The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1902-02-26
CUBA AND THE CUBANS.
Facts and Figures About the
Queen of the Antilles.

"a Gazetteer of Cuba, 'by Henry GAN
nett, geographer, is the title of Bulletin
No. 1872, of the United States geological
survey, now in press, but not yet pub
lished.
Cuba, the largest and most populous
of the West Indian islands, lying direct
~ south of Florida, has an extreme
length, from Cape Maisi on the east 10
Cape San Antonio on the west, of 100
miles, breadth ranging from 100 in
the east to % miles in the neighborhood
of Habana, and an area, including the
isle of Pines and the bordering Keys, of
approximately 1000 square miles.
The north coast is mainly steep and
rocky. In the western part of Cuba the
bluffs are low: toward the eastern end,
in Santiago province, the coast is rug
ged and almost mountainous. The south
coast from Cape Maisi westward to
Cape Cruz is bordered by mountains,
party by the Sierra Maestro. West of
Cape Cruz in the Bay of Buena Esper-
ANA, into which flows the Rio CautO,
the largest stream of the island. Thence
westward the coast is low and marShy.
broadening, west of CienfuegoS into the
Great Zapata Swamp, IS miles long and
80 miles broad. Off the southern coast
are mainly low, mangrove covered ISL
ands. Most of the harbors of both coasts
have narrow, crooked entrances opening
into sheltered basins. The middle por-
ton of the island, including the prOVln-
ces of Habana, Matanzas, Santa Clara,
and Puerto Principe, consists of broad,
undulating plains, and shallow valleys
Throughout Pinar del Rio Province in
the west, parallel to the coasts, runs a
watershed, the Organ noun tainS. exceed
ing 1000 feet, whose southwark slopes
form the celebrated Vuelta Abajo tObac-
co land. In Santiago province, the Ser
ra Maestro reaches attitudes exceeding
5000 feet, and one peak, Turquino, is s.,
800 feet high. The rivers of Cuba are
numerous, but short. and few are navi-
gable except through their eStuarieS
The Cauto, in Santiago province, is nav
igable for about so miles, and the Sagua
about 20 miles. The interior of the ISL
and is dependent on only LOO miles OF
railroad and its poor wagon roads for
Accommodation.
The mineral resources of the island, so
far as developed, consist almost entirely
of hematite iron ore, which has been
mined for many years at the south base
of the Sierra Maetro, a few miles east of
Santiago. Nearly all the ore, which con-
tains about 81 per cent of iron, is ship
and silver We're mined formerly As
phaltum has been found in several
places, particularly near the city of San
ia Clara, where it has been utilized to
make Illuminating gas.
The climate of Cuba is comparatively
simple The northeast trade winds bring
an ample rainfall, about So inches, to
the northern slopes of the island, be-
tween May and October; the rainfall on
the southern slopes is less, but sufficient
for most crops. The mean annual tenn
perature at Habana is n degrees The
higher temperature lasts a long time.
but on the northern slopes of the island
the nights. even in summer, are cool.
The six provinces, from west to
east, Pinar del Rio, Habana, Matanzas, |
Santa Clara, Puerto Principe, Santiago, |
are divided into 132 municipal districts, |
or terminus municipalities, including the |
Isle of Pines; and are SubdiVided into |
I ha n those
the cities Cities, as organized !
in our sense do not exist in Cuba. Ha- |
bana has no legal limits, but comprises |
most of the municipal districts of that |
name.
Columbus landed at Nuevitas on the |
north coast of Puerto Principe on Oc- |
tober IS, 1892. In 1872, Velasquez. with |
300 men, founded the town of Barracoa |
near the eastern end of the island, and |
two years later Santiago and Trinidad, |
both on the southern coast. Habana /
was founded in 1919 and became the |
capital in 1852. In 1775 the European |
population numbered III 500. The Eng |
lish held Habana and part of Matan- |
zas for some months in 1852 1nsurrec-
tons occurred in 1717, 1872, 1926, 1868, |
and finally in 1895. the last resulting in |
the REIMBURSEMENT by Spain of her SOW
sreignty to the United States on Decem-
Der TO- 1898.
The aboriginal inhabitants of Cuba
have been estimated at from 100000 to
!, 0OC 00c. They were enSlaved, put to
work, ana destroyed by tue European
settlers long before the end of the six
tenth century. African slaves were
then introduced, and the African slave
trade remained most profitable one up
TO the abolition of slavery in 1883.
The Spanish census of 1887 gave the
population as 1851, 6S7; the census taken
under the direction of the United States
war department in 1899 gave the popu-
alton as 1872, 797, or nearly $1,000 less.
Allowing for probable increase of pop
IIation between 1887 and 1895, the date
If the beginning of the insurrection, the
oss of life due to the war, as indicated
Oy these two censuses, may be estimated
It nearly 200, 900, and fell entirely upon
he three western provinces, Pinar del
Rio, Habana, and Matanzas. The
lensity of population, taking the island