The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1899-01-04
'GREENVILLE MAN IN CUBA.
Letter From One Of the Engineer
Force Giving RumOrs and Facts as
.aa.. s., m, n,arinan m Camn


seen in an American Camp.
The following are extracts from a letter re-
ceiyed here from Quincy Land, who went to
the war with the First North Carolina regi.
ment and is now with the engineer corps IN
Cuba:
Ouemodus, Cuba, Dec. 22.-It affords me
great pleasure to write TO you tonight. Well,
this is O little town about the size OF Green
an awfully pretty place. There is not
Spaniard here; they have given up thls toWn
and gone to Havana, from which place they
are leaving every day. There are American
If one is raised there 1t is torn down by the
Spanlards. II Is dangerous to go to Havana !
some of our drivers are Killed on the road
coming to eamp eUey ayery day
lady nurses arrived to-day and the Cobans
followed them like Negroes follow r'- ls.
The Cuban soldiers had big parad as. as.
Sunday. Whites and Negroes gU w.. g.
and they were all mounted: They have Dne
prettiest little ponies you ever saw and all
of these ponies are single footers.
All the buildings in this place are like the
ones in the city; there is not two story
house here and all have iron bars over the
windows and doors. There are no dry goods
houses here. will &c, to the city for some
shoes Sunday. Shoes here are hand made
and are cheaper than at home, which Is the
only thing have heard OF being cheap; ex.
cept cigars, which sell for almost nothing.
Chewing tobacco is higo Cuoans 90 not cne"'
This is the most beautiful country In the
world; like spring all the time; the trees stay
green all the year round; people here are now
Gathering sweet potatoes. The Cubans boil
iheir potatoes, they know nothing of baking.
there are no stoves here except those brought
by the soldiers.
This little town Is quaraptined. NO soldler
or anyone employed by the government can
60 through the streets or into any house. We
have to get Cubans to buy for us. THESE peo-
Die here do not know when Sunday comes
IN frnn IA n
any other day. Havana is not under guard
yet and l am going down there 10 mail th1s
letter Sunday. I can't get any stamps here
was with the lsL North Carolina, but am now
with the End volunteer engineer CORDS; have
a good Job, going to work at 7 and quitting at
S, with rest In the day which makes the work.
Z The V first two days 1 was at work over here I
had TO pay $3.50 day for meals and 80 cents
for cot to sleep on. I met man 6y the
engineer camp where could get meals for 81
a week. Then 1 went over to the North Caro-
lima camp where Colonel Hall gave me tent
and hay TO- make hnvs gaae s Sef Two sbei heG
Ter tents, which / sewed together and made q
bed tick. We have no use for coats here ex.
cept as pillows. None OF the men wear coats
and some OF them no shirts. IL ls hard 70 get
water to drink here, to say nothing OF water
for washing purposes. All our drinking wa
ter is hauled In wagons; think 1 have wash
ed my face three times in week. The Unit.
ed States government is putting In water
works, on which we are working night and
day, but 1t will be ten days yet before any
water Is gotten to the camps. ,.
Everybody from America seems 70 oe saIls.
fed all seem TO like the island. have oflen
said that 1 wanted TO be in place where
I knew nobody. There are only four men
here now whom I have known before, and
of 1t as much as thought would. am now
at WORK on themissionary building; there are
10 be four of them, 100 feet oy 4Oo feet, and
q cold storage and an Ice Ns iaSNtsory LOT tne
Armour company to put up beer IN. -,
There il also TO be hospital building loo
feet by 700 feet. The engineer In charge told
me today that we would likely have TO repair
cy. I am getting $3.50 day and none Of
us do as much work In q week as we do
In day at home. Anything that can drive
nail can get 50 day, but the Americans are
Americans and nipety-six Cubans at work
here and you bet we have time telling them
how an what to do. We can't understand
them and they can't understano us.
There is to be hot time In Havana On the
lst Work will be suspended and all the
troops will 20 In to see the flag raised by Gen
eral Lee over Moro castle. Everybody IL ex-
pecting trouble that day: There ere viii be ,ave hve
wish I had my tools here. but 1t would
cost s2l duty to ship. Uncle Sam, however,
uS aii the IoOiS VIC hCSN
There are all kinds of American gamblers
and fakirs here and they are coming In every
day.
We can get the Chicago Record here every
other day four days old. Ii there is anything
In the home paper OF interest cut ~ out ana
send me. l wish you coul taste THIS Cooap
bread IL is good but II as hard as a brlcR ana
costs 20 cents q loaf and tho loaves are not as
large as those at home. Beef iS 30 Genus
pound ham ~ cents q pound bacon B Genus;
coffee 10 cents Irish potatoes S!20 peck
sweet potatoes 90 cents apeck eggs ~ cents q
dozen on ions 81 peck beef liver, % cents "a
pound and pack OF Duke cigarettes cost Ss
cents In American money; Amerlc peer %
cents bottle American whiskey s. 20 quar-.
Well, will write again toon II don't ne
down and die In the meantime. i know u
everget sick enough 10 go TO the hospital wi!l
never come out alive, for feel that way;
plenty Of yellow fever Ia Mariana, seven
miles from here. The soldiers are dying there
ike sheep. But none Of us know what is the
matter with them. After they leave their
company TO 90 to the hospital, none OF the
boys ever see them again. None OF the men
are allowed there and nobody except the doc,
tors knows what's the matter with them. l
do not feel uneasy now did not come mere
TO die and hope some day to come back 10
the United States and visit old South Caro-
lima, but 1t is hard to tell whether will or
not. There is one thing sure. do not want 10
die In this country and be laid away In these
rocks and mountains. ] don't see how they
ever dig a grave for everything Is as ROCKY as
can be-. Write soon as there is no telling
what may happen before get letter from