The aegis & intelligencer. [volume] (Bel Air, Md.) 1864-1923, 1898-05-06
miscellaneous
THE WEST INDIES.

The West India Islands, the pro
bable scene of many great naval
battles in a war between the United
States and Spain, have had more than
| their share of fighting since the ro-
mantle days of the Spanish main, when
England wrested from Spain suprem-
acy on the sea. Nearly every one of
| the islands that curve about the Car
ibbean sea PLAYED a part in the strug-
giles between Spain and England in
the seventeenth, and England and
France in the eighteenth centuries.
Besides Havana and Matanzas in
| Cuba, Spain has but one fortified
harbor among the Antilles. San Juan
| Borrista, or st. Johns, in Porto Rico.
1t is an excellent harbor and could be
strongly defended by the Eiscaya and
| Oquendo, with the torpedo boats
against our squadron. But the latter
alone could do nothing in st. Johns
| against our battleships. The fortifi-
| cations are oldfashioned and the guns
| are useless against iron ships.
In southern Cuba, the harbor of
| Santiago de Cuba could be defended
with a weak force, as the entrance is
| narrow and deep, with forts naturally
strong. The forts are not modern, how
| ever, and the Spanish government
holds but limited area around the
city, SO that the Spanish will pro-
badly make the main defense at
Havana and everything be made sub
servient to holding the capital In
| this case, with the Oquendo and Viz
caya reaching Havana, the great bat
| tie of the war will be fought at the En-
trance of the harbor, or the American
| fleet will blockade and starve the city
into surrender, aided by the Cuban
| army.
The sympathy of both of the black
republics in Hayti is with the United
| States as against any European power
A moments consideration of their his
tory will explain this. The two re-
| publics, Hayti in the West and San
Domingo in the East, are the only
countries in the West Indies whose
| form of government is like our own
except, of course, the republic of Cuba.
Toussaint r0uverture's successful
struggle against France and hi cap
| ture by treachery, followed by the
complete expulsion of the French. is
one of liberty's favorite tales. The
Spanish invaded San Domingo in 1901
and their defeat left the islanders free.
There are quite million people ON
the island, but they daily on the way
to civilization. There is no army, so
Hayti's only use to us would be IN
| lending us a harbor. There are no
| harbors on the north coast, but Port
Au Prince, in the republic of Hayti, is
well protected port lying behind the
Island of Golnaive. IN tho Domini-
can republic there are the harbors of
Sapto Domingo and Porto Plata, which
would make convenient bases for
operations in the Caribbean.
The Mona Passage, only sixty miles
wide, separates Hayti from the beauti-
full island of Porto Rico. Porto Rico
is valuable possession and Spain is
putting up rich stake on turn of
| lhe war cards when she risks her con
| troll of that fertile island.
st. Johns is an ancient town. The
old buildings are curious and interest
! ing, especially the palace which was
| erected by Ponce de Leon, who con.
auered the island for Spain. The
| principal city on the southern coasts
| is Ponce, with 10000 inhabitants,
situated three miles inland. MAYA
guez, on the west coast, con tains 50, 900
| people. 1t is separated from its port
| by a river spanned by an iron bridge
| There is a barracks here, but no fort.
| The four other Beaports of Porto Rico
do not deserve notice. Their harbors
as in fact is the case with all the
harbors of the island-are rapidly fill
| ing up with silt and are dangerous to
| heavy vessels.
In the group of the Virgin Islands,
to the east, only the two Danish
Islands, st. Thomas and st. CFoiX, are
probable factors in the present situa-
ton. Their Importance would be con-
siderably greater if they had been Sc
cured by the United States, as was at
one time suggested by our State De
partment, The harbor of st. Croix is
unfortitied and not more than sixteen
feet deep, SO that it cannot be of much
service as base The island is Il hill
that rises 1, 100 feet out of that water.
Denmark bought it from France for
$145, 800 in 1913.
st. Thomas is but 100 miles away
from st. Johns. The harbor is nearly
land locked and has a depth of thirty
six feet. A dry dock is here and a
steam slip for small vessels. There is
no more pleasing sight in the Indies
than the harhor of Charlotte Amalle,
the capital, and the towering peak
fifteen hundred feet high, which forms
the bulk of the island.
Point Pitre, in Gaudeloupe, is an
important French station. That it
has fine military harbor may be con
Guided from its sobriquet. "Tle q D.
raltar of the Antilles" Nevertheless,
this Gibraltar is not as strongly fO.li-
fed as it might be. lJ resisted the
English successfully in 1866, ~ and
1903, but was taken by General Bar
rinptOu and Admiral Moore i'm 1913
The celebrated victory of Rodney over
Admiral de GTasse occurred here. y
curious feature of the island is It~
Rivere Sale, salt stream,l f1G to zoo
feet wide, which divides it,
Martinique is not great strategic
point like Guadalupe, but their are
| -. i.