(i4 CUBA AND TOHTO RICO 



Santiago, and Bavana. 1 The earlier centuries of coloniza- 

 t ion were firsl marked by a fruitless search for gold, little 

 of which was found, except as personal ornaments of the 

 natives, who were enslaved and finally exterminated. 



Pastoral pursuits soon developed. Before the end of a 

 century the cultivation of tobacco, an indigenous product, 

 and cane imported from the Canaries, was begun, and 

 African slavery introduced. During this first century the 

 island was also the seat of great maritime activity, from 

 which the explorations of the mainland proceeded. Morro, 

 Punti, and other fortresses, wdiich to-day stand in danger 

 of annihilation, were begun before 1600. 



The second century of the settlement of Cuba was marked 

 by increasing agricultural development and colonization, 

 but w r as disturbed by the constant fear of English buca- 

 neers and French and Dutch pirates, who made the coastal 

 cities their frequent prey. Duriug this time the walls and 

 primitive fortifications of Havana, Matanzas, and other 

 cities interesting to the traveler, were built. 



Similar conditions continued during the third century 

 of European occupation. These ended in 1762 in the nota- 

 ble capture of Havana by the English under Lord Albe- 

 marle, who, assisted by American colonial troops, overcame 

 the superior Spanish army and captured spoils amounting 

 to four million dollars. 



The treaty of Paris (1763) restored Cuba to the Spanish, 

 and from that time until 1834 the island saw its greatest 

 prosperity. The rich soil yielded its harvests of tropical 

 products, and ships laden with precious cargoes sailed 

 from its hundred ports. The island itself, in those days of 

 wooden craft, became a center of ship-building. To Las 

 Casas, who arrived as captain-general in 1790, is attributed 

 the greater part of this brilliant epoch in Cuban history. 



1 Velasquez founded many towns upon the island, the first of which was 

 Baracoa, in 1512; Trinidad, Santo Espiritu, and Puerto Principe, in 1514; 

 and Santiago de Cuba and the original Habana, on the south side of the island 

 near Batabano, in 1515. 



