The Breckenridge news. (Cloverport, Ky.) 1876-1955, 1899-05-03
CUBAN SIGHTS AND SCENES.

PINAR DEL RIO, CUBA, March 20, 1899,
TO THE BRECKENRIDGE News For the
sake OF those who may wish to seek
their fortune on the island of Cuba 1
will endeavor to write just few lines.
AS you all know a soldier has very little
time for this sort of work and, therefore,
you will not expect everything to be in
detail.
The most important industry of the
island is farming. Instead of the i'm
proved implements, which the Ameri-
cans would be lost without, the Cubans
have rude sort Of pillow and a short
handle hoe. The pillow is indeed curl
osity. The stock and handle are one
piece OF wood. The stock being the
body and the handle the branch of a
tree. The branch is turned down 80 as
to make a good handle and the body,
which is only about a foot and half
long. is turned 30 as to run parallel to
the ground. 1t has piece of iron fixed
over the end to protect the point from
the rocks. The beam is nothing more
than long pole mortised into the
handle near the stock and is as long as
an ordinary wagon tongue. The hoe is
made something like the American hoe,
but the handle is never more than three
feet in length.
Instead of the big fine horses and
mules to work they haye oxen, which do
all blowing, hauling and such like that
Is to be done. Their yokes, instead Of
being fastened with bow 80 as TO work
against the shoulder, are fastened to the
top OF the head by rope around the
horns. To the American this seems to
be very cruel way to yoke them up,
because they have no way at all TO pro-
tect themselves against the insects which
bother them.
Nearly everything is planted in large
ridges or hills. Even tobacco, which is
the most important crop, is planted in
small ridges.
The tobacco is small, but has a very
fine fiber. One reason for its being
small is, they grow two or three crops on
the same peice of ground the same year.
Every farmer has his little banana grove
and two or three cocoanut trees near his
house. Sweet potatoes, onions and, to
some extent, almost every tropical fruit
that can be named are raised.
AS for cultivation the Cuban does very
little. They just plant their crops, keep
the largest weeds out and trust TO the
rest. II an American could only stand
the climate during the rainy season, get
good farm and cultivate 1t as he would
a farm In the States it Is a pretty sure
thing that he would soon be an in
dependent man. The soil is good and
all it needs TO make it bring good results
Is to have some one TO work II that
knows something about 1t.
The crops are either taken to market
on large, awkward looking carts drawn
by oxen, or on pack trains. Tue carts
are large and roughly built; but II is
astonishing what loads can be hauled
upon them. The wheels are from six TO
eight feet In diameter and the beds are a
great deal larger than our ordinary
wagon beds. These beds are filed with
whatever they happen 10 be hauling and
II one yoke Of oxen can't pull 1t they
hitch In two or three more. The oxen
are hitched close 70 the load just as we
Co. excepting the lead yoke which is
sometimes hitehsd Atty feet in advance
Of the others This Ia done so when
going over the low ridges when the cart
gets " the steep part Of the hill the adj