Prices of sugar, up to the year 1880, were still remunerative (4 to 4-1/2 cents per pound, centrifugals 96 test); but the competition of beet sugars in Europe began to be felt more and more every day, causing a lower tendency towards the crisis in prices of the article which finally reached a value of only fifty per cent. of its former quotation. Under such difficulties Cuba struggled hard. The Cuban army was disbanded after the war, and many persons who had come to towns for safety went back to work their fields and became a new contingent of cane growers. The system of cane _colonias_ was started all over with marked success. Canes were sold to the mills at remunerative prices and fresh impulse was imparted to the country. In spite of all these efforts, Spain persisted in considering her colony a source of income. Our deputies to the Cortes went full of faith, but they came back fruitlessly as always. The same mistaken policy that ruled Cuba before was continued as ever, and the outbreak of February 24, 1895, was the inevitable result. The crops gathered from 1879 to 1898 were: 1879 670,000 Tons. 1880 530,000 " 1881 493,000 " 1882 595,000 " 1883 460,397 " 1884 558,937 " 1885 631,000 " 1886 731,723 " 1887 646,578 " 1888 656,719 " 1889 560,333 " 1890 632,368 " 1891 816,980 " 1892 976,960 " 1893 815,894 " 1894 1,054,214 " 1895 1,004,264 " 1896 225,221 " 1897 212,051 " 1898 300,000 " (about) Notice the decrease of production of the year 1896. We could have ground that year more than 1,100,000 tons of sugar, had it not been for the war. The amount of the coming crop will depend entirely on the greater celerity that is to be given to the so-wished for political change. Any delay will be of disadvantage to all our productions. The proper season for cleaning cane fields has already vanished, and besides cattle are badly wanted and very scarce. Training for working purposes requires time. If peace becomes a fact and all the available cane is ground, I would say that 500,000 tons might be reached. Now I will call your attention to the distribution of our crops these few years back. CROP OF 1893--815,894 TONS OF 2240 LBS. Exported to the United States 680,642 Tons. " " Canada 25,069 " " " Spain 9,448 " " " England 3,045 " Local consumption whole year 50,000 " CROP OF 1894--1,054,214 TONS OF 2240 LBS.