ical woods
are also sent. Cattle are grown on more than twenty thousand ranches,
and the greater part are sent alive to the markets of the United States.
The native long-horn stock is giving place to improved breeds.

[Illustration: MEXICO]

Gold and silver are the products that have made Mexico famous, and the
mines have produced a total of more than three billion dollars' worth of
precious metal. The native methods of mining have always been primitive,
and low-grade ores have been neglected. In recent years American and
European capital has been invested in low-grade mines, and the bullion
production has been about doubled in value; it is now about one hundred
million dollars yearly. Iron ore is abundant, and good coal exists.

The manufactures, at present of little importance, are growing rapidly.
The cotton-mills consume the home product and fill their deficiency from
the Texas crop. All the finer textiles, however, are imported. Most of
the commodities are supplied by the United States, Great Britain, and
Germany, the first-named having about half the trade. Most of the
hardware and machinery is purchased in the United States.

Railway systems, with American terminal points at El Paso, San Antonio,
and New Orleans, extend from the most productive parts of the country.
One of the most important railways crosses the Isthmus of Tehuantepec,
and, in order to encourage commerce, the harbors at Coatzacoalcos and
Salina Cruz have been deepened and improved. This interoceanic route is
destined to become a very important factor in commerce. It shortens the
route between European ports and San Francisco by six thousand miles,
and between New York and San Francisco by twelve hundred miles.[57]

_Mexico_, the capital, is the financial and commercial centre. _Vera
Cruz_ and _Tampico_ are connected with the capital by railway, but both
have very poor port facilities. Steamship lines connect the former with
New York, New Orleans, Havana, and French ports. It is the chief port of
the country. _Matamoros_ on the American frontier has a considerable
cattle-trade. The crop of sisal-hemp is shipped mainly from _Progresso_
and _Merida_. _Acapulco_, _Manzanillo_, and _Mazatlan_ for want of
railway connections have but little trade. The first-named is one of the
best harbors in the world. _Guadalajara_ has important textile and
pottery manufactures.

=The Central American States.=--The physical features and climate of
these states