CHAPTER XIV
MEANS OF TRANSPORTATION AND COMMUNICATION
Railroads.--Samana-Santiago Railroad.--Central Dominican
Railway.--Roads.--Mode of Traveling.--Inns.--Principal highways.
--Steamer lines.--Postal facilities.--Telegraph and telephone lines.
A potent cause of the undeveloped state of Santo Domingo's agriculture
has been the absence of transportation facilities, which has likewise
been a cause and an effect of the internal disturbances. There are but
two public railroads in the Republic, both in the Cibao region, with
an aggregate length of 144 miles. The highways are generally little
more than trails, difficult and dangerous even in dry weather, and
almost impassable in the rainy season. It is therefore not surprising
that the northern and southern sections of the Republic should have
developed almost as different countries and that large areas in the
interior should be practically uninhabited.
The importance and possibilities of railroad lines have been
recognized and numerous concessions for railroad construction have
been sought and granted; but the concessionnaires have, as a rule,
either been impecunious, entering the field only with speculative
intentions, or have been frightened off by the internal disturbances,
and in either case the concession has been permitted to lapse.
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