Venezuela

by Leonard V. Dalton

No visitor to Venezuela who penetrates far enough into the country to catch a glimpse of the Llanos can fail to be impressed with the possibilities of the country in stock-raising and exporting, and yet this great area of pasturage supports, in proportion to its extent, a mere handful of cattle and horses. The quality of the grass of the Llanos may be inferior to that of the Argentine Pampas, but even such a defect, if existent, may be improved in time, and so far no pedigree stock have ever been introduced, nor has the industry ever been seriously handled.

In 1804, according to Depons, there were 1,470,000 cattle, horses, and mules on the Llanos, and by 1812 the total number had increased to 4,500,000; but during the wars of independence, owing to the depredations by the opposing armies, the number was greatly decreased, and in 1839 was still only a little over 2,000,000. In the meantime, however, the excellent qualities of the Barquisimeto tableland and the Coro and Maracaibo lowlands for breeding goats had been discovered, and the export of goats’ horns and hides has been continuously an important item in the trade of Western Venezuela. In 1888 the number of heads of stock on the Llanos had increased to 8,500,000, and at that period many were exported to the other States and islands of America, a few even to the United States. Ten years later revolutions and counter-revolutions had decreased the number to 2,000,000.

The export trade in live stock has never attained very great dimensions, and in 1909-10 the value was £40,374, while the always more important item of hides, horns, and hoofs of cattle and goats was valued at over £320,000. The establishment of the Venezuelan Meat Products Syndicate works for shipping frozen meat from Puerto Cabello should do much to encourage an industry as yet in its infancy and yet of incalculable interest to the country, once properly developed.

As is the case with other resources, of the many agricultural products of Venezuela only a minority have been energetically developed, in some degree on account of lack of population to collect the natural fruits in such prolific regions as Guayana, but also on account of failure to appreciate the natural advantage of the many climates to be found within the northern part of the country, where may be grown, not only the rare fruits of the tropics but the, to many, more pleasant fruits and flowers of the cooler zones.

The three cultivated plants which have multiplied sufficiently to form the basis of considerable industries are coffee, cacao, and sugar-cane. Of these coffee was first introduced from the West Indian Islands towards the end of the eighteenth century, and the plantations now cover much of the cultivated land of the northern hills. The bushes grow anywhere between elevations of 500 and 2,000 metres, but the region immediately below the 1,000 metre line is found to be the best; and at this elevation flourishing plantations are to be found in the central part of the Coastal Cordillera, and in the Andes; the Carabobo and Segovia coffees are not so good, however, as those grown elsewhere. The plants are set from 1,600 to 1,900 to the hectare, each when matured producing ¼ to ½ lb. annually, or 400 to 950 lbs. per hectare, the life of each bush being taken as about fifty years. The value of the coffee exported in the year 1909-10 was nearly £1,500,000.

Cacao is indigenous to Venezuela, and the wild trees abound in the forests of Guayana. Before the advent of Europeans it is believed that no cultivation of cacao was carried on, but the plantations of Venezuela produce some 8,000 tons annually at the present time, of which some is renowned above all other cocoa of the world. The chief cocoa districts are the neighbourhood of Carácas, parts of the Orinoco Delta, and the Maracaibo Lake region. In the financial year 1909-10 the total exports were valued at about £700,000.

Sugar can be grown anywhere in Northern Venezuela, except on the Llanos and in the higher mountains, or where, as near Barquisimeto or Coro, the atmosphere is too dry. In addition to the native or Creole sugar, there are three varieties from the East known as Otahiti, Batavia, and Selangor cane. From the juice of these sugars crude (papelon) and refined (azucar), with alcohol (aguardiente) and rum are manufactured, the greater part of the crop being utilised in distilleries. Most of the sugar comes from the Maracaibo and Carácas districts, but the product is for the most part consumed in the country, as are the million or so bottles of alcohol. The exports for 1909-10 amounted to £20,000.

Tobacco can be grown all through the foothills of the Cordilleras, but the only important centres are the upland valleys south of Cumaná, in the east, and near Capatárida, in the State of Falcón; the latter is said to be the best, and considerable quantities of the leaf are sent to Havana. Cotton also grows wild along the dry northern coast, and has been cultivated to some extent, particularly after the American Civil War; at the close of the last century the exports amounted to 450 tons, but in 1909-10 only 63 tons were shipped, the greater part of the native product being used in the Valencia mills. Of the remaining agricultural produce most is consumed in the country, the principal plants being maize, manioc (of which some is exported), and (in the Andes) wheat.

Of the wild products rubber has been known to occur in Guayana since 1758, and the latter has been collected since 1860 in a desultory manner by individual prospectors; some is also produced in the forests of Zulia, but the largest quantity passes through Ciudad Bolivar, which exported some 440,000 lbs. of caoutchouc in 1909-10, valued at over £116,000. The tonka-beans, balatá-gum (see p. 215), sernambi, and copaiba-balsam of Guayana are also collected and exported, to say nothing of the many valuable timbers, with which little is done as yet, while coconuts have their place among the minor agricultural products of the country.

The fisheries of Venezuela, if these can be considered as existent, are of very slight importance, and even the pearling-grounds have comparatively little value. These are more or less controlled by the Government, and unlimited concessions have been granted to companies from time to time, a system not calculated to secure the greatest possible length of life for this national asset. The value of the stones exported in 1909-10 was about £21,000.