170 REPORT ON COOPERATION IN AMERICAN EXPORT TRADE.
HONDURAS.

Snes report of Consul E. M. Lawton, Tegucigalpa, Honduras, October 27,

Honduras (sometimes erroneously called Spanish Honduras) is
the central one of the Central American Republics and the least developed.
 The estimated population is 575,000 and the area about
£8,000 square miles. The western half of the Republic is the most
densely populated, cdntaining three-quarters of the entire population.
 The extreme eastern portion is in a measure unexplored, and
“ Sambos ”? or native inhabitants there are only partially civilized.
For economic matters Honduras may be said to be divided into
two parts, the north coast, or fruit sectiony and the southern half,
where the main industries are agriculture and cattle raising and
mining. There are no railroads or connecting roads other than mule
trails, and from the capital to the north coast is a six-day journey,
while during the rainy season the swollen streams make communication
 impossible sometimes. All freight for the southern section
must come by way of the Pacific port, which is the town of Amapala
located on Tiger Island, in Fonseca Bay, 25 miles from the mainland
subport of San Lorenzo.
Honduras has no manufactures of particular importance. A few
small establishments for making cigars, alcoholic liquors, soap, candles,
 and bottling soda water constitute the general run of factories,
but there are also two or three small breweries, a shoe factory, a flour
mill, and lately some fairly extensive sugar mills have been erected.
None of these establishments, however, manufacture articles for export.
 The lack of transportation facilities also prohibit much movement
 of their products in the country itself, so the average factory
produces only for consumption in the immediate vicinity.
It is therefore self-evident that there exists no association or combination
 among the limited number of manufacturers native to Honduras,
 nor do they receive any especial protection from the Honduran
Government other than accorded to all classes of individuals, except
that they usually receive certain preferential on import duties in
order to encourage enterprises for industrial development.
The import trade of Honduras has never assumed sufficient imi
 to attract organized associations of foreign manufacturers.
‘he same may be said of any combination of exporters or similar
industries. Perhaps the combination of fruit companies on the north
coast might be mentioned in this connection, though hardly coming
under this category. The United Fruit Co., with headquarters at
Tela, Honduras, has for subsidiary companies Vaccaro Bros. &amp; Co.,
at La Ceiba, and Hubbard, Zemurray &amp; Co., at Omoa. These severally
 have banana plantations and lines of steamers to New Orleans
and Mobile, and also under concessions are building railroads ostensibly
 to objective points but in reality merely tram lines to connect
up their several plantations. The several companies are of American
origin, the Vaccaros being an Italian family and the Hubbards and
Zemurrays, Jewish.
No evidence exists of any organization of Honduran buyers in any
lines of American goods, such as cooperative societies, retailers, or
importers in general. In fact, due to the very isolated conditions of