Evening Republican, Volume 21, Number 178, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 7 August 1918 — In Eastern Cuba [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

In Eastern Cuba

THE historic town of Baracoa may be said to be the western outpost of the Maisi district of Cuba. In an extremely isolated position, Baracoa can only be reached from other parts of the republic by water communication. The nearest railroad terminal on the north coast is Antilla (Nipe bay), and from here one is forced to take one of the coastal steamers of the Empresa Naviera de Cuba in order to get to one’s destination, writes Theodore de Booy, In the Bulletin of the Pan American Union. The trip to Baracoa can also be made from the south coast by embarking at either Santiago de Cuba or Calmanera on the return voyage of the coastal steamer. Baracoa is the oldest existing settlement in Cuba, and it was in 1512, two years before the first building was erected in Santiago de Cuba, that the conquistadores laid out the plans for the present town. That Columbus visited the harbor of Baracoa when he coasted the northern shore of Cuba on his first voyage is almost certain, and the admiral undoubtedly observed the prominent table mountain, El Yunque (the anvil), which dominates the harbor and can be seen for miles. It is claimed, in fact, that it was Columbus himself who named this peak El Yunque from its strong resemblance to an anvil, but this is more a matter of local legend than of accurate historical record. Rising to a height of over 1,800 feet, the “Anvil” is easily visible for 90 or more miles and forms an excellent landmark for mariners approaching this part of the Cuban coast. Zoologically, El Yunque offers one of the best fields in Cuba and one which has remained practically unexplored; since the days of the noted Cuban naturalist Gundlach, who explored the summit tn 1859, we do not believe that this peak has been investigated. Harbor Has Bad Reputation. The town of Baracoa itself is situated on the shores of one of the most picturesque bays in Cuba. While the harbor offers a safe shelter to vessels during the greater part of the year, it is exposed to northeasterly gales and In consequence has a bad reputation with masters of sailing vessels. No tugboat being available, craft which have to depend on sails alone have considerable difiiculty in leaving the harbor owing to its narrow mouth, ond with strong northeasterly winds their departure becomes an Impossibility. Baracoa has a population of about six thousand people, and judging from the stately buildings which can still be found must undoubtedly have lost a great deal of its former Importance. Perhaps the most Important industry of Baracoa Itself is a coconut-oil factory where the coconuts from the neighboring plantations are crushed in order to extract the oil from the kernels. Another export of Baracoa consists of wax gathered from the ■wild bees that have built hives in the uncleared parts of the country. These hives are located by professional wax hunters, who scale seemingly impossible rocks to secure their prize. Not Infrequently the' bees build their storehouses in the entrances of the limestone caves with which the countryside abounds, and in consequence visiting archeologists to this region may do well to remember that wax hunters will often be able to tell of caves which are unknown to the other inhabitants. In many of these caves one is likely ti find aboriginal remains and artifacts of great archeological value. Mata and the Yumurl. The first village of importance to the eastward of Baracoa is Mata. This is a calling station for the banana steamers coming to Baracoa, and from here large quantities of this fruit, gathered from the surrounding country, are exported. Mata itself is but a small village of perhaps thirty houses; its harbor is too shallow to allow steamers to anchor and in consequence the bananas are carried off in lighters to the collecting steamer which lies some distance offshore. From Mata to the mouth of the Yumurl river the road follows the beach more or less, whereas the road from Baracoa to Mata allows no view of the sea. While in places progress is somewhat impeded by the heavy sand, the road from Mata to the Yumurl ferry makes up in beauty what it lacks In convenience. " 51 . • The Yumurl river—and it should be

noted that Cuba boasts of two Yumurl rivers, the other one being found near Matanzas in the center of the island—has a width of about two hundred yards at the mouth with, in all seasons excepting the rainy season, a depth of not over three feet. This lack of depth is due to sand banks which form in the mouth of the river, thanks to the heavy swell which deposits large quantities of corallne sand. Some short distance from the mouth can be found a large ferry which carries the traveler and his horse to the other shore. There being no carriage roads between Baracoa and Maisi, there is of course no necessity for a bridge or for a ferry large enough to transport vehicles. To all who have traveled in the West Indies, the mouth of the Yumurl river must forever linger in their memory as perhaps the most picturesque ' spot visited. With towering banks on either side, the Yumuri wends its peaceful course toward the sea, protected as it were by the deep canyon it has cut for itself during untold centuries. The very walls of this canyon are covered with verdure, with here and there a snow-white spot of limestone to show the underlying foundation and to relieve the green monotony. On the Plateau. The ferry once crossed, the path ascends the tableland in a dizzy zigzag which at times puts a great fear into the traveler’s heart, especially so if his horse should happen to be stumblefooted. The tableland is fully 800 feet above the level of the sea and stretches from the banks of the Yumuri east to the shores of Cape Maisi. Perhaps the first thing that will strike the newcomer is the cool nights on this plateau. When Baracoa and the rest of the Cuban republic are smothering under the heat of a tropical sun, this tableland is invariably cool, and the nights are such that a blanket not only is a comfort but an actual necessity. The cold winds coming from the Atlantic through the Windward passage between Cuba and Hayti are responsible for this phenomenon and are also responsible for the destructive storms which occasionally visit this region. The entire tableland consists of a coraline limestone formation covered with the typical red clay resulting from the decomposing rock. The land, while of course very rocky, is ideally suited for the cultivation of bananas and coffee, and the agriculture of these parts consists almost solely of these two commodities. A limited number of horses and cattle are also raised throughout this region and the horses rank among the best that can be found in Cuba, At certain times of the' year the roads and woods are fairly covered with the ripe guava fruit, so much so, In fact, that the odor of the decomposing fruit becomes offensive. Alligator pears also cease to be a luxury in a land where every tenth tree in the woods bears this fruit and where one has to be careful, when the pears are in season, not to slip on the ripe pears which are scattered underfoot. From Sabana Grande to the east, the tableland of Maisi is known as La Gran Tierra de Maya (the great land of Maya), thus named after the Maya river which finds its source here. It is here that extensive plantations are found, where coffee and bananas are raised, and it is here that in aboriginal times the Indians must have had their favorable abode. The inhabitants of the Gran Tierra de Maya live in a manner which can only be compared to that of the patriarchs of old. Each finca (farm) is selfsupporting, and It is but seldom that the proprietor seeks the busier marts of Baracoa. Where a lavish nature provides palms, which supply only wood for the house but also roof covering, food and clothing, and calabash trees, which go far toward filling a want for kitchen utensils; where guinea grass grows like weeds and furnishes a never-falling supply of fodder for cattle and horses; where fruits are found In wild lavishness and the smallest cultivated patch will sustain a large family and where, lastly, a half acre of coffee bushes will keep a Cuban supplied with enough pocket money to have funds to lose on the outcome of a cock fight—the favorite outdoor sport of Cuba in general and of this region in particular—!.t is no wonder that the inhabitant of the i Ji&in 'nerra de Maya does not wander far from Ms native heath.

Scene In Eastern Cuba.