The Kansas City sun. (Kansas City, Mo.) 1908-1924, 1916-07-08
CATHEDRAL OF LEON

~ n APRIL IL, 1916, the cOn
gress of the republic of Mica
rngun ratified a convention
which had been drawn up by
thot country and the United States,
and which two months prior had been
ratified by the congress Of the United
States, The treaty grants to the
United States the exclusive proprie-
tary rights for the construction and
operation of an %interoceanic canal by a
Ntcaraguan route, the lease of certain
islands, aud the right to establish a
naval base on the Gulf Of Fonseca. In
return for these important concessions
the United States is to pay to the re-
public of Nicaragua the sum Of 49,
100000.
The ratification of this treaty marks
n new milestone in the history of
Nicaragua, and is hailed with much
satisfaction not alone by that country,
but by its many friends who have al
ways viewed 1t in the hopeful and OPP
timistic spirit of tomOrrow-the land
of great promise when once it can en-
JOY a new start on its journey of prog
ress, writes Harry o. ~Sandberg in the
Bulletin of the Pan-American Union.
By the terms of the convention this
sum is to be applied by Nicaragua up
on Its Indebtedness or other public pur-
poses for the advancement of its well
fare.
Called 1.-THE Beautiful"
Nicaragua is a country bountifully
blessed with natures gifts. Writers
V called it the beautiful" In
colonial times its cities were referred
to as the ''fairest Jewels of the Span
ish crown" And now that the fates
are again smiling kindly upon 1t there
is every reason to look forward to the
time In the not too distant future when
ii will again shine forth as one of the
jewels of Central America. The coun.
try with all its natural attributes is
there awaiting the magic touch which
shall transform its vast resources into
productive wealth. Its people are ready
and willing to lend a helping hand tC
those who will come to it's shores fol
the purpose of colOnizing or of con
verting It's broad plateaus and fertile
valleys, its immense forests and rich,
~ laden mines into profitable enter.
prises. OF course, ii will require capi
tai, and perhaps capital on Il large
scale, but the attractive character of
that country. its favorable geographic
position, and its natural physical quail.
ties, combine to make it n of the
most desirable countries for profitable
development. Although agriculture rep
resents at present its most prolific
source of revenue, in truth this phase
of development has not yet really com.
menced, while the mineral wealth has
just barely been touched.
Has Two Coast Lines.
Like some of its sister countries Mica.
ragua boasts of two coast lines. one or
the Atlantic and the other on the Pa,
ciic. On account of the lack of direct
and easy communication between the
two shores, the eastern and the west.
ern sections of the country have had q
different kind of development so that
the character of the towns and pOpu.
latlOns of n coast differ materially
from those on the other. About 70 pei
cent of the entire population live or
the Pacific side, and the majority OF
this number is conferred around the
capital and the adjacent cities as Leon
Masaya, Granada and Rivas. But
though the Atlantic coast does not
stand out especially strong in poini
of population, it is of great importance
commercially. On this coast are the
seaports of Bluefelds, Cabo Gracias {
DiOs, Las Perlas and San Juan de
NOrte, popularity known as Greytown.
Because of its inaccessIbility from
the Atlantic seabOard the trip to Mana
qua is most conveniently made from
Gorinto, the principal port on the Pa
cifc. On this coast there is also tn,
port of San Juan del Sur, an Quite
for the department of Rivas.
At Corinto your vessel docks along
side a splendid wharf, and as you de
scend the gangplank you meet a good
ly number of the population who eager
ly look forward to boat days for &C
tivity and excitement. Men and WON