Venezuela

by Leonard V. Dalton

A glance at the map shows that in the llanos south of Carácas the streams flow right across Venezuela, from the hills to the Orinoco or its tributaries, and, in fact, the whole of the western llanos are very gently inclined to the south-east, but in the eastern part of the llanos south of Cumaná we see a water divide, the Rivers Tigre and Guanipa flowing eastwards to the Delta, and farther west a number of rivers flowing into the Orinoco, while north of the divide various streams, the Aragua, the Unare, and others, empty themselves into the sea west of Barcelona, this being due, not to a range of hills but to the convexity of the plains, the mesas of Tigre, Guanipa, &c.

It is hard to understand that lack of water is one of the difficulties besetting the traveller on the llanos when one sees the network of streams indicated on the maps. In the wet season there is of course plenty of water, but in the dry season most of these tributary streams cease to flow. Those which take their rise in the hilly country have, indeed, some water in their upper courses all the time, while in their lower part water from the main streams, the Orinoco, the Apure, the Portuguesa, and others, is able to back a good way up, on account of their very gentle fall, but their middle courses run quite dry, pools remaining here and there in the hollows. The water in these gets somewhat foul, but by digging in the sand in their neighbourhood sweeter water may be obtained. The River Guárico, which partly dries up in this way, is said formerly to have flowed all the year round. It takes its rise near Lake Tacarigua (Lake of Valencia), and perhaps the diminution of its water supply is due to the same cause as the shrinking of that lake, the cutting down of forest and the cultivation of land near its source. In the wet season many of the streams overflow and flood wide areas, the cattle having to take refuge on slightly higher tracts. When the waters again retire many alligators and water-snakes bury themselves in the mud, and one hears of people being startled by sudden upheavals of the ground, followed by the emergence of some disturbed monster. In one case a traveller settled for a night in a hut which had been flooded the previous season, and the barking of the dogs awoke a huge alligator, who heaved up the floor, made a dash at the dogs, and then fled into the open.

Referring once again to the fact of the water in the main streams backing up the tributaries, so very slight is the inclination of the western plains, and so small the fall of its streams, that swelling of the Orinoco, or wind pressure, will force the water to flow up the tributaries, whirlpools forming where the opposing currents meet.

Humboldt states that under these conditions many natives firmly believed that in travelling up these streams in their canoes they were really descending for a considerable distance.

Apart from the change of season from wet to dry, the great factor in the climate of the llanos is the trade wind, which blows across from the east to the west. The sandy ground, thinly covered with grass, becomes very hot in the daytime and heats the air near it. In the east the trade wind, arriving fresh from the sea, lessens this effect, and makes the air pleasant, but as it sweeps across the hundreds of miles of burning soil it becomes itself heated, and as it gets farther west adds to the discomfort, instead of correcting it.

In fact, the western llanos are very hot, and although there is a twelve-hours night in which to cool, there is so much heat to be radiated off from the earth that when dawn, the coolest moment, arrives very little diminution of temperature has been attained, and the heating process begins again.

The llanos, then, are neither prairie nor desert, but hold rather an intermediate position, varying towards one or the other according to the season. Various grasses suitable for feeding live stock grow here, and there are some trees, notably varieties of mimosas, one with sensitive leaves (dormideras) very good for cattle. There are also palms, notably the Corypa palms, or palmas de Cobija, with hard wood, which are good for building huts, their leaves being used for the roof, and the Moriche palm (Mauritia flexuosa), which, as already noticed, furnishes nearly all the necessities of life to the Guarauno Indians of the Delta.

The llanos originally contained deer, the river swine or capybara (chiguire), and the jaguar, also wild ducks and geese. In 1548 Cristobal Rodriguez started sending cattle into the plains to multiply. In Humboldt’s time the live stock were estimated at 1,200,000 oxen, 180,000 horses, and 90,000 mules. Wars and diseases have at different times interrupted their increase. Horses, asses, and mules were abundant and cheap up to 1843, when a pestilence destroyed nearly all the wild ones, the loss being estimated at between six and seven million beasts.

The cattle are believed to have decreased between the years 1863-73 from 5,000,000 to 1,400,000, but by 1888 were estimated at 8,500,000 again.

Cattle-breeding should be a great and important industry for Venezuela, and it is to be hoped that it will be put on a better footing before long. An up-to-date factory for killing and chilling meat has been established at Puerto Cabello, and the first shipment took place in 1910.