The western sentinel. [volume] (Winston-Salem, N.C.) 1887-1926, 1898-03-24
PROCTOR ON CUBA.
A Horrible Picture of Suffering Dis
ease, Starvation and Death.

A Horrible Picture of Suffering Dis
ease, Starvation and Death.
From Speech in Senate, March II.
Senator Proctor described the
places he had visited and the warlike
conditions of things on the island
outside of Havana, the order of con-
centration ard of the effect it had
upon the concentrates. Continuing,
he said: 1.-THE execution of this order
was left largely to the guerillas to
drive in all that had not obryed, and
l was informed that in many cases a
torch was applied to their homes
with no notice, and the inmates fed
witt such clothing as they might
have on. their stock and other be
| longings being appropriated by the
guerillas. When they reached the
town they were allowed to build buts
| OF palm leaves in the suburbs and
| vacant places within the trocha and
left to live if they could. Their huts
are about ten by fifteen feet in size,
and for want of space are usually
crowded together They have no
floor but the ground, and no turni-
ture, and alter a years wear but
little clothing except such stray sub
stltutes as they can extempOrIze.
With large families, or with more
than one in this little space, the com
monest sanitary provisions are i'm
possible. Conditions are unmention-
| able in this respect. Torn from
their homes, with foul earth, foul air,
foul water and foul food, or none,
what wonder that one-half have died
and that one-quarter of the living
ale SO diseased that they cannot be
saved. A form of dropsy is a com
mon disease resulting from these
conditions. Little children are still
walking about with arms and chest
terribly emaciated, eyes swollen and
abdomens bloated to three times the
usual size. The physicians say these
cases are hopeless.
deaths in the streets have not
been uncommon. | was told by one
of our consuls that they have been
found dead about the markets in the
morning, where they had crawled
hoping to get some stray bits Of
food from the early hucksters, and
that there had been cases where they
had dropped dead inside the market
surrounded by food. These people
were independent and self supper ting
before Veyler's order. They are moi
beggars even now.
"Of the hospitals need not speak
o hers have described their condi
ton far better than can. 1t is not
within the narrow limits of my
vocabulary to portray it. | went tt
Cuba with a strong conviction tina
the picture had been overdrawn, tina
few cases of starvation and suffer
l hr inc ,I2% l.
press correspondents and they hat
given free play to a strong, natura
and highly cultivated Imagination
Before starting, l received through
the mail leafiet published by tn
Christian Herald, with cuts of som
of the sick and starving reconcentra
dos and took it with me, thinkin.
these were rare specimens, got up t
make the worst possible showing.
saw plenty as bad and worse; man,
that should be photographed an,
: shown. could not believe that GU
; of population of 100000, tw,
hundred thousand had died within
, these Spanish forts, PRACTICAL
prison walls, within a few month
past from actual starvation an,
diseases caused by insufficient an
improper food. Ny inquiries wer
entirely outside of sensations
, sources. They were made of GU
{ medical officers, of our consuls, {
city alcades (mayors), of relief com
: NIT tees, of leading merchants an
bankers, physicians and lawyers
, Several of my informants were Span
3 ish born, but every time the answe
was that the case had not been ovel
stated.