The Caldwell tribune. [volume] (Caldwell, Idaho Territory [Idaho]) 1883-1928, 1898-08-27
FACTS ABOUT SANTIAGO
What the Natural Resources
Of the Province are.
IT'S SOIL IS VERY RICH
Raising Of Cane and the Manufacture Of Sugar are
the Chief sOusces Of Wealth-Thrse Har-
vests Of Coffee Made Annually
Vegetables Grown.

The province of Santiago de Cuba,
and especially that part OF it east OF
line drawn between Sagua de Tanamo,
San Luis and Santiago, is today of vital
interest to thousands of people in the
United States.
The natural resources of the country
and its fertility, its products and its in
dustries are Of paramount Importance.
The richness Of the soil here, as else
where in the Island, entities it to con
sideration from an agricultural stand.
point. 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 the following sugar estates:
Santa Ana-Owned by Francisco
A0za, an American citizen, whose aver
age annual output is 10000 bags. of 300
pounds each.
HatillO-Owned by J. Bueno s. Co.,
Cubans, output, 10000 bags.
Union-Owned by Santiago Poussea,
French citizen; 10000 bags.
Sabinilla-Owned by Limo Salozar, a
Cuban; $1,000 bags.
San Sebastin-Owned by Brooks s.
Co., British subjects; 10000 bags.
Triumfo-Owned by Mr.. Whiting, an
American citizen; 5000 bags.
Mejorina-Burned and destroyed by
the insurgents.
San Luis-Owned by Angel Norma,
Spaniard; now abandoned.
In the vicinity of Guantanamo, the
principal estates are San Miguel, Santa
Cabel, Confuente, Los CaEOs and Sole
dad. The average annual crop of these
estates is estimated at $4,000 bags each.
There are many smaller estates. The
estates are all on the south coast, on
this side of the Sierra Maestro chain
of mountains. No sugar cane is grown
OF. the north coast in Santiago province.
Manzanillo, further westward on the
south coast, boasts of many large "cen-
trales,' or central sugar estates, where
the cane grown on the neighboring
fields is brought and ground, so many
cart loads of cane being delivered
against so many pounds of manufac-
tured sugar, the grinder or owner of
the estate making his profit out of the
immense amount of cane brought him,
of which he keeps percentage or roy
atty, the colono, or small planter, find
ing it to his advantage to have his cane
ground on the royalty basis instead of
laying out large sum of money for
machinery, etc, unwarranted by the
smallness of his holding or cane crop.
Guantanamo, Santiago and Mauzanillo
are the three important sugar shipping
points of eastern Cuba.
Next in Importance agriculturally
come the coffee and cocoa plantations
with which Santiago province is thichly
covered. Coffee and cocoa plants are
generally on the same "fncas," or plan
tation, the frail coffee shrub requiring
for its growth the shade offered by the
tall and overhaDging cocoa tree.
The coffee shrub yields its crop in
November, but as it is not regular and
uniform, three harvests are made an
nually, one in November, the second in
January, and the third in March. Large
quantities of cocoa have been shipped
annually to France and Spain, at prices
varying from SIS to SIT per hundred
weight, free on board, but for many
years no coffee has been exported FROM
the island of Cuba. The reason for this
lies in the fact that Cuban coffee, like
Cuban tobacco, is of a rare quality and
aroma, raised and selected by experts,
and of necessity bringing price which
would not easily find a market abroad
for the product. In the fields Cuban
coffee sells from $2l to $25 per hundred
pounds.
In by gone days these "cafetales'
coffee plantations) used to be the pride
of the Spanish Grandees, their original
owners, who nyed on their plantations