The News-Herald. [volume] (Hillsboro, Highland Co., Ohio) 1886-1973, 1899-01-05
Spanish Flag Hauled Down in
Havana and the Stars
and Stripes Raised.
SALUrES FIRED FROM HEAVY GUNS.
Raising of the American Flag Greeted
With Cheers by the People
on the HOusetOps.
The Ceremonies as the Palace Were very
Simple, Consisting OF Speech Making
by American . nd spanish An.
thorities-Farew wells Said.

HAVANA, Jan. 2.-The sovereignty of
Cuba passed from Spain to the United
States at noon Sunday.
The form of transfer was simple, con-
sisting only of an exchange of speeches
in the salon of the palace, the hauling
down of the Spanish flag and the rails
ing in it's stead of the flag of the United
States on the flagstaff Of the palace
roof. Salutes were fred from the
heavy guns of the forts and the war
ships before and after the change Of
flags.
The raising Of the Stars and Stripes
was greeted with cheers by the people
who covered the roofs Of the buildings
around the palace and plaza.
No crowd was permitted to gather in
the streets in the vicinity of the palace
to witness the epoch-making functions.
At Q o'clock q guard of the I'd bat
talon of the 10th infantry marched in
to the Plaza de Armas under command
Of Capt. Van Vliet and formed around
the square. Capt. Gen. Castellanos
watched them with interest from the
balcony of his apartments as they en-
tered the square and were stationed at
all the streets approaching the plaza.
No one was allowed to enter without
pass, and all the doors Of the palace fac
ing tho square were ordered to be
closed. Only those who could get on
the roofs and balconies of hous in
the neighborhood saw W hat was going
on before the palace.
With the guard was the band of the
I'd Illinois regiment, which had been
selected for the occasion as the best
band in the Sth army corps. With the
band were the buglers Of the sth and
10th infantry.
The weather was warm, the sun
bursting at intervals through the light
clouds, and the soldiers in blue who
| were forced to stand in the sun found
the heat oppressive. The troops were
formed in extended order around the
square, three PAGES apart, and the band
was massed in front Of the palace en-
trance across the street at the edge Of
the park.
/! Brig. Gen. Clous, the master Of cere-
monies of the day, at 1890 o'clock is
sued instructions to the officers who
were to take charge Of the various de.
partments of the government at IL
o'clock. Col. Dudley was assigned to
the department of justice, Office of the
secretary of the captain general; Maj.
L. w. v. Kennon, adjutant general Of
the department., to the department of
commerce and agriculture; Col. T. u.
Bliss, of the commissionary department,
to the treasury; Capt. Frank b. Hanna,
assistant adjutant general to the de-
partment of public instruction and
Col. Dunwoody, Of the signal corps, to
the public works department. Each
Of these officers was instructed thus:
ION the firing of the last gun of the
first 21 at noon, you are to go to the
place assigned you and demand posses
sion of the Office in the name of the
United States"
These orders were given under the
arcade of the palace. Each officer had
with him Cuban interpreter, group
of whom stood by clad in dark clothes
and wearing silk hats.
In a carriage nearby were the Amer
lean flags which were to be raised at
various points.
At 11:1O Maj. Gen. Wade and Maj.
Gen. Butler, of the American evacua-
ton commission, arrived from Ell We
dado on horseback, accompanied by
their staffs. They were met by Brig.
Gen. Clous and Maj. T. Bentley Mott,
of Gen. Ludlow's staff. About the
same moment Lucien j. Jerome, Brit
ish vice consul, arrived. He was warm
ly greeted by the American officers.
Maj. Gen. John R. Brooke, governor
Of Cuba, and Maj. Gen. Ludlow, gov.
ernor of the city of Havana, accom-
panied by their STATS. arrived at half
past II in carriages, Gen. Brooke and
Gen. Adna r. Chaffee, Gen. Brooke's
chief of staff, in the first carriage
In each of the other carriages rode
| SuU6u SCucTdA WIN A"cTICdu Ou1
cers.
The Cubans were Gems. Mario Memo
cal, Mayia Rodriguez, Serafin Sanchez
Jose Miguel Gomez, Nodarte, Rafel Dc
Cardenas, Agramonte and Vidal, and
Col. Vsliente. As the carriages drove
up. the second company of the Ssth
Spanish infantry, under command oi
Col. Don Rafael Salamanca. presented
arms and the American band stated
up with ''The Stars and Stripes For
ever" the Spanish colonel saluting.
At 11:46. Maj. Gen. Lee, military gov
ernor of the province of Havana, with
his staff, joined Gen. Brooke. The lat
ter then crossed the street to the pal
ace, Gen. Lee on one side of him anl
Gen. Chafee on the other. followed b,
the other American generals and thu
Cuban officers. The Cubans wore dark
blue uniforms, brown felt hats AM