The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1899-01-21

spondent of the New York Tribune,
brought 800 of them from Chaffarinos and
Fernando Pc. The p~ardoned political
prisoners had to find means of transporter
tion themselves. The Spanish government
provided transportation for the Nanigos.
The history of the Nanigos is,an inter
esting study. The first society, or "juego,"
was formed by slaves nearly three-quar-
tiers of a century ago. 1t was a grotesque
organization of Africans, with a basis of
superstition and ignorance, but without
criminal purpose or instincts. Originally
negroes born in Cuba were not admitted
to it's membership. Only those who had
been brought from Africa could join 1T.
They called their country the native car
abali'' and constituted organizations
known as s'cahildos." The chief cahildo
was called Apapa Epi- These terms are
still used and puzzle people who seek their
meaning in the Castilian language. These
and several hundred other words and
phrases are purely African Some of the
terms have no corresponding meaning in
Spanish and for that reason have survived.
Ultimately blacks born in Cuba, or
hneoros c~riolloa, y were admitted into the
membership Of the Nanigos. They were
not allowed TO become members of the
s.iuegos'' composed of pure Africans, but
were permitted to form lodges by them
selves. with 25 members as the basis. In
this manner they were taken on probation
and were baptized with genuine Afri-
can rites. These rites have survived, with
some additions and some changes, to the
present day.
The initiation of a new member into a
fsiuego,, of Nanigos, as il was learned by
the Havana secret police a few years ago,
consisted in a number of mysterious cere-
monies, the purpose of which was to test
The applicant. The live rooster was al
WAYS a feature. Its head vas stricken off
and the applicant made odrink the warm
blood. 1t has been stated that at some OF
the ceremonies human blood was drunk
After the preliminary initiation the appli-
cant put his hand in a globe in which
were white, black and yellow marbles
Whatever color he drew out marked a VIC
tim for him, either a white man, a black
one or q mulatto. To entitle him to full
membership he had to stab, shoot or rob
some ono. The degree to which this mi
fiation was carried out has been doubted,
vet the regularity of the crimes and the
familiarity of the methods seem to confirm
it. The knowledge that he had shot or
stabbed q victim and that the other Mani
Cos knew it was the surest means OF keep
ing the new member firm in his allegiance.
The Manages as a body were many years
In reaching this degree of professional
criminality. For a long time the initia-
fion ceremonies were limited to an oath OF
fdelitv and brotherhood, sworn on an al
tar and With q crucifx in the hand, with
various rites of mystery. Thu crucifix and
the altar were, of course, not of African
origin. The original Carahils believed in
an invisible power, but not in God The
c7bau born blacks introduced the reli-
oious symbols and in other ways modified
fbe organization. In time they came to
dominate it. Then the whites sought adj
mission and were allowed to organize sep
arate ssfuegos, = just as the Cuban criollos
had been permitted to do. 1t was a long
time before the whites worked their way
into the lodges of the negroes, but ulti-
naafeIy this happened. Then the criminal
character of the Nanigos as an organlza-
ton became pronounced.
During the period of slavery the Nanigos
were not looked upon as a dangerous ele-
ment. Organized in bodies, they commit
ted some excesses, but these were usually
corrected. Many of the masters encour.
aged and protected them. Within the last
g6 wears the complete change was worked
which made the various @juegos' societles
for crime pure and simple.
a curious feature is that they recognize
no central authority. Each "juego' il an
independent body. The rites and cerefno-
MES are the same, but a separate seal or
sscoat of arms is preserved by the differ
ent lodges. They are grotesque symbols,
and In them, as in the practice OF the
rites, is a suggestion of voodooism- The
Nanigos acknowledge loyalty only to the
asiuego'' to which they besong. They take
an oath OF vengeance and of brotherhood.
The obligation is to avenge the wrongs
of the brothers in that particular lodge,
though it may be against a Mango belong.
4ne to sonc other lodge. Twelve or 10
wears 2 So s.juegos7 were known TO DC
n existence FL Havana and it's suburbs.
At that period they were fighting n an
other. Havana was a city Of feuds, The
tobacco factories were organized +juegos.
The different bands executed vengeance
by shooting, stabbing and a-ssassinating
one another's members.
Unfortunately this condition did not
continue until they were all xterminatad
GRADUALLY they turned on society, and
Havana was actually submerged j p q mass
of crime. Robbery and murder We're daily
and nightly events. People did not ven
EE--s-s-&1 observation-disclosures affpr