A, Anterior end of _Craterostigmus_ from above.
a, Basal segments of antennae.
c, Cephalic plate with eyes (o).
t.tox, Tergal plate of somite bearing toxicognaths (tox).
t.lg.1, Tergal plate of somite bearing legs of the first pair.
B, Maxillae.
C, Palpognath.
D, Toxicognath.
E, Last segment with genital capsule (g.c), and basal segments of
legs of 14th and 15th pairs (lg. 14, lg. 15).]
This order, containing the family _Craterostigmidae_, is based upon a
remarkable genus and species _Craterostigmus tasmanianus_, of which
only two specimens are known. These were collected under stones upon
the summit of Mount Rumney in Tasmania. They are about 1½ in. in
length; but nothing has been recorded of their habits. The chief
morphological interest attaching to _Craterostigmus_ is that, apart
from certain structural peculiarities of its own, it presents features
previously believed to be found exclusively either in the
Scolopendromorpha, or the Geophilomorpha, or the Lithobiomorpha; and
it shows how the Lithobiomorpha may be derived from a
Scolopendromorphous type most nearly resembling _Plutonium_ by the
excalation of the third, sixth, ninth, eleventh, fourteenth and
seventeenth leg-bearing somites.
_Order 4. Lithobiomorpha._ Chilopoda with fifteen pairs of leg-bearing
somites differentiated into larger and smaller, the 1st, 3rd, 5th,
7th, 8th, 10th, 12th and 14th being large, the others small. Spiracles
present upon all the larger with the exception sometimes of the 1st.
The toxicognaths are relatively weaker than in the orders hitherto
considered, and have their basal segments less firmly fused mesially.
In correlation with their weaker muscularity the first leg-bearing
segment is relatively small. The gonopods, present and usually jointed
in both sexes, are especially well developed and forcipate in the
female, and arise from a large ventral plate resulting from the fusion
of their coxae with the sternum of the genital somite. The antennae
are many-jointed, and there is a single ocellus or a cluster of ocelli
on each side of the head. The coxae of the legs are large, and those
of the last four or five pairs usually contain glands opening by large
orifices. The newly-hatched young has only seven pairs of legs, the
remaining pairs being successively added as growth proceeds.
The genera of this order are divisible into three families, the
_Lithobiidae_ (_Lithobius, Bothropolys_), _Henicopidae_ (_Henicops,
Haasiella_), the _Cermatobiidae_ (_Cermatobius_). _Cermatobius_, based
upon a single species, _martensii_, from the isl. of Adenara, is of
peculiar interest, since in the absence of coxal pores, and the length
and multi-articulation of the antennae and tarsal segments, it
approaches more nearly to _Scutigera_ than does any other
pleurostigmous Chilopod. It is also stated that the spiracles have
assumed a more dorsal position, thus foreshadowing the completely
dorsal situation they have taken up in the Notostigma. The
_Henicopidae_, containing centipedes of small size, attains its
maximum of development in the southern continents and islands, more
particularly Australia, New Zealand, South Africa and South America.
One genus (_Lamyctes_) however, occurs in Europe. The _Lithobiidae_,
on the contrary, are almost exclusively northern in range, being
particularly abundant and of large size individually in Europe,
extra-tropical Asia, and North and Central America. In habits the
_Lithobiidae_ closely resemble the _Scolopendridae_. They are,
however, comparatively far more agile with their shorter, more compact
bodies and stronger legs. They are mostly of small size, the largest
species, _Lithobius fusciatus_, of south Europe measuring only 2 in.
in length of body. The females do not guard their eggs, but coat them
with soil and leave them to their fate.
SUBCLASS 2, NOTOSTIGMA.--Chilopods with a series of median dorsal
tracheal sacs furnished with tubes dipping into the pericardial blood
space, and opening each by an unpaired spiracle upon the 1st, 3rd, 5th,
8th, 10th, 12th and 14th leg-bearing somites. This characteristic is
accompanied by the complete disappearance of the tergum of the 7th,
either by fusion with that of the 8th or by excalation, and by the
evanescence of the terga of the 2nd, 4th, 6th, 9th, 11th and 13th
pedigerous somites. The preantennal area of the head is not strongly
reflexed inferiorly, and the eyes are large and compound. The maxillae
are long and have a sensory organ, the palpognaths are long, spiny and
composed of five segments, like the primitive Chilopod leg, and the
toxicognaths have their basal segments disunited and independently
movable. Gonopods duplicated in the male.
[Illustration: FIG. 9.--A, _Scutigera rubrolineata_ (after Buffon). B,
Tergum and part of a second of the same enlarged to show the position of
the stigmata o, o; p, hinder margin of tergum.]
This subclass contains the single order Scutigeromorpha and the family
_Scutigeridae_. As in the Lithobiomorpha there are fifteen pairs of
legs, the gonopods are well developed in both sexes and the young is
hatched with only seven pairs of legs. The legs and antennae in the
adult are extremely long and many jointed. In habits as well as in
structure the _Scutigeridae_, of which _Scutigera_ is the best-known
genus, differ greatly from other centipedes. Although they hide under
stones and logs of wood like _Lithobius_, they are not lucifugous but
diurnal, and may be seen chasing their foes in the blazing sun. They
run with astonishing speed and have the power of dropping their legs
when seized. South of about the 40th parallel of north latitude they
are universally distributed in suitable localities. In most species
the body only reaches a length of about 1 in.; but twice that size or
more is reached by examples of the Indian species _Scutigera
longicornis_.
[Illustration: After Latzel, _Die Myr öst-ung. Mon._ vol. i.
"Chilopoda," Vienna, 1880.
FIG. 10.--Gnathites of _Scutigera_.
I. Mandibles.
II. Maxillae.
III. Palpognaths.
IV. Toxicognaths.]
Some fossils of Carboniferous age have been described as Chilopoda by
Scudder, who refers them to two families, _Gerascutigeridae_ and
_Eoscolopendridae_. But until the specimens have been examined by
zoologists the genera they are alleged to represent cannot be taken
seriously into consideration. Remains of centipedes closely related to
existing forms have been recorded from Oligocene beds. (R. I. P.)
CENTLIVRE, SUSANNA (c. 1667-1723), English dramatic writer and actress,
was born about 1667, probably in Ireland, whither her father, a
Lincolnshire gentleman named Freeman, had been forced to flee at the
Restoration on account of his political sympathies. When sixteen she
married the nephew of Sir Stephen Fox, and on his death within a year
she married an officer named Carroll, who was killed in a duel. Left in
poverty, she began to support herself, writing for the stage, and some
of her early plays are signed S. Carroll. In 1706 she married Joseph
Centlivre, chief cook to Queen Anne, who survived her. Her first play
was a tragedy, _The Perjured Husband_ (1700), and she herself appeared
for the first time at Bath in her comedy _Love at a Venture_ (1706).
Among her most successful comedies are--_The Gamester_ (1705); _The Busy
Body_ (1709); _A Bold Stroke for a Wife_ (1718); _The Basset-table_
(1706); and _The Wonder! a Woman keeps a Secret_ (1714), in which, as
the jealous husband, Garrick found one of his best parts. Her plots,
verging on the farcical, were always ingenious and amusing, though
coarse after the fashion of the time, and the dialogue fluent. She never
seems to have acted in London, but she was a friend of Rowe, Farquhar
and Steele. Mrs Centlivre died on the 1st of December 1723. Her dramatic
works were published, with a biography, in 1761 (reprinted 1872).
CENTO, a town of Emilia, Italy, in the province of Ferrara, 18 m. S.E.
direct from the town of Ferrara; 50 ft. above sea-level; it is reached
by road (6 m. to the W.) from the station of S. Pietro in Casale, 15 m.
S.W. by W. of Ferrara, and also by a steam tramway (18 m. N.) from
Bologna to Pieve di Cento, on the opposite bank of the Reno. Pop. (1901)
4307 (town), 19,078 (commune). It is connected by a navigable canal with
Ferrara. It was the birthplace of the painter Giovanni Francesco
Barbieri (Guercino). The communal picture-gallery and several churches
contain works by him, but none of first-rate importance. A statue of him
stands in front of the 16th century Palazzo Governativo. The town was
surrounded by walls, the gates of which are preserved. The origin of the
name is uncertain.
CENTO (Gr. _[Greek: kentrôn]_, Lat. _cento_, patchwork), a composition
made up by collecting passages from various works. The Byzantine Greeks
manufactured several out of the poems of Homer, among which may be
mentioned the life of Christ by the famous empress Eudoxia, and a
version of the Biblical history of Eden and the Fall. The Romans of the
later empire and the monks of the middle ages were fond of constructing
poems out of the verse of Virgil. Such were the _Cento Nuptialis_ of
Ausonius, the sketch of Biblical history which was compiled in the 4th
century by Proba Falconia, wife of a Roman proconsul, and the hymns in
honour of St Quirinus taken from Virgil and Horace by Metellus, a monk
of Tegernsee, in the latter half of the 12th century. Specimens may be
found in the work of Aldus Manutius (Venice, 1504; Frankfort, 1541,
1544). In 1535 Laelius Capitulus produced from Virgil an attack upon the
dissolute lives of the monks; in 1536 there appeared at Venice a
_Petrarca Spirituale_; and in 1634 Alexander Ross (a Scotsman, and one
of the chaplains of Charles I.) published a _Virgilius Evangelizans, seu
Historia Domini nostri Jesu Christi Virgilianis verbis et versibus
descripta_.
CENTRAL AMERICA, that portion of the American continent which lies
between Mexico and Colombia, comprising the British crown colony of
British Honduras, and the six independent republics of Guatemala,
Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica and Panama. These seven
divisions are described in separate articles. Central America is bounded
towards the N. by the Caribbean Sea, and towards the S. by the Pacific
Ocean, and extends between 7° 12' and 18° 3' N. and between 77° 12' and
92° 17' W. It has an area of about 208,500 sq. m., and stretches for
some 1300 m. from N.W. to S.E., in a succession of three serpentine
curves, reaching its greatest breadth, 450 m., between the Peninsula of
Nicoya and the north coast of Honduras, and diminishing to 35 m. in the
Isthmus of Panama. The eastern boundary of Central America was usually
regarded as identical with that of Costa Rica until 1903, when the
republic of Panama was formed out of the northern territories of
Colombia; and the more modern definition given above does not command
the universal assent of geographers, because it fails to include the
whole region up to the natural frontier on the north-west, i.e. the
Isthmus of Tehuantepec in Mexico. It has, however, the support of
political and historical considerations, as well as of common usage; and
it may therefore be regarded as adequate, although, in respect of
climate and natural products, it would be more accurate to define
Central America as lying between Tehuantepec and Darien.
_Physical Features._--The _Cordilleras_, or mountain chains of Central
America do not form a complete link between the western ranges in the
north and south of the continent, for their continuity is interrupted
by various depressions, of which the chief is the lacustrine basin of
Nicaragua. With these exceptions, they traverse Central America from
end to end, their main axis trending from north-west to south-east.
They do not, as a rule, rise in sharply serrated ridges or series of
volcanic crests, like the Andes, but the central Cordilleras are
disposed in a succession of mountain masses, with many lesser chains
radiating from them. The principal summits have an altitude of 12,000
and even, in a few cases, of 13,000 ft., and the general character of
the ranges is volcanic, many craters being still active. Large tracts
of land remained imperfectly surveyed at the beginning of the 20th
century, owing to the unhealthiness of the tropical climate, and the
dense underwoods which impede exploration. In the northern part of
Guatemala, on the Pacific coast of the same country, in British
Honduras, along the Segovia river, on the Mosquito Coast, and in the
basin of Lake Nicaragua and the San Juan river, there are broad
stretches of comparatively flat country. The main line of watershed is
everywhere nearer to the Pacific than to the Atlantic, except in
southern Costa Rica and Panama, where it is almost equidistant from
the two oceans. In consequence, the rivers of the Pacific seaboard are
mostly short and swift,--mere mountain torrents, in many instances,
until they reach the sands and swamps which border the sea. The rivers
of the Atlantic littoral descend more gradually, and by longer
channels. The largest of them is the Segovia, in Nicaragua and
Honduras, which has a course of 450 m. Lake Nicaragua, the largest
inland sheet of water, has an area exceeding 3500 sq. m. There are
also several mountain lakes of exceptional interest and beauty, such
as Atitlán and Amatitlán, in Guatemala, besides two great land-locked
salt-water lakes--the Pearl Lagoon of the Mosquito Coast, and the
Carataska Lagoon in Honduras.
[Illustration: Geologic Map of Central America.]
_Geology._--The neck of land which unites the continents of North and
South America is not, geologically, the direct continuation of either,
but constitutes a third element which is wedged, as it were, between
the other two. The folds in the earth's crust which form the Andes and
the Western ranges of North America, are not continued along the
connecting isthmus, where, on the contrary, the strata are folded from
west to east, obliquely across the trend of the continent. It should,
however, be noticed that the Andes, as they approach the Caribbean
sea, bend round towards the east; and it is probable that the folds of
the North American Cordillera similarly bend eastward beneath the
volcanic rocks of Mexico. The folds of Central America are tangential
to the two arcs thus formed.
By far the greater part of Central America and Mexico is covered by
Cretaceous and Tertiary deposits, both sedimentary and volcanic; but
the foundation on which they rest is exposed at intervals. From the
Rio Grande to the southern declivity of the Mexican plateau the
existence of ancient crystalline rocks at the surface is yet unproved,
but they probably occur in the Sierra Madre del Pacifico. South of the
plateau, in the state of Oaxaca, low mountain ridges composed of
granites and gneisses, supposed to be of Archaean age, begin to
appear. They strike from west to east, and mark the front of the
series of east and west folds which stand _en échelon_ across the
Central American region. Between the 15th and 17th parallels of
latitude, in the state of Chiapas and in the republic of Guatemala,
there is a second group of ridges composed of granites and schists
with an eastward trend. In this case the evidence of age is clear, for
the rocks are covered by a limestone which is proved to be
Pre-Carboniferous. Similar rocks, supposed to be of Archaean or at
least of early Palaeozoic age, occupy considerable areas in British
Honduras, Honduras and northern Nicaragua, and occur also in Costa
Rica and perhaps in Panama; and wherever the strike has been observed,
it is approximately from west to east. The presence of Palaeozoic
rocks has been proved in Guatemala and the adjacent state of Chiapas,
where limestones have been found containing many unmistakable
Carboniferous fossils, and below these is a considerable thickness of
beds supposed to be Silurian. Nowhere else in the Central American
region is there any palaeontological evidence of Palaeozoic rocks.
The Mesozoic series begins with sands and red or yellow clays
containing plant remains and possibly of Triassic age; but the
occurrence of these deposits is limited to a few small isolated
outcrops. Jurassic beds have been found in Mexico but not in Central
America. The Cretaceous system, consisting of a lower series of clays,
sandstones and conglomerates, followed conformably by an upper series
of limestones, covers a considerable area in Chiapas, Guatemala and
Honduras, and is found also in Costa Rica. The upper series contains
hippurites. The greater part of the eastern half of the Mexican
plateau is also formed of Cretaceous beds.
The Tertiary system may be conveniently divided into two divisions.
The lower, of Eocene and Oligocene age, consists generally of sand and
clays which were evidently laid down near a shore line. The upper
division also, including the Pliocene and Pleistocene (which have not
yet been clearly distinguished from each other), is usually of shallow
water origin; but in the northern part of Yucatan it includes beds of
chalky limestone, like those of the Antilles, which may have been
deposited in a deeper sea.
It is probable that folding took place at more than one geological
epoch, and the whole series of beds up to the Oligocene is involved in
the folds. The Pliocene, on the other hand, is usually undisturbed,
and the final effort must, therefore, have occurred during the Miocene
period, which appears to have been a period of great earth movement
throughout the Caribbean region. From the southern extremity of the
Mexican plateau to the Colombian border, the strike of the folds--of
the Mesozoic and early Tertiary deposits, as well as of the older
rocks--is in general from east to west; but there is one considerable
exception. On both sides of the deep depression which crosses Honduras
from Puerto Cortez to the Gulf of Fonseca, the strike is commonly from
north to south. The depression is probably a "Graben" or trough formed
by faulting.
The great volcanoes of Mexico and Central America stand upon the
Pacific side of the continent, and it is only where the land contracts
to a narrow neck that their products spread over to the Caribbean
shore. The extent of the volcanic deposits is very great, and over a
wide area they entirely conceal the original structural features of
the country. The eruptions began towards the close of the Cretaceous
period and continue to the present day. The rocks are lavas and ashes,
chiefly of andesitic or basaltic composition, but rhyolites and
trachytes also occur, and phonolite has been met with in one or two
places.
According to R.T. Hill, there is but little geological evidence of any
Tertiary or later connexion between the Caribbean Sea and the Pacific,
excepting, perhaps, a shallow opening during the Eocene period. It
should, however, be stated that all authorities are not agreed upon
this point, and K. Sapper found marls and sandstones which he believes
to belong to the Upper Tertiary, lying horizontally at a height of
about 7500 ft. in the Mexican state of Chiapas. Unfortunately the
fossils obtained from these beds were lost.
_Climate_.--The climate of Central America is subject to the most
marked local differences of heat and cold, owing partly to the
proximity of two oceans, partly to the variations of altitude which
render such territories as the swamps of the coast, or the lowlands of
British Honduras and northern Guatemala, totally unlike the alpine
regions of Salvador and Costa Rica. The whole area may, however, be
roughly divided into a tropical zone (_tierra caliente_), from
sea-level to about 1500 ft.; a temperate zone (_tierra templada_),
from 1500 to 5000 ft.; and a cold zone (_tierra fria_), above 5000 ft.
These figures are, of course, only approximately correct; and it often
happens that, at the same elevation, the heat is greater on the
Pacific than on the Atlantic versant. The rainy season on the Pacific
slope varies in duration from four to six months, between April and
December. It lengthens as the altitude increases. On the coast, it
corresponds with the prevalence of the south-west monsoon, the
tempestuous _Cordonazo de San Francisco_, or "Flagellation of St
Francis," as it is called in Mexico, and it is often interrupted by an
interval of two or three weeks of fine weather, known as the
_Veranillo de San Juan_, or "Little summer of St John." In the rainy
season, the morning has usually a clear sky; about two or three
o'clock in the afternoon the clouds begin to gather in great cumulus
masses; suddenly the lightning flashes out and the rain crashes down;
and by evening the sky is clear and starry. North winds are most usual
during the dry season. On the Atlantic coast the trade-winds may bring
rain in any month, and, owing to the moist atmosphere, the heat is
more oppressive. The rainfall may vary in successive years from less
than 50 in. to nearly 200 in., owing to the occurrence of
cloud-bursts. Frosts are not rare above 7000 ft., but snow seldom
falls.
_Fauna_.--The fauna of Central America is more closely connected with
the fauna of South than with that of North America. As the region is
comparatively small, and its limits conventional, there are
comparatively few species that it can claim as peculiarly its own. It
is almost entirely free from the presence of animals dangerous to man.
Of felines it possesses the jaguar (_Felis onza_), popularly called
the tiger; the cuguar (_Felis concolor_), popularly called the lion;
the tigrillo (_Felis tigrina_), which is sometimes kept tame; and
other species. Several species of monkeys (_Mycetes_ and _Ateles_) are
numerous in the warm coast region. The Mexican deer (_Cervus
mexicanus_) has a wide range both in the lowlands and highlands.
Besides the tapir there are several varieties of wild pig, such as the
marrano de monte (_Sus torquatus_) and the jabali or javali (_Sus
labiatus javali_). The _Edentata_ are represented by a species of
armadillo, the honey-bear (_Myrmecophaga tomandua_), and the
_Myrmecophaga didactyla;_ and among the rodents may be mentioned,
besides rats, hares and rabbits, the fruit-eating cotorra and
tepes-cuinte (_Dasyprocta aguti_ and _Coelogenys paca_), and the
troublesome _Geomys mexicana._ The manatee is common in all the larger
streams. Much annoyance is caused to the agriculturist by the little
marsupial called the tacuacine, or the _Didelphys carcinora,_ its
allied species. The bats are so numerous that villages have sometimes
had to be left to their undisputed occupancy. In the south-east of
Costa Rica the inhabitants are at times compelled to withdraw, with
all their live-stock, before the swarms of large migratory vampires
which in a single night can bleed the strongest animal to death. Most
of the domestic animals--the horse, ox, goat, sheep, pig, dog, rabbit,
common fowl, peacock and pigeon--are of European origin, and are
popularly grouped together as _animales de Castilla._ For the bird
collector there is a rich harvest. The catalogue of the National
Museum at Washington shows that Costa Rica alone possesses more than
twice as many species of birds as the whole of Europe. Among birds of
prey it is sufficient to mention _Corogyps atratus,_ the commonest of
the vultures, which acts as a universal scavenger, the _Cathartes
aura,_ the beautiful _Polyborus vulgaris,_ and the king of the
vultures (_Sarcorhamphus papa_). Neither the condor of the southern
continent nor the great eagles of the northern are known. The parrot,
macaw and toucan are found in all parts; the crow, blackbird, Mexican
jay, ricebird, swallow, rainbird, wood-pecker, humming-bird and trogon
are also widely distributed. A bird of the last-named genus, the
quetzal, quijal or quesal (_Trogon resplendens_) is of special note,
not only from the fact that its yellow tail-feathers. 2 or 3 ft. long,
were formerly worn as insignia by the Indian princes, but because it
has been adopted as the emblematical figure on the national arms of
Guatemala. The gallinaceous order is well represented, and comprises
several peculiar species, as the pavo de cacho, and the Peten turkey
(_Meleagris ocellata_), which has a bronze sheen on its plumage; and
aquatic birds, it is almost needless to add, are unusually numerous in
a region so richly furnished with lagoons, rivers and lakes.
Besides the alligator, which swarms in many rivers, the almost endless
varieties of Central American reptiles include the harmless boba or
chicken-snake, python and black snake; the venomous corali, taboba,
culebra de sangre and rattlesnake; iguanas of great size, scorpions,
edible lizards and other lizards said to be poisonous. In the rivers
and lakes, as in both seas, fish of many kinds abound; turtles and
tortoises are exported; and there are valuable pearl and oyster
fisheries. Insect life is even richer and more varied. Of the
_Coleoptera_, the Camelicorns, the Longicorns, the Curculionids, and
the Chrysomelines are said to be best represented, and of the
_Lepidoptera_ the prevalent genera are--_Ageronia, Papilio, Heliconia,
Sphinx_ and _Bombyx_. There are five species of bees, and the European
honey-bee, known as _aveja de Castilla_ or "bee of Castile," has been
naturalized. Ants are common, and may sometimes be seen marching in a
column 3 or 4 m. long. The mosquito, wood-tick, flea and locust are
unfortunately no less plentiful in certain districts, but their
distribution varies greatly, the mosquito being almost unknown in
parts of Honduras. A curious species of butterfly is the _Timetes
Chiron,_ which migrates in countless multitudes from the forests of
Honduras to the Mosquito Coast, but is never known to return.
_Flora_.--The flora of Central America ranges from the alpine to the
tropical, with the transition from one climatic zone to another.
Although its forest growths are, on the whole, inferior in size to
those of corresponding latitudes in the eastern hemisphere, it is
unsurpassed for beauty, luxuriance and variety. In the volcanic
districts, the soil is extremely fertile, yielding, where cultivated
and irrigated, magnificent crops of sugar, cotton, rice, tobacco,
coffee, cocoa and maize. Indigo is produced in small quantities; sugar
yields two or three crops, and maize as many as four, this cereal
supplying a chief staple of food. Plantains, bananas, beans, tomatoes,
yams, arrowroot, pine-apples, guavas, citrons and many other tropical
fruits are also cultivated, while the extensive primeval forests
abound in mahogany, cedars, rosewood, ironwood, rubber, gum copal,
vanilla, sarsaparilla, logwood and many other dye-woods, medicinal
plants, and valuable timbers. Conspicuous amongst the forest trees are
the giant ceiba, or pyramidal bombax, and the splendid Coyal palm
(_Cocos butyracea,_ L.), with feathery leaves 15 to 20 ft. long,
golden flowers 3 ft. high, and a sap which when fermented produces the
intoxicating _chicha_ or _vino de Coyol._ In Guatemala occurs the
remarkable _Herrania purpurea,_ a "Chocolate tree," whose seeds yield
a finer flavoured chocolate than the cocoa itself. The same country is
famous for its magnificent orchids, huge arborescent thistles, and a
remarkable plant called by the Spaniards _Flor de la Calentura_,
"fever flower," from the heat which it is said to emit at the moment
of fertilization. Salvador produces an abundance of medicinal plants,
notably the so-called Peruvian balsam (_Myrospermum salvatorense_); in
Honduras there are immense forests of conifers, resembling those of
the Landes in France; in Nicaragua a characteristic tree is the cortes
(_Tecoma sideroxylori_) yielding timber as hard as ebony, and
noteworthy for the golden blossom with which it is entirely covered
after the leaves have fallen.
_Inhabitants_--In 1905 the population of Central America numbered about
4,750,000, and this total tends to increase, despite the unhealthy
climate of many districts, the terribly high average of infant
mortality, and the slow progress of immigration. Some authorities
estimate it at 5,500,000. The vast majority of the inhabitants are of
mixed Indian and Spanish blood, but the Indian element predominates
everywhere except in Costa Rica, where the whites are exceptionally
numerous. The Indian races have not shown the same power to adapt
themselves to modern civilization as the Mexicans; in some regions there
are tribes remaining in a state of complete savagery although before the
Spanish conquest their ancestors attained a high level of culture (see
below under _Archaeology_). The density of population throughout Central
America is little more than 25 per sq. m.; and it is clear that several
large areas now thinly peopled once maintained a far greater number of
inhabitants. Such are parts of the Nicaraguan lake district, where the
flora consists in great measure of plants that were formerly cultivated
by the Indians. The depopulation of these areas was effected partly by
tribal wars, partly by the harsh rule of the Spaniards. Apart from the
German agricultural settlements in Guatemala and elsewhere, the foreign
population is chiefly confined to the seaports and other centres of
commerce, Great Britain, Germany and the United States being largely
represented among the wealthier classes of residents; while the foreign
labourers are mostly Italians or negroes, with a few Chinese on the
Pacific coast.
_History_.--Central America was discovered by Columbus in August 1502;
and part of the territory which is now Costa Rica was conquered by the
Spaniards under Pedro Arias de Avila after 1513. Between 1522 and 1525,
the authority of Avila was superseded, and his work of conquest
completed by Hernando Cortes, who had already subjugated Mexico. Panama
formed part of a distinct Spanish government, "New Granada"; British
Honduras was colonized, though not formally annexed, in the 18th
century; and over the Mosquito Coast the British government exercised a
nominal protectorate after 1665. Otherwise the rest of Central America
remained a Spanish dependency bearing the general name of "Guatemala,"
until 1821. It ranked as a captaincy-general under the rule of a
military governor, and was organized in five departments, corresponding
in area with the modern republics of Guatemala, Honduras, Salvador,
Nicaragua and Costa Rica. For three centuries it was administered by
Spanish officials, who almost invariably devoted their whole energy to
enriching themselves and the home authorities. The old Indian
civilization was swept away; the native races were enslaved, maltreated
and, for a time, demoralized. But their history offers no parallel to
that of the West Indian Caribs, who failed to survive, and were replaced
by hordes of African slaves. In Central America the Indians not only
survived, thus leaving no room for any large negro population, but
quickly acquired the language, religion and habits of their masters,
with whom they intermarried. By the close of the 18th century, the
majority had attained something like uniformity of life and thought.
Racial distinctions had been obscured by intermarriage; even the term
_Ladino_, or "Latin," came to mean an educated man, whether of Spanish
or Indian blood. Nowhere, except in Mexico, has a mixed or coloured race
more completely absorbed the civilization of its white rulers; but so
gradual and silent was the process that it passed almost unnoticed. Its
result, the successful revolt of the Spanish colonies--colonies mainly
peopled by Indians or half-castes--was no more a conflict of rival races
or civilizations than the rebellion of the British colonies in North
America.
"New Granada" attained its independence in 1819; and in 1821 "Guatemala"
declared itself free. That the subsequent history of the Central
American republics has been largely a record of civil war,
maladministration and financial dishonesty, is perhaps due in part to
racial inferiority. In part, however, it may be explained by the absence
of any tradition of good government; perhaps also by the brevity and
artificiality of the evolution which converted a debased
slave-population into the citizens of modern democratic states. The five
divisions of "Guatemala" were temporarily incorporated in the Mexican
empire during 1822, but regained their autonomy (as Guatemala, Honduras,
Salvador, Nicaragua and Costa Rica) on the declaration of a Mexican
republic, and in July 1823 combined to form the Republic of the United
States of Central America. The Liberal or Federalist party, which was
supreme in Honduras, found itself opposed by the Conservatives,
including the clergy and former Spanish officials, who were very
influential in Guatemala. A bitter and protracted struggle ensued. In
1837-1839 a Conservative rising, under Rafael Carrera, president of
Guatemala, resulted in the overthrow of the Liberals, under General
Francisco Morazan of Honduras; and in 1842, after a vain attempt to
restore the Federal republic, Morazan was captured and shot. A fresh
union of the republics (except Costa Rica) was concluded in 1842, and
dissolved in 1845. The year 1850 was signalized by the conclusion, on
the 19th of April, of the Clayton-Bulwer treaty (q.v.) between Great
Britain and the United States, which was designed to facilitate the
construction of an interoceanic canal. The history of this project is
given in detail under PANAMA CANAL. One important result of the treaty
was the abandonment, in 1860, of the British protectorate over the
Mosquito Coast. This event had been preceded by a decade of political
disturbances. In 1850 Honduras, Salvador and Nicaragua had combined to
restore federal unity; but their allied armies were defeated by the
Guatemalans under Carrera. In 1856 the American adventurer, William
Walker, endeavoured to usurp the government of Nicaragua; in 1860 he
invaded Honduras and was captured and shot. His object was to assist the
slave-holders of the United States by adding new slave-states to the
Union. A further attempt to restore federal unity failed in 1885, and
its promoter, Justo Rufino Barrios, president of Guatemala, lost his
life. In 1895 the Greater Republic of Central America was formed by the
union of Nicaragua, Salvador and Honduras; and a constitution was framed
providing for the admission of Guatemala and Costa Rica; in December
1898 it was dissolved, as unsatisfactory to Salvador. On the 4th of
November 1903 Panama, which had since 1863 formed part of Colombia,
declared itself an autonomous republic. Its independence was immediately
recognized by the United States, and shortly afterwards by the European
powers. The United States also forbade the landing of any Colombian
force on the territories of Panama, and thus guaranteed the security of
the new state.
BIBLIOGRAPHY.--For a general description of Central America, and
especially of its physical features, the following monographs by K.
Sapper are of prime importance:--_In den Vulcangebieten Mittelamerikas
und Westindiens_ (Stuttgart, 1905); _Mittelamerikanische Reisen und
Studien aus den Jahren 1888 bis 1900_ (Brunswick, 1902), and _Das
nordliche Mittelamerika nebst einem Ausflug nach dem Hochland von
Anahuac_ (Brunswick, 1897); these all contain many useful
illustrations and maps. See also _Central America and the West
Indies_, by A.H. Keane, edited by Sir C. Markham (London, 1901, 2
vols., with maps and illustrations); _Central and South America_, by
H.W. Bates (London, 1882); _The Spanish American Republics_, by T.
Child (London, 1892); and _Expedition nach Zentral und Sudamerika_, by
P. Preuss (Berlin, 1901). For geology, see "The Geological History of
the Isthmus of Panama and Portions of Costa Rica," by R.T. Hill, in
_Bull. Mus. Comp. Zool. Harvard_, vol. xxviii., No. 5 (1898); and the
following by K. Sapper:--"Grundzüge der physikalischen Geographic von
Guatemala," in _Petermann's Mitt._ Ergänzungsheft, No. 113 (1894),
"Über Gebirgsbau und Boden des nördlichen Mittelamerika," ibid., No.
127 (1899), and "Über Gebirgsbau und Boden des südlichen
Mittelamerika," _ibid_., No. 151 (1905). _The States of Central
America_, by E.G. Squier (New York, 1858), is still valuable, as are
others of the numerous essays, pamphlets, &c., on Central American
affairs left by this author; see the bibliography of his writings
published in New York in 1876. The _Bulletins of the Bureau of
American Republics_ (Washington, from 1893) give ample information on
commerce and industry. See also _History of Central America_, by H.
Bancroft (San Francisco, 1881-1887. 3 vols.).