The herald., 1898-07-31
SANTIAGO'S RICH MINES
DIFFICULTY OF WORKING THEM
UNDER SPANISH RULE
Exactions and Corruption of officials
Government Property at Service
of Americans if Paid for

d. T. Denton and Captain c. D. Dickin-
son of Duluth and Captain E. Morcom OF
Tower were for several years in charge OF
the mining and railway interests of the
Juragua Spanish-American and Sigua Iron
companies at Santiago and Baiquiri. Mr.
Denton was sent there to superintend the
construction of the docks and railroads or
the companies and Captain Morcom went
with him to superintend the opening and
operation of the mines, while Captain
Dickinson was superintendent for several
years after the return of the other two to
this country. They tell interesting stories
of the country, the ways of the Spaniards
and the methods of carrying out all opera
tons there.
The Juragua Iron company is the prop
erty of the Pennsylvania Steel company,
whose works are at Steelton, near Harris
burg and of the Bethlehem Iron company.
The Spanish American mines are now the
property of the Lake Superior Consolida-
ted Mines, whose offices are in Duluth,
and whose active mines are In the Mesaba
and Gogebic ranges. The Sigua Iron COM
pany is the property of the Maryland Steel
company, and its ore goes to Sparrow
point The first of these three companies
has a railroad from its mines at Firmeza
and Quentugrua to the mouth of the Jura-
qua river at the town of Siboney, where
the headquarters of the mining and rail-
way company are situated. Opposite the
headquarters is the settlement of Juragua
q mere outpost, and there the road crosses
on a bridge, now considered so important
that several gunboats of SIMPSONS fleet
are continually guarding it. From Sboney
the road runs to Santiago, and ends at a
suburb called Vera Cruz, where the high
iron ore docks of the company are located.
The road is little narrow gauge, with
tracks three and a half feet wide, and is
twenty-five miles long, without allowing
for the twists and turns that neces-
sary in even a narrow gauge road in such
a mountainous country. After crossing
the San JSan river the road runs in deep
cuttings through the rocky hills toward
Santiago, and these cuttings are so mar
row that there is barely room for train
to scrape along between the towering
walls of rock while the'sdes are so steep
that there would not be the slightest diff
ficulty in blocking the line if Spanish troops
should take the trouble of loosening blocks
of stone and letting them drop down the
canyon.
At Baiquiri, where the landing of the
troops was fndQe is the terminus OF the
Spanish American road from the mines.
three miles northeast, and here is an iron
pier for merchandise, built by Mr.. Denton.
and an eght-pocket ore dock, rising some
fifty feet in the air. and also built by him.
1t was on the former the troops landed, and
IT Is the only point on that part of the coast
of Cuba where a landing could be effected
other than in the old way of getting ashore
by means of lighters and small boats. Ii
was the use of this pier that made the land
ing so expeditions. few miles east from
Baiquiri the Sigua from company has its
mines, close to the coast, and a pier at
which ocean ships can lie. Its railroad is a
very small affair." but that of the Jurag qua
company is equipped with nine locomotives
and some 400 cars, as well as one little pas
senger car that has been the scene of a
good deal of diplomacy and convivialty in
times past. At present none of the mines
IL worked and the properties are all aban-
dcned. The shipments of iron ore from
these mines have been as high as GOO, 600
tons a year. Along the coast from Sigus
around by Moro castle and up to Santiago
- an old military road.
TT was good once said Mr.. Denton,
''but the jungle has grown up, the cactus
has flied It and the rains have washed 1t
out Part Of 1t runs through a swamp and
nesds repairs badly. Now 1t Is good enough