Kansas City daily journal., 1897-02-06
1T WILL BE PRINTED IN FULL IN
MADRID TODAY.
AN OUTLINE OF THE SCHEME
RIGHTS GRANTED SEEM TO BE PRIN.
CIPALLY ADVISORY.
Spanish Cortes to Have Control of the
Finances and of Commercial
Trcnties-Cubans to BE Per-
mittcd to Do as They
Are Ordered.


| in aformal decree. Rule l of the first ar.
tcle provides that the municipalities and
assemblies of the six provinces of the ISL
| and of Cuba CPinar del Rio. Havana. Ma
| tanZas, Santa Clara, Puerto Principe and
| Santiago de Cuba) will enjoy all the lib
critics compatible with the laws and the
respect of individual rights. The assem-
| blies will have the right to elect their pres
| idents In each assembly, there will be an
| executive committee, elected by the assem-
| bly, every six months, and its president
| will be elected by said committee. The
mayors and deputy mayors will be elected
| by the municipalities from amongst the
| members. They will exercise, without
| limitation, the active functions of the
municipal administration as executors OF
| the decisions of the municipalities. The
| provincial assemblies will have the right
| to suspend the decision of the municpali-
! ties when they go beyond the limits of the
| municipal rights, but in this case, the mll-
inequalities will have the right to appeal
| TO the highest court of the province. The
| provincial assemblies will have large pow
ers in matters of taxes. in accordance with
| the general and local system of taxation
| The appropriations for the provinces and
municipalities will be separately made
| The Organization of establishments of pub
| lie instruction in the provinces will cor
| respond to the provisional assemblies, and
| in the towns and cities to the municipali-
ties. The governor general and the civil
governors of the provinces will only have
right of intervention in matters of public
| instruction to assure the fulltilment of the
general laws and the compatibility of the
municipal and provincial appropriations
with the expenses of those establishments.
Council of Administration.
Rule 2 of the first article. provides
of the island will be composed Of thir-
| ty-five councillors. Twenty-one of them
will be elected directly by the people, and
nine win be as follows: The president of
the chamber of commerce of Havana; the
president Of the economical societies of the
friends of the country, of Havana: the
president of the Planters Association; the
president of the Tobacco Manufacturers
Union; one member representing the chap
ters of the cathedrals of Havana and of
Santiago de Cuba one representing all the
trades associations of Havana; two desg-
mated among the taxpayers of the province
of Havana. The other five will be senators
or representatives to the cortes, who have
been elected by the island of Cuba in a
greater number of general elections. The
governor general will be honorary 'presi-
dent of the council, and the actual presi-
dent will be nominated by the governor
general from among the members of the
council. In order to be elected councillor it
is necessary to have the same qualifications
as are required to be deputy to the cortes,
and 1t is necessary to have resided two
years in the island. The appointment OF
the officers and clerks of the council will be
vested exclusively in said council.
The council will elect. every six months,
committees. each of them composed of five
members. for the transaction of business
and the drafting of resolutions.
The cortes will determine the amount of
the expenses of sovereignty Gmperial eX-
pehses) and will determine the total of the
budget. To meet that amount, the council
OF administration will accord, every year.
the taxes and revenues necessary to sup
ply the expenses approved by the cortes;
only. in the case of the council of admnis-
tration not having approved and voted by
the 1st of July the taxes and revenues
by the corteS, the governor general will
decree them. with advice of the intendante.
The council of administration will frame
AMI approve the local budget and the re-
sources for the expenses.
The Customs Tariff.
The attributes of the council of admins
tration. as regards the customs tariff, will
be as follows:
cation of the custom duties.
Second-1t will decide what is most con-
venient regarding taxes on exports.
Third-It will fix or modify the fiscal
duties for revenue on importationS in the
island.
Fourth-It is to be heard in an advisory
manner regarding the rules, classitications
and schedule of duties.
tations:
First-National products directly import
ed to Cuba will enjoy Indispensable pro-
lection, taking into consideration that the
taxes on freign products will be for reve-
nue only.
Second-Taxes for revenue established by
the council of administration will be ap-
piled alike to foreign and to national prod
uctS.
levied and will not be differential; but it
will be impossible to except from these
rules the direct exports to Spain for home
consumption.
Fourth-No prohibition on exports will
be imposed upon products directly export
ed for home consumption in Spain.
The custom tariff will consist of two
columns. One for revenues only, equally
applied, and in the same proportion to
foreign and home products. and the other
column will consist of differential duties
imposed on all foreign products. and where
there will be a margin of protection of
the national industry, with a maximum
that the cortes will establish. The govern
ment will fix. for the first time. the arti-
cles of the tariff which will make up the
differential columns. The taxes will not
exceed 20 per cent of the value of the
revision of the official valuation of mer-
chandise. after hearing all those interested
pro and con.
The immediate realization of all the con-
ditions established in these rules being i'm
possible, the minister OF the colonies in
accordance with the law of June 2S. 1895
will publish a provisional tariff on these
lines, in order to avoid delay in the re-
form the tariff laws.
The commercial treaties or conventions
affecting the tariff of Cuba will be spe-
cial. In order to establish reciprocity. there
will not be in them the most favored ma
ton clauses or its equivalent.
Council to BE sConsultedv
The council of administration will he
consulted over the adviSability of nego-
tiating commercial treaties and conyen-
tions. which it is the intention of the gov
ernment TO negotiate, and this will be done
before the final drafting of the treaty
and its presentation for the approval of
the corteS.
Rule ! refers to the appointment of gov
ernmental employees by the governor gem
suiares who have resided at least two years
in the island These appointments will be
made with the advice and consent of the
council of administration, and with regard
TO the legal and proper qualifications of the
nominee. From this rule are onIy excepted
the secretary general, intendante, comp
trcller, director of local administration, di-
rector of postal and telegraph service and
the civil governors of the six provinces
The governor general Will ne authorized
to name delegates in the municipalities to.
exercise executive functions, but in no case
will he be allowed to interfere with the
proper functions of the mayors of munici-
palitieS.
Members of the judiciary will be only an
pointed among Cuban-born or persons hay-
ing resided two years in the island. The
municipal judges Justices of the peace) will
be appointed by election by the members
of the municipalities, supplemented by a
number of electors chosen by the people,
The council of administration will respect
the actual pending contracts. and at the ex-
piration of the same will have the right to
accept or repeal them.
The council will also have the power of
of the peninsula, and of entering into a
contract with the Bank of Cuba