Wheeling Sunday register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1882-1934, 1882-09-24
A CUBAN ROMANCE.
A Girl Leads a Dashing CaValcade
TO Battle.

20 the necessities Of the business. Remem-
branceS of many picturesque scenes, ro-
mantle adventures and humorous anec-
dotGS Of other lands are often evoked by
the production of samples Of particular
yintages for the delectation Of the visitor.
4 glass of port is the prelude to a racy
narrative, i'm which the listener Is intro
decd to mantillss guitars, Zincsli and the
cachucha; a tumbler of champagne brings
with IL a host of memories Of princely
mSgnates whose vineyards produce the
nectar of Bacchus, with, perhaps, sly
"reminiscences Of Partisan banquets 2Harlre
thrown in. As for the German wines, who
could drink a glass of Hook and resist
repetition of the old rhyme:
At Bacharaeh on the Rhine,
At HOchheim on the Main
And at wuerzburg on the Stein
Grow the three best kinds Of wine!
Then lust one thimbleful of Falernian,
and what q vista Of Italian landscapes and
classic cities and ancient splendOrs is
spread before the Imagination Of the guest
as he sips the generous liquid. Aud the
liquors: Bhartreuse with the monks. who
devote their lives to its manufacture. and
add q goOdly sum to the Golfers OF the
Holy Mother Church by its sale; Curacao
and the fat Dutch merchants on their pros
porous islands in the West lndies-and so
on, each caSk and bottle has its history.
A few days ago q newspaper man hap
pened to drop into the office OF q we'll
known wine firm on Front street. He was
at once invited TO enter the cosy sanctum
of the partners, and presently found him
self one of q cOterie who were trying their
best 10 kill warm afternoon with the aid
OF box Of excellent cigars and half
dozen silver foiled bottles. Wine mer-
merchants are not verY busy this time OF
the year, so they can spare little time 70
the discussion OF gossip and samples with
thsir crOnieS, A lull of q minute or so had
fallen on the conversation Of the company,
and the interval was being passed in hold
ing up the glasses to the light shifting ut
the boQuet, taking short and long sips and
doing the many more little things with
the wine which men always consider
necessary when in wine merchants Oh
fee.
Gentlemen" suddenly exclaimed one
of the partners, If you will drink glass
OF port after champagne you shall taste one
OF the rareSt vintages in the world. We
possess very little of il, but what we have
was purchased from the brother of one OF
the meanest villains that ever existed
A general chorus of bring out the port
and tell us the story" ensued, and the
merchant descended into the cellar. He
emerged shortly after with bottle covered
Win y LlAlNh NLNSbN hNANA AAN NSANCA -
placed on the table and then very carefully
uncorked. Having filled the glasses and
handed them to his friends, he remained
standing q moment more watching the
expression ON their faces rs the wine passed
their lips.
II will not ask you for an opinion, said
the merchant; you could not possibly do
the wine justice on 30 light an acquain-
lance as one glass; but if you are not afraid
Il = Of, ,-nino for tho
next twenty minutes l will give you some
insight into the career of the brother OF the
man to whom the wine belonged. Good!
You wish me to continue. | believe, gem
tlemen. YOU all supposed me to be Span
lard. am, however, Cuban, and what IS
more, q Cuban exile. | am OF opinion that
ii one of you could deliver me, bound hand
and foot, 10 the gentle merCieS of the Cap
tain General Of Cuba, no small amount oil
dOubloOns would be your reward. As a
young man, | took an active part in the
Lopez conspiracy in lNjl, nor was
a very old mau in ls6S, when We al
most succeeded in tearing our beloved
country from the grasp OF the Oyerbearlng
PeninSularians, as the SpaniardS are called
BY the CreOleS. | was more fortunate than
the rest, Tor | made my escape when diSas-
ter fell upon our arms, and have suc-
ceeded in living in comfort in this country.
royal government are aware Of everything |
do But stay, | must not make my story
too long by talking about myself. When
the patriot Narciso Lopez raised the stand
ard of revolt in ISL, some of his most de-
voted adherentS were women. Cuban
ladies are more patriotic than the men. In
spired by the songs of Gabriel lie Ia Con-
ceptiOn Valdez, our national poet, they
arm their husbands and sons and brothers
g. - cd kil than trNf nrfh and
conquer In all our attempts at lndepen-
dence women have taken actual part IN the
struggle, and the battles of % the corpseS
OF women were frequently found on the
field disguised as men.
The Sonora Inez BeStranO was the daugh-
ter of a rich Creole planter in the eastern
interior Of the island. Above the average
height, Of perfect form and with eyes OF
the soft shade of green which LOngtellow
tells us We sometimes see in evening skies,
a constitution equal To any amount OF
fatigue or eXertion, and with complete
mastery of Craftsmanship, and, strange To
say, of the manual of arms, she WAS just
the woman for q modern Joan of Arc. Her
love for her country and her hatred for the
Spaniards was her religion. The slaves on
her fathers plantation regarded her almost
as a goddess and kissed the ground on which
she walked; and as for the Guagiros, or
native Cuban yeOman or peasants, there
was not one in the whole district who
would not have laid down his life
for her. Nor did she want for lovers among
the neighbOring planters; but she did not
show them any favor. One man, however,
had gained her heart, Pedro d'Aguas, son
of the Marquis de los Claras, a wealthy
nObieman residing in the city of Havana
Senior d Aguas was 80 years Of age and out
wardly Just the sort of man to attraet
woman's eye. He was tall, brOad-shOuld-
cred, with regular features and a soft,
pleasant voice. He rode his horse as though
he were part of the animal, and dressed
with tasteful elegance. Men did not like
him-there was something which had a
false ring when he spoke, and il was often
noticed how uneasily his eyes shifted when
ever you looked him straight in the lace.
His brother Carlos was still more unpOPu-
lar but the latter very seldom made his
appearance at the BeStrano plantation.
al told YOU Pedro was the son of mar
quis You must not confound the Cuban
nobility with any other ariStocracy. \ Gu
ban nobleis q contemplate individual, who
is generally of humble origin, bat has
amassed by severe toll and economy a large
amount of money. Finally, to oil his van
ity, he purchases title Of the Spanish gov
eminent, usually count or marquis, and
struts away ike jay in peacock feathers.
So il is with the Marquis de los Claras. He
and his sons always protested patriotism,
although, of course, they had to keep their
expressions secret But when visiting lnez
Pedro and his brother Carlos were loud in
their denunciaIiOns of the iniquities of the
Spaniard, and when Sonora lnez proposed
to raise a company Of men to join the rev.
dictionary leader, Lopez, Don Pedro was
warm in his approval of the scheme.
'Inez had no difficulty in finding men.
She picked out 200 of the most promising
looking GuagirOS, and placing herself at
their head, with Pedro as her lieutenant
by her side, she one morning presented
herself in the rebel camp and demanded en-
liStment from Lopez. 1t was a dashiug
cayalcade which met the eyes Of the rebel
commander. Picture to yourselves 200
handsomely mounted men, attired in beau
tifully embroidered shirts with wide cam
brio sashes around their waists, in which
silyer-handled sword or machete glittered
with the rays of the sun; long rifle slung
across the back of each man, and the butt
of a pistol peepiDg out Of their breasts.
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