12 



THE CUBA REVIEW 



ALL AROUND CUBA 



INTERESTING NEWS NOTES REGARDING VARIOUS MATTERS PERTAINING 



TO THE ISLAND 



CUBAN GUARANTY AND POSTAGE STAMPS 



When Jose Lopez Rodriguez acquired from 

 the Cuban government the right to print 

 guaranty stamps and postage stamps, he 

 erected an upper floor to the plant in 

 Havana. Both the fu-st and second floors 

 are totally unhke the rooms of private 

 printeries. The height from floor to ceiling 

 is more than 20 feet and huge iron-barred 

 windows flood the building with hght. 



Director Geo. P. Foster, of the United 

 States, designed the guaranty stamps, which 

 have much the appearance of the bank note. 

 On one side is a field with palms in the back- 

 ground, and peons hoeing tobacco in the fore- 

 ground. On the other side he put the Cuban 

 coat-of-arms. This was for use on cigar boxes, 

 etc. For small cigarette boxes he designed a 

 stamp and put on the front the face of a 

 Cuban girl. 



Competition among Cuban artists in the 

 designing of the postage stamps was keen. 

 The design accepted for postage stamps was a 

 map showing by the various steamship hues, 

 that Cuba is the shortest rout from the 

 United States to Panama. There was a 

 method in this. The stamps, going to all 

 parts of the world, would be mute invitations 

 to visit Havana. 



The Cuban special delivery stamp, also 

 designed by Foster, shows an aeroplane sail- 

 ing over Havana harbor. Morro Castle is 

 shown. The background in the sea, beyond 

 the harbor mouth. 



In Cuba the telegraph lines are government 

 owned, and the sender of a message must buy 

 and affix a stamp. The design for this stamp 

 was the figure of Ajax defying the lightning. 



CANDLDR COLLEGES NEW BUILDING 



The plans and specifications for construct- 

 ing the Candler College building at Havana, 

 provides for a combination church, school and 

 parsonage to cost about $75,000. Its erec- 

 tion is under the direction of the Board of 

 Missions of the Methodist Episcopal Church 

 South, Rev. E. E. Clements, pastor director, 

 Havana. 



CCLRT INCIDENTS 



The highest court in Cuba, the Supreme 

 Court, offered on October 21st, to Armando 

 Riva, the 18-year old son of Chief of PoUce 

 Riva, who was with his father when the latter 

 was murderously shot down, the weapon with 

 which the deed was committed. The Havana 

 Post says it is "A strange proceeding that the 

 highest court of the land should give to a 

 minor an instrument of murder, the carrying 

 of which is prohibited." 



Cuban lawyers pleading cases before the 

 courts of the republic have been accustomed 

 to long black robes and black caps, same as 

 the magistrates, an attire they have been 

 using from time immemorial. 



Recently a prominent Havana attorney ap- 

 peared without his robe and cap. The presi- 

 dent of the court ordered liim to conform to 

 popular usage in regard to his dress, and on 

 his refusal, fined him fifty dollars. 



The attorney thereupon appealed to the 

 Supreme Court, asserting that there was no 

 law bearing on the matter, and that the pre- 

 siding court official had no authority. 



The Supreme Court handed down a deci- 

 sion, late in October, to the effect that the law 

 requiring such attire in court was no longer 

 operative, it having become void with the 

 latest laws governing the judiciary. 



STRANGE COURT RULING 



A Cuban recently tried to kill his wife and 

 then himself, but the pistol missed fire be- 

 cause of faulty cartridges and both escaped 

 death. 



For the attempted murder of his wife the 

 man was sentenced to fourteen years imprison- 

 ment. 



The Supreme Court, however, in reviewing 

 this judgment took the ground that the con- 

 struction of the cartridges was so faulty that 

 to all intents and purposes the man was not 

 in possession of a deadly weapon, as it was 

 quite impossible for it to have been fired. 

 They accordingly commuted his sentence and 

 gave him ten days' detention for having a pis- 

 tol in his possession without a license. 



NEW EPISCOPAL BISHOP 



The election was recently announced of the 

 Rev. Hiram K. Hulse, of Suffern, N. Y., arch- 

 deacon of Orange, to succeed the Rt. Rev. 

 Albion W. Knight, who resigned a year ago 

 after ten years' service in Cuba, to become 

 Vice-Chancellor of the University of the 

 South. It is understood that he will accept 

 the office. 



DADY GETS CONTRACT 



The Government has given a contract to 

 M. J. Dady of Brooklyn to resume the work 

 of dredging the harbor of Havana, wliich was 

 stoi)ped when President Menocal annulled 

 the concessions which the Ports Improvement 

 Company held. The work will be under 

 the inspection of the Board of Port Works. 



