Evening star., 1901-04-29
IN THE WAY OF CUBA
States Which Would Oppose Its Ad-
mission to Statehood.
STRONG COMMERCIAL INFLUENCE
American Manufactures and Their
Efforts for Trade.
HOW SOME SU G G T E D
STRONG COMMERCIAL INFLUENCE
HOW SOME SJCCE D

Written for The Evening Star.
-Twenty-three states stand in the way Of
Cuba. This was said by one of the Havana
bankers before the commission from the
constitutional convention left for the United
States He wants annexation. The COM
mission does not want il. nor do the people
OF Cuba. nor will thu pe"pi" of the United
States want annexation long as they
can put 1t off.
BY twenty-three states the Havana imam
Ger meant that there We're that many SOW
ereign members of the American Union |
which through their tobacco. beet or cane
sugar and fruit growing interests would |
= oppose the admission OF a West India state
with the guarantee of free markets which |
statehood necessarily would carry. The !
same states may be expected to oppose the |
tariff concessions which would give Cuban |
products reduction Of duties. and their |
Opposition is likely to be quite as strong.
While annexation Is not practical Ques- |
tlen an immediate issue. this subject of
Cuban duties is bound to become one. The |
Fifty seventh Congress will have to meet 1t.
From the indifference shown to the mild |
reciprocity treaties negotiated with the !
British West Indies. it may be inferred |
that an educational campaign is going TO |
be necessary before the dominant party is |
ready to take up this new issue and give |
practical effect to declarations in favor OF |
reciprocity. Whether 1t is called readjust- |
not the situation exists. and Cuba. by vir |
tue of it's unsettled political status and the |
uncertainty regarding its future govern |
ment. is In position to impress !
on backward American statesmen who can |
net see beyond local interests that the |
question cannot be smothered
A Commercial influence.
IT IS not much of a secret that one of the !
Influences which has kept the constItu- |
fional convention In Havana from accept |
tief. has been commercial influence 1 do
not mean to say that this has been a prime
: cause. for 1t has not, but there are great
banking and mercantile houses in Havana
identified closely with sugar and tobacco |
which look with complacency the de-
lay. They are more than willing to have
nothing done by the Cuban convention until
the Congress Of the United States Is again
I'm session. Then they believe that 1t will !
be possible to secure reciprocal concessions
in the way Of legislation which will lower
the sugar and tobacco schedules con-
dition precedent to an Independent Cuban
government under the guardianship of the
United States. They would rather see this
plan followed than to have the Cuban con-
sress exercising its functions and In a
position to treat with the Congress of the
United States, because they think that by
prolonging the Cuban uncertainty there
viii be better chance of getting favorable
legislation from the United States. One of
the Havana newspapers which represents
the radical element and which has advocat
eGt q campaign OF moral resistance to the
Piatt amendment until the American Con-
gress meets again and Is ready to do Jus
tiGe'' to Cuba draws it's financial support
9reIn banking firm which is closely con-
Hectrd with the handling of the sugar crop.
Framing Tariff.
Meantime the tariff commission sitting in
Havana is framing tariff which 1t is pre-
sumed Will be approved by the War De-
partment and will go into effect July 1.
This tariff may prove to be the basis Of
future commercial relations between the
two countries. though it can only relate to
imports into Cuba and cannot directly in
nHeDCe the duties on Cuban products i'm
porten into the United States. The com
mission which represents the American
military authority and the Havana business
Community. has been giving public hear
1pgs. Various pleas have been made before
ii I" have the rates changed to high pro-
tscti"n basis or to a free trade basis. The
Cuban producers are struggling with an
economic condition which they do not fully
reailze, American interests have got into
- the island deep enough to be at logger
heads on various questions. Some new
breWeries have been erected. and these
want higher duties on lager beer, although
beer is still largely imported from the
United States. The dressed beef men want
loN rates on that article. as they are con-
1dent that with the erection of refrigera-
tor plants they will have d growing market
1T always IS a question what beef is best
IN the tropics. Texas man explained to
me once how beef on the hoof was the only
. proper aTticie OF consumption, while the
representative of the Chicago packing
houses demonstrated with equal conclu-
siveness that dressed beef was the only
means OF building up physically vigorous
people In warm countries. Under the
American authority every encoura cement
has been given to the importation of live
STOCK the chief aim being to furnish oxen
Tor the plantations rather than beef for
cons slInptIon. Mexico. Venezuela and Hon
nHras have benefited by this liberaIity, but
there also have been large shipments of
Sattie from the gulf states.
Real Basis of Progre.s.
All the Cubans want to encourage their
Own agricultural industries, but as they
have gone into the subject as ruIe
they have made UP their minds that the
: zeal basis Of their progress lies In to-
bacc". sugar and fruits. rather than In
seeking TO compete with American cereals
One enthusiastic Havana business man
wanted 10 encourage the production of corn
by q prohibitory duty. Two crops of corn
can be raised each year on the Cuban soil
and In the tobacco regions frequently the
land is alternated with one crop of to-
bacco and one crop of corn. Notwithstand-
ing these advantages Cuban corn never will
oner much encouragement to native agri-
culture. IL Is useful as a by-product for
g local consumption The economist who was
| going to develop Its production in order to
compete with the corn fields of Kansas and
Nebraska found that in order to do 50 he
would have to allow for an import duty of
600 per cent. and he gave up the idea of
turning the island into big corn field so
long as Ii could produce sugar and tobacco
An tnsurgent general who actually went
out into the country and began farming
:. told me few months ago that he had mad,
some discoveries. 1t cost him Is cents to
produce can of milk. while he could buy
Tor l: cents a can Of condensed milk i'm .
ported from the United States He also
Found that ii was cheaper to buy American
bacon than to raise native pork for the
Havana market. The native pork is good,
but the native pork is very thin and is
, Dot useful except for Immediate consump-
ton. All the tariff duties in the world
Would not make 81 tropical hog fat and 1t
Is the fat hog which builds up pork pack
ing industries.
There has been some complaint on the
part OF South American governments that
the port regulations of Havana Were util-
lied to discriminate against the 'tasai TO-
Or Jrrked beef which is imported in large
, quantities from Uruguay and the argen
tine Republic. but the tariff hardly gives