Keowee courier. [volume] (Pickens Court House, S.C.) 1849-current, 1900-03-15
COL. }. |. ORR ON CUBA.
FINE COUNTRY, BUT PEOPLE NOT MUCH
TO BRAG ON-SOClAL EQUALITY.
HAvANA'S MASSIVE BUILDINGS,
Farming Methods Ancient and WastefuI-The
Americans Bitterly Hated.

Americans Bitterly Hated.
Col. James l.. Orr, President o
the Piedmont cotton mills, has jus,
returned from Il visit to Cuba. lie
was not favorably impressed When
asked yesterday what his first I'M
preston of Havana was, he answered
promptly, 'rhe substantial charac-
ter of the buildings, yellow. the pre-,
dominating color, with considerable
blue and some salmon. A large ma
jority Of the houses are stone and
brick, with floors marble and brick
stories 20 to 26 feet high. All the
windows are large, high from the
floor aud barred. Most of the large
houses have courts in the centre,
which is used for flowers or stables.
The streets are clean and narrow"
"What did you think of the pco-
pie? ?" was the next question. Colo
mel Orr said: "Thcrc are three ele-
ments more or less distinctly visible
the SpaniarlS who constitute the
upper classes, and are the bankers,
business men, merchants and hotel
keepers then the Cubans, who have
the appearance Of mixed race,
partly Spanish and partly Indian,
but many of them showing unmis-
taxable evidence of negro blood.
They are dissatisfied, discontcnted
and indolent people, dirty and slo-
vcnly beyond anything | have ever
seen and hate the Americans only
second to the Spaniards. They are
small Of stature end weak mentally
and morally apparently. The negroes
are more numerous around Havana
than The other two combined and are
stronger race physically than the
Cuban and while many Of them own
great deal OF property they give
the impression of being improvidcnt
and shiftlrss, though they made
much better soldiers in the Cuban
war than the Cubans did,"
"llow about their habits and GUS
inms?"
"Ihc two most expensive opera
tonS III society are getting married
and being buried The result Of the
former is that unlawful cohaDitation
is very common and the percentage
OF lllcSitimatcs very large. 1t is
indeed serious matter to die in
Havana, for the funeral obsrquics are
ON such grand scale that the cx-
prnsrs break up man Of moderate
means. The hcarscs are Of most
elaborate and magnificent pattern,
drawn by two, four and frequently
six beautiful black horses, richly
cararisoncd without riders dressed
in red and gold. No women attend
the funerals and when the burial is
over the attendants go up to the
bcrcavrd, and with hat in hand, offer
their coincidence, and shake hands,
The funeral Of the lower classes is
simple. If they cannot have a
handsome hrarSc, then they simply
have four or six men who carry the
coffin ui heir shoulders from the
house to the cemetery. The monu-
mcnts are very ornate and many Of
them very magnificent, one in the
ChriStobal Colrn, to the hrcmcn,
costing, it is said, &25O, 100000 ard
being about 80 feet high, with mas
sivr figures or marble statuary on
it,
"What Of the future -
"1'hr most serious aspect for the
CubanS in Che future, it seems to me,
is the utter disregard of the laws Of
race. From the church to the bail
room in every grade of society is a
c"nmingling OF the races that is
TRULY appalling to any one who re-
cngmizrs the inevitable evils OF mis-
crgenatlon. The Spaniards and
Cubans seem to be absolutely want
ing in respect or pride for their own
race or antipathy for the African.
!hr "nl y place in all Cuba that any
attention is paid to race is the pcni-
tcnt'Iry (and they have one that
would be credit to any State in