The daily morning journal and courier., 1902-04-11
PROF. ATwATER ON CUBA.


 Middletown, April 1O,-Professor At water of Wesleyan University has just returned from a visit to Cuba, where by special invitation he addressed the First Cuban conference of charities and correction. and had unusual opportuni- ties for meeting representative people Of different classes and from different parts of the island, thus seeing the actual situation and state of feeling. He gives his impressions of the Cuban situation in the following statement:
 T believe that people in the United States do not realize the importance of the present exigency in the economic, social and political condition of Cuba, and the demand for liberal treatment by the United States on political and commercial grounds, as well as on those of our national duty and honor.
 That our military government has been wisely and well administered, I believe ther is no doubt. My own per- sonal impression was strongly con f1rmed by the almost unanimous testi.
  jeans with whom I talked. Through out the island business has been re- established, sanitary regulations have been devised and enforced, public inn provements developed, charitable and penal institutions reorganized and higher education provided for.
 The intelligence and public spirit of a great body of Cubans is illustrated by the fact that a conference of charities and correction has been organized on the plan of the association of the same name in the United States and starts out with about thousand paying members This, though greatly aided by our military government and by pri- vate citizens of the United States, is a Cuban enterprise.
 ''The great question now is the fu- ture of Cuba. Regarding this thought full Cubans and their American friends are extremely anxious. A number of conditions are most favorable. The people are now in a glow of enthu- siasm for self-government, education and material and moral progress. On the other hand, there are grave diff culties and dangers. The people ore n- experienced in self-government. The percentage if illiteracy is very large The economic situation is now serious. The great question, of course is the sugar tariff. To the superficial observ- CT, business seems to be good but ac- cording to the almost universal testi- mony it is, as matter of fact on the verge of collapse.
 'The chief crop is sugar. The plant CTS generally are making this years crop with borrowed capital, for which they pay from 12 to is per cent inter- est. It costs them about $2 to make | 100 pounds of sugar and put it along side ship. For this the present price is $1.36. The only market is the United l States. The Platt amendment ties the { hands of Cuba so far as making com mercial treaties with other countries is 
 Many planters are facing bankrupt | cy. The present sugar season will close | about May 1. Without money for plant l ing another season sugar growers will | be unable to employ their help. Peo- ole in both country and city will be | without work. Business men are all ready finding it hard to meet their ob- fgat1ons and a financial crash Is now being postponed by mutual forbear- ance. What will come if the United States does not help by liberal reduc- ion of the sugar tariff, they dread to People of experience say t will mean hunger, stealing, general disorder and disaster to the new gov 
 Rightly or wrongly, we have as- tuned before ourselves, Cuba and the world, the responsibility of gvng her table government. Our national honor pledged in the Teller reso- ution, the treaty of Paris. the Platt and the negotiations be- ween the higher officers of our govern nent and the representatives or Cuba binds us to do what is needed not only O put Cuba on her feet, but to avoid the founda tion on which she tands The only thing needed for this nd now is liberal reciprocity"