Evening star., 1899-03-23
IN SANTA CLARA PROVINCE
Conditions at Camajuani, Remedies, Caibarien
and Placetas.
Where the Cuban War Touched Light
ly and Where 1t Fell With
Heavy Hand.

| Assistant Secretary of War Meiklejohn
| has made public a report from a military
official who has recently returned from a
| trip to Camajuani, Remedies. Caibarien and
Placetas, in the province of Santa Clara,
| Cuba.
According to this official Cana juani has
| population in the town of COCO: the mu-
| nicipality OF 1900. Unlike many other
| towns in Cuba, the population of this place
| has increased 1900 during the war. The
town of Camajuani has, 1t appears, not suf-
| fered by the war 1t bears the reputation
| of having furnished large number of
! Spanish guerrillas. who succeeded in thor
| oughly protecting the municipality. The
| town is the center of a large tobacco dis
trict, II having produced in favorable sea-
| sons as much as 100000 bales of tobacco
| per annum. The revenues at present are
cut down to a merely nominal sum on
count of the suspension of the rural taxes
this being an agricultural district
Few Enlisted With the Insurgents.
Very few people enlisted in the Cuban
| army in this section. All of the young men
who went to war returned with high grades.
| Nearly all of the inhabitants have fathers
and brothers in the Spanish army. The
official mentioned makes the interesting
statement that he met one Cuban colonel
who had a brother and five nephews in the
Spanish army. four of the number being
| in the battle of Ell Caney.
Under the Spanish system the taxes col
| lected last year amounted to $4,000. The
| principal source of revenue, as is the case
| in nearly all Cuban towns, is the meat tax
which pays between $500 and 5000 per
month.
The town supports two public schools
one for boys and one for girls. Two public
schools are also located in Zulueta, near by.
| There are also two private schools in CAM
| ajuani and railroad and telegraph office.
The town has no waterworks, electric light
4 Issr1,+ r fz
tained from wells thirty-five feet in depth,
| the water flowing through blue clay and
limestone. There are no sewers IN town
The wells have become contaminated
through the earthen vaults, the result being
that typhoid fever is very prevalent at GER
tain times of the year. There were seven
cases of yellow fever in the town last year
while in 1897 there were 200 cases OF yellow
fever, mostly among Spanish troops.
Remedies Suffered Greatly.
The municipality of Remedies consists of
Buena Vista, Guanebibi and portion of
Zulueta. The population of Remedies is
1000 and that of the municipality. is 1900.
Prior to the recent Spanish-Cuban war the
population was 1900.
Remedies has suffered greatly by the war.
The district is a sugar-producing one and
four mills are located there, all of which
will grind this year. The town has no wa
ter works, neither gas nor electric light
plant. Water is obtained from wells and
cisterns. and the town is lighted by cleo
trio lights.
The annual taxes of the town were. in
peaceful times, between SiJ,u0U and $4,000
1t is expected to collect in the six months
between January l and June 30 of this
year $4,000 $1,000. A consumption tax is
being collected. although the rate has been
greatly reduced. The meat tax amounts to
between $400 and $500 a month Remedies
has railroad and telegraph communication.
1t also has twelve public schools and two
private schools. Seven of the public and
both the private schools are in the town of
Remedies and the others are scattered
throughout the municipality. AT present all
schools are closed, owing to want of
funds.
The country around Camajuani and Re
medios is generally low and swampy
tobacco The country is reported TO be
larious.
Business Was Depressed.
Cafbarien has only one other town in the
municipality, Guajabana. The city has a
population of 6,000, and the municipality of
5000. The population increased 1000 dur
ing the late war. No military operations
took place in the vicinity of the municipal
ity, and it has suffered more by business
depression than by the raVages of war
There are four sugar mills at Caibarien. but
only one will grind this year. The principal
business is importing and warehouse stor-
age. The taxes before the war amounted
to S20CG0 to $2i,00 a year. The present
collection is about SD day. The munich
panty Is in bankrupt condition. The town
mas railroad and telegraph communication,
but no electric light or gas plants. 1t has
four public and two private schools. About
LOO destitute people are there at present
Center of Military Operations.
Placetas town has population of 1900.
The other towns in the municipality are
San Andreas and Guaracabulla. Narcerre-
ma, fernando and Tibisia formerly belonged
to the municipality, but these three towns
were destroyed during the war. The popu-
lation of the municipality before the war
was ii 900. now it is 5000
This municipality suffered greatly as it
was the center of important military opera
tons. The principal industries are the
growing of sugar cane and tobacco. There
were formerly three mills but only one is
now in operation. The annual taxes before
$1,000. There are no water works. gas or
electric light plants. Water is supplied
from wells. The city is only twenty years
old and has wide streets laid out at right
angles. There is railroad and telegraph
communication. There are two schools for
boys and two for girls. The Spanish never
had less than G,000 troops in the cfty and
frequently as many as IA 600 The munich
pality was often occupied by from 20 OoO To
10000 Spanish.
Placetas is considered a very healthy
place. as it is on the eastern end of the
mountain district Mountains extend a far
as the eye can reach in all directions tow
ard the west. No yellow fever has ever
originated in the municipality, and it is
considered by physicians one of the healthi-
est places in the island.