The Worcester spy. [volume] (Worcester, Mass.) 1898-1904, 1899-03-29
CURTIS GUILD, JR.
Tells of Commercial and Industrial Pos
sibIities of Cuba.


Mr.. Guild said in part: The best
preface to the few words I can say in
the short time allotted me on CONNER
clal conditions In Cuba, is a statement
of the possibilities there.
1t is within the memory of man that
but a short time ago we were doing a
thriving business with Cuba, The
nome market is no longer all sufficient
Tor our manufacturers, and we seek a
foreign one without injury to our own
The future of the commerce Of the
United States lies in the development
OF the western hemisphere This was
foreseen by James c. Blaine when he
formulated the doctrine of reciprocity.
bAe striking down of those treaties by
the GoEman-Wil6 tariff dealt Amer
Jean commerce in Latin America a
heavy blow from which 1t has not yet
recovered.
In our last year of reciprocity with
Cuba (fscal year 1899 we exported to
that island American products to the
value of $23,604, 0S4 Now in the last
fiscal year (1S9S) our total exports to all
countries Of South America were but
S3S, l.971 in value, our exports ito
China were worth but $685. 1874, our
exports to Russia but Sc, 333, 317, our
exports to Austria but $5,697,912, our
exports to Mexico, our next door
neighbor. reached but SCI, 205,2 34.
These facts are worth remembering
In view Of the field which is opening
for the harvest of American industry.
The population is not large, but the
United States has only been prevented
from absolutely controlling trade by
Spanish interests, which have made
the Cuban pay eXtortionate prices for
the cotton cloth and flour, which he
does not produce, for the benefit of
Barcelona anG--other Spanish business
centres, who will lose and lose heavily
as result of this war. During our
colonial period England did her best to
keep us purely agricultural people,
not only checking our industrial de-
velopment but forbidding us to import
from other countries. A similar policy,
as far as possible, has been pursued
towards Cuba by Spain.
The extent of the Cuban market
cannot well be measured until the CEN
sus is completed. No enumeration has
been made since 1887 when the figures
were 1881 6S7, about tWo-thirds white
and ne-third tcoIored. 1t is known
that, thanks to General Weyler, those
figures have been much reduced.
Moreover, as the white man in the
Cuban army has not endured starVa-
ClOU as Wei as the DldCh, dllu DIS Iiie
peasantry destroyed by the recontrado
horrors are mostly white peasantry,
the present population will probably
show an almost even division between
whites and blacks. Already there are
some seeds of dissension between the
races in the disposition of government
patronage. Of this population, barely
70 per cent know how to read and
write. This population is almost pure
ly an agricultural population. They
manufacture little or nothing. Their
hats, clothes, table utensils, the salt
fish and wheat -four they eat, even the
machetes with which they reap their
crops and STAY their enemies, are i'm
ported. Little that a Cuban wears or
uses except his rough tanned shoes and
his hat are made in his own country.
Labor is cheap, but not especially in
dustrious. AS a matter OF fact, 1t is
necessary to have twice as many
bosses as in the United States to keep
unskilled labor at work, and in the
case of the laborers hired by the I'm
tied States, an officer or a line of Am
erican sentinels were necessary to boss
the BOSSES
OF course in a country where the mer-
curry seldom drops below sixty and
usually ranges we'll above seventy de-
grees, the amount spent for fuel and
clothing is reduced to minimum.
have never seen a naked white child
but the smaller children of the poorer
colored people run about quite comfort
ably, naked but not ashamed The
Cuban laborer is not drinking ANNA