8 Tey GU AaB Vielod vy. 
HAVANA CORRESPONDENCE 
January 26th, 1921. 
PRESIDENT HOLDS NEW YEAR’S DAY RECEPTION: On January 1st President 
and Mrs. Menocal received, as is the usual custom in Cuba. The Diplomatic Corps, 
Supreme Court, Senators and Representatives, Provincial Governors, Mayor of the 
City of Havana, Consular Corps and representatives of the press called at the Presi- 
dential Palace. The official reception extended from 1 o’clock P. M. to 4:30 P. M. The 
different groups were received separately, and both President Menocal and Mrs, 
Menocal chatted for a few moments with the different members of the groups as they 
were presented by the Secretary of State. This custom had its inception with the 
first President of the Republic, don Tomas Estrada Palma, and has been steadfastly 
maintained throughout the different administrations of subsequent Presidents. 
COLLECTOR OF CUSTOMS INSISTS THAT DUTIES ON MERCHANDISE BE PAID: 
Mr. O. B. Gans, Acting Collector of Customs of the Port of Havana, has issued a 
circular calling attention to existing laws and regulations covering the withdrawal 
from customs warehouses of merchandise declared and liquidated for the payment 
of duty. In future the regulations will be strictly followed, and merchandise on 
which duties are not paid within three days following liquidation by the customs 
authorities will be sent to General Stores, wharfage and storage will be charged 
against it, and after due announcement it will be sold at public auction. 
It is believed that this step has been under consideration by Treasury officials 
for some time as a means for the rapid clearing up of the wharves, but that great 
pressure has been brought to bear both locally and from abroad to prevent it. Deputy 
Collector Gans’ announcement would seem to indicate that determined action will 
now be taken and that private interests are to be sacrificed if necessary for the 
general good. 
“QUEDAN” SYSTEM TO BE ABOLISHED: Following representations made by the 
Merchants’ Association of Havana to the Secretary of the Treasury in connection 
with the large sums of money deposited by the merchants with the Collector of Cus- 
toms to guarantee payment of duties on merchandise withdrawn from the Custom 
House under the “Quedan” system, the Secretary of the Treasury has issued a state- 
ment declaring that the department will proceed with all despatch possible to liquidate 
these ‘“Quedans.” This will mean that a sum exceeding $1,000,000 will be refunded 
to merchants in Havana. This action on the part of the Secretary of the Treasury 
has met with the general approval of the merchants of Havana, since it has always 
been the case that money which is deposited with the Government in such instances 
is returned only after exceeding long delays and the importers in Havana haye 
always had large sums outstanding with the Government to cover deposits which 
they have made on merchandise. 
RAILROADS ASK PRESIDENT TO VETO BILL PREVENTING RATE RAISES: 
The railroad passenger and freight rate increases which became effective the middle 
of this month have met with a general protest from the public as a whole, and the 
situation has become so acute that the railroads have petitioned the President to 
veto a bill recently passed by the Cuban Senate preventing the raises in freight and 
passenger rates which had been allowed by the Cuban Railroad Commission. The 
railroads maintain that the increased cost of maintaining and operating the railroads 
will not be entirely covered by the recent raise which was permitted by the Railroad 
Commission, but at the same time the public considers that these excessive rates are 
prohibitive. What the outcome of this controversy will be we are not in position 
at this time to say. 
CRIME WAVE SEEMS TO BE WORLD-WIDE: The crime wave which has been sa 
