davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
Omaha daily bee., 1905-09-24
Land of had Hotels.

So far no arrangements have been made
to accommodate the increased travel. The
hotel accommodations are VIGOROUSLY mad
equate, and am safe in saying that there
are not half a dozen frst-class hotels in
all Cuba. Indeed, with the exception OF
that at Camaguay. might say that there
is not one which is run after our up-to-date
American methods. and that notwithstand-
ing, the rates are high and provisions COM
paratively cheap.
This is so much so that some of the rail-
road managers discourage the coming OF
tourists in large bodies. A party of 200
can hardly be accommodated, and the time
is not ripe for the Cook tourist and others
OF his class.
Most of the hotels OF Havana are run on
the Spanish plan. with American prices
The most OF the hotels have two rates
a moderate one for the summer. on the
European plan. and a higher one for the
winter. on the American plan. The sum
mer guests are Cubans and spaniards: but
those OF the winter are Americans, whom
as the cubans rightly think. will pay any
thing in or out of reason.
There is one hotel here, the Miramar
which charges SIS a day for rooms alone
and there are several others whose rates
are 81 or IS and upward per day on the
American plan. Among these hotels are the
Omaha daily bee., 1905-09-24

the voice from the mouth as elocutionista
and lecturers do. II you hear a telephone
man talking by wire you will notice that
he drawls his words a little-not enough
to make conversation noticeably slow, but
sufficiently so that one word is started
on it's way before another can tread on
its heels Clipping words, which is some
times done under the impression that II
gives them a sharper sound, is a mistake
Even for talking over considerable dis
tances the voice should be lowered In
telephone conversations. Talking from
Omaha to Lincoln or Kansas City, for ex-
ample, is no more of an effort than talk
ing from your Office to your house. In
event of longer conversations, however, it
is better to speak a little louder. In talk
ing from Omaha to Chicago for example,
the voice is heard best when 1t rises to
about the pitch OF loud conversation.
As the limit Of transmission" IS APP
proached-and this is about 1900 miles
just now, so that the rule applies to any
thing over 1900 miles, say from Omaha to
New York--it is necessary to speak vlsor-
Omaha daily bee., 1905-09-24

may be held at each ear. but these are
used only In very exceptional cases.
1t is never a good idea to interfere with
any mechanism that you do not under
stand. The telephone instrument, as It IL
put into your Office or house. is in perfect
working order. and, barring accidents, will
stay so for an indefinite time. The COM
panies have had trouble repeatedly because
some subscribers put all sorts of attach
ments upon the Observation-Disclosures
"resonators." impractical devices for keep
ing before your eyes list of numbers fire.
quently called. and so on. None of these
things do any particular good. If they did
the Bell people would incorporate them in
the mechanism. They are very likely. on
the other hand, TO do positive harm, as any
one can realize after moments thought,
and they should never be employed.
Neither should the subscriber take apart
the transmitter or receiver If you think
there is anything the matter with tho In
strument, ask the company to have It
fixed. for that is why the large force Of
inspectors and repair men is employed.
Omaha daily bee., 1905-09-24
virgin of Cobre.

Cuba has some shrines which are worth
visiting. One may tramp about here In the
footprints Of Columbus. and II he has that
faith which moves mountains he may go to
tho shrine of the Virgin OF Cobre not far
from Santiago and have all his ailments
cured. I visited this place during my eE-
ploration of the copper mines The chapel
of the Virgin is right on the top of the
mountain, with the village of Cobre perhaps
a quarter OF a mile below It, There are
steps leading from the town TO the chapel,
and pilgrims come here at certain times Of
the year and go up these steps on their
knees to pray to the Virgin and be cured
It is the custom in Cuba when ones pray
ers regarding a special ailment have boon
answered to give silver model OF the dis
eased member TO the church. In the glass
cases back OF the altar saw 800 little solid
silver legs which the priest told me had
been given by the lame who had been made
to walk, and hundreds OF silver and gold
hands, and even golden lungs, livers and
lights. There were gold and silver eyes
donated by the blind who had been made to
see and a cord or so OF crutches which had
aided the lame to the chapel, but which.
being cured, they needed no longer As I
examined these evidences of the Virgins
curative properties the priest told me he
had boxes OF other gold and silver ina ges
stored away in the vaults of the church
and he retailed many fairy stories Of the
Virgin and her wonderful cures.
This Virgin is the patron saint OF Cuba.
She has much the same place here as that
Continued on Page ssven)
Omaha daily bee., 1905-09-24
Test of the Voice.

THE quality" OF a persons voice
makes much difference in how distinctly he
or she may be heard over the telephone.
What the essential qualities of a good
telephone voice are even the Bell engineers
cannot say exactly. Persons who are very
easy to understand in conversation are
sometimes quite difficult to understand
over the telephone, and the opposite is
equally true Apparently woman's voice
comes over the wire more clearly than
a mans, and the inference is that a man
should pitch his voice a little higher than
he ordinarily would. Certainly everyone
should speak distinctly, should avoid talk
ing "in the throat" or through the nose"
and should even make an effort to eject"
Omaha daily bee., 1905-09-24
Help for Moth Ends.

The best way to answer the telephone
when the bell rings is just TO repeat your
number. Then whoever Is at the other end
OF the line knows whether he has the right
number and will waste no time about cor
rectinS the mistake II he happens to have
made a wrong call. Briefly. the rule should
be to find out that you have the right num-
ber then TO ascertain to whom you are
speaking and finally to let him know Just
who you are before you begin conversation.
Generally that can be done in half a dozen
words. There is nothing more annoying,
as every busy man knows. than to have the
cheerful inquiry come over the line. "Why,
don't you recognize my voice" or Don't
you know who this is7'
One OF the minor complications OF tele-
phony which may sometimes be a consider
able annoyance comes from Interruptions to
conversation. which the subscriber is likely
to call getting cut on" When you are
called to the telephone and the connection
is Unexpectedly broken. hang up your re-
ceiver and wait The man who was talking
with You may have called you from his own
ONCE or some ones else or from his house
or from pay station; nine times out OF
ten you don't know which. Consequently
you can't call him and II does no good to
signal central" repeatedly and to dispute
with her about what has become OF him.
He knows your number perfectly well or he
could not have called you. II the CONVEX
satiOn is broken of before It is finished he
can very easily call you again. II you are
complaining to central" when he tries to
get back on the line. OF course your line
will be reported busy and then there is .
further delay.
Omaha daily bee., 1905-09-24

II is, however q good practice, to wipe the
dust out of the mouthpiece using a damp
cloth, and taking care, OF course, not to
deluge the instrument with water
All these matters, insignificant as they
seem. play their part in satisfactory tele-
phone service, but there are other respects
in which the telephone user may as fire.
quently help as hinder. The Bell COM
panies are trying, with the cooperation
of subscribers, to establish universal
method of making and answering calls.
which will do much toward saving time.
When Central is asked for a number II
is the almost universal custom TO give tho
name of the exchange first and the num-
Der OF the telephone you wish second. This
is the practice nearly everywhere in the
west and in the majority OF places in the
east, though II, varies with different locali-
ties.
Omaha daily bee., 1905-09-24
Hotels and Other Accommodations in Cuba

of the tropics. 1t will be known as such
as time goes on. Every town has its own
peculiar features, and some of the older
ones are as queer as any in Moorish Spain.
There are caves scattered here and there
over the island. Those of Bellamar. near
Matanzas, consist of a series of under
ground chambers and halls about three
miles in length, walled and hung with
stalactite and stalagmite formations. One
of the halls is $50 feet long and eighty feet
wide it's roof being upheld by immense col
umns. II is known as the Gothic Temple.
There are wonderful caves in the mountains
near Camaguay, and natural bridges and
tunnels and subterranean rivers throughout
the island The Suzco river, in eastern
Cuba bores it's way through lofty ridge
and comes out on the other side, three
miles distant
Omaha daily bee., 1905-09-24
To Secure Accuracy.


For the sake OF accuracy II is always bet
ter to spell OUT a number, is the Gus
tom in Omaha. That is to say, instead OF
calling for Main. eleven forty-seven." you
should tell central" that you wish Main,
ne-one-four-seven" or Main. double one
four-seven." which avoids any possibility
OF confusion in the sound of eleven and
seven For a similar reason telephone enRl-
neers have adopted the letter 20" as the
name for the cipher. Many people call IL
'naught." which generally becomes ''aught"
and spoken indistinctly may get mixed up
with eight. In whatever way the sub
scriber gives the number the operator is
obliged to repeat 1t spelled out, so that she
may be sure there is no Misunderstanding.
If some mathematician who had nothing
years are lost every twelve months in tho
United States by people saying Hello" I'M
necessarily the sum would probably be
startling. The Bell companies dropped
hello" from their own vocabulary a num-
Der of years ago. It was not necessary and
the operator now gets down to business
without any Formally by inquiring simply.
Number 1t is a waste OF your time and
of hers to 60 through the form OF saying,
Hello, centrali Give me main, two-four-
teen" She and the management and every
other subscriber who may be waiting while
you are talking will thank you II you will
say simply, Main, two-one-four."
Omaha daily bee., 1905-09-24
ReceirinE the Merrnge.

Listening at the telephone is. naturally,
a simple enough proposition, though there
are some peculiarities about that part OF
a long distance conversation. 1t is a well
known fact that a person who is deaf can
hear what is said through the telephone
very much better than ordinary converse
ton. People whose hearing is normal
acquire the habit Of instinctively "listen-
ing with one ear while they are at the
telephone generally, one whose hearing is
somewhat affected will do better to close
the ear that is not covered by the re-
ceiver The Bell companies have sub
scribers to whom they w special In
struments with two receiver, so that one
Omaha daily bee., 1905-09-24

North America. The crowds which now
go to Florida continue their voyage on to
Havana, and rich Americans are settling
not only here. but at different points
along the northern shore of the island.
know OF l. dozen men who have
bought estates in or near the suburbs of
this city, and several who are planning to
make their winter homes about Nipe bay.
on the northeastern coast. There were
three times as many American tourists
here last winter as ever before. and double
that number are expected the coming
season. The steamship lines are all build
ing new vessels. Next season the Munson's
will have new steamers from Mobile; the
Wards are to put on line from New York
TO Nipe bay, and there will probably be
additional ships from New Orleans. Miami
and Tampa
Omaha daily bee., 1905-09-24
Hold the Phone LeveI.

The carbon granules in the transmitter
must be loose. of course. in order to vary
the current properly. Therefore. IL the
telephone is held at different angle from
what is intended they may fall into little
heap at the side or bottom OF the space in
which they are confined and there will be
nothing at the top to repeat in electrical
waves the vibration of the sound waves
that strike there. Some persons have a
habit OF taking desk instruments in their
hands and fitting back in their chairs
while they are talking, so that the trans
mitters are held with the mouthpieces al
most downward. Then they wonder what
the matter Is when they cannot make them
selves heard distinctly and impatiently call
on repair men to come around and see
what ails the telephone. anyway The
Omaha daily bee., 1905-09-24
Land of Ten Million Palms.


The most Of the tourists do not get out
side of Havana. They miss the most inter
esting part of the country. There is no
more beautiful island than this. 1t is
the Switzerland OF the tropics; and, indeed,
it might be called the land OF ten million
palms 1 have seen palms in the tropics
around the globe, but nowhere do they
compare with those of Cuba. The prin-
cipal tree is the royal palm. 1t has a
trunk like frosted silver and 1t rises
straight upward to a height of 100 or more
feet, when II bursts out into a gigantic tas-
sci of fern-like leaves. The leaves are Of
tho brightest green; they have many
branches, and they CULVER in the breeze.
These royal palms are to be seen in groves
and singly here and there throughout culti-
waited Cuba. They often line the road to
some great hacienda, or mark the bounda-
ries Of an estate. They may be seen among
the sugar fields. columns OF silver rising
out of a plain of emeralds; and again over
the dark green OF the tobacco or above
the reddish bronze Of pineapple plantation.
They stand out upon the newly plowed
fields OF rich chocolate soil and mirror
themselves in every stream and lake. There
are tens of thousands-aye, tens Of millions
OF them.
These palm trees form. to a large ex-
tent. the building and roofing material of
Cuba. Their leaves are used to wrap the
bales of tobacco which are brought into the
factories and shipped abroad. Sewed to-
gether they form the walls OF the huts,
and laid one over another. the roofs. Enor-
nous sheds are covered by them, from
1000 to 2O.O0O leaves being used for a sin
gle tobacco barn. Such leaves are tied
over the horns above the Jokes to shade
the heads of the oxen. They sometimes
also shade the carts. framework being
covered with them
have spoken of Cuba as the Switzerland
Omaha daily bee., 1905-09-24

The reason for this is simple and IL
worth understanding. Just behind the
mouthpiece is an aluminium diaphragm
backed with a very thin sheet OF hard
carbon. Between this sheet of carbon and
the points of contact of tho wires Is
space filled with finely powdered carbon.
The sound waves of the voice make the
aluminium diaphragm vibrate, and this in
turn affects the carbon sheet which stirs
the granulated carbon behind 1t. The cleo
trical current that is passing through the
carbon powder feels all these vibrations.
however slight, and reproduces them In the
receiver at the other end of the line, set
ting in motion sound waves corresponding
70 those in the transmitter. II you shout
at" the transmitter the vibrations may be
SO violent as to result In only confusing
tumble at the other end OF the wire. Be
sides, loud talking through telephone Is
distressing to the listener, who, you must
remember, gets the full volume OF sound
very close to his ears. Anyone who has
heard a novice try to make an announce
ment through a megaphone may under
stand how this must happen.
1t was possible TO stand further away
from the old fashioned transmitter and
speak through It because that was ex-
tremely ''microphonic"; that is to say. 1t
would pick up every little sound that came
its way. This excessiveness was one OF the
things that set the Bell engineers at work
devising an Improvement. The old type OF
instrument not only took in the voice when
It was not very near. but also gathered in
many stray noises. II a coal wagon were
passing through the street or some one was
walking across the room, or II there was
machinery In operation nearby. the clat-
ter, bang and roar was all carried over the
line along with the conversation. and as a
result the listener sometimes could not dis
tinguish one word from another.
Omaha daily bee., 1905-09-24
Cnba Are Chenn.

came from my ship to the hotel for 30
cents In silver. This included three pas
sengers. The fare for the ordinary cab
ride Is about Is cents, and the service is
quite as good as that of New York The
cab horses are fast, and the drivers as a
rule are not extordonists In shopping
one can get a hack by the hour for 80
cents gold, and If he makes his bargains
away from the hotels other kinds of trans
portatton are cheap.
The street car rates are cents Ameri-
can and there is a set of common vehicles
known as gua-guas. which connect Havana
with all suburban towns. the fares OF which
are remarkably low The gua-guas. pro-
nounced wah-wahs. are the property OF
the street car companies. They are omni-
buses. each drawn by four mules, the
animals being driven on the gallop up hill
and down. l have ridden in them here and
there over the island, but doubt whether
they are tit vehicles for our supersensitive
American ladies. who may object to the
smoking among the men and women pas
sengers.
The cabs of Cuba are Victories, with tops
which come down so as 70 shade the eyes.
They are well-made vehicles imported from
Europe. Indeed. am told that the Ameri-
can cab will not stand the wear and tear
Of the Havana street. The most of the
city thoroughfares are narrow. and not a
few are paved with cobbles. In some OF
them It is hardly possible 10 pass. and the
drivers have 10 be careful at the crossings
or when turning a corner. Every cab has
bell under It, which Is rung BY the foot
Of the driver. These bells are OF the door
gong variety, so that there is a continual
changing and ringing as the carriages go
through the streets. Indeed II was some
time before / could md where the ding
dong noises came from. until I saw that
they were from my own cab and made by
my driver.
4 SrsAt deal Il transportation OF Cuba
Omaha daily bee., 1905-09-24
Cubn,s Soft Drinks.

This is a great place for soft drinks
The cafes have them by the score, and
some are good. A popular one is panal,
made from a mixture OF sugar and white
OF egg dried in rolls six inches long. These
rolls are served with glass of water
You drop in your panal and you have
sweetish drink which makes the Cuban's
mouth water.
Pineapple Juice is not bad. and naran-
Jada, or the Juice OF oranges, If cooled
with bit of ice is delicious. Another
drink is -tamarind fruit crushed in water.
and third is the milk of the green cocoa
nut, poured out In glass and iced. Green
cocoanut milk looks like water II has a
slightly swedish taste with a mild flavor
OF cocoanut. It is not to be compared to
the milk Of the ripe nut which is coarse
and heavy. There is a drink here made
of the skins and cores OF pineapples, which
have been placed in a stone jar with
water and allowed TO ferment; and there
are others made of other fruits the names
OF which do not know. The Cubans have
but few intoxicating liquors, and, so far.
1 have seen almost no drunkenness The
most common wines are Spanish. it being
the custom to drink wine with ones
meals.
Coffee may be had anywhere in Cuba
II is always served with milk and, as the
coffee beans are burnt to a cinder, It is
rather bitter to the American taste. Most
of the milk for cofree is boiled and sailed.
1t used to be the custom to drive the COWS
through the streets from house TO house
and milk them before the doors, but the
milk is now delivered from panniers on
the backs OF horses or mules.
Omaha daily bee., 1905-09-24
Restaurants ana Cafes.

The best way TO live in Cuba is TO rent
room either at a hotel or lodging house
and take your meals at the restaurants.
There are cafes and restaurants every
where, and some are very good There are
always enough dishes on the bills OF fare
to furnish an appetizing and digestibie
meal and one pays for what he orders.
All meats are eaten the same day they
re killed. and they are not so good as
Omaha daily bee., 1905-09-24

girl who answers your call, II the mes
sage is to pass to another central" must
ask special operator there to assign q
trunk line for your special use. This ar
rangOment is made over one Of a large
group OF order circuits from which the
operator must select the particular ono
you require. The moments difference that
1t makes IL she has to wait until you give
the number before she knows which CEN
trail Office is wanted Is one of those almost
inhnitesimal delays which. in the the aggre-
gate. means hours and days and perhaps
months OF time lost for several million
subscribers each year.
Omaha daily bee., 1905-09-24

Inglaterra, FL TELEGRAPH, Pasaje and the
Louvre. The Louvre and TELEGRAPH also
take guests on the European plan, but the
rooms are high-priced: they do not have
baths connected with them, although there
may be baths on the same floor for the
common use of both sexes.
In addition there are other places where
one can rent rooms; and there is a hotel at
Vedado. out in the suburbs facing the sea.
which is managed on the American plan.
Havana and the American stomach.
The ordinary Cuban hotel meal does not
suit our digestion. II one is not on the
European plan he is supposed to take what
is set before him. or pay for every extra he
orders. I am stopping at the Inglaterra.
where pay SIS a day for myself, wife and
daughter. Our first breakfast. or desayuno.
consists OF coffee and rolls with butter and
q couple OF oranges. The oranges are
pared down to the flesh with a sharp knife,
Just as you pare an apple, and we ate them
by sticking in fork and sucking the Juice.
We can have our rolls toasted without
extra charge, but the two soft-boifed eggs,
which order for each of my party every
morning. re 9e: down on the bill at co
cents extra. This is 10 cents an egg. In
deed, It makes one almost hate hen.
Our luncheon. or what the Cubans here
call almuerzo. is taken at II or ~ o'clock
from a limited bill Of fare most OF the
dishes OF which are Spanish. Some are
good, but others stomach-trying. The Span
ish omelettes, for instance. are delicious.
but the beefsteaks are tough and the stews
and other connections need at least a table,
spoon OF pepsin per meal. I saw once on a
hotel table at Parkersburg. W. Va, bottles
OF pepsin sauce beside the catsup and to-
basco. I would recommend them for Cuba.
Anything extra outside the breakfast bill
of fare is charged for at the regular res
taurant rates. The same is true OF dinner,
which Is eaten from 8 to s o'clock, and is
the hearty meal of the day.
Omaha daily bee., 1905-09-24

those kept for a time In cold storage. The
fowls are cooked as soon as their heads
are chopped of. and for this reason are
tougher than the American variety. Poul-
try dealers bring the chickens alive in
from the country, and common sight Is
a chicken peddler with his fowls hung
from his shoulders. Turkeys are driven
through the streets, and one buys them.
as 1t were, on the hoof. Live pigs are
carried on the shoulders or in carts.
Omaha daily bee., 1905-09-24

transmitter is nxed on a pivot, which allows
II to be moved up and down within fixed
limits and so long II does not 80 beyond
these 1t is all right. but like anything else,
It should be used as the inventor intep6ed-
II to be used IL Il Is TO work satisfactorily.
Omaha daily bee., 1905-09-24

Handling Local Calls.
In cities where there are several central
offices the calls from one district to an
other are trunked. as it Is called. The
Omaha daily bee., 1905-09-24

ously. The two men who converse every
morning between Boston and Omaha
which is the longest regular call made
day in and day out. come nearer shouting
days of the telephone than anybody else
in the way that was required in the early
ought to with the present perfection of
the apparatus