The evening herald. [volume] (Shenandoah, Pa.) 1891-1966, 1899-01-11
GENERAL WOOD ARRIVES
The Commander at Santiago Was
, Summoned to Washington.
HE DENIES ALARMING REPORTS.


Citizens OF Santiago Made No Dem
onstrationS Against the Order Trans
ferring Customs Receipts to Havana.
A statement by General Castillo.
New York Jan. 1.-THE United states
transport Mississippi which sailed from
Santiago on the evening of Jan. 4, ar
rived yesterday on board the trans
port were General Leonard Wood mill
tary governor of Santiago, and Lieu
tenant Hanna. aide de-camp; Dr. Cas-
tillo, a brother of the Cuban General
Castillo and Colonel Gibson who SUI
perintended the distribution of provis-
ions to the starving Cubans
General Wood said his visit here was
in response to telegram from the Sec
retary of war received on the day h,
left Santiago. seven days ago. What
was required of him by the government
was only conjectural. AT the time he
left Santiago everything was quiet and
he affairs of the province and city in
the best condition. General Brooke had
assumed command only two days be-
fore. and the transfer of the customs
revenues from Santiago to Havana was
AAi'i tA'it ll'Nt ~ ne lAdd very lllNlt III
formation about the question, and that
little would not be proper for him to
mention till he had conferred with the
government.
The customs receipts received at San
tiago every month from the various
parts Of the province were about $7O,-
900. Under Spanish rule all the Gus
toms receipts from the whole island
went to Havana The general would
not make any comment on the changed
situation, but it was manifest that he
thought the receipts should continue to
go to Santiago to make provision for
public works and sanitation, By order
of the government the operation of
General Woods order for centralizing
the customs receipts of the Island of
Cuba at Havana has been suspended
for the present till the government
fixes a plan for their distribution, APP
parently depending much on General
Woods visit, though he would not say
so.
When shown the dispatch stating
that General Brooke had expressed
astonshment that General Wood had
permitted a demonstration at Santiago
against the order concentrating GUS
toms at Havana he declared that If
such a dispatch had been sent by Cen
eral Brooke to Washington General
Brooke was laboring under a mistake
| No such demonstration occurred, the
| people having been perfectly quiet
| about the matter, and the only thing
of public character was a gathering
| led by the mayor and chief men of the
| city attended by a band, to express
| good will toward him on his departure.
DR. Joaquin Castillo, who was a
passenger on the Mississippi and ac-
companying General Wood, is bound to
Washington as representative of the
| Santiago board of trade and the busi-
ness community generally in the Gus
toms matter. Dr. Castillo was a gem
eral in the Cuban army and served
during the first year of. the Cuban in
surrection, but from that time was as
sociated with the Cuban junta in New
York under General Palma, and direct
| ed a number of filibustering expedi-
tions. He is now a practicng physi-
clan, and is the head of the Santiago
hospital
nr. Castillo said that as against the
monthly customs receipts at present in
Santiago formerly there were about
100000, or less than half, though the
| present tariff is mostly under the third
class, while the Spanish tariff rigidly
stuck to the high charges under the
first class No more imports were re-
ceived now. maybe not so much. but
all imports now paid their share of the
duty instead of a great part being
smuggled and stolen, as formerly. In
addition to the customs revenue about
100000 yearly is realized from the
municipal taxes at Santiago. These
revenues are now all being directed to
public improvements. There are a
thousand men now employed building
roads and in other public works.