Cleveland daily leader. [volume] ([Cleveland, Ohio]) 1865-1873, 1866-05-03

| the premises. lone had dined there tn,
year before" but never n had tarrieC
for q night. The rooms were dirtier thai
any we had yet seen, naturally withou
woman's overnight, hut the table was yer!
good, and servants kind and attentive
It seemed very odd to see all Offices per
formed by men, but 1 learned long ag,
that when from home it is " greatly wise
with regard to many things to "take n,
notice" Cienfuegos is comparatively
new town, has few trees, broad streets
mostly %unpavsd, wide brick sidewalks, til
houses toned down in color, the window
glazed and with Venetian blinds instead
Of iron bars, has a more wide-awake
young America air than any town VI
have seen. The Plaza is large and pleas
ant filed with trees and flowers. UpoI
one side of it is the church, q single on,
for a population of twelve thousand.
The harhor is large, handsome, anl
completely land-locked, with a narrow
tortuous entrance; has several stream
emptying into it which used to be the re
sort of smugglers and pirates. Near tn
mouth of the harbor is a picturesque look
ing fort, with solid outer wall, inner wal
with battlements and round towers.
We have had many conversations will
regard to Island affairs with Cubana
S~paniards, and foreigners resident on tn
island. Opinions differ widely. Between
the Spaniards and the Cubans there is in,
love lost, and foreigners generally prefe
the Spsniard to the Creole, persisting il
applying to the latter as traits of eharGctei
what probably are only incidental to
state Of society that recognizes slavery
Some things, however, are conceded; one
that the slaves are worked "tO make tn
most out of them" not " in the long rum
but for the present time. We visiteC
plantations where the greater part of thu
slaves were native Africans, and whert
the hours Of labor were from fire IN tn
morning till midnight during the boiling
season, from four to six months. They
have moments Of rest during these hours
but only moments. Tho cane is not Gu
after dark, but the cane cutters rest from
their labors, the most severe of all il
handling the lsdle at the boilers.
Do they improve2 moi much. They
learn enough of the language to under
stand and be understood"
Do they live in families mo, indeed
more like dumb beasts
II mad ~ ha tho oatufon ~ r1 fhrnr,1l
the form Of marrying these people, but il
many cases trouble resulted to the MASTER
from their jealousies and quarrels, and thu
masters "ind it better to let them pleas
themselves" And thus is dismissed, fol
hundreds and thousands, all thought of
all care for a relation that to the master J.
"a sacrament.
The present Captain General is really
and truly opposed to the slave trade, anc
has been inaccessible to brides. Severa,
csrgoes of slaves have been brought to the
Island since his administration, but they
have invariably been con1scated. Thi:
course, If persisted in, would after q time
put o stop to the shameless traffic, but very
likely the successor of. Gen. Dulce viii
connive at the practice as his predecessor:
have done. The persons taken from the
slave traders are bound cut to serve eight
years, at the end of which they are to be
entirely free yet those who have lived
long in the island say they never have
seen an emancipado, for, oddly enough,
on plantations where they are, if q death
occurs, 1t is always one of those unfor-
Inmates who has paid the debt of nature
The Arguelles, whose name was some
what notorious ir the United States, came
from Spain with Gen. Dulce and enjoyed
his entire confidence, bat not content with
the reward for the capture of slavers, he
would enrich himseltby the sale of the
captured slaves, bribing a priest to certify
that they had died of small pox. There
was great excitement in the Island when
ne was returned, the people having thought
The States 8 safe asylum, which Hope they
never will be for such crimes against hu-
manity. Arguelles was sent to Spain.
What became of him there no one knows.
Everything possible seems done by the
government to demoralize the people. The
lotteries are s government affair out of
which it makes several thousand dollars a
day, but the people prefer this method of
employing the purse to a direct tax, when
they are already SO heavily burdened.
Till drawing-day they car dream of
.sightsn Of immense prizes.
Everyone before he can reside in the
Island or do business, must subscribe to
an oath certifying that he is q Roman
Catholic, and if q foreigner would marry a
native, he must produce three witnesses to
his baptism. But it is not at all difficult
TO find people to swear to anything. Men
reconcile it to their conscience BY saving
1t is q mere form, and everybody under.
.ands it as such; but the effect must be to
lessen self-respect and regard for the
sanctity of IN oath.
The government is charged with col
fusion with criminals when money can be
obtained from them. The builder of the
Tacon Theatre and the Peseaderia was a
noted pirate who betrayed his companions
to the authorities. he is still living in
Havana, has monopoly of the fish trade,
snd is treated with consideration by those
In power.
We were told at Trinidad, and the tale
confirmed, that q Philadelphisn went long
years ago TO Cubs, became q Spanish citi-
zen, and bought e title. He died very
rich, and the mother Of his children bribed
q priest to marry her to the dead man.
That the woman should try to secure the
to her children is natural, but that
a priest should lend himself to such q pre-
is sufficiently astonishing.
There is a large party on the island.
which strange to say, is made up of some of
the largest Shareholders who are not only
opposed to the importation of slaves, but
are in favor of gradual emancipation.
They believe slavery cannot much longer
continue in q Christian ration, and thew
would avoid the shock by which we have
passed from bondage to nominal freedom,
: The P~eninsular Government" as many
all it. ~scorning the use of the more en-
epithets of mother or home, is op-
posed toail this lest the revenue from this
taxed and fearfully ~mis-governed
country should be lessoned. The emanci-
.oationists believe in their triumph, or, as q
gentleman who quite won my heart, be-
:ause abe had lived too long in France to
be able to smoke in the p~resenceof ladies'"
expressed it. in speaking of q future he
an hardly expect to see, for the SHOWS
rom which no cline is exempt have al
-eady fallen on his finely developed head.
We shall carry the day" None can
ioubt the sincerity with which ! echoed
God grant II and speed it.