Evening star., 1901-05-30
THE DEBTS OF CUBA
Conservatism Shown in Regard to
Mortgaging the Future.
CLEAR BALANCE SHEETFOR THE ISLAND
Only Cienfuegos and Havana Pre-
pairing to Borrow.
r E F o RMS IN TION


Special Correspondence Of The Evening Star
HAVANA, May 25, 1901
CUBA Is beginning to discuss it's debt
carrying capacity. l do not know whether
this VIII be taken az good sign or a bad
sign 1t Is noted simply as an incident
OF the transition stage and is brought to
mead because of the efforts to provide
pIah OF sewerage and drainage for the city
OF Havana, which will require a loan of
s15.UO,UOO
The island and even the municipalities
are in fairly tempting position to 20 into
debt. Yet 1T should be said that there is
not the wild desire to mortgage the future
OF the island which is presumed. No one
with whom l am acquainted is talking OF
creating the $1O0,0OO,O0O national debt Of
which reports occasionally are heard in
the United States. 1t Is to be said for the
leading cubans that their tendency to the
orles and distractions are carried into
hrance. When they begin theorzng about
debts they follow out their conclusions TO
tne point OF determining what shall be done
about sinking funds and conversion Of tho
debts which may be incurred. 1t is a very
good trait and might be studied with ad-
vantage by some of the American syndi-
Gates which think that because of Cuha's
great undeveloped resources the thing to
DO is to mortgage these resources two or
three generations In advance
ON the part of the revolutionary leaders
there is practical side to the matter of
creating obligations which they fully un-
derstand: Ihey know that In the unset
tled conditions financial houses which make
leans are somewhat distruStful of the wav
the island is going to work out it's DESTINY
A dozen plans might be drawn for insular
loans, but to get the money on them would
be another matter. Now. it IS no secret
that the leaders of the revolutionary ele-
ment Will want about S2o.(s0,6UO to paw the
J insurgent troops and to take up the legiti-
mate obligations of the Cuban junta. They
make very clear provision for that in the
cuban constitution.
w hen the commission returned to Wash
ington Its members Indignantly denied that
they had been given ASSURANCES by the au-
thorlt1es that the Platt amendment would
not interfere with making provision of this
kind. They need not have made the denial,
Tor II is perfectly well understood that an
Indebtedness OF about s2o,ooooo0 Is expected
TO be incurred for these purposes. That
| much probably could be provided with
safety, but If they went beyond the limit
and sought $s0.OOOOOO or s1OO,OOOOOO the
whole scheme would fail But IL by con-
servative action s2OOOOOOO can be secured
the open path will be followed. Gen. Roloff,
who had control of the rolls of the insur-
gent troops, showed great liberalty In put
ting everybody on them who had the ghost
of a claim to be called an insurgent, and a
good many names the rolls which
should not be there. This reduces the
amounts which the genuine insurgents can
hope to get
The fact that the island looks upon itself
as having clear balance sheet is due en-
tirely to faith in the United States This il
the faith the efforts of European govern
ments to impose on Cuba the payment OF
any portion of the Cuban-Spanish bonded
war Indebtedness Of s45O,00O,00O to s60O, ,OOO.-
600 will be resisted. and that the moral au-
thority of the United States will be suf-
ficient to keep the European governments
from making trouble. Then the American
nation has taken upon itself to settle the
claims of Its own citizens for damages
growing out OF the insurrectiOn, though the