The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1896-05-21
CUBA'S NEW TOBACCO CORNER
SENIOR DE LONE DENIES THAT THE
EDICT Is RETALIATORY.

The Minister Claims Ii is Not a Po-
IiticaI Measure In Any Sense-Its
Adoption Forced on the Govern
ment to Meet an - onOmic Neees-
sity-He Adds That the Insurgents
Are Responsible for Its PrOmuIga-
tiOn.
washington, May 2O.-Senor Dupuy de
LONE. the Spanish minister declares that
the order prohibiting the export of to-
bacco from Cuba is misrepresented in dis
patches attributing it to Gen. Weyler as
a retaliatory measure against insurgent
sympathizers in this country.
He says that 1t is not political measure
III any sense, but was adopted by the gov
ernment at Madrid after serious consider
alton to meet an economic necessity; that
the government for a long time delayed
taking the action, because of its injury to
commerce, but was driven TO the step
by the fact that without it, over 1900
cigar makers in Havana would soon be
thrown out of work for lack of the raw
material and that $1,000 to 6OOOO women
and children, dependent on them, would
be in danger of starvation.
The minister disavows Spanish respon-
E0AANAAAANAA~
forced the decree. He says the tobacco
crop has been destroyed by Maceo's forces
during their long stay and numerous
raids in the western part of the island;
that the royal troops have injured no
property, and that the indiscriminate de-
struction of the crop is TO be laid wholly
al the doors of the insurgents.
Senior Dupuy de LONE says that Spain
has been frequently impOrtuned for the
past year to stop the tobacco exporta-
tion. which gave employment to the chief
contributors to the insurgents in this
country. but the petitions were stead
fastly refused. He declares that there
are as many cigar makers in Tampa to-
dav who are loyal 10 Spain as there
are iusurgent supporters. but that all
must suffer alike 10 avoid more serious
consequences in Havana. The prohibition,
he contends, Is exactly OF the same ma
lure as If the United States We're COM
PEELED to stop the export of cereals from
this country in time OF famine or great
industrial depression. He is informed that
there is as much Cuban tobacco now
i'm this country as in Cuba, and that tne
shortage, perhaps, will not be as great
as first supposed. At any rate, he claims
Spain was left no alternate IN the mat
ter
From a revenue point of view, the action
of the Spanish government in prohibiting
fbe export Of Cuban tobacco, will have but
little effect in comparison with the INJURY
it causes the manufacturers OF TOBACCO
and incidentally their workmen; From the
latest official figures for the last nscdi
year it is seen that b6I9,2oz p0unus Ol
wrapper tobacco valued at $7,2l9,oV was inn
norted INTO this country. OF other raw to-
bacco there was imported ZO,sSS,UOo pouuus
of the value of $.525, ,S43. The wrapper To-
bacco pays $1.50 per pound duty, ana the
other raw tobacco, largely IN liier' ii pay pay > ,
. CENTS Per fp0urd OF the 0,otS,-9z tostt,,a.sS -
of wrapper tobacco imported, only n iS5 iS5
pounds came from CuDa anu 2, ry5, w. 10
bounds from Sumatra, in the Dutch East
indies through the Netherlands II is IN
ssfUer'' tobacco that the prohibition or
Spain will be most severely felt, as, from
Cuba last year there was imported INTO
This country of this class of tobacco ~
147,4S pounds. OF th!s quantlty, L, 800, ooi i
pounds was brought into New YORK ana
about 3,000 900 pounds into FLORIDA ports,
so If the same ratio of imports now oO-
fains as Is probable New York will suffer
from the prohibition more than any other
one port in the United States.
In wrapper tobacco also New YORK IS a
large consumer of the imported product,
there having been imported there last
year 4,611445 pounds of the 5,6l9,2o2 pounds
of this class of tobacco, that came into
the United States. Whether the United
States will deem it advisable to resort
TO retaliatory measures, or indeed whether
in the absence of reciprocity agreements,
which were abolished by the last tariff
law they have the power to retaliate, are
questions that are now being considered
by Secretary Olney and may be the sub
iect of congressional action. as the sena-
tors and congressman from New York and
Florida are taking an active interest IN
the matter and each day their mail is
burdened with protests from their peo-
pie
Madrid, May 2O.-A dispatch from Ha-
vana to the impartial says that the Span
ish gun boat Cuba Espanola, has had a
sharp encounter near Manzanillo, with a
party of insurgents who were trying to
effect landing from a vessel
Madrid, May 20.-The examination made
by the medical inspector general in Cuba
for the purpose of determining the truth
or falsity of the report that the insur-
gents are using explosive bullets shows
the statement to be true.
SHERIFF. KENNEDY'S SANITY,