26 



THE CUBA REVIEW 



ISLE OF PINES NOTES. 



Some Geographical Facts. 



The Isle of Pines is situated off tlie south 

 coast of the western part of Cuba, between 

 latitude 21° 24' 40" and 21° 56' north, and 

 longitude 82° 30' and 83° 12' west. The 

 island's area is 614.34 square marine miles, 

 or 521,381 acres, of which the northern 

 portion occupies 328,643 acres and the 

 southern 192,738 acres. The greatest 

 length is from the eastern extremity to 

 French Cape, 43i/^ miles, and the great- 

 est width 33 miles. 



In general, the island's surface is a plateau 

 of SO to 100 feet above sea level, broken by 

 ridges and hills or cliffs. The most remark- 

 able summits are the Sierra de Caballos, 

 1,674 feet high; the Sierra de la Canada, 

 1,630 feet high; Daguila, 1,500 feet high, and 

 Mount Casas, composed of most beautiful 

 marbles of various colors, and Mount Cris- 

 tales, abundantly covered with green rock 

 crystals. — Isle of Pines Appeal. 



The McKinley Colonies are to have 

 a modern, up-to-date canning establish- 

 ment for pineapples and vegetables, 

 which will be installed and in operation 

 in time for the next fall and winter veg- 

 etable growing season. 



The government workmen who for a 

 year have been engaged in repairing and 

 improving the Santa Fe-Nueva Gerona 

 calzado, have almost completed their 

 work. Gangs worked from either end 

 and are now about to meet in the 

 neighborhood of Santa Rosalia Heights. 



The steamer Veguera which formerly 

 plied between this island and Batabana, 

 is said to be off the run permanently. 



Parrots Damage Fruit Trees. 



The stopping of the traffic in parrots is 

 calculated to do a great amount of harm 

 to fruit interests on the isle, says the Isle 

 of Pines News, and a movement is on foot 

 to petition the government to strike out 

 that portion of the game law relating to 

 these birds, the taking of which keeps the 

 numbers down a little and saves grove men 

 a great deal of trouble and annoyance in 

 keeping them off their groves. 



One parrot, it has been stated, will ruin 

 a tree in a short time. They bite off blos- 

 soms and fruit, especially on orange trees. 

 Most other birds have an unsatisfied appe- 

 tite for insects, but parrots prefer fruits. 



On June 30 the Cuban cabinet granted 

 a permit to allow the exportation of par- 

 rots from the Isle of Pines because the 

 garrulous birds are destroying the fruit 

 of the island. 



Mr. Sage, of Washington, D. C, the 

 owner of a tract of property in the San 

 Carlos Tract, has imported from the 

 United States rubber seed, which he 

 will plant on his holdings, believing that 

 the Isle of Pines offers a better climate 

 and better conditions for the producing 

 of commercial rubber than any of the 

 countries he has visited. He is en- 

 thusiastic over the possibilities for rub- 

 ber tree growing here. 



The new budget of the Cuban Repub- 

 lic which has just been approved by 

 President Gomez, provides for eight 

 American schools in the Isle of Pines 

 and one at La Gloria, Cuba. 



Uno de los cobertizos mejor dispuestos usados en Cuba para curar el tabaco. Ln cobertizo del 

 tamafio de este puede contener mas de $io,ooo de tabaco para capas, y los mas pequenos errores 

 cometidos en el tratamiento del tabaco durante su curacion, pueden ocasionar su perdida parcial o 



comet 

 total. 



