The Wilmington daily Republican. (Wilmington, Del.) 1890-1902, 1899-01-11
GENERAL WOOD ARRIVES
The Commander at Santiago Was
Summoned to Washington.
lE DENIES ALARMING REPORTS.
Citizens OF Santiago Made No Dem.
: onstrations Against the Order Trans-
ferring Customs Receipts to Havana.
A Statement by General Castillo.

IerrlnE customs KeceiptS to Havana.
A Statement by General Castillo.
New York, Jan. 1.-THE United States
transport Mississippi, which sailed from
Santiago on the evening Of Jan. 4, ar
rived yesterday. On board the trans
port were General Leonard Wood, mill
tary governor Of Santiago, and Lieu
tenant Hanna, aide-de-eamp; DR.. Cas-
\ tillo, brother of the Cuban General
Castillo, and Colonel Gibson, who SUI
perintended the distribution of provis-
ions to the starving Cubans.
General Wood said his visit here was
in response to a telegram from the sec
\ retary of war received on the day ht
left Santiago, seven days ago. What
was required Of him by the government
was only conlectural. At the time he
left Santiago everything was quiet and
the affairs of the province and city in
the best condition. General Brooke had
assumed command only two days be-
fore, and the transfer of the customs
revenues from Santiago to Havana was
therefore new, 80 he had very little in
formation about the question, and that
little. would not be proper for him to
mention till he had conferred with the
government.
The customs receipts received at Sam
tiago every month from the various
tp2arts of the province were about $70.-
900. Under Spanish rule all the GUS
toms receipts from the whole island
went to Havana. The general would
not make any comment on the changed
situation, but 1t was manifest that he
thought the receipts should continue to
go to Santiago to make provision for
public works and sanitation. By order
of the government the operation of
General Woods order for centralizng
the customs receipts of the Island of
Cuba at Havana has been suspended
for the present, till the government
fixes plan for their distribHtion, ap-
parently depending much on General
Woods visit, though he would not say
go.
When shown the dispatch stating
that General Brooke had expressed
establishment that General Wood had
permitted demonstration at Santiago
against the order concentrating GUS
toms at Havana he declared that II
such dispatch had been sent by Cen
nral Brooke to Washington General
Brooke was laboring under a mistake.
No such demonstration occurred, the
people having been perfectly quiet
about the matter, and the only thing
OF public character was a gathering
led by the mayor and chief men of the
city, attended by band to express
good will toward him on his departure.
DR., Joaquin Castillo, who was
passenger on the Mississippi and ac-
companying General Wood, is bound to
Washington as representative of the
Santiago board of trade and the busi-
ness community generally in the GUS
toms matter. DR.. Castillo was a gen.
eral In the Cuban army and served
during the first year of the Cuban in
surrection, but from that time was as
sOciated with the Cuban junta in New
York under General Palma, and direct
ed number of filibustering expedi-
tions. He is now a practicing physi-
clan, and is the head of the Santiago
hospital.
Dr. Castillo said that as against the
monthly customs receipts at present In
Santiago formerly there were about
$4,000, or less than half, though the
present tariff Is mostly under the third
class, while the Spanish tariff rigidly
stuck to the high charges under the
first class No more imports were re-
ceived now, maybe not so much, but
all imports now paid their share of the
duty, instead of a great part being
smuggled and stolen, as formerly. In
addition to the customs revenue about
100000 yearly Is realized from the
municipal taxes at Santiago. These
revenues are now all being directed to
public improvements. There are
thousand men now employed building
roads and in other public works.