i34  SELLING  LATIN  AMERICA

of  gold  dust  to  stores  to  trade  for  supplies.
There  is  undoubtedly  much  gold  to  be  found
in  the  country  and  the  man  with  determination
and  enterprise  who  will  follow  this  clue  is  sure
to  get  rich  returns.
The  Island  of  Margarita,  off  the  coast  of
Venezuela,  and  owned  by  the  Republic,  produces ­
  the  finest  of  pearls  and  mother  of  pearl.
Other  islands  off  the  coast  are  rich  in  guano
and  phosphate  rock.
Venezuela  is  on  a  gold  basis,  the  bolivar,
equalling  almost  20  cents  in  our  currency,  being ­
  the  unit  of  value.  The  peso,  according  to
which  bills  of  the  country  are  reckoned,  consists ­
  of  four  bolivars,  and  is  a  fictitious  coin
not  existing  in  reality.  The  “peso  fuerte,”  or
five-bolivar  piece,  is  a  regular  silver  coin.
The  bulk  of  the  business  of  Venezuela  is
handled  by  the  Germans,  although  the  United
States  takes  most  of  its  exports,  with  France
second,  Germany  third  and  England  fourth.
German  merchants  are  all  over  the  country,
the  Italians  also  are  much  in  evidence.
In  1912,  the  latest  data  available,  Venezuela