The Republican journal. [volume] (Belfast, Me.) 1829-current, 1898-11-03

II
made me sound and we'll. II saved my life -
No remedy relieves constipation so
quickly and effectively as Dr. Pierce's
Pleasant Pellets. They never grippe.
people and literally inclined. Even the
ignorant market-people, spying an Ameri-
can afar off, Immediately jump up on
their prices for the simplest things a
hundred per cent. or more. They seem
to think that, as a nation, we are literally
made out of money and have come to
disburse it.
There is no doubt that certain manu-
facturies would do we'll in Porto Rico
such as paper mill, for instance, an ice
making plant, and others of similar ma
ture to supply the needs of the island.
There are a few good openings for we'll
conducted American hotels, restaurants.
barber shops, laundries, tailoring estab-
lishments, livery stables, hack and ex-
press lines; and in the professional lines
American doctors, dentists and photo
graphers will doubtless soon absorb most
0atlNe
lawyers-who, like other Spanish Ameri-
cans are born limbs of the law. con-
tinue to monopolize the legal business.
When the building era begins, as it is
bound to do by next year at tartherest,
there will be work for while for mechan-
les of all sorts. Probably in time the ag-
licultural lands will pass into the hands
of Americans, their superior methods and
commercial sagacity being bound to event
uaIly absorb the holdings of race so i'll
fitted to compete with them as the Porto
Ricans. To-day, in spite of adverse cir
cumstances, coffee growing in this island
is about tae most profitable industry in
the world. Under ordinarily favorable
circumstances it never fails to pay from
50 to 40 per cent. on the investment, years
in and out. Where the bountes Of nature
are so lavishly bestowed as in Porto Rico,
there must be many new industries within
the reach of far seeing Americans-such as
chocolate and cocoa factories: utilizing
the palm oil nuts, castor and vanilla
beans, with which the island abounds. as
well as the spice and dye plants: fruit
packing establishments, raising chickens
and eggs with incubators Ia thing yet I'M
heard of here) and especially breweries
In the last named line there is certainly
most excellent opening. The people con
sumo vast amount of beer, which is all
brought from the United States and Ger
many, at great expense The fashion
here is to serve it with broken ice in the
glass, which of course renders it disagree
ably fiat and tasteless.
Porto Rico is not so very hot-not a
circumstance to New ! DIRK OF Washington
in mid summer-the average daily tenn
perature being so degrees; but the fact re-
mains that it is extremely trying to for
eigners. 1t stands to reason that a eli
mate IN which iron corrodes in six weeks,
and where paper is in short time reduc-
ed to powder, must be hard on the human
frame. While the natives sometimes live
| to good old age, a few instances being re-
corded of persons past one hundred years,
people from the North are sure of having
a serious time for year or two; and if
they survive the acclimating process, are
generally cut off long before the natural
three score years and ten.
Yesterday | was talking with Chicago
| real estate man whom | met in Ponce.
The gist of what he told me is as follows:
81 left home with the idea that Porto
Rico would offer some splendid openings
{ for men of small means, and came here
| expressly to seek information in that
| line. And have been disenchanted not
to say grievously disappointed. You
know how it is in the United States-that
man who has only few thousands at
command is quite lost sight of in this age
of pools and trusts and combines and
syndicated department stores; aud | sup
posed that here was one of our new
possessions to which he might come and
| with his limited means begin life under
more hopeful conditions. But | was
| altogether mistaken. | find that the cot
| fee, sugar and tobacco plantations are of
great extent, and although their owners
are willing to part with them, they want
anyw here from $50, 900 up to half a mil
lion. Fruit farming, being new ven
ture, is uncertain, and reliable data upon
| which to base estimates are impossible to
obtain. After investigating all these, l
turned my attention to dairying and minor
! industries; but there are unfavorable cir
cumstances surrounding each of them,
| more or less insurmouptable; and on the
| whole have concluded to go home and
be contented. 1t is an undoubted fact
| that nowhere on Gods green earth does
the poor man stand SO good chance as in
| the United States.''
As an indication of what is already 60
ling on, it may be stated that there are