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          ARRoGANT                CoURiERS      WiTH     ESSaYS

Grade Level:       Type of Work           Subject/Topic is on:
 [ ]6-8                 [ ]Class Notes    [Report on Jamaica 'mon  ]
 [ ]9-10                [ ]Cliff Notes    [                        ]
 [ ]11-12               [x]Essay/Report   [                        ]
 [x]College             [ ]Misc           [                        ]

 Dizzed: o4/95  # of Words:3770  School: ?              State: ?
ФФФФФФФФФ>ФФФФФФФФФ>ФФФФФФФФФ>Chop Here>ФФФФФФФФФ>ФФФФФФФФФ>ФФФФФФФФФ>ФФФФФФФФФ
     The island of Jamaica is the third largest Caribbean island.  It is in
a group of islands called the greater antilles.  It has an area of 10 991
km squared or 4 244 sq. miles. Jamaica spans 230 km east to west and from
80-36 from north to south.  It is third only to Cuba, which is the largest,
and Hispaniola which is the second largest island.  Jamaica lies in the
Caribbean sea which is a part of the much larger Atlantic ocean.  The
island is 960 km south of Florida, 160 km southwest of Haiti, and 140 km
south of Cuba.

     Jamaica is mainly a mountainous island but there are 320 km of fine
sandy beaches, swamps, moist fern- forests, sprawling open plains,
plateaus, rushing rivers, and magnificent waterfalls.  The Blue Mountains
are the highest mountains in Jamaica and Blue Mountain Peak which is the
highest peak in Jamaica rises to 2256 m or 7 402 feet. They are made up
primarily of limestone.  Farther to the west in the cockpit country the
limestone has eroded over many years to form large depressions, narrow
valleys, underground caverns and rivers. Most of the surface rivers are
short, swift flowing and descend quickly to the coast and consist of a
series of rapids and waterfalls.  The island is ringed by plains separated
by mountain and sea.

    The country is divided into three counties. They are Cornwall to the
west, Middlesex is central, and Surrey is to the east.  Middlesex is the
largest county.  Jamaica is also divided into 14 parishes which are
basically like provinces or states.  The parishes are Kingston, St. Andrew,
St. Thomas, Portland, St. Mary, St. Ann, Trelawny, St. James, Hanover,
Westmoreland, St. Elizabeth, Manchester, Clarendon, and St. Catherine.

     Jamaica is mainly a tropical climate.  During the course of the year,
Jamaica has no real winter whatsoever.  The average yearly temperature
ranges from 27 degrees celsius to 32 degrees celsius.  It is cooler in
hills, around 20 to 25 degrees and it is known to dip below 10 degrees in
the blue mountains.  Although it is hot in the day, light ocean breezes
result in making the island more comfortable in the day and cooler breezes
blow down from the Blue Mountains at night.

     Rain falls in Jamaica 12 months of the year because it is a rainy
tropical climate. The average rainfall is 196 cm per annum.  The main
months for raining, however, are May to June and September to October. The
major differences in elevation cause the rain to fall almost 600 cm per
annum on the mountains and only 89 cm on the southeast coast. Hurricanes
can strike anytime between June and October.  One of the main hurricanes to
hit Jamaica was hurricane Hugo in 1989 which badly damaged the country.
 
     The vegetation in Jamaica is exceptionally varied.  This is mainly
because of the islands varied rainfall, soil, elevations, and climate.
Many of the plants which now thrive in Jamaica's rich soil have been
introduced from other countries in colonial times.

     There are bamboo forests in the northern and northeastern areas. Also,
rosewood, mahogany, ebony, and other species of wood which live throughout
the island. Drought resistant plants live in the dry southeastern part of
Jamaica.  Sections of the plateau are heavily forested savannas or
grasslands.  The majority of the palm trees are in the southwest part of
the island.  The countryside is often covered by rampant growths of
poinsettia, hibiscus, poinciana, oleander, and bougainvillaea.

     There are many products which are grown in Jamaica. Some of the
produce raised are bananas, sugar cane, coffee, tobacco, coconut, pimento,
ackee, nutmeg, & breadfruit.

     Jamaica has many animals although it boasts only one native mammal,
the coney, which is a wild rabbit.  The mongoose is large rodent
originating from india.  It was introduced to Jamaica in 1872 to control
the problem of snakes and rats in the cane fields and has done an adequate
job since then. Most of the snakes have disappeared from Jamaica except for
a few non poisonous ones which look more like worms than snakes.  In
Jamaica, as well as many other caribbean islands there are an abundant
population of small harmless lizards.  There are over 200 species on the
island. Crocodiles are also numerous on the south coast swamp areas.
     
     In the past, Jamaica's economy was generally based on agriculture.
The dependency was on a few staple crops, primarily sugar and bananas. New
economic development began with earnest in and around the 1950's.  Bauxite
mining began in 1952 and the tourist boom around the 1950's and 1960's.
These factors lead to the rapid augmentation of mining and manufacturing
industries.  By 1959, the new industries exceeded agriculture in the Gross
Domestic Product.
     
     In 1989, Jamaica's GNP topped $2 361 000 000 U.S. Only 6% of that
figure was agriculture, 41% was in industry and 53% was in services.  The
GNP growth in Jamaica is 2.3% each year. When averaged, the GNP per capita
is $939 dollars U.S. The country spends 2% of that for defence.

     For the year of 1989 the total bauxite production amounted to 2 535.7
tonnes resulting in $384.74 million U.S. dollars.  Other earnings in this
sector such as levies and royalties were US$198.96 million  tourism is the
second largest earner of money behind bauxite/alumina production. It
grossed US$340.3 million.

     The agricultural sector is Jamaica's largest employer. There are many
types of plants grown in Jamaica.   The country has two types of industry.
There are the large plantations for major export and the small domestic
farms used mainly for individual and local use.

     Sugarcane and bananas are Jamaica's major crops. Combined, they
account of Jamaica's agricultural export earnings.  The sugarcane is used
for sugar, molasses, and Jamaican rum.  Most of these plantations are
situated in the southern coastal areas.

    The small domestic farms on the island are normally started on
soil-rich hill sides.  Crops which are grown include yams, sweet potatoes,
corn, pumpkins, peas, beans, and other vegetables.  Tree crops include
things like breadfruits, mangoes, avocado pears, and ackees.  It is said
that some of the finest coffee beans in the world are from Jamaica's blue
mountains. Activities being encouraged by the government are fishing, and
increased livestock production.  The government funds programs in the
instruction of modern agricultural techniques for farmers and propose a
guaranteed markets in order to stimulate and improve production for both
local consumption and export.
    
     Bauxite is the major mineral mined in Jamaica.  The country is the
world leader in bauxite production accounting for 20% of the world's
bauxite. It is also the world leader in alumina exports.  Nearly 1/4 of the
earth in Jamaica contains bauxite.  It is mined in the central and western
parts of the plateau.  Bauxite is used to make alumina which is then used
to make the metal aluminum.  The ore was mined since 1952.  The main
company in the mining of bauxite in Jamaica is a Canadian company called
Alcan.  The rest are other large American and Jamaican companies. By 1972,
there were five alumina plants and two bauxite drying plants on the island
with combined capacities of 15 million tonnes of bauxite per year.
Production levels are currently at 7 million tonnes per year because of
changing trends in the international aluminum market.

    Programmes have been instituted to the increased development of
Jamaica's other natural resources, especially limestone which is abundant
throughout the island.  The vast reserves of limestone pose a great
potential for foreign export. Deposits of marble, clay, gypsum, & silica
are also found and mined.

     Since the 1950's, manufacturing in Jamaica started with the
establishment of the Jamaica Industrial Development Corporation (JIDC).
Implementation of manufacturing incentive laws also helped in speeding up
the slow process.

     Jamaica now manufactures many products.  The goods manufactured are
food and drinks, clothing, footwear, textiles, paints, building materials,
agricultural machinery, and toilet articles. Most of the processing and
manufacturing plants are located in the vicinity of Kingston and Spanish
Town. Other products produced include sugar, molasses, rum, alumina,
petroleum products, and cigarettes.  Building materials including cement,
concrete, pipes, bricks, building blocks, tiles, and gypsum are made from
local raw materials.  Goods such as metal products, industrial chemicals,
paint, pharmaceuticals, records, plastic goods, paper bags, cardboard, tin
cans, tires, razor blades, and electrical equipment are made from imported
materials.  In fact, most produced goods depend on foreign raw materials,
machinery and technology for their production.

     The population of Jamaica as of 1990 was 2 512 000. In 1989 the
population was 2 458 000.  This tells us that Jamaica's population is
increasing by 1.09% annually. (see next page for graph) Jamaica is
overpopulated with a density of 224 persons/sq. km. It is estimated that
Jamaica's population will double in 64 years.  The life expectancy in
Jamaica is 70 yrs for both males and females.  The birth rate is 2.3/1000
and the death rate is 5.5/1000.  The infant mortality rate is 20/1000.

     The rapid emigration of Jamaicans to England and North America in the
50's and 60's has helped to slow the population growth in the country.
But, the emigration has slowed because of tight restrictions imposed by the
British and United States governments.  Many of them are now emigrating to
Canada in hopes for a better life but many Jamaicans realize they would be
better of back home.

     58% of the population live in urban areas while the other 42% live in
rural areas because there is a tendency to move to the cities in hopes of
better job opportunities.

     95% of the Jamaican population is of African descent.  The rest are
mostly East Indians, Syrians, Chinese, and Whites.  In religion, 55% of the
people are protestant, 20% are catholic, 25% are classified as other.
These religions include rastafarianism, pocomania, muslim, and judaism.
Rastafarianism, which was started by one of Jamaica's national heroes,
Marcus Garvey, in the 1930's is based on the beliefs and aspirations of
Garvey.  He was born on August 17th, 1887.  He advocated the "back to
Africa" movement and founded the United Negro Improvement Association.  The
rastafarians believe that  Ras Tafari or later called Haile Selassie was
the Messiah. They use the bible as a book of reference and smoke marijuana
"The sacred herb", or better known there as ganja for spiritual and
ceremonial purposes.
                                        
    Pocomania is basically a mixture of  christianity and African roots.
The ceremonies are performed by a congregation of people with white turbans
around a white table decorated with candles, dirt, and fruits.

     Jamaica has one of the most interesting histories of all of the
caribbean islands. It starts out in about 650 A.D when the first wave of
Arawak Indians arrived over the sea from South America.  The second wave
arrived on the island between 850 and 900 A.D.

     The Arawaks were a gentle agricultural based society. They first
called Jamaica, Xamayca, meaning "land of wood and water".  The Arawaks
grew potatoes, vegetables, cotton and tobacco.  They viewed smoking as a
religious rite and taught colonialists how to smoke.  They were skilled
artisans and stonemakers.  They travelled on the ocean in dugout canoes.
They lived mainly around the coasts because it was the major source of food
although they could be found allot farther inland. A few centuries later
the lives of these peaceful inhabitants was abruptly disturbed by the
savage, war-like carib indians. They began to brutally conquer all of the
natives of the other islands as well.  But, one day it got even worse for
the poor Arawaks.  Christopher Columbus, under the Spanish flag, landed
there in 1492.  This occurrence eventually led to the extinction of the
Arawak people in Jamaica.

     Columbus arrived on May 5, 1494 at St. Ann's Bay with his three ships,
the Santa Maria, the Nina and the Pinta.  As he landed he remarked "the
fairest island that eyes have beheld .... all full of valleys and fields.
He named the country "St. Jago" or "Santiago" after Spain's patron St.  He
named St. Ann's bay Santa Gloria "on account of the extreme beauty"
     
    Nine years later, Columbus returned once again to Jamaica. This time he
and his crew were in not such a good condition as during their first visit.
His ships were battered and worm- eaten and could not sail the Atlantic
without repair.  He tried to sail for Hispaniola but they got no farther
than St. Ann when they were stranded close to shore.  The ships filled with
water and settled in the soft sand of the bay.

    Here he stayed for a duration of 12 months tormented by hardships,
hunger, and sickness.  Eventually, two of his men, Diego Mendez and
Bartoleme Fieschi voyaged to Hispaniola where they were able to attain a
new caravel from a Spanish colony there.  By June of 1504, the mates
returned with the vessel.  On the 29th Columbus left with the rest of his
crew totalling about 100 to Hispaniola and then onward to spain.  He died
three years later.

    Spanish colonists first arrived in Jamaica in 1510. The first governor
was Juan de Esquivel.  The colonists named their settlement at St. Ann's
bay Sevilla la Nueva or "New Seville."  It included a fort, a castle, and a
church.  But the site was abandoned because of swamps.  The colonists then
moved to the south side of the island which is now called Spanish Town.

     The new settlement was convenient, healthful, had ample water, fertile
surroundings and good protection from sea attack.  It had approximately 400
to 500 houses, 5 or 6 churches and chapels, and one monastery.

     The Spaniards enslaved the Arawaks and so overworked them that within
a few decades the 100 000 or so Arawaks had been wiped out.  They also had
very little resistance to the European diseases that entered into their
country from the Spanish colonists.  Many had been killed by Spanish
christian missionaries who tried forcefully to convert the Arawaks into
christians.

     Today the only remains of the Arawaks in Jamaica are artifacts; a
small group of words, like barbecue, hurricane, hammock, tobacco, and
canoe.

     The Spanish began to snatch people from Africa and enslave them when
there were no more Arawaks to use.  They transported the enslaved Africans
in terrible conditions on ships to Jamaica.  It is estimated that millions
of the Africans were killed on the trip from Africa to the Caribbean and
North America. The first Africans began arriving in 1517.

     The Island was largely un- important to spain and eventually became a
badly governed and largely overlooked outpost.  Almost nothing was done to
develop the natural resources.

     The colonists devoted themselves to pastoral and agricultural duties.
The Spaniards introduced all the citrus fruits, bananas, and plantain.  The
brought on their cargo ships of death and suffering, horses, cattle, and
pigs.

     Although the island was officially under the rule of Spain, it was
basically 0xlf governing.  The Spanish governor ruled with help from a
council of appointed members. As in the colonies of North America, the
church had a strong influence on the politics in a colony.
                                        
     End of Spanish Rule

     During the last years of Spanish control of the island, internal
political fighting had weakened the colony.  The governors were not
supported well by Spain and constant attacks by pirates did not make the
situation any better.  On may 10th, 1655, a large English expeditionary
fleet landed at Kingston Harbour.  It consisted of 38 ships and 8000 men.
After a short skirmish the British had successfully snatched Jamaica from
Spanish hands.

     The spaniards fled from Jamaica leaving the enslaved Africans there
with arms to wage guerilla warfare on the British until the Spanish could
return with a strong fleet to retake Jamaica.

     In June of 1658, under Governor Christobal Arnaldo de Ysassi the
Spanish tried to retake Jamaica.  A large force of mainly mexicans landed
and dug at Rio Nuevo.  As soon as Colonel D'Oyley, the English commander
received the news, he called 750 of his best men to sail around the coast
and attack the Spaniards.  The battle took place on June 27th and the
British won a decisive victory killing 300 Spanish men.  Ysassi hid in the
mountains awaiting the Spanish relief force which never came. He escaped to
Cuba in a canoe some time later.  The island was officially ceded to
British crown in 1670 under the Treaty of Madrid.  Thus, the Spanish
influence in Jamaica ended forever as they left very little traces of their
occupation.
     
    Buccaneers and Pirates
     
     During Colonel D'Oyley's term as governor, a few small uprisings
occurred under colonels Raymond and Tyson. But D'Oyley acted quickly and
soon both of the colonels were publicly executed.  In 1872 the capital was
moved from Spanish town to Kingston.

     The British began to harass the spaniards from Jamaica.  They
supported the buccaneers who were a group of runaways, castaways, and
escaped criminals from Spanish colonies.  They attacked Spanish ships and
soon became a strong naval power.  Soon these men were given regular
commissions from France and Britain and became technically legal.  They
were now called privateers.

     The buccaneers named Port Royal as their main city for trade of
spanish loot, facilities for repair, and headquarters.  Soon the wealth of
this city had increased so much that it had earned the title of the richest
and wickedest city in the world.

     In the late 1690's the French engaged in a war with Jamaica.  A large
force under the command of Admiral Jean du Casse landed on the eastern part
of the Island.  It was successfully defended against the attack but many of
the settlers were killed and many goods were stolen.  The war ended in 1697
with the Treaty of Ryswick.

     Pirates began to attack Jamaica in growing numbers. Nicholas Brown was
one of the pirates and he once burned down a house in St. Ann with 16
people locked in it.  Other pirates included "Blackbeard" or Edward Teach
and Captain Charles Vain.
                                        
      Maroons and Slaves

     When the Spanish evacuated Jamaica during their war with Britain, the
enslaved Africans escaped to the mountains and became known as the maroons.
They developed new culture of their own in the mountains.  In 1663, they
ignored an offer of land and full freedom for every maroon if they
surrendered but they decline and for the next 16 years, warfare was fought
between them and the British settlements.

     The maroons had developed their own baffling but effective style of
warfare. They preferred to ambush British troops rather than to have the
more orthodox type of fighting.  They attacked farms, burned  buildings,
and stole cattle mainly by night.  They were skilled in woodcraft and were
familiar with the untracked forests.  At first, British troops suffered
heavily in early clashes with the Maroons but eventually the British began
to defeat the Maroons.  Colonel Guthrie of the British soon made clear a
set of terms for a formal ceasefire. The terms were that they had
guaranteed freedom, and were allowed 1 500 acres of land.  They had to
cease hostilities against the British and refuse asylum from any runaway
slaves and capture them instead for a reward.  The Treaty was signed on
March 1st, 1739.

     In 1664 Governor Modyford was appointed governor of Jamaica.  He set
about establishing a strong sugar industry.  By 1740 there were 430 sugar
estates around the island.  Many of the African descendants were subject to
the harshest and horrific conditions ever conceivable. Many rebelled,
destroying those terrible plantations whenever possible.

     In 1670, the most serious slave rebellion broke out.  The government
called upon the Maroons assistance as outlined in the 1739 Treaty.  It
began in St. Mary and spread through the rest of the country. A man named
Tacky was their leader who was a chief in Africa. Many casualties were
taken by the British side but it was put down by a militia with the help of
the maroons.

     But, peace was not long in Jamaica.  In 1795 a second maroon war broke
out.  The British imported 400 blood hounds from Cuba and before they were
released, the Maroons surrendered.  Some 600 maroons were shipped to Nova
Scotia and then onto Sierra Leone despite promises that they could stay in
Jamaica.

     These factors, along with changing political tide in Europe caused the
Africans to be emancipated from slavery as it was abolished there in 1838.

     Push for Independence

     Between the late 19th and early 20th centuries, the island began
feverishly pushing for independence from Britain. Soon, political unrest
with the slow reform sparked widespread violence in 1938.  This caused the
countries first two parties to be formed.  The JLP was headed by Alexander
Bustamante and the PNP by Norman Manley. The rise of power of the JLP or
Jamaican Labour Party ultimately led to independence on August 6th 1962.


                            CRITIQUE

     I think this was an excellent project.  The time and effort
that went into the project is evident throughout the written
report.  I am pleased with the quality and attractiveness of the
final product.  I think the information was well written and
organized in a logical fashion.  There were good pictures and
graphs which were integrated well with the typed text.  The
research was taken from a variety of sources and was compiled,
condensed and re-written in an easy to understand fashion.  If I
were to do the project over, the only thing I would do differently
is expand more on the people section of the report.  I could also
include the dialogue of both interviews.

                  Chen, Ray.  Jamaica.  Montreal:
                      Ray Chen books, 1988.

        Earle, Stafford.  Basic Jamaica History.  U.S.A:
                     Earle Publishing, 1978

         Egan, Anne.  Jamaica in Pictures.  Minneapolis:
              The Company, 1967 and 1987 versions.

       Kaplan, Irving.  Area Handbook of Jamaica.  U.S.A:
                    Mitchell Publishing, 1976

       Kuper, Adam.  Changing Jamaica.  Kingston, Jamaica:
                    Kingston Publishers, 1976

           Macpherson, John.  Carribean Lands.  Spain:
                     Longman Group Ltd, 1974

Sherlock, Philip.  The Land and People of the West Indies. U.S.A:
                  J.B. Lippincott Company, 1967

             Wilkins, Francis.  Jamaica.  Hong Kong:
                 Chelsea House Publishers, 1987

Zach, Paul., and Hoefer, Hans Insight Guides: Jamaica. Singapore:
                      APA Productions, 1987

 Jamaica Information Service.  Jamaica: An Overview.  Kingston:
                Jamaica Information Service, 1990

       Potter, Mitch.  "New Album Kicks off Marley Blitz."
        The Toronto Star.  6 February, 1991, Sec. E, p. 4
  

    "Jamaica."  Merit Students Encyclopedia.  16th ed., 1980

     "Jamaica."  The World Book Encyclopedia  14th ed., 1989

APPENDIX

Picture credits:

The Land and People of the West Indies

Insight Guides: Jamaica

Carribean Lands

Merit Students Encyclopedia

Jamaica

For my field trip I went to the Jamaica Information Service at 314
King St. West, suite 216.

I interviewed two people for my research. They are Avril Mills, and
Barbara Theobolds at the Information Service. 

