The evening times. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1895-1902, 1901-07-05

Is Vet "a further variation IN production
Guines Is the district Of small farms and
small farming They raise crops not only
for local consumption, but for export to
the United States No section
of the island gives better chance t.
study the prospects and the conditions
OF small farming
Before the instruction brought such
great destruction, the Cuiues district
was one of The most prosperous parts
of the island. II has been coming up
| rather slowly because. with 50 large a
! proportion Of small farms destroyed. and
with their owners dead or heavily in
| debt. speedy recuperatlon was not posi-
| bIe. The foreclosure of mortgages which
| has begun still bears heavily on some
unfortunate landowners, but This Is one
| Of the inevitable results of the war
| which no authority OF government could
| entirely relieve. Nevertheless, III spite
/ Of the grip OF the Spanish money lender,
| many of the original owners of the
small farms OF their heirs seem TO be
| keeping their property or a part OF il
Their burdens are heavy yet encoUT-
| aEc1neut Is given that with "a good sea
| son or two these viii be IIghtsued-
The Guines district Is not given over
entirely To small farming, for half the
country Is covered with CaUeheids. and
there are several large ccntralcs. or su-
sar mills. which did not have To be re
| built Among these are the Provldeucla'
one of the largest in Havana Province.
| which also operates 4 small refinery; the
| Amistad, Nombre de DiOs- and other
| smaller estates All of these have raised
| fair crops this year which have brought
an average price. and thus the gradual
revival of the sugar Industry has helped
I al =
planted insures a crop at least one
fourth larger next season, and this viii
be an additional aid toward recupera-
ton
| The Guines district differs from other
parts Of the island in that 1t does not de-
pend on nature alone for its fertility r.
| rigatiou enabled IL to become the market
| garden of Havana, and 10 export a con
| siderable surplus crop Of onions, pota-
| toes, and other vescJa bles TO the United
States. II is claimed that a good part Of
| the Bermuda onions, instead Of coming
| from Bermuda. come from Guines- By
means OF irrigation the district Is enabled
| to market two crops OF both potatoes and
| onions annually, in addition TO other pro-
| ducts which are raised for the island con-
! sumption.
The irrfgatiug bitches nave not been
restored to their former condition, but
| enough is seen Of the system TO dem
| onstrate its value IN q country where the
| rainy season # four or i've months is
| supposed TO furnish sufficient moisture
| for the rest o. the year GJIines, BY
| means of irrigation. has had the advaut-
| age over the other parts OF the island
| in that it could alternate the crops with
greater regularity and was not affected
| by the occasional droughts which occur
] ma
rains in Cuba are not perennial or per
| petuaI- The soil is both Of the rich BLACK
| loan and Of the red earth, which IS some
| times called mulatto land. 1t IS good for
sugar as wei is for fruits and vegeta-
/ bles, but It does not produce the tobacco
| leaf Of the quality or quantity sufficient
to make this cultivation profitable
| The Spanish laws governing irrigation
| are said to be very good ones They pro-
tect all parties II interest and afford q
sufficient guarantee for the investment Of
! capital Before the insurrection various
English and American syndicates were
reported TO be projecting extensive sys-
tens Of irrigation Since peace came
| these reports have been revived. but
like most enterprises which are depend
| ent on American capital. the realization
comes very slowly Yet in time the OBJ
| ject lesson which Guines has given OF
| the value Of irrigation IS certain to be
taken advantage Of either by co-opera-
ticn among the land owners themselves
OF by corporations with outside capital.
In the days before the war and insur-
rectiGn the possession of a cabaIlerfa of
land with q few oxen anywhere in the
Guines territory constituted what would
be called in the States a weIl-to-do farm
| eT- 4 caballeria Is thirty-three and one
third acres, yet in its productive value
it would pass Tor the quarter section of
| 100 acres on Western prairie. The
| farmhoUses and outbuiIdiugs. as in all
| parts Of rural Cuba are simple and in
expensive, and the conditions of life ex-
cept for the oppression and corruption OF
the Spanish officials, were not difficult to
meet. Sometimes a CabalIeria would be
sold for 5000 OF Whereabouts but it was
difficult 70 put any fixed price. The small
holding was valuable enough to secure
more than one advance from the bode-
gUero, or stOrekeeper. who usually was
the money lender. In spite Of IS or q
per cent interest, compounded annually.
the producJiyeness Of the soil vas great
enough TO stave Of the foreclosure for a
long time. and the small farmers vita
the debts hanging over them managed TO
get along about as the great sugar plant
ers did with their enormous obligations.
/ because OF me distress and pOEeTtN
caused by instructions, some Of the land
has 20 be sold at q sacrifice, and it is
cheaper than before the war, yet none
of it is 70 had for song. 4 cabaIIeria
under cultivation. while It may be bought
| comparatively cheap. still fetches a price
far below that Of the big farm in the
United States.
A number Of Americans have come in
to the district IN a small way and are
doing fairly well. One group Of them has
made an arrangement with the railroad
company to give them warehouse faciIi-
ties, while others are operating on their
own account. just after the protocol was
into Cuban farming. as they called it,
| and selected the GUines country for the
| scene Of their activities 4 few of them
leased lands while to others were given
the use Of tracts by Eome Of tee large
planters substantially for nothing. Few
of these early corners made a success.
The trouble was that they knew little III
| farming and had no capital Of their own.
| When they miscaIculatcd on the potato
market in New York and when too much
rain spoiled part IF the crop they were at
the end Of their resources. Others who
came in later. and who had some CAPT
/ tai. are doing better, and are greatly en-
cuuraGcd AT the prospects which the
/ Guiues district offers.
The most successful American IN this
| region is a young fellow near Catalina.
On a capital which three years ago was
Hras.H Oh =4H rH.r he.