The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1906-06-12
VENEsrRLA.

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what 10 nav tho 0ulf " Masacalbo NJ aaW
@,me fssiau viilsasa budlt on sfakss dgiyss
inss ths earth outstds ths watef ilas pov
ase,e essa,p thla ~ataeesfei Veales, ahd he
callai me hlsrs Veaagiela fAttle Venlee'
Lister on the name waa sppilet W shS lagaer
region Tbs c1uutteel n The na'ives and ths
oecupation N che country pFuces.ted eg'ns.
what aioNiy sad tha history ~ Neneste'.
pgcasats ~ eiob sspefience ~ that et
tagtss IN Mesieo ~ N PrsesfU IN Peru The
s~splofefs failed ~ hhd The Grid they aouahe
aud the country came " be regarded %
IN agricultural dis,ftot, II 10 estlfhated
,hat the population ~ vsnesteia ~ the
beginning of the n%iuesesn,h century Nss
aBortt ego,Oee, ~ these no, more than
psr tent. we're native apanlatda Ahuts
10 ber cent. wers oteoles " Eifopean de-
scent, aud the femelnder werc Indians
neacoas. half breeds and muiatt0es
The gree, hero ~ south Ameflcan lnde-
pendsnce, simon Bolivar, waa born In cara
eaa. the capital ~ venesuela. lie wss not
~ many snpposs him 10 have heen, the
l~nstiaator II tho Independence movement,
although he was the most prominent ahd
perhaps the most important factor IN We
execution. A republican conspiracy vas
revealed IN Venezuela as early ~ ifp0. when
Bolivar wa q boy Of ~ years OF age IN
1909 q Venezuelan named Miranda, who
had fought In the French army under Ma
polson and In the American army under
Washington, sailed from New YORK. In COM
mand Of q band 81 American hlibusters,
Ia q square In Puerto Cabello there II q
which bears tbs names OF ten OF
these gentlemen. who were captured and
shot by the Spanish authorities. Except
for the difference In the time which elapsed
between his expedition and the establish
msnt OF Independence, Miranda appears TO
have played In Venezuela a part very SINH
lar to that played by Narciso Lopez In Cuba
about 1860.
Bolivar returned IN 1918 from his success
full work in Colombia then New Granadal
by an overland QUITE at the head OF a band
of Granadans and v~enezuelans, and by a
series Of brilliant victories drove out the
Spanish forces. War continued until the
proclamation, In 1919, OF the independence
Of the United States OF Colombia, in which
were included the present republics OF
Venezuela, Colombia and Ecuador. This
combination lasted until the secession OF
Venezuela, under Paez in 1880. Bolivar died
IN December Ol tHdt ycdi CouHh " '"e' N'N
institution which he had done 80 much to
establish was a failure, and with almost a
prediction OF the coming years Of anarchy
and despotism. From that time until the
present Venezuela has travelled a hard
road.
Yet there are few lands in which nature
has been more lavish of her stores, and
few in which good government would
Weld larger returns to the citizens. Vene-
zuela's special trouble lies in the fact
that so many Of her Presidents have
adopted as their administrative policy
the system employed by Spain in her
dealings with her colonies. They have re-
garded those whom they governed az a
special creation for the benefit of the gov
errors An official publication shows the
reported gross revenues OF the country
from 1880 TO 1908 as S3os .269 1875. How m'ch
more was collected by indirect methods
and not officially reported is beyond even
a guess. The reported expenditures dur
ing that time are S2I3 ,o47, 1898. 1t would
seem that somewhere there should be a
balance on ham of about sos 900 900, to say
nothing Of the portion OF the s3oS 600 900
used, appropriated or stolen for other than
public purposes. In addition to this rihing
discrepancy between revenue and expendi-
ture the country has u debt Of o
CSC, 900 900,
The area OF Venezuela IL just a little less
than GOO, 900 square miles, or enough to make
twelve States of the size OF the State OF
New York. 1t is traversed by three noun
tain ranges, whose submits vary in altitude
from 1000 to 5000 feet. Its extensive table
lands and vast plains are abundantly wa
tered by the hundreds Of rivers and streams
which flow from. the hillsides, while its
different elevations give a climate ranging
from the intense heat Of the equatorial
lowla ids to the perennial springtime OF
the temperate zones in the uplands. In a
table of the temperature of towns and cities
of the thirteen States and the Federal Dis
triot the maximum IL given as Ola degrees
and the minimum as 43 degrees. Those
who have experienced the intensity OF the
coldness of the tropics at 4s degrees will
be disposed TO question the official read
ing OF the thermometer, while those who
have travelled in the State OF Bolivar or
who nave even spent a few days In La
Guayra or Puerto Cabello will be equally
disposed to question any maximum read
ing that il below l20 degrees. Heat and
cold are what they are to the human body
rather than what they are to the mercury
in a thermometer. At elevations Of 1900
to 5000 feet the climate leaves little to be
desired.
The Spaniards failed to find the gold Of
Venezuela. during the early days. 1t ia true
that they found and worked a few deposits,
but they did not find enough to satisfy them
thatit was a gold country. just how widely
thew erred remains to be seen. There is
certainly gold in the country, and there is
much to confirm the belief that it exists in
notable quantity, particularly in the region
south Of the Orinoco River. The output
of the Callao mines from 1871 to 1890 was
valued at about $25 ,000, 600 but the gold
regions are difficult and in most cases i'm
| possible OF commercial access under pres
ent conditions. Modern machinery Ia nec-
essary for development, and this cannot
be installed on a proper scale until there is
an extension Of transportation facilities.
The country is not likely to be another
California or another Transvaal, but there
Is no doubt that there Is gold In its hills.
There are also silver, copper and iron besides
a considerable assortment Of other min
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