The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1910-10-10
The Cacao Land Of Sac Thome.

II the colonial possessions Of Portugal
should come under the hammer as a
result Of complications in Europe. there
would be handsome bid for the island
of Sac ThomS in the Gulf OF Guinea and
i63 miles west of Gaboon, French Congo
VI. AUGTSr CHEvNLIFR was recently
emploved nv the French Government
10 study the agricultural possibilities
Of African colonies and also learn where
sanitarium- for Europeans in tropical
services could h" established at high
attitudes. His inquiry took him 10 Sac
Thom". whose mountains loom up
grandy when the island - approached
from any point of tho compass There
he found in progress what is perhaps
tho most rcmarkahl" agricultural de-
velopmcnt OF the times. \ paper by
him on tho suhiect is condensed in the
September number Of the BUHetiH of the
American Geographical Society.
small "a San Thome IL, thirty-one by
nineteen miles, and 39O square miles in
area, Il grows more CaCao than any
country IN the world Ecuador used 10
he first on the list. hut in 1905 ts product
was Il IDS tons, "a compared with 23.lsT
tons for little Sac ThomH. There were
Recently 80 rocas OF plantations on the
island but all of them were not cult
waiting Cacao; coffee Is one ~ the most
profitable crops, and many kinds 81
fruits flourish. Sac Thome IA seen
from a distance is a chaos Of towering
peaks with PERCEPTIONS faces On their
TANKS and in valleys verdure abounds,
but much of IL was made by man.
VIVA, give, from m. .ea th. Huston Of . vas,
forest covering the whole island is In very large
spaoes. = spreading mass of fruit trees and many
a the forest trees were intelngently selected for
preservation when the land vas cleared to give
shade 20 millions % cacao trees and banana plants
what seems At first glance % bs virgin forest IL
IN fact great tropical garden ~ incomparabls
nehnes., containing nearly everything that man
draws frou7 me vegetable kingdom for his ueeds
for even European vegetables thrive finely In mi,
little land Of many differences Of altitude and
climate
When the peaks and gorges OF Sac
Thome ar" first made ont from the deck
Of an approaching ship, il seems like
land Of Jagged basak, where growth
IL possible only in cr"viccs Of the rock
Extinct volcanoes ara numerous. and
n striking feature il monoliths rising
many hundreds of feet in the air But
on a nearer approach " j. seen that in
Spaces between the submits there IL a
great deal OF land suitable for cultiva-
ton, and the supply of water falling
in innumcrablc cascades and flowing IN
little streams 20 tho -aa il unfailing II
il evident that the rainfall IN Sac Thome
in the wet season il proftIaa The
mountain SUBMITS are frequently hid.
den by clouds, and the precipitation Ia
80 great that the people say that there
are a. many rivers rs there arc DAYS in
the year. Awaiting itself Of the cas-
oades that descend upon il. the planta-
ton Of Boa-Entrada has an elaborate
electric lighting plant
A salubrious climate in the lowlands
can hardly be expected of Sac ThomA
The temperature Scarcely varies
through rhe year, but it - high. and
usually accompanied by much humidity
Cyclones however. are almost unknown
Whether because hygi'n' u neglected
or the valleys resemble the low Congo
country in unhealthfulne-S, - per cent
Of the negro plantation hands DIE every
wear. and IN p"r cent. Of their children
At high attitudes IN" climate il said 10
10 agreeable even 20 Europeans Tho
mortality among IN" plantation folk IL
truly "A t"rribI" condition that requires
rcm",iy, but IN" Portuguese Seem TO
he too busy making money 0ut II their
Cacao plantations Ia concern themselves
about the health ~ labpr.rS. who can
he brought over bv thousands from the
mainland when the supply runs low
The valu" "f '1c8o exports VAS So. 2I9. TO-
50 for ~" ten years ending With 1919
There ar" !. So acre- under cultivation.
and 62,JO more acres II virgin aoil
available. On ON" plantation ~ ? IN
acres a profit II sSouDD was recently
made In one wear
II IL sale 20 say thar Sac Thom6 - one
~ tho richest districts for i's area in
the whole world. Dissolve cred IN 1870 By