The times., 1899-05-21

| that many had been beguiied to this un-
| frequented place, on one pretext or anoth-
| er, or forced along the camino doloroso at
| the point of the bayonet-to the edge of
the ravine; where they were murdprad and
tumbled into the cave. Investigation dis
closed large number of decayed bodies,
many identified as the missing ones; and
the position of some indicated that life
was not extinct when they were thrown In
| to die among the dead. / recall a tale of
| horror, told me in Havana a month be-
| fore the blockade, concerning this place
| The story ran that a Spanish captain. rid
| ing at the head of his troops from Cata-
| lima, heard faint means issuing from ra-
, vine by the roadside. Glaneing over, he
could see only a heap of slain in the dark
ness below, from which arose a sickening
| odor and the horrible tearing sound made
! by vultures' beaks and claws. But again
. the feeble wall was heard and the captain
/ sent down some of his men to investigate
! Among the putrefying bodies they found
! three living wretches-a woman who Cied
while being carried out, a half-grown boy
who breathed his last few minutes later
and beautiful girl baby with a terrible
machete cut across the head. company of
| Spanish cavalry had passed that way a few
days before, burned and sacked a farm
| house which was suspected of harboring
! insurgents, macheted its inmates, and cast
| their bodies into the rayine. The captain
| took the unconscious child before him in
the saddle, half expecting it to die before
Havana was reached, but promising him
| self that If it lived he would adopt il as
his own. Arrived at the capital he gave
1t TO the care of the good sisters of the
Beneficencia, where, strange TO say. it Ie-
covered and thrived apace. / went TO see
1t. and dimly remember little girl with
| big black eyes, disfigured by terrible scar,
my attention being absorbed by yet
more pitiful case. The latter was that of
slender girl of fifteen, raving crazy, al
ternately tearing her hair and screaming
in terror, or gibbering softly to the dead
whom she believed TO be around her. She
was the eldest daughter of a rebel officer
who was killed near the beginning of the
war. A few weeks before she had seen her
home burned, and mother sisters end
brother murdered, while she lay hidden in
the long grass; and afterward the sight of
carrion birds drinking the eyes of the loved
ones and tearing their flesh, though she
fought them with all her feeble strength,
unbalanced her mind Even the hardest
hearted Spaniard has a feeling of pity for
the loco" as an insane person is called,
and the next troop of soldiers that came
along buried her dead and brought the girl
TO the Benefcencia.
Regions of Great Fertility.
AS mentioned in the previous letter
Gunes is the largest town in the province
of Havana, next to the capital, and until
ruined by war was very prosperous. The
plain in which it stands is the very gard
en- spot Of Cuba, having for many years
had excellent system of irrigating ca
nails. Taken on an average, plenty of rain
falls in every part of Cuba from season TO
season, to supply all the moisture that
vegetation requires; great deal TOO
much of it, however. between May and No.
vember. and not enough during the win
ter months, which are the best crop season.
Gunes equalizes this uneven distribution
of the blessings OF providence by irrga-
ton; and with most gratifying results.
Before the war English and American syn
dicates had their representatives here who
were deep in irrigating enterprises, among
other money-coining schemes. Their ca
mails and bitches were Of course neglected
during the long struggle. but have never
fallen into complete disuse; and when the
universal distress that yet prevails has
passed away, the old irrigating system
will doubtless be enlarged and improved.
When that time comes, no spot on the
face OF the earth will be more fertile. II
is a common saying now in Cuba that n
handful of the red soil of Guines Valley
is as valuable as a handful of gold dust.
They used to say that caballeria OF the
land was SO valuable that nobody knew
its price-because nobody ever thought OF
selling. caballeria equals thirty-three |
and third English acres-and even in |
these hard times none can be bought near |
Guines for less than $56Gl. In the DAYS of |
the early Spaniards, land was sold by the |