The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1897-10-19

tackS.
The Trinidad estate. situated in the valley
can syndicate, of which Mr. O. b Still
man, OF Boston, is the representative.
owing TO the repeated and persistent at
tacks upon his place he has employed the
services of seventy armed men for its pro-
lection. During this last campaign several
attempts We're made TO blow up his ma
chinery with dynamite. but owing to ig
norance displayed in placing the bombs,
the explosions did but little damage.
DESTROYING FACTORIES.
On my last trip from Gomezs camp to
the coast, during the month of March last.
I met a young Cuban officer in the hills
above Trinidad, who explained to me how
he had placed a bomb under the furnaces
of the factory, and that how after the ex-
plosion it only took a few hours to repair
The damage. As we stood on the summit
of high mountain overlooking the beauti-
full panorama of the valley below my friend
pointed to a column of smoke arising from
tail chimney in the distance. There .
said he, is the place owned by your in
ternal cOuntrymen. They have frustrated
all our plans to destroy the factory so far,
but the next time L attempt to explode a
bomb | will be sure 10 catch Mr.. Stillman
and his manager. Mr.. Turner, and blow
them up with the factory"
Other large syndicates having their head
quarters in New York are the Puerto Padre
Company, controlling the large estate Of
Odu Ndnuel, the NarclSQ Company, repre-
senting the magnificent factory of the same
name at Yaguajay, in the Remedies dis
trict; the Tuinicu Company, owning an es-
tate situated near Sancti Spiritus, and
whose cane was burned by the Spaniards
to prevent the rebels from cutting it for
forage for their horses; and the Rosario
sugar Company. representing the largest
Factory in Havana province, at Aguacate.
These concerns are all represented in New
York by ]. NJ. Ceballos & Co.
Many individual Americans are also own
Valnahla Foremost
amongst these estates is the Hormiguero,
owned by Elias Ponvert, Of New York,
which is considered as a model of neatness
and good results.
The Parque Alto and Dos Hermanos are
| the property of tbs Fowler Brothers; the
Saratoga, of the Mccullough Brothers: the
Carolina, of the Stewards; the Santa Cata-
lima, OF Henry Heidegger; the Tinguaro, of
Charles La Rosa; and the San Miguel, Ct
the Casanova Brothers; and the holdings Of
Julio Hidalgo complete the list of prominent
American estates in the central district.
The large factory Santa Teresa, near
Manzanillo, and the Congress- and Senado,
near Puerto Principe, are also owned by
Americans.
Many of these employ special police, while
others have not been molested by the in
surgents, and have no necessity OF their
protection.
The San Miguel and Tfnguaro were
burned by the rebels. The owners of the
former have indeed been unfortunate, for,
according to all reports, the Spanish troops
under Colonel Fondevilla killed several of
the employees, and ordered the owners to
vacate the premises under threats of death.
Shortly after the estate reported to
have been burned by unknown parties, but
the writer subsequently learned from Gen
eral Aguirre that he had ordered Major
Valencia to apply the torch as punishment
for nonpayment. The same motive explains
| the destruction Of the Tinguaro estate.
There are many more of our countrymen
who have invested their capital in Cuba,
and have suffered to a greater or less ex-
tent by the destruction Of some part of
their property. Every one of them has the
same story to tell, and all express them
selves very forcibly on a point that is but
| imperfectly understood in this country-and
| that is, they strenuously object to the per-
| secution of the so-called Cuban patriots
| who are American citizens.
MISPLACED GENEROSITY.
While many of our charitable citizens
here at home are generously contributing
to aid cause that appeals strongly to pop
ular fancy, the recipients of this generosity
have left no stone unturned in attempts to
destroy the estates of other Americans in
the island of Cuba To protect themselves
they are compelled to expend equal sums
for Notifications and soldiers, and so at
| present we find the rather remarkable Sit
uation of one part of our population liber-
ally subscribing to destroy the interests
OF another part-and these, in their turn,
Many American planters can show orders
from Insurgent leaders prohibiting them
under penalty of death and the destruction
or their property, to resume work. and the
fact that gals and hurts is that many Of
these orders are signed by american Gift
Zens holding commissions in the rebel army
Many OF these planters can place in evil
dence piles of empty cartridge shells hear
ing the stamp of American manufacturers
that have been supplied to the rebels by
tnear sympathizers in this country to be
used against the employees of other Ameri-
cans IN cuba. We have been accustomed
to read a great deal about the ''rnassa cres
and atrocities" committed by the Spaniards
put the fact that the insurgents swoop
DOWN and 'machete" the peaceable laborers
In the field seems to have escaped mention
10 our american planters the most de-
pIoraole side of the question is that thew
are completely at the mercy of the insnr.
gents, for If they should make a formal
complaint In he courts of the United States
against these bogus Americans it would
inedu the signal Tor the complete destruc-
tion or their property and would leave
them without even the prospect of future
interpolation in case of Cuban victory,
IN the programme issued by Il. Estrada.
rama, dated New York Aug. Is. 1895. he
emphatically states, in. Article A that the
fore or w star not III be responsible either be-
property destroyed during the war.
rms statement, added to- the persistent
prosecutions OF the rebels and the perpet-
ual demand for money. may explain the
reason why so many of our planters ara
on the side of Spain, or in favor of annex
atlon IN preference to a Cuban republic
PREFER ANNEXATION.
From financial standpoint nine-tenths
of them prefer annexation, as it would
mean many millions of dollars more in their
pockets. The immense bounties paid wear
ly by the European governments to foster
the manufacture of beet-root sugar. and
the excessive import duties imposed by the
the Cuban industry to such an extent that
only a few of the leading estates, working
with the most improved apparatus. and
managed on thorough economic basis. can
show profit at the end of the season
Some years ago. when sugar brought
from 3 to cents per pound in the New
York market, and the manufacture of sll-
gar from beets was still in the experiment
large fortunes, and his estate was consid-
cred as valuable as gold mine. This gold
en- era in Cuba was probably one of the
worst misfortunes that could have fallen
upon her; for the planters, naturally in
clined to be wasteful feeling sure of their
monopoly and of their immense gains, gave
little attention to the minor details of their
business. Economy in administering the
estate was not thought Of and large sums
were yearly squandered, of which no ac-
count was kept
Machinery agents, and others doing bust
ness with them. obtained enormous profits
for their products and work.
The beet-roOt industry in Europe on the
other hand, was pushed by capitalists who
employed the most perfected machinery
and paid large salaries to skilled chemists
to Superintend the process Of elabora ton