In size it is the smallest of the group. Its area is about three
thousand five hundred and fifty square miles. Its average length is
about ninety-five miles; its average breadth about thirty-five miles.

In shape it resembles the State of Connecticut, though it is only
three-fourths the size of that State.

[Illustration: THE ISLAND OF PUERTO RICO.]

Puerto Rico, in English, means Rich Harbor. But Puerto Rico is not rich
in harbors. There are not more than six good harbors, but it has less
than three hundred and fifty miles of coast line.

The surface of Puerto Rico is mountainous. A range of hills traverses
the island from east to west. The hills are low and their sides are
covered with vegetation. The hills are not rocky and barren, but are
cultivated to their very tops.

[Illustration: AN AFTERNOON SIESTA.]

The lower valleys are rich pasture lands or cultivated plantations. The
knolls have orchards of cocoanuts and other trees. Coffee, protected by
the shade of other trees, grows to the summits of the green hills. The
ground is covered everywhere with a thick carpeting of grass.

The soil is remarkably fertile. This is due partly to the fine climate,
partly to abundant moisture. The island has many fast flowing rivers.
There are over twelve hundred of these. In the mountains are numerous
springs and water falls, but these are hidden by the overhanging giant