Evening star., 1896-03-25
They Flock to the Cities of Southern
Florida.
A TALK WITH FERNANDO FlGUERIDO
Stories of Outrages by Spanish
SoIdiery.
NEWS FROM THE ISLAND
STAFF Correspondence of The Evening Star.

Tampa and Ybor City, where the cigar
factories dominate every other industry,
and where all other business IS dependent
upon them for support, 1 saw crowds Of
men, thin and wan, wearing queer hats
and meager clothing. sitting singly and in
groups, silent and motionless like spectral
statues of despair. Inquiry developed that
they were refugees from Cuba cut off from
all opportunity of joining the insurgents
or too cowardly to enter the ranks IL they
had the chance. who had fed from the
sure vengeance of the Spanards to this
country. In almost every instance these
refugees spent their last cent for their
passage from the island, and here they
are. unable to get employment, ignorant
Of the language and customs, and wait
ing for what they know not. These men,
and there are hundreds of them, are sup
ported by the Cubans who are TT work
without question and without hope or ex-
pectation of reimbursement, 10 matter how
soon freedom may be gained. Every man
of them is living illustration of the strong
brotherhood that exists among the Cubans,
OF their unquestioning and devoted al
legiance to each other and the cause that
centerS all the hopes and aspirations of
their hearts.
And they will; pursue their present course
unfinchingly. They have just been made
happy to point of insanity over the news
of the landing of the ammunition and
stores carried to Cuba by the schooner
Mallory and the steamer Three Friends.
They danced and sang and made the air
ring with eXultant cr,es of Cuba Ebrc"
The Mallory had an eventful time Of 1t
before she finally cleared with her cargo
A detective discovered she vas being load
ed. and her seizure followed Her release
then came. and when she set sail again
the Spanish consul at Tampa went to the
collector of customs and demanded that she
be overharled. The reply was that the
Mallory had cleared with proper papers.
and would have been allowed to sail even
II her destination had been declared to
be Cuba itself The stores were enormous
when the desperate plight of the Cubans is
considered. TErec-uuarterS of a million
cartridges, hundreds of reload tools
over thousand machetes, nearly half that
many revolvers, and scores of cases of
rifles besides great bales of medicines for
the sick in the swamp hospitals.
No wonder the Cubans are JOYOUS and
are bending their energies toward getting
more expeditions of the Sort safely at sea.
They laugh at you when you ask if there
is any difficulty in getting the stores
ashore at the island where the insurgents
have no ports, and around which Spanish
Warships are sk.mming like sea gulis.
There is no trouble eluding the Spanish
tubs they declare, with confident gestures
Let the United States allow the vessels
carrying tie stores to get on the high seas
and the rest is easy.
What FisucridO Says.
L saw Fernando FIguerdo, the agent of
Cuba libre in Florida in West Tampa. where
he is manager Of a cigar factory owned by
Americans An affable, courteous, pleas
ant gentleman, with a high. broad fore
head. eyes dark, but soft and set far apart,
that light up with enthusiasm when Cuba's
hopes are mentioned, grow fierce when
her wrongs are suggested. He was re-
marka bly, we'll posted on the course of af-
fairs in Washington and the public men
who are engaged in shaping them
Every day that recognition of Cuba is
delayed adds to the evidence of the out
RACES inflicted upon her by the Spanish,
and 10 the education of the people in this
and out of it, he said 1--WE feel convinced
that belligerent rights cannot long be with
held, despite the false representations by
which Spain hopes to mislead American
avowals of the Spanish comes a denial in
the shape of the dastardly deeds of her
soldiers. What more complete answer %
the assertions of Minister de LONE could
be had than the murderous attack upon DR.:
Delgardo, whose American citizenship did
not save him from the anger of the Span
ish? 1t is easy to perceive what brutality
must be visited upon the Cubans them
selves when American citizens in the island
are not safe from suffering it."
After leaving Ffguerido l met Cuban
gentleman who was educated at a Catholic
college in this country, and who recently
Would Put the Turk to Blush.
"You could not publish what 1 could
truthfully tell you about the course of the
Spanish soldery in Cuba,'' he remarked.
your readers would be awe-stricken and
horrified. Your American women would
drop on their knees and beg God to stretch
out His protecting arm over their defense
less sisters in Cuba. The men are away
from the towns in most places, all save the
old and intirm, and the women and children
remain. The orgies that follow upon the
arrival of a Spanish column would put to
blush the atrocities practiced by the Turks
in Armenia. The Spanish soldiers know no
motives save those of vengeance and utter
and horrible depravity. Think of a bed
ridden brother tortured with the sight of
his tender sisters in the hands of merci-
less brutes before a bayonet is plunged
through his brain. Think of even grand
mothers being defiled. 1 can make the
sign of the cross as l tell you these things.
| The present war is developing worse in
stances Of brutal depravity than even the
| last war did. All. Martinez Campos was
indeed right when he said that the dead
| would rise from their graves if Weyler was
returned to Cuba
Other CubanS with whom / conversed
| translated to me portions of letters that
| had been smuggled through, reciting hor-
| rors worse than Senator Sherman detailed
| in his speech to the Senate, and almost
| Spanish into fragmentary English. But
| poor as the translations were they were
| enough 10 make an honest, God-fearng man
| lose his control, and be willing to sell his
| soul for the subtle power to avenge the
! wrongs of the Cuban women, leaving the
men entirely out of the question.
These men I speak of had not been ap-
| prised Of my coming. They were chary OF
| all Intercourse with me until / showed
| them 1 could be trusted, and then they
| went into welI-worn wallets. and with
| trembling fingers pulled forth the awful
| recitals, leading me away out of sight and
| sound of others while they labored to put
| them into English.
| They were not lies written for effect. They
| were the mssives of simple folk, barely
| equipped with the rudiments of education
| who had scratched and scrawled their ter.
| relatives of the victims, to acquaint them
| with the true conditions in their beloved
! island. Nor were they confined to one sec
| ton. Wherever the Spanish troops have
| been in the past two months it is nearly
| certain the same sort of letters could be
! written. How soon will the Cubans com
| mence a policy of retaliation in kind is the
question that is alarming their friends and
| representatives in this country. So far the
| Insurgents have restrained themselves ad.
| mira bly,, in the opinion of those who are
| striving here for the official sympathy OF
| this country. They have committed it is
| declared, no acts not recognized in the art
| of war. Their burning of the cane, they
| claim, is based upon the same policy which