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ARBUCKLES' ILLUSTRATED ATLAS
of Fifty Principal Nations of the World
(Actual Size: 6-7/8" x 11-1/8" - shown approx. 1/2 scale)
CLICK on any map to see the
corresponding card as it was originally issued. |
Mexico, Newfoundland, Spain, Sandwich Islands
(facing page)
MEXICO.
MEXICO (Aztec, Mexilli, a name
of the tutelary deity), a federal
republic of N. America, is bounded on the
N. by the U.S., and by Guatemala and
Honduras on the South.
The
heart of the country, to the extent of
three-fifths, is occupied by the plateau
of Anahuac, which has an elevation of
from 6,000 to 8,000 feet above the sea,
and is skirted by semi-tropical terrace
lands (a region of perpetual spring), and
by the luxuriantly productive lower lands
which stretch inland 20 or 30 miles from
the coast to the base of the mountains,
and which with a W. Indian climate, are
rendered almost uninhabitable by the
prevalence of yellow fever. Mexico is
singularly destitute of navigable rivers.
It
is divided into 27 States, 2 Territories
and the Federal District, each of which
has a right to manage its own local
affairs, while the whole are bound
together in one body politic by
fundamental and constitutional laws. The
legislative power is vested in a Congress
consisting of a House of Representatives
and a Senate, and the executive in a
President.
Area
772,000 square miles. Estimated
population 10,000,000, the majority being
engaged in agriculture. Large numbers of
cattle are raised for the United States.
The mineral wealth is enormous and there
are upwards of 990 mining enterprises,
employing upwards of 700,000 men. The
value of precious metals exported 1889-90
was $62,499,388. Other exports are
coffee, hides and skins, woods, vanilla,
copper, lead, gum, tobacco, cochineal,
indigo and India rubber.
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NEWFOUNDLAND.
NEWFOUNDLAND
(F, "Terre-Neuve"), a
large island at the mouth of the Gulf of
St. Lawrence; and Labrador, its
dependency, is the most easterly part of
the Continent of North America. The coast
of Newfoundland is rugged, especially on
the southwest, where the coast-range
reaches an elevation of nearly 2,000
feet. The hills attain their summit
within a few miles of the salt water and
then spread out into an undulating
country, consisting largely of barrens
and marshes, and intersected by numerous
rivers and lakes.
Area
40,200 square miles. Population in
1884--island, 193,122; Labrador, 4,210;
total 197,332, of whom 60,419 were
engaged in the fisheries, 1,685 were
farmers, 3,628 mechanics, and 3,360
miners. The climate is cold and bleak on
the coast but milder inland. Capital, St.
Johns.
Newfoundland
is the oldest British Colony, having been
taken possession of for Queen Elizabeth,
5th August, 1583, and first settled 1621.
The government is administered by a
Governor, assisted by an Executive
Council, a Legislative Council and a
House of Assembly.
The
chief employments are the fishing for cod
and seal on the shores of Newfoundland or
Labrador; the manufacture of oils, mining
and wood cutting. Besides the Shore
Fishery, there is an extensive 'Bank
Fishery' on a tract (S.E. of N.) about
600 miles by 200, over a plateau from 20
to 108 fathoms below the sea. The French
occupy a narrow strip of coast on the W.,
N. and E. sides, for the purpose of
curing fish. The leading exports are fish
(chiefly cod), cod and seal oil,
preserved lobster, sealskins an copper ore.
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SPAIN.
SPAIN,
a Kingdom of S.W. Europe, bounded N. by
the Bay of Biscay and the Pyrenees, E. by
the Mediterranean, S. by the
Mediterranean, the Straits of Gibraltar
and the Atlantic, and W. by Portugal and
the Atlantic.
By
decree of June 30, 1876, Spain is a
Constitutional Monarchy. The legislative
power is vested in the King and a Cortes
of two houses, a Senate and a Congress.
The
Kingdom is divided into 49 provinces.
Area, 196,081 square miles; population,
16,835,506.
Spain
may be described generally as a highland
country, the centre of which is occupied
by a great plateau of 42,500 square
miles.
The
climate on S. E. coast of the
Mediterranean has an average temperature
of 68° F.; that of the highest mountain
land answers to that of the polar zone,
and that of the rest of the country to
the S. temperate.
Wheat,
rye, barley, maize, esparto, flax, hemp
and pulse are the leading crops. The vine
is the most important culture. The total
export of Spanish wines in 1889 amounted
to 190,613,000 gallons. Large quantities
of oranges, raisins, grapes, nuts and
olives are also exported. Iron,
quicksilver, lead and copper are the most
important minerals. Other exports are
cork, wool and cattle.
The
Colonies of Spain are Cuba and Porto Rico
in America, the Philippine and other
islands in Asia, and Rio de Oro, Adrar
and Fernando Po in Africa, with a total
area of 406,903 square miles and a
population of 12,123,743.
The
Rock of Gibraltar, in the Spanish
province of Andalusia, is a British
possession.
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SANDWICH ISLANDS.
THE
SANDWICH or HAWAIIAN ISLANDS, a group
situated in the N. Pacific, 2100 miles
from San Francisco and 3400 miles from
Japan. They number twelve, of which eight
are inhabited, the remainder being little
more than large rocks. The whole group is
of volcanic origin. The island of Hawaii
contains two immense volcanoes, Mauna Loa
(13,760 feet) and Kilauea (3970 feet),
whose craters are respectively 6 and 9
miles in circumference, and are
constantly active. The climate is mild
and equable, and the soil highly fertile
and productive. The bread-fruit, cocoa
nut, banana and tara are indigenous, and
every tropical crop can be successfully
reared. Sheep, cattle and horses thrive
well and are now very numerous. Sugar and
rice are the staple industries, while
coffee, hides, bananas and wool are also
exported.
The
Sandwich Islands were practically
discovered on 19th January, 1778, by
Captain Cook, who was killed by the
natives of Hawaii on the following year.
He named them the Sandwich Islands after
the Earl of Sandwich, First Lord of the
Admiralty. Owing to missionary labors,
the islands are now wholly Christian.
The
government is a Constitutional Monarchy.
In 1887 a new constitution was granted,
by which the executive power is vested in
the Sovereign and his Cabinet.
The
total area of the islands is 6677 square
miles, and the population according to
census of 1884, 80,578, of whom 40,014
were natives and 17,939 Chinese, The
native population , which is closely
allied to the Maoris of New Zealand, is
rapidly decreasing and the foreign
population increasing.
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