Honduras has, according to conservative estimates, '489,000 (1914) head of cattle-10.57 per square mile and per capita- with a present annual increase of from 12 per cent to 15 per cent. It was recently the subject of a special investigation of the United States Department of Agriculture with regard to its livestock prospects, and a favorable report was made. The greater number of cattle is found in the departments of Olancho Choluteca, with numerous herds in the de partments of Cortes, Colon, Atlantida and Yoro. Water and shade are abundant, and the Guinea and Para grass is at times so rank that it hides the cattle that graze in it. Formerly many cattle were shipped annually to Cuba, and at present large numbers are being sent to Guate mala, Salvador and British Honduras. A beef .packing plant near the town of Quiriga, Guate mala, on the Honduras side of the boundary, has a capacity of 50 head per day. The cones cession controls 100,000 acres of land in Hon duras alone, well stocked. The exports of hides t© the United States in 1911 amounted to ,$35,563; 1914, $82,332; 1915, $137,773; 1916, $325,460 and 1917 to $291,472.
Mexico.- Due to the,recent disturbances in Mexico, it is difficult to estimate the extent of the cattle industry to-day. In 1902 the num ber of cattle was reckoned at 5,142,457 head, a low estimate. At present, the supply of cattle for the meat demands of the country is Made ipiate, so much so that in October 1916 a par tial embargo was placed upon their export, which embargo was in May 1917 made com plete. The statement of Consul Philip C. Hanna at Monterey, made to Washington (Consular Reports, 9 Aug. 1916), is generally true for the whole republic: areas . . . over which large herds of cattle roamed, are to-day empty pastures. A large sum in export duties was collected, but the meat supply . . has been greatly reduced. . . . The declared export value of hides and bones from this consular district for the year, as compared with 1914, reveals the fact that there was a falling off of 10 per cent in dry cattle hides, 72 per cent in green (or butcher) cattle hides, 54 per cent in goat skins, 80 per cent in pig skins, and 36 per cent in crude bones. One of the many serious problems con fronting the nation at present is the replenish ing of its meat supply and at prices within the purchasing power of the poor?) Supplement ing this, Consul Frederick Simpich, of No gales, reported (1916): "Heavy exports of cattle have greatly depleted the herds, but own ers were compelled to sell, in many cases, in order to protect The wholesale stripping of the ranches, wherein cows, heifers, and all were sold, has discounted the future for several seasons In 1915, the ex ports from Mexico of cattle amounted to 13,907 head, valued at $332,699; 1916, 24,919 head, val ued at.$556,540. • Of cattle and calf hides ex
to United States the number of pounds was: 1911, 22,871,509, valued at $2,796,652; 1912, 28,264,745, valued at $3,583,851; 1913, 29,559,779, valued at $4,230,382; '1914, 37, 750,732, valued at $6,367,721; 1915, 50,808,523, valued at$8,357,078; and 1916, 44,101,773, val ued at $7,661,104. The exports of fresh beef and veal to the United States in 1914 amounted to 212,865 pounds, valued at $14,114; 1915, 3, 941,131 pounds, valued at $384,497; and 1916, 1,316,698 pounds, valued at $127,800.
Nicaragua.- Nicaragua has about 503,000 (estimated) head of cattle-10.1 per square mile, and .833 per capita. Cattle raising has been up to the present one of the greatest in dustries in the republic, there being produced sufficient for domestic demands and a surplus available for shipment to Costa Rica, Salvador, Honduras and Nicaragua. The number ex ported annually is on an average 50,000 head. The departments of Chonales, Leon and Sego via in the western part of the country are ad mirably adapted to the industry, and recently (1916) the United States consul at Bluefields in a report to Washington recommended very highly the •territory in his district for cattle raising, mentioning it as the only industry within the country wherein the producer was independent of the middleman, the demand for beef being so great that buyers were constantly scouring the country for livestock The prin cipal cattle market is Tipitapa, department of i Managua. Good grazing land is obtainable at from $0.75 to $1 per acre. The exports of cattle and calf hides to the United States in 1911 amounted to $142,589; 1912, $124,403; 1913, $205,817; 1914, $173,281; 1915, $358,642; and 1916, $454,648 and 1917, $460,738.
Panama.-- Panama has, according to the Bulletin of the Pan-American Union, 166,937 head of cattle-5.15 per square mile, and .49 per capita-with estimated facilities for caring for 5,000,000. One-third of the cattle in the country are in the province of Chiriqui, the other cattle-producing provinces being Code, Veraguas, Los Santos and Panama. The ex ports of hides to the United States in 1911 amounted to $102,502; 1912, $112,480; 1913, $118,380; 1914, $172,443• 1915, $264,244; 1916, $301,633 and 1917, $332,512.