18 



T II 



c u r. .\ k !•: v i !■: \v 



DECIDED AFTER FIFTEEN YEARS 



An echo of tlic liylit fur Cuban inde- 

 pendence was heard on Xoveniber :2Utii in 

 the Supreme Court of the United States at 

 Washington, when that tribunal decided 

 that Collector George 1). Bryan of Charles- 

 ton, S. C, was not liable for the detention 

 of the steamer "Laurada" during the 

 struggle for independence. In 1895 Col- 

 lector Bryan received instructions from 

 Washington to take measures for the de- 

 tention of the steamer "Laurada," which 

 was supposed to have landed a hostile ex- 

 pedition from the United States in Culia. 

 This suit was to recover for damages 

 alleged to have resulted from the collector 

 detaining the boat. The Supreme Court 

 held that it was the United States marshal 

 and not the collector who detained the 

 ship. 



THE NOVEMBER RAIN STORM 



Losses in excess of $1,000,000 was caused 

 by the rain storm of November. In Pinar 

 del Rio Province the tobacco crop, it is 

 said, may prove a total loss. If bad 

 weather continues and the planters be un- 

 able to obtain nev/ seedlings, the loss will 

 reach several millions, because no crop will 

 be harvested this year. Some of the 

 smaller farmers have been hard hit and 

 are asking for government aid. At Guines, 

 near Havana, a great center of vegetable 

 growing, and where the picking and pack- 

 ing of tomatoes for the New York market 

 was about to begin, a total crop loss is re- 

 ported. The storm raged for three days. 

 The same heavy rains benefited the sugar 

 crop materially, and a yield of over 1,700,000 

 tons is expected. 



NEW TOBACCO DUTIES PROPOSED 



A bill recently introduced in the Cuban 

 llou.se provides for a duty of one cent a 

 p(jund on all leaf and cut tobacco exported 

 from Cuba, the tax to be used in erecting 

 schools throughout the ishmd. It is esti- 

 mated the tax will pniduce in the neigh- 

 borhood $300,000. 



Up to the present, no export duties have 

 been levied in Cuba. Such duties, chiefly 

 on tobacco and cigars, were imposed during 

 the Spanish-colonial jieriod and were re- 

 tained in the tariffs of the American mili- 

 tary government, but were abolished on 

 April 1, 1901, by order of the president of 

 the United States under date of March 

 i:j, 1901. For a short tiine export duties 

 on sugar (1892 — 1895) and on coffee 

 1 1893 — 1898) were imposed by budget laws, 

 Init were not formally embodied in the 

 tariff. 



The law of I'\'liruary 27. 1903, creating 

 internal-revenue taxes, provided for export 

 duties on cigars, at the rate of $1 per 

 thousand, on cigarettes at 10 cents per 

 thousand, and on manufactured tobacco at 

 6 cents per pound, if the proceeds from 

 the other taxes should prove insuflicient. 

 These duties have not been put in force. 

 A tax of 5 cents per bag containinp' not 

 more than 14 arrolias f about 3.50 pounds) 

 of sugar manufactured in Cuba, was like- 

 wise authorized, but has not l)een actually 

 apiilied. 



Tliere has recently been built at San Luis, 

 in Oriente Province, a factory for making 

 starch of the tubers of the yucca. This 

 plant grows well in Cuba and the industry 

 gives every promise of success. 



The Chinese consul of Cail^arien recently 

 appealed to the city authorities to pre- 

 vent the flying of the flag of the Chi- 

 nese rebels of a local Chinese club. The 

 club was recently organized and 

 the flag of the Chinese rebels was 

 floated above the building along- 

 side that of the Cuban emblem. 

 The consul claims that the per- 

 mitting of the flag to fly is a vio- 

 ation of the laws of neutrality. 



Cart all' 



iiiiiie-'.-' In 



reii trmdem frt-iiuentlv seen in Havana streets near the markets. 



