The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1900-09-23
DEA Of LIBERTY
Rough Rider Rhoades Says
They Think 1t Means Loafng
THEY DON'T WANT TO WORK
ButGhey Will Get Up in the
Night TO Talk
oSpeciaI Correspondence 10 Eagle.

with the firm belief that the prosperity OF
| the island was due TO its natural re-
| sources. Now that most of the troops
are gone they realize that they have been
depending upon the Americans entirely
for support. That the prosperity was only
| temporary and Of mushroom growth.
caused by the amounts OF money being
expended by the United States govern
ment. Now that this source of revenue
| is so greatly diminished as to throw half
of the population out of work, they are
accusing our government of insincerity
and saying that they are being abandon
ed to starve. Only yesterday speaker in
Matanzas said that Cuba was being treat
ed worse by the Americans than it ever
was by the Spaniards; claimed the
United States was an immoral govern
| ment inhabited by an immoral peop'e;
charged General Woods as being the in
strument used by the government to
force the island to become a colony and
| the people slaves He wound up with the
announcement that the brave Cubans
who had resisted the tyranny of Spain
would again take TO the woods to give
their lives if necessary for freedom. AS
he was addressing voters who were that
day casting their ballot TO choose cleo
tors to a constitutional convention, he
seems to have wandered away from his
subject. Such speeches are and have al
ways been common here and mean Moth
ing. Every Cuban is blessed with long
tongue, a strong pair Of lungs and pos
sessed of an inordinate desire TO talk.
which desire they put into practice when
ever possible. AS to the logic of their
subject it makes no difference. II their
brain power was equal to their lung
power their equal as statesmen could not
be found, but as the ratio is worse than
Is to 1, it would hardly be expected that
they restrain themselves to facts and
handle their subject with any degree of
intelligence.
The facts are that the people do not
understand the meaning of nor responbi-
bilities of liberty. They have but vague
idea of it and all seem to be possessed
with the firm conclusion that under
Cuba libre' no one should work. every
body have plenty of money and that life
should be one continuous round of pleas
ure where the individual could spend the
time dressed in white stsrched linen as
gentlemen Of leisure. with nothing to do
but crafty his own desires. From such
an ideal it must be hard to come down
TO the real, especially when the reality
means physical labor III the short sum Of
60 cents per day; TO have constantly be-
fore one vision Of a feast where fruits
abound and rich wines sparkle and then
have to satisfy the appetite with rice
and dried Goldfish.
Some of these illusions have been
rudely dispelled, but convictions of life
time die hard and it is not surprising that
bitter feelings result. The more l see of
the people and better l am acquainted
with them the more they puzzle me.
Their makeup is combination OF the
Moor. the Castilian, the African and the
Indian. Springing from such a stock the
wonder is that they are not worse instead
of better.
1 frequently receive letters about land
titles here, their validity and the
question of back taxes. In re-
gard to the latter, there is no such
a thing as a land tax known here and
consequently no tax titles and nothing to
be feared upon that score. All titles are
recorded from the original grant OF the
/
ers and a title properly secured Is per- /
feet. The registers hold their office for |
for life and are under heavy bonds as /
to their conduct in office and are fnan- |
ciauy responsible If an abstract is given /
in which there is a flaw.
A popularity Of the land laws are that I
a title to a piece does not include any 1
mineral that may be found upon il. The /
mineral title can be held BIZ one person /
and the land owned BY another. II the |
owner OF the mineral claim wished 10 |
work his property il is necessary 20 pur- /
chase the land. If The two can not (
agree a. board Of arbitration IS appointed /
TO settle their differences There is
quite a large mineral belt extending from 1
Matanzas to Havana and several mining
claims have been filed BY Americans
upon copper and ashphaIt deposits. One
Of these I mentioned once before as hay-
ing shipped some copper 70 get a mill
run. The return was sufficiently salts
factory to cause them 10 60 on and the
are now developing their property pre-
paratory 70 putting in machinery.
After fling their mineral claim they /
purchased the amount Of land desired. -
their was nothing In their way 10 a clear
20 everything except the time necessary 4,
to elspse for advertisements snG IN sd-
5!tion the usual delay u Cuban officials
After ninety days the Alco.dla O, Ma
tanzas notified them tha' he was ready
% issue the title which he dia August H.
also giving them an order 70 the Alcql-
dia q CorraH- Nuev.> in whose district
the land IS located, - put them IL pcs
session. This seemed rather absurd -
they had been IN possession over ninety
days. being there and keeping = force q
men ~ work. but 4 vas necessary 20
comply with the lav The Afeoldsa 81
Corrau %ueva set he date a. September
2 and upon that morning accom- pa nfes bY ]
a sergeant y police ard fHo pTIysfes
rode OF; % the pace WHARF, the Amer
cars H1et hin aad showed hin over tie
place- They rode arcsns the snss-s
piece carefully. noting thag each ecEne7 II
was as lefi ~ The surveyor and tzzertbss
r. the 5ees after which - formally Az
rsuncsa that tie prosesesngs hesnx a.
-arfinz 10 AK thaf 10 objections ksa
beer fled II hls cree - that - IS A.
psrto- ~ Mztznzss. g Sz-szss Us suty - I
rs, ts.e claimants n faTz3zl possssssaE-
n sBea he proceeded q II 70 ano2her
ssseerh n ~haeh - aun1uaoa1 tnat u
xzs thsirH shsnzatssT. that :he-s esa4f -
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sns thst . >; arT tire fressg4ssesg
-ssssezs essxs1sr. q ssca=aE sss f1fT $50
ssas q sss rass-s - see thas gesv ~<~e I
He saes gTses1sI 20 tae :
aozae SHIRE ~ Er2ts abesf sc ss-e ?
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xaich e was reasg e - Teswsea
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