The Billings gazette. [volume] (Billings, Mont.) 1896-1919, 1902-01-31
DR.. O.B.Prickett,

cost. The cities must and shall be
kept clean and everything done to
make a yellow fever epidemic impos-
sible. l have been much interested in
the experiments which have been made
regarding the spread Of yellow fever
and other diseases by mosquitoes. and
the matter will receive my attention.
II shall model many things on the
plan Of the united States government.
l have lived in this country long
enough to know what real progress
means and how it is accomplished. |
shall have plenty of assistance to that
end. There are many men in Cuba.
young men especially. who have been
educated in this country. and they
will he of great use now in making the
Cuban republic a model ne"
"Have o thought anything about
your cabinet"
l believe four or five secretaries will
be sufficient. OF course. there will be a
secretary Of state and a secretary of
the treasury. Then l should say there
would be a secretary of the interior
and a secretary of agriculture. l can
not sec much use for the Others"
do you think the time will come
when Cuba will become a part of the
United StatesY
mo. The Cubans have fought too
many years for freedom and indie
pendence not to hold on to it now that
it is coming to them. I know that it
will be a great many YEATS before
| Cuba knocks at the door of the United
States for admittance, if I've We are
a Spanish people. and we do not care
to be merged into the United States.
The immigration from Spain will be
very large in Cuba in the next few
years. Already since the war over
10000 Spanish immigrants have set
tied in Cuba. and more are coming all
the time. They have faith in our re-
public"
"Do you think the delay in granting
Cuba independence was necessary"
"Not at all. The Cubans were per-
fectly able to govern themselves two
years ago-as much so as they are
now, surely. We are a peace loving
people. We bear no hatred toward the
Spanish people. We are not revenge
full. We are grateful to the Americans
for all they have done for us, but we
want the independence for which we
fought so long"
The New York Herald quotes Senior
Palma Is saying: Il do not know
how soon the last Of the American
troops will be withdrawn from Cuba.
We are confident Of the perfect good
faith of the United States and will
make no demand for the immediate
evacuation of the island.
Rural guards will be formed to take
the place of a standing army and for
the purpose of meeting any emer-
gency that may arise. The Cuban
people desire to show that they do not
need American troops in the island to
keep order and peace. They have an
appreciation of their own duties, and
they will be proud when that day ar
rives that will permit them to stand
before the nations of the world free,
Independent, we'll governed. prosper
u anu at peace.
"Some system Of coinage must be
devised for Cuba. but that will have
to be left to the future. 1t is so easy
to dcpress the currency and coinage of
q weak nation that l would prefer to
have some arrangement made whereby
American money might circulate in
Cuba as standard. 1t may be that this
can be accomplished. l believe that it
would have a good effect upon our
trade relations.
Eve have outstanding bonds to the
amount Of $4,000 900 that have been
recognized. These bonds begin to bear
interest the day our government is es-
tablish"l. One of our first duties will
be I provide for their payment. Cap
ital must be encouraged and hostile
legislation minimized. The railroads
Of Cuba should be amalgalnated into
one system. as under the present plan
freight rates are unnecessarily high.
'For the present the capital will re.
main IN HAVANA. 1t is, the sentiment
witl, !aa ;:,at some day II new capital
like rho city of Washington. should be
built near the center of the island. but
that is in the distant future, More
prscti:ai problems will he treated by
the new governmental
Horrible Possibilities.
The Frenchman who claims to have
invented Il method Of seeing by wire
will probably be kind enough, says the
Washington Post, to explain just wha1
a person will see when the wires be
come crossed.