo, a little town in 
the cloud-forest region, where the principal occupations 
are those of potato and wheat-growing and cattle-farming. 
Murillo is a dependency of the municipality of Libano. 
The central part of the Cordillera contains a good deal 
of forest ; there is little doubt that at one time it was 
completely covered with forest, but large areas have been 
cleared in the lower part of the central zone for the 
cultivation of coffee, maize, &c., and in the higher part 
of the central zone for the cultivation of potatoes, wheat, 
barley, and the laying down of pasture lands. On the 
journey from Libano up the mountain we noticed that a 
good deal of this clearing has been the work of recent 
years. 
Before reaching Murillo we passed through forests 
composed entirely of Colombian oak or roble {Qiiercns sp.). 
Moors. 
- Muleteer. 
3 
Fotircroya spp. 
