BARBADOS (Poring.. the bearded, from the bearded fig tree, Ficus bartata, found there in abundance). The most easterly of the \Vest Indian islands, a possession of Great Britain. situated 78 miles east of St. Vincent, in latitude 13° 4' N., and longitude 59° 37' W. (Map: \Vest Indies, R S.) It has an area of 166 square miles. The surface, generally flat along the coast, which is surrounded by coral reefs, is elevated in the interior, where Mount Hillaby. the highest point. rises to about 1100 feet. Bar bados has a healthful, and, for a tropical island, a moderate climate, the mean temperature being about SW. Earthquakes occur infrequently, but occasional hurricanes have caused great distress.
The soil is especially adapted to the cultivation of sugar-canc. which forms the staple of the is land. Of the 106,240 acres occupied by Barba dos, about 100.000 acres are under cultivation, nearly one-third of which is devoted to sugar cub tune. Next in the rank of production come cotton, tobacco. coffee, indigo, and arrowroot. There are numerous sugar-works and several rum distiller ies. and the fishing interests are of importance. The commerce of Barbados in 1900 comprised imports valued at £1.045,252 ($5,226,260), and exports. £909.011 ($4.545.055) : the principal articles exported being sugar, molasses, and rum: while the imports consisted largely of textiles, flour, rice, and fish. Manjak, a variety of bitumen. is exported to some extent.
The administration of the island is vested in a governor who is assisted by an executive com mittee, a legislative council of 9 appointed mem bers, and the House of Assembly, which consists of 24 members, elected annually by popular vote. Education is under the direetion of the I f °Vern ment, which also subsidizes the various religious denominations represented on the island. Be
sides primary and secondary educational institu tions. Barbados has Codrington College. which is in affiliation with Durham University, Eng land. The revenue and expenditure of the col ony for 1900, respectively, were: 1185.475 ($927, 375) and £182.806 ($914,330). Barbados is the headquarters of the British troops ill the West Indies, The island has 24 miles of railroad, 470 miles of roads, and 035 miles of telephone lines. The States is represented by a consulate. The capital and principal port (the only harbor on the island) is Bridgetown (q.v.). which is also the see of a bishop of the Angliean Church. The population of Barbados in DWI was 182,306, and in 1900 it was estimated at about 195,000.
Barbados was first mentioned in the begin ning of the Sixteenth Century, and is supposed to have been visited by English seamen in 1605, but it was not colonized until 1625. After being granted several times to different English noble men, it was finally, in 1663, assumed by the Crown. The Continental wars of the Eighteenth Century were felt severely by Barbados. as the \Vest Indies were the scene of important conflicts in the struggle between France and England. A period of prosperity succeeded the abolition of slavery in 1834. The riots of 1870, resulting from the proposed confederation of the Wind ward Islands, caused a considerable loss of life and property. Barbados has experienced several disastrous hurricanes, notably those of 1780 and of 1831. and, in more recent times, of 1898, all of which necessitated relief measures on the part of the Imperial Government. (See Burrisit Wrsr IxotEs.) Consult Stark, History and Guide to Barbados (Boston. 1893).