The sun., 1897-11-14
BACK FROM FAR HAVANA.
A Delaware Mans Views and
Memories Of What He Saw.
STARVING COUNTRY FOLK.
Misery, Fear, Dcstitution an" '''>'
affection, Combine on Every
Hand to Make Life
a Horror.

Mr. Alfred Osborn, a Delawaean by
residence, but a native OF. Monte Nldeo'
:, South America, and whois sthoronghly
conversant with the Spanish language,
has inst left town after visit OF several
days in Wilmington.
MIR, Osborn has recently returned from
one of his periodical trips to Havana
for he is seafaring man with Il
"berth" aboard a steamer flying regularly
hetween New York and Havana. For
reasons which will be obvious the
name of the steamer is not made KNOWN
for it might result in complications on
Mr. Osborn's next visit to Havana, which
is not far distant.
"I am Just recovering" said Mr. os-
born, "from an attack Of yellow fever,
which laid me low in Havana, and from
the effects of which am still very weak
hut now Havana will be free from the
fever, and have no dread about going
back"
"What about the reports OF destitutlon
and starvation in Havana, do you ask?
Well. let me say this, they could hardly
he overdrawn. When left there few
weeks ago things were in frig ghtful con-
dition. The misery and suffering OF the
poor people driven in from the country
were beyond words to describe "A.
Regla, which is the terminus OF
the railway to Havana, the da''y
scenes of horror as the poor pa
cifcos, as they are called, are landed
from the trains, defy description. l'oor'
emacjated women, with starved chill
dr,n. totter fainting from the cars ana
even die on the platform Immediately
after they aIight. One poor woman, Win
q babe SO shr,,nkcn as to look Ike
diuinu,ivc skeleton, ut her cry breast,
stepped from the cars one day wheh
was there, and an American, a bystander,
moyr,t to pity by the narrowing s's",
hastcn.u f., buy a can OF condensed
milk, whial. se.Is in Havana at a iah''-
lous price, and opening it, gave the cl'i'u
tcayp,oui,l Of the milk, which It sWal-
lowed, gasr~d one" and di d. That Amer
ican paid dearly for his sy npathy' tor ne
was fairly bounded by sp cs and guards,
and kept in constant drca OF arrest anu
Imprisonment in Cabanas. The system ''
dealing with these lacili""es, is more
over one Of the strangcSt pieces of dcllb-
crate cruelty imaginable. Ihry are
brought to Havana, literally III sf'h's'
fed once in large building, IN" 'h'h
sent aIrit in the city. Tl"y are r'S''-
ouslv punished if found !r&gn%, ana "S
thcv are invariably without nra'1S, 'li''
position can be imagined. Indeed they
die in the streets by scores and hundreds
and their shrunkcn bodies are buried
uncercmonio,,sly somewhere without
thought or pity.
"Indecd, the only charity which these
people received while ! was there, was
at the hands of Americans, anu 'hese
Americans took chances in helping
them. Things may change now th''
Wcvlcr has gone, but | doubt it. AS
somnlc of how these affairs go, let me
saw that the American physician III
Havana regularly fed Il certain number
of people every day for weeks, and then
desistcd because he received notice that
his actions in feeding the "cnemlcs OF
Spain" were not approved by the gov
ernment. As the physician had no de-
sire to get into prison he complied.
"But for all this, pacificos are being
relieved by scores daily by Americans
who give them money, on the sly anu
this is in spite Of the constant espionage
of Spanish agents, who swarm every
where in the city.
For instance, l was plainly told that
had been seen helping one OF these poo'
devils, and that | had better look out
NV informant was young lieutenant II
the Spanish army, fine young fello"
between whom and myself friendship
had sprung up, based upon the fact that
although an American, l was born ahc
reared in Monte Vidco, and speak Span
ish as my native tongue A!t''
several conversations, this young lieu
tenant and l became quite intimate
We met first in the Hotel Ut
Ingleterra, which is English in nothing
but the name, and after an Interchange
of courtesies at the bar, he spoke to III
of the suspicious to which was subject
and advised me to take a room in the h'
tel for the night. This did, and l ice
certain that it saved me from arrest.
"As to the Spanish soldiers, between
Cuban machetes and yellow fever tie,
are dying like dogs. Their condition II
appalling. On the wharf running ou,
into tbo hov il the military hospital ant