The Redwood gazette. [volume] (Redwood Falls, Minn.) 1873-1940, 1896-04-23
PERIL OF THE ANTILLES.
Continued from last week.
The Wrecks of War.

The Wrecks of War.
But it is not with the beauties that ma
ture has shed broadcast that the travel
er's thoughts are occupied while he
threads his way among the wrecks that
war has made. His mind is charged
with melancholy as he views the burn
ed out canefelds, the neglected tobacco
plantations, the ruins Of stately resi-
dences that lift up their blackened arms
in mute but penetrating outcry against
the barbarities Of conflict and the curse
of tyranny. There is no need, however,
to dwell upon this somber picture, for
we know what time can do in this land
of endless and indestructible resource,
and there are pleasanter topics to COM
mand our attention, the greatest being
Havana, the capital and the very heart
of Cuba. To say that it is picturesque
and beautiful is but to give vent to the
first superficial expression that comes to
your lips. Spain itself cannot show a
more curious or interesting city. Study
it as you approach it from the sea, with
mighty Moro set high upon the head
land, time dyed in notified splotches Of
yellow, gray and black, and the red and
yellow flags above, with La Junta across
the narrow channel, prim and white,
save where the ugly dahlgren guns flash
at you like venomous black eyes, and
the city is as interesting and impressive
sight as human eye ever beheld.
As the capital, metropolis and chief
seaport Of Cuba, it is one of the best
known cities in the American hemi-
sphere. Its splendid harbor, its CONNER
cial Importance, its climate and the
tinge of romance that ever attaches to
its people have made its fame world
wide. Havana has about 900, 600 inhab-
itants. 1t was founded but % gears aft
er the discovery by Columbus and has
always been the commercial emporium
of the Antilles.
Few cities have such beautiful parks
Plaza de Armas is the chief. It COM
prises four parks, in the center Of which
is statue of Ferdinand VII. Then there
are the Alameda de Paula, bordering on
the bay, and the Campo de Marie, used
as a drill ground for the military. This
is an enormous park. It has four hand
some gates, named respectively Colon,
Cortez, Pizarro and Tacon. The Paseo
de Tacon is a magnificent drive with
double rows of trees. It has numerous
columns and statues, among the latter
one Of Charles III, ranking among the
finest works Of art in America.
The commerce Of Havana is only sur
passed in the new world by that of New
York. Two-thirds of the products of
Cuba find outlet through Havana. The
exports Of sugar alone are annually
about 100. 900, 900 pounds.
Havana was first called San Cristo-
bal de Ia Habana, in honor of Colum-
bus, but gradually the prefix was drop
ped. Havana has been frequently at
tackled from the sea- Drake tried to take
it in 1885, but failed. In 1862 British
feet under Admiral Pocock bombarded
the city and compelled it to capitulate,
but it was restored to the Spaniards the
next year by the treaty of Paris.
Not Hot Country.
We are accustomed to think of Cuba
as hot country, situated as it is under
the tropics, and the common impression
is correct to the extent that the mean
average temperature of the year is high
er than in countries farther north, but
the climate is more equable. There are
not those sudden variations that in
many parts Of the United States are so
severe on the human constitution. In
Havana, for example, the average tenn
perature of the hottest month is 81 de-
grees; of the coolest, 70. In Santiago de
Cuba, city often mentioned in the war
dispatches, the average Of the year is
80; Of the hottest month, "a; of the
coolest, IS. These are high figures, but
not very high for an island lying in
equatorial regions and surrounded by
water that is warm to the hand all the
year round. To stranger from dry
country feature more Objectionable
than the steady heat is the tremendous
rainfall. The geographical and topo-
graphical situation of Cuba provides
two seasons only, the wet and the dry.
During the latter rains are not frequent,
being atoned for, however. by tho
abundance of the dew, but in the rainy
season Jupiter Pluvius seems to turn
himself loose to excel all previous ef-
forts, and from 1876 to 14O inches of rain
are not uncommon, there being about
102 days when the rain comes down
not in drops, but in sheets, in masses,
in tubfuls at time, as though the
windows Of the heavens were opened
and the floods Of the great aerial deep
had broken loose. So abundant is the
rainfall. in fact, that, as a recent travel
er remarks, the wonder is that any is
land remains; that the whole is not dis
solved and carried off into the sea. But
in Cuba NO nne minds the rain.
Notwithstanding the pecularities of
its coast line, Cuba has more than 200
excellent ports. The principal of these
are Havana, Bahia Hondo, Puerto de
Cabanas, Matanzas, Cardenas, Sagua la
Grande, La Guanaja. Nuevitas, Mala-
gueta, Manati, Puerto del Padre, Santi-
ago de Cuba, Manzanillo, Canto. Santa