Durango semi-weekly herald., 1907-04-15

OF the United States will come here
In large numbers to settle. The white
peopl from Spain and the white Gu
bnns will coalesce with American i'm
i. ~ --nts and when that combination
amounts numerically to one-third OF
the population OF the Island 1t will
control affairs Until then we shall
have chaos recurring in the island
every time the United States leaves
the native government to its own re-
sources. That experiment has been
tried once and resulted in signal fall
ure. We are threatened with repeti
tion Of the experience, although every
thinking man In Cuba knows that 1t
Will result ever more disastrously.
The failure will be repeated as often
as the experiment is tried. Confusion,
unrest and uncertainty will prevail
here as long as the whims and cap
rices of the Washington government,
the ignorances of conditions and the
stress Of our domestic politics in the
subject Of an experiment In self-gov-
ernment. Finally, there must come
permanent occupation and substitu-
tion OF American authority for Cuban
authority to greater or less extent
When that happens streams OF immi-
grafton from the United States will be-
gin to pour into the island.
t,,
vested In Cuba now?"
''Prety near 100000 900, and 80 per
cent OF 1t has come In since independ-
ence. The American population. how
ever, has not increased in the same
proportion. because none of these i'm
migrants are laborers. They are all
men with more or less capital who
have invested $4,000, $1,000. $4,000
and similar sums in timber lands,
farms and other property. The larg-
est number are In the eastern prov
inces, but there are good many in
Pinar del Rio and around Havana.
They pay all the way from $25 to
800 an acre for land, according to
quality and location, and raise vege-
| tables, fruits and tobocco. Sugar Is a
big game and requires large ante
to get in. No census has been taken
since 1899, but the best estimates fix
$4,000 or $1,000 as the number of new
comers.
These people have got to be pro
tected, but they have no political in
iluence at home and Secretary Taft
would not listen to them while he was
here. The poorer ones are, however,
in very little danger. They are scat
tered over the country and are gen
orally out of the paths of political
storms, but there are also large Ameri-
| can interests In plantations that are
| constantly exposed and must be pro
tected If the government is given over
to the Cubans again. So will the
property Of Europeans, which is very
much larger in value than that of the
Americans The next attack will be
directed at American and foreign prop
erty of this kind for the express pur-
pose of compelling the United States
to come back and take possession OF
this island.
There was no American influence
in the late revolution, and no Ameri
can money, but there will be plenty
OF both in the next The theory is
that we've got to have American pro
| lection sooner or later. The presi-
| dent considers himsef bound by the
Teller resolution to permit a certain
amount Of hell to be raised down here
before permanent Intervention. | be
iieve that every obligation of the Tell
er resolution has already been com
piled with. and that we put an end
to Spanish disagreement in Cuba
We had absolutely no right to inter
fere with Spain, but we did SO witt
benevolent motive to liberate an op
pressed people, and moral motive
to abate nuisance which we could
not endure longer. But we have 8
lawful right and obligation to inter
fere with Cuban misgovernment, ant
the purposes of the war of 1898 are
entirely defeated if we permit worse
government here by Cubans than the
disagreement by Spaniards that We
suppresse"