Page:Statesman's Year-Book 1899 American Edition.djvu/288

 eclviii UNITED STATES to Placetas ; Ferrocarril de Puerto Principe-Nuevitas ; Ferrocarril de Guantanaino. The Maiianao Railway also belongs to an English company, with head- quarters in London. The original line, belonging to Cubans, was opened in 1863, but liquidated and was transferred to the present owners. The line, only 8J miles in length, runs from Havana to Marianao, with a branch line to a small village on the coast. During 1894, over 750,000 passengers were carried, this being the chief source of revenue. The carriages are of the American type, and are fitted, as well as the locomotives, with the Westinghouse automatic brake ; the rails are of steel, weighing 60 pounds per yard. PORTS, INTERIOR TRANSPORTATION, ETC. In 1895 the port of Havana was visited by 1179 vessels, of 1,681,325 tons; in 1897, 231 vessels, of 309,758 tons, visited Cienfuegos. There are 54 ports in Cuba, of which 15 are open to commerce. There are 19 light-houses. CABLES There are four cable lines connected with Cuba. The International Ocean Telegraph Company has a cable from Havana to Florida ; the Cuban Submarine Company has a cable connecting Havana with Santiago de Cuba and Cienfuegos ; the West India and Panama Company has a cable connecting Havana with Santiago de Cuba, Jamaica, Porto Kico, the Lesser Antilles, and the Isthmus of Panama ; the Compagnie Fran- 9aise de Cables Sous-Marins has a line connecting Havana with Santiago de Cuba, Haiti, Santo Domingo, Venezuela, and Brazil. The only three towns in Cuba having cable connections are Havana, Cienfuegos, and Santiago de Cuba. TELEGRAPHS, TELEPHONES, ETC. The telegraph and telephone systems in Cuba belong to the Govern- ment, but the latter is farmed out for a limited number of years to a com- pany called the Red Telefonica de la Habana. Nearly all the public and private buildings in the city and suburbs are connected by telephone. The Statesman'' s Year Book, 1898, says that there are 2300 miles of telegraph line, with 153 offices ; messages in 1894, 357,914. III. PRINCIPAL CITIES AND TOWNS Government The unit of local government in the North, especially in the New England States, is the rural township, governed directly by the voters, who assemble annually, or oftener if necessary, and legislate in local affairs, levy taxes, make appropriations, and appoint and instruct the local officials (selectmen, clerk, school committee, etc.). Where cities exist the township gov- ernment is superseded by the city government. Townships are grouped to form counties, each with its commissioners and other paid officials who have charge of public buildings, lay out highw^ays, grant licenses, and estimate and apportion the taxation necessary for county purposes. In the South the