PORT OF VERA CRUZ.

Hawera & Normanby Star, Volume XLVI, Issue XLVI, 27 April 1914, Page 5

PORT OF VERA CRUZ.

Vera Cruz, the first port of conflict in the war, is a town of aoout b(J,OoO people, situated at the south-west corner or tne Uuif of Mexico, on low land exposed seaward, partly sandy, partly luarshy, and wnouy unhealthy, it is often visited by yellow fever, but recently extensive drainage and waterworks were initiated, and much improvement is expected as a result. The annual death-rate at present ranges from 1 in'll to lin 20, mostly from lung disease® and fever.

The town is distant 263 miles from Mexico city by rail, and 60 miles from Jalapa. the summer residence of the upper classes. It has few buildings of interest except a superb cathedral, decorated in the Moorish style. Many of the churches have been converted into tobacco factories. Most of the streets, which are laid out at right angles, are paved with cobble stones, and have an open channel in the middle. A characteristic feature of the place are the turkey buzzards, which do the scavenging, and are consequently protected by law.

The harbor, formerly an open roadstead, has been converted into-a firstclass port, with an enclosed area of 500 acres. The fierce "northers" which sweep over the Gulf from October to March have frequently caused heavy damage to shipping in the port. In 1909-10 the imports were valued at £6.,363,000, anJ the exports at £3,970,----000, chiefly gold and silver ores, coffee, skins, and hides, beans, sugar and rubber. The manufactures include tobacco, textiles, iron, liquors, pottery and preserved fruits. The present town of Vil ]a Rioa de Vera Cruz (Rich City of the True Cross) which lies several miles to the south of the original city, founded by Cortes in 1520, on the spot where he encamped a year before, was built by the Viceroy Monteiey at the end of the sixteenth century, and received the title a-v^l privilege** of *a city from Philip in. 1615. Vera Cruz has often echoed to the guns of the invader. It was looted by bu^cannfters in 1653 and 1712. the second exploit leading to +He establishment-, of Fort St. Juan de Ulna, on the reef in front of th© town, and still one of the principal defences of the town. Tn 18"8 tb* 1 "French captured the castle, and in 1P47 General Scr>+,t took it ani made it his base for his march on Mexico City. In the French campaign of 18G1 it was a<*ain captured.

The S*atp. of V^ra Cruz has a seaboard of miles in th^ Gulf <*f Mexico with a rop*i.« breadth of 155 wiles. I+s area is 24.700 square miles, and it has a ponnlatio" of over thre"o^arfcpi's of % million Thp«e n<*irlv pl natii7<? Afp.v;if*OTt 1 c!. tTwjrTi +^c bulk of the trade is in the hands of foreigners.