The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1899-02-09
QUEER THINGS IN CUBA.
Manners and Customs Which
Seem Odd to Outsiders.
A CALENDAR FULL OF FIESTAS.
Everyday Life in the Isle of To-Morrow-
Punctured Coins and Disease-Breeding
Shin Plosters EphemeraI Tropical
Beauties.
Correspondence of The Republlcan.)

ClENFUEGOS, Jan. 20.-IO Une UfaN-
eler in foreign lands the question of
money is always troublesome-not
whether he should have plenty of it
There is never any question about
that, but in what form he ewould bet
ter put it in carrying out lagos ad-
vice. AS yet there is not much
of Cuba, except that one sees less of
Spanish gold than formerly. "Amer-
lean money! as United States silver
is called, has always circulated to
a considerable extent in the island,
and the deported Spaniards, despite
their wall of poverty, managed to
get away with most of the golden
coins of the mother country. One
who is visiting Cuba in these days Of
her recOnstructing can bring no bet
ter financial prop than American
greenbacks; they are so much easier
to carry than gold, and the premium
on them is the same. If he brings
the usual letter of credit or draws on
home through one of the island banks
he will find that the cashiers charges
for the accommodation are quite in
keeping with the Cuban idea that
everything American is lawful prey,
to be made the most of. The hotel
keepers still require their pay on the
basis of Spanish gold, but will readily
allow six per cent. on American bills.
The local merchants are glad to get
our greenbacks at the same rate, in
exchange for their goods or the coin
of the country, because most of their
business is done in New York, Phila-
delphia, Boston and Baltimore, on
the credit system, and the notes are
convenient for transportation with
out the expense of getting them
changed into another form. But the
cabman, pOrters, servants and others
of their class, accustomed to being
Ncheated at every turn by their late
lers, will have nothing to do with
any money they do not understand,
and insist on the familiar twenty-cent
pieces of the island, American dimes
or nickels, and coppers for small
change, or the dirty, begger-handed,
disease-infested shinplasters. If you
offer them an American half-dollar.
fresh and shining from the mint,
they will eye it doubtfully, try its
edges in their teeth and ring it on the
sidewalk, if they do not refuse it ont
right.
Some sharper of other days seems
to have flooded Cuba with American
silver in five and ten-cent pieces, af-
ter having punched a fraction out of
each for his own profit. You may
pick up hatful of these small coins
in the course of days transactions
in any Cuban city and meyer find a
whole one among them. Not only do
the mutilated pieces pass at their
face value without question, but the
islanders appear to place most conf
dence in the coin that has the great
est number of holes in it, as a proof
that it is genuine-else why did some
body take the trouble to punch it?
A great deal of paper scrip, similar
to that used in the United States be-
fore the resumption of specie pay
ments, circulates in Cuba-but with
this important difference; when ours
became soiled or torn we could ex-
change it for new, while in Cuba there
is no such facilities, and the filthy
bits of paper, handled by Iepers and
carried about in the lowest classes,
become so loathesome that one would
rather forego his 'change" than
touch it,
One dollar of our silver will pur-
chase at least $2.45 of this scrip-of-
ten more, according to the rate of OK
change at the moment. Though bas-
ed upon nothing, having been issued
indiscriminately by n bankrupt gov
eminent, it answers all the local nee
essities of trade, and is always used
for car-fare and small transactions.
1t was ground out of the paper-mill-
nobody knows to exactly what
amount-in five, ten, fifteen and TWEEN
ty-cent ''plasters." One thing is well
known, that every authorized issue
of a given sum was enormously eX-
ceeded.& Seven years ago an issue of
bank bills of this small currency was
entrusted to an establishment i'm the
UnitediStates, and fourteen million
dollars was printed in addition to the
authorized amount! All was duly re-
ceipted for and signed by the cor
rupt Spanish officials, whose the
quid nuncs say-divided the extra
millions among themselves. 1t is as