The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1899-02-09

dorsed the Idea for a line of steamships
TO Havana most heartily. There is GER
tain to be an immense trade between Cuba
and this country" said Mr.. Ferst, land
Savannah, from her situation, should COM
mand a large share of it. We will not
be able to do so, however, without direct
steamship connections While we could
do some business by way of Tampa other
places would have the same advantages
and Savannah would be lost sight of
among a number of others. While there
are large business houses in Havana they
have heretofore been using mostly foreign
goods. They will naturally now turn to
this country for the supplies which they
formerly obtained from Europe, and If Sa-
vannah's merchants are alert they can Sc
cure a portion of the trade"
An officer of the Sixth Volunteer In
fantry, who is now In Savannah, having
recently arrived from Havana, said that
there are immense opportunities for
American business men i'm Havana. Take
the one item of beer" he said. "Ameri-
can beer is in great demand there now,
chiefly on account of the presence of the
troops. The Cubans are learning to drink
1t, however, and it will soon become
popular drink there. The Schlitz company
lays its beer down in Havana, duty paid,
for $1,000 a case of 120 bottles, and is do
ing a big business. If Schlitz can trans
port his beer from Milwaukee to New
York, bottle it there and then lay it down
in Cuba for 5000, I should think the Sa-
vannah brewing companies, being located
at a near by seaport, should be able to
do the same thing or a little better. They
would undoubtedly be able to do a large
business there If there were a direct line
of steamers from this port to Havana"
Mr.. Gabriel Holmes, the well known
travelling representative of p. NJ. Haines
& Co., leading tobacco manufacturers of
North Carolina, has just returned from
Havana, where he spent eight or ten
days. Mr. Holmes was in Florida and the
idea occurred to him that he might be
able to do some business in Cuba, so he
took a trip to Havana and somewhat to
his surprise, succeeded in doing a very
fair business.
II put goods in Havana that had never
been seen there before said Mr.. Holmes.
plug tobacco is comparatively unknown
in Cuba. While they all smoke chewing
is very rare and there is no plug tobacco
manufactured there"
Mr. Holmes brought back a sample of
the only plug tobacco which he found in
Cuba and this, by the way, is a special
manufacture made in this country The
piece was as black as ink and it did not
require a close examination TO show that
one chew would turn the stomach of
even a negro turpentine hand. Mr..
Holmes believes that he has made a start
in educating the Cubans to use a better
grade of the plug article.
Mr.. Mills B. Lane, vice president OF
the Citizens Bank, in speaking of this
subject, said: ut is of the greatest i'm
portance 10 Savannahs commerce that a
steamship line should be established to
no
when, in order to maintain our position,
we must branch out and seek new fields
Cuba, and especially Havana, offers the
most inviting field at present, and it will
be the greatest mistake in Savannahs his
tory IL we neglect. The Central Railway
Company should establish the line, as 1t
can we'll afford TO do to its own advantage.
1t has the necessary rail connections, and
it has, besides, a number of steamships
some of which could, no doubt, be used
to better advantage on a line between Sa-
vannah and Havana than in their pres
ent' capacity The Central through its
connections, could secure a large business
for such a line, and the benefit to the
commerce of the port would be Immense"
Savannah merchants, as one of them re-
marked yesterday, are inclined TO be con-
servative and are not readily given to
branching out in new directions "Our
field is 600 circUmscribed," said this gem
tleman I'VE have been satisfied too long
to confine ourselves to a limited territory.
The time has come when we must branch
out and seek new fields. II will be diff
cult TO interest individual capital in this
enterprise, but a large corporation like
the Central Railway can afford to make
the effort and make it successfully"
There are many other business men
whose views are practically in line with
those already expressed, and 1t is posi-
bic that some concerted effort will be
made to bring the question more directly
To the attention OF the Central Railway
authorities.