AmYuiy?i9oh2arm"}      Products  of  the  Century  Plants.  329 
Progreso,  the  port  from  which  sisal  is  exported,  are  wholly  dependent 
upon  this  industry.  Were  it  not  for  this  industry  the  whole  north- 
western portion  of  Yucatan  would  be  deserted. 
"  Thanks  to  its  trade  in  henequen,  or  agave  fibre,  of  which  from 
40,000  to  60,000  tons  are  annually  exported,  Merida  has  become 
the  converging  point  of  several  lines,  which,  when  completed,  will 
cover  the  whole  peninsula  with  a  network  of  railways.  For  the 
present,  however,  the  capital  is  connected  only  by  a  road  with  its 
ancient  port,  the  little  town  of  Sisal,  at  the  northwest  corner  of 
Yucatan.  From  this  seaport  the  henequen  takes  its  English  name 
of  sisal  hemp,  by  which  it  is  known  to  the  trade.  The  price  of  this 
valuable  fibre  has  increased  six-fold  since  the  middle  of  the  present 
century.  The  roadstead  of  Sisal,  being  exposed  to  the  dangerous 
north  winds,  was  abandoned  in  1 87 1 ,  when  a  new  marina  was 
founded  on  the  coast  due  north  of  Merida,  with  which  it  is  con- 
nected by  a  railway  22  miles  long.  The  line  is  carried  over  the 
coast  lagoon  by  a  strong  embankment.  The  new  town,  which 
replaces  the  old  Indian  village  of  Tuxula,  has  already  justified  its 
name  of  Progreso,  although  the  only  advantage  it  enjoys  over  Sisal 
is  its  relative  proximity  to  the  capital.  To  shipping  it  is  equally 
inaccessible,  large  vessels  having  to  anchor  in  an  open  roadstead 
from  3  to  6  miles  from  port.  So  dangerous  is  the  roadstead 
that  steamers  and  sailing  vessels  are  always  ready  to  weigh 
anchor  and  escape  to  the  high  sea.  Towards  noon  every  day  com- 
munication with  the  shore  becomes  almost  impossible,  owing  to  the 
violence  of  the  surf  under  the  action  of  the  fierce  northern  gales." 
— "  The  Earth  and  Its  Inhabitants,"  Elisee  Reclus,  1891,  D.  Apple- 
ton  &  Co.,  N.  Y. 
EXPORT  AND   MANUFACTURE  OF  THE  FIBRE. 
The  United  States  takes  nearly  all  the  sisal  hemp  exported.  Sev- 
eral large  manufacturing  establishments  in  this  country  maintain 
agencies  in  Yucatan  for  the  purpose  of  purchasing  the  fibre  and 
keeping  thoroughly  informed  as  to  the  condition  of  the  trade,  the 
probable  supply  and  possible  variation  in  price. 
Sisal  hemp  is  one  of  the  few  important  raw  materials  of  the 
cordage  industry  in  the  United  States,  and  almost  the  whole  quan- 
tity imported  is  used  for  making  ropes  and  binding  twines.  In 
Philadelphia  and  other  cities  there  are  extensive  cordage  works 
