Page:Statesman's Year-Book 1899 American Edition.djvu/282

 cclii UNITED STATES carried across to Florida and used by the Florida Indians hundreds of years ago. From 1828 to 1840 an average of from $2,000,000 to $3,000,000 worth of copper ore was shipped annually to the United States from these mines. The iron mhies of Cuba, all of which are located near Santiago, over- shadow in importance all other industries on the eastern end of the island, constituting the only industry that has made any pretence of withstand- ing the shock of the present insurrection. The Juragua and Daiquiri iron companies (American), with a combined capital of over §5.000,000, now operate mines in this vicinity and employ from 800 to 1400 men, shipping to the United States from 30,000 to 50,000 tons of iron ore per month, the largest portion of which is used at Bethlehem, Steelton, Sparrows Point, and Pittsburg. The ore of these mines is among the richest in the world, yielding from 62 to 67 per cent of pure iron, and is very free from sulphur and phosphorus. There are numerous undeveloped mines of equal value in this region. In the Sierra Maestra range, on the southern coast of Cuba, from Santiago west to Manzanillo, within a distance of about 100 miles, are found numerous deposits of manganese, an ore indispensable in the manu- facture of steel. As nearly all the manganese used in the United States comes from the Black Sea regions of Europe and a smaller quantity from the northern part of South America, it is but reasonable to suppose that the products of these near-by mines will be in great demand when the conditions are such that they can be operated in safety. In the district of Santiago de Cuba, at the end of 1891, the total num- ber of mining titles issued was 296, with an extent of 13,727 hectares. Of the mines reported and claimed, 138 were iron, 88 manganese, and 53 copper. Commerce and Industry Railroads and other highways, improved machinery, and more modern methods of doing business are among the wants of Cuba ; and with the onward march of civilization these will doubtless be hers in the near future. Cuba, like other tropical and semi-tropical countries, is not given to manufacturing ; her people would rather sell the products of the soil and mines and buy manufactured goods. The possibilities of the island are gi'eat, while the probabilities remain an unsolved problem. The number of landed estates on the island in 1891 was estimated at 90,960 of the value of 220,000,000 pesos, and rental of 17,000,000 pesos. The live stock consisted of 684,725 horses and nmles, 2,485, 76 cattle, 78,494 sheep, and 570,194 pigs. The chief produce is sugar and tobacco. The quantity of sugar produced in the year 1894-95 was 1,004,264 tons ; 1895-96, 225,221 tons ; 1896-97, 212,051 tons. The insurrection and in- cendiarism in the island ruined the prospects of sugar cultivation in 1896. The tobacco crop on an average is estimated at 560,000 bales (1 bale = 110 lbs.), 338,000 bales being exported and the remainder used in cigar and cigarette manufacture in Havana. In 1896 the cigars exported num- bered 185,914,000. Tobacco leaf exported in 1895, 30,466,000 lbs. ; in 1896, 16,823,000 lbs. The decrease in cigar exports and decrease in leaf exports is due to decree of May 12, 1896, forbidding tobacco-leaf exports except to Spain. Cigarettes exported in 1895, 48,163,846 packets. Nearly all the tobacco and nearly half of the cigars go to the United States. About 80,000 of the inhabitants are ordinarily engaged in the cultivation of tobacco. Mahogany and other timbers are exported, as are also honey,