The times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1890-1903, 1898-12-25

fish capitalists have indicated their read
mess TO cndeayOr 10 revive the sugar in
dustry in the West Indies, II bounties
are abolished.
/ wow. Sir Thomas Upton IS not able
| % spend 100000 pounds, and 30 is prob
/ able that some arrangement viii be ar
rived at"
Nor is Thomas Upton as general
I thing, given over to the practice I'll. IN the
old phrase, buying a pig in the bag. And
when he is willing TO put a million
pounds sterling into an enterprise. on
! this side of The water 81 is q pretty safe
wager that he is not Influenced by any
idea Of helping the Anglo-American union
bat rather by the fact that il presents a
good. safe inyestmenf for his money.
THE striking failure Of the Louisiana
sugar crop-the worst I'm tWenty-one
years-has called the attention Of not
only our planters bat also English in
yostors 10 the fact that In our new pos
SON the island of cuba. We have
chance 10 cultivate that industry with
certainty of success such as can never
have been known in country that is not
blessed with a tropical climate.
cuba has the climate. but az present
she is lacking in money and enterprise.
The paragraph from tine Daily Mail
would seem 20 indicate that I'm the coming
revival of business interests I'm The Pearl
" the Antilles IL Commercial, war IS 20
be fought out between ENGLAND and
America that win bo 3D. much keener one
than the recent campaign through which
the island has passed.
TO hasten the revival Of Cuban trade
ana industries an "0pen door is TO be
maintained. Hitherto. most Of the reye-
nues OF the island have been derived from
customs duties on food products. I'm
der the Spanish regime S3j.oJ0o00 out
0f total of $6l o00.e'0 came from food.
oar duties are considerably lower than
the ola Spanish maximum rates and IN
general viii resemble our own Dingley
tariff duties on foods, about p per cent
When Robert i. Porter President Nc
Kiuley's special revenue commissioner,
was I'm Cuba q committee from the Cham
Der Of Commerce Of Santiago de cuba
presented 90 him a long memorial on the
proposed alterations in the tariff regu-
laions and Improvement Of the indus
trial condition Of the island. \ consider
able portion of this was devoted 10 this
sugar industry which has aroused the
interest of the British capitalists ana
which the memorial declares is the most
important industry I'm the island-a and has
the greatest number If people dependent
upon H. The memorial went on 10 say
that e. had been crippled by the ravases
OF war until the production had dropped
from 10000 tons in 1894 20 less than
44a693 tons IN 1921. Deficiencies ia trans
p0rtauon and apparatus. the scarcity Of
labor. and the increase IN the interest
rate on debts had raised the cost OF pro-
ducu0n above the market value Of the
product
II was suggested as a remedy that no
internal taxation be levied on sugar es-
tates that machinery be admitted into
the island duty free. and that Cuban su-
gar be admitted 10 the markets Of the
United States without the payment Of
an import tax.
What Cuba needs more than British
money or American enterprise is peace.
And as peace IS now 10 be hers the riches /
may again DE hers which once made |
famous Frenchman write that they of !
Tended humanity" The director Of the
syndicate which controls sixty per cent.
of Cuba's tobacco Is responsible for the |
statement that IL Cuba IS 50 associated |
with the United States that tobacco would !
not be taxed at our custom house, his !!
fields and factories simply could not do
the business that would press upon them.
Just before the Mckinley law went into
operation more than lOl,0oO,00O Of Ha-
vana cigars were sold to the United |
States. The number decreased afterwards !
until last year only 100000 were sold
to the United States.
Apart from the sugar and tobacco in
fustries. railways seem to offer the best
for investment. one IS sur
prised to learn. after experiencing the
Cuban railroads. that natives or men
ons resident here do not see possibilities
IN railroads. Railroads here have never
laid" they say. OF course, they have
never paid. Freights are enormously high.
and coastwdse shipping is cheap; the
coaches are miserably dirty with less
comforts than an old-fashioned stove
leated. cross-town horse car.
0sspits tha native opinion It appears