X AKKATINI-: Ol' HaIIA-MA ICx I'l'-DITION . 6/ 



Belen," a cathedral foiuuk'cl in 1704. The nuiseuin is in a 

 large room opening' from the librar\-. and contains collections 

 ilhistratiiiL;" the pixxlucts of the West Indies, particularh the 

 island of Culxi. There is a limited number of specimens of 

 birds, mammals and reptiles, (^ne of the most conspicuous 

 objects is a centre piece of two lari^e sharks, one of which is a 

 '• hammer-head."' Tiiere is also a large collection of labeled 

 mollusks. and a small cc^Uection of insects, most of which are 

 \\ithout labels and in a jioor state of preservation, having suf- 

 fered greath' from the ra\;ages of moths. The library con- 

 nected \vith the museum is quite extensive, containing man\" 

 rare old works, among them Ramon de la Sagra's •• Histor\- 

 of Cuba."* containing descriptions b\' specialists of the time, of 

 all the known animals of the island. 



The cathedral which has been supposed to contain the 

 bones of Columbus was erected b\' the Jesuits in 1724. It is 

 sombre and massixe. built in the conx'entional st\'le of all 

 Spanish cathedrals, with two towers at the fi"ont containing 

 numerous bells. Here we were accorded scant courtesv bv a 

 rotund and svu-lv Padre who seemed to be in charge of this 

 building. 



0}iposite the municipal palace is a white marble chapel of 

 plain but classic design, built to commemorate the celebration 

 of the Mrst mass held at 1 lavana b\- Christopher Columbus. 



The most striking feature of the citv to an American is the 

 omnipresence of soldiery. The militia are the policemen, and 

 besides there are thousands of regular troops tpiartered in the 

 cit\'. Men in imiform are ever\ where conspicuous, in com- 

 panies, scpuids. and singly, and the impression conveyed is that 

 of a city in the grasp of a militarv despotism. Manv of the 

 police wear sensible straw hats, and the almost uni\ ersal uni- 

 form is made of a neatly htting suit of blue cotton cloth, cool 

 and adapted to the climate. At the time ol our \isit there 

 were rumors of a rebellion, and it ma\- be that a greater mun- 

 ber of soldiers were on duty than is usualU' the case. 



In the poorer quarters of the cit}' the garbage is thrown into 

 the gutters, and the smells are horrible. Half, indeed almost 



