The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1898-06-14

tiago on the south. IN addition to these
there are many small harbors on both the
north and the south coast. Nearly all of
these harbors have a comparatively small
entrance, and widen inland, p~ouch-like
so as to make safe shipping in the case
OF storms. and are easily defended by for
tifications. There are only a few short
wagon roads in Cuba deserving Of the
name, and this fact illustrates as well as
any other the utter Indifference Of the
Spaniards to such public improvements
as ave to do with the welfare OF the
common people. On the ~neighboring is
land of Jamaica, which is under the con-
troll OF the English, and which is only
oneotenth the size OF Cuba, there are over
easy overland communication between all
parts OF the island.
THE POPULATION.
Much interest is manifested at the pres
ent time In the population OF Cuba, but
unfortunately accurate data are not OBJ
cessible, are those published in the cen
sus of 1887. These give the total popula-
ton of the island at 1,61 6S7, of which
iii. 3G3 are white and E0,$A colored, the
percentage of colored population being 81.
This includes both the pure black and the
mullato In North Carolina the percent
age Of colored population is nearly s.: in
South Carolina there are 27,00
people, hence it will be seen
that there has beer lately a great
u6d1 Oh meaningless ana erroneous TAX
in the United States about American in
PREVENTION to set free a lot of Cuban ne
groes. OF this total population in cuba
there are about 5000 Chinese laborers;
and, not including the present army of
invasion, there are not $1,000 Spanish
born residents, and not exceeding 5000
other Caucasian foreigners.
Excepting the Chinese this foreign pop
ulatiof is engaged principally in office
holding, in trade and shipping; and is
largely confined to the critics which con-
tain about one-third the total population
Of the island. 1t is this foreign popula-
ton which nowadays is doing all the talk
ing and which falsely claims to be the
true representative of all that is worth
having in Cuba 1t is this element which
represents autonomy, or Spanish rule,
and wealth for itself, even if this means
death and destruction to everything else
on the island. 1t is this element that, it
is to be devoutly hoped, when the Amer
lean flag floats over Cuban soil, will leave
the island in the possession of it's real
owners, the native white Cubans.
And who are these native white Gu
bans? They constitute 70 per cent of the
native population Of the island outside
of Havana, which is the center of the
present unwelcome foreign despotism and
not at all representative of true Cuban
life and character. What are left of the
true Cubans aye now mostly found in the
provinces and provincial cities. They are
mostly of Spanish descent, but are said
to be quite different from the native
Spaniards of today. Thousands Of the
better class of Cubans have settled in the
United States, in Paris, in London, in
Mexico and other West Indies, and many
of them hold honorable positions in these
countries. The term "Creole' as applied
to the Cubans means simply white de-
~scendants of the Latin races, but is often
enormously understood to mean an ad-
mixture of negro blood. There are said
to be no more mixing OF the races in
Cuba than in our own southern states.
Of the half million colored people in
\ Nt1hn &c oiXynn IN thn. nnnCrlc in 1907 nnnry
have been destroyed by starvation dur
ing the past two years of the insurrec-
ton, as these constituted the poorest
class of the population, which has prob
ably suffered most. Hence the colored
population of Cuba today is probably
less than SOC, 900 and may not exceed 20
per cent Of the total population of the is
and.
REVENUES OF THE ISLAND.
No reliable recent statistics are access
sible concerning the rate Of taxation in
Cuba, but in 1879 the total revenue col
lected by the Spanish government from
the island amounted to $35 ,0O0, 600, or SIS
per capita; all Of which except sos, 900, is
said to have been spent mostly in pay
ment of Spanish soldiers and office hold
erS and in the settlement of Spanish debt.
And practically none of this terrible an
nual taxation is spent in public improve
ments for the people, or distributed in
any way among the real population of
the lSldHU. AIN ~ ~
money the native Cuban who pays the
tax has practically no voice.
The spirit in which Spain has kept in
subsection the population of the wonder
fully productive island is we'll represent
ed by a proclamation by Valamaseda, a
Spanish commander during the former ten
years war, whose acts during that war
may be compared to those of Weller dur
Ing the present war. Valamaseda wrote:
mot a single Cuban will remain on this
island, because we shoot all those we
find in the fields, on the farms, and in
every hovel. 3 So every one re-
ceives what he deserves-the men with
bullets, the animals with bayonets. The
island will remain a desert"
Humane America should nav stopped
this butchery long ago. Let US hope that
Spanish rule in this hemisphere is near
ing it's end.
In addition to this appeal in behalf of
humanity the United States is concerned
in another way. In 1928 the value of
our trade with Cuba amounted to SlB,-
600, 900; in 1897 this had been reduced to
$27, 900. GOO. J.. A. HOLMES.