The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1897-11-30
MOST DEADLY PLACE on EARTH.
That's Fernando Pc where spafn
Consigns Political and Other Pris-
From the New York Herald

From the New York Herald
IL there is dbabolical place on earth
it is Fernando Pc. There are some. horri-
BILE places on this globe, but not one of
them can compete with this Infamous ISL
and. Spain used it as penal station, and
death is almost invariably the doom of
those convicts who are sent there. Rapid
ly they desc rapidly that at times the
authorities find it difficult to bury them
But now a new device has been adopted
and all obstacles to speedy burials have
been removed.
The officers of the British steamer Nj
ger, which arrived at Liverpool a few
days ago, bear testimony to the efficacy
of this device. The steamer left Fernando
Pc on July 49, and at that time the Cuban
and Philippine eXiles were dying so rapid
ly that collins could not be obtained in
which to bury them. Thereupon the au-
thorities put their heads together and
promptly decided to costruct some cof-
fins on an entirely new plan. The bot
toms of the collins were fitted with
hinges, and when the bodies were placed
in them and lowered into the earth GER
tain ropes were deftly manipulated,
whereupon the bottoms opened and the
of corpses being thus disposed of, another
set was placed in the same collins and
dropped into graves in the same inhuman
manner. Truly an economical method of
burying the dead
SPANS object in taking possession of
Fernando Pc was to make ID a penal sta
ton, and she soon had gangs of convicts
there, making reads, cutting trees and
otherwise employed in improving the God
forsaken place. Mercilessly she treated
these unfortunate beings, forcing them to
work all day under the hot sun, and car
ing nothing for them when illness struck
them down. To-day her policy is the
same She does not work the convict
as heretofore-work it seems, being at
present one of the penalties for misccn-
duct-but she lets them die by scores. More
than one European power has protested
against her using Fernando Pc as
convict station, but, with her characters
tic obstinacy, Spain has turned deaf
ear to their protests. There are within
her jurisdiction many offenders, political
prisoners and others, upon whom she can
not legally pronounce death sentences, and
so she deports them to Fernando Pc,
knowing well that they will die there al
most as surely, If not quite as swiftly, as
by the garrote. She does not Kill them
herself. but she knows that the climate of
Fernando Pc will kill them.
Much has been said about the horrors of
Ceuta, another Spanish convict station,
but Ceuta is an earthly paradise compared
10 Tornado Po True, the latter place
is very picturesque, with its magnifcenty
wooded hills and many silvery streams; but
then its climate is unbearable, breeding,
as il does. malaria and fever, from Which
few who are attacked ever recover. Dysen-
terv AMI liver complaint are also common.
Moreover the rainfall is heavy and con-
tinuous and the heat is excessive. No
white woman, il is said, has ever been
able to live on the island, and no governor
has remained there more than a few
months. The Spanish officials who are
Obliged TO spend any time there contrive
i'm a measure to ward off disease by dosing
themselves continually with quinine and
whisky. but even these antidotes do not al
WAYS prove successful. Any one, however,
in Fernando Pc who wants TO save his life
must keep himself constantly in a state of
drunkenness. The unfortunate convicts
clearly cannot fortify themselves with liq-
uor. and hence they daily drop off and are
thrust into nameless graves
Evidently the island has sadly deteriorat-
ed within the past quarter of a century.
One who ought to know says that no
fruits are grown there now and that there
are nowhere any indications of prosperity
Some negroes manage to exist there and
they are the only persons who can stand
teh terrible climate. To send white pris-
oners there is equivalent to booming them
to death, and to send political prisoners