The letters of introduction which kind Admiral Polo (Spanish Minister in Washington) gave me must be very powerful and far reaching, for we are received as if we were Princesses of the blood. The Governor-General came directly to put himself, his house, his family, his Generalship--in fact, all Cuba--_á la disposición de usted_. The Captain of the Port appeared in full gala uniform, and deposited the whole of the Spanish fleet, his person, and the universe in general at my feet, and said, "That no stone should be left unturned to make our stay in Havana illustrious in history." What could the most admirable of Polos have written to have created such an effect? Then came the General Lliano, a very handsome man, but who I thought was rather stingy, as he only put the Spanish Army at my disposition, and himself (_cela va sans dire_). Next came Señor Herreras, dressed all in white, with the most perfect patent-leather boots, much too tight for him, and which must have caused him agonies while he was offering to put himself (of course), his bank, and all his worldly possessions in my hands. I accepted all with a benign smile, and answered that I only had America and my fur-lined coat and boa to offer in return. We had so many instructions given to us as to what to do and what not to do in this perfidious climate that we were quite bewildered. Never to go out in the sun. Result--Malaria and sudden death. Never put your feet on the bare floors. Result--Centipedes. Never drink the water. Result--Yellow fever. Never eat fruit at night. Result--Typhoid fever. If you sleep too much; if you sit in the draught; if you let the moon shine on you. Result--Lockjaw and speedy annihilation. These admonitions were very confusing, and we lay awake at night thinking how we could manage to live under these circumstances. What a delight to look at the view from our balcony! I never imagined anything so beautiful: the distant hills are so blue, the water so sparkling, the sun gilds the hundreds of sails in the harbor. At night the water is brilliant with phosphorescence, and when the boats glide through it they throw out a thousand colors; even the reflection of the stars is multicolored. And then, pervading all, the delicious fragrance of fruit and flowers and tropicality! When I am not poetical, as above, I notice the oxcarts with their cruel drivers yelling at their poor beasts and goading them with iron-pointed sticks. When they were not striking them, they struck picturesque attitudes themselves, leaning on their carts and smoking endless cigarettes. The cabmen are also picturesque in their way. After their return from a "course," tired out from whipping their forlorn horses into the sideling trot which is all they are equal to, and after flicking their ears until they are too lazy to continue, they hang their hats and stockingless feet over the carriage lamps and chew sugar-cane, looking the picture of contentment.