CUBA 



1655 



CUBA 



pyramid in various combinations illustrated 

 in a, b and c. There are no common substances 

 illustrating this system. 



The Right Prismatic System. The basis of 

 this system is a prism whose bases are oblongs 

 (Fig. 3). By cutting the faces we have the 

 double pyramid with unequal faces, b. The 

 topaz and sulphur crystallize in this system. 



The Six-Sided Prismatic System. This is 

 generally known as the hexagonal system. Its 

 foundation is a six-sided prism, a (Fig. 4). 

 The modifications are illustrated by b, c and d. 



Quartz, ice, snowflakes and calcite crystallize 

 in this system. 



The Oblique Prismatic System. The founda- 

 tion of this system is an oblique prism (Fig. 

 5). Sal soda, borax, gypsum and copperas 

 crystallize in this system. 



The Double-Oblique Prismatic System. This 

 system differs from No. 5 in having all the faces 

 of the crystals oblique to each other (Fig. 6). 

 The crystals are complex. Blue vitriol and 

 some forms of tartaric acid are good illustra- 

 tions. W.F.R. 



an island republic, poetically 

 called the PEARL OF THE ANTILLES because of 

 its beauty and natural wealth, lies at the en- 

 trance to the Gulf of Mexico, dividing the 

 opening into two channels. It is ninety miles 

 south of Key West, Fla., and about 130 miles 

 east and north of Yucatan. About fifty miles 

 to the east is the island of Haiti. Havana, the 

 chief port and an important city, is 1,197 miles 

 from New York and 597 miles from New 

 Orleans. 



The name, a relic of the original inhabitants, 

 now extinct, is pronounced Kooba by the 

 islanders, and this is not unlikely to become 

 the general pronunciation in North America 

 with the increasing intimacy of international 

 relations, since it is a point on which some local 

 sensitiveness has been shown. 



Cuba was one of the earliest American pos- 

 sessions of Spain, and was one of the two 

 last to slip away from Spanish rule. For ages 

 it has been a favorite winter resort for people 

 of northern lands, and its history has been at 

 times so closely connected with that of the 

 United States as to render it especially interest- 

 ing to Americans. Since 1900 it has been an 

 independent republic, with some concessions 

 of guardianship to the United States. Includ- 

 ing numerous small islands, or keys, at the 

 north and south, and the Isle of Pines at the 

 south, all of which are a part of Cuban terri- 

 tory, the area of Cuba is about 44,164 square 

 miles. It is therefore almost as large as Penn- 



sylvania, or New Brunswick and Nova Scotia 

 combined. 



The People. The population of Cuba in 

 1916 was. approximately 2,500,000, of whom 

 about 1,795,300 are whites. The remainder are 

 chiefly negroes and negro mixtures, but there 

 are 12,000 Chinese. The prevailing religion 

 is the Roman Catholic. The white families 

 have nearly all been settled for generations on 

 the island, and were long restless under the 

 Spanish rule, for the reason that they were 

 treated merely as provincials or dependents and 

 excluded from participation in the executive 

 responsibilities and honors of the insular gov- 

 ernment; the latter were monopolized by offi- 

 cials from the mother country. The term 

 pobre Cubano (poor Cuban), applied to them 

 in Spain, wounded their sensibilities. 



There was much of class distinction in Cuba 

 under the rule of Spain. The wealthy were 

 educated and refined, but no adequate provi- 

 sion was made for the education of the poor. 

 The census of 1899 showed that sixty-four per 

 cent, or nearly two-thirds, of the people were 

 unable to read or write. The Church fostered 

 education and charities, but the government 

 was neglectful of both. 



It will be seen that the people of Cuba, of 

 whatever class, have been, until recently, de- 

 pressed and dissatisfied with conditions, al- 

 though possessing a land of beauty, fertility and 

 promise and enjoying the very valuable cul- 

 tural inheritance from Spain; and that the 



