tierra caliente and tierra templada up to an elevation of 6,000 feet. In the latter, eighteen months are required for the crop to mature, wliile in the former the time varies from nine to twelve months. The sugar-cane of Mexico is of three kinds—viz., those of Castile, Havana, and Otaite.
At the time of Humboldt's visit,[1] about 14,000,000 pounds of sugar were exported annually. In 1881 the amount did not exceed 500,000 pounds.
Tobacco is indigenous to Mexico. Indeed, it derives its name from the town of Tobaco in Yucatan. The culture of it was formerly restricted by law to the vicinity of Orizaba.[2] At present it grows chiefly in the States of Vera Cruz, Tabasco, Campeche, Yucatan, Oaxaca, Chiapas, and Jalisco. (Vide chapter on cigars and tobacco.)
Cocoa (cacao) is found in the States of Tabasco, Chiapas, Oaxaca, Guerrero, and Colima. The first-named State produces the largest amount, the culture of cocoa being the principal branch of its agricultural industry. Chiapas ranks second, and but little of this article grows in the remainder of the Republic.
Cotton (algodon) is cultivated in about half the States. Yucatan produces the largest quantities, and Durango ranks next. The finest cotton comes from the Pacific coast States and from Vera Cruz. It is also grown extensively in the vicinity of the lagoon of Tlahualila (which is familiarly called the "laguna country"), and in Southern Chihuahua. According to Señor Busto, an acre of land will yield about 2,000 pounds of cotton as an average.[3] It thrives up to an elevation of five thousand feet.
In 1803 the annual exportation of cotton amounted to
