The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1898-10-27
BETTER CIGARS soon
CUBAN WAR HAS CAUSED DETERI-
GRAFTON OF TOBACCO
STOCK
THEY MAY BE CHEAPER, TOO

If Cuba Is Annexed to the United
States Import Duties VIII He
Abolished and the Fragrant
Weeds VIII Cost the Consumer
Less MOney-Views OF Span
ish-Cubnn on the Needs OF Cuba.
'The quality of Havana cigars win
improve in about three years
This statement was made to a re-
porter for The G l O b e last evening by
Manuel A. Garcia, of Port Tampa, who
Is stopping at the Ryan. Mr.. Garcia is
a member of the cigar firm at Port
Tampa City, Florida, and speaks by
the card
1.-THE quality Of Cuban cigars at
present" he confessed, lis not good
The war in Cuba has ruined the to-
bacco crops and it will take at least
two and probably three years to re-
store them to their former quality. We
shall then have the best cigars for g.
moderate price. If the United States
annexes Cuba, which hope they will
there will be no import duty ON tobacco
and that will materially decrease the
price of cigars. 1t may also result in
the removal of all the Tampa cigar
factories and the Key West factories
to Havana. The effect will be bad for
Tampa City, for it will deprive that
city Of its greatest and most important
industry. But American smokers will
get the benefit"
Mr.. Garcia is not related to the Cuban
general.
THE name of Garcia" he said. ws
as common in Spain and Cuba as Smith
is in the United States. I am not re-
lated even remotely to the general.
both my parents are of Spanish birth
and L was born in Havana, but from
my earliest youth I was brought I'D
in the United States. I am a nephew
of E. Garcia, the cigar manufacturer.
and have been with him since nv
Spanish parentage and my Cuban birth
l am pro-American In my sympathies.
l want to see Cuba annexed to the
United States. That will mean the de-
veEopment Of the island and it will also
insure the safety Of the Spanish resi-
dents. If the Cubans set UP an inde-
pendent government they will first
want to take revenge upon the Spanish
and will kill them and wreak all the
vengeance they can upon them. If the
United States takes control Of the
island the lives and property Of the
Spanish will be protected and the
island will again become an i'm
portant and valuable place in the
geography Of the world.
There are many Cubans in Port
Tampa City and Port Tampa and
there are various opinions as to what
the United States should do, but the
majority believe as 1 do. If a Cuban
government is allowed to rule the
island there will be no advancement
and Cuba will go to seed.
Il do not place much Importance up
~, III
American occupation of Havana unless
the Spanish soldiers are paid their
salaries long overdue. That is simply
one of Blancos bluffs. He declared
that no American soldier should set
foot on Cuban soil, but he had to take
that back The Americans did set foot
there and they held it and Blanco had
to yield. The same will be true in re-
spect to Havana. American troops
will land there and they will stay
'The effect of the war with Spain
will be to make Port Tampa one Of
the most important seaports on the
American coast. 1t was demonstrated
during the war that Port Tampa could
accommodate the largest vessels and
many of them. In fact, New Orleans
cannot accommodate as many deep
draught vessels as Port Tampa. It
will be the direct port to Cuba and the
place is bound to grow. 1t will some
day extend back to Tampa City, which
is now seven miles in the interior.
look for great things there before many
years.
Mr.. Garcia ridiculed the idea Of an
Independent Cuban government under
Gomez or Garcia, and said that Gomez
had been strangely silent during the
past few months.
mo one in Tampa" he said, knows
what has become of Gomez
Mr.. Garcia has just been to San
Francisco and said he found business
conditions very favorable all over the
extreme West