Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1907-04-19
ARE SAFE IN CUBA
American Women Safe From
Insults on Any Part of
the Island.
NO EXTORTIONATE CHARGES
Observing Member of Sex Traverses
Country and Makes Interesting
Observations.

Vague reports were published tl:.e
Americans were cordially hated when
on the island Of Cuba. and unless under
direct military surveillance they were
liable to attack and bodily harm when
outside Of big cities. SO when I de-
termined to make the trip over that
island in state Of revolution" and
make it alone being a woman. many
Of my friends took leave of me with
doleful courtenances and farewells,
writes Mrs. G. r. Miller in Leslie's
Weekly.
There may be people who do not like
Havana. with its gayety, its clean
streets. its fascinating shops and its
attractive cafes. but they must be
counted among the pesSimistS who find
fault with any and every condition in
life | fingered long in this beautiful
tropical Paris and every day visited
some part Of the city. always going
alone. mingiinC among the rich and the
poor In many Instances my camera
must have appeared impertinent. as
photographed the natives after | had
literally held them up in manner
! would not have dreamed of doing in
the states. yet | received nothing hut
Kindness and courtesy from both Span
lard AMI Cuban. But" said the cr0ak
or. wait until You get into the interior,
and then the temper Of the people will
be quite different" SO on | went. stop
ping IL small towns seldom visited by
| strangers and perhaps never by 4 for
| ei@n woman alone, mingling with the
natives. whose iargon was rs intelli-
gihle to me as the moaning of the sea.
yet not even the Semblance of insult
was noticeable. Several times | was
the only woman on the train. and l
met few English speaking people. At
! CamaEuey | never saw 4 white woman
on the street except one night when
the band played on the plaza, and dur
| ing the day only g few female negroes
who seemed to be marketing.
For days ! wandered alone through
the narrow. crooked streets of the old
town. making pictures of whatever
caught my fancy. secretly hoping for
| some excitement and that the Ameri-
| can flag might he torn down in ny
presence or that | might at least be
hooted at as a detested americana.
It never occurred, so l went from town
to town alone and unprotected, doing
| exactly as | pleased. with a sense Of
security not felt in some large cities Of
the United States.
Santiago the Worst.
After visitin" a number of towns OF
the north coast and in the interior
started for Santiago. Here. il was pre-
dicted. would certainly meet with re
tufts and perhaps worse. This town
it was asserted, contained the rough
est and most lawless element Of the
island. Here rebelliOns were Matched
here the hatred of the American was
most intense and it was beyond com
prehensiOn to a certain class that ~
American woman could go about alone
in this city. With all these narrowing
pictures passing in my mind and read
ing at the time an American newSpa
per containing in flashing headlines 4,
special dispatch from Washington tina
the United States consul at Santiago
had been killed and that a Thousand
soldiers would he sent to that point
arrived in that 'dreadful' town Mt 4
o'clock at night There was a rough
looking crowd at the station, but {
negro hotel runner secured a carriage
and ordered the driver to drop me a
the hotel.
The clerk of the hotel had retired. !
|