are there treated, as indeed they should be, with special consideration and respect. They enjoy in that country at least as great an influence by reason of their official character as the same grade of officials enjoy in any other country in the world. Their rights and immunities are strictly observed, and their official representations always command serious attention.

Haiti took measures to be properly represented at the World's Columbian Expositon at Chicago. Appropriation of money was made for that purpose, and early in 1892, she appointed two commissioners to the Exposition, who were charged to make the necessary preparations. One of them is Frederick Douglass and another is Mr. Clark A. Preston, who was for many years secretary of the Haitian legation at Washington. The Haitian building and the very creditable exhibit at the Exposition are the results of these arrangements.

Chapter VIII.

FACILITIES OF COMMUNICATION AND FOREIGN COMMERCE.

The principal convention of the Universal Postal Union was signed at Paris in 1878. Haiti formally became a member of the union in 1880, and she is in the full enjoyment of all the mail facilities which the membership implies, but she comes under the provision which allows to some countries a charge of 10 cents instead of 5 on letters weighing one-half an ounce or less and addressed to Europe or the United States. She has also a safe and regular inland postal service at established postal rates.

She is, moreover, in touch with the outside world by means of the submarine telegraph which was completed and opened for operation at Port au Prince December 30, 1890, though long before that, there was a cable station at the Môle St. Nicholas, and lines of telegraph are in process of binding together her inland towns and cities.

Aside from the large numbers of foreign sailing vessels which visit, and some of which are always to be found in her ports, there are several lines of steamers running upon regular schedule time between her principal ports and New York, Europe, Venezuela, Colombia, some of the ports of Central America, Mexico, and the islands of the Antilles. They are:

FROM NEW YORK.

(1) The Atlas Steamship Company, who have a fleet of twelve commodious iron and steel steamers, all built by the best shipbuilders in Scotland especially for this service of plying between New York, the West Indies, and the Spanish Main, and of which, seven range from 2,000 to 2,500 tons, dispatch a steamer every week for Haitian ports, alternating between those of the north and those of the south of the Republic. These steamers afford special facilities for frequent and short winter tours to the tropics. Most of them touch and make brief stays at several ports in the West Indies and on the Spanish Main. The charge for a first-class passage from New York to Port au Prince is $60. The outward steamers which touch at the northern ports take the mails there for New York, leaving them at Navassa and passing on to Savanilla, Carthagena, and Port Limon, and then the next steamer which comes, returning from these latter ports, takes the mails up at Navassa, bringing them directly to New York. By this route, it takes just ten days for letters from Port au Prince to reach New York. It has proved to be an entirely safe and reliable mail service. The homeward-bound steamers of this line do not touch

at Port au Prince or any other place in Haiti.

(2) The Royal Dutch West India Mail Service Company, who have five staunch commodious steamers on the line between New York and Amsterdam, via Port au Prince, Aux Cayes, Jacmel, and other ports in the Antilles and on the Spanish Main, dispatch a steamer every three weeks, which goes directly from New York to Port au Prince in about five days. As these steamers go over the same route and are promptly despatched one every three weeks, the outward bound and the homeward necessarily meet at some fixed point on the route. That point happens to be Port au Prince, and from thence, the latter come directly to New York. The steamers of this line are the only ones that do so come from the Haitian capital to the American metropolis. The passage prices on them are the same as those on the Atlas line.

(3) William P. Clyde & Company have also two (and sometimes three) steamers running between New York and Haitian ports, one of which sails about every three weeks, touching at Cape Haitien (sometimes also at Port de Paix) and continuing on to the several ports of San Domingo, and the others going to St. Marc, Gonaïves, and Port de Paix. The time of the steamers of this line is so arranged that there are about two departures for Haiti every month.

FROM EUROPE.

(1) The Royal Mail Steamship Company's steamers calling every second week at Jacmel on their way from Southampton and Barbados, and stopping at the same port in coming from Kingston.

(2) The Compagnie Générale Transatlantique's steamers sailing from Havre and Bordeaux which, on their outward voyages to Vera Cruz, stop at Cape Haitien the 7th and at Port au Prince the 8th of each month, and on their homeward run, touch at those ports the 27th and 30th of each month, respectively, calling between these latter dates at St. Marc and Gonaïves. This company has also an annex steamer, which, starting from Fort de France (Martinique), calls once or twice a month at Jacmel, Port au Prince, Petit Goâve, Jérémie, Aux Cayes, and numerous other places in the West Indies. At St. Thomas, it meets the main steamers of the line on their outward runs the 2d and 3d of each month, and at Port de France, it connects with those of the line between Marseilles and Colon. The steamers of the Transatlantique Company are greatly patronized by Haitians passing between their own country. and France, which large numbers of them visit annually. Within the past few years, however, there is a noticeable disposition on their part to avail themselves of the Dutch steamers to go by way of New York.

(3) A Royal Spanish Mail steamer, after meeting those of the line from Europe and the United States, touching at Puerto Rico,

calls at Port au Prince the 17th of every month en route for Cuba, Mexico, the United States, and Europe. At Port au Prince, it takes freight, mails, and passengers for the latter countries via Havana, the passage to New York being $80. By this line, the West India mails are sent to New York via Tampa, Fla.

(4) A steamer of the Spanish line Sobrinos de Herrera coming from Havana and Santiago de Cuba en route for Cape Haitien, Puerto Plata, and Puerto Rico, calls at Port au Prince the 16th, and returning, bound for Cuba, touches the two Haitian ports just named the 28th of each month, taking freight, mails, and passengers for New York and Europe via Havana and Santiago.

(5) Steamers of the Hamburg Mail Steamship Company coming from Hamburg, Grimsby, Havre, and Colon touch at Port au Prince the 4th, 18th, and 27th of each month. They call at St. Thomas and also at Cape Haitien, Gonaïves, Petit Goâve, Jérémie, Aux Cayes, and Jacmel, and continue their voyages to Venezuela and Port Limon.

In addition to these regular communications, “tramp" steamers not infrequently call at Haitian ports. Those of the Franco-Russe line, those of the line formerly known as the Liverpool line, and those coming under special charters, are occasional visitors to Haitian waters.

Mention was made in the beginning of this chapter of the inland postal service. There is, besides, a coast service which has been maintained since 1863. It is carried on by four steamers, three of them being 250 tons each and one of 76 tons, all of course under the Haitian flag and owned by a Haitian company of which M. B. Rivière is the head. The Government pays a subvention of $80,000 a year to the line, and reserves the right to use the steamers in case of need on condition of paying $250 a day for each. Their regular trips are so arranged that they cover the whole extent of the Haitian coasts every ten days, taking passengers and mails, and touching regularly at no less than twenty