The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1900-07-10
N g|JBANEST gJBA
John Rhoades Discovers the
Primitive Type.
-LANGUOR AND FESTIVlTY
0obbin Is Stabbed in the
Kitchen of the Inn.

Puerto Skennesee, Province of Matan-
zas, June 1O.-To see rural Cuba one needs
go no farther than this point. 1t is To-
Gated twenty-three miles from Matanzas
by land and is situated on the seacoast.
having river mouth OF sufficient depth
to shlte- small sailing vessels and light
ers. Connection can, of course. be made
between the Two points by water, but
as there is a long peninsula to go around
1t is quite distance, said TO be over
sixty miles. This is the objective point
Of the macadamized wagon road being
constructed by the government. Just
why the road is being built to this point
I have never been able to learn, as the
entire length is through a hilly, broken
| country, thinly settled. Before the war it
was the site Of several fine sugar mills
| but at present there is only one, the
"San Juan" remaining. The town itself
is very small, having but one street. with
| two offshoots angling from IT, AS all
! the roads in Cuba are really bride paths
and they turn off for every palm matched
shack we managed without any trouble
| to get lost and were a whole day max
! ing the trip from Matanzas Everywhere
the grls: was to the backs Of the horses,
so that the animals really grazed all the
way After winding for the best part
Of eight hours over hills and through
mudholes in the valleys we reached the
plantation o. San Juan and received di-
rections as II the best road to take from
there. For several miles on each side
Of he nil fDraf1 ts1
cane fields, many Of which have been but
recently replanted. Hundreds of laborers,
mostly negroes or mulattoes, were at
work in the fields, clearing out grass,
which is very thick and waist high, from
the 20; rg plants, manyof which were
just reeplng through the ground. In
other places, where the cane was about
knee nigh. it was being cultivated by a
man, a boy and an OK. The OK is har-
messed by having a stick dashed to his
horns, from which extend two ropes,
used as traces and hitched to an Ameri-
can turning plow of about eight-inch cut.
There vas a ring through the animals
no*e by which the boy led him. 1t was
hard to tel which pulled the most. the
OK or the boy. A man guided the plow.
which merely pushed the dirt out of the
way, instead of turning H. One could
not but contrast this mode of farming
with the American way of using a sulky
cultivator and two good. high stepping
ho,ses AS all their cultivation here
tends to throw up ridges there is no
doubt that a disc cultivator would be
the very thing and do away with much
of the hand labor required at present.
A great many OF these people apparently
never before saw an American to judge
by their actions, as they stood and star
ed at US as we passed. To our 'buenos (
tarde" grin would overspread their faces
and many of them, especially the ne
groes, would take off their hats and al
most double themselves up IN their efforts
to acknowledge the salute in a BETTING
manner.
After passing the plantation we met a
party Of negroes and negresses who were /
apparently in the best OF spirits. judging
from tbei- shoutings. Every few min
utes they would shout in chorus viva, I
Viva" and as we passed them one waved 4
his hat, at which they all stopped short /
and again resounded their cry OF Viva" /
AS we entered the town we noticed sew (
eral OF the inhabitants in holiday attire. (
especially the children and the police /
men. We were directed TO the only res
taurant in the town where a sign an
nounced it as 1.-The Cheap" where we
were told we could secure cots for the /
night and have room to ourselves
with the exception OF one man. If we
would sleep in the dining room Our
dinner consisted OF a piece of bread.
chicken and rice. with an egg omelet.
=. - ~
we heard the beating of kettle drum
and the noise as il a mob were shouting
somewhere down the street Gradually
the noise drew nearer until a procession
OF about twenty-five negroes. including
three or four girls and women, halted IN
front OF the door. One stood a little IN
front waving a faded Cuban flag, exc
cutting a slow dance and all the time
using the flag both feet and banner
keeping time 70 a slow chan. OF the 9TH
ers. who. at signals from him. broke into
cries OF viva" After several minutes
Of this they moved across the street in
front Of store. repeating the perform
ance
AS soon as they were far enough away
so I could make myself heard I asked the
landlord the meaning a the scene Just
and was told that # was san
Pedro's (St. Peters, day. and that the
mob was composed OF those whose names
were Pedro. who were serenading. from
which they expected TO gather a few
cents a. each place. on which they would
feast the remainder CT the night
I was also informed tia; the whites
would celebrate the day with a dance
and received an invitation 70 attend with
my companion. The music vas to e
something special. as they were 20 have