The daily morning journal and courier. [volume] (New Haven, Conn.) 1894-1907, 1898-03-09
SACRIFICE OF PROPERTY.
The Rigney Sugar Plantation Destroy
ed by Insurgents.

The Rigney Sugar Plantation Destroy
ed by Insurgents.
Particulars have just reached Bridge
port, says yesterdays Standard,
through gentleman returning from
visit to Cuba, of the utter destruction
on January rs of the immense sugar
plantation near Manzanillo, owned by
Joseph Rigney of Bridgeport, Franklin
Farrell of Ansonia and Hugh Kelly of
New York
The estate was destroyed by the Gu
ban insurgents. The owners We're not
the object of the i'll will of the insur-
gents, but the patriots are like the an
cient Romans, who Sin Rome's quar-
rels spared neither land nor gold, nor
son, nor wife, nor limb, nor life," and
to keep the taxes it paid out of the
Spanish treasury, it had to go the way
of all but few of the thousands of
plantations on the war stricken island.
A few days before the attack which
destroyed the estate, the insurgents at
tackled one Of the sugar mills, which
was used as fortress by the guard of
1900 Spanish soldiers, maintained at
the expense of the owners The in
surgents were beaten off after firing a
cannon shot through the boilers of the
big engines. Determined to reduce the
tax paying assets OF the government,
they renewed the attempt at destruc-
ton on the day named, and when they
LETT the Spanish soldiers were beaten
and flames lined the road for six miles.
The destruction was reported in the
city of Manzanillo as having been COM
plete.
The estate, which was founded by
Mr. Rigney, who left this city some
twenty years ago, was considered the
richest on the whole island. There
were 5000 acres of sugar cane alone, be-
sides an immense farm devoted to the
raising of stock for the food supply of
the employees and the working of the
cultivated portion. The machinery of
the big sugar mill cost 100000, and
eighty-five carts, each driven by four
bulls, were kept busy hauling cane
from the fields to the mill. The work.
ing force consisted of 1900 men and
overseers. The mill was kept running
night and day, the mill workers being
divided into two shifts, each of which
worked six hours alternately.
The value of the estate was estimat-
ed at $2,50O,0O0. Mr.. Rigneys residence
alone cost $45,000, and it was furnished
in princely style. In addition to the
mills and the stables there were $50
houses used as dwellings by the labor
ers. All of these fell prey to the
.1ames.
The work of destruction was quick
and certain. After beating off the
Spanish guard the insurgents applied
the torch to the fields Of waving cane,
through which fire travels faster than
through dry prairie grass. The cane
fields which skirted the road between
the plantation and Manzanillo were six
miles long, and the fire is said to have
been an imposing spectacle.
The reports of the destruction say
that Mr.. Rigney and his family were
permitted to leave the plantation with
out being harmed, but the residence
was stripped of its furnishings and
rendered uninhabitable before the
flames reach it. The greater part of
the loss falls upon Mr. Rigney and Mr..
Kelly, as the interest of Mr.. Farrell of
Ansonia in the property was not large.
It is said that Mr.. Rigney took the de-
struction coolly, having had a similar
experience in the war which ended in
1878, and realizing that his lot was no
worse than that of the vast majority
of planters OF the island.