Courtesy of J. F. Robert 
GRAN HOTEL COSTA RICA AT SAN JOSE 
matters pertaining to the administration of justice, the granting of pardons, and 
the affairs of the Roman Catholic Church. Although Catholicism is the State 
religion, complete freedom of worship is constitutionally guaranteed. 
The Department of Interior (Secretaria de Gobernacion) has charge of 
the interior administration of the Provinces, through the governors and canton 
chiefs, and also exercises a general supervision over the municipal councils. 
The post offices and telegraph systems, the recorder of deeds, the civil register, 
the national archives, the city police forces, as well as rural police, the police 
courts, and the national prison, are under this department. At present there 
are 215 post offices in the Republic and a similar number of telegraph offices. 
The Department of Finance and Commerce (Secretaria de Hacienda y 
Comercio) has charge of the administration of the national finances and the 
regulation of commerce, all customhouses and internal revenue offices being 
under it, as well as the National Commercial Laboratory where all foodstuffs, 
chemicals and beverages are analyzed. The Department also controls the 
national liquor factory, which manufactures liquors and prepares alcohol for 
various industrial purposes. 
The Department of Public Education (Secretaria de Educacion Publica) 
is in charge of all the public elementary schools and the high schools and 
technical schools, such as the Lyceum at San Jose, the normal school at 
Heredia, and the Superior College for Girls; the Lawyers’ College and the 
Faculty of Medicine, Surgery and Pharmacy, are also under the jurisdiction 
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of this department. The Institute of Physical Geography, the Meteorological 
Observatory, the National School of Fine Arts, and the national and other 
public libraries likewise fall within its scope. 
The Department of Promotion and Agriculture (Secretaria de Fomento 
y Agricultura) exercises jurisdiction over the railways, bridges and roads, as 
well as public buildings. It is also charged with the development of agri¬ 
culture and mining and the encouragement of other industries in the country. 
The Department of Public Safety (Secretaria de Seguridad Publica) has 
charge of all matters pertaining to the instruction, maintenance, and equip¬ 
ment of the army and navy, and of regulations for the merchant marine. 
Judicial power is vested in a National Supreme Court and in minor courts. 
The Supreme Court is composed of eleven justices chosen by Congress for a 
term of four years, and when sitting as an entire body in certain classes of 
cases it is known as the full court (Corte Plena). This Court, however, is 
divided into three sections for the adjudication of ordinary cases, as follows: 
Court of Cassation (Casacion) composed of five justices; and two Courts of 
Appeal (Apelaciones) each consisting of three justices. The Chief Justice 
of the Court of Cassation is also the Chief Justice of the full Court (Corte 
Plena). The Corte Plena appoints the judges of the lower courts. The 
National Supreme Court has the power to declare laws unconstitutional. 
The Army is composed of a Reserve and a National Guard at present con¬ 
sisting of 150,486 officers and men, but the standing or active army is limited 
to 500 by agreement with neighboring nations. The land forces are supple¬ 
mented by small government vessels patrolling both Caribbean and Pacific 
coasts, which in time of peace operate for revenue purposes. 
Courtesy of National Tourist Board 
A RECENTLY CONSTRUCTED COLONIAL TYPE RESIDENCE IN SAN JOSE 
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