The west Tennessee star. (Bolivar, Tenn.) 1888-1888, 1888-08-03
BRIGANDAGE IN CUBA.
How the "Gentlemanly" Robbers
Torture and Murder People.
They XIII Their Victims Only When NeCes-
sary-LevyinE Assessments on Farmers
Why the Authorities DO Not
Suppress the Evil.

A few evenings ago the writer visit
ed "a Spanish gentleman who has very
recently returned from Cuba He is a
citizen of that country, with a resi-
deuce in Havana, and being an ardent
Spaniard has never cared to transfer
his allegiance to the United States,
though most of his life is spent in New
York He is a magnificently built
young man, with jet black hair and
eyes and fine white teeth, as becomes
a Spaniard, and his wealth is as con-
siderable as his good looks. He stands
at the head of one of the largest leaf
tobacco importing firms in all New
York, and when on request he began
TO speak of the present condition of
Cuba he had a topic with which he
was thoroughly familiar.
"YOu can not use my name in con-
nection with what am going to say,
for my partner in Havana is one Of the
chiefs of the Conservative or Spanish
party, and, as there is now a split in
that party, 1t might be assumed that
was trying to make mischief. The
Spaniards in Cuba are sensitive to
say will probably travel in time to the
island, and so it is better on the whole
that my name be not used"
. While this conversation was pro-
ceeding, the little group which heard it
sat in a cool parlOr of one OF the large
fiat houses of New York, the men
smoking delicious cigars and the ladies
rocking themselves and freely joining
IN the colloquy. The young Spanish
Rentleman's wife was an American
lady who had imbibed many Spanish
ways and trace OF Spanish accent by
long association. but who had retained
all her power of observation and com
nent. Her incursions into the inter
view gave vivid and interesting pic
lures of Cuban home life, and they are
we'll worth reproducing in their place,
even though q court OF law might re
iect them as irrelevant.
Senora-Love making in Cuba. All
how strange IL seems. Opposite our
house there lived handsome youue
lady, with whom a good looking young
gentleman fell in love. Every evening
she sat in the front parlor behind the
lace curtains, peerinR out through tn,
window bars, and every evening h,
walked by, up and down, up and down
like a newly Gagged bear or a police
man on his beat. He would walk hal
a block above the young lady's hous,
and then turn and come back and wall
half a block below. Each time as h
passed the house he would, by cranin,
his head a little, be able to see tn
young lady's face, screened by tn
window curtain. She sat like statu
there and pretended not to see him
Each time he came to the end of hi
beat he would stop and stand, twirlinl
his mustache and trying to look YER
innocent and unCOnCerned. Then h
would slowly turn and walk bac
again. This continued for ten nights
Oh, il did make me so angry with tn
young man to see him spending hour
each evening in marching up and dow
before that house, and the young lad
showing no sign all that time that sh
had noticed his existence. At last, o
the eleventh night, they spoke. Ho'
IL came about don't know, but / sa1
her stand up AZ the window, leanin
on the bars and talking to him. 500
her mother came and took her plaC
at the windiw, and the young Lad
went away and sat down. The mothe
and the young man cOnversed 70
twenty minutes, and then he lifted hi
hat and smilingly departed. The mex
night he appeared again and found tn
house all closed up in front. The youn
lady's aunt was very sick, and the
close up the house in case Of siclxnes
IN Cuba The young man marched u
and down and up and down, looking q