davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
The Denison review. [volume] (Denison, Iowa) 1867-current, 1900-12-04

Dora, the daughter of Mr.. and Mrs.
Ernst Plough is seriously ill.
The Denison review. [volume] (Denison, Iowa) 1867-current, 1900-12-04

Mrs. Clara Dean of Rockwell City is
visiting at the home of her cousin,
Mrs. G. L. Voss.
The Denison review. [volume] (Denison, Iowa) 1867-current, 1900-12-04

Mrs. John Tamm leaves next week
to spend the holidays in Davenport.
The Denison review. [volume] (Denison, Iowa) 1867-current, 1900-12-04

The 51st Iowa regiment band will be
in Denison on December Goth. 1t will
be rare treat.
The Denison review. [volume] (Denison, Iowa) 1867-current, 1900-12-04

Mrs. Georgia Wade Mcclellan went
to Des Moines this afternoon.
The Denison review. [volume] (Denison, Iowa) 1867-current, 1900-12-04

Ex-supervisor Fred Jepsen was
among our farmer friends in town yes
terday.
The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1900-04-14

has been so different from the engage
ments at other points during the cam
paign- The Boer did not have his be-
loved rocks and kopjes to stand behind.
and so his attempts at suipIng were not
so successful
Last autumn. when war was expected,
but before the Beers had invaded Brit
ish territory. Colonel Baden-PoweII. the
most active young officer who ever wore
khaki. began to fortify this spot in the
wilderness The Inhabitants OF BIafe-
king, as a rule, laughed at the colonel.
who went on gathering his arms. laying
his mines. digging his trenches. train
ing his men and preparing for the foe
which no one really expected BY No
vember the Beers had IN position their
famous Big Ben a quick firing Krupp
u FOUNDER, a Hotchkiss, a Maxim
Nordenfeldt and a few other field guns
splitting away at Mafeking from dawn
till dusk There had been 400 British
Bechuanaland police in the barracks
outside the town before the siege be-
gan. and these Baden-PoWeu made the
core Of his little army Of defense Near
" all citizens volunteered for service
The first thing Baden-PoweII had to do
was to sweep the town clear of traitors
and spies This was no easy task The
spies were finally expelled, however,
and some 10 Feniaus taken prisoner
/ and locked up Then he set about
marking out the line of his exterior de-
tense works. This included railway
I that ran a good way round the town,
/ up and down which hustled an armored
train, forever snarling and splitting out
at the Boer lines ike a frightened cat
/ Then came the honeycombing Of the
I town Every one started burrowing
( like Jack rabbits Holes were dug from
/ one end Of the place TO the other Hafe-
| king was studded with bombproof Gel
/ lars, all ordered by Raden-PoweI. the
brain of that beIeaguered collection OF
/ human moleS- The result was that
when first Cronje and later Snyman
began pouring their shells into the place
the expected death and destruction did
not take place In fact. there was some
| thing almost comical in the method Of
/ procedure Outpost forts had been sta
| toned beyond the limits Of the town
| proper in every quarter These were
held by small forces Of volunteer sharp
I shooters, with a field gun or two Tele-
phone wires were stretched from these
/ outposts to the coloueFs headquarters
/ in the center Of Mafeking- At these
outposts men with long telescopes stood
/ all day long and watched the big guns
/ Of the Beers away of on the dim hori-
/ zon. Whenever they saw that Big
/ Ben was about to send in shell there
| was the tinkle OF a telephone Dshr ana
| the information was at headquarters in
| six seconds. In Mafeking itself they
/ had a big alarm bell. and when that
bell rang people did not expose them
/ selves unnecessarily So when 1t was
+ known at headquarters that a she'll was
/ on its way to the town the bell vas
| rung and everybody scampe-ed, rushed,
tumbied under cover
The freak effects Of some Of the shells
were interesting. In RfesIe's hotel two
newspaper correspondents were playing
The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1900-04-14
BY FREDERICK A. ODER,
Author Of porto Rico apd It's Resources"

NAV have been 1t may have been from
real love for the Americans or from a de-
sire for change. for certainly their condi-
ton could not have been worse than the
Spaniards made it. They were oppressed
By foreign rulers. staggering beneath thu
burden of every species Of taxation, and
had no voice in the management Of at
fairs
And yet, badly of as they were. it IS
the opinion of General Davis that their
condition then was better than 1t is now,
for he says. Instead Of proving a bless
ing to the Inhabitants as they had 50
foudIy anticipated. annexation to the
United States has thus Tar brought them
only additional woe. and unless immediate
remedial measures are taken by this gov
eminent the distress and discomfort now
prevailing will spread and the difhcuIty Of
regeuerating the island VIII Increase
WITH prosperity, with means Of procuring
the necessities of life no difficulty viii
be experienced in main tanning order AMI
in educating the people in the American
methods of administration But to leave
them in destitution and 10 fail TO provide
means by which they can lift themselves
from the poverty encompassing them viii
breed discomfort and make them lntracta-
Bile to American rule
Ey remedial measures of course the
general means. first. such legislation on
the tariff question as shall settle it for at
least a definite term of years In my va
rious trips I couVersed with all classes OF
people from the ''gibarO.' OF poor farm
er. of the noun tains TO the rich thacen-
dado. or sugar estate owner. of the coast
valleys and the universal cry was. Give
US anything. anything but this uncertain
". We VIII be satisfied with a Is per cent
tariff OF even IS per cent, but what we
want. Of course, is perfect freedom OF
trade-nOt free trade necessarily but
freedom OF trade" Mark the difference!
The discomfort is not 50 apparent. at
least on the surface. as seems evident from
General Davis remarks He Of course as
commander in chief OF the American
forces receiving daily reports from all
quarters of the island, may be coguizalt
of more disturbances and more suffering
than the mere traveller. According 10 the
reports of those with whom I have con
versed and who claimed 10 be well ava re
of the facts. our government is steadily
pauperizing the island by the issuing OF
free rations It is pointed out that 50
many thousand or million ratious are daI-
" or weekly issued IN the country dis
tricts. and this fact, the aIarmists say,
proves that the population is starving.
The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1900-04-14

But the people are not starving. and. in
fact. are very tar from it The issuing Of
the ratiOns signifies nothing Suppose. for
instance 10 go tons Of free food were 10
be issued in the poorest part of any great
american city or IN a populous center CT
the country for that matter is there any
doubt that there would be thousands OF
people ready 70 accept this giftE And Is
II likely that they would feel inclined to
work much while they were being fed fer
nothing Human nature IS about the
same in Porto Rico as it IS II the States,
and, moreover the natural Incidence Of a
people born and bred in tropical climate
is increased by the charity Of a paternaI
government
General Davis recognizes this evil IN the
wholesale distribution of supplies for
nothing, and he proposes as remedy the
employment Of the poorest people in great
pubic works. as the building of roads.
etc In fact thousands have been so en-
ployeo, but the bulk OF them having dc
Fe!oped liking for the pap OF charity, re-
FOAted at the suggestion Of going TO WORK
at a wage experimenting their old rate Of
compensation and struck The govern
HenE contractors increased their wages.
ana they struck again and at last ac~
counts We're sim striking Over at the
east end Of the island where the laborers
on tne sugar estates had never received
more than 30 cents day in their lives be-
rore the advent of the Americans a band
or them struck against a proposed wage
~. = q Iel4r demanding sd 1t Is quite
ilkely that they VIII keep on demanding
an increase until ali their supplies are ex-
hausled and then go TO work at the old
rate OF 50 cents a day perfectly conteutet.
As Tor starvation. that Is altogether out
OF the question To prove this let me ask
Tor example, what would be the condition
OF New England were It IN the enjoyment
OF q climate that bestowed perpetual sum
mer and in which fruits and vegetables Of
all sorts grew all the time. seedtime and
harvest following fast each upon the 9TH
er's heeIs2
Anything in the world viii grow here.
and there is not week in the year when
some oozens or more of nutritious fruits
OF vegetables are not ripening- Compare
then- these two regions cIimatically and
contrast the north. with it's rigorous win
tefs and short summers. with the per
petua4 summer land of Porto Rico And
{ there are all sorts of climates here, too.
/ Tor one can have a radically different cII-
mate at any time by riding from the coast
{ a Few miles naountainward as well as a
change IN vegetation
1t Is the boast of the better class here
{ that Americans shah never buy their
( lands at less than double their value.
+ since even the poorest people are not
{ forced to sell as they can i've on bana-
mas entirely If need be One Of these said
{ this to me. remarking that his fellow eiti-
The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1900-04-14

Cruz I stumbled over q light. eoIored little
girl Of 4 or and a perfectly black baby
of perhaps = year with nothing at all 20
cover them except pretty thick coat
ing of dirt And the weather was cold.
too. for the night before / had slept with
4 thick blanket over me and found it none
too warm believe some efforts were
made to suppress the naked children, but
it is not their fault that they go about Is
they do They prefer to. of course. not
liking the restraint of clothes. but the
simple truth is that their parents cannot
afford 10 dress them IN the interior Of
the island nearly all the children run
about N 4 state of nature 50 long as they
do not go to school-up TO 4 certain age
And as their compilations harmonic well
with the earth tints they are more IN
keeping with their surroundings than II
clothed
The nuts of these country poor are made
of a loose framework of poles covered
with a thatch Of palm leaves or the
spathe of the royal palm. which is laid on
in broad strips and is known as .-yagua %
From this material in fact. the people
here derive much that IS useful in their
domestic economy, as the women use the
The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1900-04-14
RICO

tates who make money on their workers
by charging them io cents per day for
subsistence and pocketing the difference
I can prove my assertions by reference to
official reports
No indeed, It Is not the people who
are making this cIamor for higher wages
and lower tariff for free tobacco. sugar.
etc and the franchise Not one in 100 or
them knows what the franchise IS, or
cares Not one IN LEGO can read or write
or knows whether the queen Of Spain or
President Mckinley rules Porto Rico. In
fact. the majority do not care. SO long as
they are permitted TO do as they Ike, to
wear their native costume of rags and rio
bons 10 lie in q hammock and take a 81
esta at midday. 10 celebrate Sundays and
feast days (the more the merrier) by
bales or dances. drinking and cock
fighting There was time when the
richer classes made much OF the bull
fight, but they submitted to its Danish
Inent with good grace, SO long as they
were permitted to retain their cocknghts-
For here the fighting cock and not the
bald eagle is the national bird IF we
could prove that the eagle would whip the
fighting cock, we should win their ever
The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1900-04-14

in this region, where the maturing OF
fruits and vege abIes is merely 4 matter
Of weeks and not of months. If the people
are suffering now from thesIack Of food.
it Is entirely their own fault They have
only to scratch the earth a little with a
sharpened stick. drop IN a seed or a tuber,
and nature does the rest Literally at
some seasons they have only to lie be-
meath tree and open their mouths tor
the ripe fruits to fall into them And
vet uotwfthstan ding the time that has
elapsed since the hurricane, there are
thousands who prefer to exist On charity
rather than do a little work in their gar
dens- They might have had even bananas
and p1antains in full fruftage If they had
attended to them within a month after
the hurricane. for bananas and pIantains
viii grow almost spontaneously from the
shoots of the old plants and require but
few months to mature, while such vege-
tables as yams. 1annias and sweet p0ta-
toes Will riDen in few weeks And.
again. It has rarely been observed that
any OF those natives who had their huts
or houses toppIed over ever even tried to
set them Up again I have seen some that
we're level with the ground and others
that were half tumbIed over. beneath
which their owners burroWed in some
prop up the doorway or lift the thatch a
little.
I an speaking Of the mass OF the popu-
latiou. of perhaps 10000 Of the LOG. 600
fnha bitants in the island They are des-
uerateIy poor. but they don't mind that
for poverty here does not mean what pow
ertv IN a cold Climate means. They re-
quire little clothing and are happier with
none On at all a bit of coarse bread in
the morning. a banana and a piantain or
two at noon and the same at night salts
fy their cravings for food This is chiefly
the diet of the lab0rers in the eaneheIds-
They can subsist on S cents 4 day. and
there are many rich owners Of sugar es-
The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1900-04-14

zens were entirely independent of the
Americans a their subsistence practical
" grew wild. and that they didn't need
our charity But when I asked him about
those pItIful appeals for heIp that came
waited toward the States last year ana
about the shfDloads of provisions that We
sent them he was silent No indeed they
did not send any provision back; they
devcured them all and then held out tEer
hands for more,
Now. is it not rather pitifuI for any one
to say that the people of Porto Rico are
still suffering from the effects Of last Au-
gusts hurricane when more than SIX
months have passed since it oecurreds
Thousands of poor natives met their
death IN that hurricane and the evidences
OF its havoc are seen yet on every side in
the ruined nuts. the wrecked buildings OF
sugar estates and the demolished houses
and overturned trees along the roads IN
the country districts If there was any
thing left of consequence NOT destroyed or
injured, it was merely because it was not
in the path Of the storm In going from
the port. or playa. Of Ponce to that city
1 saw a 200 foot steel wagon bridge which
had been swept by the food from its
abutments and carried into q field more
than its entire length away The bed OF
this bridge was 20 feet from that of the
stream it spanned and was strongly an
chored to its abutments, yet the river
came down with the hurricane and car
riad it away like q cork The other day
when 1 saw that stream I might have
walked across it dryshOd on the stepping
stones that protruded above the water.
But I was going to say that the hurrt-
cane. terrible as II was, occurred 50 Tong
ago that there has been time for the psf
ting in and harvesting of several crops
The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1900-04-14

spathe for a washtub as wen as for
wrapping material of different sorts the
two species Of palm. the royal and the
cocoa. furnish the poor farmer with al
his building material, and for the furnish
ing of II he looks to the caIabash. which
supplies him with water vessels. dishes.
spoons and with utensils of nearly every
description needed in his simple mode Of
life
These common classes do not ask for
much while living and they don't expect
much when they die. To meet a funeral
procession on the highroad IS a common
experience, and then one sees how poor
and mean are its accessories Even the
coffin which the .'mourners" carry 50
jauntily on their shoulders. is borrowed
for the occasion. and when they get TO the
grave the corpse is dumped IN without
much ceremony and left apparently with
little regret I was told that the custom
of renting the graves had been forbidden
but when in Ponce saw some sections
digging out an old grave. from winch
they threw up all the bones OF = human
skeleton They could see no impropriety
in it. for, rs they said. the rental Of that
particular grave had been paid for only
five years. the time had expired. and the
tenants bones were now going into the
pit in the corner Of the wall along with
thousands Of Others
Having as it were pursued these Porto
Ricans from the cradle to the grave. I
Will now drop the subject only pausing
to remark upon the really symparhetic
quality Of these simple minded people,
who are readily aroused to either anger
or -nfrth who take life easily and meet
death without fear. They constitute prob
ably four-fifths Of the population and are
the masses whom the future politician
They are not yet 1T for the franchise and.
in the opinion Of all with whom have
conversed, never viii be-
But the salvation Of the island lies in
The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1900-04-14
TYPICAL SCENES IN PORTO RICO.

lasting support. but so long as there IS
any doubt they stick by the chanticIeer-
And this leads me to remark that in no
way has the liberty of the Porto Rican
worldly wise rules laid down by General
Henry and followed religiously by Gen
eraI Davis. his great successor. When
arrived at San Juan the carnival was IN
full blast, and could not detect a bit Ct
difference between its celebr5 ton then
and eight years ago Endless ribbons CT
paper were stretched across the street
and tangled Up in peoples legs, the pass
erby was treated to a small deluge OF
perfumed water or dash of rice powder
while the proIetariat were cut IN fun
force, parading the streets in masks and
costume Of exceeding grotesQueness and
originality
There was one difference 7 could hard
y detect in the capital, San Juan. They
told me that the place had been carefully
fumigated disiufected and swept. they
related wonderful stories Of the vast accu-
mutations of filth that had been removed
from houses, corners of walls and the
streets IN general But the Old doors were
there just the same 1 could at any time
tell what part Of the city was in by the
smell In the old times. when the oil
lights were dim or entirely out that was
the only way I'VE boys could ind our
way home at nightly following our
nosess Instead Of ascertainiug where We
were by the aspect of the street or house
We would locate it BY its peculiar odor
and we were not often mistaken
Now as Of yore. the lower story Of
most every house in San Juan is occupied
by the lowest species Of humanity the
city can show. These people are not by
any means vicious, nor are they probably
very bad. but they are dirty The men
go about in ragged shirts and trousers.
the women IN slatteruly skirts and the
children entirely naked Only yesterday.
IN tact. in going through the street Of La
The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1900-04-14

and a great profusi1u OF regrets and apoI-
osies that one coming there in an Official
capacity, as I had come. should be sub
Jected 20 such annoyance. But notwIth-
standing my permit was everywhere fol-
lowed hy Spanish soldier
But now how different As We passed
by the MORO on this last trip the steam
ers rail was lined with passengers point
ing cameras and kodaks at the fortidca-
TONS without q protest from anybody.
The only permit necessary on the island
tfor, being now United States property. no
passport is required) is one for viewing
the interior Of the principal forts-San
Cristobal and the MORO This. however.
Is no more than precaution against spies
and informers. and permission is granted
readily upon application at the palace.
This allusiou to the seat CT government
headquarters reminds me that the drst
visit Of nearly every American Is to the
governor generals palace. that magnif-
cent structure within the bastiou OF Santa
Catalina which dominates the city and
auords nne views Of the Casa BIanco.
where anciently Ponce de Leon lived. the
great military barracks and the citadel
itself
While the palace is the official residence
Of the captain general and so in a sense
IS q legitimate object OF invasion bv all
Americans yet It is also his private home.
ana an inspection Of the lower rooms Is
Q1ly AFFORDED 70 the public through his
courtesy. Passing through a sentry
guarded archway. we climb the broad
marble stairs and enter the anteroom.
where a polite adiutaHt is in waiting to
take the names Of visitors to the general
j had the honor of a previous acquaintance
and so was admitted az once 10 an inter-
view which was one Of the most pleasing
features Of my visit. The views Of 4 r,ar
in the position Of Brigadier General G. W.
Davis. the present governor general of
Porto Rico, have often been sought and
frequently, though not always accurately
quoted
General Davis is a worthy successor to
fne iate General Henry that model Of
caiValrI and courtesy whose great work
OK construction he is ably carrying on
lie ls every inch a soldier and his iuch-
IS VIII aggregate more than SIX feet fol
ne Is or tan and Commanding figure. wei
SET UP and portly. His every act since b.
was appointed TO command in Porto Rico
mas SHOWN that he has the best interest,".
OF the people at heart. and his constant
desire seems 10 be to make the islands per
1ectly safe place of residence for Amer
t-ans as Wen as natives Regarding IN,
coadlJion Of Porto Rico under American
Iuie. ne admitted. with the fraukuess o.
an 2il soldier accustomed to speak tn.
ttuth regardless OF consequences, tha
tnete was still much to be desired Tn.
natives. as we know. received our soldier
WIN open arms, whatever their motiv,
The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1900-04-14
THE

THERE has recently been great
deal Of discussion as TO whether or
not the island of Porto Rico should
have free trade and civil government
As a PERSONS opinion is liable to per
soual bias, depending upon his social
and political Affiliations. perhaps the
best thing can do is to give an account
OF what I have seen and heard during
my recent trip over and around the is
land. leaving my readers TO make their
own deductions. In the hrsr place
may mention that I was here 20 years
ago in the year 1850. and again eight
years ago. on my latter visit as a Chi
cago exposition commissioner Thus.
having seen the island when under
Spanish rule ard having met the ruling
people. such as the captain general, al
calde- commaudaute, etc, SHALL have
a good basis Of comparison as between
the past and the present Porto Rico
II may seem q trivial matter per
haps. but the first thing that struck me
at my entrance for the third time into
the beautiful harhor of san Juan was
the absolute freedom accorded arrivals
here as coutrasCad with the iuceSsanr
watch kept over one during the old re-
gIme As the great walled city Of san
Juan doomed before me the first time.
with the glorious Moro Castle. histOr-
fc and impressive, L was of course,
seized with a desire TO photograph the
picturesque scene and pitched my cam
era for snap shot after we had crossed
the bar and sailed into the landlocke.t
harb0r. 7 had no sooner done so, hoWeV-
or. than nay arm was gripped by sallow,
smoke dried Spanlard who groWled
threateningIy and pointed significantly to
one Of the Moro dungeons, Initiating
sfF4a rsrrN1
promptly be incarcerated- This man was
a customs official, who had come aboard
with the pilot AS he also threatened 20
couhscare my apparatus. I fastened to
hide it in my stateroom. where it lay dur
ing the time we were on the coast
That was % years ago. and conditions
were exactly the same when made my
second visit in 1882 for before I could take
any photographs whatever. even in the
country. far from the fOrtlfcatons Of
which the Spanlards We're SO jealous I
had TO procure a permit from the alcalde-
Il was given me with alacriry, to be sure,