Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1910-01-04
Miseellaneuus 8eadins.
REPUBLIC OF NICARAGUA.
SideIishts on Land Of Turbulenee and
Misrule.

Misrule. 40
What do you know about Nicaragua
This is an intimate query, because the
United States government recently senl
some war vessels and marines down to
that Central American hornets nest tC
show the present head hornet, Presi-
dent Zelaya, that he cannot murder
American citizens without being called
, to answer in court Of law. Intelligent
| observers express the belief that the
| United States will place an army OF
| occupation on Nicaraguan soil until
such time as there can be established
in that volcanic bailiwick a govern
ment guaranteed not to erupt every six
months. Our course in Cuba seems
about to be repeated in Nicaragua.
That is why some real facts abont
Nicaragua are pertinent. Once upon a
time a young American, William Wal
ker of Nashville. Tenn, was president
of Nicaragua. Fifty-three years ago
Walker conquered the country with
only fftyAsix men at his back. OF
course it didn't stay conquered. Walker
was stood up and shot down. For half
century his bones have bleached In
Nicaragua sands. AS Joaquin Miller,
who in youth was one Of Walkers
fiery flibusters, has sung: a.
He lies low in the leveled sand,
Unsheltered from the tropic sun, =
And now of all he knew not one
Will speak him fair in that far land.
The bones Of Leroy Cannon and
Leonard Groce, the two Americans re-
Gently executed by order Of Zelaya, do
not even bleach. Their bodies were
burned, also by Zelaya's orders. In q
smaller way they were like Walker,
the foremost Of the filibusters. They
fought against the prevailing govern
ment because 1t was a thing of shreds
and tatters, so far as stability was
concerned, and yet 1t was thing Of
wrath and tyranny, Most Of the time
before Walkers day and since, Nicai
ragua has been similarly missoverned.
Zelaya, against whom Secretary Knox
has thundered and American warships
seem likely to thunder presently, has
misruled the country for sixteen years
until he has come to imagine himself
czar. What the United States In
tends to do apparently is to teach Ze-
laya that misruler is non persona
grata to civilization.
Nicaragua Is not so much as to size,
though it is bigger than Holland, Bel
gium and Denmark combined. Those
are monarchies in Europe, and Nica-
ragua and her ilk are practically mon
arches in America, though called re-
publics by courtesy. But Nicaragua
is so much bigger than Panama that
the latter nation" looks like Cat
taraugus county in relation to the
state Of New York. In fact, Nicaragua
is almost exactly the size Of New
York, being 4s,2O0 square miles in
area. The country Is richer than Rus
sia proper in coast lines, having 225
miles on the Pacific and nearly 30s
miles on the Caribbean sea- the Atlant
tic side.
| Nicaragua's greatest width Is 275
miles, the distance from st. Louis 10
Chicago or from New York to Wash
ington. In one place it is only 125
miles wide, the distance from Chicago
across Illinois to the Mississippi river.
Let us call Nicaragua 1t instead Of she,
as that might offend the ladies.
According to information supplied
by the international bureau Of Ameri-
can republics, Nicaragua has the
smallest population Of any Central
American republic except Panama.
There are about 100000 people in the
country. This is less than the popula-
ton Of ST. Louis. Many Of the Nicara-
guans are aborisines, living in the in
terror Businesses and as uncivilized as
the savages of darkest Africa.
The chief cities on the Pacific side
are Leon and Managua. Leon, the lar
gest city in the republic, has $4,000
people. 1t used to be the capital. 1t
is a picturesque old place and historic
ally interesting. Managua, the pres
ent capital has a population Of 10000
the size of Springfield, Mo. Then
there are Matagalpa, 10000: Granada,
$4,000, and several other towns Of
from 5000 to 10000.
How to Reach Nicaragua.
There Is only one railroad in Nicara-
qua, and that doesn't cut much space.
1t runs from Corinto, on the Pacific
coast, to Managua, located on a lake
near that coast, and from there to
Granada, on Lake Nicaragua, the larg-
est inland body Of water in Latin
America. The railroad is about 16O
miles long-or short, as it looks to us.
It is said to be almost impossible for
an American, unless he possesses the
intrepidity of Peary or Cook, to cross
roads in some places are mere trails.
The interior is mountainous and wild.
Corinto Is the principal port on the
Pacific side. The town has but 1000
u Sel W 4NlSdlo6ud pei
haps the quickest route is through
Mexico by rail to Salina Cruz and
thence by steamship to Corinto. One
may go by ship from San Francisco all
the way. Steamers from New Orleans
run direct to Bluefields, on the Allan
tic side, a place of 5000 people. Steam
ers from New York also touch Blue
fields. Many persons from the east
ern section of the United States get to
Nicaragua by crossing Panama and
taking ship to Corinto.
Like all Central and South American
countries, Nicaragua is an undeveloped
nation. The natural resources of the
country seem to require only a stable
government for development into Won
derful wealth. On the eastern slopes
four crops CT corn are grown annually,
though vast areas are implanted. Cot
ton planted in October Is picked in
February. Coffee, rice and indigo are
grown for export, while in late years
the rubber industry has been system