“ The rivers give great facilities for water and steam power and irrigation. One reason why Porto Rico is more healthful than the other Antilles is because the streams afford such excellent drainage that there is an almost total absence of stagnant water. There are eight small lakes on the north, east, and south slopes of the island.
Climate. Though the island is in the tropics, it is also under the régime of the persistent
few plantations are as yet provided with the best steam machinery for making sugar, and nearly one-half of the cane-grinding machines are worked by oxen. ”

“ Nearly all the rice is of the upland variety. More than 1,000,000 acres of pasture land are devoted to or are suitable for stock-feeding. Over 100,000 acres are in very fine grass, much of it of the malojilla variety, which is very productive and highly nutritious. There were in the island, in 1897, 67,751 horses, 4467 mules, 303,612 cattle, and 13,411 swine. Cattle are exported chiefly to the Windward Islands and are of excellent breed. The cows, oxen, and beef cattle compare favorably with those of any other part of America. ”

“ About 200,000 persons are employed as laborers in the fields. Though small in weight and stature, their bodies are all bone and sinew, and they have great powers of endurance. The average daily wage of the farm hand is about 35 cents, and the scale of wages can hardly be increased until there is a general rise in the price of agricultural products. In 1897 the wealth of the island was estimated at $150,000,000, but the municipal and private mortgage indebtedness was about one-third of the total wealth, and rates of interest are very high. ”

“ The central range of mountains forms the water parting of the island, most of the streams rising on its slopes and flowing northward or southward. Those flowing north have the longer courses and gentler slopes, and some of them are navigable for several miles by small boats and flat boats. The southern streams are not useful for navigation, and nearly all the Porto Rican rivers have troublesome bars at their mouths. The principal rivers are the Loiza or Rio Grande, Bayamon, Morovis, Plata, Cibuco, Manati, Arecibo, and Blanco, which flow to the north coast ”

“ About the middle of the eighteenth century negro slaves and colonists from Spain began to be introduced in considerable numbers, and by 1780 the population had risen to nearly eighty thousand. In 1797 San Juan successfully withstood a three days' attack from the English under Lord Abercrombie. During the first quarter of the eighteenth century the island became a popular resort for large numbers of those who desired to escape from the turmoil and disaster incident to the revolutionary movements in South America. ”

“ The number of schools has increased over 80 per cent. since the American occupation. The Porto Ricans predominate among the teachers, 837 teachers being natives of the island. More than half the schools are ungraded rural schools. In the 345 graded schools much attention is given to the study of English. There are also a normal school for the training of teachers and a high school at San Juan. ”

“ The best coffee is produced between 600 and 2400 foot above the sea. It is grown, therefore, chiefly among the mountains. It has an excellent reputation in over-sea markets. Porto Rican tobacco is also in excellent repute in the markets of Europe and America. ”

“ Religion. The predominant religion is Roman Catholic, but all faiths have complete toleration. A Protestant church is maintained in Ponce, and a few others in smaller towns. The bishopric of Porto Rico, founded in 1504, was the first to be established in the New World.
Government. After the cession of Porto Rico to the United States the island was governed chiefly by the military authorities under the direction of the President of the United States until May 1, 1900, when the scheme of government prepared by Congress went into effect. ”

“ The immigration laws and regulations of the United States apply to Porto Rico. Of the 1908 persons arriving at San .Juan in 1902, 725 were cabin passengers, three-fourths of whom were Spaniards who left the island at the time of the American occupation and are now returning. Most of the immigrants are from the other West Indies, Spain, and South America, a large part being Porto Ricans who left at the time of the American occupation. ”

“ They are descended from a large number of fine cattle taken to Porto Rico from the Cape Verde Islands about 1840. The horses are small, agile, hardy, work well in harness or under the saddle, and have remarkable endurance.
The small area of the island and its dense population naturally increase the value of land, which is held at high prices. The best sugar lands are valued at $150 an acre; tobacco lands, from $60 to $75 an acre; fruit lands, from $40 to $50 an acre; pasture lands, from $15 to $20 an acre; and hill lands, suitable for coffee, from $10 to $15 an acre. ”

“ The classification ‘colored’ includes a very few Chinese and many persons of mixed white and negro blood, as well as the pure negroes. More than three-fifths of the population are pure white, and nearly two-fifths are partly or entirely negroes. About 84 per cent. ”

“ Population. The population by the census of 1899 was 953,243, or 264 to a square mile, a density of population about the same as that of New Jersey. The people live chiefly in the rural districts. There are no large cities, the only cities exceeding 25,000 inhabitants being San Juan (32,048) and Ponce (27,952) . Mayaguez had a population of 15,187, and Arecibo 8008. There are 8731 more females than males in the island. The census divides the inhabitants into whites, numbering 589,426, or 61.8 per cent. ”

“ Passing across the island from east to west, a little south of the middle, is a broken irregular range of hills or low mountains which toward the eastern end trend to the northeast and culminate in the peak of El Yunque, 3609 feet high. ”