The times., 1899-01-01
Spaniards Guard Peace Under
an Enemy's Flag in Cuba.
SCENES in THE CAPITAL
Dangers OF Strong Drink-Havnna's
Record for Temperament ChnnEc
of Sentiment Toward Americana
RemurknbIe vital Stafistics-span-
ish behavior in General.

from every housetop the army of the de- !
feated should be guarding, voluntarily,
The peace and order of the city it has lost,
This is what the Spanish have been
doing with an excellent grace in Havana.
Down as far as the Proda, edging the de-
parting governors of Cuba farther towards
the harbor the Cubans have pressed them
selves with their crude little flag, their
crackers, and their strange barbaric
dance marches, keeping time with weird
chants and with double hand-eiasps that
seem to be variations of the Castilian cas-
tenets.
These jubilators are mostly black ones;
the white Cubans celebrate in cafes, clink-
ing glasses for Maxine Gomez, and making
Spanish pToprietors kiss the native lag
and shout Cuba Libre'' Towards Ameri-
cans they show, just now, If not cor
diality, at least no unfriendliness, though
when they learned that General Brooke
would not allow their great hestas TO so
on next week they quit making the appear
ance of every United States officer the
excuse for forming a parade in back of
him.
The Spanish have ordered that any flag
shall be permitted TO fly anywhere IL the
city; so it becomes more marked than be-
fore that in protecting what has been
taken from them and in encouraging the
rising enthusiasm over their own electlon
they are doing an unexpected thing.
Much of this tolerance is perhaps due
10 the wife of the captain general twho Is
Cuban, in whose name he lately appealed
10 Cubans not 10 disgrace the final hours
of his governorship); for when Spaniard
marries Cuban woman, he is very fond
of her. as he should be, since no woman
is more tender devoted, gentle, feminine,
and brave-spirited.
During Holiday Week.
Since Christmas the reioicings have been
hourly increasing. unrestricted except for
reasons of peace. On that festival it seemed
TO be understood that demonstrations would
be uncountenanced by the church
In the cathedral, from which the tomb
of the old high admiral of early Spain had
been removed. the celebrations of the Ma
tivity were subdued. almost sad, and the
bishop sat on an improvised throne, the
splendid one with the royal escutcheon Of
CASTLE above it having been carried back,
too TO Madrid.
There we're life and beauty and gayety
at the fashionable Cuban church of San
IFilipe only. Here the Cuban women turned
out to every service, wearing the bright
Summery gowns which many here had not
put on since war began. The golden altar
had few flowers, and the mass was light
and bounding-some Spanish mass with
tinkling tambourines in il, and drum and
bugle, and with castauets giving for motir
the suggestion Of a distant outdoor IAN
danso.
II was on Christmas Day that Spain
truly reIinquished the island-none of her
viceroys were left save the one whose duty
II will be TO turn the possession over TO
General Brooke at noon tomorrow, and on
the next day Cuban feelings were allowed
TO give themselves play.
There had been born for Cuba new
king, and If the new king liked it the Gu
bans could hurrah for him-which they
have not done, but, instead, have cele-
brated themselves, and the flag OF the sin
gle star, and the army Of Gomez; and the
army of Gomez has fixed itself up, officers
with horses gorgeously caparisoned. and
men with trousers lent by their worship
ers, but. We hear, they are not to be in
vited to make triumphal entry into Ha
yana after all.
Introduction of whisky.
One OF the main sources of trouble for
Americans in Cuba will be the whisky bot
tie. From that, sicknesses and disturb
ances are surer to rise than from the eli
mate or the Cubans You never see Gu
ban drunk, yet on every corner there is a
cafe and between corners often two or
three.
Around the principal square there are
only cafes. Fancy Union Square with no
Tiffany. no Brentano, no piano stores, jew
tery stores, nothing but barrooms. with
their doors and windows wide open and
bustling with business.
That is how it is around the Parque Cen
tral, but there was absolutely no drunken
ness until the Americans came. When the
- first case appeared everybody ran 10 the
doors and windows; / thought it must be
a riot, But no; simply fat old man from
Missouri, his chin touching his breast his
legs throwing themselves about in eccen-
trie fashion, while he wabbled down the
paseo, dead TO the world"
This sort of thing, which General Lud-
low will try 10 stop, is now more common
and with the sobriety of the natives and oi
the Spanish soldiery a contrast, the ex-
cesses of Americans become conspicuous tC
a degree impossible at home; and il give.
point TO the saying habitual among Span
iards and Cubans, when they want TO de.
scribe a rough sort of person, that so-and.
go is like a drunken American" or
drunken Englishman."
They use the comparison somewhat as W
use that Thackerayan expression, 'drunl
as a lord" AS beverage. Cubans an
also Spaniards who have been here long
do not use strong spirits. 1t has been sal,
that there is mot SO large a territory il
Europe or America as this island wher
such degree OF temperance is observed il
the use OF intoxicating drinks"
The people take coffee when they want
stimulant, and their numerous very Euro
pean cafes are places where fine womel
go in the afternoon or the evening or afte
the theatre for an ice or q cup OF choco
late, or dish OF sweetmeats. Candies wer
sold nowhere else until today, when severa
hurdy- gurdy men from Park Row and Mas
sau Street came 10 town with what the
call American confectionery, but which /
New York they term Turkish candy.
Vital Statistics.
The final vital record 10 be made b
a Spanish administration in Havana ha
been received from the Junta Proyinc.s
de Ssnitad. 1t is rather graphic abou
certain conditions in the city, and abou
certain experiences the city has Jus
passed through.
One has not at hand the means for max
Ing comparisons, but in the matter o
births II is probably still true what Ma
turin Ballou wrote of Cuba nearly half
century ago-that mo capital or peopl
of Europe. Stockholm alone excepted OF
fers so startling a result
Havana. whatever may be the fac
about Cuba as a whole. has changed
little for the better in half a century
while fifty years ago nearly one-half III
number OF births We're nlegitlmate, tn
proportion for the last eleven months
something more than one-fourth. Sine
Mr. Ballou compiled his statistics SLAYER
has baan abolished