The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1866-05-20

Immense quantities OF superb timber which the
island up 70 the very summit OF The his remain un-
touched. There Is enterprise 10 give these forest
riches the world In short everything is given up
the sugar cane The only exceptions perhaps are the
cocoa aud the cocoanut tree which latter Is cultivated
small scale for the of the oil. There is
tablishment for making this Oil supplied with good steam
machinery and capable of producing twenty four thons-
ana gallons OF oil per annun The Cocoa which Is OF
a staple.
Within the last three four years sugar has reached
an average OF forty thousand hogsheads This year is
expected to reach as high figure sixty thousand
Another product to which little attention is pad
is asphats There is lake of this substance covering
OF about hundred acres 1t is regarded az
more ornamental than usciua mere natural curiosity,
in short.
Now in regard to government do not think there is
much wisdom exhibited. Officials numerous and
ceve high salaries which paid by the island The
three thousand five hundred pounds ser
Ing year-over seventeen thousand dollars. The other
salaries are in proportion As natural consequence n
order these absurd expenses heavy taxation 49,
resored TO- Everything produced on the island pays
It's expectation an export tax. Sugar pays dollar
twenty cents hogshead eighty cents a tierce and
twenty cents barrel; molasses, forty cents plncheoD
and rum eighty cents puncheon. Rum consumed
the island pays duty OF one dollar gallon. Cocoa
pays export duty OF twentysix cents every
hundred pounds Coffee q very little OF which Is
grown, pays twenty cents ON every hundred pounds
Everything imported pays import duty, except.
money diamonds poultry, books ana provisions Tor tho
navy aud army. Every hundred pounds worth OF ma.
chnery pays three pounds ten shllings The spanish
government of Cuba is more LIBERAL, since duty is
charged there for improved sugar apparatus and
-
To sum up this pocy ~.nd practice and present it in
an Ineligible shape let take the Official figures tho
year 1864 as a sample. We find
Value of imports fSS3 $40.
value oil exports .......... l0l,5ll
- TOTAL Ell 9s5 AL
me amount OF revenue. Observation-Disclosures. f176 lao
"A result of nearly per cent But if we take the
year 1863 which more nearly ON average with pre-
value value OF imports ....................... G7loe72
'"ue VI eAp'r's' 7losS'
Iolai. 81 427 500
heyenue.. -.............. fl76376
Result taxation Of about twelve and one. third per
cent Now, put the white population, or properly
the business population at ten thousand-whch Is a
high figure Take out Of these thousand the women
and children, and we have say, twenty five hundred
persons supplying this revenue for tue privilege Of being
governed by man who knows nothing about the
try, whose interests it, who saves his euor.
nous salary spend of it, and whose stupidity as
in the latest instance record sometimes obligos
70 retire any wonder, then, that the coonsis
these islands should cry out or annexation to the Uned
States. They have no reverence for system which
costs them an eighth OF ther incomes to support,
which denies them the privilege OF sending their produce
70 market Tree OF charge or receiving Tree OF chare
machinery which they may require for the Improvement
OF their plantations They know that part of the
United States they would be at liberty elect their
governor, man who was born and raised among them,
and who would understand the interests of the country
man, moreover who would be satisfied with the honor
OF governing free people, and whose salary would be
matter not even Of secondary consideration. 1t is
equally wonder that there very few Americans in
any these islands. Why should any American
sent to pay out the money he might make and
elsewhere, support of this absurd British systenI
this island American has ventur,d invest some
capiWl He, or some one for him, found traces OF pc
troeum the town OF san Fernando; company
formed and the work OF periortng goes on but yct
with result, though depth Of hundred aud My
feet has been reached wish him success. thou n q
feared that the deeper he digs his hole the per no
will put his foot in IT, Should he sucoced mag be tho
commencement Of good deal Of American enterprise
in Trinidad But the long and short OF the matter Is
that o. these islands prosper ~ they should
under the present English system To say nothing or
their being already American soil, their immense re-
be gwen 10 the world I'LL they not
only geograph cay, but politically, part Of the United
States Nothing but American enterprise energy and
capital, encouraged by political system can properly
deveope these magnificent Islands They are already
in great measure dependent the United States Tor
all the necessares OF life. IT, in the event
with Great Britain, the intercourse between these
lands and ports should be intercepted for any length
of time, not only would great suffering be entaicd
these possessions but would become entirely de
populated and the people be compelled leave avoid
the alienation OF starvation.
Whether annexation IL even likely to happen is moro
than venture predict, but that 1t Is the hope of
the great majority Of the people Of these Antilles can
positively affirm. Some day other such event
may happen, but not Till then will the people OF tho
great American continent be in possession Of the natural
bulwarks Of their country on the Atlantic SIDE