10 THE CUBA R E J' I E W 



Havana Correspondence 





Havana, Aug. 16, 1923. 



Sugar: All the mills have closed for the season, with the exception of the Santa 

 Lucia mill located in Oriente Province, which at this writing is still grinding. A number 

 of sugar companies are taking advantage of the dull season to make repairs and improve- 

 ments to their mills, and as this has been the first season in three years that most of the 

 companies have made any profit, purchases which should have been made during the past 

 two or three seasons are now being made. 



The past season has been very encouraging to the sugar interests, both from the 

 standpoint of production and price, and also as there is every indication at this time that 

 the coming year will again witness the return to normal conditions. 



Probably the outstanding matter of general interest and importance to the industry 

 as a whole at this time is the so-called Tarafa plan, which is fully described elsewhere in 

 this issue. This measure, which seems quite sure to be enacted into law, is meeting with 

 considerable opposition from those companies directly affected by the closing of the 

 ports contemplated by this measure. 



Financial Situation: Revenues derived during the month of July were $9,183,000 

 representing receipts from the following sources; Customs $4,258,000, Fiscal Zones (in- 

 cluding 1% tax) $4,097,000, Lottery $528,000, Communications $200,000, Consular De- 

 partment $100,000. Taking into consideration the fact that July is one of the dull 

 months in Cuba, it is quite reasonable to suppose that there will be a fair surplus in the 

 Treasury at the end of the fiscal year, as the following months will undoubtedly show a 

 much greater margin of revenue. 



Owing to the fact that Dr. Erasmo Regueiferos, Secretary of Justice and Chairman 

 of the Temporary Bank Liquidating Commission, and Dr. _,Clarence Marine, one of the 

 members of the Commission, have gone North for a few weeks, it is not expected that the 

 Commission will resume sessions until some time in September. It was recently 

 announced by the Commission that all of the suspended banks, with the exception of the 

 National Bank of Cuba and the Banco Espanol de la Isla de Cuba, would be com- 

 pletely liquidated. 



It is estimated that the recently enacted Lottery Law providing for some two 

 thousand additional "Colecturias," will create additional revenue to the Government of 

 $3,000,000 per year. 



General News Items 



Passenger Agents Coming to Havana: Announcement has been made that the 

 American Association of Travelling Passenger Agents, after holding their 48th Annual 

 Convention in St. Petersburg. Florida next November, are planning to spend several 

 days sightseeing in Cuba. It is anticipated that there will be about seven hundred 

 in the party. 



American Legion Smoker a Success: Celebrating the recent amalgamation of 

 the American Legion and the American Club, the first Legion Smoker was held in the 

 spacious ballroom of the American Club on the evening of July 28th. Star boxing 

 bouts, vaudeville from local theatres and a jazz band constituted the rnain features of 

 the program, the usual refreshments, of course, being one of the main features of the 

 program. 



Colonel Silva Plans Establishing Military Academy: Col. Eugenio Silva, 

 Commander of the eighth military district and former commander of Camp Columbia, 

 has been retired at his own request in order that he may start a military academy 

 here founded along the same lines as the Culver Military Institute, of which his son is a 

 graduate. Colonel Silva has for many years been actively engaged in promoting athletics 

 and physical training in Cuba, and his project has the backing of many prominent citizens 

 of the Republic. 



