The Banner-Democrat. [volume] (Lake Providence, East Carroll Parish, La.) 1892-current, 1898-07-30
THE RESOURCES OF CUBA
HER PROSPECTS FOR PROSPERITY
WHEN A LASTING PEACE COMES.


The Choicest Lands In California Can
not Approach the Soil Of Cuba In Fer
fility-The Mineral Wealth Of the Is
land-It Is an Agricultural Paradise.
Now that Cuba is assured Of her
freedom, it may be interesting to in
quire into the resources of the coun-
try, and ask what may be her pros
poets for prosperity when she is no
longer restrained and overtaxed by the
|greedy government of Spain. The
area Of Cuba is about AZ, 900 square
miles. It's greatest length is 760
miles, and it's breadth ranges from 20
to 1876 miles Perhaps there is no
space Of earth the equal in size to
Cuba that can begin to compare with
her in the production of those things
that are useful to man. Antonio y
Morales, noted authority, has pre-
pared table showing the variety and
quantities of the staples that can be
raised on tract of thirty-three acres
in Cuba. A farm of that size in one
year produces thousands of pounds Of
sugar, coffee, tobacco, cacao (choco-
late), cotton, indigo, rice, sage, bananas
and yucca. The choicest lands in
California for the variety and
quantity of their products-cannot
approach the soil of Cuba in this re-
spect. With its mild climate, its ex-
uberant vegetation, and the eagerness
of the earth to respond to the slight
est efforts in the way of culture, Cuba
offers an ideal home for the man in
love with the agricultural life.
The commerce of Cuba, even under
the blighting rule of the Spaniard,
has been great. In 1898, before the
curse of war fell ON the island, Cuba
exported 71S, 2O4 tons of sugar, and
produced 815, 1874 tons. It's exports
of molasses to the United States alone
ia that year were 1854 hogsheads. OF
rum the exports were 93O8 pipes. In
1893 the Cuban exports of leaf tobacco
were 227, S65 bales. OF manufactured
cigars lat, 800, 600 were exported, and
of cigarettes 1851, 1913 packages.
These are only the main exports.
They show what may be done with the
exhaustless soil and climate of the is
land, when its people were in condi-
ton of virtual slavery, alta time when
chattel slavery had been abolished
only seven years. 1t is an axiom OF
economic science that free labor is in
definitely more productive than slave
labor, and the industrial growth OF
the United States is an example OF the
expansion of industry when enterprise
is unhampered by the curse of slavery,
and by foreign political interference.
Cuba's chief industries were growing
in spite of the drain upon her before
the present war began, for in 1894 her
total production of sugar was 1, 054, PA
tons, an increase of 238, 800 tons over
the preceding year.
| The natural resources of Cuba are
infinite, one may say, in variety. OF
her area only 10 per cent. is under
cultivation, per cent. is notreclaimed.
and per cent. is under forests. Great
tracts of the island are practically un-
explored. She had in 1894 a popula-
ton of a little more than l, 500, 900.
OF these nearly one-third have been
starved to death aauring the present
war. Cuba could support in plenty a
population of 100000 Her for
ests are stock edNwith the finest wood
in the world-wood. several species of
which are as hard as iron, turning the
edge of the axe, and remaining imper-
ishable under water. There are found
woods invaluable for the dye industry,
ebony, cedar, fustic, lancewood, ma
hogany, rosewood, jocuma, acana and
many others. There are fifty varie-
ties of palm. Her fruits are valuable
and little cultivated. The climate is
admirably suited for the olive; and the
orange, the lemon, the pineapple and
the banana are indigenous.
The mineral resources of the island
are great, yet the mineral industries
are in their infancy. Almost all the
metals are found in Cuba. There are
gold, silver, mercury, copper, lead,
and all the forms of asphaltum; anti
mony, magnesia. copperas, gypsum,
red lead, ochre, salt, arsenic, tale and
many others. Copper is abundant in
all the metamorphic rocks of Cuba. It
is true that coal is yet undiscovered,
but under free republic capital would
flow into the island, and there is no
doubt that true coal would soon be
found to replace the bitumen that is
now used, and which is found in springs
and mines in great quantities.
Cuba is rich in marble, awaiting
the capital of the Spectator. Great
deposits of this rock are found, and in
the Isle of Pines there is marble of
quality as fine as the best of that ma
terial used by the sculptor. Beau
tifully colored marble and jasper are
common. On the coasts are immense
deposits of rock salt, and there are
also unlimited quantities of the purest
white sand, capable Of being convert
ed into fine earthenware. Even the
illustrious Humboldt was amazed at
the richness and variety of the mineral
wealth of Cuba. How much of this
wealth has been utilized may be gath
cred from the fact that at the end of
1891 the total number of mining titles
issued in Santiago district was 900.
OF these 1873 were iron, SO manganese,
and SO copper.