SANTO DOMINGO A COUNTRY WITH A FUTURE BY OTTO SCHOENRICH 1918 PREFACE It is remarkable how little has been written about the DominicanRepublic, a country so near to our shores, which has for years hadintimate commercial and political relations with our country, which isat present under the provisional administration of the AmericanGovernment, and which is destined to develop under the protection andguidance of the United States. The only comprehensive publications onthe Dominican Republic, in the English language, are the Report of theUnited States Commission of Inquiry to Santo Domingo, published in1871, Hazard's "Santo Domingo, Past and Present, " written about thesame time, and Professor Hollander's notable Report on the Debt ofSanto Domingo, published in 1905. The first and the last of thesepublications are no longer obtainable; hence, Hazard's book, writtenalmost half a century ago, is still the chief source of information. These considerations prompted me to indite the following pages, inwhich I have essayed to give a bird's-eye view of the history andpresent condition of Santo Domingo. The task has been complicated bytwo circumstances. One is the extraordinary difficulty of obtainingaccurate data. The other is the fact that the country has arrived at aturning point in its history. Any description of political, financialand economic conditions can refer only, or almost only, to the past;the American occupation has already introduced fundamental innovationswhich will shortly be further developed, and a rapid and radicaltransformation is in progress. Santo Domingo at this moment is acountry which has no present, only a past and a future. My personal acquaintance with Santo Domingo and Dominican affairs isderived from observations on several trips to the Dominican Republicand Haiti, from friendships formed with prominent Dominican familiesduring a residence of many years in Latin America, and from experienceas secretary to the special United States commissioner to investigatethe financial condition of Santo Domingo in 1905, and as secretary tothe Dominican minister of finance during the 1906 loan negotiations. In compiling this work I have endeavored to read all books of anyconsequence which have been published with reference to Santo Domingoand Haiti and have especially consulted the following: José Ramón Abad, "La República Dominicana"; Santo Domingo, 1886. Rudolf Cronau, "Amerika, die Geschichte seiner Entdeckung"; Leipzig, 1892. Enrique Deschamps, "La República Dominicana, Directorio y Guía General"; Barcelona, 1906. José Gabriel García, "Compendio de la Historia de Santo Domingo"; Santo Domingo, 1896. H. Harrisse, "Christophe Colomb"; Paris, 1884. Samuel Hazard, "Santo Domingo, Past and Present, with a Glance at Haiti"; New York, 1873. Jacob H. Hollander, "Report on the Debt of Santo Domingo"; 59th Congress, 1st Session, Senate Executive Document; Washington, 1905. Antonio López Prieto, "Informe sobre los Restos de Colón"; Habana, 1878. Fernando A. De Meriño, "Elementos de Geografía Física, Política e Histórica de la República Dominicana"; Santo Domingo, 1898. Médéric Louis Elie Moreau de Saint-Méry, "Description de la partie espagnole de l'isle Saint-Domingue"; Philadelphia, 1796. Casimiro N. De Moya, "Bosquejo Histórico del Descubrimiento y Conquista de la Isla de Santo Domingo"; Santo Domingo, 1913. F. A. Ober, "A Guide to the West Indies and Panama"; New York, 1914. Publications of the Dominican Government. Publications of the Bureau of American Republics and the Pan-American Union. Annual Reports of the General Receiver of Customs of the Dominican Republic to the Bureau of Insular Affairs, War Department, Washington, 1907 to 1917. "Report of the United States Commission of Inquiry to Santo Domingo"; 42d Congress, 1st Session, Senate Document, Washington, 1871. Emiliano Tejera, "Los Restos de Colon"; Santo Domingo, 1878; and "Los dos Restos de Colon"; Santo Domingo, 1879. L. Gentil Tippenhauer, "Die Insel Haiti"; Leipzig, 1892. A. Hyatt Verrill, "Porto Rico, Past and Present, and San Domingo of To-Day"; New York, 1914. William Walton, Jr. , "Present State of the Spanish Colonies, including a particular report of Hispañola"; London, 1810. O. S. New York, _January_, 1918. TABLE OF CONTENTS CHAPTER I. Historical Sketch-Days of the Conquest--1492 to 1533 Aborigines--Discovery--Founding of Isabela--Disaffection of the colonists--Indian wars--Oppression of the Indians--Founding of Santo Domingo City--Roldan's insurrection--Humiliation of Columbus--Ovando's administration--Extermination of the natives--Administrations of Diego Columbus--Treaty with Indian survivors. CHAPTER II. Historical Sketch--Colonial Vicissitudes--1533 to 1801 Decline of the colony--English attacks on Santo Domingo City--Settlement of Tortuga by freebooters--French settlements in western Santo Domingo--Border wars--Cession of western coast to France--Return of prosperity--Effect of French Revolution--Negro uprising in French Santo Domingo--Rise of Toussaint l'Ouverture--Cession of Spanish Santo Domingo to France--Evacuation by Spain. CHAPTER III. Historical Sketch--Changes of Government--1801 TO 1844 Rule of Toussaint l'Ouverture--Exodus of whites--Capture of Santo Domingo by French--War with negroes--Government of Ferrand--Incursion of Dessalines--Insurrection of Sanchez Ramirez--Reestablishment of Spanish rule--Proclamation of Colombian State of Spanish Haiti--Conquest by Haiti--Haitian rule--Duarte's conspiracy--Declaration of Independence. CHAPTER IV. Historical Sketch--First Republic and SpanishAnnexation--1844 TO 1865. Constitution of the government--Santana's first administration--Wars with the Haitians--Administration of Jimenez--Victory of Las Carreras--Baez' first administration--Santana's second administration--_Repulse of Soulouque_--Baez' second administration--Period of the two governments--Santana's third administration--Annexation negotiations--Annexation to Spain--War of the Restoration. Chapter V. Historical Sketch--Second Republic-Revolutions andDictatorships--1863 TO 1904. Restoration of the Republic--Military presidents--Cabral's administration--Baez' fourth administration--Annexation negotiations with the United States--Civil wars--Heureaux's rule--Administrations of Jimenez, Vasquez and Woss y Gil--Election of Morales. Chapter VI. Historical Sketch--American Influence-1904 to date (1918) Financial difficulties--Fiscal convention with the United States--Caceres' administration--Provisional presidents--Civil disturbances--Jimenez' second administration--American intervention. Chapter VII. Area and Boundaries Area of Republics of Haiti and Santo Domingo--Boundary disputes--Harbors on north coast--Character of shore--Samana Bay--Character of east and south coast--Harbors of Macoris and Santo Domingo--Ocoa Bay--Islands--Haitian frontier. Chapter VIII. Topography and Climate Mountains--Valleys and plains--Rivers--Lakes--Temperature and Rainfall--Hurricanes--Health conditions. Chapter IX. Geology and Minerals Rock formation--Mineral deposits--Gold-Copper--Iron--Coal--Silver--Salt--Building stone--Petroleum--Mineral springs--Earthquakes. Chapter X. Flora and Fauna Agricultural conditions--Land titles and measures--Wet and arid regions--Exports--Sugar--Cacao--Tobacco--Coffee--Tropical fruits--Forest products--Insects--Reptiles--Fishery--Birds--Cattle raising. Chapter XI. The People Population--Distribution--Race--Descendants of American negroes--Language--Physical traits--Mental traits--Amusements--Dances, theatres, clubs, carnivals--Gaming--Morality--Homes. CHAPTER XII. Religion Catholic religion--Concordat--Ownership of church buildings--Clergy--Religious sentiment--Shrines--Religious customs and holidays--Religious toleration--Protestant sects. CHAPTER XIII. Education and Literature Education in Spanish times--Work of Hostos--School organization--Professional institute--Primary and secondary education--Literacy--Libraries--Newspapers--Literature--Fine arts. CHAPTER XIV. Means of Transportation and Communication Railroads-Samana--Santiago Railroad--Central Dominican Railway--Roads--Mode of traveling--Inns--Principal highways--Steamer lines--Postal facilities--Telegraph and telephone lines. CHAPTER XV. Commerce Exports and imports--Foreign trade--Trade with the United States--Ports of entry--Wharf concessions--Domestic trade--Business houses--Banks--Manufactures. CHAPTER XVI. Cities and Towns General condition of municipalities--Santo Domingo City; ruins, churches, streets, popular legends--Other towns of Santo Domingo Province--San Pedro de Macoris--Seibo--Samana and Sanchez--Pacificador Province--Conceptión de la Vega--Moca--Santiago de los Caballeros--Puerto Plata--Monte Cristi--Azua--Barahona. CHAPTER XVII. The Remains of Columbus Burial of Columbus--Disappearance of epitaph--Removal of remains in 1795--Discovery of remains in 1877--Resting-place of Discoverer of America. CHAPTER XVIII. Government Form of government--Constitutions--Presidents--Election--Powers--Executive Secretaries--Land and sea forces--Congress--Local subdivisions--Provincial governors--Communal governments. CHAPTER XIX. Politics and Revolutions Political parties--Elections--Relation between politics and revolutions--Conduct of revolutions--Casualties--Number of revolutions--Effect of revolutions. CHAPTER XX. Law and Justice Audiencia of Santo Domingo--Legal system--Judicial organization-Observance of law--Prisons--Character of offenses. CHAPTER XXI. The dominican debt and the fiscal treaty with the UnitedStates. Financial situation in 1905--Causes of debt--Amount of debt--Bonded debt--Liquidated debt--Floating debt--Declared claims--Undeclared claims--Surrender of Puerto Plata custom-house--Fiscal convention of 1905--Modus vivendi--Negotiations for adjustment of debt--New bond issue--Fiscal treaty of 1907--Adjustment with creditors--19l2 loan--Present financial situation. CHAPTER XXII. Finances Financial system--National revenues--Customs tariff--National budget--Legal tender--Municipal income--Municipal budgets. CHAPTER XXIII. The Future of Santo Domingo Attraction by the United States--Political future of Santo Domingo-Economic future of Santo Domingo. APPENDIX A. Chiefs of State of Santo Domingo, 1492-1918 APPENDIX B. Old Weights and Measures in Use in Santo Domingo APPENDIX C. American-Dominican Fiscal Convention of 1907 INDEX LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS Columbus Monument on Cathedral Plaza, Santo Domingo City. Map of Santo Domingo Historic Gateway "La Puerta del Conde, " where the independence of the Dominican Republic was declared: View from within the city View from without, during a revolution The Strongest Presidents of Santo Domingo: President Pedro Santana President Buenaventura Baez President Ulises Heureaux President Ramon Caceres Four Prominent Dominicans: President Juan Isidro Jimenez President Horacio Vasquez Minister of Finance Federico Velazquez Archbishop Adolfo A. Nouel One of the Many Beautiful Spots on the Shores of Samana Bay Partaking of Cocoanut-water Street in Bani Street in Puerto Plata A Roadside Store Building a House with the Products of the Palm-tree Room in "Casino de la Juventud, " Santo Domingo City A Holiday Gathering, Santo Domingo City Ruins of San Francisco Church, Santo Domingo City A "Calvario" in the Road Road Scene: A Mudhole Wharf and Harbor of San Pedro de Macoris Entrance to Cathedral of Santo Domingo "House of Columbus, " Ruins of Diego Columbus' Palace The "Tower of Homage, " the oldest fortification erected by white men in America: View from mouth of Ozama River View from within fort Puerto Plata Scene: Milkmen Puerto Plata Scene: The Ox as a Riding Animal Sanctuary of Santo Domingo Cathedral Diagram of Sanctuary of Cathedral Lead Box found in 1877 with Remains of Columbus Inscription on Lid of Lead Box Obverse Side of Silver Plate Reverse Side of Silver Plate The Bane of Santo Domingo: Intrenchment at Puerta del Conde during a revolution Independence Plaza, Santo Domingo City Cathedral Plaza, Santo Domingo City SANTO DOMINGO CHAPTER I HISTORICAL SKETCH. --DAYS OF THE CONQUEST. --1492 to 1533 Aborigines. --Discovery. --Founding of Isabela. --Disaffection of thecolonists. --Indian wars. --Oppression of the Indians. --Founding ofSanto Domingo City. --Roldan's insurrection. --Humiliation ofColumbus, --Ovando's administration. --Extermination of thenatives. --Administrations of Diego Columbus. --Treaty with Indiansurvivors. When Columbus, in December, 1492, sailed along the northern coast ofthe island of Haiti or Santo Domingo, he was more enchanted with whathe saw than he had been with any of his previous discoveries. Giantmountains, covered with verdant forests, seemed to rise precipitatelyfrom the blue waters and lift their heads to the very clouds. Beautiful rivers watered fertile valleys, luscious fruits hung fromthe trees, fragrant flowers carpeted the ground, and the air wasfilled with the songs of birds of gay plumage. There were scenes ofnature's magnificence such as are found only in the tropics. Columbus, as he gazed upon them in admiration, little thought that thisbeautiful island was to witness his greatest sorrows, that it was tobe his final resting place, and that it was in later generations tobecome the theater of long years of war and carnage. At the time of its discovery the island of Santo Domingo was thicklyinhabited. The native Indians were Arawaks belonging to the same raceas those who occupied the other larger West India Islands. Unlike thefierce Caribs who inhabited some of the smaller Antilles, the Arawakswere of a gentle and meek disposition. They were inclined to idlenessand sensuality. Columbus lauded their kindliness and generosity; thepossession of these traits, however, did not prevent them fromfighting bravely when exasperated. Living in the stone age, they knew none of the useful metals, but goldornaments were used for adornment. Older men and married women woreshort aprons of cotton or feathers; all other persons went entirelynude. Their favorite amusements were ball games and savage dances withweird, monotonous music; their religion was the worship of a greatspirit and of subordinate deities represented by idols, called"zemis, " carved of wood and stone in grotesque form, and of which someare still occasionally found in caverns or tombs. They dwelt in rudepalm-thatched huts, the principal article of furniture being thehammock. Simple agriculture, hunting and fishing provided their meansof livelihood. The natives called the island Haiti, signifying "high ground, " but thewestern portion was also called Babeque or Bohio, meaning "land ofgold" and the eastern part Quisqueya, meaning "mother of the earth. "The name Quisqueya is the one by which Dominican poets now refer totheir country. The inhabitants lived in communities ruled by localcaciques, and the country was divided into five principal regions, each under an absolute chief cacique, as follows: Magua, signifying "watered plain, " the northeastern part of the islandand comprising most of what is to-day known as the Cibao--that part ofthe Dominican Republic lying north of the central mountain-range. Thechief was Guarionex. Marien, or Mariel, comprised the northwestern portion of the islandand was ruled by Guacanagari. Jaragua comprised the southwestern part, its chief being Bohechio, theoldest of the caciques. Maguana extended from the center of the island to the south coast nearAzua and was ruled by the proud Caonabo. Higuey, or Higuayagua, the most bellicose portion of the country, comprised the entire southeast and was ruled by Cayacoa. Columbus happened upon the island on his first voyage. Afterdiscovering Guanahani on October 12, 1492, and vainly searching forJapan among the Bahama Islands, he discovered Cuba and while skirtingalong the north shore of what he supposed to be the mainland heard ofan island said to be rich in gold, lying to the east. Taking aneasterly course, he was abandoned by the Pinta, one of his caravels, whose captain, disregarding the admiral's signals, sailed away to seekhis fortune alone. Continuing with his remaining caravels, the SantaMaria and the Niña, Columbus reached Cape Maisi, the easternmost pointof Cuba, where he sighted a high mountainous land lying in asoutheasterly direction. On the following day, December 6, 1492, hereached this land, which he called la Española, because it remindedhim of Andalusia. In English histories the name is modified toHispaniola. The port Columbus called San Nicolas, as he had entered iton St. Nicholas day, and it is now known as Mole St. Nicolas. Columbus then sailed along the north coast of the island and enteredthe pretty little port known to-day as Port-à-l'Ecu. Here, on December12, he solemnly took possession of the country in the name of hissovereigns, erecting a wooden cross on a high hill on the westernside of the bay. He then visited Tortuga Island, to the north, givingit this name on account of its shape and the great number of turtlesin the water near its coast. After stopping in a harbor which hecalled Puerto de Paz, Port of Peace, because of the harmony whichprevailed at the meetings with the natives, Columbus continued in aneasterly direction, but adverse winds compelled him to put into thebay of Santo Tomas, to-day bay of l'Acul, where the cordialintercourse with the natives was renewed. Here he received an embassyfrom the chief of the district, Guacanagari, inviting him to visit thecacique's residence, further along the coast, and bringing him aspresents a wampum belt artistically worked and a wooden mask witheyes, tongue and nose of gold. To accept the invitation Columbus set sail on the morning of December24. In the evening when the admiral had retired the helmsman committedthe indiscretion of confiding the helm to a ship's boy. About midnightwhen off Cape Haitien, near their destination, the vessel was caughtin a current and swept upon a sandbank where she began to keel over. During the confusion which followed, Columbus had the mainmast choppeddown but all efforts to right the ship were in vain, and Columbus andthe crew were obliged to take refuge on the little Niña. As soon as Guacanagari received news of the disaster he sent largecanoes filled with men to help the strangers transport their stores tothe shore. The relations between the Spaniards and the Indians becamemost cordial, especially as the Spaniards were gratified to obtainmuch gold in exchange for articles of insignificant value, owing towhich circumstances and to the natural advantages of the location, Columbus determined to build a fort with the wreckage of his vessel. The fort was on a hill east of the site of the present town of CapeHaitien. Columbus gave it the name of La Navidad because he hadentered the bay on Christmas day, and leaving thirty-nine men ascolonists set out on the Niña on January 4, 1493, on his returntrip to Spain. Near the great yellow promontory on the north of the island, to whichColumbus gave the name it still retains of Monte Cristi, the Pinta, which had deserted the other vessels off Cuba, was sighted. Columbushaving heard the excuses of the Pinta's captain, took no action withrespect to the latter's delinquency, but set about exploring a largeriver in the vicinity to which he gave the name of Rio de Oro andwhich to-day is called the Yaque. Continuing the journey along thecoast of the island the vessels rounded the giant promontory of CapeCabron and that of Samana and entered the great bay of Samana whichColumbus at first took to be an arm of the sea. Here it was that thefirst armed encounter between sons of the old world and the new tookplace. The Indians set upon the Spaniards when they landed but werequickly driven to flight, one of their number being severely wounded. On the following day, however, a more pleasant meeting took place andpresents were exchanged. On January 16 the two vessels set sailfor Spain. The immense excitement produced in Spain by the discoveries ofColumbus made the preparation of another expedition an easy matter, and on September 25, 1493, the admiral again set out from Spain, thistime with sixteen ships and some 1300 men. After touching at severalof the Leeward Islands and Porto Rico, the fleet sighted the Samanapeninsula on November 22, 1493, and three days later arrived at MonteCristi. Here the finding of two corpses of Spaniards filled themembers of the expedition with grave apprehensions, which provedjustified when two days later they arrived at La Navidad and found thefort completely destroyed, the Indian village burnt to the ground, andthe whole neighborhood silent and desolate. Guacanagari was found at a village further inland and according to hisstory and that of other Indians, a number of Spaniards had succumbedto disease, others were killed in brawls among themselves and theremainder died at the hands of the inland caciques Caonabo andGuarionex and their warriors, who attacked and destroyed both the fortand the village of Guacanagari. At the same time it was stated thatthe Spaniards had made themselves hateful to the natives by theirdomineering disposition and their lewdness and covetousness. Thefinding in some of the native huts of objects that had belonged to thecolonists, as well as other suspicious circumstances, caused FatherBoil and other companions of Columbus to doubt the chief's story andinsist that sanguinary vengeance be taken. Columbus, however, affectedto be satisfied with the explanation given and determined to take nofurther action, but to seek a new location for the colony. From thistime forward discord divided not only the Spaniards and Indians butalso the Spaniards themselves. As the fleet was sailing east the weather obliged it to put into anindentation of the coast fifty miles east of Monte Cristi. The placeso charmed the Spaniards that it was decided to found a town here. Thefirst city of the new world was therefore laid out and Columbus gaveit the name of Isabela, in honor of his royal patron. During theconstruction of the city Columbus sent two expeditions to the Cibaomountains, both of which succeeded in collecting a large amountof gold. It soon became evident that the neighborhood of Isabela was not ahealthy one. Fever invaded the colony; Columbus himself was notexempt. Discontent came and an uprising among the soldiers was nippedin the bud. On recovering from his illness Columbus resolved to makean exploration of the interior; and with drums beating and flagsflying a brilliant expedition left Isabela. The beautiful Royal Plainwas soon reached and friendly relations established with its peacefulinhabitants, whose wonder at the Spaniards and terror at their horsesknew no bounds. A fortress was founded on the banks of the Janicoriver and called Santo Tomas. Columbus then returned to Isabela tofind the town in a state of excitement on account of petty quarrelsand the general sickness. Picking out the principal malcontents hesent them to Santo Tomas, and ordered that another fortress befounded. On April 24, 1494, he left the island with three vessels fora voyage of exploration to the west, entrusting the government of thecolony to his brother Diego and an executive council. But a short time elapsed before new dissensions broke out, followed bytroubles with the Indians. A military expedition dispatched to theinterior committed numerous depredations and drove the natives intothe ranks of Caonabo, who was planning the expulsion of the strangers. The commander of the expedition, Moisen Pedro de Margarite, was calledto account by Diego Columbus; but conspiring with Father Boil, thereligious head of the colony, the two contrived to excite a popularinsurrection against the governor, which may be regarded as the firstDominican revolution. At this time Bartholomew Columbus, anotherbrother of the admiral, arrived with provisions, and theinsurrectionists, taking possession of the ships, returned in them toSpain where they lost no opportunity to disparage the achievements ofColumbus and to slander him and his brothers. The principal caciques of the island now formed an alliance anduniting their forces laid siege to Santo Tomas. Only Guacanagarirefused to join them and hurried to Isabela to offer his services tothe Spaniards. At this juncture, on September 29, 1494, Columbus, sickand weary, returned from his voyage, during which, after otherdiscoveries, he had explored a portion of the south coast of theisland. As soon as he had recovered sufficient strength he led anexpedition into the interior, relieved Santo Tomas, won numerousvictories over the natives and founded another fortress, LaConcepcion, in the Vega Real, or Royal Plain. Caonabo, however, assembled a vast number of warriors and forced Columbus to renewedefforts. The Spaniards and Indians met where the ruins of the old cityof Concepcion de la Vega now are, and the famous battle of the RoyalPlain was fought on March 25, 1495. The natives are alleged by theSpanish historians to have numbered 100, 000, while the Spaniards hadbut 200 men and 20 horses, besides the warriors of Guacanagari. In thebattle, a bloody one, the Indians were completely beaten, theirdiscomfiture being due principally to the superior arms of theEuropeans and the fear inspired by the horses and by twentyblood-hounds brought into the fight by the Spaniards. On the occasionof this battle the miracle of the Santo Cerro, or Holy Hill, is saidto have occurred, when, according to the Spanish chroniclers, theIndians captured an eminence on which the Spaniards had erected awooden cross, but were unable to destroy the cross with fire orhatchet, and were finally frightened away by the apparition of theVirgin Mary. This one crushing defeat definitely broke the Indians' power, forthough there were subsequent outbreaks they were only sporadic and, with one exception, of comparatively little importance. Caonabo stillremained at large and the Spaniards secured possession of his personby one of those feats of individual prowess which mark the history ofthe conquest. The Spaniard Alonso de Ojeda went out in search of thecacique, and having found him with his warriors, suggested that theyrepair to Isabela together to arrange terms of peace with Columbus. The suggestion being accepted, they set out and on crossing the Yaqueriver Ojeda pressed the Indian to put on a pair of handcuffs, asserting that these bracelets were a distinction of the king ofCastile. Caonabo acceded, whereupon the Spaniard sprang upon his horseand swinging the chief upon the croup, fled from the midst of theastonished warriors and bore him a prisoner to Isabela. Caonabo waslater embarked for Spain but died on the voyage. A beginning was now made of the harsh oppression which was soon tocause the entire disappearance of the native race. A quarterly tributewas imposed on every Indian above the age of fourteen. Those who livedin the auriferous region of the Cibao were obliged to deliver as muchgold dust as could be held in a small bell, others were to givetwenty-five pounds of cotton. Many natives fled to the mountains toescape the onerous tax and new settlements were established by theSpaniards. The enemies of Columbus had in the meantime been sufficientlysuccessful in Spain to cause one de Aguado to be sent out with theobject of investigating conditions in the colony. His conduct from thevery first was so arrogant that the admiral determined to return atonce to justify himself before the court. On March 10, 1496, heembarked for Spain, leaving his brother Bartholomew as governor ofthe colony. Before his departure the news arrived of the discovery of several richgold mines in the southern part of the island. They were found by asoldier named Miguel Diaz, who having fled to the wilderness to escapepunishment for wounding a comrade, had established conjugal relationswith an Indian woman near the present site of Santo Domingo City. Noticing that her consort was tiring of her, the lady tried to retainhim by revealing the existence of gold deposits in the region; andDiaz promptly secured his pardon and promotion by reporting the findto Isabela. The romance had a sad ending, for the Indian, shocked atthe cruel treatment accorded her countrymen by the Spaniards who cameto the place, abandoned her husband and children and disappeared inthe forest. On arriving in Spain, Columbus wrote his brother to found a town onthe south coast at the mouth of the Ozama. Bartholomew Columbusimmediately set out to select a site and on August 4, 1496, laid thefirst stone of the new city on the left bank of the Ozama, calling itNueva Isabela, in honor of the queen. The name was afterwards changedto Santo Domingo in honor, so tradition has it, of the saint to whomthe day of its foundation was dedicated. As the location of this citywas much healthier than that of fever-ridden Isabela on the northcoast, the settlers in an ever increasing stream removed to the newtown which flourished as the other decayed, until after a few yearsIsabela was entirely abandoned. The only vestiges now remaining of itare a few ruined foundation walls and shapeless heaps of stoneovergrown with rank tropical vegetation. Bartholomew Columbus busied himself with further explorations of theinterior, founding a number of strongholds, among them Santiago de losCaballeros, which commanded the Royal Plain. While at Concepcion de laVega he was informed that several Indians had burned an altar erectedby friars in the interior, and had buried the sacred images. Thebigoted governor had the Indians apprehended and burnt alive in thepublic square. This cruel act induced fourteen caciques to conspirefor an uprising; but their designs being betrayed, they were capturedby a bold stroke and two of them executed. Determined to crush thespirit of the natives, Bartholomew Columbus invaded and devastated thedistrict of Monte Cristi, driving the Indians into the remote forestsand capturing and imprisoning their chiefs. His severity was not confined to the Indians, but the Spaniards, naturally restive under the government of a Genovese, were also madeto feel it until their disaffection developed into open rebellion. At the head of the conspiracy was Francisco Roldan, the judge of thecolony, a man ambitious and seditious by nature, but who owed Columbusmany favors. Others, disgusted because their dreams of gold had notbeen realized, followed him and the insurrection was soon well underway. The rebels took Isabela and sacked the government storehouse andthen took steps to besiege Bartholomew Columbus at Concepcion de laVega. The arrival of fresh troops and stores from Spain enabled thegovernor to hold the rebels in check. Such was the deplorable state of affairs when Columbus returned to theisland on August 30, 1498. Realizing Roldan's strength, he consentedto make terms under which the insurgents were to receive stores andother property and return to Spain. By the time their vessels wereready most of them had changed their mind and declined to go, butthey wrote letters to Spain bitterly complaining of the admiral andhis brothers, and accusing them of oppression and despotism. Columbusfound himself obliged to agree to the most humiliating terms with therebels, conceding a complete pardon, restoring them to their officialposts, promising to pay their salary in arrears and distributing landsand Indians among them. Nevertheless, other quarrels followed, Columbus was forced to take severe measures and the complaintsagainst him grew. Little by little the stories of arrogance and oppression circulatedwith reference to the Columbus brothers undermined the esteem in whichthey were held by the sovereigns, who were also disappointed at notseeing the fabulous wealth they had expected from the new discoveries. They determined to send to the island of Española a person authorizedto investigate conditions and decide all disputes. Their choice for the mission was unfortunate; it fell on FranciscoBobadilla, a spiteful, arrogant and tactless man. On arriving in SantoDomingo on August 23, 1500, he immediately began to annul dispositionsmade by Columbus and sent for the admiral who was in the interior. Assoon as Columbus appeared, Bobadilla, far exceeding his authority, caused him to be put in chains and confined in a cell of the fortressof Santo Domingo. He also imprisoned the brothers of Columbus and sentthem to Spain together with the Discoverer, all chained like infamouscriminals. At the same time he made a report attributing malfeasance, injustice and fraud to all. The administration of Bobadilla was disastrous. In his efforts toingratiate himself with Columbus' enemies he heaped favors on Roldanand his followers and gave them franchises and lands. He made theslavery of the Indians more galling than ever, obliging them to laborin the fields and mines. Columbus' property and papers wereconfiscated and Columbus' friend, the explorer Rodrigo de Bastidas, was imprisoned and his property seized. The captain of the vessel bearing Columbus treated his distinguishedprisoner with all possible deference and offered to take off thechains, but the Discoverer, whose heart was breaking under theindignities heaped upon him and the injustice of which he was thevictim, proudly refused. When the vessel arrived in Spain thesovereigns, shocked at Bobadilla's proceedings, commanded theimmediate release of Columbus, ordered that his property be restoredand overwhelmed him with distinctions, though providing that hisdignities as viceroy were to remain temporarily suspended; probablybecause the calculating spirit of King Ferdinand believed that toomuch power had been vested in his subject. Bobadilla was removed fromoffice, and Nicolas de Ovando, a member of the religious-militaryorder of Alcantara, was appointed governor in his place. Ovando arrived in Santo Domingo on April 15, 1502, with a fleet ofthirty vessels, the largest which up to that time had arrived in thenew world, carrying stores of every kind and over 1500 persons, amongthem many who later attained distinction in conquests on the mainland. He was courteous to Bobadilla, but took measures to send Roldan andthe most turbulent of his companions back to Spain on the return ofhis fleet, the largest vessel of which was placed at the dispositionof Bobadilla. Just before the sailing of the fleet, on June 30, 1502, Columbusunexpectedly appeared before the city on his fourth voyage, and askedpermission to enter the port for protection from a hurricane which hebelieved was approaching. Ovando, either because he had secret orders, or perhaps because he feared Columbus' presence might cause reneweddisturbances, denied the request, and the great man, deeply wounded bythe refusal, sought shelter further up the coast. The pilots of the great fleet derided Columbus' prediction and theships set sail. They had not reached the easternmost point of theisland when a terrific hurricane broke loose. All but two of thevessels were lost, and by a strange coincidence one of these two boreRodrigo de Bastidas, the friend of Columbus, while the other, thesmallest and weakest vessel of the fleet, was the one that carriedColumbus' property. Bobadilla, Roldan and other enemies of theadmiral, and many other passengers and Indian captives perished andlarge stores of gold were lost. Columbus' squadron rode out the stormin safety in a cove of the bay of Azua, whereupon he continuedhis voyage. On land, too, the hurricane wrought great destruction. The houses ofthe town of Santo Domingo were demolished and as the right bank of theOzama was higher and seemed more suitable, Ovando ordered that thetown be rebuilt on that side, where it now stands. Ovando now inaugurated a period of general prosperity. He establishedpeace and order, issued rules for the different branches of the publicservice, placed honest men in the posts of responsibility andencouraged industry and agriculture. Yet, strange mixture of energyand cruelty, of valor and bigotry that he was, his treatment of theIndians was most oppressive. To each Spanish landholder was assigned anumber of Indians under the pretext that they were to be givenreligious instruction and accustomed to work; but so onerous andunremitting was the labor imposed that they succumbed to disease bythousands, while thousands of others perished by their own hand in anepidemic of suicide which swept through the country, and many fled toalmost inaccessible mountain regions. But two Indian chieftains still reigned in the island, one the Indianqueen Anacaona in the district of Jaragua, the other the chief ofHiguey. Ovando's severe measures against the natives made him ready tobelieve the tales of conspiracies brought to him. He therefore sent atroop of 300 infantry under Diego Velazquez, the future conqueror ofCuba, and 70 horsemen, to the territory of Anacaona, where they werereceived with every mark of kindness. The Spaniards invited thenatives to witness a military drill and when the queen, her principalcaciques and a great crowd of Indians were assembled, the exercisescommenced. The Indians were awed by the spectacle so new and imposingto them, when suddenly the trumpets gave a signal, the infantry openedfire and the cavalry charged on the defenseless spectators. All theIndians who could not escape by flight were massacred without respectto age or sex. Anacaona alone was spared and carried off to SantoDomingo where she was shortly afterwards ignominiously executed, onthe pretext that she was not sufficiently sincere in the Catholicreligion which she had recently professed! A tenacious persecution ofthe Indians who would not become slaves was instituted and but fewwere able to hide in the mountains of the interior. In 1503 the subjugation of the last remaining independent chieftain, Cotubanama, lord of Higuey, in the extreme eastern part of the island, was undertaken. Near this province a Spaniard wantonly set his houndupon one of the principal natives, and the Indian was torn to pieces, whereupon the chief, indignant at his friend's death, caused aboatload of Spaniards to be killed, thus giving Ovando a welcomeexcuse for the invasion. Four hundred Spaniards dealt death anddesolation throughout the region, pursuing the Indians into themountains and forests and sparing neither women nor children. When atlast they captured and hung an aged Indian woman revered as aprophetess, the terrified aborigines sued for peace and agreed to paya heavy tribute. A fortress was erected at Higuey, but the conduct ofthe Spanish garrison was so outrageous that the Indians in desperationagain rose, and killed every Spaniard in the district. Ovando thenbegan a war of extermination and the Indians were killed off bythousands, Cotubanama resisted heroically but in vain, and after beingbeaten in a number of desperate battles he withdrew to the island ofSaona, southeast of Santo Domingo. Here he was surprised and capturedby the Spaniards, his remaining warriors mercilessly shot and hehimself taken to the city of Santo Domingo and hung. With his deaththe island was thoroughly pacified, though at a bloody cost, and theconquest proper ended. On August 13, 1504, Columbus once more arrived in Santo Domingo. Onhis ill-fated fourth voyage he had been shipwrecked in Jamaica and oneof his men crossed the ocean in an open boat, to solicit aid ofOvando. The latter, after dallying for months, finally yielded to themurmurings of the colony and sent for the Discoverer. He receivedColumbus well, but subjected him to humiliation by arbitrarilyliberating a mutineer imprisoned by the admiral. Disappointed and sad, the great navigator left the shores of the island he loved andreturned to Spain where his death occurred two years later. Thegolden age of the colony was now at hand. Ovando built up the city ofSanto Domingo, constructed forts and other defences, and laid thefoundations of most of its public buildings. Fine private residencesand great churches and convents were erected. Sugar-cane wasintroduced in 1506 and gave rich returns, the production of the goldmines continued to increase, and cattle raising brought large profits. The Indians were dying out under the rigorous treatment, and otherswere imported from the surrounding islands under the pretense ofconverting them to Christianity; and when these also succumbed, theimportation of negroes from Africa was commenced. About 1508 theisland began to be called Santo Domingo, but for almost threecenturies royal decrees continued to refer to it as Espanola. Soflourishing was its state at this time that thirteen of its towns weregranted coats of arms and three were declared cities. The colony wasand for many years continued to be a starting point for voyages ofdiscovery and conquest in the islands and along the shores of theCaribbean Sea. After the death of Christopher Columbus his son Diego made fruitlessefforts to recover the honors of which his father had been despoiled, but it was not until he married Maria de Toledo, the beautiful nieceof the Duke of Alba, that he met with partial success, probably morebecause of the influence of his wife's family than because of thejustice of his claims. In 1509 he was appointed governor of SantoDomingo to succeed Ovando and arrived in the colony with his wife, hisuncles, and a brilliant suite. Diego Columbus inaugurated his administration with a splendor tillthen unknown in the new world, establishing a kind of vice-regalcourt. He built the castle of which the ruins are still to be seennear the San Diego gate in the city of Santo Domingo, and which in itsglory must have been an imposing structure. Unfortunately many personstransferred to the son the hatred they had borne the father and hefound his plans balked. Intending to carry into effect the royaldispositions relative to the release of the Indians from slavery heincurred the hostility of the planters and when he desisted owing totheir opposition, he was attacked by the friars. Complaints poured inupon King Ferdinand; the accusation most calculated to arouse thesuspicious monarch's fears was that the second admiral, as DiegoColumbus was called, harbored the intention of proclaiming himselfsovereign of Santo Domingo. Ferdinand accordingly instituted theaudiencia or high court of justice of Santo Domingo, which wasinvested with a comprehensive jurisdiction, being authorized to hearappeals even from decisions of the governor, whose powers were thusmaterially curtailed. This circumstance, as well as a new distribution of the Indians, madeover the head of the governor, induced Diego Columbus to return toSpain in 1515 in order to defend his interests. During the term of thetwo governors who succeeded him, various dispositions were made forthe protection of the natives whose numbers were rapidly diminishingnotwithstanding importations from the other islands and from SouthAmerica. The only result of these orders was a change of masters; forwhen Diego Columbus returned as governor in 1520, he found the Indiansexploited by the priests and officers of the crown to whom they hadbeen intrusted ostensibly for religious instruction, while themine-owners and planters now employed negro slaves. Almost simultaneously with the return of the second admiral began theinsurrection of a young Indian cacique known as Enrique. This nobleIndian, a relative of Anacaona, had been converted to Christianity andeducated by the Spaniards, but was nevertheless enslaved in one of the"repartimientos, " or distributions. His wife having been gravelyoffended by the Spaniard to whom they were assigned, he retired to thealmost inaccessible mountains in the center of the island, and many ofthe remaining natives fled to join him. Efforts to dislodge him werein vain and negotiations only elicited from him the promise to act onthe defensive alone, which was equivalent to an indefinite truce. Thenumber of negro slaves had in the meantime increased, and thetreatment given them was as harsh as that which had been accorded theaborigines. As a result an insurrection, the first negro uprising inthe new world, began near Santo Domingo City on December 27, 1522. Several Spaniards were murdered, but the troops overpowered themutineers and a number were hung. Diego Columbus continued in his efforts to promote the welfare of thecolony, but became involved in a quarrel with the royal audiencia andfound himself obliged in March, 1524, to return to Spain where he diedtwo years later. The new governor, Bishop Sebastian Ramirez deFuenleal, was appointed president of the royal court, and the officesof governor and president of the court were thenceforth consolidated. Both he and his successor used their best efforts to promoteimmigration into the colony which was beginning to suffer on accountof the draughts of men that left for the mainland. An army wasdispatched against the insurgent chief Enrique who still menaced thetranquillity of the colonists from his mountain fastnesses. When it wasfound impossible to reach him, peaceful methods were employed. Negotiations were opened, and a treaty of peace signed in 1533, on anisland in the beautiful lake still known as Lake Enriquillo. By thistreaty the Indians, now reduced to not more than 4000 in number, werefreed from slavery and assigned lands in Boya, in the mountains to thenortheast of Santo Domingo City. From this time forward there is nofurther mention of the Indians in the island's history; theydisappeared completely by dying out and by assimilation. CHAPTER II HISTORICAL SKETCH. --COLONIAL VICISSITUDES. --1533 TO 1801 Decline of the colony. --English attacks on Santo DomingoCity. --Settlement of Tortuga by freebooters. --French settlements inwestern Santo Domingo. --Border wars. --Cession of western coast toFrance. --Return of prosperity. --Effect of French revolution. --Negrouprising in French Santo Domingo. --Rise of Toussaint l'Ouverture. --Cession of Spanish Santo Domingo to France. --Evacuation by Spain. Within forty years after its discovery Santo Domingo had passed thezenith of its glory. The vast and wealthy countries discovered andconquered on the mainland of America absorbed the attention ofcolonists and of the government, and Santo Domingo quickly sank to aposition of economic and political insignificance. So littleimportance was given the island by chroniclers during the ensuing twohundred and fifty years and so few are the records remaining, that noteven the names of all the governors and the periods of their rule canbe accurately determined. The colony barely existed, the monotony ofits life was interrupted only by occasional attacks or menaces ofattacks by pirates or other foes. Every effort was made to prevent decay. Decrees were issued forbiddingemigration or the recruiting of troops for expeditions of discovery, but they were evaded. Thus Louis Columbus, the grandson of theDiscoverer and one of the most influential men of the colony, fittedout an expedition against Veragua. African slaves continued to beimported to take the place of the exterminated Indians, but as theirimportation was expensive the mines were abandoned and the number ofsugar estates declined. For the greater part of the period from 1533to 1556 the government was in the hands of an energetic man, Licentiate Alonso de Fuenmayor, Bishop of Santo Domingo and La Vega, and later first Archbishop of Santo Domingo. He pushed to a conclusionthe work on the cathedral and other religious edifices then building, repaired the edifices belonging to the state and constructed the wallsand bastions which still surround the city. He was able to ward offthe attacks of corsairs, who multiplied in West Indian waters to suchan extent that in 1561 the Spanish Government forbade vessels totravel to and from the new world except under convoy. In 1564 the cities of Santiago de los Caballeros and Concepcion de laVega were completely destroyed by an earthquake and the few remaininginhabitants reestablished the towns at short distances from theoriginal sites. The entire intercourse of the colony with Spain wasreduced to two or three caravels a year and the revenues sank so lowthat the salaries of state officials were paid and continued to bepaid for over two hundred years, from the treasury of Mexico. The year 1586 was marked by the capture of Santo Domingo City by thenoted English navigator, Sir Francis Drake, during the celebratedcruise on which he took the strongest towns on the Spanish main. Onthe morning of January 11, 1586, the inhabitants of Santo Domingo Citywere thrown into consternation at seeing eighteen foreign vessels inthe roadstead, in a line which stretched from Torrecilla Point to theslaughterhouse. To the joy of the people the fleet set sail for thewest, but their joy was short lived, for the next morning messengersarrived with the news that the enemy had landed at the mouth of theJaina River and was marching on the city. Preparations were made fordefense, but terror gained the upper hand and soon the civil andreligious authorities, the monks and nuns and the entire populationwere fleeing in confusion on foot, in carts and in canoes, leavingtheir belongings behind. Some one hundred and fifty men remained todispute the passage of Lieutenant-General Carliell who appeared at thehead of a thousand men. They were quickly dispersed by the invaderswho entered the gates with little loss and proceeded to the plazawhere they encamped. For twenty-five days Drake held the desertedcity, carrying on negotiations meanwhile for its ransom. When theseflagged he ordered the gradual destruction of the town and everymorning for eleven days a number of buildings were burned anddemolished, a work of some difficulty on account of the solidity ofthe houses. Not quite one-third of the city was so destroyed when theresidents paid a ransom of 25, 000 ducats, about $30, 000, for theremainder. Drake thereupon embarked, carrying with him the bronzecannon of the fort and whatever of value he found in the churches andprivate houses. He also ordered the hanging of several friars, held byhim as prisoners, in retaliation for the murder of a negro boy whom hehad sent with a flag of truce. Seventy years later Santo Domingo was again attacked by Englishforces, this time with the object of making a permanent landing. Oliver Cromwell after declaring war against Spain sent a fleet to theWest Indies under the command of Admiral William Penn, having on boardan army of 9000 men. The fleet appeared off Santo Domingo City on May14, 1655, and a landing was effected in two bodies, the advance guardunder Col. Buller going ashore at the mouth of the Jaina River whilethe main body under General Venables disembarked at Najayo, muchfurther down the coast. Buller met with strong resistance at Fort SanGeronimo and was forced to retire to Venables' intrenchments. Theunited English forces made several attempts to march on the capital, but fell into ambuscades and sustained heavy losses. Despairing ofsuccess, the fleet and army left the island on June 3 and proceeded toJamaica, which they captured. The rovers of the sea and the restrictive trade regulations imposed bythe Spanish government, which limited trade with the new world to thesingle port of Seville in Spain, made development of the island'scommerce impossible. The trade restrictions had the effect ofencouraging a brisk contraband traffic with Dutch vessels on the northcoast, to stop which the Spanish government adopted the incredibleexpedient of shutting up every port except Santo Domingo City andordering the destruction of the north coast towns. Puerto Plata, MonteCristi and two villages on the coast of what is now Haiti were thusdestroyed in 1606 and the inhabitants transferred to towns almost inthe center of the island, where they were far removed from temptationto smuggle. The measure temporarily stopped contraband trade on thenorth coast, but destroyed all legitimate trade in that region, transformed the coast into a desert and furnished an opportunity forthe settlement of the buccaneers in the northwest. The English, French and Dutch, in resisting Spain's claim to soletrading rights in the new world, authorized the fitting out ofprivateers that often degenerated into pirates. The bays and inlets ofthe coast of Santo Domingo became favorite resorts for such ships. Thedepot of the corsairs on the island of St. Christopher having beendestroyed by the Spaniards in 1630, a number of refugees soughtshelter on the island of Tortuga, on the northwest coast of Haiti. Some of them began to cultivate the soil, others took to hunting wildcattle on the mainland of Haiti, while others indulged in piracy. Tortuga soon became the busy headquarters of reckless freebooters ofall nations, who here fitted out daring expeditions and returned towaste their gains in wild carousals. In 1638 the Spanish governor ofSanto Domingo made a descent on the island and destroyed thesettlement, but most of the buccaneers were absent at the time and theonly result of the raid was to cause them to organize under thecaptaincy of an Englishman named Willis. French national prideasserted itself, however, and with the assistance of a French forcefrom St. Christopher, the English inhabitants of Tortuga, who were ina minority, were persuaded to leave for Jamaica, and Tortugathenceforth continued under French governors. In 1648 the Spaniards of Santo Domingo made another fruitless attemptto expel the buccaneers; but in 1653 the Spanish governor, the Countof Peñalva, collected a force which caught the island unawares and wasstrong enough to overawe the inhabitants, who were permitted to leave, though abandoning all their property. The Spaniards left a garrisonbut the persistent Frenchmen returned and drove it out. In 1664 theFrench West India Company took possession, established a garrison, andappointed as governor an energetic man, D'Ogeron, under whom thecountry rapidly advanced in prosperity and commerce. With the idea ofencouraging permanent settlement, D'Ogeron had women brought over fromthe slums of Paris and portioned out as wives to the rude colonists. The rapidly increasing population caused settlements to be made onthe Haitian mainland, and the city of Port-de-Paix was founded on abeautiful bay opposite Tortuga. The city flourished to such an extentand the advantages of settlement on the mainland were so superior thatthe settlers of Tortuga gradually left the smaller island and settledalong the Haitian coast. Within twenty years Tortuga was practicallydeserted and it so continues to this day. A better class of people now arrived from France. Families werebrought in from Anjou and Brittany, and the French settlementscontinued to spread all the way down the western coast of the island, the French settlement at Samana being withdrawn. Slaves were importedfrom Africa, and in 1678 a rising took place among them, which waseasily put down. In 1684 the French government formally sent outcommissioners to provide for the regular government of the colony, andchurches and courts of justice were established. The Spanish inhabitants of Santo Domingo meanwhile made attack afterattack on the French, but the Spanish colony was in such reducedstraits that no extended efforts were possible. Where the French wererepulsed the Spaniards were too few numerically to hold the territoryand it was soon reoccupied. Angered at the repeated aggressions, D'Ogeron sent out an expedition under Delisle in 1673, which landed atPuerto Plata and marched inland to Santiago. The inhabitants fled toLa Vega and only avoided the burning of their city by paying a ransomof 25, 000 pesos, whereupon Delisle returned to the French colony. D'Ogeron at this time proposed to the French government the conquestof the entire island for France, and would probably have attempted tocarry out this plan, had not his death occurred shortly after. Cordial relations existing between France and Spain in 1685, tentative boundary agreements were made between the French and Spanishauthorities, but each side accused the other of violations and thestrife continued as before. When in 1689, war broke out between Spainand France, the French governor organized an expedition to invade theSpanish section. He reached Santiago where some of his men died afterconsuming meat and wine found in the deserted houses. Believing thempoisoned, he ordered the torch to be applied to the city and retiredafter seeing it reduced to ashes. Admiral Perez Caro, the Spanishgovernor, thereupon made preparations for a telling blow on theFrench. The colony's militia and regular troops sent by the viceroy ofMexico invaded the French section and on January 21, 1692, administered a crushing defeat on the opposing force in the plain ofLa Limonade, killing the French governor and his principal officers. The victorious army marched through the French settlements, desolatingthe fields and putting all prisoners to the sword. At the same time anew settlement the French had made at Samana was exterminated. The new French governor found the affairs of his colony in very badcondition; but with the assistance of refugees from other islands hesent an expedition to Jamaica, from where over 3, 000 slaves togetherwith stores of indigo and other property were carried off. Inretaliation the English and Spanish fleets combined and with 4, 000 menaboard set sail from Manzanillo Bay in 1695, and sacked and burnedCape Français and Port-de-Paix, the English carrying off all the menthey took prisoners and the Spaniards the women and children. Hostilities were ended in 1697 by the peace of Ryswick by which Spainrecovered territory conquered from her by the French and ceded thewestern part of the island of Santo Domingo to France. The occupationof the western coast by France, so long resented as an intrusion, wasthus formally recognized. The French colony immediately entered upon an era of prosperity whichsoon made it the richest country of the West Indies. Great plantationsof tobacco, indigo, cacao, coffee and sugar were established. Thecountry came to be known as the paradise of the West Indies and thewealth of the planters became proverbial. The grave defect was thatthis prosperity was built on the false foundation of slavery. In 1754the population numbered 14, 000 whites, 4000 free mulattoes and172, 000 negroes. The Spanish colony on the other hand sank lower than ever. Practicallyabandoned by the mother country, there was no commerce beyond a littlecontraband and only the most indispensable agriculture, theinhabitants devoting themselves almost entirely to cattle raising. Theports were the haunts of pirates, and a number of Dominicans alsobecame corsairs. By the year 1730 the entire country held but 6000inhabitants, of whom about 500 lived in the ruined capital and theremaining urban population was disseminated among the vestiges ofCotui, Santiago, Azua, Banica, Monte Plata, Bayaguana, La Vega, Higueyand Seibo. Such was the poverty prevailing that a majority of thepeople went in rags; and the arrival of the ship from Mexico, whichbrought the salaries of the civil officials and the military, washailed with the joyful ringing of church bells. To how great an extent this depression was due to trade restrictionsis evident from the circumstance that when in 1740 several ports wereopened to foreign commerce there was an immediate change for thebetter. Agriculture expanded, exports and imports increased, moneycirculated, the cost of the necessaries of life fell, the populationrapidly increased and many new towns sprang up. According to anecclesiastical census the population had in 1785 advanced to 152, 640inhabitants. Of these only 30, 000 were slaves, owing to the Spanishlaws which made it easy for a slave to purchase his freedom. Many ofthe freemen were negroes or mulattoes. In 1751 the colony was visited by a severe hurricane, which caused theOzama to leave its banks, and by a destructive earthquake whichoverthrew the cities of Azua and Seibo and did much damage to thechurch buildings of Santo Domingo. Azua and Seibo were reestablishedon their present sites. Another earthquake in 1770 destroyed severaltowns in the French part of the island. From the beginning of the century the boundary between the French andSpanish colonies of Santo Domingo had been a source of constantfriction and bickerings. A preliminary agreement had been made in1730, but in 1776 a permanent treaty was drafted, it was ratified atAranjuez in 1777, and the boundary was marked with stone monuments. When the French revolution broke out in 1789 both the Spanish andFrench colonies of Santo Domingo were enjoying a high degree ofprosperity. In the French colony there were about 30, 000 whites, andthe haughty white planters were wont to indulge in every form ofluxury and sybaritic pleasure; the negro slaves, whose number hadgrown to almost half a million, were subjected to the most barbarousill-treatment; and a class of about 30, 000 ambitious free mulattoeshad arisen, many of whom where cultured and wealthy, but who were allrigidly excluded from participation in public affairs. It was evidentthat but a spark was needed to produce what might turn out to be ageneral conflagration. The spark came in the formation of the National Assembly in France andits declaration of the rights of man. The mulattoes at once petitionedthe National Assembly for civil and political rights, which were in1790 equivocally denied and in 1791 finally granted them. The whitesresisted the government decrees and uprisings began. The first ofthese was a revolt of the mulattoes under Ogé, which was quicklysuppressed. Ogé fled to Spanish Santo Domingo, but was surrendered bythe Spaniards on condition that his life be spared, a promise that wasnot kept for he was publicly broken on the wheel. Jean François, another mulatto, then raised an insurrection of the negroes in thenorth, marching on Cape Français, burning and murdering, with the bodyof a white infant carried on a spear-head at the head of his troops. His forces were defeated by the whites, who commenced anindiscriminate slaughter of their victims. The negroes thereupon rosein every direction and the paradise of the West Indies became a hell. The great plantation houses were burned, the wide estates desolated, white women were ravished and murdered and white men put to death withhorrible tortures, while the liberated slaves indulged in orgies atwhich the beverage was rum mixed with human blood. It was a fearfulday of reckoning. In 1793, France went to war with England and Spain. The Spanishauthorities of Santo Domingo made overtures to negro leaders of whom anumber entered the Spanish army as officers of high rank, among themToussaint, an intelligent ex-slave who later assumed the surname ofl'Ouverture and who showed remarkable military and administrativequalities. The French government sent commissioners to the colony, whose tactless handling of a difficult situation fanned the flames ofcivil war. The English attacked the colony, captured Port-au-Prince, and enlisted the aid of the revolted slaves in overrunning thesurrounding country. When they besieged Port-de-Paix the Frenchcommander sent secret emissaries to Spanish Santo Domingo and inducedToussaint to desert from the Spanish ranks and with his negrofollowers help to drive out the English. Killing the Spanish soldiershe found in his way, Toussaint went to fight the English, with suchsuccess that in 1797 he was made general-in-chief of all the Frenchtroops. The English, decimated by disease, were obliged to leave in1798 and sign a treaty of peace with Toussaint by which the island wasrecognized as an independent and neutral state during their war withFrance. The operations in Santo Domingo are said to have cost theEnglish $100, 000, 000 in money and 45, 000 lives. In the meanwhile border fights were going on in Spanish Santo Domingobetween Toussaint's troops and forces collected from the variousSpanish possessions on the Caribbean Sea. They continued until 1795, when by the treaty of Basle peace was declared between France andSpain and the Spanish colony of Santo Domingo was--to the dismay ofits inhabitants--ceded to France, the whole island thus passing underFrench control. Toward the end of that year part of the Spanish troopsand members of religious orders embarked and an emigration of thebetter families began, many taking their slaves with them. TheSpaniards also exhumed what they supposed to be the remains ofColumbus in the cathedral of Santo Domingo and carried them to Havana. One of the terms of the treaty was that the colony should formally bedelivered when French troops were sent to occupy it, but as theFrench were at this time kept busy in the western portion, the Spanishgovernor and authorities continued to administer the country forseveral years. Little by little troops and civil officials werewithdrawn and in 1799 the royal audiencia or high court wastransferred to Puerto Principe, in Cuba, most of the lawyers of thecolony leaving at the same time with their families. Toussaint l'Ouverture was now in supreme command in the west, thoughnominally holding under the French republic. He displayed considerableability in promoting peace, ordered the blacks to return to work andgave protection to the whites. It was evident, however, that he aimedto make himself absolute master of the whole island. Pursuant to thisplan he called on the Spanish governor, General Joaquin Garcia, tosurrender the Spanish colony in accordance with the stipulations ofthe treaty of Basle, Governor Garcia prepared to resist, but Toussaintinvaded the colony with an army, was successful in a skirmish on theNizao River and appearing before the capital protested that he came asa French general in the name of the French republic. Garcia had noalternative but to comply with the negro chief's demands. On the 27thof January, 1801, Toussaint l'Ouverture entered the capital with histroops and formally took possession. Amid the booming of cannon theSpanish ensign was lowered and the French tricolor raised; andToussaint invited the authorities to the cathedral where a Te Deum waschanted. Governor Garcia immediately embarked for Cuba with theremaining Spanish civil and military authorities. CHAPTER III HISTORICAL SKETCH. --CHANGES OF GOVERNMENT. -18O1 TO 1844 Rule of Toussaint l'Ouverture. --Exodus of whites. --Capture of SantoDomingo by French. --War with negroes. --Government of Ferrand. --Incursion of Dessalines. --Insurrection of Sanchez Ramirez. --Reestablishment of Spanish rule. --Proclamation of ColombianState of Spanish Haiti. --Conquest by Haiti. --Haitian rule. --Duarte'sconspiracy. --Declaration of Independence. Toussaint l'Ouverture's occupation of Santo Domingo occasioned a newexodus of white families who were fearful of what might happen undernegro rule. From the French portion of the island the whites had beenemigrating since the first uprisings; a number had fled into theSpanish colony and these now also left. It is estimated that in thedecade beginning with 1795 the Spanish portion lost over 40, 000inhabitants, more than one-third of its population. Most of thepersons who abandoned the island during these troublous times settledin Cuba, Porto Rico and Venezuela, where they established coffee andsugar plantations, to the great advantage of these countries. Some ofthe most prominent families of Cuba to-day are descendants of familieswhich left Santo Domingo at this time. Toussaint tried to stem the tide of emigration by issuing conciliatoryproclamations; but when he found his efforts in vain, it is claimedthat he conceived the idea of a general massacre of the whitesremaining in the capital. He ordered the entire population, withoutdistinction of age or sex to gather on the plaza and the men, womenand children to be separated into different groups, the whole plazabeing surrounded by strong forces of cavalry. Appearing before theterrified people Toussaint declared slavery abolished and began towalk up and down and ask the women in broken Spanish whether they wereFrench or Spanish, touching them with his cane in an ever moreinsolent manner. It was too much for one high-spirited young woman, who commenced to upbraid him for daring to touch her. At this criticalmoment a severe storm, that had been gathering since he appeared onthe plaza, broke, and Toussaint, apparently regarding it as a sign ofdivine disapproval, ordered the children removed, then permitted thewomen to retire and finally sent the soldiers to their barracks, leaving the men to disperse of themselves. Toussaint divided the Spanish part of the island into two departments, making his brother Paul l'Ouverture governor of the south withheadquarters at Santo Domingo and General Clervaux governor of theCibao, with headquarters at Santiago. He then made a journey throughthe country, being everywhere received by the frightened inhabitantswith every mark of distinction. Upon his return to the French sectionhe promulgated, in July, 1801, a constitution for the island, by whichhe was declared governor for life and commander-in-chief, with theright of appointing his successor and with an annual salary of 300, 00francs. At the same time he confiscated the property of persons whohad emigrated. Toussaint's constitution was a challenge to Napoleon Bonaparte, whohaving temporarily made peace with England, determined to reestablishFrench authority in the island. He accordingly dispatched to SantoDomingo a fleet with a well-equipped army of 25, 000 men under hisbrother-in-law, General Le Clerc. Upon arriving in Samana Bay theforce was divided into several bodies which were to operate indifferent parts of the island. The reconquest of the Spanish part wasconfided to Generals Kerverseau and Ferrand. General Ferrand landed in Monte Cristi and without difficulty tookpossession of the Cibao while the colored chief, Clervaux, knowing thehostility of the population toward him, retired without giving battle. General Kerverseau took Samana by assault and then sailed for SantoDomingo City. The negro Governor Paul l'Ouverture prepared to resist, but a brave Dominican, Colonel Juan Baron, organized aninsurrectionary force and placed himself in communication withKerverseau. The first attempt at uprising was a failure, as his planswere betrayed, and a rough sea prevented the French from landing. Hisenemies took the opportunity to sack the town of San Carlos, outsidethe city gates, and to murder a number of Dominicans. Baron gathered alarger force and in unison with Kerverseau demanded the surrender ofthe city. Paul l'Ouverture reluctantly capitulated and the French thusassumed command of the Spanish portion of the island, with Kerverseauas governor. When Toussaint heard of what had occurred he ordered themurder of a battalion of Dominican soldiers whom he had retainedas hostages. The war waged between the French and the blacks in the old FrenchColony of St. Domingue was characterized by nameless atrocitiescommitted on both sides. The last vestiges of former prosperity wereswept away and the country converted into a wilderness. Toussaint wascaptured through treachery and died in a European prison, but yellowfever invaded the French ranks and did great havoc. Le Clerc died, andRochambeau, his successor, was unable, even with reinforcements, tohold his own. England, again at war with France, impeded furtherreinforcements and actively assisted the insurgent negroes. Death bydisease and wounds made the great French army melt away, and towardsthe end of 1803 the last remnant was forced off the island. On January1, 1804, the negro generals proclaimed the island an independentrepublic under the name of Haiti, one of the island's Indian names. Jean Jacques Dessalines, a rough, illiterate negro, but ofindefatigable energy, was made governor for life, with dictatorialpowers. One of his first acts was to order the extermination of suchwhites as still remained. Dessalines a year later assumed the titleof emperor. Ferrand, the French general in the Cibao, conceived the project ofdisobeying his orders to evacuate and of trying to hold Spanish SantoDomingo for France. Finding that Kerverseau was ready to capitulate, he determined to assume command himself, feeling sure that the Frenchgovernment would approve his action, if his plans were successful. Hetherefore marched to Santo Domingo City and after a few days'parleying deposed Kerverseau, placed him aboard a vessel that carriedhim to Mayaguez, in Porto Rico, and assumed the governorship. Dessalines did not long keep him waiting. Desiring to extend hisauthority over the whole island, and angered by an injudicious decreeof Ferrand, which permitted the enslaving of Haitians of over fourteenyears found beyond their frontier, he invaded the country with a hordeof 25, 000 men. The population of the border towns fled before him interror, the very slaves remaining with their masters rather than joinhim. Victorious in an engagement on the Yaque river, he laid siege tothe capital on March 5, 1805. In the meantime his lieutenant, Christophe, overran the Cibao, sacking the towns and committinghorrors. Santiago was captured before the inhabitants had time toflee, and a large number were murdered by the savage invaders. Themembers of the municipal council were hung, naked, on the balcony ofthe city hall; the people who had sought refuge in the main churchwere put to the sword and their bodies mutilated; and the priest wasburnt alive in the church, the furniture of the edifice constitutinghis funeral pyre. Santo Domingo City had been placed in a state of defense and artillerymounted on the tower of Mercedes church and the roofs of the SanFrancisco and Jesuit churches. The garrison consisted of some 2, 000men, but to maintain these and the 6, 000 inhabitants of the city aswell as the refugees there were only limited supplies on hand. Foodquickly ran low when, providentially, a French fleet appeared beforethe city. The admiral, who thought the entire island abandoned by theFrench, was delighted to find the French flag still flying and gladlyrendered assistance. A desperate sortie was made on March 28, thetwenty-third day of the siege, with such success that Dessalinesprecipitately retired, abandoning his stores. The main body of theHaitians retreated by way of the Cibao, the others through the south, all devastating the country as far as they could. Azua, San José delas Matas, Monte Plata, Cotui, San Francisco de Macoris, La Vega, Santiago and Monte Cristi were reduced to ashes. In Moca 500inhabitants, deceived by the promises of Christophe, returned fromtheir hiding places in the hills and assembled for divine service inthe parish church, where they were butchered by the negro soldiers. InLa Vega and Santiago the Haitian troops made prisoners of numerousfamilies, aggregating 900 persons among men, women and children in LaVega and probably more in Santiago, and forced them to accompany thearmy to northern Haiti, where they were kept in captivity, workingpractically as slaves for their captors, for four years. The march wasfull of horrors for the poor prisoners, who were prohibited fromwearing hats or shoes and were brutally treated by their guards. As a civil administrator Ferrand did excellent work. He encouraged theresettlement of the abandoned fields, persuaded emigrated families toreturn, established schools and began to build water-works for thecapital, a work which he nearly completed, but which was abandoned byhis successors and has never been realized in the century that hassince transpired. Napoleon on hearing of Ferrand's conduct not onlyapproved everything he had done but sent him the cross of the Legionof Honor and financial assistance. Ferrand was especially impressedwith the importance of Samana Bay and made plans for a city to belocated west of the town of Samana, to which he intended to give thename of Napoleon. The peaceful conditions to which the countryreturned were only troubled by British vessels which occasionallyattempted to establish blockades. On February 6, 1806, a Britishsquadron of eight vessels under Sir John Duckworth badly defeated aFrench squadron, also of eight vessels, in a hotly contested fight offPoint Palenque to the southwest of Santo Domingo City. Although Ferrand was personally liked, discontent began to brew in thecountry. The inhabitants were loyal to Spain and chafed under foreignrule; many believed there was danger of Haitian invasion so long asthe French remained; certain tax exactions stirred up animosity; andthe stories of Spain's resistance to Napoleon's aggressions inflamedthe spirits of the leading men. Conspiracies ensued, fomentedprincipally by a Cotui planter named Juan Sanchez Ramirez, who hademigrated in 1803, but returned after four years of exile, and theSpanish flag was formally raised in Seibo in October, 1808. Ferrandimmediately set out to quell the uprising and on November 7, 1808, metSanchez Ramirez at Palo Hincado, about two miles west of Seibo. He wasvigorously attacked by the revolutionists, his native troops deserted, and his other troops were cut to pieces. Seeing that all was lost andthat all his work was ruined, Ferrand blew out his brains witha pistol. The revolutionists received assistance from the governor-general ofPorto Rico and from their former enemy Christophe, who had madehimself king of northern Haiti; a British squadron took Samana, theonly post held by the French outside of Santo Domingo City, and raisedthe Spanish flag; and Sanchez Ramirez laid siege to the capital, wherethe French general Barquier had assumed command, while British vesselsblockaded it by sea. The siege lasted almost nine months, during whichthe besieged suffered greatly from want of provisions, being reducedto eating dogs and cats, and the surrounding country was devastated bysorties and foraging parties. The severest fighting took place aboutSan Geronimo castle, on the shore three miles west of the city, whichwas taken and retaken. In the sixth and seventh months of the siegethe city was repeatedly bombarded from land and sea, but withoutresult. At length Sanchez applied to the governor of Jamaica and aBritish force under Sir Hugh Lyle Carmichael was sent to hisassistance. It landed at Palenque and took up a position in SanCarlos. A general assault had been determined upon, when the bravelittle defender of the city, realizing the hopelessness of furtherresistance, agreed to capitulate to the English. On July 9, 1809, theFrench flag was lowered and the country again became a dependency ofSpain, and in 1814 Spain's dominion was confirmed by the treatyof Paris. Spain had been busy fighting the French within her own borders, andwhen normal conditions were restored had her hands full in keepingorder and in trying to bring her revolting colonies of America back toobedience. She had little time for affairs in Santo Domingo, and didnothing to ameliorate conditions. The colony was left to vegetate inabsolute poverty. This second Spanish era came to be known as theperiod of "Espana boba, " "stupid Spain, " as the home governmentremained so indifferent to the colony's affairs. The only redeemingfeature was the return of a number of exiled families. SanchezRamirez, who had been proclaimed governor-general, was confirmed inthe office and held the same until his death in 1811, being succeededby Spanish military officers. In the first years of the new Spanish colony there was an undefinedattempt at uprising on the part of a few white hotheads, and anattempt to incite the slaves against their masters on the part of afew black ones, but in both cases the ringleaders were captured andput to death. The great struggle for independence in South Americagradually influenced the minds of the inhabitants of Santo Domingo;Bolivar's brief visit to Haiti also had its effect, and secretseparatist societies began to be founded. In the beginning of 1821 aconspiracy was discovered and numerous arrests made. Plottingcontinued nevertheless, stimulated by a prominent lawyer, José Nuñezde Caceres, who dreamed of making the country a state of Bolivar'sColombian Republic. On the night of November 30, 1821, the conspiracyculminated in an uprising in the capital; most of the troops had beenwon over to the cause of independence and offered no resistance; therest were taken by surprise; and the revolutionists without difficultymade themselves masters of the gateway "Puerta del Conde" and of theother gates and forts. The Spanish governor was placed under arrestand put aboard a vessel sailing for Europe, and the Colombian flag wasraised. Public proclamation was made of the independent and sovereignState of Spanish Haiti, affiliated with the Republic of Colombia, andJosé Nuñez de Caceres assumed the office of political governor andpresident of the State, while the provincial assembly became aprovisional junta of government. The State of Spanish Haiti lasted barely nine weeks. An emissary sentto Colombia for assistance in maintaining independence wasunsuccessful. Another emissary sent to President Boyer of Haiti, forthe negotiation of a treaty, brought back the answer that "the wholeisland should constitute a single republic under the flag of Haiti. "For several years Boyer, a dark mulatto, who had united Haiti underhis rule, had been endeavoring to influence the colored people on theSpanish side of the border, to such an extent that the activities ofhis agents repeatedly provoked protests from the Spanish governors, and he now recognized that his opportunity had come. Invading thecountry in the north and south his forces captured the most importantpoints. He met with no resistance, due to the fact that the temporarygovernment was entirely unprepared, that the population feared arepetition of the horrors of 1805, and that many were in sympathy withhim while others were indifferent. On February 9, 1822, Nuñez deCaceres was obliged to deliver the keys of Santo Domingo City to theinvader and the whole island came under the dominion of Haiti. The twenty-two years of Haitian rule marked a period of social andeconomic retrogression for the old Spanish portion of the island. Mostof the whites, especially the more prominent families, the principalrepresentatives of the community's wealth and culture, definitelyabandoned the country, some immediately upon the advent of theHaitians, others in 1824, when a hopeless conspiracy in favor of arestoration of Spanish rule was quenched in blood, and others in 1830, when a quixotic demand of the Spanish king for a return of his domainwas refused by Boyer. The Haitians, anxious to eliminate the whites, encouraged such emigration and confiscated the property left by theemigrants. The policy of the Haitian government was to build up astrong African state in the whole island, and in pursuance of thispolicy it emancipated all slaves, colonized Haitian negroes on theSamana peninsula and in other parts of the Spanish-speaking territoryand brought in colored people from the United States. Some of theseremained in Puerto Plata, others in Santo Domingo City, but the largernumber settled on the Samana peninsula, where their descendants stillform the bulk of the population. Every effort was made to Haitianizethe country by extending the Haitian laws, and imposing Haitiangovernors. Representation was also accorded in the Haitian congress. In 1825 the French government recognized the independence of theFrench part of the island in consideration of the payment of anindemnity, toward which the Haitians forced the Spanish part tocontribute. The wanton acts of the Haitian authorities, their hostility to whitesand lighter colored mulattoes, their opposition to the Spanishlanguage and customs, and their neglect of the country's development, caused much discontent, and the idea of separating from Haiti began tobe entertained. An enthusiastic young man, Juan Pablo Duarte, who hadbeen educated in Europe, in 1838 founded a secret revolutionarysociety, called "La Trinitaria, " to work for the country'sindependence. In May, 1842, an earthquake destroyed Santiago and LaVega, as well as Cape Haitien and other towns in the western part ofthe island, and with lesser earthquakes which followed caused a panicthroughout the country, which in turn made conditions more favorablefor a change of government. In the meantime opposition to Boyer had spread in Haiti also, and in1843 gave rise to a revolution, as a result of which Boyer was drivenfrom the country and Charles Hérard installed as dictator-president. Duarte redoubled his activities for independence, struggling againstthe opinion of many who thought such an aspiration hopeless, but hisplans were discovered and he and others obliged to flee. His work hadbeen well done, however; his ideas continued to spread, and it wasdetermined to proclaim the independence of Santo Domingo on February27, 1844. Late that night a large group of Dominicans under Franciscodel Rosario Sanchez appeared at the principal gateway of Santo DomingoCity, "Puerta del Conde, " and received the surrender of the guard, andon the following morning the Dominican flag, as designed by Duarte, was waving over the gate. Dessalines, the emperor of Haiti, had adopted red and blue, two of thecolors of the French Republic's flag, for the flag of Haiti, leavingout white, because to this hated color he attributed all themisfortunes of his country and his race. Duarte took the Haitiancolors, arranged them in four alternate squares and placed a whitecross in the center to signify the union of the races throughChristianity and civilization. The other points of vantage were quickly occupied and the Haitiangeneral, finding himself shut up in the fort "La Fuerza" without hopeof successful resistance, surrendered and was permitted to withdrawwith his officers. On the same day or within a few days afterward theflag of the new republic was raised in every town of the old Spanishcolony of Santo Domingo, except certain towns in the west which arestill in possession of the Haitians, and the country entered upon theperiod of independence. CHAPTER IV HISTORICAL SKETCH. --FIRST REPUBLIC AND SPANISH ANNEXATION. --1844 TO1865. Constitution of the government. --Santana's first administration. --Warswith the Haitians. --Administration of Jimenez. --Victory of LasCarreras. --Baez' first administration. --Santana's secondadministration. --Repulse of Soulouque. --Baez' second administration. --Period of the two governments. --Santana's third administration. --Annexation negotiations. --Annexation to Spain. --War of theRestoration. Immediately upon the declaration of independence a central council ofgovernment was formed for the provisional administration of thecountry's affairs. The new republic assumed the name of DominicanRepublic and the people were thenceforth known as Dominicans. Thefirst business before the central council of government was to preparefor the defense of the territory against the Haitian president, Hérard, who was advancing with an army to reestablish his authority. An encounter took place near Azua, in which the Dominican forces, under General Pedro Santana, were victorious, but instead of followingup his victory, Santana fell back on Bani and permitted the enemy tooccupy Azua. In the meantime another Haitian army was advancing in thenorth. In the midst of his operations Hérard was interrupted by thenews of a revolutionary movement against him in Haitian territory, andhastily recalling his troops, retired to combat it, burning Azua anddevastating the country through which he passed. Many prominent Dominicans were in doubt as to whether the republicwould be able to maintain a stable government and resist theincursions of the Haitians, and believed that the best course for thesafety and prosperity of the country would be to seek the protectionof a foreign power. These men, who came to be known as conservativesand who counted Santana among their number, began to spread theirdoctrines and were bitterly opposed by a different element, callingthemselves liberals, among whom were Duarte, returned from exile, andthe members of the central council of government. A number ofprominent conservatives were obliged to go into hiding in order toescape imprisonment, and the central council of government appointedDuarte its representative in the north and ordered that GeneralFrancisco del Rosario Sanchez supersede Santana in command of thetroops in the south. Duarte was proclaimed president of the republicby the people of the north, but Santana's soldiers refusing torecognize any other leader, marched on the capital, which they enteredon July 12, 1844, and deposed the central council of government, declaring Santana chief of state with dictatorial powers. Thus theunhappy series of revolutions which have done such harm to theDominican Republic was inaugurated within five months after thedeclaration of independence. Santana organized a new central council of government and sentemissaries to the Cibao, or northern part of the republic, where hewon over the army and the principal leaders. Duarte, Sanchez andothers who had risked their lives and spent their fortunes in behalfof Dominican independence were arrested, imprisoned in irons in theancient "Tower of Homage" of Santo Domingo and exiled as traitors totheir country! A constitutional convention was called, which met at San Cristobaland drafted the first constitution of the Republic, taking theconstitution of the United States as a model. It was promulgated onNovember 6, 1844. In accordance with a provision of the constitutionthat the convention elect the president for the first two terms, General Santana was chosen, as was to be expected. General PedroSantana, who thus became the first constitutional president, was arough, uncouth and uneducated man, but possessed of keen perceptionand great personal bravery. He had a strong strain of negro andprobably also of Indian blood. Born in Hincha, he had left his nativetown during the troubles of the early part of the century and settledin the province of Seibo, where he acquired an ascendency over thepopulation that made him a kind of local demigod. Conspiracies against Santana's government were immediately set on footby the liberals, but were discovered and three ringleaders wereexecuted on the first anniversary of the Republic's independence. Inthe spring of 1845 the first Congress met and proceeded to organizethe government. In the meantime a guerilla warfare had been going on with the Haitiansalong the border, and President Pierrot, who had overthrown Hérard, was preparing to invade the Dominican Republic. His two armies were atfirst successful and captured several border towns, but that whichentered in the south was repulsed at Estrelleta, while that whichinvaded the north was defeated at Beler. A small Haitian fleet whichset out to attack Puerto Plata blundered on a shoal where it was lefthigh and dry and captured by the Dominicans. Steps were now taken to secure the recognition of the republic byforeign powers. The government soon found itself in financialdifficulties, as it was expensive to maintain the country in a stateof defense against the Haitians, and an issue of paper money withoutsufficient guarantees made matters worse. Revolutionary mutteringswere heard, and though a number of leaders were shot, the publicdiscontent grew greater and more apparent. Santana comprehended thesituation and determined to resign the presidency, which he did onAugust 4, 1848. The cabinet officers temporarily carried on thegovernment and called an election, as a result of which General ManuelJimenez, who had fought the Haitians and had been secretary of warunder Santana, was declared president, entering upon office onSeptember 8, 1848. In his efforts to face the economic troubles of the government Jimenezdisbanded part of the army and reduced military expenses. The momentwas inopportune, for the implacable Haitians, who continued toconsider Santo Domingo as Haitian territory in revolt, were preparingfor another invasion. Soulouque, who had attained the presidency ofthe black republic, made a sudden incursion and marched victoriouslyas far as Azua. The Dominican government observed a vacillating policywhich provoked general distrust and protests from the friends ofSantana, whose partisans in the Congress called on him to take commandof the army. Jimenez at first demurred but finally consented, andSantana, emerging from retirement, collected a few hundred raggedtroops at Sabana Buey, near Azua. Soulouque attempted to move eastwardby way of the canon of El Número, but was prevented by a Dominicanforce under General Duvergé; he then tried the pass of Las Carrerasand was met and utterly defeated on April 21, 1849, by GeneralSantana. The Haitians retreated to their own territory, burning Azuaand other towns on the way. Quarrels between President Jimenez andCongress continued meanwhile, and his opponents induced the army todeclare itself against the president and request General Santana "notto lay down his arms until a government was established which wouldrespect the constitution and the laws and forever banish discord fromDominican soil. " The Congress called the president to appear beforeit, and some of the officers of his staff, hearing him harshlycriticised, drew swords and pistols to punish the offendingcongressman, and only the energy of the speaker, Buenaventura Baez, averted a bloody conflict. Congress adjourned to San Cristobal, themost important towns of the country rose against the administration, and Santana laid siege to the capital. After the siege had lasted aweek, and the suburban town of San Carlos had been destroyed by fire, President Jimenez yielded to the arguments of the British, French andAmerican consuls and agreed to resign the presidency and leave thecountry on a British warship. Santana entered the city at the head ofhis army on May 30, 1849, and assumed the reins of government, one ofhis first measures being a wholesale expulsion of Jimenez followers. He was crowned with honors by Congress and given the title of"Libertador. " The electoral college having been convened, Santiago Espaillat waschosen president, but refused to accept, realizing that Santana wouldexpect to manage him as a puppet. Colonel Buenaventura Baez was thenchosen and on December 24, 1849, entered upon his first term aspresident of the Dominican Republic. Baez, who was to play a leading part in the history of his countryduring the next thirty years, was the antithesis of Santana in mannersand education. Born in Azua in 1812, the oldest of a family of sevenchildren, his father had sent him to Europe to study and he returnedone of the most polished and best educated Dominicans of his day. Under Haitian rule he was a member of the Haitian congress and of oneof the Haitian constitutional assemblies. Almost white himself, hehere distinguished himself by his boldness in opposing measuresrestricting the rights of whites in Haiti. After the declaration ofindependence of Santo Domingo he was a member of the firstconstitutional assembly and speaker of the first congress, beingelected from the province of Azua, where his influence was similar tothat enjoyed by Santana in Seibo. Until he became president he was aclose friend of Santana. Baez determined to take the offensive against Haiti, and a small navalcampaign was undertaken in which Dominican government schoonerscaptured Anse-à-Pitre and one or two other villages on the southerncoast of Haiti, which were sacked and burned by the Dominicans. At thesame time Baez requested the mediation of the United States, Franceand England to put an end to the struggle between Haiti and theDominican Republic. Soulouque, who had meanwhile proclaimed himselfEmperor of Haiti, offered to agree to peace and recognize Baez, but oncondition that the Haitian flag be raised in Santo Domingo and thesovereignty of Haiti be admitted. His conditions were naturallyrejected by the Dominicans, and the mediating powers informed thenegro emperor that if he persisted in his plans of invading SantoDomingo they would be obliged to impose a suspension of hostilitiesfor ten years. Nevertheless his forces continued to mass on thefrontiers and small bodies actually entered Dominican territory, butwere driven back. Upon the protests of the three powers Soulouqueexplained the incursions as having been due to disobedience to orders, and under pressure agreed to a truce for one year, during whichnegotiations were to continue for a definite treaty of peace or anarmistice of ten years. In December, 1852, the minister of foreignaffairs of France notified Haiti that the maritime nations of Europewere disposed to maintain the independence of Santo Domingo. A period of peace now began which afforded a breathing-spell to thecountry. Upon the expiration of Baez' four year term, Santana wasagain elected president and entered upon the office on February 15, 1853. It was one of the occasions, only too rare in Dominican history, on which a president served out his term and personally delivered upthe office to his successor. The domineering spirit of Santana gave rise to serious dissensions. Hequarrelled with the clergy, which had been taking an active part inpolitics since the declaration of independence, forced the archbishop, under penalty of expulsion, to take the oath of allegiance to theconstitution, and banished several priests. One of the reasons for hisstand was perhaps the circumstance that Baez had sought to attract thechurch. For several years Santana had become jealous of the extensionof Baez' influence and wrathful at the independent spirit displayed byhis former protegé. It soon became apparent that the retirement ofBaez was equivalent to a fall from power. In July, 1853, Santanaissued a proclamation in which he accused Baez of treason and ofplaying into the hands of the Haitians, and ordered his banishment. Baez fled from the country and answered with a fiery counter-appeal, justifying himself and accusing Santana of despotism, whereupon thebreach between the two strong men was complete. Santana also quarrelledwith Congress and banished or shot his principal adversaries. In1854 a constitutional convention assembled to draft a constitutionmore to Santana's taste than the existing one. The presidential termwas extended to six years and the office of vice-president wasintroduced, General Manuel de Regla Mota being elected to this officewhen General Felipe Alfau declined it. This constitution did not lastsix months, for before the end of the year Santana had it furtherrestricted. Under fear of foreign complications Haiti had remained quiet forseveral years, but in 1855, when England and France were engaged inthe Crimean war, the emperor Soulouque made a last determined effortto subjugate Santo Domingo. One army advanced by way of the south, another through the central valley; both captured the border towns anddrove the Dominican outposts before them; and both were defeated onthe same day, December 22, 1855, the southern army at Cambronal, nearNeiba, by a Dominican force under General Sosa, and the other on thesavanna of Santomé, by a force under General José Maria Cabral. Not tobe deterred, Soulouque rallied his men within Haitian territory, shota few of his generals, and, believing all the Dominican forcescollected in the south, marched north to invade the Cibao. Here he wasmet by another band of Dominicans at Sabana Larga and again defeated, retreating precipitately to his dominions. It was the last Haitianinvasion, but Haiti did not formally recognize the independence of theDominican Republic until 1874. The harsh measures of Santana had provoked general dissatisfaction andthe friends of Baez seized the opportunity to conspire in his favor. Santana realized that the days of his government were numbered, andresigned the presidency as he had done in 1849, retiring to his farmnear Seibo. Manuel de Regla Mota, the vice-president, thereupon onMarch 26, 1856, became president. Baez soon after arrived in thecountry and was elected vice-president; thereupon Regla Mota resignedas president and Baez thus slid into the presidency in a perfectlylegal manner. The second administration of Baez opened with a revolution against himin the Neiba district, which was promptly put down. Baez then hadSantana arrested and exiled, feeling uncomfortable while his formerchief remained in the country. But he was not destined to have peace. An ill-considered issue of more paper money, when the rate of exchangewith gold was already fifty to one, created indignation in the tobaccoregion of the Cibao and on July 7, 1857, Santiago declared itself inrevolution. The movement rapidly spread, a provisional government wasset up in the Cibao, the forces of Baez were repulsed, and soon thepresident held only Santo Domingo City and Samana. The revolutionistscalled a constitutional convention which met at Moca and in February, 1858, promulgated another constitution, designating Santiago as thecapital. An election was held in the midst of the war and General JoséDesiderio Valverde was declared elected president. For months therewere thus two governments in the country. The revolutionists began thesiege of Santo Domingo City towards the end of July, 1857, and laterSantana arrived and took charge of military operations. There werefrequent artillery duels, the fourteenth anniversary of Dominicanindependence, February 27, 1858, being celebrated by a cannonade alongthe Ozama River lasting all day. Fortunately the most distinctivefeature of the combats was the noise, but the Baez family suffered, two of the president's brothers being killed in the war. Baez held outfor eleven months, but after the fall of Samana and when SantoDomingo was reduced to starvation he at length yielded to theentreaties of the foreign consuls and capitulated on June 12, 1858. Assoon as he had embarked for Curaçao, General Santana marched into thecity with the victorious army. It was not compatible with Santana's character to be subordinate toanyone else, and by the end of July he had with the governmentat Santiago and set up a government of his own "in orderthat the lovers of liberty be not disquieted, in order that peaceprevail, and in order that the nation be saved, " as he said in hisproclamation. The Santiago government attempted to resist but wasovercome and its members banished. Santana declared the constitutionof December, 1854, in force again and called an election at which hewas, of course, chosen president, taking the oath of office on January31, 1859. He thereupon crushed a revolution in Azua, executing theleaders. As the large amount of paper in circulation causeddifficulties, he coolly repudiated the greater part, upon which anumber of European countries temporarily broke off diplomaticrelations because of the injury done their citizens and forced him toretire the paper by issuing in lieu thereof certificates acceptablefor customs dues. This trouble removed, he devoted himself to securingthe annexation of Santo Domingo to Spain. From the earliest days of the Dominican Republic the most prominentmen had believed that the happiness of the country depended uponsecuring the protection of a strong power, capable of preservingorder, and the years of warfare confirmed them in their opinion. Thehope of remaining in power was also an incentive to the party whichhappened to be in control. Spain and France were preferred, forreasons of identity or similarity of language, customs and religion. Many also favored the United States, but while the republican form ofgovernment and the probability of commercial advantages wereattractions, the existence of slavery and of prejudice against thecolored race inspired misgivings. As early as 1843, even before thedeclaration of independence, an attempt was made to secure a Frenchprotectorate, and during the first war with Haiti, Santana continuedthe negotiations. In 1846 an attempt was made to obtain a Spanishprotectorate. In 1849 President Baez in his message to Congressreferred to the advisability of "hastening a solution of the matter byobtaining the intervention and protection of a strong nation whichwould offer the most advantageous terms, for on this depends publicprosperity. " On October 18, 1849, the Dominican minister of foreign affairs in anote to the French consul, stated that "the present situation of thecountry and the barbarous wars with the Haitians, obliged him to beg, in the name of his government, that the government of France give adefinite solution to the important matter of the protectorate; and ifthe decision of France should unfortunately be in the negative, thatit at least be not deferred too long to prevent him from addressinghimself to the special representative of the United States, who hadjust arrived. " The United States was mentioned as a bogey, for whenFrance declined, the Dominican government stated that it could notconsider the negative as final and appealed to the French sentimentsof humanity. In 1854 another strong attempt was made to secure aSpanish protectorate. Neither France nor Spain was anxious to annex ahornet's nest, and Spain was fearful that any uprising against herauthority would find an echo in Cuba and Porto Rico. In 1855negotiations were opened with General William L. Cazneau, specialagent of President Pierce, for the lease of the Samana peninsula tothe United States, and in the following year Captain (laterMajor-General) George B. McClellan, of the United States Army, made anexamination of Samana Bay. Nothing came of this matter owing toopposition by foreign powers and the fall of the Santana government. Most annexation negotiations were secret, as the opponents of theparty that happened to be in power never failed to stigmatize them astreasonable. The fear of American influence was one of the reasons given by theHaitian emperor Soulouque for his invasion of 1855, and for aninvitation issued by him in 1858 to the Dominican people, calling uponthem to return to the Haitian flag. It had its influence on theSpanish government also, which began to look more kindly uponannexation propositions and agreed to furnish arms, ammunition andmilitary instructors to Santo Domingo. In 1860 Santana addressedhimself directly to the Queen of Spain, and proposed a closer union. Bases for annexation were drawn up, founded "on the free andspontaneous wish of the Dominican people. " Santana was careful to winover the local military chiefs to his ideas. His opponents vainlycombatted the proposition from Curaçao and from Haiti, which was now arepublic again. On March 18, 1861, the people of the capital assembled on the mainplaza pursuant to a call issued on the day before, General Santana andthe members of his government appeared on the gallery of the palace ofjustice, a document was read to the public proclaiming thereincorporation of the country as a part of the Spanish dominions, andthereupon the red and gold flag of Spain was raised on the fort and onthe gate "Puerta del Conde" and saluted with 101 guns. On the same dayand during the week following, the Spanish flag was raised withsimilar ceremonies in most of the other towns. A few days laterSpanish troops were disembarked at different points. Santana wasappointed governor and captain-general of the colony, with the rank oflieutenant-general in the Spanish army. The Dominican conspirators in Haiti, comprising General Sanchez andothers who had distinguished themselves in securing independence fortheir country, crossed the boundary and endeavored to stir up aninsurrection, but with such misfortune that they were surrounded andthe majority captured. Santana ordered the prisoners shot and twentywere executed on July 4, 1861, notwithstanding the protests of GeneralPelaez, the Spanish officer second in command. The act provokedbitterness against Spain and made the men so killed martyrs in theeyes of their countrymen. It also marked the beginning of strainedrelations between Santana and Pelaez, made worse by Santana'sarrogance. The friction resulted in Santana's resignation on January7, 1862. He evidently hoped the queen would ask him to reconsider andgive him carte blanche in Dominican affairs, but the resignation wasaccepted, though sweetened by the grant to him of the title of Marquesde las Carreras and a life pension of $12, 000 per annum. Hissuccessors in the governorship were high officers of the Spanish army. Discontent was not slow in spreading among the people. Injudiciousmeasures enacted by the Spanish authorities, the importation of hordesof foreign officials, the overbearing manners of several local Spanishcommanders, increases in the budget, intolerance on the part of theSpanish priests, and the natural unrest of the Dominicans, allcombined to give rise to small revolts which were put down, until, onAugust 16, 1863, a farmer named Cabrera with a small band offollowers, at Capotillo, near Guayubin in the Cibao, began aninsurrection which quickly became general and is known in Dominicanhistory as the War of the Restoration. The Spanish forces of the Cibaovalley were obliged to concentrate in Fort San Luis, at Santiago delos Caballeros, where they were besieged by the insurgents. TheDominicans also captured Puerto Plata, but the city was retaken bySpanish troops from Cuba. Reinforcements were sent to the besiegedgarrison of Santiago, and in the fight which the Dominicans made toprevent the joining of the Spanish forces, the city of Santiago wasset on fire and reduced to ashes. The Spaniards determined to evacuatethe place, and marched down to the coast, being constantly harassed byDominican guerillas, so that they lost over a thousand men beforereaching Puerto Plata. The Dominicans established a provisionalgovernment with its capital at Santiago and the country continued tobe devastated with fire and sword. General Santana was given command of a Spanish force to put down theinsurrection in the east, but insisting on carrying out his own planof campaign, he disobeyed orders and so rudely answered thegovernor-general's remonstrances that he was summarily removed fromhis position. In high dudgeon he retired to the capital, and it isstated that the governor intended to ship him off to Cuba; but on June14, 1864, he suddenly died, after an illness of only a few hours. If the Spaniards had displayed energy in opposing the revolutioniststhey would probably have carried off the victory, but the whole numberof their troops on the island available for military service at anyone time rarely reached eight thousand men. A campaign in the MonteCristi district which might have ended the war was rendered sterileby the lack of troops. Finally the Spaniards, unable to garrison thetowns they won, were reduced to the possession of Santo Domingo Cityand a few other places near the seacoast, all practically in a stateof siege. Meanwhile the military operations were costing the homegovernment large sums of money, and it became evident that, owing tothe failure to strike at the right time, the subjugation of thecountry would entail enormous expenditures. Political conditions inSpain were not favorable to such a war of conquest, and the Spanishgovernment determined to withdraw from Santo Domingo, alleging thatSpain had taken possession only because she believed the Dominicanswere anxious for annexation but that she did not wish to remainagainst their will. Possible complications with the United States, just emerging from the Civil War, were probably also taken intoaccount. On May 1, 1865, the Queen of Spain sanctioned a law of theSpanish Cortes providing for the relinquishment of the colony. TheSpanish forces were brought together at Santo Domingo City, and onJuly 11, 1865, after the guns in the forts had been spiked and themilitary stores on hand had been destroyed, the troops and theauthorities embarked in a fleet assembled for that purpose and theSpanish flag was lowered, for the last time, in Santo Domingo. CHAPTER V HISTORICAL SKETCH. --SECOND REPUBLIC. --REVOLUTIONS ANDDICTATORSHIPS. --1863 TO 1904. Restoration of the republic. --Military presidents. --Cabral'sadministration. --Baez' fourth administration. --Annexation negotiationswith the United States. --Civil wars. --Heureaux's rule. --Administrationsof Jimenez, Vasquez and Woss y Gil. --Election of Morales. From the very beginning of the War of the Restoration and for severalyears afterwards, the principal Dominican military chiefs were engagedin a disgraceful squabble for leadership. As soon as the Spanishforces retired from Santiago the revolutionists, on September 14, 1863, proclaimed the restoration of the republic and set up aprovisional government under the presidency of General José AntonioSalcedo. The other generals accused Salcedo of lack of energy inpushing the war and on October 10, 1864, deposed him and made GeneralGaspar Polanco president in his stead. Poor Salcedo tried to resist, but was captured, hurried by a friend from one camp to another to keephim from being shot, and at last foully murdered. Polanco did notenjoy his triumph long. A reaction set in, a revolution was initiatedagainst him, his troops deserted, he was captured and imprisoned, andon January 24, 1865, a superior council of government was formed bythe insurgents, presided over by General Benigno Filomeno de Rojas. The council called a constitutional convention which proclaimed theconstitution of Moca of 1858 and in March, 1865, elected General PedroAntonio Pimentel president. It was he who entered Santo Domingo Cityafter the evacuation by the Spaniards. Hardly had the evacuation taken place when Generals Cabral andManzueta raised an insurrection which overthrew Pimentel's governmentwhile he was absent on the Haitian border, and General José MariaCabral, an educated mulatto, was proclaimed Protector of the Republic. Cabral had formerly been one of the most enthusiastic followers ofBaez but it soon became evident that he was working for himself. Heconvoked a constitutional assembly which was convening when GeneralPedro Guillermo rose in the east and proclaimed General BuenaventuraBaez president. The movement was successful and the Congress, completely convinced by the sight of a sword unsheathed in itspresence by one of the victorious generals, elected Baez to thepresidency. Since his overthrow in 1858 Baez had been in exile, but he hadaccepted Spanish sovereignty and the rank of fieldmarshal in theSpanish army. On the outbreak of the War of the Restoration, he sentCabral to join the Dominican forces as his representative. He was nowliving in Curaçao and a commission journeyed there to invite him backto Santo Domingo, a council inaugurated on October 25, 1865, meanwhiletaking charge. A new constitution was drafted and promulgated onNovember 14, 1865, and on the same day Baez entered upon his office. Neither he nor the constitution lasted long. The constitution beingtoo liberal, he had it abrogated on April 19, 1866, and Santana'sconstitution of December 16, 1854, was adopted in its stead. Thisaction was the excuse for an insurrection which broke out in Santiagoon May 1, 1866, under the leadership of Pimentel in combination withCabral, and quickly assumed such alarming proportions that Baez foundit prudent to resign before the end of the month and retireto Curaçao. As usual a constitutional assembly was called, and a new constitutionwas promulgated on September 26, 1866. An election was held and Cabralchosen president by a practically unanimous vote. Nevertheless hisgovernment had scarcely a day's peace from insurrections. It foundtime, however, to resume amicable relations with Spain, to make acommercial treaty with the United States and to found a professionalinstitute. Other relations with the United States were also planned;for as Spain and France were eliminated from the annexation idea andthe United States had abolished slavery, this country was looked uponwith greater favor. The cost of the government's military activitieswas such that a strong attempt was made to lease Samana Bay to theUnited States for two million dollars; but as complete control was notoffered the plan fell through. Later a special commissioner was sentto Washington to negotiate for the absolute lease of the Samanapeninsula and Samana Bay, which negotiations were the prelude to thelater annexation negotiations, but they were interrupted by arevolution in favor of Baez which broke out in Monte Cristi on October7, 1867. And deposed Cabral on January 31, 1868. A council of generalsadministered affairs until Baez took charge for the fourth time, onMay 4, 1868. In accordance with established usage, the existing constitution wasabrogated and Baez' pet constitution, that of December, 1854, placedin force, but with amendments. Baez then began to rule with a firmhand, and though occasionally bothered by small uprisings on theHaitian border, promoted by Cabral, Luperon and other unruly spirits, managed to sustain himself in power for almost his full term of sixyears. He was able to realize what had been the golden dream ofadministrations since the birth of the Republic, the contracting of aforeign loan. Hartmont & Co. , a firm of London bankers, agreed toissue bonds of the Republic to the amount of £757, 700, though at aruinous rate, and actually paid over £38, 095. The dream turned to anightmare, for when the government annulled the contract on the groundof failure to comply with conditions, the bankers continued to issuebonds and kept the proceeds themselves; and the bonds thusfraudulently issued constituted the nucleus of the enormous debt whichlater led to American intervention. Though Baez had, for political reasons, protested against Cabral'snegotiations with the United States, he was too sagacious a statesmanto fail to recognize the value of American protection. It was nowCabral's turn to indulge in tirades full of patriotic indignation, forBaez actively pursued negotiations for the annexation of the countryto the United States. On November 29, 1869, two treaties were signedin Santo Domingo City by representatives of the American and Dominicangovernments: by one the Samana peninsula and Samana Bay were leased tothe United States for fifty years at an annual rental of $150, 000, andby the other the Dominican Republic was annexed to the United States. Baez submitted the annexation treaty to a plebiscite in his country inFebruary, 1870, and an overwhelming vote was cast in favor thereof. While the adversaries of the treaty did not dare to oppose it activelywithin the country, it is probable that the vote represented the truesentiment of the Dominican people, for aside from the evident economicadvantages of annexation, the influence of Baez was such that thepeople were ready to follow blindly whatever he advised. Bothtreaties lapsed, but the annexation treaty was renewed and PresidentGrant in his messages to Congress strongly urged its passage. Powerfulopposition developed in the United States Senate, led by SenatorSumner, and the treaty failed of ratification. By a resolution ofCongress, approved January 12, 1871, the President of the UnitedStates was authorized to send a commission of inquiry to SantoDomingo. President Grant appointed three eminent men, Benjamin F. Wade, Andrew D. White and Samuel G. Howe, who were assisted byFrederick Douglas, Major-General Franz Sigel and a number ofscientists. The commission proceeded to Santo Domingo, travelledacross the country in several directions and made an extensive report, which is still an important source of information as to thecharacteristics of the island. The commission's report was transmittedto Congress, and President Grant made another earnest plea for theannexation of Santo Domingo. Congress took no further action, however, and the United States thus deliberately rejected an opportunity toobtain control of a most important strategical position and to securepeace and prosperity to the Dominican people. It is interesting to speculate on what the future of Santo Domingowould have been if annexation had been realized. The power of theUnited States would have maintained peace; salutary laws would haveeducated the people in self-government; liberal tariff concessionswould have stimulated agriculture and industry; the influx of a goodstock of immigrants would have developed and settled the interior;honest administration would have provided roads and schools, and soonthe country would have attained a high degree of development andprosperity. The failure of the United States to extend a helping handcondemned Santo Domingo to long years of anarchy and dictatorships. When it became apparent that nothing would come of the annexationplans, the Baez administration, on December 28, 1872, rented theSamana peninsula to an American corporation, the "Samana Bay Company, "for ninety-nine years, at an annual rental of $150, 000. The company, which intended to found a large city on Samana Bay, actually paid thesum of $147, 229. 91, the greater part in gold and the remainder in armsand ammunition. This payment, with that received on account of theHartmont bonds, and with the higher customs receipts due to quietconditions, afforded relief to the treasury; while peace brought thecountry a prosperity further increased by the immigration of numerousCubans driven from their homes by the ten years' war that had begunin 1869. President Baez did not lose hope in the ultimate realization ofannexation, and it was also his intention to have himself reelectedfor another term of six years. These circumstances were used againsthim by his ambitious enemies, and on November 25, 1873, a revolutionbroke out in Puerto Plata which spread so rapidly that Baez wasobliged to capitulate on December 31 of the same year. A newgeneration, grown up since the independence of the country and whichhad come to look upon civil disorder as a normal condition, now cameinto power, and the question of foreign annexation ceased to bean issue. A period of constant revolutionary ferment and frequent changes of theconstitution followed, with a wearisome succession of militarypresidents. General Ignacio Maria Gonzalez became provisionalpresident in 1874, took advantage of the non-payment of an annuity bythe Samana Bay Company to rescind the contract with the company, called a national assembly, which formulated the constitution of March24, 1874, and had himself elected president, entering upon office onApril 6 of that year. As the constitution did not suit him, he calleda new national convention and had another constitution promulgated onMarch 9, 1875. This was too much even for Santo Domingo, and hisenemies formed a powerful league in Santiago with a view to having himimpeached, but the Congress rejected the charges. Another civil warwas imminent when Gonzalez resigned on February 23, 1876. The council of ministers took charge of the government and held anelection at which Ulises F. Espaillat was designated president. Heentered upon office on April 29, 1876, and as he was an excellent manwould have given a good account of himself under different conditions;but General Gonzalez started a revolution on the Haitian frontier, andon October 5, 1876, Espaillat was ousted. A superior council ofgovernment was formed, which appointed General Gonzalez president inthe beginning of November, 1876. Gonzalez had been in power for justone month when he was overthrown, in December, 1876, by a revolutionthat originated in the Cibao, and General Buenaventura Baez becamepresident for the fifth time. The Republic thus had four presidents in1876: Gonzalez twice, Espaillat and Baez. Baez called a constitutionalconvention and the constitution of May 14, 1877, was promulgated. Under the influence of the younger element he was less autocratic thanin his previous administrations, but perhaps for that very reason hiswhole term was one prolonged struggle with insurrections, until he wasobliged to surrender on February 24, 1878. He retired to Porto Ricoand died near Mayaguez in 1884. Two governments were nowestablished, General Ignacio Maria Gonzalez being proclaimed presidentin the Cibao, and General Cesareo Guillermo in Santo Domingo. Anagreement was reached by them on April 13, 1878, and Guillermo becameprovisional president of the entire country. The constitution of 1877was reproclaimed with amendments, an election was held and GeneralGonzalez was declared constitutional president, entering upon officeon July 6, 1878. Guillermo immediately started a revolution withGeneral Ulises Heureaux and compelled Gonzalez to abdicate onSeptember 2, 1878. It was the end of Gonzalez' meteoric presidentialflights, but after a period of retirement he ventured into public lifeagain, and for many years was Dominican minister to Haiti. Jacinto de Castro, the president of the supreme court, acted aspresident until September 29, 1878, when he was succeeded by thecouncil of ministers of which Guillermo was chief. The constitution of1878 was promulgated, with amendments, on February 11, 1879, and onFebruary 28, Guillermo, after going through the form of an election, became constitutional president. He did not last long. On October 6, 1879, a revolution broke out at Puerto Plata and a provisionalgovernment was formed under the presidency of General GregorioLuperon, an intelligent negro, who had been imprisoned for larcenyunder Spanish rule, but had redeemed himself by signal services in theWar of the Restoration. Guillermo resisted two months, but wascompelled to surrender on December 6, 1879. Luperon did not depart from the usual custom, but called aconstitutional assembly which, in 1880, adopted with amendments theconstitution of 1879, and fixed the presidential term at two years. Luperon then held an election and gave the presidency, for the twoyears beginning September 1, 1880, to one of his supporters, FatherFernando de Meriño, an eloquent priest who had taken an active part inpolitics since his youth, and who later became archbishop of SantoDomingo. The reverend gentleman suppressed all revolutionary uprisingswith uncompromising severity and did not hesitate to execute theconspirators that fell into his hands. During Meriño's administration General Ulises Heureaux served asminister of the interior and began to wield the power which he was toretain for twenty years. Heureaux was born in Puerto Plata about 1846. Both of his parents were negroes, his father being a Haitian whofollowed the sea and afterwards became a merchant, and his mother aSt. Thomas woman. He received a mercantile education and took part asa subordinate in the War of the Restoration against the Spaniards. Onthe withdrawal of the Spaniards, in 1865, he became a bandit on theHaitian border and practised horse stealing on a large scale. Later heobtained a position in the Puerto Plata custom-house and took a moreand more prominent part in the civil disturbances of his country, until he became well known as a politician and a revolutionist. Hedistinguished himself by his bravery and was many times wounded. Throughout these civil wars he remained a sturdy follower of GeneralLuperon, the successor of Santana as leader of the "Blue" party and animplacable opponent of General Buenaventura Baez, the chief of the"Reds" and of General Ignacio Maria Gonzalez, the leader of the"Greens. " When General Luperon overthrew President Cesareo Guillermo, in 1879, Heureaux was closely associated with the revolutionary movement. Heureaux was able to strengthen himself to such an extent that when, in 1882, Luperon determined to become president himself he found thathis former follower had outgrown him in power. The result was thatHeureaux became president and served from September 1, 1882, toSeptember 1, 1884. When his term expired a bitter struggle ensued withLuperon, who still retained considerable influence. Luperon'scandidate was Segundo Imbert, while Heureaux supported GeneralFrancisco Gregorio Billini, who was ultimately victorious. Luperonwent into exile, but later became reconciled with Heureaux andreturned to die in Santo Domingo. Billini entered upon the presidency on September 1, 1884, but becamerestive under the demands of Heureaux and his friends and resigned onMay 15, 1885. The vice-president, Alejandro Woss y Gil, succeeded tothe chief office. His term was to have expired in September of thefollowing year, but a formidable insurrection broke out in July, 1886, under General Casimiro N. De Moya, with the object of preventingHeureaux from carrying out his design of succeeding Gil. After sixmonths of fighting, during which the number of fatalities was happilyremarkably small, Heureaux was victorious, and having had himselfre-elected, resumed the presidency on January 6, 1887, until whichtime Woss y Gil remained in office. The biennial elections were a source of annoyance even to one who wassure of victory, and Heureaux therefore called a constitutionalconvention which amended the constitution then in force and lengthenedthe presidential term to four years, beginning in 1889. As GeneralCesareo Guillermo, Heureaux's former companion in arms and lateropponent, was understood to be nursing aspirations for the presidency, Heureaux sought to apprehend him. Guillermo fled, but finding himselfpressed, committed suicide. No further obstacle opposed Heureaux'selection, and he was again inaugurated on February 27, 1889. In the meantime negotiations had been undertaken for the contractingof new foreign loans, and one was floated in 1888 and another in 1892. The government's fiscal agent who secured these loans in Europe wasGeneral Eugenio Generoso Marchena, a man of much influence. In 1892General Marchena announced himself as a candidate for the presidency. Heureaux won without difficulty, but still uneasy, he arrestedMarchena in Santo Domingo, imprisoned him for a year and sent him toAzua to be shot. During Heureaux's new term, beginning in 1893, the country byimprovident bond issues and debt contraction, made rapid strides inthe direction of bankruptcy. In 1893, the San Domingo ImprovementCompany, an American corporation, under contract with the governmenttook charge of the customs collections for the purpose of providingfor the services of the loans. The illegal imprisonment of severalFrenchmen gave rise to friction with the French government and in 1894a French fleet appeared before Santo Domingo City, but the matter wasadjusted by the payment of an indemnity. As the 1889 constitutionforbade a president from holding office for more than two terms insuccession, Heureaux, wishing to continue in the presidency, obviatedthe difficulty by the simple expedient of promulgating a newconstitution in 1896, in which the limitation was removed. He wasdeclared unanimously elected in 1896 and began his final term onFebruary 27, 1897. The long period of comparative peace enjoyed by the country under therule of President Ulises Heureaux, or "Lilis, " as the dictator waspopularly known, brought seeming progress and prosperity, though at aheavy price. Many of his opponents Heureaux was able to buy, and inthis way he retained the loyalty of hundreds of little military chiefsscattered through the country. Those whom he could not buy hepersecuted, imprisoned, exiled, or executed. While possessing pleasantand affable manners, he was unrelenting in his persecution ofconspirators and many stories are told of his harshness in thisrespect. It is related that when he was minister of the interior underMeriño he discovered that his brother-in-law was implicated in a plot;he therefore invited him to dinner and after they had dined, asked howhis guest had enjoyed the meal. "Very well, " was the answer. "I amglad of that, " said Heureaux, "for I am about to have you shot. Take acigar, " he added pleasantly, "it will be your last. " And it was, forthe execution followed at once. On another occasion, so the storygoes, after he had become president, a prominent general was his guestand after dinner they took a stroll. Coming to a place in the suburbswhere workmen were digging a peculiar trench, the general inquired, "What are they digging here?" "They are digging your grave, " answeredHeureaux, and before the general could recover from his consternationa squad of soldiers appeared. He was shot and buried then and there. The governor of Macoris and the minister of war were both powerful menwhose influence was feared by Heureaux. He therefore cunningly wroughtup the latter against the former to such an extent that one finemorning the minister suddenly appeared in Macoris and had the governorsummarily shot. An outcry was made by the governor's friends, andHeureaux, affecting indignation at the act, had the minister of warexecuted. Many of his prisoners mysteriously disappeared, and popularrumor points out one of the lower platforms of the fort "La Fuerza, "where an aguacate tree formerly grew, as the place where prisonerswere shot at night, their bodies being thrown to the sharks at thebase of the cliff. Some of the dictator's suspects were assassinatedin the public streets. Even exiles were not secure from his wrath andin one instance a Dominican writer named Eugenio Deschamps, who hadbeen publishing articles against him in Porto Rico, was seriouslywounded in the streets of Ponce by an assassin's bullet. Ability and unscrupulousness, courage and cruelty, resolution andcunning were mingled in the character of Heureaux. Over the country heexercised the powers of an absolute monarch. He was the fountain headof all government and the real chief of every department. The accountsof the government and his private accounts were treated by him as oneand the same thing. His ambition to remain in power necessitated theexpenditure of large sums which he obtained through improvidentforeign loans and usurious contracts with local merchants. Those whomhe favored grew rich; his enemies he ruined. In other ways also hismorals swerved from the straight and narrow path, and an isolated towngloried in the distinction of being the only place in the Republicwhere the president did not have a mistress. He himself stated that hehad no concern as to what history would say of him, since he would notbe there to read it. During the latter part of Heureaux's administration the leaders of theopposition were recognized as Juan Isidro Jimenez and Horacio Vasquez, Vasquez was the chief of a large landholding family of the Cibao. Jimenez had been a prominent merchant, at one time carrying onmercantile houses in Monte Cristi, New York, Paris and Hamburg; hisfamily had formerly been prominent in Dominican affairs, his fatherhaving been president of the Republic in 1848 and his grandfather oneof the leading spirits of the revolution by which the Haitian yoke wasthrown off. Jimenez was born in Santo Domingo City in 1846 and as aboy went to Haiti with his father, growing up in Port-au-Prince. As ayouth he removed to Monte Cristi, where he established himself inbusiness and took part in the War of the Restoration against theSpaniards. Having with Heureaux, he resided for a number ofyears in Cape Haitien, Haiti, and from there directed conspiraciesagainst the dictator. In May, 1898, Jimenez made a bold attempt to overthrow the Heureauxgovernment. He fitted out a small steamer, the "Fanita, " in the UnitedStates and left ostensibly to aid the Cuban insurgents; and as theUnited States was then at war with Spain the expedition was notopposed by the American government. A landing was made at Monte Cristiwith only twenty-five men, a general uprising being expected as soonas his arrival became known. Jimenez' followers took the town, but thegovernor of the district was able to escape to the country andreturned with a large force, driving Jimenez back to his vessel with aloss of one-half of his companions. The "Fanita" had touched in theBahamas on the way down and on returning to Inagua Island, Jimenez wasarrested by the British authorities as a filibuster. Heureaux sent aman-of-war to Nassau and did all he could to have the case pressed. Jimenez was tried twice; at the first trial the jury did not agree, and the second time he was acquitted. Though popular hatred against Heureaux was strong on account of histyrannical conduct and his attempts to compel the circulation of alarge issue of inconvertible bank notes with which he flooded thecountry, the fear in which he was held prevented any general uprising. There were many, however, among them Horacio Vasquez, who never ceasedconspiring against the dictator. When it became known that Heureauxwas resolved to bring about Vasquez' death, Ramon Caceres, a cousin ofVasquez, and other members of the Vasquez clan, were drawn into theconspiracies. The father of Caceres, once vice-president under Baez, had been killed, it is said, by order of Heureaux. In July, 1899, whenHeureaux prepared for a trip through the Cibao, he was informed of aplot to kill him on the way. When he arrived in Moca he thought thatno danger awaited him there, as he expected that if any attack were tobe made on him it would be at some solitary portion of the road andnot in a town in broad daylight. When about to leave Moca on July 26, 1899, he ordered the governor of the province to arrest Caceres andhis companions. Caceres was informed of the order by the secretary ofthe governor, who was his friend, and knowing that the arrest wouldprobably be followed by an execution, with several companions herepaired to a store where Heureaux was talking with the proprietor, the provincial treasurer. As soon as Heureaux appeared in the doorwayCaceres began to shoot, and the other conspirators continued firing, although the first shot had been fatal. Heureaux before falling drewhis revolver and returned the fire, but the darkness of death cloudedhis vision and the shots went wild, one of them, however, killing abeggar to whom he had a few moments before given alms. Caceres and hiscompanions fled to the mountains, and the body of Heureaux was takento Santiago, where it was afterwards interred in the cathedral. JuanWenceslao Figuereo, vice-president of the Republic, an aged negro, succeeded to the presidency. The death of Heureaux precipitated a revolution headed by GeneralHoracio Vasquez. President Figuereo made no resistance, but at the endof August resigned, together with his cabinet, first designating acommittee of citizens to administer affairs until the arrival ofVasquez, who entered the capital on September 5, 1899, and became thehead of the provisional government. Jimenez in the meantime hastenedto the country and was everywhere received with rejoicing. The twoleaders arranged that Jimenez should become president and Vasquezvice-president, and an election was held on October 20, by which thisresult was attained, the inauguration taking place November 20, 1899. Ramon Caceres, the slayer of Heureaux, was made governor of Santiagoand delegate of the government in the Cibao. The Jimenez administration was the reaction of that of Heureaux. Itdeserved, more than any the Republic had had up to that time, the nameof civil and constitutional government. The executive was notabsolute, as in the time of Heureaux, nor were there sanguinaryexecutions. Almost too little restraint was exercised, and the press, so long muzzled, began to convert its liberty into license. Jimenez, too, was so good-hearted that at times he yielded to importunitieswhich had better been resisted. The financial problems left by theHeureaux administration caused considerable trouble and though thewaste of the public revenues was curtailed, large sums were stillabsorbed in the payment of revolutionary claims and of pensions forlocal military chiefs. Jealousies soon ripened between Jimenez and Vasquez, who was known tolong for the presidency and had only temporarily laid aside hisaspirations on account of the overwhelming popularity of Jimenez. Eachof the chiefs collected a group of friends about him and in this wayoriginated the still existing political parties, Jimenistas andHoracistas, the respective followers of Jimenez and Horacio Vasquez. Several minor uprisings occurred but were suppressed by thegovernment. In the beginning of 1902 the Dominican Congress, which wascomposed largely of Vasquez' friends, considered the advisability ofimpeaching President Jimenez on account of the financial transactionsof the administration, and a vote of censure was finally passed. Jimenez believed Vasquez at the bottom of the agitation and endeavoredto have the municipalities protest against the action of Congress. Rumors became current that Jimenez intended to imprison hisvice-president and thus insure his own reelection. Vasquez, urged onby his friends, therefore started a revolution in the Cibao, and aftera fight in San Carlos and a four days' siege of the capital enteredSanto Domingo City on May 2, 1902, and became president of aprovisional government. Jimenez sought refuge in the French consulateand embarked for Porto Rico a few days later. General Horacio Vasquez was born in Moca and was a ranchman, merchantand planter. He possessed military capacity and took a minor part inseveral revolutions. At first a friend of Heureaux, he afterwardsbecame one of his bitterest enemies, and for a number of years livedas an exile in Cuba and Porto Rico, returning to Moca shortly beforethe death of Heureaux to remain in retirement on his plantation. TheVasquez administration had as much difficulty with financial mattersas that of his predecessor, but the president had little opportunityto show what he could do. Local outbreaks began in Monte Cristi andbecame general in October, 1902. Disturbances continued until March24, 1903, when, during the absence of President Vasquez in the Cibao, the political prisoners in the fort of Santo Domingo City, throughconnivance with the general in charge, broke out, took the fort, liberated the convicts, threw the city into a panic with a continuedfusillade, and proclaimed a revolution. They were for the most partJimenistas and "Lilicistas, " or members of the old Heureaux party, andtheir candidate for the presidency would probably have been Jimenez;but in Jimenez' absence the presidency was offered to Figuereo andothers, who declined, and was finally accepted by Alejandro Woss yGil, who had only the week before been liberated from the samepolitical prison. General Vasquez returned with an army, arriving before Santo DomingoCity at the end of March. The ensuing siege was one long battle, during which a portion of the suburban town of San Carlos wasdestroyed by fire. On April 18, 1903, Generals Alvarez and Cordero, the best generals of the besiegers, made a violent attack on the cityand effected an entrance, but fighting continued in the streets andthese leaders and most of the storming party were killed. Vasquezthereupon fled to Santiago, resigned his post, and left the countryfor Cuba. On the triumph of his party a year later, he returned toSanto Domingo and retired to his plantation in Moca. Woss y Gil, who thus became president of the provisional government, called a session of Congress and by appointments favorable to hisinterests so intrenched himself that his continuance as presidentbecame assured. Jimenez, who arrived shortly after, advanced the claimthat he was still president de jure, since the constitutional term offour years for which he had been elected had not expired, and hedenominated the Vasquez government a temporary and illegal usurpationof power. In his efforts to regain office he sent his friend EugenioDeschamps to treat with Gil, but Deschamps, seeing Gil obdurate, madean agreement by which Woss y Gil was to become president and Deschampsvice-president, Jimenez was obliged to yield to the inevitable andreturned to Porto Rico in the hope of eventually succeeding Woss yGil. An election was held in which Woss y Gil and Deschamps were theonly candidates and on June 20, 1903, they were inaugurated. In General Alejandro Woss y Gil the Republic had a very talented manas president. Born in Seibo, he had entered politics in his youth, andbecame a friend and follower of Heureaux. At times he was governor ofa province, later for a long period Dominican consul at New York, andfrom 1885 to 1887 president of the Republic. He had received a goodeducation and traveled extensively, spoke several modern languages, had some knowledge of the classic languages, and was a poet, musicianand writer. Unfortunately the talents of Woss y Gil did not extend to the securingof an honest and efficient administration. The ministers appointed byhim were exceedingly injudicious selections, and a carnival of fraudand dishonesty was soon in progress. Discontent grew general, and bythe end of October, 1903, General Carlos F. Morales, governor ofPuerto Plata, raised the standard of revolt and his troops marched onthe capital. The revolution was supported by both parties, theJimenistas and Horacistas, and was known as the "war of the union. "Morales, the leader of the insurrection, had been a follower ofJimenez and favored the aspirations of the latter to the extent evenof sending requests to Jimenez to come to Santo Domingo at once. Thesiege of Santo Domingo City lasted for about three weeks. On November24, 1903, Woss y Gil, finding himself vanquished, permitted Morales'troops to enter the city and sought refuge in the British consulate. Three days later a German man-of-war carried him to Porto Rico, and helater continued to Cuba, where he long resided in the cityof Santiago. For a short time a tripartite revolution was in progress, thesupporters of Woss y Gil, Horacio Vasquez and Jimenez fighting indifferent parts of the country. Morales, on entering Santo Domingo, became president of the provisional government. The new governors ofthe Cibao were Jimenistas, but most of the appointments Morales madein the south were Horacistas, and it began to be suspected among theJimenez followers that he had designs on the presidency. When Jimenezarrived in Santiago he realized that his ambitions were againendangered and he and his friends grew restless. On December 6, 1903, Jimenez fled from Santiago to Monte Cristi, claiming that Morales hadsent a troop of fifty men to assassinate him. A counter revolution followed at once and swiftly attained largeproportions. It became the most serious unsuccessful revolution theRepublic had seen. At one time the whole country was in the hands ofJimenez except Santo Domingo City and the small port of Sosua, nearPuerto Plata. The government forces were able to retake Puerto Plata, but the siege of the capital continued uninterruptedly from Decemberto February. Attacks and sallies were frequent, every house along thewalls and in the suburbs soon showed bullet marks and the town of SanCarlos was again partially destroyed by fire. Finally Morales defeatedthe besiegers, and in March, Macoris was taken by the governmentforces and the backbone of the revolution was broken. The insurrectionhad spent itself on account of lack of supplies and efficient leaders. Jimenez, financially ruined by his attempts to reestablish himself inpower, again withdrew to Porto Rico. The government forces were unableto retake the Monte Cristi district, but an agreement was reached bywhich the Jimenista authorities remained in full control and thedistrict became practically independent. An election was held, as a result of which Carlos F. Morales becamepresident and Ramon Caceres vice-president, and they were inauguratedon June 19, 1904. The new president, Morales, was an unusually cleverman, although his conduct sometimes betrayed that he came from afamily in which there had been mental derangement. He was born inPuerto Plata, studied for the priesthood, took orders, and held theoffice of parish priest in various places in the Cibao. After thedeath of a brother who participated in Jimenez' ill-fated "Fanita"expedition and was killed in the attack on Monte Cristi, Morales tookan interest in public affairs and during the administration of Jimenezbecame a member of Congress. At this time he laid aside his religioushabit, married, and devoted himself exclusively to politics. Duringthe Vasquez administration he was an exile in Cuba, but on theascendancy of Woss y Gil he was made governor of Puerto Plata, and inthis capacity initiated the revolt against the Gil government. CHAPTER VI HISTORICAL SKETCH. --AMERICAN INFLUENCE. --1904 TO DATE (1918) Financial difficulties. --Fiscal convention with the UnitedStates. --Caceres' administration. -Provisional presidents. --Civildisturbances. --Jimenez' second administration. --American intervention. The enormous foreign and internal debt left by the Heureauxadministration had been constantly increased by ruinous loans to whichthe succeeding governments were obliged to resort during the years ofcivil warfare, until the country was in a condition of hopelessbankruptcy. In the beginning of 1904 every item of the debt had beenin default for months. Under pressure from foreign governments, the principal debt items dueforeign citizens had been recognized in international protocols andthe income from each of the more important custom-houses wasspecifically pledged for their payment, but in no case was paymentmade. One of these protocols, signed with the American chargéd'affaires, liquidated the government's accounts with the San DomingoImprovement Company, which had been turned out from the administrationof custom-houses by President Jimenez, and provided for a board ofarbitration to settle the manner of payment. The arbitratorsdetermined the instalments payable and specified the custom-house ofPuerto Plata and certain others as security, which were to be turnedover to an American agent in case of failure to pay. No payment beingmade, the American agent demanded compliance with the arbitral awardand on October 20, 1904, was placed in possession of the custom-houseat Puerto Plata. The other foreign creditors, principally French, Belgian, and Italian, naturally began to clamor for the payment of their credits and for thedelivery of the custom-houses pledged to them. To have done so wouldhave meant absolute ruin, as the government would have been entirelydeprived of means of subsistence. In face of the imminent likelihoodof foreign intervention the Dominican government applied to the UnitedStates for assistance, and in February, 1905, the protocol of anagreement between the Dominican Republic and the United States wasapproved, providing for the collection of Dominican customs revenuesunder the direction of the United States, and the segregation of aspecified portion toward the ultimate payment of the debt. The treatywas submitted to the United States Senate, but that body adjourned inMarch, 1905, without final action. The creditors again becameimportunate and an interim modus vivendi was therefore arranged, underwhich the Dominican customs were to be collected by a receiverdesignated by the President of the United States, and the proportionmentioned in the pending treaty was reserved as a creditors' fund. Thetemporary arrangement went into effect on April 1, 1905, and theeffect was immediately apparent. Confidence was restored, the customsreceipts rose to higher figures than ever before, and the prospects ofpeace became brighter as revolutionists could no longer count oncaptured customhouses to replenish their exchequer. The position of President Morales was a difficult one. He was anex-Jimenista at the head of an Horacista government, and there was nosympathy between him and his council. The Horacistas distrusted himand forced him to dismiss his friends from the cabinet and to makedistasteful appointments. Seeing that he was being reduced to afigurehead, Morales secretly tried to form a party for himself or makearrangements with the Jimenistas who for months had been conspiringand threatening to rise. The friction became more severe untilMorales, fearing that both his office and his life were in danger, onthe day before Christmas, 1905, fled from the capital, while theJimenistas rose in Monte Cristi and marched down to attack Santiagoand Puerto Plata. It was the anomalous spectacle of a president leading an insurrectionagainst his own government. Fortune was against the insurgents fromthe beginning. Morales, while trying to scale a rocky wall near theJaina River, in the neighborhood of the capital, fell and sprained hisleg, so that he was unable to proceed further but was obliged toremain in hiding in the woods, suffering much pain. In the Cibao, important dispatches of the revolutionists were captured by thegovernment forces, which were thus enabled to make surprise attacks. The insurgents attacked Puerto Plata under their best general, Demetrio Rodriguez, an intelligent mulatto, and would probably havetaken the town, had not Rodriguez received a bullet in the temple, whereupon his men became panic-stricken and dispersed. Morales sawthat all was lost and returned to the capital, where he went to theAmerican legation for protection. On the following morning, January12, 1906, with his foot bandaged and tears rolling down his cheeks, hewrote out his resignation. He was immediately conveyed to Porto Ricoon an American cruiser. The triumph of the government was complete, its troops overran Monte Cristi, and an Horacista was made governor ofthe district. Morales fixed his residence in the island of St. Thomasand later in France. He continually conspired for a return to thepresidency, and was once tried for filibustering in Porto Rico, butacquitted. A friendly administration made him Dominican minister inParis, where he died in 1914. Upon the resignation of Morales the vice-president, General RamonCaceres, assumed the presidency. Caceres was born in Moca on December15, 1867, and was a prominent cacao-planter. It was he who killedHeureaux in 1899, after which he entered public life, being governorof Santiago and delegate of the government in the Cibao during theadministrations of Jimenez and Vasquez, an exile in Cuba during theadministration of Woss y Gil, and vice-president and governmentaldelegate during the administration of Morales. He had the appearanceof an honest country squire, large of body and great of heart. During the years 1906 and 1907 special attention was given to thesettlement of the debts of the republic. A new bond issue of$20, 000, 000 was made for the purpose of converting the old debts, andan arrangement was effected with the principal creditors, by which theamounts due were reduced by about one-half. Instead of the stillpending convention of February, 1905, with the United States, a newfiscal treaty was agreed upon, and approved by the United StatesSenate and the Dominican Congress, taking effect on August 1, 1907. Insimilarity with the provisions of the modus vivendi, the customsincome of the Republic is collected by a General Receiver of DominicanCustoms, appointed by the President of the United States, and aportion of the income is set aside by him for the service of the loan. For years the various governments had been planning to revise theconstitution of 1896, Vasquez even calling a constitutionalconvention; but the political kaleidoscope turned before suchintentions could be realized. Conditions becoming sufficiently stable, a new constitution was promulgated on September 9, 1907. It was foundunsatisfactory and a constitutional convention met in Santiago and onFebruary 22, 1908, promulgated the present constitution, by which thepresidential term was lengthened to six years and the office ofvice-president abolished. An election was held and General RamonCaceres was chosen president, entering upon his new term on July1, 1908. As a result of the Dominican-American fiscal arrangement the old debtwas practically all canceled, burdensome concessions were redeemed, and a large portion of the surplus from the new bond issue was setaside for public works, of which several were undertaken. A fewuprisings by dissatisfied chiefs remained local and unsuccessful. Aborder clash with Haiti, which in January, 1911, caused the dispatchof troops to the frontier, was settled by diplomacy. The hope ofcontinued peaceful conditions gave a new impulse to agriculture, industry and commerce, and the exports and imports increased yearby year. At a time when the future seemed brightest, the Republic was suddenlystartled by the news of the assassination of President Caceres onSunday afternoon, November 19, 1911. The president, with a singlecompanion, was returning from a drive along the new road to SanGeronimo. At Guibia, a suburb of the capital, a number of conspiratorsrushed for the carriage, seized the reins of the horse and began toshoot. The president's companion fled, but Caceres, a fearless man andan excellent shot, returned the fire. Almost simultaneously a bulletshattered his right wrist. The coachman lashed the horse in anattempt to escape, but the horse reared and threw the carriage againsta hedge. The coachman then dragged Caceres from the carriage andassisted him to the stable of a house on the roadside, adjoining theAmerican legation, but the conspirators meantime continued to firefuriously and several shots struck the president. Seeing their objectaccomplished, the assassins withdrew, and the president, mortallywounded, was carried to the American legation, where he expired a fewminutes later. The conspirators were a handful of malcontents led by General LuisTejera, a young man of prominent family, at one time governor of thecapital under Caceres, but lately estranged. Caceres had known ofTejera's seditious sentiments but refused to take them seriously. Immediately after the shooting, the conspirators hastened away in awaiting automobile, carrying with them their leader Tejera, who hadbeen wounded in the leg during the affray. At the Jaina ferry theautomobile was accidentally precipitated into the river, and thewounded man was fished out half drowned. The other conspirators lefthim in a hut by the road and escaped. Tejera was found by thepursuers, taken to the fort in Santo Domingo City, and summarilyexecuted. The commandant of arms of the capital, General Alfredo M. Victoria, who controlled the military forces, permitted his own ambitions toinfluence him more than the welfare of his country. Being onlytwenty-six years old, he was not of the constitutional age to bepresident, but listening to the counsel of scheming politicians, hedominated the situation by force of arms and brought about theselection of his uncle, Eladio Victoria, as provisional president. Thelatter was a senator from Santiago province, and had at one time beena member of Caceres' cabinet, but he was not regarded as ofpresidential calibre and his selection provoked general surprise andindignation. General Victoria's army was a potent argument; itwithered the ambition of other aspirants to the presidency, andSenator Victoria was elected provisional president and entered uponoffice December 6, 1911. In the following February the usual form ofpublic election was gone through and on February 27, 1912, he took theoath of office as constitutional president. His nephew occupiedimportant cabinet positions under the new administration. The general opposition to President Victoria and to the method ofelecting him found expression in revolutionary uprisings throughoutthe country, especially in the Cibao and Azua. Ex-President Vasquez, ex-President Morales and several Jimenista generals took the fieldindependently. Morales was captured, but the others continued thefight. Beginning early in December, 1911, the war dragged on formonths, both sides sustaining heavy losses and extensive sections ofthe country being devastated. It became apparent that there was a deadlock, the government beingpowerless to subdue the revolutionists, while the revolutionists wereunable to carry on an active campaign against the government. TheAmerican government eventually extended its good offices with a viewto the reestablishment of peace and order. A special commissionappointed by the President of the United States and consisting of anofficial of the War Department and another of the State Departmentarrived in Santo Domingo in October, 1912, and initiated a series ofconferences with government and revolutionary leaders. An agreementwas concluded and in accordance therewith the Dominican Congressassembled on November 26, 1912, accepted the resignation of PresidentVictoria, and elected the archbishop of Santo Domingo, MonsignorAdolfo A. Nouel, as provisional president for a period of two years. He was inducted into office on December 1, 1912. Archbishop Nouel, a man of great learning, beloved and respectedthroughout the country, entered upon his duties with the announcedpurpose of giving an impartial administration and governing with bothparties. The difficulties of the plan were soon impressed upon him, particularly as he relied entirely upon moral suasion to carry hispolicies into effect. Pressure was applied for favors which he couldnot grant, his appointments were bitterly criticised as savoring ofnepotism or as unduly favoring one side or the other, and some of thefiercer military chiefs assumed a menacing attitude. Sick anddisgusted, Monsignor Nouel resigned the presidential office on March31, 1913, and embarked for Europe. The Dominican Congress immediately considered the choice of atemporary successor and after many ballots elected a compromisecandidate, General José Bordas Valdez, an Horacista senator from MonteCristi, as provisional president for a period of one year. He assumedoffice April 14, 1913. His designation did not please the Jimenistas, and the Horacistas also became hostile when it appeared that PresidentBordas contemplated forming a party of his own. His opponents promptlyrose in the Cibao and took possession of the ports of Puerto Plata, Sanchez and Samana, which were thereupon blockaded by the governmentforces. In the latter part of September, 1913, the revolutionists laiddown their arms on the promise of the American minister that freeelections for presidential electors and members of a constitutionalconvention would be guaranteed. A municipal election was in factheld, but President Bordas, alleging that conditions were toounsettled for a general presidential election, held on as president defacto beyond the term for which he had been provisionally elected. Onthe day his term ended, April 13, 1914, another revolution broke outand rapidly spread to all parts of the Republic. Puerto Plata wasoccupied by the insurgents and blockaded for several months bygovernment vessels, the blockade being accompanied by a siege of thecity under the direction of the president himself. On the other hand, the insurgents laid siege to the capital. The government contractedheavy debts to carry on the war and the commerce of the countrysuffered greatly. Again the American government lent its good offices for therestoration of order. In August, 1914, a commission of three delegatesof the United States arrived in Santo Domingo to present a plan forthe resignation of Bordas, the selection of a provisional president bythe chiefs of the several political parties, a revision of theelection law, and the holding of general elections. The plan wasagreed to, President Bordas resigned, and Dr. Ramon Baez, a son offormer President Buenaventura Baez, was elected by the DominicanCongress as provisional president on August 27, 1914. Popular elections were held in October, at which there were fourcandidates: ex-President Juan Isidro Jimenez, ex-President HoracioVasquez, ex-Minister of Finance Federico Velazquez, and a fourth oflittle consequence. The Jimenez and Velazquez forces effected acombination, as a result of which Juan Isidro Jimenez was electedpresident a second time, and took the oath of office on December5, 1914. For a moment it seemed as though the country was at last entering uponan era of peace and prosperity. The government made efforts to solvethe financial problems left by the recent civil wars and to resumepublic improvements. Investments of foreign capital increased, andagriculture and commerce expanded. The elements of disorganization were present, however, in as strong adegree as ever. Corruption was general in the administration of thepublic funds, but attempts at reform had no result further than tostimulate violent opposition. The old leaven of sedition was at work, and disgruntled military chiefs found a willing leader in the ministerof war, General Desiderio Arias, a chronic revolutionist from MonteCristi, who had for years used the popularity of Jimenez as a cloakfor his own aspirations. The president, aged and infirm, was unable tomeet the situation with energy, and disinclined to adoptsevere measures. In the early part of 1916 Arias had his friends in Congress vote toimpeach President Jimenez for alleged frauds. The matter was stillunder discussion, and the president was ill at his country place onthe San Cristobal road, near Santo Domingo City, when in April, 1916, General Arias suddenly seized the military control of the capital andissued a proclamation by which he practically deposed Jimenez andassumed the executive power himself. Another civil war was imminent when deliverance came in an unexpectedmanner. For many years past in previous disturbances, one or both ofthe warring factions had looked to the United States government forhelp in restoring order, and diplomatic assistance had time after timeput an end to strife. The endless succession of revolts had at lengthexhausted the patience of the American government. In the face ofanother general war with its attendant destruction of life andproperty, harm to American and other foreign interests, and danger ofinternational complications (a British and a French man-of-war werealready solicitously hovering off the capital), the Americangovernment took decisive action. With the consent of PresidentJimenez, it landed marines at old San Geronimo castle, on the Guibiaroad, near Santo Domingo City. Though Jimenez approved of this action and recognized that his countrycould not emerge from the slough of revolution without Americanassistance, he was depressed at the condition of affairs, and in viewof his physical feebleness felt himself unequal to the task of guidingthe country through impending difficulties. He therefore on May 6, 1916, resigned the presidency of the Republic, and subsequentlyreturned to Porto Rico to live. The council of ministers temporarilyassumed the administration. Arias, dismayed at the action of the United States, made protest, butthe American government refused to admit the legality or sincerity ofhis conduct. Its troops advanced on Santo Domingo City andRear-Admiral Caperton, the American commander, gave Arias twenty-fourhours to evacuate. He promptly obeyed, and on May 15 the Americansoccupied the city. American troops continued to be landed, at Puerto Plata on June 5; atMonte Cristi on June 19; and at other seaports as necessity demanded, until a total of about 1800 marines had been disembarked. Theyproceeded into the interior, taking over the preservation of publicorder and disarming the inhabitants. They advanced on foot, inimprovised motor trucks, and as real "horse marines, " in accordancewith a plan to secure thorough pacification by having them appear inall parts of the country. The American marines met with no seriousopposition except in the Cibao, in the section between Monte Cristi, Puerto Plata and Santiago, where the following of Arias was strongest. To clear this section two columns were launched from the seacoast withSantiago as the objective, the first of 800 men from Monte Cristi, thesecond of about 200 men from Puerto Plata, the entire force beingunder command of Brigadier-General Joseph H. Pendleton. Theexpeditionary force from Monte Cristi, under Colonel Dunlop, advancedalong the highway, which was little more than a muddy trail through ajungle of cactus and thorny brush, and several Americans were shotfrom ambush. Repeatedly small detachments of rebels made a stand uponsome favorable piece of ground, until routed by the marines. Thedecisive encounter took place on July 1, 1916, at Guayacanes, nearEsperanza, where a force of 400 marines after a stubborn fight carrieda strongly entrenched position defended by about 300 rebels. TheAmerican losses were 1 enlisted man killed and 1 officer and 7enlisted men wounded; the rebels are estimated to have lost severalscore between killed and wounded, their leader, Maximito Cabral, beingkilled fighting in the trenches after all his men were dead ordriven off. The second column, from Puerto Plata, under Major Bearss, opened upthe railroad, encountering its principal resistance at the tunnelsouth of Altamira. The two columns joined forces at Navarrete and thenoccupied Santiago. All the insurgents eventually dispersed orsurrendered, and Arias himself submitted to the American militarycontrol, which became absolute throughout the country. The totalAmerican losses in occupying the country were 3 officers killed and 3wounded and 4 enlisted men killed and 12 wounded; the losses of theinsurgents are estimated at between 100 and 300 killed and wounded. The Dominican Congress proceeded on July 25, 1916, to elect atemporary president, and chose Dr. Francisco Henriquez Carvajal, adistinguished physician and highly cultured man. It was understoodthat he was to hold for six months and was not to seek reelection atthe general election to be held within that time. The United Statesgovernment, however, was loath to extend recognition unless assuredthat Santo Domingo would enter upon a path of order and progress. Thefiscal treaty of 1907 had not secured the peace expected of it; theprohibition against the contracting of further indebtedness had beenfrequently violated; disorder and corruption had continued; and theAmerican government deemed its task uncompleted if it should surrenderthe country to the same chaotic conditions. It accordingly required, as a condition of recognizing Henriquez, that a new treaty between thetwo countries be adopted, similar to the recently approved treatybetween the United States and Haiti, where a series of revolutionsculminating in a massacre of prisoners had the year before obliged theAmerican government to intervene. The principal features of thistreaty were the collection of customs under American auspices, theappointment of an American financial adviser, and the establishment ofa constabulary force officered by Americans. Henriquez, jealous of his country's sovereignty and fearful that theproposed arrangement would make the Dominican government a puppetcontrolled by all-powerful and not sufficiently responsible Americanofficials, refused to accede to the American demands. The Americanauthorities thereupon declined to pay over any of the Republic'srevenues to a government which they did not recognize. Inasmuch asthey not only collected the customs and port dues, but had assumedcontrol of the other revenues as well, the Henriquez government wasleft penniless. Nevertheless, the American demands continued to berejected. As a result, no salaries were paid in any part of theRepublic; the officials who continued in their duties did so with thehope of being compensated at some future date; some services, such asthe mail service, were discontinued almost entirely; and the wholemachinery of the government was paralyzed. This tension and anomalous condition lasted for several months. As theterm for which Henriquez had been elected drew to a close, it becameevident that he had no idea of retiring from the presidency, but, onthe contrary, intended to hold general elections, in which he expectedto be the successful candidate. The deadlock thus threatened tocontinue indefinitely, and the American government thereupondetermined to cut the Gordian knot. On November 29, 1916, Captain (later Rear-Admiral) H. S. Knapp, of theUnited States navy, commander of the American cruiser force inDominican waters, and of the forces of occupation of the DominicanRepublic, issued a proclamation, declaring the Dominican Republicunder the military administration of the United States. Theproclamation recited that the Dominican Republic had failed to live upto the terms of the treaty of 1907; that the American government hadpatiently endeavored to aid the Dominican government, but that thelatter was not inclined or able to adopt the measures suggested, wherefore the American government believed the time at hand to takesteps to assure the execution of said Convention and to maintaindomestic tranquillity in the Republic. He therefore declared that theDominican Republic was placed in a state of military occupation by theforces under his command; that the object of the occupation was not todestroy Dominican sovereignty, but to restore order; that Dominicanlaws were to continue in effect so far as they did not conflict withthe objects of the occupation or the decrees of the militarygovernment; that the Dominican courts were to continue in theirfunctions, except that offenses against the military government wereto be judged by military courts; and that all the revenues of theDominican government were to be paid over to the military government, which would administer the same. He called on all inhabitants tocooperate with the forces of the United States. The military government so established took full possession of thecountry. The chiefs of the executive departments not having appearedin their offices, their posts were declared vacant and filled withofficers of the American navy. In the country at large, there waslittle open opposition, and such as appeared was suppressed withoutdifficulty. The inhabitants quickly reconciled themselves to thesituation, realizing that it was to the best interests of theircountry. Dr. Henriquez, the ex-president, left for Cuba in the earlypart of December. The military government thereupon proceeded to organize the finances, to pay arrears of salaries, to subdue several bandits who refusedallegiance, and to confiscate all arms. Absolute order and security, greater than have prevailed in Santo Domingo since colonial days, weresoon established. The military government then devoted itself to theconstruction of public works, especially roads, the organization of apolice force, and in general to the improvement of the country. After the Washington government determined to participate in theEuropean war, the American military governor on April 12, 1917, connected Santo Domingo with the war by canceling the exequaturs ofthe German consular representatives in the Dominican Republic; therewas no formal rupture, as no diplomatic representative of eithercountry was at the time residing in the other. German residents weresubjected to surveillance by the American authorities. The Dominican Republic is still (January, 1918) being administered byAmerican naval officers and the work of reorganization continues. Eventually--in all likelihood after the European war--the governmentis to be turned back to the Dominican people, and it is probable thatsuch devolution will be under conditions that will assure a stablegovernment, peace and progress. CHAPTER VII AREA AND BOUNDARIES Area of Republics of Haiti and Santo Domingo. --Boundarydisputes. --Harbors on north coast. --Character of shore. --SamanaBay. --Character of east and south coast. --Harbors of Macoris and SantoDomingo. --Ocoa Bay. --Islands. --Haitian frontier. Of the great chain of islands which extends in a vast semi-circle fromthe southern coast of Florida to the northeastern coast of Venezuela, the second largest is the Island of Haiti or Santo Domingo, situatedmidway between Cuba and Porto Rico, and lying between latitude17°36'40" and 19°58'20" north and longitude 68°18' and 74°51' west ofGreenwich. The island is bounded by the Atlantic Ocean on the north, the Mona Channel on the east, the Caribbean Sea on the south, and theWindward Passage on the west. The nearest point of Porto Rico is 54miles distant, of Cuba 50 miles, of Jamaica 90 miles and of Venezuela, the nearest country on the South American continent, 480 miles. Thedistance from Puerto Plata, on the north coast of the island, to NewYork is 1255 miles, to Havana 710 miles, and to Southampton 3925miles. The distance from Santo Domingo City to San Juan, Porto Rico, is 230 miles, to La Guayra 500 miles, and to Colon 810 miles. The island is divided between two political entities, the western one, comprising one-third of its surface, being the Republic of Haiti, while the eastern one is popularly known as Santo Domingo or SanDomingo, though it is officially termed the Dominican Republic. Thesetwo republics present at once interesting resemblances and contrasts. They are separated by no natural bounds; their soil, resources, andpolitical conditions are similar; but while in Haiti the language andhistorical associations are French and the numerically predominantrace stock is black, in Santo Domingo, on the other hand, the languageand historical associations are Spanish, and the mulatto rather thanthe black is most in evidence. The area of the island is generally stated at 28, 249 square miles, ofwhich Haiti is credited with 10, 204 square miles and the DominicanRepublic with 18, 045 square miles. Since no part of the island hasever been carefully surveyed, such figures can be regarded as onlyapproximately correct. The Dominican Republic is therefore about aslarge as the States of New Hampshire and Vermont together, less thanhalf as large as Cuba and more than five times the size of Porto Rico. In the above estimate of the area of the two Republics no account istaken of their reciprocal claims to further lands. Each claims about1500 square miles occupied by the other. The Dominicans affirm theyhave a right to the plain of Hinche and St. Raphael, comprising someof the finest agricultural lands on the island. They contend thatHaiti is entitled only to the territory embraced in the confines ofthe old French colony of Saint-Domingue. Under the treaty of Aranjuez, of June 3, 1777, the boundaries of the French and Spanish colonies onthe Island of Santo Domingo were carefully defined and marked bymonuments. In 1795 the Spanish colony was ceded to France; but when in1804 the Haitians declared the independence of the island, they wereable to control little more than the old French portion, most of theold Spanish portion remaining in the possession of France. Theboundary line remained unchanged when the old Spanish portion againcame under the rule of Spain in 1809. In 1822 Haitian rule wasextended over the entire island, but in 1844, when the inhabitants ofthe eastern portion proclaimed their independence their declarationcomprised the whole of the old Spanish part of the island. The Haitiangovernment made strenuous efforts to reconquer the revoltingprovinces, with the final result that it was able to retain and stillretains 1500 square miles more than belonged to the former Frenchcolony. This is the portion still claimed by Santo Domingo. On the other hand, the Haitians, based on alleged boundary conditionsand tentative arrangements in 1856 and 1874, claim a strip of land nowoccupied by Santo Domingo lying along the border and also aggregatingabout 1500 square miles. Maps published in Haiti always show theboundary line from five to forty miles further east than it isin reality. Arbitration has repeatedly been suggested to determine the boundary, and efforts were made in 1895 to submit the question to the Pope andin 1911 to resort to The Hague, but without success. The Haitians have not only peopled and carefully guarded the territorycontrolled by them, but have attempted to push the frontier furthereast toward the line they claim. In 1911 and a year later, allegedencroachments by Haiti almost led to war between the two countries. The United States interposed its good offices and in 1912 suggested asprovisional boundary, until otherwise determined by mutual agreementbetween the two countries, the line which was observed as boundary in1905 when the American receiver general of customs took charge of thefrontier custom-houses. Both countries agreeing, the line as suggestedhas since been regarded as the boundary and bids fair to become, withperhaps a few unimportant modifications, the permanent boundarybetween Haiti and Santo Domingo. The outlook for arbitration seems tobe no better now than heretofore, nor is it probable that any court ofarbitration would divest either Haiti or Santo Domingo of anyconsiderable portion of the lands they have so long possessed. The boundary disputes have not tended to improve the relations betweenthe two countries, which formerly regarded each other with a hatredthat has only in the past fifty years softened down to mutual distrustand dislike. It has frequently happened that the authorities of onecountry abetted insurrections in the other; and it was common practicefor insurgents in either country to retreat across the border torecuperate in the other. In the Dominican revolutions of 1912 to 1914several bands of revolutionists had permanent headquarters on theHaitian side. The greatest breadth of the Dominican Republic, from the Morro ofMonte Cristi to Cape Beata, is about 170 miles, the greatest length, from Cape Engaño to the Haitian frontier, about 260 miles. TheRepublic has a coast line of about 940 miles, on which there areseveral good ports and large bays. One of these is Manzanillo Bay, which lies at the extreme northwesternpoint of the Republic. Large and well protected, affording excellentanchorage for any class of vessels, it is one of the best harbors andperhaps the most important point strategically, on the north coast ofthe island. It receives the waters of the Dajabon or Massacre River, which constitutes part of the boundary between Haiti and the DominicanRepublic, and of the turbulent Yaque del Norte, which here forms adelta of considerable extent. Owing to the proximity of Monte Cristithe various projects for the establishment of a port and custom-houseat this point have hitherto failed of realization. Fifteen miles to the northeast of Manzanillo Bay is the ancient portof Monte Cristi, discovered by Columbus, in his vessel the Niña, onhis first voyage. The great explorer landed here to examine the plainnear the shore, and departed at dawn on January 6, 1493. The port ofMonte Cristi is a large open bay with a fine roadstead, but theshallow water near the shore obliges vessels to anchor over a milefrom land. On the eastern side the harbor is sheltered by a highpromontory now known as El Morro, to which Columbus gave the name ofMonte Cristi, after a remarkable profile, recalling the pictures ofChrist, which is visible in the outlines of the mount to vesselsentering the harbor. The isolated, treeless mountain under the usuallycloudless sky of beautiful blue strongly recalls the buttes of ourWestern plains. The range of mountains known as the Monte Cristi Range, forms abackground for the entire northern coast of the Republic. From MonteCristi for fifty miles east, to the bay of Isabela, the shore is bleakand barren, formed of rocks and cliffs with short intervals of sandybeach. Isabela Bay is where the first Spanish settlement in Americawas laid out by Columbus in 1493. Little remains to mark the site, butthe white palm-fringed strand gleams in the sunlight and is caressedby the blue waters just as in Columbus' day. The harbor at the mouthof a stream flowing down from the mountains is small and shallow, butit is occasionally visited by coastwise vessels in search of cargoesof mahogany and other woods from the nearby hills. Thirty miles east of Isabela lies Puerto Plata. The intervening coastpossesses a few small ports of little importance, but sometimesvisited by coasting schooners. The most important one is Blanco, which during the War of the Restoration with the Spaniards was theinsurgents' port of entry and the base of considerable illicit tradewith Turks Island. The harbor of Puerto Plata, the most important cityon the north coast, is formed by a small bay, enclosed on the sea sideby a reef of coral rock. There is plenty of depth within, but littleroom, and only three or four large steamers can with safety anchorhere at the same time. The harbor is well protected except on thenorth. During gales from that direction it becomes exceedinglyuncomfortable, and the narrow entrance channel quite dangerous. Portions of wrecks rising above the foaming water of the reef--thebroken bow of one vessel and ship's engine of another--bear witness tothe perils lurking there at such times. Near the shore the harbor isshallow, and though there is little tide, the water recedes somedistance. To avoid the difficulty there is a long pier for the use ofsmall boats and it is no longer necessary, as of yore, for passengersto be carried ashore from boats in the arms of the boatmen. A finepublic dock for large vessels is also nearing completion. A broad and fertile coast plain extends from Puerto Plata sometwenty-five miles to the small port of La Goleta. On this plain abouttwelve miles from Puerto Plata, lies the port of Sosua. La Goleta is adistributing point for the lumber cut in this district. A considerableportion thereof proceeds from the headwaters of the nearby riverYásica, being floated down the river and then along the ocean shore. From the Yásica River, the mouth of which is about 100 feet wide, anuneven rocky stretch of coast extends in a southeasterly direction toCape Frances Viejo, where there is a new lighthouse. Numerous brookstraverse this region and leap down to the sea from the rocks, inbeautiful cascades often twenty and thirty feet in height. Near CapeFrances lies the small town formerly called Tres Amarras and nowCabrera. The Monte Cristi Range terminates here, its foothills formingthe promontories of Cape Frances and Point Sabaneta. Travel along thisrugged part of the coast is difficult; in order to avoid thetroublesome gullies of the shore, the trail often runs far inlandthrough dense jungle. The rocks are of a conglomerate formation, andare worn by the waves into the most fantastic shapes. From theappearance of the cliffs it seems that at remote periods two distinctupheavals of the land took place, the first of which formed the peakswhich rise about twelve miles in the interior, the second and morerecent one giving origin to the great rocks along the coast. Theprecipices in the interior, which in ages past were washed by the sea, rise to a sheer height of from two hundred to four hundred feet andare crowned with trees. The rocky masses in the coast forests are fullof clefts and caverns which furnish habitation to millions of bees. The shore now curves southward and becomes low and sandy. There arelow coast plains covered with trees, especially groves of palm trees, which extend far into the interior. Four rivers are crossed, whichcarry comparatively little water, and the mouths of which areobstructed by sand bars caused by the prevailing north and east winds. As a result of these bars the streams flood the country and form largestagnant lakes, that have effectively prevented a settlement of theregion. Some seven miles before reaching the mouth of the Gran Esterothere is a little town called Matanzas, a kind of headquarters forturtle fishermen and which, though the entrance to its bay is almostclosed by a sand bank, is often visited by coasting schooners thatcall for cacao from nearby plantations. What is called the GranEstero is a network of bayous and channels, some upon the surface, others subterranean, which extends from the Yuna River to the oceanand traverses the marshy plain forming the neck of the Samanapeninsula. It is apparent that the Yuna River centuries ago emptiedinto the ocean and that what is to-day the Samana peninsula was oncean island separated by a broad channel from the mainland, to which itbecame united by the gradual rise of the land and by the alluviumdeposited by the river. The great swamp so formed is in one place asmuch as 18 miles wide, and is covered with stunted mangrove trees andrank weeds and bushes. The decaying vegetation gives the water of thebayous and stagnant ponds a dirty coffee color and taints the air withmalarial miasma. The opening of channels and draining of the swampwould remedy the defects, at the same time providing important meansof communication and reclaiming large tracts of the richestagricultural land. From Matanzas the coast extends due east, closely following themountain range which beginning near Port Jackson forms the backbone ofthe Samana peninsula. Spurs of the mountains rise precipitously fromthe sea which foams at their rocky base, and from the summits to thewater's edge the country is covered with luxuriant vegetation. The fewrocky coves along the shore were a favorite resort for buccaneers indays gone by. One of them is Port Jackson; the entrance is rendereddangerous by a coral reef, but once within, the deep waters are alwaystranquil and offer good shelter to the little craft of the turtlefishermen. Though the waters of this region are said to teem with thefinest fish but little attention is paid to fishing. Another cove, difficult of access because of the jagged rocks near the entrance, isPort Escondido, or Hidden Port, near the most conspicuous feature ofthis coast, the lofty promontory of Cape Cabron, or Cabo delEnamorado, Lover's Cape. The easternmost point of the peninsula is therugged double-terraced headland of Cape Samana, reckoned as thebeginning of Samana Bay, though strictly speaking the Bay begins atthe majestic cliff known as Balandra Point. This magnificent bay, one of the great harbors of the world and thefinest by far of the West Indies, has ever excited the admiration oftravelers. Securely sheltered against storms, of an extent sufficientto accommodate the navies of the world, easily fortified and defended, occupying a highly important strategical position, its advantagescannot be overestimated. Samana Bay, a submerged extension of thegreat valley of the Yuna River, is thirty-five miles in length andfrom ten to fifteen miles in width. Looking up the Bay from theentrance no land is descried on the horizon. Columbus, when he firstentered, believed he was on an ocean channel dividing two islands. Thenorth coast is protected by the low mountain-range of the Samanapeninsula, in places resembling the Palisades on the Hudson, and thesouthern shore is fringed by a chain of hills, so that the emeraldgreen waters of the Bay are perfectly sheltered against all windsexcept those from the east. Even here the effect of the wind ismodified and it is only during eastern gales that choppy waves obligesmall boats to seek the coves along the shore. About four miles fromPoint Balandra, is a group of five islets, known as the CayosLevantados. The channel between these Keys and the northern shore ofthe Bay, 2000 yards in width with a maximum depth of 140 and a minimumdepth of 50 feet, constitutes the principal entrance to the Bay, theonly one which is available for large vessels. The other channel, known as the Half Moon Channel, lies immediately south of the Keys;but being narrow and shallow, is navigable only by vessels of lightdraft. The great expanse of water, fifteen miles in width, betweenthis channel and the south shore of the Bay is so dotted with shoalsas to be absolutely impassable. It will thus be seen that the actualentrance to the great Bay is quite narrow and could easily be defendedby mines or by fortifications on the Cayos and the peninsula. The Bayis like a great bottle with a very narrow neck. The Spaniards, infact, established a small fort on the headland, its ruins being nowhidden by dense underbrush. It seems surprising that no large and flourishing metropolis shouldhave arisen on the shores of this splendid body of water. Apparentlythe principal reason why it did not appeal to the Spaniards was thatowing to the prevailing easterly breezes their clumsy vessels wouldhave encountered difficulty in leaving. Since the days of steam, ofcourse, this trouble is obviated. The value of the Bay as a navalstation has been widely advertised, and France, England and the UnitedStates have at various times entertained projects of acquiring it. TheAmerican government in 1869 even negotiated a treaty for the lease ofSamana peninsula and Samana Bay, but the United States Senate failedto act and the treaty was lost by expiration of time. The Bay wouldconstitute a military and commercial key to this part of the world forany power possessing it. Near Balandra point is the tiny settlement of Las Flechas, locatedupon the scene of the first encounter marked by bloodshed between theSpaniards and Indians. A number of Columbus' men having landed here inJanuary, 1493. Were attacked by Indians and in the ensuing engagementan Indian was wounded. The occurrence induced Columbus to name theBay Golfo de las Flechas, Gulf of the Arrows. At the end of the mainchannel of entrance to the Bay the north shore is indented by thelarge and commodious basin of Clara, and about two miles further tothe west is the harbor of the old city of Santa Barbara de Samana, atranquil sheet of water, separated from the Bay proper by severalsmall islands, but which can be entered only by vessels drawing lessthan twenty feet. Beyond Samana the coast becomes a little less steepand the verdure-covered mountains recede sufficiently to give room tonarrow coast plains, thickly grown with cocoa-nut palms. Along thebeach are landscapes of idyllic beauty. Deep water extends up to theshore and there are half a dozen points which excel for landingplaces. Some twenty miles from Samana the last offshoots from themountains encompass the town of Sanchez. Beyond in a largesemi-circle, the end of the Bay is skirted by the great swamp whichcomprises the Gran Estero and the delta of the Yuna River. The town of Sanchez, the terminus of the railroad from La Vega, is animportant outlet for the products of the Royal Plain, but though oneof the principal ports of the Republic its situation on Samana Bay isunfavorable. Located where the Samana mountains slope into the GranEstero, the site is ill adapted for the expansion of the settlement;the vicinity of the great marsh is not inviting, though the prevailingeastern breezes serve to drive back its noxious emanations; and theharbor, even now so shallow that vessels are obliged to anchor a milefrom shore, is gradually silting up with sediment from the Yuna River. The story goes that the selection of this unpropitious spot for theterminus of the railroad was due to the passion of a moment. A tractof land at Point Santa Capuza, five miles down the bay, where a levelcoast plain and deep water up to the very shore invited theestablishment of a port, had previously been chosen. The railroad hadbeen extended to this spot and the foundations of the shops were beinglaid when the principal owner of the road, who was directing theconstruction work, learned that several of his engineers had acquireda controlling interest in a portion of the site of the projected town. The choleric Scotchman immediately removed his headquarters to LasCañitas, where Sanchez is now located, and though a vast amount ofdigging and filling was necessary the shops were erected here and theroad to Santa Capuza was abandoned. The railroad has since purchased, for a song, almost all the land which caused the trouble, but as ithas only recently expended £10, 000 in the extension of its wharf atSanchez from six to ten feet on water, and made other improvements, there is evidently no intention of moving the terminus. Beginning at Sanchez the entire western shore of Samana Bay is linedby swamp land, interspersed with the sandbanks formed by the variousmouths of the Yuna. Turning east, the coast becomes almostinaccessible owing to the reefs and rocks which line it and constitutethe beginning of low rocky ridges running into the interior. Thisregion, known as "Los Haitis, " continues until the Bay of San Lorenzois reached. This capacious inlet, the only good harbor on the southerncoast of Samana Bay is almost completely landlocked by a peninsulaextending across its mouth, and affords good anchorage. The project ofestablishing a city and free port here was considered in 1883 and acomprehensive concession was granted with this object in view, butnothing was done and the concession lapsed. San Lorenzo Bay is alsocalled Bahia de las Perlas, from the pearls found in its waters inthe early-days; it is related that in 1531 five pecks were sent toSpain as the royal fifth. On the western side of the bay are extensiveand beautiful stalactitic caves, in pre-Columbian days the abode ofIndians, and in the seventeenth century a favorite resort for pirates, who were well acquainted with every nook and inlet along the shores ofSamana Bay. Some five miles to the east of the Bay of San Lorenzo liesthe village of Sabana la Mar. So shallow is the water here that noteven small vessels can approach near to the low and sandy shore. Thesame condition prevails along the remainder of the southern shore ofSamana Bay. Branching from the low hills that skirt the coast is theheadland of Cape Rafael at the end of the Bay, forming a fittingcounterpart to Cape Samana on the north. Turning southeasterly along the coast Point Nisibon is reached, wherea calcareous rock formation and soil suitable for sugar plantingbegins. Forty miles of rocky shore intervene between this point andCape Engaño, the easternmost cape of the island, with a newlighthouse, the light of which is visible twenty miles away. The coastnow leads southwesterly to Point Espada, shaped like a sword, and buttwenty-five miles distant from the Island of Mona, a dependency ofPorto Rico. Southwest from Point Espada lies the largest island of theDominican Republic, the Island of Saona, fifteen miles long by fourmiles wide, the low hills of which are covered with abundantvegetation. At the time of the conquest it was the home of a numerousIndian population; later when owned by the Jesuits it had well-keptplantations; to-day it is almost uninhabited. Not far away are thesmaller islands of Catalina and Catalinita, which possess valuabletimber but like Saona are uninhabited. From Point Palmilla oppositeSaona Island, the shore-line, fringed with coral rocks, turnsnorthwest and then due west. It bounds the great flat region of SantoDomingo, and to the traveler on passing ships is the most monotonouspart of the coast, for in the absence of mountains to break thesky-line, there is nothing to be seen but a low palm-crowned rockywall with surf beating at its base. The harbors are estuaries ofrivers; those of La Romana, Soco and San Pedro de Macoris are of thisdescription. San Pedro de Macoris is the principal port for the exportation ofsugar. Its harbor is commodious, but access thereto is rendereddifficult by a bar traversed only by a narrow and tortuous channel. Extensive harbor improvements were here undertaken under a concessionwhich caused considerable litigation and discussion until it wasredeemed by the government by means of the 1907 bond issue. In the forty miles intervening between San Pedro de Macoris and SantoDomingo City, about the only place of interest is the Bay of Andres, midway between the two cities, which is the home of innumerable wildducks. The City of Santo Domingo is situated on the west bank of theOzama River, the mouth of which constitutes the city's harbor. Sincethe town was founded four centuries ago the width of the river hereseems to have diminished by fully one-fourth owing to accretion alongthe shores. A bar across the entrance renders access impracticable forvessels drawing more than fifteen feet of water. This bar has givenconsiderable trouble, for at times it has grown in such manner as toleave a depth of but five feet. It is now kept open by means ofjetties and dredging. Within the bar the river is perfectly smooth andvessels can without trouble draw up to the dock, but the roadsteadoutside is generally very rough and the embarking and disembarking ofpassengers is attended with experiences more exciting than pleasant. At this place more than one passenger has had an involuntary bath andmany a piece of luggage lies at the bottom of the sea. On twooccasions on which I disembarked here in stormy weather it seemed aneven wager that the boat would be swamped before reaching theriver mouth. The wall of coral rock girding the coast continues as far as PointPalenque, when it is succeeded by sandy beach. This inhospitable shorehas been the witness of stirring episodes, for it was near Fort SanGeronimo where the American troops came ashore in 1916; at the mouthof the Jaina that Drake disembarked in 1586 to accomplish his boldreduction of Santo Domingo City; at the cove of Najayo where Penn andVenables landed in 1655 in their unsuccessful descent upon the colony;and near Port Palenque where a British force under Carmichael landedin 1809 to assist the Dominicans in retaking Santo Domingo City fromthe French. Off Point Palenque, too, in 1806 a British squadron underVice-Admiral Duckworth defeated a French squadron commanded byRear-Admiral Lessiegues, forcing two French ships-of-the-line ashoreand capturing several other vessels. The ports are all shallow andunsheltered, but are occasionally visited by coasting sloops in questof timber and other products of the country. The lofty mountains which in Santo Domingo City can be discerned onthe distant horizon have at Palenque become more distinct andapproached nearer to the shore. On the green plain which slopes fromtheir base to the sea, white specks, glittering in the sun, betray thepresence of the town of Bani. But little further on, the mountainsrise from the very shore, their spurs in the surf, their peaks cappedby clouds. The triangular bay of Ocoa, the second largest of theRepublic, is now reached. Almost 25 miles in width at its mouth with alength of some 13 miles, its extent earned for it, in olden days, thename of Puerto Hermoso de los Españoles, the beautiful port of theSpaniards. It has plenty of water and is well protected by high hillson both sides, but on account of its wide entrance becomes very roughin a south wind. There are several good anchorages along its shore, and inlets which are used as harbors by various plantations. At itssoutheastern entrance is the landlocked body of water known as Calderaor Kettle Bay, claimed to be the best harbor on the southern coast ofthe Republic. It is separated from the ocean by a long narrow tongueof land, and being securely sheltered from all winds, its surface isalways as placid as a lake. Caldera Bay is presumed to be the harborin which Columbus on his fourth voyage rode out the great hurricane of1502 which demolished the infant city of Santo Domingo and sunk thegold fleet that had just set sail for Spain. This harbor was arendezvous for the Spanish war vessels and transports in 1861 whenSpain resumed control of Santo Domingo and again in 1865 when sherelinquished possession. The extent and depth of Caldera Bay areclaimed to be sufficient to accommodate the largest ships, but vesselsseldom venture into it, as the charts of this part of the coast aredeficient. At the upper end of Ocoa Bay is Port Tortuguero, the harbor of thecity of Azua, affording good anchorage, but very rough in south winds. It. Was the scene of one of the few naval engagements in the historyof Santo Domingo, for here on April 15, 1844, two Dominican schoonerssustained a drawn battle with three Haitian vessels. The surroundinghills appear almost bare of vegetation owing to the aridity of theclimate. The only buildings at the port are a small custom-house andseveral sheds, the city of Azua lying about three miles inland. Theformer harbor of Azua, Puerto Viejo or Escondido, Old or Hidden Port, is a sheltered inlet on the western side of Ocoa Bay, but is availableonly for vessels of light draft. Point Martin Garcia where the western side of Ocoa Bay is regarded asterminating also marks the beginning of another large bay, Neiba Bay, which has the form of a cul-de-sac, with a length of eighteen milesand an average breadth of seven miles. It is open to the southeast, but in all other directions is well protected by high mountains. Thewater is of ample depth and there are several good anchorages, thebest being the port of the small city of Barahona. From Neiba Bay to Cape Beata the coast waters are shallow and are onlyvisited by small vessels which come to take away lumber or coffee fromthe neighboring heights. At Cape Beata, the southernmost cape of theRepublic, the coast turns northwest, to the Pedernales River, whichforms part of the boundary between Haiti and the Dominican Republic. Several small bays indent this portion of the shore, the one mostfavorable for shipping being Las Aguilas Bay, also known as Bahia sinFondo, or Bottomless Bay. This part of the country, the Baborucopeninsula, is very sparsely inhabited. In the beginning of thenineteenth century it was the abode of maroons, half-savage fugitiveslaves and their descendants. Four miles to the southwest of Cape Beata lies Beata Island, slopingdown from an elevation in the south to a long point in the north. Itsgreatest length is about 7 miles, its maximum breadth 3 miles, andaccess is difficult as the only anchorage is on the eastern sidealmost two miles from land. The island is covered with dense forestsin which wild cattle abound. During the sixteenth and seventeenthcenturies the island was a convenient resort for the pirates thatinfested the Spanish main; at one time it is said to have containedfine plantations, but at present it is only occasionally visited byDominican or Haitian fishermen. Rising precipitously from the sea, at a distance of about ten milessouthwest of Beata Island, is a huge bell-shaped mass of rock, 500feet in height, almost two miles in length and a mile in width. Itreminded Columbus of a giant ship under full sail, wherefore he namedit Alta Vela, or High Sail, sometimes corrupted to Alto Velo. Thevaluable deposits of guano on the rock induced a party of Americans in1860 to take possession of it in the name of the United States as anownerless guano island, but upon protest by the Dominican authoritiesthe American government promptly recognized the superior rights ofSanto Domingo. Visible from far out at sea, with a lighthouse on itssummit, the great granite peak stands like a sentinel guarding thesouthern shore of the Republic. On the land side the vague boundary has varied constantly, influencedby the conflicting Haitian and Dominican claims, the greater or lessenergy of the border authorities on each side, and the tendency of therapidly increasing Haitian population to establish homes in theuninhabited frontier region of Santo Domingo. The absolute lack ofcorrect maps and the rugged character of the country make itdifficult, even on the spot, to determine where the boundary lineshould be considered to run. In riding through the region about LakeAzuei, I noticed some bad dents in the frontier and came to theconclusion that not all the boundary pushing has been doneby Haitians. On the frontier as provisionally fixed by the American government in1912, the Dajabon, Capotillo or Massacre River constitutes thenorthern end of the boundary. The lower course of this river is theonly part of the boundary line where Haitian and Dominican claimantsare able to agree. In the mountains to the west of Restauracion theline jumps over to the headwaters of the Libon River, which it followsto the upper Artibonite, continuing along this river as far as Banica. From here it runs across high mountains between Comendador and HondoValle on the Dominican side and Belladere and Savanette on the Haitianside, to the north shore of Lake Azuei, thence across the lake to theheadwaters of the Pedernales River--with an indentation to give Haitithe post of Bois Tombé--and along that river to the sea. For thegreater part of its extent the line traverses a wild mountainouscountry, rarely visited on the Dominican side, except by smugglers oran occasional frontier guard. CHAPTER VIII TOPOGRAPHY AND CLIMATE Mountains. --Valleys and plains. --Rivers. --Lakes. --Temperature andrainfall. --Hurricanes. --Health conditions. It is related that an English admiral, in endeavoring to illustrate toGeorge III the topography of one of the West India Islands crumpled upa piece of paper in his hand and laid it on the table before themonarch, saying: "That, sir, is the island. " The traveler touring theWest Indies finds the story following him from place to place. Amongthe islands which claim to have given origin to the anecdote is Haiti, and however that may be, such description seems to apply admirably. Rugged irregular mountain ranges interspersed with valleys form thegreater part of the surface, while in the southeast a great plainextends from the mountains to the coast. The mountains of the Dominican Republic may be grouped in fiveprincipal ranges, two along the northern coast, one in the center ofthe island, and two in the southwest. They all extend from east towest and present numerous offshoots, especially the central rangewhich is the most important one and comprises the highest peaks. One of the northern ranges is the short Samana Range, beginning atCape Samana, extending the length of the Samana Peninsula, over thirtymiles, and ending near the Gran Estero. The greatest altitude isattained by Mt. Pilon de Azucar and Mt. Diablo which are 1900 and1300 feet in height, respectively. This group at first sight appearsto be an extension of the second chain, the Monte Cristi Range, butits geological formation proves it rather to belong to the greatcentral range. It was probably at a remote period an island lying offfrom the mainland. The other northern range has its beginning near Samana Bay and extendsall the way to Monte Cristi. It is known as the Monte Cristi Rangethough the eastern portion is also called the Sierra de Macoris. Itsends several branches to the coast, the most important one being thatwhich terminates at Puerto Plata. The highest points of the range areMt. Diego de Ocampo, with an altitude of 4000 feet, Nord Peak 3500feet, and Mt. Murazo 3400 feet. A notable landmark is Mt. Isabel deTorres, 2300 feet in height, which overlooks Puerto Plata. Its head isusually shrouded in a cap of clouds, and small mists frequently hoverabout its surface. To Columbus, passing out at sea on his firstvoyage, the cloudcap appeared shining like burnished silver in themorning sun. He took it to be snow until closer investigationdisclosed its true nature, whereupon he named the mountain MontePlata, or Silver Mount, and the port at the base was afterwards calledPuerto Plata. The mountain is said to have been given its presentname, Isabel de Torres, in honor of the wife of a prominent settler, Diego de Ocampo, domiciled in Santiago in the early days, after whomthe great mountain near that city was named. According to a locallegend, this couple, although blessed with worldly goods, was alsomutually possessed of such a nagging spirit and ungovernable temperthat a separation became necessary, the husband remaining in Santiago, the wife removing to Puerto Plata. When leagues intervened betweenthem their conduct was so charming that the inhabitants of the twocities gave their names to the high mountains near the respectivetowns. "If you doubt the story, " the legend concludes, "there are themountains to prove it. " The principal mountain range, the Cordillera Central, begins at theextreme eastern point of the island, traverses the center of theRepublic, crosses into Haitian territory and sinks into the sea atMole St. Nicolas to reappear in Cuba, on the other side of theWindward Passage. It constitutes a part of the great ridge which formsthe backbone of all the islands bounding the Caribbean Sea on thenorth. In the eastern part of Santo Domingo the range consists merelyof a chain of high hills which rarely reach an altitude of more than900 feet, but in the center and west of the Republic it assumes muchgreater magnitude, sending out branches which are important mountainchains in themselves, and several of its peaks are over 6000 feet inheight. The highest point in the island and in the West Indies is Mt. Tina, with an altitude of 10, 300 feet, a magnificent outpost of thatbranch of the central range which traverses the south-central portionof the Republic. The next highest point, is Yaque Peak, 9700 feethigh, nearly at the center of the island. The dense jungle coveringthe rugged slopes of these giants has so far baffled the few attemptsat exploration of their summits. To the west of Yaque Peak is Mt. Cucurucho, 7400 feet high, and to the northwest Mt. Entre los Rios, 8000 feet and Mt. Gallo, 8200 feet in height. It must be rememberedthat in the absence of any careful measurements, the altitudes givenare mere approximations. The Cordillera Central is peculiar in its numerous branches which areoften more intricate in their ramifications and comprise loftier peaksthan the parent range. The most important of these branches are thosewhich extend from Mt. Banilejo to the southern coast, and fill thedistrict between San Cristobal and Azua with a jumble of mountains. Besides Mt. Tina, already mentioned, their principal peaks are Mt. RioGrande, 6900 feet, overlooking the beautiful Constanza Valley, and Mt. Valdesia, 5900 feet high. One of the best defined ranges on the southis the Sierra del Agua, which runs south from the Central Cordillerato the San Juan River. The branches on the north are even morenumerous and cover a greater area. Among them special reference may bemade to the Sierra Zamba, which runs parallel to the Yaque del NorteRiver, the Sierra de San José de las Matas, the Santiago Range, theJarabacoa Range and the Cotui Range. The fourth principal mountain range of the Republic, the Neiba Range, is sometimes classed as a part of the Cordillera Central. It rises onthe western bank of the Neiba River and runs west parallel with thecentral chain, into Haitian territory. Among its principal peaks isMt. Panso, 6200 feet high. The fifth principal range, situated in theextreme southwest of the Republic, is known as the Baboruco Range, andsometimes as Maniel de los Negros. It begins at the Caribbean coastsouth of Barahona Bay and runs west into Haiti, forming an integralportion of the mountain chain that traverses the great peninsula inthe south of the Republic of Haiti. These several ranges and their offshoots divide the country into anumber of distinct regions, which, owing to the difficulty ofcommunication, have developed more or less independently of oneanother. The most important division is that effected by the broadcentral belt of mountains which, twelve miles wide in its narrowestpart, and extending from the shores of the Mona Channel to and beyondthe Haitian frontier, constitutes a rugged barrier between the northand the south of the Republic. The district to the north of the Central Cordillera, comprising therichest portion of the country, still retains its old Indian name"Cibao"--a word which awoke fond hopes in the heart of Columbus whoidentified it with "Cipango, " the Japan he was so eagerly seeking. TheCibao includes the northern slope of the central range with thefertile valleys enclosed by branches of that range, the Samanapeninsula, the Monte Cristi Range with its valleys and coastal plains, and particularly the magnificent valley of the Cibao, which lyingbetween the central chain and the Monte Cristi Range, extends all theway from Samana Bay to Manzanillo Bay. The length of this remarkablevalley is about 150 miles, its average breadth is 10 miles in thenorthwestern and 15 miles in the southeastern part, and it comprisesthe most fertile lands and the most populous interior towns of theRepublic. The highest part of the valley is about 600 feet abovesea-level and is situated at its middle point, near the city ofSantiago, where a line of low hills dividing the valley into two partsforms a watershed for its rivers. The northwestern of these twosections is known as the Santiago or Yaque valley and forms thegreater portion of the basin of the Yaque del Norte, while thesoutheastern half, through which the Yuna River flows, is the superbRoyal Valley or Royal Plain. One of the most beautiful views in the Cibao Valley, and in the world, is obtained from the historic eminence of Santo Cerro, an outposthill of the central range, situated about three miles from the city ofLa Vega. From the foot of this hill the great plain stretches into thedistance, meeting the azure sky on the eastern horizon, and far inthe north skirting the brown slopes of the lofty Monte Cristimountains, the more remote peaks of which are but faintly perceptiblein their envelope of blue haze. A rich carpet of dark greenoverspreads the plain, where lighter spots indicate patches of tilledland and silver threads betray the presence of streams. The cities ofMoca and La Vega are easily distinguished and on clear days even SanFrancisco de Macoris can be discerned. Clouds or rainstorms movingover portions of the vast expanse, add animation to the landscape. Columbus, gazing out upon the enchanting scene, was so impressed byits magnificence that he gave the great vale the name it stillbears--La Vega Real, The Royal Plain. To the south of the central range the number of plains is greater. Thelargest expanse of level land on the island is the great plain whichforms the southeastern part of the Dominican Republic. It includesalmost the entire region east of the Jaina River and south of thecentral range, being about 115 miles long by 30 miles wide. ThisEastern Valley or Seibo Plain, as it is sometimes called, is coveredwith forests and broad savannas, the most notable of which arecomprised in the series of prairies known as Los Llanos, the Plains. Two smaller and irregular plains are the arid Bani coastal plain, lying between the Nizao River and the Ocoa, with a length of 25 milesand a width ranging from 3 to 12 miles, and the Azua Valley, windingfrom Mt. Numero, near the Ocoa, to the Neiba River, a distance of 33miles with a breadth of from 3 to 30 miles. The Neiba Valley, situated in the southwestern portion of the Republicbetween the Neiba and the Baboruco Mountains is more regular. It ispart of the valley which stretches from Neiba Bay, in Santo Domingo, to Port-au-Prince in Haiti. The Dominican portion is 65 miles long by12 miles wide, and over one-half of its area is covered by the watersof Lake Enriquillo. The peninsula south of the Baboruco Mountains isan uneven plateau. In the very center of the Republic, surrounded on all sides by loftymountains of the central group, is Constanza Valley, rich but to-dayalmost inaccessible. No less rich, but many times larger, is the otherinterior plain, known as the Eastern or Central Valley, a successionof fertile valleys, extending from the Neiba River to St. Raphael, almost 115 miles, with a width of from nine to twenty miles. Theentire plain is claimed by the Dominican Republic, but more than halfis in possession of Haiti. All these various valleys and plains enjoy the advantage of beingwatered by a comprehensive network of rivers of greater or less size. Many of the streams are navigable for miles in the lower part of theircourse by boats and canoes, affording means of communication to whichthe wretched condition of the land highways gives added importance. The largest river of the Republic is the Yaque del Norte, some 240miles in length, which rises on the slope of Yaque Peak, describes acircuitous northerly course, receiving numerous mountain affluents, until it reaches the vicinity of the city of Santiago de losCaballeros, whence, turning northwesterly it flows through theSantiago Valley, being reinforced by scores of tributaries. Its watersare finally discharged partially into Monte Cristi Bay and partlythrough its many mouthed delta into Manzanillo Bay. Detritus anddriftwood brought down by the river, for many years entirely filledthe Monte Cristi channel, and still constitute barriers which causelarge lagoons to form in the delta and to inundate extensive tracts ofrich farmland. Though the bars at its entrance render the riverinaccessible for larger boats, it is navigable for canoes over itsentire course in the Santiago Valley. Another large river is the yellow Yuna, which waters the eastern partof the Cibao Valley. Rising in the mountains near the center of theRepublic, it directs its course to the Royal Plain where it receivesthe waters of the rapid Camu, and thence flows eastwardly and entersSamana Bay through a marshy delta, its total length being over 200miles. Part of its waters find their way through the great swamp, theGran Estero, into the Atlantic Ocean. Up to its junction with theCamu, a distance of some 30 miles, the Yuna is navigable by boats andbarges, and above the junction both the Yuna and the Camu arenavigable by canoes for nearly 30 miles more though there are shallowstretches where the streams run rapidly and great care is necessary. In former days, the Yuna was one of the chief outlets of the Cibao;freight and passengers were transported over its course to Samana Bayand on the waters of the Bay to the town of Samana where transshipmentto larger vessels took place. With the establishment of the railroadfrom La Vega to Sanchez, the river has lost much of its old-timeimportance. The third largest river is the Neiba or Yaque del Sur, which risesnear the sources of the Yaque del Norte and pursues a southerlydirection for some 180 miles, emptying into Neiba Bay. The repetitionof geographical means is one of the peculiarities of Santo Domingo. Thus there are two rivers and a mountain named Yaque, severalmountains named Cucurucho, a mountain-range and two cities namedMacoris while in a host of minor instances rivers, mountains anddistricts in different parts of the country have identical names. Therepetition of names seems all the more curious as the Dominicans havenot hesitated to change historic names of towns and streets. The Yaquedel Sur, or Neiba River, receives several copious affluents, thelargest one being the San Juan River. Much of the lumber exported atBarahona is floated down the Yaque and the river is navigable about 20miles for flat-bottomed boats, though rapids and rocky ledgesinterpose obstacles. The other rivers of the southern part of Santo Domingo are muchsmaller. The principal one is the Ozama, at the mouth of which thecapital city is located. This river is about 60 miles in length andcarries a surprising amount of water. Being navigable by barges for 9miles from its mouth and by canoes for 15 miles, it forms an importantavenue of supply for Santo Domingo City. In the three miles from itsjunction with the Isabela to the sea, its depth is about 24 feet, butover the sandbar at its mouth but 15 feet. Two rivers in thesoutheastern peninsula, the Macoris and the Soco furnish valuableoutlets for the products of the sugar estates on their banks. A numberof Dominican streams offer peculiarities. In the mountains there arebrooks which gush out of the hillside, merrily ripple on for miles andvanish into the ground as mysteriously as they came. A number of coaststreams sink into the sand of the beach, just before reaching theocean. The Brujuelas River, which rises on the edge of the greatplains, northwest of Bayaguana, flows south 25 miles through theplains and disappears in the ground a mile from the sea. Most streamsordinarily insignificant and innocent looking, are in a surprisinglyshort space of time converted by rains into raging torrents. The mostformidable of these torrential rivers is the Nizao which flows intothe Caribbean Sea near Point Palenque. In the lower part of thisriver's course its bed is about a mile wide, of which only a smallportion is covered by the several branches of the river, the remainderbeing taken up with sandbanks, gravel beds, marshy tracts and stagnantbayous; and so frequently and erratically does the river change itschannels, and to such sudden rises is it subject, that the localauthorities are obliged to keep guides stationed on its banks almostcontinuously, in order to direct travelers across. The rapids and cascades of Dominican streams are pregnant withpossibilities, but up to the present time they have remained in theirpristine condition, nor is their energy utilized to drive a singlepiece of machinery. The largest and most beautiful waterfall of theisland is doubtless that of the Jimenoa River, in the mountains someten miles south of the city of La Vega, where the Jimenoa rushes overa precipice one hundred feet in height, producing clouds of spray anda roar that can sometimes be perceived as far as Jarabacoa, six milesaway. Another beautiful fall is that of the Dajabon River, on theHaitian frontier, 30 feet in height, and there are notable cascadesalso on the Comate River, near Bayaguana, on the great plains; on theNigua and Higuero Rivers, not many miles from Santo Domingo City; onthe Inova River, near the town of San José de las Matas; and on theGuaranas River, on the Haitian frontier in the commune of Neiba. The only lakes of any size are two which lie in the Neiba Valley, thelarger one, Lake Enriquillo, being comprised entirely within Dominicanterritory, while of the smaller one, variously called Etang Saumatre, or Lake Azuei, or Laguna del Fondo, through which the frontier linepasses, less than one-fourth is under Dominican jurisdiction. They areboth very picturesque, and with the greenish color of their water andtheir arid mountain surroundings recall portions of Lake Titicaca inBolivia. In stormy weather they become as rough as the ocean. LakeEnriquillo derives its name from the last Indian cacique of theIsland, the romantic chieftain Enriquillo, who after fiercelyresisting the Spaniards finally in 1533 concluded an honorable peacewith them on the island of Cabras in the center of this lake. The lakeis over 70 miles in circumference, having a length of about 33 milesand a width ranging from 3 to 9 miles, Cabras Island, 6 miles long byone in width, is the home of herds of goats. Lake Azuei is but 15miles in length with a width of from 2 to 7 miles. Though the two lakes are scarcely five miles apart, Lake Enriquillo is102 feet below and Lake Azuei 56 feet above sea-level. Both lakesreceive the waters of several small fresh water creeks, yet theyapparently have no outlet and their water is salt, that of Lake Azueionly slightly, but that of Lake Enriquillo more so than the sea. OnCabras Island, however, there is a fresh water spring, and threelagoons to the east and south of Lake Enriquillo also contain freshwater. Lake Azuei often shows the paradox of going down during therainy season and rising during the dry season; the phenomenon isattributed to the presence of springs at the bottom of the lake, whichare unusually copious at the end of the rainy season. Both lakes haveat least one variety of ocean fish, though the nearest point of theseacoast is some twenty miles distant; turtles abound in both andthere are many alligators in Lake Enriquillo and a few in Lake Azuei. The climate of Santo Domingo is that of the torrid zone and ischaracterized by heat and humidity. Yet the heat rarely becomes asintense as it sometimes does in the United States in summer and thenights are always cool and pleasant. The mean annual temperature ofSanto Domingo City is between 77° and 78° Fahrenheit, and thevariation between the mean temperature of the hottest and coolestmonth is hardly more than 6°. The highest temperature recorded inSanto Domingo City in a period of seven years was 95°. The averagehighest temperature in July and August is between 91° and 92°. In themountainous regions of the interior there is a noticeable differencein temperature; it is necessary to sleep under a blanket every nightof the year and the temperature sometimes falls below the freezingpoint. The pleasantest months of the year are from Decemberto February. The heat of the climate is tempered and rendered bearable by coolingbreezes which are seldom absent. During the day the prevailing breezeis from the east, but shortly after sunset a breeze sets in from theinterior, blowing out to the ocean, and continues until after sunrise. The heavy rains also tend to cool the atmosphere. The island is so cutup by mountain ranges running in different directions that there is noregular rainy season for the whole country. In the south, the west andthe interior, the rainy season is generally reckoned as lasting fromApril to November, while in the eastern section the rainy season isfrom May to December. These seasons are not absolute, for at timesthere are heavy rains during what should be the dry season, whileoccasionally there are many days of drouth during the wet months. Therains are rarely long-continued drizzles, but instead for severalhours the floodgates of heaven are opened wide, after which the skyclears and remains serene until the following day. The amount ofrainfall varies in different parts of the country, being lightest inthe arid districts of Monte Cristi, Azua and Barahona. The United States Weather Bureau maintained a station at Santo DomingoCity for a number of years and from the observations made thefollowing data are compiled: OBSERVATIONS FOR SANTO DOMINGO CITY Highest Lowest Mean Average Mean temperature temperature relative Average number temperature recorded recorded humidity rainfall of days °F °F °F per cl. Inches with rain January 74 86 61 85 2. 01 11February 74 88 60 82 . 96 8March 75 87 59 79 2. 15 9April 76 91 59 80 6. 86 14May 78 88 67 83 6. 29 13June 78 90 67 86 7. 42 18July 79 92 67 86 8. 34 18August 80 95 68 84 6. 77 17September 79 93 69 85 7. 63 16October 79 92 67 86 9. 63 15November 78 91 64 85 2. 76 11December 76 89 61 87 2. 09 11------------------------------------------------------------------Annual 77 95 59 84 62. 91 161 Santo Domingo has at intervals felt the violence of the destructivehurricanes which occasionally ravage the West Indies. They oftencombine the features of a tornado and a cloudburst, and while thefurious whirlwind wrecks houses, uproots trees and strips forests bareof leaves, the accompanying severe rains swell the streams to abnormalheight and cause extensive inundations. The hurricane season isreckoned as beginning in July and ending in October and when duringthis period a sudden fall of the barometer announces the proximity ofunusual atmospheric disturbances all shipping keeps to the harbors andthe dwellers on shore take measures to guard against the devastatingrage of the wind. The first West Indian hurricane of which we have any record was thatof 1502 which destroyed the first city of Santo Domingo and sank aSpanish fleet. More recent storms felt in Santo Domingo were those of1834, 1865, 1876 and 1883. That of September 6, 1883, desolated thesouthwestern provinces of the Republic, and the rise of the OzamaRiver swept away the bridge connecting the capital with the oppositeshore. The hurricane of 1899 which laid waste the nearby island ofPorto Rico was scarcely felt in Santo Domingo. The latest unusuallyheavy storm was that which swept over the Republic during the firstweek of November, 1909, and caused much damage, especially in theCibao. A sudden storm in the afternoon of August 29, 1916, accompaniedby a kind of tidal wave, surprised the American 14, 500 ton armoredcruiser "Memphis" at anchor in the roadstead of Santo Domingo City andwrecked it against the rocky shore. With regard to health conditions, the Dominican Republic has beenmaligned because of the fevers that decimated the English and Frencharmies in the Haitian wars of a century ago. It must be remembered, however, that the French part of the island being shut out from theeastern breezes by high mountain ranges is hotter than the Spanishpart, and that the European troops, improperly clad and fed, underwentgreat hardships and were ignorant of sanitary precautions. Amongtravelers it is the concensus of opinion that climatic conditions inthe Dominican Republic are as favorable as in any other tropicalcountry. Far from presenting dangers to health there are few districtsin the Republic which with proper hotel accommodations would notoffer delightful refuge to invalids seeking to escape the rigors ofthe northern winter. The salubrity of the climate is reflected in thesturdy character of the peasantry, and exemplified by numerous casesof unusual longevity. In the towns the death-rate is somewhat higherthan in the country regions; but the very fact that in spite ofuncleaned streets, reeking garbage heaps, and defiance of sanitaryprecepts by the majority of the inhabitants, there has been socomparatively little sickness, bears strong witness to thehealthfulness of the country. By a law of 1912 boards of health wereestablished, and under American impulse more attention is now beinggiven to sanitation. As no census of the Republic has ever been taken and data relative tobirths and deaths have not been collected regularly, it is notpossible to compile statistics as to the death rate in the variousprovinces. The data so far available seem to indicate that thehealthiest province is Puerto Plata, followed by Santiago, Azua andMonte Cristi, after which come Santo Domingo, La Vega, Espaillat, Pacificador, Samana and Barahona. The mortality rate is highest in theprovince of Macoris where the annual number of deaths is reported toaverage about thirty per thousand. The most frequent endemic diseases are malaria which is to be fearednear marshes and stagnant waters, pulmonary consumption, which, however, is not more common than in the United States, and diseases ofthe digestive organs. Yellow fever is unknown and the sporadic caseswhich have occurred were due to the importation of the disease fromother countries. The only epidemic in recent years occurred in PuertoPlata in 1901 when ten deaths were recorded. The hookworm disease is very prevalent, but its ravages are not soapparent as in certain other tropical countries. Venereal diseases areexceedingly common. Evidences of the presence of leprosy andelephantiasis are occasionally seen. The measures taken for thesegregation of lepers are far from thorough; the lepers' asylum ofSanto Domingo City is situated inside the city walls and is surroundedby habitations of the poor. Cases of typhoid fever are sometimesregistered during the hot spell, from July to October, but the victimsare usually foreigners who have been careless of climaticrequirements. The foreigner who will observe temperance and prudencein all things, who will be careful of what he eats and drinks, whowill avoid exposure to rain showers, or to drafts when inperspiration, will easily become acclimated. Realizing that manytropical disorders originate in a foul stomach, the natives upon theslightest provocation have recourse to a purgative, and the custom isone which the stranger should not hesitate to adopt. CHAPTER IX GEOLOGY AND MINERALS Rock formation. --Mineraldeposits. --Gold. --Copper. --Iron. -Coal. --Silver. --Salt--Buildingstone. --Petroleum. --Mineral springs. --Earthquakes. The geological formation and the mineral wealth of the DominicanRepublic have never been thoroughly studied, in part because of thephysical difficulties and in part as a result of the civildissensions. The government has never had money to spare for suchobjects, and private investigators have suffered much hardship andlost many days in opening paths through tangled underbrush, and incrossing rugged mountain ranges in uninhabited regions. The physicalobstacles and the necessarily superficial examination consequentthereon may explain the contradictions of detail in different reports. About the middle of the nineteenth century several studies werepublished, and three scientists who accompanied the AmericanCommission of Inquiry in the year 1871 made a report on geologicalconditions. From such studies as have been published it appears that the rockformations of Santo Domingo correspond to the secondary, the lower andmiddle tertiary and the quaternary epoch. The most ancient part of theisland is the central mountain range, also a series of protuberancesin the Samana peninsula, the nucleus of the Baboruco mountains and asingle point in the northern coast range near Puerto Plata. Thetertiary lands are those forming the entire northern part of theisland from the central range to the sea, portions of the Samanapeninsula between the older rocks, a large area to the southwest ofthe Zamba hills, smaller tracts between the Jaina and Nizao rivers, and the region between the salt lakes on the Haitian frontier andbetween Barahona and Neiba. The modern lands are the coast plains andthe small terraces on the south of the central range and on the southof the Baboruco mountains, the Maguana, Azua and Neiba valleys, smallareas on the north coast at the foot of the mountains, and the marshesand Yuna River delta at the head of Samana Bay. In the central mountain range is found a nucleus of eruptive rockswhich have raised and twisted sedimentary strata, covering them andforcing them aside. This nucleus is not a regular feature of the wholelength of the chain, but is an irregular mass beginning about at themiddle, in the region of the Jaina River, and extending in a series ofparallel lines obliquely across the backbone of the range to theborder of the Republic and on into Haiti. Among these rocks and bentand broken by them are the slates, conglomerates and calcareous rockswhich are found in the mountains and over the whole surface of theisland. The character of the central range and the inclination of thestrata of cretaceous rocks make it probable that the island emergedfrom the sea in the eocene period, its area being then confined to theextent of the central mountain chain, with a few small islands to thesouth, one or more islets to the northeast, comprising the older peaksof the Samana range, and a small archipelago to the southeast, wherethe hills of Seibo now are. During the miocene period these islandsbecame surrounded with coral reefs, the vestiges of which remain instrips of calcareous rock found in the same position in which theywere deposited. Towards the end of the tertiary period, after a timeof quiet, there was a new rise of the land. While the hills to thesouth of Samana Bay and the bed of the Cibao Valley from Samana Bay toMonte Cristi rose slowly, there was an upheaval further to the north, and the Monte Cristi Range was formed. Before this period it had beena bar at sea-level, covered with a clayey sediment of chalk. At alater geological period the great plains to the north and east ofSanto Domingo City were formed. Traces of valuable minerals are so general in the Republic that it issaid there is hardly a commune where a more or less abundant mineraldeposit is not found. The exceptions are the lands of recent corallineformation, such as the municipality of San Pedro de Macoris and thesouthern portion of the commune of Higuey. The magnet which attracted the Spaniards at the time of the conquestwas the island's mineral wealth, especially the gold deposits. It is ahistorical fact that large quantities of gold in dust and nuggets werecollected during the first years of Spanish colonization. According tothe Spanish writers, from 1502 to 1530 placer gold was produced to thevalue of from $200, 000 to $1, 000, 000 per annum. The fleet which setout in 1502 and was wrecked by a hurricane before leaving the coastwaters of Santo Domingo was laden with gold mined in the island. Atribute of a small amount of gold each year was imposed on half theIndians of the country. Much of the gold came from the mountainsbehind Santiago and La Vega, from the gold-bearing sands of the JainaRiver, around Buenaventura, and from the vicinity of Cotui, thencalled "Las Minas. " Ancient pits are still to be found in all theseplaces. At La Vega a mint was established for coining gold and silver. A nugget of extraordinary size was found by an Indian woman in abrook near the Jaina River; her Spanish masters in their exultationhad a roast suckling pig served on it, boasting that never had theking of Spain dined from so valuable a table. The Indian received nopart of the gold: "she was lucky if they gave her a piece of the pig, "remarks Father Las Casas. This nugget was purchased by Bobadilla tosend to Spain, and went down with the 1502 treasure fleet. The gold deposits found by the Spaniards were the surfaceaccumulations of centuries. When these were exhausted and the supply ofcheap labor fell off owing to the dying out of the Indians, themineral production waned. In 1502 labor difficulties caused atemporary cessation in mining. In 1511 many mines were definitelyclosed because of the scarcity of laborers and because the cultivationof sugar-cane offered surer profits. Then came the discovery of minesof fabulous wealth in Mexico and Peru, and the interest they aroused, as well as the lack of labor in Santo Domingo, caused the mines of theisland to be completely neglected. Finally, in 1543, mining workceased and by a royal decree all mines were ordered closed. Prospecting and desultory mining, especially placer mining, have beenkept up, however, until the present day. The prospecting has generally been confined to the more accessibleregions and nothing is known of the mountain valleys in the interior. The mineral deposits discovered have been of sufficient richness tocause the formation of mining companies for their development orfurther investigation. I do not, however, know of a single case whereprospectors or mining companies have ever made expenses. The cause offailure has most frequently been the lack of transportation facilitiesin the island, on account of which the cost of carrying the ore to aplace where it might be reduced became prohibitive. Sometimesenterprises failed because the deposit turned out to be too small, sometimes because the ore did not keep up to the standard, and notinfrequently mining companies fell by the wayside because of badmanagement. Enough evidence of mineral wealth has been found tojustify the belief that workable deposits do exist, and to warrantcareful further investigation, especially as the means ofcommunication are extended. The metals most frequently found are gold, copper and iron. Veins ofauriferous quartz are found throughout the central chain, the richestlodes being encountered in metamorphic rocks near crystallineformations. The metal is most abundant in placers formed in the riverbeds. Such placers are common in the Jaina River and its tributariesin the province of Santo Domingo; in Bonao creek in Seibo province;and in the Verde River, the streams of Sabaneta and a number of otherstreams of the Cibao. On the upper Jaina and on the Verde River thereare still persons who make their living by washing gold from the riversands. Hydraulic mining was attempted in Santiago province, but afterthe construction of an expensive canal the project was abandoned. Under the liberal mining law mining privileges have in recent yearsbeen granted for gold mines reported at numerous places in thecommunes of San Jose de las Matas, San Cristobal, Janico, San Juan dela Maguana, Sabaneta and others. Prof. William P. Black, one of thescientists accompanying the United States Commission of Inquiry in1871, reported: "There is a very considerable extent of gold-bearing country in theinterior and gold is washed from the rivers at various points. It isfound along the Jaina, upon the Verde, and upon the Yaque and itstributaries, and doubtless upon the large rivers of the interior. Some portions of the gold fields were worked anciently by theSpaniards and Indians. There are doubtless many gold deposits, notonly along the bed of rivers, but on the hills, which have never beenworked, and there probably is considerable gold remaining among theold workings. The appearance of the soil and rocks is such as tojustify the labor and expense of carefully prospecting thegold region. " Copper is next to gold in frequency of occurrence. Some of the bestdeposits have been found in the commune of San Cristobal, province ofSanto Domingo. A company working lodes at Mount Mateo on the NiguaRiver, encountered ore yielding as high as 33 per cent of copper. Onthe Jaina River near the ruins of Buenaventura, I have seen promisingledges of copper ore. Copper carbonates predominated, the green oreknown as malachite and the beautiful blue ore azurite were quitecommon, and white quartz, which on being broken showed little specksof native copper, was also to be found. The asperity of the region, the absence of roads and the uncertainty as to the extent of thesedeposits caused the attempts at working them to be but feeble untilrecently, when extensive works of development were undertaken in thevicinity. Copper veins have also been reported in the mountains of thecommune of Bani, province of Santo Domingo; in the communes of Cotuiand Bonao, province of La Vega; in the canton of Moncion, province ofMonte Cristi; in the commune of San Juan de la Maguana, province ofAzua, and at a number of other places. Iron is reported in large quantities in various parts of the country. The largest deposit so far known is on the banks of the Maimon Riverin the municipality of Cotui, being a bed of black magnetic oxide ofiron, nine miles long. It is said to be excellent in quality andinexhaustible in quantity. The difficulties of transportation in thiscase could be obviated by the canalization of the river to itsconfluence with the Yuna River, so as to make it navigable for smallboats. Iron ore has been discovered on the slope of Mt. Isabel deTorres behind the city of Puerto Plata, limonite deposits at variousplaces in Santo Domingo province, and a rich black iron oxide on theupper Ozama River. A layer of iron pyrites extending from Los Llanosall the way to Sabana la Mar was believed by its discoverers to be agold mine. The central ridge of Santo Domingo is part of the samemountain chain which extends through Santiago province in Cuba whereenormous quantities of iron are produced, and it is not improbablethat some of the Dominican mines will be found to pay. Coal mines found in the Samana peninsula produced a kind of lignitewhich proved of little commercial value and gave rise to the beliefthat the Republic's coal deposits had not emerged from the formativeperiod. Later investigations show that while there is considerableundeveloped lignite, coal suitable for fuel is not wanting. Small coaldeposits have been discovered in the Cibao Valley, between the centraland the northern mountain chain, in the province of Pacificador andthat of Santiago. Anthracite coal found at Tamboril, near the city ofSantiago, was used to run a small motor exhibited at an industrialfair in Santiago in 1903. In the commune of Altamira, province ofPuerto Plata, lignite and anthracite beds have been discovered, andtraces of anthracite have also been found in San Cristobal commune, and in the petroleum region of Azua. In the central mountain chain avaluable coal deposit has been found on the Haitian side and similarbeds may be expected in Santo Domingo. Silver has been discovered at Tanci, near Yásica, in the commune ofPuerto Plata. The old chronicles refer to silver mines at Jarabacoaand Cotui in La Vega province, also to others near Santiago, nearHiguey and on the Jaina River. Platinum occurs at Jarabacoa, traces ofquicksilver have been found near Santiago, Banica and San Cristobal, and tin in Seibo and Higuey. Rock salt is found near Neiba in inexhaustible quantities, there beingseveral hills of native salt covered with a thin layer of soil. Thefact that the waters of Lake Enriquillo are saltier than the sea isattributed by some to a deposit of this kind. The salt is so pure thatit does not attract moisture and deliquesce. The isolation of thedistrict has been an obstacle to the development of the salt mines, but there is a project for the building of a railroad to the port ofBarahona. Part of the salt used in the island comes from salt pondsnear Azua, where salt is obtained from sea water by solar evaporation. On a hill at the confluence of the Jimenoa and the Yaque del Norte analum deposit reaches the surface and the natives gather alum whichthey sell in Santiago City. A deposit of amber having been reported inthe Cibao a company was formed several years ago for its development, but as the company did nothing, so far as known, except issue stock, and no part of the untold millions which were affirmed to be withineasy reach has materialized, the deposit is not regarded as possessingcommercial value. For building purposes there is a large variety of limestone and lime. The coral rock is easy to quarry and soft enough to shape with theaxe, but exposure to the air makes it hard as granite, as is proven bythe old buildings and city walls of Santo Domingo City, which havestood for centuries. In the central range, on the Samana peninsula andnear Puerto Plata, granite, syenite and other building stones arefound, but owing to the absence of transportation facilities they arenot utilized. In the Bani region a sandstone occurs from whichgrindstones are made. Clay of a fine grade, proper for the manufactureof bricks and tiles, is abundant. Clays of various colors, found inthe interior of the island, are suitable for the manufacture ofpaints. Gypsum is found, especially in Azua province, and the presenceof kaolin and feldspar in the province of Santo Domingo, south of thecentral range, offers a possibility of porcelain manufacture. Petroleum has been found in large quantities in the vicinity of Azua. The presence of the oil is suspected in other parts of the island andit is claimed that a petroleum belt which is believed to extend fromPennsylvania to Venezuela embraces a considerable portion of theDominican Republic. Near Puerto Plata, during rains, one of thestreams flowing down from the mountains in the Mameyes section, iscovered with greasy spots thought to be petroleum that has oozed fromthe subsoil. Traces of petroleum have also been discovered near Neiba, and in the provinces of Pacificador and Seibo. Borings have been made only in the neighborhood of Azua. A pool knownas "agua hedionda, " "stinking water, " had long suggested petroleum, and an American company known as the West Indies Petroleum Mining andExport Company undertook the development of the field. Oil was struckon November 14, 1904, the well spouting oil to a height of seventyfeet and producing about 500 barrels per day. The grade of the oil was22 Baume gravity with an asphaltum base. It was better than theaverage of Texas oil and was considered a good fuel and lubricatingproduct. The main difficulty in this field was the presence of saltwater above the oil (as is often the case in oil regions), which herecame in rapidly at a depth of about 900 to 1000 feet. It was necessaryto put a gate valve on the first well, keeping it enclosed for aperiod of six months, in order to prevent the damaging of thesurrounding property from the flow of oil, as there were no storagetanks. During this time the continued agitation of the casing by thegas pressure and the looseness of the upper soils and shales let inthe salt water and ruined the well, and, it is to be feared, to someextent affected the surrounding territory. The company sunk four wellsmore, all but one of which produced some oil, but as the salt waterentered in such large quantities they were unable to penetrate belowthe 1200 feet level and were forced to abandon the wells at just aboutthe depth where they expected to reach the real oil sand. The fifthwell showed greater evidence of a genuine oil field than any drilledpreviously but for the same reason it could not be carried to thedesired depth. At this point dissensions arose in the management ofthe company with regard to the method of drilling, the suggestionbeing made that a combination drilling machinery comprising what isknown as the rotary process be adopted in combination with the oldcable rig style. No agreement was reached, and operations werediscontinued. Since the beginning of 1917 other interests have madeinvestigations and it is rumored that development work will shortlybegin. There are indications that if drilled with the properappliances the field will yield excellent results. How far the Azuaoil field extends is a matter of conjecture, but it has been estimatedto cover an area of over 190 square miles. Thermal springs are also found near Azua. At Resoli, about 21 milessouthwest of Azua City, there are hot sulphur springs of very copiousflow. Nearby there is one of tepid water, slightly acid and stinging, though pleasant to the taste, and with no trace of sulphur. Within aradius of a hundred yards there are about a dozen springs of differenttemperatures and medicinal properties, and the place is admirablyadapted for the location of a health resort. Mineral springs, especially sulphur springs, abound along the western frontier of theRepublic. On the Viajama River, where a sulphur mine is reported, there are cold sulphur springs which are said to have gushed forth forthe first time during the earthquake of 1751. To the east of Santiagoare the Anibaje springs which contain sulphur and iron. Hot and coldsulphur springs are found in the outskirts of San José de las Matas, southwest of Santiago, and hot springs at Banica, and to the east andwest of Lake Enriquillo. While there are no volcanoes on the island, severe seismicdisturbances have at times occasioned great havoc and loss of life. One of the first and most memorable was that of 1564 which overthrewthe cities of La Vega and Santiago de los Caballeros. La Vega was atthat time a good sized town with substantial brick houses, and themasses of masonry strewn about in the thicket which now covers thesite of the old city give evidence of the force of the earthquake. In1654 and 1673 dwellings and churches in Santo Domingo City weredamaged by lesser shocks, and in 1751 an earthquake wrecked edificesin the capital, and completely destroyed the old city of Azua and thetown of Seibo. The most recent and perhaps the most disastrousearthquake was that of 1842 when a violent commotion in the northernpart of the island demolished the cities of Santiago de los Caballeroson the Dominican side and Cape Haitien on the Haitian side, bringingdeath to hundreds of their inhabitants. Since that date there havebeen no severe shocks, though, as is the case in other West IndiaIslands, slight tremblings of the earth are not infrequent. I haveexperienced several of such tremblings in Santo Domingo and have neverbeen able to ward off a kind of creepy feeling when the rattling ofwindows and doors indicated their approach and passage. Near the ruinsof ancient La Vega the natives point out a spot in the woods whichthey call "tembladera" and where they say the earth quakes at theapproach of man. Investigation discloses that while the earth reallydoes tremble when anyone walks at this place the cause is not sodeep-seated as many imagine, the phenomenon being caused by the factthat the rich loamy soil is sustained by the interlaced roots oftrees, the foundation having been washed away by subterranean waters, and the grassy floor is swayed by every motion upon it. CHAPTER X FLORA AND FAUNA Agricultural conditions. --Land titles and measures. --Wet and aridregions. --Exports. --Sugar. --Cacao. --Tobacco. --Coffee. --Tropicalfruits. --Forest products. --Insects. --Reptiles. --Fishery. --Birds. --Cattle raising. Of all the islands visited by Columbus none impressed him so favorablyas Santo Domingo. His enthusiasm is reflected in the glowingdescription given in his letter to his friend and patron, Luis deSantangel, dated February 15, 1493, of which the following forms part: "In it (la Española) there are many havens on the sea, coast, incomparable with any others I know in Christendom--and plenty ofrivers, so good and great that it is a marvel. The lands there arehigh, and in it there are very many ranges of hills and most loftymountains, incomparably beyond the Island of Cetrefrey (Teneriffe);all most beautiful in a thousand shapes and all accessible, and fullof trees of a thousand kinds, so lofty that they seem to reach thesky. And I am assured that they never lose their foliage, as may beimagined, since I saw them as green and as beautiful as they are inSpain in May, and some of them were in flower, some in fruit, some inanother stage, according to their kind. And the nightingale wassinging, and other birds of a thousand sorts, in the month ofNovember, round about the way I was going. There are palm trees of sixor eight species, wondrous to see for their beautiful variety; but soare the other trees and fruits and plants therein. There are wonderfulpine groves and very large plains of verdure, and there is honey andmany kinds of birds and great diversity of fruits. There are manymines of metals in the earth, and the population is of inestimablenumber. Española is a marvel; the mountains and hills, and plains, andfields, and the soil so beautiful and rich for planting and sowing, for breeding cattle of all sorts, for building towns and villages. There could be no believing, without seeing, such harbors as are here, as well as the many and great rivers and excellent waters, most ofwhich contain gold. In the trees and fruits and plants there is greatdiversity from those of Juana (Cuba). In this island there are manyspecies and great mines of gold and other metals. " Columbus' panegyric on the beauty, fertility and resources of theIsland has been echoed by every writer and traveler who has sincevisited the country. The United States Commission of Inquiry to SantoDomingo reported in 1871: "The resources of the country are vast andvarious, and its products may be increased with scarcely any otherlimit than the labor expended upon them.... Taken as a whole, thisRepublic is one of the most fertile regions on the face of the earth. The evidence of men well acquainted with the other West India Islandsdeclares this to be naturally the richest of them all. " Yet thecountry's wonderful resources are to-day in almost virgin condition;in the greater part of the Republic's extent they remain absolutelyuntouched; in the remainder the beginning of development has scarcelybeen made. In the first days of the colony it appeared that agriculturalprosperity would quickly be attained. Great plantations were set outand the remains of palaces and convents in Santo Domingo City testifyto the wealth they produced. But the prosperity was founded on thebasis of slavery. The laughing aborigines soon succumbed under forcedlabor, the importation of negroes was found expensive, and hopes ofbetter fortune attracted the colonists to the American continent. While the country languished under restrictive trade regulations, stock raising became almost the sole pursuit of the Spanish section ofthe island. In the meantime the French settled the western coast, andthe name of their colony, also founded on slavery, became a synonymfor wealth and luxury. The development of the Spanish section hadscarcely begun at the end of the eighteenth century when it wasblocked by wars, the Haitian occupation, and later by the civildisturbances. The native had no incentive to accumulate property, which would only attract revolutionists, and the foreigner was charyof investing his money in so turbulent a community. What progress hasbeen made is due to the short periods of peace, principally the periodof Heureaux's ascendancy, from 1880 to 1899, and the periods from 1905to date. The rapid and gratifying strides made since theDominican-American fiscal treaty increased the probabilities of peaceare an indication of what the country may and will in time attain. Asan English-speaking resident put it, paraphrasing a familiar saying inthe United States, "If the people will only raise more cacao and lessHades, the country will soon be a paradise. " At the present time themost serious obstacle to rural development is the lack of adequatemeans of communication--roads and railroads. It is evident that theinterior cannot be developed so long as the cost of transportation isprohibitive or the roads are impassable during a great part ofthe year. The condition of land titles leaves much to be desired. All titles aresupposed to be derived from original grants by the crown or thegovernment of the Republic. As there is no record extant of suchgrants and as much land has been acquired by adverse possession, theamount of land remaining to the state cannot even be the subject of anintelligent guess. The greater part of such land passed to theRepublic as successor to the Spanish crown, another portion was addedin 1844 by the confiscation of property belonging to Haitians, but noattempt has ever been made to survey or even to list state lands. According to some estimates the state owns as much as one or eventwo-fifths the area of the Republic, but it is probable that theseestimates are exaggerated and almost the only tracts remaining to thegovernment are situated in the inaccessible mountain region of theinterior and along the Haitian border. The income of the Republic isstill insufficient to leave money for the investigation of publiclands, and every year's delay will permit more of such lands to beabsorbed by private persons. A large portion of the rural land is held in common. Tracts originallybelonging to one owner descended undivided among his heirs forgenerations, individual heirs sometimes sold their shares, and theresult is that often the tract belongs in common to many persons, someof them holding very small shares. The shares of the co-owners areknown as "pesos de posesión, " "dollars of possession, " correspondingto the value given them at some remote period. The owner of anyundivided portion of such "comunero" property, though he hold only oneor two shares or "pesos de posesión, " may enter upon and cultivate anypart of the land he finds unoccupied by other co-owners, and useanything growing or existing thereon, except certain timber or unlessit be the result of the labor of other co-owners. That this peculiarmode of enjoying the comunero property has not resulted in frictionand conflicts may be ascribed to the smallness of the cultivatedfields, the small population and the enormous expanse of vacant land. For the prospective purchaser the doubts surrounding the title tocomunero lands are enhanced by the existence of fraudulent "peso"titles and by the destruction of public offices where title transfersshould have been recorded. In recent years much division of comuneroland among the co-owners has been going on and such action isfacilitated by a law of 1911, but the importance of the matter meritsadditional laws to cheapen and hasten the division. All the planting of small crops by the poorer countryman is done inwhat are called "conucos, " cleared spaces fenced by sticks laidtightly against each other in order to keep out the wild pigs whichinfest the country. The construction of the fences is a laborioustask, yet after one or two years they require extensive repairs, andwhen the repairs are such as to amount to a practical rebuilding, the"conuco" is commonly abandoned, and a new one located elsewhere. Thismethod is wasteful of fence-material and land. The planting is done inthe most primitive way, commonly by making a hole in the ground with amachete or by using a forked stick as a plow. There are few hoes, andamong the natives no modern steel plows. A "conuco" is usually about one acre in extent, or to be precisetwenty-five varas conuqueras square. Though the metric system is theofficial system of measurement and is gradually coming into use, manyof the older standards still prevail. A common measure of length isthe Castilian vara, about equivalent to an English yard; the varaconuquera, about two and a half yards; the tarea, used for measuringfences, twenty-five varas conuqueras in length, and the league, something over three miles. The common units of surface measurementare the tarea, of about one-sixth acre, and the caballeria of 1200tareas or about 200 acres. Generally speaking, a line drawn from Cape Isabela on the north coast, through Santiago, to the mouth of the Nizao River in the south, divides the country into two regions of which the eastern one hasabundant rainfall and luxuriant tropical vegetation, while in thewestern one there is little rain, and cactus plants and thorny bushesbetoken the aridity of the soil. The two ends of the Cibao Valley seemlike different countries, the eastern end covered with palm-trees, ferns and other flora of the torrid zone, and the western portion dryand dotted with giant cacti of fantastic shape. In the country nearAzua and Monte Cristi I have imagined myself on the plains of NewMexico, with their scorching heat, their cactus, mesquite bushes anddistant violet mountains fading into the azure sky. While arid, thesewestern regions of Santo Domingo are as fertile as the rest of thecountry and when irrigated give remarkable crops. One of the Dominicangovernment's projects is an extensive irrigation scheme for the MonteCristi district. The most productive portion of the Republic isundoubtedly the Royal Plain in the Cibao Valley, which is of almostincredible fertility. It is covered with a rich black loam from threeto fifteen feet deep, as can be seen wherever brooks have cut ravinesinto the earth, and is referred to as the Mississippi Valley of theDominican Republic. The greater or less elevation of the land has likewise produceddifferent agricultural zones: the lower plains of the southern coastare favored for sugar planting; the slightly higher lands are givenover to cacao and coffee, and the highest part of the country, themountain region, is covered with timber. Broad savannas are a featureof the southern portion of the Republic; on the plains to the east ofSanto Domingo City, all the way to the ocean, there are great seas ofgrass, like the prairies of the United States, with large islands oftrees, while to the west they constitute lakes in a continentof forest. All tropical fruits grow in profusion and many vegetables, fruits andcereals indigenous to countries of the temperate zone are successfullygrown. Practically all the vegetables and fruits, as well as thegrains and staples of the Middle States of the American Union may beproduced, especially in the higher portion of the island. The factthat raspberries and delicious grapes grow wild in the highlandindicates the possibilities of fruit culture. With a view toencouraging agriculture the various provinces for years had "boards ofdevelopment" paid from national funds, but the positions on theseboards were regarded as political plums, and while the members drewtheir salaries, no other result of their activities was apparent. Thegovernment has also made spasmodic attempts to establish anagricultural experiment station, but with its limited resourcesnothing tangible has been accomplished. The establishment andextension of large sugar estates was stimulated by a law ofagricultural franchises, enacted in 1911, granting excessively broadprivileges and exemptions to sugar, cacao and coffee plantations whichregistered under that law. The table on the opposite page shows the quantity and value of theprincipal exports of the Dominican Republic since 1913 and is the bestillustration of the fact that agriculture is the mainstay ofthe country. EXPORTS OF THE DOMINICAN REPUBLIC 1913 1914 1915 1916Sugar (raw) kilos[1] 78, 849, 465 101, 428, 847 102, 800, 551 122, 642, 514 value $3, 650, 556 $4, 943, 452 $7, 676, 383 $12, 028, 297Cacao kilos 19, 470, 827 20, 744, 517 20, 223, 023 21, 053, 305 value $4, 119, 955 $3, 896, 489 $4, 863, 754 $5, 958, 669Tobacco leaf kilos 9, 790, 398 3, 705, 549 6, 235, 409 7, 925, 151 value $1, 121, 775 $394, 224 $972, 896 $1, 433, 323Coffee kilos 1, 048, 922 1, 831, 938 2, 468, 435 1, 731, 718 value $257, 076 $345, 579 $458, 431 $316, 827Hides and kilos 541, 154 685, 042 638, 020 616, 446 skins value $241, 072 $253, 832 $270, 356 $334, 665Sugar cane value -- $62, 585 $195, 782 $295, 622Bananas bunches 592, 804 114, 142 327, 169 348, 560 value $296, 368 $57, 044 $166, 432 $172, 615Beeswax and honey value $206, 749 $207, 290 $144, 579 $176, 144Molasses kilos 12, 064, 038 17, 962, 441 15, 484, 205 18, 752, 440 value $60, 737 $93, 787 $100, 023 $120, 738Forest value $167, 037 $66, 464 $64, 368 $57, 250 productsCotton kilos 242, 221 167, 123 141, 623 91, 258 value $85, 398 $67, 830 $60, 600 $31, 759All other value $263, 224 $200, 211 $240, 457 $601, 964 exports ------------------------------------------------Total value $10, 469, 947 $10, 588, 787 $15, 209, 061 $21, 527, 873 [Footnote 1: 1 kilo = 2. 2 pounds] Sugar, the leading export, is the principal product of the southernportion of the Republic. In contrast with the cultivation of cacao, coffee and tobacco, sugar planting requires a large outlay of capital. The fields must be carefully prepared, extensive ditching must be donein order to provide irrigation during the dry season; the fields mustbe cleaned repeatedly while the cane is growing; and when the caneeventually matures, after fourteen to eighteen months of growth, it must upon cutting be immediately transported to the mill, where expensive machinery grinds it and fabricates sugar fromthe cane juice. The large sugar plantations of the countryare all owned by foreigners, principally Americans and Italians, but dependent upon them are many small plots, planted undercontract with the central factory by small native owners orcontractors. Before the establishment of the first of theseplantations near Macoris in the early eighties, the apparatus formaking sugar was as crude as that employed by the first colonists, consisting of small presses turned by oxen, and large caldrons to boilthe cane. The other West India Islands are dotted with the ruins ofold sugar mills erected in the beginning and middle of the lastcentury, but those days were not favorable to investment in SantoDomingo and such buildings and ruins are absolutely wanting inthis island. Most of the large plantations are located in the vicinity of San Pedrode Macoris, and to them the city owes its rapid development. Theserepresent a value of millions of dollars, are equipped with plantationrailroads and modern mills and extend over thousands of acres of theplains behind the city. The great Consuelo estate, the Santa Féplantation, the Porvenir and the Puerto Rico estates are owned byAmerican capital, and two others, the Quisqueya and Cristobal Colonplantations are owned by Americans and Cubans. The Angelina estate isan Italian investment, but its owners hold it in the name of theGeneral Industrial Company, a corporation organized by them under thelaws of New Jersey, apparently with a view to claiming Americanprotection in case of disturbances. The principal owners of thisestate as well as of other Italian sugar estates on the south coastare heirs of J. B. Vicini, who was a wealthy Italian merchant of SantoDomingo City. One of the largest sugar estates of the Republic is the CentralRomana, which controls some 40, 000 acres near the port of La Romana, and is owned by the South Porto Rico Sugar Company. Since the firstcrop in 1911 the cane has been shipped to the mill at Guanica, PortoRico, for grinding, but a huge fifteen-roller mill, which will be thelargest on the island, is now in course of erection at La Romana. Two plantations near Santo Domingo City, San Isidro and La Fé, belongto Americans. The Italia sugar estate at Yaguate, near the NizaoRiver, the Ocoa estate and the Central Azuano, on the outskirts ofAzua all belong to the Vicini heirs. At Azua there is anotherplantation, the Ansonia estate, which is the property of Americans. The plantations at Azua and Ocoa are watered by irrigation, those ofAzua deriving their water from artesian wells. American capital isalso establishing sugar plantations near Barahona. On the north coastthere are only two small sugar plantations near Puerto Plata, in whichGerman and Spanish capital is interested, but another is beingestablished at Sosua. So rich are the Dominican lands that cane will grow from the same rootfor ten and even twenty years, while in Porto Rico and the lesserAntilles long cultivation has exhausted the soil and replanting isnecessary every three years. Near Macoris the planters have had somuch land available that instead of replanting they have oftenabandoned their old fields and taken up virgin lands instead. Thebusiest time in Macoris is the crop season from November to May. Manylaborers are then required, and as native labor is not abundant, largenumbers of negroes come from the British West Indies to work on theplantations, returning to their homes when the cane has been cut. Most of the Dominican sugar goes to the United States and a largeportion is eventually sold in Canada and England. When the amount ofsugar produced in little Porto Rico is compared with that grown inSanto Domingo, it is evident that the Dominican production mighteasily be increased to twenty times its present figure. While sugar attracts the foreigner, the Dominican's favorite staplehas been cacao. The cacao or chocolate tree grows in a number of theWest India Islands, but in none of them is it cultivated to such anextent as in Santo Domingo. Cacao is peculiarly fitted to be a "poorman's crop, " as little land and labor are required and, while thetrees are growing, corn, bananas and other crops can be raised on thesame field. Most of the cacao is raised on small plantations, producing from fifty to one hundred barrels, a barrel being worthabout eight dollars. For the preparation and planting of the field ofa poor man the whole family turns out and neighbors often come tohelp, regular planting bees being organized. The larger landownermakes contracts for the preparation of his lands, paying at the rateof $2 or $2. 50 a tarea. The best months for planting cacao are the wet months, which in theCibao are May and October. Small holes are dug in the earth aboutthree yards apart and three beans placed in each. When the sproutsgrow into young trees, two of the three should be cut off, and thebest developed allowed to remain; but the countrymen generally permitall three to grow, with resulting dwarfed trees and poor crops. Toprotect the small plants from the hot sun a yuca or cassava plant isset out next to each one. While the trees are growing, corn is plantedbetween the rows and three or even four crops are obtained in eachyear. After two years the cacao trees begin to bloom, after threeyears they begin to give fruit, and their production graduallyincreases until their eighth year when they reach mature growth. Eachtree furnishes about two pounds of cacao per year. On the largerplantations less attention is paid to ancillary crops and the cacaoplants are raised in seedbeds, the seedlings being transplanted to thefield after six months or a year. When the pods containing the cacaobeans are ripe the beans are extracted, soaked in water and then driedin the sun. During the crop season cacao beans are spread on matsbefore every native hut and in the streets of every town and villagein the Cibao, and the sourish smell of the drying bean pervadesthe air. The principal cacao region is the Cibao and the upper Seibo plain, andthe largest plantation, belonging to the well-known Swiss chocolatemanufacturer, Suchard, is situated near Sabana la Mar, on the southside of Samana Bay. The cacao here produced is not of the finestgrade, such as that grown in Ecuador, but goes to make the cheapergrades of chocolate. The ease with which cacao is planted and the profits to be derivedfrom it often cause the small farmers to neglect everything else forcacao and purchase articles of food which they could themselves raise. The consequence is that when the cacao crop fails, there is widespreadwant and discontent. Cacao has been exported since 1888, before which time it was grown forlocal consumption only. For years it led the country's exports, untilsugar took first place in 1914. The greater portion of the cacao cropis exported through the port of Sanchez, on Samana Bay. Formerlyalmost the whole crop went to Europe, Havre being the chief market, but of late years the United States has become one of theprincipal buyers. The cultivation of tobacco is confined to the Cibao region, where itwas grown by the Indians when the Spaniards landed. It is a cropyielding rapid returns, but cacao has paid so much better that theprogress of tobacco culture has been slow. The effort of thecountrymen to produce quantity rather than quality has prevented thedevelopment of the finer grades and the price paid for Dominicantobacco is low. While the tobacco grown is of inferior quality, thereis no reason why it should not be susceptible of improvement as theclimatic and soil conditions of the interior valleys are very similarto those of the tobacco regions of Cuba and Porto Rico. Tobacco is grown mostly by small planters and sold to the largecommercial houses of Santiago and Puerto Plata. Practically the entirecrop is exported through Puerto Plata. Before the European war thegreat market for Dominican tobacco was Hamburg. Up to 1907 tobacco wasexported only in leaf, but since then a small cigarette industry hasdeveloped. Coffee is another native crop the development of which has beenchecked by the popularity of cacao. It is also a crop which can begrown with profit on small tracts of land. The coffee bushes flourishin the mountains and are grown under the shade of larger trees. Aclearing having been made in the forest, the small coffee trees areplanted in rows or irregularly and near each a banana or plantaintree. The latter reach full height within six months and afford shadeuntil guava and other shade trees planted on the field have attainedsufficient size. A wait of five years is necessary before the coffeebushes begin to bear, but after that they continue indefinitely everyyear, the only labor required being that of keeping the plantationclear of brush and picking the berries when they are ripe. The treesgrow to a height of six or eight feet; they bloom with a fragrant, white, star-like flower which on withering leaves the green embryo ofthe berry. When the berry has reached the size of a hazel-nut it turnsred and is picked, much of the picking being done by women. Theberries are poured into a simple machine which extracts the two coffeebeans encased in each berry. The beans are dried in the sun, on thelargest plantations in drying machines. They are then transported tothe merchants in town, where they are polished in another machine, assorted and bagged for export. The town of Moca owes its name to thefact that the principal coffee plantations lie in its vicinity. Otherimportant coffee districts are Santiago and Bani. About two-thirds ofthe coffee of the Republic is exported from Puerto Plata. The coffee of Santo Domingo is of excellent quality. In normal timesthe greater portion was exported to France and Germany, but most of itnow goes to the United States. With one exception the limitless resources of Santo Domingo withreference to fruit culture have remained untouched. The singleexception was the United Fruit Company's banana plantation at Sosua, about ten miles east of Puerto Plata, and even this estate is atpresent, in consequence of the greater attractiveness of sugar, beingconverted into a sugar plantation. Otherwise there has been no attemptto raise fruit for export, though the sweet and bitter orange, thelemon, the lime, the grapefruit and the paradoxical sweet lemon, growwild. Pineapples are raised only for the small home consumption. Anobstacle to the cultivation of such fruits at the present time wouldbe the absence of rapid fruit steamers to the United States. Thefruits peculiar to the torrid zone all grow in profusion and amongthem the native is fondest of the juicy mango, the guava, the aguacateor alligator pear, the anon or custard apple, the guanabana orsoursop, the mamon or sweetsop, the mamey or marmalade fruit, thenispero or sapodilla and the tamarind. From the large palm-grovesabout Samana Bay cocoanuts and a little copra are exported, principally to the United States. Small attempts have been made to cultivate other products to which thecountry is adapted. Growers of cotton and hemp are encouraged byresults, but a rice plantation established in the swamp-lands near thehead of Samana Bay proved a failure rather on account of errors ofmanagement than for other reasons. In the forests which cover her mountains Santo Domingo has hardwoods, dyewoods and building timber of inestimable value. Only a generationago mahogany trees grew all the way to the water's edge, but years ofwasteful cutting have exhausted the nearer supplies and the morevaluable woods must now be sought in the interior. In the mountainsand on the high plateaus of the interior there are hundreds of squaremiles of Spanish cedar and longleaf pine. The principal woods exportedare mahogany, guayacan, known to commerce as lignum vitae (one of thehardest woods and so heavy that when in loading the steamer a logdrops into the sea it sinks to the bottom like iron), bera or bastardlignum vitae, espinillo or yellowwood, campeche or logwood (a famousdyeing material), sparwood and cedar. Other forest products exportedare dividivi, a tanning bark, and resins. Most of these exports go tothe United States and England. For the preparation of lumber for localneeds there are sawmills in La Vega and Santiago de los Caballeros. With regard to indigenous fauna Santo Domingo occupies a positionmidway between the diverse and abundant fauna of Cuba and the morelimited species of the Leeward Islands. Insects abound and in all thecoast towns it is necessary to sleep under a mosquito bar. Wild beesare found in many parts of the country and apiculture has met withmuch success. Of poisonous insects there are few. Those sometimesmet with are the species of tarantula known as the hairy spider, thespider known as guava, and the blue spider, also the scorpion and thecentipede. Their sting produces intense pain, inflammation and fever. They are found in crevices, under stones, in caves, and in rottenwood. The last two are often seen in old houses, but daily use of thebroom and duster will make them appear but rarely. Some of theseanimals grow to a large size. On a ride on the Haitian border my horseshied at a tarantula in the trail, and in calling my Dominicancompanion's attention to it, I remarked that it was as large as asaucer. "That is nothing, " he replied, "there are many around here aslarge as a soup plate. " There are few classes of reptiles. Santo Domingo is a paradise whereserpents are at a discount, for they are few in number and althoughoccasionally some are found of considerable size, they are allharmless. Lizards are plentiful in the forests, the largest classbeing known as iguana, which is eaten by some of the country people, as it was in former days by the Indians. The lizards are allinoffensive. A species of alligator is found in the lower waters ofthe Yaque del Norte and of the Yaque del Sur, and in the salt lakes onthe Haitian border. Tortoises occur in such numbers that their shellforms an article of commerce. Crustaceans and testaceans are abundant in number though few inspecies. A tiny oyster is found, not much larger than a thumb-nail, but very succulent. The marine fauna is the same as that of theneighboring Antilles, the sea and rivers teeming with edible fish, towhich, however, but little attention is paid. Sharks infest the coastsand render bathing unsafe except behind protecting reefs. Occasionally, too, a manati, or sea-cow, is seen. This strange mammalhas breasts which resemble those of a human being and emits criesthat sound almost human. It was probably a party of manati gambolingabout in the water which induced Columbus gravely to enter in hislogbook that he had sighted mermaids near Monte Cristi. Of birds there are over one hundred and fifty species, aboutninety-five of which are residents and among these several peculiar tothis island. The forests resound with the cries of parrots and otherbirds of beautiful plumage; from any point on the coast pelicans andother ichthyophagous birds can be observed darting into the watersafter their prey; the lakes and rivers are the home of thousands ofwild ducks; myriads of wild pigeons breed in the woods; and the numberof insectivorous birds, including the sweet-singing nightingale, jilguero and turpial, the swallow and the small pitirre and colibri, is infinite. The caves are inhabited by swarms of bats, the guano ofwhich, mingled with the calcareous detritus of the rocky walls, isfound in great deposits and constitutes a good fertilizer. At the time of the discovery the Spaniards found very few kinds ofquadruped mammals. One was the agouti, looking like a large rat andinhabiting the forests; another the coati, similar to the squirrel andeasily domesticated. Three other classes are mentioned, the quemi, mohui and perro mudo (dumb dog), but are not now to be found and asthe description of two of them almost tallies with that of the othersabove mentioned, it is possible that different names were applied tothe same animals. It is possible, too, that reference was made to thesolenodon or almiqui, an animal long thought to be extinct but ofwhich several specimens have recently been found in Santo Domingo. This animal is about two feet, long and resembles a rat, but having along prehensile snout and the habits of an ant-eater, it is consideredto be a remnant of the early zoölogical type from which diverged boththe rodents and the insectivorous animals of the present. The Spaniards introduced the European domestic animals, whichimmediately began to flourish. During the seventeenth and eighteenthcentury the principal and for a long time almost the only industry ofthe Spanish portion of the island was cattle-raising. Some of thecattle and pigs escaped to the woods and reverted to the wild state, and towards the middle and end of the seventeenth century great herdsof wild cattle roamed over the island. Such herds no longer exist, butwild pigs have found their way to the most remote recesses of themountains and are the plague of the fields. The equine species, sprungfrom the Andalusian horses brought by the Spaniards, has degeneratedconsiderably and the best horses in the Republic today are of PortoRican stock, but attention is at last being given to breeding. Thelargest herds of cattle roam about in the unfenced arid regions of thenorthwest. Hides are exported in large quantities, but there is littledairying. Of late years attention is being directed to improving thestock and several stock farms have been established near San Pedrode Macoris. Sheep raising is followed to some extent in the arid regions of thesouthwest and northwest, but the wool is of coarse grade. An importantindustry in these regions, especially in the neighborhood of Azua, isgoat-raising. My inquiry as to the population of Azua was answered bythe purser of the Clyde line steamer: "About three thousand people andabout three million goats. " Though his estimate of the number of goatsmay have been somewhat exaggerated, the fact is that they areeverywhere in evidence and charge through the streets in droves, andat the great Azua church I found a goat in the vestibule lookingreverently in. Over nine-tenths of the goatskins exported from theRepublic go to the United States. CHAPTER XI THE PEOPLE Population. --Distribution. --Race. --Descendants of Americannegroes. --Language. --Physical traits. --Mental traits. --Amusements. --Dances, theaters, clubs, carnivals. --Gaming. --Morality. --Homes. The estimates of the early Spanish writers as to the Indian populationof Hispaniola at the time of its first settlement in 1493 range allthe way from one million to three million inhabitants. While it isprobable that the former number was nearer to the truth, it is evidentthat the island was well inhabited, for Columbus found every valleyswarming with natives. The severe labor imposed by the Spaniards madesuch frightful inroads on the native population that within a decadelabor for the plantations and mines began to grow scarce and fortythousand inhabitants of the Bahama Islands were imported to increasethe supply. They were lured on board the Spanish transports by thepromise that they were to be conveyed to the beautiful home of theirdeparted ancestors and though they did indeed quickly join theirdeceased relatives, it was not until after a taste of purgatory in themines of Santo Domingo. In 1507 the entire Indian population wasestimated at only 70, 000, in 1508 it had fallen to 40, 000, and in 1514to 14, 000. Six years later the remnant of the aborigines united in themountains to resist the Spaniards to the end, but in 1533 a treaty wasconcluded by which the Indians were assigned certain lands near Boya, thirty miles northeast of Santo Domingo City. According to someauthorities 4000 and according to others only 600 natives remained totake advantage of this provision. Thereafter all mention of theIndians disappears from Dominican annals. Types recalling Indiancharacteristics are sometimes seen, however, and it is probable thatsome Indian blood is still represented in the country. Father Las Casas, the friend of the Indians, is credited with thesuggestion that in place of the frail natives negroes be imported forlabor in the mines and on the plantations. The earliest importationsseem to have taken place in the opening years of the sixteenthcentury, for as early as 1505 King Ferdinand authorized the shipmentof more negroes in lots of 100. Later, licenses were issued for theimportation of negro slaves by the thousands and many more wereprobably smuggled in. The Spanish population also grew rapidly untilabout 1530 when the colony reached the zenith of its wealth andprosperity. Twelve years later, when the decline had become marked, itwas estimated that besides a substantial white population there were30, 000 negro slaves on the island. The superior attractions of othernewly discovered countries and the fear of piratical invasions had by1591 decreased the total population of the colony to 15, 000. Thisnumber remained almost stationary until about 1663 when it began todwindle further until the low water mark was reached, about 1737, andthe entire population of the Spanish portion of the island wasestimated at but 6, 000. Timely tariff concessions revived trade andencouraged immigration and new importations of slaves the number ofinhabitants increased rapidly and in 1785 was reckoned at 150, 000, including 30, 000 slaves and a considerable proportion of free coloredpersons. A decade later saw the beginning of the negro insurrectionin the French section of Santo Domingo; the horrors attending thiswar, the invasion of the Spanish colony by the Haitians, the menace offurther invasions, the frequent changes of sovereignty, and adverseeconomic conditions, produced an exodus in the course of which thegreat majority of the white population abandoned the island, many withall their slaves and dependents. A few returned, but in 1809 it wascalculated that the inhabitants of Spanish Santo Domingo numbered104, 000 and in 1819 but 63, 000, of whom the greater number werecolored. During Haitian rule, from 1822 to 1844, white emigrationagain took place and white immigration was discouraged, whilesettlements of negroes from Haiti and the United States were made indifferent parts of the country. The increase of the population sincethat time has been subject to little outside influence; there has beenpractically no emigration, and immigration has been insignificant, thefew new settlers being chiefly negroes from the British colonies, Haitians, Porto Ricans, Syrians and European merchants. In 1863 anecclesiastical census, based on the returns of the various parishpriests, placed the population at 207, 700. This number may bedescribed as little more than a compilation of guesses and wasprobably exaggerated. A similar ecclesiastical census taken in 1888gave a total of 382, 312 inhabitants. These ecclesiastical computations were founded to some extent onparish records of baptisms and burials, but this basis became more andmore precarious as the population increased. Probably the records mostnearly accurate are the baptismal records of the Church, for almostevery Dominican is baptized at some time in his life. The deathrecords are the least complete on account of the obstacles presentedduring the civil disorders and the distance at which many countrypeople live from the place of registry. A law of civil registry, requiring the inscription of all births, marriages and deaths has beenonly indifferently carried out and during times of insurrectionentirely suspended. A government census was begun in 1908 but notconcluded. Any accurate computation is thus out of the question. Unofficial estimates of the population to-day range all the way from400, 000 to 920, 000. In 1908 an official estimate based on birthstatistics, placed it at 605, 000. An unofficial estimate in 1917, madeon the assumption that there are 1000 inhabitants for every 37 birthsreported, calculated the total population at 795, 432, thus distributedamong the several provinces: Santo Domingo ... 127, 976Santiago ........ 123, 972La Vega.......... 105, 000Pacificador...... 90, 569Seibo............ 68, 135Espaillat........ 64, 108Azua ............ 59, 783Puerto Plata ... 55, 864Monte Cristi ... 41, 459Macoris.......... 28, 000Barahona ........ 17, 891Samana .......... 12, 675 The estimate of 37 births per 1000 inhabitants is probably too largeas the birth-rate in Jamaica is but 34. 6, in the Leeward Islands 33, and in the birth-registration area of the United States only 24. 9. Areduction of ten per cent in the above figures would probably makethem more nearly correct. That would give a total population of about715, 000. Accepting the number of inhabitants as 715, 000 thepopulation per square mile is about 39. 6. A comparison with thesurrounding West Indian countries reveals considerable disproportion. The Dominican Republic is not quite one-half the size of Cuba but hasonly one-fourth the number of inhabitants; it is almost double thesize of the Republic of Haiti but has less than one-half theinhabitants; it is five times the size of Porto Rico and has butone-half the population; it is one hundred and seven times as large asBarbados but has only four times the population. If the DominicanRepublic were as densely populated as the neighboring Republic ofHaiti, it would have 3, 000, 000 inhabitants; if the population were asdense as that of Porto Rico, it would be 7, 000, 000; if the Republicwere as densely inhabited as Barbados it would have over 21, 000, 000people. Though the climatic and topographical conditions of thecountry would not permit it to become as thickly populated asBarbados, there is no reason why it should not support a populationproportional to that of Porto Rico. As in the other West India Islands the population is principallyrural. There are probably not more than a dozen towns in the Republicwith more than 1500 inhabitants. A government census of Santo DomingoCity, the capital and largest urban center, taken in November, 1908, showed a population of 18, 626, and the number is now estimatedas 21, 000. A census of Santiago de los Caballeros, taken by the municipalauthorities in 1903, showed an urban population of 10, 921, the presentestimate being 14, 000. The estimated population of Puerto Plata isabout 7000; La Vega and San Pedro de Macoris are believed to haveabout 5000 inhabitants each, but in every other case the urbanpopulation falls below 3000. The population of the DominicanRepublic is not scattered uniformly over the country, but is to befound chiefly in a fringe along the shore all the way from MonteCristi to Barahona, and in the Cibao Valley. The most denselypopulated region is that part of the Cibao Valley known as the RoyalPlain. In the mountainous interior there are vast stretches almost orentirely uninhabited; and remote valleys which have not been visitedsince the days of the conquest. The vicissitudes through which Santo Domingo has passed, the departureof so large a proportion of whites in the beginning of the nineteenthcentury and the intermingling of blood before and since that time havedetermined the character of the population. At the present time thepure negroes are in a minority, constituting probably less thanone-fourth the entire population. The great majority of theinhabitants are of mixed Spanish and African blood, their colorranging from black to white. The lighter shades predominate, especially in the Cibao. There is also a sprinkling of pure whites, the majority of whom are to be found in the Cibao region or areforeigners residing in the larger cities. Many families would pass forwhite anywhere, showing absolutely no trace of colored blood, and itis difficult to believe confidential assurances of their intimatefriends, indicating a different condition. A few families trace theirancestry back to the first Spanish colonists. As most of the blackslive south of the central mountain range the population of this regionis a good deal darker than that of the northern part of the island. The census of Santo Domingo City in 1908 reported 7016 whites, 6934colored persons and 4676 blacks, but apart from the circumstance thatnumerous white foreigners reside in the capital, it is probable thatmany persons were classified as white who would have been consideredcolored in the United States under the stricter rules thereprevailing. A comparison with Haiti discloses marked racial differences. In theFrench-speaking republic about ninety per cent of the inhabitants arepure blacks, the remainder being mulattoes. The distinction betweenthe two countries is due to several circumstances: in Santo Domingothe pure blacks have never been in a majority; the whites have neverall left the country; massacres of mulattoes and whites have nevertaken place; there have never been political parties based on color;and the relations between the races have always been cordial. Incompany, side by side, mulattoes, blacks and whites have lived, worked, enjoyed themselves and fought their revolutions. There isabsolutely no color line. A friend of mine from Virginia receivedquite a shock the first time he attended a state ball in Santo Domingoand saw an immense negro, as black as coal, a member of Congress, dancing with a girl as white as any of the foreign ladies present. Herushed to the refreshment room and beckoned to a tall mulatto in adress suit: "I'll have something to cool off, here waiter--" He wasstopped just in time for he was mistaking the secretary of foreignaffairs for a waiter; but after this experience he was afraid ofgiving his order to anyone else for fear he might be offending someother high official. The blacks are commonly the lower laborers, butnegroes are to be found in all grades of society and are notinfrequently represented in the cabinet itself. Of the presidents themajority have been of mixed blood, but several, like Luperon andHeureaux, were full-blood negroes. It appears that the strong strainof white blood in the country has elevated all, mulattoes and negroes. The negroes have produced men of high ability: Heureaux, forinstance, though unscrupulous and cruel, was a man of remarkablesagacity and energy. It must not be supposed for a moment that the Dominicans are inimicalto whites or, like their neighbors, the Haitians, prefer to see theircountry peopled by negroes only. On the contrary they are anxious tobe considered as belonging to the white race and are not pleased byreference to their mixed blood. For this reason the former policy ofthe United States of sending colored men as ministers and consuls toSanto Domingo was resented by the Dominicans who saw therein anevidence of contempt. I have often heard Dominican statesmen expressan eager desire for immigration, but only white immigration. Thissentiment is reflected in immigration laws and in several concessionsgranted in late years in which the concessionnaire was prohibited fromimporting laborers of African or Asiatic descent. The Congress haseven made appropriations for the introduction of white families andtheir settlement along the Haitian frontier, but the isolation of thisregion and other circumstances made such laws impracticable ofexecution. During Haitian rule, from 1822 to 1844, a different policy prevailed. President Boyer was desirous of seeing every part of the islandpopulated by blacks and accordingly settled Haitian negroes in variousparts of Santo Domingo and encouraged negro immigration from theUnited States by premiums to ship captains bringing such immigrants. The American negroes were distributed in Haiti and in Santo Domingo, particularly near Puerto Plata and in the Samana peninsula. The PuertoPlata settlers have mingled with the rest of the population, butaround the town of Samana, where the largest settlement, consisting ofsome sixty families, was made, the descendants of the Americanimmigrants still form a distinct class. Large portions of thepeninsula are taken up by their well kept farms, and one of thesections or districts into which the commune of Samana is divided, isofficially named "Sección de los Americanos. " The people stillpreserve the English language and proudly proclaim that they are "ofAmerican abstraction. " They have kept considerably aloof and only in recent years have therebeen marriages between them and their Spanish-speaking neighbors. Their exclusiveness has more than once been criticised by Dominicans. Of the original settlers all have passed away, their survivingchildren are advanced in age and the third generation is in its prime. The Methodist preacher of the district, a kindly black man, presentedme to the oldest person of the American colony, a woman of abouteighty years of age who was born only a few years after her parentsarrived from Virginia. As the old woman stood smiling in the door ofher little cabin, the walls of which were covered with leafy creepers, she looked the picture of an old Southern mammy. Her dialect wastypical; when I said: "I am glad to meet you, Mrs. Sheppard, " sheanswered, beaming, "Me likewise, I'se always glad to meet Americans, Iis. " Several of the American negroes have distinguished themselves inmilitary matters, one of the most noted being General Anderson whogrew gray in many revolutions. Between the coast towns and the ports of the surrounding countries, particularly Porto Rico, there is considerable coming and going. Thiswas called to my attention the first time I set foot on Dominicansoil, when a large negro darted out from a group of loungers on thewharf and seized my suit-case, crying: "Let me carry your baggage, Judge. " Surprised, I inquired how he knew me, whereupon he askedreproachfully: "Don't you remember you sent me to jail in Mayaguezfor shampooing a saucy stevedore's head with a brick?" Whether as a settler or transient visitor the foreigner may be sure ofcourteous and respectful treatment so long as he himself observes theproprieties. The laws grant the foreigner rights as ample as in themost advanced countries of the world. The language of Santo Domingo is Spanish, and the comparative puritywith which it is spoken is remarkable when the long period ofisolation of the country and the extended duration of Haitian rule areconsidered. In this particular Haiti offers a contrast, for thoughFrench is the official language the mass of the people speak CreoleFrench, a patois unintelligible to anyone who has not lived in Haiti. The Dominicans do not lisp the "c" as do the Spaniards, and otherpeculiarities of Spanish as spoken in America are manifest, but on thewhole the difference between the Dominican's Spanish and theSpaniard's Spanish may be compared to the difference between Englishas spoken in the United States and as spoken in England. Like severalother Spanish-American nations the Dominicans are to be distinguishedby their preference for certain words and endings, and by their accentand inflection. As everywhere else the unlettered classes are given togrammatical faults and provincialisms, but on the whole the vocabularyof the Dominican peasant contains fewer archaic expressions and Indianroots than that of the Porto Rican "jibaro" and is more easilyunderstood by the outsider. Slight differences of pronunciation arenoticeable in different parts of the country: the people of Seibo areinclined to use the vowel "i" instead of the consonant "r" and say"poique" instead of "porque, " somewhat as the New York street urchinsays "boid" for "bird"; the people of Santiago sometimes drop the "r"entirely and say "poque, " as the Southern negro in the United Statessays "fo" for "four"; the peasants of Puerto Plata show a tendency touse the "u" instead of "o" and say "tudu" instead of "todo, " like someof the inhabitants of Catalonia in Spain. The Azuans claim to speakthe best Spanish of the Republic, but their claim is disputed by otherprovinces. Besides Spanish, the English and French languages are heard to alimited extent. On the Samana peninsula, where the descendants ofAmerican negroes are in a majority, as much English is spoken asSpanish, and in the coast towns, San Pedro de Macoris, Puerto Plata, Monte Cristi and Santo Domingo, it is also often heard. In thesecities it is usually the singsong English of negroes from the Britishcolonies. Along the Haitian border and at the extremity of the Samanapeninsula, where a Haitian colony was planted by President Boyer, theFrench language is spoken. On the wharf at Monte Cristi I haveencountered fruit-vendors from the interior who spoke no languageexcept Creole French. Some persons who have been born and bred on theSamana peninsula know not a word of Spanish but only English. Manymembers of the wealthier class of the Republic have studied ortraveled in Europe or the United States and speak one or more foreignlanguages. In Puerto Plata I was surprised to hear a jet-black negrospeak German fluently; he had been educated in a commercial school inHamburg. The larger cities have their foreign colonies, consistingprincipally of merchants, and most of the languages of Europe arerepresented. As a race the Dominicans are robust and sturdy. All the Dominicanpresidents of late years have been men of commanding physique, fittingrepresentatives of their people. As far as industry is concerned theaverage Dominican is little more laborious than absolutely necessaryto support himself and his family. Why should he do more when naturehas been so bountiful and when in the past any accumulated fruits ofhis toil might have been swept away by the next revolution? The spiritof the tropics pervades the country and the tendency not to do to-daywhat can be conveniently left for "mañana" is constantly observed. The Dominican women are as a rule graceful of body and fair of face, with large and beautiful eyes. They make devoted wives and lovingmothers. The ladies of the better class are quite as susceptible tothe allurements of Parisian fashions as their American and Europeancousins, and the scenes at balls and at evening promenades on theplaza are very attractive. The heat of the climate makes a liberal useof powder necessary, and it almost seems as if the darker the color ofthe woman the greater is her fondness for powder, so that some of thenegresses assume an almost grayish hue. The Dominican woman is verydomestic, she rarely goes out except to church, to an occasional danceor to the band concerts on the plaza. Before her marriage she iscarefully chaperoned and guarded; all courting takes place in thepresence of her mother or some other near relative. Notwithstanding the large mixture of African blood and long isolationof the Dominican race, the strong personality of the Spaniard hassurvived unmodified and the population is to-day as thoroughly Spanishin character, customs and mode of thinking as the people of Cuba andPorto Rico. How completely the Spanish consciousness pervades thecountry was illustrated by a remark made to an American naval officerby the mayor of an inland town of Santo Domingo; he was a very blacknegro, but in the course of a discussion observed: "Your argumentswill fit Anglo-Saxons, but _we Latins_ are a different people. " Thefirst trait noticeable is the politeness of Dominicans of everydegree. Only once have I met a rude official and that by a curiouscoincidence was the very first one with whom I had dealings, but afterthis beginning there were no further exceptions to the rule. Acharming characteristic is the open-hearted hospitality everywhereencountered. The stranger who is introduced in any home is immediatelyassured in the customary Spanish way: "This is your house. " The words, though figuratively spoken, are sincere, and the hosts are glad tohave their new friend visit their house as though it were his own. Ascompanions the Dominicans are delightful, being generally jovial andamiable. Some there are, especially among the country people, whosenatural reticence makes them seem sullen, but once the ice is brokenthey are quite as light-hearted as the others. In the idealistic tendency of their mind the Dominicans strongly showtheir brotherhood with the other Spanish peoples. In this connectionthe spirit of their renowned kinsman, Don Quixote de la Mancha, isoften in evidence. When one of them mounts his Rocinante in defense ofsome particularly attractive abstract proposition, nothing less than ablow from a windmill will bring him back to reality. And so when anyperson or group of persons become enamored of an idea they areunwilling to brook contradiction or compromise. The inclination of themajority to do their will irrespective of the wishes of the minorityand the unwillingness of the minority to bow to the resolutions of themajority have been and will continue to be grave problems in thegovernment of the country. Even in personal relations a spirit ofintolerance can frequently be noticed and while almost anything isforgiven a friend, not a single redeeming feature is recognized in anenemy. To their idealistic tendency may be ascribed the worship of thewords "patriotism" and "liberty. " Unnumbered sins have been committedunder the cloak of patriotism, and true personal liberty, such as itis understood in the United States, has never prevailed in SantoDomingo; but the adoration of these conceptions continues and it is tobe hoped that now, with American assistance, it will bring real andlasting liberty to the country. Perhaps it is their idealism, as muchas their isolation, which causes the Dominicans to take themselves sovery seriously and renders them so extremely sensitive to criticism orjokes on the subject of their country, customs or revolutions. Foreigners sometimes complain that the affirmations of Dominicanscannot be trusted. In many cases investigation has shown that theseforeigners were misled with regard to some mine, woodland or otherproperty they had come to buy. Persons anxious to sell mines and otherundeveloped properties have not distinguished themselves for veracityin any country, and with regard to sincerity in general the Dominicansmay be regarded as no better but certainly no worse than the generalrun of humanity. With their personal friends they are generally loyaland true, but in their political relations the picture is not soattractive; for while there have been many cases where subordinateshave followed their fallen chief into exile rather than submit to thevictor, it is saddening to note the frequency with which governors ofprovinces and other local authorities have betrayed the confidencereposed in them by the chief executive, and have initiated or joinedrevolutionary uprisings. I have heard both ex-President Jimenez andex-President Morales sorrowfully complain that their fall was due tothe treachery of trusted subordinates. A particularly repulsive caseof perfidiousness was that of General Luis Felipe Vidal, a prominentpolitician, who participated in the murder of President Caceres, though he had only a few hours before visited the President, playedbilliards with him and fondled his infant daughter. Of all amusements there is none which appeals so strongly to everyclass of the population as dancing. Every public holiday is an excusefor the giving of a "baile" or dance, and when holidays are scarce the"baile" is arranged anyhow. So, while elsewhere special occasions arecelebrated by banquets, here the rule is to give a dance. Historicalanniversaries, political triumphs, religious holidays, weddings, birthdays, christenings: all are celebrated by dances. Waltz music ispopular but the favorite dance music is the pretty Porto Rican"danza, " which is kin to Mexican airs and to the Cuban "guaracha" andmay be compared to a flowing brook, now gliding along serenely, nowrushing in cascades. The dances are often interrupted by the servingof sweets and ices. In the country the dance music is quite different. A rhythmic beatingis kept up on a drum made of a barrel or hollow log and rude fiddlesor guitars or an accordion play an accompaniment. To the traveler, riding along his road at night, the deep regular rumbling of the drumsof distant "bailes" comes with indescribable weirdness. In some dancesthe participants engage in a monotonous chant, in others there arepauses in which the young men must quickly improvise verses on somesubject suggested by one of the lassies. In the cities the dancesbegin at ten o'clock at night and last until the wee hours of morning, but in the country they begin at almost any time and occasionally lasttwo or three days--especially during the Christmas holidays. These country dances with drum accompaniment are similar to thosepopular among the negroes in Porto Rico and are probably an Africanlegacy. But, like Porto Rico, the Dominican Republic is absolutelyfree from the practise of those barbarous negro rites, of which danceslike these often form part, and which are known in Haiti under thename of "voudou, " in Cuba under that of "witchcraft" and in theBritish West Indies under that of "obeah, " and which sometimes leadeven to human sacrifices. This is all the more remarkable in SantoDomingo as the adjoining Republic of Haiti has been the worst suffererfrom such practices. The country dances are occasionally the scenes of violent personalaltercations. While drunkenness is very rare and a drunkard isregarded almost as a social outcast, the countrymen are fond ofregaling themselves with rum made of cane juice, and at dances wheresuch rum is served it is not infrequent for some one to become undulyexcited. If he happened to meet another in the same condition and acontroversy arose with reference to some dusky damsel, a frequentunfortunate outcome was, until lately, for both to draw revolvers andblaze away at each other and if ejected from the house to stand nearbyand fire through the wooden walls. In Porto Rico such affairs aredecided with the machete and only the immediate combatants are hurt, but revolver bullets are more dangerous to the innocent bystander thanto those doing the shooting. In Macoris I was told of a dance wherethe casualties were fifteen killed--more than in the averagerevolution. Yet so deep-seated is the fondness for dancing that afterthe smoke has cleared away and the dead or wounded victim beenremoved, it has often happened that the ladies dried their tears andmen and women continued with the "baile. " Up to the time of American intervention in 1916, the practise ofcarrying weapons was general. In the country a man strapped on hispistol or carried his gun as he would in other countries put on hisnecktie or take up his cane. At the railroad stations in the Cibao Ihave sometimes observed everyone congregated about the station wearinga revolver more or less visible, except two or three, evidently thepoorest farm-laborers, who could not afford anything more than a dirkand who gazed at the others with envious eyes. Beautiful pearl-handledrevolvers were proudly exhibited to the public eye, and on oneoccasion I saw a little boy not over ten years old with a revolverthat reached to his knee. The habit was all the more indefensible asit was absolutely unnecessary, Santo Domingo being as safe a countryto travel in as any other. Governors of provinces sometimes forbadethe carrying of arms, but the prohibition was rarely enforced withreference to their friends and adherents. The American authoritieshave put a stop to the habit, however, and confiscated all the armsthey could find; some 15, 000 rifles and revolvers have thus beentaken up. After all, the average Dominican will resent a shot less than a blow. A story is told of a prominent youth in the capital who received aslap during a quarrel; the aggressor fled, but the young man keptholding his handkerchief to his cheek for days until he met hisassailant and was able to wipe out the insult in blood. Only in the larger towns are there facilities for the gratification ofthe popular fondness for theatrical performances. Puerto Plata has apretty theatre. In Santo Domingo City the ancient Jesuit church, longabandoned, was converted into a theater, the stage being locatedwhere the altar formerly stood, the boxes occupying the aisles, andthe chairs of the audience being arranged in the nave; but a newopen-air theatre, the "Teatro Independencia, " is more commodious. TheSpanish drama is popular, as well as the delightful Spanish "zarzuela"or musical comedy. Owing to the isolation of the country it is notoften visited by good professional troupes, and the interior isentirely dependent upon amateur talent. In social life the clubs are prominent features. A town must beunimportant indeed if it has not at least one club where the men canmeet, read the papers and play cards or billiards. The first attentionshown the stranger within the gates is to take him to the club andenroll him as a visitor, this action being equivalent to a generallocal introduction. The clubs give pleasant musical and literaryentertainments and dances attended by the best local society. In SantoDomingo, Puerto Plata and Santiago the ladies have a club of their ownwhere they can meet and chat to their hearts' content. Needless to saythe most popular entertainments and dances are those given by the"Club de Damas. " All these clubs have been of great value in thesocial development of the country and many of them have givenimportant impulses to education. Another valuable contribution to civic development is rendered by themunicipal bands existing in many towns. They are voluntaryassociations and tend to awaken in the inhabitants an interest andpride in their city. On Sunday night and sometimes on other nightsduring the week they play on the plaza, while the people, followingthe usual custom in the Spanish cities, promenade up and down. Suchscenes are very attractive, the ladies, dressed in their best, withtheir light gowns brilliant in the moonlight; the men walking withthem or watching the promenaders. It is on the plaza and in theball-room where Cupid's arrows do most execution. Of late years some interest has been shown in athletics, and baseballhas invaded the island. Bicycle races occasionally form part of publiccelebrations, and horse-races and tournaments have long been popular. Santo Domingo may be said to have two carnivals, one on St. Andrew'sday, November 30, the other during the three days preceding Lent. Theformer is the more exciting. Until recent years there was not a personin the capital and Santiago, where the populace was most given to thetypical diversion of the day, who did not voluntarily or involuntarilyparticipate therein. The diversion consisted in throwing water orflour or both on everyone within reach. The poorer people would armthemselves with great syringes and discharge them at every passerby orthrough the keyholes of house-doors. Others would station themselvesat points of vantage with barrels and tubs of water and duck theunwary they were able to entrap. People of the better class wouldplace great tubs of water on their balconies or roofs, which theservants would assiduously keep filled while their masters emptiedbuckets-full on friends in the street. The young men rode through thestreets in open carriages, bombarding the ladies on balconies andhousetops with eggs filled with perfumed water, and receivingdrenchings in return. Within the last few years the authorities haverestricted or prohibited the throwing of water, and the principalcelebration of the day is now what is called a "white dance" given bythe better society, at which the participants are supposed to comedressed in white in order that the many-colored confetti, serpentinesand gilt powders which those present throw at each other betweendances, may appear to better effect. During the carnival proper, before Lent, the streets are filled with masked persons in groups oralone, who dance, make impudent remarks or otherwise indulge innonsense, to the special delight of the ubiquitous small boy. Thebetter class celebrate with masquerade balls, where the merry spiritof the Dominican is given free rein. The principal vice of the country is gaming. Men of the better classplay cards, dominoes, chess, checkers and billiards, for money, butthey do so rather for pastime than for gain. Among the poorer classes, however, the predominant idea is that of making money quickly. Cardsand dice are often used, but the typical form of gambling, the one atwhich the poor countryman is fondest of staking his hard-earned wages, is the cockfight. Every town has its cockpit where on Sundays andholidays the barbarous sport is carried on in the presence of crowdsof whooping, screaming spectators who often ride miles to attend. Theauthorities claim that efforts have been made to stop this sport, butthat they have all been unavailing. It constitutes a source ofmunicipal income, the right to open cockpits being annually concededto the highest bidder by the various municipalities. Raffles andlotteries are also permitted by law, being subject to taxation by themunicipalities, and in one or two cities there are municipallotteries. With respect to morality the same conditions may be said to prevail inSanto Domingo as in other southern countries, the women being ingeneral virtuous and pure and the men inclined to amorous intrigues. The official statistics relating to marriages and births show that ofthe children born in the Republic almost sixty per cent areillegitimate. These figures, while serious, are rendered less alarmingthan would appear at first sight by the large number of what thecensus-takers term "consensual unions" among the humbler classes, orcases where a man and woman, though not united by marriage ceremony, live together publicly as man and wife, rear a family and are asfaithful to each other as if they were legitimately married. "Marriedbut not parsoned" is the way in which such unions are referred to insome of the British West Indies. The considerable number of theseunions may be explained by the high cost of the marriageceremony, --for while there are some priests ready to waive their feesfor a religious wedding and some alcaldes who are satisfied with whatthe law allows for the civil ceremony, others are not socomplaisant--also by the fact that such unions have become so commonthat the parties see nothing wrong in them, and further by thecircumstance that the parties often believe it more to their advantageto remain single rather than to be married. A friend of mine had arespectable colored man working on his plantation, the head of a largefamily, but not married to the woman with whom he had been living forover a score of years and to whom he was devotedly attached. My friendendeavored to persuade him to marry the woman, but the answer was adetermined negative. "If I marry her she will know I have to supporther and she may get careless and lazy. Knowing that I can leave herwhen I like she will continue to behave herself. " Persuasion was thentried with his wife and her refusal was almost identical: "If I marryhim he will know that I am bound to him and then he may go and fall inlove with some other woman. Knowing that I can leave him when I likehe will continue to behave himself. " The homes of the poorer people are mere huts generally built ofpalmwood and covered with palm-thatch. The houses of the countrypeople are exactly like the "bohios" used by the Indians at the timeof the conquest, as pictured and described by the early writers. Inthe towns outside of the capital wooden houses are the rule and someof the wealthier people have pretty chalets. In the large cities thereis a good deal of "mampostería" construction: brick or stone work, covered with cement. In the capital the walls of a majority of thehouses have come down from the early days and are of greatsolidity--here a man's house is literally his fortress. The barredwindows of the olden days are here still to be seen. One-storystructures are the rule, and there are few if any of more than twostories. The heat of the climate makes window-glass impracticable andthe windows and doors are fitted with shutters which permit the air topass through. Except in the houses of the wealthiest persons thefurniture is very simple and of small amount. In the parlors acaneseat sofa, several rockers and chairs and a small table with a fewknicknacks are arranged everywhere in the same way. The bedsteads areof iron and the bedroom furniture is reduced to the simplest articles. The floors are bare except for a few rugs. The climate is responsiblefor the simplicity of the furniture, as carpets would breed insects, and more furniture would mean endless cleaning and dusting, sinceeverything must be open all day. The kitchens are not furnished withiron stoves, but cooking is done on brick hearths, as in Cuba andPorto Rico. The most serious drawback about Dominican houses is thewant of proper bathing facilities and of sanitary closets, due to lackof running water in most cities. The most attractive feature of thehouses is the patio, or yard, which is often gay with flowers, thoughnot so assiduously cared for as in some other Spanish countries. Insimilarity to other tropical lands home life is not nearly so intenseas in colder climates. CHAPTER XII RELIGION Catholic religion. --Concordat. --Ownership of churchbuildings. --Clergy. --Religious sentiment. --Shrines. --Religious customsand holidays. --Religious toleration. --Protestant sects. The Roman Catholic creed has been the dominant religion of SantoDomingo from the time of the conquest. When Columbus arrived on hissecond voyage he brought with him twelve friars, some of whom were asholy men as their leader, the vindictive Father Boil, was a nuisance. Others were not long in arriving and soon the country had as manypriests in proportion as Spain herself. Large estates came intopossession of the church, and in the city of Santo Domingo imposingchurches and spacious cloisters were erected, which still stand, either in ruins or used for religious or secular purposes. There werethree monasteries, two nunneries, and some ten churches and chapels inthe capital. As early as 1511 bishops were appointed for Santo Domingo andConcepcion de la Vega and in 1547 the first archbishopric in the newworld was established in Santo Domingo City. From 1516 to 1519 theisland was governed directly by three friars, and the licentiateAlonso de Fuenmayor, who governed thirty years later, was not onlygovernor and captain-general of the island, and president of the royalaudiencia, but archbishop of Santo Domingo as well. The Inquisitionwas established in Santo Domingo in 1564. With the decline of the colony the number of churchmen declined also, and by the middle of the seventeenth century the majority of thechurch buildings were closed and falling to ruin and the church's vastcountry estates were abandoned. The revival of the country during theeighteenth century affected the church as well, but the occupation byHaitians and French during the beginning of the nineteenth centurycaused its influence to wane, and restrictive legislation underHaitian dominion and the expulsion of the archbishop for politicalreasons in 1830, severed all connection with Rome for many years. Thefirst archbishop appointed after the independence of the Republic wasconsecrated in 1848. The Roman Catholic religion is now the recognized state religion. In1884 the Dominican government entered into an agreement with the HolySee according to the terms of which the archbishop of Santo Domingo isto be appointed by the Pope from a list of three names, nativeDominicans or residents of the Republic, submitted by the DominicanCongress, which in turn engaged to pay the salary of the archbishopand certain other officials. The agreement as to the paymentsincumbent upon the Dominican government had the same fate as otherfinancial contracts: it was observed for a short time and thendisregarded, so that for years only small appropriations have beenmade for church purposes. In the year 1908 a controversy arose with reference to the ownershipof the buildings and lands occupied by the church. The archbishop andchurch officials claimed that such buildings belong to the churchabsolutely; while the government officials alleged that they are theproperty of the state, possessed by the church with the state'sconsent. Previously few persons had ever given a thought to thematter, the church having as many buildings as it could properly carefor, and more, while other former religious edifices were used by thestate. Contributions for the erection and repair of churches werefrequently made by Dominican towns without exciting discussion. Thecontroversy of 1908 was precipitated by the determination of thechurch authorities to erect a mausoleum in the cathedral of SantoDomingo City for the remains of the late Archbishop Meriño. TheExecutive of Santo Domingo demanded that the government's permissionbe first obtained, but the church officials refused to ask for suchpermission, holding it unnecessary. Neither side lacked historicalgrounds for its contention. In the old colonial days church and statewere united and the questions of ownership of the church buildingsnever arose. When the Haitians assumed control in 1822 they consideredthe church edifices as the property of the state alone and religiousservices continued only by sufferance of the government. Upon theestablishment of the independence of Santo Domingo, the newgovernment, although friendly towards the Catholic Church, took asimilar view of the ownership of church edifices and property. By lawof June 7, 1845, of the Dominican Congress, all "censos" and otherperpetual rents established in favor of the church were declaredextinguished and by law of July 2, 1845, all property, real andpersonal, formerly belonging to convents and orders no longer in beingin the country was formally proclaimed to pertain to the state. In1853 burials in churches were prohibited by law of Congress as beingdangerous to the public health, but in exceptional cases the Executivegranted permission therefor on the payment of a fee which of lateyears has been $300. On the other hand, it was argued that the churchhas been in uninterrupted possession of its present buildings forcenturies; that these buildings are not comprised in the laws of1845; that a law of 1867 granting the gardens of the archbishop'sresidence to the municipality of Santo Domingo for the establishmentof a market and cockpit was repealed in 1871 as being a despoilment ofthe church and unconstitutional; and that when the mausoleum ofColumbus was erected in the cathedral the committee in charge, presided over by the vice-president of the Republic, applied forpermission to the authorities of the church. The dispute regarding themausoleum of Archbishop Meriño came to an end when the governmentreceded from its demand, but the main question is not regardedas settled. At the present time the Republic is divided into fifty-seven parishes. The episcopal head is the Archbishop of Santo Domingo. In 1903, whenold age had enfeebled Archbishop Meriño, one of his assistants, Monsignor Adolfo Nouel, was made titular Archbishop of Metymne, and onthe death of the venerable churchman in 1906 succeeded him asArchbishop of Santo Domingo. In the olden days many religious orders were represented in theisland, but to-day the clergy is secular, with the exception of a fewfriars brought over in recent years from Spain and France. Themajority of the priests are native Dominicans, graduated from theseminary in the capital. There are in the clerical body a number ofblack sheep, far too fond of the pleasures of the flesh. Of this stampwas a noted prelate, of whom I was told when I asked whether he wasold: "Yes, quite old, his oldest son is over forty. " As a generalrule, however, the priests of Santo Domingo are earnest, hardworking, honorable men. The standard is being raised through the efforts of thepresent Archbishop Nouel. The unfortunate political history of the country has not beenconducive to the establishment of eleemosynary institutions or toother philanthropic activity, and such work has devolved almostexclusively upon the priests. The names of many of these are held ingrateful remembrance for their efforts in behalf of charity. Perhapsthe most celebrated was Father Billini, who, a member of one of theforemost families of Santo Domingo, consecrated his life to helpinghis fellowmen. He was a father to the poor and through his efforts theinsane asylum of Santo Domingo, an orphan asylum and a college wereestablished. His name became notable in other directions also, for hewas instrumental in the discovery of the remains of Columbus in theSanto Domingo cathedral in 1877. At times the methods of the goodfather were a little spectacular: thus on one occasion whensupplicating Heureaux in behalf of several prisoners sentenced todeath, he took off his hat and vowed he would not put it on againuntil the prisoners were pardoned, but the order of execution wascarried out and ever afterwards Father Billini went hatless. In sogreat esteem is his name held that the only statue in Santo DomingoCity, besides that of Columbus on the plaza, is erected to his memory. Practically the entire population of the country is at least nominallyRoman Catholic. Among the educated classes in the cities the women, asa rule, are devout; the men either openly acknowledge themselves freethinkers or their religion is very superficial indeed. On one occasiona Dominican earnestly assured me he was a Catholic and would alwaysremain one, "but, " he added, "I cannot accept all the doctrines of thechurch: thus I do not believe in the Virgin Mary, nor the saints, northe power of the priests to forgive sins, nor in the divinity ofChrist, but I feel almost certain of the existence of a God. " Thefondness for display makes the ornate ceremonies of the CatholicChurch popular with all, however, and they are observed by officers ofthe state whenever possible. The president always goes to mass aftertaking the oath of office, and the army flags are solemnly blessed. The less educated people of the cities and most of the country peoplenot only hold their priests in great respect, but are blindlysuperstitious. It is common to find crosses in the courtyards ofcountry houses, placed there to keep evil spirits away. Frequentlyalso, three crosses are seen in conspicuous places near the roadsideor even in the middle of the road. They are supposed to propitiate theAlmighty, and pious persons mumble prayers as they pass them. When thedestruction wrought by the Martinique volcano became known here, thedismay of the countrymen was responsible for more than one "calvario"(calvary), as these collections of crosses are called. It isespecially desired by the country people to receive the lastsacraments from the priests before death. On one occasion far out inthe country I met a crowd of people engaged in transporting a dyingman many miles to the priest in the nearest town. When asked why thepriest was not called to the sick man, they explained innocently: "Hecouldn't come. The priest is too fat. " There are in the territory of the Republic several shrines of morethan usual renown, which at certain seasons of the year attract crowdsof worshipers, some coming all the way from Porto Rico. Wonderfulcures of invalids are registered which recall the miracles of Lourdes. The most celebrated of these churches is the one on the Santo Cerro, the Holy Hill, built on the exact spot where forces of Columbusplanted their cross when defending the hill against the Indians. Afterthe Indians had stormed the place all their efforts to destroy thecross were unavailing, so the story goes, and they were finally drivento precipitate flight by the apparition of the Virgin, sitting on thecross. A church was founded on the spot and a convent near by. Duringthe dark years of the colony the convent was abandoned and fell toruin but at no time was a priest lacking to look after the site of themiracle. In the time of Heureaux the humble wooden chapel thencrowning the hill was replaced by a larger but modest brick church, the greater part of the bricks being carried up from the ruins of theold city of La Vega which lie at the foot of the hill. The churchoccupies an eminence overlooking the great Royal Plain. Its mostprized treasure, which is reverently kissed by the priest before heshows it to the stranger, consists of two splinters about an inchlong, of black wood, parts of the original cross of Columbus, enclosedin another small cross of gold filigree work. A larger piece of theoriginal cross is kept in the cathedral at Santo Domingo City, to beexhibited on special occasions. The pieces of the original crosscarried away by the Spaniards were enough to make a score of crosses, yet nevertheless there was always some wood left, which circumstancewas heralded as an additional miracle. Within the church on the Holy Hill, in one of the chapels, there is ahole in the stone floor a little over two feet square and deep, whichis pointed out as the exact place where the cross of Columbus stood. There is nothing so coveted by pilgrims as to be able to kneel in thishole and offer up their prayers. The soil from this spot is creditedwith strange powers, such as that of healing wounds on which it islaid, and that of causing floods to subside, when sprinkled on thetroubled waters. The late Archbishop Meriño assured me that themiraculous nature of the spot is evidenced by the fact that howevermuch soil is taken out of the hole, the bottom thereof always retainsthe same level, but my later inspection of the dry yellow earth at thebottom disclosed nothing unusual. Near the Santo Cerro church is thetrunk of the nispero tree, gnarled with age, from which Columbus issaid to have cut the wood for his cross. All around are miserableshacks, inhabited, so the pure-minded priest of the church sorrowfullytold me, by people the conduct of many of whom is quite at variancewith the holiness supposed to pervade the place. The town of Bayaguana, to the northeast of Santo Domingo City, alsoattracts the faithful, especially about the first of the year, byreason of the fame of the "Cristo de Bayaguana, " a very ancient figureof Christ in the church of that town. In the same way Higuey in theeastern part of the island is specially noted for its shrine of the"Altagracia, " a picture of the Virgin, of which tradition says that inthe early days of the colony it was given by an aged mysteriousstranger to the father of a devout maiden who had pined therefor. Thechurch is built on the site of an orange tree under which, it is said, the picture was first admired by the girl and her relatives; the trunkof this tree is shown behind the altar of the church. Pilgrimages tothis place take place preferably about the twenty-first of January andthe miracles ascribed to the Virgin are astounding. Miracles of quitea different nature are attributed to an image of Saint Andrew, in thecapital. The populace confidently believe that as sure as this figureis carried to the street an earthquake will follow. There are always several altars in the churches, surmounted by figuresof the saints to whom they are dedicated. Some of these statues arequite beautiful, others, in some of the poorer churches, are hideous. As in other Spanish countries the churches are bare of seats, andpeople who attend either send small chairs before the service, orstand. It is not unusual to see well dressed ladies carrying theirchairs to church. Women are much more in evidence than men, and theDominican woman is not different from her sisters in other countries, for a new hat or dress is apt to awaken in her an irresistibleyearning to go to church. Young men are fond of attending, too, but itis to be feared that in many cases their object is to see the youngladies rather than to hear the sermon. The custom of celebrating the saint's day instead of the birthday isfollowed, so that birthdays pass unperceived while the day dedicatedin the calendar of the Catholic Church to the saint whose name aperson bears, is the day which he celebrates and on which he receivesthe felicitations of his friends. Christmas tide is not a time when presents are exchanged, andChristmas trees are not found, save rarely and where the foreigninfluence is strong. There is no lack of celebration, however. OnChristmas Eve the churches are crowded and there are banquets anddances going on everywhere. In the cities the small boys amusethemselves by setting off fireworks. During the Christmas week dancesare frequent, and in the country they continue sometimes for days tothe lugubrious accompaniment of accordions and large drums. Decemberthe twenty-eighth, Holy Innocents' day, is All Fools' day, instead ofApril the first, it being argued that just as the innocents of Herod'sday were made to suffer, so the innocents of this age should bepersecuted. Many are the pranks perpetrated and the small boy is inhis glory. On New Year's Eve many families receive their friends;there is generally some large ball, and the new year is ushered inwith fireworks and other noises. The great day of the year for the children is the sixth of January, the feast of Epiphany, or Three Kings' Day, as it is called in SantoDomingo. Just as the three wise men from the East brought presents tothe infant Christ in ages past, so they now make the rounds and leavepresents for deserving children, thus taking the place of our SantaClaus. The receptacles they choose for the good things they deliverare either the children's slippers or shoes, or boxes made ready bythe little ones. For weeks before the anxiously awaited day, lettersare written to the Kings, explaining what gifts would be acceptable, and are given to the parents who undertake to deliver them. Thechildren are careful to facilitate the display of the Kings'generosity by placing their shoes or boxes in conspicuous places andfilling the boxes with grass, so that the horses of the Kings can eat. Their thoughtfulness is rewarded, for on the following morning thevisit of the Kings is attested by indubitable evidence, as there is anabundance of toys and sweets and the grass is often quite strewnabout. Excited little ones are sure they heard the pawing of thehorses on the balcony. The Kings usually show a magnanimous disregardof past offenses, but occasionally they leave a letter of advice orwarning, and they have even been known to place a switch in the box ofa particularly bad boy. Easter is celebrated with great solemnity. In order to provideopportunity for observing all the ceremonies prescribed by the church, they are so arranged that the ceremonies corresponding to thecommemoration of the death of Christ are begun on Thursday at noon andthe celebration of the resurrection on Saturday at noon, and this isthe order of dates accepted by the people in general. On Thursday andFriday soldiers form a guard of honor before the churches, and up toEaster of 1906 there was a strict prohibition of any vehicle goingthrough the streets between Thursday noon and Saturday noon. Not awheel was permitted to turn in this period, giving rise to muchinconvenience and discomfort. Since 1906 a more liberal view hasprevailed. At this time as on certain other church festivals, solemnreligious processions wind through the streets. The church has charge of several small hospitals and orphan asylums. Afew schools in the Republic are also under its auspices, but ingeneral religious education is much neglected. Although the Catholic religion is the state religion and is professedby so large a majority of the population, the influence of the churchin the government is no more than in many countries where no suchcircumstances prevail. Discipline in the priesthood is limited almostentirely to ecclesiastical matters and priests otherwise speak and actfor themselves. They frequently participate in politics and are oftento be met in municipal councils and in Congress, and in such casestheir acts indicate that they sit, not as priests representing thechurch, but entirely as individuals representing the constituency fromwhich they were elected. Father Meriño, who later became archbishop, was elected president and served out his term. President Morales hadbeen a priest, but had abandoned the priesthood when he was elected toCongress. The present head of the church, Archbishop Nouel, has alsobeen president, under a temporary compromise. Another peculiarity of Dominican Catholicism is its tolerant attitudetowards freemasonry. It is not unusual for persons who are recognizedas fervent Catholics to be at the same time enthusiastic masons. There are instances even of devout families, where one of the sonsbelongs to the priesthood and the other sons and the father arezealous masons, but where all live under the same roof in absoluteconcord. The first lodges were founded in 1858 and there are lodges tobe found to-day in all the principal cities. Several of them havetheir own buildings, that at Santiago being especially worthy ofremark. They have done excellent work in behalf of charity andeducation. The lodges of Santo Domingo City, Santiago, La Vega andMoca maintain free public schools, and the lodge of Puerto Plata ahospital. The lodges of oddfellows in the Republic have done similargood work. The absence of religious fanaticism is further exemplified by thetolerance accorded other religious sects. These, it is true, are butslimly represented. Of the Jewish faith there are probably not twodozen persons in the Republic. The Protestants are almost entirelynegroes from the British and former Danish islands and otherforeigners, and descendants of the American negroes settled in SantoDomingo. For these the Wesleyan Methodist Church of England maintainsa flourishing mission with chapels in Puerto Plata, Samana, andSanchez and a small branch in Santo Domingo City. The principal chapelis in Puerto Plata, which is also the residence of the minister incharge of the mission. The African Methodist Church also has smallstations at Samana and San Pedro de Macoris, though the word "African"does not tend to make the church popular in Santo Domingo. There isfurther an almost abandoned Baptist mission in Puerto Plata and MonteCristi. In all these churches, services are generally carried on inthe English language alone. In San Francisco de Macoris, Protestantservices are conducted in Spanish by devotees who do not seem to beordained by any particular sect. CHAPTER XIII EDUCATION AND LITERATURE Education in Spanish times. --Work of Hostos. --Schoolorganization. --Professional institute. --Primary and secondaryeducation. --Literacy. --Libraries. --Newspapers. --Literature. --Fine Arts. As in other Spanish colonies, it was not the policy of the Spanishgovernment in Santo Domingo to foster popular education. Learning wasconfined to the clergy and the aristocracy and was imparted only byservants of the church. As early as 1538, the Dominican friarsobtained a papal bull for the establishment of a university, and in1558 the institution known as the University of St. Thomas of Aquinowas inaugurated by them in Santo Domingo City, with faculties ofmedicine, philosophy, theology and law, the principal branch beingtheology. This university acquired considerable celebrity, butpractically disappeared during the colony's decline, being revived byroyal decree of May 26, 1747, which gave it the title of Royal andPontifical University of Santo Domingo. The cession of the island toFrance and the wars which followed weakened the famous institution, which was definitely closed by the Haitians when they assumed controlof the government. The Haitian occupation and the civil disorders ofthe first forty years of the Republic were not propitious for thespreading of education. Beyond a theological seminary founded in 1848, there were only a few humble public and private schools, leading aprecarious existence. An eminent Porto Rican educator, Eugenio M. DeHostos, was responsible for the intellectual renaissance of SantoDomingo. This remarkable man was one of those talented dreamersproduced by Latin-America, a lover of the abstract ideal ingovernment, philosophy and pedagogy, erudite, eloquent, with anenthusiasm which fired his pupils and hearers. Early in life heconceived the idea which he preached unceasingly: that of aConfederated West Indian Republic, in which the principal states wereto be Cuba, Santo Domingo and Porto Rico. Inspired by the Cuban war ofindependence of 1868 to 1878, he wrote and spoke throughout SpanishAmerica in behalf of the union of the Spanish speaking peoples of theWest Indies, the first step to that end to be the independence ofCuba. In 1880 he arrived for the third time in Santo Domingo, where hewas then less known than in South America. Having obtained from thegovernment a commission to found normal schools in the Republic, hewas appointed director of the normal school of Santo Domingo City. Hecame as the right man at the right time. His teachings touched aresponsive chord in the hearts of the Dominicans; his unsparingcondemnation of old pedagogical methods and eager advocacy of new onesgave rise to discussions which awakened a general interest ineducation and letters; and his aggressive enthusiasm smote the rockwhich held Dominican literature bound. A prominent Dominicanhistorian, Americo Lugo, says: "I believe that what may be callednational literature does not begin until after the arrival in theRepublic of the eminent educator Eugenio M. De Hostos. " Hostos labored in Santo Domingo for eight years, during which time hehad as pupils many who have since become prominent in the councils ofthe Republic. The baneful policies of Heureaux forced his departure, and he settled in Chile with his family, being appointed professor ofconstitutional law at the National University. Upon the conclusion ofthe Spanish-American war, when it became apparent that Porto Ricowould be American and his ideal of an Antillan Confederationdefinitely shattered, he journeyed to Washington to labor in behalf ofPorto Rico, returning later to his native island in the hope ofuniting the Porto Ricans in a demand for autonomy. There politicalpassion ran high, and Hostos, disappointed, went back to SantoDomingo, where his entry was almost triumphal. He again assumed chargeof public education though the civil disorders filled him withsadness. In 1903 he died in Santo Domingo, but the seed he sowed livesand flourishes and his memory is revered by Dominicans. In 1884 a general school law was passed, repeatedly modified since, according to which primary instruction is a charge upon themunicipality, while the cost of secondary instruction is to bedefrayed by the state. Supreme inspection over educational matters wasgiven to the Minister of Justice and Public Instruction, who wasassisted by a superior board of education with school inspectors inthe various provinces. There were further special boards of educationin each province, presided over by the governor, and school boards inthe communes which are not capitals of provinces and in the cantons. Owing to the difficulty of finding competent personnel, the inspectionof the educational institutions has generally been perfunctory and theteachers have done pretty much as they pleased. Unfortunately thefinancial limitations of the country have not permitted thedevelopment of the schools in the measure desired. Since the middle of1917 numerous changes in the school system and curriculum have beendecreed by the Department of Public Instruction and the system isundergoing a general reorganization. In 1882 a "Professional Institute" was founded, the name of which wasin 1914 changed to "University of Santo Domingo, " and it is now calledthe Central University of Santo Domingo. It occupies the same buildingin the capital, adjoining the church of St. Dominic, where the olduniversity was located. It confers degrees in five branches: law, medicine, pharmacy, dental surgery and mathematics and surveying. Practically all the lawyers of the Republic have graduated from thisschool. Most of the native pharmacists, also, have studied here. Withreference to instruction in medicine and surgery, and in dentistry, the institution is handicapped by the lack of a suitable hospital andclinic. As a result those who wish to adopt any of these professionspursue their studies abroad, if possible, and all the best knownphysicians are graduates of foreign universities. The entire annualappropriation for the University is only about $24, 000. A similarinstitution, on a smaller scale, is the Professional Institute ofSantiago, founded in 1916. In several cities there are high schoolscalled normal schools, and other institutions called superior schools, and the capital has an academy of drawing, painting and sculpture. With the exception of a few private schools, primary education is inthe hands of the municipalities, which are assisted by smallsubventions from the national government. In the municipalities thereis more enthusiasm for education than in Congress, if we judge fromthe figures presented by the budgets. Every little town takes pride inmaking its budget for education as large as possible, year after year. The total amount spent for educational purposes, however, includingsalaries, rent, supplies, subventions and teachers' pensions, is onlyin the neighborhood of $500, 000, contributed about in equal shares bythe state and the municipalities. The total number of scholars enrolled is only about 20, 000. Theschools are generally located in rented houses, there being nobuildings erected expressly for school purposes. Their equipment is asa rule deficient. The teaching force is handicapped by lack offacilities and training. The salaries of the elementary teachers arevery small, and while some municipalities are prompt in theirpayments, others lag far behind, and the Spanish saying "as hungry asa schoolmaster" has not lost all its meaning. If the amounts expended for education are not large, it is due to lackof money and not to lack of realization of the advantages of learning. The interest manifested in education and the eagerness of parents tofurnish their children as much schooling as possible, are among themost hopeful signs for the future. In the towns and villages where theschools are located, most children learn at least to read and write, but out in the country illiteracy and ignorance reign supreme. In theabsence of statistics it is not possible to determine the proportionof illiterates; there is no doubt, however, that it is very large, andI have heard it estimated at all the way from seventy to ninety percent of the population over ten years of age. Some of the best schools are private institutions, one of the bestknown being the institute for girls and young ladies, founded by SantoDomingo's foremost woman poet, Salomé Ureña de Henriquez. It is thecustom also for well-to-do families to send their children abroad forstudy and to travel themselves, and the Dominicans are not few who, besides their native Spanish, speak other languages, acquired abroad. Within the country, too, there is a predilection among the upper classfor the study of foreign tongues, and many learn English and French inthe family circle or by association with persons speaking theselanguages. As a result of the educational limitations, the population of thecountry may be divided into three groups: first, a number of persons, small in comparison with the whole number of inhabitants, who comparein culture, education and accomplishments with members of the bestsociety in any country; second, a much larger group of persons whopossess knowledge more or less rudimentary; and third, the greatmajority of the inhabitants, who are unlettered and unlearned. One obstacle to the spread of information is the lack of publiclibraries. There is a public library in Puerto Plata, and variousclubs in the larger towns have libraries, for their members or thepublic, but they are all very small and limited. The newspapers, therefore, furnish the only source of reading for the majority. Practically all the papers are published in the cities of SantoDomingo, Santiago and Puerto Plata, and all are of modest dimensions. Many newspapers have been founded in the Republic and after leading anephemeral existence have succumbed, some because their editors werepersuaded by threats or rewards on the part of the government to ceasepublication, and the greater portion because of financialembarrassment. Notwithstanding the constitutional precept guaranteeingfree speech, editors of the opposition have generally found it morehealthy to withdraw to the neighboring countries and conduct theircampaigns at long range. On the other hand, it must be said thatseveral governments have honestly endeavored to allow the press fullliberty, but that the privilege has always been abused. The principaldaily newspaper of the Republic, and the one having the largestcirculation is the "Listin Diario" of Santo Domingo. It is a four-pagesheet and its daily edition is about 10, 000 copies. It is the onlypaper having a cable service, and it receives its cablegrams from theFrench cable company, whose line crosses the island. It is also one ofthe oldest of the existing newspapers, having been founded in 1889, and maintained itself by constantly observing a prudent attitude. Inthe capital there also appear the "Gaceta Oficial, " in which the lawsand governmental decisions and announcements are published; the"Boletín Municipal, " containing municipal announcements; severalreviews whose character is indicated by their title: "Revista Médica, ""Revista de Agricultura, " "Revista Judicial, " "Boletín Masónico"; twosmall humorous papers; two commercial sheets; an illustrated paper, "Blanco y Negro, " and a well-known literary monthly, "Cuna de América"(Cradle of America). Santiago also boasts a daily paper, "El Diario, "as also several smaller papers and literary periodicals. In PuertoPlata "El Porvenir, " the oldest of existing Dominican newspapers, ispublished, as well as three less important sheets. Especially interesting among these publications are the "Cuna deAmérica" and others devoted to belles-lettres. They constitute areflection of current Dominican literature, being given over to poems, lyric compositions, biographic, historical, philosophic and otherarticles, and extracts from new plays and books. In these periodicalsmost of the poems which have brought fame to Santo Domingohave appeared. Before the intellectual awakening incident to the labors of Hostos thenumber of Dominican writers was small. Little was done in colonialtimes. In the turbulent period following the cessation of Spanishsovereignty at the beginning of the nineteenth century, the situationof the country was not favorable for the cultivation of the muses, butscions of the families who then emigrated have made their namesimmortal in the literature of Cuba and other neighboring countries. Juan Pablo Duarte, the liberator, Antonio Delmonte y Tejada, thehistorian, and a small group of others who flourished shortly beforeor at the time of the establishment of the Republic, may be said toinitiate the literature of the country, but their fame is mostlylocal. The first generation of Dominican citizens furnished a somewhatlarger proportion of literary men, among whom may be mentioned thevenerable Emiliano Tejera, the late Archbishop Fernando A. De Meriño, Francisco X. Amiama, Francisco Gregorio Billini, Mariano A. Cestero, the historian Jose G. Garcia and the novelist Manuel de J. Galvan, though it is significant that the best productions of some of theseappeared after 1880. It is since that year that literature has reallyflourished. So fecund have Dominican writers been, and so excellenttheir productions, that Santo Domingo occupies a proud place in thebeautiful field of Latin-American literature, where only a few yearsago it was practically unknown. There is an abundance of poets, essayists, historians and novelists worthy of mention, and an attemptto single out a few might lead to unjust distinctions. A number of thebest writers are women, and all prominent newspaper men are alsodistinguished in literature. In poetry, especially lyric poetry, the Dominican writers excel. Theyshow great depth of feeling and a full command of the sonorousCastilian tongue. A favorite theme is, of course, the old story whichis ever new. The civil wars have inspired many pathetic compositions, and poems like Salomé Ureña's apostrophe to the ruins of colonialtimes, Bienvenido S. Nouel's elegy on the ruins left by the laterevolutions, and Enrique Henriquez' "Miserere!", gems of verse, areveritable cries of anguish at the desolation wrought by fratricidalstrife. Perhaps it is the poets' sorrow at the misfortunes of theircountry which is the cause of the note of sadness so often to beremarked in Dominican writings. Some writers are classed as poetsthough they have versified little or not at all; of these Tulio M. Cestero, one of the most popular of the younger writers, is anexample, it being said of him that "he writes his poetry in prose. " The love of poetry is by no means confined to persons of highereducation, but is general throughout the country. It has been saidthat if there were one engineer in Santo Domingo for every hundredpoets, there would be fewer mudholes in the roads. The productions ofsome poetasters are characterized by an abundance of rare adjectives, which are introduced as well to give an impression of depth of thoughtas to advertise the author's erudition. However, there are so manygood poets that forgiveness is readily extended to the others. The national song of Santo Domingo, an ode to liberty, was written bya school teacher, Emilio Prud'homme. The music was composed by JoséReyes, who died several years ago, and is agreeable and almostmajestic. Reyes occupies probably the most prominent place amongDominican composers. Others have also obtained prominence, and theirnumber is constantly increasing; among them special mention may bemade of José de J. Ravelo, one of the younger men whose work hasattracted attention and gives promise of even better things. In painting and sculpture several Dominicans have attained prominenceof late fears. The principal artists are Arturo Grullon, a prominentoculist; Luis Desangles; and Miss Adriana Billini, whose paintingshave received prizes in Paris, Porto Rico and Havana respectively. Desangles painted the picture "Caonabo, " which hangs in the sessionhall of the City Council of Puerto Plata and shows the Indian chief inchains. The sculptors are few, and their fame so far is only local, The foremost is Abelardo Rodriguez U. , a photographer of the capital, who is something of an artistic genius. His photographs can compete inartistic merit with the best produced anywhere, and he is also apainter of no small merit. His best known sculpture is the figure of adying guerilla soldier, significantly entitled, "Uno de tantos"--"Oneof so many. " Powerful assistance has been given to education and artisticdevelopment by various clubs and literary associations, especiallywomen's clubs, throughout the country. Though at times eclipsed byrevolutionary turmoil, their work has continued undaunted and has hadgratifying results. The educational plane attained by Santo Domingo inspite of all obstacles, and the general recognition of the supremeimportance of public instruction, justify confident predictions ofadvance in the future. CHAPTER XIV MEANS OF TRANSPORTATION AND COMMUNICATION Railroads. --Samana-Santiago Railroad. --Central DominicanRailway. --Roads. --Mode of Traveling. --Inns. --Principal highways. --Steamer lines. --Postal facilities. --Telegraph and telephone lines. A potent cause of the undeveloped state of Santo Domingo's agriculturehas been the absence of transportation facilities, which has likewisebeen a cause and an effect of the internal disturbances. There are buttwo public railroads in the Republic, both in the Cibao region, withan aggregate length of 144 miles. The highways are generally littlemore than trails, difficult and dangerous even in dry weather, andalmost impassable in the rainy season. It is therefore not surprisingthat the northern and southern sections of the Republic should havedeveloped almost as different countries and that large areas in theinterior should be practically uninhabited. The importance and possibilities of railroad lines have beenrecognized and numerous concessions for railroad construction havebeen sought and granted; but the concessionnaires have, as a rule, either been impecunious, entering the field only with speculativeintentions, or have been frightened off by the internal disturbances, and in either case the concession has been permitted to lapse. The oldest of the two railroads now in operation is the road known asthe Samana-Santiago Railroad--something of a misnomer, as the roadneither reaches Samana, on the one side, nor Santiago on the other, but extends from Sanchez, at the head of Samana Bay, to La Vega, adistance of 62 miles in the interior, with a branch to San Franciscode Macoris, 7 miles, and another branch to Salcedo, 11 miles, andMoca, 7 miles, or a total length of 87 miles. Prior to itsconstruction, the products of the eastern portion of the Royal Plainhad been floated on lighters or light draft boats down the Yuna Riverand across Samana Bay to Samana, where they were transshipped toocean-going vessels. The value of a railroad in this region earlybecame apparent, and a concession granted in 1881 was acquired byAlexander Baird, a wealthy Scotchman, who constructed the road. Underthe concession the Dominican government granted the right to build andoperate a railroad from Samana to Santiago, to construct wharves onSamana Bay and collect wharf dues, and to enjoy certain tax exemptionsand other privileges. The Gran Estero, the large swamp just west of Sanchez, proved muchmore difficult to cross than the engineers had calculated. Itswallowed up tons of rock and thousands of pounds sterling. Furtherdisappointment arose when public lands promised by the governmentfailed to materialize. The enthusiasm of the promoters cooled and theconstruction work on the railroad ceased when La Vega was reached. Tothe east of Sanchez the road was continued along the Samana peninsulato Point Santa Capuza, but this position was abandoned and theterminus was established at Sanchez. The road from Sanchez to La Vegawas opened to traffic in 1886. The important city of San Francisco de Macoris lay seven miles to thenorth of the line of the Samana-Santiago railroad and in 1892 aconcession was granted to a prominent Dominican for the building of aconnecting road. It was constructed with Dominican capital from LaGina to San Francisco de Macoris, and is leased to the Samana-SantiagoRoad and operated as a branch of this road. In 1907 the Samana-Santiago Railroad waived its right to thepercentage of import duties collected at Sanchez, in consideration ofa payment made by the government, and agreed to construct a branchline to Salcedo and later continue it to Moca. A line from LasCabullas, on the main road, to Salcedo was promptly built and openedto traffic, but the Moca extension was delayed by civil disturbancesand not completed until 1917. The gauge of the Samana-Santiago road is 1. 10 meters, about three feetsix inches. It rises very gradually from sea-level at Sanchez to thealtitude of La Vega and Moca, about 400 feet. The engineering problemsattending its construction and preservation have been those connectedwith the crossing of the Gran Estero swamp, and the bridging ofnumerous small tributaries of the Yuna River, which from modestbrooklets in the dry season swell to turbulent torrents in rainyweather. The bridge across the Camu River near La Vega has been washedaway repeatedly and further trouble has been caused by the riverchanging its course. The journey from Sanchez to La Vega, including the side trip to SanFrancisco de Macoris, consumes five and a half hours. After leavingSanchez the end of the Samana range is soon reached and for miles thetrain travels across a mangrove swamp, where the bushy vegetation isexceedingly dense and the roadbed is covered with grass. Forestsfollow, the trees of which are encumbered with great hanging vines. Assoon as a higher level is reached, clearings become frequent. At thestations along the route the entire population of the small townsseems to turn out to await the train's arrival. At two larger places, Villa Rivas and Pimentel, the train makes lengthier stops. The housesall along are similar, one story wooden buildings, generallywhitewashed and roofed with tiles, corrugated zinc or palm thatch. LaGina is the beginning of the branch line which extends throughmonotonous woodland to San Francisco de Macoris. On the main line, after passing La Gina, there are numerous cacao plantations, and nearLa Vega the muddy Cotui road emerges from the woods and follows therailroad. About eight miles from La Vega is the station of LasCabullas, the starting point of the branch to Salcedo and Moca. Affording, as it does, the outlet for the products of the easternportion of the Cibao, the Samana-Santiago railroad transports thegreater part of the cacao exported from the country. It has been themost important factor in the development of the Royal Plain, but owingto the country's internal troubles was run at a loss for years. It iswell managed and of late years has made handsome profits. The name of the other Dominican railroad is also misleading, it beingcalled the Central Dominican Railway, though only extending fromPuerto Plata, on the north coast, to Santiago de los Caballeros, adistance of 41 miles, with an extension to Moca, 16 miles, a total of57 miles. Its name is due to the fact, that it was considered thefirst section of a road which was ultimately to connect Puerto Plataand Santo Domingo City. The need for such a road had been and is stillurgently felt, and the construction of no portion was more imperativethan that between Santiago and the coast. The mountain roads in thissection were indescribably bad; a trip from Santiago to Puerto Platameant at least two days of dangerous riding; and all merchandise toand from Santiago had to be transported on mule-back. PresidentHeureaux therefore considered himself fortunate when the Dominicangovernment was able, in 1890, in connection with a bond issue, to makecontracts with the banking firm of Westendorp & Co. , of Amsterdam, forthe construction of the section of the railroad from Puerto Plata toSantiago. Belgian money was furnished and Belgian engineers made theplans. The road was given a gauge of only two feet six inches, and theshort-sightedness is inconceivable which permitted the adoption onthis road of a gauge different from that of the Samana-SantiagoRailroad, when the two were expected to join in Santiago. Ultimatelythe gauge of the Central Dominican Railway will have to be widened, but the change will cost a considerable sum and require a completerenovation of the rolling stock. In view of the steepness of theslopes to be surmounted, the plans contemplated the construction, onseveral portions of the road, of a rack-line or cremaillère, a thirdtrack provided with cogs, between the other two, and the use ofspecial mountain-climbing locomotives having a cogwheel by means ofwhich the ascent was to be accomplished and the descent regulated. TheBelgian engineers built the road from Puerto Plata as far asBajabonico, a distance of about eleven miles. At this stage the financial difficulties of the Dominican governmentinduced the Belgians to sell their rights to American interests, whichformed the San Domingo Improvement Company to take them over. Americanengineers accordingly finished the road to Santiago. The rack-railfeature being undesirable, plans were made for the construction of theroad as an adhesion road. No further rack-rail was built and one ofthe portions constructed was converted, but two short stretches ofrack-rail remained near Puerto Plata, one of one mile and another ofthree miles. The Central Dominican Railway Company was incorporatedfor the operation of the road. During the controversy later carried on between the Dominicangovernment and the San Domingo Improvement Company the Companycontended that the road had cost in the neighborhood of $3, 000, 000, orabout $600, 000 in excess of the sums realized by the sale of the bondsassigned by the government to defray the cost of construction. Thedispute found its settlement in the protocol of January 31, 1903, bywhich the Dominican government agreed to purchase all the holdings ofthe Improvement Company. In the negotiations of which this conventionwas an incident, the value of the railroad was generally estimated at$1, 500, 000. Upon the delivery by the Dominican government of the cashand bonds agreed upon by the settlement of 1907 as the price of theImprovement Company's interests, the Company, in February, 1908, turned over the railroad to the government. It has since been operatedby the Dominican government with satisfactory results, though it hassuffered serious injury from revolutions. The insurgents destroyedbridges and the rack-rail; the latter has not been replaced, and thefour and ten per cent grades are now laboriously overcome by means ofShay geared engines. Surveys show that the troublesome grades can beavoided by the construction of curves which will increase the lengthof the road by not more than three or four miles. Owing to the mountainous character of the country traversed, thescenery on this road is splendid. The speed attained by the trainswould not alarm a nervous wreck, for though the length of the road isabout 41 miles, the ascent from Puerto Plata to Santiago takes almostsix hours and the return trip from Santiago five, in which the slowengines, the steep grades, the former rack-road section and thenumerous long stops have equal shares of responsibility. The roadbedis very rough and the passengers are considerably shaken up, but thememory of what used to be helps to mitigate the discomfort. On one ofmy trips over the road, when a fellow-passenger made a remark aboutthe severe jolting that almost shook us off our seats, an elderlyDominican gentleman observed: "My friend, you evidently never took atrip from Santiago to Puerto Plata before the railroad was built. Compared with travel then, this mode of conveyance is like beingcarried in angels' arms. " As on the Samana-Santiago Road, the regulartrains are mixed trains, that is, a freight and passenger together, usually looking like a freight train with a small passenger carattached. Except in unusually dull periods there is one daily traineach way. The city of Santiago is about 600 feet above the level ofthe sea; from here the course is over a rich plain among tobacco farmsand meadows full of cattle, for a distance of about twelve miles, until the foothills are reached and the ascent of the coast range isbegun. Higher and higher along the mountainside, through countrywilder and wilder, the train winds its way to the highest point of theroad, 1580 feet above sea-level and 20 miles from Santiago, where ashort tunnel pierces the mountain. The mountain pass at this point is1720 feet above sea-level and is the lowest one in twenty miles. Atthe station on the other side of the mountain a fifteen minute stop ismade for lunch. Then begins a rapid descent along a deep valley, onthe wooded slopes of which little houses peer out between the trees. The town of Altamira, on a knob in the middle of the valley, ispassed, and further down, near Bajabonico, a small sugar plantation. Another ascent, on which is the old rack-road section, is nowreached; a powerful mountain engine is placed before the train andslowly works its way up. From the top of the ridge the scene ismagnificent. Below, in the far distance, Puerto Plata is seen, aminiature city with tiny bright-colored houses, nestling at the footof the great verdure-covered cone, Mt. Isabel de Torres; before itlies its almost circular harbor with what look like toy ships ridingat anchor; the foam of the breakers on the reefs at the harborentrance gleams in the sunlight; and beyond, in vast immensity extendsthe blue expanse of the ocean. On the final descent quicker time ismade than anywhere else on the road. The extension of the Central Dominican Railroad from Santiago to Mocawas built and is operated by the Dominican government. In 1894 afranchise was granted the San Domingo Improvement Company for the Mocaroad, and grading was done for several miles outside of Santiago, butthe financial troubles of the Dominican government suspended the work. When better times came, the government in 1906 began to build the roadfrom Santiago to Moca with current revenues, and it was opened totraffic in 1910. At Moca this road is met by the extension of theSamana-Santiago Railroad from Salcedo, so that it is possible totravel by rail through the fertile Cibao from Sanchez to Puerto Plata, though the difference in gauge requires a change of cars at Moca. A railroad between the Cibao and Santo Domingo City has long beencontemplated. Government engineers a few years ago surveyed a routefrom Santo Domingo City to La Gina, on the Samana-Santiago Railroad, passing through Cotui. The route is 80 miles long, and the estimatedcost is about $2, 325, 000. Such a through railroad would open up greattracts now isolated, afford an easy means of communication betweenthe north and south, and be of inestimable advantage to the Republic. It is the most urgent and important public work under consideration inthe country. Another road which has long been projected and which the Dominicangovernment in 1906 determined to have constructed with currentrevenues, is one in the east, from Seibo, on the plains in theinterior, to the port of La Romana in the southern coast. This region, excellently adapted for cacao raising and sugar planting, has beenkept secluded by bad roads. After several thousand dollars had beenspent in surveys and a little grading, the work was stopped by lack offunds and the government decided that the expense of construction andthe undeveloped character of the country counselled an abandonment ofthe project for the moment. If the railroad is finally built, it willprobably be from Seibo to San Pedro de Macoris and not to La Romana. Even in the immediate vicinity of Santo Domingo City most roads are insuch bad condition that during the rainy season villages only a fewmiles away cannot be reached except by floundering through the mud formany hours, and even during the dry season, with all conditionsfavorable, it requires two days hard riding to reach the city of Azua, 80 miles to the west. A railroad from the capital to Azua hastherefore been proposed repeatedly, and in 1901 a concession wasgranted for the first section thereof, from Santo Domingo to SanCristobal, a distance of 16 miles, with the right of extension. Therevolution of the spring of 1903 interrupted the construction of thisroad, but a little work was done in 1906 under a new contract, whichhas since been declared lapsed. Private plantation railroads are to be found on several sugarplantations near La Romana, San Pedro de Macoris, Santo Domingo Cityand Azua, and on the United Fruit Company's plantation near PuertoPlata. They aggregate about 225 miles in length and are usedexclusively for the purposes of the respective estates, except onewhich carries passengers between the town of Azua and its port onsteamer days. In several of the larger cities carriages and light automobiles can behired at a reasonable figure, and furnish the principal means ofcommunication within the city and to other places as far as the roadswill permit. Between Monte Cristi and La Vega there is a regularautomobile service, as also between Santo Domingo City and nearbytowns. In only one place is there a car line--in Monte Cristi, where asmall car runs--if that term can be applied to its motion--between thetown and the harbor, a little more than a mile away. The cars, eachdrawn by a meek little mule, remind one of matchboxes on wheels; theyare open on all sides and contain simply two benches, back to back, which will hold a maximum of three passengers each. In Santo DomingoCity there was a horse car line for almost twenty years, running outas far as Fort San Geronimo, about three miles; but in March, 1903, while the city was under siege during a revolution, the car barns weredestroyed by fire and with them the entire rolling stock, the caraxles being taken for barricades. In 1915 the government grantedseveral franchises for electric car lines, one for Santo Domingo City, with the right to extend as far as Bani; another for Santiago, withthe right of extension to Janico; and a third for Macoris, with theright of extension to Seibo, but no work has been done onthese projects. On certain parts of the country roads there is communication by oxcartduring the dry season, and in the arid region such communication ispossible almost all the year round. On the Samana peninsula and inother mountain districts, merchandise is occasionally transported inIndian fashion, on two poles tied to a horse and trailing on theground behind. In general, however, recourse must be had fortransportation purposes to the faithful horse and the patient donkey. In the northern part of the Republic the ox is often used as a beastof burden and sometimes for riding, furnishing an odd spectacle. Theox is guided by a string tied to a ring in his nose, but neither theconfiguration of his back nor his gait are to be recommended forcomfortable rides. Most of the roads of Santo Domingo can be called roads only bycourtesy. They are generally little more than trails of greater orless width. The larger receipts enjoyed by the government since thecustoms collections were taken over by Americans in 1905, have causeda little improvement. Thus, a first-class macadam road has beenconstructed from Santo Domingo City to San Cristobal, a distance ofsixteen miles; the old trail from Santo Domingo to San Pedro deMacoris has become available for automobiles; and the royal road inthe Cibao from La Vega through Moca and Santiago to Monte Cristi, adistance of about 100 miles, formerly a horror, has been convertedinto a fair dirt road. The amount of work to be done appears all themore appalling when it is considered that in the small island ofJamaica, less than one-fourth the size of the Dominican Republic, there are 1000 miles of fine roads. The American authorities in theisland are giving considerable attention to the improvement of theprincipal highways around and between the more important cities, andvaluable work is being done. By an executive order of November 23, 1917, the military governor appropriated $650, 000, to be expended onportions of a trunk road which is ultimately to connect Santo Domingo, La Vega, Moca, Santiago and Monte Cristi. The majority of the roads and trails have scarcely been touched sincetheir course was fixed, centuries ago. Occasionally the abuttingproperty owners or an energetic communal chief cut away encroachingvegetation or drained an unusually bad bog or threw dirt from thesides of the road to the middle in order to raise it above water levelin the wet season, but such instances of civic thoughtfulness havebeen only too infrequent. During the rainy season travel becomes troublesome on all roads andimpossible on many. On the unimproved highways deep, dangerous bogsform in every depression, containing either liquid mud where the horseis almost forced to swim, or soft tough clay, where the horse's feetare imprisoned and the animal in its desperate efforts to jerk itselffree indulges in contortions anything but pleasant for the rider. Thehorses and cargo animals ever treading in each other's footsteps, cause the earth to wear away in furrows across the road, which fillwith water and with mud of all colors and conditions of toughness. With few interruptions the monotonous splash, splash, splash ofhorses' feet constantly accompanies the traveler. The first tenminutes of such a journey on slippery ground make the trip appear anadventure, the next ten an experience, but after that the expeditionbecomes exceedingly wearisome. In the dry season all moisturedisappears and the ridges between the mud trenches become hard asbrick. The efforts of travelers to avoid bad places by going aroundthem has caused the roads to become very wide in places--the widthvarying from one to over a hundred feet. At times, in grassy or stonystretches, the road disappears entirely, and the traveler's best guideis the telegraph wire, where there is one. Again it passes throughthorny woods with overhanging branches which continually threaten tounhorse the rider. Thus it winds along, through forests and plains, over fallen logs and trees, beside precipices, down steep banks, across rapid streams. A trip into the interior in Santo Domingorequires a good horse, a strong constitution and a large supplyof patience. In rainy weather the traveled roads are even worse than theunfrequented ones, for the ground is rendered more miry, and the bogsare more frequent. On a highroad near La Vega I arrived at a mudholewhere an old man was being rescued by a passer-by from drowning in theliquid mud; I snapped a photograph of the scene when he was stillknee-deep. Near the city of Moca there is a slope where many a horsehas fallen and thrown its rider on the slippery loam. A friend of minewho for safety's sake alighted from his horse to walk to the otherside of the gully, had his foot so tightly lodged in the pasty mudthat, in his straining to withdraw it, the foot slipped out of theshoe, which remained as firmly imbedded as before. His posture andpredicament were naturally a good deal more amusing for his companionsthan for himself. Yet some of these roads in dry weather are excellentdirt roads. On a road in the Cibao I made a trip of fifteen miles inthe rainy season in five hours of hard riding and arrived with anexhausted horse; six months later when the road was dry I made thesame journey comfortably in an hour and a half. On the first of theseoccasions--it was in the course of a vacation trip for the purpose ofstudying the country--I happened upon two other travelers and togetherwe floundered for many weary miles through black mud varying from theconsistency of soup to that of pudding. The road was indescribablybad, and riders and horses were covered with mire and thoroughlyfatigued. That evening at the inn, through the open door between ourrooms, I heard my traveling companions discussing me. One of themasked: "What is his object in coming here?" The other answered: "Hesays he is traveling for pleasure. " "Then, " responded the firstsolemnly, "he is either lying or he is insane. " The streams must usually be crossed either by fording or by ferry, andnot infrequently the horse must swim part of the distance across. Outside the railroad bridges, there are scarcely half a dozen bridgeswhich deserve the name in the Dominican Republic. A good bridge hasrecently been constructed over the Jaina River on the San Cristobalroad, and another was completed in May, 1917, across the Ozama Riverat Santo Domingo City, in place of one destroyed by a freshet someyears ago. Bridges, where there are any, are generally rude logs laidacross brooks. When journeying overland it is advisable to take advantage as much aspossible of moonlight nights. It is best to rise at two or threeo'clock in the morning, ride until about eleven o'clock, then rest forabout three hours while the sun is highest, and then continue tillevening. Riding at night, however, exposes one to the danger of makingtoo intimate an acquaintance with some mudhole or some low hangingbough or telegraph wire, but these risks can be avoided by vigilance. The hours of dawn are the coolest of the twenty-four, and moredistance can be covered with less fatigue than later in the day. If the traveler takes the precaution to furnish himself with cannedfood before starting on a journey inland, he will not regret hisforesight. Inns do not exist out in the country. In the larger cities, indeed, there are hotels, but all are modest establishments. Perhapsthe most pretentious is the French Hotel in Santo Domingo City. Inhotels which are located in important seaports or railroad termini andare frequented by travelers, the meals and accommodations are fair. Inother localities the food is almost inedible to an unaccustomedpalate, and the sleeping accommodations are primitive cots. Even inimportant towns like Moca and Azua I found the inns kept by poormulatto women, widows with families, having one room for travelers, divided from the family apartment by a thin partition, through whichall the proceedings on the other side could be followed throughoutthe night. The difficulty of land transportation explains why, with the exceptionof three cities in the Cibao, all important towns are located on theseacoast. It also makes plain why water transportation is preferred totravel by land, and the inhabitants of the north and south await thebi-weekly steamer rather than make the trip overland, which in themost favorable cases will take about three days. The roads and trailsare used for travel locally or when boat connections are notconvenient or feasible, and for mail transportation. The following arethe principal highways: 1. Road from Santo Domingo to the Cibao, by way of Bonao. There arethree roads from Santo Domingo City to the Cibao, the most westerlyone being the Bonao trail, the most easterly one the Sillon de laViuda and the middle one the Gallinas trail. The Bonao road leavesSanto Domingo by way of Duar Avenue and San Carlos and ascends gentlyin a northwesterly direction through slightly rolling land to theSanta Rosa plain, which it traverses. As far as Los Alcarrizos it hasbeen improved, but further on it is merely a dirt road withoutdrainage and becomes one long slough in rainy weather. On the Jobosavanna the road divides; the eastern branch runs along a range ofhills and the western branch over to the Jaina River, where it passesthe site of the old mining town of Buenaventura, of which only a fewvestiges of walls remain. Whichever of the two branches the travelertakes, he will be sorry he did not choose the other, for they areequally bad. The branches meet on the plain of Las Nasas, from wherethe highway continues through wooded lands and natural meadows, crossing the Jaina River three times and the Guananitos River ninetimes. The soil is a rich, soft loam, pure vegetable detritus, and thefrequent rains and the absence of drainage make this part of the roadvery difficult at all seasons. After crossing a stretch of beautifulsavanna, known as Sabana del Puerto, the ascent of a range of thecentral mountain system begins. The road makes many windings along themountain side until the heights of Laguneta are attained. The highhill of Piedra Blanca must be crossed and a number of small streamsforded before Bonao is reached. From Bonao to La Vega the road is ofthe same general character. There are many miry places, many ascentsand descents and many difficult river passes, the Yuna River, nearBonao, being crossed by ferry. On some of the steep descents thehorses and mules accustomed to the road put their four feet togetherand slide, while the unaccustomed traveler feels his hair standing onend. The distance from Santo Domingo City to Bonao is about 65 miles;from Bonao to La Vega some 30 miles. This seems to have been an ancient Indian trail between Santo Domingoand the Cibao. Bartholomew Columbus, under orders from his brother, founded both Buenaventura and Bonao in 1496 as military posts, aspart of the chain of forts stretching across the island. The decay ofthese towns when the mines were abandoned, the miry soil and the manycrossings of streams all caused travel to be diverted to the road ofthe Sillon de la Viuda. The Bonao road, being the most direct route toLa Vega, has been designated by the military government forimprovement as a trunk road. 2. Road from Santo Domingo to the Cibao by way of the pass of theSillon de la Viuda, or Widow's Chair. While the Widow's Chair road isabout twenty miles longer than the Bonao road, it is preferable sinceon the whole it lies over firmer ground. It leads due north from SantoDomingo City and after four miles the Isabela River is crossed byferry near its confluence with the Ozama. A steep ascent follows andthe road runs through wooded land until the town of Mella is reached. Small forests and wide savannas follow each other in rapid succession;the Ozama River is forded and a stretch of swampy soil with bad bogsis encountered. A fine piece of prairie land known as the Luisasavanna is crossed, more natural meadows follow and the ascent of thecentral mountain range begins. The road becomes so steep that therider can scarcely keep his seat on his horse. From the summit, theWidow's Pass, which is almost 2000 feet above the level of the sea, asublime view of mountains, valleys and plains is obtained. The passitself is a narrow rocky defile where a score of men might hold anarmy at bay. It is said that there are lower passes in the vicinity byutilizing which the steep grade might be avoided, but the fact couldbe ascertained only by a more thorough exploration than has yet beenmade. On the north the road descends through heavy timber, with manymiry places. Savannas separated by small forests are then crossed andthe little town of Cevicos is reached, the halfway place between SantoDomingo and La Vega. Eighteen miles further on, separated from Cevicosby a hard road crossed by numerous deep gullies, sleeps the ancienttown of Cotui. The Yuna River near Cotui must be crossed in canoes. Then follows a road thirty-five miles long to La Vega, which in therainy season is little more than mud and water, but leads through abeautiful wooded country. It is better to take the road from Cotui toLa Gina, or that to Pimentel, on the Samana-Santiago Railroad andcomplete the journey by rail, for though the character of these trailsis similar to the La Vega trail, they are only about fifteenmiles long. 3. Road from Santo Domingo to the Cibao by way of the Gallinas Pass. This is also an ancient trail which formerly passed through the townof Yamasá, but was diverted to shorten the distance to the Cibao. Leaving Santo Domingo the same route is followed as in going to theWidow's Pass, as far as Mella, where the road branches off to theleft. Small grassy plains and rolling wooded lands are traversed, asis also the wide prairie known as the Maricao savanna. Several streamsare forded, among them the upper Ozama, and the country continues ofthe same general character until the huts on the old cattle ranch ofla Guazuma, formerly Las Gallinas, are sighted. Here the road slopesupward as far as the foot of the Demajagua mountain, when a longtedious ascent to the pass begins, followed by a rough ride throughthe mountains. The long descent toward Cotui is broken by numerouswater-courses. No less than eleven smaller streams are forded, andthere are three crossings of the Chacuey River, before the roadleading to Cotui from Cevicos and the Widow's Pass is attained nearthe former town. By this road it is about 65 miles from Santo Domingoto Cotui. The three passes described are the only ones suitable, so far asknown, for communication between the capital and the Cibao. There are, indeed, lower and more convenient passes farther to the east, but theroads emerge near Samana Bay, too far from the Royal Plain to beavailable. The middle route of the three, that by way of the GallinasPass, is followed by the telegraph line and used by the post. It hasbeen preferred by travelers for it is considered the shortest road tothe Cibao and its highest point is reported to be only about 1200 feetabove sea-level. 4. Road from Santo Domingo to Sabana la Mar. Since the southeasternpart of the Dominican Republic consists of great plains, the roads inthis region are all perfectly level and less difficult than those ofthe mountains, but they are little more than trails and the widesavannas make traveling monotonous. The road which turns northeastfrom Santo Domingo on the left side of the Ozama passes the sugarestates there situated, continues by a wide path through a lightlywooded country to the town of Guerra and shortly thereafter entersupon the Guabatico prairie, which it crosses in its entire width ofover twenty miles. The ascent to the first pass, that of theCastellanos mountain, then begins. The descent is as easy as theascent, a valley is crossed in which the headwaters of the MacorisRiver are forded, and then follows a long ascent to the second pass. From the foot of the mountain to El Valle and Sabana la Mar thecountry is wooded and the road level and wide, but so miry as to bepractically impassable during the entire rainy season. The distancefrom Santo Domingo to Sabana la Mar is something over sixty miles. 5. Road from Santo Domingo to Higuey. This road is the same as theSabana la Mar road as far as Guerra, then traverses small forests andgrassy plains to Seibo, passing through the important towns of LosLlanos and Hato Mayor. The greater part of the last 36 miles of theroad, from Seibo to Higuey, runs over the foothills of the centralmountain range. The entire length of the road is about 110 miles. 6. Road from Santo Domingo to Azua. On this ancient road more militaryexpeditions have marched and fought than on any other in the island ofSanto Domingo. Spanish, British, French, Haitian, Dominican andAmerican forces have tramped on its dusty course. The road runs westfrom Santo Domingo City parallel with the seashore. Near the city itis a perfectly level boulevard bordered by pretty cottages. Aboutthree miles from the town the small fortress of San Geronimo ispassed, a romantic structure, built by the early Spaniards as anoutpost against piratical invasions. Seven miles further on is thecollection of huts constituting the town of Jaina on the river of thesame name. A fine new bridge spans the river and the road continuesthrough luxuriant tropical vegetation. The little town of Nigua, withan old chapel perched high on a hill, is reached, and here the roaddivides, the left branch continuing near the seashore, while the rightbranch turns inland to San Cristobal. The former pursues its way overland generally level though with occasional steep hills and cut byfrequent brooks, skirts the ocean beach for a short distance, crossesthe turbulent Nizao River by a long and dangerous ford and enters thearid country. The other branch extends to the grass-grown town of SanCristobal, where the macadam road from Santo Domingo ends. Continuing, the road traverses a fertile country by way of the town of Yaguate, crosses the broad bed of the Nizao River, which changes its channelswith dangerous frequency, threads a way through monotonous woods andjoins the other road near Paya. But a few miles further on is theclean little town of Bani. From here two roads lead to Azua. Theinland road leads through the pass of Las Carreras, --where Santana onApril 21, 1849, assured the independence of Santo Domingo by hisvictory over the Haitian forces--and finally joins the coast road. Theroad of the seacoast, which, though longer, is preferable by reason ofbeing more level, leaves Bani through a weird country, where giantcactus is the only vegetation produced by the rocky soil. Aftercrossing a stretch of grass-grown tableland it descends to the watersof Ocoa Bay and continues literally through the surf. Several hours oftravel through a dreary forest of cactus and thorny brush then followbefore Azua is reached. 7. Cibao Valley Road. The road, or combination of roads, from SamanaBay to Monte Cristi, lies in level country. The urgency for theimprovement of the eastern portion has been less since theestablishment of the railroad from Sanchez to La Vega, and the trailfrom near the mouth of the Yuna River to San Francisco de Macoris, with the branches from there to Moca and La Vega, is now importantonly locally. The two roads between La Vega and Santiago, however, inthe heart of the Royal Plain, are the most important and most heavilytraveled highways in the Republic. They run through the most fertilesection of the island, are quite level, and available for carts andautomobiles, but in the rainy season they become very muddy. Thedirect road from La Vega to Santiago is about twenty-seven miles longand lies to the south of the famous Santo Cerro. The other road isabout six miles longer and passes through the important city of Moca. After leaving La Vega and crossing the yellow Camu, the latter roadskirts the northern slope of the Santo Cerro and the traveler whocan, deserts it temporarily to climb the rocky height and regalehimself with a view of the most magnificent valley of the West Indies. Upon passing the second brook after leaving the foot of the SantoCerro the road traverses historic ground, for here stood the importantcity of La Concepción, or old La Vega. The distance from La Vega toMoca is about fifteen miles and from here two roads lead on toSantiago, both about eighteen miles long and both lined with finecacao plantations, but one turning a little to the south while theother approaches the foothills and leads through the smiling town ofTamboril. From Santiago on there are two roads, one to the north andthe other to the south of the Yaque River. They lie through a drycountry where cactus is the favorite product of the soil. The roadalong the northern bank of the Yaque is the better of the two, sincethe roadbed is good and there are few rivers to cross. It is thehighway between Santiago and Monte Cristi, a distance of sixty-sevenmiles, and passes through the inland town of Guayubin. The southernroad crosses numerous streams which flow down from the Cordillera tojoin the Yaque, turns southwesterly at Guayubin and continues toDajabon and on into the borders of Haiti. The above are the highways of most traffic. There is further a mainroad or rather trail westward from Azua along Lake Enriquillo andleading on to Port-au-Prince; another from Azua northwesterly throughthe fertile valley of San Juan, also leading into Haiti; and twoperilous trails branching off from the latter road and running throughremote mountain regions to Santiago and La Vega. There is no directcommunication in Dominican territory between the northwestern andsouthwestern portions of the Republic, and it is necessary either tomake a long detour or to pass through Haitian territory. Lessimportant local trails, more or less difficult of travel, are to befound in all inhabited portions of the country. In order to avoid the troubles of land travel, recourse is had, whenever possible, to water transportation. The foreign steamshiplines afford considerable relief in this respect, for they generallystop at more than one port of the Republic. In normal times there arefour foreign steamer lines with passenger service to Dominicanports, namely: The Clyde line, with bi-weekly sailings between New York and SantoDomingo, stopping at Monte Cristi, Puerto Plata, Samana, Sanchez, Macoris and Santo Domingo City, and Azua. The Cuban "Herrera Line, " with a tri-weekly steamer service betweenports of Cuba and Porto Rico, calling at Santo Domingo Cityand Macoris. The "Compagnie Générale Transatlantique, " two routes of which touch inthe Republic. A monthly steamer between French and Haitian ports callsat Puerto Plata, and returning also at Sanchez, in the DominicanRepublic, and then makes calls in Porto Rico and St. Thomas. A smallersteamer plying once a month between Haitian ports and Guadeloupe andMartinique calls at Santiago de Cuba, Santo Domingo City, Porto Ricanports and St. Thomas. The steamers on these routes, though notuncomfortable, are venerable hulks which have seen long service indifferent parts of the world. The Hamburg-American Line, a monthly steamer of which called regularlyat Santo Domingo City and also at other points in the Republic whencargo conditions were favorable, and connected with other ports in theAntilles and with vessels from Europe. Other steamers of this linecalled at the northern ports to take cargo to Europe. There is further a fruit line between Boston and Puerto Plata andsugar steamers between New York and Macoris during the cane grindingseason, but they carry no passengers. How far the interests of Spainand Santo Domingo have diverged is indicated by the fact that not oneof the Spanish transatlantic liners which run to Porto Rico, Cuba, Central and South America, touches in Santo Domingo. A steamer of the Bull line runs between ports in Santo Domingo andPorto Rico and there is also a coast line under Dominican registry, which extends to Porto Rico, but the steamers of which do notdistinguish themselves for comfort. Thus there is at present frequentsteamer service between Santo Domingo and Porto Rico, but littlecommunication with Haiti and Cuba. Most of the steamer lines touching in the Republic carry mails. SantoDomingo is a member of the International Postal Union and its postoffices offer the usual facilities, except that there is no moneyorder system. More than three-quarters of the incoming foreign mailcomes from the United States, including Porto Rico, and over one-halfthe outgoing foreign mail is directed to this country. The Americanauthorities are engaged in a thorough re-organization of the Dominicanpostal service. In connection with the post offices the government operates atelegraph and telephone system. The government lines connect all themore important points in the country. Constructed without plan ormethod and insufficiently cared for, these lines are all in poorcondition and badly in need of repair or reconstruction. The chargesare high and the service poor. The government also has a wirelesstelegraph station at Santo Domingo City and another at Macoris. The French Submarine Telegraph Co. Affords Santo Domingo cableconnection with the rest of the world. Its cable touches at PuertoPlata and Santo Domingo City, crossing the Republic by means of a landline which is also open to local messages. The interruptions ofcommunication over this land line in the various revolutions havegiven rise to numerous damage claims on the part of the Company. There are also telephone lines on the Samana-Santiago Railroad and onthe Central Dominican Railroad operated in connection with therespective roads. Local public telephone systems are in operation inSanto Domingo City and San Pedro de Macoris, and there are privatetelephone lines between the principal cities and plantations intheir vicinity. CHAPTER XV COMMERCE Exports and imports. --Foreign trade. --Trade with the United States. --Ports of entry. --Wharf concessions. --Domestic trade. --Businesshouses. --Banks. --Manufactures. The fact that Dominican commerce has more than trebled in twelve yearsdemonstrates the epoch-making character of the fiscal convention withthe United States. The trade figures since 1905 are as follows: GROWTH OF DOMINICAN TRADE (All figures are in American currency) Imports Exports Total 1905 $ 2, 736, 828 $ 6, 896, 098 $ 9, 632, 9261906 4, 065, 437 6, 536, 378 10, 601, 9151907 4, 948, 961 7, 628, 356 12, 577, 3171908 4, 767, 775 9, 396, 487 14, 164, 2621909 4, 425, 913 8, 113, 690 12, 539, 6031910 6, 257, 691 10, 849, 623 17, 107, 3141911 6, 949, 662 10, 995, 546 17, 945, 2081913 8, 217, 898 12, 385, 248 20, 603, 1461913 9, 272, 278 10, 469, 947 19, 742, 2251914 6, 729, 007 10, 588, 787 17, 317, 7941915 9, 118, 514 15, 209, 061 24, 327, 5751916 11, 664, 430 21, 527, 873 33, 192, 303 The increase in 1916 over 1915 was almost as much as the entire tradeof the country in 1905. The temporary setback of 1909 was caused bythe partial failure of the cacao crop and the paralyzation ofcommerce in anticipation of lower tariff rates. That of 1914 was dueto the European war and a domestic revolution. Santo Domingo has, however, repeatedly presented the anomalous spectacle of showingenormous trade figures in the midst of warfare, as for example, in1912. The advance in commerce has been especially marked since thepresence of the American troops assured peaceful conditions. Not a year has passed since 1904 without a large balance of trade infavor of Santo Domingo. While the greater part of this is representedby huge sugar profits which have gone to foreign investors, aconsiderable portion remained in the country. The great increase inwealth since 1904 is apparent to anyone who knew the country atthat time. The imports cover the wide range to be expected in a nonmanufacturing, agricultural country in the tropics. The principal imports in1916 were: Cotton goods $1, 721, 534Iron and steel manufactures, including sugar machinery 1, 562, 367Rice 1, 080, 068Wheat flour 621, 900Provisions, meat and dairy products 530, 195Oils 545, 284Bagging and other manufactures of vegetable fiber 508, 644Vehicles and boats 408, 832Manufactures of leather 385, 518Wood and manufactures of wood 317, 421Codfish and other preserved fish and fish products 309, 204Chemicals, drugs and dyes 293, 072Soap, and ingredients for the manufacture of soap 233, 991Paper and manufactures of paper 171, 706Beer 168, 901Agricultural implements 121, 830 The United States furnished practically all the flour and otherbreadstuffs, oils, lumber, agricultural implements and leatherarticles and most of the cotton goods, hardware, machinery, fish, meatand dairy products. Before the European war all the rice was bought inGermany, as well as a considerable portion of the fish, beer, meat anddairy products. At present the rice is brought from the United Statesand England. The other imports from England are almost entirely cottongoods and bagging, with some iron and steel manufactures. In the chapter on the flora of the country, statistics are given withreference to the exports of the country, which are, as there pointedout, principally: sugar, cacao, tobacco, coffee, bananas, beeswax andhoney, hides, cotton, hardwoods and dyewoods. Owing to its geographical position the United States naturally has thegreater part of Dominican trade, but since the European war set thecommerce of the world awry that proportion has grown until in 1916 theimports from the United States, including Porto Rico, were 90. 4 percent of the total and the exports to the United States and Porto Ricowere 82. 8 per cent of the total, though the latter figure variessomewhat from final destination, as much of the sugar and cacao isshipped subject to order. Before the European war something more thanone-half of the trade of Santo Domingo was with the United States, one-fifth with Germany, and the remainder with France, England andother countries. The countries of origin of imports and destination ofexports of the Dominican Republic in the year 1916, as compared withthe list for 1913, the last preceding normal year, are here shown: DOMINICAN TRADE BY COUNTRIES IMPORTS 1913 1916 Value Percentage Value Percentage of whole of whole Cuba $ 7, 352 . 08 $ 136, 587 1. 17France 274, 318 2. 96 152, 358 1. 30Germany 1, 677, 833 18. 10 ---- ----Italy 173, 105 1. 87 63, 450 . 54Porto Rico 62, 900 . 67 378, 219 3. 24Spain 210, 781 2. 27 151, 451 1. 30United Kingdom 730, 191 7. 88 481, 305 4. 13United States 5, 769, 061 62. 22 10, 162, 698 87. 13Other Countries 366, 737 3. 95 138, 362 1. 19 Total $ 9, 272, 278 100. 00 $11, 664, 430 100. 00 EXPORTS Cuba $ 27, 536 . 26 $ 19, 447 . 09France 887, 907 8. 48 287, 799 1. 34Germany 2, 068, 384 19. 76 ---- ----Italy 20, 430 . 19 2, 496 . 01Porto Rico 28, 994 . 28 425, 483 1. 98United Kingdom 241, 810 2. 31 105, 107 . 49United States 5, 600, 768 53. 49 17, 412, 088 80. 88Other Countries 1, 594, 118 15. 23 3, 275, 543 15. 21 Total $10, 469, 947 100. 00 $21, 527, 873 100. 00 Very interesting statistics with reference to all these matters arepublished annually in the report of the general receiver of Dominicancustoms. Since the establishment of the receivership full and accuratetrade statistics have become available for the first time in thehistory of the Republic. Before 1891 no statistics at all were kept. During the nineties there was an attempt at compilation, but thecorruption in the custom-houses was so notorious that the figurescannot be regarded as reliable. For the disturbed years immediatelyfollowing the death of Heureaux the data are incomplete and uncertain. The question of shipping has been a serious problem confrontingDominican commerce since the beginning of the European war. Freightrates are rising to almost prohibitive figures, which have theireffect in an enormous increase in the cost of living, Santo Domingohas as much reason as the rest of the world to desire an earlycessation of the world calamity. After the war the old trade rivalry will be revived, but Americancommerce with the Republic should easily retain its lead, if properlycultivated. The observations so frequently made with reference to theextension of American trade with South America also hold good in thecase of Santo Domingo. American merchants should send asrepresentatives cultured men who speak Spanish; they should providecatalogs in good Spanish with accurate descriptions of the articlesoffered; they should fill orders as received, without substitutingother articles; they should pack their shipments very carefully andwith a view to local transportation conditions. The success of theGermans in building up their Dominican trade was due in large measureto the polish and fluent Spanish of their representatives, to theirthorough study of local conditions, and to their favorable termsof payment. American commerce with Santo Domingo would be further stimulated andstrengthened by a tariff reciprocity agreement similar to the customsconvention between the United States and Cuba. The mutual advantagesof such an agreement would be enormous and the development of SantoDomingo would be effectively promoted. Closer relations would also befostered by a postal convention applying the domestic rates of postageto all mail between the two countries, a good beginning having beenmade by a recent arrangement applying the domestic postage rate toletters between the United States and the Dominican Republic. The Dominican Republic has twelve ports of entry, but nine-tenths ofthe foreign commerce goes through the ports of Macoris, Santo Domingo, Sanchez and Puerto Plata. The first two supply the import and exportrequirements of the southern portion of the Republic, the other twothose of the Cibao. The other eight custom-houses exist for localconvenience and for the prevention of smuggling. This is especiallytrue of the three along the Haitian frontier. In former years therewas considerable smuggling across the border, as the import duties oncertain articles in Haiti are much lower than in the DominicanRepublic. Although the profitable smuggling business demoralized tradein those regions, the government did not interfere with it owing tothe difficulty of policing the wild and sparsely populated borderdistrict. The American general receiver determined that the back doorshould be guarded as well as the front entrance, and formed a frontierguard which stopped contraband traffic, though at a heavy cost, fortwo brave American officials have been killed and three wounded bysmugglers and outlaws, while fourteen Dominican guardsmen andinspectors have been killed and twenty-three wounded. The expense ofthe three frontier custom-houses is greater than the revenue theyproduce, but entries in Azua, Monte Cristi and Puerto Plata increasedsignificantly after the frontier guard began its patrolling. Incidentally the guard has helped to keep the boundary line in place. In the seaports most of the loading and unloading is done by lighters, the wharves generally being small affairs. Only in Puerto Plata (whereextensive harbor improvements are now under way), Macoris and SantoDomingo can larger vessels approach the wharves. All the wharves werebuilt under concessions from the government, which, in theimpossibility to provide them itself on account of its perpetual lackof funds, was obliged to procure their construction by granting theright to collect a specified wharf tax, more or less onerous, for aperiod of years. The Santo Domingo City wharf concession provided thateverything exported from and imported into this city or any othercoast point in the province must pay the tax, whether the wharf wasused or not. The Samana wharf concession; as amended, gave the rightto collect certain high wharf taxes for fifty years, from 1875 to1925, in return for the building of a diminutive dock. One of theimportant objects accomplished through the 1907 bond issue was theredemption by the government of the monopolistic wharf concessions. A peculiar feature of the country's domestic trade is that almostfifty per cent of it is in the hands of Syrians. These people arefound in a number of the West India Islands, but nowhere have theygained such a foothold as in Santo Domingo. They appeared in thenineties, and for a number of years confined their activities topeddling goods about the country, both men and women traveling aroundwith great bundles of merchandise which they spread out wherever theymet prospective purchasers. Their next step was to establish retailstores and crowd the native Dominican storekeeper out, and of lateyears they have opened large business houses. They are not regardedas a desirable element, as they do not amalgamate or mingle with theDominican population, but seem possessed of the single idea to make afortune and return with it to their country. Such part of the retail trade as is not controlled by Syrians, ismostly in the hands of Dominicans. The stores are generally small, with a limited stock of goods; they have no show-windows, but arearranged on the style of bazars. Fixed prices are rare and most salesbecome negotiations with the polite shopkeeper. In the country it iscustomary for the storekeeper to make advances of merchandise to thesmaller farmers until crop time; they then pay him in cacao, coffee, tobacco or other farm products, which he remits to the seaport to thewholesale merchant with whom he deals. The larger business houses are in a majority of cases owned byforeigners, principally of Italian, German, Spanish, American andCuban citizenship, and now also including numerous Syrian firms. Amajority of those classed as Americans are natives of Porto Rico. Anumber of these merchants arrived in Santo Domingo as poor men and byhard work and shrewd investment built up respectable firms. Theycarefully preserved their foreign nationality as a valuable assetwhich protected them from undue interference on the part of thegovernment. One of the most prominent and successful merchants ofSanto Domingo was the late J. B. Vicini, an Italian who came to thecountry penniless, but with his energy and sagacity amassed thelargest fortune of the island. His business is now managed byhis sons. The larger merchants combine a banking business with their export andimport business. The foremost of these private bankers of late yearswas Santiago Michelena, a Porto Rican. Less than ten years ago therewas not a single bank in the Republic, but there are now three wellequipped banking institutions, all of them with their localheadquarters in the capital. One of these is the International BankingCorporation, which is connected with the National City Bank of NewYork; it entered the Dominican Republic in April, 1917, by taking overMichelena's banking business. It has a branch in Macoris and PuertoPlata and agencies and correspondents throughout the country. Anotherbank is the Royal Bank of Canada, which does a flourishing business ina number of the West India Islands; it has branches in five cities ofthe Dominican Republic. The third bank is the Banco Nacional de SantoDomingo, incorporated by Americans under the Dominican banking law of1909, with a capital of $500, 000. Although it has several branches, its business is not so active as that of the other banks, since it haslent most of its capital to the government. Under the banking law thisinstitution has the right to issue bank notes, but it has notattempted to use the privilege. Slowly the establishment of small factories has proceeded, for thepartial provision of local needs. The principal cities have iceplants, of which some are subject to annoying interruptions. In theCibao there are several sawmills. Further there are, in the largercities, small establishments for the manufacture of cigars, cigarettes, matches, rum, straw hats, shoes, chocolate, soap and a fewother articles. These are financed by Dominican capital and are notable to supply the local demand. In Santo Domingo City are the remainsof a costly brewery erected by Americans with a view to supplying theWest Indies; it was ruined, so local reports say, by bad managementand has been idle for fifteen years. If the amount of soap used by apeople is really an index of its degree of civilization, then theDominicans can claim to be far advanced, for the consumption of soapmanufactured in the country and imported, is very considerable. Thegovernment has encouraged manufacturing enterprises and repeatedlygranted concessions exempting their machinery and raw material fromimport duties for specified periods. The number of manufacturingplants will doubtless increase, but agriculture is bound to remain themainstay of the country. CHAPTER XVI CITIES AND TOWNS General condition of municipalities. --Santo Domingo City; ruins, churches, streets, popular legends. --Other towns of Santo DomingoProvince. --San Pedro de Macoris. --Seibo. --Samana and Sanchez. --Pacificador Province. --Concepción de La Vega. --Moca. --Santiagode los Caballeros. --Puerto Plata. --Monte Cristi. --Azua. --Barahona. Compared with cities in the United States a majority of Dominicantowns are hoary with age. The capital city and a number of others werefounded more than a century before Virginia was settled, and had begunto decline almost a hundred years before the Pilgrims landed onPlymouth Rock. Yet such have been the vicissitudes of the country thatonly one city, the capital, shows signs of its antiquity; the othersfrom their appearance might be taken to be but a few decades old, andwith the exception of two or three ancient churches in the interiornone of the older buildings of these towns have survived the ravagesof time, wars and earthquakes. The modern appearance of most cities isheightened by the fact that frame structures predominate, and outsideof Santo Domingo, Santiago, La Vega and Puerto Plata stone houses areinfrequent. The impoverishment of the country by periodic revolutions has had itseffect on the municipalities and prevented their proper development. In no city are all municipal needs and services properly attended to, and in most towns they are all badly neglected. Sanitary inspection isnowhere given due attention; sewers are practically unknown; but twocities, Puerto Plata and Santiago, have a general system ofwaterworks, the others being dependent on water drawn from cisterns orwells, or carried from rivers or springs; in all but five or sixlittle attention is paid to the condition of the streets. OnlySantiago, Puerto Plata and Santo Domingo have electric light, but thatof Santo Domingo is very deficient. Little by little conditions areimproving and especially the larger municipalities are endeavoring toimprove their streets and provide a water supply. To the smallness of the urban centers their lack of municipalconveniences is partly to be attributed. The Dominican towns are allbuilt on the same general plan as other Spanish cities, beingconstructed around a central plaza on which the church and governmentbuilding are located. The principal cities are the capitals of the twelve provinces, and thecity of Sanchez. A brief description of these cities follows, with areference to the other more important towns and villages ofeach province. PROVINCE OF SANTO DOMINGO _Santo Domingo de Guzmán_, the capital of the Republic and of theprovince of the same name, is the oldest city founded by Europeans inthe new world, the first city, Isabela, having disappeared a few yearsafter settlement. It was founded by Bartholomew Columbus in 1496 onthe east bank of the Ozama River as the capital of the colony, but thesmall houses constituting the town having been destroyed by ahurricane in 1502 it was transferred to the west bank of the river byorder of Governor Ovando. It grew rapidly in population and wealthuntil it merited the eulogies of Oviedo who wrote to Charles V in 1525that he did not hesitate to assure that there was not in Spain a cityhe would prefer whether on account of advantageous and agreeablelocation, beauty and arrangement of squares and streets or charms ofthe surrounding country, adding that "their Highnesses oftentimeslodged in palaces which have neither the conveniences, the ample sizenor the wealth of some of those in Santo Domingo. " By the middle ofthe sixteenth century the city had passed the zenith of its glory, andits capture by Drake in 1586 and the destruction of the houses aboutthe main plaza was a severe blow. The decline continued rapidly, although in 1655 the city was still strong enough to repel an invasionby Admiral William Penn. In 1684 and 1691 it was visited bydestructive earthquakes and in 1700 it was full of ruins among whichgrew great trees. The lowest ebb was reached about 1737 when thepopulation had fallen to 500 "and, " writes Father Valverde, "more thanhalf the buildings of the capital were entirely ruined, and of thosestill standing two-thirds were uninhabitable or closed and the otherthird was more than enough for the population. There were houses andlands whose owners were unknown, and of which people took advantage asbelonging to the first one who might occupy them, either because therewas entire lack of heirs of the owners or because they had emigratedelsewhere. " In a few years, however, the tide of fortune turned andthe city's rise was as rapid as its decline had been long, until byabout the year 1790 it had quite recovered its ancient glory. Anotherreverse was quick in coming, for the cession to France in 1795 and therevolt of the negroes in French Saint-Domingue drove away the bestinhabitants. In 1801 Toussaint l'Ouverture took possession of the cityand in 1805 it was successfully held by the French against the siegeof the negro emperor Dessalines. This siege was the beginning of aseries lasting for a century. In 1809 after a desperate struggle thecity was recaptured for Spain by the Dominicans, but from 1822 to 1844it was in the hands of the Haitians, and abandoned by all the whiteswho could flee. Since the declaration of Dominican independence in1844 almost every revolution has involved a siege of the capital. Within the last twenty-five years the city has made rapid stridesforward and spread far beyond the old city walls. To the stranger Santo Domingo is by far the most interesting city ofthe Republic, on account of its stirring history and its venerablemonuments of the past. Unfortunately the relics of the early days havemet with scant respect from later generations, and ruins which wouldbe the pride of other cities have been wantonly demolished. TheHaitian governors gloried in this kind of vandalism, using the oldchurches as quarries and destroying the coats of arms of famousfamilies which were cut in stone on the facades of their former housesand in their chapels in the cathedral. One which they left, on a houseon Mercedes street, adjoining the government building, was obliteratedin 1907 by the erection of a balcony. Since the declaration ofindependence ignorance and negligence have been responsible for muchdamage and the few administrations which took an interest in the oldmonuments needed all their money for military purposes. Ancientbastions have been needlessly razed, inscriptions effaced and no stepstaken for the preservation of such memorials as remained. In 1883 aconcession for the improvement of Santo Domingo harbor even providedthat the concessionnaire might tear down the ruins belonging to thestate and use the material for filling purposes; happily he was ableto carry out but little of this part of the contract. The greatmajority of the brick and stone structures of Santo Domingo areancient houses and convents preserved or rebuilt with more or lessalteration. In some cases behind walls and doorways of great age arelittle huts of the poor. Though many signs of the past have thusdisappeared, many still remain. It is to be hoped that the Americanauthorities in Santo Domingo will be less indifferent to thepreservation of ancient monuments than has been the case in other WestIndian countries. The most interesting ancient building is the massive ruin known as the"House of the Admiral" or "House of Columbus, " which even now, aftercenturies of neglect and decay, gives eloquent testimony of formergreatness. It was built soon after 1509 by Diego Columbus, the son ofthe great navigator, on a height overlooking the Ozama River. HereDiego Columbus governed with regal splendor and here most of hischildren were born. It was the home of his widow, Maria de Toledo, until her death in 1549. Here also their son Louis Columbus lived formany years and embarked on two of his mad marriages. Another son, Cristobal, who was in the government employ in Santo Domingo, alsoseems to have lived in this house, after Louis went to Spain in 1551. On Cristobal's death in 1571 and that of Louis in 1572, it passed toCristobal's son Diego. From the date of this Diego's death in 1578, when the direct male line of the Discoverer's descendants becameextinct, the history of the house becomes obscure: it was sequesteredby court decree in the course of the long inheritance litigationbetween the members of the Columbus family and appears to have beenawarded in 1583 to the Admiral of Aragon, son of a sister of Louis andCristobal, and in 1605 to Nuño de Portugal, grandson of anothersister; the former may have sojourned there temporarily, but it isdoubtful whether the latter or any of his descendants ever visitedSanto Domingo. There is reason to believe that it was occupied for atime by the family of Luis de Avila, judge of Santo Domingo City, whowas married to a daughter of Cristobal and whose children were stillliving in the colony at the end of the sixteenth century. When in 1790a descendant of this Avila was at length awarded the last vestiges ofthe Columbus honors, no attention seems to have been given to thishouse, which was then as complete a ruin as at present, though it wasin better condition and the arcade supporting the front porch wasstill extant. The edifice is built of stone blocks; porches supported by gracefularches were once an attractive feature; the windows and principaldoorways were embellished with handsome arabesques; and Oviedo andother chroniclers dwell at length on the magnificence of the interior. They especially refer to the beauty and value of a sculpture showingthe arms of Castile, located in the great reception hall behind theviceroy's throne. At the present time the building is reduced to amere shell, roofless and windowless; in a part of its interior thereis a little palm thatch shelter for stabling horses; while the courtyard and terrace reek with offal from dirty cabins round about. At the foot of the house of Columbus is part of the old city wallerected in 1537 and of which numerous portions remain intact, thoughall traces of the moat have disappeared. The old city was in the formof a trapezium occupying an area of a caballeria or about 200 acres, and the wall on the north side, provided with numerous redoubts andwatch towers, was much the longest, the western wall being theshortest. Santo Domingo is one of the cities of the Spanish main whichlay claim to the story that when the accounts for the city's wallswere laid before the king of Spain, he went, to the window and gazedat the horizon, saying he was "looking for the reflection of thosewalls, for they must be built of gold, they cost so much. " Judging bythe relative size of the walls, the story should rather be awarded toCartagena, in Colombia, or possibly to another city, but SantoDomingo's walls are massive enough to have justified the Spanish kingin squinting at the horizon, at least. The ancient gates which wereformerly closed from sunset to sunrise, still remain, but no longerafford the only means of ingress and egress as breaches have been madein the walls at most street terminations. The most famous of the oldgates is the "Puerta del Conde, " "Gate of the Count, " so calledbecause it was constructed by the Count of Peñalva, Governor of SantoDomingo, about 1655, though the bastion through which it leads is asold as the city wall. It was here that the cry of independence wasraised on February 27, 1844, and it is therefore regarded as thecradle of Dominican independence and its official name is "Bulwark ofthe twenty-seventh of February. " Another important gate is the "Gateof San Diego, " also called "Gate of the Admiral, " near the ruins ofDiego Columbus' house and affording communication with the wharves onthe Ozama River. It is one of the original three gates of the city. Upthe river, near the lumber market, is a very old ceiba tree to whichit is claimed Columbus once tied up his vessel. Still further up theriver is a spring the enclosure about which is said to have been builtby Diego Columbus. "La Fuerza, " the fort and barracks, is situated at the southeastcorner of the city. According to an inscription over the gate it wasbuilt in the year 1783. Within its enclosure on a bluff at the placewhere the Ozama empties into the sea, rises the ancient citadel, the"Torre del Homenaje, " "Tower of Homage" the enormously thick walls ofwhich were erected not later than 1504. There are many who affirm thatit was built before 1500, although the town was then situated on theother side of the river, and a cell with a small barred window ispointed out as the cell in which Bobadilla imprisoned Columbus beforesending him to Spain in chains. Others claim that recently-discoveredold foundation-walls on the east side of the river were thefoundations of the building in which Columbus was confined. "In thatcase, " Dominican wags observe, "the Tower of Homage is the place wherehe would have been confined if it had then been erected. " In any eventthe tower and the terraces below it are the oldest fortificationsconstructed by white men in America. Cortez and Pizarro, Velazquez, Ponce de Leon, Narvaez and many others passed out of the Ozama Riverunder the shadow of this building, full of hope for the future. Withinits somber walls have been immured many an Indian chief in the time ofthe conquest and many a revolutionist in later days. The tower properhas been for years a political prison, while around the courtyard atits base on the riverside, is the common jail. The churches form an important connecting link between old and newSanto Domingo. Of these the most beautiful and imposing is thecathedral, built in what may be called Ibero-Romanesque style. Asearly as 1506 Ferdinand and Isabella ordered its erection, in 1512 agrant of revenue was made and two years later the work of constructionwas begun. In one of the chapels is a large rough-hewn mahogany crosson which is painted the legend: "This is the first sign planted in thecenter of this field to mark the beginning of this magnificent templein the year MDXIV. " The work progressed slowly; an inscription in thedoorway leading to the plaza states that the church was completed tothat point in 1527 and another inscription in the old choir, torn downin 1877, stated that the building was finished in 1540. It is probablethat the original plans called for an even loftier building. One ofthe towers first projected was begun, but it was never concluded andthe belfry is still a temporary one. Of late years there have beenattempts to provide for the completion of this tower by popularsubscription. The building has been damaged repeatedly by earthquakesand the repairs made have changed its original outer appearance on theplaza side. In its roof there is still lodged a cannon-ball fired intothe city by a Spanish battery during the siege of 1809. In the interior, great pillars of a soft dark-red tint support thehigh groined arches and the effect is severe and impressive. The altarat the head of the nave is beautifully inlaid with wrought silver andis surmounted by the coat of arms of Spain placed there by order ofCharles V, a relic of Spanish days which was hidden away while theHaitians were in possession of the city. On the altar platform amarble slab indicates the place where the bones of Columbus were foundin 1877, another slab the former location of the remains taken to Cubain 1795 as the remains of Columbus, and still another the restingplace of Louis Columbus, the grandson of the Discoverer. At the end ofthe nave, near the entrance door, is the airy marble monument beneathwhich is guarded the casket that contains the remains of theDiscoverer of America. The cathedral like the other churches is made more interesting by theancient epitaphs on slabs in the pavement and walls, marking theburial places of persons famous in the history of the island. In oneof the lateral chapels, which belonged to the Bastidas family, theresting place of Bishop Bastidas, who in the early days was bishop inVenezuela, Porto Rico and Santo Domingo, is marked by a large marblerecumbant figure of a bishop and the chapel is therefore known as "thechapel of the stone bishop. " Nearby is the tomb of his father, thatRodrigo de Bastidas who was imprisoned by Bobadilla, and an epitaphfull of abbreviations which reads: "Here lies the very magnificent Sir Don Rodrigo de Bastidas, firstAdelantado and Governor and Captain-General of Santa Marta, who in theyear 1502 discovered Terra-firma by order of the Catholic Sovereignsfrom Cape Vela to Darien: he died March 28, 1527. " Close by is another epitaph: "Here lies the virtuous, Christian and religious lady Doña IsabelRodrigo de Romera, native of the noble town of Carmona, who was wifeof the Adelantado Don Rodrigo de Bastidas and mother of the mostreverend Bishop of San Juan, Don Rodrigo de Bastidas. She diedSeptember 15, 1533. May she rest in peace. " And in Latin: "I believe that my Redeemer lived and that on the judgment day I shallbe resurrected. " In another chapel is a slab ten feet long with an elaborate coat ofarms, surmounted by a helmet with flowing plumes, and having aninscription reading: "Here lies the magnificent knight Diego Caballero, councilor of thisIsland of Española, first secretary of the first Royal Audiencia whichthe Catholic Sovereigns established in these Indies. He died January22, 1553. " Surrounding this inscription is another: "Likewise lies here the generous lady Isabel Bacan, his good wife: shedied in the year 1551. " Above is a verse stating that he flourished with the strength givenhim by God, and on an adjoining stone are the words; "I have ended my cares. Hope and fortune, remain and seek others tomock. " On another tombstone is the inscription: "This tomb belongs to Don Francisco de Almansa, canon of this holyprincipal church and commissioner of the Holy Inquisition, and tohis heirs. " There are many other interesting inscriptions. In one of the chapelsis an artistic gem, a well preserved picture of Our Lady of Antigua, presented by Ferdinand and Isabella who are represented in an attitudeof devotion at the foot of the Virgin. It is probably by Antonio delRincon, their court painter. Other very old and obscure paintings inthe church are ascribed to Velazquez or Murillo. Another chapel, adorned with the Dominican coat of arms in marble relief, is theresting place of Dominican celebrities. The oldest Christian church in the new world was that of San Nicolas, founded by Governor Nicolas de Ovando in 1502. It was suffered to goto ruin, then restored and used as a military hospital and then againabandoned to decay until, overgrown with weeds and almost roofless, itwas latterly used by a blacksmith as his workshop. The suggestion wasfrequently made that it be converted into a museum of Dominicanantiquities, but the matter was neglected too long and in 1909 thehistoric building was condemned and the front portion demolished, butthe groined arch over the presbytery remains. The most picturesque ruin of the city is that of the church of SanFrancisco, erected by the Franciscan monks about 1504 at the mostconspicuous point in the city, and which is now, after the destructionof San Nicolas church, the oldest church ruin in America. It was thelargest church in old Santo Domingo. Here were deposited and probablystill rest, the remains of Bartholomew Columbus, the brother of theDiscoverer. The church and convent, like several other churches of thecity, were badly damaged by the earthquake of 1751 but were rebuiltbetter than before. When the Haitians came the church was abandoned;in 1824 it was assigned to the negro immigrants from the United Statesas a Methodist church, but it was allowed to go to complete ruin andmuch of its masonry was utilized by the Haitian rulers. A small partof the monastery has been rebuilt for use as an asylum for the insane. The Franciscan community was one of the wealthiest of the city, andfronting on the city's principal market still stands a large houseformerly belonging to it and known as the "Casa del Cordón, " "House ofthe Cord, " because of a Franciscan's girdle hewn in stone over thedoorway. Tradition says that Diego Columbus resided here while hispalace was under construction. The other larger churches have all been restored and among them may bementioned the church of St. Dominic or Santo Domingo founded in 1507, with massive walls and arches. It contains numerous tombs belonging tofamilies that flourished in the island in the sixteenth andseventeenth centuries, but most of the inscriptions are rudely carved. A slab in one of the chapels shows a coat of arms with thirteen stars;there is no inscription further than a short Latin quotation from the26th psalm, but the stone is supposed to date from the latter part ofthe sixteenth century and to mark the grave of Lope de Bardeci, thefounder of the chapel. Other churches are the lofty Mercedes church bythe side of the ruined monastery of the friars of Mercy; the church ofRegina Angelorum, the spacious building adjoining which, now used bythe courts of justice, was formerly a nunnery; that of St. Clara, formerly a nunnery and rebuilt from ruin in 1885 by the sisters ofcharity; the church of San Lazaro, at the leper asylum; the quaint oldchurch of Santa Barbara; and the chapel of San Miguel, founded about1520 by Miguel de Pasamonte, the royal treasurer, an inveterate enemyof the Columbus family. The old Jesuit church is used as a theater andthe former Jesuit convent is occupied by business houses and privateresidences. The main plaza of Santo Domingo is a pretty square planted withflowers and shade trees. In the center stands a bronze statue ofColumbus who is represented with the flag of Spain taking possessionof Quisqueya for his sovereigns. At the foot of the pedestal is anIndian writing thereon the words found engraved on the box thatcontained what are believed to be Columbus' remains: "Ill'tre. YEs'do. Varon D'n Cristoval Colon, " "Illustrious and noble man DonCristopher Columbus. " On the south side of the plaza is the cathedral, on the west side the old city hall, recently renovated and providedwith an ugly tower, and on the east side the government building, erected during the Haitian occupation with bricks from the SanFrancisco and Santa Clara churches. Popular superstition thereforeregards this building as unlucky and points out that one of the Baezbrothers was killed in a revolution when the family resided here. Theedifice was for years occupied by all the government offices untilthe renovation of the ancient palace of government. Adjoining is thesmall building in which the Dominican Congress meets. It occupies asite on which in the olden days stood a prison, the walls of whichstill remain behind the Congress Hall. The spacious building known asthe old palace of government is one of the most ancient edifices inthe city. Its cornerstone was laid about 1504 by Ovando and itcontained the offices of the Spanish governors-general in colonialtimes. Through neglect it was permitted to fall to ruin but since 1900it has gradually been renovated. Nearby is a large sundial, erectedin 1753. The old palace of government is on Colon street, which was in theearly days called "Calle de las Damas, " "Street of the Ladies, "because on it resided the ladies who came from Spain with the wife ofDiego Columbus. It is to be regretted that the old street names whichwere pregnant with memories of the past have been so lightly changed. At present most of the streets are named after events, battles orpersons prominent in the more recent history of the country. The streets of the capital are not quite so narrow as those of Havana, San Juan and other old Spanish cities. After years of neglect theprincipal streets have at length been placed in excellent conditionand the steam roller has even invaded the side streets. The sidewalksare generally narrow, being only about three feet in width, and asmunicipal supervision over them has not been carefully exercised, there are differences in grade along the sidewalks of certain streetsand in passing along it is necessary to go up and down steps. Alongthe improved streets, however, new sidewalks and gutters have beenconstructed. The style of architecture of the houses with their thickwalls and iron-barred windows makes the streets resemble those ofother Spanish-American cities. Among the finest buildings of the citymay be counted the palatial quarters of the young men's club "Casinode la Juventud" and of the Union Club, of which the most prominent menof the city, especially merchants, are members. Leading out of thecity are two boulevards along which are fine residences of wealthierDominicans. A city of such history naturally abounds with popular legends. Storiesare current of a network of ancient subterranean passages which aresaid to connect the principal churches and the fort, and knowledge ofthe location of which has been lost because their entrances haveeither been walled up or become obstructed by debris. Local historiansderide such tales, though admitting that underground passages may haveexisted at isolated points. It is related that not many years ago awoman was digging in her garden on a street which passes the ruins ofMercedes convent, when the earth gave way and an aperture becamevisible. Her husband investigated and found a subterranean passagewhich led across the street: and directly under the convent ruins, where it was choked up with stones and earth. Other stories refer todeep, forgotten vaults said to exist under many buildings. Popularrumor, morbid when dealing with President Heureaux, affirms that invaults under the ancient mansion which was converted into a palace forhim, the remains of some of his victims were found. In vaults anddungeons under the barracks of La Fuerza the Spaniards in retiringfrom the island at the close of the eighteenth century, secreted partof their military supplies. Many years later an old man who hadassisted in walling up the stores revealed their existence toPresident Baez and he, when besieged in Santo Domingo in 1857 broughtthem out and utilized them against the revolutionists. The oldmortars and grenades were found in excellent condition and at firstcaused a panic among the besiegers who thought the shells had fallenfrom the sky. The favorite stories are those relating to buried treasure. During thevicissitudes through which the island has passed and especially duringthe troublous period at the end of the eighteenth and the beginning ofthe nineteenth century many persons who left the country firstsecreted their valuables in the belief that their absence would beonly temporary. They did not return, their property passed into otherhands and the treasure was forgotten. Occasionally, too, people buriedtheir money for safe-keeping and died without imparting the secret. There have been authenticated cases of treasure-trove, especially inthe first half of the nineteenth century. The finds have almost alwaysbeen accidental, as when in hanging a hammock a nail gave way andrevealed a cavity, or in rebuilding a hidden orifice was disclosed. Inmany popular stories a foreigner with a map plays a part. According toone of these tales a stranger appeared some years ago near Mercedeschurch taking measurements, so that the neighbors thought him insane. He finally approached the owner of one of the houses and offered torent it. When his increased offers were refused he drew from hispocket a paper which he said showed the location of a hidden treasureand offered the houseowner a share if he were permitted to make thesearch. The cupidity of the other was aroused and he would agree totake nothing less than three-fourths of the whole, whereupon thestranger in a rage lit a match and burnt the paper before thehorrified houseowner's eyes, exclaiming: "Now you will never find it. "For months afterwards the proprietor delved through the ground belowthe house and perforated the walls in scores of places, but theprediction of the stranger would probably have been verified had itnot been for an accident. Some four years later, after a heavy rain, awoman of the neighborhood came to draw water from the cistern of thisparticular house. As the rope stuck in the pulley she gave a tug, slipped and fell into the cistern to her waist in water. Her screamsbrought assistance and as she was drawn out it was noticed that in herdescent, she had loosened several bricks in the wall of the cistern. An examination revealed an aperture large enough to hold a man, andfilled with plate, jewelry and coins. In another story the stranger was more fortunate. He rented a smallhouse, also on Mercedes street, paying several months' rent inadvance. When after a few days the house was found closed it wasthought the stranger had taken a trip to the country, but when two andthree months passed and the tenant did not reappear, the proprietressapplied to the authorities. The door was forced open and in the middleof the room a deep hole was found, at the bottom of which was an emptystrongbox, while smaller boxes and the pick and shovel used in theexcavation lay scattered around. On a table in the corner lay aparchment with a map that showed the location of the strongbox. Further investigation revealed that the stranger a week after hisdisappearance took passage on a schooner for a foreign port. The fortunate finders of such treasures have generally kept silence inorder to avoid the possibility of adverse claimants, and whendiscovered would minimize the find. Popular rumor still designatesseveral houses as containing hidden treasures. One of them, situatedon Billini Plaza, near the cathedral, has all but been torn to piecesby tenants in vain efforts to penetrate the secret. In other cases therumors are more vague. General Ferrand, the energetic French governorof Santo Domingo, is reported to have buried the state treasure beforedeparting in 1808 on the disastrous expedition in which he lost hislife in Palo Hincado, and in more than one place excavations have beenmade to seek it. Outside the walls of the city is the cemetery, which is pretty andclean and has many vaults and varicolored plants. The most conspicuousobjects are the crosses which surmount the graves and the iron fencessurrounding many lots, with a little lantern at each corner. Thelanterns are lighted up on All Soul's Day, when people flock to thecemetery and decorate the graves of their departed friends withwreaths and flowers. An interesting monument of old Santo Domingo is the small fortress ofSan Geronimo, which stands deserted on the ocean shore about threemiles from the city. It was built in the early days of Spanishcolonization as a protection against foes who might land up the coastand is a good specimen of medieval military architecture, with itswalls of immense thickness, its watch towers, its deep moat and itsdark dungeons. In revolutions it was usually garrisoned and has beentaken and retaken unnumbered times, and in 1903 it was bombarded by aDominican cruiser. In the midst of its monuments of the past Santo Domingo throbs withthe life of the present. Being one of the principal ports and the seatof the government it is the busiest city of the Republic. Its docks, markets and business streets are always congested with workersand traders. _San Carlos_ is a suburb of Santo Domingo City, adjoining the same onthe northwest, and since 1910 forming an integral part thereof. Itwas founded towards the end of the seventeenth century by CanaryIslanders. Owing to its proximity to Santo Domingo and as part of thetown overlooks the capital, it has in all the sieges of Santo Domingobeen held by the besiegers and lost heavily. The fifteen days' siegeby the negro emperor Dessalines in 1805 caused serious damage; in thesiege of eight months in 1808 by Juan Sanchez Ramirez it was almostentirely ruined; in the fifteen days' siege of 1849 by Santana it wasburned; in the nine months' siege of 1857 by Santana it was againpartially destroyed and since that time in every siege it hassustained damage. In the two months' siege in the beginning of 1904the church and other buildings were damaged by shells, and severalblocks of dwellings were burned to the ground. Yet the town has alwaysrisen, phoenix-like, from its ashes. One of the points of interest isan old public cistern of great size and depth. Near San Carlos is thepicturesque grotto of Santa Ana, said to have been an Indiansanctuary. On the Ozama River opposite the capital is _Villa Duarte_, formerlycalled _Pajarito_. On an adjoining estate is the ruined chapel ofRosario, believed to date from the first city of Santo Domingo andwhich may have been the church where Bobadilla proclaimed hisauthority over Columbus. Not far from the town is an interesting cavewith three crystal pools called Tres Ojos. _San Cristobal_, about 16 miles to the west of the capital, had only achapel and two or three huts in 1820, but attained more importancewhen slaves freed by the Haitians on the surrounding sugar estatessettled there. _Bani_ is a pretty little town founded in 1764 and situated about 39miles west of Santo Domingo, between the foothills and the sea. Itschief pride is that it was the birthplace of Maximo Gomez, the famouswarrior for Cuban independence. Gomez became a major in the Spanisharmy, fought against his countrymen during the War of the Restorationand abandoned Santo Domingo with the Spaniards, but this record hasbeen forgiven by the Dominicans in view of his later services inbehalf of Cuba libre. _Bayaguana_ and _Monte Plata_, about 30 and 28 miles northeast ofSanto Domingo, respectively, were both founded in 1606 for thesettlement of residents of coast towns destroyed in order to stopsmuggling, the former receiving the inhabitants of Bayajá and Yaguana, the latter those of Monte Cristi and Puerto Plata. The church ofBayaguana is visited by many pilgrims who come to adore an image ofChrist to which miracles are attributed. Other villages of the province are: _San Lorenzo de los Minas_, 3miles northeast of Santo Domingo, first settled in 1719 by negroes ofthe Minas tribe, refugees from French Santo Domingo; _San Antonio deGuerra_, situated in the plains 19 miles northeast of the capital;_Boyá_, 32 miles northeast of the capital, founded in 1533 byEnriquillo, the last Indian chief and by the last survivors of theIndians of the island: it contains an old church of compositeaboriginal Gothic architecture, in which the remains of Enriquillo andof his wife Doña Mencia are believed to rest; _Mella_, 7 miles, and_La Victoria_, 12 miles north of the capital; _Yamasá_, 30 milesnorthwest of Santo Domingo; and _Sábana Grande_, or _Palenque_, 22miles west of the city. PROVINCE OF SAN PEDRO DE MACORÍS _San Pedro de Macorís_, about 45 miles east of Santo Domingo City, isone of the most modern and flourishing cities of the Republic. In1885 it was merely a small fishing village, about that time sugarplantations began to be established in the surrounding plains and thetown commenced to grow. To-day there are pretty houses, the streetsare clean and in good repair, the plaza has a handsome park and thewhole city wears a prosperous look. There are busy scenes on themodern docks and in the harbor. Around Macoris, as in other parts ofthe Republic, there are large numbers of beautiful graceful cocoanutpalms and royal palms. The Province of Macoris is small and contains but one other townworthy of mention, namely, _San José de los Llanos_, about 15 milesnortheast of Macoris, founded in the plains in the eighteenth century. PROVINCE OF SEIBO _Santa Cruz del Seibo_, 74 miles northeast of Santo Domingo, wasoriginally founded by Juan de Esquivel in 1502, but being destroyed byan earthquake in 1751, was moved to its present location, to the northof its old site. It lies in the center of a region devoted to cacaoplanting and stockraising. The town has a pretty church, and iscelebrated in Dominican history as having instigated the reconquestfor Spain in 1808 and as having been the home and bulwark of GeneralPedro Santana, who was idolized by the Seibanos. _Salvaleón de Higüey_, the easternmost city of the Republic, situated31 miles southeast of Seibo, was also founded by Juan de Esquivel inthe days of Ovando. Its church contains a picture of Our Lady ofAltagracia, to which miracles are ascribed and which attracts pilgrimsfrom all parts of Santo Domingo and Haiti. Other towns are _Hato Mayor_, 18 miles west of Seibo; _Ramón Santana_, formerly called _Guaza_, 19 miles south-west of Seibo; _La Romana_, on the coast 25 miles south of Seibo, with rapidly expanding sugarestates; and _El Jovero_, a hamlet on the coast near the eastern endof Samana Bay. PROVINCE OF SAMANÁ _Santa Bárbara de Samaná_, 78 miles northeast of the capital of theRepublic, is built on a cove on the north side of Samana Bay. Theprotected character of the inlet made it a favorite resort for piratesin the seventeenth century, and beginning with 1673, French buccaneersmade several attempts to settle here but were driven out by theSpanish authorities. The town was definitely settled in 1756 byfamilies from the Canary Islands. In the town and neighborhood livemany English-speaking negroes, descendants of those who were broughtfrom the United States by the Haitian President Boyer about 1825. A larger town is _Sánchez_ at the western end of Samana Bay, twenty-five miles from the town of Samana. In 1886 there was here atiny hamlet, known as _Las Canitas_, but on becoming the terminus ofthe railroad from La Vega, the name of Sanchez, a hero of Dominicanindependence, was given it, and the town rapidly grew in size. Itsdwellings are scattered over two ridges of land divided by a deepvalley. On one of the ridges the houses are pretty one-story buildingswith gardens in front. The beautiful grounds surrounding the house ofthe general manager of the Samana-Santiago Railroad are situated on aheight overlooking the sparkling expanse of Samana Bay and give asuggestion of the possibilities of landscape gardening in SantoDomingo. Colored families from St. Thomas and the British West Indiesand descendants of American negroes make up a considerable proportionof the population, so that more English is heard here than Spanish. On the south side of Samana Bay is the small village of _Sábana de laMar_, commonly known as _Sábana la Mar_, founded by Canary Islandersin 1756. There are many stories of pirates' buried gold inthis region. PROVINCE OF PACIFICADOR _San Francisco de Macoris_, the capital of the province, is about 85miles northwest of Santo Domingo City and occupies the site of a fortestablished by Ovando in 1504 and known as the fort of La Magdalena. It was founded in 1774 around a chapel dedicated to St. Ann whichstood on a ranch called San Francisco. Lying in a fertile districtformerly devoted to tobacco and now one of the chief cacao regions ofthe island, it is a town of considerable business. It is also called_Macoris del Norte_, to distinguish it from San Pedro de Macoris, which is called Macoris del Este. _Villa Rivas_, on the Samana-Santiago Railroad, 19 miles from Samanabay, was formerly called Almacén, or Storehouse, because here wassituated, before the railroad was built, a warehouse for the storageof merchandise imported and exported by way of Samana and theYuna river. The other towns, all of recent foundation, are _Matanzas_, a fishingvillage on the edge of a cacao district on the northeast coast, andthree villages named after heroes of the War of Restoration: _Cabrera_on the coast at Tres Amarras point; _Castillo_, 8 miles west of Rivas;and _Pimentel_, formerly called _Barbero_, a station on theSamana-Santiago Railroad and the center of an important cacao zone. PROVINCE OF LA VEGA _Concepción de la Vega_, capital of the province and one of the mostimportant cities of the Royal Plain, is 90 miles from Santo DomingoCity. The old town of Concepción de la Vega was founded by Columbus in1495 at the foot of the eminence known as Santo Cerro and at the placeof residence of the Indian chief Guarionex. It quickly attained suchimportance that in 1508 it was declared a city and endowed with a coatof arms, and in the same year a bishopric was erected there, whichwas, however, in 1527 merged with the bishopric of Santo Domingo. Anearthquake overthrew its fine buildings in 1564 and the city wasthereupon relocated at a distance of three miles on the bank of theCamu. The site of the old city is now private property and isovergrown with tropical vegetation. Moss-grown foundation wallsprotrude from the ground; a mass of brickwork some twenty feet highand having the form of a blockhouse chimney remains of the old church;and part of the circular tower erected at the corner of the fort ofColumbus, well provided with loop-holes for muskets, still remainsstanding. In desultory excavations made at different times smallobjects such as ancient spurs, stirrups and coins have been found. The new city led a languishing existence until it became the interiorterminus of the Samana-Santiago Railroad which gave it a greatimpetus. It is regularly laid out, the streets are fairly wide and amajority of the houses are built of brick. The city has a pretty plazalaid out as a garden, a new market building, a theater, and like everyother town of importance in Santo Domingo, a club. At the entrance tothe town is a bronze statue of Gregorio Rivas, a progressive merchantand philanthropist of this region, who died twenty years ago. The feature of the city which attracts the traveler's attentionunfavorably is the neglect of the city streets. During the dry seasonthe lack of pavements does not matter but when the rains come the richloam turns to a deep black mud. Along most streets there are narrowsidewalks, but where there are none, or where it is necessary to crossto the other side, the mode of progress is by hop, skip and jump fromone dry place to another--the religion of the virtuous pedestrianbeing put to a severe test when after a strenuous jump he lands in amuddy place up to his shoe tops. At some crossings thoughtfulstorekeepers lay a plank of salvation for the passer-by. The city is agreat center for cacao, tobacco and coffee, and several sawmills arekept busy cutting up pine logs from the surrounding hills. _Cotuí_, about 31 miles southeast of La Vega, was founded by order ofOvando in 1505, being called _Las Minas_ in the early days because ofthe mines of gold, copper and other metals in the neighborhood. _Bonao_, about 26 miles south of La Vega, was founded by order ofColumbus in 1496 to protect the mines in the nearby mountains and wasthe scene of Roldan's revolt against Columbus. Both of these townsalmost disappeared when the colony declined and are nowhumble villages. Other villages are _Jarabacoa_, 18 miles southwest of La Vega;_Constanza_, 30 miles southwest of La Vega and rarely visited bystrangers because of its isolation among the mountains, near thebeautiful valley of Constanza; _Cevicos_, also hidden in themountains, 12 miles southeast of Cotui; and _Santo Cerro_, 3 milesnorth of La Vega, on a hill which commands a magnificent view of theRoyal Plain. PROVINCE OF ESPAILLAT _Moca_, also called _Espaillat_, 100 miles northwest of Santo DomingoCity, is a thriving city. It was the scene of the "Moca massacre" in1805, when the Haitian general Christophe, having guaranteed thesafety of the inhabitants, induced them to return from their hidingplaces in the mountains and assemble in the church to the number offive hundred in order to hold a mass of thanksgiving, whereupon theywere massacred by the Haitian soldiers. In more recent history it hasbeen taken and retaken many times during revolutions and in 1899 wasthe scene of the killing of President Heureaux. Its houses are mostlyone story in height and many are built of brick, while picturesquehuts of the poor surround the town. Gutters have been constructed inthe principal streets, but the possibilities of paving have by nomeans been exhausted. The town sustains two churches, one on theoutskirts, and another with a peculiar square tower, on the plaza. Theinhabitants take pride in their pretty flower-grown plaza and in theelaborate portal of their cemetery. The other town of the province is _Salcedo_, formerly called _JuanaNúñez_, 7 miles east of Moca in a rich cacao district. PROVINCE OF SANTIAGO _Santiago de los Caballeros_, Santiago of the Gentlemen, 115 milesnorthwest of Santo Domingo, was founded as a military station on abluff of the Yaque River about 1497 by order of Bartholomew Columbus, and settled in 1504 by thirty knights, from which circumstance itderives its name. It received many settlers from the old town ofIsabela, was given a coat of arms in 1508, reached a flourishingstate, and was destroyed in 1564 by the same earthquake whichoverthrew La Vega. Its inhabitants then removed to the present site, about six miles east of the location of the old city, the ruins ofwhich are still to be seen. The city was burned three times by theFrench buccaneers during their struggles with the Spanish colonialauthorities and later by the Haitian general Christophe on theoccasion of the retreat of the emperor Dessalines in 1805. It hadagain attained importance when it was destroyed by an earthquake in1842. Once more it was reduced to ashes in 1863 at the outbreak of theWar of the Restoration. To-day Santiago is one of the richest and mostflourishing cities of the island and has aspirations to become thecapital of the Republic, so that an intense rivalry exists with SantoDomingo. The streets are regular and clean and a general repair hasbeen commenced. There are important business houses and well-stockedbazaars and the market place is one of the busiest in the country. The plaza in the center of the city has a handsome garden establishedby popular subscription, and gay with flowers and palms. Two churchesare on the plaza, the larger of which has a beautiful altar. Theremains of President Heureaux are buried here, his resting place beingmarked by a marble slab with the Dominican coat of arms. Thegovernment palace fronting on the plaza is a substantial affair withwalls dating from Haitian times, and the city hall, also fronting onthe plaza, is a fine structure. In the cemetery there is a street ofbeautiful mausoleums, the architecture of several being Egyptian instyle and others bearing medallions or recumbent figures of thedeceased. The volunteer fire corps of Santiago has a special lot and apretty monument. _San José de las Matas_, 24 miles southwest ofSantiago, is situated on a high plain in the midst of the mountainsand is surrounded by great pine forests. Its salubrious climate andpicturesque environments make it a favorite summer resort for wealthyfamilies of Santiago, Puerto Plata and Moca, and a health resort forpersons afflicted with stomach or lung trouble. Nearby are hot andcold sulphur springs, the beautiful Inoa waterfall, the picturesqueconfluence of the Amina and Inoa rivers and the high Rubio Peak, whichcommands one of the finest panoramas in the island. Other towns are _Valverde_, formerly _Mao_, 30 miles northwest ofSantiago; _Jânico_, 14 miles southwest of Santiago, _Esperanza_, 27miles northwest of Santiago; and _Canton Peña_, also called_Tamboril_, 7 miles east of Santiago and having such close socialrelations with that city as to be regarded as a suburb of the same. PROVINCE OF PUERTO PLATA _Puerto Plata_, 150 miles northwest of Santo Domingo, is the mostimportant port of the north of the Republic. Columbus is said to havemade the plans for the streets of the town; as early as 1499 therewere settlers here; and in 1502 the city was formally founded by orderof Ovando. It enjoyed prosperity during the first years of the colony, but in 1543 was attacked by pirates and thereafter rapidly went todecay. The stringent laws which restricted the commerce of the islandto certain ports of the mother country encouraged contraband trade andthe place became the headquarters for smugglers. The governmentendeavored to stop smuggling in 1606 by the brilliant expedient ofdestroying the town and moving all the inhabitants to Monte Plata, farin the interior of Santo Domingo province. In 1750 Puerto Plata waspopulated anew and shared with Monte Cristi the advantage of the lawpermitting free trade for ten years. It rapidly grew in populationuntil it became the most important commercial point of the Republic, and the port of the entire Cibao region, part of which now finds anoutlet at Sanchez. It was in a flourishing state and had fine houseswhen it was totally destroyed by fire in 1863, during the War ofRestoration, whether by the Spaniards or the Dominicans remains indoubt. Prosperity again followed, many foreigners were attracted byits commercial possibilities and to-day it is again one of the mostthriving towns of Santo Domingo. The first thing to attract the traveler's notice is the excellentcondition of the city streets. Though the macadamized streets and thesidewalks are narrow, they are clean, well kept and well lighted atnight. In streets, schools and public squares the city is in advanceof most of the other cities of the Republic. This is attributed to agreat extent to the presence of many cultured foreigners as well as tothe progressive natives. The inhabitants of Puerto Plata boast thatwhat Puerto Plata does the rest of the Republic does. They point as anexample to their plaza. Formerly the plaza of Dominican cities was abare, shadeless tract of ground in the center of the city. PuertoPlata was the first to plant trees, lay out a garden and provide itsplaza with a music stand. This plaza in the center of the town is theoldest and prettiest of the city's three public squares and is nowshaded by large, leafy trees and embellished with beautiful flowersand varicolored bushes. On Sunday nights on this plaza and on Thursdaynights on one of the others, band concerts attract crowds of people, young and old, who promenade to the strains of the music. The bellesof the city are very handsome and owing to the intermarriage ofnatives with foreigners from all parts of the world widely differenttypes of beauty are to be observed at such concerts. On one side of the principal plaza is the church, on another standside by side the theater, the government building, where theprovincial offices are located, and the city hall, on the first floorof which is a well-attended school. The three principal clubs of thecity are also located in commodious quarters fronting on this plaza. One of these clubs counts among its members most of the merchants andstaid and elderly people, another is the club of the young men and athird is the ladies' club. The ladies' club is open only in theafternoon and evening, but in the clubs frequented by gentlemen gamesof billiards may be seen going on at almost any hour of the day. The buildings of the city are all of modern date. Only a fewfoundation walls near the ocean shore, and the old fort, remain fromformer days. The old fort is situated on the point of land partlyenclosing Puerto Plata harbor and is surrounded on three sides bybuildings of the present fort. It is a large round whitewashedstructure having the appearance of a huge cheesebox; its walls are ofenormous thickness and it is now used as a jail. In former days theinhabitants had much difficulty in obtaining drinking water, butPuerto Plata was the first city to be provided with a general systemof water works, having been followed only recently by Santiago. Thewater is brought from a stream a little over a mile away. The ridethere is a beautiful one but it goes to prove that the movement forgood thoroughfares has not yet extended to the roads. From all partsof Puerto Plata Mt. Isabel de Torres is seen towering behind the city. The view obtained from the slopes of the mountain, over miles ofshoreline and a broad expanse of ocean, is of indescribable grandeur. The traveler who visits Puerto Plata carries away with him pleasantmemories of the clean city, its comfortable clubs, its hospitablecitizens and its beautiful surroundings. Other towns of the province are _Altamira_, 18 miles southwest ofPuerto Plata, astride a hill rising in the middle of a valley of thecoast range of mountains; _Blanco_, on the coast 20 miles northwest ofPuerto Plata and 10 miles east of the site of Isabela, the first cityin the new world; and _Bajabonico_, 10 miles southwest of PuertoPlata, a village called into being by the building of the CentralDominican Railroad. PROVINCE OF MONTE CRISTI _San Fernando de Monte Cristi_, 196 miles northwest of Santo DomingoCity, the capital of Monte Cristi province, was founded during thegovernment of Ovando by sixty Spanish families, and after givingpromise of prosperity decayed with the rest of the colony. It wassupported for a time by a brisk contraband trade which sprang up withthe Dutch and other nations and to put a stop to which the town wasdestroyed in 1606 like Puerto Plata and the inhabitants transferred toMonte Plata, to the south of the central mountain range. In 1750 aroyal dispensation granted it the right to free trade with all nationsfor a period of ten years and it began to attain prominence as a port, but the wars with the Haitians, the War of Restoration with theSpaniards and the many civil wars have retarded its progress. Only inthe last few years has it received a new impetus. The town is builtabout a mile from the shore, with which it is connected by a tinyhorse car. About thirty houses are connected with a private system ofwaterworks which supplies water from the Yaque river. Situated as itis in the arid region of Santo Domingo the city bears much resemblanceto some of the western towns of the United States. Other towns are _Guayubín_, 24 miles, _Sabaneta_, 36 miles, and_Monción_, 46 miles southeast of Monte Cristi; and _Dajabón_, 22miles, _Restauración_, 40 miles, and _Copey_, 12 miles southwest ofMonte Cristi. They are all small villages. Dajabon, founded towardsthe middle of the eighteenth century, is situated on the east bank ofthe Massacre river, which constitutes the Haitian boundary, and is oneof the inland ports of entry. Restauración is peopled largely byFrench speaking negroes from Haiti. PROVINCE OF AZUA _Azua de Compostela_, about 83 miles west of Santo Domingo City, wasfounded by Diego de Velazquez in 1504 at a point four miles southwestof its present location. It was first called Compostela after aGalician official who held some property here, but the Indian name ofthe region prevailed. Hernando Cortez, later the conqueror of Mexico, settled here and for some five years was the notary of the town. Atfirst prosperous, the city soon suffered a serious decline, but wasbeginning to revive when on August 18, 1751, it was entirely destroyedby an earthquake. The inhabitants then transferred the town to itspresent location on the western bank of the Via River. The ruins ofthe old city are still visible near the hamlet called Pueblo Viejo, Old Town. Azua was destroyed by fire three times in the Haitian wars:in 1805, by order of the Haitian emperor Dessalines, in 1844 byPresident Herard, and in 1849 by President Soulouque. To-day it isthe most important town in the southwestern part of the Republic. Situated in an arid region, like Monte Cristi, it is similar to many atown in New Mexico and Arizona, with hot, sunny, shadeless streetsbeginning and ending in space, one story houses, a great plain of darkgreen beyond the town and purple mountains in the distance. The houseshere are of wood or stone and with thatched or zinc roofs. There is alarge new church, the images in which seem to be very old and do notdistinguish themselves for beauty. The town is about three milesinland from the port, but a branch of a narrow gauge plantationrailroad connects the city with the wharf and on steamer days apassenger car makes several trips. Azua is famous throughout SantoDomingo for its excellent "dulce de leche, " a kind of milk taffy, which is well made elsewhere in the Republic, but is better in Azua asit is here prepared from goat's milk. _San Juan de la Maguana_, 48 miles northwest of Azua, was founded in1504 by Diego Velazquez in the beautiful Maguana valley where theIndian chief Caonabo had his residence, became almost extinct in 1606, but revived in 1764 with the establishment of new cattle ranches inthe vicinity. During the Haitian wars it was burned repeatedly. Nearthe town is a curious relic of Indian times called Anacaona's circusor "el corral de los Indios, " consisting of large stones laid in ahuge circle, and in the center a strange cylindrical stone, carvedwith Indian figures, which is supposed to have served as the throne ofthe Indian queen Anacaona. _Las Matas de Farfán_, 64 miles northwest of Azua, was established in1780 and suffered greatly during the wars with the Haitians. Like theother villages of the Maguana valley its chief industry isstockraising. _Bánica_, 75 miles northwest of Azua, on the Haitianfrontier, was one of the towns established by Diego Velazquez in 1504. Though an important town in the early days it decayed, and in thebeginning of the nineteenth century was abandoned entirely. DuringHaitian rule it was reestablished, but upon the declaration ofDominican independence was again abandoned for fear of Haitianvengeance, remaining so until the War of Restoration during which itwas settled anew. Other villages are _San José de Ocoa_, also known as _Maniel_, 18miles northeast of Azua, founded in 1844 in a picturesque region;_Túbano_, 34 miles northwest of Azua; _El Cercado_, 12 miles southwestof Las Matas de Farfan; and _Comendador_, near the Haitian frontier, 13 miles west of Las Matas de Farfan, the seat of one of the inlandcustom-houses. Dominican writers include among the towns pertaining to the Provinceof Azua those situated in that part of the territory of the formerSpanish colony which is now held by Haiti. The principal towns in thisterritory are _Lares de Guajaba_ or _Hincha_, to-day called _Hinche_, which was founded in 1504 and was the birthplace of General PedroSantana; _Las Caobas_, founded about the middle of the eighteenthcentury; _San Miguel de la Atalaya_, to-day called _St. Michel_, founded about the same time; and _San Rafael de la Angostura_, called_St. Raphael_ by the Haitians. PROVINCE OF BARAHONA _Barahona_, 126 miles west of Santo Domingo City, became capital ofthe Barahona district when a provincial government was establishedthere in 1881. It is a small town, which began to be settled in thebeginning of the nineteenth century, and suffered greatly during theHaitian wars and the revolutions following them. At present its fameis its fine coffee. Other towns are _Enriquillo_, formerly called _Petitrú_ (Petit Trou)on the coast 22 miles south of Barahona; _Neiba_, 32 miles northwestof Barahona, founded a century ago and prevented from developing bythe damages it sustained first in the Haitian, then in the civil wars;and _Duvergé_, formerly called _Las Damas_, which commands a fine viewof Lake Enriquillo with Cabras Island in the distance. In thenorthwest corner of the province is the small collection of hutscalled _Tierra Nueva_, and a few miles beyond, isolated in a wildregion on the frontier, the inland customhouse of _Las Lajas_. CHAPTER XVII THE REMAINS OF COLUMBUS Burial of Columbus. --Disappearance of epitaph. --Removal of remains in1795. --Discovery of remains in 1877. --Resting place of Discovererof America. The greatest pride of the Dominican people is that they are thecustodians of the mortal remains of Christopher Columbus. The samehonor is claimed by Spain, but a Dominican would consider it almosttreasonable to doubt the justice of the Dominican claim. It is astrange freak of fate that not only should the great navigator havebeen denied in life the rewards promised him, not only should the newworld he discovered have been given the name of another, but that hisvery tomb is a matter of controversy. It is admitted that after hisdeath in Spain his remains were transferred to Santo Domingo City andthere deposited in the cathedral. In 1795, when the Spanish colony ofSanto Domingo was ceded to France, the Spaniards carried with them toCuba what they supposed were the remains of Columbus, and these werein 1898 taken to Spain, but in the year 1877 another casket wasbrought to light in the Santo Domingo cathedral, with inscriptionswhich indicated that it contained the bones of the great Discoverer. It was the desire of Columbus to be buried in Santo Domingo, hisfavorite island. In his will, executed shortly before his death, hecalled on his son Diego to found, if possible, a chapel dedicated tothe Holy Trinity, "and if this can be in the Island of Española, Ishould like to have it there where I invoked the Trinity, which is inLa Vega, named Concepción. " Columbus died on May 20, 1506, inValladolid and his body was deposited in the church of Santa Maria dela Antigua in that city. In 1513, or perhaps before, it wastransferred to the Carthusian monastery of Santa Maria de las Cuevasin Seville, where was also deposited the body of his son Diego, whodied in 1526. Diego Columbus, in his will of the year 1523, statedthat he had been unable to carry out his father's wishes, butrequested his heirs to found in the city of Santo Domingo, inasmuch asLa Vega was losing population, a nunnery dedicated to St. Clara, thesanctuary of which was to be the burial place of the Columbus family. His plans were modified in favor of a nobler mausoleum and his widow, Maria de Toledo, in the name of her son Louis Columbus, applied to theking of Spain for the sanctuary of the cathedral of Santo Domingo as aburial place for her husband, his father and his heirs, which grantthe king made in 1537 and reiterated in 1539. A difference havingarisen with the bishop of Santo Domingo, who wished to reserve thehigher platform of the sanctuary for the interment of prelates andcede only the lower portion to the Columbus family, the king in 1540again reiterated his concession of the whole sanctuary. According tothe annals of the Carthusian monastery of Seville, the bodies ofChristopher Columbus and his son were taken away in 1536, and it isprobable that they were deposited in the cathedral of Santo Domingo in1540 or 1541, after the issue of the king's third order and theconclusion of the work on the cathedral. Where they were during theintervening four or five years and in what year they were brought toSanto Domingo, is not known. Las Casas, writing in 1544, states thatthe remains of the Admiral were at that time buried in the sanctuaryof the cathedral of Santo Domingo. In the year 1572 Louis Columbus, the grandson of the Discoverer, died in Oran, in Africa, and hisremains were taken to the Carthusian monastery in Seville. It is notknown when they were brought to Santo Domingo, but the transferprobably took place in the beginning of the seventeenth century. The early records of the Santo Domingo cathedral were burnt at thetime of Drake's invasion in 1586, and those since that year have beenso damaged by the ravages of tropical insects that little is left ofthem. They make little and only passing reference to the tomb ofColumbus, and mention no monument or inscription whatever. Juan deCastellanos, in his book "Varones Ilustres de Indias, " printed in1589, recites a Latin epitaph which he says appeared near the placewhere lay the body of Columbus in Seville, but pretty Latin epitaphswere Castellanos' weakness, and it is to be feared that this one, likeothers which he dedicated to American explorers, was nothing more thana figment of his poetic imagination. Two writers, Coleti and Alcedo, who almost two centuries later mentioned the same epitaph as markingthe grave in Santo Domingo, must have copied from Castellanos. Undoubtedly there was at first some inscription to mark the tomb, butin the course of the years any slabs with inscriptions were permittedto disappear entirely from the graves of Columbus, his son andgrandson, and the very existence of their remains in the cathedralbecame a matter of tradition. It is possible that the epitaphsdisappeared at some time when the pavement of the church was renewed, or when damages inflicted by earthquake shocks were repaired, or whenchanges were made in the windows and doors about the main altar, orwhen the higher altar platform was extended to reach the desks onwhich lie the Gospels and Epistles. At any such times the slabs overthe burial vaults may have been broken or laid aside and neverreplaced. It is also possible that they were intentionally removed inorder to guard against profanation of the tombs by enemies in time ofwar or by West Indian pirates, who captured and sacked stronger citiesthan Santo Domingo. In 1655 when an English fleet under AdmiralWilliam Penn appeared before the city and landed an army under GeneralVenables, there was great excitement and fear in Santo Domingo, andthe archbishop ordered that the sacred ornaments and vessels be hiddenand that "the sepulchres be covered in order that no irreverence orprofanation be committed against them by the heretics, and especiallydo I so request with reference to the sepulchre of the old Admiralwhich is on the gospel side of my holy church and sanctuary, " Thatother tombs were hidden, whether at this time or another, was shown in1879, when, on repairing the flooring in the chapel of the "stonebishop" in the cathedral, the slab indicating the grave of theAdelantado Rodrigo de Bastidas, the explorer, was found concealedunder a stone, and it was discovered that the epitaph of Bastidas on aboard which from time immemorial had hung on the wall of the chapelwas an incorrect copy of the original graven on the burial slab. Fromthe words of the archbishop it appears possible that the sepulchre ofColumbus was marked in some way in 1655, although even then there mayhave been nothing, since the prelate saw fit to specify the point inthe church where the tomb was situated. The first document in which tradition appears invoked for designatingthe burial place is the record of a synod held in 1683, which containsthe following clause: "this Island having been discovered byChristopher Columbus, illustrious and very celebrated throughout theworld, whose bones repose in a leaden box in the sanctuary next to thepedestal of the main altar of this our cathedral, with those of hisbrother Louis Columbus which are on the other side, according to thetradition of the old people of this Island. " The synod and traditionwere not strong in Columbus genealogy when they referred to LouisColumbus as the brother instead of the grandson of the Discoverer, andit is noticeable that no mention is made of the son Diego Columbus. Itmay be remarked, in passing, that the body of Bartholomew Columbus, brother of the Admiral, was deposited in the convent of San Franciscoin Santo Domingo, upon his death in 1514, and while some writerssuggest it may have been taken to Spain, there is nothing to indicatethat it was ever given sepulture in the cathedral of Santo Domingo. After the lapse of another century tradition referred to twosepulchres, one of Christopher Columbus, on the right side of thealtar, the other of his brother or son, on the left side of the altar. Moreau de Saint-Méry, a French diplomat and statesman, who lived inthe French colony of St. Domingue for some years during the decade of1780 to 1790, in his book "Description de la partie espagnole del'isle Saint-Domingue" states that, being desirous of obtainingaccurate information with reference to the tomb of Columbus, headdressed himself to José Solano, an ex-governor of the colony, thenin command of a fleet in the insular waters; that this official wrotea letter to his successor in the governorship, Isidoro Peralta, andthat he received the following answer: "SANTO DOMINGO, March 29, 1783. "_My very dear friend and patron:_ "I have received the kind letter of Your Excellency of the 13th of thismonth, and did not answer immediately in order to have time toascertain the details it requests relative to Christopher Columbus, and also in order to enjoy the satisfaction of serving Your Excellencyas far as is in my power and to permit Your Excellency to have thesatisfaction of obliging the friend who has asked for those details. "With respect to Christopher Columbus, although the insects destroythe papers in this country and have converted whole archives intolace-work, I hope nevertheless to remit to Your Excellency the proofthat the bones of Columbus are in a leaden box, enclosed in a stonebox which is buried in the sanctuary on the side of the gospels andthat those of Bartholomew Columbus, his brother, repose on the side ofthe epistles in the same manner and under the same precautions. Thoseof Christopher Columbus were transported from Seville, where they hadbeen deposited in the pantheon of the dukes of Alcala after havingbeen taken there from Valladolid, and where they remained until theirtransport here. "About two months ago, in working in the church, a piece of thick wallwas thrown down and immediately reconstructed. This fortuitous eventwas the occasion of finding the box of which I have spoken, and which, although without inscriptions, was known, according to a constant andinvariable tradition, to contain the remains of Columbus. In additionI am having a search made to see whether in the church archives orthose of the government some document can be found which will furnishdetails on this point; and the canons have seen and stated that thegreater part of the bones were reduced to dust and that bones of theforearm had been distinguished. "I send Your Excellency also a list of all the archbishops which thisisland has had and which is more interesting than that of itspresidents, for I am assured that the first is complete, while in thesecond there are voids produced by the insects of which I have spokenand which attack some papers in preference to others. "I also refer to the buildings, the temples, the beauty of the ruinsand the motive which determined the transfer of this city to the westbank of the river which constitutes its port. But with reference tothe plan requested by the note there is a real difficulty, as this isforbidden me as governor; the superior understanding of YourExcellency will comprehend the reasons, etc. " The documents sent by Governor Peralta were as follows: "I, José Nuñez de Caceres, doctor in sacred theology of the pontificaland royal University of the Angelical St. Thomas d'Acquino, dignitarydean of this holy metropolitan church, primate of the Indies, docertify that the sanctuary of this holy cathedral having been torndown on January 30 last, for reconstruction, there was found, on theside of the platform where the gospels are chanted, and near the doorwhere the stairs go up to the capitular room, a stone coffer, hollow, of cubical form and about a yard high, enclosing a leaden urn, alittle damaged, which contained several human bones. Several yearsago, under the same circumstances and I so certify, there was found onthe side of the epistles, another similar stone box, and according tothe tradition handed down by the old men of the country and a chapterof the synod of this holy cathedral, that on the side of the gospelsis reputed to enclose the bones of the Admiral Christopher Columbusand that on the side of the epistles, those of his brother, nor has itbeen possible to verify whether they are those of his brotherBartholomew or of Diego Columbus, son of the admiral. In testimonywhereof I have delivered the present in Santo Domingo, April 20, 1783. JOSÉ NUÑEZ DE CACERES. " An identical certificate, signed by Manuel Sanchez, was also sent, aswell as a third which reads as follows: "I, Pedro de Galvez, schoolmaster, dignitary canon of this cathedral, primate of the Indies, do certify that the sanctuary having beenoverthrown in order to be reconstructed there was found on the side ofthe platform where the gospels are chanted, a stone coffer with aleaden urn, a little damaged, which contained human bones; and it isremembered that there is another of the same kind on the side of theepistles; and according to the report of the old men of the countryand a chapter of the synod of this holy cathedral that on the side ofthe gospels encloses the bones of the Admiral Christopher Columbus, and that on the side of the epistles those of his brother Bartholomew. In witness whereof I have delivered the present on April 26, 1783. PEDRO DE GALVEZ. " The certificates were not carefully drafted, for in speaking of therebuilding of the sanctuary only the interior thereof, probably onlythe platform, was referred to, and from a notarial document ofDecember 21, 1795, quoted below, it is evident that by coffer wasmeant a vault and that the word urn was used synonymously with box. The papers give eloquent testimony of the uncertainty in which theeminent men's remains were involved. Governor Peralta died in 1786 andwas interred under the altar platform near the supposed remains ofColumbus. In 1787, when Moreau de St. Méry endeavored to find theofficial record of the find of 1783, it had already disappeared. In 1795 Spain ceded to France the entire Spanish part of SantoDomingo, and in evacuating the island the Spanish authoritiesdetermined to carry with them the remains of the great Discoverer. Itis to be assumed that there were still persons connected with thecathedral who could point out the location of the vault accidentallydiscovered twelve years before and that as tradition referred to onlyone vault on that side of the altar, the remains contained thereinwere extracted without further investigation. The description of thevault opened tallies with that of the vault found in 1783. Thedocument attesting the embarking of these remains reads asfollows: "I, the undersigned clerk of the King, our Lord, in charge ofthe office of the chamber of this Royal Audiencia, do certify that onthe twentieth day of December of the current year, there being in thisholy cathedral the Commissioner Gregorio Saviñon, perpetual member anddean of the very illustrious municipal council of this city, and inthe presence of the most illustrious and reverend friar FernandoPortillo y Torres, most worthy Archbishop of this metropolitan see; ofHis Excellency Gabriel de Aristizabal, Lieutenant-General of the royalnavy of His Majesty; of Antonio Cansi, Brigadier in charge of the fortof this city; of Antonio Barba, Field-marshal and Commander ofEngineers; of Ignacio de la Rocha, Lieutenant-colonel andSergeant-major of this city, and of other persons of rank anddistinction, a vault was opened which is in the sanctuary on the sideof the gospel (between) the main wall and the pedestal of the mainaltar, which is one cubic yard in size, and in the same there werefound several plates of lead, about one tercio in length, indicatingthat there had been a box of the said metal, and pieces of bone as ofthe tibia or other parts of some deceased person, and they werecollected in a salver that was filled with the earth, which by thefragments of small bone it contained and its color could be seen tobelong to that dead body; and everything was placed in an ark ofgilded lead with iron lock, which being closed its key was deliveredto the said illustrious Archbishop, and which box is about half a yardlong and wide and in height something more than a quarter of a yard, whereupon it was transferred to a small coffin lined with blackvelvet, and adorned with gold trimmings, and was placed on a decentcatafalque. "On the following day with the presence of the same illustriousArchbishop, His Excellency Aristizabal, the communities of Dominicans, Franciscans and Mercenarians, military and naval officers, and aconcourse of distinguished persons, and people of the lower classes, mass was solemnly said and fasting enjoined, whereupon the sameillustrious Archbishop preached. "On this day, about half past four o'clock in the afternoon therecame to the holy cathedral the gentlemen of the Royal Order, to wit, Joaquin Garcia, Fieldmarshal, President-Governor and Captain-Generalof this Island of Española; José Antonio de Vrisar, knight of theroyal and distinguished order of Charles the Third, Minister of theroyal and supreme council of the Indies and at present Regent of theRoyal Audiencia; Justices Pedro Catani, dean; Manuel Bravo, likewiseknight of the royal and distinguished order of Charles the Third, andwith honors and seniority in the Royal Audiencia of Mexico; MelchorJoseph de Foncerrada and Andres Alvarez Calderon, state's attorney;there being in the cathedral the most illustrious and reverendArchbishop, His Excellency Gabriel de Aristizabal, the municipalcouncil and religious communities, and a complete picket with drapedbanner, and taking the wooden box covered with plush and goldtrimmings, in the interior of which was the box of gilded lead, whichcontained the remains exhumed on the preceding day, the PresidentJoaquin Garcia, the Regent Joseph Antonio de Vrisar and the Justices, Dean Pedro Catani and Manuel Bravo conducted it to a little before theexit through the door of the said holy church, where the President andRegent separated, passed to their respective places and weresubstituted by Justice Foncerrada and Calderon, state's attorney, andupon leaving the church it was saluted by the said picket with adischarge of musketry, and there followed the Fieldmarshal andCommander of Engineers Antonio Barba, the Brigadier and Commander ofmilitia Joaquin Cabrera, the Brigadier and Commander of the fortAntonio Cansi, and the colonel of the regiment 'Cantabria, ' Gaspar deCasasola, and thereafter the military officers alternated according totheir grade and seniority until reaching the city gate which leads tothe harbor, where their places were taken by the members of the veryillustrious municipal council of this city, dean Gregorio Saviñon, Miguel Martinez Santalices, Francisco de Tapia and Francisco deArredondo, judge of the rural court, and upon emerging from the gateit was placed upon a table prepared therefor; a response was chantedand during the same the forts saluted it with fifteen minute guns, asfor an admiral, and one after another took the key of the ark andthrough the said illustrious Archbishop placed it in the hands of HisExcellency Aristizabal, stating that they delivered the ark into hispossession subject to the orders of the Governor of Havana as adeposit until His Majesty should determine what may be his royalpleasure, to which His Excellency acceded, accepting the ark in themanner stated and transferring it aboard the brigantine 'Descubridor, 'which, with the other war-vessels waiting with insignia of mourning, also saluted it with fifteen guns, whereupon this certificate wasconcluded and signed by the parties. "Santo Domingo, December 21, 1795. Joaquin Garcia. Friar Fernando, Archbishop of Santo Domingo. Gabriel de Aristizabal. Gregorio Saviñon. José Francisco Hidalgo. " The brief account of the remains when everything else was related withsuch detail leads to the logical conclusion that there was no epitaphon the vault and no inscription on the leaden plates found within. TheSpanish judicial chronicler's habit of minute description would nothave permitted the omission of such important particulars, if theyhad existed. The remains were transferred to Havana where their reception was evenmore solemn than their embarkation in Santo Domingo. On January 19, 1796, they were landed amid the booming of guns, conducted in state bythe civil and military authorities and a large concourse to the plaza, and deposited on a magnificent bier in the shadow of the columnerected where, according to tradition, the first mass was said inHavana and the first municipal council met. Here the ark was formallydelivered to the Governor of Havana, who had it opened and itscontents inspected, whereupon it was again closed and transferred withgreat pomp to the cathedral. The key was there delivered to the bishopand the remains deposited in a sepulchre with suitable bas-reliefsand inscriptions. The notarial narrative of the event goes into themost minute particulars, but the contents of the ark are merelydescribed as "several leaden plates nearly a tercio in length, severalsmall pieces of bone as of some deceased person, and some earth whichseemed to be of that body. " For over eighty years it was generally accepted in Santo Domingo, asthroughout the world, that the bones of Columbus rested in thecathedral of Havana. There were, indeed, persons who handed down atradition that the remains taken away by the Spaniards were not thoseof the great navigator and that these still remained under the altarplatform in the Santo Domingo cathedral, but such persons were veryfew and no attention was paid to their allegations. Some Dominicanseven called on the Spanish government to return the remains and letthem be laid to rest in Dominican soil in accordance with theDiscoverer's dying wish. In the meantime no one thought of the tombsof Diego Columbus or Louis Columbus, nor was it remembered that theywere buried in the cathedral. In the year 1877 extensive repairs were undertaken in the cathedral ofSanto Domingo. The worn brick flooring was to be replaced with marblesquares, the old choir was to be torn down and a choir establishedelsewhere in the church, and the altar platform was to be extendedinto the church proper and reduced in height. Shortly after the workhad begun, a heavy bronze image kept in the vestry--which adjoined thesanctuary on the side opposite that where the remains were exhumed in1795--was, on May 14, 1877, placed in a doorway long closed leading tothe sanctuary. In doing so it was noticed that a hollow sound camefrom the wall adjoining and in order to ascertain the cause a smallopening was made in the wall about a yard above the floor. It was thenseen that there was a small vault under the altar platform of thechurch, and that the vault contained a metal box with human remains. Canon Billini, in charge of the cathedral, immediately ordered thatthe opening be closed until the return of the bishop from a pastoralvisit to the Cibao. The hole was hidden behind a curtain and noimmediate attention given to it. Towards the end of June Mr. CarlosNouel, a friend of Canon Billini, obtained permission to look in atthe box and deciphered a rude inscription reading, "El Almirante D. Luis Colon, Duque de Veragua, Marques de--" "The Admiral Don LouisColumbus, Duke of Veragua, Marquis of--. " The last word was missingbecause of a hole in the corroded leaden plate, but was supposed to be"Jamaica. " At this time the box was broken, because several daysbefore in placing a scaffold in the church one of the posts had beenlocated over the box and had broken through. The persons whoafterwards sought to draw out the box pulled to overcome the obstacleand tore the weak plates apart entirely. The bishop returned on August 18, 1877, and being informed of what hadhappened, on September 1 invited the Cabinet officers, the consularcorps and a number of civil and military authorities and privatepersons to witness the removal of the remains of Louis Columbus. Tothe chagrin of the bishop and canon, it was found that the plate withthe inscription had been stolen. Probably shamed by ever increasingpopular indignation, the grave-robber anonymously returned it onDecember 14, 1879, by leaving it in the cathedral door in a packageaddressed to the archbishop. The other plates with the earth andpieces of bone were carefully collected. [Illustration: SANCTUARY OF CATHEDRAL IN SEPTEMBER, 1877(Scale; 1 centimeter = 1 meter) 1. Vault containing remains of Christopher Colombus. 2. Vault opened by Spaniards in 1795. 3. Vault containing remains of Louis Columbus. 4. Pedestal of main altar. 5. Door leading to vestry. 6. Door leading to capitular room. 7. Location of containing wall of old altar platform, as it existed in 1540. 8. Location of stairs which in 1540 led up to altar platform. 9. Tribune of the Gospels. 10. Tribune of the Epistles. 11. Steps of altar platform. 12. Grave of Juan Sanchez Ramirez. Isidore Peralta had also been buried at this spot. ] The unexpected finding of the long forgotten remains of the grandsonof the Admiral recalled the tradition that the Discoverer's body stillremained in Santo Domingo, and several gentlemen, among them theItalian consul, requested the bishop to take advantage of therepairing of the church for a thorough investigation of the altarplatform in order to ascertain whether it contained any other notablegraves. The bishop gave his consent, and the investigation commencedon September 8, under the direction of Canon Billini. Digging wasbegun near the door of the capitular room and in a short time anunmarked grave was found containing human remains and militaryinsignia. It was proven by witnesses that they were the remains ofJuan Sanchez Ramirez, Captain-General of Santo Domingo, who died onFebruary 12, 1811, and was buried in the same place where had been thegrave of General Isidore Peralta. A narrow wall was then encounteredwhich was afterwards found to be the containing wall of the ancientaltar platform. On the ninth, a Sunday, the work went on during themorning with the permission of the bishop. An excavation was made atthe place where, according to tradition, the remains taken to Havanahad lain and soon a small vault was discovered quite empty. It wasevidently the vault opened by the Spaniards in 1795. The examinationwas continued between this vault and the main altar, but nothing newwas encountered, whereupon the work was left to be resumed on thefollowing day, rather with the hope of finding something of DiegoColumbus, for the empty vault seemed to show that the remains ofChristopher Columbus were really removed in 1795. The excavations continued on September 10, 1877, between the emptyvault and the wall. A large stone was found, and a piece broken off, disclosing another vault containing what appeared to be a square box. The bishop and the Italian consul were sent for immediately and upontheir arrival the orifice was slightly enlarged and a metal box becameclearly visible. It was covered with the dust of centuries, but aninscription was seen, in which abbreviations of the words "FirstAdmiral" could faintly be distinguished. The work was stopped at once, the doors of the cathedral were locked and all the principal personsof the city invited to attend the further investigation of the vault'scontents. The report of the find rapidly spread through the city, though distorted in some quarters, for one of the workmen hearing thebishop's joyful exclamation, "Oh, what a treasure!" conceived the ideathat the box was full of gold pieces and so informed the people thatgathered outside. The formal opening of the vault on the afternoon of that day and theexamination of its contents are minutely described in the notarialdocument drawn up on the occasion: "In the City of Santo Domingo on the tenth of September of the yeareighteen hundred and seventy-seven. At four o'clock in the afternoonupon invitation of the most illustrious and reverend Doctor FriarRoque Cocchia, Bishop of Orope, Vicar and Apostolic Delegate of theHoly See in the Republics of Santo Domingo, Venezuela and Haiti, assisted by presbyter Friar Bernardino d'Emilia, secretary of thebishopric, by the honorary penitentiary canon, presbyter FranciscoJavier Billini, rector and founder of the College of San Luis Gonzagaand of the charity asylum, apostolic missionary and acting curate ofthe holy cathedral, and by presbyter Eliseo J'Andoli, assistant curateof the same, there met in the holy cathedral General Marcos A. Cabral, Minister of the Interior and Police; Licentiate Felipe DavilaFernandez de Castro, Minister of Foreign Relations; Joaquin Montolio, Minister of Justice and Public Instruction; General Manuel A. Caceres, Minister of Finance and Commerce; and General Valentin Ramirez Baez, Minister of War and the Navy; and the citizens General BraulioAlvarez, Civil and Military Governor of the Province of the Capital, assisted by his secretary Pedro Maria Gautier; the honorable membersof the illustrious municipal council of this capital, citizen Juan dela C. Alfonseca, president, and citizens Felix Baez, Juan BautistaParadas, Pedro Mota, Manuel Maria Cabral and José Maria Bonetti, members; General Francisco Ungria Chala, military commandant of thiscity; citizens Felix Mariano Lluveres, president of the legislativechamber and Francisco Javier Machado, deputy to the same chamber; themembers of the consular corps accredited to the Republic, Messrs. Miguel Pou, Consul of H. M. The Emperor of Germany, Luis Cambiaso, Consul of H. M. The King of Italy, Jose Manuel Echeverri, Consul of H. Catholic M. The King of Spain, Aubin Defougerais, Consul of the FrenchRepublic, Paul Jones, Consul of the United States of North America, José Martin Leyba, Consul of H. M. The King of the Netherlands, andDavid Coen, Consul of H. M. The Queen of the United Kingdom of GreatBritain; the citizens licentiates in medicine and surgery MarcosAntonio Gomez and Jose de Jesus Brenes; the civil engineer Jesus MariaCastillo, director of the work in this cathedral; the chief sexton ofthe same, Jesus Maria Troncoso, and the undersigned notaries public, Pedro Nolasco Polanco, Mariano Montolio and Leonardo Delmonte iAponte, the first also being the acting notary of the curacy and thesecond the titular notary of the municipal council of this capital. "The most illustrious Bishop, in the presence of the gentlemen abovedesignated and of a numerous concourse, declares: that the holycathedral being undergoing repairs under the direction of the reverendCanon Francisco Javier Billini, and it having come to his notice thataccording to tradition and notwithstanding what appears from publicdocuments with reference to the transfer of the remains of the AdmiralChristopher Columbus to the city of Havana in the year seventeenhundred and ninety-five the said remains might still be in the placewhere they had been deposited and as such place the right side of thesanctuary was designated, under the spot occupied by the archbishop'schair; with the desire of clearing up the matters which tradition hadcarried to him, he authorized the reverend Canon Billini, upon hisrequest, to make the necessary explorations; and as the latter wasdoing so with two workmen on the morning of this day, he discovered ata depth of two palms, more or less, the beginning of a vault whichpermitted part of a metal box to be seen; that immediately the saidCanon Billini ordered the chief sexton, Jesus Maria Troncoso, to go tothe archiepiscopal palace and inform His Grace of the result of theinvestigations, also informing the Minister of the Interior, requesting their presence without loss of time; that immediately HisGrace proceeded to the holy cathedral where he found Jesus MariaCastillo, civil engineer, in charge of the repairs to this temple andtwo workmen who, in company with Canon Billini, guarded the smallexcavation which had been made, and at the same time Luis Cambiasoarrived, called by the said Canon Billini; that having personally madecertain of the existence of the vault as well as that it contained thebox to which Canon Billini made reference and an inscription beingdiscovered on the upper part of what appeared to be the lid, heordered that things be left as they were and that the doors of thetemple be closed, the keys being confided to the reverend CanonBillini; proposing to invite, as he did invite, His Excellency thegreat citizen, President of the Republic, General Buenaventura Baez, his Cabinet, the consular corps and the other civil and militaryauthorities named in the beginning of this certificate, in order toproceed with all due solemnity to the extraction of the box and giveall required authenticity to the result of the investigation; andhaving advised the authorities, by their order municipal policemenwere stationed at each one of the closed doors of the temple. "His Grace, stationed in the sanctuary, near the started excavationand surrounded by the authorities above mentioned and a very numerousconcourse, all the doors of the temple having been opened, had theexcavation continued, and a slab was removed, permitting the raisingof the box, which was taken and shown by His Grace and found to be oflead. The said box was exhibited to all the authorities convoked, andthereupon was carried in procession through the interior of the templeand shown to the people. "The pulpit of the left nave of the temple being occupied by HisGrace, by the reverend Canon Billini, who carried the box, theMinister of the Interior, the president of the municipal council andtwo of the notaries public who sign this document: His Grace openedthe box and exhibited to the people a part of the remains it encloses;he also read the several inscriptions on the box, which prove beyondcontroversy that the remains are really and in fact those of theillustrious Genovese, the great Admiral Christopher Columbus, Discoverer of America. The truth of the matter being irrefutablyascertained, a salute of twenty-one guns, fired by the artillery ofthe fort, a general ringing of bells and strains of music from themilitary band, announced the happy and memorable event to the city. "Immediately the authorities convoked met in the vestry of the templeand proceeded in the presence of the undersigned notaries public, whocertify thereto, to an examination and expert investigation of the boxand its contents; the result of the examination being that the saidbox is of lead, has hinges and measures forty-two centimeters inlength, twenty-one centimeters in depth and twenty and a half inwidth; containing the following inscriptions: on the upper side of thelid 'D. De la A, Per. Ate. '--On the left headboard 'C. ' On the frontside 'C'--On the right headboard 'A. ' On raising the lid the followinginscription was found on the inner side of the same carved in GermanGothic characters: 'Illtre. Y Esdo. Varon Dn. Cristobal Colon, ' and inthe said box human remains which on examination by the licentiate ofequal class Jose de Jesus Brenes are found to be: A femur deterioratedin the upper part of the neck, between the great trochanter and itshead. A fibula in its natural state. A radius also complete. The ossacrum in bad condition. The coccyx. Two lumbar vertabrae. Onecervical and two dorsal vertabrae. Two calcanea. One bone of themetacarpus. Another of the metatarsus. A fragment of the frontal orcoronal bone, containing half of an orbital cavity. A middle third ofthe tibia. Two more fragments of tibia. Two astragoli. One upperportion of shoulder-blade. One fragment of the lower jawbone. One halfof an os humeri, the whole constituting thirteen small andtwenty-eight large fragments, there being others reduced to dust. "In addition a leaden ball weighing about an ounce, more or less, wasfound and two small screws belonging to the box. "The examination mentioned having been terminated, the ecclesiasticaland civil authorities and the illustrious municipal council resolvedto close and seal the box with their respective seals and deposit itin the sanctuary of the church of Regina Angelorum, under theresponsibility of the aforesaid penitentiary canon Francisco JavierBillini, until otherwise determined; His Grace, the Ministers, theconsuls and the undersigned notaries immediately proceeding to affixtheir seals; and finally they determined to transfer the box intriumph to the said church of Regina Angelorum, accompanied by theveteran troops of the capital, batteries of artillery, music, andwhatever else might give impressiveness and splendor to so solemn anact, for which the town was prepared as was noted from the greatmultitude which filled the temple and the cathedral plaza, to which wecertify, as we do also that the present was signed by the gentlemenabove named and other distinguished persons. "Friar Roque Cocchia, of the Order of Capuchins, Bishop of Orope, Apostolic Delegate to Santo Domingo, Haiti and Venezuela, ApostolicVicar in Santo Domingo--Friar Bernardino d'Emilia, Capuchin, Secretaryof His Excellency the Apostolic Delegate and Vicar--Francisco X. Billini--Eliseo J'Andoli, assistant curate of the cathedral--Marcos A. Cabral, Minister of the Interior and Police--Felipe Davila Fernandezde Castro, Minister of Foreign Relations--Joaquin Montolio, Ministerof Justice and Public Instruction--M. A. Caceres, Minister of Financeand Commerce--Valentin Ramirez Baez, Minister of War and theNavy--Braulio Alvarez, Governor of the Province--Pedro Ma. Gautier, Secretary--Juan de la C. Alfonseca, President of the Municipalcouncil--Members, Felix Baez--Juan Bautista Paradas--Manuel Ma. CabralB. --P. Mota--Jose M. Bonetti--Francisco Ungria Chala, Commandant ofArms--Felix Mariano Lluveres, President of the LegislativeChamber--Francisco Javier Machado, Deputy of the LegislativeChamber--The Consul of Spain, Jose Manuel Echeverri--Luigi Cambiaso, R. Consul of H. M. The King of Italy--Miguel Pou, Consul of the GermanEmpire--Paul Jones, United States Consul--D. Coen, BritishVice-Consul--J. M. Leyba, Consul of the Netherlands--A. AubinDefougerais, Vice-Consul of France--Jesus Ma. Castillo, CivilEngineer--M. A. Gomez, Licentiate in Medicine and Surgery--J. J. Brenes, Licentiate in Medicine and Surgery--The chief sexton, JesusMa. Troncoso--A. Licairac--M. M. Santamaria--Domingo Rodriguez--Manuelde Jesus Garcia--Enrique Peinado--Federico Polanco--Lugardis Olivo--P. Mr. Consuegra--Eujenio de Marchena--Valentin Ramirez, Jr. --F. Perdomo--Joaquin Ramirez Morales--Amable Damiron--Jaime Ratto--PedroN. Polanco, Notary Public--Leonardo Delmonte I Aponte, NotaryPublic--Mariano Montolio, Notary Public. " [Illustration: Inscription on lid of lead box. (2/5 actual size)] [Illustration: Inscription on inner side of lid. (2/5 actual size)] The vault so opened was a little larger than that opened in 1795, andseparated therefrom by a six-inch wall. The leaden box was of rudeconstruction, dented and much oxydized, the plates being a littlethicker than those of the casket of Louis Columbus. The inscription onthe outside of the lid "D. De la A. Per, Ate. " was taken to mean"Descubridor de la América, Primer Almirante"--"Discoverer of America, First Admiral. " The inscription on the inner side of the lid, withoutcontractions, was: "Ilustre y Esclarecido Varon Don CristobalColon"--"Illustrious and noble man, Christopher Columbus. " The letters"C C A" were interpreted as signifying "Cristobal Colón, Almirante"--"Christopher Columbus, Admiral. " On January 3, 1878, amore minute examination of the remains was made at the request of theSpanish Academy of History and in the dust at the bottom of the boxwas found a small silver plate with two holes by which it hadevidently been screwed with the two screws found at the firstexamination to some wooden board or receptacle. All vestige of woodhad disappeared, either through decay or perhaps through destructionby insects, for on the walls of the vault are faint traces of ancienttracks made by the comejen or wood-eating ant. On one side of theplate was engraved in rude letters: "Ua. Pte. De los rtos. Del pmer. Alte. D. Cristoval Colon Des. , " which is read as meaning "Ultima partede los restos del primer Almirante, Don Cristoval Colon, Descubridor"--"Last part of the remains of the first Admiral, DonChristopher Columbus, Discoverer. " On the reverse side are the words"Cristoval Colon" and several letters which indicate that theinscription "Ua. Pte. " etc. , was begun here but was stopped, perhapsbecause there was not sufficient room. [Illustration: Obverse side of silver plate (Enlarged 1/20)] [Illustration: Reverse side of silver plate. (Enlarged 1/20)] The small lead ball, similar to a musket-ball, found in the box, hasbeen the subject of much comment. It is not known that Columbus wasever wounded, though it is true that of many years of his life wehave little information. Some writers make deductions from anequivocal sentence contained in a letter written by him to the rulersof Spain on his fourth voyage, in which he refers to his difficultiesoff the coast of Central America and says: "There the wound of mytrouble opened. " Others refer to an obscure sentence of Las Casas, butothers believe that the ball was dropped in the box by accident, either when the box was prepared for the vault or at some time when inthe course of the centuries the vault may have been casually opened aswas the adjoining vault in 1783. At what time the remains wereenclosed in this box and the inscriptions placed on the same it isimpossible to determine; it may have been in Seville, or in the earlydays in Santo Domingo, or at a later date, perhaps when the epitaphswere removed from the vault. The remainder of the old altar platform was carefully examined but noother vaults or remains were discovered. With reference to the bones"of a deceased person" transferred in 1795 a logical conclusion can bereached: Christopher Columbus, his son Diego, and his grandson Louiswere all buried in the Santo Domingo cathedral; the caskets, withinscriptions, of the first and third were found in 1877 and there areno other vaults under the old altar platform; therefore the remainstaken away in 1795 with pieces of a casket without inscription, or theinscription of which had become illegible, were most probably those ofDiego Columbus. Santo Domingo went wild with joy over the discovery. It was determinedto erect a suitable monument for the remains with funds raised byprivate subscription and by a half per cent, surtax on imports. Abeautiful marble memorial costing $40, 000, guarded by bronze lions andadorned with bronze relief work depicting scenes from the life ofColumbus, was designed by two Spanish sculptors. The first intentionwas to place the same in a mausoleum specially built for the purpose, but it was finally erected in the nave of the cathedral near the maindoor. A richly ornamented bronze box placed in the monument containsthe leaden casket and the remains. Once a year on the anniversary ofthe find, the box is opened and the public permitted to gaze onits contents. The Spanish authorities would never admit the authenticity of theremains found in 1877, and the Spanish consul in Santo Domingo wasbitterly criticized for affixing his signature to the notarialdocument relating the discovery. The Spaniards continue to claim thatthe true remains of the Discoverer are those which were transferred toHavana. Upon the evacuation of Cuba by Spain in 1898 these remainswere solemnly removed and taken to Spain, where they now rest in thecathedral of Seville. Many investigations have been made fromdifferent sources and the majority of investigators report in favor ofthe Dominican contention, especially when they have personally visitedSanto Domingo. The Spanish writers present no proof that the remainstaken to Havana in 1795 were those of Christopher Columbus, but limitthemselves to attacking the find of 1877. The insinuations andaccusations, without corroborating facts, prove nothing but the temperof their authors. All criticisms have been refuted by showing thateven supposing the box to date from the year 1540, other andindubitable inscriptions of that year have the same style of letters, abbreviations, spelling and words as those criticized. Further theappearance of the box and vault of 1877, the circumstances attendingtheir discovery, and the irreproachable character of the ApostolicDelegate, of Canon Billini and of others connected with that eventpreclude all suspicion of fraud. On the whole, the weight of evidence is strongly in favor of theDominican contention. It seems that, in spite of the acts of men, fatehas permitted the remains of the Discoverer of America to repose inthe principal cathedral of the island he loved. CHAPTER XVIII GOVERNMENT Form of government. --Constitutions. --Presidents. --Election. --Powers. --Executive secretaries. --Land and sea forces. --Congress. --Localsubdivisions. --Provincial governors. --Communal governments. From the date of the declaration of independence, February 27, 1844, down to the present time, with the exception only of a portion of theperiod of Spanish occupation of 1861 to 1865, Santo Domingo hasremained in form at least, a republic. Herein it contrasts with itsneighbor Haiti, which has experienced several monarchies. ThusDessalines proclaimed himself emperor in 1804, Christophe assumed thetitle of king in 1810 and Soulouque had himself declared emperor in1849; and the latter two instituted pompous black nobilities. Andthough the Cibao of Santo Domingo and the region south of the CentralCordillera have ever been rivals and often in arms against each otherunder competing generals, there has never been any tendency toseparate and form two states--as occurred in Haiti in 1806 when thenorthern portion fell under the sway of Christophe for a period offourteen years, first as a nominal republic and later as a kingdom, while the southern portion became a republic under Petion and finallyunder Boyer. But although the country has in form remained a republic and the titleof the chief of state has never been more pretentious than presidentor protector, in fact there have been few years when the governmentwas not autocratic and the president an absolute monarch whose powerswere limited only by his own generous impulses or the fear ofalienating his more influential supporters. Dominican writers haveeven referred to the constitution as a conventional lie. The various Dominican presidents, as soon as securely in power, havegenerally been careful to follow constitutional forms, in an effort todeceive their followers and themselves into the belief that they wereacting in regular course as servants of the people. The successfulrevolutionist was almost, always in haste to "legalize" his positionby an election. Most of the presidents, among them Heureaux, have beengreat sticklers for form. Instead of moulding their wishes to conformto the constitution, however, they would mould the constitution toconform to their wishes, and repeatedly the first act of thesuccessful revolutionist has been to promulgate a new constitution inaccordance with his ideas. It has thus come to pass that theconstitution, far from being revered as the immutable foundation ofgovernment, has rather been regarded as the convenient means for thepresident in office to exercise power. From 1844 to the present timenineteen constitutions have been promulgated in Santo Domingo, one inthe year 1844, one each in 1858, 1859 and 1865, two in 1866 and oneeach in 1868, 1874, 1875, 1877, 1878, 1879, 1880, 1887, 1896, 1907and 1908. This extraordinary number is due in part to the practice of notenacting amendments to an existing constitution, but of promulgatingthe amended instrument as a new constitution. On three of theoccasions here indicated a constitution was abrogated in order torevive a prior one. No account is taken in the above computation ofthe instances where a successful revolutionist in order to announcehis adherence to the then existing constitution promulgated the sameanew. Thus the constitution of 1896 was reestablished in 1903. The Dominican constitutions have all been modeled on the general linesof that of the United States, and have differed from each other onlyin detail. The term of office of the president has varied from one tosix years and the powers conferred upon him have been more or lessample. The constitution of 1854, revived in 1859, 1866 and 1868, practically invested him with dictatorial powers, and the onlylegislative assembly it provided for was an "Advisory Senate" ofnine members. The present constitution was drafted by a constitutional assemblywhich sat in Santiago de los Caballeros in the early part of 1908. Itis disappointing both as a literary and political document. The stylebears witness to the haste with which the instrument was compiled. Provisions quite unsuitable to Dominican conditions are included, suchas that granting the right to vote to all male citizens over eighteenyears of age. Such an extension of the suffrage would be looked uponaskance even in countries where education is general, and in SantoDomingo would constitute a serious danger if really put into effect. While the presidential succession is left to be regulated by a law ofCongress, the constitution goes into minute details regardingcitizenship, naturalization and several other matters. Repeatedattempts have been made to secure a new constitution and in 1914partial elections were held for a constitutional convention, but forone reason or another the plan has not matured. A new constitutionwill probably be provided in connection with the cessation of Americanoccupation. According to the present constitution the president must be a nativeborn Dominican, at least thirty-five years of age and with aresidence of at least twenty years in the Republic. His term of officeis fixed at six years, to be counted from the day of inauguration. Thefact that no specific date is mentioned has repeatedly proved a matterof convenience to successful revolutionists. The designation of apresidential term of office in the various constitutions has thus farbeen something of an irony, for of the 43 executives who have come tothe fore in the 70 years of national life, but three presidents havecompleted terms of office for which they were elected: Baez one term, Merino one and Heureaux four, nor was the distinction of these threedue to ought but their success in suppressing revolutionary movements. Five vice-presidents completed presidential terms. Two presidents werekilled and twenty deposed. The other chief magistrates resigned moreor less voluntarily. Of the 43 presidents 15 were chosen by popular election according toconstitutional forms, 5 were vice-presidents who succeeded to thepresidency, 4 were provisional presidents elected by Congress, 10began as military presidents and then had themselves elected underconstitutional forms, and 9 were purely and simply militaryprovisional presidents. A comparison of the list of presidents with the roster of executivesof Haiti reveals a disproportion, for though the black Republic hasbeen in existence since 1804, it has had but twenty-nine chiefs ofstate, the average duration of whose rule was therefore much longerthan has been the case in Santo Domingo. It is to be observed, however, that of the Haitian executives only one completed his term ofoffice and voluntarily retired; of the others, four remained in poweruntil their death from natural causes, eighteen were deposed byrevolutions, one of them, committing suicide, another being executedon the steps of his burning palace, and still another being cut topieces by the mob; five were assassinated; and one is chief magistrateat the present time. The president and members of the Senate and House of Deputies areelected by indirect vote. Electors whose number and apportionmentamong the several provinces and their subdivisions are prescribed bylaw, are chosen by general suffrage in what are called primaryassemblies in the several municipalities and constitute electoralcolleges which meet at the chief town of the respective province. Theelectors having cast their votes for president the minutes of thesession are sent to the capital. The votes are counted in jointsession of Congress and the successful candidate is proclaimed bythat body. Though the election procedure designated in the constitution wasgravely followed, yet not once in the history of the country has theresult of an election been in doubt, nor is there an instance when thecandidate of the government was not elected, excepting only theelection of October, 1914, when the American government broughtwatchers from Porto Rico to avoid gross frauds and coercion. Usuallyeverything was prepared beforehand and the primaries and the meetingsof the electoral colleges were little more than ratification meetings. The votes of the electoral colleges were generally unanimous in favorof the government's candidate, yet the odd spectacle has repeatedlypresented itself, of a unanimously elected president being driven outof the country within a few months by a general revolution. The constitution authorizes the president to conclude treaties withthe consent of Congress, to appoint certain government officials, toreceive foreign diplomatic representatives, and to grant pardons incertain cases, and makes him commander-in-chief of the army and navy. Most of the chief magistrates have not felt themselves hampered, however, whether in peace or war, by any enumeration of powers in theconstitution, for their ascendancy has generally been such that theirwishes would be complied with and their illegal acts ratified orignored by a subservient Congress. President Heureaux so controlledCongress, the courts, and all public functionaries, that thegovernment was practically identical with his personality. The constitution provides that in case of the death, resignation ordisability of the president the Congress shall by law designate theperson who is to act as president until the disability ceases or a newpresident is elected, and that if Congress is not sitting the Cabinetofficers are immediately to call a session. This is an innovation, asfrom 1853 to 1907 the Dominican constitutions provided for avice-president. The vice-president was generally a decorative feature. He was required to possess the same qualifications as the presidentand was chosen with the same formalities, but no duties were assignedto him, not even that of presiding in Congress, so that his onlyattribute was the glory of being a president in escrow. The newlyelected vice-president therefore often quietly retired to his farm, emerging occasionally to act in the president's stead when the latterleft the capital on a trip through the country. Frequently thevice-president was made delegate of the government in some part of thecountry and at times he was invested with a portfolio as one of thecabinet secretaries. During the administration of a strong president, as in the time of Heureaux, the vice-president was generally one ofhis satellites, whereas, when the president's power was not so firmlyestablished, as in the administrations of Jimenez and Morales, one ofhis rivals would be mollified by the vice-presidency. In such casesfriction frequently developed, and in the two cases specified thevice-presidents and presidential rivals, Vasquez and Caceres, overthrew the president and established themselves in power. Evidentlyin order to avoid such disturbances and temptations the constitutionof 1908 abolished the office of vice-president. The lack of a definitesuccessor to the president, however, enabled Victoria to seize thepresidency after the death of Caceres in 1911 and has given rise touncertainty and trouble in the cases of presidential succession sincethat time. It has been a custom, sometimes expressly authorized by theconstitution, for the president to delegate executive powers andprerogatives to persons selected by him in various parts of thecountry, especially where revolutionary uprisings threatened. Therehas usually been such a delegate of the government in the Cibao andoften one in Azua. They are powerful officials, inasmuch as they areregarded as the direct representatives of the president and hisadministration, command the local military forces, and constitute thefountain-head of all local executive appointments. Nominations asdelegates of the government have been preferably conferred uponprovincial governors or upon the vice-president. The president isnaturally anxious to repose such powers in one of his confidants, butpolitical exigencies have sometimes obliged him to soothe one of hisrivals with the distinction and remain on the qui vive thereafter. More than one governmental delegate has overthrown the president andestablished himself in power. Provisional presidents have been numerous in Dominican history. Aftera successful revolution the victorious general usually proclaimedhimself president of a provisional government and until theconstitution was again declared in force he and his ministers unitedexecutive and legislative power. How far the acts of such de factogovernments were legally binding upon the Republic has been questionedin cases where obligations were imposed upon the country, but foreigngovernments in asserting their rights have paid little attention tosuch quibbles. The constitution provides that there shall be such executivesecretaries as may be determined by law. They are currently referredto as ministers and their number has been fixed at seven, namely, (1)secretary of the interior and police (interior y policia); (2)secretary of foreign relations (relaciones exteriores); (3) secretaryof finance and commerce (hacienda y comercio); (4) secretary of warand the navy (guerra y marina); (5) secretary of justice and publicinstruction (justicia e instrucción pública); (6) secretary ofagriculture and immigration (agricultura e inmigración); (7) secretaryof public development and communications (fomento y comunicaciones). Communication between Congress and the executive departments isrendered easier than in the United States by the constitutionalprovision that the secretaries of state are obliged to attend theCongressional sessions when called by Congress. This right ofinterpellation has frequently been exercised. The secretary of the interior and police is at the head of animportant department. He is the administrative superior of theprovincial governors and the communal and cantonal chiefs. Hisposition renders him the sentinel of the government for the detectionof revolutionary movements. The foreign office of the Republic is directed by the secretary offoreign affairs. The diplomatic service of Santo Domingo is limitedto the modest needs of the country, the more important posts beingthose of minister plenipotentiary in the United States, Haiti andFrance and chargé d'affaires in Cuba and Venezuela. The majority ofconsuls depend altogether upon consular fees for their remuneration, only a few of the more important being provided for in the budget. Theconsulates of most consequence have been considered to be those in thesurrounding West India Islands and in New York City, for apart fromtheir commercial relations with the Republic these places have beenthe favorite haunts of conspiring political exiles. Almost all theEuropean countries are represented in the Dominican Republic either byministers, chargés d'affaires or consuls. Of the diplomaticrepresentatives residing in Santo Domingo City the highest in rank isthe American minister. Before 1904 the American minister to Haiti wasaccredited to the Dominican Republic as chargé d'affaires. The UnitedStates has consular representatives at all the principal ports, therebeing an American consul at Puerto Plata and consular agentselsewhere. In the past, great respect has been shown to consulateseven to the extent of allowing them privileges of extra-territoriality, and frequently political refugees have sought asylum under the flag ofa mere consular agent. The secretary of finance and commerce has charge of the sources ofnational income, and the customs and internal revenue services, andunder his authority the disbursements of the Republic are audited. Theoffice for the compilation of statistics, organized a few years ago, is also in this department. The army, rural police, navy and the captaincies of the port are underthe supervision of the secretary of war and the navy. This official isalways a military man and generally takes the field in person incases of revolutionary uprisings. During the insurrection of Jimenezagainst Morales in 1903-4, two of Morales' ministers of war werekilled in battle. Upon the American occupation in 1916 the military force of theRepublic was disbanded. There were at that time twelve military posts, one in the capital of each province. The commanders and their aidesand the chiefs of forts and their assistants were treated as distinctfrom the regular army. The army's strength and organization havevaried greatly; at the time of its dissolution the authorized strengthwas one infantry regiment of about 470 officers and men, and a band of33 men. Only a few months before, the preceding budget had authorizedan infantry force of about 800 officers and men and a battery ofmountain artillery of 100 officers and men, in addition to theall-important band. In reality, however, only the membership of theband was certain; in time of war the rest of the militaryestablishment was much larger, and in time of peace it comprisednumerous phantom soldiers, whose salaries were nevertheless regularlycollected from the national treasury. Service was supposed to bevoluntary, but the "volunteers" were generally picked out by communalchiefs and brought in under guard, sometimes tied with ropes to keepthem from deserting. There was also an inefficient and overbearing rural police called the"Guardia Republicana, " supposed to consist of seven companies of about800 officers and men, but here too things were not what they seemed. The higher officers of the Republican Guard were a brigadier-general, a colonel, a lieutenant-colonel and 2 majors; those of the army only acolonel, 2 lieutenant-colonels and 2 majors, which was very modest fora country teeming with generals and where the budget of 1909 evenappropriated $20, 000 for a "corps of generals at the orders of thepresident. " The American garrison in the Republic, comprising about 1000 men, tookover the military posts in the Republic and lent strength to theGuardia Republicana. By an order of the military governor, of April 7, 1917, the sum of $500, 000 was set aside for the organization of aconstabulary force to be called the "Guardia Nacional Dominicana, " totake the place of the Dominican army, navy and police. This DominicanNational Guard is to be commanded by a citizen of the United Statesand such other officers as the American government may considernecessary. Its organization is far advanced and it has alreadyabsorbed the Guardia Republicana. In it will be merged the frontierguard of about 70 men depending on the general receiver's office, andprobably also the small municipal police squads that compel theobservance of municipal ordinances. The Dominican navy is now composed of a single gunboat, the"Independencia. " At the end of Heureaux's rule the country boastedthree. The best of these was the "Restauración, " which went on therocks at the entrance to Macoris harbor in one of the first conflictsbetween the Jimenistas and Horacistas. The story goes that the steamerwas about to attack Macoris, that the pilot, in sympathy with theopposition, grounded her with a view to having her captured, but thata sudden storm drove her to complete destruction. Another gunboat wasthe "Presidente, " which had figured in history, for it was nothingless than the yacht "Deerhound, " on which the Confederate AdmiralSemmes took refuge after the sinking of the "Alabama" by the"Kearsarge. " In 1906 it was sent to Newport News for overhauling asold age had made it unseaworthy, but since the repairs would have costmore than the vessel was worth, it was sold for old iron. Thesurvivor, the "Independencia" is a trim vessel with a crew of fiftyofficers and men. Attached to the general receiver's office areseveral gasoline revenue cutters, recently provided. The secretary of justice and public instruction has administrativesupervision over the courts, jails and schools of the Republic, andthe government subventions to primary and private schools aredisbursed under his direction. The secretary of agriculture and immigration is the cabinet officer ofmost recent creation. Prior to the 1908 constitution agriculture hadbeen in charge of the department of public development and there hadbeen no special provision for immigration. The importance of thesesubjects for the Republic was felt to be such as to merit theestablishment of a special department. In practice the department hasdone nothing, its efforts being hampered by revolutions andcircumscribed by the limited sums at its disposal. Its activities havebeen confined to a general supervision of agriculture, the preparatorywork of the establishment of an agricultural experiment station andthe operation of a small meteorological service. The department of public development and communications has charge ofthe postal service of the Republic, of the national telegraph andtelephone, of the lighthouses, and of the public works carried on bythe government. The size of the national legislature of Santo Domingo has fluctuatedconsiderably. Under the 1896 constitution the Congress consisted of asingle house of twenty-four members, two from each of the thenexisting six provinces and six districts. The increase of thenational income permitting greater expenditures, the constitution of1908 provided for two houses, one called the Senate, the other theChamber of Deputies. The Senate is composed of twelve members, onefrom each province, elected by the same electoral colleges that electthe president and holding office for six years. One-third of theSenate is renewed every two years. The number of members of theChamber of Deputies is supposed to be in proportion to the number ofinhabitants of the various provinces, but as there has been no censusthe number is provisionally fixed at twenty-four, two from eachprovince. The members of the Chamber of Deputies are elected for aterm of four years, also by the electoral colleges, which at the sametime designate alternates for the several members. Congress meets each year in regular session on the anniversary ofDominican independence, February 27, and its session is limited toninety days, which may, however, be extended sixty days more. Sincethere are no provincial legislatures the powers of the Congress, setforth in the Constitution, are sweeping. They include the right tolegislate in general for every part of the Republic, to approve orreject treaties and to try the president, cabinet members and supremecourt judges on impeachment charges. In practice the elections for deputies have been as perfunctory asthose for president, though there were occasional contests. Thecharacter and attitude of Congress has varied with the character andcondition of the presidents. During the incumbency of strong leaders, such as Santana, Baez and Heureaux, the Congress was little more thanthe tool of the executive, but when the personality of the presidentwas not so overwhelming or when many of the deputies were followers ofa rival chieftain, as in the administrations of Jimenez and Morales, an independent and sometimes a nagging spirit has been manifested. Under the American occupation the Congress was by decree of January 2, 1917, declared in abeyance and all executive and legislative powersare temporarily exercised by the commander of the American forces. Theheads of executive departments are officers of the American navy ormarine corps. Otherwise the general structure of the governmentremains as before. The theory that Santo Domingo is an independent, sovereign country is carefully followed, though at times it leads toanomalous situations, as when the American military governor issuesexequaturs to American consuls in Santo Domingo "by virtue of thepowers vested in me by the Constitution of the Dominican Republic, " orwhen the American minister, Hon. W. W. Russell, representing theUnited States and receiving his instructions from the United StatesState Department, calls on Admiral H. S. Knapp, chief executive ofSanto Domingo, who takes his orders from the United States NavyDepartment. For administrative purposes the Republic is divided into twelveprovinces; Azua, Barahona, Espaillat, La Vega, Macoris, Monte Cristi, Pacificador, Puerto Plata, Samana, Santiago, Santo Domingo and Seibo. Formerly six were known as provinces and six as maritime districts, though there was in practice no distinction between them. Theprovinces are subdivided into communes and cantons--a canton being acommune in embryo--and these in turn are subdivided into sections. Congress is empowered to create new provinces, communes and cantons. In the twelve provinces there are now sixty-five communes, severalcomprising cantons. The provinces bear the names of their capitaltowns, except Espaillat and Pacificador, the former of which iscalled after Ulises F. Espaillat who took a prominent part in the Warof Restoration and was president in 1876, and the latter in honor ofPresident Heureaux, on whom a fawning Congress conferred the title ofPacificador de la Patria, but these also are sometimes known by thenames of their capitals, Moca and San Francisco de Macoris. Thecommunes bear the names of their urban centers. Towns with long namesare usually referred to by part of the name only, thus Santa Cruz delSeibo is known simply as El Seibo, Santa Barbara de Samaná either asSanta Barbara or as Samana, etc. At the head of each province is an official who bears the title ofgovernor. He acts as the direct agent of the president and is chief ofthe government police and commander of the military forces of thedistrict. In civil matter he is dependent upon the department of theinterior and police, in military affairs he is under the department ofwar and the navy. The governors are appointed by the president of theRepublic and their salaries are paid from the national treasury. Underthe present American occupation the various provinces still have theirgovernors, but the real governors are the American officers locally incommand of the occupation forces. In each commune and canton there is a communal or cantonal chief whorepresents the governor of the province. He is paid by the nationalgovernment and is charged with the preservation of the peace in hisjurisdiction. Again in each section there is a sectional chief, alocal police officer who depends on the communal chief. The system of local chieftains of gradually diminishing category hasbrought Santo Domingo to resemble in some administrations a feudalmonarchy rather than a constitutional republic. As governor thepresident usually chose prominent men of the locality, either friendswhom he wished to reward or opponents or rivals whom he was obliged toplacate. The communal chiefs were also appointed by the president, though the governor's wishes were respected to a large extent, andhere too men of influence were selected, such influence usually beingreckoned by the possession of a devoted following. The section chiefswere chosen under similar considerations. Though the law prescribes the duties of the governors, their localprestige, their authority as commanders of the military, and theiractivities in revolutionary times, have so exalted their position asto convert them into something like satraps and make them powerfulsupporters or dangerous rivals of the president. Many insurrectionshave been inaugurated by disaffected governors. At times provinceshave remained practically independent for many months, ruled merely bythe governor and a coterie of his friends, while the president, in theimpossibility of imposing his authority, was obliged to acquiesce. Aconspicuous example of such a peculiar state of affairs was furnishedby the district of Monte Cristi, during the presidency of Morales. InDecember, 1903, the formidable insurrection of Jimenez againstProvisional President Morales originated in Monte Cristi and thoughthe government gradually regained the remainder of the country it wasunable to subjugate this district, where the entire population wasJimenista and the character of the country rendered campaigning verydifficult. Finally in the spring of 1904 a formal treaty was signed bywhich the insurgents agreed to lay down their arms upon thegovernment's promise not to interfere in their district, where allexecutive appointments were thereafter to be made as recommended bythe local authorities. Though constitutional forms were stillobserved a few military chiefs thus assumed the direction of affairs. Whenever any executive appointment was to be made, the name of thenominee was certified to the capital to be ratified as a matter ofcourse; when orders came from Santo Domingo City, whether in civil ormilitary affairs, they were obeyed or ignored as convenience dictated;the entire amount of the revenues collected in the Monte Cristicustom-house was retained in the district. In order to stimulateimports and increase the customs collections the local authoritieseven conceded a secret discount from the general tariff. With theenforcement of the San Domingo Improvement Company's arbitral awardand the inauguration of the receivership for Santo Domingo the controlof the custom-house passed out of the hands of the local chieftains, who sullenly protested as against an invasion of their treaty rights. In other matters the autonomy of the district remained unimpaireduntil the beginning of 1906 when upon the fall of Morales thegovernment troops, in suppressing the revolution in the north, overranMonte Cristi province and restored its dependency upon the centralgovernment. The healthiest and most important political subdivisions in SantoDomingo are the communal governments, and whatever progress has beenmade in the Republic has been due largely to their initiative. Theycorrespond to the Spanish "municipios" and the French "communes. " InSanto Domingo the French name was introduced during Haitianoccupation. The various towns constitute the centers of government, their jurisdiction extends over the surrounding rural districts, andthe affairs of the whole are administered by a municipal council. Thepowers of such councils are manifold and far-reaching and theirimportance has been accentuated by the chronic impotency of thecentral government to foster public improvements. The councilsexercise all the faculties commonly pertaining to city councilselsewhere and have control of education, sanitation, streets and roadsin their respective districts. They also act as election boards. When an outlying hamlet of the rural belt has grown to sufficient sizeit is erected into a municipal district or canton and accorded ajustice of the peace and a cantonal chief and governing board. Itremains subject, however, to the municipal council of the commune ofwhich it formed a part until further development warrants itssegregation as an independent commune with its own council. Thecantons, as well as some of the sections, are also provided with acemetery and a small church or chapel. From among their number the municipal councilmen select a presidentwho is regarded as mayor of the commune, though many of the dutieselsewhere pertaining to mayors are discharged by an official calledthe syndic. The councilmen are supposed to be elected for a term oftwo years, but the oft repeated revolutions have interfered asseriously with their terms of office as with everything else. Theaverage Dominican seems to manifest little interest in his municipalelections; my question as to when the last local election was heldwould generally be answered with uncertainty: "Last January, no, lastApril, no, I believe it was in November. " After all, the electionshave usually been mere ratifications of slates prepared beforehand. Inthe time of Heureaux the lists of new councilmen were often arrangedin the capital and a few days before election remitted to the varioustowns, even with a designation of the person whom the council waslater to choose as its president. The results of such a method of selection of councilmen has not beenas unfavorable as might be expected. The position of councilman paysno salary and is not of sufficient importance to appeal to thepolitician, so that under the present system the principal merchantsand other prominent men are frequently designated. The law does notprohibit foreigners from forming part of the municipal councils andthey have frequently been chosen, especially in Puerto Plata. CHAPTER XIX POLITICS AND REVOLUTIONS Political parties. --Elections. --Relation between politics andrevolutions. --Conduct of revolutions. --Casualties. --Number ofrevolutions. --Effect of revolutions. The characteristic features of Dominican politics are the violence ofpolitical antagonism and the absence of differences of principlebetween the political parties. None of the three parties existingto-day has a platform, and the distinction between them is entirely amatter of the personality of the leaders. Each party alleges that ithas the best people and the purest motives and views with alarm thegovernment of the country by any other party. In practice therefore, politics follows the rule only too common in the Spanish-Americancountries, of resolving itself into a personal struggle between the"ins" and the "outs. " In the early days of the Republic different policies were occasionallyseriously considered. It was then held by some that independenceshould be preserved at any cost while others contended that in view ofthe constant, civil wars the country should seek peace and progressunder the protection of some foreign power. Although theannexationists were at first called conservatives and their opponentsliberals, these divergent views were not the exclusive property of anydesignated group of men, but the annexation idea was generallyespoused by the party that happened to be in power, which thus hopedboth to save the country and perpetuate its own rule, whileindependence was invariably supported by the opposition, whichbristled with patriotic indignation and the fear that it might bepermanently excluded from the banquet-table. Thus Santana obtained areturn to Spanish rule in 1861 and Cabral a few years later agitatedthe question of American annexation and their action was denounced byBaez; yet shortly after Baez almost succeeded in securing annexationto the United States and was stigmatized as a traitor by Cabral. Another issue which existed for a few years after the separation fromHaiti in 1844 was the division between clericals on the one hand andliberals on the other, a party division that has created havoc inother parts of Spanish America. The very indefinite claims on eachside and the practical unanimity of the country in its attitudetowards the church caused this issue to disappear. The real parties that kept see-sawing in and out of power from theearly days of the Republic down to the time of Heureaux were thosefounded by General Pedro Santana and General Buenaventura Baez. Intimate friends in the struggles with Haiti which followed SantoDomingo's declaration of independence, their ambitious and domineeringnatures soon clashed, and each collected a group of friends andincessantly conspired against the other. The partisans of Baez, orBaecistas, adopted red for the color of the cockades and ribbons whichdistinguished them in the civil wars, and came to be known as the"Reds, " while the followers of Santana, or Santanistas, adopted blueand were known as the "Blues. " On the death of Santana in 1863, Luperon and Cabral became the leadersof the Blue party, and for several years after the expulsion of theSpaniards in 1865 the Reds and Blues took turns in setting upgovernments and having them overthrown. In 1873 General Ignacio MariaGonzalez, a former adherent of Baez, assembled a following from bothfactions and formed a Green party with which he ousted the Reds whowere then in power. In the next six years the Reds and Greensalternated in control, but in 1879 the Greens were driven out anddefinitely scattered by the Blues, who thereby gained a foothold whichthey did not lose for years. The death of Baez in 1884 threw the Redsinto confusion and their constant persecution by the "blue" PresidentUlises Heureaux effectually crushed them. Ulises Heureaux with Blues, Reds and Greens built up his own party of "Lilicistas" which remainedin power until his death in 1899. In the later years of Heureaux'srule the distinguishing color used by his troops was white. On the death of Heureaux, Juan Isidro Jimenez, as president, andHoracio Vasquez, as vice-president, came into power. The rivalrybetween Jimenez and Vasquez caused a division between their respectivefollowers, who called themselves Jimenistas and Horacistas, thusforming the principal parties which continue to the present time. Theold Reds and Blues had disappeared and their survivors alignedthemselves with Jimenez and Vasquez indiscriminately; members of theBaez family joined old Blues to follow Jimenez, while other old Redsand Blues as well as the Lilicistas seemed to prefer Vasquez. In 1901an attempt was made to form a party known as the Republican Party, which it was intended to endow with a platform, but being composedlargely of Jimenez' friends, it was viewed with suspicion andfell with him. In 1902 the Horacistas revolted and obtained the government, only tobe overthrown in 1903 by followers of Jimenez. The new administrationproving odious to both parties they combined to drive it out in thefall of 1903. The Horacistas gained the upper hand in the succeedinggovernment and remained in power until 1912, though a serious divisiondeveloped in the party, to the extent that the nominal leader, HoracioVasquez, himself joined in conspiracies and uprisings against theadministration. His efforts, combined with those of the Jimenistas, led to the choice of Archbishop Nouel as compromise candidate forpresident in 1912. Monsignor Nouel unsuccessfully attempted to governwith both parties and on his resignation in 1913 another Horacistabecame president. Again there was opposition from Horacistas as wellas Jimenistas and in 1914 a Jimenista became provisional president. At about this time a small third party appeared, led by FedericoVelazquez, a former Horacista. His followers are known asVelazquistas, though the party has adopted the official name ofProgresista. In the elections of 1914 he joined forces with Jimenez, who thus secured the presidency. The government, or what remains of itunder the present military occupation, is still constituted largely byfollowers of Jimenez and Velazquez. Though both Jimenistas and Horacistas claim to have the largerfollowing in the country in general, it is probable that they areabout equally matched, the Velazquistas holding the balance of power. The Jimenistas are often vulgarly called "bolos" or bob-tailed cocks, and the Horacistas "rabudos" or "coludos, " meaning bushy-tailed orlong-tailed cocks. In the fighting on the Monte Cristi plains theJimenistas would often attack, but retire as soon as their opponentsshowed fight, and as such tactics reminded the Dominicans of thehabits of bob-tailed fighting cocks, the nicknames were imposed. The men who attain prominence in politics range all the way from rudeignorant military chiefs to polished members of the aristocracy. Inlooking over the annals of Dominican history the same family namesconstantly recur and it may be affirmed that the government of thecountry has during the time of independence been in the hands of sometwenty families, the members of which have swayed its councils and ledits revolutions. They have tasted the sweets of power but also thebitterness of defeat, alternately occupying high positions in thegovernment and pining in prison or exile. Almost all the chiefs ofstate since 1899 would have done honor to any country, but all havebeen obliged by the exigencies of politics to give places in theirentourage to men of low standing, whose deeds or misdeeds when inpower and whose unbridled ambition, have been a factor in the civilwars. At the present moment perhaps the most prominent politicalfigure is Federico Velazquez, a man of unusual force of character, whoas minister of finance under Caceres, enforced the settlement of theDominican debt and gave what was probably the most honestadministration of public revenues in the Republic's history. He is oneof the few men having the moral courage openly to advocate Americancooperation in the government of the country. He is about forty-sevenyears old, was born in Tamboril, near Santiago, and advanced throughthe stages of schoolmaster, shopkeeper, secretary to Vasquez andCaceres, and cabinet minister, to the position of a political leader. The ill-feeling akin to hatred between many members of the politicalparties is incredible to one not accustomed to Latin-Americanpolitics. They will have nothing in common, neither will acknowledgethe existence of any good in the other, they endeavor to keep apart inthe clubs, they do not care to buy in each other's stores. Even thewomen enter into this bitterness and engagements have been brokenbecause the bridegroom was discovered to favor one party while thebride or her family sympathized with the other. The parties are not unalterably composed of the same individuals. Onthe contrary a great number of the leaders and of the rank and fileare continually drifting from one party to another, evincingparticular anxiety to "get on the band-wagon. " These changelings, while they belong to any one party, affect to be its most ardentsupporters in order to avert any suspicion of insincerity. Much of thedisorder which has sapped the life-blood of the Republic has been dueto disappointed office-seekers who suddenly veered about and joinedthe opposing party. Not only to personal ambitions and corruption of the persons in power, but also to the perfunctory mode in which elections have beenconducted the many revolutions are to be ascribed. The municipalcouncils in the communes and the justices of the peace and tworesidents in the cantons form the election board before which thevoters of the respective commune or canton are supposed to appear todeposit their votes. It is evident that if anything more than a smallproportion of the qualified voters appeared, such election boardswould be swamped, yet no difficulty has ever been registered. Theelection of the presidential candidate supported by the government wasgenerally so certain that all other aspirants realized the futility oflaunching their candidacy, and their followers either voted for theofficial candidate or refrained from voting. In this connection I amreminded of the convincing political speeches attributed to one ofthe foremost men of La Vega during the farcical campaigns precedingthe elections of Heureaux. He is quoted as saying: "My friends, thisRepublic is founded on the free and unrestricted suffrage of itscitizens. It is the proud boast of the Dominican that under theconstitution he may vote as he pleases. You are therefore free to castyour vote for whomsoever you prefer. I would not be your friend, however, if I did not advise you that whoever does not vote forHeureaux might as well leave the country. " In elections for municipalcouncilmen and members of Congress there was occasionally an exceptionto the rule of having a cut and dried program and contests sometimesarose for a seat. The real campaigns and expressions of the people's will have thereforebeen the revolutions, and politics and revolutions have thus come tobe regarded as going hand in hand. In a town of the Cibao anexpression of the garrulous landlady of the inn attracted myattention. The old lady, after regaling me with the local gossip, started with her own troubles. "Two revolutions ago, " she said--andher mode of measuring time struck me as peculiar--"my eldest son tooka gun and went into politics. " "Cojió un fusil y se metió en lapolitica"--"took a gun and went into politics, " the phrase is sadlyexpressive. Such campaigns were only too easily begun. When a new presidententered upon office on the crest of a successful revolution, apparently with the whole country behind him and his adversariessilenced or scattered, his popularity generally lasted until thespoils were distributed. ("To the victors belong the spoils" was thepolicy of the past; the American military authorities are making animportant innovation by the introduction of civil service principlesfor selecting public employees. ) The disappointed spirits immediatelyentered into the plots which the vanquished opponents were not slow infomenting. The leader of the adverse party or one of his trustedlieutenants raised the standard of revolt and issued manifestoes whichechoed with patriotic sentiments and decried the faults of theadministration. He was joined by a number of disgruntled "generals"and their followers. The telegraph wires were cut and the revolutionhad begun. Before 1905 the seizure of a custom-house was invariably the nextstep, which would at the same time provide the insurgents with thesinews of war and make it impossible for the government to pay itsemployees in that province. The custom-houses were eliminated as pawnsin the revolutionary game by the fiscal treaty with the United States, according to which the customs receipts were paid over to an Americanreceiver-general. Revolutions for a short time became more difficult, but where there's a will there's a way, and under a new routine thenecessary funds were derived from the government's internal revenuesand from levies on private citizens. The first two or three weeks of a revolt constituted its criticalperiod, for the government at once poured troops into the district inorder to suppress the insurrection, while the rebels sought to obtainas many strategical points as possible. Both sides lived on thecountry while roaming about in pursuit of each other. If thegovernment was victorious the leaders of the revolt would usuallyscramble across the border into Haitian territory, or leave thecountry by boat, or otherwise make themselves inconspicuous until thetime was ripe for another rebellion. When the government was unreadyor unsuccessful, the insurrection spread with great rapidity from townto town until it arrived before the walls of Santo Domingo City. There was more or less of a siege and when the president capitulatedhe was permitted to board a vessel and go into exile. The head of thenew revolution then assumed charge of the government and had himselfelected president and the game began all over again. The personal property of the fallen adversaries was respected andthere was no confiscation, such as has occasionally been witnessed incertain other Latin republics. When Baez was overthrown in 1858 therewas an exception to the rule, his properties being seized by theSantana government on the ground that he was a traitor ready todeliver the country over to the Haitians and was guilty of other highcrimes and misdemeanors. But when the wheel of fortune again broughtBaez to the top he promptly reentered upon his lands. During the uprisings there has rarely been wanton destruction ofproperty, the property of foreigners being especially respected. Theowner of a plantation near Macoris told me that on one occasion thegeneral of an insurgent force even halted at his gates and sent him apolite request for permission to cross the property. Suchconsideration was not universal, however, and large sums have beenpaid to foreigners for damages inflicted during revolutions. A seriousinconvenience was caused farmers by revolutions as many laborers wereenrolled in one army or the other, either voluntarily or byimpressment. In the course of the insurrection there were numerous encountersbetween the rebels and the government troops, most of them being mereskirmishes. There is hardly a town where there are not houses whichshow the marks of bullets. The walls and gates of Santo Domingo Cityand the houses in the vicinity are full of such marks, thoughgenerally painted over now. In 1904 and 1905 one of the sights of thecity was a beautiful villa opposite the Puerta del Conde, which hadserved as target for the government forces while occupied by theinsurgents and was so peppered by shot and shell as to look like asieve. The sieges of Santo Domingo City sometimes lasted for manymonths. At such times almost every citizen took part in theexcitement, barricades were erected at every street opening and therattle of musketry was heard at all hours. The proportion of shots fired to casualties inflicted is known to beenormous in all wars and in Santo Domingo it is almost incredible. Battles have been fought lasting for hours with thousands of shotsfired, yet with not one man lost. There have been revolutionaryuprisings lasting for months with not a man wounded. In Puerto Platait is said that when the government troops attacked the city in 1904 afierce battle ensued which continued from morning till the town wastaken by storm in the evening; yet only one man was killed and hisdeath was due to his own carelessness, for he appeared not far fromwhere soldiers of the other side were training a cannon and refused toobey their warning to get out of the way, whereupon the cannon wasdischarged and his arm shot off, causing a mortal wound. At other times, however, the results have been far more serious, asmany a maimed soldier and bereaved family can testify. The graves ofvictims of the revolutions are scattered all over the Republic. Howmany have fallen in the disturbances of the past fifteen years it isimpossible to determine; I have heard estimates ranging from 1000 upto 15, 000. Nor is revolutionizing a pleasant business when continuedfor any length of time. When the men entered a town contributionscould be levied on the merchants, but when they were harassed andforced to retreat to the mountains they roamed for weeks half nude, bare-headed, barefooted, exposed to the weather, living on whatbananas and wild fruits they could find or occasional wild hogs theywere able to kill, undermining their constitutions and brutalizingtheir natures. The landlady whose son sought political distinctionwith a gun told me amid sobs that her boys were dutiful, industriouslads before being caught in the revolutionary torrent, but that in thewoods they lost all inclination for work and returned home completelydemoralized. From grieving relatives of victims I have heard manyanother story of ruined lives and early deaths. It is saddening toreflect on the tears which have been shed and the misery which hasbeen caused by this long continued civil strife. While women have been heavy sufferers from the revolutions they havenot hesitated to take sides and contribute their mite. Many are thestories current in Santo Domingo of women who smilingly passed throughthe enemy's ranks and carried ammunition and supplies concealedbeneath their garments to their friends in the woods. Excluding the revolution by which the Haitian yoke was thrown off in1844 and that of 1863-65, which expelled the Spaniards, there haveoccurred in the seventy years of Dominican independence no less thantwenty-three successful revolutions. One occurred in each of the years1848, 1844, 1849, 1857 and 1864, three in 1865, one each in 1866, 1867and 1873, three in 1876, one each in 1877, 1878, 1879, 1899 and 1902, two in 1903 and one each in 1912 and 1914. At times hardly had arevolution proved successful when a counter-revolution broke out andsecured the victory. The longest intermissions were from 1879 to1899 when the party of the dictator Heureaux was in power, and from1903 to 1912, when the indirect protection of the United States wassufficient to sustain the government. These were the successful revolutions; the unsuccessful insurrectionsare innumerable. It has been unfortunate for the credit of SantoDomingo that almost every little shooting affray is classed as aninsurrection or revolution. Most of these unsuccessful uprisings havebeen unimportant excursions into the country by some disaffected localchief and a handful of followers, the band being promptly rounded upor scattered by government forces or induced to come in by promise ofa job or some other consideration. The circumstance that the provincial governors found it to theiradvantage to have disturbances in their district explains many of thesmaller commotions. Upon the outbreak of an insurrection or before thethreat of an outbreak the authorities in the capital would authorizethe provincial governor to recruit troops and draw funds for theirpayment. The governor would do so, but if two or three thousand menhad been authorized he would raise only two or three hundred andforget to account for the balance of the money. The suppression of the"revolution" would thus benefit both his military reputation and hispocketbook. Governors were therefore prone to exaggerate rumors ofinsurrection and sometimes themselves sent out men to fire a few shotsin the woods and create alarm. Other insurrections have been fierce and formidable and someadministrations were obliged to engage in constant warfare in order tomaintain themselves. A serious unsuccessful insurrection was that ledby Gen. Casimiro de Moya against Heureaux in 1886, which lasted sixmonths. The most widespread was that of Jimenez against the Moralesgovernment, lasting from December, 1903, to May, 1904, and duringwhich the insurgents gained possession of practically the entireRepublic. Other serious outbreaks occurred in 1904, 1905, 1906, 1909, 1911, 1913 and 1916. The fires smouldered constantly, especially inthe Cibao, which raises the largest crops of everything, includingrevolutions. The effect of such continuous commotion has been most disastrous tothe country and the people at large. This is all the more saddeningwhen it is considered that, less than ten per cent of the people tookpart in the disturbances. Revolutions, successful and unsuccessful, have been fought to a finish with less than a thousand men on eitherside. Ninety per cent of the population are law-abiding citizens whowould like nothing better than to be let alone and permitted to pursuetheir vocations in peace. The other ten per cent were not entirely toblame: they have been the victims of their environment. Not only have the revolutionary disturbances caused enormous indirectloss to the country through paralyzation of agriculture, arrest ofdevelopment and loss of credit, but they have also been a large directexpense. A considerable portion of every budget was devoted toappropriations for the purchase of war material and the maintenance ofthe military and naval establishment. When uprisings occurred theadditional amounts necessary for their suppression have been takenfrom other appropriations, those for public works usually being thefirst to be cancelled. If the uprisings became serious the otherappropriations of the budget were reduced by fifty or evenseventy-five per cent until all the available cash was devoted to warpurposes. In 1903 military and naval expenditures absorbed 71. 7 percent of the Republic's disbursements, and in 1904 72. 6 per cent. Atsuch times the government was reduced to a desperate struggle forexistence; the loss of the custom-houses in power of the insurgentsmade its position still more precarious; it contracted loans onruinous terms; it neglected its foreign obligations and paid itsemployees in promissory notes and even in postage stamps, which theywould then peddle about the streets. Under such conditions it isnatural that nothing was left for public improvements. Even under thepeaceful administration of Heureaux a disproportionate part of thenational funds was expended for military purposes and three gunboatswere acquired and maintained, but not a single mile of improved roadwas laid out. With the American military occupation political conditions in theDominican Republic have radically changed. The system of wagingpolitical campaigns by force of arms has stopped abruptly andabsolutely. Revolutions have become a matter of history. Ballots willhereafter take the place of bullets, and politics will be conducted inthe same manner as in other orderly countries. Evolution, notrevolution, will be the characteristic of the future. CHAPTER XX LAW AND JUSTICE Audiencia of Santo Domingo. --Legal system. --Judicialorganization. --Observance of laws. --Prisons. --Character of offenses. In the year 1510 the Spanish government established in Santo Domingothe first of the famous colonial audiencias, or royal high courts, thelist of which appears like a roll call of Spain's former glories. Others were added later in Mexico, Guatemala, Guadalajara, Panama, Lima, Santa Fé de Bogotá, Quito, Manila, Santiago de Chile, Charcas(now Sucré), and Buenos Aires. The audiencia of Santo Domingo at firsthad jurisdiction over all the territory under Spanish dominion in thenew world, but upon the establishment, of the audiencia of Mexico andothers its jurisdiction was confined to the West India Islands, andthe north coast of South America. Its functions were both judicial andadministrative, including the power to hear appeals from the judges ofthe district and from certain administrative authorities, and tointervene in certain matters of government, in the finances of theterritory and in behalf of the public peace. The governor andcaptain-general of Santo Domingo was president of the royal audiencia, though not acting when it sat as a law court, and at times theaudiencia alone temporarily carried on the government of one or moreof the territories under its jurisdiction. It applied the law asexpressed in the codification of the "Laws of the Indies, " and theSpanish "Partidas. " It sat in the building still called the old palaceof government. During the dark days which fell upon the island in theseventeenth century, the presence of the audiencia helped to save thecolony from being completely forgotten. It continued in its functionsuntil the country was ceded to France, whereupon in 1799, it wasremoved to the city of Puerto Principe, in Cuba. Could its records buthave been preserved a great many gaps in the history of Santo Domingo, Cuba, Porto Rico and Venezuela would be filled. It seems that thefirst records were destroyed by Drake in 1583, and almost all thelater ones succumbed to the negligence of man and the voracity of thetropical insects. When the government of Cuba in 1906 honored therequest of the government of the Dominican Republic for the return ofsuch of the records of the audiencia of Santo Domingo as were stillextant, it could find in its national archives and turn over but ascore of bundles of documents, mostly records of suits regarding landboundaries in the eighteenth century, of little historic value. Theseand several small mahogany bookcases still preserved in the presentaudiencia of Havana, are the only tangible remains of thisnoted court. When Santo Domingo again came under Spanish rule in 1809, the colonywas included in the territorial jurisdiction of the audiencia ofCaracas. Upon the beginning of Haitian rule in 1822, when most of thedistinguished citizens, including judges and lawyers, left thecountry, they took with them the ancient legal system. The Haitiansimposed their laws, namely, the Code Napoleon and other French codes. These took such deep root that on the expulsion of the Haitians noattempt was made to return to the Spanish laws, which also at thattime were still under the disadvantage of not having been revised andcodified in accordance with modern needs. In 1845 the laws of Francewere expressly adopted by the Dominican Republic. During the troubloustimes following little attention was given to the legal system, andthere was not even a Spanish translation of the codes. Afterannexation to Spain in 1861 the Spanish authorities attempted toclarify the situation by introducing the Spanish penal code and law ofcriminal procedure and by appointing a commission to translate thecivil code, in which they made several changes, but upon thereestablishment of the Republic in 1865 everything done in thisrespect by the Spaniards was annulled. Several efforts were later madeto secure a translation of the codes, though laws were not ofteninvoked amid so much civil unrest. As late as 1871 the Americancommission which visited the island reported that the administrationof justice had practically fallen into disuse. The local militarychiefs and the parish priests decided the questions that arose. As the country progressed in spite of itself, and there were periodsof peace, the need of an official Spanish text of the laws became morepressing, and at length in 1882 a commission was appointed totranslate and adapt the French codes. On the report of the commissiona civil code, a code of civil procedure, a code of commerce, a penalcode, a code of criminal procedure and a military code were approvedin the year 1884. They are literal translations of the French codeswith a few modifications to adapt them to local conditions. The penalcodes are such close translations that several paragraphs relating tojuries were retained, although the institution does not exist in SantoDomingo. It was tried in 1857, but discontinued in the following year. The Dominican Congress made but few changes in these important laws, which have therefore been more permanent than the constitution. Theneed for a further revision of the Dominican codes became urgent, however, and such revision has very recently been concluded by acommission which sat for that purpose; it is now being considered witha view to an early promulgation of the codes in amended form. Santo Domingo, the first Spanish colony, thus has no Spanish laws. Itis the only Spanish country which has adopted French legislation socompletely, and which looks so largely to France for itsjurisprudence. The laws of Congress, and the decrees of the Executive relating toconcessions, naturalization, pardons, and other matters, and, atpresent, the "executive orders" and decrees of the militarygovernment, are published in the Official Gazette, a governmentnewspaper appearing almost daily. In addition to the calendar date, official papers are dated from the declaration of independence in 1844and the restoration of the Republic in 1863, somewhat as follows:"Given in the National Palace of Santo Domingo, Capital of theRepublic, on the 3rd day of March, 1916, the 73rd year of Independenceand the 53rd of the Restoration. " In Haiti it was formerly the custom, after a successful revolution, to count dates not only from thedeclaration of independence but also from the proclamation of thelatest revolution, the latter period being denominated the"regeneration, " thus: In the 40th year of independence and the 3rd ofthe regeneration. In the Dominican Republic Baez introduced this rulein his presidency of 1868-1873, during which period decrees were datedin the following manner: "On the 3rd day of March, 1871, the 28th yearof Independence, the 8th of the Restoration, and the 3rd of theRegeneration. " The revolution of December, 1873, ended thisregeneration, and the official references thereto. At the present time the judicial power is vested in a supreme court, sitting in the capital of the Republic, three courts of appeals, onein Santo Domingo, one in Santiago and one in La Vega; twelve courts offirst instance, one in each province; and 70 alcaldias or justice ofthe peace courts, in the several communes and cantons. The supremecourt is constituted by a presiding justice and six associatejustices, who are elected by the Senate for terms of four years. Itexercises original jurisdiction in cases against diplomaticfunctionaries and judges of courts of appeals, sits as a court ofcassation in appeals from, the courts of appeals, finally decidesadmiralty cases and has certain other functions assigned to it by law. The three courts of appeals each have a presiding justice and fourassociate justices, all elected by the Senate for four year terms. They exercise appellate jurisdiction over cases adjudged by courts offirst instance and courts-martial, and original jurisdiction inadmiralty cases and in the prosecution of certain judicial andadministrative officials. Prior to 1908 there was one supreme court, with five members, and no court of appeals. When the income of thecountry grew, the new constitution provided that the supreme courthave at least seven members, and that at least two courts of appealsbe established, with their necessary judges and clerks. The system isnow costly and topheavy. The twelve district courts each have a judge of first instance and ajudge of instruction, elected by the Senate for terms of four years. The judge of instruction is not, strictly speaking, a part of thecourt, his duty being to investigate the more serious criminaloffenses, commit the offenders for the action of the court and reportthe result of his investigation to the prosecuting attorney. Thecourts of first instance have original jurisdiction in all criminalmatters except the minor police offenses and in all civil mattersexcept those expressly assigned to the justices of the peace. Theyhear appeals from the justices of the peace in civil andcriminal cases. The local justices of the peace are called "alcaldes. " The alcalde, inSpanish times, was an officer exercising both administrative andjudicial functions, the name being derived from the Arabic "al cadi, "the judge, and whereas in Spain and most of the former Spanishcolonies the alcalde has now only administrative duties and his officeis equivalent to that of mayor, in Santo Domingo he now exercisessolely judicial authority. (The office of "alcalde pedaneo, " which maybe roughly translated as deputy mayor, exists in Santo Domingo, however, this title being given to the municipal executive's agent ineach section. ) The alcalde's jurisdiction comprises the smaller policeoffenses and, in civil cases, matters involving less than $100, aswell as certain cases, such as suits between innkeepers and guests, where the limit of his authority is raised to $300, and other cases, such as ejectment suits, where his jurisdiction attaches on account ofthe subject-matter. The alcaldes are appointed by the president ofthe Republic. In general the system works smoothly. The alcaldes are often ignorantmen, but even in the United States the country magistrates are notalways founts of wisdom. The judges of first instance and districtattorneys are almost without exception respected in the community, andthe present judges of the supreme court and of the courts of appealsenjoy a good reputation. Not infrequently political considerationshave given rise to poor appointments, such as occurred in Barahonasome years ago when the judge-elect telegraphed an indignant protestto the capital to the effect that he was unacquainted even with therudiments of the law. The administration had not taken the trouble toascertain whether he was a lawyer, but knowing he sought a position, had given him the first one at hand. This was rather an oversight, asthe law requires such appointees to be members of the bar. On anotheroccasion the legal requisite was filled by first declaring theaspirant a lawyer and then designating him for the post. These casesare exceptions, however. The integrity of the judges is not oftenquestioned, but the alcaldes do not enjoy so good a reputation. At the present time there are also American provost courts which takecognizance of "offenses against the military government. " Thisdesignation is broad enough to include anything the militaryauthorities choose to include. Apart from a few cases of regrettableharshness these courts have done fairly well. While the various constitutions have expressly declared theindependence of the judicial power, the authority of the courts hasheretofore been rather relative, and they have studiously avoidedconflicts with the other branches of the government. There is no caseon record where they have declared a law unconstitutional. The supremecourt when driven into a corner in 1904 even declared that it had notthe authority to make such a declaration. The constitution of 1908modified the decision by expressly providing that the supreme courtmay decide as to the constitutionality of laws. This decision of the supreme court made little impression in thecountry, due probably in part to the ease with which the variousadministrations have disregarded the constitution when it suited theirconvenience. The little value of the constitution between friends hasconstantly been demonstrated. Certain provisions have beensystematically violated, even by the best of administrations. Principal among them is the provision that no one be arrested withouta warrant setting forth the offense, unless caught _in flagranti_, andthe provision that every person imprisoned be informed of the cause ofhis imprisonment and submitted to examination within forty-eight hoursafter arrest, and not be detained for a longer time than permitted bylaw. These provisions have been dead letters as far as politicalprisoners are concerned. When a person was suspected of being involvedin a conspiracy against the government he was liable at any moment tobe seized and conducted to prison, where he might be detainedindefinitely, until the danger was over, or he was consideredinnocuous. The ancient fortress at the river mouth in Santo Domingo, known as La Torre del Homenaje, bears over its entrance the sign, "Political Prison, " and rarely has it been without tenants, even whenthe country was at peace and the constitutional guarantees weresupposed to be in force. On one occasion when I heard a Dominicanlawyer lament that a friend of his had thus been incarcerated forseveral months without a hearing, I inquired why he did not apply to acourt and invoke the constitutional provision. The reply was, "Thejudge who signed an order to set the prisoner free would probably joinhim in jail before many hours had passed. " Such ignoring of the written law was a relic of the days when the willof the military was the only law respected. Reminders of the old stateof affairs continued to crop out, though the people and governmentwere rapidly adopting other customs. An instance occurred in Sanchezduring the presidency of Morales. A younger brother of the presidentwas customs collector at that port and was accused by public rumor ofirregularities in office. A customs employee having been dischargedfor spreading the rumor, called on the collector and invited him to ameeting outside; and the two adjourned to the bush, where shots wereexchanged and young Morales was wounded in the leg. The aggressor wasimmediately seized by the general commanding the military forces inSanchez and carried to the town cemetery, a grave was dug, and thegeneral prepared to have him summarily shot. The town authoritiesinterceded, but in vain, and the execution was about to take placewhen the ladies of the town succeeded in moving the commandant bytheir pleadings. The prisoner was remanded to the jail in Samana andwas later tried by the court of first instance and acquitted. Muchmore recently the leader of the band that assassinated PresidentCaceres was killed without trial. Some of the surviving military leaders of the old school finddifficulty in adjusting themselves to the new conditions. Among themwas General Cirilo de los Santos, better known by his nickname"Guayubin" (the name of the town where he was born) who took an activepart in the political disturbances of the Republic for many years. When I traveled through the country with Prof. Hollander on hisfinancial investigation we were guests of this hero of a hundredrevolutions, who was then Governor of La Vega. In the course ofconversation Prof. Hollander expressed gratification at the cessationof the custom of shooting political prisoners. The governor was atthat time engaged in the persecution of one Perico Lasala, a perpetualrevolutionist who was infesting the nearby hills and who has sincedone his country a favor by being killed in an incursion on the coast. The idea of not shooting this notorious character as soon as he wasapprehended seemed grotesque to Guayubin--and perhaps not withoutreason. He cried, "If you were in my place and caught Perico Lasala, wouldn't you shoot even him?" "Why, no, " was the answer. Guayubin'sface fell and he became thoughtful. For the rest of the day he wasstrangely silent and he continued so on the morrow, when heaccompanied us for several miles out of town. When bidding goodbye, hebroke out: "I wish to ask your advice. If I should catch PericoLasala, what would you advise me to do with him?" Dr. Hollander asked:"What do you do with persons who steal or commit similar violations ofthe law?" "We put them in jail. " "Why, then, put Perico Lasala injail. " A look of inexpressible relief came over the face of the oldwarrior. "Of course!" he said, "I never thought of that. " Not long after this incident General Guayubin met a political opponentagainst whom he harbored resentment. He immediately drew his revolverand began to shoot, and the object of his wrath escaped only bydexterous sprinting. At a session of Congress there was some criticismof his action and Guayubin resigned his office in disgust. The deathof this fighter was as stern as his life. He attended a christeningparty at a house where there was a forgotten powder-cask; a spark fellinto the powder and in the ensuing explosion Guayubin's eyesight wasdestroyed. Grimly refusing to take food or drink, he pined away. Prior to the American occupation, the Dominican penal establishmentswere as a rule in very bad condition. There is no penitentiary andportions of the forts or government houses are used as jails. Theprisoners were herded together with little thought of cleanliness. Thestench in some of the jail yards was at times almost unbearable. Injustice it should be stated that the Dominican authorities frequentlycalled the attention of their Congress to this condition of affairs. The prisons at Santo Domingo City and Santiago were exceptions to therule; they were improved even to the extent of being endowed with aprison school. The political prisoners were generally given better accommodations, ifthere were any at hand, and had the privilege of securing their mealsfrom the outside instead of being limited to the scant and repugnantprison food. During revolutions, however, when the prisons wereovercrowded, the political prisoners were kept in irons andsupervision was rigid. According to law the functionaries of eachcourt of first instance were supposed to visit and examine the jailsonce a month, but as the date of their visit was known beforehand theinspection was little more than perfunctory. Not very long ago it waswhispered in the Cibao that a judge in inspecting a jail accidentallypassed through a door to a room he was evidently not expected toenter, and there to his own embarrassment and that of the warden founda score of prisoners whose names were not on the prison rolls. The more serious offenders were kept in irons. The Dominicanauthorities, realizing that they had no reason to be proud of theirprisons, were loath to permit foreigners to visit the jails. When Icalled at the government building at Sanchez on one occasion, however, the commandant was absent and an indiscreet sergeant offered to showme the two rooms used for prison purposes. The building was a woodenone and one of the rooms, though heavily barred, did not seem unfittedexcept in case of overcrowding, which I was told sometimes occurred. The other room was extremely repulsive. It was dark and a foul odorrising from a hole in the wooden floor demonstrated the truth of theguide's remark that there was no outhouse for the use of theprisoners. Along one side of this room lay two long square-cut beams, one on the other, scalloped out so as to form a number of round holesalong their juncture. It was evident they were used as stocks and myguide stated that he had seen a whole row of men sitting along the logwith their feet thus confined. One or two of the holes were a littlelarger and it was explained that they were for the purpose ofconfining not the feet but the neck of the delinquent, and that thispunishment was much worse, producing especial pain in the case ofshort-necked persons. The severest pain was produced, so the guidestated, when the delinquent was seated on the beam and his feet placedcrosswise through the holes: he could bear the agony of this positionfor only a short time. The American authorities have made great improvements in the prisonsand prison discipline. The jails are now so clean that they are almostshow places. The revolutionary disturbances have seriously interfered with theproper execution of the sentences of the courts. It was a usualprocedure for revolutionary forces, upon entering a town, to free theprisoners--either as a slap at the government or in order thereby toaugment their own strength. In Puerto Plata, a few years ago, amerchant was convicted of fraudulent bankruptcy and sentenced to threeyears in jail; soon afterwards a revolutionary force took possessionof the town and freed the prisoners; and a few hours later thetownspeople were amused to see the lawyer who had been instrumental insecuring the conviction himself led to prison at the instigation ofthe culprit. In March, 1903, when the political prisoners in the Santo Domingoprison broke out, they released the convicts, some of whom retainedtheir gyves during the fighting which followed, until the revolutionwas successful several days later. The undeveloped state of the country has offered difficulties to theapprehension of criminals, and the proper enforcement of the law. Could a criminal but reach the mountains of the interior, which arealmost entirely uninhabited, he would be safe from pursuit and mighteither wait to join the next uprising or proceed to a different partof the country, where he was unknown and where, owing to thedifficulty of intercourse, detection would be unlikely. Instances haveoccurred more than once where an escaped malefactor has become a"general" of other outlaws and by threatening to raise an insurrectionhas induced the government to pardon him and his associates. In several regions there were up to the time of the Americanoccupation local caciques who were almost absolute monarchs in theirdistrict. They and their followers considered themselves above the lawand their power and influence were such that the government in thecapital preferred to let them alone so long as they kept withinbounds. Such gentlemen can hardly be expected to favor the Americanadministration for they have been made to understand that their rightsand remedies are no more than those of other citizens. In view of such conditions so favorable to wrongdoers, the lowcriminal record of Santo Domingo is all the more remarkable and speakshighly for the character of the population. Crimes evincing malice anda depraved disposition are exceedingly rare. The Dominican boasts thatit is possible to travel without fear from one end of the Republic tothe other, though unarmed and carrying large sums of money. The fewattacks on travelers which are on record have generally been due torevenge or some other personal motive. There is petty thievery, but nomore than anywhere else. A friend of mine used to remark that he hadnever seen so many chickens in a community where there were so manynegroes. No criminal is so greatly despised as a thief, and to accusea person of being "mean enough to steal a pig" is a mortal insult. Adistinction is made, however, between public honesty and privatehonesty, and the impression has been only too general that stealingfrom the state is not stealing. The most common serious offenses are homicide and assaults committedin sudden quarrel or due to jealousy. Not a little mischief was causedby the unfortunate habit of going armed. The attractions of the fair sex give rise not only to crimes ofjealous passion, but also to other missteps, such as seduction andsimilar offenses. The average of these is not greater, however, thanin other southern countries. CHAPTER XXI THE DOMINICAN DEBT AND THE FISCAL TREATY WITH THE UNITED STATES Financial situation in 1905. --Causes of debt. --Amount of debt. --Bondeddebt. --Liquidated debt. --Floating debt. --Declared claims. --Undeclaredclaims. --Surrender of Puerto Plata custom-house. --Fiscal convention of1905. --Modus vivendi. --Negotiations for adjustment of debt. --New bondissue. --Fiscal treaty of 1907. --Adjustment with creditors. --1912loan. --Present financial situation. Rarely have the fiscal affairs of a country experienced so rapid andradical a change for the better as those of Santo Domingo since 1904, and rarely has a financial measure so quickly proved its efficacy asthe fiscal convention between the United States and Santo Domingo. Inthe beginning of the year 1905 Santo Domingo had fallen to the lowestdepths of bankruptcy and financial discredit. After decades of civildisturbance, misrule and reckless debt contraction, the deluge hadcome. The substance of the country had been wasted in militaryexpenditures; agriculture and commerce were stagnant; a debt of over$30, 000, 000 had been contracted with nothing to show for it butforty-two miles of narrow-gauge railroad and two small gunboats; thegovernment obligations were chronically in default and interestcharges were piling up at ruinous rates; every port of the Republicwas pledged to foreign creditors who were clamoring for payment; oneport had already been seized and the occupation of the others byforeign powers was imminent. At this juncture the Dominican governmentapplied to the United States for assistance and the custom-houses ofthe Republic were placed in charge of an American general receiver, with the obligation of reserving a specified portion of the customsincome for the creditors and turning the remainder over to theDominican government. The situation immediately changed as if bymagic. The imports and exports, and with them the income of thegovernment, quickly reached higher figures than the country had everseen, the national debt was scaled down by almost one-half and the newDominican bonds issued in 1907 to convert the old debt went nearly topar in the markets of the world. (a) Periodic accumulation of floating debt, owing to: 1. Political instability, requiring large outlays for soldiery, for bribery of potential revolutionists, and for suppression of actual revolutions. 2. Corruption of officials. 3. "Asignaciones" or pensions to mollify enemies and to reward friends of the existing régime. (b) Usurious interest computations, on account of: 1. "Bonus" in principal, 2. Extravagant interest rates. (c) Interest default and compounding accumulations. (d) Recognition and liquidation of excessive or illegal claims as a condition of further advances. In order to obtain more positive information with reference tooutstanding Dominican indebtedness, for use in connection with thepending fiscal treaty, the American government in the early part of1905 commissioned a financial expert, Prof. Jacob H. Hollander, ofJohns Hopkins University, to proceed to Santo Domingo and make aninvestigation of financial conditions. Prof. Hollander, in anelaborate report, found the amount of the claims pending against theDominican Republic on June I, 1905, to be $40, 269, 404. 38, distributedas follows: Bonded debt........................ $17, 670, 312. 75Liquidated debt...................... 9, 595, 530. 40Floating debt........................ 1, 553, 507. 79Declared claims...................... 7, 450, 053. 89Undeclared claims.................... 4, 000, 000. 00 --------------Total indebtedness................. $40, 269, 404. 38 The bonded debt, as above designated, comprised the publicindebtedness represented by outstanding bonds; the liquidated debtconsisted of items secured by international protocols or by formalcontracts; the floating debt consisted of admitted indebtedness, neither funded nor secured, but evidenced by public obligations; thedeclared claims were claims presented for reimbursement or indemnitybut not expressly recognized by the government; and the undeclaredclaims were claims of the same nature not yet formally presented. Abrief description of each of these items will afford an idea of thegeneral character, of Dominican financiering and a betterunderstanding of Dominican history. _Bonded Debt_. The bonded debt held by Belgians andFrench and amounting to $17, 670, 312. 75, was the finaloutcome of eight consecutive bond issues floated by theRepublic, as follows: Interest per TermDate Amount cent years Name_ 1869 £ 757, 700 6 25 Hartmont loan1888 £ 770, 000 6 30 Westendorp loan1890 £ 900, 000 6 56 Railway loan1893 £2, 035, 000 4 66 4 per cent consolidated gold bonds1893 $1, 250, 000 4 66 4 per cent gold debentures1894 $1, 250, 000 4 66 French-American reclamation consols1895 $1, 750, 000 4 661897 £1, 736, 750 2-3/4 102 Obligations or de Saint Domingue £1, 500, 000 4 83 Dominican unified debt 4 per cent bonds In making its very first loan, in 1869, the Dominican government fellinto the hands of sharpers and was mercilessly fleeced. The bargain, even if it had been honestly carried out, was improvident enough. Reduced to American money the nominal amount of the loan was$3, 788, 500; of this amount the Republic was to receive but $1, 600, 000;yet it contracted to pay as interest and sinking fund in twenty-fiveyears a sum amounting to $7, 362, 500. The contractors for the loan, Hartmont & Co. , of London, were authorized to retain $500, 000 as theircommission. In fact, however, no more than $190, 455 was ever paid tothe Dominican government. The brokers claimed that they tendered afurther sum of $1, 055, 500, though after the expiration of the timelimited in their contract, and that the tender was refused because ofnegotiations then under way for the annexation of the Republic to theUnited States, but such tender is denied on the Dominican side. At allevents, the loan contract was cancelled by the Dominican senate in1870 on the ground of non-compliance of the brokers with itsconditions and the government made no payments for interest or sinkingfund. The brokers nevertheless continued to sell bonds in London andpay the current interest with the proceeds. Incidentally in additionto collecting their commission, they turned a penny for themselves bytaking the bonds with their friends at 50 and selling them to thepublic at 70. When the Dominican repudiation of the bond issue waspublished in England in 1872 a cash balance of $466, 500 still remainedto the credit of the Dominican government, but it was coolly pocketedby the principal agent, who claimed it as a set-off against allegeddamages in connection with a concession he had near Samana. In the tenyears of anarchy that followed in Santo Domingo no attempt was made tostraighten out the matter. The bonds having gone into default in 1872dropped lower and lower until they reached 3 per cent in 1878. The setback received by the credit of the Republic by reason of thedefaulted Hartmont bonds made further bond issues impossible for anumber of years. Finally an Amsterdam banking house, Westendorp & Co. , was interested and in 1888 and 1890 floated the second and third bondissues for £770, 000 and £900, 000 respectively. The object of thesecond issue was to retire the Hartmont bonds at 20 per cent, to pay anumber of floating interior debts the owners of which were harassingthe government, and to provide cash for the treasury, principally formilitary and naval expenditures, while the third issue was designed tosecure funds for the construction of a railroad between Puerto Plataand Santiago. For the purpose of providing for the service of the loana collection office known as the "caisse de la regie, " or simply"regie, " under the management of Westendorp, took charge of thecustomhouses with the obligation of paying a certain amount to thegovernment monthly and devoting the remainder to payment of interestand sinking fund of the loans. The arrangement was thus similar to thelater receivership plan, but its vulnerable point was that it wasoperated by a private concern. The first instalments of interest and sinking fund on these two bondissues were paid from the proceeds of the bonds, then for severalmonths the "regie" supplied funds, and then came the first crash. Thegovernment was ever in need of money and to secure the same violatedits agreements by seizing certain revenues to pledge them to localmerchants for advances, and by conniving at customs irregularities. Asa result, after paying the sums for the budget, the "regie" hadnothing left for the service of the bonds and they went intodefault in 1892. Westendorp was almost ruined by this occurrence and became anxious todraw out of his Dominican entanglements. He applied to Smith M. Weedand Brown and Wells, New York attorneys, to negotiate a sale of hisbonds to the United States government, transferring also his right tocollect the Dominican customs. The United States government declined, whereupon Weed, Wells and Brown organized the famous San DomingoImprovement Company under the laws of New Jersey, the claim of whichwas later the prime factor in bringing about American intervention inSanto Domingo. Subsequently two other companies, the San DomingoFinance Company and the Company of the Central Dominican Railway, wereincorporated, also under the laws of New Jersey, as auxiliaries of theImprovement Company, but they were all managed by the same persons. The San Domingo Improvement Company took over Westendorp's holdingsand was placed in control of the "regie. " A fourth bond issue, of£2, 035, 000 was floated through the agency of the Improvement Companyin 1893 for the conversion of the outstanding government bonds. TheImprovement Company also completed the railroad from Puerto Plata toSantiago, which was the only improvement it ever effected in theRepublic and this it did with Dominican money. It further took fromthe Republic at rates very favorable to the Company a fifth, sixth andseventh bond issue, in 1893, 1894 and 1895 respectively, aggregating$4, 250, 000, for the payment of government indebtedness. Theobligations paid by the first two of these issues were in considerablepart inflated claims against the government, capitalized at excessiveinterest rates, those satisfied by the 1895 issue arose principallyout of indemnity claims made by France for mistreatment of Frenchcitizens and for debts due them. The Dominican government took no warning from previous disasters butcontinued in its course of reckless debt contraction. In order toequip warships and arsenals it borrowed money right and left at ratesof interest which ranged anywhere from 18 to 30 per cent per annum. The loans were guaranteed by customs revenues which the creditors wereauthorized to collect direct from the importer. Thus the amountcollected by the "regie" was not sufficient to provide for the serviceof the ever increasing bonded debt and in 1897 there wasanother default. The old remedy of a new bond issue was to be tried again. The SanDomingo Improvement Company undertook to float the eighth bond issueof £2, 736, 750 in bonds at 2-3/4 per cent and £1, 500, 000 in bonds atfour per cent. With these bonds it contracted to convert all previousbonds then outstanding, to pay overdue interest and to secure for thegovernment over $1, 000, 000 in cash. President Heureaux issued draftson this presumption, but it soon became evident that it would beimpossible for the Improvement Company to carry out the contract. Thecompany blamed the government and the government the company. Thesituation quickly became chaotic. Eventually the conversion of theolder bond issues was completed, though at enormous cost. Bonds to thevalue of £600, 000 were absorbed during the transaction with at most acash payment of $250, 000 to the Dominican fiscal agent in Europe. Inthe meantime the government tried the experiment of a large emissionof paper money in which the customs dues were partly payable. Thepaper depreciated as fast as it was issued, the revenues were againinsufficient and the new bond issue suffered default in April, 1899. While plans for further action were under consideration, PresidentHeureaux was shot in July, 1899, and the revolution which followed hisdeath made Jimenez president. The new administration in 1900 enteredinto a contract with the San Domingo Improvement Company for adifferent distribution of the customs revenues, but a condition wasintroduced that the consent of the majority of bondholders be obtainedfor the funding of interest up to 1903. A large number of Belgian andFrench bondholders had become dissatisfied with the ImprovementCompany, however, and repudiated the contract and all connection withthe Company. In Santo Domingo, too, there was general hostilitytowards the Improvement Company which was regarded as an associate ofPresident Heureaux and an incubus on the development of the country. The Company claimed it had secured the consent of a majority ofbondholders but the government decided it had not and in January, 1901, President Jimenez issued a decree excluding the ImprovementCompany from the custom-houses. The government now made a new contract with the Franco-Belgianbondholders, and for the payment of its obligations pledged itscustoms revenues, and specifically the income of the ports of SantoDomingo City and San Pedro de Macoris. But if there had been defaultbefore, in time of peace, with the "regie" in charge of thecustom-houses, there was still less money available for the creditorsnow, with no control by creditors over collections and the governmentharassed by constant revolutionary uprisings. Small partial paymentswere made for two years and then ceased. As the Improvement Company'sbond holdings became the subject of a special arrangement, the bondeddebt of the Republic was considered to be that held by the French andBelgian creditors. However unsavory the debts which gave origin to thebond issues, and however imprudent most of the bond issues themselves, the great majority of bonds had passed into the hands of smallholders, innocent third parties who sustained great loss by thecontinued suspension of payments. _Liquidated Debt_. The liquidated debt, secured by internationalprotocol or formal contract, Prof. Hollander found to be as follows onJune 1, 1905: San Domingo Improvement Company (American and British)................. $4, 403, 532. 71Consolidated internal debt (chiefly Spanish, German and American).. 1, 737. 151. 35Internal debt held by Vicini heirs (Italian)............................... 1, 598, 876. 04Old foreign debt (chiefly Italian and Dutch)............... 365, 183. 20Sala claim (American)....................... 356, 314. 20Vicini heirs (Italian)...................... 242, 716. 32Italian protocol............................ 186, 750. 36Spanish-German protocol..................... 100, 034. 00B. Bancalari (Italian)...................... 175, 000. 00J. B. Vicini Burgos (Italian)................ 55, 500. 00Ros claim (American)......................... 39, 967. 78Two cacao contracts(chiefly Dominican and German)............... 68, 296. 16Bancalari, Lample & Co. (Italian)............ 16, 733. 19Twenty-eight minor contracts (chiefly Spanish, American)............... 249, 475. 19 ------------Total.................................... $9, 595, 530. 40 The claim of the San Domingo Improvement Company was secured by aprotocol between the American and Dominican governments. When the SanDomingo Improvement Company was ousted from the custom-houses in 1901, it immediately appealed to the State Department in Washington. TheState Department counselled a private settlement and negotiations withthe Dominican government dragged on for almost two years. TheImprovement Company claimed no less than $11, 000, 000 for the bonds itheld or controlled, for its interest in the railroad from Puerto Platato Santiago, for its shares of the extinct National Bank of SantoDomingo which it had purchased at the government's request, and forthe settlement of a long list of minor claims. Arbitration wassuggested by the Company, but the Dominican government finally offereda round sum of $4, 500, 000 and the offer was accepted. It is probablethat the Republic fared better under this compromise than if the casehad been submitted to arbitration, for though the ImprovementCompany's demands were greatly exaggerated, its position toward thegovernment was that of a careful creditor who has kept minute accountof all transactions as against a spendthrift debtor who has squanderedhis property with little or no record of his expenditures. By a protocol signed January 31, 1903, the Dominican governmentformally agreed to pay the sum of $4, 500, 000, leaving details to besettled by a board of arbitrators to be designated by the American andDominican governments. The board met in Washington and rendered itsaward under date of July 14, 1904. It fixed the interest on the debtat four per cent per annum and designated the custom-houses of PuertoPlata, Sanchez, Samana and Monte Cristi as security for the debt. Inthe event of failure by the Dominican government to pay any of themonthly instalments specified, a financial agent, appointed by theUnited States, was authorized to enter into possession of the PuertoPlata custom-house, and if its revenues proved insufficient to takepossession also of the other custom-houses designated. The Dominicangovernment never made any payments and the financial agent tookpossession of the Puerto Plata custom-house in October, 1904. Mostof the other claims comprised in the liquidated debt had their originin advances made to the government--often bearing interest at two orthree per cent a month, or even more--and in indemnity claims forrevolutionary damages. In making the liquidations, musty credits and agenerous amount of compound interest were generally included and itwas usually provided that the sums so agreed upon were themselves tobear interest. The greater portion of these claims was held byforeigners, Italian, German, Spanish and American holdingspredominating. Payments, more or less feeble, were made in many caseson account of principal or interest up to 1903, but in that year, whenthe government was reduced to desperate straits in combattinginsurrections, practically every item of the debt went intopermanent default. The principal Italian claimants were the heirs of an Italian merchant, J. B. Vicini, and an Italian in business at Samana, Bartolo Bancalariby name, who with other Italian subjects became loud in theircomplaints at the non-payment of their claims. The Italian governmentbegan to do a little sword-clanking, the Italian minister came fromHavana in a warship, and the upshot was the signing in 1904 of threeprotocols admitting most of these claims and solemnly promising to paythem. Payment of the internal debt held by the Vicini heirs and of theItalian revolutionary claims was guaranteed by five per cent of allthe customs receipts of the Republic, the revenues of Santo DomingoCity, Macoris, Sanchez and Puerto Plata being specifically pledged. The Bancalari debt was guaranteed by part of the customs revenues ofSamana. Notwithstanding the protocols, no payments were made by theDominican government. _Floating Debt_. The floating debt, consisting of admittedindebtedness, neither funded nor liquidated, but evidenced by somekind of public obligation, was found to be as follows: Registered deferred debt................... $587, 710. 24Registered floating debt.................... 140, 850. 27Privileged revolutionary debt................ 79, 812. 12Certificates of comptroller's office........ 633, 124. 60Certificates of treasury offices............. 31, 771. 07Open unsecured accounts...................... 80, 239. 49 ----------Total.................................... $1, 553. 507. 79 By the year 1902, a large number of small claims--many of them forsupplies furnished and services rendered--had accumulated, the justiceof which the government admitted but of which owing to thedeficiencies in its books it had no record. Notices were accordinglypublished calling on holders of such lawful credits to present thesame for registration. This was the origin of the so-called registereddebts. The largest item was constituted by what was very aptlydenominated the "deferred" debt, created in 1888. Prior to that timethe government had covered its military deficits with money obtainedfrom loan associations known as "credit companies, " which flourishedin the larger towns and which did business at an interest rate thatfluctuated between five and ten per cent a month. When a settlementwas finally made, part of the amount due these companies was paid incertificates of indebtedness, the law directing with subtle humor thatthey be paid from the annual surplus in the budget. There never was asurplus, nothing was ever paid, and the market value of thesecertificates fell to three per cent of their nominal value. The revolutionary debt above referred to, consisting of claims arisingin the revolutions which brought Jimenez into power, was called"privileged" because it was assigned interest. To some extent it was, indeed, privileged, for partial payments were made until the middle of1903. The government certificates forming part of the floating debt, were acknowledgments of indebtedness issued by the government when itwas pressed for ready money. Many bore no interest, others boreinterest as high as two per cent a month. In view of the greatuncertainty of payment the amount of indebtedness was generally eitherfrankly or disguisedly inflated before being expressed in thecertificate. Such certificates were sometimes admitted in part paymentof customs dues. _Declared Claims_ Besides the admitted indebtedness, there were manyclaims for indemnity and reimbursement which had not been acknowledgedby the government in contract form. Some had been formally filed withthe government for the payment of specific amounts, while others werestill general demands. The declared claims were as follows: Internal revolutionary claims................... $ 885, 258. 10American revolutionary claims................... 71, 000. 00Spanish revolutionary claims.................... 40, 000. 00French revolutionary claims..................... 190, 000. 00Italian revolutionary claims.................... 40, 000. 00German revolutionary claims..................... 10, 000. 00British revolutionary claims.................... 5, 000. 00Cuban revolutionary claims...................... 35, 000. 00Font claim (Spanish)............................ 186, 643. 00Heureaux estate claim (Dominican)............... 3, 100, 000. 00National bank notes............................. 1, 574, 647. 00Lluberes contract (Dominican)................... 250, 000. 00West India Public Works Company claim (British). 250, 000. 00Vicini heirs claim (Italian).................... 812, 505. 00 ______________Total........................................... $7, 450, 053. 89 Most of the older claims of indemnity for damages suffered duringrevolutions crystallized into bonded indebtedness, were recognized ingovernment contracts or protocols, drifted into the old foreign debt, or were represented by certificates of indebtedness. Some remained, however, and their number was greatly increased by the disturbancesbetween 1899 and 1905. How exaggerated many such claims were, isillustrated by a story told by the Danish consul in Santo Domingo. ADanish subject came to him and complained that government soldiers hadinvaded his store and carried off merchandise. He begged the consul topresent a damage claim of $10, 000 gold, which was equivalent to$50, 000 silver. The consul listened to his story and said: "You areasking for a large sum, I cannot get you that. I doubt whether I canget you more than $40, silver. " "Make it gold, consul, " was theimmediate reply. Many other claims would not have suffered by asimilar scaling down. Most claims were for houses burned, cattlekilled, horses commandeered and fences and other property destroyed bygovernment forces or revolutionists. The other declared claims arose principally out of alleged violationsof concessions or other contractual obligations. The Heureaux estateclaim, advanced by creditors of the Heureaux estate and based on thepractical identity of the accounts of Heureaux and those of thegovernment was later rejected by the Dominican courts. The outstandingnational bank notes were those issued by the defunct Banque Nationalede Saint Domingue. _Undeclared Claims_. The undeclared claims, such ashad not been formally presented, were estimated asfollows:-- American claims......................... £1, 000, 000British claims.......................... 50, 000Italian claims.......................... 200, 000Spanish and German claims............... 200, 000Other foreign claims.................... 50, 000Dominican claims........................ 2, 500, 000 ---------- Total............................ £4, 000, 000 The foreign claims were principally for damages during revolutions, violations of contract, failure of justice, false imprisonment, etc. The principal one was an American claim, that of Wm. P. Clyde & Co. , of New York, of over $600, 000 and was based on the failure of theDominican government regularly to enforce certain high port duesagainst all vessels, save those of the Clyde line, as agreed in theClyde concession. The Dominican claims were mostly old claims forunpaid salaries, revolutionary losses, merchandise furnished thegovernment, etc. The situation towards the latter part of 1904 appeared hopeless. Everyitem of the enormous debt had been in default for many months andinterest was accruing at such rate that the whole income of thecountry would hardly have been sufficient for the payment of interestalone. Commerce was handicapped by high wharf and harbor chargescollected by private individuals under their concessions from thegovernment, and by prohibitive port dues imposed on foreign vessels inaccordance with the concession of the Clyde line. More thanthree-fourths of the debt was held by foreigners who were clamoringfor payment. The general revenues of the country and every importantcustom-house had been mortgaged to these foreign creditors. In generalterms it may be said that the ports of the northern coast were pledgedprimarily to Americans and secondarily to Italians, those of SamanaBay primarily to Italians and secondarily to Americans, and those ofthe southern coast primarily to French and Belgians and secondarilyto Italians. Only one of the international protocols, however, specified when thecustom-houses to which it referred were to be turned over and themanner in which the surrender was to be made. The others merely madethe pledge in general terms, further negotiations being necessary torender it effective. The exception was the arbitral award of the SanDomingo Improvement Company, which determined that in case of thenonpayment of any of the monthly instalments a financial agent, to benamed by the United States government, was to enter into possession ofthe Puerto Plata custom-house. No payments of instalments were made bythe Dominican government and in September, 1904, compliance with theterms of the award was demanded. On October 20, 1904, thevice-president of the San Domingo Improvement Company, designated asAmerican financial agent, was placed in possession of the custom-houseat Puerto Plata. A cry of dismay ran through the land and the leading newspaper ofSanto Domingo, the "Listin Diario, " published an editorial under theexpressive heading "Consummatum est, " It was, indeed, the beginning ofthe end. The other foreign creditors now pressed their claims withmore vigor than ever, and the preparations for turning over the MonteCristi custom-house to the American financial agent, accomplished inFebruary, 1905, stimulated them to greater exertions. In December, 1904, the French representative in Santo Domingo, acting in behalf ofthe French and Belgian interests, threatened to seize the custom-houseof Santo Domingo City, the mainstay of the government. The Italiancreditors also demanded compliance with their agreements. It wasobvious that the foreclosure of these foreign mortgages would meanindefinite foreign occupation and the absolute destruction of theDominican government, as there would be no revenue left to sustain it. In this difficulty, the Dominican government proposed that all theports of the Republic be taken over by the United States. Thenegotiations were carried on through the capable American minister inSanto Domingo, Thomas C. Dawson, and on February 7, 1905, culminated inthe signing of a treaty convention which provided that all Dominicancustoms duties be collected under the direction of the United States, that 45 per cent of the collections be turned over to the Dominicangovernment for its expenses and the remaining 55 per cent be reservedas a creditors' fund, and that a commission be appointed to ascertainthe true amount of Dominican indebtedness and the sums payable toeach claimant. The treaty was laid before the United States Senate and met with acold reception. In the United States there was even less desire thanin Santo Domingo for American intervention in Dominican matters. Further the treaty was strongly advocated by President Roosevelt andthe tension then existing between the Senate and the Presidentendangered many of his measures. The Senate accordingly adjourned inMarch, 1905, without action on the Dominican treaty. It was the darkest hour for Santo Domingo. The creditors, tired ofwaiting, were in no mood to admit of further delay and the government, totally without resources, was in no position to appease them. Diplomacy was equal to the emergency and a modus vivendi was arranged, under which the President of the United States was to designate aperson to receive the revenues of all the custom-houses of theRepublic and distribute the sums collected in a manner similar to thatdetermined by the pending treaty, namely, to turn over 45 per cent ofthe receipts to the Dominican government and to deposit 55 per cent asa creditors' fund in a New York bank. This temporary arrangement wentinto effect on April 1, 1905. The new controller and general receiverof Dominican customs arrived with several American assistants and soonhad the receivership service admirably organized. The effect wasimmediate. The creditors ceased their pressure, confidence returned, interior trade revived, smuggling was eliminated, the exports andimports increased and the customs receipts took a leap upwards. It was believed that the opposition in the United States Senate wouldbe diminished, if, instead of the United States both adjusting thedebt and collecting the money for its payment, the Dominican Republicshould make a direct settlement with the creditors, and the UnitedStates merely undertake to administer the customs for the service ofthe debt as adjusted. Accordingly the Dominican government appointedthe minister of finance, Federico Velazquez, as special commissionerto adjust the Republic's financial difficulties. After long andtedious negotiations, Minister Velazquez and his able adviser Dr. Hollander evolved three conditional agreements: (1) An agreement with the banking firm of Kuhn, Loeb & Co. Of NewYork, for the issue of fifty year 5 per cent bonds of the DominicanRepublic to the amount of $20, 000, 000. (2) An agreement with the Morion Trust Company of New York to act asfiscal agent of the Dominican Republic and as depository in the debtadjustment. (3) An offer of settlement to the holders of recognized debts andclaims, to adjust these in cash at rates varying from 10 to 90 percent of the nominal values specified in the offer. The nominalaggregate, as recognized by the Republic, exclusive of accruedinterest, was $31, 833, 510, for which it was proposed to pay$15, 526, 240, together with certain interest allowances. The proposed scaling down of the debts provoked opposition andremonstrance, but the creditors wisely reflected on the differencebetween a bird in the hand and more in the bush, and by the beginningof 1907 holders of credits had signified their assent in sufficientamount to assure the success of the readjustment. A new convention between the United States and the Dominican Republicwas accordingly prepared, being signed in Santo Domingo on February 8, 1907. It was ratified by the United States Senate on February 25, andby the Dominican Congress on May 3, 1907. The Dominican Congress addedwhat it called explanatory articles to the law by which it approvedthe convention but made no change therein. This convention, a copy of which will be found in the appendix, recited that disturbed political conditions in the Dominican Republichad created debts and claims amounting to over $30, 000, 000; and thatsuch debts and claims were a burden to the country and a barrier toprogress; that the Dominican Republic had effected a conditionaladjustment under which the total sum payable would amount to not morethan $17, 000, 000; that part of the plan of settlement was the issueand sale of bonds to the amount of $20, 000, 000; that the plan wasconditional upon the assistance of the United States in the collectionof custom revenues of the Dominican Republic; and that "the DominicanRepublic has requested the United States to give and the UnitedStates is willing to give such assistance. " The two governments therefore agreed that the President of the UnitedStates shall appoint a general receiver of Dominican customs, whoshall collect all the customs duties in the custom-houses of SantoDomingo until the payment or redemption of the entire bond issue. Fromthe sums collected, after paying the expenses of the receivership thegeneral receiver is on the first of each month to pay $100, 000 to theFiscal Agent of the loan and the remainder to the Dominicangovernment. Whenever the customs collections exceed $3, 000, 000 in anyyear, one-half the excess shall be applied to the sinking fund for thefurther redemption of bonds. The Dominican government agrees to give the general receiver and hisassistants all needful aid and full protection to the extent of itspowers. The United States also undertakes to give the general receiverand his assistants such protection as it, may find to be required forthe performance of their duties. The convention further stipulates that until the payment of the fullamount of the bonds the Dominican Republic is not to increase itspublic debt except by previous agreement with the United States, andthat a like agreement shall be necessary to modify the import duties. Even with the approval of the convention difficulties lay in the wayof the debt adjustment. In Santo Domingo there was opposition to theplan by interested parties and by persons not sufficiently mindful ofpast errors and present dangers. The Dominican Congress mutilated thecontracts with the bankers, who not only refused to accept themodifications, but declined to treat further with Minister Velazquezunless he were first invested with plenary powers. The DominicanCongress then extended the necessary authority, but it came late, forthe fall of 1907 witnessed a money panic in the United States and thefloating of a bond issue was impossible. After months of negotiations and struggle with recalcitrant creditorsMinister Velazquez and Prof. Hollander finally perfected anarrangement under which the creditors were paid the amounts specifiedin the plan of adjustment, twenty per cent in cash and eighty per centin bonds guaranteed by the fiscal convention. For the purpose of thecash payments the creditors' fund accumulated under the modus vivendiwas utilized. The bonds were delivered to the creditors at the rate of98-1/2 per cent of their face value. Under the plan of settlement the outstanding Franco-Belgian bonds andmost of the other debt items were redeemed at fifty per cent of theirface value, the Improvement Company's claim at ninety per cent, thedeferred debts and comptroller's certificates at ten per cent, and theremaining claims at rates varying from ten to forty per cent. Accumulated interest was remitted entirely by the creditors, except inthree cases, in which it was greatly reduced. These terms were muchbetter than the Republic could have expected from any commission ofinvestigation. The arbitral award of the San Domingo ImprovementCompany was scaled down by only ten per cent, because the bondscomprised in the award had been included therein at only one-halftheir face value and the other credits had also been largely reduced;even this small discount brought howls of protest from Britishinterests that had remained discreetly silent while the StateDepartment was pressing the claim thinking it completely American. Payment under the plan of settlement was soon practically completed. Only one important group of creditors, the Vicini heirs, still refusesto assent to the plan and accept the amount set aside for them. Upon payment to the San Domingo Improvement Company, the Companyturned over the Central Dominican Railway, from Puerto Plata toSantiago, to the Dominican government. The right of theSamana-Santiago Railroad to receive a percentage of the import dutiescollected at the port of Sanchez was redeemed by the delivery of$195, 000 in bonds at par, an excellent bargain, made all the better bythe circumstance that the railroad invested the proceeds of thesebonds in the extension of its line in the interior. The restrictiveconcession and heavy damage claim of the Clyde Steamship Line werealso cancelled, and the onerous wharf and harbor concessions at thevarious ports of the Republic were among the other importantconcessions acquired by the government by means of the bond issue. Thus debts and claims aggregating nearly $40, 000, 000 have been andwill be discharged for about $17, 000, 000. The surplus remaining fromthe bond issue and the modus vivendi collections must, under theagreements made, be devoted to public improvements approved by theUnited States government: a portion has been so expended, and a fundof over $3, 000, 000 still remains available. In addition the Republic'scredit was established on a high plane; burdensome concessions wereredeemed and adequate revenues for the maintenance of the governmentand the progress of the country were assured. As time goes on properappreciation will be given to the men who were the principal agents insecuring this financial and economic regeneration, especially to theMinister of Finance, Federico Velazquez, and to Prof. Jacob H. Hollander. While the fiscal convention largely increased the customsrevenues, the Dominican government made no attempt to accumulate areserve fund, but spent more even than authorized by its everincreasing budgets. During the period of civil strife following theassassination of President Caceres in 1911 the government, in order tocarry on its military campaigns, neglected to pay the salaries of itscivil employees, pledged its internal revenues, diverted andmisapplied amounts of the trust fund set aside for public works, andincurred indebtedness for supplies and materials purchased and moneyborrowed. It thus violated the spirit and letter of the convention inwhich the Dominican Republic expressly agreed not to increase itspublic debt except by previous agreement with the United States. The American government, in its unwillingness to interfere in theinternal affairs of the Dominican Republic, had suffered the Victoriaadministration to seize the government in Santo Domingo after thedeath of Caceres, and it now also condoned the violation of the fiscalconvention. The American commission which went to Santo Domingo in1912 to reconcile the warring factions, found that an essentialcondition of the restoration of peace and the rehabilitation of thegovernment was the payment of pending salaries and certain otherdebts. Accordingly the United States consented to an increase of theDominican public debt by $1, 500, 000, and the Dominican governmentcontracted a loan to that amount with the National City Bank of NewYork, which took the bonds at 97-1/2 Per cent. The bonds bore 6 percent interest, and for the service of interest and sinking fund, itwas agreed that the general receiver of customs pay over to the Bank, beginning in January, 1913, a monthly sum of $30, 000. This bond issuewas finally liquidated in 1917. The amount so borrowed was notsufficient to pay all the indebtedness of the Dominican government. The manner of circumventing the debt increase prohibition of theconvention having been discovered, the interior debt was furtheraugmented after that time by failure to pay salaries, by hypothecatingstamps and stamped paper, and by contracting other obligations, eitherto combat insurrections or because of less worthy motives. Inaddition, claims for revolutionary damages were filed against thegovernment. The foreign debt thus consists merely of the $20, 000, 000 customsadministration loan of 1907. The sums paid into the sinking fund ofthis loan have been used to purchase bonds of this issue at theirmarket price, somewhat less than par, and the interest falling due onsuch purchased bonds has also gone to swell the sinking fund. Thevalue of the assets in the sinking fund on December 31, 1917, estimating the purchased customs administration bonds at par, was$6, 019, 161. 50, exclusive of interest accruals in 1917. The interior debt, as a result of revolutionary confusion anddefective accounting, became as problematic as in days of yore and wasestimated at widely different figures. With a view to ascertaining theexact amount and making provision therefor, the military government, in July, 1917, constituted a commission consisting of three Americanand two Dominican citizens, who were charged with the duty ofinvestigating and liquidating all claims against the governmentarising since the settlement of 1907. The American members appointedwere J. H. Edwards, acting comptroller-general of Santo Domingo, chairman, Lt. -Col. J. T. Bootes, of the United States Marine Corps, and Martin Travieso, Jr. , of the Porto Rican bar; the Dominicans weretwo attorneys, M. De J. Troncoso de la Concha and Emilio Joubert. Claimants were called upon to file their claims before January 1, 1918, or be deemed to have relinquished their rights. The nominalamount of the claims so filed--comprising all outstanding internaldebts--is a little more than $14, 000, 000, some of the claims being forindefinite sums. This figure is probably greatly exaggerated and willdoubtless be subjected to drastic revision by the claims commission. The customs receivership has continued to render invaluable service. In peace and war its officials have distinguished themselves by ahighly efficient, tactful and fearless discharge of their duties. Upto 1913 appointments to the service were determined by the fitness andexperience of the appointee rather than by his political antecedents, and the officials appointed possessed unusual qualifications: thefirst general receiver, Col. George R. Colton, who held until 1907, his successor W. E. Pulliam, who continued until 1913, their deputy J. H. Edwards, and others, were experts trained in the Philippinecustoms service. CHAPTER XXII FINANCES Financial system. --National revenues. --Customs tariff. --Nationalbudget. --Legal tender. --Municipal income. --Municipal budgets. The financial system of Santo Domingo is characterized by aninequitable mode of obtaining public revenue, whereby the burden ofsupporting the state is thrown upon the poorest classes in the form ofindirect taxes upon articles of necessary consumption, and whereintaxation of property or contribution according to economic capacityplays little part. This is especially true with regard tomunicipal taxation. NATIONAL FINANCIAL SYSTEM The revenues of the general government are derived chiefly fromcustoms duties and secondarily from miscellaneous minor sources. Thereis no direct tax on land. Prior to 1904 the revenues fluctuatedaccording to the state of tranquillity of the country, being usuallysomething less than $2, 000, 000 per annum, but immediately upon theestablishment of the American receivership in April, 1905, they wentup rapidly. The increase has continued steadily and the government'sannual income now amounts to over $4, 500, 000. The proportion of revenue calculated from the various sources hasfluctuated but little in the different budgets. The proportionsappearing from the budget of 1916 are here shown, as well as those ofthe budget of 1910, at which period the interior revenues wereadministered with less leakage. Per cent of total 1910 1916Customs duties........................ 77. 2 81. 7Impost on alcohol..................... 6. 8 4. 4State railroad........................ 6. 4 ... Revenue stamps........................ 3. 3. 6State wharves......................... 2. 1 4. 4Port dues............................. 1. 5 1. 8Stamped paper......................... 1. 4 2. Post offices.......................... . 7 . 8Consular fees......................... . 4 . 9National telegraph and telephones..... . 3 . 2Miscellaneous......................... . 2 . 2 ----------- Total........................... 100. 100. Almost 95 per cent of the customs receipts are obtained from importduties. The present customs tariff, which took effect on January 1, 1910, made a radical change in the Dominican tariff system and was astep in the country's financial regeneration. Theretofore theDominican tariff system was about as unscientific as could beimagined. It had been a tariff for revenue only, in the sense thatthe object was to obtain all the revenue possible and more;accordingly the common necessities of life were most heavily taxed. Originally, it appears, the tariff provided for the payment of an advalorem duty on goods imported; later the discretionary power involvedin the appraisement was taken away and a fixed, arbitrary value wasassigned by law to each article, and on this value, known as the"aforo, " a specified percentage was payable as customs duty. Successive governments, in their efforts to raise money, graduallyincreased this percentage until it reached 73. 8 per cent. As the"aforo" valuation was as a general rule higher than the real value theimposition of so elevated a tax made all imported articlesinordinately expensive. With respect to many items the lawmakersoverreached themselves, for the duties were raised far beyond thepoint of maximum return. For years a desire prevailed to adjust the tariff on a rational andequitable basis, but as there were no statistics and the governmentfeared its income might be reduced, nothing was accomplished. Afterthe establishment of the receivership, full statistics of imports andexports became available. The general receiver's office and theDominican government accordingly drafted a new tariff, to which theAmerican government agreed under the terms of the fiscal convention. The new tariff is based almost entirely on specific schedules; only inexceptional instances, such as in the case of drugs, are ad valoremduties imposed. There were many reductions from the former tariff, especially on articles of prime necessity, but in some cases the rateremained substantially the same, while in a few it was slightlyincreased, a tendency being observed to protect home industries. Onthe whole the revision made an average reduction of about 15 per centas compared with the former tariff, but the new duties arescientifically distributed and after a year of commercial readjustmentthe revenue reached higher figures than ever before. Less than 6 per cent of the customs receipts are derived from exportduties. Such duties are imposed on cacao and a number of otherarticles, but not on sugar or tobacco. The tax is not a large one, butthe imposition of any export tax is deplored. Wars and crop conditions have had their influence on the customsreceipts, but the figures continue satisfactory, as appears from thefollowing table of collections since the establishment of thereceivership: GROSS CUSTOMS COLLECTIONS First Modus Vivendi year, April 1, 1905, to March 31, 1906.................................................... $2, 502, 154. 31Second Modus Vivendi year, April 1, 1906, to March 31, 1907.................................................... $3, 181, 763. 48Four months' period, April 1, 1907, to July 31, 1907(termination of Modus Vivendi)...................... $1, 161, 426. 61First convention year, Aug. 1, 1907 to July 31, 1908.................................................... $3, 469, 110. 69Second convention year, Aug. 1, 1908 to July 1909.................................................... $3, 359, 389. 71Third convention year, Aug. 1, 1909 to July 1910.................................................... $2, 876, 976. 17Fourth convention year, Aug. 1, 1910 to July 1911.................................................... $3, 433, 738. 92Fifth convention year, Aug. 1, 1911 to July 1912.................................................... $3, 645, 974. 79Sixth convention year, Aug. 1, 1912 to July 1913.................................................... $4, 109, 294. 12Seventh convention year, Aug. 1, 1913 to July 1914.................................................... $3, 462, 163. 66Five months' period, Aug. 1, 1914 to Dec. 31, 1914.................................................... $1, 209, 555. 54Ninth fiscal period, Jan. 1, 1915 to Dec. 31, 1915.................................................... $3, 882, 048. 40Tenth fiscal period, Jan. 1, 1916 to Dec. 31, 1916................................................... $4, 035, 355. 43Eleventh fiscal period, Jan. 1, 1917 to Dec. 31, 1917................................................... $5, 329, 574. 20 With regard to port dues, the Dominican government was long bound by aconcession made to the Clyde line in 1878. Upon the redemption of thisconcession the port dues were in 1908 reduced to their present figure. An impost on alcohols was established in 1905, and ought to become animportant source of revenue. The law is crude in that it taxes thedistillation rather than the sale of alcohol and does not sufficientlyguard against fraud. The receipts, which in the beginning were quitepromising, fell off strangely in late years. The most recent sources of revenue are the Central Dominican Railway, from Puerto Plata to Santiago, acquired from the San DomingoImprovement Company under the debt settlement in 1908; the Mocaextension of the railroad, finished by the government in 1910; and thewharves acquired by the redemption of the various port concessions. These properties at first gave the government a handsome revenue, which later diminished in a suspicious manner. The budget of the Republic kept pace with the growth of income, butthe appropriations were practically all for personnel, while publicworks continued to be neglected and no provision was made for futurecontingencies or the establishment of a reserve fund. The annualbudget enacted to become effective July 1, 1916, may be summarizedas follows; ESTIMATED RECEIPTS Custom-houses: Import duties $3, 500, 000Port dues 80, 000Export duties 220, 000 Subtotal: $3, 800, 000 Imposts:Alcohol 200, 000Stamps 165, 000 Subtotal: 365, 000 Communications: Postage stamps 36, 000Telegraph and telephone 5, 000Wireless telegraph 5, 000 Subtotal: 46, 000 Consular fees 40, 000Stamped paper 90, 000 State properties: Ozama lighting plant 4, 500State wharves 200, 000Rentals and post-office boxes 1, 000 Subtotal: 205, 500 Miscellaneous 6, 200 Total estimated receipts $4, 552, 700 ESTIMATED DISBURSEMENTS Service of public debt $1, 966, 746. 86 Legislative power 132, 400. 00 Including salaries of 12 senators and 24 deputies at $200 per month. Executive power...................................... $ 25, 460. 00 Expenses of president's office, including salary of president at $800 per month. Judicial power........................................ 316, 160. 00 Including salaries of supreme court (with a chief justice at $250 per month, six associate justices at $160, and a state's attorney at $200); 3 courts of appeals (each having a chief justice at $180 per month, 4 associate justices at $140 and a state's attorney at $180); 12 courts of first instance (each having a judge at $150 per month, a state's attorney at $130-$150, and one or two judges of instruction at $130); 3 courts-martial costing $2, 916 each; 70 justices of the peace with salaries ranging from $25 to $55 per month; and jails in each province, the jailers receiving from $35 to $69 per month. Department of Interior and Police...................... 329, 638. 00 Including office of secretary of interior, who receives $320 per month; 12 provincial governors with salaries from $160 to $180 per month; 53 communal chiefs, at $30 to $60; church salaries amounting to $3, 600; public celebrations $5, 100; expenses of sanitation service $15, 000; and a long pension list amounting to $188, 240. Most of these pensions are of $10, $12 or $15 per month, but 7 widows of former presidents and other distinguished men receive $100 per month. Department of Foreign Affairs.......................... 122, 572. 00 Including office of secretary, whose salary is $320 per month; ministers to the United States, France and Haiti at $500 per month; charge's in Cuba and Venezuela at $250; and 23 consuls in the United States, Porto Rico, Cuba, Haiti, St. Thomas, Panama, Turks Island, Jamaica, England, France, Italy, Holland, Spain and Belgium. Department of Finance and Commerce...................... 356, 678. 04 Including office of secretary, who receives $320 per month; general comptroller's office; 10 treasury agents with salaries from $80 to $112 monthly; custom-houses (the collectors of the port receiving from $80 to $200 per month); receiver-general's office $43, 152 (the salary of the general receiver is given as $9, 848. 04 per annum and that of his deputy as $5, 988); coast guard service $6, 000; wharf repairs $20, 000. Department of War and the Navy......................... 593, 815. 26 Including office of secretary; 12 military posts (the commanders receiving from $60 to $150 per month); 10 armories $4, 980; military instructors $4, 380; president's staff $12, 380; one infantry regiment of about 470 officers and men (the colonel receiving $95 monthly, the men $l5); a band of 33 men; a police force, called "republican guard" of about 800 officers and men (salaries ranging from $200 for the brigadier general and $140 for the colonel, to $18 for the private); 2 military hospitals $31, 867; a machine shop $4, 440; port captains at $50-$90 per month, and doctors at $25-$50; and the gunboat $26, 444. Department of Justice and Public Instruction........... 318, 208. 00 Including office of secretary; University of Santo Domingo $23, 700; Santiago professional institute $8, 820; 2 jail schools; subventions to many municipal schools, private and special schools, about $180, 000; 33 scholarships, $23, 870; pensions $23, 988. Department of Agriculture and Immigration.............. 18, 740. 00 Including office of secretary; experiment fields in Santiago $3, 000; weather bureau $3, 980. Department of Development and Public Works............. 332, 596. 00 Including office of secretary; lighthouses $13, 282; postal service; telegraph, telephone and wireless service; upkeep of dredge "Ozama. " Chamber of Accounts.................................... 7, 980. 00 Miscellaneous.......................................... 61, 872. 00 Contingent expenses.................................... 25, 000. 00 Constitutional assembly................................ 10, 000. 00 Total estimated disbursements, besides debt service ... $2, 651, 119. 30 The figures in the budgets were not, absolute but were subject tomodification by transfer of appropriation through presidential decree. The contingent expense fund and the military appropriations were thusfrequently swelled at the expense of other services. The budget above shown was the last one enacted under the oldconditions. It was never applied, but is given as a sample, because, while differing only slightly from the old budget which continued inforce, it better illustrates conditions at the beginning of Americanoccupation. The military government made numerous changes in thebudget and rendered the appropriations for salaries of the presidentand cabinet secretaries available for other purposes, as the Americannaval and marine officers now performing the duties of these positionsreceive no compensation from the Dominican treasury. A comprehensivenew budget, the first one of the period of transition and providingfor some of the innovations recently introduced, was expected tobecome effective early in 1918. For the purpose of bringing order and efficiency into the collectionand disbursement of the public revenues of Santo Domingo, the Americangovernment in 1913 urged that it be permitted to designate an Americancomptroller and financial adviser and the Bordas administration atlength consented, but as there was no legal authority for such actionand as the appointee was not characterized by unusual ability, theJimenez administration declined to continue the arrangement. Duringthe present military government and under the efficient direction ofthe acting comptroller-general, J. H. Edwards, valuable work is beingdone in revising the accounting system and generally placing thecountry's finances in order. All the accounts of the Republic are carried on in American money, which is legal tender and is current in all parts of the country. Forabout fifty years after the declaration of independence, coins of manycountries, principally Mexican silver and Spanish gold, were incirculation, with the rate of exchange constantly fluctuating. In 1890the Republic joined the Latin convention and in the following yearthrough the then existing Banque Nationale de Saint Domingue issuedsilver and copper coin to the value of about $200, 000. The fall in thevalue of silver caused depreciation and a few of the silver coins ofthis issue which are still in circulation are valued at forty centsgold for five francs; the copper coins at a little less. In 1894 thegold standard was adopted and though no actual coinage took place allofficial financial transactions were thereafter based upon goldvalues. In 1895 and 1897 President Heureaux issued more silver coinsor, rather, coins washed over with silver, to the nominal amount of$2, 250, 000, but the seigniorage was so enormous that the issue was acase of a government counterfeiting its own money. The rate ofexchange fell to five pesos for one dollar gold and this is the ratelegalized by the law of June 19, 1905, which made the American golddollar the standard of the Dominican Republic. For a while the ordinary smaller business transactions continued to bebased on silver values. On a trip to Santo Domingo in 1904 a friendand myself were driven from the wharf to the hotel and the coachmanasked for two dollars. It seemed an outrageous charge, but weconsidered ourselves in the hands of the Philistines, and handed overan American two-dollar bill. "Excuse me until I can get change, " saidthe coachman to our surprise, and ran into the hotel; in a moment hereappeared with a double handful of coins: "Here is your change, " hesaid, "eight dollars. " The charge had been only forty cents in gold. At the present time American money is the basis and Dominican silverand copper is regarded merely as fractional currency, one pesoDominican being equivalent to twenty cents American. At various times the Dominican Republic has had disastrous experienceswith paper money issued without sufficient guarantees. One servicerendered by the Spaniards during their occupation in the sixties wasthe retirement of large amounts of such paper. The troublesaccompanying unsecured paper money had been forgotten when Heureaux inhis attempts to raise funds floated an issue of a nominal amount of$3, 600, 000 in notes, of the Banque Nationale, in addition to a smallamount already emitted by the bank. Such demoralization resulted thatat one time it took twenty dollars in paper money to purchase onedollar in gold. The national bank notes having been demonetized, various amounts were purchased at auction by the administrationssucceeding Heureaux and destroyed, and almost all the remainder hasbeen redeemed at five to one under the 1907 debt settlement. The onlypaper now seen is American paper money, which circulates at a par withAmerican silver and gold. MUNICIPAL FINANCES Like the national government, the municipalities or communes dependalmost entirely upon indirect taxation for their revenues. One of theprincipal sources of income is the tax on the slaughter of cattle andsale of meat. The communes may further, with the authority ofCongress, levy a "consumo" tax, a small duty on the imports andexports of merchants within their jurisdiction, which tax has givenrise to much confusion and controversy. Business licenses also form animportant fount of revenue. By a law of Congress (soon to besuperseded by a decree of the military government) the municipalitiesare divided into several classes, according to their importance, andthe licenses payable by the various kinds of business in the severalclasses are designated. The national government turns over to thevarious municipalities a portion of the impost on spirits and grantseducational subventions to several municipalities for their primaryschools. Minor sources of revenue are taxes on lotteries and raffles, vehicle licenses, amusement permits, cockpits, etc. Two towns, SantoDomingo and Santiago, have municipal lotteries. Under all these taxesa man might own scores of houses and great expanses of land withoutpaying towards the maintenance of the state and municipality more thanthe poorest peon on his property. The sums collected for municipal purposes in all the communes of theRepublic may be calculated at about $600, 000 per annum, derived fromthe following sources: MUNICIPAL RECEIPTS Approximate percentage of entire income Municipal charges on imports and exports.............. 17. 7Business licenses..................................... 15. 3Markets............................................... 10. 8Lottery tax........................................... 10. 5Slaughter houses and meat transportation.............. 9. 2Alcohols.............................................. 7. 3Excises (alcabala).................................... 5. Amusement permits..................................... 3. 5Public register....................................... 3. 5Lotteries............................................. 2. 5Lighting in private houses............................ 2. 3Ferryboats and bridges................................ 3. 1Municipal property and rentals........................ 1. 8Miscellaneous......................................... 8. 5 ----- 100. The largest budget is that of the capital city, with Santiago second. According to the latest figures available, in round numbers theincome of the thirteen more important cities and towns is annuallyabout as follows: Santo Domingo........................ $160, 000Santiago de los Caballeros............. 90, 000San Pedro de Macoris................... 50, 000Puerto Plata........................... 40, 000La Vega................................ 30, 000Moca................................... 21, 000Azua................................... 20, 000San Francisco de Macoris............... 19, 000Samana................................. 10, 000Monte Cristi........................... 10, 000Sanchez................................ 10, 000Bani................................... 9, 000San Cristobal.......................... 8, 000 In almost every town the largest item of expenditure is for education, the maintenance of public primary schools. The more important cities, especially the capital, make fair appropriations for street repair andother municipal public works, but in the lesser communes suchappropriations are negligible. Very little, practically nothing, isappropriated for roads. Some communes pay a small subvention to thechurch and assist in the repair of church buildings. On the whole, municipal services are only scantily looked after, but the fault isdue more to lack of revenue than to improper distribution. Occasionally the national government renders assistance in theconstruction of some work pertaining to a municipality. The average distribution of municipal disbursements may be estimatedabout as follows: MUNICIPAL EXPENDITURES Approximate percentage of whole expenditureEducation.......................................... 27. 1Public works, street cleaning, etc................. 27. Police............................................. 8. 4Administrative expenses (salaries of municipalofficials and cost of tax collection).............. 7. 5Public lighting.................................... 7. Sanitation......................................... 4. Charity............................................ 2. 2Municipal debts.................................... 1. 9Miscellaneous...................................... 14. 2 ------ 100. In view of the lack of resources or interest on the part ofmunicipalities and the central government, services of a public naturehave frequently been assumed by private initiative. Many clubs andlodges maintain schools. Firemen's corps, where there are any, arevolunteer organizations. For charity work, hospitals, educationalwork, etc. , local committees are formed which raise funds by privatesubscription or by lottery, and in a number of towns the embellishmentof the plazas is in charge of a "junta de ornato. " CHAPTER XXIII THE FUTURE OF SANTO DOMINGO Attraction by the United States. --Political future of SantoDomingo. --Economic future of Santo Domingo. The history of the Dominican Republic affords a striking illustrationof the rule that large bodies attract nearby smaller or weaker bodieswhether in the world of physics or in international politics. TheUnited States of America had scarcely become a nation when it began toabsorb contiguous territory and exert a strong attraction on Cuba. With respect to Santo Domingo also, there was such attraction, asbecame evident in proposals for annexation or the establishment of anaval station. At times it appeared that the process was definitelychecked, as when Spain annexed Santo Domingo in 1861, and when theUnited States Senate refused to annex the country in 1871, and whenthe Dominican Government cancelled the Samana Bay Concession in 1874, but these acts merely set back the clock of time which they couldnot stop. When Porto Rico and Cuba were occupied by the United States theattraction exerted on Santo Domingo was powerfully increased. Fromthat time on the Dominican Republic was in fact a protectorate of theUnited States, though neither American nor Dominican statesmen wouldhave admitted it. The modus vivendi of 1905 and the fiscal conventionof 1907 gave expression, in part, to relations actually existing. A peculiar feature of the matter is that, except for a few very briefintervals, neither the United States nor the Dominican Republic hasdesired closer political relations and each country has doneeverything in its power to avoid them. The 1907 convention wasapproved in the United States Senate with only one vote to spare, andmany of its supporters favored it principally because it was expectedto obviate the necessity of further American intervention in Dominicanaffairs. It was believed that with the custom-houses removed from thepolitical game the receipts and prosperity of the country would grow, revolutionists would no longer be able to finance uprisings, and civilwars would cease. The convention did indeed augment the country'srevenues and prosperity, but it could not prevent uprisings entirelynor remove their causes. On the other hand it strengthened the bondsbetween the United States and Santo Domingo and led to the militaryoccupation of 1916. What will the future bring? There is every reason to believe that thesame attraction of Santo Domingo by the United States will continuewith greater strength than ever, despite all that may be said or done, on either side, to oppose it. It is a force which cannot be overcome, and had best, be recognized and reckoned with. It is unnecessary toconsider the sentimental objections to closer political relationsbetween the two countries. Conditions in Santo Domingo, in the UnitedStates, and in the world at large are the causes of this force ofattraction, for which the government of neither country isresponsible. What then will the future relations between Santo Domingo and theUnited States be? It appears that at the present moment a plan similarto that tried in Haiti is under advisement, namely, to restore theDominican government, but to leave the custom-houses under Americanadministration, place the finances under American control, appoint anAmerican supervisor of public works, and secure the peace by a policeforce under American officers. The real relations between the twocountries would thus find further expression in the creation of adisguised protectorate. As a permanent solution it is not probable that this plan will provesatisfactory. It tends to create two independent governments in thesame country; on the one side the Dominican government which willconsider itself supreme and sooner or later resent dictation or lackof sympathy on the part of the American officials, and on the otherhand the police heads and other American officers who will brook nointerference with what they deem their duty. Friction is bound todevelop; it is impossible for two independent governments to work sideby side in the same territory; one authority must be paramount. Atfirst the plan may appear to operate successfully because the desiresof the American officials will be respected, but later when the newDominican government has outgrown the novelty of the situation thereare certain to be reciprocal demands which may lead to opposition. Another possible source of difficulty is that even among the proposedAmerican officials there is no recognized superior and that here alsodifferences may arise. Rather than go so far and no further, it werebetter to attempt less. The ultimate expression, more or less deferred, of the relationsbetween the two countries, will most probably be a clearly definedprotectorate with an amply authorized resident, or outrightannexation. Which of these two courses is preferable? From astandpoint of the interests of the Dominican people annexation wouldappear better. A protected state has many obligations and few rights. It must defer to the wishes of the protector, but the protector isunder no absolute duty to further its development or the happiness ofits inhabitants. On the other hand, when annexed to the strongerstate, it may expect and demand that interest be shown in its progressand well-being. While annexation would probably entail a temporarygovernment by officials foreign to the country, American traditionswould not permit such a condition to continue for any length of timeand autonomy would eventually come. From an American standpoint a protectorate would seem preferable. Itwould carry the advantages of annexation without its responsibilities, without the undesirable feature of bringing into our body politic apeople foreign in race, language and customs, and with less danger ofstirring up South American susceptibilities. It would, however, permitof less latitude for the improvement of conditions in Santo Domingo. For some time to come it is probable that some form of protectoratewill be the choice of both parties. Many American statesmen areopposed to annexation, and the Dominicans as a rule would prefer thephantom of sovereignty in a mediatized republic to the real advantagesof annexation. It is only natural that Dominicans should feel sad at passing underthe government of a foreign power. But those of clearer visionrecognize that there is no alternative, that the independence of theRepublic has long been a fiction, that real freedom is only nowbeginning to dawn, and that American assistance will give the greatestimpetus to prosperity. For several years the number of persons takingsuch a broader view has been rapidly increasing. It was not long agowhen friends of mine in Santo Domingo would lead me to the middle ofthe plazza, out of hearing of any eavesdropper, and then with batedbreath confide their conviction that the only salvation of thecountry lay in the United States. Ruin and sorrow brought by the civilwars have caused such ideas to spread and be openly expressed. Atpresent it may be said that many Dominicans welcome Americanassistance, that the great majority accept it, and that only a smallminority are bitterly opposed to it, and these objectors areprincipally former politicians and revolutionists whose opinion countsfor least. The number of those favoring American intervention is beingincreased by the splendid administrative work of the present Americanauthorities and would doubtless be still further augmented by valuableconstructive legislation and by a more uniform display of tact andkindliness on the part of all American officials. These relations between the two countries impose at least a moral dutyupon the United States. They make it incumbent upon the United States, as far as is in its power, to foster the development of Santo Domingoand promote the happiness of the Dominican people. One measure itshould adopt is the granting of suitable tariff concessions. Anothermeasure is the creation, for the administration of the countriesdependent on the United States, of a corps of trained men, selectedand retained without regard to political considerations, thoroughlyqualified for the duties they are to assume, speaking the language ofthe country where they are sent, and capable of a sympatheticunderstanding with the inhabitants. By showing an interest of thiskind the United States will properly fulfill its proud mission ofspreading liberty and prosperity in the new world. The closer relations between the United States and Santo Domingo willbring that country one boon of inestimable value, namely, peace. It isobvious that all the troubles which have befallen the DominicanRepublic are due directly or indirectly to the state of civildisorder which has so long been the bane of the country. Anotheradvantage which these relations will bring is a proper administrationof the country's finances. Peace and efficient administration willmean the multiplication of roads, railroads and other publicimprovements, the extension of education and a rapid advance of thepeople and development of the country. When we think of the vastresources of Santo Domingo, the mineral treasures hidden within Itsforest covered mountains, the unlimited agricultural wealth concealedbeneath its fertile soil, the enchanting beauty of its scenery, thecourtesy and hospitality of its people, its glorious early days anddistressing later history, we must be glad that the clouds which haveso long shrouded the land in darkness are definitely dissipated atlast and that the sun of peace and prosperity has begun to shine. With peace assured and with means of communication provided, it iseasy to make predictions as to the economic future of Santo Domingo. There will probably never be much manufacturing but agriculture willincrease with enormous strides assisted by streams of foreign capitalwhich will not be slow to realize the exceptional opportunitiesoffered. Sugar growing will probably be preferred and the southernplains as well as a great portion of the rich Cibao Valley will soonbe covered with waving canefields. Tobacco will also receive attentionand perhaps fruit growing. Cacao and coffee will spread more slowly. Prospecting for mineral wealth will be undertaken. The extension ofagriculture will stimulate commerce and augment, the wealth of thepeople. Within a few years the country will become one of the richestgardens of the West Indies. The curtain has gone down upon the epoch of revolutions, conspiracies, civil wars and destruction. That period belongs to the past asdefinitely as the era of freebooters and pirates. A new era has begunfor beautiful Quisqueya, in which, under the protection of the Starsand Stripes, it is destined to enjoy a greater measure of freedom, progress and prosperity than its inhabitants have ever dreamed. APPENDIX A CHIEFS OF STATE OF SANTO DOMINGO 1492-1918 FIRST SPANISH COLONY _Governors_ Admiral Cristopher Columbus, viceroy 1492-1500Adelantado Bartholomew Columbus 1496-1498Comendador Francisco de Bobadilla 1500-1502Comendador Nicolás de Ovando 1502-1509Diego Columbus, Second Admiral 1509-1515Licentiate Cristábal Lebrán, in connection with Royal Audiencia 1515-1516Luis de Figueroa, Bernardino de Manzanedo, and Ildefonso de Santo Domingo, friars of the order of San Jeránimo 1516-1519Licentiate Rodrigo de Figueroa 1519-1520Diego Columbus, Second Admiral 1520-1524Royal Audiencia, in connection with judges Caspar de Espinosa and Alonso de Zuazo 1524-1528 _Governors and Captains-General _ (Note. Owing to the incompleteness of the recordsthe following list probably contains inaccuracies. ) Sebastián Ramirez de Fuenleal, Bishop of Santo Domingo and Concepcián de la Vega 1528-1531Royal Audiencia 1531-1533Licentiate Alonso de Fuenmayor, Bishop of Santo Domingo and Concepcián de la Vega 1533-1540Louis Columbus, Third Admiral 1540-1543Licentiate Alonso Lápez de Cerrato 1543-1549Licentiate Alonso de Fuenmayor, Archbishop of Santo Domingo 1549-1556Licentiate Alonso de Maldonado 1556-1560Licentiate Cepeda 1560Licentiate Veras 1560-1561Licentiate Alonso Arias de Herrera 1561-1564Antonio de Osorio 1564-1583Licentiate Cristábal de Ovalles 1583-1590Lope de Vega Portocarrero 1590-1597Domingo de Osorio 1597-1608Diego Gámez de Sandoval 1608-1624Diego de Acuña 1624-1634Maestre de Campo Juan Bitrián de Viamonte 1634-1646Nicolás Velazco Altamirano 1646-1649Maestre de Campo Gabriel de Chaves Osorio 1649-1652Bernardino de Menesets y Bracamonte, Count of Peñalva 1652-1657Felix de Zuñiga 1657-1658Andrés Pérez Franco 1658-1660Juan Francisco de Montemayor Cárdova y Cuenca 1660-1662Juan de Balboa y Mogrovejo 1662-1670Pedro de Carvajal y Lobos 1670-1671Maestre de Campo Ignacio de Zayas Bazán 1671-1677Dr. Juan de Padilla Guardiola y Guzmán 1677-1679Maestre de Campo Francisco de Segura Sandoval y Castilla 1679-1684Maestre de Campo Andrés de Robles 1684-1689Admiral Ignacio Pérez Caro 1689-1698Maestre de Campo Gil Correoso Catalan 1698-1699Severino de Manzaneda 1699-1702Admiral Ignacio Pérez Caro 1702-1706Licentiate Sebastián de Cerezada y Girán 1706-1707Guillermo Morfi 1707-1713Brigadier Pedro de Niela y Torres 1713-1714Colonel Antonio Landeche 1714-1715Brigadier Fernando Constanzo y Ramárez, Knight of Santiago 1715-1723Colonel Francisco de la Rocha y Ferrer 1723-1732Brigadier Alfonso de Castro y Mazo 1732-1739Brigadier Pedro Zorrilla y de San Martin, Marquis of la Gándara Real 1739-1750Brigadier Juan José Colomo 1750Teniente rey José de Zunnier de Basteros 1750-1751Brigadier Francisco Rubio y Peñaranda 1751-1759Field-Marshal Manuel de Azlor y Urries 1759-1771Brigadier José Solano y Bote 1771-1779Brigadier Isidore de Peralta y Rojas 1779-1785Colonel Joaquán García y Moreno 1785-1786Brigadier Manuel González de Torres 1786-1788Brigadier Joaquán García y Moreno 1788-1801 FRENCH COLONY _Governors_ General Toussaint l'Ouverture 1801-1802General Antoine Nicolas Kerverseau 1802-1803General Marie Louis Ferrand 1803-1808General L. Barquier 1808-1809 SECOND SPANISH COLONY _Governors and Captains-General_ Brigadier Juan Sánchez Ramárez 1809-1811Colonel Manuel Caballero y Masot 1811-1813Brigadier Carlos de Urrutia y Matos 1813-1818Brigadier Sebastian Kindelan y Oregán 1818-1821Brigadier Pascual Real 1821 STATE OF COLOMBIAN REPUBLIC _Governor and President_ Licentiate José Nuñez de Cáceres 1821-1822 HAITIAN RULE _Presidents_ Jean Pierre Boyer 1822-1843Charles Riviáre Hérardi ainé 1843-1844 FIRST REPUBLIC _Presidents_ Central Council of Government (Provisional government) 1844Pedro Santana, Provisional and Constitutional President 1844-1848Manuel Jiménez, Constitutional President 1848-1849Buenaventura Baez, Constitutional President 1849-1853Pedro Santana, Constitutional President 1853-1856Manuel de Regla Mota, Vice-President 1856Buenaventura Baez, Vice-President 1856-1858José Desiderio Valverde, Constitutional President 1858Pedro Santana, Provisional and Constitutional President 1858-1861 THIRD SPANISH COLONY _Governors and Captains-General_ Lieutenant-General Pedro Santana 1861-1862Lieutenant-General Felipe Ribero y Lemoine 1862-1863Brigadier Carlos de Vargas 1863-1864Lieutenant-General José de la Gándara 1864-1865 SECOND REPUBLIC_Presidents_ José Salcedo, Provisional President 1863-1864Gaspar Polanco, Provisional President 1864-1865Benigno Filorneno de Rojas, Provisional President 1865Pedro Antonio Pimentel, Constitutional President 1865José Maria Cabral, Provisional President 1865Buenaventura Baez, Provisional and Constitutional President 1865-1866José Maria Cabral, Constitutional President 1866-1868Buenaventura Baez, Constitutional President 1868-1873Ignacio Maria Gonzalez, Provisional and Constitutional President 1874-1876Uliees F. Espaillat, Constitutional President 1876Ignacio María González, Provisional President 1876Buenaventura Baez, Provisional and Constitutional President 1876-1878Cesareo Guillermo, Provisional and Constitutional President 1878Ignacio Marña González, Constitutional President 1878Jacinto de Castro, President Supreme Court 1878Cesareo Guillermo, Provisional and Constitutional President 1878-1879Gregorio Luperán, Provisional President 1879-1880Fernando A. De Meriño, Constitutional President 1880-1882Ulises Heureaux, Constitutional President 1882-1884Francisco Gregorio Billini, Constitutional President 1884-1885Alejandro Woss y Gil, Vice-President and Provisional President 1885-1887Ulises Heureaux, Constitutional President (4 terms) 1887-1899Juan Wenceslao Figuereo, Vice-President 1899Horacio Vásquez, Provisional President 1899Juan Isidro Jimánez, Constitutional President 1899-1902Horacio Vásquez, Provisional President 1902-1903Alejandro Woss y Gil, Provisional and Constitutional President 1903Carlos E. Morales, Provisional and Constitutional President 1903-1906Ramán Cáceres, Vice-President and Constitutional President 1906-1911Eladio Victoria, Provisional and Constitutional President 1911-1912Adolfo A. Nouel, Provisional President 1912-1913José Bordas Valdez, Provisional President 1913-1914Ramán Baez, Provisional President 1914Juan Isidro Jimánez, Constitutional President 1914-1916Francisco Henriquez Carvajal, Provisional President 1916 AMERICAN INTERVENTION _Military Governor_ Rear-Admiral H. S. Knapp 1916- APPENDIX B OLD WEIGHTS AND MEASURES IN USE IN SANTO DOMINGO The equivalents between old weights and measures still in use in SantoDomingo with the legal or metric system, are as follows, theequivalents with American measures being also given: Dominican American Metric Measures of length:1 league 3. 46 miles 5. 5727 kilometers1 ona 3 feet, 10. 79 inches 1. 1884 meters1 yard 35. 996 inches 0. 9143 meter1 vara 32. 91 inches 0. 836 meter1 foot 10. 945 inches 0. 278 meter1 inch 0. 9055 inch 0. 023 meter1 line [1] 0. 0787 inch 0. 002 meter Surface measures:1 tarea [2] 0. 1554 acre 628. 86 sq. Meters1 caballeria 186. 50 acres 75. 4636 hectares Liquid measures:1 bottle 0. 7392 quart 720 grams1 gallon 3. 3265 quarts 3. 34 liters Dry measures:1 fanega 1. 575 bushels 55. 5 liters1 almud 0. 1596 bushel 5. 625 liters1 cuartillo 0. 0328 bushel 1. 156 liter Weights:1 ton 2, 028. 232 pounds 920 kilograms1 quintal 101. 412 pounds 46 kilograms1 arroba 25. 353 pounds 11. 5 kilograms1 pound 1. 014 pounds 460 grams1 ounce 0. 06338 pound, or 28. 75 grams 1. 014 ounces avoirdupois1 adarme 27. 78 grains 1. 8 grams1 grain[3] 0. 7706 grain 5 centigrams The following measures are cited for comparison: American MetricPorto Rican cuerda 0. 9701 acre 3930. 4037 sq. MetersPorto Rican caballeria 194. 02 acres 78. 608 hectaresCuban caballeria 33. 16 acres 13. 4202 hectaresHaitian carreau 3. 194 acres 12, 928 sq. Meters [Footnote 1: 12 lines = 1 inch; 12 inches = 1 foot; 3 feet = 1 vara; 3varas = 1 vara conuquera; 20, 000 feet = 1 league] [Footnote 2: A tarea is a parcel of land measuring 100 square varasconuqueras. It is the usual measure of land. 300 tareas = 1 peonia; 4peonias = 1 caballeria. ] [Footnote 3: 36 grains = 1 adarme; 16 adarmes = 1 ounce; 16 ounces = 1pound; 25 pounds = 1 arroba; 4 arrobas = 1 quintal; 20 quintals =1 ton. ] APPENDIX C AMERICAN-DOMINICAN FISCAL CONVENTION OF 1907 CONVENTION BETWEEN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA AND THE DOMINICANREPUBLIC PROVIDING FOR THE ASSISTANCE OF THE UNITED STATES IN THECOLLECTION AND APPLICATION OF THE CUSTOMS REVENUES OF THEDOMINICAN REPUBLIC _Concluded February 8, 1907 Ratification advised by Senate February 25, 1907 Ratified by President June 2, 1907 Ratified by President of the Dominican Republic June 18, 1907 Ratifications exchanged at Washington July 8, 1907 Proclaimed July 25, 1907_ BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA A PROCLAMATION Whereas a convention between the United States of America and theDominican Republic providing for the assistance of the United Statesin the collection and application of the customs revenues of theDominican Republic, was concluded and signed by their respectivePlenipotentiaries at the City of Santo Domingo, on the eighth day ofFebruary, one thousand nine hundred and seven, the original of whichconvention, being in the English and Spanish languages, is word forword as follows: Whereas during disturbed political conditions in the DominicanRepublic debts and claims have been created, some by regular and someby revolutionary governments, many of doubtful validity in whole orin part, and amounting in all to over $30, 000, 000, nominal orface value; And whereas the same conditions have prevented the peaceable andcontinuous collection and application of National revenues for paymentof interest or principal of such debts or for liquidation andsettlement of such claims; and the said debts and claims continuallyincrease by accretion of interest and are a grievous burden upon thepeople of the Dominican Republic and a barrier to their improvementand prosperity; And whereas the Dominican Government has now effected a conditionaladjustment and settlement of said debts and claims under which all itsforeign creditors have agreed to accept about $12, 407, 000 for debtsand claims amounting to about $21, 184, 000 of nominal or face value, and the holders of internal debts or claims of about $2, 028, 258nominal or face value have agreed to accept about $645, 827 therefor, and the remaining holders of internal debts or claims on the samebasis as the assents already given will receive about $2, 400, 000therefor, which sum the Dominican Government has fixed and determinedas the amount which it will pay to such remaining internal debtholders; making the total payments under such adjustment andsettlement, including interest as adjusted and claims not yetliquidated, amount to not more than about $17, 000, 000. And whereas a part of such plan of settlement is the issue and sale ofbonds of the Dominican Republic to the amount of $20, 000, 000 bearingfive per cent interest payable in fifty years and redeemable after tenyears at 102-1/2 and requiring payment of at least one per cent perannum for amortization, the proceeds of said bonds, together with suchfunds as are now deposited for the benefit of creditors from customsrevenues of the Dominican Republic heretofore received, after paymentof the expenses of such adjustment, to be applied first to the paymentof said debts and claims as adjusted and second out of the balanceremaining to the retirement and extinction of certain concessions andharbor monopolies which are a burden and hindrance to the commerce ofthe country and third the entire balance still remaining to theconstruction of certain railroads and bridges and other publicimprovements necessary to the industrial development of the country;And whereas the whole of said plan is conditioned and dependent uponthe assistance of the United States in the collection of customsrevenues of the Dominican Republic and the application thereof so faras necessary to the interest upon and the amortization and redemptionof said bonds, and the Dominican Republic has requested the UnitedStates to give and the United States is willing to give suchassistance: The Dominican Government, represented by its Minister of State forForeign Relations, Emiliano Tejera, and its Minister of State forFinance and Commerce, Federico Velasquez H. , and the United StatesGovernment, represented by Thomas C. Dawson, Minister Resident andConsul General of the United States to the Dominican Republic, have agreed: I. That the President of the United States shall appoint, a GeneralReceiver of Dominican Customs, who, with such Assistant Receivers andother employees of the Receivership as shall be appointed by thePresident of the United States in his discretion, shall collect allthe customs duties accruing at the several customs houses of theDominican Republic until the payment or retirement of any and allbonds issued by the Dominican Government in accordance with the planand under the limitations as to terms and amounts hereinbeforerecited; and said General Receiver shall apply the sums so collected, as follows: First, to paying the expenses of the receivership; second, to thepayment of interest upon said bonds; third, to the payment of theannual sums provided for amortization of said bonds including interestupon all bonds held in sinking fund; fourth, to the purchase andcancellation or the retirement and cancellation pursuant to the termsthereof of any of said bonds as may be directed by the DominicanGovernment; fifth, the remainder to be paid to the DominicanGovernment. The method of distributing the current collections ofrevenue in order to accomplish the application thereof as hereinbeforeprovided shall be as follows: The expenses of the receivership shall be paid by the Receiver as theyarise. The allowances to the General Receiver and his assistants forthe expenses of collecting the revenues shall not exceed five per centunless by agreement between the two Governments. On the first day of each calendar month the sum of $100, 000 shall bepaid over by the Receiver to the Fiscal Agent of the loan, and theremaining collection of the last preceding month shall be paid over tothe Dominican Government, or applied to the sinking fund for thepurchase or redemption of bonds, as the Dominican Governmentshall direct. _Provided_, that in case the customs revenues collected by the GeneralReceiver shall in any year exceed the sum of $3, 000, 000, one half ofthe surplus above such sum of $3, 000, 000 shall be applied to thesinking fund for the redemption of bonds. II. The Dominican Government will provide by law for the payment ofall customs duties to the General Receiver and his assistants, andwill give to them all needful aid and assistance and full protectionto the extent of its powers. The Government of the United States willgive to the General Receiver and his assistants such protection as itmay find to be requisite for the performance of their duties. III. Until the Dominican Republic has paid the whole amount of thebonds of the debt its public debt shall not be increased except byprevious agreement between the Dominican Government and the UnitedStates. A like agreement shall be necessary to modify the importduties, it being an indispensable condition for the modification ofsuch duties that the Dominican Executive demonstrate and that thePresident of the United States recognize that, on the basis ofexportations and importations to the like amount and the likecharacter during the two years preceding that in which it is desiredto make such modification, the total net customs receipts would atsuch altered rates of duties have been for each of such two years inexcess of the sum of $2, 000, 000 United States gold. IV. The accounts of the General Receiver shall be rendered monthly tothe Contaduria General of the Dominican Republic and to the StateDepartment of the United States and shall be subject to examinationand verification by the appropriate officers of the Dominican and theUnited States Governments. V. This agreement shall take effect after its approval by the Senateof the United States and the Congress of the Dominican Republic. Done in four originals, two being in the English language, and two inthe Spanish, and the representatives of the high contracting partiessigning them in the City of Santo Domingo this 8th day of February, inthe year of our Lord 1907. THOMAS C. DAWSON, EMILIANO TEJERA, FEDERICO VELAZQUEZ H. And whereas the said convention has been duly ratified on both parts, and the ratifications of the two governments were exchanged in theCity of Washington, on the eighth day of July, one thousand ninehundred seven; Now, therefore, be it known that I, Theodore Roosevelt, President ofthe United States of America, have caused the said convention to bemade public, to the end that the same and every article and clausethereof may be observed and fulfilled with good faith by the UnitedStates and the citizens thereof. In testimony whereof, I have hereunto set my hand and caused the sealof the United States of America to be affixed. Done at the City of Washington, this 25th day of July in the year ofour Lord one thousand nine hundred and seven, and of the Independenceof the United States of America the one hundred and thirty-second. [SEAL. ] THEODORE ROOSEVELT. By the President: ROBERT BACON _Acting Secretary of State. _