26 THE CUBA RE V I E TV 



(by the old methods and without amelioration of the soils). This was the year in 

 which the mill ground 81,000 bags; but it only did it once, for the cane in many 

 parts of the land gave only one crop and died out, and Cuba cannot afford to plant 

 every year as is done in some countries, and as a matter of fact there is no necessity 

 for it. The loss fell mainly on the colono, as at that time he had money, or was 

 able to obtain it, but under present circumstances, should the same attempt be made 

 again, the loss would fall on the mill itself as the colono is destitute and the company 

 must furnish the necessary funds; and while it is true that these would be charged 

 against the colono, yet it would only be a bookkeeping operation, for the colono has 

 only his time to lose — the company is bound to be the financial loser. 



Pursuant to the adoption of the plan of putting in intensive, or to be more 

 exact, progressive cultivation, an equipment of agricultural implements was purchased 

 and work begun in the early part of June, preparing the land for the fall plantings 

 (September-October). The writer offered to prepare and plant this fall, even starting 

 so late, from 10 to 12 caballerias, or a maximum of 15 caballerias, and to establish 

 and maintain an average of at least 50,000 airobas per caballeria, and to so plant 

 another 75 caballerias this coming spring. It has been shown that the work of this 

 central is a matter of great detail, with the varied character of the land and the 

 numerous small colonos to deal with individually, yet by taking the most energetic 

 measures by the 15 of August he had broken (first plowing) about thirty caballerias, 

 all done with ox-drawn single plows, and the cross-plowing, harrowing and fertilizing 

 (or amending) commenced. 



First a general "diagnosis" of the entire property was made, much as a physician 

 would do in the case of a new patient; the history of the place inquired into, past 

 growing performances ascertained, the soil and general conditions examined as closely 

 as possible in the time available, and a general line of action laid out. 



It was seen that, speaking generally, in a tract of say five caballerias, there would 

 be as many different kinds of soil, consequently as many different problems. There 

 would be, for instance, one caballeria of good workable clay loam (although impov- 

 erished) ; the caballeria adjoining of gravel ; next a hard pan with only a few inches 

 of soil on the surface on which hardly anything would grow; alongside of this another 

 caballeria of marshy land; then immense boulders; or perhaps a caballeria of good 

 soil, but filled with large stones from three to eight inches through; or again, land with 

 buried rock and boulders, with a light covering of soil (different from the hard pan), 

 which would have broken to pieces any plow drawn with the speed of a tractor and 

 on which, as in the case of the hard pan, poorer growing results would be obtained. 

 The same condition was found to exist in smaller tracts, that is, in many instances 

 even in one single caballeria there are as many different kinds of soil. 



Further than the impoverished condition of the land, it was found that the 

 cane suffered from lack of moisture, lost generally by percolation (except in the 

 marshy lands where drainage was required.) The method of planting in this district 

 is absolutely erroneous in view of conditions. The custom is to plant "en narigon," 

 that is, in rows, the seed placed end to end, each row from forty to fifty inches apart. 

 Naturally a very rich soil is necessary to support such dense plantings; undoubtedly 

 this method is employed because of the impoverished condition of the soil and the 

 local planter in his ignorance believes that he will thus obtain a larger amount of 

 cane at a crop. Needless to say, such plantings in that poor soil cannot hold for more 

 than one or two cuttings, when they are "worn-out." 



The plan laid out by the writer for the renovation of these fields was to treat 

 each class of oil according to its character, requirements and possibilities. Taking 

 first the best soils, the clayey lands, it was proposed to put it in the most intensive 

 cultivation possible with the object of obtaining and sustaining an average production 

 of some 100,000 arrobas per caballeria (probably around 125,000 arrobas or more 

 at the first cutting), and thus offset the lower production of the poorer soils that 

 would not lend themselves to such intensive cultivation. 



