GUADUAS  , a

town of the department of Cundinamarca, Colombia, 53 M . N.W. of Bogota on the old road between that city and the Magdalena river port of Honda . Pop . (1900, estimate) 9000, chiefly Indians or of mixed blood . It stands in a narrow and picturesque valley formed by spurs of the Eastern Cordillera, and on a small stream bearing the same name, which is that of the South American bamboo (guaduas), found in great abundance along its banks . Sugar-cane and coffee are cultivated in the vicinity, and fruits of various kinds are produced in great abundance . The elevation of the town is 3353 ft. above the sea, and it has a remarkably uniform temperature throughout the whole year . Guaduas has a pretty church facing upon its plaza, and an old monastery now used for secular purposes . The importance of the town sprang from its position on the old amino real between Bogota and Honda, an importance that has passed away with-the completion of the railway from Girardot to the Bogota plateau . Guaduas was founded in 1614 .