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A LITTLE JOURNEY TO PUERTO RICOfor intermediate and upper grades
Do you know what people mean when they speak of "Our New Possessions"?What are they? Where are they? Why are men, in the streets, in theshops, everywhere, talking about them? Why are the newspapers full ofarticles in regard to them? Why are our lawmakers at the capitaldevoting so much time and attention to them? Can you tell?
Some of these things you can easily ascertain for yourselves. Others wewill speak of here.
The new territory which has lately come into the possession of the
United States, consists of the islands of Puerto Rico, Hawaii and the
Philippines. Cuba is not included in this list; it is soon to be an
independent country.
Since Puerto Rico and these other islands have come to be parts of the
United States, everyone is anxious to learn something more of them.
The best way to learn the geography of a country and the customs of thepeople is to visit the country and see with your own eyes.
That would be a difficult thing for most of us. The next best way is tomake the journey in imagination, and that all of us can do.
The island nearest us is Puerto Rico, the most eastern island of theGreater Antilles. Let us visit that first and the other islands lateron.
We must find out something of the climate, however, before we start onthis journey. This may not be the right season of the year to go. Wemust know, too, what kind of clothing to take with us.
In order to plan our route wisely, we must know something of thegeography of the island. We should also know the past history of PuertoRico, in order to understand the customs of the people and theconditions that exist there.
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If you will find a map of the West Indies in your atlas or geography,you will also find Puerto Rico. It is one of the four Greater AntillesIslands, and lies east of Haiti and farthest out in the Atlantic Ocean.
It is over four hundred miles from the east coast of Cuba, one thousandmiles from Havana, and about one thousand four hundred and fifty milesfrom New York.
In size it is the smallest of the group. Its area is about threethousand five hundred and fifty square miles. Its average length isabout ninety-five miles; its average breadth about thirty-five miles.
In shape it resembles the State of Connecticut, though it is onlythree-fourths the size of that State.
[Illustration: THE ISLAND OF PUERTO RICO.]
Puerto Rico, in English, means Rich Harbor. But Puerto Rico is not richin harbors. There are not more than six good harbors, but it has lessthan three hundred and fifty miles of coast line.
The surface of Puerto Rico is mountainous. A range of hills traversesthe island from east to west. The hills are low and their sides arecovered with vegetation. The hills are not rocky and barren, but arecultivated to their very tops.
[Illustration: AN AFTERNOON SIESTA.]
The lower valleys are rich pasture lands or cultivated plantations. Theknolls have orchards of cocoanuts and other trees. Coffee, protected bythe shade of other trees, grow