Clinch Valley news. [volume] (Jeffersonville, Va.) 18??-2019, 1891-07-10
THE INCA REPUBLIC.
Il DrED's-EYE VIEW oEPEnuaNn
ITS RESOURCES.
Throwing on the Spanish shackles
disastrous War With Chile
The System of Government
Mineral Products.

The Republic of Peru, the capital of
which is Lima. stretches along the Pacific
Coast from Ecuador to Chile, having
Brazil and Bolivia on the eastern frontier.
1t revolted from Spain in 1921, and its
FIRST Constitution was adopted in 1925.
In 1929 it fought with Colombia. In;
1s64-67 there was desultory effort on
the part of Spain to renew her domino.
ton, when Chile came vigorously aud
heroically to the rescue of Peru.
In 1S7S-S1, after forming secret al
lance for the purpose with Bolivia, Peru
fought desperate war with its quondam
friend, Chile, and in consequence lost the,
| province of Tarapaca and Professionally.
the department of Tacna.
The area of Peru is about 465. 747.
square miles, and its population approx
mates 3, 500, goo, of whom considerably
more than half are aborignals.
The present Constitution of Peru was
adopted in 1856, and was revised to some,
extent in 1860.
There are in Peru, MS in most of the
other South American Republics, an ex-
ecutive President, Senate and House of
Representatives; blu: the conditions of
Government are not so liberal US in the
majority Of Republican States Tho Presi-
dent is assisted by two Vice. Presidents,
one senior to the other, with the first
right OF succession id case of vacancy.
These three office holders are elected
every four years. An Executive Coun-
Gil of five Ministers, directly responsible
to the President, is nominated by him ut
the time of his entering ON his term of
Office; and he, not the Congress, has the
power of removing them.
The twenty departments nominate two
members each to the Senate, which also
includes Representatives of Tacna.
The House of Representatives contains
ITO members, returned by indirect cleo
tion-thc districts choosing electors,
who then meet in the chief towns of the
department and select Deputies in the
ratio of one to every 20, 900 inhabitants.
The local government of the depart.
ments, like the central State Govern
mcat, has been somewhat disorganized
by war and internal discussions, so that
the Constitution may be said to be in n;
large measure dependent upon the popu-
lar caprice. The established religion is
Roman Catholic.
The finances of Peru are greatly de-
moialized and disorganizcd, and no re-
cent returns of revenue aud expenditure
are either reliable or available The
public debt approXimatcs $3.50 ,O0O, 600,
the interest on which is not paid, and in
consequence the expenditures are con
sidcrably in excess of the income. In
short, Peru has been practically ruined
by the wild policy which it has adopted
through the intervention and influence of
foreign capitalists.
Peru is perhaps the best known of all
South American countries. 1t is the scat
of the ancient civilization of the Incas
and contains some of the FUNGUS silver
mines worked for so many centuries. 1t
is divided by its mountains into three
regions--thc coast, the central plateau
and the Amazon region. The coast
line of Peru presents an almost un-
broken front of arid ridges of sand or
bleak ranges of rock running some
times to the sea, yet behind those ridges
and between those bare mountains are
valleys of unparalleled fertility, through
which wind streams of water fed by the
unfailing SHOWS of the highest peaks,
streams whose volume and force abntc
ms they reach the wall of sand toward
the sea and in which they are finally
lost. There are few rivers of the multi
tude along the western slope of the Cor
dillcras that find their way unbarred bv
sand to the ocean. In these valleys the
products of the field are cxuberant and
varied, corn, cotton, sugar cane, alfalfa,
rice, with grapes, apples, pears, peaches
and other fruits, abound. The maturity
of the crops depends upon the time of
sowing and planting, so that they NAV
be arranged to mature consecutively,
thus keeping the mills always at work.
The mineral resources of Peru are very
abundant. Silver is found throughout
her territory, also gold, coal, copper and
many other minerals.
The plateau is an agricultural country
broken by many rides. In the south is
portion of the great basin of Lake
Titicaca, the remainder being in Bolivia;
the whole is entirely surrounded by hills,
thus cutting off all escape for its waters.
North of this basin, in the valleys, flow
the tributaries of the Amazon; ON the
plateau they flow due north, and then.
escaping through the ridges, pour their
waters into the Ucayali, the Hul,aga and
the Maranon. These again, increased by
the streams rising upon the eastern slopes
of the Coruilleras, enter the Amazon.
The greater portion of the population
live On the central plateau, the province
of Jauja being the most thickly inhab-
tied.
The Amazon provinces are thickly
covered with vegetation, and are thnly
inhabited. They are traversed In all
directions by water courses; the climate
is mild, and the soil extremely fertile.
In this country lies the head of naviga.
ton of the Amazon, beyond which the
ways open to traffic are few, consisting
of mule paths almost impossible during
the rainy season. The early Spaniards
built extensive roads through the
plateau, and it is said that the sRoyal
Highway" traversed the country from
north to south. Along the coast there
are also good roads, but across the