The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1899-05-11
TRAGEDIES IN OLD MORO.
THE CRIMES THAT HAVE BEEN
COMMITTED THERE.

Been Among the Su1ferers-Dr.
Field Talks of What He Saw and
the Stories Tie Heard-on Every
Side the walls Are Pitted With
ShOt-Rich spaniards in Havana
in the Old Days We're Eager TO
witness TraEedy-The Dead
Line Where a Hundred or More
Were Hanged at "a Time.
DR.. II. NJ. Field, in the Independent
Not long ago had occasion TO quote
the saying that "half the world does not
know how the other half lives" But that
Is not all that may be said. We may ada
that half the world does not know how
the other half suffers and dies. The
writer's of tragedies that are to be acted
upon the stage take pains to have plot
that is wrought up wiki features OF hor-
ror that may exist only in the authors
Imagination. But may we not say truly
that nothing can be drawn with the pen
or the pencil that has not been seen with
the eye or been made vidid and real by
human experience? Travellers go to We
nice, and look with admiration on the
Dd4dGG WtETG tlE lOAE OtNS 6elt Al SedtN
in a splendor that surpassed all the kings
Of the East. But let them go down into
the dungeons underneath, where not only
the guilty. the worst of men, but some
times the bravest and the best, have PIN
ed away and died.
But all this was centuries ago-tragedies
that belong to past history. On the con-
trary, l am writing this letter within
| sight Of walls within which have been
| perpetrated land not in a barbaric age,
| but In your own tme-in the very year
that has Just closed darker tragedies
| than Venice ever knew. In coming TO
| Havana the one thing which l wishe to
see above all Others was the Moro Cas-
tie, which has been for centuries the cite-
| del of Spanish power
| But l was told that the grim old castle
which rose up so stern and savage on the
| other side of the entrance to the harbor,
| was the one dark spot in all the landscape
| that could be seen only from without
| 1t was not that there were any secrets
| that would be revealed but that II had to
be closed, in order that Il might be
| cleansed from top to bottom as a precau-
ton against the breaking out of a pes
! thence. Already three men employed in
|
fever, and II this dread terror were once
let loose, it might sweep away thousands.
! To guard against such a danger no eau
| ton was. too great, so that l might have
| found difficulty In getting admittance but
! for the Intervention of a friend Capt.
! McCulloch, name well known in New
York as connected with the police for
thirty years, and as one of the men who
! had organized our city police into the
| formula hla fOrro - L..
| for this that he was invited to Havana to
naugurate police here after taht admir-
able pattern. OF couse, he had but very
| poor material in the Cubans, who were
| eager to offer themselves for any official
| position But he has set the machine go
Ing so that it gives promise of attaining
some degree of efficiency To him | had
only to express my wish to see the in
J terror of Moro Castle when he soon
| brought me a pass, not only for myself
but for any of my friends whom l should
wish to take with me.
The situation.
That was enough. The next morning 7
was with friend at the landing, from
| which boat took US to the other side
| As we climbed up the hill, the handsome
stretched out farther and farther. In
stead of narrow neck of land, or a rock
in the sea, just large enough to be base
| for the fortress itself, was an upland
plateau stretching out far and wide as
| If TO give the greater effect to the white
| tents that were seen in the distance. On
this breezy Hill top was a plain. broad
enough to be the camping ground of a
| hundred thousand men. AS our PASS did
not come from the Governor, the FIRST
sentry directed US to the tent of the com
manding officer half mile away. where
we found him sitting under the canvass
| quite alone He received us not only
| graciously, but it was apparently pleas
ure on his side as well as ours as we found
that he had served in California, and had
known the family of Judge Field there
| and in Washington. Still further our in
terest increased by finding that he COM
manded the artillery at the battle of San
| Juan, though of his own deeds we could
only draw him out by our questions to
which he answered with the modesty of
| a gallant soldier.
He had but TO glance at our pass to
| give it his approval. and to tell our escort
| TO show up everything i'm both castles
| the Moro and the Cabanas-the latter
| of which was by far the larger and the
more fun of thrilling, though horrible
associations. While giving US this com
| plete unrestrained liberty, he felt it due
| to us and to himself TO warn us of the
| danger we should run. The old fortress
| had been for months reeking with pes
| thence. and in spite of all attempts TO
| make IL clean, only a short time before
! three sturdy men, who were employed in
| the work were struck down by yellow
| fever and hurried into the grave If we
ventured where they had fallen we must
| do il al our own risk. We thanked him
| for his thoughtful kindness, and then pro-
ceeded to do the very thing which he had
| warned us not 10 do.
How could we help it? It was as If We
were standing on the Bridge Of Signs IN
Venice. with permission to descend into
| the dungeons below. And then there was
a fascination In the danger itself. We be-
gan cautiously taking our first view from
| the outside. l am not a soldier, but
have seen first and last good deal of
the world, and no fortress has impressed
me so much except Gibraltar. The Ca
bapas acne covers many acres of ground.
and the Notifications are In the style of
those in Europe, as, for example, in the
low countries and along the Rhine. They
are girdled with high and massive walls,
surrounded by deep moat and an outer