The United States now stood pledged to aid and succor agonized Cuba, to strike the shackles from off her bruised and bleeding limbs, and raise her to a position which her valor had long deserved, amongst the free and independent nations of the world.
CHAPTER XV.
THE TOPOGRAPHY AND RESOURCES OF CUBA.
Cuba lies in the northern portion of the torrid zone, and immediately south of Florida. From Key West to the nearest point on the Cuban coast, the distance in 86 miles.
The form of Cuba is an irregular crescent, with a large number of bays or indentations. The coast line is about 2,200 miles, exclusive of the indentations; or, if we include the latter, nearly 7,000 miles.
The island is about 760 miles long. Its breadth varies from 127 miles at a point some fifty miles west of Santiago to 28 miles from Havana to the south.
Its area is 43,314 square miles, which includes the Isle of Pines and several smaller islands.
Cuba is intersected by a range of mountains, more or less broken, which extends across the entire island, from east to west, and from which the rivers flow to the sea. This range is called the Sierra del Cobra, and it includes the Pico de Turginuo, with an altitude of 7,670 feet, the highest point on the whole island. There are other ranges, and the eastern portion of the island is particularly hilly. We must not forget the famous Pan of Matanzas which received its name from its resemblance to a loaf of sugar. It is 1,300 feet high, and has been of great service to mariners in enabling them to get their bearings.
Naturally the rivers are small, but they are numerous. The principal one, and the only one that can properly be called navigable, is the Canto. Schooners ascend this for about sixty miles. It rises in the Sierra del Cobre, and empties upon the south coast, a few miles from Manzanillo. Mineral springs abound, and their medicinal qualities are in high repute.
Of lakes there are only a few, and most of these lie in the marsh lands.