[Illustration]
The illustration, which accompanies this article is a fac-simile, so far
as the drawing is concerned, of the postage stamps at present in use in
one of the Dutch possessions off the coast of South America, namely, the
island of Curaçoa. It represents the uniform type of the whole series,
and was introduced in 1873. The head on the stamp represents King
William III. of Holland.
The series consists of the following values and colors.
2-1/2c., bright green.
3c., stone.
5c., rose.
10c., bright blue.
25c., light brown.
50c., mauve.
The currency is in cents, one hundred of which go to the guilder, or
florin. A guilder is equal to nearly forty-one cents of our money.
Curaçoa, or, as printed on the stamps, Curaçao--the "c" being sounded
like "s"--is an island in the Caribbean Sea, lying off the north coast
of Venezuela. It is forty miles in length from northwest to southeast,
and ten miles in average breadth; the area is two hundred and twelve
square miles. The island is hilly, and deficient in water, being wholly
dependent upon the rains, yet, owing to the industry of the Dutch
planters, considerable quantities of sugar, cotton, tobacco, and maize
are raised. A peculiar variety of orange grows abundantly, and supplies
an important part in the liqueur which takes its name from the island.
The principal export is salt. The shores are bold, in some places deeply
indented, and present several harbors, the chief one being Santa Anna,
on the southwest side of the island. The narrow entrance to this harbor
is protected by Fort Amsterdam and other batteries; but the harbor
itself is large and secure, and is the port of the chief town, Curaçoa,
or Willemstad. The population in 1875 amounted to nearly twenty-four
thousand, about one-third being emancipated negroes. All belonged to the
Roman Catholic Church, except about two thousand Protestants and one
thousand Jews.
The island was settled by the Spaniards about 1527, was captured by the
Dutch in 1634, was taken by the English in 1798, and again in 1806, but
was restored to the Dutch in 1814, in whose possession it has since
remained. It is seldom that the name of this island is found in ordinary
geographies, although stamp-collectors think it ought to be given a
place.
[Illustration]