The Bourbon news. [volume] (Paris, Ky.) 1895-19??, 1898-08-16
ARICHCOUNTRY.
Some of the Natural Resources of the
Province of Santiago de Cuba.
Maize, Vans, Sweet Potatoes and Other
Vegetables Grow Everywhere With
Little CuItivatiOn-ForestS of
Valuable Hard Woods.

SANTIAGO, Aug. 15-The province OF
Santiago de Cuba, especially that part
east of line drawn between Sagua de
Tanamo, San Luis and Santiago, is
to-day of vital interest to thousands
in the United States.
The natural resources of the country
and its fertility, its products and its
industries are of paramount import
ance. The richness Of the soil here, as
elsewhere in the island, entities 1t to
consideration from an agricultural
standpoint. The raising of cane and
the manufacture of sugar are the chief
sources of wealth in the province. In
the immediate neighbOrhOOd of Santi-
ago are many sugar estates.
ManzanillC, further westward on the
south coast, boasts of many large
''centrales," or central sugar estates,
where the cane grown on neighboring
field is brought and grown, so many
carloads of cane being delivered
against so many pounds of man
ufactured sugar, the grinder, or
owner, of the estate making his
profit out of the immense amount Of
cane brought him, of which he keeps a
percentage or royalty, the ''ColonO,"
or small planter, finding it to his adj
vantage to have his cane ground on
royalty basis instead Of laying out
10 IF al naI
etc, unwarranted by the smallness Of
his holding or cane crop.
Guantanamo, Santiago and Manza-
Milo are the three important sugar
shipping ports Of caste IN Cuba.
Next in Importance, agriculturally,
come the coffee and cocoa plantations,
with which Santiago province is thick
ly covered. Coffee and cocoa plants are
generally grown on the same ''fncas",
or plantation, the frail coffee plant re-
curing for it's growth the shade of.
fered by the tall and over
hanging cocoa tree. The eoffee
shrub yields its crop in November, but,
as it is not regular and uniform, three
harvests are made annually, the first
in November, the second in January
and the third in March.
Maize, yams, sweet potatoes and
| other vegeta bles grow everywhere,
with little care or supervision. In six
months they bear. Coffee shrubs need
the shade and these plants offer it.
The result is that on most coffee plan
tations these vegetables are grown,
which amply feed and sustain the
planter, who after six mon tbs IS on a
self-sustaining basis, with goodly
coffee crop ahead as clean profit.
Tobacco is grown extensively al
Palma So~ianO San Luis, Paire, Jigu-
any and Guica, most of which has
hitherto been shipped to Germany, the
balance to the Spanish reggie. Guica
produces the best leaf, although, OF
course, of an inferior grade as com
pared with Vuelta and Partidos to-
bacco.
The woods and forests of eastern
Cuba abound in every variety of hard
woods, the principal being mahogany,
cedar, rosewood and ''majagua," a
| wood known the world over as the
strongest and most durable of all
woods of greenish ashy hue and an
exceedingly close grain. Most of them,
in fact nine -tenths of the woodlands
are virgin forests which it would take
10 lo~s ia, 70 ~
which have so far escaped the destruc
tive hand of man owing to the lacl
of transportation facilities to the sea
coast.
The "Yaya," or iancetshar, grows by
the thousand acres, and so does the
lignum vitae so much sought after fOl
the manufacture of block sheaves anC
of heavy balls used in bowling alleys
Palm leaf in great quantities is ex
ported to Europe and the United
States for the manufacture of hats
and ''palmiche" finds a ready marke
abroad for the manufacture of oil.
Honey and beeswax are other yer,
important articles of export, and mod
ern hives on the plan of the Frencl
and Dutch hives would amply repa,
the investment
Next in Importance to it's agricul
tural products, Santiago de Cuba's irol
: and manganese mines demand uni
| versal attention. AS is well know
the Santiago ore, with its low percent
age of PHOSPHORUS ranks, togethe
with the Swedish and the Spanish De
merara mineral as the crack ore" o
the world.
With wealth of natural resources
rich in agricultural and mineral soil
Santiago de Cuba only awaits Amer
lean brains, enterprise and capital t
make it one of the richest. as we'll a
one of the most beautiful, spots in tn
world.
The News at Hong Kong.
HONG Hone, Aug. 15.-News of TIL