The Hawaiian gazette. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1865-1918, 1899-08-08
"A RICH PLANTER
Gives His Views on Fu-
t,re of Cuba
What osgood WEIGH. a Wealthy
Plantation Owner, Tells the
New York Herald.

Osgood Welch, a rich American sugar
planter in Cuba, writing to the New
York Herald on the future OF that ISL
and, says:
There is no getting away from the
fact that Gomez and not General
Brooke Is the actual Governor Of Cuba.
The Americans own and rule the cit
les, but the insurgents own and rule
the interior. The President knows
this and all his army officers know it.
Brigandage is as bad now as 1t was at
any time under Weyler. They are
shooting brigands all the time. Six,
believe, were shot the other day at
Santiago. The American people do not
know what Is going on because the in
formation Is kept from them. American
owners Of plantations are afraid to
come out openly for annexation be-
cause they fear the insurgents. But
they are working under cover. AS the
owner of one Of the largest plantations
near Cienfuegos, / am not afraid to tell
, the truth. II annexation does not come
pretty quickly this Government is 60
ing to have more trouble in Cuba than
lit has ever dreamed of.
| "A great mistake was made at the
outset, when the American soldiers
! went down there in January to take
possession. The policy should have
been to select sufficient number of
insurgents-and enough could have
been obtained then-to police the
island from one end to the other. and
call upon the insurgents to give up
their arms. What are our soldiers
there for? Are they expected to pro-
tect the propertyh holders from plunder
and brigandage by Cuban outlaws? II
SO, they are not doing It, The situa-
tiOn Is as bad there now as it was un-
der the Spanish. We have taken
away the best government Cuba has
had within four hundred years, and
have put nothing in its place. There
is no fear of the Spaniards in Cuba
The Spanish question Is as dead there
as the Irish question Is In America.
do not misunderstood me. 1t was
the proper thing for the Americans to
take Cuba. We need 1t in our business
as the saying goes. But why not come
out. openly and say that we have taken
it, and mean to keep It? What Is the
use of frittering away time by parley.
ing with lot OF people who have NJ
intention of developing the rich re
sources of the island, and who coul(
not do 1t II they would? We Ameri
cans that own property in Cuba. believe
that annexation should come now, be
fore any further injury is done. We ar'
Americans, and have right to protec
ton there. II was bad enough to suf
fer ruin under the Spaniards, but it /.
intOlerable to have it continued by oul
own people"
Mr.. Welsh thinks that the planta
tions will be able to secure what labor
they can use. He adds:
I'VE need not expect much help from
the insurgents in that respect. They
do not want to work, and will not
work That is not their idea of the vic.
tory the Americans have won fol
them. They are looking for govern
ment positions and for plunder. Their
army is breaking up into bands of bri-
gands. The Spaniards know this, and
they know that under Cuban rule eX-
istence would be made burden to
them. They are finding 1t out to q
large extent already. That is why SC
many of them are leaving the island