Among other rivers of importance are the Catatumbo and the Escalante flowing into Lake Maracaibo and the Tocuyo into the Caribbean.
Among the 205 lakes, Maracaibo, covering 8392 square miles, is obviously the largest and most important. Other lakes are Valencia, Zulia, Laguneta, and Camaguán, but many of the 200 are mere shallow lagoons which serve as breeding places for mosquitoes.
Climate
As might be expected, the climate of the country is similar to that of Colombia, with corresponding variations for altitude: tropical to about 2000 feet; above that to 7000 temperate; still higher, cold, with mean annual temperatures ranging from 60° to zero or less on the high mountains. The hot region, tierra caliente, includes the coastal plains with the Maracaibo district, the llanos, a large part of the Guayana Highlands, and a few of the lower mountain valleys. The islands are the coolest, the llanos the warmest part of the tropical region; the hottest section of the latter is south and west, the farthest from the sea. Along the coast the temperature ranges from 64°-68° to 93°-95°. The temperate region includes the most thickly settled sections at moderate elevation, while the cold mountain heights have comparatively few inhabitants. On the llanos the dry season is from November to May, or June, the rainy following to November. The coast has two rainy seasons, December and January, and April to July. The Orinoco Delta and parts of the Guiana section are the most unhealthful; the lowest death rate, rather strangely, is in the cities of the llanos, the next lowest in the regions of the Andes and the Caribbean Mountains.
CHAPTER IX
VENEZUELA: CAPITAL, STATES, TERRITORIES, CHIEF CITIES
The Capital
Caracas, the capital of the Republic, founded in 1567, is a very attractive city with a delightful climate. Only occasionally does the temperature go below 60° or above 80°. Eight miles in a straight line from its port, La Guaira, from which it is 23 miles by rail, the city is at an altitude of 3036 feet on the south side of the outer Coast Cordillera. The city is in the usual Spanish American style, with beautiful plazas and promenades. Exceptionally, the streets, which are at right angles, are numbered instead of named, but the old names are in general use. Notable buildings are the Capitol covering more than two acres, the Miraflores Palace, the Cathedral, University, National Pantheon, Masonic Temple, called the best in South America, a beautiful theatre, etc. A fine view is had from the hill Calvario, 200 feet above, the slopes of which are arranged as a public garden. Caracas is up to date in modern conveniences, water supply, street cars, etc., and has a good and cheap cab service. The city is near the west end of a rich valley 12 miles long and 3 wide, which slopes towards the southeast. The Guaire River below the city flows into the Rio Tuy.
Individual States
The Coastal States follow with the Island State, and Lara, which is neither coast, llano, nor mountain, though having some hills. The coast line extends over 1800 miles.
Zulia, the large State (23,000 square miles) occupying the northwest corner of the Republic, has Colombia on the west and northwest, the Gulf of Venezuela northeast, Falcón, Lara, and Trujillo east, and Mérida with a little of Táchira south. This State, of which Maracaibo is the capital, is one of the wealthiest in the Republic, though still sparsely inhabited. The Maracaibo Plain, the most conspicuous and important section occupying the greater portion of the State, lies between the two great branches of the East Cordillera. The lake itself is a sheet of water about 150 miles long and half as wide, the water sweet in the southern half of the lake, but brackish towards the north. The precipitation in this district amounts to 70 inches annually. Thus an enormous amount of fresh water from the Cordillera is continually entering the lake through its various affluents; of these the Catatumbo with its tributary Zulia, and the Escalante, are navigable for steamboats. The lake has a depth of 30 feet and is served by several lines of steamers as well as by sailing craft. A few small towns on the lake receive agricultural products from their vicinity; along the shore cacao is cultivated with great profit. There is a fine goat farming district; fishing is carried on; there are many settlements of Indians inhabiting huts on piles in the lake in the ancient fashion. North of the city, Maracaibo, are salinas or salt deposits, from which several thousand tons are taken annually. Southwest of Maracaibo, a peculiar tree is found in the forest, the arbol de vaca, or palo de leche, the sap of which, though slightly thicker, may be used in every way as cow’s milk. In the forests are valuable timber, useful creepers, and trees which furnish various gums or resins. Around the lake are found outcrops of coal, also petroleum and asphalt.