Evening star., 1901-05-13
Something of Its Agricultural Re-
sources,
LAND NOW UNDER CULTIVATION
Development Of Staple Products,
Sugar and Tobacco.
! INTER ESTING STATEMENT Is


Now that the Department of Agriculture
Tt~ determined to start an experimental
station in Porto Rico. which Mr.. Frank d.
t,ardRer of the division of soils has been
.ruointed special agent. 1t may be found
,-- interest for those who have the
Porto Rican welfare at heart to earn
some facts regarding our agricultural
wealth up TO the time when the Amer
Ian government took possession OF the
island.
Porto Rico has a surface Of about 800
square kilometers. out of which some S,525
were in 1891 devoted to agricultural enter
prises "f various kinds. The number of
estates was then 60 a5:;. valued at from
fDrty-eight to forty-nire millions of pesos
'the peso is equal TO ~ cents in American
gold. the peso having been Withdrawn
from circulation. the standard there is now
the American dolidr). These estates were
owned by some ~. -. landlords. Gen. San
gers report on the census taken in 1879.
after the hurricane, gives out 39.G21
tatrs. with aggregate area of about
1.1Ii is square kilometers. of which less
than one-third was under cultivation. Gen.
Sanger's report does not state the value
fixed to these estates al the time when the
census was taken. but a conservative esti-
mate of the losses experienced by the
farmers through the hurricane of August.
1879. can be put at from fifteen to twenty
millions; for III the coffee districts we find.
for instance. counties like Lares. whose
loss amounted to not less than s.. .OOO, 600.
and Las Marias. with some 81 ,04,,O.,S of
damages as stated in the official reports
of the municipalities after Investigations.
Thus the decrease in value of the land on
account of the tornado was considerable.
Companions Made.
If now compare the areas of cuitiva-
tion in the main products of the Porto
Riean soil just prior to the American ec-
cupation OseID and just after the occupa-
Wi
Tubacco cuerdas ............ 4264o7 $3.50
ss S%sss eans sHsfss sserdas s 1s2o.s 21ss
The cuerda is nearly the same as an
acre. The figures heretofore given for 1881
have been taken from the official reports
of the Spanish government. and those for
1879 from the Porto Rican census. taken
by the United States government under
the direction of General ]. P. Sanger. now
assistant secretary of war.
Cattle raising is extensive and i'm
portant business in the will-be-if-the-
Cnited-States- s-Supreme-Court-so fu-
LIZ. 1.5S1.5 80 cuerdas devoted to pasture. And
the comparative stock follows:
Horses heads s.--.......-...... 6..!3i $3.50
Mules. heads Observation-Disclosures. 4.464 6.9s5
ASSe>, heads. OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES. III 1,oSS
BLACK cattle token. cows &c).
NI-rino sheep heads. 2o5a ss6s
S9esD S%1gs hsadi Sss5. 1s.,s $.is & fs.ssa 9s1
While the numbers in horses and black
cattle have decreased by 9.oS1 and 433S7,
respectively. an increase is noticeable in
mules. by 2,321 head asses. by 36s head
NierinO sheep. by i.ShS head: sheep by
ln.212 head. and swine. by 52,169 head
The large decrease in black cattle is prob
ably due to the fact that stock
called upon to supply the needs of Cuba.
where the desolation following the war
made il necessary TO import many an in
dispensable article of Subsistence. So much
f4y r1E IG ~ laI hat
the Porto Rican authorities more than once
were compelled to deal with the general
cry of the press calling for halt TO the
expectation of our cattle. The largest in
crease has been. by far. in the swine in
dustry, where in 1899 we had -, 769 head
more than in 1881.
We shall now deal with the chief produc-
tons of the island. separately, so as to
give a full and compre hensive description
OF what the island has been from the
point of view of agriculture. what 1t is at
present and what developments can be ex-
peCted in the future. Credit is due for
the following inforrna tion to DR.. Cayetano
Call Toste. ex-civil secretary to the late
military government of Porto Rico; today
member of the islands lower legislative
body. who has made special study of
all points touching with our country. so
C.al as We'll commercial, Industrial and
agricultural, since its discovery to the
present time. 1t is from him that We have
obtained the following information. and
We now wish to pay him high tribute
before the American people. because of his
many accomplishments, and because he de-
81 Tves good of every Porto Rican.
Sugar Cane.
From 1850 to 1897 the greatest production
vas reached in 1S19 when 154 S:S9 .,G2 kilo-
grams. worth 4.645, Isl. s6 pesos was raised.
However, In 1873 the production of
only 1G.536 IO1 Kilograms. but it obtained
value of I,4s7,2l1.97 pesos This enormous
difference was due TO the tax which COM
mencing with the crop of 1879 the Spanish
government. or more properly misgoyern-
ment. Laid upon this product and which re-
turned an amount of 31:;G0O 10 pesos in the
same year
In 1891 the amount of molasses exported
rendered the sum of 4St;510 10 pesos not
withstaDding the scarcity of modern ma
Chinery in the island.
Out of 643 sugar mills only sos We're in
opera ton in 1875 for 13S We're entirely
abandoned When the American occupa-
tiOn of the island took place we had 249
sugar mills and twenty-five central facto-
JIes.
The sugar cane was imported In Porto
Rico in lJlo from St. Domingo and the
first mill was established in 151s near Pa
yamon. a few miles from San Juan, later
on. Isl eleven mills rendering some 3I5-
600 pounds of sugar annually were working
with a relative degree of success This
number decreased. however. and only eight
Were left in 1GO2. when 30 600 pounds were
produced The business received very
severe shock in 1915. when d hurricane
September 12l swept them all. leaving
situated The government then came to
the help of the agricultural development of
the island, and in 1920 four new mills start
cd the cultivation of the cane and the
manufacture of sugar. in 1914 We had three
more. but not until 1850 We can ssy that
the business passed from the condition OF
embryo.
Coffee.
This Is one of the most important produc-
. tions of the island. The Porto Rican coffee
by far the best to be found in America, is
Iavorably compared to that of Java or
M"hd- Its development began in 1867
Whcn the crop rendered 1001 a2s IS pesos
and fuctuated in the neighborhood of one
million until 1871, when the crop obtained
'aii!e OF @.olO.i O.i~is ,3 pesos. and. still sur
passed the five million mark in 1879 when
iie paternai government of Spain laid upon
j an export duty which yielded 156. .934 .66
pesos the same year.
lhe largest crop was reached in 1sia-
I2i'Dl kAograms-sold for 51Sa I43 IL
pesos The crop of 1896. however was of
only 26,G2 194 kilograms. but its value
reached 13,s643i pesos. Porto Rico
rgnSGN<SPS r-7nS Srfi-a