Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1899-01-18
CUBA AND CUBANS.
ANOTHER INTERESTING LETTER FROM
MIR. F. A. GOSMAN.

Energy and Intelligence.
Correspondence Of the Yorkville Enquirer.
HACIENDA DE LA RoMELY, JAMAI-
CA, CUBA, January 2, 1S99.-It has
been long time since my last letter {;
but while 1 have constantly had the
matter in my mind, on account of being
so offer changed about from one place
to another, I have had but little op-
portunity to write. We thought when
we came here that we would be al
lowed to remain long enough to get
settled down but already we have Or
ders to move, either to Havana or to
Puerto Principe, on the the northern
coast of the island, and will leave
here inside of ten days or as soon as
we are relieved.
I am still holding on to my record
for good health, not having yet been
sick since l came To Cuba. The health
of the whole regiment is improving
wonderfully. We have not lost man
for six weeks. This has brought about
a satisfied feeling, and it is with some
little apprehension that we consider
the idea of being transferred to an
other probable "pest hole"
I and four other men of the regi-
ment have been doing duty during the
past six weeks as guards on various
sugar plantations. We are now about
20 miles from Guantanamo, in the
direction of Baracoa, right at the foot
of the mountains. We are here to
protect the plantation against the
thieving of scattered bands of Cuban
marauders, which infest all this part of
the country.
On this plantation, which embraces,
1 am told, $4,000 acres, is one Of the
largest, if not the very largest, sugar
mill in this part of the island. The
plantation and mill belongs to an
Englishman by the name of Brooks.
He seems to own everything in this
section, including the railroad from
Jamaica to Caimanera. One of his
foremen tells me that the machinery,
which goes to make up the sugar mill
plant, was all made in England and
that it represents value of not less
than S5OO,OOO.
The whole plantation is in sugar
caue. There are miles and miles of it,
80 thick that you cannot 60 through
1t, except by cutting your way. The
matured stalks range from the size of
a good big corn stalk, on up to the
thickness of a mans wrist. They do
not have TO plant sugar cane here
every year. . 1t is planted once, and
then the crop continues indefinitely.
There is some trouble the first year.
1t is necessary to plow the land and to
keep the weeds nd>grass away for
about II months. Then all there is to
do after that is The cutting of the cane.
The leaves are stripped from the stalks
and left on the ground. Their rotting
keeps up all the necessary fertility.
The work Of cutting cane was COM
meuced on this plantation yesterday,
and the mill will commence work next
week. Then, for six months, it will
be cut and grind, although about
800 people are engaged in the work of
cutting cane and hauling it to the mill.
The pay is at the rate of from 81 to
$1.2O a day in gold. Some of the
work is done by contract, the price
being so cents for each $500 pounds of
cane cut in lengths of about three feet
each and tied in bundles weighing
about 25 pounds each. On this basis
laborers can make $3.50 a day for six
hours work. 1t is not often that they
work more than six hours day.
The masses of the people here are
all very poor; but seem to be satisfied
with their lot. Whites and Negroes
associate together on perfect equality.
At least that is the way it looks to me.
l have been told that about half the
population is white and the other half
Negroes; but 1 cannot, for the life of
ME, distinguish the difference between
them. I would say that all of the
people are Negroes.
There is no Sunday here. The
people put in their six hours day
every day and have their dances, or
"fandangoes," as they call them, every
night. A motley crew they are, and
the noise they make at these fandan-
goes is something wonderful. l can
not describe it. 1t has to be heard.
But 1 will give you an idea. One of
the musicians has for his instrument q
barrel or a section of a hollow tree,
with a piece of raw hide stretched over
one end, and on this he pounds with
all his might. Another has an empty
box, a third tin pan, and a fourth,
probably, a cow horn-anything with
which to make a noise. And they
wake things up. Gabriel's trumpet
would stand poor chance in this
neighborhood.
We have been at this place IA days,
and there has not been night without
its fandango. 1t is our orders to keep
things quiet; but as we are on guard
at night, and the people seem to be
enjoying themselves, we are not dis
posed to interfere. We stopped them
one night on account of sick child,
and we see to it that they do not con-
tinue their racket after 9 o'clock.
So far as l am able 10 see, there is
but little, if any, religious faith among
these people, and no idea of morality.
The Spanish laws have required a
marriage license fee of from S25 to
500, and as the vast majority Of the
people who desire to marry are unable
to raise any such sums, they dispense