The Appeal. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn. ;) 1889-19??, 1899-03-25

Seory of an Exploration of Spain's
Famous Prisons at Havana-Trir
Through MOrro's Grewsome Dun.
geOns-At Last We Have Pene.
trated the Damp Recesses of Hor.
ror-Cells Whose Secrets Arr
More Dreadful Than Those OF the
Dungeons of Ancient Venice.
e The Moro anu the ~Cabanas, as the,
rear their drear walls above the harbol
and. city, frowning down at the hundred.
OF American and Cuban flags, seem t.
cast still lingering shadow over tn,
dawn OF Cuban independence. Although
the red and yellow Of CASTLE no longe.
floats over those battlements, the grim
1ortresses still represent the shacklet
menace of Spatn's vanished power. With
in those walls, deep down in the rock
recesses, many budding aspira ton ant
thought of liberty has been foul,
crushed out There are blood stains IL
those cells which no cleansing process. car
remove, says a Havana correspondent o.
the New York Herald, and they must re
main. mute evidences of freedoms mar
tyrdom, until the prison walls cralnlble
The story of the Moro and Caballas
prisons can never be adequately told. II
contains such depth of human misery,
such refinement Of mental torture, such
barbarity of physical suffering enforced
by inhuman jailers, that the full truth
AUST ever hide its head from the scru
tiny of civilization. Could the ghosts OF
the past three centuries reinhabit the
cruInbled skeletons beneath the slime eof
the moats and reassemble within the
walls which once Knocked their ,sufferings
what dread and direfrl tales of man s
inhumanity to man might be related. If
such thing could be the shades would
stink in horror back to their forgotten
resting places, aghast at the memories OF
their sojourn in the flesh. But this may
not be. The martyrs -.of the Morr0 and
Cabanas have passed, and their sufferings
must be cOnjectured mainly from recent
events and indestrncttble evidence left
behind. ".' "..
The entrance to the Cahanas is reached
by a narrow passageway, winding round
the face of the cliff from the rickety
wharf at the waters edge. Zinc covered
and paved, this road has been a way OF
sorrow for many a prisoner who has
YEARLY traml,ed UP the steep incline
Few have returned along that path. The
bravely, with their hacks to the firing
squad and cry Of ~Cuha uhre!" ON their
lips
Forty feet from the summit of the cliff
small grass-coNered place is reached. In
front are two gna-led and rugged laurel
trees, their roots stretching down the
slope and showing Through the sea-. y
soil like the bones of some partly ex
humed mammoth. In the background
and close to the cliff Is a guard house.
the wood of sides and floor decayed, the
doors lockless and broken. In front is
spread out the panorama of the harbor
and city,, the latter, with it's tiled roofs
and quaint architecture it's square built
towers and lofty steeples, looking like a
picture from ancient Spain. To the left
Is the craggy bride track leading round
to Santiago battery.
To this spot such of Spain:s prisoners
Who had been allowed the privilege of
communicating with their friends were
led, shackled and guarded, four soldiers
to each man, and for a brief moment per
mItted to breathe the clear air and enjoy
the bright sunshine. For thirty precious
minutes they had a glimpse of the world
outside, before being thrust back into
their dungeons i'm the inner walls OF the
Cabanas. 1t was here that Cen. Lee con-
ferred with the Competitor prisoners, and
here where Julio 'Sanguilly, after many
months confinement, proposed to break
loose from his guards and escape down
the cliff, preferring the risk of immediate
death by a Malser bullet to continue
longer subject to the insufferable horrors
Of his prison
Crossing this grass plot, narrow gate
way to the left gives admittance to the
outer works Of the fort. To the right, the
lana side towers huge wall cut out 'ot
the solid rock, forming a posse, or ditch,
between the land approaches and the
massive
outer defense the ground slopes inland
the only approach to the castle being "a
smooth, SlOping sward naked at all points
by guns mounted ON the walls. This ditch
extends round the castleuntil lit ends In
the sea- On the MORO side lit is crossed
by a wooden drawbridge of ancient con.
struction, and raised and lowered by Gn
ella borate system of weights and pu1leys.
The southern portion Of this meat is the
famous Fosse de los Llamreles, martyr
ground of Cuba's liberty. A long, gloomy
walk, gravelled ON Gne side, on the other
the long rank grass. Right and left are
the frowning walls of the fortress. AT the
northern end the walk twists mound to the
west. Midway are six trees OF the class
from which the place takes dts name.
Twis.cd and distorted their trunks seem
to have lest their natural shape by wit
Messing mary scenes .f human agony.
They draw their :rnrture from the blood
at such a price for T. cling, has shown her
protes. in crooked branch and duly
tinted leaf. tE.F.
Two PAGES from the trees is the 'execu-
ton ground. A mound OF stones and a
dented wall, cut and SCARED by many a
bullet, are the only existing memorials
on the spot where so many OF Cuba s
sons have died for freedom. Here, i'm the
cool gray Of the morning, were le& out
those whose crime had been a too great
devotion to what they deemed their duty,
The sad procession led from the cells
in front Of the office OF the captain OF
the guard A squad of soldiers came first
Next followed the condemned and the
priest who was to administer to him the
last consultations of religion The NEGRO
,eravedigger and his assistants. bearing 9
rough deal coffin. followed The governor
of Cabanas and his aids, escorted by a
squad of soldiers, brought up the rear
Passing through the long corridors. which
penetrate the hundred feet walls, the
Fosse de los Laurels was at length
reached.
The prisoner was placed against the
WALL his back to the firing party, whd
were but a few feet distant. The soldiers
fdling around passed haunting remarks
Using the language Of the bull ring. they
asked PECULIARLY what kind of a fight the
victim would put up. Occasionally, II the
condemned man were some noted char
acter, their feelings carried them so fal
that they actually assaulted him on his
way to execution. The vtlest taurts were
poured on the head of the islander and
his last hours were tortured by the I'M
feeling bitterness Of his prosecutors. But
at last the farce was ended. The lieu.
tenant in charge OF the firing party threw
away his cigar, the orders, Load, = Pre-
sent" Fire. were given and the Swrith-
tng corpse on the ground was all that re-
nsained OF the follower of free Cuba.
inside the castle itself but 1little can