The times., 1899-03-12

masculine attire. carried Mauser rifles and
machetes. marched with the men. endured
all tine hardships of camp and field, and
made as intrepid and uncomplaining SOL
diers as any. Among many well authenti-
Gated stories space forbids the telling OF
but TWO or three. One OF the most roman
tic incidents OF the war was marriage
ceremony performed at dawn in the noun
taius of Puerto Principe. The groom was
Captain Robau. handsome, we'll educated,
and once wealthy young planter; the bride
the runaway daughter of one OF his tenants.
Robau had long loved the young lady, bu.
as she was in humble circumstances the
rigid rules OF Cuban etiquette kept them
apart. At the beginning of the war he re-
cruited a company from his own neighbor-
hood composed entirely OF his personal
friends. all we'll young men. When
they started for the field, their horses
tails braided with ribbons, each man wear
ing a wreath OF palm around his hat in
honor OF the captains sweetheart they
rode direct to the girls house and saluted
her as she stood on the balcony with her
mother. RObau went inside and asked that
he might marry her at once and take her
with him fearing that some evil might be-
fall her in his absence. The parents re-
fused and he rode away broken hearted.
Two days later, when the company had
gone many miles, the girl, mounted on
horse dashed TO the captains side. Shs
had run away from home in order TO join
her lover. Without an hours delay Ro-
bau sent TWO men, with an extra horse and
an empty saddle, TO fetch the nearest priest
The good padre muttering Ave Marias all
the way, expecting to be killed, arrived
with his escort just as dawn was breaking
in the east. So the young people were
married: Sonora RObau followed her hus-
band all through the war and now. with
her little boy, Is at home on the Robau
plantation.
BaGicd Spanish Officers
The women OF San Juan Martinez took
no small part in the rebellion. When the
Spanish troops under Cornell were on their
way to that city the citizens, men and
woI H. met and took Il vote as to what
course they should pursue. They decided
to burn their town TO ashes, rather thdn
have it destroyed by Spanish soldiers. So
while the men took all the horses and
hurried to The fields the women set their
own homes on fire and then. with their
children in their arms, walked TO Guane,
. twelve miles distant The SpaniardS en-
ragged at finding themselves bafiled, started
/ in hot pursuit. Hearing of their approach,
the women fired Guane and walked to the
next town. MOnteZuma. and so they kept
up the merry chase, burning village al
ter village until they reached the insur-
gent army.
! The wife OF Senior Damien Peresote. a
political exile in the Isle Of Pines. fol-
lowed her husband to the penal colony, re-
solved to liborate him. While he was
working with several others telling tim
bsr she suddenly appeared, snatched a gun
from the surprised guard, ana pointing ii
at his head, threatened him with instant
4 i l.
comrades rushed forward, bound and gag
ged the guard before he could give the
alarm, and escaped from the island in an
open boat. They reached Cienega de Zapa-
/ ia in safety and afterwards joined the rev.
olutionary forces. Mrs HERNIA sz acting
as nurse till the end of the war.
Though so fearless in the ia of dan
ger, belligerence is farthest from the nat
ural bent of the Cuban woman. Most of
them find their hearts content in the quiet
of the home circle, with no ambition to
shine in public favor. Now and then,
however. genius appears whose light can
not be hid. Such was the poetess, Ger
trudes Gomez de Avellaneda, who has been
called the Elizabeth Browning of Cuba. She
was born in Puerto Principe in 1914. At
the age of twenty she went to Spain and
soon became known in Seville CadiZ, and
Madrid through her lyrics, dramas and
.
Burnett. she has published dozen novels
several books of poems, biographies, and
essays, and no less than nine successful
dramas. Among the latter her Saul.
"Baltasar." and 'Catilina" have been
| translated into several languages and long
held the boards in France and Spain She
died in Madrid in 1873.
The Island Poctcss.
Another authoress of high merit is Luisa
Perez, born in Santiago de Cuba in 1887
Her father being a poor miner in the CO.
bre mountains, she educated herself with
the aid of a few books. While still young
she was celebrated as the island poetess." 4"
second only TO Avellaneda. In later life
she translated a number of works, wrote a
voluminous work on "Educacion Ur-
banidad." and published several essays.
After the death of her husband. Senior
Ramon Zambrana, she ceased writing alto
gether and yet lives III Havana, devoted
TO her family.
Aurelia Castiil de Gonzales is another
wellknown literary Cubana. She first ac-
qured fame through the newspapers of her
native city, Puerto Principe, and then her
poems passed TO other countries. Not long
ago she published a book Of travels in