Located in the eastern Caribbean, Saint Lucia has an area of 616 square kilometers (239 square miles) of rugged volcanic territory. Of note is the fact that the tiny nation has produced two Nobel Laureates: Sir Arthur Lewis (in Economics) and Derek Walcott (in Literature). In 2003 Saint Lucia's population was estimated at 162,157 people. Its ethnic breakdown was as follows: 90 percent of predominantly African descent, approximately 6 percent of mixed races, and 3 percent of East Indian or Asian descent. Overwhelmingly, its people are Roman Catholic (90%), with some 3 percent Episcopalian. English is the official language, but the popular dialect is a French-based patois. Literacy is about 70 percent. In the sixteenth century European settlement brought with it rampant disease that largely decimated the Amerindian population of Arawaks and Caribs. Colonization also resulted in the development of plantations, which led to the importation of African slaves and, after the abolition of slavery in...