COLOMBIA. Physical Features, Flora and The republic of Colombia is bounded on the north and northwest by the Caribbean Sea and the republic of Panama; on the east by Venezuela and Brazil; on the south by Brazil, Peru and Ecuador; on the west by the Pacific Ocean. Its area cannot be stated precisely. The estimate in the latest census is 461,606 square miles; in the pamphlet entitled 'Latin America' (Washington 1915), 438,436. The boundary lines between it and four of the neighboring countries are in dispute.
The Andes of Colombia are divided into three ranges— the Cordillera Oriental, Cordil lera Central and, Cordillera Occidental—with intervening uplands of great extent, which are habitable and fertile, but as yet rather inac cessible. Of the three ranges mentioned, the Western Cordillera is the least impressive; the Central Cordillera has the greatest number of snow-clad summits. There are four river sys tems in the republic: (1) The western system, comprising the streams which flow from the western Cordillera into the Pacific Ocean; (2) the river Cauca and its affluents; (3) the Magdalena River with its affluents; (4) the streams of the eastern slope of the eastern Cordillera. Of special interest is the Atrato River, which is not included in any of the fore going systems. This navigable stream flows to the Gulf of Darien near the disputed Panama Colombia boundary. As Mr. Eder has writ ten, when discussing the topography of this country. Colombia presents three main divisions for study, namely the coast regions, the low-lying eastern territory, and, between the two, the great Andean land, with its valleys, plateaux and mountains. The eastern region is subdivided into a northern part, where the llanos or open wild pastures are found, and (fa southern part, of impenetrable forests, the selvas sparsely populated, except by savages, and much of it still but imperfectly explored.° Besides the three main Cordilleras, the other mountain systems of Colombia comprise the great mountain block called the Sierra Nevada of Santa Marta in the northern part of the country near the Caribbean Sea; far to the south a line of worn-down ancient mountains separating the Amazon basin from the Orinoco system; and the Baudo Range which runs along by the Pacific Coast from the mouth of the San Juan River to the Isthmus of Panama, and belongs to the Antillean system (See CENTRAL AMERICA), while the true Western Cordillera of the Andes, running northward a little further from the Pacific Coast, is separated from the Baudo Mountains by valleys through one of which the San Juan River flows into the Pacific while in the other the Atrato takes its course toward the Atlantic. On the Pacific slopes of
the Western Cordillera the rainfall is excessive and the vegetation is luxuriant, while the eastern slopes are comparatively arid. Near the border of Ecuador are the twin snow peaks, Chiles (16,912 feet) and Cumbal (17,076 feet). With these exceptions the height of the Western Cordillera is in general not above 12,000 feet; and on the other hand it is as a rule not below 6,000. There are, however, a few low passes, the most remarkable of which is the valley of the Patia, a precipitous gorge 1,676 feet deep. Here the Patia River has forced its way through the Andes and empties into the Pacific. Near the southern end of the continent there are other examples of rivers cutting the Cordillera from east to west, rather than from west to east; nevertheless the gorge of the Patia is decidedly noteworthy, and it will be referred to later. The Central Cordillera's high plateaux, in the regions of Pasto and Popayan, are well adapted to agriculture, and towns of some im portance are located there, at no great distance from groups of volcanoes, some of which are emitting smoky clouds from their snowy caps.' Dominating Cauca Valley, north of Popayin, is one of the highest mountains in Colombia, Huila (17,700 feet). Thence north ward the Central Cordillera has a nearly con stant altitude of about 12,000 feet. There are several passes, but through none have roads been built north of the pass near Popayin till near Quindiu. For the bulk of travel and traffic between the Cauca and Magdalena valleys, there is still available only the old Spanish highway. Near the Quindiu are the snow-crowned Tolima (18,400 feet), Ruiz and Herveo (18,300 feet), and Santa Isabel (16,700 feet). North of these high mountains, the Central Cordillera, widens out and here we find the important mineral region of Antioquia. The Eastern Cordillera (of Cretaceous and Tertiary formation), which broadens out into the great tableland or savannah of Bogota, also has high peaks, such as those of the Sierra Nevada de Chita and Cocui (16,800 feet). °From whatever point of view we examine Colombia — be it scientific, historical, political, or economical, whether we are investigating the habits and customs of its people or its trade routes, markets and in dustries — we find the mountains an ever present, a predominant factor. The immense tropical forests have been scarcely less an im pediment.' The effects of the extreme rugosity of the second in size of the West Indian Islands should be studied in this connection. See the article on Sarno DOMINGO.