The Mellette County pioneer. [volume] (Wood, Mellette County, S.D.) 19??-1971, 1924-03-21

The Cauca vaiiey,
.Prepared by the National Geograp phic So
cety, Washington, ID. c.
To show that ocean To Great Lakes
traffic is possible, Il newspaper head
line declared not long ago that Il ship
had sailed from Bogota, Colombia, TO
Chicago. Doubtless not one person in
Il hundred who read the words recog-
niZed their absurdity In so far rs the
port" Of origin is concerned, such is
the lack Of knowledge in the United
States in regard to the by no means far
reality the headline could be no more
justified than one clubbing Reno, Ne
vada, port because goods from that
city, carried hundred miles by rail,
were shipped ut Sacramento.
Bogota lies on Il great plateau Il
mile and three quarters above sea
level and thousands Of feet above the
rapids that mark the head Of naviga-
tiOn for steamers on the Magdalena
river, hundred miles away. Because
Of this high location Bogota is one Of
the most delightful capitals Of South
America-a temperate zone city deep
in the tropics, barely 300 miles from
the equator. There, on Il site de-
pendent on mule-back transport alton
until Il few years ago, has grown up
Haven. Co... or Memphis, Tenn. 1t
is a city Of beautiful homes. colleges
and schools, and has club and social
life that put it on par with some
European capitals.
1t would be difficult to choose Il more
delightful setting for city than the
site Of BOgota. To the east rise high
mountains; to the north and south
stretches an extensive, fertile upland
plain; and at some distance to the
west are hills and beyond more high
mountains. Bogota's rather paradox
ical situation in the shadow Of the
equator yet essentially in the tenn
perature zone, is proved by journey
over its adjacent plains where the po-
tatoeS, corn and other grains and
vegetables of our Middle West flourish.
The testimony Of the thermometer
is equally eloquent. The mean tenn
perature is about CD degrees Fahren-
heit. the mercury seldom rising above
- degrees or ling below 80 de-
grees. A reasonable amount of rain
falls and altogether the city is blessed
with "white mans climate"
Colombia's Strong Points.
The republic of which Bogota is the
capital may some day be one OF the
most important countries OF South
America because of its unique and
convenient location, its vast resources,
and its climatic assets. 1t is the only
country Of the southern continent that
has IA coast line on both the Atlantic
and Pacific oceans And both ocean
outlets are extensive; the country bor-
ders the Atlantic for more than 600
miles, while its Pacific seaboard is
only slightly less in extent. On both
oceans are several good l,orts, and hu-
mcrous others that engineering skill
can make useful.
Colombia covers close 10 half Il mil
lion square miles, Il region about as
great as all the southeastern section
of the United States east Of the Mis-
sissippi and south Of the Ohio river
and the southern line Of Pennsylvania.
And thanks TO its great mountain
misses and plateaus, its lOwlandS and
valleys, ii has range Of climatic con
,Xtions that could be approached in
the United States only by journeying
from the tip Of Florida TO the northern
boundary Of Maine.
The Andes, which are fairly compact
in Ecuador, separate into three
branches in Colombia, the western,
central and eastern cordillera. The
real heart Of the country in population
and development lies between the two
outer cordilleras in the great Cauca
valley to the west of the central ridge,
and The greater Magdalena valley and
the Rogota plateau on It's other side.
The steep Pacific slope on the west
ward side Of the western cordillera is
as yet little developed, largely, no
doubt, because Of its tremendous rain
fall. There Is no seasonal let-up in
the precipitation in this strip of terri
tory: the rain falls almost continuous
". and III one station the annual total
Is more than 33 feet.
Largely because OF saturated ground,
Goods and a rank Jungle growth, il re-
quired 40 years 10 build % miles of
railroad through the western strip of
Colombia from the Pacific port, Buena-
ventura, to Cali. Riding along On