THE CUBA REVIEW 



Secretary of the Interior 

 Cabinet Gerardo Macliado and Sec- 

 Rcsig)iatioiis retary of Public Works 

 Jose M. Balie. in President 

 Gomez's Cabinet, tendered their resigna- 

 tions April 24th, which were accepted. 



Secretary Machado's successcfr is Dr. 

 Federico Laredo Bru, formerly fiscal of 

 the Audencia of Havana and latterly the 

 registrar of property in Cienfuegos. 



Secretary Babe resigned because of ill- 

 ness, and Seiior Machado felt bound to 

 resign having avowed his intention of 

 supporting the presidential candidacy of 

 Alfredo Zayas. 



Regarding these appointments, President 

 Gomez has the following to say in a letter 

 to Ex-Secretary Machado : 



"I have refused to appoint as secretaries 

 of government and public works, persons 

 who have figured in party politics, select- 

 ing instead Messrs. Laredo Bru and Rafael 

 Carrera, who, as is well known, have not 

 mixed in politics and are men of un- 

 doubted rectitude, who will come to the 

 Cabinet to manage affairs, starightcning 

 out the tangles, without inj.uring any po- 

 litical faction with acts which are not 

 strictly just, nor favor, directly or in- 

 directly, any candidate to the injury of 

 the others. This is what the public wants 

 and this is what I will continue to do, and 

 from this attitude no one shall remove me." 



Senor Rafael Carrera, appointed to suc- 

 ceed Secretary of Public Works Jose 

 Babe, who resigned recently, assumed the 

 duties of his new office on May 1st. ^ He 

 was chief of public works of Santa Clara 

 Province. 



Senor Babe was on the same day ap- 

 pointed to be consulting engineer for the 

 government in the construction of the new 

 million-dollar presidential palace. His 

 salary is stated to be $500.00 monthly. 



Three associates of Hugh 



Contractors Reilly in the construction 



JVant of the water works system 



, Payment at Cienfuegos returned to 



Havana May 5th to look 

 after the collection of $650,000 which they 

 say is still due on their contract. The 

 delegation was headed by Hugh J. Reilly, 

 Jr., son of the contractor. 



This is the second protest which the 

 Reilly firm has made to President Taft. 

 The "first was made two months ago, and 

 the Cuban Secretary of the Treasury, Sr. 

 Manuel Sanguily, was accused of "hold- 

 ing up" the final certification of the work, 

 which was complete seven months ago. 

 According to one of Mr. Reilly's asso- 

 ciates, the work was to cost $3,080,000, 

 which, with the exception of the final pay- 

 ment of $650,000, was paid from time to 

 time as the work progressed. 



When the water works were completed, 

 he said, application was made to the Ha- 

 vana officials for a final certification, so 

 that the final installment might be collected, 

 but this certification was delayed so long 

 that protest was made to Washington. 

 President Taft instructed Arthur Beaupre, 

 American minister at Havana, to inpuire 

 into the delay, and ^Ir. Beaupre reported 

 he could obtain no satisfaction. Then the 

 contractors decided to come to Washing- 

 ton, and obtained an interview with Presi- 

 dent Taft. Mr. Taft, they said, expressed 

 surprise that the claim had not been paid, 

 and assured them he would take the matter 

 up with President Gomez direct. — New 

 ]'ork Herald. 



The JJ'ashini/ton Post says on this sub- 

 ject that inquiry at the State Department 

 on May 2d developed the fact that com- 

 plaints of American contractors in Cuba 

 are now under consideration. That there 

 is delaj' in obtaining payment for them 

 is admitted, but the reason governing 

 Cuba's tardiness is not explained. The 

 L^nited States government has not yet 

 reached a stage in pressing the contract- 

 ors' claims where it is possible to ascertain 

 whether Cuba is short of the needed 

 funds. 



Under the Piatt amendment the United 

 States has a supervisory interest in Cuban 

 finances, particularly in regard to floating 

 of new loans. 



By January 1st last, says the Nezv York 

 American, the budget provisions were ex- 

 hausted to the end of the fiscal year and 

 transfers of funds had somewhat disguised 

 the situation. Late in lon, Speyer & 

 Co. paid over the final installment of the 

 $15,500,000 loan negotiated for the pay- 

 ment of sewering, paving and improving 

 of the water system in Havana and instal- 

 lation of such a system in Cienfuegos. 

 Of that loan, about $3,000,000 remains on 

 deposit in New York and is being drawn 

 against at the rate of $300,000 a month. 



About $600,000 monthly is required to 

 carry on the work in progress. The 

 sewering company has renew^ed pressure 

 on the treasury and obtained $402,000. 

 Unless the paving company gets its share 

 it will quit work. 



Major Armando Andre, editor of El 

 Dia. was acclaimed candidate of the Con- 

 servative Party for governor of Havana 

 Province on April 21st, when the provin- 

 cial convention gathered in Havana to pro- 

 ceed with the nomination of the provin- 

 cial ticket. 



Colonel Justo Garcia Velez, Cuban 

 minister in Spain, who has had a leave 

 of absence, has returned to his post, sail- 

 ing from Havana on May ist. 



