New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1899-06-04
NOTES FROM SANTIAGO.
HISTORICAL INTEREST OF THE PROvIN-
CIAL CAPITAL.
THE HARBoRs PIcTUREsoUENEss AND
NATURAL BEAUTY-MIsTAKEs OF THE
EARLY BUILDERS-THE BAY AND
THE PATTLEFIEIDS
THE BATTLEFIELDs.


EARLY BUILDERS-THE BAY AND
THE BATTLEFIELDs
Santiago de Cuba, May Is (speciaD.-In the
snpeal II makes 10 the historical imagination
santiago is easily the most inspiring Of Cuban
nroyincial capitals The contrasts II offers are
hoth picturesque and vivid. and the American
observer finds curious piquancy in the inter-
mixture here OF the very oldest with the very
newest OF historical associations For Santiago
a. on the one hand. the ancient capital OF Span
ish Cuba-the first seat in this island of that
sixteenth-century civilization which Spain fast
ened. and stubbornly strove to keep fastened.
on all American territory which came beneath
her colonizng yoke.
Cortez sailed from here for the conquest OF
Mexico and from this natural military base
Spanish power was spread over the whole Of the
West Indies. All the earliest traditions OF Span
sh rule in Cuba cluster. therefore. about this
land-locked harbor and the struggling town
which rises from the bay the steep hills near
IT'S northern extremity BY the accidental de-
velopment OF Cervera's strategy Santiago be-
came on the other hand. the objective point of
the single campaign made by the United States
70 compel the Spanish evacuation Of Cuba.
American blood freely shed on the battle
fields 10 the east Of the city and the American
flag finally supplanted the Spanish on the roof
OF the ancient palace of the Governors General.
So through the chance which carried Ger
yera's squadron here rather than TO Cienfuegos,
Santiago was constituted the entry point OF the
American occupation-the field in which the ex-
periment OF political reconstruction was to be
tried under conditions OF extraordinary difficulty
and absolute novelty Other Cuban cities are
tive hut nnp
OF them can challenge Santiago in point of his
torical suggestiveness and interest.
A BEAUTIFUL PORT
In picturesqueness and natural beauty few
ports IN the world excel this one. The harbor,
ike the harbors OF Havana and Cienfuegos, is a
sheltered estuary, with exceedingly narrow
mouth but within deep spacious and practically
tideless The channel is clear and free. and the
futility Of the attempt 10 close II with the sunk
en- collier Merrimac is disclosed bv the fact
that the largest steamers can now pass safely
over the hulk OF the intended bother for Ger
vera's fleet. Only a few days ago the Army
transport Mcpherson crashed against and broke
of the Merrimac's mainmast. which rose few
feet above the surface of the harbor: but the
transports keel did not even scrape the main
part Of the wreck.
the bay soon clears obstructing points and ISL
ands. and stretches away northward in broad
enptical expanse. trimmed in the west by the
crowdng peaks of the coast range. and on the
east by the more open foothills over whose
slopes the streets OF the provincial capital climb
stifiy and painfully. In It's tight-iocked setting
the harbor has all the panoramic charm Of a
big Alpine lake whose nearness to sea level is
betrayed only by the varied ensgns flying from
the tanrails OF its shipping.
The town Itself is from the water line a de-
cded disappointment. For though the steep
hillside offers every chance for the display OF
that real genius in city building which Spanish
architects derived from contact with the Moors.
the opportunity lost by Santago's found
ers and the city rises in crude amphitheatre
fashion. with neither order nor beauty. TO the
hill crown on which the old cathedral stands.
This venerable landmark is imposing only
through it's age and it's associations. Moreover,
Il faces a plaza altogether too cramped and I'm
tied in area 10 furnish that outlet for open
cir enjoyment which every tropical community
instinctivey Graves.
LACKING IN OUT-OF-DOO ADJUSTMENTS.
Santiago is sadly lacking indeed. in that
sdaptability to simple out-of-door amusements
which is the main resource of Cuban life. The
streets are so steep in grade and narrow
that they do not serve at all for promenading,
and the plaza is practically a tiny walled gar
den shut in by the Cathedral. the Govern
Inent buildings and the clubs. Other south
coast cities, like Manzaniilo and Cienfuegos'
have far more attractive plazas and level streets
Infinitely better adapted to the inevitable Gu
Tan custom OF open-air lounging And though
Santiago has an excellent drive, the Alameda,
Il lies along the harbor front and is too remote
from the central life Of the town 10 be availa-
BILE for the night time "paseo." The Governor
official palace is a modest. rambling, one-story
building-so modest and so easily blanketed by
its neighbors that one looks in vain from the
harbor for its roof and the flag that was raised
there. with certain sensational consequences, on
the day Of General Toral's surrender. The Mill
tary Governors actual residence is more salts
fyingly visible, or. the brow OF one Of the high
shore-line bluffs TO the south of the city.
But II the Cathedral is dingy ard unimposng
and the town itself lacks architectural effective
ness this debit balance is easily swallowed up
in the surprising beauty Of the MORO at the
harbor entrance. No purer or more finished ex-
ample Of the old Spanish seaport fortress can
be found in Cuba Smaller than the Havana
Moro. and lacking its picturesquely solitary
lighthouse tower, the Santiago castle presents
far more harmonious lines, and borrows IRON
It's extraordinary setting an effect OF far greater
mass and solidity Rooted in the coral ROCKS OF
the great eastern bluff. so that one can scarcely
tell where the real stone ends and the masonry
begins II seems to lift itself sheer from the
sea three hundred feet or more TO the TOP Oh
the cliff wall. and then TO crown the natural
level with a flight of towers and rarnparts' IRON
whose SUBMITS the Caribbean stretches on
south, east and west TO the horizon
DEFENCES OF THE HARBoR
For harbor defence the Morro's usefulness
ceased nearly century ago. and the Spaniards
with a fine sense OF fitness mounted here only
the sntioua,ed French bronze pieces which hac