Iron County register., 1899-08-10
THE RESOURCES OF CUBA.
The Government VIII Make an At
tempt to Secure Reliable
Information.
CENSUS TO Be TAKEN IMMEDIATELY.
with the Facts Obtained the Presi-
dent Hopes to he Able to Lay Be-
fore Congress Something Definite
on which to Base Legislation
Concerning the Island.

New York, Aug. "a special to the
Tribune from Washington says: The
president has directed that the census
of Cuba be taken as soon as possible
The matter has been energeticaliy
taken up by the war department with
the exception of completing the work
and furnishing the principal results
to congress at the opening of the next
session.
To Settle the Details
On Secretary Roots return to Wash
ington, next Tuesday, he will hold
final conference in his Office to settle
the details of the undertaking with
Assistant Secretary Meiklejohn, who
has immediate charge of colonial af-
fairs, and with the officials of the
census bureau. The latter have al
ready drafted the blanks which prob
ably will be used by the enumerators,
and these schedules are now in process
of transmission into Spanish. Gen.
Brooke, commanding the department
of Cuba, has appointed five superin-
tending enumerators, who are now on
their way to Washington to receive
instructions as to the manner of tax.
ing the census and to familiariZe them
selves with American methods of in
surfing accuracy in the data to be OBJ
tanned.
An Independent Census.
The Cuban census is to be wholly
independent of the United States CEN
sus of next year, although the large
organization under Director Merriam.
which will not begin its actual field
work until the first of the year, may
be utilized to some extent in the tabu-
lation and arrangement of Cuba data
secured in the next three months. II
is determined that the Cuban census
shall be finished before the census OF
the United States, including Porte
Rico, begins. The object of haste n
determining the condition of affairs
statistically in Cuba, is to furnish tc
congress such exhaustive statements
of facts that legislation for the future
of the island may be promptly and in.
teIligently accomplished.
Information for Congress.
1t is expected that the president vii
be able to include a summary of the
results in his next message, and at ne
same time furnish preliminary re-
port of the census, with the prospeci
of giving the senate and heuse the
final and complete detailed result by
the middle of January. 1t is not in
tended to secure simply an enumera
ton of the inhabitants of the island
but to determine as precisely as pos.
sible it's agricultural and industrial
conditions. The last Spanish census
of Cuba was taken in 1887. While its
accuracy was in many respects doubt
full, as a whole, it was conceded te
give a fair idea of the conditions ther
existing. The population was said tc
be 1851 ,6S7, of whom nearly 65 pei
cent. were white.
Army Officers Estimates.
Army officers who have been con.
nected with the Cuban administration
since the American occupation began
estimate that the total has fallen to
about 100000. The census of 1887
gave nearly 100000 horses and mules,
2,5O0,cO0 cattle and 600, 900 pigs in the
island. These, according to army of.
ficers. have practically disappeared as
the result Of the long war. The in
come of plantations, the sugar max.
ing capacity, and acreage under cult.
vation for tobacco have been almost
obliterated, but these and other vast
sources of wealth are being rapidly re-
stored, and it will be one of the OBJ
Jects of the census to show what op-
pOrtunity may he found for the revival
and development of Cuban resources.
The collection of information will be
in Gen. Brooke's charge, the expense
being met from the Cuban revenues.