Cuba and Her People of To-day: An account of the history and progress of the island previous to its independence; a description of its physical features; a study of its people; and, in particular, an examination of its present political conditions, its industries, natural resources, and prospects; together with information and suggestions designed to aid the prospective investor or settlerForbes-Lindsay, C. H.
History
Cuba and Her People of To-day: An account of the history and progress of the island previous to its independence; a description of its physical features; a study of its people; and, in particular, an examination of its present political conditions, its industries, natural resources, and prospects; together with information and suggestions designed to aid the prospective investor or settler
Forbes-Lindsay, C. H.
Cuba
The great difficulty in Cuba is that, in proportion to the land
available, there is little labor, and less capital. The most complete
and effective remedy will, of course, be found in an increase of the
population, but in the meanwhile conditions would be greatly improved if
the Cubans could be taught to handle their lands more intelligently and
with greater energy. There is no man on earth more susceptible to an
object lesson than the Cuban. Abstruse theories are slow to penetrate
his mind, but he readily grasps the significance of a visible
exposition. For this reason it is believed that the experiment stations,
of which there are now half a dozen or more in the Island, will not be
without effect in promoting better farming.
Nearly all the crops of northern latitudes may be raised satisfactorily
upon the uplands of Cuba. It is questionable, however, whether wheat,
barley, and oats, would be as profitable crops as some others to which
the ground might be devoted. Corn of an indifferent quality is widely
grown and fed to stock. There seems to be no reason why the very best
varieties of this grain should not be produced on Cuban soil, and
efforts are being made to induce farmers to use selected seed and better
methods in the cultivation. Two crops a year are secured and,
unfortunately, the ground is often sown continuously in corn for long
periods. Rotation is something that the Cuban farmer has yet to
appreciate. On the lands about the coast, a great deal of rice is
raised, but the domestic consumption of this cereal is very large and
there is no surplus for export. This is, however, one of the crops which
might be increased without any extraordinary effort, and the United
States market would be open to the importation of all the excess
product.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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