THE CUBA RE\'IEW 



9 



A rcsolutiim, presented 



Tariff Xovember 29th in the 



Aiiu-iuiinciits. senate, recommends that 



Resolutions, etc. article 21 of the existing 



tariff law be amended. 

 This article provides for the exemp- 

 tion of all shipments amounting to 

 $50 or less from consular fees. The re- 

 solutions cite the fact that the shipments 

 of $50 give as much trouble as those 

 amounting to $200, which pays 1 per cent 

 for the consular certificate. It cites the 

 fact that the shippers are evading the law 

 by splitting up their shipments so that they 

 will all come under the $50 exemption and 

 are thus defrauding the Cuban government 

 of some of the revenues it should derive 

 from the consular service. The resolution 

 recommends that all shipments of $50 shall 

 pay the sum of 1 per cent, which, it is 

 believed, will result in a considerable in- 

 crease in consular fees. The matter was 

 referred. 



A resolution on Xovember 29th provides 

 for creating ministers plenipotentiarj- and 

 envoj-s extraordinar}- to the republics of 

 Peru, Colombia and \'enezuela, and to raise 

 the grade of the resident ministers to the 

 republics of Brazil and Chile as well as 

 that of Belgium to that rank. 



It provides for the suppression of the 

 post of resident minister to Uruguay and 

 to Belgium, placing the republics of Para- 

 guay and Uruguay under the diplomatic ju- 

 risdiction of the minister plenipotentiary to 

 the Argentine Republic. The minister 

 plenipotentiary to Chile will also represent 

 Cuba in Bolivia, and the minister to Colom- 

 bia will do the same in Ecuador, while the 

 minister to Belgium will represent Cuba at 

 the court of Holland. 



A general advancement in rank of the 

 legation secretaries and consular corps is 

 provided for in Uruguay. Brazil, Chile, Co- 

 lombia, A'enezuela, Panama, Paraguay, Bo- 

 livia. Costa Rica and Ecuador. 



The resolution recommends the appro- 

 priation of $78,525.22 to cover the expense 

 to be incurred b}- the proposed changes. 



A bill has been introduced in the house 

 authorizing the executive to grant the reg- 

 ular subsidy of the railroad subsidy act of 

 July 5, 1906, to any compan}- offering to 

 construct a broad-gauge railroad line be- 

 tween Guantanamo and Baracoa in Oriente 

 Province. The bill, after being read, was 

 referred to the committee on public works. 



Another bill prescribes that in all 

 branches of industry, including agriculture, 

 employees and apprentices must consist of 

 at least 75 per cent of Cubans. 



Havana's board of health 

 .Igaiiist has declared that the leasing 

 Leasing the of the city's waterworks 

 U aterzi'orks to :a private concern would 

 be a menace to the city's 

 health. The suggestion therefore, that 

 for this reason the project might run coun- 

 ter to the Piatt amendment, meets with 

 some acceptance, as under the amendment 

 Cuba is bound to maintain her cities in 

 thoroughly hygienic condition. 



In the \'ento springs the city has an 

 excellent and abundant water supply, but 

 it is acknowledged that the distribution is 

 inadequate and fault\-, and an improved 

 service is needed. It is stated that the 

 cost of a better service would not exceed 

 $2,000,000, which amount was provided for 

 in a decree during the ]\Iagoon administra- 

 tion. There is strong oppression to per- 

 mitting private ownership. 



The naming of candidates 

 Nominating for the presidential elec- 

 the Next tion in 1912 has already be- 

 President gun. 



Friends of President Go- 

 mez will place him in nomination in spite 

 of the coalition agreement in 1908 between 

 the two wings of the Liberal Party that 

 Sr. Zayas should be the presidential candi- 

 date of both factions at the next election. 



La Discusioii. a newspaper of Havana, 

 recently printed an interview with General 

 Jose Alonteagudo. commander of the Rural 

 Guard, who, according to reports, had his 

 eye on the nomination for president of 

 Cuba. The general denied all such talk 

 emphatically, savang: 'T wish neither to be 

 a candidate, nor the president of this re- 

 public." 



On the other hand General Eusebio Her- 

 nandez, who is also spoken of as a candi- 

 date of the Liberal Party for president in 

 1912, says that he has no intention of go- 

 ing against the wishes of those who among 

 his friends are working towards his nomi- 

 nation. 



The bill for the extension of the seawall 

 in Havana from the ^lalecon to the Chor- 

 rera forts grants $1,200,000 for the com- 

 pletion of the work, a quarter of which 

 is to be included each year in the budget 

 of the department of public works. 



The department of state announces that 

 General Carlos Garcia Valez, Cuban min- 

 ister to Argentine, who is at present in 

 the United States, has been appointed to 

 represent Cuba as a special ambassador at 

 the coronation of King George V. 



According to the December calculations 

 made by ^lessrs. Guma and ]\Iejer, the 

 sugar production in Cuba in 1911 will reach 

 1,748,714 tons. 



Gen. Machado, inspector-general of the 

 armed forces of Cuba, was appointed on 

 December 14th secretary of the interior. 



