The Anaconda standard. [volume] (Anaconda, Mont.) 1889-1970, 1898-11-01
sllRCT|ne CAMP SITES
THE TENSION is PAINFUL
- 10Th spanish and Cuban Troops
Are Held IN Good Control
This Years Tobacco
Crop.

New York. Oct. s1.-A dispatch to the
Tribune from Pinar del Rio says some
American omcers came to this town
q few nights ago to look up the site
Tor a American amp. No parade VA
made Of their presence. but their COM
ing wa q grateful Indication that
something Is being done toward Amer
lean military occupation.
Lieutenant Rowan had previously
been here and had conferred with Gen.
sral ve.ssco. commanding the Spanish
troops In the district. and with the
Cuban general. Lorento. whose head.
ouarters are Q short distance out OF
town. The only other Americans who
have visited the place were two or
three tobacco buyers. who come every
seasou. Nothing In their presence
ave 4 hin Of the new conditions. To-
6acco would continue to grow In Pinar
del Rio whether Spanish sovereignty
was In force or not. n buyers would
continue to come from the united
States.
IL n not likely that q large garrison
win be established here. Yet the pre-
sumption 10 thai the military control
of the western end of the island VIII
be centered At this point. There Is no
other place except the little port OF Co
Iona. on the south coast. Is or 20 miles
away. That n not adapted for q camp:
though supplies may be lande there n
carried overland by supply trains, as
the road In an excellent one. or they
can be sent by railroad from Havana
There are 1000 Cuban soldiers In this
part Of the province, and almost an
equal number of Spanish troops. Two
thirds Of the Insurgents are under Gen.
eral Lorento In small camps. within a
few miles Of Pinar. The remainder are
camped at Puerto de Collie. a dozen
miles away. They do not forage on the
country. Instead. they send out small
SQUADS to solicit food from the people
In the villages. Where they have any
thing. both Cubans and Spanish contri-
butte. II 10 an uncertain means OF ex-
istence and cannot be continued In
definitely.
The Cuban generals have excellent
control and their authority Is respect
ed. Nc collisions ave occurred with
the Spanish troops. and self restraint
10 shown on both sides. Nevertheless
the tension IL painful.
The cubans say they will disband as
soon as the Spanish troops 60. Gen
eral veiasca. the Spanish commander
does not know when that WI BE.
Though IL might not be possible for
the Spanish forces to depart for two
or three month";. the presence of a small
American garrison In Pinar would re-
lieve the strain which must exist az
Iong as the two armed forces continue
a. ct present. In respect to the fu-
ture. there Is a sharp cleavage. The
Spanish classes want Immediate, quick
and even forcible action h Cubans
want to try the experiment OF an In
dependent government.
The town Of Pinar itself Is healthy
and II rs free from malaria as n
spot In Cuba Is likely to be. In no part
OF the island is less seen OF the effects
of three and a half years OF internal
war. In the zone OF which Pinar del
Rio II the center. are $4,000 people
Most Of them are engaged In cultivat-
ing the soil. Pinar del Rio had the re-
concentration In mild form. While
traces of IL remain, the country peo-
pie as a whole were not exterminated
Enough are left to till the lands. The
evidence that they are doing IL can be
seen for miles around. The prospects
for q general recuperation and expan
sion when American control Is estab-
lished are almost growing.
All this Il said with the full know
ledge hat the tobacco crop this sea-
son may not com up to what II was
year CO.. The uncertainty following
the signing of the protocol has changed
q little. The Inhabitants expected that
the United States would take immed.
late possession. When that did not
happen they had a period of doubt
and instead Of putting In their crops
they talked politics" But the chic
drawback II the weather. The rain,
season lasted later han usual and tn
rains have been heavy enough to wash
out the young tobacco plants which
had not been taken from the hotbeds
The small tobacco farmer is dreadini