T H E C U B A R E \' 1 E W 



19 



COMMERCE AND RAILROADS 



ATLANTA S TRADE WITH CUBA 



Cuban Consul C. H. W'hittington, sta- 

 tioned at Atlanta, Ga., said in a recent 

 interview that .\tlanta had in the last three 

 months shipped 1.000,000 pounds of freight 

 to Cuba, the wholesale value of which was 

 over $100,000. He said further: "Atlanta 

 manufacturers are now beginning to realize 

 that Cuba accords an excellent market for 

 their products. Better still, they like to 

 do business with the Cuban merchants and 

 during all the time that I have represented 

 Cuba here as consul I have never had a 

 single complaint from manufacturers that 

 the Cuban purchaser had failed to pay for 

 a bill of goods." 



NEW CONSULAR INSTRUCTIONS 



The State Department at \A'ashington has 

 been advised by the American legation at 

 Havana that the Cuban government has 

 decided to permit the use of non-negotiable 

 bills of lading for custom house purposes, 

 as applied to shipments from the United 

 States, and that official instructions to 

 Cuban consular officers in this country to 

 this effect are about to be issued. 



This action will afford relief to shippers 

 and exporters, who by the recent regula- 

 tion under the consular fee law of July 1, 

 1911, were obliged to send their original 

 bills of lading to Cuban consuls for cer- 

 tification. The new regulations will per- 

 mit the issues of duplicate bills of lading 

 plainly marked "non-negotiable : for cus- 

 toms house purposes'" to be filed with the 

 Cuban consul at ports of shipment without 

 detention of the original bills. 



The making of charcoal bricks is the 

 latest industry- in Cuba by the Compania 

 Carbonera de Cuba, with a capital of 

 $600,000 and an office in Havana. Charcoal 

 is about the only available cheap fuel in 

 Cuba, and the production is constantly 

 going on in all parts of the island. 



Among the twenty heaviest buyers of 

 American goods Cuba stands number S, 

 \\ ith purchases aggregating as follows : 

 1909-10 1910-11 " 



$51,794,848 $60,709,062 



United States exports of cotton goods 

 to Cuba show a great increase in the fiscal 

 year of 1911 as compared with ten years 

 a.go. The figures follow : 



1901 1911 



$25,946. SOI $60,709,062 



CUBAN TOBACCO CROP 



The total receipts of tobacco from the 

 country since January 1, 1911, amount to 

 193,401 bales, of which 120,810 came from 

 \'uelta Abajo, 8,843 from Semi-Vuelta, 

 15,221 from Partido, 43,349 from Reme- 

 dios, and 5,178 from .Mayari (Orientej. 



The tobacco situation in Havana is rather 

 tr_ving from the viewpoint of the buyer, as 

 prices range from 10 to 30 per cent higher 

 than for the same grades last year, and 

 the supply at even these prices is decidedly 

 limited. 



A factor which makes the position of the 

 American manufacturer of cigars who uses 

 Cuban tobacco at times very difficult is 

 that, the American taste is for a light- 

 colored leaf, and very often it is extremely 

 difficult for the manufacturer to obtain 

 enough light leaf, owing to various con- 

 ditions in the Cuban production. Tobacco 

 experts here insist that the light-colored 

 leaf is really not fully matured and does 

 rot have the fine flavor of the darker 

 grades. 



In a report to the State Department on 

 the commerce and industries of Cuba, 

 Consul General Rodgers, at Havana, re- 

 ports the production of tobacco in Cuba 

 during- the past three years as follows : 



1908 1909 1910 



Districts Bales Bales Bales 



Vuelta Abajo 257,628 220,458 189,728 



Semi Vuelta 24.519 28,868 21,485 



Partida 38,843 33,824 27.905 



Santa Clara 192,874 162,178 91,231 



Matanzas 445 428 732 



Camaguey 12,522 9,089 7,194 



The average price of tobacco per 10^ 

 pounds in Cuba in March. 1911, was : first- 

 class $50, second-class $32. and third-class 



Sis. 



United States importations of tobacco, 

 from Cuba during July compares as fol- 

 lows : 



Leaf suitable for 1910 1911 



cigar wrappers.. 1,812 lbs. 3,573 lbs. 

 All other tobacco 1,373,417 „ 1,943,626 „ 



The value reaches these figures : 

 1910 1911 



$814,556 $1,228,559 



A company has been formed in Cuba 

 to manufacture glazed brick, a new indus- 

 try for _ the island. Among the stock- 

 holders in the enterprise are General ]\Iario 

 Menocal, manager of the sugar central 

 Chaparra. and Colonel Charles Hernandez, 

 ex-director general of posts under the first 

 government of intervention. 



