THE CUBA REVIEW 



CUBAN GOVERNMENT MATTERS 



SPAIN 



The Spanish Ciovernment has appointed 

 a commission to collect data concerning all 

 official attempts made in the past to cultivate 

 tobacco in Spain, and has requested Spanish 

 agriculturists to report to the Ministry of the 

 Treasury full details concerning such land as 

 they wish to devote to tobacco growing. 

 Information is sought as to any features which 

 landowners believe to be favorable for tobacco 

 raising in their particular localities. 



As soon as the statistics are available, the 

 commission will determine the areas to be 

 devoted to the cultivation of tobacco in Spain, 

 designating as well certain tracts for exper- 

 iments. 



[Tobacco at present is a monopoly in 

 Spain, the Government receiving a fixed 

 amount from a private concern which is 

 given control of the trade]. — Consul General 

 Carl Bailey Hurst, Barcelona. 



SUSPENSION CF CUBAN EXFCRT CLTIES 



The American Minister at Habana has 

 furnished the following report, dated Aug- 

 ust 21 : 



"I was yesterday informed by President 

 Menocal that a decree suspending the export 

 tax on iron ore and copper had been issued by 

 him, and that next winter when Congress 

 meets these taxes will be repealed. I have 

 heard no objection to the standing of 6 per 

 cent, tax on profits." 



[The export duties referred to were em- 

 bodied in a provision of the recent law au- 

 thorizing a Government loan of .1f30,000,000. 



SECRETARY OF AGRICULTURE 



Er. Fugenio Sanchez Agramonte entered 

 upon his duties on August 24th. 



The ceremonies of installation were simple, 

 being attended only by a few government 

 officials and members of the department. 



NEW TELEPHONIC CHIEF IS NAMED FOR 

 HAVANA. 



On August 17, president Menocal desig- 

 nated Sr. Linares Buardeno Chief of the 

 Telegraphic Service of Havana. Chief 

 Buardeno had served as a subordinate 

 offi.cial of the department for several years. 



CUSTOMS RECEIPTS 



Detailed statistics of customs receipts and 

 expenditures for the calendar year, 1916, re- 

 cently compiled and analyzed by treasury de- 

 partment experts, showed a marked increase 

 of customs income, from $36,646,545.38 in 

 1915 to $27,750,220.94 for 1916, a gain of 

 18,896,362.44, or not far from a third. The 

 Havana customs house in particular sur- 

 passed all its former records. 



Next to Havana, the customs houses that 

 led were, in the order stated, Santiago de 

 Cuba, Cienfueges and Matanzas, the figures 

 for each, for 1916, being: 



Havana $26,745,271.36 



Santiago de Cuba 2,402,094.30 



Cienfuegos 1,719,341.78 



.Matanzas 1,021,826.44 



The foregoing cities were the only ones with 

 receipts above the one-million-dollar mark. 



The statistics compiled by the government 

 include, in customs house receipts, besides 

 tariff duties, such miscellaneous receipts as 

 are taken in through the customs house, such 

 as fines, etc. Customs house administration 

 and other expenses were $1,328,860.41 for 

 1915, and $1,422,833.82 for 1916. 



CUBAN INVENTOR 



The first official tests of the apparatus 

 invented by Rafael Arazoza, a Cuban inventor, 

 for raising sunken objects from the bottom 

 of the sea, was held off Cojimar, recently. 

 A bar of lead weighing 92 pounds was lowered 

 into the sea and raised to the surface by the 

 apparatus. 



MAP STAMPS. 



The new issues of Cuban stamps, which have 

 been in circulation for some time, bearing, 

 in the two-cent denomination, the picture of 

 Maximo Gomez, will be the only authorized 

 stamps in circulation after September 1st. 

 The stamps of the earlier issue, which have a 

 map of Cuba on their face will no longer be 

 good for postage. 



MINISTER TO HOLLAND 



Dr. Kohly, Cuban IVIinister to Holland, has 

 tendered his resignation to the State Depart- 

 ment. 



