THE ATLANTIC COAST AND ITS CONNECTIONS. 35 
the islands of the sea, which still bear their name, when 
the Spaniards enslaved or destroyed their fellow-owners of 
the land. Its situation at the entrance of the chief water¬ 
way to the interior and the capital soon marked it for a 
Spanish post; but the buccaneers were too powerful, and 
before their advance the port of entry was moved far up 
the Rio Dulce to Izabal, on the lake of that name, —-the 
fort of San Felipe blocking the way to these lawless ene¬ 
mies. Not only pirates, but the Home Government has¬ 
tened the decay and disuse of this port, and the banks of the 
Rio Dulce were of little importance, except to the mahog¬ 
any-cutters and sarsaparilla-gatherers, for two centuries. 
An enlightened Government, in fostering the immense 
agricultural wealth of Guatemala, turned the attention of 
foreign capital, first to the rich coffee-lands in the neigh¬ 
borhood of Coban, and later to the even richer fruit-lands 
of the valleys east of the high table-lands of the interior. 
The outlet for all the produce was by the Polochic, and 
the shipping-port was Livingston ; so the little village 
built by the exiled Caribals (cannibals) has been gradually 
occupied by business men of various nations, until now 
the population may be nearly two thousand. The shores 
are high and healthful, and the anchorage within the 
river is secure. Dredging would easily open a channel,, 
and jetties like those placed in the Mississippi by Captain 
Eads would doubtless keep the way open; for the current 
is frequently very strong, but now wastes its strength, 
over a mile of shoal-water. At present all the ocean 
steamers lie at anchor outside; and consequently the 
lighterage is an important business. 
In the immediate neighborhood of this port, and acces¬ 
sible by water, are lands pre-eminently adapted for sugar 
