The Virginia enterprise., 1898-08-12
seen ES IN SANTIAGO

seen NEs IN SANTIAGO.
Pen Picturea Of the Southern
Cuban City After American
Occupation.
Santiago de Cuba, July q. Core
spondence of the Associated Press. The
dirty condition OF this city, the heaps oi
foul refuse that cucumber the streets, the
malodorous alleys and by-ways, the lack
of sanitary arrangements and drainage Of
any description are fall matters that will
require remedying If this is to become an
American city. 1t should be remembered
that the weeks of blockade, the fear of
bombardment, the scarcity of food and
the general Generalization existing in q
besieged town have done much to add to
the conditions of filth and poor sanitation
that normally prevail. For generations
the people have lived regardless Of the
first rules of hygiene: the lower classes
are ignorant of all precautionary meas
urcs, and it is not surprising when our
American officers issue an order through
the civil governor of Santiago, stating
that all houses must be at once thorough
" cleaned. inside and out, the order is
disresarded. Orders are constantly issued
to the people to report Mt once the death
of fine and enforced labor as a punish
ment carry little weight. Extreme meas
ures will have to be taken to bring about
proper condition of affairs in this re-
spect and it will take many months of
example and stringent enforcement of
regulations to bring the people to an OBJ
seryance of what is clearly best for their
health. @.-'' -Es'+. -.S -,.5,@. ..'> =
Hundreds in the Hospitals. f.
In the military hospital of the city there
were on July 26. 562 cases of the preva-
terry; Sc cases of diarrhoea; PA cases of
anaemia and 10 cases of yellow fever. The
yellow fever cases are all among the Span
ish soldiers: A week ago there Were six
.ases Of this fever and among the total
vi nineteen eases there have, been six
deaths since the American occupation. Six
teen of the 4SS wounded Spanish soldiers
States troops took possession of the town.
To the city of Santiago there is this
advantage from the rains of the wet sea-
son: The water rushes down the steep
streets and sweeps away all manner of
refuse and rubbish. Flushing the streets
as the rains do is like flushing the sewers
in an American city.
Slnce July anu uAln d u4y 20 tnS CITY
was without daily paper. On July %
the Espectador made its first appearance
and printed the Spanish text of President
Mctinley's proclamation the people Of
Cuba. The Espectador is running a series
of articles on New York city,. this SUBJ
ject being supposedly of prime interest to
hs readers at this time. A three-column
article on the inscriptions of the Egyptian
obelisk in Central park appears in the
10 ND tho y,.1l,lschor ho
declaration of the independence of the
United States in the near future.
Espctador enjoys the distinction of be-
ing the only Spanish paper published in
this island free of Spanish censorship.
A newspaper printed in Spanish and
English is promised soon, and Go. + of
the Thirty third Michigan Volunteer in
fantry has brought out paper called Co.
f Enterprise which is the first American n
paper published in the city of Santiago de
Cuba. 49,,
Already the enterprising American is
present. There is around town a ragged
man with a smattering of Spanish who
has turned several dollars by buying up
swords and machetes from Spaniards and
the city pawnshops to sell them again
to American relic hunters. There is the
but a sure and remunerative opportunity
and there is the man who buys up bar
gains in American horsehesh from sick or
wounded officers going home, hoping to
sell the animals at a profit.
- Look Over Business Opportunities.
The first steamer from the United
States has brought many men to look over
this new field for business opportunities,
and there will be American sharpness
and enterprise pitted against the Cuban
and Spaniard. II Santiago prospers and
money is easy there will be good field
here for the gambler and his outfit, if the
laws will allow him to operate: With
prosperity and a good hotel, there is prom
Use in Santiago of wide-open town that
will be sure attraction to men of GER
tain stamp. .4;..~- =; ~,
The arrival of SO many strangers in
Santiago during the last two weeks has
taxed the town accOmmoda tions, which
were never ample, to the utmost. The
lack of anything like. proper hotels and
restaurants will continue to be a detri-
ment to the city until some one with a
knowledge of what Americans want steps
in and opens a hotel. ~ !
The Anglo-American club of Santiago,
an Institution founded over three years
ago by the English-speaking residents of
this place, has been the salvation of many
Americans since the occupation. The
club affords a limited number of cool.
respondents Many of Santiago's Ameri-
can visitors will remember most grateful
ly the clubs cool garden and the stone
paved shower bath. Since three days af-
ter the occupation the club has served
meals, and while what is eaten comes
mostly in cans, the long white table set
twice a day with china plates and bot
sight to many an officer who has ridden in
from the front to experience the novel
sensation of civilized meal. Old friends
meet at this common center, and the fight
ing of the LIST, I'd and Sd of July is told
and told again by men who were on the
right or the left, or who came up late.
Naval officers from the ships have come
officers from the field hear tales of what
the ships have done. E% -,e7---=
Refugees Coming Back, .,,z p
Many of the refugees from Santiago
and the eastern end Of Cuba who slipped
times are coming back. Opportunities
to DO so are scarce, however, as steamers
are not frequent from Jamaica. but slow
~ the town is filling up and the country
people are coming in to buy certain ne
cessities.- But their money is not plenti-
ful as yet. They depend upon the. crops
OF sugar and coffee and tobacco, and un-
til agricultural work is resumed and the
money that was sent back to Spain for
safe keeping during the war finds its way
back to Cuba under an assured conf
dence In the future, money will not be as
easy as it was in the old days. :,
Their ismuch talk in town of the ex-
orbitant prices charged by storekeepers
for clothing, food and drinks. Prices are
today, three and four times as high as
they should be-. Shopkeepers are charg-
ing at the rate of two American dollars
for what sold formerly for one silver
Spanish dollar. It has been found neces-
sary to ordain that bread shall not be
sold for more than 20 cents silver per
pound and the announcement that there
will be established soon an American
bakery to sell bread at prices prevailing
III New. York is received with delight.