Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1899-01-16
REAL ESTATE BOOM
Condition of Land in the Country in
Cuba.
PROSPECTS GOOD FOR FARMERS
Big Plantations Not the Only Ones
to Be Bought.
ONE AMERICANS PLA n S
Copyright. 1929 by Charles VI. Pepper)
ron, a StsN Corresp0ndeut


This is a real estate boom letter. i shall
not send any cards of the real estate agents
with it, but they are welcome 10 the adVef-
tisement without commission NO such
things as city lots are to be had and what
ever is done with land must be in the coun-
try The boom has not yet struck AL
auizar or any other part of rural Cuba
There are signs of revival and hardly more
than signs. When the boom does come TO
these places it will have one advantage
over similar conditions in the United States.
The spectators will not be able to move
it along to the next town when the rail-
road moves. When prosperity comes once
more to this island it will come to stay.
am writing from the southwestern part
of Havana province. The land has what is
known as the average productiveness. on
to the north and to the east. stretch the
sugar plantations. Some cane fields may
be seen. on one plantation the smoke Is
rising from the chimney OF the central OF
mill which does the grinding. The owner
has been able to cut a few hundred acres
of cane. To the west of AlquiZar are some
vegas or tobacco farms. The ''vegueros'
or farmers have had bad season. They
managed last fall to do some planting in
spite of the rains which were then so bad,
and they will have partial crop. / have
also seen one or two corn fields, though not
among the vegas The tobacco land is not
used for corn until spring. In the neigh
borhoods where little cultivation is going
on | saw fields OF tomatoes or sweet pota-
toes of plantains or bananas and of yucca
or starch plants. The people have not as
yet pigs or poultry and the COW is a rare
animal Some oxen were procured. else
there could have been no fields ploughed
Value OF Coffee.
This average prodUctiveness might be in
creased by raising little coffee. Wild cof-
fee bushes in haIf-rufued sugar plantations
caused me to make inquiries. 1 was told
that this was not the result of the present
war Coffee cultivation was given up
twenty-five or thirty years ago, because
sugar raising was SO much more profitable
In the agricultural rebuilding of Cuba the
sugar industry can only be reconstructed by
large capital. 1t offers opening to the
man of small means. He can rent land and
raise cane on il, which the Central" will
grind for him on shares. bat this would
keep him in debt most of the time. II is
true that the cane can be planted and
crop had in fifteen or eighteen months. Cof-
fee trees do not begin to produce the berry
for four years, and another twelve months
must be allowed before a crop can be
marketed The farmer who comes from
the United States and who wants to make
money Al once viii probably prefer to raise
sugar cane until experience has taught him
better. The1 ne may reflect on the posi-
bilities of coffee production. If he has had
experience in suItivating tobacco in Penn
syiyania, Connecticut or Wisconsin. or in
the southern states, he may engage in that
Industry At once and reap his harvest with
IN year Tobacco culture. all the experts
are agreed. is susceptible Of great develop
ment. and this development will come
through small farms instead of through big
Plantations
One Americans Plans.
1 don't know just when the land around
Alquizar which formerly given over
To coffee Will he put to that use again. The
men who are studying the matter tell me
the time is not so far distant when the
eastern end of the island will cease to have
monopoly Of coffee production. In San
uagO province it has never given way 10
sugar. because the greater part of the
land there is not adapted to cane A young
American who lived in Cuba before the
insurrection and who had previously lived
in Florida told me what he was going TO
do with 100 acres. He intends to settle
IL the island and make it his home. i
think black-eyed Cuban girl has some
thing to do with that resolution. This
young American does not expect to get
rich the first year. though he believes the
land Will AFFORD him a living and something
besides. He is going to begin raising to-
bdcco at once. He will also raise corn.
yucca and bcnatos for the consumption of
his labOreTS- Formerly he had a beet
ranch. and he thinks he will do something
in that lire The local market for honey
is always good one. Then he intends 10
plant an orange grove. That is an ex-
pertinent Oranges grow easy enough
he said, but nobody has ever thought of
raising them as a business. 1 believe it
viii pay"
\ little beyond Alquizar are groves Of
guava@- They grow wild and do not need
cultivation. The fruit has a variety of
naNors. II Is made into paSteS and jelieS.
which are consumed in the West Indies
Formerly there was market in the United
states for this guava jelly. Some one dis
covered now to make substitute out of
glucose and started a factory in Brooklyn,
N \. Since then the demand for guaya
from Cuba has not been increased | asked
II II would not pay better to take the fruit
OF the guava trees which already bear
ing than to attempt orange raising No"
was the reply, Il make a regular
business of orange raising. The Brooklyn
glucose man would keep me from selling
cuava jelly in the states. II NAV pay 10
pick the guavas. but l couldn't count on
Land and Farm Expenses.
This young American has lived on sugar
plantations. He has fully decided that he
will not raise sugar cane because he can
make more money out of other products.
He is thinking Of coffee. for he looks
ahead Probably he will undertake that
along with mis- orange grove. His notion
is TO diversity his products He has a
cash capital which cannot be more than
S4,oph. and a credit in the states which will
enable MIN TO secure prehaps 5000 more.
He Is buying his 100 acres for <; goo clear
He can get the property for 81 800 ca sh
ana assume mortgage of 81 800 The
mortgage bears twelve per cent interest
so ne VIII take 1t up at once. His land
mas on IL buildings which were not de-
stroyed during the instruction. and these
ne VIII put in order at a slight expense
He IS hagGling with the agent over the
price TO be paid for some farm Implements
BEFORE the bargain is closed he will get
them for 800, Then he will buy some pigs
ana poultry 10 have around the place and
will also poy for his oxen and his sead
Thereupon he will become one Of the Mo-
neer American developers of Cuba under the
new regime He Will be prosperous in time
for he isn't thinking OF getting elected
either to the Congress of the United States
or to the Cuban assembly. He could Sc
cure an election to the latter body be-
cause he fought in the bush with the in
surgents and starved with them a part
Of the time. He told that IL he were 10
take any part in politics il would be tc
oppose annexation until the Cubans were
better prepared for Il.
have given the case of this young Amer