History.— An account of the Spanish settle ments at the beginning of the 16th century is given in the article CENTRAL AMERICA. The Spanish Crown in 1540 established the province of Costa Rica; in 1560 and 1573 defined its frontiers; in 1562 appointed Juan Vasquez de Coronado military governor of Costa Rica and Veragua. The city of Cartago, until 1823 the capital, was founded by Coronado, but it was a city only in name. During the first century of the existence of the province no headway was made. The Indian tribes were the most intractable of their kind; white settlers were few. A brief period of comparative prosperity began when Captain-General Sandoval, in 1638- 39, made a new port at Matina and opened a road from it to the capital. The value of cacao plantations near the road increased, and the eastern coast, as well as the Gulf of Nicoya, was visited by trading ships. But the bucca neers swooped down upon the coast as soon as there was anything of value to be seized, and Indians completed the work of destruction. This wretched state of things continued through out the 18th century. One hundred years ago Costa Rica was described as the most be nighted, woefulprovince in the whole Spanish empire. Its colonists, ignorant and indigent, °clothed with the bark of trees,* had been reduced to this condition of misery through being cut off from communication with the outside world for generation after generation and by century-long ravages of pirates from Europe and marauding bands of Indians from the Mosquito coast. But to-day the republic holds a leading position among Latin-American nations in regard to public instruction, and (ex cept for the apparently chronic dislocation of the public finances) it can no longer be called a very poor country. Every Costa Rican who cares to do so can own valuable property of some sort, and the foreign commerce of the country is far from being contemptible. The change may be described in a few words.
Less than four months after proclaiming that Spanish control was at an end (15 Sept. 1821), Costa Rica with the other weak Central Ameri can states was drawn into a union with the Yturbide empire of Mexico. This dependence lasted until 1824, and then followed the experi mental union of the Central American countries. But genuine independence began after 1830. Even in that time of extreme poverty the state acknowledged and declared that it could not postpone and would not shirk its duty to pro vide for the education of the people.
During the first half of the 19th century commerce received a new impulse through the discovery of gold in the mountains near the Gulf of Nicoya, and the extension of coffee culture. Several of the Presidents holding office since 1824 have been eminently patriotic and far-seeing men, under whose guidance the graduates of Costa Rican schools have begun to appropriate some of the natural resources of the land, with little aid from immigration, though not without the aid of foreign capital. Immigration up to the present time has been small.
In 1907 Costa Rica and all the other Central American states sent delegates to a conference in session at Washington, D. C., from 14 No vember to 20 December. This conference decided, among other things (see CENTRAL. AkIERICA), to establish a Central American Court of Justice and a Central American gped agogical institute,D both to be located in Costa Rica. The delegates expressed the opinion that each republic should have the right to maintain, at the proposed normal college, not more than 200 students of both sexes and they agreed to send not less than 20 students of each sex. On
20 March 1910 Costa Rica and Panama signed a protocol setting forth the basis of fact for the arbitration of their boundary dispute by Chief Justice Fuller. In May, Ricardo Jiminez was inaugurated as President of the Republic, An earthquake wrecked a large part of the city of Cartago, including the new Palace of Peace. The estimated loss of life was 1,800. In 1913 the President in his message stated that the govern ment was particularly solicitous for the advance tnent of education. Although more than one eighth of the total revenue of the state had been expended for schools and colleges in the pre ceding year, Congress was asked to increase the inheritance tax for the benefit of the School of Arts and Crafts and the hospital fund: Among the measures passed by the Congress was a law limiting the armed force of the President (the regular army) to 1,000 men in time of peace and 5,000 in time of public danger from insurrection, etc. President Alfredo Gon zales Flores, chosen for the term 1914 to 1918, was known to be the moving force responsible for legislation in favor of agriculturists and in defense of the rights and privileges of working. men which engaged the attention of the Con gress in 1915 and 1916. Costa Rica brought action in March 1916 against Nicaragua for the violation of her rights under the canal treaty with the United States, and the Central American Court of Justice, on 5 May, gave decision in her favor. General Federico Tinoco, after a bloodless revolution in January 1917, Overthrew the Gonzalez government and pro claimed himself provisional President of Nica iagua. By instructions from Washington, the American Minister to Costa Rica issued the following statement to the people of Costa Rica 2 Feb. 1917: "The government of the United States has viewed the recent overthrow of the established government of Costa Rica with the greatest concern. and considers that illegal of this character tend to disturb the peace of Central and to disrupt the unity of the American continent. In view of this policy in regard to the assumption of power through illegal methods. clearly enunciated by it on several occasions during the past four years, the government of the United States desim to set forth, in emphatic and distinct manner, its present position in regard to the actual situa tion in Costa Rica, which is that it will not give or support to any government which may be established. unless it is thoroughly proven that it is elected by legal and constitutional means." The legislative branch of the government consists of a single house, called the Constitutional Congress; its 43 deputies, who are chosen, one for every 15,000 inhabit ants, for a term of four years, assemble each year for a 60 days' session which may be extended for 30 days. One-half of the depu ties retire every two years. The term of the President, in whom is vested the chief executive power, is four years. Congress annually ap points three presidential substitutes called designados. Administrative departments in charge of secretaries or ministers appointed by the President are six in number. An assistant secretary (subsecretario) assigned to an import ant bureau (for example, public instruction) "re ( rts directly to the Constitutional Congress. also hold office for terms of four years.