The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1914-07-23
PROSPERITY FOLLOWS
BUILDING OF
CANAL

Washington. D. c.. July 22,--4The
probable beneficent effect OF the
Panama canal on the countries Of
the Caribbean Is told by VIM. J Sho-
walter in communication to the Ma
tional Geographic society. at Wash
lngton, D. c. He describes the won
derful changes that have been
wrought in Porto Rico and Cuba
since the advent OF the United States
government in those islands.
TT would require six Salvadors to
make one Honduras, and Yet Sal
vador has three times as much popu-
lation and three times az much for
eign commerce as Honduras" he
he says. Costa Rica Is less than
half as big as Nicaragua. and yet 1t
has three times as much foreign COM
meree as Nicaragua. And yet. when
Salvador and Costa RIGA are COM
pared with Porto Rico. they in turn
seem to be slow. in their develop
ment. Porto Rico Is so small that
seven islands Ike it would be
required to cover an area equal to
that OF Costa Rica. yet 1t has a for
eign trade five times as great as that
Of the Banana empire. Porto Rico is
less than half as large as Salvador.
ye, 1t has a foreign trade seven times
as great
Little Porto Rico Ia so small that
1t could be buried In a single Cen
trail American lake; 1t would take
fifty seven islands of its size TO equal
Central America in area. and yet
Porto Rico produces more foreign
trade than all Central America to-
gether The reason? Because Por-
to Rico has an ideal government. The
re icfa n
tupled since Uncle Sam took posses
sion there. The number Of children
enrolled in the school has Increased
skiold The wages of the laboring
class has multiplied threefold Porto
Rico's prosperity is seen In the sugar
fields, where four tons of sugar are
produced where one was dozen
years ago, and where the Porto Rican
people receive Sc for exported sugar
where they received 81 only. dozen
years before. Coffee production has
quadrupled since the beginning OF the
century. The production OF oranges
has increased sevenfold In ten years,
pineapples twentyfold in four years,
and grapefruit twenty-fvefold In
three years"
Similar comparisons are made be-
tween Cuba and the six republics.
with an AREA vi oIiS-lIltil NS BiNaA'
its foreign commerce Is three times
that Of the six "One might go on
with these comparisons indefinitely.
the lesson Of them all being that pros
perity cannot exist where good gov
eminent does not" continues the
writer.
with vast deposits Of minerals,
untold thousands OF acres of the nm
est tropical fruit and vegetable lands
in the world. and vast areas OF mag
nificent grazing and coffee lands.
Honduras is at our very doors. IL
is 700 miles nearer to Chicago than
that city Is from San Francisco; II
Is closer to Washington than Denver
is; 1t is farther from New Orleans to
Chicago than it is from Puerto Bar
rios to New York stable govern
ment for Honduras, and 1t must be-
come kingdom OF plenty instead OF
principality Of poverty! Nicaragua
Is in the same condition as Honduras.
'.It is not unreasonable to assume
that If the people Of Middle America
can secure fair and proper govern
ment conditions after the completion
of the Panama canal, they can do
! what Cuba has done in the thirteen
wears since the first American inter-
vention. Since that time the number
OF people able to read and write has
increased 40 per cent. The mortal
ity rate has been cut down from 1865
per thousand to 1859. The balance
Of trade has risen from deficit o.
$27.000,000 year to surplus OF
| $50, 100000. Assuming that Central
America can be brought UP to Cuba's
standard today, its foreign trade
would amount to full billion dol
lars a year instead OF a beggarly
sixty five million today. 1t would
have 10000 miles of railroad where
il has less than 1000 miles today. II
would have 5000 miles OF maeaaa"
roads as compared with few hun
dred. 1t would have a population OF
ii 900, 900 as compared with 5.60o,oo0
today.
This and more will certainly come
to Central America II good govern
ment there comes apace with COM