Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1899-05-04
PRAISE OF PORTO RICO
Return Of Mr.. Heath, First Assistant Post
master General.
Magnificent Scenery-Crops Growing
cefved Ideas All at Fault.

After an absence of a month and a day
IN an official visit to Porto Rico for the
purpose of investigating its mail facilities.
Mr.. Heath, the first assistant postmaster
general returned to his desk in the de-
partment today. With the exception of
terrible attack of seasickness he said he
had a very pleasant trip and spoke in glow
ing terms Of our new possession in the At
lantic.
He arrived at Ponce on the 18th of April
and on the 14th started on his tour of the
island The trip was made by railway,
overland coaches and horse. some years
ago he said, French syndicate obtained
a valuable concession from the Spanish
cortes. as well as an appropriation. and I'M
dertook to construct railroad about me
island In return they guaranteed per
cent dividend. They were to receive S6o'uVu
a mile for the railroad constructed. In the
nice smooth places the railroad Is all right
but when it comes TO the rugged county ,t,
the builders simply stopped and put the
money down in their pockets
Magnificent Scenery.
The scenery in Porto Rico, Mr.. Heath
said is magnificent, and combines the
beauty of Switzerland, Scotland, England
and the United States. A remarkable fea-
ture of the country IS the fact that there
is not an acre of valley land. Ihe hllis
rise precipitously and are covered with col
fee and bananas which are in a tiourishlng
condition. 1t was a source of wonderment
to him how the natives could work on
their almost perpendicular sides He had
had before a good idea of every country
he was about to visit before making the
trip, but this time what he saw was differ
ent from anything he had ever imagined,
and the descriptions that had been given
a rfgNn II-Dr
variance with the true state OF AFFAIRS. He
had heard about the immense forests and
the great plains and the numerous rivers,
but he saw none of them, the timber being
scarce. the plains an imagination ana the
rivers few and far between. The even tenn
perature that had been spoken of was
minus quantity, and when he left the tenn
perature was 100 degrees in the shade.
There was a great humidity in the at
mosphere, and people always carry an UNI
brelia after the sun goes down.
Mr.. Heath spoke in glowing terms of the
great work the Americans are doing on the
island.
San Juan the CIeanest City.
San Juan, he said, was the cleanest city
in every respect he had ever sean. 1t was
situated on an island whose topography re-
minded one of a turtles back, and the
heavy rains. which were frequent, kept the
city spick and span The alleys and streets
were paved WIN belgian DtOch- ana alto
sether the hygienc conditions Were such
as those found in every well-regulaUed mu-
nioipality. There We're some places he visit
ed which the Americans had not yet taken
hold Of where the conditions were just the
OF posite. At San German. for instance, he
was entertained by the alcade ii the city
hall, and it was really the dirtiest place he
had ever seen, and full of f1eas. which were
very torn anting. Gen. Henry. the governor
of the island, has been doing a woad ,rlul
work, and Yankee ingenuity ana progress
sion is seen on every hand. The only COM
plants that he heard while on the island
were that the country had not already been
annexed to the United States.
Porto Rico, he declared, offered many ad-
vantages for people with small capital, and
he thought after while that it might he a
good place for young men to go. At the
present time the duty of the United States
was to feed the people and then educate
them. After that there would be no trouble
They were peaceful and evinced a desire to
progress.