, 1891-11-18

the Lesser Antilles, and therefore could be
maze 20 yield, with proper enterprise, the
pest tobacco in the world, plenty of sugar and
all the other numerous West India staples that
ma so ready a market in the North.
AS the outline picture of st. Thomas shows
the island is long and narrow in shape, with
many bays. Its length does not exceed twelve
miles, and Its average breadth is three miles.
1t may be sad to be equal in size to the island
upon which our own city of New York is built.
tls, however, exceedingly mountainous, and
therefore has a greater superficial area than
Manhatten Island, The highest point is 1900
feet above the level of the sea. It is called
crown Hill. There are other hills-the island
ers are not bold enough to call them mountains
THAI are 900, 900, and 700 feet in height.
Indeed there is very little Jewel laHd on the
lsland. There are no rivers, lakes or ponds,
elther. In the rainy season, however, which
lasts from June until October, some raging
torrents are formed that in q day rush down
the SIDES OF the hills, swapping the streets and
movable.
Before another day has rolled around. how.
ever, presuming that the downpour Of rain has
ceased, little or no vestige remains as far as
bed and banks are concerned, Of The roarinr
river OF the day before. They are MANY
springs of fresh water on the island, but they
are not utilized to any extent. The people
use ram water for drinking. cooking and like
purposes, wherefore every house has a cistern
winch collects its water from the roof.
owing to undue length some years of the
"ry season these ~cisterns or the great majority
oI Iheln' are often emptied. The water famine
IS more or less a regular thing every year.
Oniy a very small portion of the island of
81. Thomas is under cultivation. There was a
Ilue however, when it was made to Weld great
abundance, and those who mainain that the
restitution OF the Islands former property lies
only IN recourse to agriculture are wont to
point to hat fact in support Of the practicable
ty OF such a recourse.
The people of St. Thomas have almost who'll.
~ given themselves up to commerce, not rails
ing enough, indeed, for their own consumption
much less for export. For many wears they
nave had to depend on the surrounding islands
Tor the bulk of their fruits, part of their vege-
tables and a great proportion Of their cattle
ana other live stock for slaughter. They aball-
doned their estates and plantations because
quicker and greater profits awaited them in the
domain OF trade. The geographical position
OF the island, coupled with the fact that the
harbour is one of the best in the West Indies,
beng spacious, deep and perfectly landlocked
rendered 1t the best distributing point HI the
Caribbean Sea.
Europe and North America sent their manu-
features to st. Thomas, where immense ware
houses were erected to receive them, and St.
Thomas In turn sent those manufactures to
the other islands in the West Indies and to
Central and South America. St. Thomas was
also made the distributing point for the pro-
ducts OF the other islands and Central and
South America, receiving them and storing.
them until such time as the European ana
North American markets were ready for them.
To-day st. Thomas has only the shadow of
her commercial prosperity of fifty. thirty, or
twenty years ago. Various causes contribut-
ed to her decline. Principal among them was
the application of steam to navigation and
the ease of communication therefore made
possible between all countries. The islands
that hitherto depended for their supplies on
st. Thomas began to have direct intercourse
with Europe and America, and it naturally
followed that their merchants forsook the
whilom emporium and got their goods from
the manufacturers themselves saving the ST
Thomas middlemen's profits.
Nevertheless there is still a great deal of it
left, for none of the others have been able to
GUST st. Thomas altogether from this position
of a distributing centre, which it must
always continue to be as long as o distribu-'
ting centre is needed in these waters. AS
only a few Of the islands, moreover, can fur
Ill ~ =. Il -