Evening star., 1897-06-02
THE EVICTED CUBANS
Continued from First Page.)


narrow streets to Cascoro Hill. That is
where most of the pacifcos are located. 1t
has been their home for months. and will
be fer those Of them that survive for
months to come. 1t Is said to be the best
settlement on the place for natural sani-
tary conditions, and also for supplies.
Smallpox ran its course months ago, and
having exhausted ITSELF is no longer to
be feared. Some Thousand of the pacifcos
have been sent into the country villages,
which is worse for them. but better for
those who remain. That is, they have a
large town-Matanzas once had a popula-
tien Of 50.0O0-in which to beg food, and
there are fewer of them to be fed.
Hundreds of palm huts are on Cascoro
Hill. Neither Mr.. Calhoun Consul General
Lee nor anybody else in the party tried to
count them. They are built without order
or regulation. All are alike inside. The
gravel and dirt make the floor. Boards
stretched along the sides serve for tables
and for beds. A few have chairs, others
simply rough benches. The household ef-
fects are usually few old clothes in the
corner. Two or three tin pans are the
cooking utensils, which are seldom needed,
because there is nothing to cook The bed
ding is an old blanket sheet spread over
of litter serves for bed. Some of the
huts have rough partitions, but many of
them are single rooms. All show in their
interior furnishings what would be called
in the states abject poverty.
Mr.. Calhoun took ample observations on
the extent of these interior furnishings, be-
cause the pacificos get sick like other peo-
pie and need comforts. And in the rainy
season, which is close at hand, they must
live much of the time indoors instead of in
the open air.
The Story of One of the People.
1t is, however, with the pacificos, or re-
concentrates, themselves that We are at
present concerned. A pause at the door
way of one Of the huts was met with an
invitation 10 come in. There was not room
for all the visitors but some crowded past
the threshold. A young woman was rock
ing with a babe of six or seven months on
her lap. She was intelligent and answered
questions promptly. A boy, two or three
years old, clad in natures garb stole up to
her side. A girl of fifteen or sixteen drew
faded shawl across her shoulders, and,
her modesty shielded, looked at the strang-
ers. Through the opening of a partition
we could see an aged woman raise herself
from the litter on which she lay and peer
out curiously. A man of thirty-five or forty
sat on stool and listened to what was
asked. All he wanted, he said. was a
chance to work in the fields and get some
thing to eat.
The young woman told President Nc
Kinleys representative that the people on
the hill got living by begging and work
ing. The work was making the straw hats
out of the palm leaves, in which many of
the women were seen engaged. There was
little demand for these hats and the pay
was very small but it was better than
nothing. Food was got in MatanZas by
begging. and some good folks did what
they could for the pacificos. But there was
no distribution of rations by the military
authorities, not even once a day. Now part
of the men were allowed to go out a little
ways into the country for food, but they
brought back little, because not much was
te be had, and the soldiers would not let
tkem go far. The pacificos shared with
one another when they had food. The
family around her. the young woman said,
had had breakfast that morning. They did
not hope for another meal that day, but
they were not SO very hungry. yet Ut
wanted an hour of noon) They had lived
in good house, three miles from Matan-
zas. The soldiers have burned it and made
them come In with the reconcentrados.
Another Family Driven From Home.
In another hut the stay was short A
nliddle-aged woman. who was sewing the
straws of q palm hat, invited us to enter
and see for ourselves. She was active and
intelligent. On some boards at one side q
sick man was lying. The bedding under
him seemed to be an old coverlet. Palm
leaves or bushes inclosed In bag formed
a pillow for his head. He was crouched
urder a sheet with his knees drawn up.
His cheeks were flushed with fever. He
locked at the strangers nautely and hope
lessly. The chamber of a dying pacifico
has its sacredness. and the intrusion made
without knowledge was followed by
quiet withdrawal
In the open air the mother told the story
of that family. Her daughter and others
were by her side. They made few pen
MES sometimes by sewing the hats. Then
they got together a little food, she hardly
knew how. They had eaten last night"
at 10 o'clock and hoped for something be-
fore the day was over. They received no
rations from the soldiers. The soldiers
were letting them alone now and that was
good. Her son was sick with some sort of
fever. Her other son had it a month ago
and died. The family had lived in the
country eight miles from Matanzas The
soldiers came and burned their house; then
drove them in with the other country peo-
pie whose houses had also been burned
Before that 1t was SO easy to raise enough /
to eat. sweet potatoes. bananas and such
things.
Mr.. Calhoun made personal investiga-
ton of many other cases. and the story was
uniformly the same. I am bound to say
he would not prove a good intendant at
hospital or thorough student of sociology.
He and General Lee did not see it all. They
staid on the slope of the hill. Secretary
Fish5ach and some ef the rest of us, who
are harder-hearted perhaps, followed the
ravine and went among the people in the
huts there. The misery was a little deep
er. II possible, and certainly more hope
less. But we were rewarded by a CLEAN
of sunshine. In one nut, where there were
eight mouths to feed, the woman had met
with great good fortune. From the heav-
ems had fallen a piece OF hard tack and
some real salt pork. She had boiled 1t. and