El Paso daily herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1881-1901, 1897-11-23
STARVING CUBANS.
One Mans RatiOns NJ ade to Serve for
Five.

A special 10 the New York " orld
from Hava Il says: In every town in
Cuba W here there ara American citi-
zens groups of Starving islanders ga her
every day in the front of the houses of
those Americans and beg for the
crumbs that fall from the tables.
That the Americans have anything
on their tables from which crum bs
could fail is due 10 the relief
fund of O,000 voted last spring by
congress. Consul General Lea has
drawn so far about So, 900 of the total
amount and has distri buted tle money
to the cousuls in Mat auzas, Cienfuegos,
Sagua Santiago de Cuba and else
where.
These consuls buy provisions and
distribute weekly ratlons to distressed
Americans.
There are l, 400 Americans on the
consular relief fund list. OF these
about $50 are American born. The
others are naturalized citizens end
their families who, haviog had their
citizenship papers properly registered
It the different United States consul
ates are entitled, if in distress, to the
same relief as AmeriCan-bOrn citizens.
Tois course of action Gen. Lee has fell
owed 10 all cas- eS and the state depart
meut has approved IL.
ccOrding to state ment made by
Con sui Baker, who is staff )ned at Sag
ua, about 10000 pc ,ple ere being kept
alive in Cuba by these ratiops di5tri-
buted for the support of 400. Neiz h.
bors gather around the front doOr of
TIE houses of American citizens and
beg a share of the food tina; comes from
the COnsulates.
Where suffering is so neral these
appeals are not in vain and the scant
supply of rice, ierKed beef and bread
- made to do the service for five instead
of one.
In the town of Sagua person walk
ing through the principal street about
| / a. M, or p. M, can tell the houses
of American citizens by the crowds of
starving creatures patiently waiting at
the door and hoping 10 get even a
mouthful of rice or crust of bread.
The most pitiful sight is to see the
babies in arms, hardly alive and the
small children with their thin little
legs and arms and distended bodies, all
indicating lack of nourishment and
death by starvation.
There are no markets in any but the
bigger cities, because nothing is pro:
duced to supply tb EN- and no one has
money to buy with.
Misery is universal, suffering is ev-
erywhere and the death rate goes up
o. gher anu hlg her each day.
In the town of Sagua where there is
a popu alton of about 10000 the death
list tor five years before the war was
800 year. In the month of August
of this year 64S persons died of starva
tion alone.
Consul Brice, stationed at Matanzas,
reports that since July 1, p, 900 per-
sons have died in bis district.
AS he was crossing the public square
one evening lately he saw a mao fall to
the ground within a few feet of him
and Mastering to his side, found he was
tad. His body was nOIhirg more than
a So elet ton. Such scenes occur every
hour of the day all over the is and
where people are herded together.
Pacificos to cultivate land outside
the military lines would diminish suf-
ferings if the people had the strengl h
aud the implements with which to work
but they have neither, and Weyler's
scheme to eXterminate the Cubans is
rapidly proving successful.
1t is generally believed here, in
Havana, that Blanco had received
orders from Madrid to do everything
pOssi bic 10 prevent starvation reports
from gong to the United States, and
that Minister Dupuy de Lone has
urgsd h m to issue proclamation aud
orders that will convey the idea that
the new regime will take care of the
non combatants and stop the present
appalling death rate.