20 



THE CENTURY BOOK OF PACTS. 



The land is not suitable to the cultivation 

 of cereals, and probably no flouring mill exists 

 on the island. 



Finances. The estimated revenue for 

 1897-98 was 24,755,760 pesos (a peso equals 

 $0.965), of which 11,890,000 was from cus- 

 toms ; ordinary expenditure, 26,119,124 pesos, 

 of which 12,602,216 pesos was for the debt, 

 5,896,741 pesos for the Ministry of War, and 

 4,036,088 pesos for the Ministry of the Inte- 

 rior. The extraordinary revenue was esti- 

 mated at over 80,000,000 pesos. The debt 

 was in 1896 put at about 70,220,000, of which 

 10,000,000, was due to the Spanish treasury. 



The interest on the debt is estimated to im- 

 pose a burden of $9.75 per inhabitant. 



Minerals. According to Consul Hyatt, 

 Cuba is capable of taking high rank in min- 

 eral wealth. Gold and silver have not been 

 found in paying quantities. Copper was 

 mined at Cobre by the natives before Colum- 

 bus discovered the island, and there is strong 

 proof that native copper was carried across to 

 Florida and used by the Florida Indians hun- 

 dreds of years ago. From 1828 to 1840 an 

 average of from $2,000,000 to $3,000,000 

 worth of copper ore was shipped annually to 

 the United States from these mines. 



The iron mines of Cuba, all of which are 

 located near Santiago, overshadow in impor- 

 tance all other industries on the eastern end of 

 the island, constituting the only industry that 

 has made any pretense of withstanding the 

 shock of the present 'insurrection. The Jura- 

 gua and Daiquiri iron companies (American), 

 with a combined capital of over $5,000,000, 

 now operate mines in this vicinity and employ 

 from 800 to 1400 men, shipping to the United 

 States from 30,000 to 50,000 tons of iron ore 

 per month, the largest portion of which is used 

 at Bethlehem, Steelton, and Pittsburg, Pa., 

 and Sparrows Point, Md. The ore of these 

 mines is among the richest in the world, yield- 

 ing from 62 to 67 per cent, of pure iron, and 

 is very free from sulphur and phosphorus. 

 There are numerous undeveloped mines of 

 equal value in this region. 



In the Sierra Maestra range, on the southern 

 coast of Cuba, from Santiago west to Manza- 

 nillo, within a distance of about 100 miles, 

 are found numerous deposits of manganese, an 

 ore indispensable in the manufacture of steel. 

 As nearly all the manganese used in the United 

 States comes from the Black Sea regions of 

 Europe and a smaller quantity from the north- 

 ern part of South America, it is but reasonable 

 to suppose that the products of these near-by 

 mines will be in great demand when the con- 

 ditions are such that they can be operated in 

 safety. 



In the district of Santiago de Cuba, at the 

 end of 1891, the total number of mining titles 

 issued was 296, with an extent of 13,727 hec- 

 tares. Of the mines reported and claimed, 

 138 were iron, 88 manganese, and 53 copper. 



Commerce and Industry. Railroads 

 and other highways, improved machinery, and 

 more modern methods of doing business are 

 among the wants of Cuba ; and with the on- 

 ward march of civilization these will doubtless 

 be hers in the near future. Cuba, like other 

 tropical and semi-tropical countries, is not 

 given to manufacturing ; her people would 

 rather sell the products of the soil and mines 

 and buy manufactured goods. The possibili- 

 ties of the island are great, while the probabili- 

 ties remain an unsolved problem. 



The number of landed estates on the island 

 in 1891 was estimated at 90,960, of the value 

 of 220,000,000 pesos, and rental of 17,000,000 

 pesos. The live stock consisted of 584,725 

 horses and mules, 2 T 485,766 cattle, 78,494 

 sheep, and 570,194 pigs. The chief produce 

 is sugar and tobacco. The quantity of sugar 

 produced in the year 1894-95 was 1,004,264 

 tons; 1895-96, 225,221 tons; 1896-97,212,- 

 051 tons. The insurrection and incendiarism 

 in the island ruined the prospects of sugar 

 cultivation in 1896. The tobacco crop on an 

 average is estimated at 560,000 bales (1 bale 

 = 110 Ibs.), 338,000 bales being exported and 

 the remainder used in cigar and cigarette 

 manufacture in Havana. In 1896 the cigars 

 exported numbered 185,914,000. Tobacco 

 leaf exported in 1895, 30,466,000 Ibs. ; in 

 1896, 16,823,000 Ibs. The decrease in cigar 

 exports and decrease in leaf exports is due to 

 decree of May 12, 1896, forbidding tobacco- 

 leaf exports except to Spain. Cigarettes ex- 

 ported in 1895, 48,163,846 packets. Nearly 

 all the tobacco and nearly half of the cigars 

 go to the United States. About 80,000 of the 

 inhabitants are ordinarily engaged in the cul- 

 tivation of tobacco. Mahogany and other 

 timbers are exported, as are also honey. wax, 

 and fruits. The chief imports are rice, jerked 

 beef, and flour. The Spanish official returns 

 state the value of the imports from Cuba into 

 Spain for 1896 to be 21,898,215 Spanish 

 pesetas ($4,216,355.49), and the exports from 

 Spain to Cuba 134,461,675 pesetas ($25,951,- 

 003.27). In 1897 the imports of the United 

 States from Cuba amounted to $405,326,637, 

 and the exports from the United States to 

 Cuba $100,456,712. 



Railways. According to a report pub- 

 lished in Special Consular Reports, ' ' High- 

 ways of Commerce," there are ten railway 

 companies in Cuba, the most important being 

 the Frrocarriles Unidos ; upward of 1000 



