The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1879-08-14
HAVANA.
THE LAW FOR THE ABOLITION OF SLAVERY AND
THE REGULATION OF THE CONDITION OF
CoLoRED CITIZENS.

THE LAW FOR THE ABOLITION OF SLAVERY AND
THE REGULATION OF THE CONDITION OF
coLoRED CITIZENS.
HAVANA August Q. 1879.
The law for the gradual abolition of slavery had
at the time the object of regulating the con-
dtion of coored persons, that those who were in
reality not slaves should not be passed such. In
order avoid this the law declares that all colored
persons mentioned slaves in the lists of 1867 and
1871 shall be considered such, while those who do
not appear in those lists shall be considered freed
men. AS the lists rightly supposed to be very
on account of the disturbed state of the
island during those years, the government recently
ordered that the lists should be exposed to public
inspection during thirty days from August l. from
sunset. at various public places. in order
to enable slave owners to rectify any errors omis
sons. The Board of Freedmen. which in this pro-
vince has charge of the publication of the lists.
thought it sufficient to expose them to the public
from eleven O'Clock in the morning until five in
the afternoon in the office OF the Board.
This decision. and the well known abolition senti-
ments OF some members of the Board. excited the
owners. fearing that they win not have time to
tfy omissions which would make freedmen OF the
slaves omitted from the lists but day after day the
Censor prohibited the VOC de Cuba from publishing
these articles. on the ground that newspapers have
been adnonished not to discuss the slavery
lished the vos dc Cuba finally printed an I'D
dress to the Captain General. in which it says
that the Board of freedmen is not doing its duty;
that the Office of the Board is too retired and the
hours, from eleven o'clock in the morning to five
in the afternoon quite insufficient to enable the slave
holders of the whole province to examine the lists
and rectiiy errors, and that consequently great
many persons will suffer considerably on their prop
erty The address published on the 4th inst,
but the Captain General being absent and the Board
of Freedmen supposed to be acting according to
law, the clamors OF tho VOC dc CUBA Will probably
remain unheeded
The President of the Ministers in Madrid.
General MARITIME ,l Gampos; has several several times
Cortes from attacks made against the policy he
pursued when pacifying Cuba. and his speeches
contain some interesting explanations OF hereto
fore doubtful points. Martinez Campos says that
| the negotiations tor peace did not proceed from
him. The insurgents came to treat with him, ask
ing for truce and the naturalization of
tain and he granted ten times more than they
asked for he carried the sword in one hand and
peace in the other. Martinez Campos told every
where. well as in Puerto Principe. Las Tunas and
Cnco Villas that peace could not be made without the
intervention of the United States. This probably
q calumny upon the Spanish government. but the
people really believed that peace was impossible
without that intervention. Still Martinez Campos
did not for one moment consider this assertion. He
did not allow the insurgents to treat with him until
they had annulled the following article OF their con-
stitution:-
"Cuba accepts no provincial. municipal nor
political reform, be it as liberal as it may be- under
the Dominion OF Spain. and the only unconditional
aim of revolution is absolute independence"
This they annulled. and it was the Spanish army
that concluded the in Cuba. The treaty of
peace at Zanjon was fulfilled the moment that the
provincial municipal and political laws pro-
claimed by Martinez Campos Martinez Campos
further said that what Cuba now wants Is what the
Spanish government and the Cortes promised long
ago-namely. that Cuba be province and not
colony, and that this motion be resolved quickly,
but without injury to Cuba or Spain and not by
means of party spirit.
With regard to the Spanish Colonial Bank Martinez
Campos i'd that at the time there was no other
means of raising money than by making a contract
with this institution. and that money was most
urgent necessity, as it would have been impossi-
BILE to prosecute the without it, that the
government will annul the contract with that bank
as soon as possibly can. but that the government
could not annul it tor the sake of saying that
it had done So but must wait for the opportunity
to obtain real advantages from the annulment.