sentences:  Beans, corn, rice, and sorghum continue to be widely grown and consumed domestically.The first cattle were brought to Nicaragua by the Spanish in the 16th century, and livestock raising was a mainstay of the early colony.Drier areas on the western slopes of the central highlands were ideal for cattle raising, and by the mid-18th century, a wealthy elite, whose income was based on livestock raising, controlled León, Nicaragua's colonial capital.