Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1899-08-19
HEAR FROM INTERIOR
Communication With Interior Prov.
inces of Porto Rico Established
Predictions Confirmed.
Great Distress Among All Classes
Of Natives Money and Food
Distributed.
Jiminez, the Leader Of the Rebellion
in San Domingo, Arrested at
Cienfuegos.

New York, Aug. o9.-The Herald's
Ponce. Porto Rico. special says:
The correspondent of the New York
Herald has just completed trip through
the southern and most distressed districts
of the island. The misery is very great,
and is more apparent now than it was
Immediately after the storm. but the
government has the famine districts
well in hand and has shown itself COM
petent to deal with the situation.
Relief is being rapidly and effectively
distributed Each post commander has
received $1,000 and limited supplies of
food for distribution. More supplies
are being forwarded as fast as possible.
Each commander has appointed dis
trict officer, who dispenses the food and
money or gives employment. The may
ors OF the towns receive no money or
supplies, but with scarcely an exception
they have rendered valuable assistance.
Besides the loss of the crops, the loss
of life has been extremely heavy Com
ing from almost every by-road. pathet-
ically humble funeral professions are
met, the bodies being wrapped in palm
leaves. The majority of the dead were
washed away. The Aibonito district Sc
verely suffered. The official figures Civ
en- me by the alcade are: Killed by
storm. twenty; wounded, sixty; houses
destroyed in the town and the country
surrounding, 1.22S. The barracks in Al
bonito We're totally destroyed. Many
soldiers had a narrow escape. One was
ileilled and several were wounded One
IS still missing.
Captain Wheeler has demonstrated
the advantage of giving work to the
sufferers instead of doles. On his own
authority he has spent portion of the
$1,000 granted him In employing all the
available labor. AS result Aibonito
is today well repaired, the streets are
clean and the people are contented.
In the country district of Juanadiaz,
says the mayor of that town. 105 per-
sons We're killed in the storm and many
are i'll. The result is much misery. Pro
visions are scarce. In all the country
districts the reports of danger from in
fecticus diseases have been exaggerat-
ed. The only danger is from fevers arts
ing from hunger. In Ponce there may
/ III snlile lIletSipii, Dul even IEiG tiiS
authorities may be able to keep the dis
ease under control if 1t breaks out.
The army surgeons in all the towns
are visiting invalids daily. In all the
districts the extreme poverty is likely tc
continue for at least two years. The
/ whole of Ponce Valley from Juandia7
down is complete ruin. Trees, houses
piles of river sand, bodies of cattle and
general debris are scattered every
where. The highway cannot be picked
out in the midst of the wreckage, and
travelling is dangerous.
In Ponce repairs are being pushed
rapidly. The streets are beng cleaned
but the carts available are not sufficient
to remove with speed the offensive mat
ter deposited by the flood. The local
stores are resuming business Tele-
graph communication has not yet been
re- esta blshed with San Juan.