The Wilmington daily Republican. (Wilmington, Del.) 1890-1902, 1899-01-05
THAT SANTIAGO SCARE.
The Ersitable Oubans Were Need
.-lessly Aroused.
HAVANA WILL NOT GET RECEIPTS
Tho Customs Omcers Are Merely In
structed to Make Weekly Reports.
All Receipts to Be Used For the BEN
sfit OF All OF Cuba.

Tho Customs Officers Are Merely In
structed to Make Weekly Reports.
All Receipts to Be Used For the Benz
sfit OF All Of Cuba.
. Washington, Jan. 5.-Regardng the
sensational reports from Santiago that
the whole province had been inilamei
by the recent order Of the war DEPART
ment Concentrating all customs money
70 Havana" thus threatening to throw
thousands Of Cubans out of employ
ment, 1t may be authoritatively stated
chat any excitement existing in San
tiago is due to misrepresentation of
the war departments order. 1t seems
TO have been taken for granted that the
order contemplates sending all cur
Tency collected for customs dues to
Havana, and thus cutting off the gov
ernor Of Santiago province from the
employment of local labor. The fact Is
dhat the officers in charge Of customs
in the various ports Of entry are merely
ordered to make weekly reports to the
collector of customs Of the island at
the chief port of all transactions at the
6ub-port over which he may have juris-
dicti0n. with copies of entries of mer-
Chandise duly certified" The customs
from all ports in the island are to be
used for the betterment of the con-
ditions of the Cubans. not only In Ha-
Hana and Santiago. but elsewhere.
! Expenditures will be divided as
cquitably as possible, so as to relieve
distress existing in various quarters
and to make this relief correspond as
nearly as possible to the emergency.
It would be just as equitable. 1t Is ar
gued, for the port Of New York to re-
tain all customs funds collected there
for expenditure in the Island OF Man
hattan'as it would be-for Havana Or
Santiago or any other town in Cuba to
Eobble all of the customs receipts for
expenditure within its own borders. Z
! So far as the war department con-
templating any curtailment Of the relief
work In Cuba, an order already has
been issued to the governor general
directing him to furnish work to every
able bodied Cuban applying for it at
fair rate of weekly wages, measured
by Cuban standards. The order sug-
Eests that the best lines of employment
are in sanitary work road Improvement
and municipal works of various sorts.
1t Is intended to Offer chance for
Jemunerative work to all who are able
10 take advantage of 1t and to cut off
the gratuitous distribution of rations
among those natives able to work for
what they eat The employment con-
templated will not be offered, however,
20 any resident Of the island who re-
tains his allegiance to Spain.
! The plans so far formulated by the
~ar department do not touch the pay
ment of the Cuban army, which has
been urgently requested by General
Gomez, but this matter is now under
ndvisement, and 1t Is notimpossible that
the war department will hold that it
mas quite as much right to apply the
Income of Cuba to paying off these
men. and thus giving them a new
start In life, as 1t has to employ labor
ers on public works with the same gem
Gr2l end in view.