The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1897-02-06
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Atrocities OF The WAR IN CUBA.
HOSPITAL Patients Buchered-Cuban Women Subjected to
Unspeakable Outrages by Spanish Officers
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Pinar del Rio and along the western
trocha. sends to the Chicago Record
te following letter describing with SIN
gular clearness the condition OF the
disputed territory west of Havana,
where the Spaniards are nominally in
control, and the savage warfare that
goes on there Ceaselessly. 1t is dated
Havana, January 30, and is as follows;
The trocha lies about fifteen or
twenty miles west of Havana, across
the narrowcst part of the island, and
cuts off Pinar del Rio from the other
provinces. 1t is reached by rail at
either Artemisa of Guanajay, two
hours run from Havana. a permit is
necessary to cross the line and go to
the capital of the province, and this
was refused me. However, 1 was given
permission to go to the line and along
it for some distance.
The train leaves Havana at the un-
holy hour of $40 in the morning and
gets to Artemisa about 8 o'clock. The
sights along the line are really pitifuL
Everywhere are burned houses and
fields. At every stopping place are
hundreds of poor peasants, forced to
come into the towns by Weylers or
drs and living there in squalor and
grinding poverty. Everywhere, too,
are soldiers and forts. The train must
have passed within sight of 5000 of the
former during its two hours run.
Artemisaf is nearly in the center o
the trocha which ends abruptly at one
side of the town and recommences at
the other. This leaves a large gap in
it, which. however, is defended by
about 5000 troops.
1t was probably for this reason that
Maceo attacked it some time ago, in
spite of its large garrison, rather than
try to force the passage of the trocha.
The attack was an utter failure. The
dynamite gun, which always figures
in battle in Pinar del Rio, even though
it is laid up for repairs. could not be got
near enough to do effective work. There
are a good many burned and bullet
pierced houses, however to show that
the fight was hot while it lasted.
HOW TROCHA IS CONSTRUCTED.
The trocha itself, in it's strongest
part, that north of Artemisa consists
of an excellent road, stone fence. a
ditch and two lines of barbed-wire
fencing. Every 500 yards along 1t is a
little fort with a hundred soldiers or
so. Strong cavalry patrols are con-
stantly passing between the forts.
This is the part of the trocha that the
war correspondents generally see, and
describe, and it is certainly admirably
constructed for its purpose. The
barbed wires will stop the insurgent
cavalry, and the cacti, with which the
ground in front of it is planted, will
soon disable the barefooted Cuban in
fantry. There are strong forts in ad-
vance of the line, where large bodies of
soldiers are stationed, from which re-
endorsements can be hurriedly sent to
any point threatened.
Further south, however, the trocha
is weak, and the insurgents can easily
slip across it by night. General Ber-
mudez, an insurgent leader, has just
crossed it in this region, and is now
raidng in Havana province. Macec
crossed it to the north a few days be.
fore his death.
In the south it leads through the
Majana swamps for about six miles
where a very elaborate but ineffective
construction has been carried out. All
old drainage ditch, some fifteen fee
wide, has been cleaned out, and a log
wall has been built all along it's eastern
side. Strong forts are built at clost
intervals, and sentries come and gt
constantly. Nevertheless, the insurg
ents, by creeping in the water, anC
watching their chance, easily cross i
by night in this part.
Indirectly, the trocha is of great aiC
to the insurgents, as it requires th
constant attention of $1,000 Spanisl
soldiers, about one-third of whom ar,
stationed in the swamps, where tn
mortality is tremendous. This swami
alone accounts for 5000 to 1000 mel
a month who are disabled by danger
GUS fevers.
ATTACKS ON RAILWAY TRAINS
North of Artemisa the railroad con
tinues some seventy miles to the cit
of Pinar del Rio, in the center OF tn
province of that name. The railroad i
very carefully defended by numerou
forts and patrols, yet scarcely a wee
passes without train being attacke
and injured by the insurgents. Ever
train has an irOnclad coach, so-calleC
1t is an ordinary freight car lined wit
boiler iron and loopholed for rifle fir,
AT the first sound Of danger the sci
diers ON the train all run aboard thi
car, and from it return the fire of tn
insurgents, who respond briSkly. TIL
engine, which has never gone fast feel
ing its way through unknown danger!
now slows down until it scarcely moves
After awhile, however, it passes tn
rebel position. and goes on its way MOI
swiftly.
Sometimes the insurgents lay a min
on the track and fire it by electricit
when the train is over it. They usual
try to pick out the iron-clad coach, AM
1t is said, have succeeded in blowing
up seven times since the war begal
Hence, this coach, in spite of the fee
ing of security inspired by it's ire
walls, Is really the most dangerous pa
of the train.
This railroad line marks the extel
OF Spain's dominion here. Spain hole
the trocha and a certain amount of te
rltory around Pinar del Rio city al
Whales, but between the two lies a Ian
which no Spanish company dare vel
ture except along the railroad lin
Everywhere else are hills and hills al
hills with hundreds of places built |
nature expressly for hiding places al
buscades and surprises.
ATROCITIES BY BOTH SIDES.
West of Pnar del Rio and Whales
Spanish soldiers have been. North al
south of the railroad the Spanish ia
constantly, in strong force, but ha
no garrisons.
The war goes on with the create
cruelty and brutality. Both sides a
destroying all property, the rebels /
cause every product of value must d
duty to Spain, and the Spaniards /
cause what they have will nourish a
support the rebels, Probably bo
sides are justified in some of the ac