THE 

 CUBA REVIEW 



"ALL ABOUT CUBA." 



Copyright, 1907, by the Munson Steamship Line. 



Volume VL OCTOBER, 1908. Number 11. 



POLITICAL MATTERS IN CUBA. 



A Negro Party Formed — Liberal Divisions and Dissensions, Etc. 



November 14 will be a momentous day in Cuba, when her people will hold 

 elections for President, Vice-President, Representatives and Senatois. It is the 

 climax of the last few years of preparation, and on its result will hang the destiny 

 of Cuba. 



The situation is becoming most interesting, and as election day approaches 

 the apathy among Cubans so noticeable in the August elections, when some forty 

 per cent, of the voting population refrained from voting:, is disappearing and a 

 vital interest in election affairs is taking its place. Despite the formation of the 

 negro party and party dissensions and divisions, the issue remains between the 

 followers of Gomez and Menocal for the Presidency, Vice-Presidency and Senate. 

 The same two parties are now against each other and the negroes for the House. 



The prospects seem to favor an extremely close election for the Presidency 

 of Cuba, and resulting discontent, no matter which party wins, is predicted by 

 those in Washington familiar with Cuban affairs. Disorders have taken place frora 

 time to time in various places, and these have emphasized the necessity of retaining 

 a part of the United States forces in and around Havana and other places after 

 the new President shall have been installed, until his authority is firmly established. 



In Sancti Spiritus, Santa Clara Province, a conservative meetinsr was the 

 occasion of a riot, during which knives and clubs were freely used, and many 

 injured, one conservative mortally, by a policeman. The disturbance had been 

 anticipated, and Gov. Magoon was petitioned a week previous for the protection 

 of the Rural Guard, the police force not being considered reliable, owing to their 

 political affiliations. Sancti Spiritus is the home of Gen. Gomez, the liberal can- 

 didate for President of Cuba, and the mayor of the town and the police are like- 

 wise liberals. The same evening a meeting of the new negro party in Havana 

 was broken up by disturbing liberals, but, all things considered, the disorders 

 due to political animosity have not been frequent. 



It might be well to recapitulate the main results of the August elections as 

 partly indicating the trend of popular thought regarding the two parties. 



The conservative candidates are Gen. Mario Menocal for President and Rafael 

 Montoro for Vice-President. The Liberal party fused after the August electionB, 

 when the strength of the conservatives became strongly evident in all of the 

 provinces, and united on Gen. Jose Miguel Gomez and Alfredo Zayas for Presi- 

 dent and Vice-President, respectively. The united strength of the two liberal 

 factions in the August elections was 156,841, while the conservatives polled 10S,71'8. 

 Out of 82 mayors, the conservatives elected twenty-nine and the combined liberals 

 .Sfty-three. The latter also secured more votes for Governors than the conserva,- 

 tives in all the six provinces of the island. The conservative vote exceeded th'e 

 combination vote in thirteen municipalities, and in other cities it exceeded the 

 combined liberal vote and the Independent vote. It would seem that if the lib- 

 erals combined as effectually in the November elections as in those of August, 

 their ticket would prove victorious, as the total conservative vote only e.s.ceed««i 

 by 11,477 the votes of the Gomez faction alone. The formation of a negro palrty 



