The Birmingham age-herald., 1911-09-29
HALSTEAD TALKS
 IF CUBAN CROPS Some Interesting Items
 Concerning the Maine ALL CROPS ARE GOOD Says Cubans Are Making Great Progress Toward Higher Educa-
 ton and Self Government. Maine Wreck Is Junk
ALL CROPS ARE GOOD

E. w Halstead of Cuba, who has been in Birmingham visiting his brother. pr. Hal F. Halstead for several days, talked Interestingly yesterday of conditions and developments in Cuba.
 MT. Halstead is manager of the Fl Cai- initial Fruit company, Los Palacois, Cuba, and the La Lagun Plantation company, Herradura, Cuba, as we'll as representa-
 tive of the Cuba Fruit exchange. He has
 been on the island eight years and has
 become thoroughly familiar with eondi-
 tions there.
 "Condtions are good all over the isi- and" said Mr. Halstead. "'The sugar crop is large and it is bringing splendid
 prices, the highest that have been reai- ized in years. The plantations are being increased through the center of the isi- and and the eastern and western parts
 This will be one of the biggest years we have ever seen. While the production has not been so large to the acre this year, the cultivation of new plantations will keep the entire yield up to that Of last year.
 "The tobacco crop is raised in the win ter and is sold in August and Seutemb-
 
 but of excellent quality and it is bringing good prices.
 r'The orange and lemon crops are good. So far the orange production has tot betn equal to the local demand, but in few years they will begin to be sold in the northern markets. Their quality ;af1- not be beaten I am connected with the Cuba Fruit exchange and l have been in- vestigating the way in which Cuba fruits are received in American ports, and I find that they have a good sale.
 "The pineapple crop amounted to over q million boxes and good prices are being gotten all the way through. "Government conditions are very quiet, and everything is peaceful. The govern ment is seemingly stable, and there are no fluctuations of business on its &C., count.
 Americans find life among the Cubans very pleasant. The Cubans are very uour- teous I have been there eight years and I have found that the Cubans come about as near giving. a man the treatment that he gives them as any people on earth. There are Americans living all over the island.
 Learning English "The Cubans are learning English zap idly and arc sending their children to American schools. Most of them are sent
 
 but large number also go to the higher institutions of learning-to Harvard, Yale, Cornell and Tulane.
 Just before 1 left Havana I took a series of pictures of the Maine bat tleship. showing the progress of the work and condition of the wreck since the water was taken out of the coffer- dam The wreckage of the forward part of the vessel is very great, simply i'm lpd ma nf turret is good, but the front Is cov- cred with mud.
 "Twenty-seven bodies have so far been found and only one of them has been identified-that of Merritt. The bow, instead of being on a line with the rear of the vessel is 30 feet to the side and 20 feet farther forward than it should be. indicating that the ship was cut into two parts.
 "Interlocking steel piles 90 feet long are used in making the cofferdam. They are 12 or II inches wide and about three-fourths of an inch thick. Cais- sons have been constructed about 30 feet in diameter After the piles have been driven in and the caissons made they were filled with mud and finished at the top with rock Rock was also piled up inside the caissons as a sup port against the enormous pressure of the water.
 Just a few. days ago the four after boilers were uncovered and found un- injured by the explosion. The work of taking the wreckage out is being confined to cleaning the after part and cutting away the forward part. The work of cutting away is being done with acetylene burners, which gener- ate about 1000 degrees of heat and cut through five inches of solid steel The outside work Is suspended un- til November. The cofferdam is only three feet above mean time and the engineers in charge have decided to wait until after the equinox, so that ! they will not be flooded by any storms, for which they are not prepared 'It has not been fully determined what will be done with the remains of the ship. There have been several suggestions. One that the part that Is still good be floated by putting a bulkhead in it and taken out to sea and sank in deep water Another | that the same thing be done with it., but that it be taken to an American port to be kept as a relic; and still another, to fill In the cofferdam and | leave it as a small island, monument commemorative of the disaster The | final disposition of 1t will, I suppose,