of British Guiana contain dyewood and hardwoods of various kinds. An important product is balata, the export of which has increased materially. The chief mineral products are gold, diamonds, and bauxite; bauxite is becoming increasingly important. Grazing is carried on in the interior. Cattle, goats, and sheep are raised. Manufacturing.-Manufacturing industries consist of a match factory, a shoe factory, an edible-oil factory, a meat plant, and a few sawmills, foundries, and machine shops. Principal Exports. The principal exports, in order of importance, are sugar, bauxite, gold, rice, rum, diamonds, molasses, and balata. By value, 6 percent of total exports were taken by the United States in 1937 and 4 percent in 1938. TRANSPORTATION AND COMMUNICATION Steamship Services.-British Guiana can be reached from the United States both by steamship and by airplane. The Canadian National Steamship Line provides fortnightly sailings from Canada and Boston; the Royal Netherlands Steamship Co. has a service about every 20 days from New York; and the Aluminum Line operates freight and passenger service between Georgetown (British Guiana), Trinidad, and New Orleans, about every 10 days. The Harrison Line (British) provides service with London, via Trinidad. Internal Communications.-Georgetown, the capital, being the only important commercial center in the Colony, internal communications are not of great interest to the commercial traveler. A Government railway is operated along the east coast and areas adjacent to Georgetown, and a system of roads covers the same area. Internal communication is maintained by boats on the rivers, by foot over mountain trails, and by chartered airplanes. The latter method, the only one suitable for commercial travelers, is expensive (Georgetown to Rupununi gold fields, $500 round trip). Air Service. Pan American Airways operates planes once a week from Miami to Georgetown, and more frequently to Portof-Spain, Trinidad. The same company provides service on down the South American coast from Georgetown, with stops in Surinam (Netherlands Guiana) and French Guiana, and at the northern ports of Brazil. ENTRY REQUIREMENTS Visas are not required at the present time by American citizens entering British Guiana. Temporary visitors in possession of return-trip tickets are not required to obtain passports; all others must have passports, and may be called on to post a bond of $250. Passports are useful for identification purposes; steamship companies usually will not accept American citizens for passage to the United States without definite proof of citizenship. ARRIVAL Samples. No duty is levied on the personal effects of temporary visitors, nor on samples, except those of commercial value. Samples of commercial value may be imported under bond for a limited period. Advertising matter without commercial value is admitted free of duty, but is subject to 3-percent bill-of-entry tax. No license is collected from commercial travelers. SALES METHODS The only city generally visited by traveling salesmen is the capital, Georgetown, where are located the principal wholesale houses; these distribute to the interior and supply the small dealers. A number of retailers also customarily import direct, both from the United States and from Europe. If necessary, the traveler can visit Berbice (New Amsterdam), which is but a short distance from Georgetown and easily reached by railroad. The West Indies Year Book contains much useful information concerning this area. If it is desirable to establish an agency, Georgetown is a satis factory location. From Georgetown the traveler can also arrange to visit Surinam (Netherlands Guiana) by steamship or airplane. Occasionally French Guiana is included in the territory of the agent in Georgetown. If the amount of business warrants it, more satisfactory results can be obtained by the appointment of an agent in the principal city of each of these three Colonies. HINTS TO TRAVELERS Best Visiting Time. The climate of British Guiana varies little throughout the year, but the best weather is in the months of November to January. Clothing. Light clothing is suitable throughout the year, and a lightweight but waterproof raincoat will be found useful. Packing.-Packing must be adequate for frequent rough handling and exposure to heat and dampness. Hotels. The only two available hotels are the Park Hotel and Tower Hotel, both in Georgetown. Holidays. The holidays usually observed are: New Year's Day; Easter Bank Holiday, Easter Monday; Empire Day, May 24; Whitmonday (May 29 in 1939); King's Birthday, June 8; August Bank Holiday, first Monday in August; Christmas, December 25; Boxing Day, December 26. Currency and Banks. The currency of the Colony is the British Guiana dollar, fixed to the pound sterling at $4.80. Banks are Barclays Bank (Dominion, Colonial, and Overseas) and the Royal Bank of Canada. CHIEF COMMERCIAL CENTER Georgetown.-Capital of the Colony; population, 70,000. Situated just within mouth of Demerara River; landing, alongside wharf. Distances: From Paramaribo, Dutch Guiana, 214 miles; from New Amsterdam, 70 miles; from Port-of-Spain, Trinidad, 363 miles; from Cayenne, French Guiana, 395 miles; from Barbados, 385 nautical miles. Principal products: Agricultural (sugar and rice); balata, greenheart, and other timber; coconuts; bauxite, gold, and diamonds. Industries: Mining; tropical agriculture. American consul in residence. How Reached.-From the United States, by steamer and airplane; from Trinidad and Netherlands Guiana, by steamship and airplane. Hotels.-Park; Tower. Banks. Royal Bank of Canada; Barclays Bank (Dominion, Colonial, and Overseas). Note.-Georgetown is the principal city of British Guiana, and agencies may properly be established here. A number of important commercial firms do both a wholesale and a general importing business. The surrounding territory is canvassed by representatives of these firms. Several mining companies have their offices in Georgetown. This city is often canvassed in connection with Trinidad. 202836-40- 11 FRENCH GUIANA AREA, TOPOGRAPHY, AND CLIMATE French Guiana, the only French possession in South America, is bordered on the north by the Atlantic Ocean, on the east and south by Brazil, on the west by Netherlands Guiana. The area is about 32,000 square miles, or one-third that of France. Population, 47,500, 4,500 of whom are deportees; the remainder comprises different races, including aborigines. Topography. The coast is a lowland, rising to savannas or plains; at about 50 miles inland the highlands commence. The numerous ridges and low mountains of the area are broken by many valleys and rivers. The interior is heavily forested. Climate.-Tropical, with excessive rainfall. At Cayenne, the capital, the average is 130 inches yearly. In the interior, rain occurs on 160 to 175 days of the year. The temperature of Cayenne varies little throughout the year; the average is 79° F. in January, about 80° in June, and 83° in September and October. The long rainy reason extends from November, with 5 inches, through December, with about 11 inches, to July, with 7 inches. The maximum is about 22 inches in May. Slightly more than 1 inch falls in September and October, respectively. CHIEF ECONOMIC ACTIVITIES Agriculture. Agriculture is not of great importance; chief crops are sugar, coffee, and cacao. Bananas, sweetpotatoes, manioc, tobacco, Indian corn, and vegetables are grown for local consumption. Timbering. The forests are of great extent, but as yet hardly touched, because of the lack of roads. The chief forest products are rosewood, extract of rosewood, and balata gum. A fair amount of hardwood is exported. Mining. The mineral resources are the most important. The chief mines are those producing gold, worked principally by convicts. TRANSPORTATION AND COMMUNICATION Cayenne can be reached from the United States by airplane from Miami once a week; from Surinam (Netherlands Guiana), by fortnightly sailings of the Surinam Navigation Co.; from Trinidad and Surinam, by the French Line; and from points in the West Indies, Georgetown (British Guiana), Paramaribo (Surinam), and east-coast South American Republics, by planes of Pan American Airways. A coastwise steamship service calls at practically all the coast towns of French Guiana, including the Ile de Salut. Internal communication is limited. There are no railways. A few roads connect the capital with the centers of population in the interior. HINTS TO TRAVELERS Travelers' Documents and Samples.-No commercial travelers' licenses are required. Passports, however, are necessary; these are also useful for identification purposes. Samples. Arrangements can be made for the importation of samples under bond, which is canceled upon reexportation of goods. Holidays. The population being largely Roman Catholic, the feast days of the church are generally observed. In addition, the following holidays are officially recognized: January 1, New Year's Day; July 14, Fete Nationale (Fall of the Bastille); December 25, Christmas. Currency. The currency of France is used in this Colony; bank notes and coins are of different design, but are similar to those used in France. COMMERCIAL CENTERS CAYENNE.-Capital; population, 12,500. Situated at mouth of Cayenne River, on island of Cayenne. Steamers anchor close to the town. Distant 260 nautical miles from Paramaribo, Netherlands Guiana, and 395 miles from Georgetown, British Guiana. Temperature average 80° F. Annual rainfall is at least 100 inches. Principal Hotel.-Grand Hotel Verdun, |