The Washington weekly post., 1900-03-20

ana that Hder American Direction They
Have Made Rapid strides in the Risht
Direcfion-Comin Elections and What
Would Follow >aeee.sfsI Autonomy.
Havana, Mareh l5.-Sccretary Root said
'"-daF' when interviewed by the CORE
hD'Hdent % TIE Associated Press that he
had come 20 Cuba Tor two reasons. In
the first place. he desired 90 see FOR him
self The working OF the various depart-
ments. civil and military. and 10 investi-
gate. - far as possible the character OF
the work ac,ompIished. IN the second
place. ne desired 20 see as many reprcvcn-
tdtiNc men as possible. including an the
business Interests. lu order 20 feel that
he was In personal touch with the require
ments Of the island
li" went on 10 say that ne had at all
um@s closely followed all the reports re-
Sarding Cuba, but he had alwavs felt as
sufcd mat In respect of many natter.
definite knowledge called for personal
contact He now felt that the Cubans
had done wonders considering the nature
of the strife that had devastated the
country FOR 50 long a time. Their condgc.
and amiability had greatly impressed him,
and he was satisfied from all he had seen
that they were capable Of self-gOycru-
mont
1t Is necessary, of course. to prepare
Tor this" said Mr.. Root. by practical ex-
perience Nor should Il be a cause for
surprise II the first municipal elections
should not bring to the surface the best
elements Of the country. Even in the
United States men who would naturally
be supposed to take an active interest IN
politics are often found attending to 9TH
or matters on election day This work Of
preparation is deemed necessary even by
the most radical Cubans As soon as
proper explanations are made TO them.
they recognize that time must elapse be-
fore race UnaCqUainted with the sim
piest forms Of government viii become
able 10 manage public affairs absolutely
without assistance.
Our Pledge 10 he Kept.
There IS no doubt that the United
States will keep faith with the Cuban
people, and the joint resolution Of Con-
gress will be carried out But lust ex-
actly when. II is impossible TO say The
municipal elections, which will take place
on May !, Will prove the first lesson. The |
object is TO give municipalities home rule
in the very broadest sense. making each
self-supporting and making the elected
officials answerabIe 10 their own people !
only for the proper expenditure Of funds. |
II Is desirable as far as possible. to de- |
centralize all municipalities from Havana |
control The American officials would |
then have only advisory and supervisory |
duties.
The city of Havana would then come |
into the same category with other cities. |
The military department of the city would |
De abolished, and this would enable the
elected municipal government of Havana |
10 take the necessary steps to refund the
debt 10 obtain new loan, and TO carr
CUt the works Of sewerage and paving
which are necessary and which should be
commenced as soon as possible. Proba-
bly, this work will commence in the early
autumn"
Referring to the reports Of possible
trouble H. the island, Mr.. Root said:
These reports are the result of hvsteria
or are circulated by those who. for per
sonal ends, wish TO see turmoil There is
close analogy between these Cuban aei-
iators who talk about taking to the
woods and the American braggarts who
insist that the United States will not give
up Cuba- Both classes are equally un-
representative of their countries"
Not Blind 10 Their Defects.
Abiding TO conversations he had had
with many Cubans representing the vari-
Gus industries, he said he thought ne b.d
seldom met with people more desirous of
learning the methods of government and
that he could see they recognized the dif-
heulty Of the task, since government. ike
Painting. was an art
He referred 10 the fact that prasido,,ti,1
ciections In the United States REQUIRED
several months of preparation. in order
tEat they should be carried TO a success
iui conclusion, and he pointed out that the
IN Cuba were very much great
eI w nat was desired, he said was that
the peasant in Cuba should have equal
rights and facilities with the loud-talking
man with the macheIe.
/ nave been agreeably surprised" he
continued, in visiting various points i'm
the province of Pinar del Rio. Natanzas
ana Havana 10 find so many evidences Of
rehabilitation. Everywhere the men were
apparently working: clean houses were in
tNlence, and there was a general air of
approaching prosperity, which | had nor
expected 10 detect. In the tobacco dis
trlcts l found that common laborers were
\
money and this, although the work is
only temporary, proves the falsity of tue ,
statements OF general distress. The mayor
Ol GuanaJay told me he had in his employ |
more than 1900 men.
Another thing that | particularly no ,
uced while travelling through the prov
inccs was that everywhere the American
troops were in good health. Their robust
appearance ana excellent cOlOring show ,
apparently that the climate agrees with .
them
Prison Abuses Corrected. I
Passing on 10 the question of prisons. {
Mr. Root paid a high tribute. 10 the work | I
Ji Gen. Wood in tEis direction, adding: {
Some months ago / had personal re- !
ports made TO me regarding the condition /
'i the prisons, and such sights as were !
then TO be seen do not exist now. for | q
have Inspected the r-isons myself. l con- a
slider the cleanliness of the city another E
fact ] wish a million Amer {
eans could witness rot only the cities q
hat are occupied by the United States &
troops, but also many towns that have I
ouS since been left absolutely to the care 7
u the Cuban population. Even in the I
after cases the stree's are kept scrupu- /
uusly clean, and ! feel that the Cubaus !
ieserve great credit for carrying OUT this }
cork, begun under American auspices. Ii /
.usurs well for tho self-Coyernment of the i
'uure. v
The growth Of the school system Is 1
another feature deserving of specjal no. [
ice More than l50.O00 pupils are now on I
oiled. / am heartily IN accord with Tho Z
dea Of taking as many teachers as pos
able Tor a summer stay OF several weeks \
n the United States. and will personally, Il
10 all ] can 10 assist such a plan. c
Taking into consideration eveTvthipy
am exceedingly pleased with my visit ~
'un1 ana l feel that / have a better
risp of the situation" a
DRIFTING. il
.oa Iet ne breathe the salt breath a, ths So ].