Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1899-02-08
Sugar Growing in Central Cuba.
Big Plantations in Santa Clara Province
Scenes on Typical Estate.

4
the mill: and others feeding the cane
between the great steel cruHhera, be-
meath which n jelly stream pourH
forth into iron pipes 10 be- conducted
to the boilers Men. women and child
rem spread the crushed refuse 10 dry In
tho sun. after which Il viii serve ~
fuel. In another department square
cars filled with soft SUGAR are rolled
along "a track to he weighed. and then
their. contents are dumped into watts 10
dry Afterwards Che sigOr IL ahpycllcd
into bags aud horaheads-the latter to
be headed ~ coopers. the former Fewh
M with twina. ilglf u century ago
the Cuban planters found their great
cat profit In the mnnufhcttfe or the
best white sugar. but about the ycar
1854 q revolution incurred Va The sugar
! Industry. caused by the enormous uInn-
| titles ~ Uoct-root SUGAR Witch France
Germany and other Eufopenn countries
| put upon The market Before that time
| they Imported all their fine gugnf from
cuba. now they not only manufactur.
plenty for .ihrmselvcA, hut export i'm
mcnso quantities uf SUGAR ~ better
quality and ut lower prices 10 on
those countries which used 10 buy ~
Cuba. Hence few OF the cuban manu-
facturers now make the fnor grade.
hut conflne themselves To- the brown
varieties and what II known a. raw
sugar. No Industry II more pxmCtiug
and iaborious. The grinding season
extends from December 90 Apiii. and
then work goes ON uninterruptcdiy
night and day one gang relieving an
other Tor a few hours sleep. The rip
cning cane must have lm Juice cx-
pressed promptly. M just the right
time. n its full value ~ TO b. returned
and serious loss avoided. " the stalks
arc left too long IN the field, tho sap
tends TO crystnlixc. whereby the amount
Of juice II diminished and It's quality
impaired. 4 few years ago the cuban
| ovprseor was never seen without his
long cutting whip. nH well ~ his
mcchcto and pistol. but nowadays he
wears only the latter. The disappear.
nncc uf the whip II ~ much due to an
Improvement ON the side m humanity
as to the fact that plantation labor II
now nominnily free. The darkest ahhd-
owH Of the picture lie Tar In tho past.
for centuries the hlood-thitHty spirit
OF Spanish Hlavc-holders had free scope
In cuba; and after the aboriginal race
was sacrificed. millions OF Africans
were done 60 death by ovor-work, In
sufficient food. the lash the trund-mlli
simply to fli the pockets ~ rnpaciouH
masters and satisfy the mother coun-
trya demands for tribute. Early writ
orH tell Us how the slaves were allowed
hut four hours sleep out m the twenty
four being worked by watches through
out the night. Later under the SO
blacks could legally be- kept at work
only from sunrise III sun set. with an
hour FOR rest and food IN the middle
OF the day: but this rule was NJ little
regarded during the grinding season as
tho northern farmer minds wctting
when his hay IL out In the rain. Now
ndnys the negroes ana monHrcl-bloodei
wnrkmen look upon tho harvest season
nH the holiday of tho year. notwith.
standing It's nrduour lnhorH. because
then they ARE sure NJ job. ut good
wages. with plenty to eat. besides the
special privileges and bniHt croua
ninuaemsnts pertaining 10 the time
The fact II. the labor question n like.
" To become az serious In this isle OF
tomorrow ~ IN any other portion of the
earth. Some people contend that the
abolition Ut slavery demorhiizcd the Ia
Dor system; perhaps Il " possible that
the mischief dates farther back and
the decentralization began when slavery
was instituted. AZ any rate the neg
rocH, freed from the enforcement Of
work, are prone to he idle and thrift
less, having no thought for the morrow
and taking no interest In the property
out OF which they have TO make n llV-
ing. In the season when the cutting
OF cane " necessary. they can not be-
commanded, except az wages which the
times and the prices OF sugar wiii not
warrant; and even then. whole gangs
NulN WINK iNI n Mffh 10 ENJOY Nufile
fiesta. or attend the festivities incident
10 funeral or n wedding among their
class. though thclr employers lose
thousands of dollars by the delay. one
~ nstonished NJ the number ~ negroes
seen In cienfucgoa ana throughout
Santa CLARA prOvincc-until he reflect,
that each ~ the great estates used to
employ two ar three thousand ~ them
ana that there are thirty estates with
In a days ride ~ cicnfuoFoa. They
went en- mnssv into the Cuban army
and by the dlshnndment Of that body
are again bet loose upon tho communi-
". Seeing biloxi faces NJ every turn
one finds no difficulty In believing tho
oft-rcpontcd statement that mora than
half the population ~ New Cuba " de-
seconded from the Africans. They are
mostly uneducatcd. and OF course. un.
fitted FOR any higher position In life
than working IN the cane nolds, or
husk-wh hacking In the rag-tng army.
Vet even now many OF them are growl.
Ing ominously and threatening dire
vengeance on Americans because they
are not given government positions un.
der the new rcglmei They say. 1--WE
ana the nEhtlnR and now we want To
share In the benefits of Independence"
FANNIE nIfIGIIAM kVaDn